Thursday, 23 January 2025

Thursday of the 31st week after Pentecost

263 days after Pascha · Tone 5 · Liturgy · No Fast

Saints commemorated

Hieromartyr Clement of Ancyra, and Martyr Agathangelus

296

He was from Ancyra in Galatia, son of a pagan father and a Christian mother named Euphrosyne. His mother prophesied on her deathbed that he would suffer great torments for Christ over many years. After her death he was adopted and reared by a pious woman named Sophia. From the age of twelve, he began to fast and pray like the monks, so that he was soon ordained a deacon, and became Bishop of Ancyra at the age of twenty. His piety and zeal for the faith attracted the attention of the Imperial Governor of the region, who had him arrested. Thus began Clement’s twenty-eight years of almost continuous suffering for the Faith. When he stood firm despite many tortures, he was sent to the Emperor Diocletian in Rome. The Emperor showed him a table set with costly vessels on one side, and another decked with instruments of torture on the other, and bade Clement to make his choice. The Saint replied: “These precious vessels remind how much more glorious must be the eternal good things of Paradise; and these instruments of torture remind me of the everlasting punishments of hell that await those who deny the Lord.” The Saint was viciously tortured, then transported to Nicomedia, where a converted pagan named Agathangelus (‘good angel’) became his companion. For many years they endured unspeakable torments alternating with long imprisonments, but nothing would move them to deny the precious Faith of Christ. After twenty-eight years of suffering, Agathangelus was beheaded; but Clement was briefly paroled and allowed to celebrate the services of Theophany and to give the holy Communion to his fellow-Christians. A few days later, as he was again celebrating the Divine Liturgy, some pagan soldiers burst into the church and beheaded him at the altar.

Hieromartyr Clement, bishop of Ancyra

Clement was born in the Galatian city of Ancyra in 258 to a pagan father and a Christian mother. He lost his father in infancy and his mother when he was twelve years old. A devout woman named Sophia adopted him and raised him in the fear of God. From his youth, Clement was distinguished for his exceptional virtue and holy living, particularly for his ascetical practices. He ate only bread and vegetables, abstaining from anything slaughtered or containing blood. Because of his fame as a holy man, Clement was elected Bishop of Ancyra at the extraordinary young age of twenty. He had previously been made a reader, then ordained a deacon, and at eighteen was ordained to the holy priesthood. When the persecution against Christians under Emperor Diocletian broke out, Bishop Clement boldly confessed the faith despite the dangers. He was denounced as a Christian and arrested. During the reign of Diocletian, Bishop Clement was subjected to horribly torments as no one had suffered since the beginning of the world, according to historical accounts. He spent twenty-eight years in torments and in dungeons, enduring his sufferings with remarkable faith and steadfastness. On 23 January 312, soldiers from the city stormed the church where he was celebrating the Divine Liturgy as bishop. The holy hierarch was beheaded as he stood before the altar offering the Bloodless Sacrifice. His disciple Agathangelus, who had avoided execution with other confessors, desired to suffer and die with his bishop and was also martyred. Their memory is preserved in the Orthodox tradition as witnesses to Christ.

Saint Mausimas the Syrian

Saint Mausimas (also known as Maximus) was a Syrian monk and ascetic of the early Church. Little biographical detail survives regarding his birth and family, but he is venerated as one of the desert fathers of Syria and the Holy Land during the period of Christian monastic development in the fourth or fifth century. Mausimas devoted his life to rigorous asceticism, prayer, and the pursuit of spiritual perfection in the harsh conditions of the Syrian desert. He was known for his wisdom and spiritual counsel, and attracted disciples who sought his guidance in the monastic life. His life exemplifies the early monastic tradition of self-denial, contemplative prayer, and the struggle against the passions through fasting and vigil. He is commemorated on 23 January as a venerable monk and father of the desert.

Saint Paulinus the Merciful, Bishop of Nola

Paulinus of Nola (353-431) was born in Bordeaux in Aquitania into a wealthy senatorial family. He received a classical education and held the position of Roman consul in 389. In his youth he was known for his eloquence and secular learning, but underwent a profound spiritual conversion in middle age. After the death of his son and the influence of his wife Therasia, he and his family renounced their vast estates and wealth, distributing their fortune to the poor and to churches. He was ordained a priest and later became Bishop of Nola, where he laboured tirelessly for the spiritual and material welfare of his flock. Paulinus was celebrated for his generosity towards the poor and sick, earning the epithet "the Merciful". He was a prolific writer of hymns and spiritual poems, and his correspondence with Saint Augustine and other Church fathers influenced theological thought of the period. He fasted rigorously and maintained a life of ascetic discipline despite his advancing years. Paulinus reposed in peace around 431 and was venerated as a great intercessor for the poor. His feast day commemorates his pastoral charity and transformation from worldly pursuits to Christian asceticism.

