[Readingsandsaints] Readings and Saints

Thu Mar 27 05:00:19 CDT 2008

Scripture Readings and Saints for Thu Mar 27 2008

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Isaiah 11:10-12:2  (6th Hour)
12 Therefore it shall come to pass, when the Lord has performed all
His work on Mount Zion and on Jerusalem, that He will say, I will
punish the fruit of the arrogant heart of the king of Assyria, and the
glory of his haughty looks.
13 For he says: By the strength of my hand I have done it, And by my
wisdom, for I am prudent; Also I have removed the boundaries of the
people, And have robbed their treasuries; So I have put down the
inhabitants like a valiant man.
14 My hand has found like a nest the riches of the people, And as one
gathers eggs that are left, I have gathered all the earth; And there
was no one who moved his wing, Nor opened his mouth with even a peep.
15 Shall the ax boast itself against him who chops with it? Or shall
the saw exalt itself against him who saws with it? As if a rod could
wield itself against those who lift it up, Or as if a staff could lift
up, as if it were not wood!
16 Therefore the Lord, the Lorda of hosts, Will send leanness among
his fat ones; And under his glory He will kindle a burning Like the
burning of a fire.
17 So the Light of Israel will be for a fire, And his Holy One for a
flame; It will burn and devour His thorns and his briers in one day.
18 And it will consume the glory of his forest and of his fruitful
field, Both soul and body; And they will be as when a sick man wastes
away.
19 Then the rest of the trees of his forest Will be so few in number
That a child may write them.
20 And it shall come to pass in that day That the remnant of Israel,
And such as have escaped of the house of Jacob, Will never again
depend on him who defeated them, But will depend on the Lord, the Holy
One of Israel, in truth.
Scripture Reading 1 of 3

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Genesis 7:11-8:3  (Vespers, 1st Reading)
11 In the six hundredth year of Noahs life, in the second month, the
seventeenth day of the month, on that day all the fountains of the
great deep were broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened.
12 And the rain was on the earth forty days and forty nights.
13 On the very same day Noah and Noahs sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth,
and Noahs wife and the three wives of his sons with them, entered the
ark
14 they and every beast after its kind, all cattle after their kind,
every creeping thing that creeps on the earth after its kind, and
every bird after its kind, every bird of every sort.
15 And they went into the ark to Noah, two by two, of all flesh in
which is the breath of life.
16 So those that entered, male and female of all flesh, went in as God
had commanded him; and the Lord shut him in.
17 Now the flood was on the earth forty days. The waters increased and
lifted up the ark, and it rose high above the earth.
18 The waters prevailed and greatly increased on the earth, and the
ark moved about on the surface of the waters.
19 And the waters prevailed exceedingly on the earth, and all the high
hills under the whole heaven were covered.
20 The waters prevailed fifteen cubits upward, and the mountains were
covered.
21 And all flesh died that moved on the earth: birds and cattle and
beasts and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth, and every
man.
22 All in whose nostrils was the breath of the spirit of life, all
that was on the dry land, died.
23 So He destroyed all living things which were on the face of the
ground: both man and cattle, creeping thing and bird of the air. They
were destroyed from the earth. Only Noah and those who were with him
in the ark remained alive.
24 And the waters prevailed on the earth one hundred and fifty days.
1 Then God remembered Noah, and every living thing, and all the
animals that were with him in the ark. And God made a wind to pass
over the earth, and the waters subsided.
2 The fountains of the deep and the windows of heaven were also
stopped, and the rain from heaven was restrained.
3 And the waters receded continually from the earth. At the end of the
hundred and fifty days the waters decreased.
Scripture Reading 2 of 3

