[Readingsandsaints] Readings and Saints

[Daily Orthodox Readings and Saints]

Scripture Readings and Saints for Mon Dec 31 2007

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------ READINGS FOR TODAY ----------------------------
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James 2:14-26
14 What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but
does not have works? Can faith save him?
15 If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food,
16 and one of you says to them, "Depart in peace, be warmed and
filled," but you do not give them the things which are needed for the
body, what does it profit?
17 Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
18 But someone will say, "You have faith, and I have works." Show me
your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my
works.
19 You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons
believe-and tremble!
20 But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is
dead?
21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac
his son on the altar?
22 Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by
works faith was made perfect?
23 And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "Abraham believed God,
and it was accounted to him for righteousness." And he was called the
friend of God.
24 You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith
only.
25 Likewise, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she
received the messengers and sent them out another way?
26 For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works
is dead also.
Scripture Reading 1 of 2


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Mark 12:13-17
13 Then they sent to Him some of the Pharisees and the Herodians, to
catch Him in His words.
14 When they had come, they said to Him, "Teacher, we know that You
are true, and care about no one; for You do not regard the person of
men, but teach the way of God in truth. Is it lawful to pay taxes to
Caesar, or not?
15 Shall we pay, or shall we not pay? But He, knowing their hypocrisy,
said to them, "Why do you test Me? Bring Me a denarius that I may see
it."
16 So they brought it. And He said to them, "Whose image and
inscription is this?" They said to Him, "Caesar's."
17 And Jesus answered and said to them, "Render to Caesar the things
that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's." And they
marveled at Him.
Scripture Reading 2 of 2



