Слово на Святое Христово Воскресение . Святого Епифания, епископа Кипрского 16

Now the three-day Sun of righteousness has risen and illuminated all creation. The three-day and eternal Christ, like a bunch of grapes, grew and filled the entire universe with joy. Let us see the non-evening light; now we will rise early and be filled with the light of joy. The gates of hell were opened by Christ, and the dead, as if from sleep, arose. Christ rose again - the rebellion of the fallen, and raised Adam with Him. Christ has risen - the Resurrection of all, and freed Eve from her oath. Christ is risen - the Resurrection, and, instead of disorder, splendor appeared in the world. The Lord arose as if sleeping (Ps. 77:65) and, having defeated, overthrew all His enemies. Christ rose again, and gave joy to all creation, - rose, and the prisons of hell were empty, - rose, and changed the corruption of nature into incorruption. The Lord rose again and restored Adam to the ancient dignity of immortality. All creation new in Christ is renewed by the Resurrection. The whole world is made new through Christ. Now the new sky is a sky more beautiful than the visible sky: for on it is not the sun that sets daily, but the Sun, seeing Which on the cross, the ministering sun was ashamed and hid itself - the Sun about which the Prophet says: the Sun of righteousness will shine upon you who fear My name (Mal. 4:2), - the Sun, the light of which illuminates the Church. It is the Sun that makes the foolish wise, it is the Sun that establishes our faith on a solid foundation. For the sake of this Sun of truth, Christ, the heavenly Church was built, which is illuminated not by the moon, now waxing, now waning, but by eternally shining grace - and in which there appear not just any wandering stars, but newly illuminated stars rising from the baptismal font. The Church does not have rain-bearing clouds, but theological teachers; it is not based on troubled waters, but on sacred dogmas. This day, which the Lord has made, we will rejoice spiritually and be gloriously glad in it (Ps. 117:24). It is more solemn than all festivals. It constitutes a celebration of both renewal and salvation for the whole world. This holiday is the head and summit of all holidays. This is the day that God blessed and sanctified (Genesis 2:3), because He rested on that day from all His works, having completed the salvation of the earthly and the underworld together. On this day God stopped the rituals of serving idols and animals, on this day He stopped the power of everything resistant, on this day He stopped demonic festivals and celebrations, on this day He stopped bloody idol sacrifices. On this day He stopped the power of the tyrant and destroyed the sting of death that bit people; on this day He gave the creation new statutes and laws; on this day He stopped the legal Jewish Passover; on this day He fulfilled all the types, signs and prophecies. Our Easter is the true Easter - Christ, who sacrificed Himself. In Christ, a new creation: in Christ a new faith, a new law, a new people of God, a new (and not ancient) Israel, a new Passover, a new and spiritual circumcision, a new and bloodless sacrifice, a new and Divine covenant. So, be renewed now, and renew the right spirit in your hearts, in order to understand the mystery of the new and true holiday, so that you can now enjoy the joy of truly heavenly and come away, having learned the undecaying mysteries of the new Passover, established in place of the ancient, transformative one, in order to know together what is the difference between us and the Jews, and what is the relationship between the prototype and the truth. In ancient times, for the salvation of the people, from a high mountain (Ex. 32:15) the lawgiver Moses was sent from God, as an image of the law. For the salvation of our race, the Lawgiver, the Lord, God from God, was sent down from the heavenly Mountain - sent down as the Truth itself. Moses freed Pharaoh and Egypt from the yoke; Christ delivered us from the devil and demons. Moses, having killed an Egyptian who had treated a Jew unjustly, hid him in the sand (Ex. 2:12); Christ, having defeated the devil, cast him into the abyss. Moses reconciled two brothers who were at enmity with each other (Ex. 2:13); Christ also reconciled His two peoples, uniting heaven and earth. There, Pharaoh's daughter, coming to the river to wash herself, found and took Moses (Ex. 2:5); here the Church - the daughter of Christ - in the baptismal font finds Christ, not Moses three months old in the ark, but (instead of Moses) three days old from the tomb. There Israel celebrated the transformative Passover at night; here we brightly celebrate Easter during the day, there in the evening of the day, and here in the evening of the times of the century. There they were anointed with the blood of the doors (Ex. 12:7); here the hearts of believers are sealed with the blood of Christ. There the sacrifice was made at night, and the crossing of the Red Sea followed at night; here salvation is accomplished through