Week One, Day Two
The Second Day
Daily Readings:
Saints/Martyrs/Feasts/Fasts to be observed/commemmorated/celebrated: the Fast of the Nativity
+ St. Merkorios
The Second Day
Morning Prayer
In the name of the Father…
Opening Prayer
O God Our Lord, who are the source of all good things; give us your grace, and help us to start this new day with you and end it with you. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ your Holy Son, who lives and reigns with you and with the Holy Spirit, One God. Now and forever. Amen. Our Father…. O may Lady Mary…
Psalm 9: 1 – 20
9:1 I will praise thee, O Lord, with my whole heart; I will show forth all your marvellous works. 9:2 I will be glad and rejoice in thee: I will sing praise to your name, O thou most High. 9:3 When mine enemies are turned back, they shall fall and perish at your presence. 9:4 For you have maintained my right and my cause; you sit in the throne judging right. 9:5 You have rebuked the heathen, you have destroyed the wicked, you have put out their name forever and ever. 9:6 O thou enemy, destructions are come to a perpetual end: and you have destroyed cities; their memorial is perished with them. 9:7 But the Lord shall endure forever: he hath prepared his throne for judgment. 9:8 And he shall judge the world in righteousness, he shall minister judgment to the people in uprightness. 9:9 The Lord also will be a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble. 9:10 And they that know your name will put their trust in thee: for thou, 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, thou that lifts me up from the gates of death: 9:14 That I may recount all your praise in the gates of the daughter of Zion: I will rejoice in your salvation. 9:15 The heathen are sunk down in the pit that they made: in the net which they hid is their own foot taken. 9:16 The Lord is known by the judgment which he executes: the wicked is snared in the work of his own hands. Higgaion. Selah. 9:17 The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God. 9:18 For the needy shall not always be forgotten: the expectation of the poor shall not perish forever. 9:19 Arise, O Lord; let not man prevail: let the heathen be judged in your sight. 9:20 Put them in fear, O Lord: that the nations may know themselves to be but men. Selah. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, As it was in the beginning…
Psalm 10: 1 – end
10:1 Why stand afar off, O Lord? why hide thou thyself in times of trouble? 10:2 The wicked in his pride doth persecute the poor: let them be taken in the devices that they have imagined. 10:3 For the wicked boasts of his heart's desire, and blesses the covetous, whom the Lord abhorreth. 10:4 The wicked, through the pride of his countenance, will not seek after God: God is not in all his thoughts. 10:5 His ways are always grievous; your judgments are far above out of his sight: as for all his enemies, he puffs at them. 10:6 He hath said in his heart, I shall not be moved: for I shall never be in adversity. 10:7 His mouth is full of cursing and deceit and fraud: under his tongue is mischief and vanity. 10:8 He sits in the lurking places of the villages: in the secret places doth he murder the innocent: his eyes are privily set against the poor. 10:9 He lies in wait secretly as a lion in his den: he lies in wait to catch the poor: he doth catch the poor, when he draws him into his net. 10:10 He croucheth, and humbles himself, that the poor may fall by his strong ones. 10:11 He hath said in his heart, God hath forgotten: he hideth his face; he will never see it. 10:12 Arise, O Lord; O God, lift up your hand: forget not the humble. 10:13 Wherefore doth the wicked contemn God? he hath said in his heart, Thou wilt not require it. 10:14 You have seen it; for thou beholdest mischief and spite, to requite it with your hand: the poor committeth himself to thee; you are the helper of the fatherless. 10:15 Break thou the arm of the wicked and the evil man: seek out his wickedness till thou find none. 10:16 The Lord is King forever and ever: the heathen are perished out of his land. 10:17 Lord, you have heard the desire of the humble: thou wilt prepare their heart, thou wilt cause your ear to hear: 10:18 To judge the fatherless and the oppressed, that the man of the earth may no more oppress. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, As it was in the beginning…
Psalm 11: 1 – end
11:1 In the Lord put I my trust: how say ye to my soul, Flee as a bird to your mountain? 11:2 For, lo, the wicked bend their bow, they make ready their arrow upon the string, that they may privily shoot at the upright in heart. 11:3 If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do? 11:4 The Lord is in his holy temple, the Lord's throne is in heaven: his eyes behold, his eyelids try, the children of men. 11:5 The Lord tries the righteous: but the wicked and him that loves violence his soul hates. 11:6 Upon the wicked he shall rain snares, fire and brimstone, and an horrible tempest: this shall be the portion of their cup. 11:7 For the righteous Lord loves righteousness; his countenance doth behold the upright. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, As it was in the beginning…
Scripture Readings
1st Reading
Jonah 2: 1 – 9
Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the belly of the fish, saying, “I called to the Lord, out of my distress, and he answered me; out of the belly of She’ol I cried, and thou didst hear my voice. For thou didst cast me into the deep, into the heart of the seas, and the flood was around about me; all your waves and your billows passed over me. Then I said, “I am cast out from your presence; how shall I again look upon your holy temple?” The waters closed in over me, the deep was around about me; weeds were wrapped about my head at the roots of the mountains I went down to the land whose bars closed upon me forever; yet thou didst bring up my life from the pit, O Lord my God. When my soul fainted within me, I remembered the Lord; and my prayer came to thee, into your holy temple. Those who pay regard to vain idols forsake their true loyalty. But I with the voice of thanksgiving will sacrifice to thee; what I have vowed I will pay. Deliverance belongs to the Lord!” He who receives the prophet by the name of the prophet, shall receive the saint’s …
