The gospel readings direct our focus on the time
of the resurrection, Thomas, and then today the
myrrh bearers with Joseph and Nicodemus. So we
see their faithfulness and their love. Mary Magdalene,
Mary the mother of James and Salome, the Theotokos,
Susanna, Martha, all these Merberas. I think
we can count eight of them. They brought spices
that they might come and anoint very early in
the morning on the first day of the week. And
also Joseph and Arimathea, in their courage,
went to Pilate, that very wicked governor, and
asked for the body of Jesus. Caring for the dead,
that's something we know a little bit about for
the last two weeks for sure. But the church is
not a graveyard. If anyone is in Christ, he's
a new creation. It's about life and life eternal.
Myrrh is fitting for the dead, said the hymn,
but Christ is risen. Why does the church have
us read this gospel account today? I ask myself,
perhaps so that we might return to the experience
of Joseph and Nicodemus and the Myrrh -bearing
women after their hope had been crushed, after
they had seen the one that they followed, that
they loved, they were devoted to, beaten, crucified.
rejected by his own people. After they had lost
their hope, we returned to the tomb after Pascha,
and the stone rolled in front of the grave. That's
what they thought. But lo, it was rolled to the
side. Not so Jesus could get out, obviously.
The church brings us back. Why? Why do we have
this reading? Perhaps for me, it's because the
church wants to bring us back to the worst. place
in the story, the hardest place in the story,
perhaps reminding us of our own occasionally
dire spiritual condition, perhaps reminding us
of something else. And this is very important.
One of the Russian elders, late 19th century,
said, because of the state of the world then
and now, because of the state of the world and
because of who we are, Christians who are going
to be saved, how? Through their sorrows. Through
their sicknesses. Through the troubles that they
encounter. For them, certainly through persecution.
But he said, in all those things, if we accept
what God has given us with trust and with love
and devotion, whatever sorrow and trouble and
obstacle we have, if we accept it, and give thanks
to God for all things, like St. Paul told us
to do in that epistle on Palm Sunday, finding
everything good in every situation, then we will
be saved. You and I might be stuck in the worst
part of our life story. We can't possibly know
that, though. But today we're reminded through
the myrrh berries of the victory that is truly
here in the resurrection that is coming when
our own tale, our own spiritual life, our own
way in this life is fulfilled. Hope, not false
hope like tomorrow is going to be a better day.
Tomorrow usually isn't, if you read the news,
for most people. No. Hope, not false hope, not
hope in tomorrow, but hope in Jesus Christ, as
I've told you so many times. We have no plan
B. It's all Christ and only Christ for all things
and everything, in every sorrow, in every sickness,
in every death, especially death, since Christ
is risen. And whatever obstacle, we have hope.
Just as Christ rose and passed through the stone
that enclosed the tomb, his light can pierce
the darkness in our heart. Didn't we hear on
Pascha, in him was life, and that life was the
light of men, and the light shineth in darkness,
and the darkness has not overcome it. Secondly,
I don't really like three -part sermons, but
I'm going to give you one today. Secondly, we
have this reading to remind us that evangelism
starts within the church. The Myrrh -bearing
women will illustrate this for us. The Gospel
states that the apostles were amazed by the word
of the women that Jesus was risen. We have a
beautiful fresco of Mary Magdalene. We have Mary
Magdalene meeting Jesus. We have the women at
the tomb. And the angels say, why are you here
searching for a dead man? He is risen. He is
not here. We have the women up there in that
peak before Christ. We have the apostles being
greeted by the women who do not believe them.
It's hysteria. It's hysteria. Yea, certain women
also of our company who were early at the sepulchre
made us astonished with this news. And they believed
them not. Before the evangelists picked up their
pens, Before the apostles walked to the far reaches
of the Roman Empire with their sermon, with the
good news of the victory over death, before Peter
proclaimed the good news to thousands on the
day of Pentecost, and 3 ,000 later, the myrrh
bearers, this was the church. Doesn't matter
how small it is. It's the power in those that
are there. The myrrh bearer is brought to the
apostles, the first proclamation and the first
sermon and the first news, the good news. So
we should also stand before them with astonishment.
