Daily Devotional

Scripture Readings

Paschalion — Movable Calendar

Wednesday of the Second Week

Epistle

The Reading is from the Acts of the Apostles [§ 11]. In those days:

4 ¹³When the Jews saw the boldness of Peter and John, and comprehended for themselves that they were unlettered and laymen, they kept on wondering and began to recognize them that they were with Jesus. ¹⁴And seeing the man who was healed standing with them, they kept on having nothing to gainsay. ¹⁵But after they commanded them to go outside the council, they were conferring with one another, ¹⁶saying, “What shall we do to these men? For, indeed, that a notable sign hath come to pass through them is manifest to all those inhabiting Jerusalem, and we are not able to deny it. ¹⁷“But in order that it might not spread further among the people, let us forbid them with a threat to no longer speak in this name to any man.” ¹⁸And they called them, and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus. ¹⁹But Peter and John answered and said to them, “Whether it is right before the face of God to hearken to you rather than God, judge ye. ²⁰“For we cannot but speak the things which we saw and heard.” ²¹Now after they further threatened them, they released them, finding nothing how they might punish them, because of the people; for all were glorifying God for that which had taken place. ²²For the man upon whom this sign of healing had taken place was more than forty years old.

Gospel

The Reading is from the Holy Gospel according to Saint John [§ 15]. The Lord said to the Jews who had come to Him:

5 ¹⁷“My Father worketh until now, and I work.” ¹⁸On this account therefore the Jews were seeking the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the sabbath, but was also calling God His own Father, making Himself equal to God. ¹⁹Then Jesus answered and said to them, “Verily, verily, I say to you, the Son is not able to do anything of Himself, unless He see the Father doing anything; for whatsoever that One may do, these things also the Son is doing in like manner. ²⁰“For the Father loveth the Son, and showeth Him all things which He Himself doeth; and He will show Him greater works than these, that ye may wonder. ²¹“For even as the Father raiseth up the dead and maketh alive, thus also the Son maketh alive whom He will. ²²“For the Father judgeth no one, but hath given all judgment to the Son, ²³“in order that all may honor the Son, even as they are honoring the Father. The one who honoreth not the Son honoreth not the Father Who sent Him. ²⁴“Verily, verily, I say to you, that the one who heareth My word and believeth the One Who sent Me hath everlasting life, and cometh not into judgment, but hath passed over out of death into life.”

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.