DYNAMIS!
A publication of St. George Orthodox Christian Cathedral
Wichita, KS

Fourth Kingdoms 2:19-22   (01/19)   Twelfth Reading at the Vigil of the Feast of Theophany

 

Blessing of Water: Fourth Kingdoms 2:19-22 SAAS, especially vs. 21: “Thus says the Lord: ‘I have healed these waters; from them there shall no longer be death or barrenness.’”  The Great Blessing of the Waters may be celebrated twice at the Feast of Theophany: the first Blessing to take place on the Paramon (the day of preparation for the Feast, a strict fast day), and the other to take place on Theophany proper.  There is no difference between the two services.  Where two Blessings are celebrated, some among the Faithful have adopted the pious custom of drinking the waters of the first blessing for health and spiritual refreshment, and then of sprinkling their homes with the water from the second Blessing.  However, the distinction between these blessed waters is purely customary and not a canonical requirement.  The water from either service may just as well be used for both purposes.

The record of the Prophet Elisha’s cleansing the spring at Jericho, the Church’s Great Blessing of the Waters at Theophany, as well as the three readings specifically associated with the Great Blessing - Is. 35:1-10 (see Jan. 4), Is. 55:1-13 (see Jan. 5), and Is. 12:3-6 (see Jan. 6) - invite us to consider the role of water for human life, both as a physical necessity and in its spiritual significance for use in cleansing by the Lord, in His renewing, and healing.

Much can be said about the necessity of water in general for human communities and for all other living creatures who share the earth with us.  When the Prophet Elisha cleansed the spring that served as Jericho’s water supply, he pronounced the will of God for all water: that it should be health-giving and never the cause of any “...death or barrenness” (4 Kg 2:21).  This explicit declaration of the will of God surely is a motivation that compels us to cooperate with the intent of laws such as the United States Clean Water Act of 1972.

As stewards of the earth’s rivers, lakes, seas, and coastal waters, we Orthodox Christians everywhere have an obligation to bend our energies to assure the future of the world’s water resources for drinking, fishing, and washing.  In truth, we are not free to turn on the water tap, mindless of our stake in efforts to clean up pollution and pass on a heritage of clean, potable, life-supporting water to generations and other life forms after us.

The men of Jericho approached the Prophet Elisha for his help with the city’s spring, for they realized that their water supply problems were not merely an issue of physical contamination but were a difficulty having a spiritual source (vs. 19).  Truly, so long as hearts and souls are not healed, there are no instant solutions to the degradation of the world’s waters.  Until we approach the basic elements of the earth with reverence, we labor in vain to heal the water sources of our cities and lands.  Thus, the Great Blessing calls water “...a gift of sanctification, a deliverance from sins unto healing of soul and body and unto every expedient purpose.”

Beloved, let us be watchful in our kinship with water, a fellow creature upon which we depend both physically and spiritually.  May God open the eyes of our hearts to the spiritual ministry of water.  In the great mystery of infinite love, God cleansed the water of Jericho in a rite of blessing for life in that city and for the whole ecosystem within which it was situated.  So let us drink the Divinely blessed waters of Theophany, sprinkle them on our homes, and give thanks as the Priests bless our homes.  God, the Holy and Life-giving Trinity, is among us giving “...redemption, the blessing of Jordan,” and providing for the “remission of sins...protection against disease...destruction of demons” unto the cleansing of our hearts and souls.

Great art Thou, O Lord, and wondrous are Thy works and no words sufficeth to hymn Thy wonders.  Glory to Thee O Lord.  Glory to Thee.

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