Scripture Readings:
- Daniel 14:27–42 – The destruction of the dragon and Daniel’s deliverance.
- John 7:1–13 – Jesus walks in secret before the appointed time.
As we enter deeper into the Hebdomada Passionis, the Church draws the veil across the sacred images, a physical sign that we are approaching the moment when the Light of the world will be hidden from the eyes of men. Today’s readings, drawn from both the Old and New Testaments, place before us two moments of quiet yet decisive conflict — one in the hidden chambers of Babylon, the other in the muttering crowd of Jerusalem.
Daniel and the Dragon: Victory in Hidden Places
The apocryphal story in Daniel 14 presents the prophet once again standing alone against the deceit of idolatry. The great dragon, venerated by the Babylonians as a god, is shown to be a mere beast — slain not by sword, but by wisdom. Daniel, acting under divine inspiration, concocts a deadly mixture of pitch, fat, and hair, which bursts the creature from within. When accused, he is cast into the lion’s den once more, only to be miraculously preserved for six days — fed by the prophet Habakkuk, transported by an angel.
St. Jerome, in his commentary on Daniel, sees in these events a figure of the Church’s victory over paganism: “Daniel destroys the dragon, that is, the devil, not by violence but by divine craft. So too the Church overcomes error not by sword, but by preaching and martyrdom.”
And St. Gregory the Great, in his Moralia, reflects on the feeding of Daniel in the lion’s den as a sign of God’s providence to His faithful: “Even in their exile, the saints are nourished. The world may cast them down, but heaven lifts them up.”
This hidden miracle — known only to a few — is an apt figure for Christ’s own quiet victories before His Passion. The dragon of sin is defeated not by earthly warfare, but by the divine wisdom of the Cross.
Christ Walks in Secret: The Hidden Hour of Glory
Turning to the Gospel (John 7:1–13), we find Our Lord deliberately avoiding the public eye. “Jesus would not walk in Judea, because the Jews sought to kill Him.” His brethren urge Him to manifest Himself openly: “Show thyself to the world!” But Christ replies with sovereign serenity: “My time is not yet come.”
St. Augustine, in his Tractates on the Gospel of John, meditates on this moment:
“He had power to die when He would, and not to die until He would. He had come not to be dragged to death, but to offer Himself to it.”
The Lord, knowing the hour appointed by the Father, refuses to follow the counsel of the worldly-minded. In a time of growing hostility, He chooses to walk “in secret,” waiting for the time decreed from eternity — the hora of His glorification through the Cross.
His “secret walking” is not weakness, but divine strength veiled in humility. As St. Leo the Great writes in one of his Passion sermons:
“He who was to conquer the devil by suffering, had to hide the power of His majesty. The hiddenness of Christ was itself a part of the victory.”
Passiontide: When Truth Walks Veiled Among Men
In these final days before Holy Week, the Church invites us to contemplate the mystery of hidden triumph. Just as Daniel was vindicated in the lion’s den and Jesus walked unrecognized among the crowds, so too the faithful must live in the tension between divine silence and divine victory.
How often do we, like the brethren of Jesus, demand that He “show Himself” — that He manifest His power in ways that satisfy human expectation? Yet the Passion teaches us that God’s ways are not ours. His glory is revealed not in clamor, but in the Cross.
Let us imitate Daniel, persevering in prayer though cast into the dens of this world. Let us walk as Christ walked in these hidden days — not seeking worldly affirmation, but remaining faithful until His hour is made manifest in us.
Prayer for Tuesday in Passion Week
O Lord Jesus Christ, who didst walk in secret and submit Thyself to suffering in silence, grant us grace in this Passiontide to follow Thee without fear, to endure trial with trust, and to wait upon Thy perfect timing. Hide us in the wounds of Thy Passion, and bring us at last to the glory of Thy Resurrection. Amen.
Suggested Devotions:
- Recite the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary, meditating on the hidden strength of Christ.
- Read the Passion sermons of St. Leo the Great or the homilies of St. John Chrysostom on Daniel.
- Attend Mass (if available) or pray the Mass texts for the day, uniting your soul to the Church’s contemplation of Christ’s hidden sorrows.
“The time is not yet come.” But it draws near. Let us enter into the stillness, that we may rise with Him in glory.