“Moses the great mystically prefigured this present day, saying: ‘And God blessed the seventh day.’” In ancient times, catechumens were not permitted to read the Gospel; rather, they studied the Old Testament. Then, at the time of their illumination, on Holy Saturday, everything made sense. All the stories and images they had learned in the Scriptures became a sort of grammar in which the mystery of Christ was expressed. Every year, reading Genesis, Proverbs, and Isaiah on the weekdays of the fast, we are invited to relive this experience for ourselves, renewing our familiarity with sacred Scripture. If we have done so, then today we are able to behold Christ’s Passion and Resurrection with understanding, seeing how our Lord’s Pascha fulfills the types and shadows. And we can use the language of Scripture, the lives and words of the prophets and forefathers, to better understand and express the mystery of Jesus’ Passion and Rising.
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