[Readingsandsaints] Readings and Saints

Mon Mar 31 05:00:32 CDT 2008

Scripture Readings and Saints for Mon Mar 31 2008

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Composite 2  - Proverbs 10, 3, 8 (Vespers, 1st Reading)
The memory of the righteous is with praise and the blessing of the
Lord is upon his head. Blessed is the man who has found wisdom and the
mortal who has understanding. For it is better to purchase her than
treasuries of gold and silver. She is more precious than precious
stones and all that is precious is unworthy of her. For length of days
and years of life are in her right hand; and in her left hand are
riches and glory. Out of her mouth proceeds righteousness and she
bears law and mercy upon her tongue.
Hear me, O child, for I will speak noble things. Blessed is the man
who keeps my ways, for my ways are the way of life, and in them is
prepared favor from the Lord. Therefore, I pray you, and utter my
voice to the sons of men: For I, wisdom, have dwelt with counsel and
knowledge and I have called upon understanding. Counsel and safety are
mine, understanding and strength are mine. I love those who love me
and those seeking me shall find grace.
Understand craftiness, O you who are simple, and imbibe knowledge, you
who are untaught. Hear me again, for I will speak noble things: I will
open _my mouth_ and from my lips _shall_ come what is right. For my
throat shall meditate truth; false lips are an abomination before me.
All the words of my mouth are righteous; there is nothing in them that
is twisted or perverse. They are all straight to him who understands
and right to those who find knowledge.
I shall instruct you in truth, so that your hope will be in the Lord
and you shall be filled with the Spirit.
Scripture Reading 1 of 9

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Composite 3  - Wisdom of Solomon 4, 5 (Vespers, 2nd Reading)
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 2 of 9

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Composite 4  - Proverbs 10; Wisdom of Solomon 6, 7, 8, 9 (Vespers, 3rd
Reading)
The mouth of the righteous brings forth wisdom; the lips of the wise
man know grace. The mouth of the wise speaks wisdom, and the truth
delivers them from death. If a righteous man dies, hope is not, for
the son of the righteous is born to life, and in his own good things
he acquires the fruit of righteousness. There is always light for the
righteous and they obtain grace and glory from the Lord. The tongue of
the wise is a good sister-in-law, and in their hearts rests wisdom.
The Lord loves the hearts of the holy, and acceptable to Him are all
the undefiled in the way.
The wisdom of the Lord illumines the faces of the wise. For she takes
hold of those desiring her by making herself first known to them. She
is easily seen by those who love her. He who rises early to seek her
shall have no difficulty, and those keeping vigil for the sake of her
shall quickly be without sorrows. For she goes about seeking those
worthy of her, and graciously reveals herself in the pathways. Against
wisdom evil does not prevail.
Therefore I was a lover of her beauty; I loved her and sought her out
from my youth. I desired to make her my bride, and even the Master of
All loved her. For she is an initiate in the knowledge of God, and a
discoverer of His works. Her labors are virtues, for she teaches
temperance and prudence, justice and courage; nothing in life is more
necessary for men than these. And if anyone desires much knowledge,
she knows the things of old, and beholds things to come; she
understands turns of speech and the solution of riddles; she has
foreknowledge of signs and wonders and the outcome of times and
seasons. She is a mediator of good things for all, for immortality is
in her, and glory in the company of her words.
Therefore I appealed to the Lord and prayed to Him, and said to Him
with all my heart: "O God of _my_ fathers and Lord of mercy, Who hast
made all things by Thy word, and by Thy wisdom hast fashioned man that
he should have dominion over the creatures made by Thee, that he
should rule the world in holiness and righteusness: Give me wisdom
that sits by Thy throne, and cast me not away from among Thy children,
for I am Thy servant and the son of Thy handmaid. Send her forth from
the heavens, from Thy holy abode, and from the throne of Thy glory,
that she may be with me, in understanding, and preserve me in her
glory. For the thoughts of mortals are miserable, and their intentions
likely to fail."
Scripture Reading 3 of 9

