Daily Readings:
Saints/Martyrs/Feasts/Fasts to be observed/commemmorated/celebrated: the Fast of the Nativity
+ St. Yohannis Welde Negedquad
Week One, Day Four
The Fourth Day
The Fourth Day
Morning Prayer
In the name of the Father and……..
Opening Prayer
God our heavenly Father, you are a faithful God who keeps your covenant and steadfast love with those who love you and keep your commandments to a thousand generations. Give us your grace and power to keep your commandments and your love, today, tomorrow and always. Amen. Our Father…
Psalm 19: 1 – 14
19:1 The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows his handy work. 19:2 Day to day utters speech, and night to night shows knowledge. 19:3 There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard. 19:4 Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun, 19:5 Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoices as a strong man to run a race. 19:6 His going forth is from the end of the heaven, and his circuit to the ends of it: and there is nothing hid from the heat thereof. 19:7 The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. 19:8 The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes. 19:9 The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever: the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether. 9:10 And they that know your name will put their trust in thee: for you, Lord, have not forsaken them that seek thee. 9:11 Sing praises to the Lord, which dwells in Zion: declare among the people his doings. 9:12 When he makes inquisition for blood, he remembers them: he forgets not the cry of the humble. 9:13 Have mercy upon me, O Lord; consider my trouble which I suffer of them that hate me, you that lift me up from the gates of death: 9:14 That I may declare all your praise in the gates of the daughter of Zion: I will rejoice in your salvation. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
Psalm 20: 1-end
20:1 The Lord hear thee in the day of trouble; the name of the God of Jacob defend thee; 20:2 Send thee help from the sanctuary, and strengthen thee out of Zion; 20:3 Remember all your offerings, and accept your burnt sacrifice; Selah. 20:4 Grant thee according to your own heart, and fulfil all your counsel. 20:5 We will rejoice in your salvation, and in the name of our God we will set up our banners: the Lord fulfil all your petitions. 20:6 Now know I that the Lord saves his anointed; he will hear him from his holy heaven with the saving strength of his right hand. 20:7 Some trust in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the name of the Lord our God. 20:8 They are brought down and fallen: but we are risen, and stand upright. 20:9 Save, Lord: let the king hear us when we call. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, As it was in the beginning…
Psalm 21: 1 – 13
21:1 The king shall joy in your strength, O Lord; and in your salvation how greatly shall he rejoice! 21:2 You have given him his heart's desire, and have not withheld the request of his lips. Selah. 21:3 For thou preventest him with the blessings of goodness: thou settest a crown of pure gold on his head. 21:4 He asked life of thee, and thou gavest it him, even length of days forever and ever. 21:5 His glory is great in your salvation: honour and majesty have you laid upon him. 21:6 For you have made him most blessed forever: you have made him exceeding glad with your countenance. 21:7 For the king trusts in the Lord, and through the mercy of the most High he shall not be moved. 21:8 Your hand shall find out all your enemies: your right hand shall find out those that hate thee. 21:9 Thou shall make them as a fiery oven in the time of your anger: the Lord shall swallow them up in his wrath, and the fire shall devour them. 21:10 Their fruit shall thou destroy from the earth, and their seed from among the children of men. 21:11 For they intended evil against thee: they imagined a mischievous device, which they are not able to perform. 21:12 Therefore shall thou make them turn their back, when thou shall make ready your arrows upon your strings against the face of them. 21:13 Be thou exalted, Lord, in your own strength: so will we sing and praise your power. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, As it was in the beginning…
Scripture Readings
1st Reading
Sirach 28: 1-7
28.1 He that revenges shall find vengeance from the Lord, and he will surely keep his sins [in remembrance. Forgive your neighbour the hurt that he hath done to thee, so shall your sins also be forgiven when thou prayest. One man bears hatred against another, and doth he seek pardon from the Lord? He shows no mercy to a man, which is like himself: and doth he ask forgiveness of his own sins? If he that is but flesh nourish hatred, who will intreat for pardon of his sins? Remember your end, and let enmity cease; [remember] corruption and death, and abide in the commandments. Remember the commandments, and bear no malice to your neighbour: [remember] the covenant of the Highest, and wink at ignorance. He who receives the prophet by the name of the prophet shall receive the prophet’s reward. Amen
2nd Reading
Romans 15: 1 – 4
15:1 We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak, and not to please ourselves. Let every one of us please his neighbour for his good to edification. For even Christ pleased not himself; but, as it is written, The reproaches of them that reproached thee fell on me. For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope. He who receives the Apostle by the name of the Apostle, shall receive the Apostle’s reward.
