Daily Devotional

Scripture Readings

Paschalion — Movable Calendar

The Sunday of the Antipascha (The Sunday After Pascha)

The Sunday of the Holy Apostle Thomas

Mode One — First Eothinon

Epistle

The Reading is from the Acts of the Apostles [§ 14]. In those days:

5 ¹²Through the hands of the apostles many signs and wonders were being wrought among the people. And they were all with one accord in the porch of Solomon. ¹³And of the rest not even one was daring to be joined to them, but the people were magnifying them. ¹⁴And more believers were being added to the Lord, multitudes both of men and of women, ¹⁵insomuch that they carried out the sick into the streets and laid them upon beds and pallets, in order that at least the shadow of Peter as he came might overshadow some of them. ¹⁶And also the multitude kept on coming together out of the cities round about to Jerusalem, bearing sick people and those who were troubled by unclean spirits—all of whom were being healed.

¹⁷Then the high priest rose up and all those with him (the sect which is of the Sadducees), and were full of jealousy, ¹⁸and laid their hands on the apostles and put them in state custody. ¹⁹But an angel of the Lord during the night opened the doors of the prison and led them out, and said, ²⁰“Go and take a stand in the temple, and be speaking to the people all the words of this life.”

Gospel

The Reading is from the Holy Gospel according to Saint John [§ 65].

20 ¹⁹When it was evening on that day, the first of the week—and the doors were closed where the disciples were gathered together for fear of the Jews—Jesus came and stood in the midst, and saith to them, “Peace be to you.” ²⁰And after He said this, He showed them His hands and His side. Then were the disciples glad, after they saw the Lord. ²¹Then Jesus said to them again, “Peace be to you; even as the Father hath sent Me forth, I also send you.” ²²And after He said this, He breathed on them, and saith to them, “Receive ye the Holy Spirit: ²³“if ye forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven to them; if ye retain the sins of any, they are retained.” ²⁴But Thomas, one of the twelve, who is called Didymos, was not with them when Jesus came. ²⁵The other disciples therefore were saying to him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I should see in His hands the mark of the nails, and put my finger into the mark of the nails, and put my hand into His side, in no wise will I believe.” ²⁶And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Then cometh Jesus, the doors having been shut, and He stood in the midst, and said, “Peace be to you.” ²⁷Then He saith to Thomas, “Bring thy finger here, and behold My hands; and bring thy hand, and put it into My side. And cease being unbelieving, but believing.” ²⁸And Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God.” ²⁹Jesus said to him, “Because thou hast seen Me, thou hast believed; blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed.”

³⁰Then indeed Jesus also did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; ³¹but these things have been written that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing ye may have life in His name.

Menaion — Fixed Calendar

The commemoration of our holy father among the saints, George, Bishop of Mitylene, and the holy Martyr Kalliopios.

No readings given.

Lives of the Saints (Prologue)

April 20th – Civil Calendar
April 7th – Church Calendar

1. St. George the Confessor.

For his great virtues, which he acquired through long asceticism, George was chosen and installed as Metropolitan of Mytilene. And this saint governed his flock with zeal and wisdom to old age. But when a persecution arose under Leo V, the Armenian, who destroyed the holy icons, this holy elder was summoned by the emperor to Constantinople, to the council of bishops which was summoned, at the emperor’s desire, to put a stop to the veneration of icons. But George not only refused to act according to the emperor’s desire; he, together with some other courageous bishops, stood up in defence of the holy icons. For this he was held in derision by the emperor and exiled to the region of Cherson, where, in physical pain and every sort of need, he spent the remainder of his earthly life. He died and went to immortal life in about 816. He was a wonder-worker both during his life and after his death, through his great righteousness and love for the Lord Jesus.

2. Our Holy Father Nil Sorsky.

One of the great fathers of the Russian Church, he was the founder of the monastic ‘skete’ way of life in Russia. He died peacefully in 1508, and his relics are preserved in the monastery at Sora. His rule of life in the sketes presents a spiritual and pragmatic work of the first order.

3. The Holy Martyr Calliopus (Kalliopios).

He was the only son, obtained from God with tears, of a senator of Perga in Pamphylia. His devout mother, Theoklea, taught him veneration of God and purity of life at an early age. Calliopus was still very young when a terrible persecution arose under the Emperor Maximian. To save him from death, his mother put him into a ship, gave him a sufficient sum of money and sent him off to the city of Pompeiopolis. But things turned out differently, by the providence of God. Disembarking at Pompeiopolis, Calliopus walked straight into some tumultuous pantheistic celebration. When he, in the press of the crazed mob, refused to take part in that senseless feast, he was brought to the commander, Maximus, to whom he confessed that he was a Christian. The commander ordered that he be beaten with iron staves, burned by fire and finally, wounded all over, thrown into prison. Hearing of the torture of her son, his mother, Theoklea, gave away all her goods to the poor and needy, and with a small sum of money, hurried to her son’s prison. Entering the prison, she bowed to her son and bound up his wounds. Finally, the commander pronounced the sentence that Calliopus be crucified. Joy and anguish were mingled together in his mother’s heart. When they led her son to the place of execution, she passed the executioner five gold pieces to crucify her son, not like the Lord, but upside-down. This she did from humility towards the Lord. Calliopus was crucified, upside-down, on Holy Thursday, and his mother stood below the cross giving thanks to God. When they took his dead body down from the cross the next day, she fell on it and breathed her last. Thus these two went to stand before the throne of the King of glory. They suffered with honor in 304.

4. Our Holy Father Daniel of Pereyaslavl.

He had as his special asceticism the care of the dead. Whenever he heard that someone had frozen to death or died in some other way, he hurried to give him burial and to pray to God for him. He died peacefully in 1540. His healing relics are preserved to this day.

5. Our Holy Father Gregory the Sinaite.

A great saint and ascetic of Sinai and Athos (see August 8th).

FOR CONSIDERATION

‘Those in spiritual authority must be careful to differentiate between themselves and those under them, as a shepherd must between himself and his sheep.’ So speaks St. Isidore of Pelusium, interpreting the First Epistle to St. Timothy. The life of a priest always serves as an example, whether for good or for ill. By a good life, a priest confirms the Gospel, and denies it by a bad one. No one else is in such a position to confirm or deny the Gospel as is a priest by his life. A good priest is differentiated by his actions from a bad priest, no less than a shepherd from a wolf. Therefore the portion of the good priest will be with the sons of God, and that of the bad with the wild beasts in darkness. Good shepherds of the Church, even at the moment of their last breath, were concerned for the flock that they were leaving behind them. On his deathbed, St. Joseph the Hymnographer prayed to God: ‘Defend Thy flock, O Son of God, and protect all the works of Thy hands to the end of time. Be Thou a helper of the beloved sons of Thy Church. Give to Thy Bride (the holy Church) eternal peace and stormless quiet.’ And St. Antipas, burning in a red-hot copper ox, prayed to God: ‘Not for myself alone, but for those who will, after me, become partakers of Thy mercy.’

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.