[Readingsandsaints] Readings and saints

[Daily Orthodox Readings and Saints]

Scripture Readings and Saints for Mon Feb 12 2007

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3 John 1:1-14
1 The Elder, To the beloved Gaius, whom I love in truth:
2 Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health,
just as your soul prospers.
3 For I rejoiced greatly when brethren came and testified of the truth
that is in you, just as you walk in the truth.
4 I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth.
5 Beloved, you do faithfully whatever you do for the brethren and for
strangers,
6 who have borne witness of your love before the church. If you send
them forward on their journey in a manner worthy of God, you will do
well,
7 because they went forth for His name's sake, taking nothing from the
Gentiles.
8 We therefore ought to receive such, that we may become fellow
workers for the truth.
9 I wrote to the church, but Diotrephes, who loves to have the
preeminence among them, does not receive us.
10 Therefore, if I come, I will call to mind his deeds which he does,
prating against us with malicious words. And not content with that, he
himself does not receive the brethren, and forbids those who wish to,
putting them out of the church.
11 Beloved, do not imitate what is evil, but what is good. He who does
good is of God, but he who does evil has not seen God.
12 Demetrius has a good testimony from all, and from the truth itself.
And we also bear witness, and you know that our testimony is true.
13 I had many things to write, but I do not wish to write to you with
pen and ink;
14 but I hope to see you shortly, and we shall speak face to face.
Peace to you. Our friends greet you. Greet the friends by name.
Scripture Reading 1 of 2


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Luke 19:29-40; 22:7-39
29 And it came to pass, when He drew near to Bethphage and Bethany, at
the mountain called Olivet, that He sent two of His disciples,
30 saying, "Go into the village opposite you, where as you enter you
will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever sat. Loose it and
bring it here.
31 And if anyone asks you, 'Why are you loosing it?' thus you shall
say to him, 'Because the Lord has need of it.'
32 So those who were sent went their way and found it just as He had
said to them.
33 But as they were loosing the colt, the owners of it said to them,
"Why are you loosing the colt?"
34 And they said, "The Lord has need of him."
35 Then they brought him to Jesus. And they threw their own clothes on
the colt, and they set Jesus on him.
36 And as He went, many spread their clothes on the road.
37 Then, as He was now drawing near the descent of the Mount of
Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and
praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works they had seen,
38 saying: " 'Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the LORD!'
Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!"
39 And some of the Pharisees called to Him from the crowd, "Teacher,
rebuke Your disciples."
40 But He answered and said to them, "I tell you that if these should
keep silent, the stones would immediately cry out."
7 Then came the Day of Unleavened Bread, when the Passover must be
killed.
8 And He sent Peter and John, saying, "Go and prepare the Passover for
us, that we may eat."
9 So they said to Him, "Where do You want us to prepare?"
10 And He said to them, "Behold, when you have entered the city, a man
will meet you carrying a pitcher of water; follow him into the house
which he enters.
11 Then you shall say to the master of the house, 'The Teacher says to
you, Where is the guest room where I may eat the Passover with My
disciples?" '
12 Then he will show you a large, furnished upper room; there make
ready.
13 So they went and found it just as He had said to them, and they
prepared the Passover.
14 When the hour had come, He sat down, and the twelve apostles with
Him.
15 Then He said to them, "With fervent desire I have desired to eat
this Passover with you before I suffer;
16 for I say to you, I will no longer eat of it until it is fulfilled
in the kingdom of God.
17 Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, "Take this and
divide it among yourselves;
18 for I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until
the kingdom of God comes.
19 And He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them,
saying, "This is My body which is given for you; do this in
remembrance of Me."
20 Likewise He also took the cup after supper, saying, "This cup is
the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you.
21 But behold, the hand of My betrayer is with Me on the table.
22 And truly the Son of Man goes as it has been determined, but woe to
that man by whom He is betrayed!
23 Then they began to question among themselves, which of them it was
who would do this thing.
24 Now there was also a dispute among them, as to which of them should
be considered the greatest.
25 And He said to them, "The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship
over them, and those who exercise authority over them are called
'benefactors.'
