Saturday, 3 February 2024

Saturday of the 35th week after Pentecost

293 days after Pascha · Tone 1 · Black squigg (6-stich typikon symbol) · No Fast

Saints commemorated

Holy and Righteous Symeon the God-Receiver and Anna the Prophetess

“There is an ancient tradition that the holy, righteous elder Symeon, who came from Egypt, was one of the Seventy learned Jews chosen in the days of the Pharoah Ptolemy Philadelphus (285-246 BC) for the task of rendering the Hebrew Bible into Greek, and that to Symeon was assigned the translation of the book of the Prophet Isaiah. When he reached the famous passage where the Prophet foretells the virgin birth of Christ, saying: Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel (Is. 7:14), he was so perplexed that he took a penknife to erase the word ‘virgin’ in order to replace it by ‘young woman’. At that moment, an angel of God appeared and prevented him from altering the sacred text, explaining that what seemed impossible to him was, in fact, a prophecy of the coming into this world of the Son of God. To confirm the truth of this, he promised that Symeon would not see death until he had seen and touched the Messiah born of the Virgin. When, after many long years, Christ was brought into the Temple at Jerusalem by the All-Holy Mother of God, the Holy Spirit revealed to the Elder Symeon that the time of fulfilment of the promise had come. He hurried to the Temple and, taking the Child in his arms, he was able to say wholeheartedly to God: Lord, now lettest thou Thy servant depart in peace according to Thy word, for mine eyes have seen Thy salvation (Luke 2:29). For indeed, the Elder Symeon was the living image of the ancient Israel of the Old Testament, which having awaited the coming of the Messiah was ready to fade away and give place to the light and truth of the Gospel. The relics of the holy and righteous Symeon were venerated at Constantinople in the church of St James, built at the time of the Emperor Justin.

“The prophetess Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, was eighty-four years old. Since the early death of her husband, she had spent her whole life in the Temple in hope of the coming of the Saviour. She is the pattern for holy widows, virgins and monks, who have freed themselves of worldly cares in order to dwell always in the Temple, offering their fasts, hymns and prayers in eager expectation of the Lord’s coming. And when, like Anna and Symeon, they have seen the indwelling Christ with the eyes of their heart and touched Him through their spiritual senses, they proclaim with joy and assurance to all mankind that the Saviour is still coming into the world: A light to lighten the Gentiles and the glory of His people Israel (Luke 2:32).” (Synaxarion)

The Synaxarion notes that the tradition that St Symeon was one of the Seventy is by no means universal among the Fathers. According to some, Symeon was the son of Hillel and father of Gamaliel, St Paul’s teacher. According to others, he was a righteous and devout Jew aged 112, neither a priest nor a Pharisee.

Saint Anskar of Hamburg

Saint Anskar (also known as Ansgar), the Apostle of the North, was born in 801 in Amiens, France. From his youth, he was dedicated to the service of the Church and received his monastic training in the monastic tradition of Western Christendom. Moved by a deep passion for the salvation of souls and the evangelization of pagan lands, he devoted himself to missionary work among the pagan peoples of Northern Europe. In the early years of his ministry, Saint Anskar was appointed as a missionary to Denmark and later to Sweden, where he laboured tirelessly to bring the light of Christ to peoples still living in darkness and paganism. Despite great obstacles and hardships, including opposition from pagan authorities and the dangers of travel through wild lands, he pressed forward with his sacred mission. He established churches, trained local clergy, and baptized many converts to the Christian faith. Saint Anskar was appointed Archbishop of Hamburg-Bremen, receiving authority to evangelize and establish the church throughout Northern Europe. He became known throughout the region as a man of great holiness, wisdom, and zeal for the Orthodox faith. He founded monasteries and schools, working to build a strong ecclesiastical foundation in these newly Christian lands. His pastoral care extended to both the clergy and the faithful, and he was beloved for his gentleness and spiritual leadership. Throughout his life, Saint Anskar faced numerous trials and persecutions as a result of pagan resistance to the Gospel, but his faith remained steadfast. He endured hardships with patience and continued his work of evangelization and church-building to the end of his life. Saint Anskar fell asleep in the Lord on 3 February 865 in Hamburg, having spent his entire life in service to the salvation of the Nordic peoples and the establishment of the Church in lands where Christ's name was previously unknown.

Saint Werburgh of Chester

Saint Werburgh was born around 650 into the royal house of Mercia. She was the daughter of King Wulfhere of Mercia and Queen Ermenilda, making her the granddaughter of Saint Sexburga and the great-niece of the renowned Saint Etheldreda. From her youth, she was educated in faith and holiness within her noble and devout family, learning the sacred traditions of the Church from her parents and relations. Hearing the call of Christ to dedicate her life wholly to His service, Werburgh entered the monastic life as a nun. Through her spiritual discipline, obedience, and deepening prayer, she grew in holiness and became known throughout the kingdom for her virtue and wisdom. Her spiritual gifts and leadership were recognized by the Church, and she eventually succeeded her mother Ermenilda as Abbess of the monastery at Ely, one of the most prominent and important monastic communities in Anglo-Saxon England. She followed in the footsteps of her grandmother Seaxburh and her great-aunt Etheldreda, both of whom had served as abbesses at Ely. Saint Werburgh oversaw the monastic community with care and wisdom, guiding her sisters in their spiritual growth and labour. She was known for her compassion and her dedication to the teachings of Christ. Among the many stories of her sanctity, one particularly remarkable account tells of her restoration to life of a dead goose that had been eaten by hunters, demonstrating the power of her intercession and God's regard for her holiness. As abbess, Saint Werburgh continued the spiritual legacy of her holy predecessors, maintaining the monastery as a beacon of faith and learning. She peacefully departed this life on 3 February 700, having served Christ faithfully throughout her life. Her relics were initially buried at Hanbury in Staffordshire, but due to the threat of Viking raids in the late ninth century, they were transferred to Chester for protection. A shrine was established in Chester at the Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, which later became Chester Cathedral. Saint Werburgh is venerated as the patron saint of Chester.

