[Readingsandsaints] Readings and saints

Wed Feb 21 05:00:16 CST 2007

Scripture Readings and Saints for Wed Feb 21 2007

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------ READINGS FOR TODAY ----------------------------
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Isaiah 2:3-11  (6th Hour)
3 Many people shall come and say, Come, and let us go up to the
mountain of the Lord, To the house of the God of Jacob; He will teach
us His ways, And we shall walk in His paths. For out of Zion shall go
forth the law, And the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
4 He shall judge between the nations, And rebuke many people; They
shall beat their swords into plowshares, And their spears into pruning
hooks; Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, Neither shall
they learn war anymore.
5 O house of Jacob, come and let us walk In the light of the Lord.
6 For You have forsaken Your people, the house of Jacob, Because they
are filled with eastern ways; They are soothsayers like the
Philistines, And they are pleased with the children of foreigners.
7 Their land is also full of silver and gold, And there is no end to
their treasures; Their land is also full of horses, And there is no
end to their chariots.
8 Their land is also full of idols; They worship the work of their own
hands, That which their own fingers have made.
9 People bow down, And each man humbles himself; Therefore do not
forgive them.
10 Enter into the rock, and hide in the dust, From the terror of the
Lord And the glory of His majesty.
11 The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, The haughtiness of men
shall be bowed down, And the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day.
Scripture Reading 1 of 3

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Genesis 1:24-2:3  (Vespers, 1st Reading)
24 Then God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature
according to its kind: cattle and creeping thing and beast of the
earth, each according to its kind; and it was so.
25 And God made the beast of the earth according to its kind, cattle
according to its kind, and everything that creeps on the earth
according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.
26 Then God said, Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our
likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the
birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over
every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.
27 So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created
him; male and female He created them.
28 Then God blessed them, and God said to them, Be fruitful and
multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of
the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that
moves on the earth.
29 And God said, See, I have given you every herb that yields seed
which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit
yields seed; to you it shall be for food.
30 Also, to every beast of the earth, to every bird of the air, and to
everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have
given every green herb for food; and it was so.
31 Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very
good. So the evening and the morning were the sixth day.
1 Thus the heavens and the earth, and all the host of them, were
finished.
2 And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done, and He
rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done.
3 Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He
rested from all His work which God had created and made.
Scripture Reading 2 of 3

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Proverbs 2:1-22  (Vespers, 2nd Reading)
1 My son, if you receive my words, And treasure my commands within
you,
2 So that you incline your ear to wisdom, And apply your heart to
understanding;
3 Yes, if you cry out for discernment, And lift up your voice for
understanding,
4 If you seek her as silver, And search for her as for hidden
treasures;
5 Then you will understand the fear of the Lord, And find the
knowledge of God.
6 For the Lord gives wisdom; From His mouth come knowledge and
understanding;
7 He stores up sound wisdom for the upright; He is a shield to those
who walk uprightly;
8 He guards the paths of justice, And preserves the way of His saints.
9 Then you will understand righteousness and justice, Equity and every
good path.
10 When wisdom enters your heart, And knowledge is pleasant to your
soul,
11 Discretion will preserve you;
12 To deliver you from the way of evil, From the man who speaks
perverse things,
13 From those who leave the paths of uprightness To walk in the ways
of darkness;
14 Who rejoice in doing evil, And delight in the perversity of the
wicked;
15 Whose ways are crooked, And who are devious in their paths;
16 To deliver you from the immoral woman, From the seductress who
flatters with her words,
17 Who forsakes the companion of her youth, And forgets the covenant
of her God.
18 For her house leads down to death, And her paths to the dead;
19 None who go to her return, Nor do they regain the paths of life
20 So you may walk in the way of goodness, And keep to the paths of
righteousness.
21 For the upright will dwell in the land, And the blameless will
remain in it;
22 But the wicked will be cut off from the earth, And the unfaithful
will be uprooted from it.
Scripture Reading 3 of 3

