Thursday, May 5, 2011

Greek Orthodox Church Daily Readings For Tuesday, 26 April

From The Greek Orthodox Arch-Diocese of America:

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Daily Scripture Readings and Lives of the Saints for Tuesday, April 26, 2011



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Readings for today:



Acts of the Apostles 2:14-21

Luke 10:16-21



Feasts and Saints celebrated today:



Renewal Tuesday

Mark the Apostle & Evangelist

Basil the Holy Martyr Bishop of Amasea

Glaphyra the Righteous





Epistle Reading



The reading is from Acts of the Apostles 2:14-21



IN THOSE DAYS, standing with the eleven, Peter lifted up his voice

and addressed them, "Men of Judea and all who dwell in

Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give ear to my words. For these men

are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the

day; but this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: 'And in the

last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit

upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and

your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams;

yea, and on my menservants and my maid servants in those days I will

pour out my Spirit; and they shall prophesy. And I will show wonders

in the heaven above and signs on the earth beneath, blood, and fire,

and vapor of smoke; the sun shall be turned into darkness and the

moon into blood, before the day of the Lord comes, the great and

manifest day. And it shall be that whoever calls on the name of the Lord

shall be saved.' "



(C) 2011 Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America



Gospel Reading



The reading is from Luke 10:16-21



The Lord said to his disciples, "He who hears you hears me, and he

who rejects you rejects me, and he who rejects me rejects him who

sent me." The seventy returned with joy, saying, "Lord, even the

demons are subject to us in your name! " And he said to them, "I saw

Satan fall like lightning from heaven. Behold, I have given you

authority to tread upon serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of

the enemy; and nothing shall hurt you. Nevertheless do not rejoice in

this, that the spirits are subject to you; but rejoice that your names

are written in heaven. " In that same hour he rejoiced in the Holy

Spirit and said, "I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that

you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and

revealed them to babes; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will."



(C) 2011 Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America





Renewal Tuesday



Reading from the Synaxarion:



On the island of Mytilene (Lesbos in ancient times), near the

village of Therme, the villagers had a custom of ascending a certain hill

on this day to celebrate the Divine Liturgy in the ruins of a small

chapel, although no one knew whence the tradition sprang. In the year

1959, certain villagers began seeing persons who spoke to them, first

in dreams, then awake, both by day and by night. Through these

wondrous appearances, which were given to many people independently, the

holy Martyrs Raphael, Archimandrite of the ancient monastery, and

Nicholas, his deacon, together with other Saints who had been martyred on

the island, told the villagers the whole account of their martyrdom,

which had taken place at the hands of the Moslem Turks ten years after

the fall of Constantinople, in 1463. The twelve-year-old Irene had

been tortured, then burned alive in a large earthenware jar in the

presence of her parents. On Tuesday of Renewal Week, Saint Raphael had

been tied to a tree and his head sawn off through his jaws; Saint

Nicholas had died at the sight of this. Although the feast is celebrated

today because it is the day of their martyrdom, through the appearances

of the Saints as living persons five hundred years after their

martyrdom, it is also a singular testimony to the Resurrection of Christ.



Apolytikion in the Fourth Tone

On Lesbos, ye strove in contest for the sake of Christ God; ye also

have hallowed her with the discovery of your relics, O blessed ones.

O God-bearer Raphael, with thee, we all honour Nicholas the deacon

and Irene the chaste virgin, as our divine protectors, who now

intercede with the Lord.



Kontakion in the Fourth Tone

Ye shone on the world like stars first as ascetics, then as athletes

slain for Christ, and were translated to the heights through the great

torments that ye endured; and them that praise you, ye keep and protect, O

Saints.



This content is under copyright and is used with permission, all rights reserved:

Reading (c) Holy Transfiguration Monastery

Apolytikion (c) Holy Transfiguration Monastery

Kontakion (c) Holy Transfiguration Monastery





Mark the Apostle & Evangelist



Reading from the Synaxarion:



Mark was an idolater from Cyrene of Pentapolis, which is near Libya.

Having come to the Faith of Christ through the Apostle Peter, he

followed him to Rome. While there, at the prompting of Peter himself and

at the request of the Christians living there, he wrote his Gospel

in Greek, and it is second in order after Matthew's. Afterwards,

travelling to Egypt, he preached the Gospel there and was the first to

establish the Church in Alexandria. The idolaters, unable to bear his

preaching, seized him, bound him with ropes, and dragged him through the

streets until he, cut to pieces on rocks, gave up his soul. It is said

that he completed his life in martyrdom about the year 68. He is

depicted in holy icons with a lion next to him, one of the living

creatures mentioned by Ezekiel (1:10), and a symbol of Christ's royal

office, as Saint Irenaeus of Lyons writes.



If April 25 falls on or before Great and Holy Pascha, the Feast of

St. Mark is translated to Bright Tuesday.



Apolytikion in the Third Tone

O Holy Apostle and Evangelist Mark, intercede with the merciful God

that He grant unto our souls forgiveness of offences.



Kontakion in the Second Tone

When thou hadst received the Spirit's grace from Heaven's heights,

thou rentest apart the webs of the philosophers; and on catching all

of the nations in thy net, O all-lauded Mark, thou didst offer them

to thy Lord, by preaching the Gospel of divine renown.





This content is under copyright and is used with permission, all rights reserved:

Reading (c) Holy Transfiguration Monastery

Apolytikion (c) Holy Transfiguration Monastery

Kontakion (c) Holy Transfiguration Monastery





Basil the Holy Martyr Bishop of Amasea



Reading from the Synaxarion:



This Saint was Bishop of Amasia in Pontus, in the days of Licinius

(reigned 308-324), fellow Emperor and brother-in-law of Saint Constantine

the Great. Licinius' wife Constantia, sister of Saint Constantine,

had as handmaid a virgin named Glaphyra. When it became known that

Licinius had conceived a sinful desire for her. Constantia secretly sent

Glaphyra away to the East. Coming to Amasia, she took refuge with Saint

Basileus. When Licinius learned of this, he furiously commanded that both

be brought before him. When the soldiers came for them, however,

Saint Glaphyra had already departed to the Lord; she is also

commemorated this day. Saint Basileus was taken alone to Nicomedia, where he

was beheaded. His body was cast into the sea, but through divine

revelation was found again and brought back to Amasia.



Apolytikion in the Fourth Tone

As a sharer of the ways and a successor to the throne of the

Apostles, O inspired of God, thou foundest discipline to be a means of

ascent to divine vision. Wherefore, having rightly divided the word of

truth, thou didst also contest for the Faith even unto blood, O

Hieromartyr Basil. Intercede with Christ our God that our souls be saved.



This content is under copyright and is used with permission, all rights reserved:

Reading (c) Holy Transfiguration Monastery

Apolytikion (c) Holy Transfiguration Monastery



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