Ἡ παραβολὴ τοῦ Δείπνου (Λουκ 14, 16-24)

Anthony Bloom (Metropolitan of Sourozh (1914- 2003))

Στὸ ὄνομα τοῦ Πατρὸς καὶ τοῦ Υἱοῦ καὶ τοῦ Ἁγίου Πνεύματος

Ξανὰ καὶ ξανὰ ἀκοῦμε τούτη τὴν παραβολὴ τοῦ Χριστοῦ. Ἂν μονάχα τὴν δεχόμασταν βαθιὰ στὴν καρδιά μας, ἐὰν βλέπαμε τοὺς ἑαυτούς μας ὅπως ἀπεικονίζονται σ’ αὐτήν! Πόσοι εἶναι ἐκεῖνοι ποὺ περιγράφονται στὴν παραβολή, ποὺ θὰ μποροῦσαν νὰ ποῦν στὸν Κύριο ὅταν τοὺς καλεῖ - ὄχι νὰ κάνουν κάτι ἰδιαίτερο, ἀλλὰ ἁπλὰ νὰ εἶναι μαζί Του, νὰ μοιραστοῦν τὴν χαρά Του, νὰ γίνουν μέτοχοι τῆς Θείας Χάριτος- πόσοι ἀπὸ ἐμᾶς θὰ Τοῦ ἔλεγαν (καὶ τὸ κάνουμε, ἀλλὰ τὸ συνειδητοποιοῦμε;): Κύριε, ἀνήκω στὴν γῆ, δὲν μὲ ἔφτιαξες ἀπὸ τὴν γῆ, δὲν ἔχω δημιουργηθεῖ ἀπὸ τὴν σκόνη; Ἡ γῆ εἶναι ἡ μητέρα μου, εἶναι τὸ πιὸ κοντινὸ πράγμα σὲ μένα, τῆς ἀνήκω. Ξεχνώντας ὅτι πράγματι τῆς ἀνήκουμε· ἔχουμε φτιαχτεῖ ἀπὸ αὐτήν, ἔχουμε διαμορφωθεῖ ἀπὸ αὐτήν, ἀλλὰ θὰ ἐπιστρέψουμε σ’ αὐτὴν σὰν σκόνη, ἐκτὸς ἐὰν ὑπάρχει μέσα μας ἡ ἄλλη προοπτική, ἐκτὸς ἐὰν συνειδητοποιοῦμε, ὄχι μονάχα μὲ τὸ νοῦ, ὅτι πράγματι δημιουργηθήκαμε ἀπὸ τὴν γῆ, ἀλλὰ ὅμως ἀπὸ τὸν ἰσχυρό, δημιουργικὸ λόγο τοῦ Θεοῦ, καὶ ὅτι ἀνήκουμε σ’ Ἐκεῖνον ποὺ πρόφερε αὐτὸν τὸν λόγο, ὅτι συγγενεύουμε μ’ Ἐκεῖνον πιὸ πολὺ ἀπ’ ὅ,τι μὲ τούτη τὴ γῆ. Νοιώθουμε σὰν νὰ ἔχουμε ριζώσει βαθιὰ σ’αὐτήν, σὰν ν’ ἀντλοῦμε ἀπὸ ἐκεῖ αὐτὸ ποὺ εἴμαστε: τὴ ζωὴ· ἀλλὰ ἐπίσης αὐτὰ ποὺ ἡ γῆ γεννᾶ, ὀμορφιὰ καὶ χαρά, καὶ τὸ κάθε τι· καὶ εἶναι τόσο εὔκολο νὰ ξεχάσουμε ὅτι ἔχουμε κληθεῖ νὰ γίνουμε κάτι περισσότερο ἀπὸ τὴ σκόνη αὐτῆς τῆς γῆς!

