[Readingsandsaints] Readings and Saints

Fri Sep 14 05:00:22 CDT 2007

Scripture Readings and Saints for Fri Sep 14 2007

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------ READINGS FOR TODAY ----------------------------
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Exodus 15:22-16:1  (Vespers, 1st Reading)
22 So Moses brought Israel from the Red Sea; then they went out into
the Wilderness of Shur. And they went three days in the wilderness and
found no water.
23 Now when they came to Marah, they could not drink the waters of
Marah, for they were bitter. Therefore the name of it was called
Marah.
24 And the people complained against Moses, saying, What shall we
drink?
25 So he cried out to the Lord, and the Lord showed him a tree. When
he cast it into the waters, the waters were made sweet. There He made
a statute and an ordinance for them, and there He tested them,
26 and said, If you diligently heed the voice of the Lord your God and
do what is right in His sight, give ear to His commandments and keep
all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have
brought on the Egyptians. For I am the Lord who heals you.
27 Then they came to Elim, where there were twelve wells of water and
seventy palm trees; so they camped there by the waters.
1 And they journeyed from Elim, and all the congregation of the
children of Israel came to the Wilderness of Sin, which is between
Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they
departed from the land of Egypt.
Scripture Reading 1 of 6

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Proverbs 3:11-18  (Vespers, 1st Reading)
11 My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, Nor detest His
correction;
12 For whom the Lord loves He corrects, Just as a father the son in
whom he delights.
13 Happy is the man who finds wisdom, And the man who gains
understanding;
14 For her proceeds are better than the profits of silver, And her
gain than fine gold.
15 She is more precious than rubies, And all the things you may desire
cannot compare with her.
16 Length of days is in her right hand, In her left hand riches and
honor.
17 Her ways are ways of pleasantness, And all her paths are peace.
18 She is a tree of life to those who take hold of her, And happy are
all who retain her.
Scripture Reading 2 of 6

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Isaiah 60:11-16  (Vespers, 1st Reading)
11 Therefore your gates shall be open continually; They shall not be
shut day or night, That men may bring to you the wealth of the
Gentiles, And their kings in procession.
12 For the nation and kingdom which will not serve you shall perish,
And those nations shall be utterly ruined.
13 The glory of Lebanon shall come to you, The cypress, the pine, and
the box tree together, To beautify the place of My sanctuary; And I
will make the place of My feet glorious.
14 Also the sons of those who afflicted you Shall come bowing to you,
And all those who despised you shall fall prostrate at the soles of
your feet; And they shall call you The City of the Lord, Zion of the
Holy One of Israel.
15 Whereas you have been forsaken and hated, So that no one went
through you, I will make you an eternal excellence, A joy of many
generations.
16 You shall drink the milk of the Gentiles, And milk the breast of
kings; You shall know that I, the Lord, am your Savior And your
Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.
Scripture Reading 3 of 6

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John 12:28-36  (Matins Gospel)
28 Father, glorify Your name. Then a voice came from heaven, saying,
"I have both glorified it and will glorify it again."
29 Therefore the people who stood by and heard it said that it had
thundered. Others said, "An angel has spoken to Him."
30 Jesus answered and said, "This voice did not come because of Me,
but for your sake.
31 Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will
be cast out.
32 And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to
Myself.
33 This He said, signifying by what death He would die.
34 The people answered Him, "We have heard from the law that the
Christ remains forever; and how can You say, 'The Son of Man must be
lifted up'? Who is this Son of Man?"
35 Then Jesus said to them, "A little while longer the light is with
you. Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you; he who
walks in darkness does not know where he is going.
36 While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become
sons of light. These things Jesus spoke, and departed, and was hidden
from them.
Scripture Reading 4 of 6

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1 Corinthians 1:18-24
18 For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are
perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
19 For it is written:
20 Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of
this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?
21 For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not
know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message
preached to save those who believe.
22 For Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom;
23 but we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and
to the Greeks foolishness,
24 but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power
of God and the wisdom of God.
Scripture Reading 5 of 6