26 But not so among you; on the contrary, he who is greatest among
you, let him be as the younger, and he who governs as he who serves.
27 For who is greater, he who sits at the table, or he who serves? Is
it not he who sits at the table? Yet I am among you as the One who
serves.
28 But you are those who have continued with Me in My trials.
29 And I bestow upon you a kingdom, just as My Father bestowed one
upon Me,
30 that you may eat and drink at My table in My kingdom, and sit on
thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
31 And the Lord said, "Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you,
that he may sift you as wheat.
32 But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and
when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren.
33 But he said to Him, "Lord, I am ready to go with You, both to
prison and to death."
34 Then He said, "I tell you, Peter, the rooster shall not crow this
day before you will deny three times that you know Me."
35 And He said to them, "When I sent you without money bag, knapsack,
and sandals, did you lack anything?" So they said, "Nothing."
36 Then He said to them, "But now, he who has a money bag, let him
take it, and likewise a knapsack; and he who has no sword, let him
sell his garment and buy one.
37 For I say to you that this which is written must still be
accomplished in Me: 'And He was numbered with the transgressors.' For
the things concerning Me have an end.
38 So they said, "Lord, look, here are two swords." And He said to
them, "It is enough."
39 Coming out, He went to the Mount of Olives, as He was accustomed,
and His disciples also followed Him.
Scripture Reading 2 of 2



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St Meletius the Archbishop of Antioch
Saint Meletius, Archbishop of Antioch, was Bishop of Sebaste in
Armenia (ca. 357), and afterwards he was summoned to Antioch by the
emperor Constantius to help combat the Arian heresy, and was appointed
to that See.
St Meletius struggled zealously against the Arian error, but through
the intrigues of the heretics he was thrice deposed from his cathedra.
Constantius had become surrounded by the Arians and had accepted their
position. In all this St Meletius was distinguished by an
extraordinary gentleness, and he constantly led his flock by the
example of his own virtue and kindly disposition, supposing that the
seeds of the true teaching sprout more readily on such soil.
St Meletius was the one who ordained the future hierarch St Basil the
Great as deacon. St Meletius also baptized and encouraged another of
the greatest luminaries of Orthodoxy, St John Chrysostom, who later
eulogized his former archpastor.
After Constantius, the throne was occupied by Julian the Apostate, and
the saint again was expelled, having to hide himself in secret places
for his safety. Returning under the emperor Jovian in the year 363, St
Meletius wrote his theological treatise, "Exposition of the Faith,"
which facilitated the conversion of many of the Arians to Orthodoxy.
In the year 381, under the emperor Theodosius the Great (379-395), the
Second Ecumenical Council was convened. In the year 380 the saint had
set off on his way to the Second Ecumenical Council at Constantinople,
and came to preside over it.
Before the start of the Council, St Meletius raised his hand
displaying three fingers, and then withdrawing two fingers and leaving
one extended he blessed the people, proclaiming: "We understand three
hypostases, and we speak about a single nature." With this
declaration, a fire surrounded the saint like lightning. During the
Council St Meletius fell asleep in the Lord. St Gregory of Nyssa
honored the memory of the deceased with a eulogy.
St Meletius has left treatises on the consubstantiality of the Son of
God with the Father, and a letter to the emperor Jovian concerning the
Holy Trinity. The relics of St Meletius were transferred from
Constantinople to Antioch.
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St Alexis the Metropolitan of Moscow and Wonderworker of All
Russia
Saint Alexis, Metropolitan of Moscow and All Russia the Wonderworker
(in the world Eleutherius), was born in the year 1292 (or according to
another source, 1304) at Moscow into the family of the noble Theodore
Byakont, a descendant of the Chernigov princely line.
The Lord revealed to the future saint his lofty destiny from early
childhood. At twelve years of age Eleutherius went to a field and set
nets to ensnare birds. He dozed off and suddenly he heard a voice:
"Alexis! Why do you toil in vain? You are to be a catcher of people."
>From this day on the boy abandoned childish games and spent much time
in solitude. He frequently visited church, and when he was fifteen he
decided to become a monk.