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John 10:1-9  (Matins Gospel)
1 Most assuredly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by
the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a
robber.
2 But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.
3 To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he
calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.
4 And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the
sheep follow him, for they know his voice.
5 Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him,
for they do not know the voice of strangers.
6 Jesus used this illustration, but they did not understand the things
which He spoke to them.
7 Then Jesus said to them again, "Most assuredly, I say to you, I am
the door of the sheep.
8 All who ever came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep
did not hear them.
9 I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go
in and out and find pasture.
Scripture Reading 4 of 9

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Isaiah 14:24-32  (6th Hour)
24 The Lord of hosts has sworn, saying, Surely, as I have thought, so
it shall come to pass, And as I have purposed, so it shall stand:
25 That I will break the Assyrian in My land, And on My mountains
tread him underfoot. Then his yoke shall be removed from them, And his
burden removed from their shoulders.
26 This is the purpose that is purposed against the whole earth, And
this is the hand that is stretched out over all the nations.
27 For the Lord of hosts has purposed, And who will annul it? His hand
is stretched out, And who will turn it back?
28 This is the burden which came in the year that King Ahaz died.
29 Do not rejoice, all you of Philistia, Because the rod that struck
you is broken; For out of the serpents roots will come forth a viper,
And its offspring will be a fiery flying serpent.
30 The firstborn of the poor will feed, And the needy will lie down in
safety; I will kill your roots with famine, And it will slay your
remnant.
31 Wail, O gate! Cry, O city! All you of Philistia are dissolved; For
smoke will come from the north, And no one will be alone in his
appointed times.
32 What will they answer the messengers of the nation? That the Lord
has founded Zion, And the poor of His people shall take refuge in it.
Scripture Reading 5 of 9

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Genesis 8:21-9:7  (Vespers, 1st Reading)
21 And the Lord smelled a soothing aroma. Then the Lord said in His
heart, I will never again curse the ground for mans sake, although the
imagination of mans heart is evil from his youth; nor will I again
destroy every living thing as I have done.
22 While the earth remains, Seedtime and harvest, Cold and heat,
Winter and summer, And day and night Shall not cease.
1 So God blessed Noah and his sons, and said to them: Be fruitful and
multiply, and fill the earth.
2 And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be on every beast of
the earth, on every bird of the air, on all that move on the earth,
and on all the fish of the sea. They are given into your hand.
3 Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. I have given
you all things, even as the green herbs.
4 But you shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood.
5 Surely for your lifeblood I will demand a reckoning; from the hand
of every beast I will require it, and from the hand of man. From the
hand of every mans brother I will require the life of man.
6 Whoever sheds mans blood, By man his blood shall be shed; For in the
image of God He made man.
7 And as for you, be fruitful and multiply; Bring forth abundantly in
the earth And multiply in it.
Scripture Reading 6 of 9

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Proverbs 11:19-12:6  (Vespers, 2nd Reading)
19 As righteousness leads to life, So he who pursues evil pursues it
to his own death.
20 Those who are of a perverse heart are an abomination to the Lord,
But the blameless in their ways are His delight.
21 Though they join forces, the wicked will not go unpunished; But the
posterity of the righteous will be delivered.
22 As a ring of gold in a swines snout, So is a lovely woman who lacks
discretion.
23 The desire of the righteous is only good, But the expectation of
the wicked is wrath.
24 There is one who scatters, yet increases more; And there is one who
withholds more than is right, But it leads to poverty.
25 The generous soul will be made rich, And he who waters will also be
watered himself.
26 The people will curse him who withholds grain, But blessing will be
on the head of him who sells it.
27 He who earnestly seeks good finds favor,
28 He who trusts in his riches will fall, But the righteous will
flourish like foliage.
29 He who troubles his own house will inherit the wind, And the fool
will be servant to the wise of heart.
30 The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, And he who wins souls
is wise.
31 If the righteous will be recompensed on the earth, How much more
the ungodly and the sinner.
1 Whoever loves instruction loves knowledge, But he who hates
correction is stupid.
2 A good man obtains favor from the Lord, But a man of wicked
intentions He will condemn.
3 A man is not established by wickedness, But the root of the
righteous cannot be moved.
4 An excellent wife is the crown of her husband, But she who causes
shame is like rottenness in his bones.
5 The thoughts of the righteous are right, But the counsels of the
wicked are deceitful.
6 The words of the wicked are, Lie in wait for blood, But the mouth of
the upright will deliver them.
Scripture Reading 7 of 9

