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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Hill Country Homilies, weekly homilies from Holy Annunciation

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<v Speaker 1>Orthodox Church in Liberty Hill, Texas. Holy Annunciation is an

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<v Speaker 1>old calendar Orthodox Church, sharing the faith of the apostles

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<v Speaker 1>and the love of Christ with all who seek His truth.

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<v Speaker 1>Now let's listen to this week's homily.

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<v Speaker 2>In the name of the Father, and the Son, and

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<v Speaker 2>the Holy Spirit, glory to Jesus Christ. Have a seat

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<v Speaker 2>if you wish. Now, some of you are old enough

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<v Speaker 2>to remember when Europe was both literally and symbolically divided

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<v Speaker 2>by a massive concrete barrier called the Berlin Wall. Others

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<v Speaker 2>may know of it only from history. It was built

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<v Speaker 2>in 1961 by the communist government of East Germany. And

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<v Speaker 2>the wall stretched throughout the city of Berlin and became

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<v Speaker 2>the most visible symbol of a world divided between liberty

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<v Speaker 2>and totalitarianism. Families were separated, freedom of movement was restricted,

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<v Speaker 2>armed guards stood watch to prevent people from crossing from

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<v Speaker 2>the Soviet East to the Allied West, and many died

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<v Speaker 2>trying to escape from one side to the other. In 1987,

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<v Speaker 2>President Ronald Reagan stood before that wall and famously challenged

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<v Speaker 2>the Soviet leader, demanding, Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall.

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<v Speaker 2>And two years later, the wall was gone. And that

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<v Speaker 2>which had been separated began to join together in a

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<v Speaker 2>new era of freedom. Now, you may be wondering why

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<v Speaker 2>I begin a homily with a story about the Cold

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<v Speaker 2>War and the fall of communism. But the story really

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<v Speaker 2>isn't about the fall of communism. It's about that wall

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<v Speaker 2>and everything that it stood for. And today's gospel, likewise,

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<v Speaker 2>begins with its own account of a wall. We all

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<v Speaker 2>know the parable of the wicked vine dresser that was

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<v Speaker 2>read today. A landowner plants a vineyard, entrusts it to tenants,

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<v Speaker 2>and departs into a far country. And when the season arrives,

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<v Speaker 2>he sends servants to collect that which is rightfully his.

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<v Speaker 2>But his servants are beaten, they're rejected, and they're killed.

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<v Speaker 2>More servants are sent and they suffer the same fate.

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<v Speaker 2>And finally, the owner sends his beloved son, believing that

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<v Speaker 2>they will respect him. For the tenants not only cast

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<v Speaker 2>him out, they murder him as well, believing that they

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<v Speaker 2>can then lay claim to his inheritance. And we understand

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<v Speaker 2>clearly what the Lord is describing. The servants are the

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<v Speaker 2>prophets whom God sent time and again to Israel, but

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<v Speaker 2>they were rejected. And the son, of course, is Christ

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<v Speaker 2>himself rejected again. and crucified by those who should have

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<v Speaker 2>received him. And we also know the outcome. The unfaithful

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<v Speaker 2>tenants are judged and the vineyard is entrusted to others

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<v Speaker 2>who will render its fruits in due season. A prophetic

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<v Speaker 2>image of the judgment that would befall unbelieving Israel and

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<v Speaker 2>the calling of the Gentiles into the kingdom. Yet because

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<v Speaker 2>these themes are so familiar to us, we often hurry

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<v Speaker 2>straight to the crime and the punishment. But before we

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<v Speaker 2>do so today, it's worth pausing at the beginning of

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<v Speaker 2>the parable and asking a different question. What had the

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<v Speaker 2>owner done for the vineyard before any of this tragedy unfolded?

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<v Speaker 2>The gospel reading begins, there was a certain householder who

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<v Speaker 2>planted a vineyard and hedged it round about and digged

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<v Speaker 2>a wine press in it and built a tower and

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<v Speaker 2>let it out to husbandmen and went into a far country.

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<v Speaker 2>So right off, we can see that the householder who

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<v Speaker 2>represents the father didn't just plop tenants into the middle

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<v Speaker 2>of bare land. Instead, he carefully prepared everything that they

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<v Speaker 2>would need to bring forth the good fruit. He planted

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<v Speaker 2>the vineyard before the tenants were even there. He placed

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<v Speaker 2>a hedge around it and made both a wine press

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<v Speaker 2>and a tower. In other words, he let out his

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<v Speaker 2>vineyard to the tenants he chose with all that they

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<v Speaker 2>needed to flourish. The fathers of the church tell us

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<v Speaker 2>that each of these items symbolize God's provision for the Jews.

