[Readingsandsaints] Readings and saints

Sat Apr 14 05:00:29 CDT 2007

Scripture Readings and Saints for Sat Apr 14 2007

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------ READINGS FOR TODAY ----------------------------
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Acts 3:11-16
11 Now as the lame man who was healed held on to Peter and John, all
the people ran together to them in the porch which is called
Solomon's, greatly amazed.
12 So when Peter saw it, he responded to the people: "Men of Israel,
why do you marvel at this? Or why look so intently at us, as though by
our own power or godliness we had made this man walk?
13 The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers,
glorified His Servant Jesus, whom you delivered up and denied in the
presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let Him go.
14 But you denied the Holy One and the Just, and asked for a murderer
to be granted to you,
15 and killed the Prince of life, whom God raised from the dead, of
which we are witnesses.
16 And His name, through faith in His name, has made this man strong,
whom you see and know. Yes, the faith which comes through Him has
given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all.
Scripture Reading 1 of 2

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John 3:22-33
22 After these things Jesus and His disciples came into the land of
Judea, and there He remained with them and baptized.
23 Now John also was baptizing in Aenon near Salim, because there was
much water there. And they came and were baptized.
24 For John had not yet been thrown into prison.
25 Then there arose a dispute between some of John's disciples and the
Jews about purification.
26 And they came to John and said to him, "Rabbi, He who was with you
beyond the Jordan, to whom you have testified-behold, He is baptizing,
and all are coming to Him!"
27 John answered and said, "A man can receive nothing unless it has
been given to him from heaven.
28 You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, 'I am not the Christ,'
but, 'I have been sent before Him.'
29 He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the
bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the
bridegroom's voice. Therefore this joy of mine is fulfilled.
30 He must increase, but I must decrease.
31 He who comes from above is above all; he who is of the earth is
earthly and speaks of the earth. He who comes from heaven is above
all.
32 And what He has seen and heard, that He testifies; and no one
receives His testimony.
33 He who has received His testimony has certified that God is true.
Scripture Reading 2 of 2

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Bright Saturday
The artos, which was blessed after the Liturgy of Pascha, is cut and
distributed after Liturgy on Bright Saturday. The prayer read today
speaks of Christ as the Bread of Life.
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St Martin the Confessor the Pope of Rome
Saint Martin the Confessor, Pope of Rome, was a native of the Tuscany
region of Italy. He received a fine education and entered into the
clergy of the Roman Church. After the death of Pope Theodore I
(642-649), Martin was chosen to succeed him.
At this time the peace of the Church was disturbed by the Monothelite
heresy (the false doctrine that in Christ there is only one will. He
has a divine, and a human will). The endless disputes of the
Monothelites with the Orthodox took place in all levels of the
population. Even the emperor Constans (641-668) and Patriarch Paul of
Constantinople (641-654) were adherents of the Monothelite heresy. The
emperor Constans II published the heretical "Pattern of Faith"
(Typos), obligatory for all the population. In it all further disputes
were forbidden.
The heretical "Pattern of Faith" was received at Rome in the year 649.
St Martin, a firm supporter of Orthodoxy, convened the Lateran Council
at Rome to condemn the Monothelite heresy. At the same time St Martin
sent a letter to Patriarch Paul, persuading him to return to the
Orthodox confession of faith. The enraged emperor ordered the military
commander Olympius to bring St Martin to trial. But Olympius feared
the clergy and the people of Rome who had descended upon the Council,
and he sent a soldier to murder the holy hierarch. When the assassin
approached St Martin, he was blinded. The terrified Olympius fled to
Sicily and was soon killed in battle.
In 654 the emperor sent another military commander, Theodore, to Rome.
He accused St Martin of being in secret correspondence with the
enemies of the Empire, the Saracens, and of blaspheming the Most Holy
Theotokos, and of uncanonically assuming the papal throne.
Despite the proofs offered by the Roman clergy and laity of St
Martin's innocence, the military commander Theodore with a detachment
of soldiers seized St Martin by night and took him to Naxos, one of
the Cyclades islands in the Aegean Sea. St Martin spent an entire year
on this almost unpopulated island, suffering deprivation and abuse
from the guards. Then they sent the exhausted confessor to
Constantinople for trial.