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Hebrews 7:26-8:2  (Epistle, St. Innocent)
26 For such a High Priest was fitting for us, who is holy, harmless,
undefiled, separate from sinners, and has become higher than the
heavens;
27 who does not need daily, as those high priests, to offer up
sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the people's, for this
He did once for all when He offered up Himself.
28 For the law appoints as high priests men who have weakness, but the
word of the oath, which came after the law, appoints the Son who has
been perfected forever.
1 Now this is the main point of the things we are saying: We have such
a High Priest, who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the
Majesty in the heavens,
2 a Minister of the sanctuary and of the true tabernacle which the
Lord erected, and not man.
Scripture Reading 8 of 9

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John 10:9-16  (Gospel, St. Innocent)
9 I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go
in and out and find pasture.
10 The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to
destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have
it more abundantly.
11 I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the
sheep.
12 But a hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one who does not own
the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and
the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them.
13 The hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about
the sheep.
14 I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My
own.
15 As the Father knows Me, even so I know the Father; and I lay down
My life for the sheep.
16 And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must
bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and
one shepherd.
Scripture Reading 9 of 9

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Repose of St Innocent the Metropolitan of Moscow the
Enlightener of the Aleuts and Apostle to the Americas
St Innocent (Veniaminov), Metropolitan of Moscow and Kolomensk (August
26, 1797 - March 31, 1879), was glorified by the Russian Orthodox
Church on October 6, 1977. He was born in the village of Anginsk in
the Irkutsk diocese. The Apostle of America and Siberia proclaimed the
Gospel "even to the ends of the earth": in the Aleutian islands (from
1823), in the six dialects of the local tribes on the island of Sitka
(from 1834), among the Kolosh (Tlingit); in the remotest settlements
of the extensive Kamchatka diocese (from 1853); among the Koryak,
Chukchei, Tungus in the Yakutsk region (from 1853) and North America
(in 1857); in the Amur and the Usuriisk region (from 1860).
Having spent a large part of his life in journeys, St Innocent
translated a Catechism and the Gospel into the Aleut language. In
1833, he wrote in this language one of the finest works of Orthodox
missionary activity INDICATION OF THE WAY TO THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN.
In 1859, the Yakut first heard the Word of God and divine services in
their native language. Twice (in 1860 and 1861) St Innocent met with
St Nicholas the Apostle to Japan (February 3), sharing with him his
spiritual experience.
A remarkable preacher, St Innocent said, "Whoever abounds in faith and
love, can have mouth and wisdom, and the heart cannot resist their
serving it."
Having begun his apostolic work as a parish priest, St Innocent
completed it as Metropolitan of Moscow (January 5, 1868 - March 31,
1879). He obeyed the will of God all his life, and he left behind a
theme for the sermon to be preached at his funeral: "The steps of a
man are rightly ordered by the Lord" (Ps 36/37:23).
St Innocent is also commemorated on October 5 (Synaxis of the Moscow
Hierarchs) and on October 6 (his glorification).
For further information on St Innocent, Apostle to America, see the:
Celebration of the Year of St Innocent (1997) in the special features
section.
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Repose of St Jonah the Metropolitan of Moscow and All Russia
Saint Jonah, Metropolitan of Moscow and Wonderworker of All Russia,
was born in the city of Galich into a pious Christian family. The
father of the future saint was named Theodore. The youth received
monastic tonsure in one of the Galich monasteries when he was only
twelve years old. From there, he transferred to the Moscow Simonov
monastery, where he fulfilled various obediences for many years.