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<v Speaker 2>The winepress represented the altar upon which they would offer

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<v Speaker 2>their sacrifice to Him. The tower represented the temple from

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<v Speaker 2>which the worship of God would be given. And before

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<v Speaker 2>any of that, we are told that He hedged it

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<v Speaker 2>round about. That is, this entire vineyard was enclosed by

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<v Speaker 2>the sort of thick, tall hedges that you might see

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<v Speaker 2>in photos of royal gardens or arboretums. the entire vineyard

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<v Speaker 2>was protected by this hedge wall. When the fathers speak

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<v Speaker 2>of this hedge, they characterize it differently in what precise

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<v Speaker 2>representation is intended. But to a one, they represent it

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<v Speaker 2>in a similar manner. Blessed Theophilact, whose commentary is said

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<v Speaker 2>to be the best mirror of the mind of the

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<v Speaker 2>church in matters of scriptural interpretation, says that the hedge

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<v Speaker 2>represents the law which prevented them from mixing with the Gentiles.

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<v Speaker 2>This encompasses a literal prohibition on mixing, for instance, the

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<v Speaker 2>bar under the Mosaic Law on intermarriage between Jews and Gentiles.

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<v Speaker 2>But since it's evident... that the Jews and the Gentiles

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<v Speaker 2>were in commerce regularly, the hedge is interpreted to mean

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<v Speaker 2>not just the law of Moses, but all laws that

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<v Speaker 2>were intended to represent and to preserve the chosen nation

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<v Speaker 2>of God from pagan influence. So the hedge is intended

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<v Speaker 2>to represent a protection for the tenants, for Israel. But

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<v Speaker 2>this is the thing about walls. They can both protect

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<v Speaker 2>and imprison. And if all things were prepared for the

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<v Speaker 2>husband to bring forth fruit for the householder, then the

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<v Speaker 2>fact that they slew the servants and the son tells

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<v Speaker 2>us that something went horribly, horribly wrong. And what went

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<v Speaker 2>wrong was the law itself, or rather its misuse. We

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<v Speaker 2>all know that the law was given to Israel after

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<v Speaker 2>the fall, but why was it given? The law was

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<v Speaker 2>never to be an end to itself. It was never

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<v Speaker 2>a path to salvation. Rather, the law was given to

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<v Speaker 2>preserve Israel, to restrain sin and to prepare mankind for

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<v Speaker 2>Christ and to protect the true worship of God until

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<v Speaker 2>the coming of the Messiah. As St. Irenaeus pointed out,

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<v Speaker 2>the purpose of the law was to prepare them for

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<v Speaker 2>the coming of Christ. Yet the Jews remained unwilling to

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<v Speaker 2>be subject to it. All this law erected for their protection,

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<v Speaker 2>not from outside enemies, but from their own hard-heartedness. all

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<v Speaker 2>this law became the seed of their destruction. Irenaeus reminds

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<v Speaker 2>us that not only by actual transgression did they set

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<v Speaker 2>the law of God at naught, but they also set

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<v Speaker 2>up their own law in opposition to it, which is

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<v Speaker 2>termed even to the present day pharisaical. And so this

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<v Speaker 2>law that was intended for their protection, for their education,

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<v Speaker 2>remember Paul calls the law a tutor, to bring us

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<v Speaker 2>to Christ, and ultimately their reunion with God turned instead

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<v Speaker 2>to a prison which separated them from their Lord, and

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<v Speaker 2>which caused them to slay the prophets that were sent

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<v Speaker 2>for their edification, and finally even the Son who was

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<v Speaker 2>sent for their salvation. Walls often seem to offer protection

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<v Speaker 2>and safety when we walk in fear of the world

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<v Speaker 2>around us. But as Christians, we're not to fear the

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<v Speaker 2>material world which God has made for us. We are

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<v Speaker 2>to fear God, before whom even the angels fall down

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<v Speaker 2>and cover their faces. And so having betrayed the very

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<v Speaker 2>Lord who planted them in this vineyard, the tenants find

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<v Speaker 2>themselves punished and cast out. And the vineyard is then

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<v Speaker 2>open to new tenants who will render to the Lord

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<v Speaker 2>the fruits that he is due. Archbishop Averke warns us

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<v Speaker 2>not to understand this parable as being about the second

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<v Speaker 2>coming of Christ. Rather, he speaks of it as to

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<v Speaker 2>the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D., the end of

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<v Speaker 2>the Old Testament priesthood. and the fall of the Sanhedrin

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<v Speaker 2>scribes and the Pharisees. The new vine dressers are the

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<v Speaker 2>apostles and their successors who become the pastors of the church.

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<v Speaker 2>And of course, one of the first things the apostles

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<v Speaker 2>had to deal with was the question of the law.

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<v Speaker 2>And what was meant for those outside of Jerusalem now

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<v Speaker 2>to be joined to Christ in his body, which is

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<v Speaker 2>the church. Because the first Christians were Jews. They worshipped

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<v Speaker 2>in the temple. They kept the feast. They'd been raised

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<v Speaker 2>under the law of Moses. But as the gospel spread

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<v Speaker 2>among the Gentiles, a great controversy emerged. Must these converts

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<v Speaker 2>also be circumcised and keep the whole Mosaic law in

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<v Speaker 2>order to be saved? The apostles gathered in Jerusalem, it's

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<v Speaker 2>in Acts 15, to decide the matter. And after hearing

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<v Speaker 2>from Peter and Paul, Barnabas and James, they concluded under

