Daily Devotional

Scripture Readings

Paschalion — Movable Calendar

Tuesday of the Sixth Week

Epistle

The Reading is from the Acts of the Apostles [§ mid 40]. In those days:

17 ¹⁹The Athenians, having taken hold of Paul, led him to the Areopagos, saying, “May we come to know what this new teaching is which is spoken by thee? ²⁰“For thou bringest in certain surprising things to our ears. We wish therefore to know what these things may mean.” ²¹Now all Athenians and the strangers living there have leisure for nothing else other than to say something and to hear newer things. ²²And Paul stood in the midst of the Areopagos, and said, “Men, Athenians, I perceive how in all things ye are most religious. ²³“For passing through and carefully observing the objects of your veneration, I also found an altar on which it had been written: ‘To an unknown God.’ Therefore since ye know not Whom ye reverence, I proclaim this One to you. ²⁴“The God Who made the world and all things in it, this same One, being Lord of heaven and of earth, dwelleth not in temples made by hand; ²⁵“neither is He being serviced to by the hands of men, as though in need of anything, because He Himself giveth to all life, and breath, in all respects. ²⁶“And He made of one blood every nation of mankind, to dwell on all the face of the earth, having determined preappointed seasons and the boundaries of their dwelling, ²⁷“to seek the Lord, if perhaps they might feel about for Him and find Him, though indeed He is not far from each one of us. ²⁸“For in Him we live, and move, and exist.”

Gospel

The Reading is from the Holy Gospel according to Saint John [§ 42]. At that time:

12 ¹⁹The Pharisees took counsel against Jesus, and said among themselves, “Observe ye that ye profit nothing? Behold, the world hath gone away after Him.”

²⁰And there were certain Greeks from among those going up that they might do reverence at the feast. ²¹Then these came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida of Galilee, and asked him, saying, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” ²²Philip cometh and telleth Andrew, and again Andrew and Philip tell Jesus. ²³But Jesus answered them, saying, “The hour hath come that the Son of Man should be glorified. ²⁴“Verily, verily, I say to you, unless the grain of the wheat that falleth into the earth should die, it abideth alone; but if it should die, it beareth much fruit. ²⁵“The one who loveth his life shall lose it; and the one who hateth his life in this world shall keep it to life eternal. ²⁶“If anyone serve Me, let him keep on following Me; and where I am, there My servant shall be also. And if anyone serve Me, the Father shall honor him. ²⁷“Now My soul hath been troubled; and what shall I say? ‘Father, save Me from this hour’; but on this account I came to this hour. ²⁸“Father, glorify Thy name.” Then a voice came out of the heaven: “I both glorified it and will glorify it again.” ²⁹The crowd then that stood by and heard it was saying that thunder had occurred; others were saying, “An angel hath spoken to Him.” ³⁰Jesus answered and said, “This voice hath not occurred for My sake, but for your sakes. ³¹“Now is a judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world shall be cast out. ³²“And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all to Myself.” ³³But He was saying this, signifying by what manner of death He was about to die. ³⁴The crowd answered Him, “We heard out of the law that the Christ abideth forever; and how sayest Thou, ‘The Son of Man must be lifted up’? Who is this Son of Man?” ³⁵Then Jesus said to them, “Yet a little while is the light with you. Be walking while ye have the light, that darkness might not overtake you; and indeed the one who walketh in the darkness knoweth not where he goeth. ³⁶“While ye have the light, keep on believing in the light, that ye might become sons of light.”

Menaion — Fixed Calendar

The commemoration of the holy Martyr Vasiliskos of Comana.

No readings given.

Lives of the Saints (Prologue)

June 4th – Civil Calendar
May 22nd – Church Calendar

1. The Holy Martyr Vasiliskos.

A kinsman of St. Theodore the Tyro, he was martyred together with Eftropios and Kleonikos (March 3rd). When these two were crucified and gave up the spirit, Vasiliskos was taken back to prison. A change of governors occurring at this time, Vasiliskos remained a long time confined in prison. He besought God with tears that He would not deprive him of a martyr’s death for His sake. After he had prayed at length, the Lord Jesus appeared to him and promised to fulfill his desire, sending him to his village to say farewell to his mother and brothers. Thereupon the new governor, Agrippa, arrived and sent to have Vasiliskos brought from the village immediately. On the way to the city of Amaseia, the Lord worked great wonders through His martyr, bringing many of the people to faith in Christ. Agrippa ordered the martyr to offer sacrifice to Apollyon. ‘“Apollyon” means “Destroyer”,’ said Vasiliskos, and with fervent prayer, he knocked the idol to dust and burned the temple with fire from heaven. The terrified Agrippa attributed this all to magic, and ordered that Vasiliskos be beheaded with the sword. Agrippa immediately became insane, and in his madness, went to the place of execution, found a little of the martyr’s blood in the dust and smeared it on himself under his belt, being restored to health by it. Having come to his senses, he was baptized. Later, a certain Marinus, a citizen of Comana (the place of Vasiliskos’ execution) built a church over the martyr’s relics, and many of the sick found healing there.

2. The Holy Martyr John (Jovan) Vladimir, King of Serbia.

He came of a princely family from Zahumlje. His grandfather was named Hvalimir and his father Petrislav. He was a wise ruler—merciful, meek, chaste and courageous. He was fervent in prayer and a devoted builder and benefactor of churches. But he had major battles to fight, both inside and outside his realm; internally with heretics and Bogomils, and externally with invaders, with King Samuel of Bulgaria and the Emperor Basil. Samuel captured him by guile and threw him into prison. While he was in prison, an angel of God appeared to him and foretold that he would soon be released from prison, but that he would die a martyr’s death. Getting to know Vladimir better, Samuel became attached to him and gave him his daughter Kosara in marriage. When Samuel died, his son Radomir became king, but his twin brother Radislav killed him and then summoned Vladimir on some pretext and beheaded him as well, in 1015. The relics of this holy martyr-king are preserved incorrupt in his monastery near Elbasan, and numerous wonders have been worked over them through the ages and to this day. In 1925, a church was built to this royal martyr near the monastery of St. Naum, which famous monastery he founded.

3. The Second Ecumenical Council.

This council was held in Constantinople in 381, in the time of the Emperor Theodosios the Great. Its purpose was to confirm the teaching of the Orthodox Church about the Holy Spirit. Makedonios (Macedonius), Bishop of Constantinople (d. 362), had taught wrongly that the Holy Spirit is God’s creature and not a divine Person, equal to the Persons of the Father and the Son and one in being with Them. Makedonios was condemned by this council and the Nicene Creed was amplified with teaching on the Holy Spirit.

4. Holy and Righteous Melchisedek, King of Salem.

He was a contemporary of our forefather Abraham. According to the Apostle Paul, he was, as king and priest, a type of the Lord Jesus (Heb. 7).

FOR CONSIDERATION

How was Moses able to fast for forty days? How were many Christian ascetics able to live, and live long, with prolonged periods of abstinence from food and drink? A carnal man, unacquainted with the spiritual life, finds this impossible to believe. It is impossible to prove it to him, for it can be understood only from experience. When St. Vasiliskos’ torturers left him for three days without food or water, and then urged him to eat, he refused, saying that he was not hungry. ‘I am,’ he said, ‘filled with immortal nourishment and will not receive mortal food. Earthly bread feeds you, but I am fed by the heavenly word of God; the universe gives you wine, but I receive the grace of the Holy Spirit. You are nourished by meat, but I by fasting; bodily power strengthens you, but me the Cross of Christ; gold enriches you, but me the love of Christ; clothing beautifies you, but me good works. You are made merry by laughter, but I am comforted in my spirit through prayer.’ Behold this man, one of many, in whom the words of Christ are confirmed: ‘Man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God’ (Matt. 4:4).

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.