The Holy Apostle James, Brother of Saint John the Theologian (c. 44)
Acts 10:44-11:10; Acts 12:1-11; John 8:21-30; Luke 5:1-11
Polyeleos Feast. Abstention from meat and foods that contain meat.
Read John 8:21-30
Christ is risen! Truly, He is risen!
Today’s Gospel is another occasion when we encounter Our Lord striving to explain to those around Him who He is. The group of Pharisees who are frequently present and questioning Jesus are perplexed by Our Lord’s foreshadowing of His passion and death; they are very confused and do not understand what He is trying to communicate. Jesus explicitly tells them that they will die in their sins unless they believe that He is the Christ.
Brothers and sisters, so often we focus on sins being the bad things we have done, the temptations we have succumbed to. While it is an important first step towards true repentance that we acknowledge our sins, we must also gain a deeper understanding of the effect of sin: distance from what is true. When we sin we misuse our will and we distance ourselves from God. He does not move away from us, we move away from Him. Our Lord is always waiting for us to close the gap, to turn back to Him. If we do not, if we seek to wallow in our sins we will die in them. Much like a clot in an artery, sin is a spiritual blockage that can have disastrous effects on us if not addressed. The blockage of sin is remedied through sacramental confession, receipt of the Holy Eucharist, frequent prayer, and amendment of life, especially through our self-emptying for others through both corporal and spiritual works of mercy. Every time we sin we must pick ourselves back up again and close the gap and return to God. Then we may respond to Our Risen Lord and say “Yes Lord, truly I know who you are. You are the Saviour of the world and you died and rose again to save me, a sinner. Glory be to You, O only Lover of mankind!”