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Prologue from
Ochrid
by
Saint Nikolai Velimirovic
February
14th - February 20th
(New Style) • February 1st - February 7th (Old Style)
New Style
February
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
Old Style
February
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
February 14th (New Style) • February 1st (Old Style)
The
Holy Martyr Tryphon
Tryphon was
born of poor parents in the village of Lampsacus in Phrygia. In his
childhood he tended geese. Also from his childhood he was able to
cure illnesses that afflicted people and livestock and was able to
expel evil spirits. The Roman Empire at that time was ruled by
Emperor Gordian whose daughter Gordiana went insane and this caused
her father great sorrow. All the physicians were unable to help
Gordiana. The evil spirit spoke through Gordiana and said that no
one can cast him out except Tryphon. After many who were named
Tryphon in the empire were summoned, by Divine Providence, young
Tryphon was also summoned. He was brought to Rome and he healed the
emperor's daughter. The emperor lavished upon him many gifts all of
which Tryphon, upon his return, distributed to the poor. In his
village this holy youngster continued to tend geese and to pray to
God. When Decius, the Christ-persecutor, was crowned emperor, Saint
Tryphon was tortured and cruelly tormented for Christ. He endured
all tortures with great joy saying: "Oh! If only I could be
made worthy to die by fire and pain for the Name of the Lord and
God, Jesus Christ!" All sufferings did him no harm and finally
the tormentors sentenced him to be beheaded. Before his death
Tryphon prayed to God and gave up his soul to his Creator in the
year 250 A.D.
The
Holy Female Martyrs Perpetua and Felicitas; the Holy Martyrs Styrus
and Others with them
As
Christians, they were all cast into prison during the reign of
Emperor Septimus Severus. Saint Perpetua, who was of noble birth,
encouraged all the other prisoners not to be afraid to suffer for
Christ. In a dream, Perpetua saw a ladder imbedded with sharp
knives, swords, spears, fishhooks, nails and other death-bearing
instruments extending from heaven to earth. At the bottom of the
ladder there lay a loathsome serpent. She saw how Satyrus ran up to
the top of the ladder first, unharmed, and from the top cried out to
Perpetua: "Perpetua, I am waiting for you; come, but be careful
of the serpent!" Encouraged by this, Perpetua stood on the head
of the serpent as on the first rung of the ladder and, step by step,
quickly raced to the top. When she reached the top, Perpetua entered
into heaven and saw the most beautiful mansions of heaven and was
very ecstatic. When she related her dream, all the prisoners
interpreted that imminent death soon faced them, the first of them
being Satyrus, which shortly came true. Satyrus was slain first,
then Perpetua and all others one by one. As lambs slain for Christ
the Lamb of God, they received from Christ, the eternal reward in
the kingdom of Light. They all suffered for Christ between the years
202-203 A.D.
Venerable
Peter of Galatera
At age seven
Peter left the home of his parents for the sake of Christ and
retreated into the wilderness. Here, by fasting and prayer, Peter
attained such a state of perfection that he worked many miracles by
the Spirit of God. In his ninety-ninth year, he took up habitation
in the eternal Kingdom of Christ about the year 429 A.D.
Reflection
The Prayer
of Saint Tryphon before his death: "O Lord, God of gods and
King of kings, the most holy of all holies, I thank You that You
made me worthy to complete my mortification without faltering. And
now, I pray to You that the hand of the invisible demon does not
touch me; that the demon not drag me into the abyss of destruction.
Rather, let Your holy angels lead me into Your beautiful dwelling
place and make me an heir of Your desired kingdom. Receive my soul
and harken to the prayer of all those who would offer sacrifices to
You in my remembrance. Gaze upon them from Your holy dwelling place
and grant them abundant and incorruptible gifts. For You are the
only good and merciful Gift-giver unto the ages of ages. Amen."
Since Tryphon suffered in Nicaea and since many miracles occurred
over his lifeless body, the citizens of Nicaea wanted to bury
Tryphon in their cemetery. But, the saint appeared in a vision and
expressed his desire that he be translated to his village of
Lampsacus where he once tended geese and to be buried there.
Contemplation
To
contemplate the Lord Jesus as the fresh and healthy air of the soul:
1. As the
fresh and healthy air by which the soul breathes and is saved from
corruption;
2. As the
fresh and healthy air which the prophets, apostles and saints
inhaled and were healthy in soul;
3. As the
fresh and healthy air of my soul which drives out the stench of sin
in me and makes me fresh and healthy in soul.
Homily
About the
Word of God which purifies as a fire
" You
are already clean through the word which I have spoken to you"
(St. John 15:3).
