Orthodox Lives of The Saints and Feasts by month (Links)

[Jude1:3Contendforthefaith]

August 19

Lives of the Saints


• Afterfeast of the Dormition of the Mother of God

On the fourth day of the Afterfeast of the Dormition, the Church continues to honor the passage of the Most Holy Theotokos from death to life. Just as Christ once dwelt in the virginal womb of His Mother, now He takes Her “to dwell in His courts.”

• THE HOLY MARTYR ANDREW, STRATELATES [THE TRIBUNE, THE COMMANDER]

Andrew was an officer, a tribune, in the Roman army during the reign of Emperor Maximian. He was a Syrian by birth, and served in Syria. When the Persians menaced the Roman Empire with their military, Andrew was entrusted to command the imperial army in defense against the enemy. Therefore, Andrew was promoted to the rank of general--"Stratelates." Secretly a Christian, even though he was not baptized, Andrew trusted in the Living God and chose only the best of the many soldiers to enter into battle. Before the battle, he told his soldiers that if they would call upon the help of the one, true God--Christ the Lord--their enemies would scatter as dust before them. Truly, all the soldiers were filled with zeal for Andrew and his faith, and invoked Christ for assistance; then they made the assault. The Persian army was utterly destroyed. When the victorious Andrew returned to Antioch, envious men accused Andrew of being a Christian, and the imperial deputy summoned him to court. Andrew openly confessed his unwavering faith in Christ. After bitterly torturing him, the deputy threw Andrew into prison and wrote to the emperor in Rome. Knowing the respect in which the people and the army held Andrew, the emperor ordered the deputy to free Andrew, and to seek another opportunity and reason to kill him. Through God's revelation, Andrew learned of the emperor's command, and, taking with him his faithful soldiers, 2,593 in number, he departed to Tarsus in Cilicia, where all were baptized by Bishop Peter. Persecuted even there by the imperial authorities, Andrew and his detachment withdrew further into the Armenian Mount Taurus. The Roman army caught up with them there while they were at prayer in a ravine, and all of them were beheaded. None of them tried to defend themselves, but all were desirous of a martyr's death for Christ. On this spot, where the stream of the martyr's blood flowed, a spring of healing water burst forth, which cured many people of every disease. Bishop Peter secretly brought his people and honorably buried the bodies of the martyrs where they had been slain. Dying honorably, they were all crowned with the wreath of glory and took up their habitation in the Kingdom of Christ our Lord.

• THE VENERABLE THEOPHANES

Theophanes was born in Ioannia. As a young man, he left all and went to Mt. Athos, where he was tonsured a monk in the community of Dochiariou. He was an example to all the monks in fasting, prayer, all-night vigils, and depriving himself of all that was unnecessary. Because of this, he was eventually elected abbot. Later, because of a disagreement with the monks, he and his nephew left Mt. Athos for Berea [Beroea] in Macedonia, where he established a monastery in honor of the All-holy Theotokos. When this monastery blossomed with spiritual life, Theophanes entrusted its governance to his nephew. He then went to Naousa, where he established another monastery in honor of the Holy Archangels. Theophanes died peacefully in the fifteenth century. His miracle-working relics repose in Naousa, and even now manifest the great power of God.

• THE HOLY MARTYRS TIMOTHY, AGAPIUS AND THECLA

All three were martyred for Christ during the reign of the wicked Emperor Diocletian. Timothy was burned alive, and Agapius and Thecla were thrown to wild beasts.

• Martyrs Florus and Laurus of Illyria (2nd c.)

"Brothers in both the flesh and the spirit, they were both zealous Christians, and stonemasons by craft. They lived in Illyria. Some pagan prince set them to build a pagan temple. It happened during the course of their work that a fragment of stone splintered off and flew into the eye of the pagan priest's son, who was watching the building work with curiosity. Seeing his son blinded and bleeding, the priest shouted at Florus and Laurus and tried to thrash them. Then the holy brothers told him that, if he would believe in the God in whom they believed, his son would be restored to health. The priest promised. Florus and Laurus prayed to the one, living Lord with tears and made the sign of the Cross over the child's stricken eye. The child was healed instantly and his eye became whole as it had been before. Then the priest, Merentius, and his son were baptised, and they both very soon suffered for Christ in the flames. But Florus and Laurus, when they had finished the temple, put a Cross on it, called together all the Christians, and consecrated it in the name of the Lord Jesus with an all-night vigil of hymns. Hearing of this, the governor of Illyria burned many of these Christians by fire and had Florus and Laurus thrown alive into a well, which was then filled with earth. Their relics were later discovered and taken to Constantinople. These two wonderful brothers suffered for Christ, and were glorified by Him, in the second century." (Prologue)

• Our Holy Father John, Abbot of Rila (946 A.D.)

He was born near Sophia in Bulgaria during the reign of the Emperor Boris. When his parents died he withdrew from the world to a cave high in the mountains, where he gave himself to the ascetical struggle. There the Prologue says that he 'endured many assaults both by demons and men, from robbers and from his kinsmen.' In time he moved to the mountain of Rila, where he lived in a hollow tree, eating only the wild herbs and fruits there. On Rila he saw no human being for many years, but was eventually discovered by a shepherd, after which his fame spread quickly: many came to him for counsel and for the healing of diseases, and Peter, King of Bulgaria, visited him for advice. Many people seeking their salvation settled near him, and soon a church and monastery developed around him. St John reposed in 946 and appeared to his disciples after his death. His relics are venerated at the monastery of Rila, which has for centuries been a lighthouse of Orthodox spirituality in Bulgaria.

• Saint Pitirim, Bishop of Perm

Saint Pitirim, Bishop of Perm


• Intercession of the “Don” Icon of the Mother of God against the Tatars Attack

Intercession of the “Don” Icon of the Mother of God against the Tatars Attack

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[Jude1:3Contendforthefaith]

August 20

Lives of the Saints


• Afterfeast of the Dormition of the Mother of God

The Church continues to honor the passage of the Most Holy Theotokos from death to life. Just as Christ once dwelt in the virginal womb of His Mother, now He takes Her “to dwell in His courts.”

• THE HOLY PROPHET SAMUEL

Samuel was the fifteenth and last judge of Israel. He lived eleven hundred years before Christ. Samuel was born of the tribe of Levi, of the parents Elkanah and Hannah, in a place called Ramatha (or Arimathea), where noble Joseph would later be born [Joseph of Arimathea]. Through weeping, the barren Hannah besought from God the child Samuel and dedicated him to God when he was three years of age. Living in Shiloh, near the Ark of the Covenant, Samuel had a true revelation from God in his twelfth year, concerning the punishments that were pending for the house of the high priest Eli because of the immorality of his sons Hophni and Phineas. That revelation soon materialized: the Philistines defeated the Israelites, slew both of Eli's sons, and captured the Ark of the Covenant. When the messenger informed Eli of this tragedy, Eli fell to the ground dead, in the ninety-eighth year of his life. The same thing occurred to his daughter-in-law, the wife of Phineas. For twenty years, the Israelites were the slaves of the Philistines. After that, God sent Samuel to the people to preach repentance--if they desired salvation from their enemies. The people repented, rejected the pagan idols that they served, and recognized Samuel as a prophet, priest and judge. Samuel then set out with an army against the Philistines. With God's help he confused and defeated them, and liberated Israel. After that, Samuel peacefully judged his people until old age. Considering his old age, the people asked him to install a king for them in his place. In vain, Samuel tried to dissuade them from this, saying to them that God was their only true King, but the people stubbornly insisted. Even though this was not pleasing to God, He commanded Samuel to annoint Saul, the son of Kish from the tribe of Benjamin, as their king. Saul reigned for a short time only, before God rejected Saul because of his impudence and disobedience. God then commanded Samuel to annoint Jesse's son, David, as king in Saul's place. Before his death, Samuel gathered the entire people and bid them farewell. When Samuel died, all of Israel mourned for him, and they buried him honorably in his house at Ramatha.

• THE PRIESTLY-MARTYR PHILIP, BISHOP OF HERACLION, WITH SEVERUS THE PRESBYTER, AND HERMES THE DEACON

It seem certain that they were Slavs. They served God in Thrace, and there they were first given over to tortures for Christ. When the pagans rushed to set fire to a Christian church, the brave Philip said to their leaders: "Do you think that God is enclosed within these walls? He lives in our hearts." The church was destroyed, all the books burned, and these clergy were taken to Jedrene where, after imprisonment and tortures, they were thrown half-burnt into the Maritsa River. Thirty-eight other Christians also died with them as martyrs. It is thought that they suffered and died during the reign of Diocletian

• Martyrs Heliodorus and Dosa of Persia
The Martyrs Heliodorus and Dosa suffered for Christ in Persia under the emperor Sapor II, in the year 380.


• Martyr Lucius

The Martyr Lucius, a senator, was beheaded by the sword on the island of Crete in the year 310 for confessing his faith in Christ.

• Holy New Martyr Theocharis

In the year 1740 Sultan Ahmed and Ibrahim Pasha, the governor of Asia Minor, a decree was issued that Christian boys should be placed in concentration camps. The orphan Theocharis was among them. On a certain day, however, the judge of Neapolis (Nevsehir) in Cappadocia, saw Theocharis in the camp, he liked him, and brought him home to care for his animals.

Theocharis’s piety and comeliness prompted the judge to suggest that he become his son-in-law, after first becoming a Moslem. Theocharis answered courageously, “My master, I was born a Christian, and I cannot deny the faith of my Savior and of my fathers.” The Ottoman judge considered the answer to be offensive and threatened him with torture, and then he sentenced him to death by starvation. Theocharis went to church to confess and to partake of the spotless Mysteries, and then returned to his master. When he repeated his refusal and confessed his faith, they threw him into prison without food for many days. He was nourished by prayer, however and did not feel hunger; he was satisfied with a little water once in a while. When the judge repeated his offer to let him marry his daughter, Theocharis firmly refused. Then, after frightful torture, they took him an hour’s journey from the city of Neapolis, where he was stoned and then hanged at noon on a white poplar tree on August 20, 1740.