Καὶ ὕστερα πόσο συχνὰ σκεφτόμαστε, ὅτι δὲν μᾶς μένει καιρὸς γιὰ νὰ σχετιστοῦμε μὲ τὸν Θεό, νὰ εἴμαστε μαζί Του, νὰ εἴμαστε ἁπλὰ χαρούμενοι, νὰ εἴμαστε μαζὶ μ’ Ἐκεῖνον; Μπορεῖ νὰ εἶναι κάτι ποὺ νοιώθω ὅτι εἶναι σημαντικό! Ἴσως νὰ εἶναι κάτι ποὺ φανταζόμαστε ὅτι εἶναι σημαντικὸ γιὰ τὸν Θεὸ- ἔχω τὸ χρόνο νὰ βρίσκομαι μαζί Του; Ἴσως ἀργότερα νὰ εἴμαστε μαζί, ὅταν ὅλα θὰ ἐκπληρωθοῦν ἢ ὅταν ὁ θάνατος θὰ ἔχει κόψει τὰ δεσμὰ τῆς ζωῆς, τὸν σύνδεσμό μας μὲ τὴ γῆ καὶ αὐτὸ ποῦ φανταζόμαστε ὅτι εἶναι τὸ ἔργο μας ποὺ δὲν ἔχει τέλος· ἄλλος ἕνας θεολόγος τοῦ παρελθόντος εἶχε πεῖ ὅτι ἡ εἰκόνα μὲ τὰ πέντε ζευγάρια βόδια μᾶς μιλάει πράγματι γιὰ τὸ ἔργο ποὺ πρέπει νὰ φέρουμε εἰς πέρας· ἢ δὲν ἀντιπροσωπεύουν ἴσως τὶς πέντε αἰσθήσεις μας; Τὶς πέντε αἰσθήσεις ποὺ χρησιμοποιοῦμε συνεχῶς πρὸς κάθε κατεύθυνση, ἄναρχα, χωρὶς σκοπό, ποὺ μᾶς καθιστοῦν τυφλοὺς σὲ ὅ,τι δὲν βλέπουμε;

Καὶ τότε, ὁ τελευταῖος ἄνθρωπος τῆς παραβολῆς εἶπε, δὲν μπορῶ νὰ μοιραστῶ τὴ χαρά σου, Κύριε, ἔχω τὴ δική μου. Ἔχω γυναίκα, ἡ καρδιά μου εἶναι γεμάτη ἀπὸ χαρά! Μπορῶ νὰ γυρίσω τὴν πλάτη στὴν χαρὰ ποὺ νοιώθω, νὰ τὴν ξεχάσω γιὰ μία στιγμή, νὰ τὴν ἀφήσω καὶ νὰ μοιραστῶ τὴ δική σου; Ἂς γίνει ἡ χαρά μου, χαρὰ τῆς κάθε ἡμέρας· ἂς χάσει τὴ φρεσκάδα της, καὶ ἴσως τότε νὰ μοιραστῶ τὴ δική σου χαρά.

Αὐτὲς δὲν εἶναι διάφορες εἰκόνες ποὺ περιγράφουν τὴ ζωή μας; Καὶ τί μπορεῖ ὁ Θεὸς νὰ κάνει γι’ αὐτό; Προσφέρει τὸν ἑαυτό Του· θέλει νὰ μοιραστεῖ μαζί μας ὅ,τι ὑπάρχει: ναί, τούτη ἀκόμα τὴ γῆ, ἀλλὰ μὲ τοὺς ὅρους Του· γιὰ νὰ χρησιμοποιήσω μία εἰκόνα ἀπὸ τὸν Ἅγιο Ἐφραὶμ τὸν Σύρο, γιὰ νὰ κάνει γιὰ μᾶς τὴ γῆ μύηση ἑνὸς μυστηρίου: ἕνα μυστήριο, μιὰ θεϊκὴ πράξη ὅπου ὁ ἴδιος ἀποκαλύπτεται, καὶ τὰ μέσα μὲ τὰ ὁποῖα ἀποκαλύπτει τὸν ἑαυτό Του, γίνονται ἱερά, ἅγια, λάμπουν μέσα στὸ φῶς τῆς Θεϊκῆς δόξας. Ναί, θέλει ἀπὸ ἐμᾶς νὰ ἐκπληρώσουμε ἕνα ἔργο στὴ γῆ, ἀλλὰ αὐτὸ τὸ ἔργο θὰ πρέπει νὰ εἶναι αὐτὸ ποὺ κάνει Ἐκεῖνος, θέλει νὰ μᾶς κάνει συνεργάτες Του, ὄχι ἀνθρώπους ποὺ ἡ παρουσία Του τοὺς ἔδιωξε μακρυά, ἀλλὰ ἀνθρώπους ποὺ τόσο τέλεια, εἶχαν γίνει ἕνα μαζί Του, ὥστε νὰ κάνουμε ὅ,τι κάνει Ἐκεῖνος καὶ νὰ εἴμαστε αὐτὸ ποὺ εἶναι, ὥστε τελικὰ ἡ χαρά Του θὰ εἶναι καὶ δική μας χαρά, ἡ χαρὰ ποὺ δὲν μπορεῖ νὰ χωρέσει ἡ καρδιά μας, τόσο μεγάλη εἶναι- γεμίζει τὴν καρδιὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ.

