Commend One Another To Christ!
The radical message of Orthodox Christianity resets my attitude and ideas about what it means to be in the community of Faith. Be warned; this is challenging!
There are times in the Liturgy that grab my attention. One of the most powerful moments is when I say, “Let us commend ourselves, ONE ANOTHER, and our whole life unto Christ, our God. To You, O Lord.”
“One another?”
How do I “commend” someone else to “Christ, our God?”
Aren’t they responsible for themselves? What does this mean?
Of course, each of us is responsible for ourselves. But from the very beginning, when Cain asked God, “Am I my brother’s keeper?” Humans have struggled with balancing personal responsibility and our connection to those around us. You may be surprised to hear me say that this struggle is good and necessary, and there isn’t necessarily an end.
The wise challenge of Normal Orthodoxy insists that I confront myself in this moment. Do I live just for “number 1,” or is there room in my thoughts and actions for the people around me? Do I even notice them? Am I so preoccupied with my own life that I am effectively blind to how my actions affect others? Am I even curious about this?
Do I even struggle with this?
The struggle is the point!
Just look at our Lesson today from Acts 2:38-43:
IN THOSE DAYS, Peter said to the people, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is to you and to your children and to all that are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to him.” And he testified with many other words and exhorted them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation.” So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls. And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. And fear came upon every soul; and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles.
The book of Acts, by St. Luke, tells the story of the earliest community of believers in the Risen Jesus Christ and His Gospel of the Kingdom of God.
Our lesson tells what happened after St. Peter preached his homily on the Day of Pentecost after the Holy Spirit empowered the disciples to be witnesses to Christ and his message starting in Jerusalem, just as the Lord promised would happen!
After Peter preached, the people who heard him asked: “What do we do now?” And Peter said what St. John the Baptist said, what the Lord Jesus said: Repent! Enter into a new way of life. Not “change your religious philosophy.” Not “join our movement.”
No, repent.
Start by admitting what is already true. You MUST realize you need to go in another direction!
Peter also told them to be baptized.
They didn’t just need an inner transformation, but they also needed to make a visible choice.
That’s the way of the Normal Orthodox Faith. We do both, not just one or the other.
We don’t merely ask for a change of heart. We also insist on a change of action. They go hand in hand. Because you are more than a mind, a philosophy, or a feeling. You are a whole person, physical and spiritual, so your faith needs to be both, too!
And look what happened.
On that Day of Pentecost, 3000 people entered the fledgling Church! But there’s more. They didn’t just get baptized and then do their business as usual. Look at what constituted the first community of believers of Orthodox Christians: They devoted themselves to the Apostles’ Teachings, to “Koinonia” (not just “fellowship, but building deep connections with each other), to “breaking of bread” (more than just eating dinner together. This is the Eucharist); and “the prayers” (this is the rhythm of the liturgical life together). And that’s how Normal Orthodox communities have behaved ever since!
The results are a community that knows how to BALANCE personal responsibility AND my responsibility to others! So, not only do I commend my own life to “Christ, our God” at every Liturgy, I also commend all those around me to “Christ, our God” as well BECAUSE I am part of a community that is sharing the Body and Blood of Christ together.
I am always aware that this community is also in communion with other communities that share the Body and Blood of Christ together. I am part of a community in communion with all other communities that have ever shared the Body and Blood of Christ together!
I never pray alone!
Is this your Normal experience in your parish community?
As we leave the Feast of the Theophany, where we remember the Baptism of Jesus by John in the Jordan River, let’s take one more moment to consider this event and why we Orthodox insist we remember it. The moment of the Lord’s baptism makes the shift from the Old Testament to the New Testament. Jesus enters the waters of Baptism not because He needs to repent for any sin but so that the water can be restored to do what water does now: baptize people in Christ and make them the new creatures restored and cleansed by God’s grace. Jesus sets creation right again in His humility and His obedience. He sets us on the path to see God’s creation as good and invites us to participate in the Divine Life of God by His grace! If I am ever going to be set free from the zombie life of self-centered living, I am going to have to reset my idea of “normal” to include those around me, created in God’s image to be in communion with me and the Uncreated God Who loves us all more than we know how to love!
Today, are you aware of your connection with your fellow believers? How does that affect your prayer, your behavior, and your participation in the life of the Church? Little awareness of our connectedness usually equals a lack of awareness of our desperate need to gather regularly to pray together. As one saint has said, “The first sign of a weakness in faith is the inattention to gathering for worship!” Let’s allow the wisdom of our connectedness to produce a healthy practice of being a Normal Orthodox Christian!
P.S. Lord, when You were baptized in the Jordan, the veneration of the Trinity was revealed. For the voice of the Father gave witness to You, calling You Beloved, and the Spirit, in the guise of a dove, confirmed the certainty of His words. Glory to You, Christ our God, who appeared and enlightened the world.
Fr. Barnabas Powell is the parish priest at Sts. Raphael, Nicholas, and Irene Greek Orthodox Church in Cumming, GA. He is also the founder of Faith Encouraged Ministries and produces the Faith Encouraged Daily Devotional on Substack. Watch the Faith Encouraged YouTube Channel here - https://www.youtube.com/@FaithEncouragedTV
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Thank you Father, this prayer of imploring God to help us 'let go', turning it ALL over to Him, along with the awesomely terrible, "Blessed art Thou O'Lord, teach me Thy statutes", are a seriously intense part of the services ⛪☦️ 📖 that become easy to 'over-hear' in our negligence and attentiveness. 😬 This simple set of repetitions are incredibly powerful, profound and profitable! Once one ponders them seriously with the heart, they certainly aren't shallow or flippant. Grace and peace to you....