The holy and great martyr Demetrius was born in Salonica of devout parents, and was a much-longed-for only child. Because of this he received an excellent education. Like his father, Demetrius became a soldier in the Roman army. The emperor Maximian appointed him to persecute Christians in Salonica, but Demetrius confessed his faith and preached Christ. He was cruelly martyred for his witness to the Lord. Since the 7th century a miraculous flow of fragrant myrrh has been found beneath the burial place of St. Demetrius, so he is called “the Myrrh-gusher” or Myroblyte.
The Commemoration of the great and fearful earthquake in Constantinople, 740: In the time of the emperor Leo the Armenian, there was a terrifying and long-lasting earthquake in Constantinople. The people felt that it was punishment for their sins, and entreated the most holy Mother of God and St. Demetrius to intercede for them.
Troparion
O Passion-bearer, the world has seen you as a defender of those imperiled and a conqueror of the nations. In cutting down the arrogance of Lyaeus, you bolstered Nestor by your courage. Therefore, O holy Demetrius, pray to Christ our God to grant us great mercy.
Troparion – Earthquake
O Christ our God, who look upon the earth, and it quakes: deliver us from the dreadful menace of earthquakes, and send down upon us Your rich mercies through the intercession of the Theotokos and save us.
Kontakion
With streams of your blood, O Demetrius, the God, who gives you invincible might, has dyed the Church in purple, and keeps your city unharmed, for you are its foundation.
Epistle
2nd Timothy 2: 1-10
Timothy, my son: You must be strong in the grace which is ours in Christ Jesus. The things which you have heard from me through many witnesses you must hand on to trustworthy men who will be able to teach others. Bear hardship along with me as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No soldier becomes entangled in the affairs of civilian life; he avoids this in order to please his commanding officer. Similarly, if one takes part in an athletic contest, he cannot receive the winner’s crown unless he has kept the rules. The hardworking farmer is the one who should have the first share of the crop. Reflect on what I am saying, for the Lord will make my meaning fully clear.
Remember that Jesus Christ, a descendant of David, was raised from the dead. This is the gospel I preach; in preaching it I suffer as a criminal, even to the point of being thrown into chains–but there is no chaining the word of God! Therefore I bear with all of this for the sake of those whom God has chosen, in order that they may obtain the salvation to be found in Christ Jesus and with it eternal glory.
Gospel
John 15:27 – 16:2
The Lord said to his disciples: “The command I give you is this, that you love one another. If you find that the world hates you, know that it has hated me before you. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own; the reason it hated you is that you do not belong to the world. But I chose you out of the world. Remember what I told you: no slave is greater than his master. They will harry you as they harried me. They will respect your words as much as they respected mine. All this they will do to you because of my name, for they know nothing of him who sent me. If I had not come to them and spoken to them, they would not be guilty of sin; now, however, their sin cannot be excused.
“To hate me is to hate my Father. Had I not performed such works among them as no one has ever done before, they would not be guilty of sin; bit as it is, they have seen, and they go on hating me and my Father. However, this only fulfills the text in their law: ‘They hated me without cause.’ When the Paraclete comes, the Spirit of truth who comes from the Father – and whom I myself will send from the Father – he will bear witness on my behalf. You must bear witness as well, for you have been with me from the beginning.
“I have told all this to keep your faith from being shaken. Not only will they expel you from synagogues; a time will come when anyone who puts you to death will claim to be serving God!”
Icon courtesy of Jack Figel, Eastern Christian Publications – ecpubs.com
Wednesday, October 25 –