By His word
the Lord created the world; by His word He renewed the world; by His
word He forgave sins; by His word He healed diseases; by His word He
drove out evil spirits; by His word He calmed the storms and the
winds. By His holy word He cleanses men, even now, that they,
cleansed, may bring forth-abundant fruit. As are the vines, when
they are pruned and cleansed, the word of the Lord is powerful for
it comes forth from the All-powerful. "By the word of the Lord,
the heavens were made" (Psalm 33:6). The word of the Lord is as
bright as the sun but, when necessary, it is as fiery as the sun and
then burns out everything that goes against the Lord. The word of
the Lord is as sweet as honey; but, when necessary, it is as bitter
as medicine. The word of the Lord is as welcome as a friend who
knocks at the door when he is most needed; but, when necessary, the
word of the Lord is as a judge who finds us in sin and who judges us
without allowing us any excuse. The word of the Lord is true, just,
wise and merciful which is why it is so All-powerful. No one and
nothing, either in heaven or on earth, is able to go against it. The
human word is also powerful when it is true, just, wise and
merciful. But just as illness is able to exhaust and so weaken a
giant that he becomes more powerless than a child; so falsehoods,
injustice, insanity and lack of mercy so weakens the word of a human
that it becomes nothing; a chattering fox against the moon. He who
spares words forges them of pure silver. And whoever unmercifully
squanders them must mix earth with silver. Your word, O Lord, is
life and truth. Cleanse us by Your All-powerful word as You cleansed
Your apostles to bear much fruit and to be made worthy of Your
kingdom.
To
the Top
February 15th (New Style) • February 2nd (Old Style)
The
Meeting (Presentation) of our Lord in the Temple
The fortieth
day after His birth, the All-Holy Virgin brought her Divine Son into
the Temple of Jerusalem, in accordance with the Law, to dedicate Him
to God and to purify herself. "Consecrate to me every
first-born that opens the womb among the Israelites both of man and
beast, for it belongs to me" (Exodus 13:2). "Tell the
Israelites: when a woman has conceived and gives birth to a boy, she
shall be unclean for seven days, with the same uncleanness as at her
menstrual period. On the eighth day, the flesh of the boy's foreskin
shall be circumcised, and then she shall spend thirty-three days
more in becoming purified of her blood; she shall not touch anything
sacred nor enter the sanctuary till the days of her purification are
fulfilled. If she gives birth to a girl, for fourteen days she shall
be as unclean as at her menstruation, after which she shall spend
sixty-six days in becoming purified of her blood. When the days of
her purification for a son or for a daughter are fulfilled, she
shall bring to the priest at the entrance of the meeting tent a
yearling lamb for a holocaust and a pigeon or a turtledove for a sin
offering. The priest shall offer them up before the Lord to make
atonement for her, and thus she will be clean again after her flow
of blood. Such is the law for the woman who gives birth to a boy or
a girl child" (Leviticus 12:2-7). Even though neither the one
nor the other was necessary, nevertheless the Lawgiver did not, in
anyway, want to transgress His own Law whom He had given through
Moses, His servant and prophet. At that time, the high-priest
Zaccharias, the father of John the Forerunner [Precursor], was on
duty in the Temple["serving as a priest before God in the order
of his division" St. Luke 1:8]. Zaccharias placed the Virgin,
not in the temple area reserved for women but rather in the area
reserved for virgins. On this occasion, two unusual persons appeared
in the Temple: the Elder Simeon and Anna, the daughter of Phanuel.
The righteous Simeon took the Messiah in his arms and said:
"Now, Master, You may let Your servant go in peace, according
to Your word, for my eyes have seen Your salvation" (St. Luke
2: 29-30). Simeon also spoke the following words about the
Christ-child: "Behold, this child is destined for the fall and
rise of many in Israel" (St. Luke 2:34). Then Anna, who from
her youth served God in the Temple by fasting and prayers,
recognized the Messiah and glorified God and proclaimed to the
inhabitants of Jerusalem about the coming of the long-awaited One.
The Pharisees present in the Temple, who having seen and heard all,
became angry with Zacharias because he placed the Virgin Mary in the
area reserved for virgins and reported this to King Herod. Convinced
that this is the new king about whom the Magi from the east spoke,
Herod immediately sent his soldiers to kill Jesus. In the meantime
the Holy Family had already left the city and set out for Egypt
under the guidance of an angel of God. The Feast of the Meeting of
our Lord in the Temple was celebrated from earliest times but the
solemn celebration of this day was established in the year 544 A.D.
during the reign of Emperor Justinian.
The
Holy Neo-Martyr Jordan
Jordan, born
in Trebizond, was a coppersmith by trade. Because he openly defended
his faith in Christ and unmasked the faith of Islam, Jordan suffered
at the hands of the Turks in 1650 A.D. at Galata in Constantinople.
The monk Gabriel, a Canonarch of the Great Church in Constantinople
[St. Sophia], suffered in the same manner in the year 1672 A.D.
Reflection
Speaking
about the spread and celebration of Christmas, St. John Chrysostom
says: " Magnificent and noble trees when planted in the ground
shortly attain great heights and become heavily laden with fruit; so
it is with this day." So it is with the day of the Meeting of
our Lord in the Temple. In the beginning this day was discussed
among Christians but the solemn celebration began from the period of
the great Emperor Justinian. During the reign of this emperor, a
great pestilence afflicted the people in Constantinople and vicinity
so that about five-thousand or more people died daily. At the same
time a terrible earthquake occurred in Antioch. Seeing the weakness
of man's ability to prevent these misfortunes the emperor, in
consultation with the patriarch, ordered a period of fast and prayer
throughout the entire empire. And, on the day of the Meeting [The
Presentation] itself, arranged great processions throughout the
towns and villages that the Lord might show compassion on His
people. And truly, the Lord did show compassion; for the epidemic
and earthquake ceased at once. This occurred in the year 544 A.D.
