The Hieromartyr Methodius, bishop of Patara (Lycia in Asia Minor), was distinguished for his genuine monastic humility. Calmly and with mildness he instructed his flock, but he firmly  defended the purity of Orthodoxy and he energetically contended against heresies, especially the widespread heresy of the Origenists. He left behind a rich literary legacy: works in defense of Christianity against paganism, explications of Orthodox dogmas against the heresy of Origen, moral discourses, and explanations of Holy Scripture. St. Methodius was arrested by pagans, steadfastly confessed before them his faith in Christ, and he was sentenced to death by beheading in the year 312. 

 

Troparion

Your blood cries out from the earth like that of Abel, O wise saint, for you preached the Incarnation with fearsome boldness. You shamed the lies of Origen, O father Methodius, and now you have been admitted to the court of heaven. Beg Christ our God to save our souls. 

 

Kontakion

You were a priest and a mystic of the Holy Trinity. You preached divine decrees which surpass comprehension. You are strength for the faithful, O Methodius. You prevailed against evil plots, becoming a martyred priest in your blood for the faith. As you stand before Christ, pray for our salvation. 

 

Epistle

Romans 7: 1-13

    Brothers and sisters: Are you not aware (I am speaking to men who know what law is), that the law has power over a man only so long as he lives? For example, a married woman is bound to her husband by law while he lives, but if he dies she is released from the law regarding husbands. She will be called an adulteress if, while her husband is still alive, she gives herself to another. But if her husband dies she is freed from that law, and does not commit adultery by consorting with another man. In the same way, my brothers, you died to the law through the body of Christ, that you might belong to that Other who was raised from the dead, so that we might bear fruit for God. When we were in the flesh, the sinful passions roused by the law worked in our members and we bore fruit for death. Now we have been released from the law – for we have died to what bound us – and we serve in the new spirit, not the antiquated letter.

What follows from what I have said? That the law is same as sin? Certainly not! Yet it was only through the law that I came to know sin. I should never have known what evil desire was unless the law had said, “You shall not covet.” Sin seized that opportunity; it used the commandment to rouse in me every kind of evil desire. Without law sin is dead, and at first I lived without law. Then the commandment came; with it sin came to life, and I died. The commandment that should have led to life brought me death. Sin found its opportunity and used the commandment: first to deceive me, then to kill me. Yet the law is holy and the commandment is holy and just and good. 

Did this good thing then become death for me? Not that either! Rather, sin, in order to be seen clearly as sin, used what was good to bring about my death. It did so that, by misusing the commandment, sin might go to the limit of sinfulness.  

 

Gospel

Matthew 9: 36-38, 10: 1-8

When Jesus saw the crowds, his heart was moved with pity. They were lying prostrate from exhaustion, like sheep without a shepherd. He said to his disciples: “The harvest is good but laborers are scarce. Beg the harvest master to send out laborers to gather his harvest.”

Then he summoned his twelve disciples and gave them authority to expel unclean spirits and to cure sickness and disease of every kind. 

The names of the twelve apostles are these: first Simon, now known as Peter, and his brother Andrew; James, Zebedee’s son, and his brother John; Phillip and Bartholomew, Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James, the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddeus; Simon the Zealot Party member, and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed the Lord. Jesus sent these men on mission as the Twelve, after giving them the following instructions:

“Do not visit pagan territory and do not enter a Samaritan town. Go instead after the lost sheep of Israel. As you go, make this announcement: ‘The reign of God is at hand!’ Cure the sick, raise the dead, heal the leprous, expel demons. The gift you have received, give as a gift.”  

 

Icon courtesy of Jack Figel, Eastern Christian Publications – ecpubs.com

The holy apostle Jude was one of the Twelve apostles of Christ and descended from King David and Solomon, and was the son of Righteous Joseph the Betrothed by his first wife. Tradition says that when St. Joseph returned from Egypt, he began to divide his possessions among his sons. He wanted to allot a share to Christ the Savior, born miraculously and incorruptibly from the All-Pure Virgin Mary. Joseph’s other sons were opposed to this because Jesus was born of another mother. Only James, later called “The Brother of God,” offered to share his portion with Him. Later, Jude came to believe in Christ the Savior as the awaited Messiah, and he followed Him and was chosen as one of the twelve apostles. Mindful of his sin, the Apostle Jude considered himself unworthy to be called the Lord’s brother, and in his Epistle he calls himself merely the brother of James. The holy apostle Jude died as a martyr around the year 80 near Mt. Ararat in Armenia, where he was crucified and pierced by arrows. 