2nd Reading
Romans 5: 1 – 5
Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have obtained access to this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in our hope of sharing the glory of God. More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. He who receives the Apostle by the name of the Apostle shall receive the Apostle’s reward. Amen
3rd Reading (Chant)
Psalm 65:1 – 2
65:1Praise is due to thee, O God, in Zion; and to thee shall all vows be performed, 65:2 O thou who hearest prayer! To thee shall all flesh come. 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 18:5 – 8
Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me; but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened round his neck and be drowned in depth of sea. “Woe to the world for temptation to sin! For it is necessary that temptations come, but woe to the man by whom the temptation comes! And if your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it from you; it is better for you to enter life maimed or lame than with two hands or two feet to be thrown into the eternal fire. Heaven and earth shall pass away….
Concluding prayer:
God of power and mercy, your steadfast love is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear you, and your righteousness to children’s children to those who keep your covenant. Grant us your grace and love. We ask this in your holy name. Amen. Our Father… O may Lady Mary…
Day 2
Evening Prayer
In the name of the Father and……..
Opening Prayer
O God Our Lord, who are the source of all good things; give us your grace, and help us to start this new night with you and end it with you. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ your Holy Son, who lives and reigns with you and with the Holy Spirit, One God. Now and forever. Amen. Our Father…. O may Lady Mary…
Psalm 12: 1-8
12:1 Help, Lord; for the godly man ceases; for the faithful fail from among the children of men. 12:2 They speak vanity every one with his neighbour: with flattering lips and with a double heart do they speak. 12:3 The Lord shall cut off all flattering lips, and the tongue that speaks proud things: 12:4 Who have said, With our tongue will we prevail; our lips are our own: who is lord over us? 12:5 For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy, now will I arise, saith the Lord; I will set him in safety from him that puffs at him. 12:6 The words of the Lord are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times. 12:7 Thou shall keep them, O Lord, thou shall preserve them from this generation forever. 12:8 The wicked walk on every side, when the vilest men are exalted. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, As it was in the beginning…
Psalm 13: 1-6
13:1 How long wilt thou forget me, O Lord? forever? how long wilt thou hide your face from me? 13:2 How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart daily? how long shall mine enemy be exalted over me? 13:3 Consider and hear me, O Lord my God: lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death; 13:4 Lest mine enemy say, I have prevailed against him; and those that trouble me rejoice when I am moved. 13:5 But I have trusted in your mercy; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation. 13:6 I will sing to the Lord, because he hath dealt bountifully with me. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, As it was in the beginning…
Psalm 14: 1-7
14:1 The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth good. 14:2 The Lord looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, and seek God. 14:3 They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy: there is none that doeth good, no, not one. 14:4 Have all the workers of iniquity no knowledge? who eat up my people as they eat bread, and call not upon the Lord. 14:5 There were they in great fear: for God is in the generation of the righteous. 14:6 Ye have shamed the counsel of the poor, because the Lord is his refuge. 14:7 Oh that the salvation of Israel were come out of Zion! when the Lord brings back the captivity of his people, Jacob shall rejoice, and Israel shall be glad. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, As it was in the beginning…
Scripture Reading
1st Reading
Jeremiah 42: 19-22
The Lord hath said concerning you, O ye remnant of Judah; Go ye not into Egypt: know certainly that I have admonished you this day. For ye dissembled in your hearts, when ye sent me to the Lord your God, saying, Pray for us to the Lord our God; and according to all that the Lord our God shall say, so declare to us, and we will do it. And now I have this day declared it to you; but ye have not obeyed the voice of the Lord your God, nor any thing for the which he hath sent me to you. Now therefore know certainly that ye shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence, in the place whither ye desire to go and to sojourn. He who receives the prophet, by the prophet by the name of the prophet …
2nd Reading
Romans 6: 12-14
Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin: but yield yourselves to God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. He who receives the saint, by the name of the saint …
3rd Reading (Chant)
Psalm 34: 1-2
34:1 I will bless the Lord at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth. 34:2 My soul shall make her boast in the Lord: the humble shall hear thereof, and be glad. Halleluiah, stand up and harken to the Holy Gospel, the message of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
4th Reading
The Gospel of St. John 15: 12-14
This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you. Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. He that believeth in the Son hath everlasting life…
Concluding Prayer
God of power and mercy, your steadfast love is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear you, and your righteousness to children’s children to those who keep your covenant. Grant us your grace and love. We ask this in your holy name. Amen. Our Father… O may Lady Mary…
The Synaxarium:
THE FOURTH MONTH
TAHISAS 25
(January 03)
IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER AND THE SON AND THE HOLY SPIRIT,
ONE GOD. AMEN.
