Akathist Saturday; Our Venerable Father and Confessor James, Bishop of
Catania. Day 34 of the Great Fast.
Hebrews 9:24-28; Hebrews 9:1-7; Mark 8:27-31; Luke 10:38-42; 11:27-28.
Read Mark 8:27-31
Recognition of Christ is mostly a result of an interior openness and a desire to seek the truth no matter the cost. The question posed to the disciples exposes the limits of perception shaped by opinion, fear, and expectation. To confess rightly requires that the heart be opened beyond what is visible. This is the deeper meaning of “be opened”: not simply the healing of the physical condition, but the opening of the mind and heart to the divine reality.
Yet the confession of the name Christ is very much connected with his mission. The resistance to the Passion reveals that the heart can be partially opened, and yet closed to the fullness of God’s plan. St. John Chrysostom teaches: “Peter indeed confessed Him to be the Christ, but he knew not yet the mystery of the Passion; therefore He adds what was yet unknown, that the Son of man must suffer many things.”[Homilies on Matthew 54.5 (PG 58:534)] Knowledge without embracing the fullness of God’s will remains incomplete.
To open the heart widely, we need to ascetically hand over our personal expectations, which are shaped by human power and success. St. Bede the Venerable notes: “He who acknowledges Christ must also learn that He is to suffer, lest he think of Him according to earthly honour rather than heavenly truth.”[Commentary on Mark (PL 92:206)]. The heart must be opened not only to who Christ is, but to how He saves.
Thus, the command to be opened is fulfilled only when confession and acceptance of Jesus Christ are embraced. The confession, “You are the Christ,” only becomes real in the lives of the disciples after they embrace the path of the cross.