3rd Reading (Chant)
Psalm 101: 1 – 2
101:1 I will sing of mercy and judgment: to thee, O Lord, will I sing. 101:2 I will behave myself wisely in a perfect way. O when wilt thou come to me? I will walk within my house with a perfect heart. Halleluiah! Stand up and harken to the Holy Gospel, the message of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
4th Reading
The Gospel of St. Matthew 26: 36 – 45
26:36 Then cometh Jesus with them to a place called Gethsemane, and saith to the disciples, Sit ye here, while I go and pray yonder. And he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful and very heavy. Then saith he to them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even to death: tarry ye here, and watch with me. And he went a little farther, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt. And he cometh to the disciples, and finds them asleep, and saith to Peter, What, could ye not watch with me one hour? Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. He went away again the second time, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if this cup may not pass away from me, except I drink it, your will be done. And he came and found them asleep again: for their eyes were heavy. And he left them, and went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the same words. Then he came to his disciples, and said to them, Sleep on now, and take your rest: behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Heaven and earth pass away a bit, my words shall not pass away, said the Lord to his disciples.
Concluding Prayer
God our heavenly King, who are the beginning and the end of all creations. Be the beginning and the end of all that we do and say today and every day. Grant us your all-powerful help to use this day according to your will. Amen. Our Father…
Day 4
Evening Prayer
In the name of the Father and the Son…
Opening prayer
Lord God, we are gathered together here in prayer, to give you thanks and praise for bringing us safely to our home. Listen favourably to our evening prayer and keep us safe during the coming night. Amen. Our Father…O my Lady Mary…
Psalm 22: 1 – end
22:1 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? why are you so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring? 22:2 O my God, I cry in the day time, but thou hearest not; and in the night season, and am not silent. 22:3 But you are holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel. 22:4 Our fathers trusted in thee: they trusted, and thou didst deliver them. 22:5 They cried to thee, and were delivered: they trusted in thee, and were not confounded. 22:6 But I am a worm, and no man; a reproach of men, and despised of the people. 22:7 All they that see me laugh me to scorn: they shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying, 22:8 He trusted on the Lord that he would deliver him: let him deliver him, seeing he delighted in him. 22:9 But you are he that took me out of the womb: thou didst make me hope when I was upon my mother's breasts. 22:10 I was cast upon thee from the womb: you are my God from my mother's belly. 22:11 Be not far from me; for trouble is near; for there is none to help. 22:12 Many bulls have compassed me: strong bulls of Bashan have beset me round. 22:13 They gaped upon me with their mouths, as a ravening and a roaring lion. 22:14 I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint: my heart is like wax; it is melted in the midst of my bowels. 22:15 My strength is dried up like a potsherd; and my tongue cleaves to my jaws; and you have brought me into the dust of death. 22:16 For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have enclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet. 22:17 I may tell all my bones: they look and stare upon me. 22:18 They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my vesture. 22:19 But be not thou far from me, O Lord: O my strength, haste thee to help me. 22:20 Deliver my soul from the sword; my darling from the power of the dog. 22:21 Save me from the lion's mouth: for you have heard me from the horns of the unicorns. 22:22 I will declare your name to my brethren: in the midst of the congregation will I praise thee. 22:23 Ye that fear the Lord, praise him; all ye the seed of 22:24 For he hath not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; neither hath he hid his face from him; but when he cried to him, he heard. 22:25 My praise shall be of thee in the great congregation: I will pay my vows before them that fear him. 22:26 The meek shall eat and be satisfied: they shall praise the Lord that seek him: your heart shall live forever. 22:27 All the ends of the world shall remember and turn to the Lord: and all the kindreds of the nations shall worship before thee. 22:28 For the kingdom is the Lord's: and he is the governor among the nations. 22:29 All they that be fat upon earth shall eat and worship: all they that go down to the dust shall bow before him: and none can keep alive his own soul. 22:30 A seed shall serve him; it shall be accounted to the Lord for a generation. 22:31 They shall come, and shall declare his righteousness to a people that shall be born, that he hath done this. Jacob, glorify him; and fear him, all ye the seed of Israel. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
Psalm 23: 1 – 6
23:1 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. 23:2 He makes me to lie down in green pastures: he leads me beside the still waters. 23:3 He restores my soul: he leads me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. 23:4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for you are with me; your rod and your staff they comfort me. 23:5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup overflow. 23:6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, As it was in the beginning…
Scripture Reading
1st Reading
Isaiah 50: 10 – 11
50:10 Who is among you that fears the Lord, that obeys the voice of his servant, that walks in darkness, and hath no light? let him trust in the name of the Lord, and stay upon his God. Behold, all ye that kindle a fire, that compass yourselves about with sparks: walk in the light of your fire, and in the sparks that ye have kindled. This shall ye have of mine hand; ye shall lie down in sorrow. He who receives the prophet in the name of the prophet shall receive the prophet reward.
2nd Reading
Acts 2: 25 – 28
2:25 For David speaks concerning him, I foresaw the Lord always before my face, for he is on my right hand, that I should not be moved: Therefore did my heart rejoice, and my tongue was glad; moreover also my flesh shall rest in hope: Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, neither wilt thou suffer your Holy One to see corruption. You have made known to me the ways of life; thou shall make me full of joy with your countenance. He who receives the Apostle in the name of the Apostle shall receive the Apostle’s reward.
3rd Reading (Chant)
Psalm 112: 1 – 2
112:1 Praise ye the Lord. Blessed is the man that fears the Lord, that delights greatly in his commandments. 112:2 His seed shall be mighty upon earth: the generation of the upright shall be blessed. Halleluiah, stand up and harken to the Holy Gospel, the message of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
4th Reading
The Gospel of St. Matthew 5: 3 – 12
5:3 Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you. Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not…
Concluding Prayer
Lord God, the creator of our entire being, hear our prayer and humble request; inspire us with good intentions and help us to fulfil them. We make this our evening prayer and supplications through our Lord Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God. Amen. Our Father…, O Our Lady Mary….
The Synaxarium:
THE FOURTH MONTH
TAHISAS 06
(December 15)
IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER AND THE SON AND THE HOLY SPIRIT,
ONE GOD. AMEN.
On this day is commemorated Saint Anatolius the priest and martyr. Salutation to Anatolius.
And on this day also died the holy father Abba Abraham the Syrian, the sixty-second Archbishop of the city of Alexandria. This father was a Christian from the country of the East, and he was a merchant and had many possessions. He came to Mesr (Cairo) many times when traveling, and he dwelt there, and there appeared in him many virtues, and he was merciful to the poor. And the report of his excellence and understanding was noised abroad, and the fathers, the bishops, and the elders, and the doctors agreed concerning him, and they determined to make him Archbishop of the city of Alexandria. And when he had been enthroned by the Will of God, he gave all his goods to the poor and needy, and he suppressed every evil custom from his office, and he threatened to excommunicate all the bishops if they took any bribes whatsoever in making appointments to the priesthood; and he excommunicated those who took concubines, and he was wroth with those who had them. And when those who had concubines heard the excommunication which he pronounced against them, they feared the banning of the archbishop very greatly, and they feared God the Most High, and they cast out all their concubines from their houses, and came to Abba Abraham the archbishop, and bowed down at his feet and repented; and he accepted their repentance and remitted unto them all their sins. And no man dared to gainsay the archbishop except a certain man who was a scribe in Mesr (Cairo), and he feared neither God Most High nor this father. And this father rebuked him many times, and he bore with him for many days, but although he bowed low before him many times he would not accept his rebuke, nor turn from his evil way, and he was not afraid lest God Most High should destroy him. And although he saw a pure and holy old man lying prone on the ground at his feet, (which ought to have been cut off!), beseeching him to turn from his evil, and to cast out that concubine from his house, he neither listened to his command nor turned and forsook his counsel. And even after this the archbishop considered neither his own learning (?), nor his rebuke, but he humbled himself like Christ his Creator, and he went to the house of that man. And when that infidel heard of the coming of this father to his house, he shut the door, and this father remained for two hours standing at the door of that evil man and knocking at it; and the man neither opened the door to him nor spoke one word. And when this father heard that the wretched man had separated himself from the community, and was alone, and that of his own free will he had perished from the flock of Christ, and that all his members were rotten, than and then only, not because of the sin which he had committed against this father, but in order that the rest of the members of his flock might not be corrupted, this father rightly decided to cut him away from his congregation, and to set his blood on his own head, and he excommunicated him, and shook off the dust from the sandals on his feet at the door of the house of that unclean man. And God made manifest at that moment a sign in the presence of