The Holy Martyrs and Notaries Marcian and Martyrius (351)
Abstinence from meat and foods that contain meat.
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Philippians 3:8-19; Luke 7:31-35
The genius of the Byzantine East is its sense of solemnity. It often takes the character of a party. For example, take the paschal vigil. One might contrast the seriousness of the Latin paschal vigil with the exuberance of Paschal Matins in the Byzantine tradition. Polyphonic “Christ is Risen,” Deacons shouting the paschal greeting while swinging incense, while you try to keep up with the brisk pace of the choir racing through John Damascene’s paschal canon. The Church gives us occasion to enter into the feast of the bridegroom, to enter into the party the Son of Man has started, who comes “eating and drinking.” The question is, are we going to match pitch. Shall we dance when this music is piped to us, or shall we refuse to enter into the joy? The Byzantine Liturgy, especially in its Eastern Catholic iteration, has no tolerance for wallflowers, it asks us to join in on the party, freed from our self-concern and self-consciousness, and enter into the selfless worship of the sacrifice of praise.
God promises to show up at the party; the question is, will you?