 

Troparion

We recognize that you are one of the Lord’s relatives and a strong martyr who for the faith trampled on lies. We have come to praise you in a sacred manner, O Jude, as we celebrate your holy memory and make our plea; Forgive our sins by the might of your prayers. 

 

Kontakion

You were a chosen disciple with a firm purpose, an invincible pillar of the Church of Christ. You preached the word about Christ to the pagans, telling them to believe in the one God. Therefore, you have been exalted by Him and graced with the gift of healing. You cure the ills of those who hasten to you, O praiseworthy apostle Jude. 

 

Readings for the saint

Epistle

Jude 1: 1-10

    Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ and brother of James, to those who have been called by God; who have found love in God the Father and have been guarded safely in Jesus Christ. May mercy, peace, and love be yours in ever greater measure. 

    I was already fully intent on writing you, beloved, about the salvation we share. But now I feel obliged to write and encourage you to fight hard for the faith delivered once for all to the saints. Certain individuals have recently wormed their way into your midst, godless types, long ago destined for the condemnation I shall describe. They pervert the gracious gift of our God to sexual excess and deny Jesus Christ, our only master and Lord. 

    I wish to remind you of certain things, even though you may already be very well aware of them. The Lord first rescued his people from the land of Egypt but later destroyed those who refused to believe. There were angels, too, who did not keep to their own domain, who deserted their dwelling place. These the Lord has kept in perpetual bondage, shrouded in murky darkness against the judgment of the great day Sodom, Gomorrah, and the towns there abouts indulged in lust, just as those angels did; they practiced unnatural vice. They are set before us to dissuade us, as they undergo a punishment of eternal fire. 

    Similarly, these visionaries pollute the flesh; they spurn God’s dominion and revile the angelic beings. Even the archangel Michael, when his case with the devil was being judged – a dispute over Moses’ body– did not venture to charge him with blasphemy. He simply said, “May the Lord punish you.” These people, however, not only revile what they have no knowledge of but are corrupted through the very things they know by instinct, like brute animals. 

 

Gospel

John 14: 21-24

    The Lord said to his disciples: “He who obeys the commandments he has from  me is the man who loves me; and he who loves me will be loved by my Father. I too will love him and reveal myself to him.”

    Judas (not Judas Iscariot) said to Jesus, “Lord, why is it that you will reveal yourself to us and not to the world?” Jesus answered: “Anyone who loves me will be true to my word, and my Father will love him; we will come to him and make our dwelling place with him. He who does not love me does not keep my words. Yet the word you hear is not mine; it comes from the Father who sent me.”

 

Readings for the day

Epistle

Romans 2: 10-16

    Brothers and sisters: There will be glory, honor, and peace for everyone who has done good, likewise the Jew first, then the Greeks. With God there is no favoritism.

    Sinners who do not have the law will perish without reference to it; sinners bound by the law will be judged in accordance with it. For it is not those who hear the law who are just in the sight of God; it is those who keep it who will be declared just. When Gentiles who do not have the law keep it as by instinct, these men although without the law serve as a law for themselves. They show that the demands of the law are written in their hearts. Their conscience bears witness together with that law, and their thoughts will accuse or defend them on the day when, in accordance with the gospel I preach, God will pass judgment on the secrets of men through Christ Jesus. 

 

Gospel

Matthew 4: 18-23

    At that time as Jesus was walking along the Sea of Galilee he watched two brothers, Simon known as Peter, and his brother Andrew, casting a net into the sea. They were fishermen. He said to them, “Come after me and I will make you fishers of men.” They immediately abandoned their nets and became his followers. He walked along farther and caught sight of two brothers, James and John, the sons of Zebedee. They too were in their boat, getting their nets in order with their father, Zebedee. He called them, and immediately they abandoned their boat and father to follow him. Jesus toured all of Galilee. He taught in their synagogues, proclaimed the good news of the kingdom, and cured the people of every disease and illness. 

