The relics of the holy apostle Bartholomew were stolen by the Armenians, and then taken to the town of Alipay’s. At the time of Theophilus the Iconoclast, they were translated again, this time to the town of Benevento. From there they were taken to Rome.
The holy apostle Titus is counted as one of the 70 Apostles. Born in Crete, he was baptized by the Apostle Paul. He served Paul in such sincerity of the heart that Paul called him his son (Titus 1:4) as well as his brother (2 Cor. 12:18). He was made the first bishop of Crete, where he widely governed the Church to great old age. He died at the age of ninety-four.
O holy apostles, intercede with the merciful God that he may grant our souls forgiveness of sins.
You appeared to the Church as a brilliant star, O Bartholomew, apostle of the Lord, illuminating those who honor you with the radiance of doctrine and awesome wonders.
As a companion of Paul, you declared the word of divine grace to us. Ever-memorable and truly great Titus, we tender a song of honor to you. Now pray unceasingly for all of us.
2 Corinthians 11: 5-21a
Brethren: I consider myself inferior to the “super-apostles” in nothing. I may be unskilled in speech but I know that I am not lacking in knowledge. We have made this evident to you in every conceivable way.
Could I have done wrong when I preached the gospel of God to you free of charge, humbling myself with a view to exalting you? I robbed other churches, I accepted support from them in order to minister to you. When I was with you and in want I was a burden to none of you, for the brothers who came from Macedonia supplied my needs. In every way possible I kept myself from being burdensome to you, and I shall continue to do so. I swear by the Christ who is in me that this boast of mine will not cease in the regions of Achaia! Why? Because I do not love you? God knows I do. What I am doing shall continue to do, depriving at every turn those who look for a chance to say that in their much-vaunted ministry they work on the same terms as we do. Such men are false apostles. They practice deceit in their disguise as apostles of Christ. And little wonder! For even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. It comes as no surprise that his ministers disguise themselves as ministers of the justice of God. But their end will correspond to their deeds.
I repeat: let no one think me foolish. But if you do, then accept me as a fool all the way and let me do a little boasting. What I am about to say in this self-assured boasting, I speak not as the Lord desires but after the manner of a fool. Since many are bragging about their human distinctions, I too will boast. Being wise yourselves, you gladly put up with fools. You even put up with those who exploit you, who impose upon you and put on airs, with those who slap your face. To my shame I must confess that we have been too weak to do such things.
Mark 4: 1-9
At that time Jesus began to teach beside the lake. Such a huge crowd gathered around him that he went and sat in a boat on the water, while the crowd remained on the shore nearby. He began to instruct them at great length by the use of parables, and in the course of his teaching said: “Listen carefully to this. A farmer went out sowing. Some of what he sowed landed on the footpath, where the birds came along and ate it. Some of the seed landed on rocky ground where it had little soil; it sprouted immediately because the soil had no depth. Then , when the sun rose and scorched it, it began to wither for lack of roots. Again, some landed among thorns, which grew up and choked it off, and there was no yield of grain. Some seed, finally, landed on good soil and yielded grain that sprang up to produce at a rate of thirty – and sixty – and a hundredfold.” Having spoken this parable, he added: “Let him who has ears to hear me, hear!”
Icon courtesy of Jack Figel, Eastern Christian Publications – ecpubs.com
Thursday, August 24 –