Once, St Photius, Metropolitan of Moscow (May 27 and July 2), visited
the Simonov monastery. After the Molieben, he blessed the
archimandrite and brethren, and also wished to bless those monks who
were fulfilling their obediences in the monastery.
When he came to the bakery, he saw St Jonah sleeping, exhausted from
his work. The fingers of the saint's right hand were positioned in a
gesture of blessing. St Photius said not to wake him. He blessed the
sleeping monk and predicted to those present that this monk would be a
great hierarch of the Russian Church, and would guide many on the way
to salvation.
The prediction of St Photius was fulfilled. Several years later, St
Jonah was made Bishop of Ryazan and Murom.
St Photius died in 1431. Five years after his death, St Jonah was
chosen Metropolitan of All Russia for his virtuous and holy life. The
newly-elected Metropolitan journeyed to Constantinople in order to be
confirmed as Metropolitan by Patriarch Joseph II (1416-1439). Shortly
before this the nefarious Isidore, a Bulgarian, had already been
established as Metropolitan. Spending a short time at Kiev and Moscow,
Isidore journeyed to the Council of Florence (1438), where he embraced
Catholicism.
A Council of Russian hierarchs and clergy deposed Metropolitan
Isidore, and he was compelled to flee secretly to Rome (where he died
in 1462). St Jonah was unanimously chosen Metropolitan of All Russia.
He was consecrated by Russian hierarchs in Moscow, with the blessing
of Patriarch Gregory III (1445-1450) of Constantinople. This was the
first time that Russian bishops consecrated their own Metropolitan. St
Jonah became Metropolitan on December 15, 1448. With archpastoral zeal
he led his flock to virtue and piety, spreading the Orthodox Faith by
word and by deed. Despite his lofty position, he continued with his
monastic struggles as before.
In 1451 the Tatars unexpectedly advanced on Moscow; they burned the
surrounding area and prepared for an assault on the city. Metropolitan
Jonah led a procession along the walls of the city, tearfully
entreating God to save the city and the people. Seeing the dying monk
Anthony of the Chudov monastery, who was noted for his virtuous life,
St Jonah said, "My son and brother Anthony! Pray to the Merciful God
and the All-Pure Mother of God for the deliverance of the city and for
all Orthodox Christians."
The humble Anthony replied, "Great hierarch! We give thanks to God and
to His All-Pure Mother. She has heard your prayer and has prayed to
Her Son. The city and all Orthodox Christians will be saved through
your prayers. The enemy will soon take flight. The Lord has ordained
that I alone am to be killed by the enemy." Just as the Elder said
this, an enemy arrow struck him.
The prediction of Elder Anthony was made on July 2, on the Feast of
the Placing of the Robe of the Most Holy Theotokos. Confusion broke
out among the Tatars, and they fled in fear and terror. In his
courtyard, St Jonah built a church in honor of the Placing of the Robe
of the Most Holy Theotokos, to commemorate the deliverance of Moscow
from the enemy.
St Jonah reposed in the year 1461, and miraculous healings began to
take place at his grave.
In 1472 the incorrupt relics of Metropolitan Jonah were uncovered and
placed in the Dormition Cathedral of the Kremlin (the Transfer of the
holy Relics is celebrated May 27). A Council of the Russian Church in
1547 established the commemoration of St Jonah, Metropolitan of
Moscow. In 1596, Patriarch Job added St Jonah to the Synaxis of the
Moscow Hierarchs (October 5).
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St Hypatius the Wonderworker and Bishop of Gangra
Hieromartyr Hypatius, Bishop of Gangra, was bishop of the city of
Gangra in Paphlagonia (Asia Minor). In the year 325 he participated in
the First Ecumenical Council at Nicea, at which the heresy of Arius
was anathematized.
When St Hypatius was returning in 326 from Constantinople to Gangra,
followers of the schismatics Novatus and Felicissimus fell upon him in
a desolate place. The heretics ran him through with swords and spears,
and threw him into a swamp. Like the Protomartyr Stephen, St Hypatius
prayed for his murderers.
An Arian woman struck the saint on the head with a stone, killing him.
The murderers hid his body in a cave, where a Christian who kept straw
there found his body. Recognizing the bishop's body, he hastened to
the city to report this, and the inhabitants of Gangra piously buried
their beloved archpastor.