On this day died John Kama (John, the Black). This holy man was from the city of Sabra, of the country of Mansis (Mansurah) in the north of Egypt, and his parents were God-fearing believers; and they had no other son, ad they wished to rejoice in him in this world. And they married him to a certain maiden against his will, and when he entered the bridal bed-chamber he stood up as one who prayed frequently, and he drew nigh to the maiden and said unto her, “O my sister, thou knowest that this world is a fleeting thing, and all the lust thereof; wilt thou that we agree together to preserve our bodies in purity?” And she answered and said unto him, “God is my witness that I have never for a moment thought of desire in my heart. I do not love marriage. May parents forced me to marry thee against my will. And now, behold, God hath fulfilled my petition.” And they agreed together to preserve their virginity unsullied, and they lived together many days and they slept together, but kept their virginity undefiled. And it came to pass that when they lay down together the angel of God descended like a bird, and covered them over with his wings. And because of their exceedingly great righteousness God made a vine to grow in their house, which no man had planted, and it grew and mounted up and overshadowed their heads, and their children (sic). And it was a sign of their virginity and of their holiness, for this their action was above the nature of the children of men--two young people sleeping together and the desire of the flesh never rising in their thoughts! Who can go into the fire without burning himself? They would not have done this unless the help of God had protected them. And when their parents saw that they had lived together for many days, and had begotten no children, they thought that they had had no children because they were too young. And after this John Kama said unto his wife, “O my sister, I want to go to the desert of Scete and become a monk, but I will do nothing without thy consent.” And she answered and said unto him, “Do what thou wishest, and may God cause thee to be right, so far as I am concerned.” When she had said this John took her and placed her in a house of virgin nuns, and she became abbess, and she performed signs and wonders and pleased God. And when the saint went out to depart and to labor in the desert of Scete, a man with a shining face appeared unto him and asked him concerning his going forth. And Saint John Kama said unto him, “If God be willing I wish to become a monk.” And the man with a shining face advised him and said unto him, “Go to the cell of Saint Abba Darudi of the monastery of Abba Macarius, and live with the elder Abba Darudi, who will make thee a monk and teach thee the path of the ascetic life.” And the shining man walked with John Kama, and comforted him until he came to the house of Abba Darudi; and when he entered the house Abba Darudi received him into it, and arrayed him in the garb of the monk, and Abba John learned from him the Monastic Rule and the way of righteousness until Abba Darudi died. When Abba Darudi died the angel of God commanded Abba John Kama to go to the west, to the city of Saint Abba John, the Short, and to build a habitation for himself there. And he departed thither, and three hundred brethren gathered together to him, and he arrayed them in the garb of the monk, and they built a church and a tower (or, fortress), and he taught them to pray and to sing hymns and psalms, and the Liturgy, and the Praises of our Lady Mary. One night when they were standing in prayer at the time of midnight, at the praising of our Lady Mary, the apostolic Saint Athanasius appeared unto him, and revealed unto him spiritual mysteries; and from that day they have mentioned the name of Saint Athanasius at the end of the prayer of the Three Children. Once our Lady Mary appeared unto John Kama, and said unto him, “This place shall be my house for ever. And I will be with thy sons as I have been with thee, and my name shall be given to this monastery”; and the church was dedicated in the name of our Lady Mary, the God-bearer. Now there were certain monasteries in Upper Egypt the monks of which wished to be under the shadow of Saint Abba John Kama, and they sent a message to him asking him to come to them, so that he might strengthen them in his Rule and Ordinances. And Abba John called one of his disciples whose name was Sinoda, and he said unto him, “Stand over the brethren until I return”; and that holy brother whose name was Sinoda stood on his feet, and he slumbered not, nor lay on the ground, until Saint Abba John Kama returned from Upper Egypt; and he found him standing on his feet, which had broken out in ulcers wherefrom the worms were crawling. And Abba John Kama said unto him, “O my son Sinoda, why hast thou done this thing? I commanded thee to stand over the brethren in my place, and to inspect their works and their obedience.” And Sinoda bowed down at his feet and said unto him, “Forgive me, O my father, I have not done anything good.” Then the days drew nigh when God wished to give Abba John Kama rest from the toil of this fleeting world, and the saint wished to depart to his everlasting habitation, which changeth not; and he became a little sick and delivered up his soul into the hand of God. Salutation to Abba John Kama. Salutation to Abba Darudi.