 

Icon courtesy of Jack Figel, Eastern Christian Publications – ecpubs.com

 

The holy martyr Leontius, a Greek by origin, served as a military chief in the imperial army of the Phoenician city of Tripoli during the reign of Vespasian (70-79). Leontius was distinguished for his bravery and good sense, and the people of Tripoli held him in deep respect because of his virtue. The emperor appointed the Roman senator Adrian as governor of the Phoenician district, with full powers to hunt out Christians, and in case of their refusal to offer sacrifice to the Roman gods, to give them over to torture and death. And on his way to Phoenicia, Adrian received a report that St. Leontius had turned many away from worshiping the pagan gods toward Christ. Learning what had happened, he ordered St. Leontius, Hypatius, and Theodulus to be brought to him. After threatening them with torture and death, he demanded that they renounce Christ and offer sacrifice to the Roman gods. Having suffered patiently harsh tortures in prison, the death of the holy martyrs occurred between the years 70 and 79. 

Troparion

O Lord our God, your holy martyr Leontius has deserved the crown of immortality on account of his good works. Armed with your strength, he has vanquished his persecutors and crushed Satan’s dreadful might. Through his supplications, O Christ our God, save our souls. 

 

Kontakion

You shamed the evil treachery of the torturers, and you prevailed against the false worship of the Greeks. You presented the knowledge of God in piety to all people. For all of this we honor you with love, O wise Leontius. 

 

Epistle

Romans 3: 19-26

    Brothers and sisters: We know that everything the law says is addressed to those who are under its authority. This means that every mouth is silenced and the whole world stands convicted before God, since no one will be justified in God’s sight through observance of the law; the law does nothing but point out what is sinful. 

    But now the justice of God has been manifested apart from the law, even though both law and prophets bear witness to it – that justice of God which works through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. All men have sinned and are deprived of the glory of God. All men are now undeservedly justified by the gift of God, through the redemption wrought in Christ Jesus. Through his blood, God made him the means of expiation for all who believe. He did so to manifest his own justice, for the sake of remitting sins committed in the past – to manifest his justice in the present, by the way of forbearance, so that he might be just and might justify those who believe in Jesus. 

 

Gospel

Matthew 7: 1-8

    The Lord said: “If you want to avoid judgment, stop passing judgment. Your verdict on others will be the verdict passed on you. The measure with which you measure will be used to measure you. Why look at the speck in your brother’s eye when you miss the plank in your own? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take that speck out of your eye,’ while all the time the plank remains in your own? You hypocrite! Remove the plank from your own eye first; then you will see clearly to take the speck from your brother’s eye.

    “Do not give what is holy to dogs or toss your pearls before swine. They will trample them under foot, at best, and perhaps even tear you to shreds.

    “Ask, and you will receive. Seek, and you will find. Knock, and it will be opened to you. For the one who asks, receives. The one who seeks, finds. The one who knocks, enters.”

 

Icon courtesy of Jack Figel, Eastern Christian Publications – ecpubs.com

The holy martyrs Manuel, Sabel, and Ishmael were brothers from an illustrious Persian family in the 7th century. Their father was a pagan, but their mother was a Christian who baptized them and raised them with firm faith in Christ the Savior. The brothers received their crowns of martyrdom after refusing to worship pagan gods during their service in the imperial army. 

 

Troparion

O Lord our God, your holy martyrs have deserved the crown of immortality on account of their good fight. Armed with your strength, they have vanquished their persecutors and crushed Satan’s dreadful might. Through their supplications, O Christ our God, save our souls.

 

Kontakion

O blessed martyrs, because of your perfect faith in Christ, you drank the cup of sufferings with generous hearts. You renounced the idols of Persia and proclaimed your belief in the Holy Trinity. O trinity of martyrs, intercede for us at all times. 

 

Epistle

Romans 5:17 thru 6:2

    Brothers and sisters: If death began its reign through one man because of his offense, much more shall those who receive the overflowing grace and gift of justice live and reign through the one man, Jesus Christ. 

    To sum up, then: just as a single offense brought condemnation to all men, a single righteous act brought all men acquittal and life. Just as through one man’s disobedience all became sinners, so through one man’s obedience all shall become just. 

    The law came in order to increase offenses; but despite the increase of sin, grace has far surpassed it, so that, as sin reigned through death, grace may reign by way of justice leading to eternal life, through Jesus Christ our Lord. 