Ἀλλὰ δὲν ὑπάρχει τρόπος; Ναί: Ἂς γίνουμε ὅπως οἱ ἄνθρωποι στοὺς ὁποίους ὁ Βασιλιὰς ἔστειλε τοὺς ὑπηρέτες Του: ἦταν χωλοί, ζητιάνοι, ντυμένοι μὲ κουρέλια, ἦταν καθάρματα τῆς γῆς· ἀλλὰ ἐπειδὴ ἦταν στερημένοι ἀπὸ τὰ πάντα, λαχταροῦσαν τὰ πάντα· δὲν ἐπιθυμοῦσαν ἁπλὰ τὶς μικρὲς χαρὲς τῆς γῆς, ποὺ μᾶς φαίνονται τόσο σπουδαῖες, ἀλλὰ κάτι μεγαλύτερο: ὅλη τὴ ζωὴ τους ποθοῦσαν τὴ Βασιλεία τοῦ Θεοῦ, ὅπου ὅλα θὰ πρέπει νὰ εἶναι ὀμορφιά, ἀγάπη· καὶ σ’ αὐτοὺς στάλθηκαν οἱ Ἄγγελοι τοῦ Θεοῦ, οἱ ὑπηρέτες τοῦ Βασιλιᾶ!

Τί συμβαίνει μέ μᾶς; Δὲν θὰ μπορούσαμε νὰ μοιάσουμε σ΄ ἐκείνους τοὺς ἀνθρώπους; Δὲν εἴμαστε τόσο τυφλοὶ ὅπως οἱ τυφλοί, τόσο χωλοί, τόσο φτωχοὶ ὅσο οἱ πιὸ φτωχοὶ ἀπὸ ἐκείνους τοὺς ἀνθρώπους; Γιατί δὲν στρεφόμαστε στὸν Θεὸ καὶ δὲν δεχόμαστε τὴ γῆ, καὶ τὸ ἔργο ποὺ ἔχουμε νὰ φέρουμε εἰς πέρας, καὶ ὅ,τι μπορεῖ νὰ γεμίσει τὴ ζωὴ καὶ τὴν καρδιά μας μὲ τοὺς ὅρους τοῦ Θεοῦ, μ’ Ἐκεῖνον; Καὶ αὐτὸ μᾶς προσφέρει τὴν ἡμέρα τῆς Γεννήσεώς Του, ποὺ θὰ γιορτάσουμε τὴν ἑπόμενη ἑβδομάδα· τὴν ἡμέρα ποὺ ἔγινε ἕνας ἀπὸ ἐμᾶς γιὰ νὰ μᾶς δείξει ὅτι ἐνῶ εἶναι ἐντελῶς ἄνθρωπος, τέλεια, ἀνεπιφύλακτα ἄνθρωπος καὶ ὅμως, ἡ ἀνθρώπινη φύση Του διαπνέται ἀπὸ τὴν θεότητα, μποροῦμε νὰ γίνουμε ἕνα μ’ Ἐκεῖνον, μέτοχοι τῆς θεϊκῆς φύσεως, τοῦ Σταυροῦ, καὶ τῆς δόξας Του. Ἂς συλλογιστοῦμε τούτη τὴν παραβολή· ἂς γίνουμε οἱ ἀπόκληροι καὶ οἱ φτωχοὶ καὶ οἱ τυφλοί, καὶ οἱ πεινασμένοι· καὶ τότε, κατὰ τοὺς Μακαρισμούς, θὰ τρέφεται αἰώνια ἡ ψυχή μας. Ἀμήν.