And I take it from this, that the lesson, that
the mission of the church begins within the church.
I'll spell that out. The first evangelism required
of Christian parents, for example, is to evangelize
their children. Teaching prayer. Teaching what
the meaning of prayer is. Teaching who it is
we are praying to. Teaching about the soul, the
life of the soul. Teaching about, yes, the commandments,
the beatitudes, the creed. Teaching them to love
the scripture, not just to read it, but to love
it. To love the church services. To love the
fasts. Yes, to love the fasts. To love Lent and
the hymns of Lent. To love the feast day. To
love each other. To love their neighbor. To love
God. To love the monastics. If parents are not
evangelizing the children, maybe I'm... You know,
preachers like to exaggerate a little, so maybe
this is slightly. If parents are not evangelizing
the children, there's no point in doing anything
else. Without such evangelism within the family,
we merely become caretakers of the tomb, of a
cemetery. Sure, there are bodies there, but without
the life of the Spirit, without the life and
breath within them, In the church of God, the
body of Christ, we live, we breathe, we have
our being in the light and the knowledge, the
wisdom and joy of the resurrection of Christ.
Remember the incredible passage read by reader
Nicholas on the eve of the great and holy Sabbath
of Holy Saturday as we... came back into the
church after carrying the epitaphias, the plush
geniza shroud, around the church singing Holy
God, and reader Nicholas read that passage from
Ezekiel, the dry bones, and breath came upon
them, and sinews came upon them, and they rose.
That's what evangelizing ourselves will allow
God to do to us. We are not caretakers of a cemetery.
One more point. Those who so courageously cared
for the Lord. And it was courage. Think what
that meant. Their Lord had been crucified by
the occupying authorities. With the collusion
of the religious authorities. These women could
pass through all that. Those people saw them
as nothing. And their testimony would be received
as nothing. But they could, in their courage,
come to that tomb. An impossible task, by the
way, because they thought the stone was there.
And this says a lot about how we approach our
life in the church, because we are also invited
to be myrrh bearers. We emulate them in our care
for the body of Christ. The church, that is one
another, isn't it? Of which we are all members.
We care for one another in love. That's first.
Those who sing in the church, they're myrrh bearers.
Those who clean the church are myrrh bearers.
Those who do flowers for the feast day are myrrh
bearers. Those who look after the grounds are
myrrh bearers. Those who help clean the vestments
and put the altar covers on and the icon stands,
they're myrrh bearers. Those who prepare food
or wash the dishes. are myrrh bearers. Those
who go into the bathroom and plunge the toilet,
they're myrrh bearers too. Those who prepare
themselves to pray by fasting to receive communion,
you're myrrh bearers. Those who make offerings
of money are myrrh bearers. Those who come and
pray with all their hearts for the salvation
of the world are myrrh bearers. Gracie, may her
memory be eternal. Setting out the sugar and
the salt and the pepper and the coffee cups,
myrrh bearer. Whatever is done for the sake of
the love of Christ and his body, they're myrrh
bearers. If we do tasks here at the church for
any other reason besides devotion to our Lord
Jesus Christ and love for one another, you will
burn out. So be careful. Do it for the love of
God. Be a myrrh bearer. Let the myrrh stream
from your heart. Let the light of God pierce
through the darkness. And the risen Lord will
do what he did for those women. An angel came
and spoke to them first the good news. The good
news will be revealed in your heart in all its
power and its joy. And you will survive, not
only survive, you will thrive in this life whatever
sorrows and difficulties come to you. You will
have the risen Lord always, not just at your
hand, no, but in your heart. May our Lord have
mercy on all of us and inspire all of us to be
myrrh bearers. Glory to Jesus Christ.