They carried the sick man on a stretcher, but the judges callously
ordered him to stand up and answer their questions. The soldiers
propped up the saint, who was weakened by illness. False witnesses
came forward slandering the saint and accusing him of treasonous
relations with the Saracens. The biased judges did not even bother to
hear the saint's defense. In sorrow he said, "The Lord knows what a
great kindness you would show me if you would deliver me quickly over
to death."
After such a trial they brought the saint out in tattered clothes to a
jeering crowd. They shouted, "Anathema to Pope Martin!" But those who
knew the holy Pope was suffering unjustly, withdrew in tears. Finally
the sentence was announced: St Martin was to be deposed from his rank
and executed. They bound the half-naked saint with chains and dragged
him to prison, where they locked him up with thieves. These were more
merciful to the saint than the heretics.
In the midst of all this the emperor went to the dying Patriarch Paul
and told him of the trial of St Martin. He turned away from the
emperor and said, "Woe is me! This is another reason for my judgment."
He asked that St Martin's torments be stopped. The emperor again sent
a notary and other persons to the saint in prison to interrogate him.
The saint answered, "Even if they cripple me, I will not have
relations with the Church of Constantinople while it remains in its
evil doctrines." The torturers were astonished at the confessor's
boldness, and they commuted his death sentence to exile at Cherson in
the Crimea.
There the saint died, exhausted by sickness, hunger and deprivations
on September 16, 655. He was buried outside the city in the Blachernae
church of the Most Holy Theotokos, and later the relics of the holy
confessor Martin were transferred to Rome.
The Monothelite heresy was condemned at the Sixth Ecumenical Council
in 680.
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Martyr Anthony of Vilnius, Lithuania
The Holy Martyrs Anthony, John, and Eustathius were brothers who
suffered for Christ under the Lithuanian Great Prince Olgerd
(1345-1377). The prince was married to the Orthodox princess Maria
Yaroslavna (+ 1346). He was baptized and during his wife's lifetime he
allowed the preaching of Christianity. Two brothers, Nezhilo and
Kumets, received holy Baptism from the priest Nestor, and they
received the names Anthony and John. And at the request of Maria
Yaroslavna an Orthodox church was built at Vilnius (Vilna).
After the death of his spouse, Prince Olgerd began to support the
pagan priests of the fire-worshippers, who started a persecution
against Christians. Sts John and Anthony endeavored not to flaunt
their Christianity, but they did not observe pagan customs. They did
not cut their hair as the pagans did, and on fastdays they did not eat
forbidden foods.
The prince soon became suspicious of the brothers, so he interrogated
them and they confessed themselves Christians. Then he demanded that
they eat meat (it was a fast day). The holy brothers refused, and the
prince locked them up in prison. The brothers spent an entire year
behind bars. John took fright at the impending tortures and declared
that he would obey all the demands of the Great Prince. The delighted
Olgerd released the brothers and brought them to himself.
But Anthony did not betray Christ. When he refused to eat meat on a
fast day, the prince again locked him up in prison and subjected him
to brutal tortures. The other brother remained free, but both
Christians and pagans regarded him as a traitor and would not
associate with him.
Repenting of his sin, John went to the priest Nestor and entreated him
to ask his brother to forgive him. "When he openly confesses Christ,
we will be reconciled," Anthony replied. Once, while serving the
prince at the bath, St John spoke privately with him about his
reconciliation with the Church. Olgerd did not display any anger and
said that he could believe in Christ, but must conduct himself like
all the pagans. Then St John confessed himself a Christian in the
presence of numerous courtiers. They beat him fiercely with rods and
sent him to his brother in prison. The martyrs met with joy, and
received the Holy Mysteries that same day.
Many people went to the prison to see the new confessor. The brothers
converted many to Christ by their preaching. The prison was
transformed into a Christian school. The frightened pagan priests
demanded the execution of the brothers, but they did not fear death.
On the morning of April 14, 1347 the Martyr Anthony was hanged on a
tree after receiving the Holy Mysteries. This oak, which the pagans
considered sacred, became truly sacred for Orthodox Christians.