Venerable Anatolius of Optina the Younger

Anatolius of Optina the Younger was a Russian Orthodox monk of the Optina Monastery in the nineteenth century. He followed in the tradition of the elders (starcy) of Optina, who were renowned for their spiritual wisdom and pastoral care of souls. Anatolius devoted himself to the monastic life with great dedication, practising rigorous asceticism, obedience to the monastic rule, and constant prayer. He became known as a compassionate spiritual father to those who sought his counsel, offering guidance rooted in deep Orthodox theology and lived experience of the ascetic struggle. The Optina Monastery, situated in the region of Kaluga, was a major centre of spiritual renewal in the Russian Church during the nineteenth century, producing several notable elder-monks and hermits. Anatolius exemplified the virtues of humility, prayer, and self-sacrificial love that characterised the Optina tradition. He reposed in the Lord at Optina and is commemorated as a venerable father of the Russian monastic tradition.

Venerable Salamanes the Silent of the Euphrates

Salamanes was from the town of Kapersana in Syria, on the west bank of the Euphrates River. He followed the path of monasticism and built his cell near the Euphrates, dedicating himself entirely to prayer, silence, and study of the Word of God. He sought to be dead to the world and to obey only the will of God through his monastic struggles. When the bishop of the town learned of the virtue of the venerable ascetic, he went to see him in order to ordain him to the priesthood, desiring to elevate his spiritual gifts for the benefit of the Church. Upon arrival at the saint's cell, the bishop ordered Salamanes to dismantle part of the wall so that he might enter. During the conversation about the grace of priesthood and its responsibilities, the bishop was met with complete silence. Salamanes spoke not a single word in response, maintaining his vow of silence even before his spiritual superior. Understanding the saint's commitment to silence and contemplation, the bishop departed, ordering him to rebuild the wall. Saint Salamanes was content with his feat of silence, which he maintained as a spiritual discipline until his death around the year 400. The ascetic did not interrupt his practice, speaking only to God in prayer. He is honoured as the first saint in the Orthodox tradition to embrace complete silence as a lifelong spiritual practice, pioneering what would later develop into the hesychast tradition of mystical prayer.

Daily readings

Epistle

weekly cycle

James — James 1.19-27

¹⁹Ye know this, my beloved brethren. But let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath:

¹⁹Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath: ²⁰for the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God. ²⁰For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God. ²¹Wherefore putting away all filthiness and overflowing of wickedness, receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls. ²¹Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls. ²²But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deluding your own selves. ²²But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. ²³For if any one is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a mirror: ²³For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: ²⁴For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. ²⁴for he beholdeth himself, and goeth away, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. ²⁵But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed. ²⁵But he that looketh into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and so continueth, being not a hearer that forgetteth but a doer that worketh, this man shall be blessed in his doing. ²⁶If any man thinketh himself to be religious, while he bridleth not his tongue but deceiveth his heart, this man’s religion is vain. ²⁶If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man’s religion is vain. ²⁷Pure religion and undefiled before our God and Father is this, to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world. ²⁷Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.

Gospel

weekly cycle

Mark — Mark 10.17-27

¹⁷And when he was gone forth into the way, there came one running, and kneeled to him, and asked him, Good Master, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life?

¹⁷And as he was going forth into the way, there ran one to him, and kneeled to him, and asked him, Good Teacher, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life? ¹⁸And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God. ¹⁸And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? none is good save one, even God. ¹⁹Thou knowest the commandments, Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Defraud not, Honour thy father and mother. ¹⁹Thou knowest the commandments, Do not kill, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor thy father and mother. ²⁰And he answered and said unto him, Master, all these have I observed from my youth. ²⁰And he said unto him, Teacher, all these things have I observed from my youth. ²¹Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me. ²¹And Jesus looking upon him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me. ²²But his countenance fell at the saying, and he went away sorrowful: for he was one that had great possessions. ²²And he was sad at that saying, and went away grieved: for he had great possessions.

²³And Jesus looked round about, and saith unto his disciples, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God!

²³And Jesus looked round about, and saith unto his disciples, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God! ²⁴And the disciples were astonished at his words. But Jesus answereth again, and saith unto them, Children, how hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God! ²⁴And the disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus answereth again, and saith unto them, Children, how hard is it for them that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God! ²⁵It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. ²⁵It is easier for a camel to go through a needle’s eye, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. ²⁶And they were astonished out of measure, saying among themselves, Who then can be saved? ²⁶And they were astonished exceedingly, saying unto him, Then who can be saved? ²⁷And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible. ²⁷Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for all things are possible with God.