Our Venerable Father Macarius of Egypt (c. 390)
James 4:7-5:9; Mark 11:27-33.
Read James 4:7-5:9
Christ is born! Glorify Him!
Even though there was a good cloud cover, the day I received my very first bicycle was one of the brightest days of my childhood. It was a blue CCM with a saddle seat and butterfly-like handlebars. My brother received a similar bike, but it had an extended vertical riser at the back of the seat. My father spent the better part of the day helping us to find our balance on two wheels. We were both excited when by mid-afternoon we had achieved this momentous task and discovered a new adventure of balance, and speed, and wind blowing through the hair.
It wasn’t long that brightly coloured ribbons hung from the end of the handlebars and hockey cards attached with clothespins made our bikes into racers. We attempted tricks and tighter turns, and riding with no hands. Did we fall? Yes. And the bruises and scrapes became badges of honour. And then came the wilderness. Riding on barely visible paths through the forests provided a new type of adventure. And we dared each other as to who could ride closest to the cliff (or what seemed a cliff to the eyes of a youngster) without falling off. It was thrilling!
How many of us also love to embrace a thrill as above? We try to defy the known rules of physics in all sorts of carnival rides; indeed, we might even attempt these thrills in other areas of our life. What about our moral life? How often do we drive as close to the moral cliff with the hope of not falling off? It is probably more often that we think.
In the first paragraph of today’s epistle reading, James gives ten imperatives to lead a life of humility and repentance as a Christian. Try to identify these ten words for yourself. I’ll give you a hint: In one of the ten, James essentially states that we ought not even to think of riding the edge of the moral cliff—it reveals our double-mindedness between good and evil. Instead, let us embrace an eternal thrill – the life of Christ!