Tuesday, May 24 : Aphrahat

The upright and righteous and good and wise fear not nor tremble at death, because of the great hope that is before them. They at every time are mindful of death, their exodus, and of the last day in which the children of Adam shall be born. Paul, the apostle said:— But death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those who did not sin, and thus death came to all the children of Adam”(Rm 5:14.12) …Thus, death came to all people from Moses until the world shall end. Yet Moses preached that its kingdom is made void; death hoped that he would bind fast all people and would be king over them for ever…, but when the Holy One called Moses from the bush he said thus to him: “I am the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob” (Ex 3,6). When death heard this utterance, he trembled and feared and was terrified and knew… that God is king of the dead and of the living, and that it is appointed to the children of Adam to come forth from his darkness. And observe that our Redeemer Jesus also, when he repeated this utterance to the Sadducees, thus said: “He is not God of the dead, but of the living, for to him all are alive” (Lk 20:38)… When Jesus, the slayer of death, came, and clothed himself in a body from the seed of Adam, and was crucified and tasted death. When death perceived that he had come down unto him, he was shaken from his place, and he closed his gates. Then Christ burst his gates, and entered into him, and began to despoil all his possessions. But when the dead saw light in the darkness, they lifted up their heads from the bondage of death, and looked forth, and saw the splendour of the Messiah King … And death saw that his darkness was beginning to be done away, and some of the righteous who were sleeping arose to ascend with him, then he made known to him that when he shall come in the fulness of time, he will bring forth all the prisoners from his power, and they shall go forth to see the light.

maronite readings – rosary,team