Notes for  17 February 2020

Baptism is according to these words of the apostle Peter an event, in which we become partakers of the resurrection of Christ. For us deprived of life, having not salvation, this salvific gift comes in particular thanks to faith expressed in the baptism. And that is why it is important to hear the words of the apostle concerning what is our baptism. The stereotypes of our consciousness force us to behave towards baptism, how to say this… differently. Sometimes it {baptism} is for us an initiation rite, or something like vaccination against diseases and misfortunes.

That is why it is so important to hear what Apostle Peter says: baptism, according to him, is not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, that is it does not concern the ritual purity. The apostle asserts that the main in baptism is an answer towards God of a good consciousness. The Greek word means here not simply answer, but an answer made solemnly, a vow. For various reasons, for most of us, this event - making a vow of baptism - passes unnoticed. That is why we don’t keep partially in the memory these vow – “answer towards God of a good consciousness". And Apostle Peter says that it is in particular such baptism, answer or oath to Christ that saves us by the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

It is not less important that all the rest, except a good consciousness, remain "off". Salvation is given only by the resurrection of Jesus Christ, and nothing more. It is necessary to answer towards God to have a good consciousness and fulfill this answer, in order to have this salvation. Firstly, such christocentric is in itself important, because everything that pretends to a central place in our life, except the Son of God, is an idol. Secondly, such view of the apostle contains in itself a whole uncountable variety of forms of the Christian vocation.

Therefore, it is as well important that the apostle speaks about our destiny. The apostle speaks about persecutions falling on Christians, with a wonderful peace, as of something which is completely clear to him. He justifies that by the fact that a good consciousness before God will entail any Christian to that way of the Cross, of which the Head of the Church also passed. But, in continuation of the Teacher and Lord, Apostle Peter says to us: be not afraid, it is the way of life.

Today’s reading from the Epistle of the Apostle James is devoted almost entirely to what our proper attitude toward temptation should be. Of course, there is nothing good in such experiences; moreover, a person often emerges from situations of temptation drained, battered, and wounded, even if not defeated. Yet the Apostle considers it important to draw attention to the need to endure temptations with patience. The need to withstand powerful attacks of evil coming from different directions and disguised as good, and the steadfastness and firmness this demands, enable us to gain clarity of vision and mind—and consequently clarity of faith. It is precisely this clarity that makes it possible to overcome doubt when we greatly desire to yield to evil but understand clearly that nothing good will come of it. We usually excuse ourselves by saying that the temptation is too strong and we cannot resist it. In doing so, we forget that only the one who resisted to the very end can know the full force of evil’s attack: not the one who fell to the ground at the first gust of wind, but the one who remained standing through the storm. We are obliged to stand to the end, because the first One who stood firm died on the Cross for our life.

When reading the parable of Noah, the reader's attention is usually drawn first of all to the description of the worldwide flood. Meanwhile, the sacred writer, it appears, was interested in that story least of all. It interested him so little that he did not even consider it necessary to remove the quite obvious repetitions and parallel passages found in the parable when it comes to the description of the flood itself. Scholars and commentators of the Bible have often noted that the biblical author used two different versions of the tradition about the flood. The first is reflected in Gen 6:5-22 and in Gen 8:1-22, and the second in Gen 7:1-24. This clearly became possible only because the sacred writer considered the traditions about the flood merely a background for a story about something else, something far more important to him. And that more important thing was undoubtedly the figure of Noah. The most remarkable thing in Noah's life story turns out to be precisely the absence of that life story. In essence, the description of Noah's whole life fit into one sentence: "Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his generation; Noah walked with God" (Gen 6:9). The parable contains no details of this "walking," which is not surprising: the events are understood to belong to times that even historians today picture only vaguely. Something else is important: righteousness and righteous people have existed in the world in every age, and God has never abandoned them. In a certain sense, Noah becomes a collective image of all the righteous people of the pagan world who have ever lived on earth. And not only of those who "walked with God" in ancient times, but also of those who "walk with God" today. There are many people in the world who have not yet heard of the God of the Bible, and still more who have not heard in the Bible the voice of the One who led its authors. And if any of these people seeks God, God Himself leads that person after Him by paths known to Him alone. Whether such a righteous person will hear God in the words of the Bible, or whether they will remain for him only words, depends in part on us, who consider ourselves Christians.

In addition to the other biblical parallels, today the evangelist tells how Jesus, like the ancient prophet Samuel, was brought to the Temple to dedicate the Firstborn to God. But unlike the other firstborn, who were only symbolically "offered in sacrifice" to God and redeemed from Him by sacrificial animals, for example a pair of doves, compare Leviticus 12, Jesus Himself is called "redemption," a term referring to sacrifice. In the Temple Jesus becomes sacrifice, sign, salvation, and fulfillment of the prophecies, containing within Himself all biblical symbols and realities. For the Evangelist Luke, this very moment becomes the sacrifice in which Christ accomplishes the redemption of the people and of the "Gentiles." Having become a participant in this ministry, Simeon fulfilled his purpose in this world and can now depart, showing the readers of the Gospel that their purpose in this life is also to become participants in the redemption and salvation of the world.

Elihu has not been mentioned even once until now. He appears quite unexpectedly, and we know nothing about him except his origin and the fact that he is young. Still less do we know whether he had known Job in earlier times and, if he had, what their relationship had been. In any case, Elihu did not try to accuse Job under the guise of sympathy, and his words were not a stab in the back from someone whose support was expected.

Elihu's anger is prompted by zeal for God, whom none of the participants in the long conversation managed to defend properly. Here again we encounter the evaluative judgment of the unnamed narrator, who notes that Job justified himself rather than God. Elihu is a human being like everyone else, and he is aware of his lesser experience compared with those present. His words, like those of the other participants in the conversation, cannot contain the whole truth in an absolute sense. Yet to draw nearer to it, every point of view must be taken into account, especially one that comes from an unexpected direction.