The holy martyr Euphemia the Illustrious was handed over to the beasts after various tortures under the emperor Diolcetian. Her passing is kept on Sept. 16; today is the day that her holy relics confirmed the orthodox faith at the Fourth Ecumenical Council in Chalcedon.
The passing of Olga, princess of Kiev, baptized Helen, at Kiev in Rus. She was the grandmother of St. Vladimir, the first of the Rurik dynasty to receive baptism. She prepared the way to Christ for all the peoples of Rus.
Lighting your lamp, you loved your Spouse. You were radiant from your virtues, O praiseworthy one, and because of this you pledged yourself to Christ. You received a crown of suffering from Him. From troubles deliver us who venerate your memory in faith, O Euphemia.
Raising your mind on the wings of theology, you soared far above visible creation. Seeking the God and Creator of all things being rewarded by finding Him, you were born again to Christ in baptism. Receiving delight from the Tree of Life, you remain incorrupt for all ages, O glorious Olga.
You took part in the struggle with great valor, defending faith in Christ your beloved Savior. Through the powerful intercession of the Mother of God, intercede with Christ that He may wipe out all false teachings and humiliate the pride of the enemy. From the six hundred and thirty Fathers of the Council, you have received the definition of the faith and preserved it faithfully, O Euphemia worthy of all praise.
Let us sing hymns to the Benefactor of the world who exalted the God-wise Olga in the land of Rus. May He forgive our sins by her prayers.
2 Corinthians 6: 1-10
Brothers and sisters: As your fellow workers we beg you not to receive the grace of God in vain. For he says, “In an acceptable time I have heard you; on a day of salvation I have helped you.” Now is the acceptable time! Now is the day of salvation! We avoid giving anyone offense, so that our ministry may not be blamed. On the contrary, in all that we do we strive to present ourselves as ministers of God, acting with patient endurance amid trials, difficulties, distresses, beatings, imprisonments, and riots; as men familiar with hard work, sleepless nights, and fastings; conducting ourselves with innocence, knowledge, and patience, in the Holy Spirit, in sincere love as men with the message of truth and the power of God; wielding the weapons of righteousness with right hand and left, whether honored or dishonored, spoken of well or ill. We are called imposters, yet we are truthful; nobodies who in fact are well known; dead, yet here we are alive; punished, but not put to death; sorrowful, though we are always rejoicing; poor, yet we enrich many. We seem to have nothing, yet everything is ours!
Luke 7: 36-50
At that time there was a certain Pharisee who invited Jesus to dine with him. Jesus went to the Pharisee’s home and reclined to eat. A woman known in the town to be a sinner learned that he was dining in the Pharisee’s home. She brought in a vase of perfumed oil and stood behind him at his feet, weeping so that her tears fell upon his feet. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissing them and perfuming them with the oil. When his host, the Pharisee, saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet he would know who and what sort of woman this is that touched him–that she is a sinner.” In answer to his thoughts, Jesus said to him, “Simon, I have something to propose to you.” “Teacher,” he said, “speak.”
Jesus said, “Two men owed money to a certain money-lender; one owed a total of five hundred coins, the other fifty. Since neither was able to repay, he wrote off both debts. Which of them was more grateful to him?” Simon answered, “He, I presume, to whom he remitted the larger sum.” Jesus said to him, “You are right.”
Turning then to the woman, Jesus said to Simon: “You see this woman? I came to your home and you provided me with no water for my feet. She has washed my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You gave me no kiss, but she has not ceased kissing my feet since I entered. You did not anoint my feet with perfume. I tell you, that is why her many sins are forgiven–because of her great love. Little is forgiven the one whose love is small.”
Jesus said to her then, “Your sins are forgiven”; at which his fellow guests began to ask among themselves, “Who is this that he even forgives sins?” Meanwhile Jesus said to the woman, “Your faith has been your salvation. Now go in peace.”
1 Corinthians 10:28 – 11:7
Brothers and sisters: If someone should say to you, “This was offered in idol worship,” do not eat it, both for the sake of the one who called attention to it on account of the conscience issue – not your own conscience but your neighbor’s. You may ask, why should my liberty be restricted by another man’s conscience? And why is it, if I partake thankfully, that I should be blamed for the food over which I gave thanks?
The fact is that whether you eat or drink – whatever you do – you should do all for the glory of God. Give no offense to Jew or Greek or to the church of God, just as I try to please all in any way I can by seeking, not my own advantage, but that of the many, that they may be saved. Imitate me as I imitate Christ.
I praise you because you always remember me and are holding fast to the traditions just as I handed them on to you. I want you to know that the head of every man is Christ; the head of a woman is her husband; and the head of Christ is the Father. Any man who prays or prophesies with his head covered brings shame on his head. Similarly, any woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered brings shame upon her head. It is as if she had had her head shaved. Indeed, if a woman will not wear a veil, she ought to cut off her hair. If it is shameful for a woman to have her hair cut off or her head shaved, it is clear that she ought to wear a veil. A man, on the other hand, ought not to cover his head, because he is the image of God and the reflection of his glory. Woman, in turn, is the reflection of man’s glory. Man was not made from woman but woman from man.
Matthew 16: 24-28
The Lord said to his disciples: “If a man wishes to come after me, he must deny his very self, take up his cross, and begin to follow in my footsteps. Whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. What profit would a man show if he were to gain the whole world and destroy himself in the process? What can a man offer in exchange for his very self? The Son of Man will come with his Father’s glory accompanied by his angels. When he does, he will repay each man according to his conduct. I assure you, among those standing here there are some who will not experience death before they see the Son of Man in his kingship.”
Icon courtesy of Jack Figel, Eastern Christian Publications – ecpubs.com
Wednesday, July 10 –