In 1320, he entered Moscow's Theophany monastery, where he spent more
than twelve years in strict monastic struggles. The renowned ascetics
of the monastery, the Elders Gerontius and St Stephen (July 14),
brother of St Sergius of Radonezh, were guides for him and his
companions.
Metropolitan Theognostus, who had taken notice of the virtuous life
and spiritual gifts of St Alexis, bade the future saint to leave the
monastery and manage the ecclesiastical courts. The saint fulfilled
this office for twelve years. Towards the end of 1350, Metropolitan
Theognostus had Alexis consecrated as Bishop of Vladimir. After the
death of the metropolitan, he became his successor in the year 1354.
During this period the Russian Church was torn by great rifts and
quarrels, in part because of the pretensions of Metropolitan Romanus
of Lithuania and Volhynia. In 1356, in order to put an end to the
troubles and disturbances, the saint went to Constantinople to the
Ecumenical Patriarch. Patriarch Callistus gave St Alexis the right to
both be called and to consider himself Archbishop of Kiev and Great
Russia with the title, "All-Venerable Metropolitan and Exarch."
On the return journey, during a storm at sea, the ship was in danger
of shipwreck. St Alexis prayed and vowed to build a temple to the
saint of that day on which the ship should come to shore. The storm
subsided, and the ship arrived on August 16. Moscow delightedly came
out to meet the saint.
In spite of problems on every side, St Alexis devoted himself to his
flock: he appointed bishops, he established cenobitic monasteries (on
the model of the Trinity Lavra, founded by St Sergius), and he brought
order to Russian relations with the Khans of the Horde. The saint
journeyed more than once to the Golden Horde. In 1357 the Khan told
the Great Prince that the saint should come to him and heal the
blindness of Taidulla, his wife.
"This is beyond my powers," said St Alexis, "but I believe that God,
Who gave sight to the blind, will also aid me." Through his prayer,
and after being sprinkled with holy water, the wife of the Khan was
healed.
When Great Prince Ioann died, his young son Demetrius (the future
saint), still a minor, was taken under the saint's guardianship. The
holy bishop had much toil in reconciling and appeasing princes
obstinatly refusing to accept the authority of Moscow. Nor did the
metropolitan neglect the work of organizing new monasteries.
In 1361 he founded the Icon of the Savior Not-Made-by-Hands monastery
at the Yauza in Moscow (Andronikov, the disciple of St Sergius, was
the first igumen of the monastery), fulfilling the vow he had made on
his return journey from Constantinople, when the ship was in danger.
He also founded the Chudov monastery in the Moscow Kremlin. Ancient
monasteries were restored: the Annunciation monastery at
Nizhni-Novgorod, and Sts Constantine and Helen at Vladimir. In 1361 a
women's cenobitic monastery was named for him (the Alekseev).
St Alexis reached the advanced age of seventy-eight, having spent
twenty-four years upon the metropolitan cathedra. He reposed on
February 12, 1378 and was buried in accord with his last wishes at the
Chudov monastery. His relics were uncovered in a miraculous manner
fifty years later, after which the memory of the great holy hierarch
and man of prayer began to be celebrated.
St Alexis is also commemorated on May 20 (Uncovering of his relics)
and on October 5.
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St Meletius the Archbishop of Kharkov
There is no information available about this saint at this time.
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Venerable Mary (who was called Marinus), and her father at
Alexandria
Saint Maria and her father Eugene lived at the beginning of the sixth
century in Bithynia (northwestern Asia Minor). After the death of his
wife, Eugene decided to withdraw to a monastery, but his daughter did
not want to be separated from him, and so she accompanied him, dressed
as a man. Together they entered a monastery not far from Alexandria,
and the daughter received the name Marinus.
Marinus becameaccomplished in virtue, and distinguished by humility
and obedience. After several years, when her father died, she
intensified her ascetical efforts and received from the Lord the gift
to heal those afflicted by unclean spirits.
