Daily Devotional

Scripture Readings

Paschalion — Movable Calendar

Holy and Great Saturday

Epistle

In the Orthros

The Reading is from the First Epistle of Saint Paul to the Corinthians [§ 133]. Brethren:

Note two Readings, one from 1 Cor. 5:6-8 and Gal. 3:13, 14.

Begin with First Corinthians [§ 133]:

5 ⁶A little leaven leaveneth the whole dough. ⁷Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new dough, even as ye are unleavened. For also Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us; ⁸therefore let us be keeping festival, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened loaves of sincerity and of truth.

Conclude with Galatians [§ 206]:

3 ¹³Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it hath been written: “Cursed is everyone who hangeth on a tree [Deut. 21:23]”), ¹⁴that the blessing of Abraham might come to pass to the nations in Christ Jesus, in order that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

In the Divine Liturgy

The Reading is from the Epistle of Saint Paul to the Romans [§ 91]. Brethren:

6 ³As many as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death. ⁴Therefore we were buried with Him by the baptism into the death, that even as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, thus also we should walk in newness of life. ⁵For if we have been planted together in the likeness of His death, certainly also we shall be of the resurrection, ⁶knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be rendered inactive, in order to no longer serve sin. ⁷For the one who died hath been justified from sin. ⁸Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, ⁹knowing that Christ Who was raised from the dead dieth no more; death no longer hath dominion over Him. ¹⁰For the death which He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life which He liveth, He liveth to God. ¹¹Thus reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Gospel

In the Orthros

The Reading is from the Holy Gospel according to Saint Matthew [§ 114].

27 ⁶²On the morrow, which is after the preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees were gathered together to Pilate, ⁶³saying, “Sir, we were reminded that that deceiver said while He was yet alive, ‘I am being raised after three days.’ ⁶⁴“Command therefore that the tomb be made secure until the third day, lest perchance His disciples come by night and steal Him, and say to the people, ‘He was raised from the dead’; and the last deceit shall be worse than the first.” ⁶⁵And Pilate said to them, “Ye have a guard; go your way and make it as secure for yourselves as ye know how.” ⁶⁶And they went and made the tomb secure, having sealed the stone with the guard being present.

In the Liturgy

The Reading is from the Holy Gospel according to Saint Matthew [§ 115].

28 ¹Late on the sabbath, at the dawning toward the first day of the week, there came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the tomb. ²And behold, a great earthquake occurred; for an angel of the Lord descended out of heaven, and came and rolled away the stone from the door, and sat upon it. ³And his appearance was as lightning, and his garment white as snow. ⁴And those keeping guard, because of their fear of him, were shaken and became as dead men. ⁵And the angel answered and said to the women, “Cease being afraid, for I know that ye seek Jesus Who hath been crucified. ⁶“He is not here; for He was raised, even as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord was lying. ⁷“And go quickly and say to His disciples that He was raised from the dead. And behold, He goeth before you into Galilee; there shall ye see Him. Behold, I have told you.” ⁸And they went out quickly from the sepulcher with fear and great joy, and ran to bring tidings to His disciples. ⁹But as they were going to bring tidings to His disciples, then behold, Jesus met them, saying, “Rejoice ye.” And they approached and laid hold of His feet, and made obeisance to Him. ¹⁰Then Jesus saith to them, “Cease being frightened. Go and bring tidings to My brethren that they should go into Galilee, and there shall they see Me.” ¹¹Now when they were going, behold, some of the guard came into the city and reported to the chief priests all the things that came to pass. ¹²And after they were gathered together with the elders and took counsel, they gave a considerable amount of money to the soldiers, ¹³saying, “Say, ‘His disciples came by night and stole Him while we were sleeping.’ ¹⁴“And if this should be heard before the governor, we will persuade him and make you free from care.” ¹⁵And they took the money and did as they were taught. And this report was spread abroad by the Jews until today.

