By Fr. George Dorbarakis
The somewhat forgotten and undervalued by Christians of our time feast of Mid-Pentecost (in contrast to the Byzantine era, where it was celebrated in an exquisite manner, so much so that it was considered the feast of the empire: the emperor, dressed in his "royal" regalia, would go with a grand procession to the Church of Saint Mokios, where the Patriarch was waiting for him, in order to participate in the festal Divine Liturgy) comes to highlight to us key elements of our faith, without which we cannot truly be characterized as Christians. In addition to emphasizing the importance of the two great feasts it connects, the Resurrection and Pentecost, it proclaims in an intense manner the divinity of the Lord Jesus Christ, which, however, is understood to the extent that man has accepted it not theoretically and from afar, but existentially and personally: that is, that the Lord, precisely because He is God who became man, now functions as the center of man's life, which means that after Christ, the faithful cannot live, move, speak, or think without taking Him into their consideration. In other words, the Christian is (must be) a Christ in the world and Christ is (must be) seen in their existence by every other person on earth. This is the truth to which the Apostle Paul also testifies, when he not only confesses that “Christ lives in me” as the center of his life, but also that every Christian constitutes “an epistle of Christ to the world, which is thus read by other people.”
The hymnographers of the feast, both Saint Theophanes and Saint Andrew of Crete, constantly refer to this dimension of Mid-Pentecost, because they emphasize what the Holy Gospel according to the Synaxarion also emphasizes: the Lord reveals His messianic nature, He judges the Jews, He calls the entire world that thirsts for truth to come to Him, for He is the source of life and living water that quenches the heart and the entire existence of man. We choose almost at random:
“As You were in the midst of the Temple, when the middle of the feast was approaching in a divine manner, You cried out loudly: Whoever thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. For he who drinks from My divine waters will see that rivers of My doctrines will flow from his heart. And whoever believes in Me, who was sent by God My Father, will be glorified with Me. For this reason we cry out to You: Glory to you, Christ our God, for You have richly offered the waters of Your philanthropy to Your servants” (Kathisma, Matins).
These are the same words – the Synaxarion notes – that the Lord addressed to the Samaritan woman, who, because she was well-intentioned and believed in Christ, was converted and became not just a good Christian, but the Equal-to-the-Apostles and Holy Great Martyr Photini. The Lord’s words worked within her like a catalyst, overturning her entire previous life.
The only thing required, of course, is the good disposition of the person: that is, to believe in Christ, leaving aside “one’s own will,” one’s own selfishness. Because faith in Christ surely means: I take Him seriously in my life and I make Him the center of my life with His grace. So what do I offer Him? The filth of my sins, the barrenness of my heart, in order to flood it with the source of the waters of His teaching and with the stream of His blood, so that it may become a “dwelling place” for Him and for His Holy Spirit. The Oikos of the Synaxarion of the day is very revealing:
“My soul, which has become barren from the iniquities of my sins, do cleanse with the streams of Your blood and make it fruitful from virtues. For You have told all, O all-holy Word of God, to come to You and draw water of incorruption, which is the living water that cleanses the sins of all who praise Your glorious and divine resurrection. To those who acknowledge You as God, good Lord, You grant the heavenly power of the Spirit that truly came upon Your disciples, for You are the source of our life.”
Source: Translated by John Sanidopoulos.
