Daily Devotional

Scripture Readings

Paschalion — Movable Calendar

Saturday of the Third Week

Epistle

The Reading is from the Acts of the Apostles [§ 22]. In those days:

9 ¹⁹Saul was certain days with the disciples in Damascus, ²⁰and straightway he began proclaiming Jesus in the synagogues, that this One is the Son of God. ²¹And all those who heard were amazed, and were saying, “This is the one, is it not, who ravaged those who called upon this name in Jerusalem, and had come here for this, that he might bring them bound to the chief priests?” ²²But Saul was empowered the more, and was confounding the Jews who dwelt in Damascus, teaching that this is the Christ. ²³And when many days were fulfilled, the Jews took counsel together to kill him; ²⁴but their plot was made known to Saul. And they were watching the gates closely, both day and night, that they might kill him. ²⁵But the disciples took him by night and let him down through the wall, lowering him in a basket. ²⁶And after Saul came up to Jerusalem, he was attempting to join himself to the disciples; but they were all fearing him, not believing that he was a disciple. ²⁷But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles. And he set out in detail to them how he saw the Lord in the way, and that He spoke to him, and how he spoke boldly at Damascus in the name of Jesus. ²⁸And he was with them in Jerusalem, going in and going out, ²⁹and speaking boldly in the name of the Lord Jesus. And he was both talking and disputing with the Hellenists, but they attempted to put their hands to kill him. ³⁰But after the brethren came to know this, they brought him down to Cæsarea, and sent him forth to Tarsus.

³¹Then indeed were the churches throughout all of Judæa and Galilee and Samaria having peace, being built up and proceeding in the fear of the Lord, and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit they were being multiplied.

Gospel

The Reading is from the Holy Gospel according to Saint John [§ 52]. The Lord said to His disciples:

15 ¹⁷“These things I command you, that ye be loving one another.

¹⁸“If the world hate you, ye know that it hath hated Me before it hath hated you. ¹⁹“If ye were of the world, the world would love its own; but because ye are not of the world—but I chose you for Myself out of the world—therefore the world hateth you. ²⁰“Keep on remembering the word which I said to you, ‘A slave is not greater than his lord.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you; if they kept My word, they will keep yours also. ²¹“But all these things they will do to you for My name’s sake, because they know not the One Who sent Me. ²²“If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have sin, but now they have no pretext for their sin. ²³“The one who hateth Me hateth My Father also. ²⁴“If I did not do the works among them which no other one hath done, they would not have sin; but now they have both seen and hated both Me and My Father. ²⁵“But this cometh to pass that the word might be fulfilled which hath been written in their law: ‘They hated Me without a cause [cf. Ps. 34(35):22, 68(69):5(4)].’ ²⁶“But whenever the Paraclete should come, Whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of the truth Who proceedeth from the Father, that One shall bear witness concerning Me. ²⁷“And ye also are bearing witness, because ye have been with Me from the beginning.

16 ¹“These things I have spoken to you, in order that ye should not be made to stumble. ²“They shall put you out of the synagogues; yea moreover, there cometh an hour that everyone who killeth you should think that he offereth God a service.”

Menaion — Fixed Calendar

The commemoration of Hieromartyr Paphnutios of Jerusalem, and our venerable Father John of the Ancient Caves in Palestine.

No readings given.

Lives of the Saints (Prologue)

May 2nd – Civil Calendar
April 19th – Church Calendar

1. Our Holy Father John of the Ancient Caves.

He labored in asceticism in the Ancient Caves or Lavra of Chariton the Great in Palestine. He came to love Christ the Lord with all his heart and soul and mind, and in his youth began travelling around all the holy places to seek the instruction and advice of holy men. He finally settled in Chariton’s cave, where he undertook a rigorous ascetic life, spending his days in fasting, prayer and vigils, constantly meditating on death and teaching himself humility. Like a well-ripened fruit, he was taken by death and entered into Paradise. He lived and died in the eighth century.

2. The Holy Martyrs Christopher, Theonas and Antonios.

These three were young officers under the Emperor Diocletian. When St. George the Great Martyr was being tortured, they witnessed his sufferings and the miracles that were performed at that time. Having seen all this, they came to the emperor, threw down their arms, removed their soldiers’ belts and courageously confessed the name of the Lord Jesus. They were subjected to many tortures and finally thrown into the fire, where their bodies were burned while their souls ascended to the one Lord in eternal joy. They suffered in Nikomedia in 303.

3. St. Tryphon, Patriarch of Constantinople.

The Emperor Romanos, who ruled Byzantium at the beginning of the 10th century, had a son, Theophylact, who was sixteen years old when Patriarch Stephen died. The emperor wished his own son to become patriarch, because he had been promised to a spiritual calling right from a small boy, but because of his youth he was timid about this. Tryphon, a simple, chaste and honorable old man, occupied the patriarchal throne and held that position for three years. When the emperor’s son attained his twentieth year, the emperor had it in mind to remove Tryphon and replace him with his own son as patriarch. St. Tryphon would not relinquish his throne voluntarily, considering it a great scandal for such a young man to be elected to so responsible and difficult a position as that of patriarch. The signature of the innocent Tryphon was obtained on a blank piece of paper through the scheming of an evil bishop, and a false resignation was written above his signature in the imperial court. The emperor announced his resignation, and a difficult time of unrest began in the Church, since the people and the clergy took the side of Tryphon, the man of God. Then the emperor deposed the old patriarch by force and placed him in a monastery, raising his own son, Theophylact, to the patriarchate. St. Tryphon lived in the monastery as an ascetic for two years and five months, and went to the Lord in 933.

4. Our Holy Father Agathangelos.

From Thrace, his worldly name being Anastasios, he was a slave to some Turks, and they compelled him to embrace Islam in Smyrna. As a penitent, he was tonsured at the monastery of Esphigmenou on the Holy Mountain. Tormented by his conscience, he desired to wash his sins in his own blood, so he went to Smyrna, where he showed a Cross and an icon of Christ’s Resurrection to the Turks. He was beheaded on April 19th, 1819, at the age of nineteen. He appeared to his spiritual father, Germanos, after his death.

5. Our Holy Father Simeon the Barefoot.

He labored in asceticism on the Holy Mountain and was abbot of Philotheou for a short time. He strengthened Christians in many Balkan countries in the Faith, and is renowned as a wonder-worker.

FOR CONSIDERATION

A spiritual guide and elder once said: ‘Remain indoors, speak with yourself alone; work, O body, that you may be fed; be vigilant, O soul, that you may be saved and inherit the kingdom.’ These are not mere idle words; rather, they have been the rule of many thousands of monks through the centuries, the daily rule of their lives. They fed themselves by their labor and were vigilant in prayer. But why only monks? Why should it not be the rule for every follower of Christ? Has not Christ Himself provided us with a clear example of bodily labor and unceasing vigilance in prayer?

Daily Scripture Readings taken from The Orthodox New Testament, translated and published by Holy Apostles Convent, Buena Vista, Colorado, copyright © 2000, used with permission, all rights reserved.

Daily Prologue Readings taken from The Prologue of Ochrid, by Bishop Nikolai Velimirovic, translated by Mother Maria, published by Lazarica Press, Birmingham, England, copyright © 1985, all rights reserved. Edited by Dormition Skete.