On Holy Pascha. -St. Kirill of Turov
St. Kirill of Turov
Today is a double joy for all Christians and unspeakable gladness for the world, on account of the feast now come, in place of the sorrow that belonged to the former mystery. And what was that sorrow of the mystery that preceded it? On the day before yesterday, our Lord Jesus Christ, as man, was crucified—but as God, He darkened the sun and turned the moon to blood, and darkness lay over all the earth. As man, He cried out and gave up the ghost—but as God, He shook the earth and broke the stones asunder. As man, He was pierced in the side—but as God, He tore the veil of the old Law in two. As the Lamb, He poured out His blood in place of the lambs formerly slain in the wilderness for sacrifice, and offered Himself as a sacrifice to God the Father for the salvation of the whole world. As man, He was laid in a tomb—but as God, He sanctified the altar of the Church drawn from the Gentiles. As a king, He lay sealed in the grave and was guarded by soldiers—but as God, through the hosts of angels, He proclaimed to the demonic powers in the depths of Hades: “Lift up your gates, O ye princes, and be ye lifted up, ye everlasting doors: and the King of glory shall come in” (Psalm 23:7).
At His word, the gates of Hades were shattered, and its bars broken down to the foundation. The Lord Himself descended into Hades and trampled down the devil’s dominion by the Cross; He slew death, and those who sat in darkness saw a great light, and those bound in poverty and chains were set free. He plundered the treasures of Hades and now has come forth from it in the power of God and in the glory of the holy angels. The captive souls of mankind have been released and are brought into Paradise, glorifying the name of Christ. While Christ was yet in the tomb, the Church called upon the Prophets, for the Prophets are the children of the Church.
Suddenly, Christ rose from the dead, leaving the seals of the tomb intact, and the Church received an inexpressible joy; and the Prophets exult with gladness, crying aloud: “Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us” (1 Corinthians 5:7); “O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?” (Hosea 13:14). For the sake of our salvation Christ rose from the dead, and granted life to those in the graves, and the souls of the saints were enriched beyond nature and taken up from Hades into Heaven. Therefore this feast has a twofold and even threefold name.
It is called Pascha because of the lambs slain by Moses in Egypt, whose blood, smeared on the lintels and doorposts of their houses, caused the Israelites to be spared from death by the angel who smote the Egyptians. So also is the meaning of our present Pascha: now the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ, was slain by the priests for the salvation of the whole world, and He led forth from Hades our forefather Adam, for He came not for the righteous only, but for the whole fallen world. He took upon Himself the sins of all men and bore them upon the Cross. Therefore, let us in faith become partakers of the Divine Pascha; let us anoint our lips—the doors of our spiritual house—with the blood of God, that demons may not approach us, seeking to slay us through sin.
The Israelites slew the lamb, but the Gentiles partook of Him—and now the prophet calls all the faithful to the Lord’s table, saying: “Receive the Body of Christ, taste ye the Fountain of Immortality.” For by this Body, the head of Hades was crushed, and its sting blunted; by this Body, the dominion and authority of Hades was overthrown; by this Body, the belly of Hades was pierced—for Christ did not return through the gates of Hades, but, having torn open its belly, He drew forth from it the souls of men. For at the moment when the Body of Christ was laid in the tomb, the brazen gates were shattered, the iron bars broken, the gatekeepers trembled, the prison collapsed, and the dead were raised.
The Body of Christ put death to death and renewed the whole decaying creation. Christians who partake of this Body with faith are sanctified and receive eternal life. Therefore, brethren, let us partake of this life-giving food, and let us embrace one another with love, forgiving each other all offenses from the heart.
The Resurrection of Christ is called the Great Day. Truly this day is great—not because it contains more hours than others, but because of the great miracles wrought by our Savior Jesus Christ. Today angels rejoice with men, and men are sanctified by the Lord, receiving the Holy Spirit.
The Evangelist Luke (Luke 24:1–7) tells us that “on the first day of the week, very early in the morning,” the women came to the tomb of Jesus, bringing the spices they had prepared to anoint His body, “but found the stone rolled away from the tomb.” And entering in, they found not the Lord Jesus. And as they stood perplexed, behold, two men in shining garments stood beside them and said: “Why seek ye the Living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen. Remember how He spake unto you of His rising again on the third day. Now go to His disciples and say: Christ Resurrected!” For of you it was already written by the prophet: “Come from the vision, O heralding woman, and say to Zion: Receive from us the joy of good tidings.” Go to the apostles and tell them: “Hide yourselves no more, for the word spoken to you by Jesus is fulfilled: ‘A little while, and ye shall not see Me; and again a little while, and ye shall see Me’” (John 16:16). Remember the prophet who wrote of Christ and of you: “I will smite the Shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered,” but not long after, “stretching forth My hand, I will gather them, and will give them a Shepherd” (cf. Zechariah 13:7).
