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Prologue from
Ochrid
by
Saint Nikolai Velimirovic
January 22nd - 28th
(New Style) • January 9th - January 15th (Old Style)
New Style
January
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
Old Style
January
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
January
22nd (New Style) • January 9th (Old Style)
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 Saint Polyeuctus in the year 259
A.D. during the reign of Valerian. In this city [Melitene] were two
friends: both Nearchus and Polyeuctus were officers, Nearchus
baptized and Polyeuctus unbaptized. When the command of the emperor
was sent out concerning the persecution of the Christians, Nearchus
prepared for death; but he was in great sorrow because he had not
succeeded in converting his friend Polyeuctus to the True Faith.
When Polyeuctus learned of the reason for Nearchus' sorrow, he
promised to embrace the Faith. The following day Polyeuctus related
his dream to Nearchus: the Lord Himself appeared to him in light,
removed Polyeuctus' old clothes from him and dressed him in radiant
new clothes and sat him in the saddle of a winged horse. After this,
Polyeuctus went to town, shredded the emperor's decree concerning
the torturing of Christians, and destroyed many statues of the
idols. He was tortured and was condemned to death. When he was
brought to the place of execution, he looked at Nearchus in the
throng of people and joyfully cried out to him: "Save yourself
my dear friend! Remember the vow of love confirmed between the two
of us!" Later, Saint Nearchus died as a martyr for Christ by
fire. The commemoration of the feast of St. Nearchus is April 22.
The
Venerable Eustratius
Eustratius
was a native of Tarsus. He was a great ascetic and a man of prayer.
During the seventy-five years he spent in the monastery, Eustratius
never laid down to sleep on his left side but always on his right
side. Throughout the Divine Services, from the beginning to the end,
he repeated to himself: "Lord have mercy!" He died in his
ninety-fifth year.
St.
Philip, Metropolitan of Moscow
Philip
was born February 11, 1507 A.D. Once, while standing in church as a
young boy, he heard the priest read from the Gospel: "No one
can serve two masters" (St. Matthew 6:24). He became very
frightened by these words, as though these words were exclusively
spoken to him and at that same time became enlightened by them. He
then withdrew to the Solovetsk Monastery where he, after a long and
difficult period of probation [Novitiate], was tonsured a monk. In
time, Philip became the abbot and shone as the sun and the whole of
Russia heard of him. Hence, Emperor Ivan the Terrible summoned
Philip to fill the vacant Metropolitan See of Moscow in the year
1566 A.D. However, this holy man could not endure with indifference
the awful atrocities of the terrible tsar and, therefore, counseled
him and rebuked him without fear. The tsar found some false
witnesses against Philip, ousted him from office, and ordered that
he be dressed in a simple and tattered monastic cassock and
imprisoned him in Tver on December 23, 1569 A.D. Malyuta Skuratov,
one of the tsar's confidants, came to Philip's cell and suffocated
him with a pillow. Shortly afterwards, all those who were opposed to
Philip died evil deaths. After several years, the body of the saint
discovered whole, incorrupt, and fragrant, was translated to the
Monastery of Solovetsk.
Reflection
The
Orthodox Church by teaching men about perfect love, at the same
time, also teaches them perfect obedience from which emanates order
and harmony among the faithful. Bishops owe their obedience to the
Lord. Priests owe their obedience to the bishops. The faithful owe
their obedience to both [bishops and priests]. St. Ignatius writes
about this: "You are required to obey without hypocrisy; he who
would deceive his visible bishop would also scorn the Invisible
[Christ]. I pray you, endeavor to fulfill everything in godly
unanimity under the presidency of the bishops who occupy the place
of Christ and the presbyters who constitute the assembly of the
apostles, not thinking that whatever you do alone and apart would be
correct."
Contemplation
To
contemplate all the virtues in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ:
1. How
every virtue in Him is complete and perfect as in no other in the
history of the world;
2. How
everything is wonderfully complimented, one in the other is
developed and one in the other is made radiant.
Homily
About
the concern for the salvation of our neighbors
"No
one should seek hisown advantage, but thatof his neighbor" (I
Corinthians 10:24).
This
is the principle of the saints of God, both now, at one time, always
and forever. This is the principle on which society is built. Upon
this principle can be established the most perfect, the most
God-pleasing and the most prosperous human society. This is the
saving principle for every type of difficulty with which
contemporary men struggle, struggle without victory and without
hope. The holy soul is concerned with where the homeless will spend
the night, how the hungry will be fed, how the naked will be
clothed. The soul is concerned and prays to God that their neighbors
be saved; that their hearts be filled with love toward God; that
their minds be directed toward God; that the wicked turn from the
path of wickedness; that those wavering in the Faith be
strengthened; that those who are strengthened be sustained; that
those who have died see the Face of God; that the living be written
in the Book of Life in the Kingdom of Light.
