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Fr. Dr. Augustine Sokolovski
The Fourth Sunday of Lent has a double dedication. This means that, like the second and fifth Sunday of Lenten, the first celebration of which relates to a specific gospel theme, and the second to the remembrance of the great saints, Gregory Palamas and Mary of Egypt, the fourth Sunday is the remembrance of a gospel event and the memory of a saint. This event is the healing by the Lord Jesus of a demon-possessed boy.
The saint whom the Church especially remembers on this day, is the Sinai ascetic John. In Christian tradition, both in the East and in the West, after the title of his main work, which has come down to us, he is called John Climacus. It is important not to forget about the double dedication of this and other similar Lenten Sundays.
The saint whom the Church especially remembers on this day, according to the church charter, is the Sinai ascetic John. In Christian tradition, both in the East and in the West, after the title of his main work, which has come down to us, he is called John Climacus. It is important not to forget about the double dedication of this and other similar Lenten Sundays. The first dedication is more ancient. The second one, in honor of the saints, over time began to overshadow the last one, so that the Gospel dedication was no longer preached or even remembered.
During the liturgy, the text from the Gospel of Mark, chapter 9, verses 17–31 is read. According to the story, after the Transfiguration, Jesus came down from the mountain, and a man came out to meet him, whose son was “possessed by an evil spirit.” “Wherever he seizes him, he throws him to the ground, and he emits foam, and grinds his teeth, and becomes numb” (18). He further said to the Lord: “I spoke to your disciples to cast out the demon, but they could not” (Mark 9:18). The inhabitants of Palestine, brought up on the words of the Old Testament Scriptures, knew very well that casting out unclean spirits is a great boldness.
In the mouth of this man, whom Mark calls “one of the people” (17), that is, not a pagan, but a Jew who knew the Scriptures, these words obviously sounded like reproach. Hence the prophetically indignant response of the Lord: “Oh, unfaithful generation! How long will I be with you? How long will I tolerate you? Bring him to me" (19). The Lord Jesus, in the sequence and succession of the Ancient Prophets, knew how to be indignant. At the same time, as the Bible, already foreseeing His Coming, but peering at the predecessor of Moses, through the mouth of God said in the Book of Numbers: “Moses was a former man, the meekest of all people” (Numbers 12:3).
It is possible that the child’s father asked for healing in absentia, without the participation of the Lord, as follows from the previous words: “I told them” (18). In this detail and Christ’s answer there is a lesson for all of us who often resort to God with the help of notes-intentions, requests to pray, and other wishes that do not require any sacrifice on our part. But this is rather the content of possible pastoral instruction.
It is also possible that this man was trying to pit Jesus and His disciples against each other.
In Lenten times, the most important thing is theological interpretation. “When Jesus entered the house, His disciples asked privately: Why could we not drive him out? And he said to them, “This generation cannot come out except by prayer and fasting” (29-30). What the Lord said to the father of the demon-possessed boy applied to the Apostles during His earthly life.
Nowadays it refers to all of us as a wandering Church, a Church walking the roads of Lent.
Power over the world of evil, from which unclean spirits come, which they personify, and on which they feed and live, requires great boldness. It is based on unity with God in prayer and overcoming natural, natural ambitions and forces. The fast that the Lord speaks about in the Gospel is not self-restraint at all, not a diet or choosing one food instead of another, but a complete refusal of food and drink. This is a refusal to maintain vitality. That is why Orthodox monks of the late Middle Ages decided not to shave their beards or cut their hair. For a human corpse grows a beard. The monks died for the world. Nowadays, the understanding of this symbolism of the appearance of monks, unfortunately, has been lost.
The Lord's fast is a Biblical fast. In the liturgical calendar, this Gospel passage corresponds to the 40th pericope. Although the numbering of the New Testament texts by pericopes hardly followed any deliberate design, the number forty itself is deeply symbolic. This is a biblical number of repentances corresponding to the Lenten journey of the People of God.
The Lord Himself, following the example and in fulfillment of the prophetic image of Moses (cf. Exodus 24:18), by which the People of God were to recognize Him, fasted for 40 days. Then the demon of demons, that is, the devil, approached Him to tempt Him (cf. Matt. 4:3). Obviously, he was confident that a hungry, cold, thirsty person could be tempted and overcome. But before him was the Messiah, who lived not only by willpower, as ascetics try to do, but as Consubstantial with the Heavenly Father. “These signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will kill snakes” (Mark 16:17-18). By the power of the Holy Spirit, the author of the Gospel of Mark knew what he was talking about. On the day of Pentecost this was fulfilled. The Holy Spirit then descended on the Apostles and gave them strength and authority to do great things in the likeness of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Another dedication of this day is the memory of St. John Climacus. The saint was an ascetic, theologian, and teacher of monastics. The great Sinai tradition of Orthodox asceticism is associated with the name of John.
In addition to the fourth Sunday of Lenten, the memory of St. John is celebrated on April 12 (March 30). It is very rare that Easter is extremely late and falls on the penultimate day of all possible days, May 7th. In this case, the moving day of John's memory and his constant remembrance coincide. It is noteworthy that in this year 2024, the two feast days of St. John are separated by only two days.
Moreover, this year the moving day of John coincides with the permanent feast day of the Venerable Mary of Egypt on April 14 (April 1). Let us remind you that in the Fifth Week of Great Lent, that is, exactly a week from now, on April 21 (8), the Church will celebrate its moving Lenten memory.
In Roman Catholic Christianity, celebrations are usually postponed on such occasions. This does not happen in Orthodox worship. Therefore, such coincidences of the Easter calendar and the permanent calendar, these two times of the Church, which do not abolish, but mutually adjoin and complement each other, are a characteristic feature of Eastern Orthodoxy and the decoration of its liturgical calendar.
John's memory is inseparable from his work "Ladders", the title of which recalls Jacob's Ladder, along which angels ascended to heaven. In imitation of this image, the monks tried to climb the ladder of spiritual rebirth. The April Commemoration of the Great John on April 12 is a permanent annual day of his memory. This celebration in honor of the Sinai ascetic, unfortunately, usually goes unnoticed since the memory of John is celebrated in a special solemn way by the Church on the fourth Sunday of Great Lent. But it is wonderful and noteworthy that the constant celebration in honor of John, April 12, coincides with Cosmonautics Day, when the first man flew into space and paved the way for people to reach the visible heavens.