¹⁶Now the eleven disciples went into Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus appointed them. ¹⁷And having seen Him, they made obeisance to Him; but some doubted. ¹⁸And Jesus approached and spoke to them, saying, “All authority is given to Me in heaven and on earth. ¹⁹“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰“teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I commanded you; and behold, I am with you all the days until the completion of the age.” Amen.

Menaion — Fixed Calendar

The commemoration of the holy Martyrs Claudius, Diodoros, Victor, Victorinos, Pappias, Nikephoros, and Serapion, and the holy Martyrs Theodoulos, Agathopodes, and those with them.

No readings given.

Lives of the Saints (Prologue)

April 18th – Civil Calendar
April 5th – Church Calendar

1. The Holy Martyrs Agathopous and Theodulus.

Agathopous, adorned with the white hairs of age, was a deacon and Theodulus, with the chastity of youth, was a reader in the Church in Thessalonica. In the time of Diocletian’s hunting of Christians, these two were summoned for trial. They went there joyfully, and each holding the other by the hand, went in crying: ‘We are Christians!’ The whole court’s urging them to deny Christ and worship idols was in vain. After long imprisonment and starvation, they were condemned to death by drowning in the sea. Their hands were bound behind them and a large stone tied to their necks, and they were taken off to be drowned. When they went to throw Agathopous into the depths, he cried out: ‘Lo, by second Baptism we are washed from all our sins, and will go cleansed to Christ Jesus!’ The sea quickly threw their drowned bodies onto the shore, and Christians gave them burial. St. Theodulus appeared to his friends in the form of a shining angel in white raiment and commanded them to distribute all his remaining goods to the poor. These great soldiers of Christ suffered with honor under the Emperor Diocletian and Faustinus the governor of Thessalonica, in the year 303.

2. Our Holy Father Mark of Trache.

He is also known as ‘the Athenian’ because Athens was his birthplace. When he had finished his higher schooling in Athens, his parents died. He pondered within himself on the inevitability of death, and that one must prepare in good time for a holy departure from this world. He gave his goods away to the poor and seated himself on a plank in the sea, with profound faith in God’s help and the prayer that God would lead him wherever He desired. And, by the providence of God, he was kept safe and taken to Libya (or Ethiopia), to a mountain called Trache. Mark lived in asceticism on that mountain for ninety-five years, seeing neither man nor beast. For thirty whole years he had an intense struggle with evil sprits, and was tormented by hunger and thirst, cold and heat. He ate earth and drank sea-water. After thirty years of the most intense sufferings, the conquered demons fled from him and angels of God started bringing him food every day in the form of bread, fish and fruit. St. Serapion visited him just before his death, and later recorded the wonderful life of this saint. Mark was asking Serapion if there were in the world any Christians who could say to the mountain they were on: ‘Get up and cast yourself into the sea,’ and it would do so. At that moment the mountain began to move like a wave. But Mark raised a hand and quieted it, such being the miraculous power of this man of God. At the time of his death, he prayed for the salvation of all men and gave his soul into God’s hands. St. Serapion saw an angel bearing Mark’s soul, and a hand extended from heaven to receive it. St. Mark lived for a hundred and thirty years and entered into rest in about 400.

FOR CONSIDERATION

‘Live as though you were out of this world, and you will have peace.’ Thus St. Anthony spoke to his disciple. This is a strange teaching, but a true one. We experience the greatest trouble and unease in ourselves when we feel ourselves more and more to be in this world. But, the more a man withdraws from the world, the more often he contemplates this world as existing without him and the more strongly, in his thoughts, he ponders on the utter needlessness of his presence in this world, so much the closer will he stay to God and so much the deeper will be the spiritual peace that he will have. ‘I die daily’ (I Cor 15:31), says the Apostle Paul. That is, I feel every day that I am not in this world. But, because of this, he feels himself every day in spirit a citizen of heaven. When the torturer Faustinus asked St. Theodulus: ‘Isn’t life better than a harsh death?’ St. Theodulus replied: ‘Indeed, I bear in mind that life is better than death; and have therefore decided to scorn this mortal and transitory life on earth that I might be a partaker of life immortal.’

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.