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NOTES for Mar 15:42-43

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42 And now when the even was come, because it was the preparation, that is, the day before the sabbath,
43 Joseph of Arimathaea, and honourable counseller, which also waited for the kingdom of God, came, and went in boldly unto Pilate, and craved the body of Jesus.
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Sometimes people who have remained unnoticed for a long time suddenly find themselves at the center of events. Thus, all at once, Joseph of Arimathea, whom the evangelist mentions, appears on the scene. Almost nothing is known about him except that he was a man of very high standing. What was Jesus to him? What was his relationship with Him? A secret disciple, as the other evangelists also say about him, but what did it mean to be His secret disciple? To give support in a situation where none of the open disciples could do anything, to use one's position so that the impossible would become possible? Yes, of course, that too. But the main thing was readiness.

In a certain sense it is easier to be an open disciple. Jesus, of course, tells all the disciples and everyone willing to hear that one must always keep watch, that spiritual laxity and the path into the Kingdom are incompatible. Still, for those who are constantly beside Him, it is easier in a certain sense. They see the Teacher with their own eyes; for them He is absolutely real at every moment of their life. The secret disciples, no doubt, communicated with Him much less often. He appeared to them and disappeared, and one could never say exactly when He would appear next.

The apostles experienced something similar during the Last Supper, when they understood that Jesus was going to leave them for a time. They did not know where He was going; they did not truly understand the Teacher and could not imagine what they would have to live through very soon. But they understood that, at any rate, now they would be left alone for some period of time, and a completely undefined one at that. They would not see the Teacher, would not hear Him, would not know where He was or what He was doing, and would not know what He would require of them when He returned.

This situation very much resembles the situation of every Christian today. We live in the age of the coming Kingdom, but when it will be completed no one knows except the Father. We cannot calculate any time frames here, even approximately. We can only live with the awareness that on any day everything can come to an end and the Savior can return.

One cannot prepare for that day in the way we prepare for one event or another in our world. We can usually imagine the events of our world somehow; we can at least try to think through and calculate what we may need, though how successful and adequate that calculation will be is another question.

But as for the Kingdom and the return of the Messiah, here we can neither imagine nor calculate anything. What remains is readiness as an inner spiritual state, presupposing the very spiritual alertness whose necessity Jesus spoke of and which His secret disciples constantly had to maintain: waiting for the Teacher's unexpected appearance and inwardly ready to do what is completely impossible to imagine in advance.

Other notes

 
For Mar 15:43
43 Joseph of Arimathaea, and honourable counseller, which also waited for the kingdom of God, came, and went in boldly unto Pilate, and craved the body of Jesus.
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Today in the Gospel we read about one manifestation of true human greatness. The faithfulness and love that moved Joseph of Arimathea are truly worthy of every praise and imitation. When every hope...  Read more

Today in the Gospel we read about one manifestation of true human greatness. The faithfulness and love that moved Joseph of Arimathea are truly worthy of every praise and imitation. When every hope had ceased, when Jesus had died on the Cross and everything was over, at precisely that moment there remained people faithful to Him.

It is not easy to remain near the Crucified God. It is still harder to mourn His death. What did Joseph of Arimathea, Nicodemus, and Mary Magdalene experience and think on Holy Saturday, when the Lord lay in the tomb in the flesh? And how did Joseph dare to go in to Pilate to ask for the Body of Christ, disregarding both the laws about ritual defilement, since that morning the chief priests would not enter the house of the pagan Pilate, and the danger of being accused of complicity in the case of the Executed One? They pass through the horror of Friday and Saturday to the end and remain together with the One who has died and with His Mother. To be with God to the end, wherever He goes. And when He descends into hell, where people cannot go with Him, they weep and wait for Him on earth.

And this waiting does not remain in vain.