The pagan priests who hoped that Christian preaching would stop with
the death of St Anthony, were disappointed. A multitude of the people
gathered before the walls of the prison where St John was being held.
On April 24, 1347 they strangled him and hanged his dead body upon the
same oak. The venerable bodies of both martyrs were buried by
Christians in the church of St Nicholas the Wonderworker.
A third sufferer for Christ was their relative Kruglets. At Baptism
the priest Nestor named him Eustathius. Kruglets stood out because of
his comeliness, valor and bravery, but even more because of his mind
and virtue of soul. A favorite of Olgerd, he could count on a very
promising future. However, he also refused to eat meat at the festal
table. St Eustathius openly declared that he was a Christian and would
not eat meat because of the Nativity Fast.
They began to beat him with iron rods, but the youth did not make a
sound. The prince tried refining the torture. Olgerd gave orders to
strip the martyr naked, take him out on the street and to pour icy
water in his mouth. But this did not break his spirit. Then they broke
his ankle bones, and ripped the hair and skin from his head, and cut
off his ears and nose. St Eustathius endured the torments with such
gladness and courage, that the very torturers themselves were
astounded by the divine power which strengthened him. The martyr
Eustathius was sentenced to death and hanged on the same oak where Sts
John and Anthony received a martyr's death (December 13, 1347).
For three days no one was permitted to take down the body of the
martyr, and a column of cloud protected it from birds and beasts of
prey. A church was later built on the hill where the holy martyrs
suffered. The trinity of venerable passion bearers glorified the true
God worshipped in the Holy Trinity, Father and Son and Holy Spirit.
The church was dedicated to the Most Holy Trinity. The altar table was
built on the stump of the sacred oak on which the martyrs died.
Soon their relics were found to be incorrupt. In 1364 Patriarch
Philotheus of Constantinople (1354-1355, 1364-1376) sent a cross with
the relics of the holy martyrs to St Sergius of Radonezh (September
25). The Church established the celebration of all three martyrs on
April 14.
The holy martyrs were of immense significance for all the Western
frontier. Vilnius's monastery of the Holy Trinity, where the holy
relics are kept, became a stronghold of Orthodoxy on this frontier. In
1915 during the invasion of the Germans, these relics were taken to
Moscow.
The relics of the holy passion-bearers were returned to the Vilnius
Holy Spirit monastery in 1946. The commemoration of their return (July
13) is solemnly observed at the monastery each year.
_________________________________________________________________
Martyr John of Vilnius, Lithuania
The Holy Martyrs John, Anthony, and Eustathius were brothers who
suffered for Christ under the Lithuanian Great Prince Olgerd
(1345-1377). The prince was married to the Orthodox princess Maria
Yaroslavna (+ 1346). He was baptized and during his wife's lifetime he
allowed the preaching of Christianity. Two brothers, Nezhilo and
Kumets, received holy Baptism from the priest Nestor, and they
received the names Anthony and John. And at the request of Maria
Yaroslavna an Orthodox church was built at Vilnius (Vilna).
After the death of his spouse, Prince Olgerd began to support the
pagan priests of the fire-worshippers, who started a persecution
against Christians. Sts John and Anthony endeavored not to flaunt
their Christianity, but they did not observe pagan customs. They did
not cut their hair as the pagans did, and on fastdays they did not eat
forbidden foods.
The prince soon became suspicious of the brothers, so he interrogated
them and they confessed themselves Christians. Then he demanded that
they eat meat (it was a fast day). The holy brothers refused, and the
prince locked them up in prison. The brothers spent an entire year
behind bars. John took fright at the impending tortures and declared
that he would obey all the demands of the Great Prince. The delighted
Olgerd released the brothers and brought them to himself.
But Anthony did not betray Christ. When he refused to eat meat on a
fast day, the prince again locked him up in prison and subjected him
to brutal tortures. The other brother remained free, but both
Christians and pagans regarded him as a traitor and would not
associate with him.
Repenting of his sin, John went to the priest Nestor and entreated him
to ask his brother to forgive him. "When he openly confesses Christ,
we will be reconciled," Anthony replied. Once, while serving the
prince at the bath, St John spoke privately with him about his
reconciliation with the Church. Olgerd did not display any anger and
said that he could believe in Christ, but must conduct himself like
all the pagans. Then St John confessed himself a Christian in the
presence of numerous courtiers. They beat him fiercely with rods and
sent him to his brother in prison. The martyrs met with joy, and
received the Holy Mysteries that same day.