    What, then, are we to say? “Let us continue in sin that grace may abound?” Certainly not! How can we who died to sin go on living in it?

 

Gospel

Matthew 9: 14-17

    At the time the disciples of John came to Jesus with the objection, “Why is it that while we and the Pharisees fast, your disciples do not?” Jesus said to them: “How can wedding guests go in mourning so long as the groom is with them? When the day comes that the groom is taken away, then they will fast. Nobody sews a piece of unshrunken cloth on an old cloak; the very thing he has used to cover the hole will pull, and the rip only get worse. People do not pour new wine into old wineskins. If they do, the skins burst, the wine spills out, and the skins are ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins, and in that way both are preserved.”

 

Our venerable father Tychon was bishop of Amathis on Cyprus. He labored zealously to eradicate the remnants of paganism on Cyprus; he destroyed a pagan temple and spread the Christian Faith. St. Tychon was generous, his doors were open to all, and he listened to and lovingly fulfilled the request of each person who came to him. Fearing neither threats nor tortures, he firmly and fearlessly confessed his faith before pagans. He died peacefully in the year 425.

 

Troparion

You first crucified yourself to the world by becoming poor among the living. Then like a true shepherd, you put your life at the disposal of your flock. Enriching your sheep with miracles, you became a bright light for the Church of Amathis. By shedding light on it, you saved it from the fog of deceit, O father Tychon. By your prayers enlighten us today as we praise you.

 

Kontakion

You preserved in fasting through your love for God, and heaven sent you the power to expose the lies of idols, to save the people and cast out devils, to heal illness by the power of the Comforter.

 

Epistle

Romans 5: 10-16

    Brothers and sisters: If, when we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him by the death of his Son, it is all the more certain that we who have been reconciled will be saved by his life. Not only that; we go so far as to make God our boast through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

    Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world and with sin death, death thus coming to all men inasmuch as all sinned – before the law there was sin in the world, even though sin is not imputed when there is no law – I say, from Adam to Moses death reigned, even over those who had not sinned by breaking a precept as did Adam, that type of the man to come.

    But the gift is not like the offense. For if by the offense of the one man all died, much more did the grace of God and the gracious gift of the one man, Jesus Christ, abound for all. The gift is entirely different from the sin committed by the one man. In the first case, the sentence followed upon one offense and brought condemnation, but in the second, the gift came after many offenses and brought acquittal. 

 

Gospel

Matthew 8: 23-27

    At that time Jesus got into the boat and his disciples followed him. Without warning a violent storm came up on the lake, and the boat began to be swamped by the waves. Jesus was sleeping soundly, so they made their way toward him and woke him: “Lord, save us! We are lost!” He said to them: “Where is your courage? How little faith you have!” Then he stood up and took the winds and the sea to task. Complete calm ensued; the men were dumbfounded. “What sort of man is this,” they said, “that even the winds and the sea obey him?”

 

Icon courtesy of Jack Figel, Eastern Christian Publications – ecpubs.com

 

The Lord sent the holy prophet Amos to the sons of Israel. He was a herdsman of Tekoa and a dresser of sycamores, and his preaching was to defend the Lord’s righteousness and holiness against the transgressions of the children of Israel. 

The venerable Jerome, priest of Stridon, who, born in Dalmatia, was an exceptional laborer. He pursued the studies of all literature in Rome and was baptized there. Then, seized by the power of contemplative life and having embraced the ascetic life, he proceeded to the East and was ordained a priest. When he returned to Rome, he stayed in a retreat of Pope Damasus, and then left for Bethlehem in Judea. There he founded a monastery. The notable teacher escaped the world by translating and explaining the Holy Scriptures. In a marvelous way he was a worker fulfilling very many of the needs of the Church. Finally, when he had lived to an advanced age, he reposed in peace in the early 5th century. 

 

Troparion – Amos

Celebrating the memory of your prophet Amos, O Lord, we beg You to save our souls through his intercession. 

 

Troparion – Jerome

O guide of the true faith, mirror of piety and commendable behavior, bright star of the universe, and adornment of pontiffs, you enlightened us all by your teachings. O wise Jerome, inspired by God and lyre of the Holy Spirit, intercede with Christ our God that He may save our souls. 