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For Mar 15:43-47
43 Joseph of Arimathaea, and honourable counseller, which also waited for the kingdom of God, came, and went in boldly unto Pilate, and craved the body of Jesus.
44 And Pilate marvelled if he were already dead: and calling unto him the centurion, he asked him whether he had been any while dead.
45 And when he knew it of the centurion, he gave the body to Joseph.
46 And he bought fine linen, and took him down, and wrapped him in the linen, and laid him in a sepulchre which was hewn out of a rock, and rolled a stone unto the door of the sepulchre.
47 And Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses beheld where he was laid.
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There is one point in common for both of today’s readings. In the Gospel of Mathew Jesus says: ‘As the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.’ (Mat. 24:27). And Paul writes in his letter to Corinthians...  Read more

There is one point in common for both of today’s readings. In the Gospel of Mathew Jesus says: ‘As the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.’ (Mat. 24:27). And Paul writes in his letter to Corinthians: ‘God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.’ (2 Cor. 4:6) The New Covenant is not a secret knowledge available just for a few chosen ones. It is not an exclusive association hostile to aliens. Nor is it a list of requirements that sets up a scale of good and evil based on the depth of the person’s fall into the abyss. The New Covenant is not an ideology intended to mould the souls and minds of its disciples. It’s not even a life-pattern that brings you flowers and fruits in return for rejecting something. It is the light that shines as a lightning from one end of heaven to the other. The light that illuminates and reveals everything – truth and lie, good and evil, life and death. The light beaming from the face of Jesus Christ. And is not just that it can be hard to live without this light in a world that is dark, frightful and cold. Reality proves there is simply no life at all outside of this Light.

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For Mar 15:40-47
40 There were also women looking on afar off: among whom was Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the less and of Joses, and Salome;
41 (Who also, when he was in Galilee, followed him, and ministered unto him;) and many other women which came up with him unto Jerusalem.
42 And now when the even was come, because it was the preparation, that is, the day before the sabbath,
43 Joseph of Arimathaea, and honourable counseller, which also waited for the kingdom of God, came, and went in boldly unto Pilate, and craved the body of Jesus.
44 And Pilate marvelled if he were already dead: and calling unto him the centurion, he asked him whether he had been any while dead.
45 And when he knew it of the centurion, he gave the body to Joseph.
46 And he bought fine linen, and took him down, and wrapped him in the linen, and laid him in a sepulchre which was hewn out of a rock, and rolled a stone unto the door of the sepulchre.
47 And Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses beheld where he was laid.
Hide
In the hour of suffering, those who were usually not especially active and were not in view were nearby. These were the silent...  Read more

In the hour of suffering, those who were usually not especially active and were not in view were nearby. These were the silent women who served Christ and the apostles from their possessions; this was Joseph of Arimathea, who had long hidden his discipleship but now cast caution aside. Joseph, who was not afraid to go to Pilate to ask for the Body of the Executed One, also had the chance that day to serve Jesus with his possessions: a piece of cloth and a tomb. First of all, however, all those who buried the Lord served Him with faithfulness and unexpected steadfastness.

At decisive moments, when questions of life and death stand starkly before us, faith is proved not by theories, and problematic arguments recede into the background. What becomes most important are simple deeds filled with quiet courage and wordless love.