Many people went to the prison to see the new confessor. The brothers
converted many to Christ by their preaching. The prison was
transformed into a Christian school. The frightened pagan priests
demanded the execution of the brothers, but they did not fear death.
On the morning of April 14, 1347 the Martyr Anthony was hanged on a
tree after receiving the Holy Mysteries. This oak, which the pagans
considered sacred, became truly sacred for Orthodox Christians.
The pagan priests who hoped that Christian preaching would stop with
the death of St Anthony, were disappointed. A multitude of the people
gathered before the walls of the prison where St John was being held.
On April 24, 1347 they strangled him and hanged his dead body upon the
same oak. The venerable bodies of both martyrs were buried by
Christians in the church of St Nicholas the Wonderworker.
For three days no one was permitted to take down the body of the
martyr, and a column of cloud protected it from birds and beasts of
prey. A church was later built on the hill where the holy martyrs
suffered. The trinity of venerable passion bearers glorified the true
God worshipped in the Holy Trinity, Father and Son and Holy Spirit.
The church was dedicated to the Most Holy Trinity. The altar table was
built on the stump of the sacred oak on which the martyrs died.
Soon the martyrs' relics were found to be incorrupt. In 1364 Patriarch
Philotheus of Constantinople (1354-1355, 1364-1376) sent a cross with
the relics of the holy martyrs to St Sergius of Radonezh (September
25). The Church established the celebration of all three martyrs on
April 14.
The relics of the holy passion-bearers were returned to Vilnius's Holy
Spirit monastery in 1946. The commemoration of their return (July 13)
is solemnly observed at the monastery each year.
_________________________________________________________________
Martyr Eustathius of Vilnius, Lithuania
The Holy Martyrs Eustathius, Anthony, and John were brothers who
suffered for Christ under the Lithuanian Great Prince Olgerd
(1345-1377). The prince was married to the Orthodox princess Maria
Yaroslavna (+ 1346). He was baptized and during his wife's lifetime he
allowed the preaching of Christianity. Two brothers, Nezhilo and
Kumets, received holy Baptism from the priest Nestor, and they
received the names Anthony and John. And at the request of Maria
Yaroslavna an Orthodox church was built at Vilnius (Vilna).
After the death of his spouse, Prince Olgerd began to support the
pagan priests of the fire-worshippers, who started a persecution
against Christians. Sts John and Anthony endeavored not to flaunt
their Christianity, but they did not observe pagan customs. They did
not cut their hair as the pagans did, and on fastdays they did not eat
forbidden foods.
The prince soon became suspicious of the brothers, so he interrogated
them and they confessed themselves Christians. Then he demanded that
they eat meat (it was a fast day). The holy brothers refused, and the
prince locked them up in prison. The brothers spent an entire year
behind bars. John took fright at the impending tortures and declared
that he would obey all the demands of the Great Prince. The delighted
Olgerd released the brothers and brought them to himself.
But Anthony did not betray Christ. When he refused to eat meat on a
fast day, the prince again locked him up in prison and subjected him
to brutal tortures. The other brother remained free, but both
Christians and pagans regarded him as a traitor and would not
associate with him.
Repenting of his sin, John went to the priest Nestor and entreated him
to ask his brother to forgive him. "When he openly confesses Christ,
we will be reconciled," Anthony replied. Once, while serving the
prince at the bath, St John spoke privately with him about his
reconciliation with the Church. Olgerd did not display any anger and
said that he could believe in Christ, but must conduct himself like
all the pagans. Then St John confessed himself a Christian in the
presence of numerous courtiers. They beat him fiercely with rods and
sent him to his brother in prison. The martyrs met with joy, and
received the Holy Mysteries that same day.
Many people went to the prison to see the new confessor. The brothers
converted many to Christ by their preaching. The prison was
transformed into a Christian school. The frightened pagan priests
demanded the execution of the brothers, but they did not fear death.