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<v Speaker 2>the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, also in Scripture, that

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<v Speaker 2>the Gentiles were not to be placed under the yoke

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<v Speaker 2>of the Mosaic law. Instead, they imposed only a few

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<v Speaker 2>necessary restrictions for the sake of holiness and peace within

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<v Speaker 2>the church. In other words, the apostles quickly recognized that

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<v Speaker 2>the law had served a divine purpose in preparing for Christ,

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<v Speaker 2>but that with the coming of Christ, a new stage

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<v Speaker 2>in God's plan had become. The church was not abandoning

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<v Speaker 2>the law as though it had been evil. Rather, she

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<v Speaker 2>had understood that its purpose had been fulfilled in the

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<v Speaker 2>Messiah to whom it had always pointed. And for those

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<v Speaker 2>who protest, let us remember what St. John Chrysostom says,

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<v Speaker 2>recollecting Paul's epistle to the Galatians, he writes of the

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<v Speaker 2>time before Christ, the law, then it was our tutor,

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<v Speaker 2>and we were kept shut up under it. not as

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<v Speaker 2>an adversary, but as a fellow worker of grace. However,

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<v Speaker 2>after the coming of Christ, continued subjugation to the law

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<v Speaker 2>may hinder those who, like the Gentiles, seek after Christ.

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<v Speaker 2>So Christus continues, but if when grace has come... It

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<v Speaker 2>continues to hold us down. It becomes an adversary. For

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<v Speaker 2>if it confines those who ought to go forward to grace,

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<v Speaker 2>then it is the destruction of our salvation. The law,

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<v Speaker 2>despite its intended function, in spite of its laudable intentions,

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<v Speaker 2>became a prison for the Jews. Applied outwardly, it became

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<v Speaker 2>a stumbling block for the Gentiles. And since no man

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<v Speaker 2>was ever saved under the law, what place could it

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<v Speaker 2>even have when Christ has conquered death and made for

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<v Speaker 2>us a path to the resurrection? The apostles lay upon

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<v Speaker 2>the faithful a few simple requirements to keep peace in

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<v Speaker 2>the church. Christ calls us to live out two great commandments,

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<v Speaker 2>to love God and to love our neighbor. When we

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<v Speaker 2>put on Christ, we need to be neither imprisoned nor

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<v Speaker 2>stumbling blocks to our brothers. We do not need a

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<v Speaker 2>tutor when we have beheld the teacher face to face.

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<v Speaker 2>And having said that, let us be clear in our

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<v Speaker 2>understanding of those traditions that the church has bequeathed to us,

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<v Speaker 2>because perhaps the greatest mistake we can make is to

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<v Speaker 2>think that orthodox praxis is some sort of a new law,

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<v Speaker 2>replacing the old one, just another list of rules with

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<v Speaker 2>different content, because it's not. We fast, we pray, we

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<v Speaker 2>keep the feasts, we make prostrations, we confess our sins,

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<v Speaker 2>not because God needs these things, not because we can

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<v Speaker 2>earn salvation through them, but because these are the actions

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<v Speaker 2>of those who love God. A husband doesn't remain faithful

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<v Speaker 2>to his wife because a law book commands it. He

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<v Speaker 2>does so because he loves her. A child who loves

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<v Speaker 2>his father does not ask, what is the minimum required

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<v Speaker 2>of me, but delights in all ways to please him.

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<v Speaker 2>In the same way, the practices of the church are

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<v Speaker 2>not chains placed upon us, but the language of love.

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<v Speaker 2>They are age-old examples by which love for God is learned, expressed,

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<v Speaker 2>and deepened. If we keep them merely as legal obligations,

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<v Speaker 2>we begin to build our own prison. We begin to

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<v Speaker 2>plant a new hedge. But if we keep them out

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<v Speaker 2>of our love for Christ, then they cease to be

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<v Speaker 2>burdens and become a joy. For the Christian life is

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<v Speaker 2>not about conformity to a code, but communion with a person.

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<v Speaker 2>The law could command obedience, but only Christ can teach

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<v Speaker 2>us to love. So brothers and sisters, as we depart today,

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<v Speaker 2>let us tear down that wall of legalism that tangles

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<v Speaker 2>so many in today's world. Let us focus ourselves on

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<v Speaker 2>the two great commandments of love, love of God and

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<v Speaker 2>love of neighbor. And let us embrace the praxis that

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<v Speaker 2>we have received, not out of fear, not out of duty,

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<v Speaker 2>but out of love for God, making our small offering

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<v Speaker 2>of ourselves out of our own free will. And having

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<v Speaker 2>been made sons of God, not by the law, but

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<v Speaker 2>by faith, let us draw near to Him who has

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<v Speaker 2>given us a promise through His incarnation, voluntary ascent upon

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<v Speaker 2>the cross. To Him be all glory, honor, and worship

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<v Speaker 2>of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

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<v Speaker 1>Thanks for listening to Hill Country Homilies. For more information,

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<v Speaker 1>visit Holy Annunciation Orthodox Church at www.AnnunciationTX.com and please join

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<v Speaker 1>us again next week.