Following this and from that time one, the Feast of the Presentation
[Meeting] began to be celebrated as a major feast of the Lord. The
tree, in time, grew and began to bring forth-abundant fruit.
Contemplation
To
contemplate the Lord Jesus as Health:
1. As Health
of our mind; for with Him we think healthily;
2. As Health
of our heart; for with Him we feel healthy;
3. As the
Health of our will; for with Him we act healthily;
4. As the
Health of family, the Church, the school, the people and every
institution.
Homily
About the
guidance of the Spirit of God
"Filled
with the Holy Spirit, Jesus returned from the Jordan and was led by the
Spirit into the desert" (St. Luke 4:1).
You see,
brethren, what it means to be filled with the Holy Spirit of God.
Without the Spirit of God, man is filled with worries: where he will
go and how he will go. But with the Spirit of God man is without
those worries. For then the Spirit instructs man where he will walk
and how he will act and man becomes sinless in his movement and in
his actions because the Holy Spirit is sinless Who leads and guides
him. Man cannot walk justly nor act righteously if the
All-omnipotent and All-omniscient Spirit of God does not inform him.
Whoever is not led by the Holy Spirit of God is led, either by his
own individual spirit or by the evil spirit of the demon. As a
result of this he becomes helpless, bitter, remorseful, angry and
despondent. We cannot endure the Spirit of God in the fullness as
Christ the Lord, but we can receive the Spirit of God as much as
needed in order to know where, what and how. According to the purity
of the heart, the Holy Spirit settles in the heart and from the
heart directs man.
That is why
the Church often repeats this prayer to the Holy Spirit: "O
Heavenly King, the Comforter, the Spirit of Truth! Come and abide in
us."
To
the Top
February 16th (New Style) • February 3rd (Old Style)
St.
Simeon, the God-Receiver
During the
reign of the Egyptian Emperor Ptolemy Philadelphus, Simeon was
chosen as one of the prominent Seventy to whom was entrusted the
task of translating the Bible from the Hebrew language into the
Greek language [The Septuagint]. Simeon was performing his task
conscientiously but when he was translating the book of the Prophet
Isaiah and came upon the prophecy: "Behold, a virgin shall
conceive, and will give birth to a son" (Isaiah 7:14), he
became confused and took a knife to remove the word
"virgin" and to replace it with the words, "young
woman," and as such to translate it into Greek. At that moment,
however, an angel of God appeared to Simeon and restrained him from
his intention, explaining to him that the prophecy is true; that the
prophecy is correctly written: that it is true and correct. The
messenger of God also said that Simeon would be convinced of it
personally for, according to the Will of God, he will not die until
he sees the Messiah born of the Virgin. The righteous Simeon
rejoiced to hear such a voice from heaven, left the prophecy
unchanged and thanked God Who is making him worthy to live and to
see the Promised One. When the young Child Jesus was presented in
the Temple in Jerusalem by the Virgin Mary, the Spirit of God
appeared to Simeon who was very old and as "white as a
swan." Simeon quickly entered the Temple and there recognized
both the Virgin and the young Child by the light that shone around
their heads as an aureal. The joyful Simeon took Christ into his
hands and prayed to God to release him from this life: "Now,
Master, You may let Your servant go in peace, according to Your
word, for my eyes have seen Your salvation" (St. Luke 2:
29-30). Anna the Prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, was also
there, who recognized the Messiah and proclaimed Him to the people.
"And
coming forward at that very moment, she gave thanks to God, and
spoke about the Child to all who were awaiting the redemption of
Jerusalem" (St. Luke 2:38). At that time, Anna was eighty-four
years old. St. Simeon died shortly after that. This righteous Elder
Simeon is considered to be the Protector of young children.
The
Holy Martyrs Adrian and Eubulus
These two
holy souls arrived from their place of Baneas in Caesarea of
Cappadocia to attend the imprisoned Christians in the dungeon and to
console and encourage them. However they, too, were arrested and
sentenced to death. Adrian was beheaded and Eubulus was thrown
before wild beasts in the year 309 A.D. Thus, not grieving over this
life, they honorably and joyfully entered into life eternal.
Reflection
How great a
glory in heaven befitted St. Simeon the Receiver of God, who held
the Savior of the world in his hands, which the following incident
clearly shows as, related in the hagiography of St. Peter the
Athonite (June 12). As a commander during a battle, Peter was
enslaved, chained and cast into prison in the town of Samara on the
shores of the Euphrates River. Languishing in prison for along time
Peter, in tears, prayed to St. Nicholas to beseech God on his behalf
to liberate him from prison, promising that he will completely
dedicate himself to God. St. Nicholas appeared to him in a dream and
told him that although he [St. Nicholas] prays to God on his behalf,
God delays his deliverance because he [Peter] earlier made a similar
vow to God and did not keep it. And further, St. Nicholas counseled
Peter that he ought to pray to St. Simeon the God-receiver "who
is very mighty before God and stands close to the Throne of God
together with the All-Holy Virgin and St. John the Forerunner."