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John 19:6-11, 13-20, 25-28, 30-35
6 Therefore, when the chief priests and officers saw Him, they cried
out, saying, "Crucify Him, crucify Him!" Pilate said to them, "You
take Him and crucify Him, for I find no fault in Him."
7 The Jews answered him, "We have a law, and according to our law He
ought to die, because He made Himself the Son of God."
8 Therefore, when Pilate heard that saying, he was the more afraid,
9 and went again into the Praetorium, and said to Jesus, "Where are
You from?" But Jesus gave him no answer.
10 Then Pilate said to Him, "Are You not speaking to me? Do You not
know that I have power to crucify You, and power to release You?"
11 Jesus answered, "You could have no power at all against Me unless
it had been given you from above. Therefore the one who delivered Me
to you has the greater sin."
13 When Pilate therefore heard that saying, he brought Jesus out and
sat down in the judgment seat in a place that is called The Pavement,
but in Hebrew, Gabbatha.
14 Now it was the Preparation Day of the Passover, and about the sixth
hour. And he said to the Jews, "Behold your King!"
15 But they cried out, "Away with Him, away with Him! Crucify Him!"
Pilate said to them, "Shall I crucify your King?" The chief priests
answered, "We have no king but Caesar!"
16 Then he delivered Him to them to be crucified. So they took Jesus
and led Him away.
17 And He, bearing His cross, went out to a place called the Place of
a Skull, which is called in Hebrew, Golgotha,
18 where they crucified Him, and two others with Him, one on either
side, and Jesus in the center.
19 Now Pilate wrote a title and put it on the cross. And the writing
was: JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS.
20 Then many of the Jews read this title, for the place where Jesus
was crucified was near the city; and it was written in Hebrew, Greek,
and Latin.
25 Now there stood by the cross of Jesus His mother, and His mother's
sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.
26 When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved
standing by, He said to His mother, "Woman, behold your son!"
27 Then He said to the disciple, "Behold your mother!" And from that
hour that disciple took her to his own home.
28 After this, Jesus, knowing that all things were now accomplished,
that the Scripture might be fulfilled, said, "I thirst!"
30 So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, "It is
finished!" And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.
31 Therefore, because it was the Preparation Day, that the bodies
should not remain on the cross on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was a
high day), the Jews asked Pilate that their legs might be broken, and
that they might be taken away.
32 Then the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first and of the
other who was crucified with Him.
33 But when they came to Jesus and saw that He was already dead, they
did not break His legs.
34 But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and
immediately blood and water came out.
35 And he who has seen has testified, and his testimony is true; and
he knows that he is telling the truth, so that you may believe.
Scripture Reading 6 of 6

