Washing, Eating, Drinking, Glittering with Glory and Seeing Divinity (Pascha Almost Here!)

Last updated on: April 30, 2021 at 2:17 pm by John Mark N. Reynolds

Washing, Eating, Drinking, Glittering with Glory and Seeing Divinity (Pascha Almost Here!) 2021-04-30T14:17:18-04:00 John Mark N. Reynolds

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

We do what we must, take joy when we can, knowing an eternal holiday is coming.

A holy day for most of history had to be a work day, because most people have been farmers. The goat and chickens needed feeding. If you had a cow, the cow needed milking.
There were, naturally, jobs that could be put off, yet nature naturally acts according to the nature of the various plants and animals.

Just as we have to wash, eat, and drink, so do our fellow creatures. The ox that falls into the ditch must be saved, even on the Sabbath.

A holy day is to be as special as we can make the day. Some activities will be mundane, because a few jobs cannot be put off. Nature calls.

Scrooges twist this and use this as an excuse to do their normal routines (especially money making) on a holy day. They lose joy. The puritanical will try to make a holy day miserable, not because of piety, but general crabbiness. They stifle joy.

Instead, the faithful do what we must, yet hurry to worship and run to the feast. The mass at Christmas, the vigil at Pascha, these are special joys, holy jobs, and the golden glow puts our normal toil in a new light.

No accident that God has taken humble things such as eating, drinking, washing and made them sacraments. We drink, God gives us a Holy Grail. We eat, God gives the Bread of Heaven. We wash, He comes as our Servant and washes our feet.

We are obligated to worship as a reasonable service, as necessary to men. This worship happens in the ordinary tasks, of course. God sustains all and empowers every good task. We are always living as part of God’s creation, feeling His Spirit that empowers us and sustains all around us daily.

The golden glory of high worship, the special holy day highlights the constant glory of God.

We acknowledge that what we do daily can point godward. The special services or customs of the holy days are the “bold” or “italics” used by the Church to emphasize the sacredness of all the year.

The chores we must do on a holy day, are holy and are always holy. Every day is God’s day, but some days we stop, think about, and recognize that truth. On these special days, our normal tasks are preludes or postludes to acts that are extraordinary: the Lord’s Supper each Sunday, the fast of Advent and the feast of Christmas, Lent and Easter, the many holidays of the year.

The good God gives us at least one day in seven to rest and then adds to this even more fasts and feasts of the year. We live for joy, not for the pathway to joy. We are headed to the golden City of God, not endless tedium.

We are not mice running on a wheel, trapped in a cage. We create glory daily by being people doing our tasks and then see a gleam of that golden glory in our special days. If we do our duty as God gives us, then we are creating something eternal. God never forgets any good His children do.

He treasures them, perfects them, and sets them in a beautiful frame. Our daily work is the canvas and our greater works, the holiest acts of prayer and service, are the icon of Divinity: Christ within is the hope of glory.

Culture

Philosophy

Spiritual Reflections

Previous Post

April 28, 2021

O Unction, O Balm for the Soul! (On the Way to Pascha)

Next Post

April 30, 2021 Humility of Holy Friday (Pascha is Near, Feels Far Away)

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Apologetics Art Culture Education On Books On Education Philosophy Politics Pop Culture Spiritual Reflections Uncategorized

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 July 2025 June 2025 September 2024 July 2024 June 2024 December 2023 June 2023 September 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Which parable tells of a shrewd manager who is commended for his cleverness?

Select your answer to see how you score.

The Unjust Steward The Lost Sheep The Wise Virgins The Good Samaritan

Books by This Author John Mark Reynolds

See All Titles »