 

Kontakion – Amos

Purifying your heart by the Spirit, you accepted the gift of prophecy. You stood up and shouted your message. This is our God, and you shall have none before Him. 

 

Kontakion – Jerome

Delighting in purity, O wise in God, you repressed the urges to the flesh. You glowed with faith and bloomed like an orchard in paradise, O priest and father Jerome. 

 

Epistle

Romans 4: 13-25

    Brothers and sisters: Certainly the promise made to Abraham and his descendants that they would inherit the world did not depend on the law. It was made in view of the justice that comes from faith. If only those who observe the law are heirs, then faith becomes an empty word and the promise loses its meaning. Indeed, the law serves only to bring down wrath, for where there is no law there is no transgression. Hence, all depends on faith, everything is grace. Thus the promise holds true for all Abraham’s descendants, not only for those who have the law but for all who have his faith. He is father of us all, which is why Scripture says, “I have made you father of many nations.” Yes, he is our father in the sight of God in who he believed, the God who restores the dead to life and calls into being those things which had not been. Hoping against hope, Abraham believed and so became the father of many nations just as it was once told him, “Numerous as this shall be your descendants be.” Without growing weak in faith he thought of his own body, which was as good as dead (for he was nearly a hundred years old), and [he thought] of the dead womb of Sarah. Yet he never questioned or doubted God’s promise; rather, he was strengthened in faith and gave glory to God, fully persuaded that God would do whatever he had promised. Thus his faith was credited to him as justice.

    The words, “It was credited to him,” were not written with him alone in view: they were intended for us too. For our faith will be credited to us also if we believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead, the Jesus who was handed over to death for our sins and raised up for our justification. 

 

Gospel

Matthew 7: 21-23

    The Lord said: “None of those who cry out, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of God but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. When that day comes, many will plead with me, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in your name? Have we not exorcised demons by its power? Did we not do many miracles in your name as well?’ Then I will declare to them solemnly, ‘I never knew you. Out of my sight, you evildoers!’”

 

Icon courtesy of Jack Figel, Eastern Christian Publications – ecpubs.com

 

The holy prophet Elisha was a disciple of the prophet Elijah, and was himself a prophet in Israel from the time of King Joram to the days of Jehoash. Though his oracles do not remain, he nevertheless, by working miracles for foreigners, announced the coming of salvation for all people. 

Our holy father Methodius, patriarch of Constantinople. While he was a monk, he betook himself to Rome to Pope St. Paschal the First in defense of the holy icons. Elevated to the episcopate, he solemnly celebrated the triumph of the orthodox faith with the restoration of the holy icons. 

 

Troparion – Elisha

The glorious Elijah, an angel in the flesh, the greatest of the prophets and second forerunner of Christ’s coming, dispels diseases, purifies lepers, and showers all kinds of healing upon those who honor him, by sending a blessing from heaven upon Elisha. 

 

Troparion – Methodius

Burning with zeal for the holy icons, O most wise saint, you boldly opposed the malice of the king. You were locked in a tomb and suffered torment, and for your labors you were exiled. Do not forget us who sing of your fame, O most blessed pastor Methodius. 

 

Kontakion – Elisha

O blessed Elisha, you lived the life of a prophet of God. You received an abundance of graces, and now together with Elijah, you intercede fervently with Christ our God for all of us. 

 

Kontakion – Methodius

You fought like an angel on earth and inherited heaven for a reward, O Methodius. Having clearly revealed the reverence that was due icons, you were subjected to agonies and terrible hardships. But this did not deter you from your path of truth as you condemned those who cast out the icons of Christ. 

 

Epistle

Romans 4: 4-12

    Brothers and sisters: When a man works, his wages are not regarded as a favor but as his due. But when a mar, does nothing, yet believes in him who justifies the sinful, his faith is credited as justice. Thus David congratulates the man to whom God credits justice without requiring deeds [when he says]: “Blest are they whose iniquities are forgiven, whose sins are covered over. Blest is the man to whom the Lord imputes no guilt.”