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Leavetaking of the Nativity of our Lord
Materials for the Leavetaking of the Nativity are taken from the
service of the Feast day itself in the Menaion. The Scripture readings
at Liturgy, however, are of the day, not of the Feast. The
Prokeimenon, Alleluia verses, and Communion hymn are all of the Feast.
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Venerable Melania the Younger of Rome
Saint Melania was born in Rome into a devout Christian family. Her
parents, people of property and wealth, hoped that their daughter
would marry and have children who would inherit their wealth.
At fourteen years of age Melania was married to the illustrious youth
Apinianus. From the very beginning of their married life, St Melania
asked her husband to live with her in chastity or else release her
from the marriage. Apinianus answered, "I cannot agree to this right
now. When we have two children to inherit the property, then we shall
both renounce the world."
Soon Melania gave birth to a daughter, whom the young parents
dedicated to God. Continuing to live together in marriage, Melania
secretly wore a hairshirt and spent her nights in prayer. The second
child, a boy, was premature and had severe complications. They
baptized him, and he departed to the Lord.
Seeing the suffering of his wife, Apinianus asked the Lord to preserve
St Melania's life, and he vowed to spend the rest of their life
together in chastity. Recovering, St Melania stopped wearing her
beautiful clothing and jewelry. Soon their daughter also died. The
parents of St Melania did not support the young couple's desire to
devote themselves to God. It was only when St Melania's father became
deathly ill, that he asked their forgiveness and permitted them to
follow their chosen path, asking them to pray for him.
The saints then left the city of Rome, and began a new life completely
dedicated to the service of God. Apinianus at this time was
twenty-four years of age, and Melania twenty. They began to visit the
sick, to take in wanderers, and to help the indigent. They visited
those who were exiled, and mine-convicts, and the destitute, there in
debtor's prison. After selling their estates in Italy and Spain, they
generously helped monasteries, hospitals, widows and orphans in
Mesopotamia, Syria, Egypt, Phoenicia, and Palestine.
Many churches and hospitals were built with their assistance. Churches
of both West and East benefited from them. Leaving their native land,
they set sail for Africa, and a strong storm arose while they were at
sea. The sailors said that this was because of the wrath of God, but
St Melania said that it was not God's will that they should go
directly to their destination.
The waves carried the ship to an island on which barbarians had
landed. The besiegers demanded a ransom from the inhabitants, or else
they threatened to lay waste the city. The saints supplied the
necessary ransom, and thus saved the city and its people from
destruction.
Resuming their voyage, they landed in Africa and helped all the needy
there. With the blessing of the local bishops, they made offerings to
churches and monasteries. During this time St Melania continued to
humble her flesh by strict fasting, and she fortified her soul by
constantly reading the Word of God, making copies of the sacred books
and distributing them to those who lacked them. She sewed a hairshirt
for herself, put it on, and continued to wear it.
The saints spent seven years in Carthage, and then decided to visit
Jerusalem. At Alexandria, they were welcomed by the bishop, St Cyril,
and they met in church with the holy Elder Nestorius, who was
possessed of the gift of prophecy and healing. The Elder turned to
them and told them to have courage and patience in expectation of the
Glory of Heaven.
At Jerusalem, the saints distributed their remaining gold to the
destitute and then spent their days in poverty and prayer. After a
short visit to Egypt, where the saints visited many of the desert
Fathers, St Melania secluded herself in a cell on the Mount of Olives.
Only occasionally did she see St Apinianus.
Later, she founded a monastery, where eventually ninety virgins lived
in obedience to St Melania. Out of humility, she would not consent to
be abbess, and lived and prayed in solitude as before. In her
instructions, St Melania urged the sisters to be vigilant and to pray,
to disdain their own opinions and cultivate first of all love for God
and for one another, to keep the holy Orthodox Faith, and to guard
their purity of soul and of body.
In particular, she exhorted them to be obedient to the will of God.
Calling to mind the words of the Apostle Paul, she counselled them to
keep the fasts "not with wailing, nor from compulsion, but in virtuous
disposition with love for God". By her efforts an oratory and altar
were built in the monastery, where they enshrined the relics of
saints: the Prophet Zachariah, the holy Protomartyr Stephen, and the
Forty Martyrs of Sebaste. About this time St Apinianus fell asleep in
the Lord. St Melania buried his relics and there spent another four
years in fasting and unceasing prayer.
St Melania wanted to build a men's monastery on the Mount of the
Ascension of the Lord. The Lord blessed her intent by sending a
benefactor who provided the means for the monastery. Joyfully
accepting it, St Melania finished the great work in a single year. In
this monastery, saintly men began to lift up unceasing prayer in the
church of the Ascension of Christ.
Having completed her tasks, the saint left Jerusalem for
Constantinople, hoping to save the soul of her pagan uncle Volusianus
who had traveled there from Rome. Along the way she prayed at the
relics of St Laurence (August 10), at the place of his martyrdom, and
received auspicious signs. Arriving in Constantinople, the saint found
her uncle had fallen ill. Her demeanor and her inspired discourses had
a profound influence on the sick man. He gave up pagan impiety and
died a Christian.
During this time many inhabitants of the capital were deceived by the
heretical teaching of Nestorius. St Melania accepted anyone who turned
to her for proper explanation, converting many of them to Orthodoxy.
Many miracles were worked through the prayers of the saint.
Returning to her own monastery, the saint sensed the approach of
death, and told this to the priest and the sisters. They listened to
her final instructions with deep sorrow and with tears. Having asked
their prayers and commanding them to preserve themselves in purity,
she received the Holy Mysteries with joy. St Melania peacefully gave
up her soul to the Lord in the year 439.
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Venerable Cyriacus of Bisericani, Romania
Saint Cyriacus of Bisericani is one of Romania's greatest ascetics,
and in his life he was like the great Fathers of the Egyptian desert.
He lived in the Bisericani monastery at the beginning of the
seventeenth century, which then had more than a hundred monks. Longing
for a life of solitude, St Cyriacus went to live in a cave at Simon
Mountain and remained there for sixty years.
Like St Onuphrius (June 12), St Cyriacus went about naked in summer
and in winter, and his body became overgrown with hair. He glorified
God with unceasing prayer and ascetical struggles, and Christ gave him
the grace to overcome the demons which assailed him.
Attaining great holiness and perfecting himself in virtue, St Cyriacus
fell asleep in the Lord in 1660. His relics were buried in his cave,
where there is now a small chapel dedicated to him. Later, because of
unsettled conditions in the land, the faithful took portions of his
relics away in order to preserve them.
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Venerable Cyriacus of Tazlu, Romania
Saint Cyriacus was born into a peasant family, and became a monk at
the Tazlau Monastery. Since he surpassed the other monks in humility,
prayer, and virtue, he was found worthy of the grace of the
priesthood.
Wishing to attain further perfection, St Cyriacus withdrew to a
mountain called Magura Tazlaului, where he lived for fifty years.
There he struggled in a manner similar to the great hesychasts of old,
sustaining himself with dried bread and fruits, keeping all-night
vigils and shedding copious tears. Through the grace of the Holy
Spirit, he was able to forsee future events, and to cast out evil
spirits.
In time, many disciples flocked to him seeking spiritual counsel.
These, in turn, became hesychasts and lived in the mountains of
Tazlau, Nichitu, and Tarcau.
After he had reached a great age, St Cyriacus surrendered his soul to
God around 1660. His disciples buried him in a cave on Magura
Tazlaului, and many miracles were worked through his holy relics.
At the end of the seventeenth century Moldavia was threatened by great
dangers, and many people took refuge in the forests. The relics of St
Cyriacus were divided among the faithful so that they would not be
profaned by infidels. Thus, the mountain cave on Magura Tazlaului was
deprived of its great treasure.
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St Dositheus the Bishop and Confessor of Serbia
No information available at this time.
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St Dositheus the Confessor
No information available at this time.
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St Theophylactus of Ochrid
No information available at this time.
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Venerable Sabiana, Abbess of the Samtskhe Monastery
The nuns of Georgian monasteries have historically been outstanding in
their diligence. God entrusted them with the special duties of
ceaseless prayer, fasting, needlework, and the raising of orphans.
Nuns have been regarded as vessels of sanctity and wisdom, and even
royalty would kneel before them.
Many Georgian noblemen would send their children to nuns to be brought
up in the Christian Faith. According to the great church figure George
the Lesser, when the parents of St. George of the Holy Mountain
decided to have their first-born daughter, Thekla, raised by nuns,
they sent her to the worthy and holy Sabiana, who at that time was
abbess of the Samtskhe Tadzrisi Monastery in southern Georgia.
St. Sabiana welcomed Thekla and raised her as though she were her own
natural daughter.
Before long Theklas brother, the seven-year-old George, was also
brought to the monastery, and St. Sabiana spent three years educating
and instructing him in the spiritual life.
Further information on the life and labors of St. Sabiana has sadly
not been preserved. But as the Holy Gospel according to St. Matthew
attests, _the tree is known by his fruit_ (Matt. 12:33). The high
level of monastic life during St. Sabianas abbacy and the pious lives
of her spiritual children attest to the great spiritual heights she
attained.
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