Fifth Sunday After Pentecost

(Matthew 8:28-9:1)

This morning’s Gospel reading spoke to us about the Lord’s coming into the country of Gergesenes and His encounter with the two men possessed by demons. The terror and evil of the demons made these men exceedingly fierce, such that no one could even pass by their way. Yet when our Lord Jesus Christ came by, the demons cried out, saying ‘What have we to do with Thee, Jesus, Thou Son of God?’ The fearsome demons crumbled before the grace and authority of Christ and begged Him to at least let them be sent into the herd of swine feeding nearby. This scene demonstrates for us both the reality of demonic evil, but also the absolute power and authority of Christ. It demonstrates for us the truth that darkness cannot prevail in the presence of Light… the Light of Christ.

The Gospel goes on to tell us a very interesting thing… the reaction of the townspeople to the healing of the men who had been possessed and to the loss of their herd of swine. The people begged Jesus to go, to depart and leave them alone…

I am reminded of the haunting words of the opening of the Gospel of St John: ‘In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.’

Throughout history God has been faithful in shining light into the dark places. He did so in Old Testament times through his prophets and He has continued to do so in our New Testament times through his saints.

Yesterday we celebrated one such saint, St John of Shanghai and San Francisco. Here was a man of God who reflected and shone the light of Christ into the dark places wherever he was sent. In Shanghai, he would walk amid the darkness of the streets and alleyways and rescue orphaned children. In Tubabao, his prayers and presence held back the darkness of the forces of typhoons. And coming to San Francisco, he dispersed the darkness of discord which prevented the building of the New Cathedral. To this day, it is remarkable to think that one of the greatest saints of the 20th century lies incorrupt and receives the prayers and supplications of believing people – serving as a beacon of light in the midst of one of the darkest and most sin-ridden cities in this country.

St John was a remarkable man… a man truly filled with the light of Christ and a man of great zeal to serve his Lord and Savior. This great zeal strengthened him in his tireless service to God and to mankind. Those that remember him, recall him as a wise and discerning man of prayer, a real ascetic and faster, a defender of the Orthodox faith, an Apostle with missionary spirit, and a loving shepherd of his flock.

In this morning’s Epistle reading, Apostle Paul speaks about zeal… but his gives us a warning about ‘zeal not according to knowledge’. What does this ‘zeal not according to knowledge mean’?

St. Nectarios of Aegina offers us, in just a few lines, an image of the difference between the true zealot of Christ and one who has zeal not according to knowledge. He writes the following: ‘The zealot according to knowledge, motivated by the love of God and his neighbor, does all things with charity and self-effacement; he does nothing that might bring sorrow to his neighbor; such a zealot is enlightened by knowledge, and nothing prompts him to deviate from what is morally right.

The Christian who is inspired by zeal not according to knowledge is a ruinous man who turns the Gospel of Grace and love upside down. His zeal is a seductive fire, a consuming fire. Destruction comes forth from him and desolation follows in his wake. He beseeches God to send down fire from Heaven and to devour all of those who do not embrace his principles and convictions. He is characterized by hatred for those of other religions and confessions, envy and persistent anger, violent resistance to the true spirit of Divine law, an unreasonable obstinacy in defending his own views, a passionate zeal for prevailing in all things, the love of glory, quarrels, contention, and a love of turmoil.’

St. Theophan the Recluse also provides a clear distinction between that true godly zeal and the zeal not according to knowledge. He writes that he who has godly zeal, ‘is not alienated by others, though he does not act like them because he always acts in the spirit of love and compassion toward the infirmities of his brothers. Only a spirit of zeal beyond measure rubs people the wrong way and produces disharmony and division. Such a spirit cannot refrain from teaching and criticizing. But the one [with the spirit of Christ] is only concerned with ordering his and his family’s life in a Christian way. He does not permit himself to interfere in the affairs of others, saying to himself, “Who set me as a judge?” He quietly makes everyone well-disposed to himself and inspires respect for those customs to which he holds. He who gives orders to everyone makes himself unloved and evokes disapproval for the good customs to which he holds.  Humility is needed in such cases…it is the source of Christian good sense, which knows how to act well in given situations.’

Just recently, on the 6th Sunday after Pascha, we read the Gospel about the man who was born blind. He was healed by our Lord and given his sight. The remainder of that Gospel account tells us how he was subjected to the zeal not according to knowledge of the Pharisees who doubted his cure and who argued that such a thing should not have occurred on the Sabbath. The man born blind had godly zeal and great gratitude to God for his healing. The man born blind remained calm and assured in the midst of his inquisition by the Pharisees… he did not need to argue, he did not need to prove anything, he KNEW the Truth because he had encountered Jesus Christ and experienced His grace.

This should be the source of our zeal as well. We need to be actively involved in purifying our heart through our humble spiritual strivings… and in doing so, we will encounter the grace of God which is life-giving and light-giving. As our heart is transformed by this grace and love of God, we must then not keep that light under a bushel, but shine forth that light and love. This is godly zeal. It is far from the zeal not according to knowledge which begets that argumentative complete lack of peace.

St Paisios of Mt Athos gives us the following good advice: ‘If you want to help the Church, it is better to try to correct yourself, rather than looking to correct others. If you manage to correct yourself, one small part of the Church is immediately corrected. Naturally, if everyone did the same, the body of the Church would be in good health. But, today, people concern themselves with anything but themselves. You see, judging others is easy, whereas working on yourself takes effort.’

Through the prayers of our holy fathers: St Nectarios, St Theophan, St Paisios, and our beloved St John of Shanghai and San Francisco, may God grant us this proper and godly zeal – a flame ignited by a humble awareness of our own sins, our great gratitude for the mercy of God, and a heart afire with love for God and others.