Daily Devotional

Scripture Readings

Paschalion — Movable Calendar

Friday of the First Week

Epistle

The Reading is from the Epistle of Saint Paul to the Romans [§ 82]. Brethren:

2 ¹⁴Whenever the Gentiles, who have not the law, do by nature the things of the law, these, who have not the law, are a law to themselves, ¹⁵who show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts one with another accusing or also excusing, ¹⁶in the day when God shall judge the secrets of men through Jesus Christ, according to my Gospel.

¹⁷Behold, thou art called a Jew, and restest in the law, and boastest in God, ¹⁸and knowest His will, and approvest the things that are excellent, being instructed out of the law, ¹⁹and hast persuaded thyself to be a guide of the blind, a light of those in darkness, ²⁰an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of infants, having the form of knowledge and of the truth in the law. ²¹Thou therefore who teachest another, dost thou not teach thyself? Thou who preachest not to steal, dost thou steal? ²²Thou who sayest not to commit adultery, dost thou commit adultery? Thou who loathest the idols, dost thou rob temples? ²³Thou who boastest in the law, dost thou dishonor God through the transgression of the law? ²⁴“For the name of God is being blasphemed among the nations through you [cf. Is. 52:5],” even as it hath been written. ²⁵For on the one hand circumcision profiteth, if thou continue practising the law; but on the other hand, if thou art a transgressor of the law, thy circumcision hath become uncircumcision. ²⁶Therefore if the uncircumcision be keeping the ordinances of the law, shall not his uncircumcision be counted for circumcision? ²⁷And the uncircumcision by nature which fulfilleth the law shall judge thee that with the letter and circumcision art a transgressor of the law. ²⁸For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision which is outward in the flesh. ²⁹But he is a Jew who is one in that which is hidden; and circumcision is that of the heart, in spirit, not in letter, whose praise is not of men, but of God.

Gospel

The Reading is from the Holy Gospel according to Saint Matthew [§ 14]. The Lord said:

5 ³³“Ye heard that it was said to the ancients, ‘Thou shalt not swear falsely, but thou shalt render to the Lord thine oaths [cf. Deut. 19:12; Num. 30:3].’ ³⁴“But I say to you not to swear at all: neither by the heaven, for it is the throne of God; ³⁵“nor by the earth, for it is the footstool of His feet; nor in regard to Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. ³⁶“Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, for thou art not able to make one hair white or black. ³⁷“But let your word ‘yes’ be ‘yes,’ and ‘no,’ ‘no’; and what is more than these is from the evil one. ³⁸“Ye heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth [Ex. 21:24; Deut. 19:21; Lev. 24:20].’ ³⁹“But I say to you do not resist the evil one; but whosoever shall strike thee on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. ⁴⁰“And to the one who doth wish to go to law with thee and take thy tunic, yield to him thine outer garment also. ⁴¹“And whosoever shall compel thee to go one mile, go with him two.”

Menaion — Fixed Calendar

The commemoration of the holy and glorious Hieromartyr Elladios, and Hieromartyr Therapon, Bishop of Sardis, and the righteous Confessor John the Russian.

Epistle

For St. John:

The Reading is from the Second Epistle of Saint Paul to Saint Timothy [§ 292]. Child Timothy:

2 ¹Be thou empowered in the grace that is in Christ Jesus; ²and the things which thou heardest from me in the midst of many witnesses, commit thou these things to faithful men who shall be competent also to teach others. ³Thou therefore suffer hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. ⁴No one serving as a soldier is entangled with the affairs of life, in order that he might please the one who enlisted him. ⁵And if anyone also contend as an athlete in the games, he is not crowned unless he contend lawfully. ⁶The farmer who laboreth must be first to partake of the fruits. ⁷Be considering what I say; O may the Lord give thee understanding in all things! ⁸Be remembering Jesus Christ, of the seed of David, Who hath been raised from the dead, according to my Gospel, ⁹in which I suffer hardship even to bonds as a malefactor, but the word of God hath not been bound. ¹⁰On this account I endure all things for the sake of the elect, that they might also attain salvation that is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.

for Sl. usage, see [Gal. 5:22-6:2].

Gospel

The Reading is from the Holy Gospel according to Saint Luke [§ 24]. At that time:

6 ¹⁷Jesus stood upon a level place. And there was a crowd of His disciples, and a great multitude of the people from all of Judæa and Jerusalem and the seacoast of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear Him, and to be healed of their diseases— ¹⁸even those who were troubled by unclean spirits; and they were cured. ¹⁹And all the crowd was seeking to touch Him, for power was coming forth from Him and healing all. ²⁰And He lifted up His eyes to His disciples, and began to say:
   “Blessed are the poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.
   ²¹“Blessed are ye who hunger now, for ye shall be filled.
Blessed are ye who weep now, for ye shall laugh.
   ²²“Blessed are ye whenever men hate you, and whenever they separate you, and reproach you, and cast out your name as evil, on account of the Son of Man.
   ²³“Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in the heavens.”

Lives of the Saints (Prologue)

June 9th – Civil Calendar
May 27th – Church Calendar

1. The Hieromartyr Therapon, Bishop of Sardis.

He brought many Greeks to the Christian Faith and was cruelly persecuted by the pagans, being starved, imprisoned and flogged. They stripped him and threw him to the ground, bound him to four posts and beat him mercilessly, until they had stripped the flesh from his bones. However, the martyr still remained alive and the four dry posts became green and grew into tall trees from which many of the sick received healing. Finally St. Therapon was slain like a lamb and entered into the kingdom, to behold the glory of God in eternity. He suffered with honor in the time of Valerian, in about 259.

2. The Holy Martyrs Theodora and Didymus.

In the reign of the wicked Emperor Maximilian, there lived in Alexandria a maiden, Theodora, well-educated and of noble lineage. She was brought to trial before the pagans for her Christian Faith. After long interrogation and torture for the Faith, the prince, her tormentor, ordered that she be thrown into a brothel and the soldiers given free access to her to indulge their carnal lusts. Theodora prayed fervently to God to save her from defilement, and when she had prayed, a soldier called Didymus came in to her and told her that he was a servant of Christ. He dressed her in his soldier’s garb and himself in her dress, then let her out and remained in the brothel himself. He was seized and brought before the judge, where he acknowledged that he was a Christian and had saved Theodora, and was now prepared to die for Christ. He was condemned to death and taken out to the place of execution. Theodora ran up to him there and cried out: ‘Although you saved my honor, I did not ask you to save me from death. Yield the martyr’s death to me!’ Didymus replied: ‘My beloved sister, do not hinder my death for Christ, nor the washing of my sins in my blood.’ Hearing this exchange, the pagans condemned them both to death, and they were beheaded and their bodies burned. They suffered with honor and received eternal wreaths of glory in Alexandria in the year 304.

3. St. David (Davit) of Garesjei.

This David is one of the thirteen Georgian fathers (see May 7th). He is thus named for the Garesjei desert near Tiflis, where he lived the ascetic life. In old age, David decided to visit the Holy Land with several of his disciples. He left the direction of the monastery to two elders, Lucian and Dodo, and set out on the way. When they came to a hill from which Jerusalem was visible, David burst into tears and said: ‘How can I dare to walk in the steps of God incarnate with these sinful feet?’ and he told his disciples to go and worship at the holy places, but he himself took up three stones and set off to return. But the Lord did not let such humility remain hidden from the world, and an angel appeared to Elias, the Patriarch of Jerusalem, and said to him: ‘Send at once for the elder who is even now returning to Syria; he has taken with him three stones, and is carrying off with him all the Holy Land’s grace. One stone is a sufficient blessing for him; let him return the other two to Jerusalem. He is called Abba David of Garesjei.’ The patriarch quickly sent men off to overtake the elder. They took two stones from him, and let him go on his way. The third stone lies on his grave to this day and possesses miraculous healing power.

FOR CONSIDERATION

Physical health is undoubtedly a gift of God. But physical well-being is not at all the greatest good of this world, as so many would say and write. Because, whatever physical health may be, it is transitory; and whatever is transitory cannot be man’s greatest good. Values that do not pass away are more precious than those that do, and so eternity is more precious than time. Intransitory values are counted as spiritual health. Saint John of Kronstadt writes: ‘Oh, I myself feel that, when I am quite well and do not tire myself with work, my spirit begins to die, the kingdom of God is not within me and my body begins to master me, and when the body is in control, then the devil finds an entrance.’

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.