Tuesday, 16 January 2024

Tuesday of the 33rd week after Pentecost

275 days after Pascha · Tone 7 · Black squigg (6-stich typikon symbol) · No Fast

Saints commemorated

★ Veneration of the Precious Chains of the Holy Apostle Peter

On 16 January, the Orthodox Church commemorates the veneration of the precious chains with which the Apostle Peter was bound during his imprisonment by King Herod Agrippa around the year 42 AD. According to the Acts of the Apostles (12:1–11), Peter was imprisoned and fastened with two iron chains by Herod, who had begun to persecute the Christian community in Jerusalem following the martyrdom of James the Greater.

During the night before his trial, when he was to be executed, an angel of the Lord appeared to Peter in the prison. The chains fell away from him, and the angel led him miraculously out of the prison to safety. This deliverance became one of the most celebrated episodes demonstrating God's protection of the apostles during the era of persecution.

For nearly three centuries after Peter's deliverance, the chains were carefully preserved in Jerusalem. They became a source of great spiritual power, and those who suffered from illness and approached them with sincere faith received healing. The chains were revered as powerful relics of the apostolic age.

In the fifth century, during the reign of Emperor Theodosius the Younger, the Patriarch Juvenal of Jerusalem presented the chains as a gift to Eudokia, the wife of the emperor. Eudokia then transferred them from Jerusalem to Constantinople, either in 437 or 439, where they were publicly venerated and housed in a church dedicated to their honour.

The veneration of Peter's chains exemplifies the Orthodox tradition of honouring the relics and spiritual legacy of the apostles, celebrating their faithfulness and God's providence in protecting His Church during its earliest trials.

Holy Martyrs Speusippus, Eleusippus and Meleusippus, and their Grandmother Leonilla

The holy martyrs Speusippus, Eleusippus and Meleusippus were three brothers born to a devout Christian family in Asia Minor during the era of imperial persecution against the Church. They were reared in the Christian faith by their grandmother, Leonilla, an elderly woman of great spiritual wisdom and unwavering commitment to Christ. Under her guidance and example, the three brothers developed a profound devotion to the Lord, studying the teachings of the Gospel and preparing themselves for potential suffering for the faith. When persecution against Christians intensified, the brothers refused to participate in pagan worship and publicly confessed their allegiance to Christ. Rather than renounce their Saviour to appease the authorities, they endured torture and ultimately suffered martyrdom for their faith. Their grandmother Leonilla witnessed their steadfast courage and devotion, offering them spiritual encouragement and prayers throughout their trial. She herself is also venerated as a saint for her faithful witness, her maternal love, and her role in forming these three holy martyrs in the faith. The Church celebrates their memory together on 16 January, honouring the unity of faith that bound them across generations and their collective witness to Christ. Their lives demonstrate the power of Christian family formation and the grace that flows from one generation of believers to the next.

Saint Priscilla of Rome

Saint Priscilla of the Roman Glabrio family was an early Christian saint of the first century who is commemorated on 16 January in the Orthodox Church. She is remembered as a devout Christian and generous benefactor who hosted the Apostle Peter in Rome around the year 42 AD, providing him sanctuary during his apostolic ministry. Saint Priscilla's villa near the Roman catacombs became an important centre of Christian worship and fellowship during the apostolic age. Tradition holds that Peter established his headquarters within her household, conducting his ministry and pastoral care for the fledgling Christian community in Rome from her home. Her hospitality and support were vital to Peter's work in spreading the Gospel amongst the pagans of the Roman capital. The historical legacy of Saint Priscilla is preserved in the Catacomb of Priscilla, the ancient Christian burial place that still bears her name to this day. These catacombs contain some of the earliest Christian art and inscriptions, providing archaeological evidence of early Christian life and worship during the first and second centuries. Her generosity and willingness to risk her status and security as a Roman noblewoman to support the apostles demonstrates her deep faith and commitment to Christ. Saint Priscilla exemplifies the role of wealthy and influential women in the early Church who used their resources and position to advance the Gospel and provide safe spaces for Christian community and worship during the era of persecution.

Daily readings

Epistle

weekly cycle

2 Timothy — 2 Timothy 3.16-4.4

¹⁶Every scripture inspired of God is also profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for instruction which is in righteousness: ¹⁶All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: ¹⁷that the man of God may be complete, furnished completely unto every good work. ¹⁷That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.

¹I charge thee in the sight of God, and of Christ Jesus, who shall judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom:

¹I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom; ²preach the word; be urgent in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. ²Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. ³For the time will come when they will not endure the sound doctrine; but, having itching ears, will heap to themselves teachers after their own lusts; ³For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; ⁴and will turn away their ears from the truth, and turn aside unto fables. ⁴And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.

Gospel

weekly cycle

Luke — Luke 19.45-48

⁴⁵And he went into the temple, and began to cast out them that sold therein, and them that bought;

⁴⁵And he entered into the temple, and began to cast out them that sold, ⁴⁶saying unto them, It is written, And my house shall be a house of prayer: but ye have made it a den of robbers. ⁴⁶Saying unto them, It is written, My house is the house of prayer: but ye have made it a den of thieves. ⁴⁷And he taught daily in the temple. But the chief priests and the scribes and the chief of the people sought to destroy him,

⁴⁷And he was teaching daily in the temple. But the chief priests and the scribes and the principal men of the people sought to destroy him: ⁴⁸And could not find what they might do: for all the people were very attentive to hear him. ⁴⁸and they could not find what they might do; for the people all hung upon him, listening.