Psalm 95 (Thursday Matins, Kathisma 13)
O sing unto the Lord a new song; sing unto the Lord, all the earth. Sing unto the Lord, bless His name; shew forth His salvation from day to day.
Declare His glory among the heathen, and His wonders among all peoples.
For the Lord is great, and greatly to be praised; He is to be feared above all gods.
For all the gods of the nations are demons, but the Lord made the heavens.
Praise and beauty are before Him; holiness and majesty are in His sanctuary.
Ascribe unto the Lord, O ye kindred of the nations, ascribe unto the Lord glory and honour; ascribe unto the Lord glory to His name.
Bring sacrifices, and go into His courts: worship the Lord in His holy court. Let all the earth be moved at His presence.
O sing unto the Lord a new song; sing unto the Lord, all the earth. Sing unto the Lord, bless His name; shew forth His salvation from day to day.
Declare His glory among the heathen, and His wonders among all peoples.
For the Lord is great, and greatly to be praised; He is to be feared above all gods.
For all the gods of the nations are demons, but the Lord made the heavens.
Praise and beauty are before Him; holiness and majesty are in His sanctuary.
Ascribe unto the Lord, O ye kindred of the nations, ascribe unto the Lord glory and honour; ascribe unto the Lord glory to His name.
Bring sacrifices, and go into His courts: worship the Lord in His holy court. Let all the earth be moved at His presence.
Say among the heathen that the Lord reigneth; for He hath established the world, which shall not be moved; He shall judge the peoples in uprightness.
Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; let the sea be moved, and the fulness thereof. The fields shall rejoice, and all that is therein.
Then shall all the trees of the wood rejoice before the Lord; for He cometh, for He cometh to judge the earth.
He shall judge the world with righteousness, and the peoples with His truth.
Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; let the sea be moved, and the fulness thereof. The fields shall rejoice, and all that is therein.
Then shall all the trees of the wood rejoice before the Lord; for He cometh, for He cometh to judge the earth.
He shall judge the world with righteousness, and the peoples with His truth.
The Third Ecumenical Council, the Counsel of Ephesus (431) condensed into a single graphic: Jesus is God, and the word “Theotokos,” or “Mother of God,” reflects that truth.
The council condemned Nestorius’ overemphasis on the human nature of Christ at the expense of the divine. The Council decreed that Christ was one person, not two separate "people": fully God and fully man, with a rational soul and body.
The Virgin Mary is Theotokos because she gave birth not to a mere man but to God the Word, the man Jesus Christ.
The council condemned Nestorius’ overemphasis on the human nature of Christ at the expense of the divine. The Council decreed that Christ was one person, not two separate "people": fully God and fully man, with a rational soul and body.
The Virgin Mary is Theotokos because she gave birth not to a mere man but to God the Word, the man Jesus Christ.
“O thou greatest of them that are born of women, cease not to intercede for us who with faith honor thy divine conception, that we may find forgiveness of sins and Great Mercy."(from Great Vespers Doxasticon, Tone 6)
On Feast of the Conception of the Honourable Glorious Prophet, Forerunner and Baptist John (Sept 23 / Oct 6) “the mercy, miracles and wisdom of God are celebrated: His mercy toward the devout and righteous parents of St John, the aged Zacharias and Elizabeth, who all their lives had wished for and begged a child from God; His miracle, that of John's conception in the aged womb of Elizabeth; His wisdom, in the dispensation of man's salvation.”
From ‘The Prologue of Ohrid: Lives of Saints, Hymns, Reflections and Homilies for Every Day of the Year’ by St Nikolai Velimirović.
On Feast of the Conception of the Honourable Glorious Prophet, Forerunner and Baptist John (Sept 23 / Oct 6) “the mercy, miracles and wisdom of God are celebrated: His mercy toward the devout and righteous parents of St John, the aged Zacharias and Elizabeth, who all their lives had wished for and begged a child from God; His miracle, that of John's conception in the aged womb of Elizabeth; His wisdom, in the dispensation of man's salvation.”
From ‘The Prologue of Ohrid: Lives of Saints, Hymns, Reflections and Homilies for Every Day of the Year’ by St Nikolai Velimirović.
On the anniversary of the arrival of Russian missionaries in Alaska (September 24, 1794), we honour the New Martyrs Saint Peter the Aleut, Protomartyr of America, and Saint Juvenaly.
"Today Alaska rejoices and America celebrates,
For the new world has been sanctified by martyrdom. Kodiak echoes with songs of thanksgiving,
Iliamna and Kenai observe the festival of faith.
The Apostle and martyr Juvenaly is glorified,
And Peter the Aleut is exalted by his voluntary sacrifice,
In their devotion and love for the Lord,
They willingly endured persecution and death for the Truth.
Now in the Kingdom of Heaven, they intercede for our souls!"
- Troparion, Tone 4
"Today Alaska rejoices and America celebrates,
For the new world has been sanctified by martyrdom. Kodiak echoes with songs of thanksgiving,
Iliamna and Kenai observe the festival of faith.
The Apostle and martyr Juvenaly is glorified,
And Peter the Aleut is exalted by his voluntary sacrifice,
In their devotion and love for the Lord,
They willingly endured persecution and death for the Truth.
Now in the Kingdom of Heaven, they intercede for our souls!"
- Troparion, Tone 4
“Having lived as a stranger in the world, you outwitted the deviser of evil by your pretended foolishness, O Xenia, you received the grace from God to foresee and foretell things to come.”
Saint Xenia (Glorification Sept 11/ Sept 24) was widowed at the age of twenty-six when her husband suddenly died at a party. She was especially grieved for her husband because he died without Confession or Holy Communion.
Xenia lost interest in the things of this world, and followed the difficult path of a fool for Christ.
Against her will, her spiritual gifts become widely known and nearly everyone loved her. They said, “Xenia does not belong to this world, she belongs to God.”
Saint Xenia (Glorification Sept 11/ Sept 24) was widowed at the age of twenty-six when her husband suddenly died at a party. She was especially grieved for her husband because he died without Confession or Holy Communion.
Xenia lost interest in the things of this world, and followed the difficult path of a fool for Christ.
Against her will, her spiritual gifts become widely known and nearly everyone loved her. They said, “Xenia does not belong to this world, she belongs to God.”
"God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him."
Our love should not be just words and talk; it must be true love, which shows itself in action. This is the message of the holy, glorious and all-laudable Apostle and Evangelist John (also John the Theologian or John the Divine), one of the original twelve Apostles. (Repose Sept 26)
"Let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth."
"Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister."
Our love should not be just words and talk; it must be true love, which shows itself in action. This is the message of the holy, glorious and all-laudable Apostle and Evangelist John (also John the Theologian or John the Divine), one of the original twelve Apostles. (Repose Sept 26)
"Let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth."
"Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister."
Walking, sitting, lying down, conversing, or working, at every time, pray with your whole heart that faith and love may be given to you.
You have not yet asked for them as you should ask–fervently and instantly, with the firm purpose of obtaining them. Say now, “I will begin to do so henceforth."
☦️ St John of Kronstadt, My Life in Christ.
You have not yet asked for them as you should ask–fervently and instantly, with the firm purpose of obtaining them. Say now, “I will begin to do so henceforth."
☦️ St John of Kronstadt, My Life in Christ.
“We implore you, cover us with your holy veil (omophorion) and deliver us from all evil.”
On the Feast of the Protection of the Most Holy Theotokos (Oct 14/1) we implore the defense and assistance of the Queen of Heaven. “Remember us in your prayers, O Lady Virgin Mother of God, that we not perish by the increase of our sins. Protect us from every evil and from grievous woes, for in you do we hope, and, venerating the Feast of your Protection, we magnify you.”
On the Feast of the Protection of the Most Holy Theotokos (Oct 14/1) we implore the defense and assistance of the Queen of Heaven. “Remember us in your prayers, O Lady Virgin Mother of God, that we not perish by the increase of our sins. Protect us from every evil and from grievous woes, for in you do we hope, and, venerating the Feast of your Protection, we magnify you.”
Having named her daughters with the names of the three Christian virtues, Faith, Hope, and Love, their pious widowed mother, Saint Sophia, raised them up in love for the Lord Jesus Christ. Saint Sophia and her young daughters (Sept 30/17) did not hide their faith in Christ and they openly confessed it to all— including their joyful confession in the face of martyrdom before the emperor Hadrian in the second century.
“You blossomed in the courts of the Lord as a fruitful olive tree, holy martyr Sophia; in your contest you offered to Christ the sweet fruit of your womb, your daughters Faith, Hope, and Love. Together with them intercede for us all.”
“You blossomed in the courts of the Lord as a fruitful olive tree, holy martyr Sophia; in your contest you offered to Christ the sweet fruit of your womb, your daughters Faith, Hope, and Love. Together with them intercede for us all.”
The Feast of the Protection of The Theotokos (Oct 14/1) commemorates the appearance of our holy Theotokos in the Church of Blachernae in Constantinople in the early sixth century, as recorded in the life of Saint Andrew the Fool for Christ.
While the multitudes of the faithful were gathered in the church, Epiphanius, the friend of Saint Andrew, through the Saint's prayers, beheld our most Holy Lady Theotokos coming through the air, radiant with heavenly light and surrounded by an assembly of the Saints.
St John the Baptist and the holy Apostle John the Theologian accompanied the Queen of Heaven above the faithful and spreading out her veil over them, signifying her unceasing protection of all Christians. Because of this, we keep a yearly feast of thanksgiving, beseeching our Lady never to cease sheltering us in her mighty prayers.
Church photo: Holy Protection of the Theotokos Orthodox Church, Cabramatta, New South Wales, Australia
While the multitudes of the faithful were gathered in the church, Epiphanius, the friend of Saint Andrew, through the Saint's prayers, beheld our most Holy Lady Theotokos coming through the air, radiant with heavenly light and surrounded by an assembly of the Saints.
St John the Baptist and the holy Apostle John the Theologian accompanied the Queen of Heaven above the faithful and spreading out her veil over them, signifying her unceasing protection of all Christians. Because of this, we keep a yearly feast of thanksgiving, beseeching our Lady never to cease sheltering us in her mighty prayers.
Church photo: Holy Protection of the Theotokos Orthodox Church, Cabramatta, New South Wales, Australia
From his hermitage on the Holy Mountain, the God-bearing St Paisios (1924- 1994) guided and healed thousands of people who came to him from all over the world for relief from their spiritual and physical infirmities. The life of this great clairvoyant elder silences those who believe that saints are a myth or that there are no longer any saints in our times. Father Kosmas, priestmonk at the Holy Archangel Orthodox Monastery in Sydney, Australia, relates the experiences of a number of people who visited the elder, recounting their problems, concerns and questions and the elder's response in each case.
The following questions are also discussed: Can our sins affect our loved ones? How can one be "tied to the devil"? Why does God allow incurable illnesses? Is it always beneficial to witness a miracle? Is walking on water always a sign of holiness?
https://t.me/priestmontkosmastalks/2
The following questions are also discussed: Can our sins affect our loved ones? How can one be "tied to the devil"? Why does God allow incurable illnesses? Is it always beneficial to witness a miracle? Is walking on water always a sign of holiness?
https://t.me/priestmontkosmastalks/2