Our Father among the Saints, Nikolai, Archbishop and Enlightener of Japan

1912

Born in Russia in 1836, he became one of the great Orthodox missionaries of modern times. As a boy, he resolved to become a missionary in the far East. With the counsel and blessing of Bishop Innocent of Siberia and Alaska, he went to Japan in 1861 and joined a small Russian mission there. Though the mission’s official purpose was to minister to the Russian consular community, the consul-general who invited Hieromonk Nikolai hoped to bring the light of the Orthodox Faith to the Japanese people as well. Realizing that he could only hope to convert the Japanese people if they understood one another well, Fr Nikolai immersed himself in the study of Japanese thought, culture and language. Over the course of his life he translated most of the Bible and most of the Orthodox services into Japanese, and became a fluent speaker of the language. He encountered much resistance: Preaching of Christian doctrine was officially banned in Japan, and a Samurai once approached him with the words “Foreigners must die!” It was this same Samurai who later became his first Japanese priest. In 1880 he was elevated to Bishop of Japan. During the Russo-Japanese war he remained in Japan and labored successfully to overcome nationalist strife that might have harmed or destroyed the Church in Japan. He encouraged all his Japanese faithful to pray for the Japanese armed forces, though he explained that as a Russian he could not do so, and excluded himself from all public services for the duration of the war. He sent Russian-speaking Japanese priests to the prison camps to minister to Russian prisoners of war. At the time of his repose in 1912, after forty-eight years in Japan, St Nikolai left a Cathedral, eight churches, more than 400 chapels and meeting houses, 34 priests, 8 deacons, 115 lay catechists, and 34,110 Orthodox faithful. The Church of Japan is now an autonomous Orthodox Church under the care of the Moscow Patriarchate.

Daily readings

Epistle

weekly cycle

Ephesians — Ephesians 5.1-8

¹Be ye therefore imitators of God, as beloved children;

¹Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children; ²and walk in love, even as Christ also loved you, and gave himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for an odor of a sweet smell. ²And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour.

³But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not even be named among you, as becometh saints; ³But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints; ⁴nor filthiness, nor foolish talking, or jesting, which are not befitting: but rather giving of thanks. ⁴Neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks. ⁵For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. ⁵For this ye know of a surety, that no fornicator, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. ⁶Let no man deceive you with empty words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the sons of disobedience. ⁶Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience. ⁷Be not ye therefore partakers with them; ⁷Be not ye therefore partakers with them. ⁸For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light: ⁸for ye were once darkness, but are now light in the Lord: walk as children of light

Gospel

weekly cycle

Luke — Luke 14.1-11

¹And it came to pass, as he went into the house of one of the chief Pharisees to eat bread on the sabbath day, that they watched him.

¹And it came to pass, when he went into the house of one of the rulers of the Pharisees on a sabbath to eat bread, that they were watching him. ²And, behold, there was a certain man before him which had the dropsy. ²And behold, there was before him a certain man that had the dropsy. ³And Jesus answering spake unto the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath day? ³And Jesus answering spake unto the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath, or not? ⁴And they held their peace. And he took him, and healed him, and let him go; ⁴But they held their peace. And he took him, and healed him, and let him go. ⁵And answered them, saying, Which of you shall have an ass or an ox fallen into a pit, and will not straightway pull him out on the sabbath day? ⁵And he said unto them, Which of you shall have an ass or an ox fallen into a well, and will not straightway draw him up on a sabbath day? ⁶And they could not answer again unto these things. ⁶And they could not answer him again to these things.

⁷And he spake a parable unto those that were bidden, when he marked how they chose out the chief seats; saying unto them,

⁷And he put forth a parable to those which were bidden, when he marked how they chose out the chief rooms; saying unto them, ⁸When thou art bidden of any man to a wedding, sit not down in the highest room; lest a more honourable man than thou be bidden of him; ⁸When thou art bidden of any man to a marriage feast, sit not down in the chief seat; lest haply a more honorable man than thou be bidden of him, ⁹And he that bade thee and him come and say to thee, Give this man place; and thou begin with shame to take the lowest room. ⁹and he that bade thee and him shall come and say to thee, Give this man place; and then thou shalt begin with shame to take the lowest place. ¹⁰But when thou art bidden, go and sit down in the lowest room; that when he that bade thee cometh, he may say unto thee, Friend, go up higher: then shalt thou have worship in the presence of them that sit at meat with thee. ¹⁰But when thou art bidden, go and sit down in the lowest place; that when he that hath bidden thee cometh, he may say to thee, Friend, go up higher: then shalt thou have glory in the presence of all that sit at meat with thee. ¹¹For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted. ¹¹For every one that exalteth himself shall be humbled; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.