And on this day also died the Maccabees in the kingdom of the Midianites and Moabites. There was a king whose name was Sirusadin who was devoted to evil, and he boasted himself in the multitude of his horses, and the might of the soldiers who were under his authority. And he had many gods whom he worshipped and served, fifty of whom were in the form of men and twenty in the form of women; and he used to sacrifice to them morning and evening, and compel [other] men to sacrifice to them. And there was a man of the tribe of Benjamin whose name was “Maccabeus,” and he had three good, strong sons; one of them used to choke bears, and kill them like chickens, and one of them used to kill a bear with a single blow. And their names were “Abya” and “Sila” and “Pantos.” And they possessed beauty of their hearts, for they worshipped God, and feared not death. And the king said unto them, “Ye are heretics; why do ye not offer sacrifice to my gods and worship them?” And they answered him with one voice, and said unto him, “We will neither offer sacrifice to thy gods, now worship them, but we will worship the Lord God, Who is thy Creator, and Who made thee, and made thee to reign over all His work so that thou mightest see His people in integrity and righteousness. When He shall say unto thee, ‘Leave this world,’ wilt not thou have to leave it? And will He not give thy glory to another, because thou hast made thyself blind to the duties of governing, which He hath committed to thee? For suddenly death shall come upon thee. And at the Resurrection there shall be judgment, and the deeds of men and of kings shall be enquired into. There is nothing, which shall give them honor, for at the punishment and the judgment riches and poverty shall be alike. The Judge is just, and the punishment is prepared, and the Books shall be opened, and the deeds of men shall be made manifest, and there shall be nothing, which shall remain, concealed and unrevealed at the resurrection of the dead. Even the earth shall give back what hath been committed to its care, and what hath been laid upon it, even as a woman when her time for bringing forth hath arrived cannot shut her womb when that which is in her belly is about to go forth. Can any man compel the clouds to gather up water when their Lord hath commanded them to drop down rain? And they will shut up the souls of sinners in houses of darkness, the darkness where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth. And the souls of the righteous they will take into the houses of light, wherein there is pleasure and never-ending joy. And at the resurrection of the dead [souls] will be gathered from the four winds, and they shall be brought by water, and by the dew, and by the sun, and by the heat, and by the dust of the earth, and by the breath of the winds; and God will bring from His habitation the Spirit. And when He summoneth them with one word they will all be gathered together, and the resurrection will take place. And the Living God, the Spirit of Life, will give the space of seven hands to one grain, according to His Will, and it shall shoot out its roots into the earth, and sprout and bust into leaf above ground. See that it be not dead, and unable to live at all.” And when the king heard this he commanded [his soldiers] to cast them into a red-hot oven, and they did as the king commanded; and these blessed and holy men entered it and delivered up their souls into the hand of God, their Lord. And the angels met them with joy and gladness, and they took them into the bosoms of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, in the Garden of Delight. And the king also commanded the soldiers to cast their bodies into the sea, and they did so, but the sea would not swallow them, because the Spirit of God was with them. And he also commanded them to cast their bodies to the wild beasts, and they did so, but neither the wild beasts nor the birds would touch them; and the eagles and other birds hovered over them and protected the bodies for fourteen days. And their bodies sparkled like the foot (i.e. rays) of the sun, and like a tabernacle of light. Salutation to the five (sic) Maccabees.
And on this day also are commemorated Nicolaus, the governor, and his believing wife, and Daniel, the Less, the monk and spiritual fighter.
Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints. Amen.
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