the men who were there, for the framework of the door and the large stone were split asunder and became two parts. What an awful and marvelous thing was this! When the massive, solid stone heard the excommunication of this father it split asunder. And the fate, which came upon this man who was full of sin, was not tender, for God worked grievous signs upon that man, and he became the poorest of the poor. And He removed him from his position in disgrace, and of all his possessions he had not left to him one sarik (i.e. farthing); and God afflicted his body with serious illness, and [the soldiers] cut off his hands in the days of Hakim the Khalifah. And he became a spectacle unto all men, and many sinners were afraid when they saw an evil death come upon him, and they repented. And in the days of this holy father, Me’ez (Al-Mu’izz) the Khalifah of Mesr (Cairo), the captain of his host was a certain Jew who embraced with him the Muslim Faith, and he became like unto the Muslims; and that captain had a friend, a Jew, who used to come with him frequently and hold converse with the khalifah. And when that Jew found favor with the khalifah, because of his friendship with the captain of the host of the khalifah, he made a request to the khalifah, and he said unto him, “I very much wish that thou wouldst bring the archbishop to me so that I might have an argument with him.” And the khalifah sent and brought this father, and with him was Severus, the son of Makfue, Bishop of the city of Eshmunen. And they disputed with that Jew, and vanquished him in argument and put him to shame. When the khalifah saw this he rejoiced, and he was pleased with the archbishop and those who were with him, and paid them honor and they departed to their houses in peace. And the captain of the host and that Jew friend were ashamed, and they were seeking to kill the archbishop and all the Christians. One day the captain of the host came to the khalifah and said unto him, “I would have thee to know, O my lord, that the Christians have no Faith, for it saith in their Gospel, ‘If there be in you faith as large as a mustard-seed, and ye say to this mountain, Depart and fall into the sea, it shall depart from this world.’” And when the khalifah heard this he sent and brought the Archbishop Abba Abraham, and he said unto him, “What hast thou to say to the words in your Gospel which saith, ‘If there be in you faith as large as a mustard-seed, and ye say to this mountain Depart, and it shall depart’?” And the Archbishop said unto him, “Yea, it is true, the Gospel doth say this” (Matthew xvii, 20). And the khalifah said unto him, “Behold, there are thousands and tens of thousands of thousands of you Christians in whom there is faith. I wish you to bring to me one of your number to make manifest this sign to me with his own hand, not thyself who art the head of the Christian people, though it would be seemly for thee to make manifest this sign unto me with thine own hand.” When the archbishop heard these words he was dismayed and feared exceedingly, and he said unto the khalifah, “Wait three days,” and he replied, “Let it be according as thou sayest.” And the archbishop went out from before the khalifah, and he gathered together the archbishops, and the bishops and the priests, and the monks who lived near him, and they sat in the church of the holy Lady of us all, the Virgin Mary, in Mu’Allakah in Mesr (Cairo) for three days and three nights, fasting, and praying, and making supplication to God. On the third night, at dawn, our holy Lady, the Virgin Mary, the God-bearer, appeared unto Abba Abraham with a bright and joyful face, and she said unto the archbishop, “What is it that hath come upon thee?” And she said unto him, “Fear not, I have accepted all thy tears which thou hast shed in my church, and now rise up, and get thee out into the ‘street of iron’ which leads into the market, and there thou shalt find a one-eyed man bearing a pot of water on his shoulders, lay hold upon him, for he shall make manifest this sign unto thee. And the name of this man is Simon, and he is a shoe-maker, and he put out his eye through the command of my Beloved Son Jesus Christ.” And the archbishop rose up and went quickly, and he found the man, and laid hold upon him, and he said unto him, “Have mercy on the Christian folk.” And he told him how our holy Lady the Virgin Mary had appeared unto him, and how she had told him about him. And Simon bowed down before him and said unto him, “Forgive me, O my father, I am a sinful man and a transgressor, and I cannot do what thou tellest me, but God’s Will be done. By the prayer of our holy Lady the Virgin Mary and by thine own prayer thou shalt help the Christian people. But I beseech thee, O my father, not to reveal my work unto any man, for I have not strength enough to bear this world’s honor; but what I say unto thee do. Get thee out to the mountain about which the khalifah spoke unto thee, with thy priests, and let thy people be with thee, and take with thee the Gospels, and the crosses, and the censers, and candles. And let the khalifah and his soldiers and all the people stand on one side, and do thou and thy people stand on the other side. And I will stand behind thee among the people and none will know me, and let them entreat God, and say, and cry out, ‘Kiryalayson,’ that is to say, ‘God have mercy upon us, Christ,’ one and forty times, and then command thy people to hold their peace. Then do thou bow down, and let all the people bow down, and I myself will bow down with thee. And do this three times, at the same time making the sign of the Life-giving Cross before that mountain.” When the archbishop heard this, he took the bishops, and the priests, and the monks, and the believing people, and came to the khalifah. And the khalifah and his soldiers went out, and with them were all the people of Mesr (Cairo) and Kahera (Cairo), and they made haste to that mountain, and the Archbishop Abba Abraham and the believing men stood on one side, and the khalifah and his soldiers and all his men on the other side. Then the archbishop and the believing men prayed, and Simon with them, and they cried out, saying, “Lord have mercy upon us” one and forty times. And when they had bowed down three times, now at each time the archbishop lifted up his eyes to heaven, and made the sign of the Cross, the mountain moved itself and rose up in the air before all the people. And when the archbishop and all the believing people bowed down, the mountain descended to its place [again]; and thus he did three times. And when the khalifah and his soldiers and all the Muslims saw this sign and wonder, they marveled exceedingly, and they cried out loudly and were afraid with a great fear. And the Khalifah brought the archbishop Abba Abraham, and honored him greatly, and asked him to demand from him whatsoever he wished, but he had no need to ask him for anything whatsoever. And when the khalifah pressed the archbishop, the archbishop said unto him, “I wish to build some churches, and especially a church [in honor of] Saint Mercurius in Mesr (Cairo).” And the khalifah commanded him to build what churches he wanted, and besides this he gave him money from his palace, and paid him reverence. And the archbishop said unto him, “May God lengthen thy days upon earth, and make strong thy kingdom; for myself I do not want money.” And when he said this to him the khalifah loved him exceedingly, for he saw his righteousness proceeding from him in his rejection of the goods of this world. Then the khalifah leaped upon his horse and [departed] with his soldiers and he stood by the side of the archbishop at the building of the church of Saint Mercurius, when certain evil men would have prevented him building the church, and he stayed with him until he had finished building the church of Saint Mercurius, and many other churches in the country of Egypt. And having fought a good fight, and pleased God, he died in peace, having sat upon the throne of Mark the evangelist for three years and six months. And one saith in the story of the life of this father that the scribe whom he excommunicated because of his concubines concocted poison and poisoned himself and he died. And this saint departed to God Whom he loved, and all the people mourned for him. Salutation to Abraham the merchant and archbishop. Salutation to Simon who was instructed by the mouth of Mary.
And on this day also is commemorated the consecration of the church of Saint ‘Arsima, the virgin and martyr, and the translation of her body, and of the bodies of the holy martyrs who were with her; now these were six and twenty holy martyrs. And King Tiridates said unto her, “Hath thy heart no desire to live as long as thou canst with us?” And she said unto him, “My desire for heaven, which is better, is greater.” And he commanded his soldiers to take her to the fore part of the tent and to strip her naked there, and to cut off her head; and they cut off her head and she received the crown of martyrdom in the kingdom of the heavens. Salutation to the translation of the body of ‘Arsima.
And on this day also are commemorated Batelsis the priest, and Abraham Soreyawi, the second, who was a carpenter, and a Christian, and Ta’Amani, and Sufit, and Meryan, and Michael, and Yolsawis and Ptolemy.
Salutation to Elyab a pagan on whom God showed compassion. [This salutation is omitted in the Bodleian MS.]
Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints. Amen.
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