    Does this blessedness apply only to the circumcised, or to the uncircumcised as well? For we say that Abraham’s faith was “credited as justice.” What were the circumstances in which it was credited? Was it after he was circumcised or before? It was before. In fact, he received the sign of circumcision as a seal attesting to the justice received through faith while he was still uncircumcised. Thus he was to be the fighter of all the uncircumcised who believe, so that for them too faith might be credited as justice, as well as the father of those circumcised who are not merely so but who follow the path of faith which Abraham walked while still uncircumcised. 

Gospel

Matthew 7: 15-21

    The Lord said: “Bo on your guard against false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but underneath are wolves on the prowl. You will know them by their deeds. Do you ever pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from prickly plants? Never! Any sound tree bears good fruit, while a decayed tree bears bad fruit. A sound tree cannot bear bad fruit any more than a decayed tree can bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is  cut down and thrown into the fire. You can tell a tree by its fruit. None of those who cry out, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of God but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.”

 

Icon courtesy of Jack Figel, Eastern Christian Publications – ecpubs.com

 

The holy martyr Aquilina was twelve years old when she was brutally martyred under the emperor Trajan in the late third century. After converting one of her pagan friends to Christianity, she was arrested and tortured. Believing Aquilina dead after her tortures, her captors left her body outside the city to be eaten by wild beasts. However the saint was still alive, and during the night an angel came to her and healed her. She returned to denounce the pagan governor. She was taken into prison again, denounced as a sorceress, and ordered to be executed by beheading. St. Aquilina was taken by the Lord before her execution, but the executioner, fearing for his own safety, beheaded the body of the saint even though she was dead. Her relics were later taken to Constantinople and placed in a church named for her. 

Our holy father Triphyllus, Bishop of Leucosia in Cyprus, ardently defended the orthodox Nicene faith. He was the most eloquent speaker of his time, and a marvelous commentator in the Song of Songs, as St. Jerome relates. 

 

Troparion – Aquilina

O Jesus, your lamb Aquilina cries out to You with great love: O my Bridegroom, I long for You in great pain. I am crucified with You, and in baptism I am buried with You. I suffer for your sake in order to reign with You. I die for You in order to live with You. Accept me as an immaculate victim since I am immolated for your love. Through her intercession, O merciful One, save our souls. 

 

Troparion – Triphyllus

The sincerity of your deeds has revealed you to your people as a teacher of moderation, a model of faith, and as an example of virtue. Therefore, you attained greatness through humility, and wealth through poverty. O father and archbishop Triphyllus, ask Christ our God to save our souls.

 

Kontakion – Aquilina

Purifying your soul by the balm of virginity, you soared to heaven in a flight of martyrdom. You languished with love of Christ, O precious saint, and now you can stand before Him, O Aquilina. Join the angels in unceasing prayer for us on earth. 

 

Kontakion – Triphyllus

You perfected virginal chastity in a wonderful life, and you proved yourself a bishop of Leucosia. You became a prophet and a guide for those seeking God, O Triphyllus. For this reason we bless you in song, O glory of pastors. 

 

Epistle

Romans 2:28 thru 3:18

    Brothers and sisters: Appearance does not make a Jew. True circumcision is not a sign in the flesh. He is a real Jew who is inwardly, and true circumcision is of the heart; its source is the spirit, not the letter. Such a one receives his praise, not from men, but from God.

    What is the advantage, then, of being a Jew, and what value is there in circumcision? The answer is, much in every respect. First of all, the Jews were entrusted with the words of God. You may ask, what if some of them have not believed? Will not their unbelief put an end to God’s faithfulness? Of course not! God must be proved true even though every man be proved a liar, so that, as Scripture says, “You shall be vindicated in what you say, and win out when you are judged.” But if our wrongdoings provides proof of God’s justice, what are we to say? “Is not God unjust when he inflicts punishment?” (I speak in a merely human way.) Assuredly not! If that were so, how could God judge the world? Another question: If my falsehood brings to light God’s truth and thus promotes his glory, why must I be condemned as a sinner? Or why may we not do evil that good may come of it? This is the very thing that some slanderously accuse us of teaching; but they will get what they deserve.

    Well then, do we find ourselves in a position of superiority? Not entirely. We have already brought the charge against Jews and Greeks alike that they are under the domination of sin. It is as Scripture says: “There is no just man, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one in search of God. All have taken the wrong course, all alike have become worthless; not one of them acts uprightly, no, not one. Their throats are open tombs; they use their tongues to deceive; the venom of asps lies behind their lips. Their mouths are full of curses and bitterness. Swiftly run their feet to shed blood; ruin and misery strew their course. The path of peace is unknown to them; the fear of God is not before their eyes.”