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For Mar 15:16-47
16 And the soldiers led him away into the hall, called Praetorium; and they call together the whole band.
17 And they clothed him with purple, and platted a crown of thorns, and put it about his head,
18 And began to salute him, Hail, King of the Jews!
19 And they smote him on the head with a reed, and did spit upon him, and bowing their knees worshipped him.
20 And when they had mocked him, they took off the purple from him, and put his own clothes on him, and led him out to crucify him.
21 And they compel one Simon a Cyrenian, who passed by, coming out of the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to bear his cross.
22 And they bring him unto the place Golgotha, which is, being interpreted, The place of a skull.
23 And they gave him to drink wine mingled with myrrh: but he received it not.
24 And when they had crucified him, they parted his garments, casting lots upon them, what every man should take.
25 And it was the third hour, and they crucified him.
26 And the superscription of his accusation was written over, THE KING OF THE JEWS.
27 And with him they crucify two thieves; the one on his right hand, and the other on his left.
28 And the scripture was fulfilled, which saith, And he was numbered with the transgressors.
29 And they that passed by railed on him, wagging their heads, and saying, Ah, thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days,
30 Save thyself, and come down from the cross.
31 Likewise also the chief priests mocking said among themselves with the scribes, He saved others; himself he cannot save.
32 Let Christ the King of Israel descend now from the cross, that we may see and believe. And they that were crucified with him reviled him.
33 And when the sixth hour was come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour.
34 And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?
35 And some of them that stood by, when they heard it, said, Behold, he calleth Elias.
36 And one ran and filled a spunge full of vinegar, and put it on a reed, and gave him to drink, saying, Let alone; let us see whether Elias will come to take him down.
37 And Jesus cried with a loud voice, and gave up the ghost.
38 And the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom.
39 And when the centurion, which stood over against him, saw that he so cried out, and gave up the ghost, he said, Truly this man was the Son of God.
40 There were also women looking on afar off: among whom was Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the less and of Joses, and Salome;
41 (Who also, when he was in Galilee, followed him, and ministered unto him;) and many other women which came up with him unto Jerusalem.
42 And now when the even was come, because it was the preparation, that is, the day before the sabbath,
43 Joseph of Arimathaea, and honourable counseller, which also waited for the kingdom of God, came, and went in boldly unto Pilate, and craved the body of Jesus.
44 And Pilate marvelled if he were already dead: and calling unto him the centurion, he asked him whether he had been any while dead.
45 And when he knew it of the centurion, he gave the body to Joseph.
46 And he bought fine linen, and took him down, and wrapped him in the linen, and laid him in a sepulchre which was hewn out of a rock, and rolled a stone unto the door of the sepulchre.
47 And Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses beheld where he was laid.
Hide
In the Gospel account of the Savior's crucifixion, the description of the triumph experienced by...  Read more

In the Gospel account of the Savior's crucifixion, the description of the triumph experienced by all who hated Jesus during His earthly life makes a special impression. Those who loved Him can only grieve and weep. Of course, this is only an apparent triumph; it simply throws into sharper relief what will happen very soon, three days later, when everything falls into place. But those three days still have to pass; they have to be lived through, and not even Jesus' closest disciples expected the Resurrection. Those days were all the harder because the triumph of the forces of evil was not some convention or staged scene; it was as real as Jesus' death on the cross itself. In essence, here at the foot of the cross, two realities, two worlds, came into contact with each other: the great world of God, and the small, limited little world of those who stand against God, separated from Him. But to those who find themselves in that little world, it always appears to be the only reality. And in that reality it is evil that triumphs, and it triumphs as truly as that little world itself is real. Physically, the great world of God and the little world of those who oppose God can exist in the same space and at the same time; those who belong to them can see one another and speak with one another. Spiritually, however, they are two different worlds, and on the day of the Last Judgment the distinction between them, formerly visible only to a few, becomes obvious to everyone: the great world of God becomes the Kingdom of which Jesus speaks, and the little world of those who oppose God becomes the outer darkness of the Gospel parable. In the outer darkness death triumphs; in the Kingdom, life. And the victory of darkness, which appears so real in the little world, turns out on the day of the Resurrection to be its real and complete defeat in the great world of God. Each person decides for himself which of these worlds to live in, just as those who stood at the foot of the cross on the day of the Savior's death made their own decision.