One time the "monk" Marinus was sent with other monks to the monastery
gardens, and along the way they had to spend the night at an inn. The
inn-keeper's daughter, having sinned with one of the lodgers,
denounced the Marinus and named "him" as the father of her child. The
girl's father complained to the igumen of the monastery, who expelled
the "sinful brother." The saint spoke not a word in her defense and
began to live outside the monastery wall. When the hapless girl gave
birth to a boy, the inn-keeper brought it to Marinus. Without a word
he put his grandson down before her and left. The saint took the
infant and began to raise him.
After three years the brethren begged the igumen to take back the
"monk" Marinus into the monastery. The igumen, who very reluctantly
gave in to their requests, began to assign Marinus very difficult
obediences, which she fulfilled with the greatest of zeal, while also
raising her foster child.
Three years later the saint peacefully reposed in her cell. The
brethren saw the deceased "monk" and the boy crying over "him". As
they began to dress the saint for burial, her secret was revealed. The
igumen of the monastery tearfully asked forgiveness of the departed,
and the inn-keeper followed his example.
The body of St Maria was reverently buried in the monastery. The
inn-keeper's daughter came to the grave of the saint and openly
confessed her sin. Immediately, she was freed from the evil spirit
which had been tormenting her. The boy whom the saint was raising
later became a monk.
The relics of the saint were transferred to Constantinople, and were
carried off to Venice in 1113.
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Venerable Eugene and his daughter at Alexandria
Saint Eugene and his daughter Maria lived at the beginning of the
sixth century in Bithynia (northwestern Asia Minor). After the death
of his wife, Eugene decided to withdraw to a monastery, but his
daughter did not want to be separated from him, and so she accompanied
him, dressed as a man. Together they entered a monastery not far from
Alexandria, and the daughter received the name Marinus. Her father
fell asleep in the Lord several years later.
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St Anthony the Patriarch of Constantinople
Saint Anthony, Patriarch of Constantinople, was a native of Asia, but
lived in Constantinople from his youth. He was born around 829 of rich
and pious parents. After the death of his mother, he entered a
monastery at the age of twelve, where following the example of the
igumen, he spent his nights in prayer and led a strict monastic life.
With the passage of time, and against his will, he was ordained to the
holy priesthood. Later, at the insistence of the Patriarch, he was
made an igumen. Serving in this rank, he tonsured his own father into
monasticism. St Anthony was distinguished by his mercy, by his love
and concern for the destitute, and he provided generous help to them.
Elevated to the Patriarchal throne at Constantinople in 893, St
Anthony intensified his care for the destitute, and especially for
their spiritual condition. With the assistance of the emperor Leo the
Wise, Patriarch Anthony did much good for the Church, and encouraged
piety in the people. He also built a monastery over the relics of St
Kallia (February 12). Despite being stooped over with age, he went
around all the churches, fulfilling the command of the Savior to be
the servant of all the brethren.
In the year 895, advanced in age, St Anthony went peacefully to the
Lord.
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St Kristo the Gardener of Albania
The holy New Martyr Kristo was an Albanian who worked in a vegetable
garden. At the age of forty, he decided to go to Constantinople to
seek better business opportunities.
One day he was negotiating with a Turk who wished to purchase his
entire stock of apples, but they were unable to agree on a price. The
Turk became angry and accused Kristo of expressing a desire to become
a Moslem. Kristo was brought before the authorities, and false
witnesses were found to testify that he had indeed stated his
intention to convert.
Kristo declared that he never said that he wished to become a Moslem.
His testimony was discounted, however, because he was a Christian, and
Moslem witnesses had contradicted him.
The saint was beaten and tortured the next day, but remained steadfast
in his confession of Christ. Kaisarios Dapontes, a well known monk and
author, visited St Kristo and got him freed from the place where he
was chained. He brought food for him, but he refused to eat. "Why
should I eat?" he asked. "I do not expect to live, so I may as well
die hungering and thirsting for Christ."
Since he refused to abandon the Orthodox Faith, St Kristo was
sentenced to be beheaded. Before they led him away, Kristo gave
Dapontes a metal file and told him to sell it and use the money to
have memorial services offered for him.