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Proverbs 10:1-22  (Vespers, 2nd Reading)
1 The proverbs of Solomon: A wise son makes a glad father, But a
foolish son is the grief of his mother.
2 Treasures of wickedness profit nothing, But righteousness delivers
from death.
3 The Lord will not allow the righteous soul to famish, But He casts
away the desire of the wicked.
4 He who has a slack hand becomes poor, But the hand of the diligent
makes rich.
5 He who gathers in summer is a wise son; He who sleeps in harvest is
a son who causes shame.
6 Blessings are on the head of the righteous, But violence covers the
mouth of the wicked.
7 The memory of the righteous is blessed, But the name of the wicked
will rot.
8 The wise in heart will receive commands, But a prating fool will
fall.
9 He who walks with integrity walks securely, But he who perverts his
ways will become known.
10 He who winks with the eye causes trouble, But a prating fool will
fall.
11 The mouth of the righteous is a well of life, But violence covers
the mouth of the wicked.
12 Hatred stirs up strife, But love covers all sins.
13 Wisdom is found on the lips of him who has understanding, But a rod
is for the back of him who is devoid of understanding.
14 Wise people store up knowledge, But the mouth of the foolish is
near destruction.
15 The rich mans wealth is his strong city; The destruction of the
poor is their poverty.
16 The labor of the righteous leads to life, The wages of the wicked
to sin.
17 He who keeps instruction is in the way of life, But he who refuses
correction goes astray.
18 Whoever hides hatred has lying lips, And whoever spreads slander is
a fool.
19 In the multitude of words sin is not lacking, But he who restrains
his lips is wise.
20 The tongue of the righteous is choice silver; The heart of the
wicked is worth little.
21 The lips of the righteous feed many, But fools die for lack of
wisdom.
22 The blessing of the Lord makes one rich, And He adds no sorrow with
it.
Scripture Reading 3 of 3