Μετάφραση:www.agiazoni.gr


Πρωτότυπο Κείμενο

In the Name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost.

Time and again we hear this parable of Christ. If we only received it deep in our hearts, if we only saw ourselves as we are depicted in it, both to our shame and to our glory, to our hope! How many of us are those who are described there, are the people who could say when they are called by God - not to do anything in particular, but simply to be with Him, to share His joy, to be partakers of the grace - how many of us would say to Him (and we do, but are we aware of it?): Lord, I belong to the earth; didn’t You take me out of the earth, have I not been fashioned out of the dust? The earth is my mother, the earth is the closest thing to me, I belong to it… Forgetting that indeed, we belong to it; we are taken out of it, fashioned out of it, but we shall return to it as dust, unless there is the other dimension that has grown in us, unless we realize, not only with our mind - with all our being, that we were indeed made out of earth, but by the powerful, the creative word of God, and that we belong to Him Who spoke this word, we are akin to Him more than we are to this earth, if that is possible. We feel as though we have set roots deep, deep into the earth, as though we derived from it all that we are: our life - yes, called out of it; but also all that it produces, beauty and joy, and everything; and it is so easy to forget that we are called to be more than just the dust of this earth!

And then, how often do we think, there is no time for me to spend in the intimacy of God, to be with Him, just to be, just to be happy, to be together with Him: haven’t I got a task? It may be something that I feel is important! It may even be something that we imagine is important to God - is there time for me to be with Him? We may be with Him later, one day, when all things are fulfilled, or when death has severed our fetters, our link with the earth and with what we imagine is our task. And our tasks are endless; one or another of the divines of the past had said that the image of the five yokes of oxen indeed speaks of the work we feel we must fulfill; but also perhaps, do they not represent our five senses? Do they not represent the five senses which we use continuously, in all directions, anarchically, unpurposefully being by them blinded to the invisible? Isn’t it true that the demon of the noonday is this moment when everything created, all the visible becomes so intensely, powerfully perceptible to us and blinds us to the invisible?

And then, the last man said, I can’t share your joy, oh Lord, I have my own. I have taken a bride, my heart is full of rejoicing! Can I turn away from my joy, forget it for one moment, let go of it and share yours? Let this joy of mine become every day’s life; loose its newness perhaps, and then I will share yours.

Isn’t that the various images which depict us? And what can God do about it? He offers Himself; He wants to share with us all there is: yes, even this earth, but on His terms; to use an image of Saint Ephraim of Syria, to make for us this very earth a sacrament of initiation: a sacrament, a divine act by which He Himself is disclosed, and the means by which He discloses Himself become holy, sacred, shining with glory divine... Yes, He wants us to fulfill a task on earth, but that this task should be what He is doing, make us co-workers with Him, not people sent away from His presence, but people who had become so perfectly one with Him that what we do is what He does and what we are is what He is, ultimately, and that His joy should be ours, the joy that cannot be contained in our hearts, so great it is - it fills the heart of God.

But isn’t there a way? Yes! Become like the people to whom the King send His servants: they were lame, they were beggars, they were in rags, they were the scum of the earth; but because they were deprived of everything, their longing was for all; and вЂ˜all’ was not simply the little things of the earth that seem so great to us, but something greater: the Kingdom of God, where all should be love, beauty, truth, justice they have longed all their lives; and it is to them the Angels of God, the servants of the King were sent!

What about us? Couldn't we become, each of us, one of these people? Aren’t we as blind as the blind, as lame as the lame, as poor as the poorest? Why not turn to God and receive the earth, and our task, and all that can fill our life and our hearts on God's own terms, with Him? And this is what He is offering us on this day of the Nativity which we will keep next week; the day when He became one of us to show us that while being human totally, perfectly, unreservedly human, and yet, totally pervaded with divinity, we can become one with Him, partakers of the divine nature, partakers of His cross and of His glory. Let us reflect on this; let us become the lame, and the poor, and the blind, and the hungry; and then as the Beatitude tells us we shall be fed. Amen