On February 12, 1748 St Kristo the Gardener was beheaded, thereby
receiving an imperishable crown of glory from Christ.
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Icon of the Mother of God "Iveron"
The Iveron Icon of the Mother of God (which is preserved on Mt. Athos)
was kept in the home of a certain pious widow, who lived near Nicea.
During the reign of the emperor Theophilus, the Iconoclasts came to
the house of this Christian, and one of the soldiers struck the image
of the Mother of God with a spear. Blood flowed from the place where
it was struck.
The widow, fearing its destruction, promised the imperial soldiers
money and implored them not to touch the icon until morning. When the
soldiers departed, the woman and her son (later an Athonite monk),
sent the holy icon away upon the sea to preserve it. The icon,
standing upright upon the water, floated to Athos.
For several days, the Athonite monks had seen a fiery pillar on the
sea rising up to the heavens. They came down to the shore and found
the holy image, standing upon the waters. After a Molieben of
thanksgiving, a pious monk of the Iveron monastery, St Gabriel (July
12), had a dream in which the Mother of God appeared to him and gave
him instructions. So he walked across the water, and taking up the
holy icon, he placed it in the church.
On the following day, however, the icon was found not within the
church, but on the gates of the monastery. This was repeated several
times, until the Most Holy Theotokos revealed to St Gabriel Her will,
saying that She did not want the icon to be guarded by the monks, but
rather She intended to be their Protectress. After this, the icon was
installed on the monastery gates. Therefore this icon came to be
called "Portaitissa" or "Gate-Keeper" (October 13). This comes from
the Akathist to the Mother of God: "Rejoice, O Blessed Gate-Keeper who
opens the gates of Paradise to the righteous."
There is a tradition that the Mother of God promised St Gabriel that
the grace and mercy of Her Son toward the monks would continue as long
as the Icon remained at the monastery. It is also believed that the
disappearance of the Iveron Icon from Mt. Athos would be a sign of the
end of the world.
The Iveron Icon is also commemorated on March 31, October 13 (Its
arrival in Moscow in 1648), and Bright Tuesday (Commemorating the
appearance of the Icon in a pillar of fire at Mt. Athos and its
recovery by St Gabriel).
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St. Prochorus of Georgia
No information available at this time.
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Martyr Nicholas Dvali in Jerusalem
No information available at this time.
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St Bassian of Uglich
Saint Bassian of Uglich was a disciple of St Paisius of Uglich (June
6). He was born in the village of Rozhalov, in the Kesov district of
the city of Bezhetsk Verkha. He was descended from the Shestikhin
princes, whose ancestor was the prince St Theodore of Smolensk
(September 19).
St Bassian came to the Protection monastery when he was thirty-three
years of age, and was soon tonsured by St Paisius. He fulfilled his
obediences without complaint and lived in great abstinence. In 1482,
St Bassian discovered the Protection Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos.
Having spent twenty years at the monastery of St Paisius, St Bassian
then asked a blessing to live in silence. His teacher blessed him
saying, "Go my child, be guided by Christ with the blessed yoke of the
Lord as it pleases Him. Soon you yourself shall form your own
monastery and gather a monastic flock to the glory of the the Most
Holy Trinity."
In 1492 St Bassian left the monastery and, after spending time at the
Nikolo-Uleimsk monastery, he went to a remote place thirty versts
south of Uglich and began to live as a hermit. Soon people learned of
his solitary habitation and began to come for advice and guidance.
In 1492, the saint built a wooden church dedicated to the Most Holy
Trinity, and soon those wishing to live the monastic life came to be
guided by him. St Bassian did not cease his relationship with his
teacher until the latter's death, at which he was present together
with other disciples.
Having dwelt at the Trinity monastery for seventeen years, St Bassian
died on February 12, 1509. Three years later, a man named Gerasimus
received healing from unclean spirits at his grave, and another fellow
named Valerian was healed of palsy.
St Bassian was glorified in 1548 at the uncovering of his incorrupt
relics, over which a stone crypt was built. St Bassian is commemorated
twice during the year: on the day of his repose, February 12, and on
June 6 with his spiritual teacher St Paisius of Uglich.
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