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The Universal Exaltation of the Precious and Life-Giving
Cross
The Elevation of the Venerable and Life-Creating Cross of the Lord:
The pagan Roman emperors tried to completely eradicate from human
memory the holy places where our Lord Jesus Christ suffered and was
resurrected for mankind. The Emperor Hadrian (117-138) gave orders to
cover over the ground of Golgotha and the Sepulchre of the Lord, and
to build a temple of the pagan goddess Venus and a statue of Jupiter.
Pagans gathered at this place and offered sacrifice to idols there.
Eventually after 300 years, by Divine Providence, the great Christian
sacred remains, the Sepulchre of the Lord and the Life-Creating Cross
were again discovered and opened for veneration. This took place under
the Emperor Constantine the Great (306-337) after his victory in the
year 312 over Maxentius, ruler of the Western part of the Roman
empire, and over Licinius, ruler of its Eastern part. In the year 323
Constantine became the sole ruler of the vast Roman Empire.
In 313 he had issued the Edict of Milan, by which the Christian
religion was legalized and the persecutions against Christians in the
Western half of the empire were stopped. The ruler Licinius, although
he had signed the Edict of Milan to oblige Constantine, still
fanatically continued the persecutions against Christians. Only after
his conclusive defeat did the 313 Edict of toleration extend also to
the Eastern part of the empire. The Holy Equal of the Apostles Emperor
Constantine, having gained victory over his enemies in three wars with
God's assistance, had seen in the heavens the Sign of the Cross, and
written beneath: "By this you shall conquer."
Ardently desiring to find the Cross on which our Lord Jesus Christ was
crucified, St Constantine sent his mother, the pious Empress Helen
(May 21), to Jerusalem, providing her with a letter to St Macarius,
Patriarch of Jerusalem.
Although the holy empress Helen was already in her declining years,
she set about completing the task with enthusiasm. The empress gave
orders to destroy the pagan temple and the statues in Jerusalem.
Searching for the Life-Creating Cross, she made inquiry of Christians
and Jews, but for a long time her search remained unsuccessful.
Finally, they directed her to a certain elderly Hebrew by the name of
Jude who stated that the Cross was buried where the temple of Venus
stood. They demolished the pagan temple and, after praying, they began
to excavate the ground. Soon the Tomb of the Lord was uncovered. Not
far from it were three crosses, a board with the inscription ordered
by Pilate, and four nails which had pierced the Lord's Body (March 6).
In order to discern on which of the three crosses the Savior was
crucified, Patriarch Macarius alternately touched the crosses to a
corpse. When the Cross of the Lord touched the dead one, he came to
life. Having beheld the raising of the dead man, everyone was
convinced that the Life-Creating Cross was found.
Christians came in a huge throng to venerate the Holy Cross,
beseeching St Macarius to elevate the Cross, so that even those far
off might reverently contemplate it. Then the Patriarch and other
spiritual leaders raised up the Holy Cross, and the people, saying
"Lord have mercy," reverently prostrated before the Venerable Wood.
This solemn event occurred in the year 326.
During the discovery of the Life-Creating Cross another miracle took
place: a grievously sick woman, beneath the shadow of the Holy Cross,
was healed instantly. The elder Jude and other Jews there believed in
Christ and accepted Holy Baptism. Jude received the name Cyriacus and
afterwards was consecrated Bishop of Jerusalem.
During the reign of Julian the Apostate (361-363) he accepted a
martyr's death for Christ (see October 28). The holy empress Helen
journeyed to the holy places connected with the earthly life of the
Savior, building more than 80 churches, at Bethlehem the birthplace of
Christ, and on the Mount of Olives where the Lord ascended to Heaven,
and at Gethsemane where the Savior prayed before His sufferings and
where the Mother of God was buried after her death.
St Helen took part of the Life-Creating Wood and nails with her to
Constantinople. The holy emperor Constantine gave orders to build at
Jerusalem a majestic and spacious church in honor of the Resurrection
of Christ, also including under its roof the Life-Giving Tomb of the
Lord and Golgotha. The temple was constructed in about ten years. St
Helen did not survive until the dedication of the temple, she died in
the year 327. The church was consecrated on September 13, 335. On the
following day, September 14, the festal celebration of the Exaltation
of the Venerable and Life-Creating Cross was established.
Another event connected to the Cross of the Lord is remembered also on
this day: its return to Jerusalem from Persia after a fourteen year
captivity. During the reign of the Byzantine emperor Phocas (602-610)
the Persian emperor Khozroes II in a war against the Greeks defeated