Go, and tell the disciples that they may understand this time foretold by the prophet Hosea, who proclaimed: “He was stricken by the lawless, He healed the world in two days, and on the third day He shall rise again, and we shall live before Him” (cf. Hosea 6:3); and also by the prophet Zephaniah, who said: “Wait for Me, saith the Lord, in the day of My resurrection as a witness, for My mercy has already come down upon the nations” (cf. Zephaniah 3:8). Go, and tell the apostles: “This is the day of which David spoke: ‘Thou, O Lord, shalt arise and have mercy upon Zion, for the time is come’” (cf. Psalm 101:14). I do not speak of that Zion which is trampled by soldiers, but of the Church drawn from the Gentiles, redeemed by the Precious Blood of the Savior—a Church which none shall overcome. Do not think that you are liable to be deceived, as Eve once was; she took counsel from the serpent, but you are hearing the words of angels. Therefore we proclaim to you the joy, and you shall preach salvation to the world.
Then the women returned from the tomb and reported all this to the eleven apostles—but they did not believe them, for they had not yet received the Holy Spirit, and so were unsteady, timid, and weak in faith. But Peter and John arose and ran to the tomb. John arrived before Peter but did not enter until Peter came. Peter went in first and saw only the linen wrappings lying there. John, who came first to the tomb, did not refrain from entering out of fear, but rather in obedience to God’s will and the teaching of Scripture—for these two apostles symbolized the Old and the New Law: John represented the Old Law, and Peter the New.
The Old Law, which came before the New, although it looked forward to Christ in hope, yet when He came, it did not enter into faith in Him. But the New Law, though it came later, believed in Christ first, having seen that hope in the former Law was vain and could no longer save those who clung to it. For the fledgling has already flown, and the foolish still sit in the empty nest; Christ Resurrected, but the priests and Pharisees bribe the guard and command them to lie about His resurrection. Woe to you, sinful nation! You have been deceived—though you read the prophets who wrote of Christ, you did not understand them. While awaiting the light, you remain in darkness. O cruel hearts! How could you devise wicked plans against the living God?
That same day, two of Christ’s disciples were walking to a village near Jerusalem, speaking with each other about all these things—and behold, Jesus Himself met them on the road. For He is like a shepherd who, having lain down to sleep, awakens to find his flock scattered and quickly goes about to gather them. Jesus said to the disciples, “What are these things you are discussing as you walk, and why are you sad?” They answered that they were speaking of Jesus of Nazareth, who had been crucified by the Jewish priests, and of the women who had heard from an angel of His resurrection.
They did not recognize Him, for their eyes were still of the flesh, and Christ had not yet breathed on them, saying, “Receive ye the Holy Ghost,” nor had He yet opened their minds. Yet they were aware of the prophecies concerning Christ. Therefore, He said to them, “O fools, and slow of heart to believe!”—and beginning with all the sacred writings, He interpreted to them the things concerning His suffering and resurrection.
Was it not Moses, He said, who wrote: “Thy life shall hang in doubt before thee” (Deuteronomy 28:66)? And David wrote of His crucifixion: “They pierced My hands and My feet” (Psalm 21:17); and again: “They gave Me gall for My food, and in My thirst they gave Me vinegar to drink” (Psalm 68:22); and of His burial: “They have laid Me in the lowest pit, in darkness, and in the shadow of death” (Psalm 87:7); and also of His resurrection: “Let God arise, and let His enemies be scattered” (Psalm 67:2); and again: “Arise, O God, judge the earth” (Psalm 81:8). And Isaiah spoke of His disciples: “Having arisen, I shall gather My brethren, and they shall see My glory and proclaim it among the nations, and many people from among the Gentiles shall be Mine” (cf. Isaiah 66:19–20).
While they spoke, they drew near to the village to which they were traveling. The disciples urged Jesus, saying: “Abide with us, for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent.” And when He reclined with them at table, He took bread, blessed it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened: they saw the wounds from the nails in His hands and recognized that it was Christ Himself. But He became invisible to them. They returned to Jerusalem and told all this to the apostles, affirming that Christ is truly risen, that He had appeared to them, and that they knew Him by the wounds of the nails.
And we, brethren, having beheld the Resurrection of Christ, let us bow down before Him and cry out: “Thou art our God, and we know none other beside Thee. Thou art seen as man, and known as God!” Let all the earth bow before Thee and sing: “Have mercy on us, O Lord, who believe in Thee!” To Thee we pray, with tender hearts: cleanse our sins, remit the debts of our souls that praise Thee! Now do we serve Thee, who didst suffer for us and accept death, as Thy humble servants.
Yesterday, with the thief, we were crucified with Thee—today we are risen with Thee! Yesterday, with Longinus, we cried out: “Truly this was the Son of God!” And now with the angels we declare: “Truly, Christ Resurrected!” Yesterday, with Nicodemus, we took Thee down from the Cross; today, with Magdalene, we behold Thee risen. Yesterday, with Joseph, we laid Thee in the tomb; but today, like Mary, we hear from Thee the joyful words: “Go, tell My brethren that they go into Galilee, and there shall they see Me” (Matthew 28:10).
And now, as into Galilee, gathering in this holy church, we rejoice and say: “This is the day which the Lord hath made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” For Thine is the Kingdom, O Christ, and the glory, with the Father and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen.