[Readingsandsaints] Readings and saints

[Daily Orthodox Readings and Saints]

Scripture Readings and Saints for Fri Feb 23 2007

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------ READINGS FOR TODAY ----------------------------
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Isaiah 3:1-14  (6th Hour)
1 For behold, the Lord, the Lord of hosts, Takes away from Jerusalem
and from Judah The stock and the store, The whole supply of bread and
the whole supply of water;
2 The mighty man and the man of war, The judge and the prophet, And
the diviner and the elder;
3 The captain of fifty and the honorable man, The counselor and the
skillful artisan, And the expert enchanter.
4 I will give children to be their princes, And babes shall rule over
them.
5 The people will be oppressed, Every one by another and every one by
his neighbor; The child will be insolent toward the elder, And the
base toward the honorable.
6 When a man takes hold of his brother In the house of his father,
saying, You have clothing; You be our ruler, And let these ruins be
under your power,
7 In that day he will protest, saying, I cannot cure your ills, For in
my house is neither food nor clothing; Do not make me a ruler of the
people.
8 For Jerusalem stumbled, And Judah is fallen, Because their tongue
and their doings Are against the Lord, To provoke the eyes of His
glory.
9 The look on their countenance witnesses against them, And they
declare their sin as Sodom; They do not hide it. Woe to their soul!
For they have brought evil upon themselves.
10 Say to the righteous that it shall be well with them, For they
shall eat the fruit of their doings.
11 Woe to the wicked! It shall be ill with him, For the reward of his
hands shall be given him.
12 As for My people, children are their oppressors, And women rule
over them. O My people! Those who lead you cause you to err, And
destroy the way of your paths.
13 The Lord stands up to plead, And stands to judge the people.
14 The Lord will enter into judgment With the elders of His people And
His princes: For you have eaten up the vineyard; The plunder of the
poor is in your houses.
Scripture Reading 1 of 6


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Genesis 2:20-3:20  (Vespers, 1st Reading)
20 So Adam gave names to all cattle, to the birds of the air, and to
every beast of the field. But for Adam there was not found a helper
comparable to him.
21 And the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he slept;
and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in its place.
22 Then the rib which the Lord God had taken from man He made into a
woman, and He brought her to the man.
23 And Adam said: This is now bone of my bones And flesh of my flesh;
She shall be called Woman, Because she was taken out of Man.
24 Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to
his wife, and they shall become one flesh.
25 And they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not
ashamed.
1 Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which
the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, Has God indeed said,
You shall not eat of every tree of the garden?
2 And the woman said to the serpent, We may eat the fruit of the trees
of the garden;
3 but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden,
God has said, You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you
die.
4 Then the serpent said to the woman, You will not surely die.
5 For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be
opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.
6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was
pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took
of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he
ate.
7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they
were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves
coverings.
8 And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in
the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the
presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden.
9 Then the Lord God called to Adam and said to him, Where are you?
10 So he said, I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid
because I was naked; and I hid myself.
11 And He said, Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from
the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?
12 Then the man said, The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave
me of the tree, and I ate.
13 And the Lord God said to the woman, What is this you have done? The
woman said, The serpent deceived me, and I ate.
14 So the Lord God said to the serpent: Because you have done this,
You are cursed more than all cattle, And more than every beast of the
field; On your belly you shall go, And you shall eat dust All the days
of your life.
15 And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your
seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His
heel.
16 To the woman He said: I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your
conception; In pain you shall bring forth children; Your desire shall
be for your husband, And he shall rule over you.
17 Then to Adam He said, Because you have heeded the voice of your
wife, and have eaten from the tree of which I commanded you, saying,
You shall not eat of it: Cursed is the ground for your sake; In toil
you shall eat of it All the days of your life.
18 Both thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you, And you
shall eat the herb of the field.
19 In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread Till you return to
the ground, For out of it you were taken; For dust you are, And to
dust you shall return.
20 And Adam called his wifes name Eve, because she was the mother of
all living.
Scripture Reading 2 of 6