Therefore,
be careful brethren, how even in like manner, word for word, can
sound the destructive and antisocial principle of the devil. This
principle of the devil says: no one should look at their own body to
preserve it in purity from sin, but rather everyone should look at
the bodies of others in order to ruin and to destroy them. That no
one should look at his own soul, how to save it, rather everyone
should look at the soul of someone else in order to blacken it, to
curse it, to impoverish it and to destroy it. Let no one look at his
house, in order to build it, and renew it rather let everyone look
at the home of another in order to burn it and demolish it. No one
should look at his granaries in order to fill them, rather, one
should look at the granaries of others in order to steal from them
and to empty them. See, brethren, how this principle can be either a
principle of good or a principle of evil; a sharp two-edged sword;
an angel or Satan. See how this principle in the satanic spirit and
form has taken momentum on all sides today!
O
Lord, Holy Spirit, Who has released these holy words in the world
through the tongue of the apostle of God as bright rays of the sun
to illuminate and not to burn us, help us now to fulfill them in the
proper heavenly sense to the glory of the Triune God and for the
salvation of our souls.
To
the Top
January
23rd (New Style) • January 10th (Old Style)
St.
Gregory Bishop of Nyssa
Gregory
was the brother of Basil the Great. At first, he was only a
presbyter since he was married; but when his wife Blessed Theosevia
died, Gregory was chosen and consecrated as bishop of Nyssa. He was
distinguished by his great secular learning and spiritual
experience. He participated at the Second Ecumenical Council
(Constantinople, 381 A.D). It is thought that he composed the second
half of the Symbol of Faith [The Creed]. He was a great orator, an
exegete of Holy Scripture and a theologian. Because of their defeat,
the Arians especially attacked him as their worst enemy, so that,
during the reign of Emperor Valens, their ally of the same mind,
succeeded in ousting Gregory from the episcopal throne and banished
him into exile. This Holy Father spent eight years in exile,
patiently enduring all miseries and all humiliations. He finally
died in old age toward the end of the fourth century and was
translated into the Kingdom of God remaining on earth throughout the
ages as a great beacon of the Church.
The
Venerable Ammon, Egyptian Ascetic
For
fourteen years, Ammon prayed to God and struggled to conquer anger
within himself. He attained such perfection of goodness, that he was
not even conscious that evil existed in the world. He was
particularly knowledgeable in Holy Scripture. He died at the
beginning of the fifth century.
St.
Marcian
Marcian
was born in Rome. As a presbyter, he lived the remainder of his life
in Constantinople during the greater part of the reign of Emperor
Marcian and Empress Plucheria. Inheriting enormous wealth from his
parents, Marcian generally spent it on two goals: either on building
or restoring churches or on charity for the poor. He built two new
churches in Constantinople, St. Anastasia and St. Irene, both famous
for their beauty and sacredness. When he was asked, "Why do you
spend so much on churches?" He replied, "If I had a
daughter and wanted to marry her to a nobleman, would I not spend
much gold in order to adorn her as a worthy bride? And, here I am
adorning the Church, the Bride of Christ." As much as this
wonderful man was generous toward the churches and the indigent; so
much was he austere, very austere toward himself following the
apostolic exhortation: "If we have food and clothing, we shall
be content with that" (I Timothy 6:8). It is written about him:
"He was totally in God and God in him, and presented himself to
God in fullness of years and good works," in the year 471 A.D.
Reflection
Vanity
because of clothing occupies special momentum in our time. He who
has nothing else of which to be proud becomes proud of his attire.
He who would have something more costly than clothes of which to be
proud, does he not become proud? Just as gold, which does not come
out from the surface of the earth, so it is that neither the
spiritual values of a man not show outwardly. It is said, that a
certain distinguished philosopher saw a young man who displayed
pride in his clothing. He approached the young man and whispered in
his ear: "The same fleece was previously worn by a ram, but,
nevertheless, he was still a ram!" To be a Christian and to
display pride in clothing is more insane than to be an emperor and
to be proud of the dust under his feet. While St. Arsenius wore
cloth of gold in the royal court, no one called him great. He was
called Great only then when he unselfishly gave himself over
completely to God and dressed in rags.
Contemplation
To
contemplate the lowliness of the Lord Jesus:
1. The
lowliness of the King Who was born in a cave;
2. The
lowliness of the most wealthy One, Who hungered and thirsted;
3. The
lowliness of the Almighty in relationship with the lowly on earth.
Homily
About
contentment with that which is most necessary to us
"If
we have food and clothing,we shall be content withthat" (I
Timothy 6:8).
