[Readingsandsaints] Readings and saints

[Daily Orthodox Readings and Saints]

Scripture Readings and Saints for Tue May 29 2007

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------ READINGS FOR TODAY ----------------------------
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Romans 1:1-7, 13-17
1 Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle,
separated to the gospel of God
2 which He promised before through His prophets in the Holy
Scriptures,
3 concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed
of David according to the flesh,
4 and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit
of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead.
5 Through Him we have received grace and apostleship for obedience to
the faith among all nations for His name,
6 among whom you also are the called of Jesus Christ;
7 To all who are in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace
to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
13 Now I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that I often planned
to come to you (but was hindered until now), that I might have some
fruit among you also, just as among the other Gentiles.
14 I am a debtor both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to wise and to
unwise.
15 So, as much as is in me, I am ready to preach the gospel to you who
are in Rome also.
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power
of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and
also for the Greek.
17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith;
as it is written, "The just shall live by faith."
Scripture Reading 1 of 2


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Matthew 4:25-5:13
25 Great multitudes followed Him-from Galilee, and from Decapolis,
Jerusalem, Judea, and beyond the Jordan.
1 And seeing the multitudes, He went up on a mountain, and when He was
seated His disciples came to Him.
2 Then He opened His mouth and taught them, saying:
3 Blessed are the poor in spirit, For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4 Blessed are those who mourn, For they shall be comforted.
5 Blessed are the meek, For they shall inherit the earth.
6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, For they
shall be filled.
7 Blessed are the merciful, For they shall obtain mercy.
8 Blessed are the pure in heart, For they shall see God.
9 Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called sons of God.
10 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, For
theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all
kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake.
12 Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in
heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
13 You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor,
how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown
out and trampled underfoot by men.
Scripture Reading 2 of 2



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------ SAINTS/FEASTS FOR TODAY ----------------------------
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Trinity Week - 3rd Day of the Trinity
Many of the hymns of Pentecost are repeated in the postfestal services
of this week, and references to the Holy Spirit, and to fire, abound.
In particular, we are reminded of the Unburnt Bush (Exodus 3:2), the
zealous Prophet Elias who ascended to Heaven in a chariot of fire, the
three youths in the fiery furnace, and the Lord descending on Mt.
Sinai in fire (Exodus 19:18).
As we commemorate the Holy Spirit this week, we look forward to the
Sunday of All Saints, those righteous men and women of all nations and
in every age, who were perfected and sanctified by the same Holy
Spirit.
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Martyred Fathers and Mothers of Atchara
Atchara has been a Christian stronghold since apostolic times. It was
through this region that St. Andrew the First-called entered Georgia,
preaching the Gospel for the first time in the Iberian land. On this
land, in the village of Gonio, the holy relics of the martyred Apostle
Matthias are buried.
Since the 16th century Atchara has been subject to constant assaults
by the Turks. Having attained a victory in the Ottoman-Persian War,
the Turks gained a large part of southern and western Georgia:
Samtskhe, Atchara, and Chaneti were declared Turkish provinces. The
invaders knew well that, in order to completely conquer the Georgian
people, it was necessary to uproot Christianity. Thus they instituted
a systematic campaign of forced conversion to Islam.
When they failed to achieve their goal with bribery and deception,
they resorted to violence. In his work _The Islamization of Georgia,
or the Spread of Islam in Western Georgia in the 17th18th Centuries_,
the renowned early twentieth-century scholar Zakaria Chichinadze
retold a story he had heard from one elderly Atcharan man: In Atchara
the implanting of Islam faced a powerful opposition. Many of the
elderly men and the majority of women stood firmly by the Christian
Faith, and even challenged and debated the Turkish mullahs. The number
of these aged men in Atchara was considerably high. In the end an
order was issued: to arrest all dissidents, forcibly convert them to
Islam, and execute those who resisted. Before long all the elderly
Christians of Atchara were arrested and cast in prison. Then they were
led to the River Atcharistsqali, to a 12th-century bridge known as the
Bridge of Queen Tamar. On that bridge the Ottomans erected a
guillotine.
They chopped off the heads of the elderly people, sent the ends of
their tongues to the pasha, and threw their bodies into the river.
This happened one hundred years ago, in the year 1790.
Gallows and a guillotine were erected in the villages of
Atcharistsqali, Keda, Chakvi, Khulo, Machakhela, and Gonio. The
documents preserved in the manuscript collection at Akhaltsikhe Museum
describe in even more horrific detail the martyrdom of the Atcharan
Christians: The human tongue is powerless to describe the tortures
that the Georgians suffered in those years for confessing
Christianity. While they were still alive their flesh was stripped and
their bodies quartered; they were slashed to pieces with swords, their
bellies ripped open; they were roasted over campfires. They were
pierced with flaming rods, thrown into cauldrons of boiling water;
molten lead was poured down their throats; they were tossed into pools
of hot lime.
The Georgian Apostolic Church has numbered among the saints all the
holy fathers and mothers of Atchara who sacrificed their lives in
defense of the Christian Faith.
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Repose of the Blessed John of Ustiug the Fool-for-Christ
Blessed John, Fool-for-Christ, Ustiug Wonderworker, was born in the
village of Pukhovo, near Old Ustiug, of pious parents Sava and Maria.
>From his youth he distinguished himself by a strict life of fasting.
On Wednesdays and Fridays he ate nothing, and on other days he ate
only bread and water. His parents moved to the city of Orlets along
the River Iug, forty versts from Ustiug. Left widowed, the saint's
mother took monastic tonsure at the Orletsk Trinity monastery. The
young John started by keeping silence, and then he embraced the
struggle of foolishness for the sake of Christ.
Going about the city of Ustiug, he lived in a hut that had been built
for him, and spent his nights at unceasing prayer. By day, however, he
went about the streets of the city barefoot and in rags all year long,
resting sometimes on a dung heap. He endured much abuse and derision
from the people of the city.
During his life, the saint had been granted a gift of wonderworking.
He died at a young age on May 29, 1494, and was buried near the
Dormition cathedral in the city of Ustiug. Afterwards, a church
dedicated to him was built over his relics.
The Service to Blessed John of Ustiug was composed in the sixteenth
century. His life was written in 1554, based on the recollections of
people who had known him. The holy ascetic was famed as an intercessor
during invasions of enemies, and as a healer of those afflicted with
various maladies.
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Commemoration of the Holy Fathers of the First Ecumenical
Council
The Commemoration of the First Ecumenical Council has been celebrated
by the Church of Christ from ancient times. The Lord Jesus Christ left
the Church a great promise, "I will build My Church, and the gates of
hell shall not prevail against it" (Mt. 16:18). Although the Church of
Christ on earth will pass through difficult struggles with the Enemy
of salvation, it will emerge victorious. The holy martyrs bore witness
to the truth of the Savior's words, enduring suffering and death for
confessing Christ, but the persecutor's sword is shattered by the
Cross of Christ.
Persecution of Christians ceased during the fourth century, but
heresies arose within the Church itself. One of the most pernicious of
these heresies was Arianism. Arius, a priest of Alexandria, was a man
of immense pride and ambition. In denying the divine nature of Jesus
Christ and His equality with God the Father, Arius falsely taught that
the Savior is not consubstantial with the Father, but is only a
created being.
A local Council, convened with Patriarch Alexander of Alexandria
presiding, condemned the false teachings of Arius. However, Arius
would not submit to the authority of the Church. He wrote to many
bishops, denouncing the decrees of the local Council. He spread his
false teaching throughout the East, receiving support from certain
Eastern bishops.
Investigating these dissentions, the holy emperor Constantine (May 21)
consulted Bishop Hosius of Cordova (Aug. 27), who assured him that the
heresy of Arius was directed against the most fundamental dogma of
Christ's Church, and so he decided to convene an Ecumenical Council.
In 325, 318 bishops representing Christian Churches from various lands
gathered together at Nicea.
Among the assembled bishops were many confessors who had suffered
during the persecutions, and who bore the marks of torture upon their
bodies. Also participating in the Council were several great
luminaries of the Church: St Nicholas, Archbishop of Myra in Lycia
(December 6 and May 9), St Spyridon, Bishop of Tremithos (December
12), and others venerated by the Church as holy Fathers.
With Patriarch Alexander of Alexandria came his deacon, Athanasius
(who later became Patriarch of Alexandria (May 2 and January 18). He
is called "the Great," for he was a zealous champion for the purity of
Orthodoxy. In the Sixth Ode of the Canon for today's Feast, he is
referred to as "the thirteenth Apostle."
The emperor Constantine presided over the sessions of the Council. In
his speech, responding to the welcome by Bishop Eusebius of Caesarea,
he said, "God has helped me cast down the impious might of the
persecutors, but more distressful for me than any blood spilled in
battle is for a soldier, is the internal strife in the Church of God,
for it is more ruinous."
Arius, with seventeen bishops among his supporters, remained arrogant,
but his teaching was repudiated and he was excommunicated from the
Church. In his speech, the holy deacon Athanasius conclusively refuted
the blasphemous opinions of Arius. The heresiarch Arius is depicted in
iconography sitting on Satan's knees, or in the mouth of the Beast of
the Deep (Rev. 13).
The Fathers of the Council declined to accept a Symbol of Faith
(Creed) proposed by the Arians. Instead, they affirmed the Orthodox
Symbol of Faith. St Constantine asked the Council to insert into the
text of the Symbol of Faith the word "consubstantial," which he had
heard in the speeches of the bishops. The Fathers of the Council
unanimously accepted this suggestion.
In the Nicean Creed, the holy Fathers set forth and confirmed the
Apostolic teachings about Christ's divine nature. The heresy of Arius
was exposed and repudiated as an error of haughty reason. After
resolving this chief dogmatic question, the Council also issued Twelve
Canons on questions of churchly administration and discipline. Also
decided was the date for the celebration of Holy Pascha. By decision
of the Council, Holy Pascha should not be celebrated by Christians on
the same day with the Jewish Passover, but on the first Sunday after
the first full moon of the vernal equinox (which occured on March 22
in 325).
We also commemorate the holy God-bearing Fathers of the First
Ecumenical Council on the seventh Sunday of Pascha.
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Virginmartyr Theodosia the Nun of Constantinople
The Virgin Martyr Theodosia of Constantinople lived during the eighth
century. She was born in answer to the fervent prayers of her parents.
After their death, she was raised at the women's monastery of the holy
Martyr Anastasia in Constantinople. St Theodosia became a nun after
she distributed to the poor of what remained of her parental
inheritance. She used part of the money to commission gold and silver
icons of the Savior, the Theotokos, and St Anastasia.
When Leo the Isaurian (717-741) ascended the imperial throne, he
issued an edict to destroy holy icons everywhere. Above the Bronze
Gates at Constantinople was a bronze icon of the Savior, which had
been there for more than 400 years. In 730, the iconoclast Patriarch
Anastasius ordered the icon removed.
The Virgin Martyr Theodosia and other women rushed to protect the icon
and toppled the ladder with the soldier who was carrying out the
command. Then they stoned the impious Patriarch Anastasius, and
Emperor Leo ordered soldiers to behead the women. St Theodosia, an
ardent defender of icons, was locked up in prison. For a week they
gave her a hundred lashes each day. On the eighth day, they led her
about the city, fiercely beating her along the way. One of the
soldiers stabbed the nun in the throat with a ram's horn, and she
received the crown of martyrdom.
The body of the holy virgin martyr was reverently buried by Christians
in the monastery of St Euphemia in Constantinople, near a place called
Dexiokratis. The tomb of St Theodosia was glorified by numerous
healings of the sick.
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Icon of the Mother of God "the Surety of sinners"
The Icon of the Mother of God "Surety of Sinners" is known by this
name because of the inscription on the icon: "I am the Surety of
sinners for My Son Who has entrusted Me to hear them, and those who
bring Me the joy of hearing them will receive eternal joy through Me."
The Mother of God embraces Her Child, Who holds Her right hand with
both His hands so that Her thumb is in His right hand, and Her small
finger in His left hand. This is the gesture of one who gives surety
for another.
Although we do not know when or by whom the icon was originally
painted, it is believed that the basis of the icon is to be found in
the Akathist to the Protection of the Most Holy Theotokos: "Rejoice,
You Who offer Your hands in surety for us to God."
This icon was first glorified by miracles at the St Nicholas Odrino
men's monastery of the former Orlov gubernia in the mid-nineteenth
century (The "Assuage My Sorrows Icon" commemorated on October 9 is
also from this monastery). The "Surety of Sinners" icon of the Mother
of God was in an old chapel beyond the monastery gates, and stood
between two other ancient icons. Because it was so faded and covered
with dust, it was impossible to read the inscription.
In 1843 it was revealed to many of the people in dreams that the icon
was endowed with miraculous power. They solemnly brought the icon into
the church. Believers began to flock to it to pray for the healing of
their sorrows and sicknesses. The first to receive healing was a
crippled child, whose mother prayed fervently before the icon in 1844.
The icon was glorified during a cholera epidemic, when many people
fell deathly ill, and were restored to health after praying before the
icon.
A large stone church with three altars was built at the monastery in
honor of the wonderworking icon.
In 1848, through the zeal of Lt. Col. Demetrius Boncheskul, a copy of
the wonderworking image was made and placed in his home. Soon it began
to exude a healing myrrh, which was given to many so they might
recover their health after grievous illnesses. Boncheskul donated this
wonderworking copy to the church of St Nicholas at Khamovniki in
Moscow, where a chapel was built in honor of the icon.
The "Surety of Sinners" Icon is also commemorated on March 7 and on
Thursday of the week of All Saints.
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Virginmartyr Theodosia of Tyre
Saint Theodosia of Tyre lived during the third and fourth centuries.
Once, during a persecution against Christians, which had already
lasted for five years, the seventeen-year-old Theodosia went up to
condemned Christian prisoners in the Praetorium in Caesarea,
Palestine. It was the day of Holy Pascha, and the martyrs spoke about
the Kingdom of God. St Theodosia asked them to remember her before the
Lord, when they should come to stand before Him.
Soldiers saw that the maiden bowed to the prisoners, and they seized
her and led her before the governor, Urban. The governor advised the
maiden to offer sacrifice to the idols but she refused, confessing her
faith in Christ. Then they subjected the saint to cruel tortures,
raking her body with iron claws until her bones were exposed.
The martyr was silent and endured the sufferings with a happy face,
and to a second suggestion by the governor to offer sacrifice to the
idols she answered, "You fool, I have been granted to join the
martyrs!" They threw the maiden with a stone about her neck into the
sea, but angels drew her out from the depths. Then they threw the
martyr to the wild beasts to be eaten by them. Seeing that the beasts
would not touch her, they cut off her head.
By night St Theodosia appeared to her parents, who had tried to talk
their daughter into not going to the sufferings. She was in bright
garb with a crown upon her head and a luminous gold cross in her hand,
and she said, "Behold the great glory of which you wanted to deprive
me!"
The Holy Martyr Theodosia of Tyre suffered for Christ in the year 307
or 308. On May 29 we commemorate the transfer of her relics to
Constantinople and Venice. She is also commemorated on April 3.
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