Peter heeded the counsel of St. Nicholas and proceeded to pray to
St. Simeon. Again St. Nicholas appeared to him, together with St.
Simeon, not in a dream but in reality. Peter saw Simeon glorious in
appearance, face glowing, and attired in the vestments of an Old
Testament priest with a golden staff in his hand. St. Simeon said to
Peter: "Do you want to fulfill the vow and become a monk?"
To that, Peter replied: "Yes master, with God's help."
Simeon then touched Peter's chains with his staff and the chains
melted like wax. Opening the doors of the dungeon, the saint led
Peter from prison.
Contemplation
To
contemplate the Lord Jesus as the Cornerstone:
1. As the
Cornerstone in building personal character;
2. As the
Cornerstone in building the family and a nation;
3. As the
Cornerstone of every good intentioned social transformation and
inspiration of mankind.
Homily
About the
Spirit of God Who speaks through the Spirit-bearers
"Do not
worry about how you are to speak -- but the Spirit of your Father
speaking through you" (St. Matthew 10: 19-20).
These are
the words of Him Who knows all and Who declared to the world
knowledge which no one knew before His visit to mankind. If someone
is filled with the Spirit of God, he does not speak from the spirit
of man but the Spirit of God speaks from him and through him. He is
only an instrument or a lyre of God's Spirit through which God the
Spirit speaks. When that kind of man speaks, he speaks infallibly
and no one can find falsehood in his speech except those, who
because of the perversion of their minds, consider truth as
falsehood. How men speak, filled with the Spirit of God, was clearly
shown by the example of the prophets and more clearly shown by the
example of the apostles. Miraculous and unbelievable did the words
of the apostles seem to strangers, i.e., those who did not have the
Spirit of God in themselves and who knew how to speak only of the
earth, considered the apostles as intoxicated. In reality, to the
ignorant, all those people who first began to speak about the hidden
miracles of this physical world, about the power of steam, about
magnetism, about electricity, about wireless telegraphy, and
conversation at a distance [the telephone] appeared intoxicated and
foolish. How then do spiritual men not seem intoxicated and foolish
who, led by the Spirit of God, speak about countless hidden
mysteries of the spiritual kingdom? Whoever humbles himself before
God, God makes him powerful. The Spirit of God settles in a contrite
heart and from there speaks through the mouth of man. This is
confirmed not only on the prophets and apostles but also on the
countless number of God's sons and daughters
O Good Lord,
do not refuse us Your Holy Spirit.
To You be
glory and thanks always. Amen.
To
the Top
February 17th (New Style) • February 4th (Old Style)
The
Venerable Isidore of Pelusium
Isidore was
an Egyptian by birth and the son of a prominent family and kinsman
of the Alexandrian Patriarchs Theophilus and Cyril. Having studied
all the secular disciplines, he renounced worldly riches and glories
and devoted himself completely to the spiritual life for the love of
Christ. He was a great and ardent defender and interpreter of the
Orthodox Faith. According to the statements of Nicephorus the
historian, St. Isidore wrote more than ten-thousand letters to
various individuals in which he reproached some, counseled some, and
comforted and instructed others. In one letter St. Isidore writes:
"It is more important to teach by a life of doing good than to
preach in eloquent terms." In another, he says: "If one
desires that his virtues appear great, let him consider them small
and they will surely manifest themselves as great." The first
and basic rule for St. Isidore was this: "First do, then teach
according to the example of our Lord Jesus." At the time of the
persecution of St. John Chrysostom when the entire population was
divided into two camps; one for and one against, St. Isidore, this
great pillar of Orthodoxy, sided with St. John Chrysostom. He wrote
to Patriarch Theophilus saying what a great light of the Church
Chrysostom is and begged him to avoid hatefulness toward him.
Isidore lived long and accomplished much, glorifying Christ the God
with his life and his writings. Isidore took up habitation in the
kingdom of Christ about the year 436 A.D.
Venerable
Nicholas, the Confessor
This saint
was from the Island of Crete. He arrived in Constantinople to visit
his kinsman, Theodore; the abbot of the Studite Monastery and here
he remained and was tonsured a monk. As a monk, Nicholas underwent
all mortifications for the sake of the salvation of his soul. During
the persecution of the Church by Leo the Armenian, Theodore and
Nicholas were cruelly tortured, humiliated and beaten with oxen
straps and finally thrown into a dungeon where they were imprisoned
for three years. After the death of St. Theodore, Nicholas became
abbot of the Studite Monastery. Even during his lifetime, he worked
many miracles through the power and grace of God. Nicholas healed
Eudocia, the wife of Emperor Basil, as well as Helen, the wife of
Manuel, the patrician. To Theophilus Melisenus, a prominent nobleman
whose other children did not survive birth, Nicholas blessed the
newly born daughter and prophesied that she will live and that she
will be very fruitful which occurred, to the joy of the parents. On
the very day of his death, Nicholas gathered the monastic
brotherhood and asked them what they lacked? "Wheat,"
answered the monks. Then the dying man said: "He Who fed Israel
in the wilderness will send you an ample supply of wheat within
three days." And indeed, the third day, a boatload of wheat
sent by Emperor Basil sailed below the monastery. Nicholas took up
habitation in the heavenly kingdom on February 4, 868 A.D., in the
seventy-fifth year of his life.
The
Holy Neo-Martyr Joseph
Joseph was
born in Allepo. He was pressured by the Turks to embrace Islam.
Joseph not only rejected this but also began to expose the
falsehoods of Islam and to praise the Faith of Christ. For that,
Joseph was tortured and beheaded in the year 1686 A.D.
Reflection
Impose upon
yourself some form of penance [Epitimija] for the sins of others. If
you have judged someone or punished someone, impose upon yourself a
form of penance. You should also suffer voluntarily for the sins of
sinners. This is pleasing to God. This mystery was known by the
saints who condemned themselves for the sins of others. Even
non-Christian peoples perceived this mystery. There exists this
custom in China: when an executioner beheads a criminal who is
sentenced to death, he then approaches the judge and informs him
that the verdict was carried out. The judge then reimburses him with
a silver coin because he killed the criminal and orders that the
executioner be whipped forty lashes because he killed a man.
Christian saints profoundly understood the mystery of sin and human
injustice. For the saints, all human sin has as long a history, as
there is distance from us to Adam.
Contemplation
To
contemplate the Lord Jesus as Joy:
1. As Joy
which refreshes the whole spirit of man;
2. As Joy
which enlivens and strengthens in man all power toward good;
3. Joy from
His Name, Joy from His Words, Joy from His Works and Joy from His
Spirit.
Homily
About the
providence of Zacchaeus of little stature
"Today,
salvation has come to this house" (St. Luke 19:9).
Thus it was
spoken by the One Whose word is life and joy and restoration of the
righteous. Just as the bleak forest clothes itself into greenery and
flowers from the breath of spring, so does every man, regardless of
how arid and darkened by sin, becomes fresh and youthful from the
nearness of Christ. For the nearness of Christ is as the nearness of
some life-giving and fragrant balsam which restores health,
increases life, give fragrance to the soul, to the thoughts and to
the words of man. In other words, distance from Christ means decay
and death and His nearness means salvation and life.
"Today,
salvation has come to this house" said the Lord upon entering
the house of Zacchaeus the sinner. Christ was the salvation that
came and Zacchaeus was the house into which He entered. Brethren,
each one of us is a house in which sin dwells as long as Christ is
distant and to which salvation comes when Christ approaches it.
Nevertheless, will Christ approach my house and your house? That
depends on us. Behold, He did not arbitrarily enter the house of the
sinner Zacchaeus, rather He entered as a most desired guest.
Zacchaeus of little stature climbed into a tree in order to see the
Lord Jesus with his own eyes. Zacchaeus, therefore, sought him;
Zacchaeus desired Him. We must also seek Him in order to find Him
and desire Him in order that He would draw nearer to us and, with
our spirit, to climb high in order to encounter His glance. Then He
will visit our house as He visited the house of Zacchaeus and with
Him salvation will come.
Draw near to
us O Lord, draw near and bring to us Your eternal salvation.
To You be
glory and thanks always. Amen.
To
the Top
February 18th (New Style) • February 5th (Old Style)
The
Holy Female Martyr Agatha
Agatha, this
glorious virgin and martyr for Christ, was born in the Sicilian town
of Palermo of noble and wealthy parents. When Emperor Decius began a
persecution against Christians, St. Agatha was arrested and brought
to trial before Judge Quintian. The judge, seeing Agatha beautiful
in countenance, desired to have her for his wife. When he suggested
this, Agatha answered that she is the bride of Christ and cannot be
unfaithful to her Betrothed. Quintian subjected her to cruel
tortures. Agatha was ridiculed, whipped, bound to a tree and flogged
until blood flowed. After that, the judge again tried to persuade
her to deny Christ and to avoid any further torture and suffering.
To that the bride of Christ replied: "These tortures are very
beneficial for me; just as wheat cannot arrive at the granary before
it is cleansed from the chaff, so my soul cannot enter into Paradise
if my body, beforehand, is not humbled by tortures." Then, the
torturer ordered that her breasts be cut off and that she be cast
into prison. St. Peter appeared to Agatha in prison and restored her
to health and wholeness of body. Again, Agatha was led out for
torture and again, cast into prison where she gave up her soul to
God in the year 251 A.D. in the town of Catania during the reign of
Emperor Decius. After her death, the torturer Quintian departed for
Palermo to usurp her estate. However, along the way, his horse and
the horses of his soldiers became wild with rage. Quintian was
bitten on the face, thrown to the ground and trampled to death.
Swift was the punishment of God that reached out for this savage
crime perpetrated against St. Agatha.
The
Holy Female Martyr Theodula
Theodula
suffered for Christ during the reign of the nefarious Roman Emperor
Diocletian. During her torture, Theodula brought one of her
torturers, Heladius, to his senses and converted him to the Faith of
Christ. When Heladius openly confessed his faith in Christ, he was
beheaded. Theodula held up very courageously at her trial at which
time the judge referred to her as being "deranged." To
that Theodula responded: "You, who have forgotten the One True
God and bow down before lifeless stones, are deranged." The
judge then subjected Theodula to cruel tortures, which she
heroically endured and, by her heroism during this torturing, she
astonished many and converted them to Christ. Among those were two
distinguished citizens: Macarius and Evgarius. With these two and
many others, Theodula was thrown into a fiery furnace where they all
honorably died and were made worthy of the kingdom of Christ.