entry into the (Red) Sea of ​​Baptism, by which the fire of the Spirit is ignited. This is the water over which the Holy Spirit truly floats, and in which He appears, in which the head of the dragon, the very prince of dragons and demons and the entire host of devils, is crushed. There Moses baptized the people of Israel with night baptism. There a cloud covered the people (Ex. 13:21, 22); and Christians are overshadowed by the power of the Most High. There, after delivering the people, Moses' sister, Miriam, makes up the congregation (Ex. 15:21); here the Church of Christ with all its children celebrates the salvation of the pagans. There Moses resorts to the created stone (Ex. 17:6); here the people flock to the Stone of Faith (1 Cor. 10:4). There the tablets of the law are broken (Ex. 32:19), as a sign that the law must pass away and become old; here the Divine laws remain unchanged. There, as a punishment for the people, a calf was melted (Ex. 32:20); here, for the salvation of the people, the Lamb of God is sacrificed. There the stone is struck with a rod; here the Stone - Christ, is pierced into the rib. There water flowed from the rock (Ex. 17:6); here blood and water flowed from the life-giving rib (John 19:34). They received from heaven the flesh of quails (Ex. 16:13); we received from the heights of the Spirit, in the form of a dove. They ate the temporary manna and died (John 6:49–50); we eat the Bread of the eternal life. All this ancient stuff has decayed and passed away like a shadow; on the contrary, what concerns us grows, flourishes, and continues constantly. This is how our Easter was foreshadowed. Thus, like a shadow, all events under the law passed away. Think in this way about the present holiday; consider everything that Moses and the Prophets said about the present day, so that you can be convinced of the truth of the Resurrection: for the veil of unbelief is before everyone’s eyes. There are countless types of images of the rising from the dead and the resurrection. The sacrifice of Isaac reliably testifies to it (Gen. 22:1–13). He was typified by Joseph's ditch (Gen. 37:24), into which he was thrown by his brothers, and from which he emerged without suffering death. It was also typified by the den of Jeremiah (Jer. 38:6), from which this one was brought out, having been delivered from corruption and uncleanness. The Resurrection of Christ was also typified by Jonah’s whale, from which he emerged after three days (John 2:1–11). The prison of Joseph can also serve as a prototype of the prison of hell. The adulterous Synagogue (wife of Pentephry) plunged him into it; but, after three years, he came out of it unharmed (Gen. 41:14), just as Christ rose from the dead on the third day. In addition, Daniel’s den of lions also prefigured the Savior’s tomb, from which He emerged alive, having escaped the wrath of the lions of hell and death (Dan. 14:12). With this expose the Jews, with this reproach them. So defend the suffering and Resurrection of Christ. This is the weapon he is giving you; the current word for this fight! These are the sacraments that a real holiday teaches you. What after this? Will we now celebrate alone, or will we also remember our neighbors? Will we enjoy the brightness of the holiday alone, or will we take care of others? Our celebration, if we want it to be pleasant and pleasing to the Lord, must necessarily be united with the general sighing of the Church to God and remembrance of the needs of our brothers, our neighbors, who endure all kinds of need and poverty: for if one soul suffers, all people suffer with him (1 Cor. 12:26). So, let us be compassionate towards our brethren, who are our members, and we will help them: some through their own acquisitions, others through other benefactions, and all, in general, through our prayers before God. Let there be, I beg you, a common prayer for all. Let us be attentive to the speaker: pray for one another, that you may be healed (Ik. 5:16). Let us be attentive to the words of Christ: if two of you on earth agree to ask for anything, everything will be given to them (Matthew 18:9). The prayer of the Church, brothers, is a powerful weapon. Consensual prayer to God, especially the prayer of a believing people, is a solid wall. No one dare say: God will not listen to sinners (John 9:31)! He especially listens to the prayers of the humble, especially those who labor for His name. It is their prayers that He will hear immediately; their prayers, beloved, are a powerful weapon. Often during celebrations, the love of kings grants forgiveness and freedom to many condemned... So, I pray for your love, constantly remember in your prayers your brothers who are in need, especially at that most sacred hour in which you take into your hands the priceless pearls of the Body of Christ. Amen 17. In short. Epiphan. Constant., sive Salamis in Cypro episcop. Opera omnia graece et latine. Parisiis. 1822 ann., vol. II, pag. 276–284; compare Christ. Read 1838, II, pp. 21–38; Sunday Read XIX (1855–56), pp. 1–4. You might be interested in: