Saturday, 10 February 2024

Saturday of the 36th week after Pentecost

300 days after Pascha · Tone 2 · Liturgy · No Fast

Saints commemorated

Hieromartyr Charalampus, Bishop of Magnesia

“This great saint was bishop in Magnesia, and suffered for Christ at the age of 113. When a violent persecution broke out under the Emperor Septimus Severus, the aged Charalampus did not hide from his persecutors, but freely and openly preached the Christian faith. He endured all tortures as though not in the body, and when they flayed the living flesh from him, the godly saint said to the Emperor’s soldiers: ‘Thank you, my brethren, for scraping off the old body and renewing my soul for new and eternal life.’ He performed many wonders and brought many to the Faith. Even the Emperor’s daughter, Gallina, repudiated the paganism of her father and became a Christian. Condemned to death and led to the place of execution, St Charalampus raised his arms to heaven and prayed for all men, that God would give them bodily health and salvation of soul, and that He would grant them the fruits of the earth in abundance: ‘Lord, Thou knowest that men are flesh and blood; forgive them their sins and pour out Thy blessing on all.’ After praying thus, the saintly elder gave his soul to God before the executioner had laid his sword to his neck. He suffered in 202. Gallina took his body and buried it.” (Prologue)

The Great Horologion puts his age at 103.

Holy Martyrs Porphyrius and Baptus

Porphyrius and Baptus were early Christian martyrs who gave their lives in witness to Christ. They refused to participate in pagan idolatry and steadfastly confessed the Christian faith despite threats and torture. Their martyrdom represents the commitment of the early Church to proclaim Christ as Lord and Saviour, regardless of the cost. Through their faithful witness and willingness to die for their faith, they strengthened the resolve of other believers and became witnesses to the power of Christ's redemption. They are remembered in the Orthodox Church as faithful confessors whose martyrdom testified to the truth of the Gospel.

Saint Anastasius II of Jerusalem

Anastasius II was a patriarch of Jerusalem and a venerable father of the Church. He served as a bishop in the Holy Land and was devoted to the spiritual welfare of the Christian communities there. Anastasius was known for his learning, his piety, and his commitment to upholding Orthodox doctrine and tradition. He worked to preserve the sacred sites and to guide the faithful in the way of salvation. He is remembered as a faithful shepherd of the Church in the holy city of Jerusalem.

Saint Scholastica of Nursia

Scholastica was the sister of Saint Benedict of Nursia, the founder of Western monasticism. She lived in the sixth century and devoted her life to the contemplative life and the service of God. Scholastica founded a convent near Monte Cassino and led it with great wisdom and spiritual discipline. She is remembered for her deep piety, her commitment to the monastic life, and her close relationship with her brother Benedict. According to tradition, she had the gift of prophetic foresight and was visited by her brother regularly. She exemplified the virtues of humility, obedience, and devotion to prayer, becoming a model for women monastics throughout the Church. Her memory is venerated as a foundress of women's monastic life in the Western Church.

St Scholastica of Italy, sister of St Benedict

543

She was the twin sister of St Benedict, patriarch of monasticism in the West (March 14), and his constant fellow-laborer in the vineyard of Christ. They lived in neighboring monasteries; though they loved one another dearly, they met only once a year, spending the day in prayer and spiritual conversation, then parting after sharing a simple meal. At their meeting in 543, she prevailed on her brother (and the monk who accompanied him) to break his own monastic rule and stay with her in vigil through the night. Three days later, as Benedict looked out his cell window, he saw his sister’s soul in the form of a dove ascending to heaven. Recommended: The Holy Twins: Benedict and Scholastica, a beautifully illustrated children’s book about the two Saints; by Kathleen Norris, illustrated by Tomie dePaola.

Our Venerable Father Prochorus of the Kiev Caves

1107

“A wonder-worker of the Monastery of the Caves in Kiev, he was named the Orach-eater because the whole time he lived in the monastery, he never tasted bread but fed himself on orach [a kind of wild spinach] prepared according to his own particular method as a sort of bread. When he gave someone some of this bread with his blessing, it was as sweet as honey, but if someone stole some, it was as bitter as wormwood. “At one time, when there was a dearth of salt in Russia, Prochorus distributed ashes to the people for salt. The ashes that he distributed with his blessing became salt; ashes, however, that anyone took for himself remained ordinary ashes. Prince Svyatopolk ordered that all the ashes from Prochorus’ cell be brought to the court without his permission, let alone his blessing. When the ashes were brought there, it was obvious to everyone that they were ashes and not salt. Then Prochorus told all the people who came to him for salt to go to the prince’s court, and, when the prince threw the ashes away, to take them and use them as salt. This they did, and the ashes again became salt. The prince himself, learning of this, was filled with a deep respect and love for him and, when Prochorus died in 1107, placed him with his own hands in a grave near the great Russian saints, Antony and Theodosius.” (Prologue).

Also commemorated: Hieromartyr Haralambos

Daily readings

Epistle

weekly cycle

Colossians — Colossians 1.3-6

³We give thanks to God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you, ³We give thanks to God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you, ⁴Since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus, and of the love which ye have to all the saints, ⁴having heard of your faith in Christ Jesus, and of the love which ye have toward all the saints, ⁵because of the hope which is laid up for you in the heavens, whereof ye heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel, ⁵For the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, whereof ye heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel; ⁶which is come unto you; even as it is also in all the world bearing fruit and increasing, as it doth in you also, since the day ye heard and knew the grace of God in truth; ⁶Which is come unto you, as it is in all the world; and bringeth forth fruit, as it doth also in you, since the day ye heard of it, and knew the grace of God in truth:

Gospel

weekly cycle

Luke — Luke 16.10-15

¹⁰He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much. ¹⁰He that is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much: and he that is unrighteous in a very little is unrighteous also in much. ¹¹If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches? ¹¹If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches? ¹²And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man’s, who shall give you that which is your own? ¹²And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another’s, who will give you that which is your own?

¹³No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. ¹³No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. ¹⁴And the Pharisees also, who were covetous, heard all these things: and they derided him.

¹⁴And the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, heard all these things; and they scoffed at him. ¹⁵And he said unto them, Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God. ¹⁵And he said unto them, Ye are they that justify yourselves in the sight of men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God.