The
apostles of God taught others that which they themselves fulfilled
in their own lives. When they had food and clothing they were
content. Even when it occurred that they had neither food nor
clothing they were content. For their contentment did not emanate
from the outside but emanated from within. Their contentment was not
so cheap as the contentment of an animal, but costly, more costly
and more rare. Internal contentment, the contentment of peace and
love of God in the heart, that is the contentment of greater men,
that was the apostolic contentment. In great battles, generals are
dressed and fed as ordinary soldiers and they do not seek
contentment in food nor in clothes but in victory. Victory is the
primary principle of contentment of those who battle. Brethren,
Christians are constantly in battle, in battle for the victory of
the spirit over the material, in battle for conquest of the higher
over the lower, man over beast. Is it not, therefore, absurd to
engage in battle and not to worry about victory but to concern
oneself with external decorations and ornaments? Is it not foolish
to give to one's enemies the marks of identification? Our invisible
enemy [Satan] rejoices at our vanity and supports us in every vain
thought. The invisible enemy occupies us with every possible
unreasonable pettiness and idleness only to impose upon our minds
the heavy forgetfulness relative to that for which we are here on
earth. The invisible enemy [Satan] presents to us the worthless as
important, the irrelevant as essential and that which is detrimental
as beneficial only in order to achieve victory and to destroy us
forever.
O
Lord, Holy, Mighty and Immortal, Who created us from the mud and
breathed a living soul into mud, do not allow, O Lord, that the mud
overwhelms! Help our spirit that it always be stronger than the
earth.
To
the Top
January
24th (New Style) • January 11th (Old Style)
Venerable
Theodosius the Great
Theodosius
was the first founder and organizer of the cenobitic way of monastic
life. He was born in the province of Cappadocia in the village of
Mogarissus of devout parents. As a child, he visited St. Simeon the
Stylite who blessed him and prophesied great and spiritual honors
about him. With a thurible [censer] in which he placed unburned
charcoal and incense, Theodosius sought out a place where he could
settle and establish his monastery and stopped when the charcoal
fired up on its own. Here, he settled and began to live the
ascetical life. Soon, he gathered around him many monks of various
nationalities. He built a church for each nationality so that, at
the same time, services and hymns were offered to God in Greek,
Armenian, Georgian, etc. But, on the day of Holy Communion, all the
brotherhood gathered in the great church in which the Greek language
was used. There was a communal table for all, communal property,
communal penance, communal labor, communal patience and, not too
rare, communal hunger. Theodosius was an exalted model of life to
all the monks; an example in labor, prayer, fasting, watchfulness
and in all Christian virtues. God granted him the gift of working
miracles by which he was able to heal the sick, to appear from a
distance, to tame wild beasts, to discern the future and to cause
bread and wheat to multiply. Prayer was on his lips day and night.
He died peacefully in the Lord in the year 529 A.D., the one-hundred
fifth year after his birth.
Blessed
Michael, A fool for Christ
Blessed
Michael was a Russian of a princely family. He made himself appear
foolish so as to conceal his virtues from the world and to avoid the
praise of men. Thus, he prepared himself for praise before God. He
died in the year 1453 A.D. in the Klops Monastery near Novgorod
where his relics repose.
Reflection
To be
bribable means to be not a Christian. The Orthodox Fathers of the
Church were not given to bribery nor to be intimidation. Bribery in
matters of the Faith is equal to Judas's betrayal of Christ for
money. Such bribery was characteristic only of certain heretics.
When Emperor Anastasius succumbed to the heresy of Euthychius,
Emperor Anastasius rose up against the decisions of the Fourth
Ecumenical Council (Chalcedon, 451 A.D) and wanted to outlaw those
decisions. In order to win over the most distinguished
representatives of the Church for himself, the emperor began to send
them various gifts. St. Theodosius, by his fame, was the first in
all of Palestine. The emperor sent him thirty liters of gold as a
gift, supposedly for the needs of the monastery. By this, Theodosius
immediately understood that the emperor wanted to bribe him. How
wisely this saint of God acted! He did not want to keep the money
for the monastery even though it was in great need; neither did he
want to return it to the emperor so that the emperor would not
become more embittered against Orthodoxy; thus he immediately
distributed all the gold to the poor in the emperor's name. This
charity strengthened his prayer to God for the correction of the
emperor and return to the true path.
Contemplation
To
contemplate the weeping of the Lord Jesus:
1. The
weeping and sorrow over the lifeless Lazarus as well as over the
fate of Jerusalem;
2. The
weeping and sorrow in the Garden of Gethsemane because of man's
bondage to sin, to the demon and to death.
Homily
About
the progressive growth in spiritual development
"Everyone
who lives on milk lacks experience of theword of righteousness, for
heis a child. But solid foodis for the mature, for thosewhose
faculties are trainedby practice to discern goodand evil"
(Hebrews 5:13-14).
Those
who feed on the food of the milk of sensual reflection cannot easily
distinguish between good and evil. They usually come to the
conclusion that all Faiths are equally the same in value; that sin
is the indispensable shadow of virtue; that evil, in general, is the
unavoidable companion of good. A true Christian cannot come to such
erroneous conclusions. A true Christian is a mature person who is
not fed of milk, one who is distrustful of the senses, one who
judges much finer and makes a finer distinction between the values
of all that is and all that was. To the Christian, indeed, is given
clear distinction of God's Revelation for distinguishing good from
evil; nevertheless, for him [the Christian] a long and laborious
study is necessary in order that he, as being perfect, could in
every given case know what is good and what is evil. This knowledge
should pass over into feeling in order to be trustworthy and without
error. Both good and evil wish to touch the heart of man. That is
why man should be trained, with his feeling in the heart, to
immediately recognize what approaches him in the same manner, as
with his tongue he immediately senses the salty and the unsalty, the
sweet and the bitter.
Brethren,
let us endeavor every day and every moment to sharpen our heart that
the heart could always distinguish good and evil. For everything
that happens to us, the question is posed: What is good and what is
evil? Precisely everything that happens to us, happens to us so that
we could realize what is good and to follow after good. We place
ourselves in such temptations even a hundred times a day. He who has
eyes to see, let him see.
O
Lord, Lover of mankind, warm our hearts with good which is from You.
Make us wise, O Lord, to be able to distinguish good from evil. O
Master, strengthen us that we should always embrace good and discard
evil for the sake of Your glory, O Lover of mankind, and for the
sake of our salvation.
To
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January
25th (New Style) • January 12th (Old Style)
The
Holy Female Martyr Tatiana
Tatiana
was a Roman whose parents were of great nobility. She was a
Christian and a deaconess in the church. After the death of Emperor
Heliogabalus, Emperor Alexander, whose mother Mammaea was a
Christian, reigned in Rome. The emperor himself was wavering and
indecisive in the Faith for he kept statues of Christ, Apollo,
Abraham and Orpheus in his palace. His chief assistants persecuted
the Christians without the emperor's orders. When they brought out
the virgin Tatiana for torture, she prayed to God for her torturers.
And behold, their eyes were opened and they saw four angels around
the martyr. Seeing this, eight of them believed in Christ for which
they also were tortured and slain. The tormentors continued to
torture St. Tatiana. They whipped her, cut off parts of her body;
they scraped her with irons. So all disfigured and bloody, Tatiana
was thrown into the dungeon that evening so that the next day, they
could, again, begin anew with different tortures. But God sent His
angels to the dungeon to encourage her and to heal her wounds so
that, each morning, Tatiana appeared before the torturers completely
healed. They threw her before a lion, but the lion endeared himself
to her and did her no harm. They cut off her hair, thinking,
according to their pagan reasoning, that some sorcery or some
magical power was concealed in her hair. Finally, Tatiana along with
her father were both beheaded. Thus, Tatiana ended her earthly life
about the year 225 A.D., and this heroic virgin, who had the fragile
body of a woman but a robust and valiant spirit, was crowned with
the immortal wreath of glory.
The
Holy Martyr Peter Apselamus
Peter
was born in Eleutheropolis in Palestine. In his youth, Peter
suffered for the Faith of Christ in 311 A.D., during the reign of
Emperor Maximian. After much torture, he was condemned to death.
Upon hearing his death sentence, he rejoicefully cried out:
"That is my one wish; to die for my God!" Peter was
crucified in the same manner as our Lord Himself and expired on the
cross.
The
Feast of the Icon of our Lady Nursing the Christ Child (Mlekopitatelnitsa)
This
is the name of the icon of the All-Holy Mother of God which the
Serbian Saint Sava [Sabas] brought from the Monastery of St. Sabas
the Sanctified, near Jerusalem. And so, the prophecy spoken of by
St. Sabas the Sanctified, some eight-hundred years earlier, that a
certain Serbian priest by the name of Sava [Sabas] will come and
that this icon and his crozier (staff) be given to him, was
fulfilled. When St. Sava the Serbian visited the Monastery of St.
Sabas the Sanctified, the monks recalled the prophecy of the founder
of their monastery and gave to Sava the Serbian this icon and
crozier. This icon [Mlekopitatelnica] was placed on the right side
of the Royal Doors on the iconastasis, in Sava's hermitage [Isposnica-House
of Silence] in Karayes [Mt. Athos] and the crosier placed in an
adjacent cell known as the "Paterica".
The
Venerable Mother Theodora
Theodora
was a glorious nun and teacher of the nuns from Alexandria.
"Just as trees require winter and snow in order to bear fruit,
so trials and temptations are needed for our life," spoke this
holy woman. She died peacefully at the beginning of the fifth
century.
Reflection
There
is no greater honor or greater calling on earth than to be a
Christian. When the judge-torturer Sevirus asked the young Peter
Apselamus, "Of what lineage are you?" Peter replied,
"I am a Christian." The judge further inquired of him,
"In what rank are you?" To that Peter responded, "
There is no greater nor better rank than to be a Christian."
Father John Kronstadt writes: " The whole world is but a cobweb
in comparison to the Christian human soul." The Christian is an
earthen vessel into which is poured divine power and light. Will
this vessel be placed on the golden royal throne or will it be
lowered in the dark hut of the beggar; by this, his value will
neither be magnified nor diminished. Does not gold have the same
value whether it is wrapped in a silk handkerchief or in a cabbage
leaf?
Contemplation
To
contemplate the meekness of the Lord Jesus:
1. His
meekness about His hidden life in Nazareth until the age of thirty;
2. His
meekness in dealing with the sick and with the sinners;
3. His
meekness in dealing with Judas the traitor and with the unjust
judges.
Homily
About
how man is most dear to God and God to man
"For
I want not what is yours, but you" (I Corinthians 12:14).
With
these words, which could have only been spoken by the fiery
apostolic love toward one's neighbor, is expressed the essence of
the relationship of the Christian toward God and God toward the
Christian. The love of God could very well say: "You, O
Christian, fast for My sake; for My sake you distribute alms; for My
sake you lift up heartfelt prayers; for My sake you build churches;
for My sake you offer sacrifices and you perform many other good
deeds. All of this is good, and all of this is pleasing to Me, but
you are more precious to Me than all of this. In the end, I seek
nothing of all of this rather, I seek you, only you."
The
love of a Christian could very well say:
"O
Lord, You gave me health and that is good. You turn on the light;
You permit the rain to fall; You refresh the air by Your thunder and
that is good. You bestow wealth, wisdom, many years, offspring and
many other good things which You bountifully place on the table of
this life. All of this is good and overly-good. I receive all of
this with gratitude. But, in the ultimate end, that is only the hem
of Your garment. Ultimately, I do not seek anything of that but You,
O Lord, You alone I seek."
O my
brethren, that is not God which is seen with the physical eyes,
neither is that man which is seen with the physical eyes. That which
is seen in the whole of nature is only something of God; and that
which is seen in the physical garment is only something of man.
Brethren, God is Love which heaven lowers to earth; Brethren, man is
love which raises earth to heaven.
O
Lord, Lover of mankind, Creator and Almighty, take up Your abode
more and even more in us with Your Life-giving Spirit that we may
live; that we may be alive in Your kingdom without death.
To You
be glory and thanks always. Amen.
To
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January
26th (New Style) • January 13th (Old Style)
The
Holy Martyrs Hermylas and Stratonicus
The
Emperor Licinius raised up a persecution against Christians. St.
Hermylas, a Christian and a deacon in the Church, was captured and
led to court. When Hermylas was informed that he was being led away
to be tortured, he greatly rejoiced. In vain did the emperor
threaten him. Hermylas openly confessed his faith in Christ and
responded to all the threats of the emperor saying, "The Lord
is with me; I fear not; What can man do against me?" (Psalm
118:6). Following excruciating tortures, Hermylas was thrown into
the dungeon. The guard was Stratonicus, secretly a Christian, who
sympathized with the suffering of Hermylas with all his heart. When
it was reported to the emperor that Stratonicus was also a
Christian, the emperor ordered that both of them be drowned in the
Danube river. After that, the executioners tied Hermylas and
Stratonicus in a net and both were drowned in the Danube. Three days
later, their bodies were washed ashore. Christians discovered their
bodies and buried them about eighteen miles from Belgrade. These
glorious martyrs suffered for Christ and were glorified in the year
315 A.D.
St.
James, Bishop of Nisibis
As a
hermit, James lived in an open field in the summer and in winter he
lived in a cave. On one occasion, he went down to the town of
Nisibis to see how the Christian Faith was prospering and to see how
Christians live. There, he was elected bishop. He participated in
the First Ecumenical Council (Nicaea, 325 A.D.) and protected
Orthodoxy against the Arian heresy. It happened once that the
infidel Persians with their armies attacked Nisibis. St. James, in a
procession with the Cross and banner [Litija] came before the
ramparts of the town. Alone he climbed and walked along the rampart
not fearing the arrows of the adversary which were aimed at him.
Walking along as he did, he prayed to God to preserve the town and
the faithful in this manner: "That He [God] would send a plague
of flies and mosquitoes on the Persians and by that to cause them to
flee from the walls of the town of Nisibis." However, James did
not seek the death of his enemies, nor did he seek whatever kind of
catastrophe and defeat rather, one small vexation which would cause
them to flee from Nisibis. God heard the prayers of His chosen one
and sent a plague of flies and mosquitoes upon the Persians, driving
them away. Thereby, the town of Nisibis was spared. St. James lived
long and honorably. He died peacefully in old age in the year 350
A.D.
The
Venerable Maximus Kapsokalivitos
In the
fourteenth century, Maximus led an ascetical life as a monk on Mt.
Athos in his own unique way. That is to say, he pretended to be a
little crazy and constantly changed his dwelling place. His place of
abode consisted of a hut made from branches. He built these huts one
after the other and then burned them, for this he was called
Kapsokalivitos, i.e., "hut-burner. He was considered insane
until the arrival of St. Gregory Sinaites to Mt. Athos, who
discovered in Maximus a unique ascetic, a wonder-working intercessor
and "an angel in the flesh." He died in the Lord in the
year 1320 A.D.
Reflection
A good
deed done in silence is worth more than a good deed done with an
explanation and is incomparably worth more than the most spiritual
explanation without a good deed. From St. Nicholas of Myra in Lycia,
no words have remained, but his deeds have remained. On three
occasions without any explanations, he came at night to the home of
a poor man and secretly tossed a bag of gold through the window. A
certain elder of a Scete in Egypt became very ill and desired to eat
a little fresh bread, for the bread that the monks ate, at that
time, was dried in the sun and lasted for months. Upon hearing this,
one of the monks, not saying anything to anyone, departed the Scete
and went to a distant town where he purchased fresh bread for the
ailing elder. Learning about the effort of this monk, the elder did
not want the bread saying: "That is the blood of my
brother!" (That is to say, the brother, provided it with great
difficulty, with great effort). Then, the other monks implored the
elder to eat, saying to him, "Do not despise the sacrifice of
the brother." What kind of explanation and what words of
brotherly love are able to replace this simple and silent act of
brotherly love?
Contemplation
To
contemplate the hunger and thirst of the Lord Jesus for justice:
1. How
He comes into the world to restore down-trodden justice;
2. How
He proclaims God's justice and unmasks injustice;
3. How
He hurriedly does numerous acts of justice in order to leave us an
example.
Homily
About
the Kingdom of God which is within
"The
Kingdom of God is within you" (St. Luke 17:21).
All
that belongs to God carries the seal of immortality. And, the
Kingdom of God is immortal. If we desire to breathe the air of
immortality, we must enter within ourselves, within our hearts,
within the Kingdom of God. Outside of ourselves is the air of time,
the air of transitoriness and decay in which the soul breathes with
difficulty. The kingdom of nature is the sensual kingdom; hence, a
foreign kingdom in comparison to our soul which represents our inner
kingdom. Why do men love to reside for a long, long time in a
foreign land? Why do they rarely and reluctantly enter into their
own home? Whenever we think about the world, we think about that
which is foreign land. Whenever we converse about the sensual world,
we converse about a foreign land. Living by the senses, we are
similar to a man who rushes around all day to the homes of
strangers, and only at night, returns to his own home to sleep. And
so, we dedicate our vigilance to death and our sleep to immortality!
We come to ourselves; we return to ourselves only in sleep. But,
even our sleep is dreaming of our reality, i.e., even when we are in
our own home, in an unconscious state, we dream of foreign homes:
Our dreams are sensual, for our consciousness is sensual. And so, we
are in a foreign land; we are strangers in reality and in dreams. We
are constantly outside ourselves. The Lord wants to return us to
ourselves, in His home and to His homeland. For us, the Kingdom of
God is within us: outside of ourselves is a foreign land. In order
to escape from a foreign land and find our true home, in which we
directly encounter God, we must enter within ourselves, into our
hearts. There is the King, there also is the Kingdom.
O
Lord, King of the angels and saints, show us the riches and the
light of Your Kingdom within us. That we may love Your kingdom more
than we love the foreign land of the sensual, the kingdom of change
and transitoriness.
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January
27th (New Style) • January 14th (Old Style)
St.
Sava (Sabas), Archbishop of the Serbs
Sava
was born in 1169 A.D. He was the son of Stephen [Stefan] Nemanja the
Grand Zupan of the Serbs. As a young man, Sava yearned for the
spiritual life for which he fled to the Holy Mountain [Mt. Athos]
where he was tonsured a monk and with rare zeal lived according to
the ascetical rule. Stefan Nemanja followed the example of his son
and came to the Holy Mountain where he was tonsured a monk and died
as Simeon, the monk. Sava obtained the independence of the Serbian
Church from the [Byzantine] emperor and patriarch and became the
first Archbishop of the Serbs. Together with his father, he built
the Monastery Hilendar and, after that, many other monasteries,
churches and schools throughout the Serbian lands. On two occasions,
he made a pilgrimage to the sacred places in the Holy Land. He
restored peace between his two brothers who were estranged because
of a struggle for power. He restored peace between the Serbs and
their neighbors. In establishing the Serbian Church, he was, through
that, establishing the Serbian State and culture. He instilled peace
between all the Balkan peoples and worked for the benefit of all for
which he was loved and respected by all the Balkan peoples. To the
Serbian people he gave a Christian soul which did not perish with
the collapse of the Serbian State. Sava died in Trnovo, Bulgaria,
during the reign of Emperor Asen, having become ill following the
Divine Liturgy on the Feast of the Epiphany on January 12, 1236 A.D.
King Vladislav translated his body to the Mileshevo Monastery from
which Sinan Pasha removed it and burned it on Vracar in Belgrade,
April 27, 1595 A.D.
Venerable
Martyrs: The Fathers of Sinai and Raithu
These
holy martyrs, were slain by the Saracens, those fathers of Sinai in
the fourth century and those fathers of Raithu in the fifth century.
Saint
Hilary, Bishop of Poiters
Hilary
was an ardent combatant against the heresy of Arius in the west. He
suffered much because of his defense of Orthodoxy. Hilary wrote many
papers; the most important thesis was about the Holy Trinity. He
died in the Lord in the year 362 A.D.
Saint
Nina, Enlightener of the Georgians
Nina
was a relative of St. George the Great Martyr and Juvenal, the
Patriarch of Jerusalem. Her parents belonged to the nobility in
Cappadocia and since they both were tonsured in the monastic state,
Nina was educated under the tutelage of Patriarch Juvenal. Hearing
about the people of Georgia, the virgin Nina, from an early age,
desired to go to Georgia and to baptize the Georgians. The All-Holy
Mother of God appeared to Nina and promised to take her to this
land. When our Lord opened the way, the young Nina, indeed, traveled
to Georgia where, in a short period of time, she gained the love of
the Georgian people. Nina succeeded in baptizing the Georgian
Emperor Mirian, his wife Nana and their son Bakar, who, later on,
zealously assisted in Nina's missionary work. During her lifetime,
Nina traveled throughout Georgia, mainly to convert the entire
nation to the Faith of Christ, exactly at the time of the terrible
persecution of the Christians at the hands of Emperor Diocletian.
Having rested from her many labors, Nina died in the Lord in the
year 335 A.D. Her body is entombed in the Cathedral Church in
Mtzkheta. She worked many miracles during her life and after her
death.
Reflection
If, at
times, the dogmas of the Faith seem to be like solid food, first
endeavor to fulfill the moral dogmas of Christianity, then the
understanding of the dogmas of the Faith will be revealed to you.
Inquisitive questioning of higher things without effort regarding
the improvement of your life does not bring any benefit. At one
time, the monks of Egypt reflected about Melchisedek and not being
able to come to a clear understanding about the mysterious
personality of this ancient king and high priest, invited Abba
Copres to their assembly and asked him about Melchisedek. Upon
hearing this, Copres struck himself three times on the mouth and
said, "Woe to you Copres! You left that which God commanded you
to do and you question that which God does not require of you."
Hearing him, the monks were ashamed and dispersed. St. John
Chrysostom writes, "And, if we adhere to the true dogmas and
are not concerned about our behavior, we will not have any kind of
benefit; and in the same way, if we concern ourselves about our
behavior and neglect true dogmas, we will receive no benefit for our
salvation. If we want to be delivered from Gehenna and to gain the
kingdom, we need to be adorned on both sides: correctness of dogmas
and honorable living."
Contemplation
To
contemplate the mercy of the Lord Jesus:
1.
Toward sinners and toward those who are ill;
2.
Toward the people who are confused as a flock without a shepherd;
3.
Toward mankind in general for whom He allowed Himself to be
crucified.
Homily
About
the visions of the invisible world
"We
look not to what is seen but to what is unseen"(2 Corinthians
4:18).
We see
this material and transient world, but we look to that spiritual and
immortal world.
We see
earthly joy, often interrupted by tears and sighs and, in the end,
always concluded in death; but we look to spiritual joy among the
angels and saints of God in the heavens, to joy uninterrupted and
eternal.
We see
sufferings and failures of the righteous in this life; but we look
at their glory and celebration in that world.
We see
many successes, glory and honor of the unrighteous in this life, but
we see their defeat, condemnation and indescribable torment in
eternity.
We see
the Church of God often humiliated and persecuted in this world, but
we look to the final victory of the Church over all of her enemies
and adversaries both visible and invisible.
Brethren,
we often see tyrants and abductors as rulers and wealthy men in this
age, and we see saints as poor, dejected and forgotten, but we look
at the other kingdom, the Kingdom of God, eternal, sinless and
immortal in which the saints will reign without one, no, not one
tyrant or abductor.
O
Lord, most patient and most merciful, open our spiritual vision that
we may see that which awaits us after this short-lived life and that
we endeavor to fulfill Your law.
To You
be glory and thanks always. Amen.
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January
28th (New Style) • January 15th (Old Style)
Venerable
Paul of Thebes
Paul
was born of wealthy parents in Lower Thebes in Egypt during the
reign of Emperor Decius. Paul, along with his sister, inherited all
the property of their parents. But his brother-in-law, an idolater,
wanted to confiscate Paul's share of the property and threatened to
betray Paul before the judge as a Christian if he did not cede his
property to him. On one hand, that misfortune and on the other hand
those heroic examples of self-sacrifices of Christian martyrs which
Paul saw with his own eyes motivated him to give his share of the
property to his sister and he, as a pauper, withdrew into the desert
where he lived an ascetical life until his death. To what spiritual
heights this ascetical giant reached is witnessed by no less a
person than St. Anthony the Great who, at one time, visited Paul and
saw how the wild beasts and birds of heaven ministered to him.
Returning from this visit, Anthony said to his monks, "Woe is
me, my children! A sinful and false monk that I am, a monk only in
name. I saw Elijah, I saw John in the wilderness and, in truth, I
saw Paul in Paradise!" St. Paul lived one-hundred thirteen
years and peacefully died in the Lord in the year 342 A.D.
Venerable
John Kushchnik (The Hut Dweller)
John
was born in Constantinople of wealthy and distinguished parents
during the reign of Leo I. He was the only child of his parents.
Drawn by the inclination for the spiritual life, the young John
secretly fled with a monk to a monastery in Asia Minor. In this
monastery he remained for six years in the greatest restraint,
prayer and obedience toward the abbot. Then the devil assailed him
with temptation that he should leave the monastery and return home
to his parents and there to live with them as a nobleman. Indeed, he
returned to the home of his parents dressed as a beggar. He saw his
parents, but did not introduce himself. He took up lodging as a
beggar in their courtyard, living, so to say, from the crumbs which
the servants threw to him and enduring many ridicules from everyone.
As such, John lived for three years constantly praying to God that
He save the souls of his father and mother. When John fell ill and
sensed death approaching, he made himself known to his parents who
recognized him by a precious book of the Gospels which they had
given him in his childhood and which he had kept for himself as his
only possession. And so, this young man, even though he was very
wealthy, defeated the devil and saved his soul and the souls of his
parents. He died in the Lord about the year 450 A.D.
The
Venerable Gabriel of Lesnov
Gabriel
was a Slav and companion of Prochorus of Pchinja and St. John of
Rila. He lived a life of asceticism in the tenth century at Kratov
on Mt. Lesnov where he erected a church dedicated to the Holy
Archangel Michael. He was a miracle-worker during his life and after
his death. The present-day beautiful church located there was built
by John Oliver, a duke of Tsar Dushan. St. Gabriel died in the Lord
toward the end of the tenth century.
The
Holy Martyr Pansophius
Pansophius
was the son of the Alexandrian Pro-consul Nilus. He abandoned
worldly honor and riches and as a young man was tonsured a monk. For
twenty-seven years, he lived a strict life of asceticism, uplifting
his spirit to the higher world. During the reign of Decius, he was
dragged before the court where he was flogged for the Name of Christ
until he gave up his soul to his God in great torment.
Reflection
Do not
ever think that God does not hear you when you pray to Him. He hears
our thoughts just as we hear the voices and the words of one
another. And, if He does not act immediately according to your
prayer, i.e., either because you are praying to Him in an unworthy
manner or because you ask something of Him which would be
detrimental to you, or, because He, in His wisdom and providence
delays the fulfillment of your petition until the proper moment.
Father John of Kronstadt writes: "As by means of the electric
telegraph we speedily communicate with persons who are far away from
us, so, likewise, by means of lively faith, as though through the
telegraph wires, we speedily communicate with God, with the angels
and saints. As we entirely trust to the speed of the electric
current and to its reaching its destination, so likewise, we should
completely trust to the speed of the prayer of faith and to it
reaching its destination. Send your petition to God and the saints
by means of the telegraph of faith and you will speedily obtain an
answer." And again, in another place St. John writes: "God
and the created spirits and the souls of the departed as well as
those of the living are thinking beings and thought is rapid and in
some sort omnipresent. Think of them with your whole heart and they
will be present with you. God will always be with you and
necessarily so by the gift and power of God, the others will also be
with you."
Contemplation
To
contemplate the purity of the Lord Jesus:
1. The
purity of His mind;
2. The
purity of His heart;
3. The
purity of His will;
4. The
purity of His tongue;
5. The
purity of His appearance and all of His senses.
Homily
About
the victorious faith
"And
the victory thatconquers the world in ourfaith" (I John 5:4).
Christ
the Lord conquered the world. That, brethren, is also our victory.
The apostles conquered the world and that is our victory. The
saints, virgins and martyrs conquered the world and that is our
victory. Brethren, there is nothing more powerful in the world than
the Christian Faith. The swords that struck this Faith became blunt
and broken but the Faith remained. The kings who fought against this
Faith were smothered under the anathema of crimes. The kingdoms that
waged war against this Faith are destroyed. The towns that rejected
this Faith lay demolished in their ruins. The heretics who corrupted
this Faith perished in soul and body and under anathema departed
from this world, and this Faith remained.
Brethren,
when the world pursues us with its temptations: the temptation of
external beauty, the temptation of riches, the temptation of
pleasure, the temptation of transient glory; with what shall we
resist and by what shall we be victorious if not by this Faith? In
truth, by nothing except by this invincible Faith which knows about
something better than all the wealth of this world.
When
all the temptations of this world reveal the opposite side of their
faces, when beauty turns into ugliness, health into sickness, riches
into poverty, glory into dishonor, authority into humiliation and
all blossoming physical life into filth and stench--by what shall we
overcome this grief, this decay, this fifth and stench, and to
preserve oneself from despair, if not by this Faith? In truth, by
nothing except this invincible Faith which teaches us eternal and
unchangeable values in the Kingdom of Christ.
When
death shows its destructive power over our neighbors, over our
relatives and our families, over our flowers, over our crops, over
the works of our hands and, when it turns its irresistible teeth
even on us, by what shall we conquer the fear of death and by what
shall we unlock the doors of life, stronger than death, if not by
this Faith? In truth, by nothing except this invincible Faith, which
knows about the resurrection and life without death.
O Lord
Jesus, the Conqueror of the world, help us also to conquer the world
with faith in You.
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