Subscribe
Share
Share
Embed
Fr. Paul frames the wisdom books as "functional," speaking "not to philosophers but to regular people" who need a path they can live by, not abstract speculation. Telling the story of Rehoboam, who set aside the law given through Moses for the advice
A daily note from the team at OCABS.ORG, drawing on the published works of Fr. Paul Nadim Tarazi, with citations to his books and lectures.
Readings: Proverbs 10:31-11:12; Matthew 11:27-30; Galatians 5:22-6:2; Luke 6:17-23; Ephesians 4:17-25; Luke 4:22-30.
Fr. Paul frames the wisdom books as "functional," speaking "not to philosophers but to regular people" who need a path they can live by, not abstract speculation. Telling the story of Rehoboam, who set aside the law given through Moses for the advice of his young companions, he insists on the reversed order that governs a righteous life: "You don't protect the law; it protects you." He adds that even a wise word or a prophetic message is met by refusal in its own generation, yet the hope it carries is not thereby canceled, only pushed toward the hearers still to come.
Fr. Paul reads the invitation "Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me" as Matthew's way of presenting Jesus as the bearer of "the new Torah." The yoke is easy because the one who gives it is himself humble; scripture calls him "gentle and lowly in heart," and this humility, not any claim to bring something wholly new, marks the true teacher whose burden gives rest rather than crushing. Fr. Paul ties this Matthean saying directly to Paul's language of "the law of Christ" in Galatians, treating the two texts as speaking of the same reality.
In Galatians, the fruit of the Spirit stands opposed to the works of the flesh already named, and Paul shifts into the first person precisely so that Jew and Gentile are held equally within it. Fr. Paul explains that those "who are of Christ" have crucified the flesh because the realm of the Law has been abolished and replaced by the gift of the Spirit, not because of a private choice made at baptism. Freed from anxious self-concern, the believer becomes free to "serve one another thtough love," which is what bearing one another's burdens means in practice.
Sources: Orthodox Audio Bible Commentary, Wisdom Literature (vol. 20-22), part 1, at 2:34:33; Orthodox Audio Bible Commentary, Wisdom Literature (vol. 20-22), part 1, at 1:15:03; Orthodox Audio Bible Commentary, Wisdom Literature (vol. 20-22), part 1, at 1:11:11; Tarazi, 2 Corinthians: A Commentary, p. 149; Tarazi, The New Testament: An Introduction, vol. 4, Matthew and the Canon, p. 187; Tarazi, The New Testament: An Introduction, vol. 4, Matthew and the Canon, p. 217; Tarazi, Galatians: A Commentary, p. 303; Tarazi, Galatians: A Commentary, p. 302; Tarazi, Galatians: A Commentary, p. 285.
Opening music: Taksim Arbi, Bichi Slama, oud (Tunis, Archives de la Parole, 1930s), public domain. Source: gallica.bnf.fr / BnF.
A daily note from the team at OCABS.ORG, drawing on the published works of Fr. Paul Nadim Tarazi, with citations to his books and lectures.
Every day: the readings of the Orthodox lectionary read in full, a short note on them, and a root pair from the Consolation of Consonants, Hebrew and Arabic, chosen for the day’s readings. About five minutes a day, from OCABS on the Ephesus School Network. Read each note, with its citations, at ocabs.org.