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Proverbs 3:19-34  (Vespers, 2nd Reading)
19 The Lord by wisdom founded the earth; By understanding He
established the heavens;
20 By His knowledge the depths were broken up, And clouds drop down
the dew.
21 My son, let them not depart from your eyes Keep sound wisdom and
discretion;
22 So they will be life to your soul And grace to your neck.
23 Then you will walk safely in your way, And your foot will not
stumble.
24 When you lie down, you will not be afraid; Yes, you will lie down
and your sleep will be sweet.
25 Do not be afraid of sudden terror, Nor of trouble from the wicked
when it comes;
26 For the Lord will be your confidence, And will keep your foot from
being caught.
27 Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, When it is in
the power of your hand to do so.
28 Do not say to your neighbor, Go, and come back, And tomorrow I will
give it, When you have it with you.
29 Do not devise evil against your neighbor, For he dwells by you for
safetys sake.
30 Do not strive with a man without cause, If he has done you no harm.
31 Do not envy the oppressor, And choose none of his ways;
32 For the perverse person is an abomination to the Lord, But His
secret counsel is with the upright.
33 The curse of the Lord is on the house of the wicked, But He blesses
the home of the just.
34 Surely He scorns the scornful, But gives grace to the humble.
Scripture Reading 3 of 6


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Composite 8  (Forerunner)
Thus saith the Lord: "Comfort, comfort My people," says God. "Speak to
the heart of Jerusalem, you Priests, comfort her, for her humiliation
is increased, her iniquity is pardoned; for she has received from the
Lord's hand double for her sins. The voice of one crying in the
wilderness: 'Prepare the way of the Lord; make straight the paths of
our God.'
"Go up to a high mountain, you who are proclaiming glad tidings to
Zion, lift up your voice with strength, O herald of good tidings to
Jerusalem. Lift it up, fear not! I the Lord God, I have heard the poor
of Israel and will not forsake them. I will open rivers on the
mountains, and fountains in the midst of the valleys; I will make the
deserts pools of water, and the thirsty landsprings of water. Let the
heavens rejoice from above, and let the clouds rain down
righteousness; let the earth bring forth, and let it sprout forth
mercy and cause righteousness to shine forth also.
"Declare this with a shout of joy, and let this be known, proclaim it
to the end of the earth. Say, 'The Lord hath redeemed His servant
Jacob!' And if they thirst, he shall lead them through the desert, He
shall bring forth water for them out of the rock. Rejoice, O barren
one who did not bear; break forth _into singing_ and cry loud, you who
have not been in travail! For more are the children of the desolate
one than of her who has a husband."
Scripture Reading 4 of 6


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Composite 9  (Forerunner)
_Thus saith the Lord Almighty:_ "Behold, I send My messenger before
Thy face, who shall prepare Thy way before thee, and the Lord whom you
seek, shall come into His temple. But who can endure the day of His
coming? For he is coming like fire of a furnace and like the fuller's
herb; and he shall cleanse, refining and purifying, as it were, silver
and gold. And he comes to you with judgment, and will be a swift
witness against the evil ones and against adulterers, and against
those who swear falsely by My name, against those who withhold the
hireling's wages, against those who oppress widows and beat orphans,
against those who avoid judgment in favor of strangers, and against
those who do not fear him," says the Lord Almighty.
"For I am the Lord your God, and I change not; and you, the sons of
Jacob, have turned aside from the law and have not kept it. Return to
Me, therefore, and I will return to you," says the Lord Almighty. "And
all nations shall call you blessed, and they shall understand that I
am the Lord, who distinguishes between the righteous and between the
transgressors on that day, in which I shall act to spare those who
love me.
"Know, therefore, and remember the Law of Moses, My servant, as I
commanded you at Horeb, the statues and ordinances for all Israel. And
behold, I will send to you Elijah the Tishbite before the great and
glorious day of the Lord comes, who shall turn the heart of a father
to his son, and the heart of a man to his neighbor, lest I come
quickly and smite the earth," _saith the Lord Almighty, God, the One
of Israel._
Scripture Reading 5 of 6


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Composite 3  (Forerunner)
The righteous man, though he die early, will be at rest. The righteous
man who has died will judge the ungodly who are living. For they will
see the end of the righteous, and will not understand what was said
about him; for the Lord will cast down the ungodly speechless to the
ground and shake them from the foundations; they shall become desolate
to the end; they will be in sorrows, and their memory will perish. For
they will come with fear at the thought of their sins, and their
iniquities shall stand against them to convict them.
Then the righteous man will stand with great boldness before those who
have afflicted him, and those who have made of no account his labors.
Having seen it, they shall be troubled with much fear and they will be
amazed at his most-glorious salvation. They will say within themselves
in repentance, in anguish of spirit they will groan and say: "This was
he whom we had sometimes in derision and a proverb of reproach - we
fools! We accounted his life as madness, and his end to be without
honor. How is he numbered among the sons of God? And why is his lot
among the Saints?
"Therefore, we have erred from the way of truth, and the light of
righteousness did not illumine us, nor did the sun shine on us. We
took our fill of the paths of lawlessness and destruction, and we
walked impassible pathways, but the way of the Lord we have not
known."
Scripture Reading 6 of 6



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Hieromartyr Polycarp the Bishop of Smyrna
Saint Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna, who was "fruitful in every good
work" (Col. 1:10), was born in the first century, and lived in Smyrna
in Asia Minor. He was orphaned at an early age, but at the direction
of an angel, he was raised by the pious widow Kallista. After the
death of his adoptive mother, Polycarp gave away his possessions and
began to lead a chaste life, caring for the sick and the infirm. He
was very fond of and close to St Bucolus, Bishop of Smyrna (February
6). He ordained Polycarp as deacon, entrusting to him to preach the
Word of God in church. He also ordained him to the holy priesthood.
The holy Apostle John the Theologian was still alive at this time. St
Polycarp was especially close to St John, and sometimes accompanied
him on his apostolic journeys.
Shortly before his death, St Bucolus expressed his wish that Polycarp
be made Bishop of Smyrna. When St Polycarp was consecrated as a
bishop, the Lord Jesus Christ appeared to him. St Polycarp guided his
flock with apostolic zeal, and he was also greatly loved by the
clergy. St Ignatius the God-Bearer of Antioch (December 20) also had a
high regard for him. Setting out for Rome where execution awaited him,
he wrote to St Polycarp, "This age is in need of you if it is to reach
God, just as pilots need winds, and as a storm-tossed sailor needs a
port."
The emperor Marcus Aurelius (161-180) came to the Roman throne and
started up a most fierce persecution against Christians. The pagans
demanded that the judge search for St Polycarp, "the father of all the
Christians" and "the seducer of all Asia."
During this time St Polycarp, at the persistent urging of his flock,
stayed in a small village not far from Smyrna. When the soldiers came
for him, he went out to them and invited them in to eat. He asked for
time to pray, in order to prepare himself for martyrdom. His suffering
and death are recorded in the "Epistle of the Christians of the Church
of Smyrna to the Other Churches," one of the most ancient memorials of
Christian literature.
Having been brought to trial, St Polycarp firmly confessed his faith
in Christ, and was condemned to be burned alive. The executioners
wanted to nail him to a post, but he declared that God would give him
the strength to endure the flames, so they could merely tie him with
ropes. The flames encircled the saint but did not touch him, coming
together over his head in the shape of a vault. Seeing that the fire
did him no harm, the pagans stabbed him with a dagger. So much blood
flowed from this wound that it extinguished the flames. The body of
the hieromartyr Polycarp was then cremated. The Christians of Smyrna
reverently gathered up what remained of his holy relics, and each year
they celebrated the day of his martyrdom.
A story has been preserved about St Polycarp by his disciple, St
Irenaeus of Lyons, which Eusebius cites in his ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY
(V, 20):
"I was still very young when I saw you in Asia Minor at Polycarp's,"
writes St Irenaeus to his friend Florinus, "but I would still be able
to point out the place where Blessed Polycarp sat and conversed, and
be able to depict his walk, his mannerisms in life, his outward
appearance, his speaking to people, his companionable wandering with
John, and how he himself related, together with other eyewitnesses of
the Lord, those things that he remembered from the words of others. He
also told what he heard from them about the Lord, His teachings and