In 1923, the right hand of St. Theocharis was brought to Thessaloniki and was placed in the Church of St. Katherine, where it remains today.

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[Jude1:3Contendforthefaith]

August 21

Lives of the Saints

• Afterfeast of the Dormition of the Mother of God

The Church continues to honor the passage of the Most Holy Theotokos from death to life. Just as Christ once dwelt in the virginal womb of His Mother, now He takes Her “to dwell in His courts.

• Apostle Thaddeus of the Seventy (44)

He was by birth a Jew from Edessa; it was he who instructed king Avgar in the Faith and baptised him (see August 16). According to Eusebius he is not the Thaddeus who was one of the Twelve (Mt 10:3), but was one of the Seventy. After Christ's Resurrection, he preached the Gospel in Mesopotamia and ended his life in martyrdom.

• Holy Martyrs Bassa and her sons Theognis, Agapios, and Pistis (4th c.)

"Bassa was the wife of a pagan priest, but she was secretly a Christian and brought her sons up in a Christian spirit. Her husband hated her for her faith, and handed her over to the judge for torture, together with her sons. After harsh torture, her sons were beheaded (it is thought, in Edessa in Macedonia). Bassa was filled with joy to see her sons thus gloriously finish their martyr's course for Christ, and herself went with yet greater desire from torture to torture. When she was thrown into the sea, angels appeared to her and took her to an island in the Sea of Marmara, where she was slain with the sword under Maximian. Thus holy Bassa was in a twofold manner made worthy of the Kingdom of Christ: as a martyr and as the mother of martyrs." (Prologue)

• New Martyr Simeon of Samokov

• Hieromartyr Raphael of Serbia

• Saint Cornelius of Paleostrov and Olonets
Saint Cornelius of Paleostrov and Olonets

• Hieromartyr Raphael of Sisatovac


• Holy Forefathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob
They are also commemorated on the Sunday of the Holy Forefathers, before Nativity.

• VENERABLE ABRAHAM OF SMOLENSK

Abraham was born in the Russian town of Smolensk, in answer to his parent's prayers. He entered the monastic life at an early age and gave himself over to austere asceticism, emulating the ancient fathers of the desert. Later he established the Monastery of the Holy Cross near Smolensk. He endured many temptations both from demons and men with great patience and thanksgiving to God. During a great drought, Abraham brought forth rain by his prayers. Living fifty years as a monk, Abraham peacefully died in the Lord, in about 1220 A.D.

• Venerable Ephraim the Wonderworker, disciple of Abramius, and Archimandrite of Smolensk

Saint Ephraim was the disciple of Saint Abramius of Smolensk. He compiled the Life of Saint Abramius, which provides many details about education in the remote northwestern part of Russia in those days.



• Venerable Abramius the lover-of-labor of the Kiev Near Caves

Venerable Abramius the lover-of-labor of the Kiev Near Caves

• Saint Sarmean, Catholicos of Kartli, Georgia

Saint Sarmean, Catholicos of Kartli, Georgia

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[Jude1:3Contendforthefaith]

August 22

Lives of the Saints

• Afterfeast of the Dormition of the Mother of God

The Church continues to honor the passage of the Most Holy Theotokos from death to life. Just as Christ once dwelt in the virginal womb of His Mother, now He takes Her “to dwell in His courts.”

• THE HOLY MARTYRS AGATHONICUS, ZOTICUS AND OTHERS WITH THEM

St. Agathonicus was a citizen of Nicomedia and a Christian by faith. With great zeal he converted the Hellenes from idolatry and instructed them in the true Faith. At Emperor Maximian's orders, the regional governor cruelly persecuted the Christians. The deputy captured St. Zoticus in a place called Carpe. He crucified Zoticus's disciples and brought Zoticus himself to Nicomedia--where he also captured and bound St. Agathonicus, Princeps, Theoprepius (Bogoljepa), Acindynus, Severianus, Zeno and many others. Securely bound, they were all taken to Byzantium. As they traveled, Saints Zoticus, Theoprepius and Acindynus died of their many wounds and exhaustion. Severianus was slain near Chalcedon. Agathonicus and the others were taken to Silybria, in Thrace. There, after being torture in the emperor's presence, they were beheaded, and entered into eternal life and the joy of their Lord.

• THE HOLY FEMALE MARTYR EULALIA

The virgn Eulalia, born of Christian parents in the town of Barcelona, lived during a time of terrible persecution against Christains in Spain. Completely dedicated to Christ as her Bridegroom, completely immersed in Holy Scripture, Eulalia ceaselessly disciplined herself in voluntary ascesis of the body and spirit. When the torturer Dacian--a merciless killer of Christians throughout Spain--came to Barcelona, Eulalia secretly left from her parents at night, came before the torturer, and, in the presence of many people, rebuked him for slaughtering innocent people. She also ridiculed the lifeless idols and openly confessed her faith in Christ the Living Lord. The enraged Dacian ordered that Eulalia be disrobed and beaten with rods. The holy virgin showed that she did not feel pain from being tortured for her Christ. The torturer then bound her to a wooden cross and ordered that her body be burned with torches. Then the torturer asked her: "Where is your Christ, now, to save you?" Eulalia answered: "He is here with me, but you are unable to see Him because of your impurity." Under savage torture, Eulalia gave her soul to God. When she reposed, the people saw a white dove ascend from her mouth. Snow instantly fell from the sky and covered the naked body of the martyr like a white garment. On the third day, St. Felix came and sadly wept before Eulalia's still-hanging body, and a smile formed on her lifeless lips. Her parents and other Christians honorably buried the body of this holy virgin. Eulalia suffered and died for her Lord, and entered into eternal joy, at the beginning of the fourth century.

• Saint Bogolep, disciple of Saint Paisius of Uglich

Saint Bogolep, disciple of Saint Paisius of Uglich



• Venerable Isaac I of Optina

Saint Isaac (Antimonov) fell asleep in the Lord on August 22, 1894.

The Moscow Patriarchate authorized local veneration of the Optina Elders on June 13,1996, glorifying them for universal veneration on August 7, 20



• THE HOLY FEMALE MARTYR ANTHUSA AND OTHERS WITH HER

Anthusa was the daughter of wealthy but pagan parents from Seleucia in Syria. Learning of Christ, Anthusa believed in Him with all her heart and secretly went to Bishop Athanasius, who baptized her. Angels of God appeared to her at her baptism. Soon afterward, Anthusa set out for the wilderness to live a life of asceticism, for she was afraid to return to her parents. She labored ascetically in the wilderness for twenty-three years. She gave up her soul while in prayer, kneeling on a stone under which, according to her last testament, she wished to be buried. Bishop Athanasius and two of Anthusa's servants, Charismus and Neophytus, were slain some time later because of their faith in Christ. These events occurred in the time of Emperor Valerian, in about 257 A.D. They all reposed honorably and were crowned with heavenloy wreaths of victory.

• Icon of the Mother of God of Georgia

Icon of the Mother of God of Georgia

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[Jude1:3Contendforthefaith]

August 23

Lives of the Saints


• Leavetaking of Dormition

On the Holy Mountain, the Feast of the Dormition is extended to August 28, thus consecrating almost the entire month of August to the Most Holy Theotokos.

• Hieromartyr Irenaeus, bishop of Lyons (202 A.D.)

He was born in Asia Minor around the year 120, and was a disciple of Saint Polycarp, who was in turn a disciple of St John the Evangelist. He succeeded the martyred St Pothinus as Bishop of Lyons in Gaul (now France). He produced many writings contesting not only against paganism but against Gnostic heresies that were then troubling the Church. When Victor, Bishop of Rome, planned to excommunicate the Christians of Asia Minor for celebrating Pascha on a different date than the Church of Rome, Irenaeus persuaded him to stay his hand and maintain unity and peace in the Church. (This was before the date of Pascha had been set by the Ecumenical Councils). By his efforts Lyons became for centuries a center and bastion of Orthodoxy in the West.

• Martyr Lupus (306 A.D.), slave of St Demetrios of Thessalonica

He was the servant of the Great Martyr Demetrius, and was present at his martyrdom. He dipped the hem of his garment in the martyr's blood, and later worked many miracles with the garment, healing many illnesses. At the order of the Emperor Maximian, he was then himself arrested, tortured and, like his earthly master, beheaded for Christ. It is said that, as his death approached, he prayed to be baptized before his death, for, though a believer in Christ, he had never been able to be baptized. A cloud suddenly poured down a torrent of water upon him, answering his prayer.

• Hieromartyr Pothinos, Bishop of Lyons (177 A.D.)

The Holy Polycarp (February 23) sent Pothinus from Asia Minor to spread the Gospel in Gaul. He brought many there to faith in Christ, and became the first bishop of Lyons. During a persecution of Christians Pothinus, who was then ninety years old, was brought before the proconsul, who asked him 'Who is the Christian God?' Pothinus answered 'You will find out, if you are worthy.' He was beaten fiercely with staves and stones, then thrown in prison, where he died of his injuries.

• Ss. Eutychius and Florentius of Nursia

Ss. Eutychius and Florentius of Nursia

• SAINT VICTOR

Saint Victor suffered and died in Marseilles [France] in the third century. After prolonged and bitter tortures, he was cast into prison, where he converted the guards to the Christian Faith. He died by crucifixion.


• SAINT ALBAN

Alban was an English nobleman. In a time of persecution, he concealed a Christian priest in his home and was learned the Christian Faith from him. Alban gave his clothing to the priest, then dressed himself as the priest and gave himself up to the torturers. Sentenced to death, he converted his executioner to the Christian Faith.

• Saint Callinicus, Patriarch of Constantinople

Saint Callinicus, Patriarch of Constantinople (693-705), was at first a presbyter in the temple of the Most Holy Theotokos at Blachernae, but in 693 with the death of Patriarch Paul (686-693), he was elevated to the episcopal throne of Constantinople. The cruel Justinian II (685-695) reigned at this time. He undertook the construction of a palace very near the church of the Most Holy Theotokos and decided to demolish it. The emperor ordered Patriarch Callinicus to give his blessing for tearing it down. The patriarch replied that he had prayers only for the building of churches, not their destruction. When the church was demolished, he cried out with tears, “Glory to Thee, O Lord, in enduring all things.”

Soon the wrath of God befell Justinian. He was toppled from the throne and sent for imprisonment to Cherson, where they cut off his nose (from which he received the nickname “Short-nose”). Leontius (695-698) succeeded him on the throne.

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[Jude1:3Contendforthefaith]

August 24

Lives of the Saints

Hieromartyr Eutyches (1st c.)
He was a disciple and friend of St John the Theologian, and worked with the Apostle Paul, and is himself named as an Apostle though he is not one of the Seventy. He travelled widely in the ministry of the Gospel of Christ, suffering many imprisonments and tortures. He died in Sebastia, the place of his birth. The Prologue says that he was beheaded, the Great Horologion that he reposed in peace "in deep old age."

• New Hieromartyr Kosmas of Aitolia, Equal-to-the-Apostles (1779)

This recent Equal to the Apostles was born in Mega Dendron (Great Tree) in Aetolia. He became a monk on Mt Athos, where he lived and prayed for many years. But he was troubled by the ignorance of the Gospel that had fallen on many of the Orthodox people, living under the oppression of the Ottoman Turks. He went to Constantinople, where he studied the rhetorical arts and received the blessing of Patriarch Seraphim II to preach the Gospel. He travelled throughout Greece, Macedonia, Serbia and Albania, preaching at every town he visited. Often not only Greeks but many Muslims would come to hear him, so great was his reputation for holiness. Though he always sought the blessing of the local bishop and the local Turkish governor before he preached in an area, his strong condemnations of dishonest business practices aroused the enmity of Orthodox Christian and Jewish merchants, who falsely accused him to the authorities. He was strangled by the Turks and thrown into a river in Albania, but his wonderworking relics were preserved. He reposed at the age of sixty-five.



† Translation of the relics of St Peter, metropolitan of Kiev (1479)
See December 21 for his life.

• THE HOLY MARTYR TATION

By descent, Tation was from Mantinaeas near Claudiopolis in Bithynia. He suffered during the time of Diocletian. After terrible tortures he was buried alive, and thus gave up his holy soul to God.

• THE HOLY FEMALE MARTYR SYRA

Syra was a kinswoman of St. Mary Golinduc (July 12). She was a Persian from the town of Khirkhaselevkos, and the daughter of a eminent, fire-worshiping pagan priest. Reared in paganism, the virgin Syra learned of Christ from poor Christian women, and her heart became inflamed with love for the Lord. During an illness while she was still unbaptized, Syra asked a Christian priest for dust from the church, but the priest refused since she was not yet baptized. With great faith she touched the priest's vestments, and was healed. That miraculous healing confirmed her even more in the Christian Faith. Her soulless father gave her over to harsh tortures, during which she received courage and comfort from heavenly visions. She was strangled with a cord and then drowned in the year 558 A.D., at the ages of eighteen. This occurred in the time of the Persian King Chozroes I. And so this holy virgin gloriously finished her earthly journey and took up her habitation with the heavenly angels.

• THE VENERABLE ARSENIUS OF KOMEL

Arsenius was born in Moscow and was of noble birth. As a youth he became a monk in the Monastery of St. Sergius of Radonezh. Being an exemplary monk, Arsenius was chosen as abbot, but he yearned for prayerful solitude and withdrew to the forest of Komel. There he lived a life of asceticism until his death, struggling bravely with powerful temptations from the demons. He went to rest in the Lord in the year 1550 A.D.

• SAINT GEORGE LIMNIOTES (OF THE LAKE)

Gregory was a confessor and a great ascetic of Olympus. He died at the age of ninety-five, in the time of the Iconoclasts, in 716 A.D. *)


• Repose of the New-Hieromartyr Cosmas of Aitolia, Equal of the Apostles

Repose of the New-Hieromartyr Cosmas of Aitolia, Equal of the Apostles

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[Jude1:3Contendforthefaith]

August 25

Lives of the Saints


• THE HOLY APOSTLE BARTHOLOMEW

On this day we commemorate the translation of the relics of St. Bartholomew, although his main feast is celebrated on June 11. When this great apostle was crucified in Albanopolis [Derbend] in Armenia, Christians removed his body and honorably buried it in a lead sarcophagus. When numerous miracles--especially healings of the sick--occurred over the grave of the apostle, the number of Christians visiting the grave increased, so the pagans took the coffin containing the relics of Bartholomew and threw it into the sea. They also threw four more coffins into the sea. These contained the relics of four martyrs: Papian, Lucian, Gregory and Acacius. However, by God's providence the coffins did not sink, but floated and were carried by the current: Acacius to the town of Askalon, Gregory to Calabria, Lucian to Messina, Papian to the other side of Sicily, and Bartholomew to the island of Lipara. By a miraculous revelation, Agathon, the Bishop of Lipara, foresaw the approach of Apostle Bartholomew's relics. Accompanied by other clergy and the people, Agathon came to the seashore to receive the coffin with great joy. Immediately, many healings of the sick occurred over the relics of the holy apostle. The relics were placed in the Church of St. Bartholomew on Lipara, and reposed there until the time of Theophilus the Iconoclast. In approximately 839 A.D., the Muslims threatened Lipara, and the relics of the apostle were translated to Benevento. Thus the Lord glorified His apostle by the miraculous grace bestowed upon him, both during his life and after his death.

• THE APOSTLE TITUS

Titus was one of the Seventy [Apostles]. He was born in Crete and was educated in Greek philosophy and poetry. Following a vision in a dream, he began reading the Prophet Isaiah and lost his faith in Hellenic philosophy. Hearing of Christ the Lord, Titus traveled to Jerusalem with other Cretans, and there he heard the Savior speak and witnessed His mighty acts. He gave his young heart completely to Christ. Later he was baptized by the Apostle Paul, whom he served, like a son to a father, in the work of evangelization. Paul loved Titus so much that he referred to him at times as his son: To Titus, my beloved son (Titus 1:4) and at times as his brother: I urged Titus to go to you and I sent the other brother with him (2 Corinthians 12:18). Titus traveled extensively with the great apostle, and Paul appointed him Bishop of Crete. Titus was present at Paul's suffering and death in Rome, and honorably buried the body of his teacher and spiritual father. Afterward Titus returned to Crete, where with great success he baptized the pagans, and where he prudently governed the Church of God until old age. Titus entered into rest at the age of ninety-four.

• THE HOLY CONFESSORS OF EDESSA

They suffered much, in prisons and in exile, for the Orthodox Faith. This was during the reign of the Arian Emperor Valens. Their persecution was lifted under Emperor Theodosius.

• SAINT MENAS, PATRIARCH OF CONTANTINOPLE

Menas governed the Church wisely from 536-552 A.D. Before that, he was in charge of the Home of St. Sampson (see June 27) for the poor and needy. Pope Agapitus (who had come to Constantinople in order to refute and depose the heretical Patriarch Anthimus) participated at the consecration of Menas as bishop. *)

• New Hieromartyr Vladimir (Moshchansky) of Tver

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[Jude1:3Contendforthefaith]

August 26

Lives of the Saints


• THE HOLY MARTYR ADRIAN AND HIS WIFE NATALIA

Adrian and Natalia were husband and wife, both of noble and wealthy families from Nicomedia. Adrian was a pagan and the head of the Praetorium. Natalia was secretly a Christian. They were both young and lived together in marriage for only thirteen months before their martyrdom. When the wicked (nefarious) Emperor Maximian visited Nicomedia, he ordered that Christians be seized and subjected to torture. Twenty-three Christians were hidden in a cave near the city. Someone reported them to the authorities. They were cruelly flogged with oxen whips, beaten with rods, and cast into prison. Soon they were taken before the Praetor to register their names. Adrian observed these people--serene and meek, tortured but patient. He made them swear to tell him what they thought their God would give them for enduring so many tortures? They told him of the blessedness of the righteous in the Kingdom of God. With that, Adrian turned to the scribe at once and said to him: "Write my name with these saints--I also am a Christian." When the emperor learned of this, he asked Adrian: "Have you gone out of your mind?" Adrian replied: "I have not gone out of my mind--rather, I have come to my senses." When she heard of this, Natalia greatly rejoiced. As Adrian sat with the others, chained and in prison, she came and ministered to all of them. When they flogged and intensely tortured her husband, Natalia encouraged him to endure to the end. After lengthy tortures and imprisonment, the emperor ordered that the prisoners' arms and legs be broken with a hammer and anvil. This was done. With twenty-three fellow Christian men, Adrian gave up the spirit under the greatest of tortures. Natalia took their relics to Argyropolis (near Constantinople) and honorably buried them there. After a few days, Adrian appeared to her in heavenly radiance and called out that she should also come to God, and she peacefully gave up her spirit to God.

• THE VENERABLE TITHOES

Tithoes, a disciple of St. Pachomius, was renowned among the ascetics of Egypt. He was abbot of Tabennisi Monastery. He lived his entire life in absolute purity. Once a brother asked him: "What path leads to humility?" Tithoes replied: "The path to humility is abstinence, prayer and knowing that you are lower than everything." Tithoes attained a very high degree of perfection--whenever he lifted his hands in prayer, his spirit rose into ecstasy. He died in the Lord in the fourth or fifth century. The Venerable Ibistion is commemorated together with him.



• SAINT ZER-JABOB

Jacob was a great Christian missionary in Abyssinia [Ethiopia].


• Venerable Joasaph, son of Saint Abenner the King

• Venerable Adrian, Abbot of Ondrusov, Valaam

Venerable Adrian, Abbot of Ondrusov, Valaam

• THE MIRACLE OF THE MOST-HOLY THEOTOKOS IN MOSCOW IN THE YEAR 1395 A.D. *)

Commemoration of the Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God and the deliverance of Moscow from the Invasion of Tamerlane

• “Virgin of Tenderness” Icon of the Mother of God of the Pskov Caves

“Virgin of Tenderness” Icon of the Mother of God of the Pskov Caves

 

[Jude1:3Contendforthefaith]

August 27

Lives of the Saints


• THE VENERABLE POEMEN [PIMEN] THE GREAT

Poemen was an Egyptian by birth and a great ascetic of Egypt. As a boy, he visited the most renowned spiritual men. He gathered tangible knowledge from them, as a bee gathers honey from flowers. Poemen once begged the elder Paul to take him to St. Paisius. Seeing Poemen, Paisius said to Paul: "This child will save many; the hand of God is on him." In time, Poemen was tonsured a monk, and attracted two of his brothers to the monastic life as well. Once his mother came to see her sons. Pimen did not allow her to enter but asked her through the door: "Do you desire more to see us here, or there, in eternity?" The mother withdrew with joy, saying: "Since I will surely see you there, then I do not desire to see you here." In the monastery where these three brothers dwelled (which was governed by Abba Anoub [Anubis], Poemen's eldest brother), their rule [typikon] was as follows: At night they spent four hours doing manual work, four hours sleeping, and four hours reading the Psalter. During the day, they alternated work and prayer from morning to noon, did their reading from noon until Vespers, and made supper for themselves after Vespers. This was the only meal in twenty-four hours, and it usually consisted of some kind of cabbage. Poemen is said to have commented: "We ate that which was given to us. No one ever said, 'Give me something else,' or 'I do not want that.' In this way, we spent our entire life in silence and peace." Poemen lived a life of asceticism in the fifth century, and died peacefully in old age. *)

• THE VENERABLE POEMEN [PIMEN] OF PALESTINE

Poemen lived a life of asceticism in Rouba, which lay in the wilderness of Palestine, during the reign of Emperor Maurice (582-602 A.D.). He had been a shepherd in his youth. One day his dogs attacked a man and tore him to pieces, but out of mischievousness he did not try to save the man. As a result of this, it was revealed to him that he would be slain by wild beasts when his time was to come. And thus it happened. He was devoured by wild beasts and gave up his soul to his Lord.



• SAINT HOSIUS, BISHOP OF CORDOVA

As the Bishop of Cordova, Hosius governed the Church in Spain for over sixty years. He was prominent at the First Ecumenical Council in Nicea [325 A.D.], and presided at the local Council in Sardica in 347 A.D. So zealous was he for Orthodoxy that, when he was near death, he issued yet another anathema against the Arian heresy.




• THE PRIESTLY-MARTYR KUKSHA AND POEMEN [PIMEN] THE FASTER

Kuksha and Poemen were both monks in the Monastery of the Caves in Kiev. Kuksha successfully preached the Gospel to the Wallachians and baptized them. One day, pagans attacked and slew him and his disciple. Just then, Poemen the Faster was standing in the church in the Monastery of the Caves; and, having a vision of the death of Kuksha, his disciple and companion, he cried out: "Today, our brother Kuksha was slain for the Holy Gospel." Saying this, he himself gave up the spirit. This happened in the year 1113 A.D.

• Saint Phanourius

Saint Phanourius

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[Jude1:3Contendforthefaith]

August 28

Lives of the Saints

• THE VENERABLE MOSES THE BLACK [THE ROBBER]

Moses was an Ethiopian by birth. In the world, he was a thief and the leader of a band of thieves, and yet he became a penitent and a great ascetic. Moses was once a slave, who escaped and joined the thieves. Because of his great physical strength and daring, the robbers chose him as their leader. Then one day he was suddenly overcome with pangs of conscience and repented for his misdeeds. He left the thieves, entered a monastery, and gave himself over completely to obeying his spiritual father and the monastic rule. He benefited much from the teachings of Saints Macarius, Arsenius and Isidore. Later he withdrew to solitude in a cell, where he dedicated himself completely to physical labor, prayer, vigils and contemplating God. Tormented by the demon of lust, Moses confessed to Isidore, his spiritual father, who gave him counsel to increase his fasting, and even when eating to avoid satisfying his appetite. When this regimen did not help, he was counseled to keep all-night vigil and to pray standing. Then he also began the practice of bringing water to the elderly monks from a distant well, all night long. After six years of terrible struggles, St. Isidore miraculously healed him of lustful thoughts, fantasies and dreams perpetrated on him by the demon. Moses was ordained a priest in old age. He founded his own monastery, had seventy-five disciples, and lived to the age of seventy-five. He foresaw his death: one day he told his disciples to flee, for the barbarians were about to attack the monastery. When the disciples urged him to escape with them, Moses said that he had formerly been violent, and had to suffer violence himself, according to the words: For all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword (Matthew 26:52). He remained at the monastery with six brethren, and the barbarians slew them. One of the brethren, hiding nearby, saw seven shining wreaths descend from heaven upon the seven martyrs.

• THE VENERABLE SAVA OF PSKOV AND KRYPETSK

Sava was a Serb by descent. He lived a life of asceticism in the Monastery of the Holy Theotokos in Pskov, and then became abbot of that monastery. But they praised him, and so, fleeing the glory of men, he withdrew to the shores of Lake Krypetsk, where he founded a new community dedicated to St. John the Theologian. Nevertheless, he was unable to conceal his fame and prominence even there. He was visited by Prince Yaroslav of Pskov and his wife. Sava would not allow the wife to enter the monastery, but he blessed her and prayed to God for her, and healed her of a disease outside the monastery. This saint of God found rest in the year 1495 A.D. and his relics have retained miracle-working power. Abbot Dositheus was one of his visitors at Krypetsk.

• THE SYNAXIS [ASSEMBLY] OF ALL THE SAINTS [CHOSEN MEN OF GOD] OF THE MONASTERY OF THE CAVES IN KIEV

Synaxis of the Saints of the Kiev Caves, whose relics repose in the Far Caves of Venerable Theodosius

• Righteous Hezekiah

Righteous Hezekiah

• Martyr Susanna, Queen of Georgia

Martyr Susanna, Queen of Georgia

• Uncovering of the relics of Venerable Job the Wonderworker, Abbot of Pochaev

Saint Job of Pochaev died on October 28, 1651, and his relics were transferred to the church of the Holy Trinity on August 28, 1659. A second uncovering of the relics took place on August 28, 1833. In the year 1902, the Holy Synod decreed that on this day the holy relics of Saint Job be carried around the Dormition cathedral of the Pochaev Lavra after the Divine Liturgy.

• Righteous Anna the Prophetess and Daughter of Phanuel, who met the Lord at the Temple in Jerusalem

Righteous Anna the Prophetess was descended from the tribe of Aser, and was the daughter of Phanuel. She lived with her husband for seven years until he died. After his death, Righteous Anna led a strict and pious life, “not leaving the Temple, and serving God both day and night in fasting and prayer” (Luke. 2: 37). When Righteous Anna was 84 years old, she saw the Infant Jesus Christ at the Temple of Jerusalem. He was brought to be dedicated to God as a firstborn child according to the Mosaic law.

Righteous Anna also heard the prophetic words of Saint Simeon the God-Receiver spoken to the Most Holy Theotokos. The Prophetess Anna together with Saint Simeon glorified God, and told everyone that the Messiah had come into the world (Luke. 2: 38).

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[Jude1:3Contendforthefaith]

August 29

Lives of the Saints


† The Beheading of the Glorious Prophet, Forerunner and Baptist John

The story is told in the Gospels, and cannot be told better here. Today is kept as a strict fast day, on whatever day of the week it falls. Because the holy Forerunner's head was brought to Herod on a platter, it is a pious custom not to eat anything from a plate or platter today.

• Our Holy Mother Theodora of Salonica (879 A.D.)

"A wealthy and devout woman, she lived on the island of Aegina, but, when the Arabs over-ran the island, she moved to Salonica. There, she gave her only daughter to a monastery, where she received the monastic name Theopista. Her husband Theodorinus died very soon, and then Theodora became a nun. She was a great ascetic. She often heard angelic singing, and would say to her sisters: 'Don't you hear how wonderfully the angels are singing in heavenly light?' She entered into rest in 879, and a healing myrrh flowed from her body, which gave healing to many.



• THE HOLY FEMALE MARTYR VASILISSA

Vasilissa suffered for Christ in Srem [Serbia].



• THE HOLY MARTYR ANASTASIUS

Anastasius was a young man from Radovište, in the diocese of Strumica. He learned a trade in Thessalonica. The Turks tried to force him to become a Muslim, which he adamantly rejected, and for that he was tortured, then hanged, on August 29, 1794 A.D.

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[Jude1:3Contendforthefaith]

August 30

Lives of the Saints

1. THE SYNAXIS [ASSEMBLY] OF THE HOLY SERBIAN ENLIGHTENERS AND TEACHERS

Today we do not commemorate all the Serbian saints in general, but only several archbishops and patriarchs:

Saint Sava, the first Archbishop of the Serbs and Equal to the Apostles;
Arsenije (Arsenius), the successor to St. Sava, a great hierarch and miracle worker;
Saint Sava II, son of the First-crowned, King Stefan, who lived in Jerusalem for a long time and is called "like unto Moses in meekness" [refer to the Srbljak, the Service Book of the Serbian Saints];
Nikodim (Nicodemus), who lived a life of asceticism on the Holy Mountain [Athos], was abbot of Hilandar, and following that was Archbishop of all the Serbian and Coastal lands;
Joanikije (Joannicius), at first an archbishop, and then patriarch from 1346 A.D. to his repose in 1349 A.D.;
Ephraim, an ascetic who was elected patriarch against his will in the time of Prince Lazar in 1376 A.D., and who crowned Lazar king. After that, he resigned the patriarchal throne and retreated into solitude;
Spyridon, who was the successor to Ephraim, and who reposed in the year 1388 A.D.;
Makarije (Macarius), who renovated many ancient monasteries [Zaduzbine] and printed many ecclesiastical books in Skadar, Venice, Belgrade and other places. He also built the famous refectory in the monastery at Peć and labored much to advance the Church with the assistance of his brother Mehmed Sokolović, the Grand Vizier. Makarije died in the year 1574 A.D;
Gabriel, by birth a nobleman of the Rajić family, who participated in the Moscow Church council under Patriarch Nikon, for which he was tortured for treason by the Turks, and hanged in the year 1656 A.D.
With these we also commemorate Jevstatije (Eustace), Jakov, Danilo, Grigorije, Jovan, Sava III, Maxim and Nikon. Many of them lived a life of asceticism on the Holy Mountain [Athos], and all were meek and faithful servants in the vineyard of the Lord.

2. SAINTS ALEXANDER, JOHN AND PAUL, PATRIARCHS OF CONSTANTINOPLE

Alexander participated in the First Ecumenical Council in Nicaea [325 A.D.], in place of the aged Patriarch Metrophanes. Afterward, he succeeded Metrophanes as patriarch. When certain philosophers wanted to debate with him about faith, he said to one: "In the name of my Lord Jesus Christ, I command you to be silent!" and the philosopher immediately became mute. By his prayers, also, Arius's life was shortened (see "Reflection" below). Alexander died at age ninety-eight in the year 340 A.D.

St. John the Faster governed the Church during the reign of the wicked Emperor Anastasius the acephalite heretic. He died in the year 595 A.D.

St. Paul IV governed the Church for five years and eight months, then resigned the throne and secretly received the Angelic Habit in order to repent for his sins, because he had earlier agreed with the iconoclasts. He was the predecessor of the great Tarasius, and died in the reign of Irene and Constantine in the year 784 A.D.

3. THE VENERABLE CHRISTOPHER

Christopher was an ascetic of the sixth century in the community of St. Theodosius. In a vision he saw the lampadas (votive lamps) of diligent monks alight, and the lampadas of the slothful monks unlit.


4. SAINT EULALIUS, BISHOP OF CAESAREA IN CAPPADOCIA

Eulalius was one of the predecessors of St. Basil. He defrocked his son of his priestly rank for wearing clothing unbecoming to his spiritual calling.


5. Saint Alexander, Patriarch of Constantinople

Saint Alexander, Patriarch of Constantinople

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[Jude1:3Contendforthefaith]

August 31

Lives of the Saints


† The Placing of the Sash of the Most Holy Theotokos (395-408? 886- 912?)

At the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos, her sash came into the possession of the Apostle Thomas and after various transfers came to Cappadocia. It was later taken from there to Constantinople, where it was kept in a sealed casket in the Church of the Theotokos at Blachernae, at the time of the Emperor Arcadius (395-408). The casket was not opened until the reign of the Emperor Leo the Wise (886-912), when the Empress Zoe, who was ill, had a vision in which she was told to have the sash placed upon her. The Emperor obtained the blessing of the Patriarch, the sash was placed upon the Empress, and she was immediately healed. Some accounts say that today's feast celebrates the bringing of the sash to Constantinople; others that it commemorates the miraculous healing of the Empress.

• Hieromartyr Cyprian, bishop of Carthage (258 A.D.)

He was born around 190 to pagan parents in North Africa. Before baptism he was distinguished in Carthage as a teacher of philosophy and rhetoric. He came to faith in Christ and was baptized at a young age; as soon as he became a Christian he abandoned his prestigious teacher's position, sold his many possessions and gave all his wealth to the poor. He was ordained presbyter in 247, Bishop of Carthage in 248. He was known for his gentleness and paternal care for his flock, combined with firm opposition to heretics. His extensive writings still guide the Church today.
  For his confession of Christ, he was beheaded under the Emperor Valerian on September 14; since that is the date of the Exaltation of the Cross, his feast is kept today. At the time of his execution he left twenty-five gold pieces (a huge sum) for the executioner who beheaded him.

• St Gennadius, Patriarch of Constantinople (471 A.D.)

He was known for his gentleness and his ascetical way of life. He would not ordain any man who did not know the Psalter by heart. He presided at a local council in which simony in the Church was anathematized. In his own lifetime he worked miracles, and he was told the time of his death in a vision. The famous monastery of Studion was built in his time, with his blessing. He reposed in peace.

• Saint Aidan of Lindisfarne (651 A.D.)

Around AD 635, Saint Oswald (5 August), King of Northumbria, appealed to the monks of the Monastery of Iona to send missionaries to his mostly-pagan kingdom. (An earlier mission had ended with the death of St Edwin in 633.) The fathers of the monastery chose St Aidan and consecrated him bishop. He founded a monastery (and his episcopal seat) on the island of Lindisfarne, and undertook missionary journeys, always on foot, throughout the kingdom, with King Oswald often accompanying him and serving as his interpreter. He lived in great poverty, using all the gifts he received as alms for the poor or to buy back captives and slaves. He was the spiritual father of St Hilda (17 Nov.), and founded the first women’s monasteries in Northumbria. He reposed in peace in 651, and was buried at Lindisfarne.
Note: Northumbria was an Anglo-Saxon kingdom in what is now northeastern England and southern Scotland.

• Saint Eanswythe, Abbess of Folkestone

Saint Eanswythe, Abbess of Folkestone

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[Jude1:3Contendforthefaith]

September 1

Lives of the Saints


† The Beginning of the Church's Year

The First Ecumenical Council established that the Church's year would begin on September 1st, continuing the practice of the Roman Empire at that time. For centuries, the beginning of the civil year coincided with the Church year, but later changed, first in western Europe, then in Russia in the time of Peter the Great.

† Our Holy Father Symeon Stylites (459 A.D.)

Born in Syria, he was a shepherd, but at the age of eighteen he left home and became a monk, practicing the strictest asceticism. At times he fasted for forty days. After a few years at a monastery he took up an ascetical discipline unique at that time: mounting a pillar, he stood on it night and day in prayer. Though he sought only seclusion and prayer, his holiness became famous, and thousands would make pilgrimage to receive a word from him or to touch his garments. Countless nomadic Arabs came to faith in Christ through the power of his example and prayers. To retreat further from the world, he used progressively taller pillars: his first pillar was about ten feet high, his final one about fifty. He was known also for the soundness of his counsel: he confirned the Orthodox doctrine at the Council of Chalcedon and persuaded the Empress Eudocia, who had been seduced by Monophysite beliefs, to return to the true Christian faith. After about forty years lived in asceticism, he reposed in peace at the age of sixty-nine.
  He was at first suspected of taking up his way of life out of pride, but his monastic brethren confirmed his humility thus: They went to him as a group, and told him that the brotherhood had decided that he should come down from his pillar and rejoin them. Immediately he began to climb down from the pillar. Seeing his obedience and humility,
they told him to remain with their blessing.

• Righteous Joshua, Son of Nun
In the Septuagint he is called Jesus, the Greek form of Joshua. Of the Hebrews who fled Egypt in the Exodus, only he and Caleb were found worthy to enter the Promised Land. He was Moses' chosen successor to lead the Hebrew people. Read his story in the Old Testament book that bears his name. He reposed at the age of 110, about 1500 years
before Christ.

• Saint Meletios the Younger (1095-1124)

He was born in Cappadocia around 1035. He became a monk in Constantinople, but after a few years he went on pilgrimage to Jerusalem and Rome, then settled at a small monastery near Thebes. Here Meletios became known for his piety: he wore one garment of woven horsehair and, as the Synaxarion says, 'never let his eyelids slumber without having bathed the mat he lay on with his tears.' After twenty-eight years of ascetical labors Meletius, seeking to escape his increasing renown, departed the monastery, eventually settling near the Monastery of the Bodiless Powers near Myoupolis in Greece. Here he thought that he would be able to pray in obscurity, but once again the fame of his virtues attracted a monastic community around him. By order of the Patriarch of Constantinople he was ordained to the priesthood and, much against his will, made abbot of the monastic colony. The Emperor Alexander Comnenus wished to give a large gift of money to the monastery, but the Saint, unwilling to store up wealth on earth, would only accept enough for the essential needs of his monks: 'but' (the Synaxarion says) 'as a sign of gratitude, he protected the pious Emperor in all his campaigns from that time forth, by his prayer.' After many years caring for the monastery, in which he revealed gifts of healing, insight and prophecy, Saint Meletios reposed in peace, aged about seventy years, sometime between 1095 and 1124.



• Saint Meletius the New

Saint Meletius the New

• Holy New Martyr Angelis (1680)
He was a goldsmith living in Constantinople. While he was celebrating the Dormition of the Theotokos with some friends in a nearby village, the party was joined by some Turkish neighbors. The Christians and Turks drank a great amount together, and at one point entertained themselves by exchanging headgear. The next day, when everyone had sobered up, a Turk asked Angelis why he was not wearing a Muslim turban, for wearing it once was a sign of conversion. (To our knowledge this is not Islamic law, but was a ploy to pressure the young Angelis into conversion.) The dismayed Angelis was brought before a judge and given the choice of converting to Islam or being put to torture and death. Though the young man had shown little seriousness about his faith before this, he was filled with the Holy Spirit and boldly confessed Christ, willingly accepting a Martyr's end. He was beheaded on Sunday, September 1, 1680.


• Holy Forty Women Martyrs and Martyr Ammon the Deacon, their teacher, at Heraclea in Thrace

The 40 Holy Virgins and Saint Ammoun the Deacon, were from Adrianopolis in Macedonia. Deacon Ammoun was their guide in Christian Faith. They were captured by Baudos the governor, and were tortured because they would not offer sacrifice to idols.

The holy martyrs endured many cruel torments, which were intended to force them to renounce Christ and worship idols. Later, they were sent to Heraclea in Thrace to appear before the tyrant Licinius. The valiant martyrs remained unshakeable, however.

Saint Ammoun and eight of the virgins were beheaded, ten virgins were burned, six of them died after heated metal balls were put into their mouths, six were stabbed with knives, and the rest were struck in the mouth and stabbed in the heart with swords.

• Martyr Aithalas of Persia

The Holy Martyr Aithalas the Deacon, by order of the Persian emperor Sapor II, was put to death by stoning in the year 380 for confessing Christ.

• Venerable Martha, mother of Saint Simeon Stylites

Venerable Martha, mother of Saint Simeon Stylites

• Venerable Evanthia


• Martyrs Callista and her brothers, Evodius and Hermogenes, at Nicomedia

The Holy Martyrs Callista and her brothers Evodus and Hermogenes, with other Christians of Nicomedia, were brought to trial before the pagan governor for confessing their faith in Christ. Refusing to offer sacrifice to idols, they were cut down by the sword.

• “Chernigov-Gethsemane” Icon of the Mother of God

“Chernigov-Gethsemane” Icon of the Mother of God

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[Jude1:3Contendforthefaith]

September 2

Lives of the Saints


• Martyr Mamas of Caesarea in Cappadocia (275), and his parents, Martyrs Theodotus and Rufina

He began his life in the cruelest of circumstances: both of his parents were imprisoned for their faith in Christ. First his father, Theodotus, died in prison, then his mother, Rufina, died shortly after his birth, so the infant was left alone in prison beside the bodies of his parents. But an angel appeared to the widow Ammia, telling her to go to the prison and rescue the child. Ammia obtained the city governor's permission to bury the parents and bring the child home. He was called Mamas because he was mute until the age of five and his first word was `Mama'. Despite his late beginning, he showed unusual intelligence and, having been brought up in piety, soon openly proclaimed his Christian faith. When he was only fifteen years old he was arrested and brought before the Emperor Aurelian. The Emperor, perhaps seeking to spare the boy, told him to deny Christ only with his lips, and the State would not concern itself with his heart. Mamas replied `I shall not deny my God and King Jesus Christ either in my heart or with my lips.' He was sent to be tortured, but miraculously escaped and lived in the mountains near Caesarea. There he lived in solitude and prayer and befriended many wild beasts. In time, he was discovered by the persecutors and stabbed to death with a trident by a
pagan priest.


• Martyr Mamas of Caesarea in Cappadocia

Martyr Mamas of Caesarea in Cappadocia

• St John IV, Patriarch of Constantinople, known as John the Faster (595 A.D.)

He was born and raised in Constantinople. When he came of age he worked as a goldsmith and an engraver at the mint; but, renouncing worldly things, he was ordained a deacon and given charge of the distribution of alms in Constantinople. He gave freely to all with no consideration of their worthiness. The Synaxarion says 'the more he distributed the more God filled his purse, so that it seemed inexhaustible.'
  Upon the death of Patriarch Eutyches in 582, John became Patriarch and reigned for thirteen years, reposing in peace in 595. (It was during his reign that the term "Ecumenical Patriarch" began to be used to refer to the Patriarch of Constantinople.) St John was known for his great asceticism and fasting, and as a powerful intercessor and wonderworker. So generous was he to the poor that he used up all his funds in almsgiving and had to ask the Emperor for a loan, which he used to give more alms. After his repose, his only possessions were found to be an old cassock, a linen shirt and a
wooden spoon.

• Righteous Eleazar, son of Aaron and second High Priest of Israel
He was the son of Aaron, the first High Priest of Israel, and he in turn became the second
High Priest. He reposed in peace.



• Repose of Hieromonk Seraphim (Rose) of Platina (1982). (August 20 OC)

This modern-day pioneer of Orthodoxy and monasticism in America has not been glorified as a Saint of the Church, though many individuals ask his prayers and icons of him have been painted.
  Eugene Rose was born in 1934 in California, where he spent all his life. Following an intense spiritual search that took him through study of several Eastern Religions (he earned a graduate degree in Chinese Philosophy), he providentially encountered the Russian Orthodox community in San Francisco, and in 1962 was received into the Orthodox Church. The sanctity of Archbishop (now Saint) John Maximovich was especially important to his development in the Faith.
  After a few more years living in the world, he and his friend Gleb Podmosensky founded a small monastic brotherhood in the wilderness of far northern California; in time they were tonsured as monks and ordained as priests: Fr Seraphim and Fr Herman. At a time when Orthodoxy was almost invisible in North America, the monastery became a beacon of Orthodoxy for Americans seeking an authentic Christian faith.
  Fr Seraphim reposed in 1982 at the age of forty-eight. Many of his writings are still in print. A biography, Father Seraphim Rose: His life and works, by Hieromonk Damascene, is highly recommended.

• Icon of the Mother of God of Kaluga

Icon of the Mother of God of Kaluga

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[Jude1:3Contendforthefaith]

September 3

Lives of the Saints

• Hieromartyr Anthimos, bishop of Nicomedia, and those with him (303-304 A.D.)

"After the death of the 20,000 Martyrs of Nicomedia (see Dec. 28), their Bishop Anthimos fled to a certain village to care for his remaining flock. The Emperor Maximian sent men in search of him. When they found him, he promised to show Anthimos to them, but first took them in as guests, fed them, and only then made himself known to them. Amazed at his kindness, the soldiers promised him to tell Maximian that they had not found him. But Anthimos went willingly with them, and converting them by his admonitions, baptized them on the way. He boldly confessed his Faith before Maximian, and after frightful tortures was beheaded in the year 303 or 304." (Great Horologion)
  Our Holy Father Theoctistus, Fellow Ascetic of St Euthymius (451), is also commemorated today. A faithful disciple of St Euthymius, he was abbot of St Euthymius' monastery in Palestine until his repose in peace at the age of ninety.

• Holy Martyr Basilissa (309 A.D.)

She lived near Nicomedia during the great persecution by the Emperor Diocletian. Though she was only nine years old, she was arrested and brought before Alexander, the Governor of Bithynia. When she fearlessly proclaimed her faith in Christ, the Governor had her stripped and beaten, but she only gave thanks to God. Enraged at the steadfastness of a mere child, the Governor ordered her chained and plunged head-first into boiling pitch, then cast into a blazing furnace, then thrown to the lions. Through all these torments she was miraculously preserved. Astonished at the wonders that he beheld, Alexander fell at Basilissa's feet and confessed that he too believed that Christ is the Savior. He was baptized by the Bishop of Nicomedia and died not long afterward. Basilissa went into the wilderness outside the city to give thanks to God for her endurance under torture and to ask Him to receive her soul in peace. While praying in this way, she entered into her rest.

• Our Holy Father Joannicius, Archbishop and first Patriarch of Serbia (1354 A.D.)

"Born in Prizrem, he served as first secretary to King Dušan. He became Archbishop in 1339, and in 1346 was raised to the rank of Patriarch. He was a zealous pastor, and brought order to the Serbian Church, being 'a great upholder of the Church's laws'. He entered into rest on September 3rd, 1349, and his relics are preserved at Pec´." (Prologue)

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[Jude1:3Contendforthefaith]

September 4

Lives of the Saints

• Hieromartyr Babylas, bishop of Antioch, and those with him (251)

He was archbishop of Antioch at the time of the wicked Emperor Numerian. Once the Emperor came to Antioch and attempted to enter a church where Babylas was serving. Coming to the door, the Archbishop forbade the Emperor, as a pagan and a shedder of innocent blood, to enter the house where the True God was worshipped. Retreating in humiliation, the Emperor determined to take his revenge. Shortly after he had Babylas imprisoned along with several Christian children. Babylas was made to watch the beheading of each of the children. Having given them encouragement he submitted himself to beheading. At his own request he was buried in the chains with which he had been bound.
  After the establishment of Christianity in the Roman Empire, the Emperor Gallus had a church built in honor of Babylas near the site of a temple to Apollos at Daphne, outside Antioch. (This was where, according to pagan legend, the maiden Daphne had been turned into a tree to escape the lust of Apollos). When Julian the Apostate came to Antioch in 362 to consult a famous oracle there, he found that the oracle had been deprived of its power by the presence of a Christian church nearby. He ordered the relics of St Babylas to be dug up and removed from the Church. As soon as this had been done a thunderbolt destroyed the shrine of Apollo, which Julian did not dare to rebuild. Saint John Chrysostom, then Archbishop of Antioch, preached a sermon on these events within a generation after their occurrence.

• Holy Prophet Moses, who beheld God.

What can we say of Moses? For his story read the Old Testament books of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. The Church holds him to be the author of the Pentateuch or Torah, the first five books of the Old Testament.

• St John Mavropos, Metropolitan of Euchaita (1100)

He is best known for his part in the institution of the Synaxis of Sts Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian and John Chrysostom (see January 30). The three holy hierarchs appeared to him and revealed that all three are united and equally honored in heaven, thus dispelling a spirit of factionalism that was disturbing Constantinople. He is the composer of the Canon to the Most Sweet Jesus and the Canon to the Guardian Angel, both found in many prayer books. He reposed in peace. Mavropos is a nickname meaning 'Black-foot'.
  He is commemorated on June 14 on the Slavic Calendar.

• St Hermione, daughter of Apostle Philip (1st c.)

She was one of the four daughters of the Apostle Philip the Deacon (October 11). As we read in the Acts of the Apostles (21:8), all four were virgins and prophets. Her fame as a prophetess and a worker of miraculous healings attracted the attention of the Emperor Hadrian, under whose tribunal she was cruelly tortured. It is written that throughout her torments the only sounds that came from her lips were verses of the Psalms. At last she was sentenced to death; when the executioners raised the sword to behead her they were struck with paralysis, but St Hermione healed them by her prayer. At this, the executioners believed in Christ and laid down the sword. Saint Hermione was buried at Ephesus.

• Venerable Anthimos the Blind, New Ascetic (1782)

He was born on the island of Kephalonia in 1727, with the name Athanasios Kourouklis. At the age of seven he became blind as a result of smallpox. His devout mother prayed for his healing, and asked her priest to serve forty Ligurgies for her son's healing. At the fortieth Liturgy, as the priest said 'In the fear of God and with faith and love draw near,' Athanasius cried out that he could see the priest's vestments and chalice. He had recovered sight in his right eye. For a time he followed his father's occupation as a seaman, but then took up the life of a monk, receiving the name Anthimos. At some point he went blind again, and soon thereafter had a vision: he was praying for the restoration of his sight before an icon of the Theotokos when two young men in radiant garments appeared and led him to the Mother of God herself, who told him 'Depart, for your continual prayer that I restore your sight is not profitable to you.' But the two young men pleaded for him, and the Theotokos said 'Anthimos, because of your great piety and many prayers, I will restore your sight in part, but do not forget that, having gained temporal vision, you can lose that which is eternal.' Thereafter, though Anthimos was almost completely blind, he could dimly discern the outlines of objects; but in compensation he was granted the gift of spiritual insight,and was able to predict the future and call by name those he had never met.
  Saint Anthimos was about twenty when he entered monastic life, and lived on Mt Athos for awhile. Despite his blindness, he then took up a life of missionary work that took him throughout the Greek mainland and islands. Traveling from place to place he preached the Gospel, healed the sick, founded several monasteries. Once he restored a blind woman's sight by his prayers, though he himself remained blind throughout his life. Throughout his amazing labors he maintained a life of the most severe asceticism, eating little, sleeping on a plank or on the floor.
  In 1782, in the course of one of his many sea journeys, he told the sailors to change course for Kephalonia, saying 'God's will is not that I concern myself with [the mission he had undertaken], but that I go back and die in my monastery.' On returning he fell ill and called his spiritual children to him. 'My children, the hour has come for me to go where the Lord ordains. Death is the common lot of us all and is nothing to be afraid of. It is important rather to do your best to keep your promises and your monastic vows. The one thing necessary in this life is to please God and save your souls.' Having said this, he fell asleep in peace, at the age of fifty-four. He was glorified as a Saint in 1976.
  Note: It is sometimes said that celebrating Divine Liturgies for special intentions is 'not Orthodox.' The example of St Anthimos' mother shows that the practice is a both traditional and efficacious.

• Holy New Martyr Gorazd, Bishop of Slovakia and the Czech Lands (1942) (August 22 OC)

He was born in 1879 in Moravia and given the name Matthew Pavlik. He became a Roman Catholic priest, active in a movement for reform within the Roman Catholic Church. When Czechoslovakia became an independent state in 1919, about 800,000 Christians, including Fr Matthew, approached Bishop Dositheus of the Orthodox Patriarchate of Serbia, asking to be received into the Orthodox faith. Father Matthew was received into the Church in 1920; a year later was made Bishop of the Orthodox of Moravia and Silesia by Patriarch Demetrius of Serbia, and was named for St Gorazd, a disciple of St Methodius (July 27). Though many of the original 'reform' leaders turned back, finding the demands of Orthodoxy too difficult, Bishop Gorazd labored mightily for the restoration of Orthodoxy in Czechoslovakia: he established eleven parishes, translated the divine services into Czech, and published a Czech Prayer Book.
  During the Second World War, two priests of the Orthodox Cathedral in Prague were arrested because some of the Czech resistance had taken refuge in the Cathedral. It was clear that the Nazis were planning retaliation against the entire Orthodox Church. Bishop Gorazd presented himself to the Nazis and, to save his priests, took full responsibility for the events in the Cathedral. He was arrested, tortured and finally shot on September 4 1942 (August 22 OC). Despite his selfless sacrifice, the Orthodox Church was severely persecuted by the Nazis: all the churches were closed and the priests sent to concentration camps in Germany.
  Saint Gorazd was glorified by the Church of Serbia in 1961 and by the Patriarchate of Constantinople in 1987.

• “Unburnt Bush” Icon of the Mother of God

“Unburnt Bush” Icon of the Mother of God

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[Jude1:3Contendforthefaith]

September 5

Lives of the Saints


• Holy and Glorious Prophet Zacharias, Father of St John the Baptist and Righteous Elizabeth

Much of his story is told in the first chapter of Luke's Gospel. The Synaxarion continues:
  'After the birth of Christ, Zacharias plainly declared the virginity of Mary and showed her truly to be the Mother of God; for he appointed her a place in that part of the Temple reserved for the virgins and so brought upon himself the hatred of the priests and levites.
  'When John was six months old, Zacharias hid him and his mother in a cave beyond the Jordan because King Herod, hearing of the birth in Bethlehem of the king of the Jewsand fearing a rival of his own worldly power, sent soldiers to kill all the male children of Bethlehem. His enemies seized this opportunity to denounce Zacharias to Herod, who had him pursued and put to death within the precinct of the Temple, at the very place the Mother of God abode for a witnes to her virginity. As the Prophet's blood flowed within the sanctuary, it signified the withdrawing of the divine Presence. Priests came to take up his body and they buried him with his fathers. From that moment signs and prodigies occurred in the Temple, indicating that the rites of the Law would soon be abolished. No longer would the priests behold the angels of God, or have the grace of prophecy; no longer would they be able to deliver oracles or enlighten the people upon the dark places of holy Scripture, as they had been wont to do.'

• Holy Hieromartyr Athanasius of Brest-Litovsk (1649)

"Saint Athanasius was born in the province of Minsk in 1596, the same year as the false Union of Brest-Litovsk was concluded between Rome and some Russian bishops. His father was a Lithuanian nobleman of modest means, but Athanasius acquired a breadth and depth of learning that were exceptional at that time. Besides modern and ancient languages and the writings of the holy Fathers, he was familiar with the works of Western philosophers and theologians.
  "In 1627, after spending several years as a private tutor, he became a monk at the Monastery of Khutyn near Orsha in Little Russia. This monastery was independent of the Polish occupying forces and, by tradition, deeply committed to the preservation of Orthodoxy, so that it was able to offer great encouragement to the Orthodox people in the face of Roman Catholic propaganda. Athanasius went on to follow his monastic path in other renowned monasteries, and was ordained priest. The Metropolitan of Kiev, Peter Moghila, gave him the task of restoring the Monastery of Kupyatitsk. In obedience to a divine revelation, Athanasius set out for Moscow, a long and dangerous journey through territory under Polish occupation, in order to ask for financial assistance for the restoration, and to acquaint the Tsar with the fate intended for the Orthodox Church in the lands to the south-west of Russia. He was successful in his quest and with the help of the Mother of God, the restoration works were begun. Two years later, Athanasius was appointed Abbot of the Monastery of St Symeon the Stylite in Brest-Litovsk. From then on, he was to be a resolute and tireless fighter against Roman proselytism, clothed in Orthodox rites and customs known as the Unia. For the next eight years, by prayer, preaching and through his writings, the Saint devoted all his strength to refuting the false Union, and to bringing back to the holy sheep-fold of Christ those who had strayed.
  "The population of the occupied territories was brutally treated by the Polish soldiers and colonists, nor did the Jesuit missionaries, for their part, abstain from any measure that might serve to lead the peoples of Little Russia to accept their faith. In this situation, Saint Athanasius decided to petition the King of Poland, Vladislav IV, that the Orthodox be treated with more humanity. The King was moved by his request and issued a decree forbidding the abuses that had occurred, but his officials ignored it. The condition of the Orthodox in Warsaw was particularly bad. It was not unknown for the Poles and Uniates to set fire to Orthodox churches on feast days when they were full of the faithful, just as had happened in the time of the great Persecutions.
  "Athanasius kept up the fight, aided and comforted by none but the Mother of God, and in 1643, following a new revelation, he again appealed for redress on behalf of the Orthodox to the Polish Council of State. He received a favourable hearing and the Orthodox were granted some legal protection. But certain Orthodox men of rank, fearing for their privileges, claimed that the Saint was mad and succeeded in having him deprived of his abbacy, deposed from the priesthood and sent to Kiev to answer before a church court.
  "The humble Athanasius was completely exonerated and restored to his position, but he did not have peace for long, since persecution of the Orthodox soon began again. He drew up a petition intended for the King of Poland, but was arrested and thrown into prison before he was able to complete it. He was released after three years' detention but, in 1648, a persecution broke out that was more terrible than ever before. So bloody was it that the people of Little Russia rose up and demanded the departure of the Polish-Lithuanian army and the restoration of Russian territory to the Tsar. The Polish authorities immediately arrested the rebel leaders and prominent Orthodox dignitaries. Saint Athanasius was imprisoned, and endured physical and mental torments of all kinds at the hands of his gaolers and of the Roman Catholic authorities, but he never ceased to cry, 'Anathema to the Union!' After being tortured with red-hot coals, he was flayed and burnt alive. As he was still not dead, his executioners shot him.
  "They threw his decapitated corpse into a pit, where it was found some time later incorrupt. In the years that followed, the relics of the holy Martyr worked many miracles." (Synaxarion)

• Holy Martyrs Abda the bishop, Hormizd and Sunin of Persia (4th c)

Saint Abda lived in Persia during the reign of the Emperor Theodosius II and of the Persian king Yazgerd I; as bishop of the Christians there, he labored tirelessly to care for his own flock and bring the pagans to Christ. One day, full of zeal, he entered the temple at which the king made sacrifice, overturned the sacred fire and set the temple on fire. The enraged king forbade the worship of the Christian God, ordered the destruction of all the churches and monasteries, and arrested all of the clergy. Abda was brought before the king and ordered to rebuild the pagan temple; when he refused, he was cruelly and lengthily tortured until he gave up his soul to God. This was the beginning of a thirty-year period of terrible persecution for Christians in Persia. Of the many who perished for Christ during this time, St Benjamin is commemorated on October 13, and Sts Hormizd and Sunin today.
  Saint Hormizd was the son of a Persian governor who became a Christian in his youth. For this, his father condemned him to labor as a naked camel-herder in the desert. Some time later, the King sent Hormizd a linen tunic, promising to restore him to favor if he would return to the religion of the Persians. The Saint tore up the tunic and retured it to the king, for which he was executed.
  Saint Sunin was a high Persian official who turned to Christ and was rewarded with a crown of martyrdom

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[Jude1:3Contendforthefaith]

September 6

Lives of the Saints

† Commemoration of the Miracle of the Archangel Michael at Colossae (Chonae) (4th c.)

In Colossae in Phrygia there were a church and a holy spring dedicated to the Archangel Michael. Malicious pagans diverted the course of two rivers so that they would inundate the church. But the Archangel appeared, bringing with him an earthquake that shook the whole area and opened a fissure into which the waters plunged, sparing the church. The place was thereafter called "Chonae" Greek for "funnels" instead of Colossae.

• Holy Prophet Zacharias and Righteous Elizabeth (1st c.), parents of St John the Forerunner.

The story of the holy parents of the Forerunner is told in the first chapters of Luke's Gospel. Several of the Fathers say that Zacharias is the one who, the Lord said, was slain between the temple and the altar (Matthew 23:35); because he continued to call the Mary the Mother of God a virgin even after she bore Christ; and because his son had escaped the slaughter of the innocents ordered by Herod. St Elizabeth had hidden him in a cave in the desert; he remained in the wilderness from that time until he began to preach by the Jordan.

• St Maxim (Sandovich), martyr of Lemkos, Czechoslovakia (1914) (August 24 OC)

St Maxim was born in the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1888. At this time all Orthodox Churches had been captured and subjected to the "Unia," by which, though keeping the Orthodox liturgical rites, they were united to the Roman Catholic Church. Many of the Carpatho-Russian people were ignorant of the change and what it meant; others were unhappy with it but, in their subject condition, saw no alternative. Maxim's farmer parents, at great personal sacrifice, obtained an education for him that enabled him to study for the priesthood at the Basilian seminary in Krakow. Here he discerned the un-Orthodox nature of the "Greek Catholic" training there and traveled to Russia, where he became a novice at the Great Lavra of Pochaev and met Archbishop Anthony (Khrapovitsky), who encouraged him in his quest for Orthodoxy. (Archbishop Anthony, after the Russian Revolution, became the first Metropolitan of the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad). He entered seminary in Russia in 1905 and was ordained to the Priesthood in 1911.Metropolitan Anthony, knowing the hardships and persecutions that awaited any Orthodox priest in Austro-Hungary, offered to find Maxim a parish in Russia. But Maxim was already aware of the hunger for Orthodoxy among many of the Carpatho-Russian people; several people from his village had travelled to America and while there had attended Orthodox Churches and confessed to Orthodox priests. They begged him to return to his country and establish an Orthodox parish there.
  When he returned to his native village of Zhdynia, the polish authorities, seeing him in the riassa, beard and uncut hair of an Orthodox priest, mocked him, saying "Look, Saint Nicholas has come to the Carpathians!" But the people of nearby Hrab sent a delegation asking him to set up an Orthodox parish in their village. This he did, setting up a house-church in the residence that the people gave him. Almost immediately, he and his people began to be harassed and persecuted, first at the instigation of "Greek Catholic" priests, then of the government. His rectory/church was closed, and he and several of his parishioners were repeatedly jailed, sometimes on trumped-up charges of sedition. (The Carpatho-Russian people were always suspected of pro-Russian political sympathies by the Austrian and Polish authorities).
  Despite these persecutions, through Fr Maxim's labors a wave of desire for Orthodoxy spread through the region, with many Carpatho-Russians openly identifying themselves as Orthodox. The government issued orders to regional mayors to forbid those who had identified themselves as Orthodox to gather and, in 1913, appointed a special commissioner whose task was to force the people to return to Catholicism.
  In 1914, war broke out between Russia and Austro-Hungary. Despite lack of any evidence that Fr Maxim had engaged in pro-Russian political activity — he once said "My only politics is the Gospel" — he was arrested and executed on September 6 by the Papal calendar, August 24 by the Church Calendar. He was denied any form of Church burial, and his father buried him with his own hands.
  Following the First World War, Orthodoxy became legal in the new Polish Republic, and a monument was placed over Fr Maxim's grave in his home town of Zhdynia. In 1994, the Orthodox Church of Poland officially glorified St Maxim.

• Icon of the Mother of God of Kiev-Bratsk

Icon of the Mother of God of Kiev-Bratsk

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[Jude1:3Contendforthefaith]

September 7

Lives of the Saints

• Forefeast of the Nativity of the Theotokos

† Martyr Sozon of Cilicia (208/304)

He began life as a pagan shepherd in Lycaonia. Coming to faith in Christ, he was baptized and received the name Sozon ("Save"). Thereafter he took every opportunity to proclaim the Gospel to his countrymen and to urge them to give up their idols. Entering a temple of Artemis in Cilicia, he cut off its golden hand, broke it into pieces, and distributed the gold to the poor. When he learned that because of this some were being punished unjustly for theft, he gave himself up to the governor Maximian. He was beaten to death with rods, by some accounts in 288, by others in 304.

• Holy Apostles Evodus and Onesiphorus of the Seventy

St Evodus (or Evodius) is mentioned by St Ignatios of Antioch. He was a disciple of the Apostle Peter and succeeded him as Bishop of Antioch. It is said that the name "Christians" for members of the Church was given by Evodus. He was martyred during a visit by the Emperor Vespasian to Antioch. St Onesiphorus is mentioned by the Apostle Paul in his second epistle to St Timothy, where he calls Onesiphorus a friend and helper. He was a bishop in Colophon in Asia Minor, where he met martyrdom for Christ.

• Holy Martyr Eupsychyius of Caesarea (2nd c.)

He was the son of a wealthy pagan senator in Caesarea of Cappadocia. When his father died, he gave his inheritance to the poor, proclaiming the Kingdom of God while he did so. For this he was arrested by Sapricius, Governor of Cappadocia, and put in prison. He persuaded his jailers to release him for awhile, and set about giving away the remainder of his worldly goods, first to his accusers and persecutors, then to the poor. When all his wealth was gone, he voluntarily returned to prison. He was viciously scourged several times, then beheaded. At his martyrdom, it is said that milk instead of blood flowed from his body.



• Our Holy Father John, Archbishop of Novgorod (1185)

"He was first a married priest and then, from 1163, bishop in Novgorod, building seven churches during his lifetime. He had a vision of the holy Mother of God and a rare power over demons, making them obey him, and he once miraculously preserved Novgorod from an attack by seventy-two princes. He suffered from diabolical temptations, but overcame them all by the power of the Cross and by prayer. Retiring to a monastery in old age, he received the Great Habit and entered peacefully into rest in the Lord on September 7th, 1185." (Prologue)

• St Kassia (Kassiani) the Hymnographer (9th c.)

She was born in Constantinople to a noble family, and grew to be unusually beautiful and
learned — so much so that she was chosen to participate in a ‘bride show’, at which the Emperor Theophilos was to choose a wife. Struck by Kassia’s beauty, the Emperor approached her and said ‘Through a woman came forth the baser things,’ referring to Eve’s transgression. Kassia responded, ‘Through a woman came forth the better things’, referring to the Incarnation of Christ through His Most Pure Mother. Stung by her reply, the Emperor rejected her and chose Theodora as his wife. Kassia entered monastic life and founded a women’s monastery in Constantinople, closely allied with the Stoudion Monastery. Serving as abbess of the monastery, she wrote many liturgical hymns, at least twenty of which are included in the services of the Church. Best-known (or at least most closely associated with her) is the Hymn of Kassiani, sung at Matins on Holy Wednesday. She reposed in peace.



• Martyr Macarius, Archimandrite of Kanev and Pereyaslavl

Martyr Macarius, Archimandrite of Kanev and Pereyaslavl

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