An Appeal from Bishop John
By St. John Maximovitch
(Delivered in 1936 in Shanghai)
By St. John Maximovitch
(Delivered in 1936 in Shanghai)
When Christ was condemned to death by Pilate and carried His cross to Golgotha, many people followed Him.
Among Him walked both the enemies of Christ and His followers.
However, the majority of the latter hid their closeness to Christ, and only women openly cried and wept for their Teacher.
Therefore, Christ turned to them alone on His way to Golgotha.
Even after the crucifixion, Christ’s disciples did not dare to approach Him, except for one virgin, John the Theologian.
But the women who came with Him from Galilee, with His Most Pure Mother at their head, did not leave Him here either.
They stood at the Cross before Christ delivered His spirit to His Divine Father, and they stood there when He hung lifeless on the Cross.
When evening came, Joseph of Arimathea together with Nicodemus, dared to ask Pilate for the body of Christ and give Him up for burial.
The women remained mournful spectators here too and left when the stone was rolled against the tomb, and the darkness of the night began to approach the earth.
However, their hearts were filled with such love for Christ that even after leaving the tomb, their thoughts were with Him.
Since the body of the Lord was not anointed with fragrant myrrh during its hasty burial, they prepared aromas to anoint Him with them the next day.
While still in deep darkness, they went again to the tomb, but no longer found there what they were looking for.
Christ had already risen from the dead, as the angels sitting at the tomb informed the Myrrhbearers.
They hastily announced this with joy to the apostles, themselves still not believing what they heard.
At first, bewilderment also gripped the apostles.
But bewilderment and sorrow soon gave way to joy.
Christ appeared to those who mourned for Him, and first of all to the Most Pure Virgin Mary and the MyrrhBearing Mary Magdalene.
Thus, those who showed the greatest devotion to the Savior were rewarded for their loyalty to Him by being the first to hear the good news and the first to see the Risen Lord.
Through them, women, joy was proclaimed to humanity, the joy of the Resurrection and eternal salvation.
Women, who give themselves more to the desire of the heart than to the judgments of the mind, often move ahead of the male sex when a sacrificial feat in the service of God is required.
And it is understandable because it was women who took upon themselves the difficult work of collecting funds for the construction of the Church of the the Most Holy Theotokos in Shanghai.
In a few days they will go out to collect all possible donations for the Day of Sacrifice, the day of remembrance of Bishop Simon, who bore the name of the Apostle Simon the Zealot.
Let their call find a response in the hearts of the Orthodox Shanghai flock.
Let the coming of the gatherers remind us that today is the day of the joy of the Resurrection, the joy announced through women.
Whoever can, let him make his donation immediately; whoever wants to pay gradually, let him make an inscription on the sheet.
Let us remember that by giving to the temple, we are giving to Christ, who, although he does not need anything material, did not refuse to share the meal offered to Him by disciples who did not recognize Him. It was when He accepted their food that their eyes were opened and they recognized the Risen One (Luke 24:30-31).
May the call addressed to us by those who, bearing the joy of the Resurrection, which illuminated the hearts of the faithful on the Day of Pascha, with the words “Christ is Risen,” not go unheard and fruitless, ask to donate to the temple of the Mother of the Risen One!
In their person, Christ Himself will receive us, and our heart will tell us: “Truly He is Risen!”
Source: Translated by John Sanidopoulos.