miracles....
Through the mercy of God to me, I then already listened attentively to
Polycarp and wrote down his words, not on tablets, but in the depths
of my heart. Therefore, I am able to bear witness before God, that if
this blessed and apostolic Elder heard something similar to your
fallacy, he would immediately stop up his ears and express his
indignation with his usual phrase: 'Good God! That Thou hast permitted
me to be alive at such a time!'"
During his life the holy bishop wrote several Epistles to the flock
and letters to various individuals. The only one that has survived to
the present day is his Epistle to the Philippians which, St Jerome
testifies, was read in the churches of Asia Minor at divine services.
It was written by the saint in response to the request of the
Philippians to send them some letters of the hieromartyr Ignatius
(December 20) which St Polycarp had in his possession.
The composer H.I.F. Bibier (1644-1704) has written a Sonata "Scti
Polycarpi" for eight trumpets in honor of the holy martyr.
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Venerable Polycarp of Briansk
Saint Polycarp of Briansk In the world, he was Prince Peter Ivanovich
Boryatinsky, a descendant of St Michael, Prince of Chernigov
(September 20). This supposition has been put forward because
Boryatinsky is connected with the destiny of the Briansk Savior
Transfiguration monastery.
The name of Prince Peter Boryatinsky is often encountered in documents
of the sixteenth century. Thus, he was among those sent off to wage
war against the Swedish king at the river Sestra. In 1576, he was
named voevod at Tula. In 1580, Boryatinsky, having been appointed
voevod at Kholm, was captured by the Lithuanians under a siege headed
by Panin. Upon his release from captivity under Boris Godinov,
Boryatinsky returned home in disgrace.
In 1591 he was named voevod at Tiumen, but after several years he left
the world, settled at Briansk and received monastic tonsure with the
name Polycarp. From his means the monk built a monastery of the
Transfiguration of the Lord and established in it a Rule of strict
ascetical life. St Polycarp was the first Superior of this monastery.
He died and was buried there in 1620 or 1621.
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Venerable John, Ascetic of the Syrian Deserts
Saint John, disciple of St Limnaeus (February 22), lived in Syria in
the fifth century, and chose for himself the ascetic struggle of "a
shelterless life." He settled on a hill, sheltered from the wind on
all sides, and lived there for twenty-five years. He ate only bread
and salt, and he exhausted his body under heavy chains. When one of
the nearby ascetics planted an almond tree on the hill so that St John
could enjoy its shade and get out of the vicious heat, the saint told
him to cut it down. This he did in order to deny his body any respite.
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Venerable Antiochus, Ascetic of the Syrian Deserts
Sts Antiochus and Antoninus also lived in asceticism with St John.
They continued their ascetical struggles until they reached an
advanced age, offering an example of spiritual strength, and
overcoming every obstacle.
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Venerable Antoninus, Ascetic of the Syrian Deserts
Sts Antoninus and Antiochus also lived in asceticism with St John.
They continued their ascetical struggles until they reached an
advanced age, offering an example of spiritual strength, and
overcoming every obstacle.
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Venerable Moses, Ascetic of the Syrian Deserts
St Moses lived in Syria in the fifth century.Iimitating St John, he
settled on a high mountain near the village of Rama. He was a disciple
of St Polychronius, and lived with him. Emulating his Elder in
everything, St Moses was the very model of an austere ascetical life.
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Venerable Zebinas, Ascetic of the Syrian Deserts
St Zebinas lived in Syria during the fifth century. He lived an
ascetical life on the same mountain as St Moses. He never sat down
during his Rule of prayer, but sometimes he leaned on his staff. The
neighboring inhabitants venerated St Zebinas, and they received great
help in their sorrows and needs through his prayers.
He reached a great old age, then departed to the Lord.
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Venerable Polychronius, Ascetic of the Syrian Deserts
Saint Polychronius lived in Syria in the fifth century. He was the
disciple of St Zebinas, and imitated the life of his Elder, spending
both day and night in fasting and vigil. St Polychronius had no
chains, but he dug up a heavy oaken root from the earth and carried it
on his shoulders when he prayed. St Polychronius asked God to send
rain during a drought, and he filled up a stone vessel with oil for
the needy.
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Venerable Moses, Ascetic of the Syrian Deserts
Saint Moses settled on a high mountain near the village of Rama. He
