Today, 3 May 2015, the Orthodox Church is on the 4th Sunday after Easter, also called of the Paralysed man.
The evangelical pericope of John 5:1-15, presenting us the healing of the paralysed man at Bethsaida pool, was read in all the Orthodox churches at the Divine Liturgy.
His Beatitude Daniel, Patriarch of Romania delivered a sermon in which he explained the teaching of the gospel of the day, which shows us that Jesus Christ, our Saviour, goes to the pool of Bethsaida with a certain purpose, namely to heal a sick that had been suffering for 38 years who was waiting for God’s mercy and help.
Perfect patience and deep lowliness and permanent hope bring salvation
Jesus Christ, Son of God, who was made man for the people’s salvation came to this man who had been paralysed for 38 years and helped by nobody, the Primate of the Romanian Orthodox Church underlined. “Because this man had been waiting with great patience and permanent hope for a man to help him to be healed, God-the-Man, Jesus Christ came to help him. Jesus, the Lord, knew about the long sufferance of the paralysed man, as well as about his great repentance for his sins, with no rebellion and much hope of healing. When the sick man told Jesus: “Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool”, He expressed, in fact, more than a request, he gave an explanation. He felt that the man who could help him was near him, the man who could help him get into the pool after the angel stirred the water. But the sick man would see that the man near him had not come to help him get into the pool, but to heal him right away and discreetly through his words, saying: “Stand up, take your mat and walk”. Full of the faith strengthened by sufferance, the paralysed man from the pool of Bethsaida stood up, took up the mat he was lying on and started walking. In the meantime, the One who told him: “Stand up, take your mat and walk”, did not remain where He had healed the man, not to be recognised by those present at Bethsaida pool”.
Good must be done any time
The Patriarch of Romania has also emphasised the fact that the Gospel shows us that good must be done any time.
“While healing this paralysed man on a Saturday day, Jesus Christ, our Saviour, shows us that we must do good all the time, both on a week day and on a holiday. We must always show merciful love and help those distressed, sick and lonely. Why that? That is because we must show mercy and kindness to those who need our help, because we must glorify the Good Merciful God. The merciful and devoted love of the people for their fellow beings in distress is the sign that the merciful love of God for humans works through those who help other people”, His Beatitude said.
The Church is the new Bethsaida, the space of healing or the place of raising through the healing saving grace of the Holy Sacraments
Bethsaida pool is the representation of the salvation through the work of the Church, the Patriarch of Romania said: “The Holy Fathers say that the angel who stirred the water and brought the healing of the first man who got into the pool was an anticipation of the grace of the Sacrament of the Holy Baptism, with the difference that in the Old Testament the grace was given as a foretaste, while in the Church of Christ, the grace of forgiveness and of healing the sins and diseases is given in its fullness. Only the first man who got into the pool was healed at the time, but now all those who are baptised in the pool or water of baptism are healed. The one who is baptised is healed of the disease of the ancient sin and of all the sins committed till then as well as of the physical diseases if they have strong faith. The Church is the new Bethsaida, the space of healing or the place of raising, through the healing saving grace of the Holy Sacraments: Baptism, Repentance, Holy Unction, Holy Eucharist because the Church is the mysterious Body of the Crucified and Risen Christ full of the grace of the Most Holy Trinity”.
On 10 May 2015, the Church will be on the 5th Sunday after the Easter, of the Samaritan woman.
