[Readingsandsaints] Readings and Saints

Mon Nov 5 05:00:14 CST 2007

Scripture Readings and Saints for Mon Nov 5 2007

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1 Thessalonians 2:20-3:8
20 For you are our glory and joy.
1 Therefore, when we could no longer endure it, we thought it good to
be left in Athens alone,
2 and sent Timothy, our brother and minister of God, and our fellow
laborer in the gospel of Christ, to establish you and encourage you
concerning your faith,
3 that no one should be shaken by these afflictions; for you
yourselves know that we are appointed to this.
4 For, in fact, we told you before when we were with you that we would
suffer tribulation, just as it happened, and you know.
5 For this reason, when I could no longer endure it, I sent to know
your faith, lest by some means the tempter had tempted you, and our
labor might be in vain.
6 But now that Timothy has come to us from you, and brought us good
news of your faith and love, and that you always have good remembrance
of us, greatly desiring to see us, as we also to see you-
7 therefore, brethren, in all our affliction and distress we were
comforted concerning you by your faith.
8 For now we live, if you stand fast in the Lord.
Scripture Reading 1 of 2

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Luke 12:13-15, 22-31
13 Then one from the crowd said to Him, "Teacher, tell my brother to
divide the inheritance with me."
14 But He said to him, "Man, who made Me a judge or an arbitrator over
you?"
15 And He said to them, "Take heed and beware of covetousness, for
one's life does not consist in the abundance of the things he
possesses."
22 Then He said to His disciples, "Therefore I say to you, do not
worry about your life, what you will eat; nor about the body, what you
will put on.
23 Life is more than food, and the body is more than clothing.
24 Consider the ravens, for they neither sow nor reap, which have
neither storehouse nor barn; and God feeds them. Of how much more
value are you than the birds?
25 And which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?
26 If you then are not able to do the least, why are you anxious for
the rest?
27 Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and
yet I say to you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like
one of these.
28 If then God so clothes the grass, which today is in the field and
tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will He clothe you, O
you of little faith?
29 And do not seek what you should eat or what you should drink, nor
have an anxious mind.
30 For all these things the nations of the world seek after, and your
Father knows that you need these things.
31 But seek the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added to
you.
Scripture Reading 2 of 2

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Martyr Galacteon and his wife at Emesa
The Martyrs Galacteon and his wife Epistime at Emesa There was a rich
and distinguished couple named Kletophon and Leukippe, who lived in
the Syrian city of Emesa, and for a long time they were childless.
They gave much gold to the pagan priests, but still they remained
childless.
The city of Emesa was governed by a Syrian named Secundus, put there
by the Roman Caesars. He was a merciless and zealous persecutor of
Christians, and to intimidate them he ordered that the instruments of
torture be displayed on the streets. The slightest suspicion of
belonging to "the sect of the Galilean" (as thus Christians were
called by the pagans), was enough to get a man arrested and handed
over for torture. In spite of this, many Christians voluntarily
surrendered themselves into the hands of the executioners, in their
desire to suffer for Christ.
A certain old man by the name of Onuphrius, who concealed his monastic
and priestly dignity beneath his beggar's rags. He walked from house
to house in Emesa, begging alms. At the same time, whenever he saw the
possibility of turning people away from the pagan error, he preached
about Christ.
Once, he came to the magnificent house of Leukippe. Accepting alms
from her, he sensed that the woman was in sorrow, and he asked what
was the cause of this sadness. She told the Elder about her familial
misfortune. In consoling her, Onuphrius began to tell her about the
one true God, about His omnipotence and mercy, and how He always
grants the prayer of those turning to Him with faith. Hope filled the
soul of Leukippe. She believed and accepted Holy Baptism. Soon after
this it was revealed to her in a dream that she would give birth to a
son, who would be a true follower of Christ. At first, Leukippe
concealed her delight from her husband, but after the infant was born,
she revealed the secret to her husband and also persuaded him to be
baptized.
They named the baby Galacteon and his parents raised him in the
Christian Faith and provided him a fine education. He could make an
illustrious career for himself, but Galacteon sought rather an
unsullied monastic life in solitude and prayer.
When Galacteon turned twenty-four, his father resolved to marry him
off and they found him a bride, a beautiful and illustrious girl by
the name of Epistime. The son did not oppose the will of his father,
but by the will of God, the wedding was postponed for a time. Visiting
his betrothed, Galacteon gradually revealed his faith to her.
Eventually, he converted her to Christ and he secretly baptized her
himself.
Besides Epistime he baptized also one of her servants, Eutolmius. The
newly-illumined decided on the initiative of Galacteon, to devote
themselves to the monastic life. Leaving the city, they hid themselves
away on Mount Publion, where there were two monasteries, one for men
and the other for women. The new monastics had to take with them all
the necessities for physical toil, since the inhabitants of both
monasteries were both old and infirm.
For several years the monastics struggled in work, fasting and prayer.
Once, Epistime had a vision in her sleep: she and Galacteon stood in a
wondrous palace before a radiant King, and the King bestowed golden
crowns on them. This was a prefiguring of their impending martyrdom.
The pagans became aware of the existence of the monasteries, and a
military detachment was sent to apprehend their inhabitants. But the
monks and the nuns succeeded in hiding themselves in the hills.
Galacteon, however, had no desire to flee and so he remained in his
cell, reading Holy Scripture. When Epistime saw that the soldiers were
leading Galacteon away in chains, she began to implore the Abbess to
permit her to go also, since she wanted to accept torture for Christ
together with her fiancé and teacher. The Abbess tearfully blessed
Epistime to do so.
The saints endured terrible torments, while supplicating and
glorifying Christ. Their hands and legs were cut off, their tongues
were cut out, and then they were beheaded.
Eutolmius, the former servant of Epistime, and who had become her
brother in Christ and fellow ascetic in monastic struggles, secretly
buried the bodies of the holy martyrs. He later wrote an account of
their virtuous life and their glorious martyrdom, for his
contemporaries and for posterity.
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Martyr Episteme and her husband at Emesa
The Martyrs Epistime and her husband Galacteon at Emesa.
When Galacteon turned twenty-four, his father resolved to marry him
off and they found a beautiful and illustrious girl by the name of
Epistime. The son did not oppose the will of his father, but by the
will of God, the wedding was postponed for a time. Visiting his
betrothed, Galacteon gradually revealed his faith to her. Eventually,
he converted her to Christ and he secretly baptized her himself.
Besides Epistime he baptized also one of her servants, Eutolmius. The
newly-illumined decided to devote themselves to the monastic life.
Leaving the city, they hid themselves away on Mount Publion, where
there were two monasteries, one for men and the other for women. The
new monastics had to take with them all the necessities for physical
toil, since the inhabitants of both monasteries were both old and
infirm.
Once, Epistime had a vision in her sleep: she and Galacteon stood in a
wondrous palace before a radiant King, and the King bestowed golden
crowns on them. This prefigured their impending martyrdom.