was a disciple of St Polychronius. Emulating his Elder in everything,
St Moses was the very model of austere ascetical life.
St Moses died in Syria in the fifth century.
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Venerable Damian, Ascetic of the Syrian Deserts
Saint Damian lived in Syria in the fifth century. He withdrew to a
monastery named Ieros and lived there in asceticism. In his cell he
had only a small box of lentils from which he ate.
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Venerable Alexander the founder of the Monastery, of the
"Unsleeping Ones"
Saint Alexander, Founder of the Monastery of the "Unsleeping Ones,"
was born in Asia and received his education at Constantinople. He
spent some time in military service but, sensing a calling to other
service, he left the world and receivedmonastic tonsure in one of the
desert monasteries near Antioch under the guidance of Igumen Elias.
Having advanced through all the degrees of monastic obedience, he
received a blessing from the igumen to dwell in the wilderness. The
saint lived an ascetical life in the wilderness, taking only the Holy
Gospel with him. Afterwards, the Lord summoned him to preach to
pagans. He converted to the faith the local city-head Rabbul, who
afterwards prospered in the service of the Church, attaining the rank
of bishop and for thirty years he occupied the bishop's cathedra in
the city of Edessa.
Finally, St Alexander settled not far from the Euphrates River. Monks
gathered around him, attracted by the loftiness of his prayerful
asceticism and spiritual experience. A monastery of 400 monks
eventually sprang up there.
Then the holy igumen in his prayerful zeal decided to offer
never-ceasing praise to the Lord at the monastery both by day and by
night. For three years the holy abba prayed that God might reveal to
him whether it was pleasing to Him to establish such a monastic rule.
He received an answer by divine revelation. All the monks were divided
into twenty-four watches of prayer. Changing shifts each hour, two
choirs sang the holy Psalms both day and night, except when divine
services were celebrated in church. Hence the name "Monastery of
Unsleeping Ones," since the ascetics offered unceasing praise to God.
St Alexander guided the monastery on the Euphrates for twelve years.
Thereafter, having left the experienced Elder Trophimus as igumen, he
set off with some chosen brethren through the cities bordering on
Persia, to preach the Gospel. Having arrived at Constantinople,
capital of the Byzantine Empire, he also established a monastery there
with his Rule of unceasing praise. The abba died at a great old age
after fifty years of monastic struggles. His death occurred in the
year 430.
St Alexander is also commemorated on July 3.
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Venerable Damian of Esphigmenou of Mt Athos
Saint Damian lived in the thirteenth century. He was a hesychast on
Mt. Athos, and struggled in the skete of Esphigmenou monastery, on a
mountain called Samareia, between the monasteries of Hilandar and
Esphigmenou, and also in one of the caves where the Father of Russian
Monasticism, St Anthony of the Caves (July 10), had lived in
asceticism.
Known for his ascetic life and for the miracles he performed, he was
truly obedient and kept the injunctions of the Fathers.
St Damian reposed in his cell in the year 1280, and a miraculous
fragrance issued from his grave for forty days. His Life was written
by his friend St Cosmas of Zographou Monastery (September 22).
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Monkmartyr Damian of Philotheou
Saint Damian of Philotheou was a disciple of St Dometius (August 7).
He was from the village of Richovon (Merichovon) near Agrapha. He went
to Mt. Athos when he was quite young, and received the monastic
tonsure at Philotheou Monastery. After spending some time there, he
withdrew to a hermitage under the guidance of an Elder named Dometius.
After three years, he heard a voice telling him to go forth and teach.
He obeyed these instructions, preaching in many areas of Greece. He
urged his fellow Christians to repent of their sins, to abstain from
all vices, to obey God's commandments, and to devote themselves to
God-pleasing works.
As he was on his way to a village, St Damian was arrested by the Turks
and thrown into prison. After fifteen days of torture, he was hanged
and then thrown into a fire.
St Damian received the crown of martyrdom on February 23, 1568.
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New Hieromartyr Nicholas (Dmitrov) of Tver
No information available at this time.
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St Gorgonia, sister of St Gregory the Theologian
Saint Gorgonia, The sister of St Gregory the Theologian, she was
distinguished for her great virtue, piety, meekness, sagacity, and
toil. Her house was a haven for the poor. The mother of five children,
she died around the year 372 at the age of thirty-nine. Her last words
were, "In peace I will both lie down and sleep" (Psalm 4:8).
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