Tag Archive for: Matthew 25

The Forgotten Face of Christ

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Armodoxy for Today: The Forgotten, part 9 – The Face of Christ

Most people are able to conjure up an image of Jesus in their mind based on popular representations of him in artform – whether paintings, drawings or from movies. The longhair, parted in the middle, bearded man, usually comes along with a first-century outfit of a white robe and sandals.

Religious relics have contributed to this image. Most famously is the Shroud of Turin, the burial wrap of Jesus, which projects an image of him. Veronica’s Veil is another source for the image. During the road to Cross, a devout follower of Jesus named Veronica, offers the beaten and worn Jesus a veil to soak the blood and sweat off of his holy and abused face.   There, the image of his face is memorialized on that cloth.

Today, on the simple instruction of “Generate a picture of Jesus” to an AI chatbot, we receive a preliminary respond of, “bringing a sacred vision to life,” followed by a picture that more or less resembles what most Hollywood producers have asked us to consider to be the image of the Son of God, long hair parted in the middle, beard and all.

The Face of Jesus has been forgotten. I’m talking about the real face of Jesus which Armodoxy has presented throughout the centuries. It is the face that you see on Armenian Church altars, artwork and miniatures.

Jesus asks us to see him in the “least of his brothers and sisters.” His call is found in Matthew chapter 25. It is the face of the hungry, the thirsty, the abandoned, the lonely and abused, the homeless, the sick and the grieving.

Like those he refers to in this passage (verses 31-46) – those who did not forget his face – we may ask, “When did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink?  When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothed you?  When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?” to which Jesus answers, “…Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”

It is not a comfortable portrayal nor a pleasant image of our Lord, but it is the snapshot he leaves us with: the parentless child screaming on the sidelines of war, the hungry family suffering a depressed economy, the migrant escaping persecution, the lone man with lost hope as he mourns the passing of his last companion. These are some of the forgotten faces of Christ.

We pray, Lord, open my eyes to see the world as a place and opportunity to share your love with others. Amen.

Jesus closer than you think

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Armodoxy for Today: Closer than you think

A pious Christian will certainly jump at the chance to help, or even interact, with Christ. For many, Christ is only a person appearing in history, and so, it is safe to want come to his aid. If I were there at the time of the crucifixion, I certainly would have stood up against his accusers or torturers.

Of all the challenges Jesus offers to participate in the Kingdom, there is no invitation as clear as the one he offers when he says, “I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’… For inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’” (Matthew 25)

No need to time travel to meet Jesus, he’s all around us.

Today’s one minute for Summertime.

Negate the Negative

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Armodoxy for Today: Negate the Negative

Immediately after the Resurrection of Christ, Scripture tells us that Jesus appeared to the disciples “Over a period of forty days and spoke about the Kingdom of God.” (Acts 1)

The Kingdom of God is often thought of as something or some place that is accessible only after we pass from this life. Jesus refers to the Kingdom as something accessible in the here and now. “The Kingdom of God is at hand,” was a message John the Baptist heralded even before Christ’s baptism. It was enacted by Christ and the active Church today.

Access to the Kingdom is available for everyone. The condition is to live a life of love demonstrated by action. In the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 25, Jesus speaks of the Kingdom predicated on our actions of readiness and good deeds. Standards of goodness have no limits for Jesus, as is demonstrated in the Parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10). Even more, non-action is grounds for expulsion from the Kingdom.

We read: Then the King will say to those on His left…, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed… for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.’  Then they also will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?’ … He will answer them, saying, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’

The world we live in is real. The problems that plague it are under our control. We are the agents of Christ. Thy Kingdom come, Thy Will be done, happens with our involvement. You can’t close yourself off from the suffering in the world.

We pray, St. Nersess Shnorhali’s 9th hour of prayer, All-provident Lord, place a guard before my eyes, so that I may not look lustfully, before my ears, not to delight in hearing evil discourses, before my mouth, not to speak falsehood,  before my heart, not to think of wickedness, before my hands, not to commit injustice, before my feet, not to walk on the paths of righteousness;  rather, guide my motives, that they may be according to all your commandments. Amen.

Cover: Once you see it, it’s impossible to not see it. (Quite literally too!)

Holy Week – Great Tuesday (10 Maidens)

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Holy Week Day #4 – Great Tuesday – The parable (Matthew 25) can be and must be turned into a story reflecting its message of preparedness. The Christian is always ready with good works and solid faith, in preparation of answering to God.
Song: “Stargazer” by Armen Donelian;
Produced by Suzie Shatarevyan for ePostle.net

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