St.
Palyeuctus, Patriarch of Constantinople
Because of
his great mind, religious zeal and eloquence, Polyeuctus was called
"a second Chrysostom." During the time that Patriarch
Polyeuctus governed the Church and Emperor Constantine
Porphryogenitus ruled the empire, the Russian Princess Olga traveled
to Constantinople and was baptized in the year 957 A.D. The
patriarch baptized her and the emperor was her godfather.
Prophetically, St. Polyeuctus said to her: "Blessed are you
among Russian women, for you have loved light and cast off darkness;
the sons of Russia will bless you to the last generation." From
among the simple monks, Polyeuctus was elevated as patriarch in the
year 946 A.D., and remained on the patriarchal throne until his
death in 970 A.D.
Reflection
The monks
ask of the great Abba Ischyrion: "What have we done?"
"We have fulfilled the commandments of God," Ischyrion
replied. "And, what will those do who come after us?"
"They will be doing what we are doing, but only half as
much." "And those after them?" "Before the end
of time, they will not keep the monastic practice [rule] but such
misfortunes and temptations will befall them that, through their
patience during those assaults and temptations, they will prove
themselves greater than us and our fathers in the kingdom of
God."
Contemplation
To
contemplate the Lord Jesus as the only true Enlightener:
1. As the
Enlightener of every individual man;
2. As the
Enlightener, consequently, of both society and the entire human
race;
3. As the
Enlightener Who enlightens the mind, the heart and the will of man
with eternal light.
Homily
About death
as sleeping
"Our
friend Lazarus is asleep, but I am going to awaken him" (St.
John 11:11).
The Lord of
life calls death "sleeping." O what an inexpressible
comfort that is for us! O what sweet news for the world! Physical
death, therefore, does not mean the annihilation of man rather only
sleeping from which only He can awaken; He Who awakened the first
dust to life by His word.
When the
Lord cried out: "Lazarus!" (St. John 11:43), the man awoke
and lived. The Lord knows the name of each of us. When Adam knew the
names of every creature of God, why would not the Lord know each one
of us by name? Not only does He know but He also calls us by name.
O, the sweet and life-creating voice of the only Lover of mankind!
This voice can create sons of God from stones. Why, then, can He not
awaken us out of our sinful sleep?
It is told
that a certain man raised a stone to kill his brother. But, at that
moment, it seemed to him that he heard the voice of his mother
calling him by name. He only heard the voice of his mother and his
hand began to quiver. He dropped the stone and was ashamed of his
evil intention. The voice of his mother awakened him from committing
a deadly sin. If the voice of a mother saves and awakens from death,
how much more, then, the voice of the Creator and Life-giver!
Whenever the
Lord cried out to someone who was dead in the body [physically dead]
all of them awoke and arose. But, everyone did not awaken and arise
among those who were dead in the soul [spiritually dead] when the
Lord cried out to them. But, for this awakening, for this
resurrection, the agreement of the will of the deceased is
necessary. Judas! Do you betray with a kiss? "Judas, are you
betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?" (St. Luke 23:48). That
is how the Life-creating Voice cried out, but the dead man [Judas]
remained dead and the sinner did not awaken. "Saul, Saul, why
are you persecuting Me?" (Act of the Apostles 9:4). The same
Life-creating Voice cried out and he who was asleep in sin awakened
and the dead man became alive. In truth, deeper is the sleep of sin
than the sleep of death and the one who is asleep [in sin] does not
easily awaken.
O Sweet
Lord, awaken us from the sleep of sin; awaken O Lord!
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February 19th (New Style) • February 6th (Old Style)
St.
Bucolus, Bishop of Smyrna
Bucolus was
a disciple of St. John the Theologian, who consecrated him bishop of
Smyrna. In Smyrna, there were few that were baptized. In the
darkness of paganism, St. Bucolus shown as a bright candle. He
distinguished himself with every virtue, especially meekness and
humility. Before his death, Bucolus consecrated the glorious
Polycarp as his successor to the espicopacy. He died peacefully and
took up habitation with the Lord.
The
Holy Female Martyr Fausta
Fausta was
martyred for Christ during the reign of Emperor Maximian between 305
A.D. - 311 A.D. By her heroism, Fausta astonished her persecutors
and succeeded to convert them to Christianity: the eighty-year old
pagan priest Evilasis and Maximus, the Eparch. When the judge
threatened Fausta with more severe tortures, she asked him to make
her an icon with the depictions of all those tortures with which he
threatened her. When the icon was completed, it was shown to her and
St. Fausta said: "As this icon does not feel any pain, so my
body does not feel any pain from your punishments, for my soul is
secure in the Lord." The judge then threw her into a vat of
boiling hot water where this thirteen-year-old girl died with prayer
on her lips and her soul entered Paradise.
The
Holy Female Martyr Dorothea
Dorothea was
a prominent and beautiful maiden from Caesarea in Cappadocia.
Sapricius, the administrator of the province, turned Dorothea over
to the two pagan sisters Christina and Kallista in order to dissuade
her from Christ. But, the opposite occurred; Dorothea succeeded to
convert both sisters to the Faith of Christ. Enraged, Sapricius
ordered the two sisters bound back to back and threw them into a vat
of pitch and set it on fire. He then sentenced Dorothea to death.
She joyfully heard the sentence and cried out: "I give thanks
to You, O Soul-loving Christ, that You are leading me into Your
All-holy mansions!" Theophilus, a certain nobleman who was
present, laughed at these words and cried out to Dorothea:
"Listen, O bride of Christ, send me apples and flowers from the
pomegranate tree from the Paradise of your Bridegroom."
"Indeed, I will do that," replied the martyr. When
Dorothea was at the place of execution, all at once a beautiful
young man appeared with three beautiful apples and three red flowers
from the pomegranate. That was an angel of God and it was winter.
Dorothea asked the angel to bring them to Theophilus and to tell
him: "Behold, this is what you desired!" When Theophilus
received the message and saw the gift, he was thoroughly frightened.
For him, everything turned upside down and he, a confirmed pagan,
became a Christian. He was tortured and slain for Christ and his
soul entered the Paradise of the Lord Jesus soon after St. Dorothea.
Saint
Photius, Patriarch of Constantinople
Photius was
a great beacon of the Church. He was the emperor's relative and a
grandson of the glorious Patriarch Tarasius. He was a vigorous
protector of the Church from the authority-loving pope and other
Roman distortions of the Faith. In six days he went through all the
ranks from a layman to patriarch. He was consecrated patriarch on
Christmas day, 857 A.D. and died in the Lord in the year 891 A.D.
The
Venerable Barsanuphius and the Venerable John
Both
Barsanuphius and John were great ascetics, discerners and
miracle-workers from Gaza. They left a famous work entitled the
"Book of Answers" dealing with many questions about the
spiritual life. They lived in the sixth century.
The
Holy Female Martyrs Martha and Mary and their Brother Lycarion
All three
were crucified for Christ and then pierced and slain with a lance.
Reflection
St.
Barsanuphius, who for fifty years lived secluded in a cell and did
not allow himself to be seen by any living person, attained
exceptionally purity and perceptiveness through his godly-thoughts
and prayer. Here are a few thoughts from his "Book of
Answers." "Every thought which is not preceded by the
silence of humility does not proceed from God. All that is from the
devil occurs with confusion and disturbance." "When you
pray and God delays to fulfill your request, He does this for your
benefit in order to teach you forbearance." "Visible
thieves are servants of invisible thieves; imaginary thoughts."
"The Lord Jesus Christ endured all things and finally ascended
on the Cross, which means the deadening of the body and passion and
a holy and perfect rest." "Our Lord wants you to honor
every man more than yourself." When they asked the elder
whether they should hire a defender [advocate] regarding a dispute
between the monastery and certain men, the elder replied: "If
you would purchase the defense of men, then God will not defend
you."
Contemplation
To
contemplate the Lord Jesus as a Laborer:
1. As a
physical Laborer throughout many long years;
2. As a
spiritual Laborer who constantly taught man, comforted man and
healed man giving the new law to the world;
3. As a
tireless Laborer who left the commandment, "I must work the
works of Him Who sent Me while it is still day" (St. John 9:4).
Homily
About the
mutual knowledge of the Father and the Son
"I know
Him, because I am from Him, and He sent Me" (St. John 7:29).
No one has
ever dared say that they know God. Many have only said that
"they believe in God." Only our Lord Jesus Christ spoke
the words: "I know Him." And immediately He explained from
where He knows Him, saying: "because I am from Him, and He sent
Me." The first reason: "I am from Him" testifies to
the eternal being of the Son; and the second reason: "And He
sent Me," testifies to the manifestation of the Son in time in
the physical world as an emissary of the Holy Trinity.
For us, who
are Christ-believing, it is not given to know the Father as His
Only-begotten Son knows Him but to us it is given and it is
commanded that we believe. Our merit is in believing and not in
knowing. If all of us knew God by seeing, no one would have any
merit. For what kind of merit is there in seeing and recognizing?
However, not to see and believe, in this is merit; in this is
virtue; in this is our salvation. We are not worthy to see God and
by seeing to know, for we are weakened by sin and alienated from
God. But, the mercy of God gave us faith in this life which is able
to bring us closer to God and to lead us into the eternal kingdom of
seeing and knowing in that life. O, my brethren, let us believe in
Christ the Lord for He knows. He does not speak by faith but by
knowing.
O Merciful
Lord, confirm the faith in us. Extend the hem of Your garment that
we may hold on to it to the end of our lives.
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February 20th (New Style) • February 7th (Old Style)
St.
Parthenius, Bishop of Lampsacus
Parthenius
was the son of a deacon from the town of Melitopolis. As a child he
remembered well the words of the Gospel and endeavored to fulfill
them. He settled in the area of a lake where he fished. He then sold
the fish and distributed the money to the poor. By God's Providence
he was chosen as bishop of Lampsacus. He cleansed the town of
paganism, closed the idolatrous temples, built many churches and
strengthened the faithful in the Faith. Through prayer, he healed
every manner of illness and he was particularly powerful over evil
spirits. On one occasion when he wanted to cast out an evil spirit
from an insane man, the evil spirit begged him not to do so.
