Commentary on the Daily Lectionary of the Orthodox Church
Author: Fr. Basil
Now retired, the Very Rev. Archpriest Basil Ross Aden has served as a parish priest, parish pastor, diocesan mission director, writer, and college teacher of New Testament and Religious Studies. He has a Master of Theology and a Doctor of Ministry degree from the University of Chicago and has published daily devotional and stewardship materials as well as a college textbook on Religious Studies. He also has published papers and/or lectured on the Orthodox perspective on Luther and the Reformation. religious freedom, current issues of religion and society, and St. John Chrysostom. He is married to Sandra and has two sons and three grandchildren. He is still active as a priest as well as a writer of articles and materials on Orthodoxy and topics of faith and life today.
The word of the day is “fear.” We may have a rosy picture of the life of the first believers who were filled with the Holy Spirit, bold in the proclamation of the Gospel, united in a common life, and fearless in the face of arrest, imprisonment, and death. Yet, in today’s reading of Acts 5:1-11, we hear a note of sobering realism. Luke reports the first instance of troubles in the community. As a divine punishment for cheating and lying, a couple falls dead at the feet of the apostles. Luke, the writer of Acts, summarizes the somber response of the faithful, “So great fear came upon all the church and upon all who heard these things” (OSB 5:11).…
The word of the day is “filled.” Most believers go through times of spiritual emptiness. They feel that they are in a spiritual “black hole.”  Their heart feels hollow.  They keep going, but they are running on an empty tank. Today in our reading of Acts 4:23-31, we read that the new community of believers gathered after the religious authorities had released Peter and John. Luke then reports, “And when they had prayed… they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness” (NKJV vs. 3).  Today in our study of Scripture, we find a way to fill an empty heart. A Prayer for Spiritual Fullness St. Paul prays that God would grant…
The word of the day is “bold.”  Many people today have claimed the privilege of promoting their views boldly and without restraint. Not wanting to be drawn into futile arguments, others have kept silent. But what about the Gospel of the Resurrection?  How forthright are we in proclaiming the most important message of Christ’s work of salvation? Today in our reading of Acts 4:13-22, we hear Peter’s daring proclamation that salvation is obtainable only in the Name of the Crucified and Risen Christ (Acts 4:12). In response, the council of religious authorities “marveled” “…when they saw the boldness of Peter and John,” though they “perceived that they [the apostles] were uneducated and untrained men” (Acts 4:13). Today we consider what constitutes…
The word of the day is “power.”  Power is the dynamic ability to do something.  It is a force that produces an effect or the capacity to act upon something. In today’s reading of Acts 4:1-10, the religious authorities arrest Peter and John for preaching the Risen Christ. And the rulers interrogate the Apostles asking, “By what power or by what name have you done this?” (Acts 4;7).  Our close reading of this question will open new insight into Peter’s response to the religious authorities and the superior nature of the power of the Name of Jesus. An Important Point Missed With one exception, all the major translations of Acts miss an important point about the question of the power…
The word of the day is “turn.” We are now in the third week of the Paschal season. How has our life changed? Yes, the joy of Pascha has given us new hope, new inspiration, and new faith. Yet has that joy transformed our life? If not, then Pascha is just another turning of the wheel of the church seasons. Unless we make purposeful and permanent changes to the way we live, when next Lent comes, we will find ourselves in the same spiritual condition as we had last year. In today’s reading of Acts 3:19-26, Peter concludes his sermon in Solomon’s Porch with the “words of life” that God has sent “His Servant Jesus” to “bless you in turning…
The word of the day is “words.” What is the main thing? Often what is most important gets lost in the swirl of events that are less significant. Today in our reading of Acts 5:12-20, we find that “many signs and wonders” are taking place as the believers meet in the temple (Acts 5:12). Yet, what was the point? Luke, the writer of Acts, records that the angel instructed the apostles about the main thing when he released them from prison. The angel said, “Go, stand in the temple, and speak to the people all the words of this life” (OSB 5:20). The important thing was not the spectacular miracles taking place and not even the healings of the sick…
The word of the day is “name.” Whenever someone does something outside the expectations of normal behavior, people are bound to ask, “Where did he or she get this?” Today in our reading of Acts 3:11-16, Peter and John explain the healing of the lame man in the Temple to the astonished onlookers.  Peter claims the source of the miracle is the Prince of Life, whom God raised from the dead (OSB vs. 16). He says, “And His name, by faith in His name, has made the man strong whom you see and know.” What the Name Represents What is in the “name”?  The name represents all that the Lord is.  To do something in the name of Jesus Christ…
Christ is Risen! The word of the day is “leaping.”  The one thing about power that we can count on is that it will fade. The laws of inertia say that a body will stay moving in a straight line unless some force acts on it. But such forces as gravity, friction, and opposing forces will slow an object down. So we might expect that the power of the resurrection to move people to faith and hope would eventually weaken. The wear and tear of time, opposition, competing claims and interests, and the resistance of the devil would dampen the enthusiasm of the new movement of believers. The Power of the Resurrection Does Not Weaken But consider our reading of…
Christ is risen! The word of the day is “gladly.”  We call something that is done by an extraordinary and mysterious power “miraculous.” We should also consider the acceptance of such a phenomenon as “miracle.” In our reading of Acts 2:38-43, we learn of the astounding reception of the initial preaching of the Gospel.  In response to the first sermon preached on Pentecost after the descent of the Holy Spirit, three thousand souls were added to the number of believers. Luke, the writer of Acts records, “Then those who gladly received his word were baptized, and that day about three thousand souls were added to them” (OSB vs. 43). Note that those who accepted Peter’s message had never heard such…
The word of the day is witness.” Today in our reading of Acts 2:22-36, the Apostle Peter preaches the first sermon after the Ascension of the Lord. In it He offers convincing evidence for the glorious resurrection of the Lord. He says, “This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses” (NKJV vs. 32). This proof of all that has happened for our salvation comes at the right time. By now, some of us might have second thoughts about the celebration of Pascha.  We might join Thomas in questioning the truth of the Gospel of the Cross and Resurrection told by the apostles. Thomas was the most famous doubter of the truth of Christ’s work of redemption.…