Daily Devotional

Scripture Readings

Paschalion — Movable Calendar

Monday of the Fifth Week

Epistle

The Reading is from the Acts of the Apostles [§ 30]. In those days:

12 ¹²Peter came to the house of Mary, the mother of John who was surnamed Mark, where a considerable number of them were gathered together and praying. ¹³And after Peter knocked at the door of the gateway, a maidservant, by name Rhoda, came to hearken. ¹⁴And having recognized the voice of Peter, from her joy she did not open the gateway, but she ran in and announced that Peter stood before the gateway. ¹⁵And they said to her, “Thou art mad.” But she was strongly affirming that it was so. And they kept on saying, “It is his angel.” ¹⁶But Peter continued knocking. And after they opened, they saw him and were amazed. ¹⁷And having motioned to them with his hand to be silent, he set out in detail to them how the Lord brought him out of the prison. And he said, “Relate these things to Iakovos and to the brethren.” And going out, he went to another place.

Gospel

The Reading is from the Holy Gospel according to Saint John [§ 32]. The Lord said to those Jews who had come to Him:

8 ⁴²“If God were your Father, ye would love Me; for I came forth out of God and am come; for neither have I come of Myself, but that One sent Me forth. ⁴³“Why do ye not understand My speech? Because ye are not able to hear My word. ⁴⁴“Ye are of your father, the devil, and the desires of your father ye wish to do. That one was a manslayer from the beginning, and hath not stood in the truth, because there is no truth in him. Whenever he may speak the lie, he speaketh out of the things which are his own; for he is a liar and the father of it. ⁴⁵“And because I speak the truth, ye believe Me not. ⁴⁶“Which of you reproveth Me concerning sin? But if I speak truth, why do ye not believe Me? ⁴⁷“The one who is of God heareth the words of God; on this account ye hear not, because ye are not of God.” ⁴⁸Then the Jews answered and said to Him, “We say well, do we not, that Thou art a Samaritan and hast a demon?” ⁴⁹Jesus answered, “I have not a demon; but I honor My Father, and ye dishonor Me. ⁵⁰“And I seek not Mine own glory; there is One Who seeketh and judgeth. ⁵¹“Verily, verily, I say to you, if anyone should keep My word, he in no wise shall ever see death.”

Menaion — Fixed Calendar

The commemoration of our venerable Mother Elisabeth the Wonder-worker of Constantinople, and the Martyr Savvas the General of Rome and 70 soldiers with him.

No readings given.

Lives of the Saints (Prologue)

May 7th – Civil Calendar
April 24th – Church Calendar

1. The Holy Martyr Savvas Stratelates.

This famous Savvas lived in Rome in the time of the Emperor Aurelian, and held a general’s rank. He was of a noble Gothic family. He often visited Christians in prison, helping them from his abundance. Through his great purity and fasting, God gave him power over unclean spirits. When he was charged with being a Christian, he stood courageously before the emperor, cast his officer’s belt before him and publicly confessed Christ the Lord. He was tortured in various ways: flogged, flailed with iron rods, burned with torches. But he did not succumb to these deadly tortures, and was seen to be alive and well. His comrades, the soldiers, seeing clearly that God was helping Savvas, accepted the Christian Faith, and seventy of them were immediately beheaded at the emperor’s command. Christ the Lord Himself appeared to Savvas in the prison in great light, and strengthened His martyr. Then Savvas was condemned to death by drowning. He was thrown into a deep river, where he gave his soul to God in the year 272. And his soul went to the Lord to Whom he had remained faithful under many tortures.

2. Our Holy Mother Elisabeth

She embraced monasticism in early youth in the monastery of Ss. Kosmas and Damian in Constantinople, and took on herself a heavy asceticism for the sake of Christ the Lord and of her soul. She regarded herself as the bride of Christ, and this world as illusory. From her great love for God flowed a great compassion for people, especially for the sick and suffering. By the gift she had received from God, she healed many diseases and much distress among the people. At her nightly prayers she was seen all illuminated with heavenly light. And after her death, her relics had the power of healing, and many of the sick and suffering have come to her grave through the ages. She entered peacefully into rest and went to the eternal joy of her Lord in the year 540.

3. The Holy Martyrs Evsevios, Neon, Leontios and Longinos.

These four were army comrades of St. George. Seeing the courageous endurance and marvels of the saint, they became Christians and were consequently beheaded.

4. The Holy Martyrs Pasikratees and Valention.

When the judge urged Pasikratees (Pasicrates), and also the martyr’s brother, Papianos (who had fallen away from Christ through fear of torture) to offer sacrifice to idols, Pasikratees put his hand into the fire and cried: ‘The body is dead and burned by fire, but the soul is immortal and does not feel visible torture.’ His mother upheld him and greatly encouraged him to endure to the end. He was beheaded along with Valention (Valentine), and they both went to the kingdom of Christ in about 302.

5. Our Holy Father Thomas the Fool for Christ.

Whenever, in his monastic work, he had to go into the city of Antioch, Thomas feigned madness for the sake of Christ. A certain Anastasios, refusing to give him the requested alms for the monastery, gave him a blow instead. Then Thomas prophesied: ‘From now on, I shall receive nothing from Anastasios, nor will Anastasios be able to give anything.’ One day later, Anastasios died; and Thomas also, about to return to the monastery, gave up the spirit. And so the prophecy of this holy man was fulfilled. St. Thomas departed this life in Laphnis near Antioch, in the time of Patriarch Domnos (546-560).

6. The Holy New-Martyrs Luke and Nicholas

The young man Luke (or Doukas), a tailor by profession, suffered for Christ in 1546, and Nicholas in 1776.

FOR CONSIDERATION

Exhorting Christians to come to church for prayer, St. John Chrysostom says: ‘If a messenger brings an imperial or princely document to a subject citizen, the citizen does not examine the life of the bearer, whether he is rich or poor, righteous or sinful, but listens carefully to what he reads. If anyone has not heard him, he asks someone who has. So, if you have such enormous respect for an earthly ruler, how necessary it is to listen to us priests, here where the Creator of the heavenly powers speaks through us sinners.’ And, indeed, what are the holy Scriptures but documents of the King of heaven? How can it not interest us every day and every hour, that unique and saving document, when the least decree of the lowest authority in the state interests us? St. Anthony says: ‘Let all that you do be justified in holy Scripture.’ But how can you have justification from holy Scripture if you do not know the Scriptures?

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.