Great Tuesday
Matthew 22:15-23:39; Ezekiel 1:21-2:1; Exodus 2:5-10; Job 1:13-22; Matthew 24:36-26:2
Great Week. Abstention from meat and foods that contain meat. According to liturgical prescriptions, the Divine Liturgy is not celebrated today.
Read Job 1:13-22
Glory to Jesus Christ! Glory forever!
Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return there. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.
Today is Great and Holy Tuesday. At the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts this evening, we will hear another reading from the Book of Job. The story of Job prompts us to reflect upon human suffering, which is especially fitting as we meditate on the Passion of Christ this week. Today we hear about the first tragedies that befell Job. A sequence of messengers came to him and told him that his oxen and donkeys were taken away and his servants were killed, that his sheep and servants were burned up, that his camels were taken away and servants were killed, and that his children died. Job was understandably grief-stricken upon hearing all this terrible news. However, in spite of his immense grief, he blesses God and commits no sin.
In the Letter of St. James, James instructs his brethren: “count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing” (James 1:2-4). It almost sounds like James is asking for the impossible; how could we consider falling into trials a source of joy? It seems like it is a matter of perspective. Although some trials we face in life have their origin in evil (as is clearly the case with Job since it is made clear that Satan is inflicting these terrible tragedies upon him), when the trials happen, God is with us and always brings light out of the darkness we face. Evil may be permitted to happen, but God will never allow evil to have the final say. Facing various trials in the course our lives, we learn important lessons and spiritually mature.
When Christ was crucified and rose from the dead, He not only proved that Death has no power over those who dwell in Him, but He also transformed the meaning of suffering. Our loving God became a man who experienced intense suffering, and His suffering and death demonstrate His unconditional, Self-sacrificing love for us. Christ taught us: “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends” (John 15:13). When we make sacrifices for others and suffer for them, maybe even to the point of death, we can demonstrate a deep and powerful love which is modeled after God’s love for us.
Later in his letter, James specifically mentions Job: “My brethren, take the prophets, who spoke in the name of the Lord, as an example of suffering and patience. Indeed we count them blessed who endure. You have heard of the perseverance of Job and seen the end intended by the Lord—that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful” (James 5:10-11). As we meditate on Christ’s suffering this week and how He responded to it, let us also consider ourselves. How do we respond when tragedy strikes, when we experience immense suffering? Do we have the perseverance of Job in enduring our trials, or do we lash out at God and at others?