 

Gospel

Matthew 6: 31-34 & 7: 9-11

    The Lord said: “Stop worrying, then, over questions like, ‘What are we to eat, or what are we to drink, or what are we to wear?’ The unbelievers are always running after these things. Your heavenly Father knows all that you need. Seek first his kingship over you, his way of holiness, and all these things will be given you besides. Enough, then, of worrying about tomorrow. Let tomorrow take care of itself. Today has troubles enough of its own.

    Would one of you hand his son a stone when he asks for a loaf, or a poisonous snake when he asks for a fish? If you, with all your sins, know how to give your children what is good, how much more will your heavenly Father give good things to anyone who asks him!”

 

Icon courtesy of Jack Figel, Eastern Christian Publications – ecpubs.com

 

Our venerable father Onuphrius the Great was an anchorite who piously spent his life for sixty years in the desolate wilderness in the late 4th and early 5th centuries.

Our venerable father Peter of Mt. Athos was a soldier by profession. Captured and imprisoned by Arabs, he was miraculously freed. He immediately set out for Rome, where he was tonsured a monk by the pope. He was guided in a vision to Mt. Athos, and spent thirty-five years in ascetic life in the 8th century. 

 

Troparion – Onuphrius

You entered the desert, being led by spiritual yearning; and you fought in it for many years like an angel. You are the equal of Elijah and the Baptist, and you were delighted by the Sacred Mysteries ministered by angel hands. Now that you have gone to them in the Trinity’s light, pray for us who venerate your memory. 

 

Troparion – Peter

The mountain of Athos rejoices, inviting all the monastic choirs to praise you. We join with them in singing to you, O venerable Peter, and we lay our petition before you: Seek peace for the world and mercy for our souls. 

 

Kontakion – Onuphrius

Illumined by the light of the most Holy Spirit, you turned your back on the distractions of this life. Taking up your life in the desert, O venerable father, you greatly pleased God our Creator. For this reason, Christ exalts you, O blessed saint. 

 

Kontakion – Peter

Leaving the company of mortals, you took up residence in caves and caverns, inspired by your love of God and the ardent burning desire of your soul. You received a crown from God for this. Now pray unceasingly for all of us to be saved. 

 

Epistle

Hebrews 11:33 thru 12:2a

    Brothers and sisters: By faith [the Saints] conquered kingdoms, did what was just, obtained the promises; they broke the jaws of lions, put out raging fires, escaped the devouring swords; though weak they were made powerful, became strong in battle, and turned back foreign invaders. Women received back their dead through resurrection. Others were tortured and would not receive deliverance, in order to obtain a better resurrection. Still others endured mockery, scourging, even chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, sawed in two, put to death at sword’s point; they went about garbed in the skins of sheep or goats, needy, afflicted, tormented. The world was not worthy of them. They wandered the earth. Yet despite the fact that all of these were approved because of their faith, they did not obtain what had been promised. God had made a better plan, a plan which included us. Without us, they were not to be made perfect. 

    Therefore, since we for our part are surrounded by this cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every encumbrance of sin which clings to us and persevere in running the race which lies ahead; let us keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, who inspires and perfects our faith. 

 

Gospel

Matthew 10: 32-33, 37-38, 19: 27-30

    The Lord said to his disciples: “Whoever acknowledges me before men I will acknowledge before my Father in heaven. Whoever disowns me before men I will disown before my Father in heaven. Whoever loves father or mother, son or daughter, more than me is not worthy of me. He who will not take up his cross and come after me is not worthy of me. 

    Then Peter said to him: “Here we have put everything aside to follow you. What can we expect from it?” Jesus said to them: “I give you my solemn word, in the new age when the Son of Man takes his seat upon the throne befitting his glory, you who have followed me shall likewise take your places on twelve thrones to judge the twelve tribes of Israel. Moreover, everyone who has given up home, brothers or sisters, father or mother, wife or children or property for my sake will receive many times as much and inherit everlasting life. Many who are first shall come last, and the last shall come first.”

 

Icon courtesy of Jack Figel, Eastern Christian Publications – ecpubs.com