Resurrection of Lazarus
It celebrates 8 days before Holy Easter.
This Saturday we honor the Resurrection of His friend Lazarus under Christ.
Lazarus was a friend of Christ and his sisters Martha and Mary hosted him many times (Luke 1:38-40, John 15:1-3) in Bethany near Jerusalem. A few days before the Lord’s passion, Lazarus fell ill and his sisters informed Jesus, who was then in Galilee, to visit him. But the Lord purposely delayed until Lazarus was dead, so he said to his disciples, let’s go now to wake him up. When he arrived in Bethany he comforted the sisters of Lazarus who had been dead four days and asked to see his tomb.
When he arrived at the monument, he burst into tears and ordered the tombstone removed. Then he raised his eyes to heaven, thanked God and Father and with a loud voice said: Lazarus, come out. Immediately the four-day-dead man came out wrapped in the shrouds in front of the watching crowd, and Jesus asked that the shrouds be taken from him and that he go home. (John 11:44)
Ancient tradition says that Lazarus was then 30 years old and lived another 30 years. He ended his earthly life in Cyprus in the year 63 AD. and his tomb in the city of Kitia was written: “Lazarus the four-day old and friend of Christ”.
In the year 890 AD his holy relic was moved to Constantinople by the emperor Leo the Wise, who composed the idioms for Lazarus’ vespers: Lord, Lazarus thelon tafon idein, etc.
Characteristic of the later life of Lazarus, tradition says, was that he never laughed except once only when he saw someone stealing a pot and said the following phrase: One soil steals another.
The Resurrection of Lazarus increased the hatred of the Jews who, upon learning of it, demanded to kill Lazarus and Christ.
On this day there are no commemorations with kolyva, only a simple Trisagio in need.