Parthenius said to him: "I will give you another man into whom
you can enter and in him, you can dwell." The evil spirit asked
him: "Who is this man?" "I am that man," replied
the saint, "enter and dwell in me!" Upon hearing this, the
evil spirit fled as though burned by fire crying out: "How can
I enter into the house of God!" St. Parthenius lived a long
time and through his work manifested an abundant love for God and
man. Parthenius entered into the eternal rest of Christ in the
fourth century.
The
Venerable Luke of Hellas
Luke was
born in Castoria. Even as a child, he never desired to taste meat
and always conducted his life in chastity and in prayer. At one
time, Luke entered a field to sow grains of wheat, but along the way
he distributed a greater portion of the grains of wheat to the poor
and the lesser portion which was left over, he planted. From that
lesser amount of seeds of wheat, God gave him a greater harvest than
had previously come from the entire amount. After that, Luke left
his widowed mother and entered a monastery. The grieving mother
prayed earnestly to God to reveal to her the secret where her son
could be found. God heard the prayers of the mother. The abbot of
that monastery, where Luke had fled, dreamed on three consecutive
nights that a certain woman sharply rebuked him because he took away
her only son. The abbot then ordered Luke to immediately return to
his mother. Luke went, visited with his mother and once again,
parted from her without returning. He atoned on "Mount
Johannitsa," near Corinth. At night he prayed to God and during
the day he worked in the garden and in the field, not for his sake
but for the sake of the indigent and the visitors. However, Luke fed
only on bread made of barley. God bestowed upon him the gift of
working miracles. Luke died peacefully in the year 946 A.D. From
time to time, Chrism [oil] flowed from his relics.
The
Venerable Mastridia
Mastridia
lived in Jerusalem where she led an austere life of asceticism. A
certain young man fell in love with her and began to annoy her. In
order to save herself and this young man from sin, Mastridia took a
small basket of moistened berries and retreated into the wilderness.
She spent seventeen years in the wilderness and during the entire
time, by the power of God, neither did she lace berries, which she
brought, nor did her clothing wear out. Mastridia died peacefully
about the year 580 A.D.
The
One-Thousand Three Martyrs at Nicomedia
They all
suffered from Christ during the reign of Emperor Diocletian.
Reflection
St. Isidore
of Pelusium interprets certain words of Holy Scripture in this
manner: "Two [women] will be grinding at the mill; one will be
taken, and one will be left" (St. Matthew 24:4). This means
that many are dedicating themselves to the spiritual life, but with
different intentions; some sincerely and steadfastly and others
negligently and vainly. The first will be taken into the kingdom of
God and the others will be left behind. What does the prayer of the
Cup mean? And why did the Lord pray that this cup of Suffering pass
from Him? "O My Father, if this Cup cannot pass away from Me
unless I drink it, Your will be done!" (St. Matthew 26:42).
This means that no one should seek out adversity but when adversity
does come, a Christian should accept it and courageously endure it.
Concerning the Five Foolish Virgins (St. Matthew, Chapter 25), St.
Isidore says: "Indeed, all of them had retained their
virginity, but they did not possess the other virtues, especially
charity. Virginity alone is not sufficient to enter the kingdom of
God. Virginity does not help at all, if the virgin is proud and
selfish.
Contemplation
To
contemplate the Lord Jesus as a Sower:
1. As a
Sower whose seed grows slowly and surely;
2. As a
Sower of the new teaching, new power and new order;
3. As a
Sower of the new spiritual food by which mankind will be fed until
the end of time.
Homily
About the
narrow-minded, to whom crime is closer than the love of God
"But
you seek to kill Me because My word has no place in you" (St.
John 8:37).
Why was the
word of Christ unable to prevail among the Jewish elders? Because
they were so filled with malice that there was no room in them for
the divine seed; for the divine good news. All that grew in their
souls was the sowing of Satan, the Antichrist. That is why they
sought to kill Christ. Through the Blessed Psalmist, the Lord
speaks: "Empty yourselves, [desist] and know that I am
God" (Psalm 46:10). Therefore, it is necessary to empty oneself
of everything that is opposed to God, i.e., of everything in us that
hinders the light of knowledge of God from dwelling in us. When man
empties himself of that, then and only then, can he understand that
God is God. As long as the soul of man is filled with anti-godly
thoughts, anti-godly feelings and anti-godly desires, until then,
the soul of man is totally unable to listen or to receive the word
of God. Whoever does not have God within him, that one acts by some
infernal impulse to uproot God from the soul of him who possesses
Him [God]. "You seek to kill Me." Why? Because not one
divine word of Christ was able to find shelter nor acceptance in
their godless hearts. Having nothing in common with Christ the Lord,
the Jewish elders, from the beginning, were unable to have any kind
of friendly relations with Him.
O Lord
Jesus, our Blessed Savior, help us to empty ourselves of all sinful
seeds in us, that Your holy word may be able to enter into us and to
enlighten, strengthen and resurrect us.
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