the Greek army, plundered Jerusalem and captured both the
Life-Creating Cross of the Lord and the Holy Patriarch Zachariah
(609-633).
The Cross remained in Persia for fourteen years and only under the
emperor Heraclius (610-641), who with the help of God defeated
Khozroes and concluded peace with his successor and son Syroes, was
the Cross of the Lord returned to the Christians.
With great solemnity the Life-creating Cross was transferred to
Jerusalem. Emperor Heraclius in imperial crown and royal purple
carried the Cross of Christ into the temple of the Resurrection. With
the emperor went Patriarch Zacharios. At the gates by which they
ascended Golgotha, the emperor suddenly stopped and was not able to
proceed farther. The holy Patriarch explained to the emperor that an
angel of the Lord was blocking his way. The emperor was told to remove
his royal trappings and to walk barefoot, since He Who bore the Cross
for the salvation of the world from sin had made His way to Golgotha
in all humility. Then Heraclius donned plain garb, and without further
hindrance, carried the Cross of Christ into the church.
In a sermon on the Exaltation of the Cross, St Andrew of Crete (July
4) says: "The Cross is exalted, and everything true gathers together,
the Cross is exalted, and the city makes solemn, and the people
celebrate the feast".
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Repose of St John Chrysostom, Archbishop of Constantinople
Saint John Chrysostom died on September 14, 407, but because of the
feast of the Exaltation of the Life-Creating Cross of the Lord, the
commemoration of the saint was transferred to November 13. On January
27 we commemorate the transfer of the holy relics of St John
Chrysostom from Comana to Constantinople, and on January 30, the
Synaxis of the Three Hierarchs.
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Monkmartyr Macarius of Dionysiou on Mt Athos
No information available at this time.
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Monkmartyr Joseph of Dionysiou on Mt Athos
Saint Joseph was a monk of Dionysiou Monastery on Mt. Athos, where he
shone forth with the virtues of monastic life. He was an iconographer,
and he painted the icon of the holy Archangels on the iconostasis of
Dionysiou's main church.
In obedience to the instructions of Igumen Stephen, St Joseph traveled
to Constantinople with Eudocimus, who had apostasized from Orthodoxy
to become a Moslem. Eudocimus repented, and wished to wipe out his sin
through martyrdom.
When faced with torture and death, however, the unfortunate Eudocimus
denied Christ again, blaming Joseph for turning him from Islam.
St Joseph was arrested and threatened with death. In spite of many
tortures, he refused to convert to Islam. This holy martyr of Christ
was hanged on February 17, 1819, and so he obtained an incorruptible
crown of glory.
Some sources list his commemoration on February 17, while others list
him on September 14 or October 26.
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Icon of the Mother of God of Lesna
The Lesna Icon of the Mother of God was discovered on the Feast of the
Exaltation of the Cross of the Lord in 1683 by a shepherd on the
branches of a pear tree, and taken to a nearby Orthodox church of the
village of Bukovich, not far from the town of Lesna.
When news of the miraculously appearing icon circulated throughout all
the surrounding area, the Catholic priests then decided to use the
icon for spreading Catholicism. They took away the icon by force from
the inhabitants of Bukovich in 1686 and put it in the Roman church at
Lesna.
At the beginning of the eighteenth century, monks of a Catholic order
founded a large Roman church and monastery at Lesna, in which was the
wonderworking icon. In 1863 the monks of the order took part in the
Polish revolt, and, by decree of the Russian government, the monastery
was closed and converted into an Orthodox women's monastery. Many
miracles were worked by the icon. The celebration of the Lesna Icon of
the Mother of God is celebrated also on September 8 and on the Day of
the Holy Trinity.
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Repose of St. Anthimus, Bishop of Georgia
Saint Anthimus of Iberia was one of the most highly educated people of
his time. He was fluent in many languages, including Greek, Romanian,
Old Slavonic, Arabic, and Turkish and well-versed in theology,
literature, and the natural sciences. He was unusually gifted in the
fine artsin painting, engraving, and sculpture in particular. He was
famed for his beautiful calligraphy. Finally, St. Anthimus was a great
writer, a renowned orator, and a reformer of the written Romanian
language.
Little is known about the youth of St. Anthimus. He was a native of
the Samtskhe region in southern Georgia. His parents, John and Mariam,
gave him the name Andria at Baptism. He accompanied King Archil to
Russia and helped him to found a Georgian print shop there, but after
he returned he was captured by Dagestani robbers and sold into
