23 April 2027 · Syro-Malankara Rite
Open in the Daily Word appAlso: Syro-Malabar Rite · Latin Rite · മലയാളം
“Share in suffering like a good soldier of Christ Jesus.” 2 Timothy 2:3
There is hardly a Christian village in Kerala without a Geevarghese, a Varghese or a George. The name of today's saint has passed from Syriac (Giwargis) into Malayalam homes, and his image, a young soldier on a white horse with his lance aimed at the dragon, hangs in churches of every tradition among us. Today our Church keeps his feast. What history can say with confidence is short and strong. George was a Christian soldier who gave his life for Christ in the great persecution of the early fourth century, most likely under the emperor Diocletian, and his tomb at Lydda (Diospolis) in Palestine was a place of pilgrimage within a few generations. The longer stories of his trials grew up later; the Church has always honoured him above all as a witness. Our tradition calls him Sahada, the Syriac word for martyr, which means witness. A decree attributed to Pope Gelasius I placed him among those whose names are rightly revered among people but whose deeds are known fully only to God (in substance). That is enough. We do not need every detail of his story to know what he did: when the empire demanded that he deny Christ, he chose Christ.
The readings show why a soldier became the image of every Christian. St Paul writes to Timothy: “You then, my child, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus... Share in suffering like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No one serving in the army gets entangled in everyday affairs; the soldier's aim is to please the enlisting officer.” Paul adds the athlete, who is not crowned “without competing according to the rules,” and the farmer “who does the work.” All three are pictures of steady, faithful labour, not of sudden heroics. George's martyrdom did not come from nowhere; it grew out of a soldier's daily faithfulness to the one who had enlisted him in Baptism. St Ignatius of Antioch, himself on the way to martyrdom, wrote to Polycarp: please the one under whom you serve as soldiers; let none of you be found a deserter; let your Baptism be your shield, your faith your helmet, your love your spear, your endurance your armour (Letter to Polycarp 6, in substance). In the Gospel Jesus sends his disciples out with no illusions: “See, I am sending you out like sheep into the midst of wolves; so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.” They will be handed over and “dragged before governors and kings because of me, as a testimony to them and the Gentiles.” And he adds the promise that every martyr has leaned on: “do not worry about how you are to speak or what you are to say... for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.” Finally: “the one who endures to the end will be saved.”
Why does a martyr's feast belong in the season of Qyomtho? Because martyrs are the strongest proof that Christians really believe in the Resurrection. No one dies for a story he suspects to be false. St Augustine taught that it is not the suffering but the cause that makes a martyr (Letter 89, in substance): George is honoured not because he was tortured, but because he would not betray the risen Lord. The famous dragon is a later legend, best read as a picture: the dragon is the old enemy, and every Christian who refuses evil for Christ's sake strikes at it. In our own time Christians are still dragged before councils, in many lands, for the name of Jesus. Pray for them today. And ask yourself where your own small martyrdom lies: in refusing a bribe at the office, in telling the truth at home when a lie would be easier, in keeping Sunday when the world pulls the other way. Take part in the Holy Qurbono for the feast if you can, and if you bear his name, thank God for it and ask for his courage.
Theme: “Share in suffering like a good soldier of Christ Jesus.”
On the feast of Mar Geevarghese Sahada: the good soldier, the sheep among wolves, and the witness of the Resurrection.
“I hereby command you: Be strong and courageous; do not be frightened or dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9
“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power. Put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.” Ephesians 6:10–11
Apply: Each morning this week, before work or school, make the sign of the Cross slowly and offer the day to Christ as his soldier.
“Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil; for you are with me;” Psalm 23:4
“Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.” Revelation 2:10
Apply: Pray by name for one country where Christians suffer for their faith, and learn one fact about their situation.
“If our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the furnace of blazing fire and out of your hand, O king, let him deliver us. But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods” Daniel 3:17–18
“But they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they did not cling to life even in the face of death.” Revelation 12:11
Apply: Choose one wrong thing you will refuse this week for Christ's sake, quietly and firmly.
Mar Geevarghese was faithful in a soldier's daily duty, and so he was faithful in the hour of trial.
The martyrs are witnesses of Qyomtho: they died because they knew the Lord was alive.
Take-home resolution: Be strong in grace, pray for persecuted Christians, and make one faithful refusal for Christ this week.
Dear friends, Christ is risen! Today our Church honours Mar Geevarghese Sahada, St George, a Christian soldier who gave his life for Christ in the great persecution of the early fourth century. Sahada means martyr, and martyr means witness. His tomb at Lydda drew pilgrims from very early times, and his name lives in countless Kerala families.
St Paul writes: share in suffering like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No one serving in the army gets entangled in everyday affairs; the soldier's aim is to please the enlisting officer (2 Timothy 2:3–4). George served an earthly emperor, but his first loyalty was to Christ, who enlisted him in Baptism.
Jesus did not hide the cost: see, I am sending you out like sheep into the midst of wolves (Matthew 10:16). His witnesses would be dragged before governors and kings. But he promised: it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you, and the one who endures to the end will be saved (Matthew 10:20, 22).
The martyrs belong to Qyomtho, because no one dies for a lie: they died for the risen Lord whom they knew. The dragon of the legend is evil itself. Each time we refuse evil for Christ, we strike it. Let us pray for persecuted Christians today, and ask Mar Geevarghese for the courage to be faithful soldiers in small things. Amen.
Children, Christ is risen! Today is the feast of Mar Geevarghese, St George. Do you know anyone called Varghese or George? They are named after him! He was a soldier who loved Jesus so much that he would not stop being a Christian, even when the emperor ordered him. There is a famous story of him fighting a dragon. The dragon means everything bad. When you say no to lying or hitting or cheating because you love Jesus, you are as brave as St George!
Lord Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, you gave Mar Geevarghese the courage of a good soldier and the crown of a martyr. You sent your disciples as sheep among wolves and promised that your Spirit would speak through them. By his prayers make us strong in your grace; let us not be entangled in what is passing, but seek only to please you who enlisted us in Baptism. Strengthen all Christians who suffer for your name, and give us endurance to the end, so that with all your witnesses we may share in your Resurrection. You live and reign for ever. Amen.