The holy martyr Polyeuctus: The Armenian city of Melitene was drenched with the blood of Christians, as was the entire country of Armenia. The first blood shed for Christ in this city was that of St. Polyeuctus in the year 259, during the reign of Valerian. In Melitene were two friends: Nearchus and Polyeuctus. Both […]
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Jan. 07 Synaxis of the Holy, Glorious Prophet, Forerunner, and Baptist John
Synaxis of the Holy, Glorious Prophet, Forerunner, and Baptist John: A “synaxis” feast follows one of the great feasts, and highlights a major personage of yesterday’s celebration. We remember today the work of the Forerunner, John, who baptized Christ. Troparion The memory of the righteous is celebrated with praise, but for you, O Forerunner, […]
Jan. 03 The Holy Prophet Malachi & the Holy Martyr Gordius
The Holy Prophet Malachi, after the return from the Babylonian Captivity, announced the great day of the Lord and his coming to his temple, and that always and everywhere a pure offering should be made to his name. The Holy Martyr Gordius, praised in the writings of St. Basil the Great, was a centurion who […]
Dec. 30 The Martyr Anysia; The Venerable Zoticus, Priest and Protector of Orphans
The holy martyr Anysia was arrested at Thessalonica when she entered that city to attend the synaxis of the faithful, and was put to death in 304 during the reign of Maximian Galerius. The venerable Zoticus, was a holy priest of Rome who went to Constantinople where he established hospitals and havens of refuge for […]
Dec. 27 The Holy Apostle, First Martyr, and Archdeacon Stephen; Our Venerable Father Theodore the Branded
The holy apostle, proto-martyr, and archdeacon Stephen was a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit. First of the seven deacons whom the Apostles chose to be fellow-laborers in the ministry, he was also the first of the disciples of the Lord to pour out his own blood at Jerusalem. He provided testimony for […]
Dec. 24 The Holy Great Martyr Eugenia
The holy great martyr Eugenia’s father was Eparch of All Egypt. Eugenia ministered to the Christians who had been forced to flee the city of Alexandria due to persecution, and was then baptized. She assumed men’s clothing and lived in a monastery. She was betrayed to the Eparch, who then found his daughter (who he […]
Dec. 22 The Holy Great Martyr Anastasia
The holy great martyr Anastasia was born into a senatorial family in Rome, and she was a Christian from a tender age. Forced by her father to marry a pagan landowner, she refused to have marital relations with him. For this, her husband has her tortured and imprisoned. When her husband drowned during a business […]
Dec. 21 The Holy Martyr Juliana of Nicomedia
The holy martyr Juliana was born to pagan parents, and was converted to the Faith at a young age. She refused to marry the man chosen for her by her parents because he was not a Christian. She was arrested, beaten, and then beheaded. With her many others were martyred who saw her witness and […]
Dec. 20 The Holy Priest Martyr Ignatius the God-bearer
The holy martyr Ignatius the God-bearer was a bishop and a disciple of St. John the Apostle. He ruled the Church of Antioch second after St. Peter. He was condemned to the beasts under the Emperor Trajan, and was sent to Rome and there he was crowned in martyrdom in the year 107. On his […]
Dec. 19 The Holy Martyr Boniface
The holy martyr Boniface was a servant to a wealthy and wicked woman in Rome, and was her paramour. His mistress decided that she wanted to have some relics of a Christian martyr in her house to use as an amulet to ward off evil, and dispatched Boniface to buy what she desired. In the […]