After his death, the relics of St Hypatius were famous for numerous
miracles, particularly for casting out demons and for healing the
sick.
>From of old the hieromartyr Hypatius was particularly venerated in the
Russian land. Thus in the year 1330 the Ipatiev monastery was built at
Kostroma, on the place where the Mother of God appeared with the
Pre-eternal Christ Child, the Apostle Philip, and the hieromartyr
Hypatius, Bishop of Gangra. This monastery later occupied a
significant place in the spiritual and social life of the nation,
particularly during the Time of Troubles.
The ancient copies of the Life of the hieromartyr Hypatius were widely
distributed in Russian literature, and one of these was incorporated
into THE READING MENAION of Metropolitan Macarius (1542-1564). In this
Life there is an account of the appearance of the Savior to St
Hypatius on the eve of the martyr's death.
The entry for the saint's Feast consists of his Life, some prayers,
and words of praise and instruction. The pious veneration of St
Hypatius was also expressed in Russian liturgical compositions. During
the nineteenth century a new service was written for the hieromartyr
Hypatius, distinct from the services written by St Joseph the Studite,
contained in the March MENAION.
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Venerable Hypatius the Healer of the Kiev Caves
Saint Hypatius the Healer of the Caves, attained glory through his
severe fasting and prayerful vigilance. By night he stood at prayer,
slept very little, and ate only bread and water.
St Hypatius devoted himself entirely to the service of the sick, and
received from God the gift of healing. Those sick with various
illnesses often hastened to his prayerful intercession.
The memory of St Hypatius is celebrated also on August 28, on the
Synaxis of the Saints of the Far Caves.
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Venerable Apollonius, Ascetic, of Egypt
Saint Apollonius, when he was a fifteen-year-old youth, withdrew into
the inner Thebaid desert (Lower Egypt), where he spent forty years in
monastic struggles. Directed by God, he founded a monastery near
Hermopolis, where eventually about five hundred monks gathered. St
Apollonius was strict in fasting, only on Sundays did he eat cooked
food, and on other days he ate wild plants.
All the monks followed the example of St Apollonius, engaging in
spiritual struggles at the monastery. The holy ascetic died in the
fourth century.
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Hieromartyr Audas the Bishop of Persia
The Hieromartyrs Audas (Abdas), the Bishop and the Deacon Benjamin.
St Audas was Bishop of Bethchasar in Persia. He destroyed a temple of
the fire-worshippers, and was brought to trial before the Persian
emperor Izdegerd I (401-402), who ordered the saint to rebuild the
temple. When Bishop Audas refused, the emperor ordered soldiers to
destroy all the Christian churches, persecute the Christians, and to
torture them.
St Audas was the first to be martyred. He was beheaded after lengthy
tortures. After thirty days, the other martyrs were also executed.
Among them was the deacon Benjamin, who suffered particularly cruel
torments. They stuck sharp needles under his nails and impaled him on
a spear.
The hieromartyrs died in the old Persian city of Suza.
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Martyr Benjamin the Deacon
The Hieromartyrs Audas (Abdas) the Bishop of Persia and the Deacon
Benjamin.
St Audas was a bishop in Persia. He destroyed a temple of the
fire-worshippers, and was brought to trial before the Persian emperor
Izdegerd I (401-402), who ordered the saint to rebuild the temple.
When Bishop Audas refused, the emperor ordered soldiers to destroy all
the Christian churches, persecute the Christians, and to torture them.
St Audas was the first to be martyred. He was beheaded after lengthy
tortures. After thirty days, the other martyrs were also executed.
Among them was the deacon Benjamin, who suffered particularly cruel
torments. They stuck sharp needles under his nails and impaled him on
a spear.
The hieromartyrs died in the old Persian city of Suza.
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Venerable Hypatius the Abbot of Rufinus in Chalcedon
Saint Hypatius, Igumen of Rufinus in Chalcedon was born in Phrygia
(Asia Minor) into the family of a lawyer and he received a fine
education. Once, when he was eighteen years old, his father punished
