St. Theophan the Recluse and the Prologue of Ohrid on Today’s Scriptures and Saints Oct. 28/Oct 15

21st Week after Pentecost. Demetrius’ Saturday. Commemoration of the Dead. Tone 3.    Fast-free period.

Saints for the Day:

St. Euthymius the New, of Thessalonica, confessor (889).  Hieromartyr Lucian, priest, of Antioch (312).  New Hiero-confessor Athanasius (Sakharov), bishop of Kovrov (1962).Martyrs Sarbelus (Thathuil) and his sister Bebaia, of Edessa (98-138). St.  Sabinus, bishop of Catania (760). Hieromartyr Lucian, hieromonk of the Kiev Caves (1243). St. John, bishop of Suzdal (1373). St. Dionysius, archbishop of Suzdal (1385). New Hieromartyr Valerian Novitsky, priest, of Telyadovich (1930). Synaxis of New Hieromartyrs of Belorussia: Archimandrite Seraphim, Priests Vladimir (5), Basil, Sergius, Michael (2), Porphyrius, Dimitry (2), John (3), Leonid, Alexander, Matthew, Peter, Valerian, Nicholas, and Deacon Nicholas. Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos “She Who Ripens the Grain.” (19th c.) St. Barses the Confessor, bishop of Edessa (378). St. Aurelia of Strasbourg (Alsace, Gaul) (ca. 383). St. Thecla, abbess, of Ochsenfurt (Germany) (ca. 790).

Today’s Scriptures:

2 Corinthians 3:12-18

Therefore, since we have such hope, we use great boldness of speech- unlike Moses, who put a veil over his face so that the children of Israel could not look steadily at the end of what was passing away. But their minds were blinded. For until this day the same veil remains unlifted in the reading of the Old Testament, because the veil is taken away in Christ. But even to this day, when Moses is read, a veil lies on their heart. Nevertheless when one turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.

Luke 6:1-10

Now it happened on the second Sabbath after the first that He went through the grainfields. And His disciples plucked the heads of grain and ate them, rubbing them in their hands. And some of the Pharisees said to them, "Why are you doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath?" But Jesus answering them said, "Have you not even read this, what David did when he was hungry, he and those who were with him:  how he went into the house of God, took and ate the showbread, and also gave some to those with him, which is not lawful for any but the priests to eat?  And He said to them, "The Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath." Now it happened on another Sabbath, also, that He entered the synagogue and taught. And a man was there whose right hand was withered.  So the scribes and Pharisees watched Him closely, whether He would heal on the Sabbath, that they might find an accusation against Him.  But He knew their thoughts, and said to the man who had the withered hand, "Arise and stand here." And he arose and stood.  Then Jesus said to them, "I will ask you one thing: Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to destroy?"  And when He had looked around at them all, He said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." And he did so, and his hand was restored as whole as the other.

St. Theophan on Today’s Scriptures:

Saturday. [II Cor. 3:12-18; Luke 6:1-10]

   The Lord’s disciples pluck the ears of grain, rub them in their hands and eat them on the Sabbath—a deed very unimportant both in appearance and in essence; meanwhile the Pharisees could not restrain themselves and rebuked them. What made them raise this issue? In appearance—unreasoning zeal, but in essence—the spirit of judgmentalness. This sticks to everything and presents all in a sombre form of unlawfulness and destructiveness. This infirmity, to a greater or lesser degree, is common to almost all people who do not watch themselves. Not everyone will express judgmental thoughts in word, but it is rare for a person to refrain from them. Someone sits beside the heart and stirs up judgmentalness—it pours forth. But at the same time the judge himself is prepared to do deeds which are not good, as long as nobody sees, and he is unfailingly in a state that is not so good in some way. It is as though he judges and condemns for that very reason—in order to satisfy his inwardly insulted and suppressed feeling of righteousness with attacks on others, groundless as they may be. He who loves righteousness and stands in it, knowing how difficult it is to attain correctness in deeds and even more so in feelings, will never judge; he is ready sooner to cover with leniency not only small, but also great transgressions of others. The Lord does not judge the judging Pharisees, but indulgently explains to them that the disciples did something that anyone would excuse if they thought about it rightly. And it almost always is this way: think reasonably about your neighbor’s actions and you will find that it does not at all have that serious, ghastly character which you saw at first.aught. And a man was there whose right hand was withered.  So the scribes and Pharisees watched Him closely, whether He would heal on the Sabbath, that they might find an accusation against Him.  But He knew their thoughts, and said to the man who had the withered hand, "Arise and stand here." And he arose and stood.  Then Jesus said to them, "I will ask you one thing: Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to destroy?"  And when He had looked around at them all, He said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." And he did so, and his hand was restored as whole as the other.

From the Prologue of Ohrid:

1. The Venerable Martyr Lucian, Presbyter of Antioch 

Lucian was born of noble parents in the Syrian city of Samosata. In his youth, he acquired a very broad education, both secular and spiritual. He was a man distinguished in learning, as well as in the austerity of his ascetic life. Having distributed his goods to the poor, Lucian supported himself by compiling instructive works, and thus fed himself by the work of his hands. He performed a great service to the Church in that he corrected many Hebrew texts in Holy Scripture (that heretics, in accordance with their own false teaching, had distorted). Because of his learning and spirituality, he was ordained a presbyter in Antioch. During Maximian’s persecution, when St. Anthimus of Nicomedia and St. Peter of Alexandria were tortured, St. Lucian was on the list of those the emperor wanted to kill. Lucian fled the city and hid, but an envious heretical priest, Pancratius, reported him. The persecution was horrible and not even young children were spared. Two boys who did not want to eat food sacrificed to idols were thrown into a boiling bath, where in torments they gave up their holy souls to God. A disciple of Lucian named Pelagia (October 8) preserved her virginal purity from dissolute attackers by praying to God on her roof-top: she gave up her soul to Him, and her body fell from the roof. Lucian was brought to Nicomedia before the emperor. Along the way, his counsels converted forty soldiers to the Christian Faith, and all died a martyr’s death. Following interrogation and flogging, St. Lucian was cast into prison where he suffered starvation. St. John Chrysostom writes of St. Lucian: “He scorned hunger: let us also scorn luxury and destroy the power of the stomach that we may, when the time that requires such courage comes for us, be prepared in advance by the help of a lesser ascesis, to show ourselves glorious at the time of battle.” He received Holy Communion in prison on the Feast of Theophany, and on the following day rendered his soul to God. St. Lucian suffered on January 7, 311. St. Martyr Lucian (Menologion of Basil II, 11th c.) 

2. The Venerable Euthymius the New Euthymius was born in Ancyra in 824 of righteous parents, Epiphanius and Anna. He served in the army, married and had one daughter, Anastasia. He lived a strict and long ascetic life in monasteries on Mount Olympus and Mount Athos. For a time he also lived as a stylite near Thessalonica. He founded a monastery for men and a convent for women, near Thessalonica. He entered into rest on an island near the Holy Mountain toward the end of the ninth century. His holy and miracle-working relics repose in Thessalonica. 

HYMN OF PRAISE

The Venerable Martyr Lucian Lucian the most wise ascetic and scribe Boldly walked on the path of Christ. Against heretics and idolatrous darkness Lucian the victor waged a bitter struggle. Planted firmly on the foundation of the Most-holy Trinity— The Father without beginning, with the Spirit and the Son— Lucian glorified God in word and deed, And he confirmed this by his innocent blood. Savage Rome collapsed, the heresies died; Works immoral and shameful perished; The Church raised martyrs up to heaven; And the Church, great and glorious, outlived all. This is the Kingdom of saints, the Kingdom without end That Daniel foretold and Christ founded— O desired Kingdom, of earthly origin, With golden domes atop the heavenly roofs! And holy Lucian, a builder of that Kingdom, Labored much, and gave all for it. He now gloriously reigns beside his Jesus, Borne by God to the angelic flock. 

REFLECTION

The saints of God place great importance on receiving Holy Communion before their death. Even though they were sacrificing their lives for Christ the Lord and washing away all their sins by the blood of martyrdom, the martyrs longingly received the Holy Mysteries whenever it was possible. St. Lucian was in prison with several of his disciples and other Christians. On the eve of Theophany, Lucian longed, on such a great Christian feast, to partake of the Body and Blood of Christ, for he knew that his death was imminent. Seeing the sincere desire of His sufferer, God Almighty arranged that some Christians pass bread and wine into the prison. When the Feast of Theophany dawned, Lucian called all the Christian prisoners to stand in a circle around him and said to them: “Surround me and be the Church.” He had no table, chair, stone or wood in the prison upon which to celebrate the Divine Liturgy. “Holy Father, where shall we place the bread and wine?” they asked Lucian. He lay down in their midst and said: “Place them on my chest, let it be a living altar for the Living God!” And thus the Liturgy was celebrated correctly and prayerfully on the chest of the martyr, and all received Holy Communion. The next day, the emperor sent soldiers to bring Lucian out for torture. When the soldiers opened the door of the prison, St. Lucian cried out three times: “I am a Christian! I am a Christian! I am a Christian!” and with that, he gave up his soul to his God. 

CONTEMPLATION

Contemplate the wondrous freeing of the apostles from prison (Acts 5): 

1. How the elders of the Jews cast the apostles into prison; 

2. How an angel of God appeared at night, opened the prison, led the apostles out and ordered them to enter the temple and preach the Gospel. 

HOMILY on how the Lord watches over the bones of the righteous

He watches over all his bones; not one of them shall be broken (Psalm 34: 20) Let not the righteous be afraid. The All-seeing God watches over them. Can the All-seeing lose or forget something? On the Day of Resurrection, He shall gather all their bodily parts and gloriously resurrect them. The persecutors hurled the bodies of the martyrs into the sea, buried them in deep pits, or left them in fields for the birds to devour. But the Lord, by His divine providence, so guided events that these holy relics came into the hands of the faithful. They were laid honorably in costly reliquaries, churches were built over them, and wonderworking power emanated from them. God wanted to show the faithful by this that He watches over the bones of the righteous, and that He has glorified them in the Heavenly Kingdom. And the Church on earth has affirmed this through the miraculous power of their glorified bodies. Wonderworking relics are like forerunners of the general and glorious resurrection of the righteous. But what if some of the bones of the righteous are burned or ground up— could that be an obstacle to the almighty power of God? Can He not, in the Day of Resurrection, reassemble and enliven them from the scattered ashes? There shall not an hair of your head perish (Luke 21: 18), assures the Lord. Nevertheless, if you want to understand “bones” as “works,” know then that the works of the unrighteous are as smoke, and the works of the righteous are powerful and as lasting as hard bones. Not even one righteous deed will fade away or disappear in the course of time. God knows them and God watches over them, so that He may reveal them like precious pearls before the assembly of angels and men on that Day. O All-seeing Lord, Master and Protector of the righteous, multiply our righteous deeds by Thy Holy Spirit, without whom nothing good can be done; and save us by Thy mercy, not according to our deeds. To Thee be glory and praise forever. Amen.