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Martyr Matrona of Thessalonica
The Holy Martyr Matrona of Thessalonica suffered in the third or
fourth century. She was a slave of the Jewish woman Pautila (or
Pantilla), wife of one of the military commanders of Thessalonica.
Pautila constantly mocked her slave for her faith in Christ, and tried
to convert her to Judaism. St Matrona, who believed in Christ from her
youth, still prayed to the Savior Christ, and secretly went to church
unbeknownst to her vengeful mistress.
Pautila, learning that St Matrona had been to church, asked, "Why
won't you come to our synagogue, instead of attending the Christian
church?" St Matrona boldly answered, "Because God is present in the
Christian church, but He has departed from the Jewish synagogue."
Pautila went into a rage and mercilessly beat St Matrona, tied her up,
and shut her in a dark closet. In the morning, Pautila discovered that
St Matrona had been freed of her bonds by an unknown Power.
In a rage Pautila beat the martyr almost to death, then bound her even
more tightly and locked her in the closet. The door was sealed so that
no one could help the sufferer. The holy martyr remained there for
four days without food or water, and when Pautila opened the door, she
again found St Matrona free of her bonds, and standing at prayer.
Pautila flogged the holy martyr and left the skin hanging in strips
from her body. The fierce woman locked her in the closet again, where
St Matrona gave up her spirit to God.
Pautila had the holy martyr's body thrown from the roof of her house.
Christians took up the much-suffered body of the holy martyr and
buried it. Later, Bishop Alexander of Thessalonica built a church
dedicated to the holy martyr. Her holy relics, glorified by many
miracles, were placed in this church.
The judgment of God soon overtook the evil Pautila. Standing on the
roof at that very place where the body of St Matrona had been thrown,
she stumbled and fell to the pavement. Her body was smashed, and so
she received her just reward for her sin.
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Martyr Manuel
The Holy Martyrs Manuel and Theodosius suffered for their faith in
Christ in 304 in Sirmium. Seeing how the pagans put Christians to
death every day, they believed in Christ and resolved to suffer for
their faith. They boldly confessed themselves as Christians before the
governor. The governor and those around him marvelled at their
bravery.
By order of the governor, Sts Manuel and Theodosius were thrown into
prison, and a strict watch was set over them. After several days the
governor gave orders to bring the saints from prison, and he urged
them to renounce Christ and offer sacrifice to the idols. The holy
martyrs, however, were steadfast in their confession.
Then the governor ordered Sts Manuel and Theodosius to be suspended
from a tree, and scraped with sharp iron hooks. The martyrs were
stabbed with a sharp trident, and then beheaded.
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Martyr Theodosius
The Holy Martyrs Theodosius and Manuel suffered for their faith in
Christ in 304 in Sirmium. Seeing how the pagans put Christians to
death every day, they believed in Christ and resolved to suffer for
their faith. They boldly confessed themselves as Christians before the
governor. The governor and those around him marvelled at their
bravery.
By order of the governor, Sts Manuel and Theodosius were thrown into
prison, and a strict watch was set over them. After several days the
governor gave orders to bring the saints from prison, and he urged
them to renounce Christ and offer sacrifice to the idols. The holy
martyrs, however, were steadfast in their confession.
Then the governor ordered Sts Manuel and Theodosius to be suspended
from a tree, and scraped with sharp iron hooks. The martyrs were
stabbed with a sharp trident, and then beheaded.
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Venerable John the Clairvoyant, Anchorite, of Egypt
Saint John the Clairvoyant of Egypt was born at the beginning of the
fourth century. He lived in the city of Likopolis (Middle Egypt) and
was a carpenter. At the age of twenty-five he went to a monastery,
where he received monastic tonsure.
For five years St John lived in various monasteries, and then wanting
complete solitude, he went to the Thebaid and lived on Mount Bolcha.
St John then spent many years in solitude, never leaving the spot. He
conversed with visitors through a small window, through which he also
received food and other necessities.
After thirty years of seclusion,St John received the gift of
clairvoyance from God. He predicted to the emperor Theodosius the
Great (379-395) victory over his adversaries Maximus and Eugenius, and
a military victory over the Gauls. He also foretold future events in
the lives of his visitors, and gave them guidance. The ascetic gave
holy oil to the sick who visited him, and anointed them with it,
healing them of various maladies.
St John predicted that the historian Palladius, who wrote his Life,
would become a bishop. The prediction of the seer was fulfilled, and
Palladius was made Bishop of Bithynia (Asia Minor).
St John in his instructions commanded first of all to have humility:
"Imitate the virtuous life of the holy Fathers according to the
measure of your strength and if you fulfill everything, do not become
overconfident or praise yourself. For there are many people who
reached perfection in virtue and became puffed up with pride, plunging
from the heights into the abyss.
"Examine yourselves carefully to see if your conscience is pure, so
that purity may not be driven from your mind. Do not allow your
thoughts to wander during prayer. Do you, out of vanity, wish to gain
a reputation for asceticism? Or do you wish to have only the
appearance of asceticism? Take heed lest any passion overcome you.
Take heed that thoughts of worldly things do not enter your mind
during prayer, since there is nothing more foolish than to pray to God
with your lips, while your thoughts are far from Him. This often
happens with those who do not absolutely renounce the world, but
rather seek approval from men. A man whose mind is given over to
worldly and perishable things, cannot behold God with his spiritual
eyes. It is fitting that one who seeks after God will remove his mind
from every earthly thing, and direct the gaze of his understanding
towards God. He who has attained a little knowledge of God (for no one
can receive the whole of it), is able to acquire knowledge of many
things, and will see the mysteries which the knowledge of God will
show him. He sees future events before they happen, and like a saint
he will receive glorious revelations. He will work miracles, and will
receive everything that he asks from God."
"Love silence, child, live always in divine contemplation and pray
that God will grant you a pure mind, free from sinful thoughts. Worthy
of praise is the ascetic who lives in the world, practices the
virtues, renders kindness to strangers or distributes alms, or who
helps others in their work, or lives without anger. Such a man is
praiseworthy, since he dwells in virtue, fulfilling the commands of
God, while not neglecting earthly affairs."
"He who leaves the transitory things of this world to others is better
and more worthy of praise, for he denies himself, takes up his cross,
and cleaves to Christ. He constantly embraces the things of heaven,
and escapes earthly things. He will not allow himself to be turned
aside by any other cares. Such a man, through his good deeds and the
praises which he offers to God, is free and unfettered by any ties
whatsoever. He stands before God in security, and his mind is not
distracted by any other cares. He who is in this condition continually
converses with God."
St John brought much spiritual benefit to people with these and
similar salvific teachings, through his instructive discourses, and by
his personal example in the angelic life.
St John of Egypt survived into old age and fell asleep in the Lord in
395, at the age of ninety.
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Icon of the Mother of God of Mt. Athos, "Sweet Kissing"
No information available at this time.
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Icon of the Mother of God "of the Akathist"
There are other icons of this name which are commemorated on January
12 (Hilandar Icon "Of the Akathist"), and October 10 (Zographou Icon
"Of the Akathist").
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