slavery. Through the efforts of Patriarch Dositheus of Jerusalem,
Anthimus was finally set free, but he remained in the patriarchs
service in order to further his spiritual education.
Already famed for his paintings, engravings, and calligraphy, Anthimus
was asked by Prince Constantine Brincoveanu (16881714) of Wallachia
(present-day Romania) to travel to his kingdom around the year 1691.
After he had arrived inWallachia, he began to manage a local print
shop. The printing industry in that country advanced tremendously at
that time, and the chief inspiration and driving force behind the
great advances was the Georgian master Anthimus. He succeeded in
making Wallachia a center of Christianity and a major publisher of
books for all the East.
In 1694 Anthimus was enthroned as abbot of Snagov Monastery (in
present-day Romania), where he soon founded a print shop. In the same
year his new print shop published _Guidelines for the Divine Services_
on May 21, All Saints Day. The book was signed by Subdeacon Michael
Ishtvanovich, future founder of the first Georgian print shop.
In 1705 Anthimus, the chosen among chosen abbots of Wallachia, was
consecrated bishop of Rimnicu Vilcea, and in 1708 he was appointed
metropolitan of Hungro-Wallachia. The whole country celebrated his
elevation. As one abbot proclaimed: The divine Anthimus, a great man
and son of the wise Iberian nation, has come to Wallachia and
enlightened our land. God has granted him an inexhaustible source of
wisdom, entrusted him to accomplish great endeavors, and helped to
advance our nation by establishing for us a great printing industry.
Under the direct leadership of St. Anthimus, more than twenty churches
and monasteries were erected in Wallachia. Of particular significance
is All Saints Monastery, located in the center of Bucharest. The main
gates of this monastery were made of oak and carved with traditional
Georgian motifs by St. Anthimus himself. The metropolitan also
established rules for the monastery and declared its independence from
the Church of Constantinople.
>From the day of his consecration, Metropolitan Anthimus fought
tirelessly for the liberation of Wallachia from foreign oppressors. On
the day he was ordained he addressed his flock: You have defended the
Christian Faith in purity and without fault. Nevertheless, you are
surrounded and tightly bound by the violence of other nations. You
endure countless deprivations and tribulations from those who dominate
this world. Though I am unworthy and am indeed younger than many of
youlike David, I am the youngest among my brothers the Lord God has
anointed me to be your shepherd. Thus I will share in your future
trials and griefs and partake in the lot that God has appointed for
you.
His words were prophetic: In 1714 the Turks executed the Wallachian
prince Constantine Brincoveanu, and in 1716 they executed Stefan
Cantacuzino (17141716), the last prince of Wallachia.
In his place they appointed the Phanariote (a member of one of the
principal Greek families of the Phanar, the Greek quarter of
Constantinople, who, as administrators in the civil bureaucracy,
exercised great influence in the Ottoman Empire after the Turkish
conquest.) Nicholas Mavrokordatos, who concerned himself only with the
interests of the Ottoman Empire.
During this difficult time, Anthimus of Iberia gathered around him a
group of loyal boyar patriots determined to liberate their country
from Turkish and Phanariote domination. But Nicholas Mavrokordatos
became suspicious, and he ordered Anthimus to resign as metropolitan.
When Anthimus failed to do so, he filed a complaint with Patriarch
Jeremiah of Constantinople.
Then a council of bishops, which did not include a single Romanian
clergyman, condemned the conspirator and instigator of revolutionary
activity to anathema and excommunication and declared him unworthy to
be called a monk. But Nicholas Mavrokordatos was still unsatisfied and
claimed that to deny Anthimus the title of Metropolitan of
Hungro-Wallachia was insufficient punishment. He ordered Anthimus to
be exiled far from Wallachia, to St. Catherines Monastery on Mt.
Sinai. Metropolitan Anthimus, beloved of the Romanian people, was
escorted out of the city at night since the conspirators feared the
reaction of the people.
But Metropolitan Anthimus never reached Mt. Sinai. On September 14,
1716, a band of Turkish soldiers stabbed St. Anthimus to death on the
bank of the Tundzha (Tunca) River where it flows through Adrianople,
not far from Gallipoli, and cast his butchered remains into the river.
Thus ended the earthly life of one more Georgian sainta man who had
dedicated all of his strength, talent, and knowledge to the revival of
Christian culture and the strengthening of the Wallachian people in
the Orthodox Faith.
In 1992 the Romanian Church canonized Anthimus of Iberia and
proclaimed his commemoration day to be September 14, the day of his
repose. The Georgian Church commemorates him on June 13.
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