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For Mar 15:16-47
16 And the soldiers led him away into the hall, called Praetorium; and they call together the whole band.
17 And they clothed him with purple, and platted a crown of thorns, and put it about his head,
18 And began to salute him, Hail, King of the Jews!
19 And they smote him on the head with a reed, and did spit upon him, and bowing their knees worshipped him.
20 And when they had mocked him, they took off the purple from him, and put his own clothes on him, and led him out to crucify him.
21 And they compel one Simon a Cyrenian, who passed by, coming out of the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to bear his cross.
22 And they bring him unto the place Golgotha, which is, being interpreted, The place of a skull.
23 And they gave him to drink wine mingled with myrrh: but he received it not.
24 And when they had crucified him, they parted his garments, casting lots upon them, what every man should take.
25 And it was the third hour, and they crucified him.
26 And the superscription of his accusation was written over, THE KING OF THE JEWS.
27 And with him they crucify two thieves; the one on his right hand, and the other on his left.
28 And the scripture was fulfilled, which saith, And he was numbered with the transgressors.
29 And they that passed by railed on him, wagging their heads, and saying, Ah, thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days,
30 Save thyself, and come down from the cross.
31 Likewise also the chief priests mocking said among themselves with the scribes, He saved others; himself he cannot save.
32 Let Christ the King of Israel descend now from the cross, that we may see and believe. And they that were crucified with him reviled him.
33 And when the sixth hour was come, there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour.
34 And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?
35 And some of them that stood by, when they heard it, said, Behold, he calleth Elias.
36 And one ran and filled a spunge full of vinegar, and put it on a reed, and gave him to drink, saying, Let alone; let us see whether Elias will come to take him down.
37 And Jesus cried with a loud voice, and gave up the ghost.
38 And the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom.
39 And when the centurion, which stood over against him, saw that he so cried out, and gave up the ghost, he said, Truly this man was the Son of God.
40 There were also women looking on afar off: among whom was Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the less and of Joses, and Salome;
41 (Who also, when he was in Galilee, followed him, and ministered unto him;) and many other women which came up with him unto Jerusalem.
42 And now when the even was come, because it was the preparation, that is, the day before the sabbath,
43 Joseph of Arimathaea, and honourable counseller, which also waited for the kingdom of God, came, and went in boldly unto Pilate, and craved the body of Jesus.
44 And Pilate marvelled if he were already dead: and calling unto him the centurion, he asked him whether he had been any while dead.
45 And when he knew it of the centurion, he gave the body to Joseph.
46 And he bought fine linen, and took him down, and wrapped him in the linen, and laid him in a sepulchre which was hewn out of a rock, and rolled a stone unto the door of the sepulchre.
47 And Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses beheld where he was laid.
Hide
Today's reading may help us, to some degree, make sense of the sharpest question facing a person: how does almighty God allow the existence...  Read more

Today's reading may help us, to some degree, make sense of the sharpest question facing a person: how does almighty God allow the existence of suffering and evil, especially when it is always the purest and most innocent people who suffer? Today we are given a glimpse of how God relates to evil in the world. We read how the Lord Himself passes through the very thick of human suffering. He descends from heaven in order to share with humanity all the darkness, all the horror of its loneliness and pain. Jesus is abandoned by His disciples; He passes through the soldiers' mockery, the shameful procession to the place of execution, and the agonizing crucifixion on the cross. In order to drink to the end all the bitterness of human torment, He refuses to drink the wine with myrrh that would dull the pain.

The King of all the earth, the Son of God, is "numbered with the transgressors." He does not come down from the cross, so that He may pass through the most terrible thing: "My God! Why have You forsaken Me?" He passes through the darkness of God-forsakenness belonging to fallen humanity. After this He, like each of us, sinks into the cold of death. The veil in the temple, which separated God from people, was torn: the Son of God had walked the human path to the end. The few disciples who remained buried Him like any mortal man.

Such is God's answer to the existence of suffering on earth. He does not merely sympathize; He suffers with us completely, with us and for us.

Here is also our answer: Christians, each in his own measure, take part in the sufferings of Christ, suffer with the world, and in this way take part in Christ's redeeming sacrifice, and through this also in His Resurrection.

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