Traditions can be Good or Bad

Today is the final day of our 2017 Great Lenten Journey. While the Great Fast is not yet over, and Holy Week will begin a couple days, I wanted to write about tradition today. As Orthodox Christians we speak often about the benefits of tradition. We speak about “BIG T” and “little t” traditions. Sometimes we even find ourselves fighting over traditions, to the point sometimes of missing the entire point of Pascha.

Over the next few days, your particular Orthodox Christians parish will experience Holy and Great Week with many Church services which will include local and global traditions. Some of these traditions will very ancient while others may be of a more recent origin. I won’t deny that tradition is an important part of our Orthodox Christian expression, but it is possible that we sometimes lose focus. Sometimes we look at the traditions as “making or breaking” our celebration of Holy and Great Week. If the priest, especially if he is new, changes ‘just one thing’ about how your parish celebrates Holy and Great Week, many will feel as though he has RUINED their entire experience.

Though all traditions have a history, sometimes the history isn’t worth keeping. One tradition for example is to limit Holy Communion to once or twice per year, or to allow Holy Communion lines to continue for hours on Holy Thursday morning. In these two examples, and there are more) the tradition was based upon an improper understanding and practice, and have mostly stopped within our Churches, but there were many arguments and finger waving sessions when clergy worked to correct poor behavior. I’m sure we can all think of at least one such tradition.

I’m not going to list “good” and “bad” traditions here, but I will urge you to consider Orthodox Christianity is an ancient expression of God’s truth and faith. There have been seasons when we lost focus and seasons when we struggled to regain the proper perspective. If your priest either forgets to honor a tradition, or if he outright stops the practice of a particular tradition, don’t panic. He probably has a pretty good reason. The tradition you hold so dearly may just be hiding your eyes from seeing the true beauty that is Holy and Great Week. If you don’t believe me, pay attention to the many references to the Pharisees, Sadducees and Scribes during the services next week. They honored many traditions that didn’t lead them to Christ. Check with your priest and he can (and most would prefer) to explain the various decisions so you could better understand Holy and Great Week.

It has been a blessing for me to write a daily reflection for the 2017 Daily Lenten Journey. I pray it has been a blessing, and I pray it becomes a healthy and beautiful tradition here at Be Transfigured Ministries. Have a blessed Holy Week and Pascha. I will work to continue some posting as I did last year. I may miss a few, but God willing whatever we offer will be a blessing.

Today’s Old Testament Readings:

Isaiah 66:10-24 (RSV) - "Rejoice with Jerusalem, and be glad for her, all you who love her; rejoice with her in joy, all you who mourn over her; that you may suck and be satisfied with her consoling breasts; that you may drink deeply with delight from the abundance of her glory."  For thus says the LORD: "Behold, I will extend prosperity to her like a river, and the wealth of the nations like an overflowing stream; and you shall suck, you shall be carried upon her hip, and dandled upon her knees.  As one whom his mother comforts, so I will comfort you; you shall be comforted in Jerusalem.  You shall see, and your heart shall rejoice; your bones shall flourish like the grass; and it shall be known that the hand of the LORD is with his servants, and his indignation is against his enemies.  "For behold, the LORD will come in fire, and his chariots like the stormwind, to render his anger in fury, and his rebuke with flames of fire.  For by fire will the LORD execute judgment, and by his sword, upon all flesh; and those slain by the LORD shall be many.  "Those who sanctify and purify themselves to go into the gardens, following one in the midst, eating swine's flesh and the abomination and mice, shall come to an end together, says the LORD.  "For I know their works and their thoughts, and I am coming to gather all nations and tongues; and they shall come and shall see my glory, and I will set a sign among them. And from them I will send survivors to the nations, to Tarshish, Put, and Lud, who draw the bow, to Tubal and Javan, to the coastlands afar off, that have not heard my fame or seen my glory; and they shall declare my glory among the nations.  And they shall bring all your brethren from all the nations as an offering to the LORD, upon horses, and in chariots, and in litters, and upon mules, and upon dromedaries, to my holy mountain Jerusalem, says the LORD, just as the Israelites bring their cereal offering in a clean vessel to the house of the LORD.  And some of them also I will take for priests and for Levites, says the LORD.  "For as the new heavens and the new earth which I will make shall remain before me, says the LORD; so shall your descendants and your name remain.  From new moon to new moon, and from sabbath to sabbath, all flesh shall come to worship before me, says the LORD.  "And they shall go forth and look on the dead bodies of the men that have rebelled against me; for their worm shall not die, their fire shall not be quenched, and they shall be an abhorrence to all flesh."
 Genesis 49:33-50:26 (RSV) - When Jacob finished charging his sons, he drew up his feet into the bed, and breathed his last, and was gathered to his people.  Then Joseph fell on his father's face, and wept over him, and kissed him.  And Joseph commanded his servants the physicians to embalm his father. So the physicians embalmed Israel; forty days were required for it, for so many are required for embalming. And the Egyptians wept for him seventy days. And when the days of weeping for him were past, Joseph spoke to the household of Pharaoh, saying, "If now I have found favor in your eyes, speak, I pray you, in the ears of Pharaoh, saying, My father made me swear, saying, 'I am about to die: in my tomb which I hewed out for myself in the land of Canaan, there shall you bury me.' Now therefore let me go up, I pray you, and bury my father; then I will return."  And Pharaoh answered, "Go up, and bury your father, as he made you swear."  So Joseph went up to bury his father; and with him went up all the servants of Pharaoh, the elders of his household, and all the elders of the land of Egypt, as well as all the household of Joseph, his brothers, and his father's household; only their children, their flocks, and their herds were left in the land of Goshen.  And there went up with him both chariots and horsemen; it was a very great company.  When they came to the threshing floor of Atad, which is beyond the Jordan, they lamented there with a very great and sorrowful lamentation; and he made a mourning for his father seven days.  When the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites, saw the mourning on the threshing floor of Atad, they said, "This is a grievous mourning to the Egyptians." Therefore the place was named Abelmizraim; it is beyond the Jordan.  Thus his sons did for him as he had commanded them; for his sons carried him to the land of Canaan, and buried him in the cave of the field at Machpelah, to the east of Mamre, which Abraham bought with the field from Ephron the Hittite, to possess as a burying place.  After he had buried his father, Joseph returned to Egypt with his brothers and all who had gone up with him to bury his father.  When Joseph's brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, "It may be that Joseph will hate us and pay us back for all the evil which we did to him."  So they sent a message to Joseph, saying, "Your father gave this command before he died,  'Say to Joseph, Forgive, I pray you, the transgression of your brothers and their sin, because they did evil to you.' And now, we pray you, forgive the transgression of the servants of the God of your father." Joseph wept when they spoke to him.  His brothers also came and fell down before him, and said, "Behold, we are your servants."  But Joseph said to them, "Fear not, for am I in the place of God?  As for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, to bring it about that many people should be kept alive, as they are today.  So do not fear; I will provide for you and your little ones." Thus he reassured them and comforted them. So Joseph dwelt in Egypt, he and his father's house; and Joseph lived a hundred and ten years.  And Joseph saw Ephraim's children of the third generation; the children also of Machir the son of Manasseh were born upon Joseph's knees.  And Joseph said to his brothers, "I am about to die; but God will visit you, and bring you up out of this land to the land which he swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob."  Then Joseph took an oath of the sons of Israel, saying, "God will visit you, and you shall carry up my bones from here."  So Joseph died, being a hundred and ten years old; and they embalmed him, and he was put in a coffin in Egypt.
 Proverbs 31:8-31 (RSV) - Open your mouth for the dumb, for the rights of all who are left desolate.  Open your mouth, judge righteously, maintain the rights of the poor and needy.  A good wife who can find? She is far more precious than jewels.  The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will have no lack of gain.  She does him good, and not harm, all the days of her life.  She seeks wool and flax, and works with willing hands.  She is like the ships of the merchant, she brings her food from afar.  She rises while it is yet night and provides food for her household and tasks for her maidens.  She considers a field and buys it; with the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard.  She girds her loins with strength and makes her arms strong.  She perceives that her merchandise is profitable. Her lamp does not go out at night.  She puts her hands to the distaff, and her hands hold the spindle.  She opens her hand to the poor, and reaches out her hands to the needy.  She is not afraid of snow for her household, for all her household are clothed in scarlet.  She makes herself coverings; her clothing is fine linen and purple.  Her husband is known in the gates, when he sits among the elders of the land.  She makes linen garments and sells them; she delivers girdles to the merchant.  Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she laughs at the time to come.  She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.  She looks well to the ways of her household, and does not eat the bread of idleness.  Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her:  "Many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all."  Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.  Give her of the fruit of her hands, and let her works praise her in the gates.