him, after which the youth left home and went to Thrace (Balkans).
There he herded cattle for a time, and then he lived with a priest who
taught him how to chant the Psalms. Soon the chosen one of God was
tonsured in one of the monasteries. Struggling against the temptations
of the flesh, the holy ascetic spent fifty days in a strict fast. One
night, with the blessing of the igumen, he drank some wine and ate
some bread in the presence of the brethren, and was healed of his
passions.
In search of a new place for ascetic struggles, St Hypatius settled
with two other monks in the neglected Rufinus monastery near Chalcedon
(Asia Minor). The monastery was rebuilt and soon many monks gathered
about the holy ascetic, and the monastery began to flourish
spiritually once more.
At the age of forty, St Hypatius was chosen igumen and he guided the
monastery for forty years. Many monks, imitating their guide, attained
spiritual perfection. For his strict ascetic life and love for others,
St Hypatius was granted the gifts of wonderworking and healing by the
Lord. Through his holy prayers bread was multiplied at the monastery,
those afflicted with demons, and the blind, the withered and the
hemorrhaging, came to the monastery and were healed.
St Hypatius reposed in 446, at eighty years of age. On the eve of his
death, he predicted misfortunes to come: a devastating hailstorm, an
earthquake, and Attila the Hun's invasion of Thrace.
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Appearance of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God
The Iveron Icon of the Mother of God (which is preserved on Mt. Athos)
was kept in the home of a certain pious widow, who lived near Nicea.
During the time of the emperor Theophilus, the Iconoclasts came to the
house of this Christian, and one of the soldiers struck the image of
the Mother of God with a spear. Blood flowed from the place where it
was struck.
The widow, fearing its destruction, promised the imperial soldiers
money and implored them not to touch the icon until morning. When the
soldiers departed, the woman and her son (later an Athonite monk),
sent the holy icon away upon the sea to preserve it. The icon,
standing upright upon the water, floated to Athos.
For several days, the Athonite monks had seen a fiery pillar on the
sea rising up to the heavens. They came down to the shore and found
the holy image, standing upon the waters. After a Molieben of
thanksgiving, a pious monk of the Iveron monastery, St Gabriel (July
12), had a dream in which the Mother of God appeared to him and gave
him instructions. So he walked across the water, and taking up the
holy icon, he placed it in the church.
On the following day, however, the icon was found not within the
church, but on the gates of the monastery. This was repeated several
times, until the Most Holy Theotokos revealed to St Gabriel Her will,
saying that She did not want the icon to be guarded by the monks, but
rather She intended to be their Protectress. After this, the icon was
installed on the monastery gates. Therefore this icon came to be
called "Portaitissa" or "Gate-Keeper" (October 13). This comes from
the Akathist "Rejoice, O Blessed Gate-Keeper who opens the gates of
Paradise to the righteous."
There is a tradition that the Mother of God promised St Gabriel that
the grace and mercy of Her Son toward the monks would continue as long
as the Icon remained at the monastery. It is also believed that the
disappearance of the Iveron Icon from Mt. Athos would be a sign of the
end of the world.
The Iveron Icon is also commemorated on February 12, October 13 (Its
arrival in Moscow in 1648), and Bright Tuesday (Commemorating the
appearance of the Icon in a pillar of fire at Mt. Athos and its
recovery by St Gabriel).
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St Acacius the Confessor
Saint Acacius the Confessor lived during the Decian persecution, and
was Bishop of Melitene, Armenia.
Arrested as a Christian, St Acacius was brought before the governor
Marcianus, who ordered that he be tortured. He was not put to death,
but was set free after a while, bearing the wounds of Christ on his
body. He died in peace.
St Acacius the Confessor is also commemorated on September 15. He
should not be confused with another St Acacius of Melitene (April 17)
who lived in the fifth century.
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Righteous Joseph the Patriarch
No information available at this time.
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