Great news on June 1st (like every year) it is a feast of the Lord and there is liturgy in a Coptic church near you early in the day time.
This is one of seven minor feasts of our Lord Jesus Christ.
What is the occasion? Our Lord Christ went to Egypt which is the only other country He lived in when He incarnated. You may already know why and how Christ went to Egypt.
Did you ever wonder if “Out of Egypt I called My son” was a prophecy in the old testament ? It was stated in old testament Hosea 11:1. One answer was that it was not said to prophecy about Christ but it was said about the people of Israel to remind them that God loved them as his children and saved them from slavery in Egypt by sending Moses to get them out of Egypt.
Then if it is not a Messianic prophecy about Christ in Egypt why is it cited in Matthew 2:15 when Jesus was in Egypt? One interpretation is that this is a pictorial prophecy. It is seen as an analogy. Matthew in his Gospel was writing primarily to the jews and wanted to point out a connection between the people of Israel and their Messiah the one to fulfill the prophets (Matthew 5:17).
This year 2016 all Christian Orthodox churches celebrated the feast of the Resurrection on May 1st. Christ is Risen, indeed He is Risen.
Did you wonder why Mary Magdalene went to the tomb of Christ early Sunday morning ?
Was there others who went to the tomb early Sunday morning before learning about the resurrection ? yes, according to the Gospel of St Mark chapter 16 verses 1 to 8.
They carried gifts of spices and went to the tomb. They were not empty handed.
“When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus’ body. 2 Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb 3 and they asked each other, “Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?”
4 But when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away. 5 As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed.
6 “Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him. 7 But go, tell his disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.’”
8 Trembling and bewildered, the women went out and fled from the tomb. They said nothing to anyone, because they were afraid.”
Luke chapter 24
“9 When they came back from the tomb, they told all these things to the Eleven and to all the others. 10 It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the others with them who told this to the apostles.”
Thank you Father James Soliman for this eye opening sermon which we may listen to by clicking on the following link:
Picture of icon of the myrrh-bearing women is attached. Check it out.
Great news on June 1st (like every year) it is a feast of the Lord and there is liturgy in a Coptic church near you early in the day time.
Catechism Coptic Church 2009 