From byzcath.org and wapedia:
Daily Readings
Saints/Feasts/Fasts to be observed/commemmorated/celebrated: The Fast of the Nativity
Great Martyr Barbara
Saint John Damascene
Scriptural Readings:
Ephesians 1:16-23
Ephesians 1:16-2316I do not cease to give thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers. 17I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, 18so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints, 19and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according to the working of his great power. 20God put this power to work in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, 21far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the age to come. 22And he has put all things under his feet and has made him the head over all things for the church, 23which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.
Luke 12:32-40
Luke 12:32-4032“Do not be afraid, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom. 33Sell your possessions, and give alms. Make purses for yourselves that do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. 34For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. 35“Be dressed for action and have your lamps lit; 36be like those who are waiting for their master to return from the wedding banquet, so that they may open the door for him as soon as he comes and knocks. 37Blessed are those slaves whom the master finds alert when he comes; truly I tell you, he will fasten his belt and have them sit down to eat, and he will come and serve them. 38If he comes during the middle of the night, or near dawn, and finds them so, blessed are those slaves. 39“But know this: if the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. 40You also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour.”
The Synaxarion:
December 4
Memory of the holy Great martyr Barbara (?).
Our venerable Father John Damascene (+749?)
According to the legend in the Greek Menaia, Saint Barbara lived under Emperor Maximian. Her father was a pagan named Dioscorus. Jealous of his daughter's remarkable beauty, Dioscorus kept her imprisoned in a tower, for he was not unaware that she was a virgin and already won over to Christianity. He was still further convinced of it, when, having arranged for two windows to be put into a bath which he was building, his daughter ordered three windows. Questioned concerning her reasons, she answered: "So that it be in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit." At these words, Dioscorus wanted to immediately behead her with his own sword, but she escaped from falling into his hands. He lunged at her from behind a rock, but she fled to the mountains. Having been advised of it, her father followed her, found her, and delivered her over to the governor of the province, before whom she confessed Christ and scorned the idols. Then she was cruelly beaten, her body was torn open by pin punctures, her sides were burned, and her head was battered by large stones. Then she was stripped and led through the entire city. She was further overpowered by assaults. At last, she ended her martyrdom, beheaded by the hands of her own father. It is told that this wretched man was struck by lightning when he came down from the mountain where he had killed his daughter.
Saint John Damascene was born in Damascus, in an illustrious family, the son of Sergius, the son of Mansour, the general administrator of Caliph Abdalmalik (685-705). He received a complete education, thanks to his virtuous father, and he probed the depths of the Holy Scriptures. Impelled on by his faith, he abandoned his paternal riches and embraced monastic life in the laura of Saint Sabbas, in the company of Saint Cosmas, the future Bishop of Maiuma. Under divine inspiration, they both composed a considerable number of troparia and canons in praise of God, the Theotokos, and the Saints. Ordained a priest, without doubt by his teacher John, the Patriarch of Jerusalem (706-734), he courageously combatted the ungodly Iconoclast heresy by the vigor of his discourses and the irrefutable arguments which he knew how to pull out of Scripture. He left behind him a great number of works, comprising almost wholly and in perfect clarity the whole body of required knowledge. He died at the Laura, in old age. It is believed that this occurred on December 4, 749. His body still reposes in the holy monastery where he lived. In his life, which was written in the Tenth century by Patriarch John of Jerusalem, it is said that he was condemned by his adversaries, the Iconoclasts, to have his right hand cut off but that it was miraculously healed by the Virgin. This legend does not seem to be historically founded.
Fourth Class Feast. Typika and Beatitudes.
Troparia: of Saint Barbara, of Saint John Damascene, and of the Church Patron. Kondakion of the Pre-festive Period of the Nativity according to the Flesh of Our Lord, God, and Savior Jesus Christ (December 20). Epistle, Gospel, and Kinonikon of Saint Barbara.
In occurrence with a Sunday, see the rule for general occurrences.
Sunday of the Stooped Woman: On the Sunday which falls between December 4-10, the Gospel of the tenth Sunday after the Exaltation of the Venerable and Life-giving Cross, (Luke 13:10-17), is read, which mentions the healing of the stooped woman on the Sabbath day.
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