On the morning of April 14, 1347 the Martyr Anthony was hanged on a
tree after receiving the Holy Mysteries. This oak, which the pagans
considered sacred, became truly sacred for Orthodox Christians. St
John was strangled and hanged on April 24, 1347
A third sufferer for Christ was their relative Kruglets. At Baptism
the priest Nestor named him Eustathius. Kruglets stood out because of
his comeliness, valor and bravery, but even more because of his mind
and virtue of soul. A favorite of Olgerd, he could count on a very
promising future. However, he also refused to eat meat at the festal
table. St Eustathius openly declared that he was a Christian and would
not eat meat because of the Nativity Fast.
They began to beat him with iron rods, but the youth did not make a
sound. The prince tried refining the torture. Olgerd gave orders to
strip the martyr naked, take him out on the street and to pour icy
water in his mouth. But this did not break his spirit. Then they broke
his ankle bones, and ripped the hair and skin from his head, and cut
off his ears and nose. St Eustathius endured the torments with such
gladness and courage, that the very torturers themselves were
astounded by the divine power which strengthened him. The martyr
Eustathius was sentenced to death and hanged on the same oak where Sts
John and Anthony received a martyr's death (December 13, 1347).
For three days no one was permitted to take down the body of the
martyr, and a column of cloud protected it from birds and beasts of
prey. A church was later built on the hill where the holy martyrs
suffered. The trinity of venerable passion bearers glorified the true
God worshipped in the Holy Trinity, Father and Son and Holy Spirit.
The church was dedicated to the Most Holy Trinity. The altar table was
built on the stump of the sacred oak on which the martyrs died.
Soon their relics were found to be incorrupt. In 1364 Patriarch
Philotheus of Constantinople (1354-1355, 1364-1376) sent a cross with
the relics of the holy martyrs to St Sergius of Radonezh (September
25). The Church established the celebration of all three martyrs on
April 14.
The holy martyrs were of immense significance for all the Western
frontier. Vilnius's monastery of the Holy Trinity, where the holy
relics are kept, became a stronghold of Orthodoxy on this frontier. In
1915 during the invasion of the Germans, these relics were taken to
Moscow.
The relics of the holy passion-bearers were returned to the Vilnius
Holy Spirit monastery in 1946. The commemoration of their return (July
13) is solemnly observed at the monastery each year.
_________________________________________________________________
Martyr Ardalion the Actor
The Holy Martyr Ardalion suffered for Christ under the emperor
Maximian Galerius (305-311). St Ardalion was a talented actor.
Once, he played the role of a Christian. In the play, the actor at
first refused to offer sacrifice to idols, but then consented to
renounce Christ. Suddenly the saint ordered everyone to be quiet and
declared that he actually was a Christian.
St Ardalion continued to confess his faith in Christ. Then the
governor ordered the martyr to be thrown onto a red-hot iron grill. So
St Ardalion attained a martyr's crown.
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Martyr Azades (Azat) the Eunuch of Persia
Saint Azades (Azat) was a wealthy man who served in the household of
King Shapur II of Persia, and enjoyed his confidence. He was arrested
for professing Christianity, and then suffered martyrdom with 1000
other Christians. After this, the king repented and ordered an end to
the persecution of Christians.
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1,000 Martyrs of Persia
These holy martyrs were executed with St Azades (Azat), a wealthy man
who served in the household of King Shapur II of Persia, and enjoyed
his confidence. He was arrested for professing Christianity, and then
suffered martyrdom with 1000 other Christians. After this, the king
repented and ordered an end to the persecution of Christians.
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Icon of the Mother of God of Vilnius
The Vilnius (Vilna) Icon of the Mother of God was painted by the holy
Evangelist Luke. For a long time it was in the family of the Greek
emperors at Constantinople. In 1472 Sophia Paleologina, wife of the
Moscow Great Prince Ivan III (1462-1505), transferred the icon to
Moscow.
In 1495 the Great Prince blessed his daughter Elena with this icon
before giving her in marriage to the Lithuanian king Alexander. The
Church celebrates the transfer of this icon to Vilnius on February 15.
Later, the holy icon was placed in the church of St John the
Forerunner, in which Princess Elena was buried. Afterwards, they
transferred the icon to Vilnius's HolyTrinity monastery.
The Vilnius icon is also commemorated on February 15.
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