Post-feast of the Entrance of the Mother of God; The Holy Great-Martyr Catherine (310-13); the Holy Great-Martyr Mercurius (249-51)
1 Timothy 1:8-14; Luke 14:25-35
Nativity Fast.
Read 1 Timothy 1:8-14
Re-read the first line of the epistle reading: “… the law IS good IF one uses it lawfully….
That line outlines for us how the law can, and often is, misused. On the one hand, the law can be seen as something superfluous. This attitude towards the law ignores the need for establishing proper order within a relationship. In this relationship, the law establishes boundaries that establish for us what is good and what is not; what is proper and what should be avoided. Without the law, anything can be justified.
On the other hand, the law can become an idol. Used and applied improperly, the law becomes the object of our fascination rather than the relationship that it is meant to guide. We idolize the law in applying it without deference or consideration for the situation in which it is being applied.
During this time of the Nativity Fast, as we fast from certain foods and increase our efforts in prayer and almsgiving, may we find a balanced approach for our own lives that seeks to do one thing: bring us closer to Christ so that we may welcome Him into our hearts at His glorious Nativity in the flesh. Prayer, fasting, and almsgiving are part of the law during the fast, but we cannot allow them to become an idol that leads us to reject hospitality, neglect our relationships, and become puffed up with an unhealthy pride.