The pagans became aware of the existence of the monasteries, and a
detachment of soldiers was sent to apprehend their inhabitants. But
the monks and the nuns succeeded in hiding themselves in the hills.
Galacteon, however, had no desire to flee and so he remained in his
cell, reading Holy Scripture. When Epistime saw that the soldiers were
leading Galacteon away in chains, she began to implore the Abbess to
permit her to go also, since she wanted to accept torture for Christ
together with her fiancé and teacher. The Abbess tearfully blessed
Epistime to do so.
The saints endured terrible torments, while supplicating and
glorifying Christ. Their hands and legs were cut off, their tongues
were cut out, and then they were beheaded.
Epistime's former servant Eutolmius, who had become her brother in
Christ and fellow ascetic in monastic struggles, secretly buried the
bodies of the holy martyrs. He later wrote an account of their
virtuous life and their glorious martyrdom, for his contemporaries and
for posterity.
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Repose of St Jonah the Archbishop of Novgorod
Saint Jonah, Archbishop of Novgorod, in the world named John, was left
orphaned early in life and was adopted by a certain pious widow living
in Novgorod. She raised the child and sent him to school. Blessed
Michael of Klops Monastery (January 11), who chanced to meet John on
the street, foretold that he would become Archbishop of Novgorod. John
received tonsure at the Otnya wilderness-monastery, 50 versts from the
city, and he became igumen of this monastery. It was from here that
the people of Novgorod chose him as their archbishop in 1458, after
the death of St Euthymius (March 11).
St Jonah enjoyed great influence at Moscow, and during his time as
hierarch, the Moscow princes did not infringe upon the independence of
Novgorod. St Jonah, Metropolitan of Moscow (1449-1461), was a friend
of the Novgorod Archbishop St Jonah, and wanted him to become his
successor.
In 1463, Archbishop Jonah built the first church dedicated to St
Sergius of Radonezh in the Novgorod region. Concerning himself over
reviving traditions of the old days in the Novgorod Church, he
summoned to Novgorod the renowned compiler of Saints' Lives, Pachomius
the Logothete, who wrote both the services and history of the best
known Novgorod Saints, based on local sources.
And to this time period belongs also the founding of the Solovki
monastery. St Jonah rendered much help and assistance in the
organizing of the monastery. To St Zosimas he gave a special
land-grant (in conjunction with the secular authorities of Novgorod),
by which the whole of Solovki Island was granted to the new monastery.
The saint, after his many toils, and sensing the approach of his end,
wrote a spiritual testament to bury his body at the Otnya monastery.
On November 5, 1470, after he received the Holy Mysteries, the saint
fell asleep in the Lord.
There has survived to the present day a Letter of St Jonah to
Metropolitan Theodosius, written in 1464. The Life of the saint was
written in the form of a short account in the year 1472 (included in
the work, Memorials of Old Russian Literature, and also in the Great
Reading Menaion of Metropolitan Macarius, under November 5). In 1553,
after the uncovering of the relics of Archbishop Jonah, an account of
this event was written by St Zenobius of Otnya (October 30). A special
work relating the miracles of the saint is found in manuscripts of the
seventeenth century.
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Apostle Patrobus of the Seventy
Saints Patrobas, Hermes, Linus, Gaius, Philologus, Apostles of the
Seventy preached the Gospel in various cities, each enduring various
hardships in their service as bishops.
St Patrobas (Rom 16:14) was Bishop of Neopolis (now Naples) and
Puteoli in Italy.
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Apostle Hermes of the Seventy
Saints Hermes, Patrobas, Linus, Gaius, Philologus, Apostles of the
Seventy preached the Gospel in various cities, each enduring various
hardships in their service as bishops.
St Hermes was bishop in the city of Philippoplis where he died a
martyr.
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Apostle Linus of the Seventy
Saints Linus, Patrobus, Hermas, Gaius, Philologus, Apostles of the
Seventy preached the Gospel in various cities, each enduring various
hardships in their service as bishops.
Linus (2 Tim 4:21) was a successor to the Apostle Peter at Rome.
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Apostle Gaius of the Seventy
Saints Gaius, Patrobus, Hermas, Linus, Philologus, Apostles of the
Seventy preached the Gospel in various cities, each enduring various
hardships in their service as bishops.
St Gaius (Rom 16:23),was Bishop of Ephesus after St Timothy.
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Apostle Philologus of the Seventy
Saints Philologus, Patrobas, Hermes, Linus, Gaius, Apostles of the
Seventy preached the Gospel in various cities, each enduring various
hardships in their service as bishops.
The Apostle Andrew consecrated St Philologus (Rom 16:15) as bishop of
the city of Sinope (in the Black Sea region).
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St Gregory the Archbishop of Alexandria
Saint Gregory the Archbishop of Alexandria lived in the ninth century.
He was flogged and thrown into prison in the reign of Leo the
iconoclast. He was left in prison without food until he died.
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