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------ SAINTS/FEASTS FOR TODAY ----------------------------
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Venerable Timothy of Symbola in Bithynia
Saint Timothy of Symbola, was of Italian descent. He became a monk at
a young age and pursued asceticism at a monastery called "Symbola," in
Asia Minor near Mount Olympus. At that time Theoctistus was the
archimandrite of the monastery. St Timothy was the disciple of
Theoctistus and also of St Platon of the Studion Monastery (April 5).
Attaining a high degree of spiritual perfection, he received from God
the gift of healing the sick and casting out unclean spirits. He spent
many years as a hermit, roaming the wilderness, the mountains and
forests, both day and night offering up prayer to the Lord God. He
died at a great old age, in the year 795.
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St Eustathius the Archbishop of Antioch
Saint Eustathius, Archbishop of Antioch (323-331) was born in Side,
Pamphylia in 324. He was Bishop of Beroea (modern Aleppo), and enjoyed
the love and esteem of the people, and at the request of his flock he
was elevated by the Fathers of the First Ecumenical Council (325) to
the See of Antioch.
St Eustathius was a learned theologian, and was also distinguished by
his broad knowledge in secular sciences. When the heresy of Arius
began to spread in the East (Arianism denied the consubstantiality of
the Son of God with the Father), St Eustathius struggled zealously for
the purity of the Orthodox Faith through his words and his writings.
The First Ecumenical Council was convened in the year 325 by the holy
God-crowned Emperor Constantine the Great (306-337). The first to
preside over this Council was St Eustathius. The Council condemned the
heretical teachings of Arius and incorporated the Orthodox confession
into the Symbol of Faith (the Nicene Creed).
But the mad Arius, as St Eustathius called him, refused to renounce
his errors. He and those who shared his opinion were excommunicated
from the Church by the Council. Among the bishops who signed the
Nicene Symbol of Faith were some who sympathized with the heresy of
Arius, but signed the Acts of the Council through fear of
excommunication.
After the Council, his enemies plotted against St Eustathius. With
great cunning they gained his consent to convene a local Council at
Antioch. Having bribed a certain profligate woman, they persuaded her
to appear at the Council with an infant at her breast, and falsely
declare that St Eustathius was the father of the infant.
The Arians declared St Eustathius deposed, violating the Apostolic
Rule that accusations against the clergy must be substantiated by two
witnesses. Without a trial he was sent off into exile in Thrace. But
the lie was soon unmasked: the woman repented after falling grievously
ill. She summoned the clergy, and in the presence of many people, she
confessed her sin.
St Constantine the Great died around this time, and his son
Constantius (337-361), who shared the heretical views of Arius and
favored the Arian bishops, succeeded his father on the throne. Even in
exile, St Eustathius struggled for Orthodoxy with the same zeal. He
died in exile, in the city of Philippi or Trajanopolis, in the year
337.
Convened in the year 381 at Constaninople, the Second Ecumenical
Council confirmed the Orthodox Symbol of Faith, which St Eustathius
had so vigorously defended. The Arian heresy was once again
anthematized.
In the year 482 the relics of St Eustathius were reverently
transferred from Philippi to Antioch, to the great joy of the Antioch
people, who had not ceased to honor and love their patriarch.
St Eustathius was esteemed by the great hierarchs of the fourth
century, Basil the Great, John Chrysostom, Athanasius of Alexandria,
Epiphanius of Cyprus, Anastasius of Sinai, and Jerome of Stridonia.
The renowned church historian Bishop Theodoret of Cyrrhus calls St
Eustathius a pillar of the Church and a man of piety, of equal stature
with St Athanasius of Alexandria and the other bishops at the
forefront of the struggle for Orthodoxy.
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St George the Bishop of Amastris on the Black Sea
Saint George, Bishop of Amastris, was from the city of Kromna, near
the city of Amastris close to the Black Sea. His pious and illustrious
parents Theodore and Migethusa gave him a fine spiritual and secular
education. St George withdrew to the mountains of Syriki in Asia
Minor, where he embraced monasticism and began to lead a strict
ascetic life under the guidance of a hermit.
After the death of his Elder, St George moved to a monastery in
Bonissa, and there continued with his efforts. After the death of the
bishop of the city of Amastris, St George was chosen bishop by the
clergy and the people, and he was consecrated at Constantinople by
Patriarch Tarasius (February 25). Arriving in Amastris, St George
instructed his flock, he adorned several churches, was a defender of
widows and orphans, fed the poor, and in everything he gave example of
a God-pleasing life.
By the power of his prayer he repelled the Saracens who were ravaging
the countryside from the city of Amastris. He also delivered from
death Amastrian merchants wrongfully condemned in the city of
Trebizon.
St George died peacefully in the midst of his flock on March 3, 805
during the reign of the emperor Nicephorus I (802-811).
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Icon of the Mother of God "Kozelshchansk"
The Kozelshchansk Icon of the Mother of God was glorified in the late
nineteenth century, though it is older than that. This icon is of
Italian origin and was brought to Russia by one of Empress Elizabeth's
(1741-1761) maids of honor, who was Italian. The owner of the icon
married a records clerk of the Zaporozhsky-Cossack army, Siromakh. So,
the icon went to the Ukraine with them.
During the nineteenth century it belonged to the family of Count
Vladimir Kapnist, and was one of their sacred possessions. The icon
was in the village of Kozelschina, Poltava governance. During
Cheesefare Week in the year 1880, Maria, the daughter of V. I.
Kapnist, dislocated some bones in her foot. The local doctor said the
problem was not serious. Dr. Grube, a noted surgeon in Kharkov, agreed
with the diagnosis, and he applied a plaster cast to Maria's foot. He
also prescribed hot baths and iron supplements. To lessen the
discomfort of the foot while walking, a special shoe was made with
metal bands that went around the girl's leg. Lent passed, but the girl
did not feel any relief.
After Pascha, Maria's other foot became twisted. Then both shoulders
and her left hip became dislocated, and she developed pain in her
spine. The doctor advised Count Kapnist to take his daughter
immediately to the Caucasus for the curative mineral waters and
mountain air. The journey to the Caucasus and the curative treatments
caused even greater affliction. The girl lost all feeling in her hands
and feet, and did not even feel pinches.
Because of the advanced degree of the illness, and since therapy was
not helping, they were compelled to return home.
In the month of October, the father journeyed with his sick daughter
to Moscow. Here he consulted specialists, who declared that they could
do nothing for Maria.
The parents and the sick girl began to despair. However, an unexpected
opportunity for help from a foreign professor presented itself. Since
it would be some while before his arrival in Moscow, the sick girl
asked to return home. The Count sent her back to the village, and his
wife promised to bring their daughter back to Moscow when he received
news of the the professor's arrival. On February 21, 1881, they
received a telegram saying that the professor had arrived in Moscow.
On the day before the appointment, Maria's mother suggested that she
pray before the family icon of the Mother of God. She said to her
daughter, "Masha [a diminutive form of Maria], tomorrow we go to
Moscow. Take the icon, let us clean its cover and pray to the Most
Holy Theotokos that your infirmity be cured."
The girl, who had no confidence in earthly physicians, placed all her
hope in God. This icon had long been known as wonderworking. According
to Tradition, young women would pray before it to have a happy family.
It was also the custom to clean the cover of the icon, and the one
praying would wipe it with cotton or linen.
Pressing the holy icon to her bosom, the sick girl, with the help of
her mother, cleaned it and poured out all her sorrow and despair of
soul to the Mother of God. All at once, she felt the strength return
to her body and she cried out loudly, "Mama! Mama! I can feel my legs!
I can feel my hands!" She tore off the metal braces and bandages and
began to walk about the room, while continuing to hold the icon of the
Mother of God in her hands.
The parish priest was summoned at once and celebrated a service of
Thanksgiving before the icon. The joyous event quickly became known
throughout all the surrounding villages. The Countess and Maria went
to Moscow and took with them the holy icon of the Mother of God. News
of the healing quickly spread about Moscow and people began to throng
to the hotel, and then to the church, where they had brought the icon.
The icon continued to work several more healings. When the family
returned home to Kozelschina, people had already heard about the
miracles of the Kozelschansk icon of the Mother of God in Moscow, and
many came to venerate the icon. It was no longer possible to keep the
icon at home, so by the order of Archbishop John of Poltava, the icon
was transferred to a temporary chapel on April 23, 1881. Every day
from early morning, services of Thanksgiving and Akathists were served
before the icon.
In 1882 a chapel was built on the grounds of the estate, and then a
church. decision of the Holy Synod on March 1, 1885 a women's
monastery was established, and on February 17, 1891 it was dedicated
to the Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos.
At present, the Kozelschansk Icon is in the Krasnogorsk Protection
women's monastery (Kiev diocese). In the lower left corner of the icon
is a table with a cup and a spoon. It is believed that this symbolizes
the Mother of God as a "bowl for mixing the wine of joy" (Akathist,
Ikos 11). A Service and an Akathist have been composed for the
Kozelschansk Icon.
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St John "Scholasticus", Patriarch of Constantinople
Saint John Scholasticus, Patriarch of Constantinople, was born in
Sirimion near Antioch, and studied law. He was ordained a priest
because of his great holiness and piety. Later he was elevated to the
patriarchal throne, where he spent the years 565 to 577.
While still a presbyter, he compiled a collection of Church Rules in
Fifty Chapters, and later during his time as patriarch he made a Codex
of civil laws relating to the Church. From these collections was
compiled the Nomocanon (i.e. "Law-canon"), used in church
administration. St John also composed the "Cherubic Hymn", and "Of Thy
Mystical Supper."
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St Zacharias, Patriarch of Jerusalem
Saint Zacharias, Patriarch of Jerusalem, lived from the end of the
sixth to the early seventh centuries. He became Patriarch of Jerusalem
in 609. In the year 614 the Persian emperor Chosroes fell upon
Jerusalem, looted it, and led many Christians into captivity,
including St Zacharias.
Chosroes also captured the Life-Creating Cross of Christ. During the
invasion, as many as 90,000 Christians perished. Afterwards Chosroes
was compelled to sue for peace with the Byzantine Emperor Heraclius
(610-641). The Cross of the Lord was returned to Jerusalem. The
Christian captives who remained alive also were returned, among them
Patriarch Zacharias, who died peacefully in the year 633.
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