THE PARAGON

Saturday, October 10, 2026

Sunday Sept 28 / Oct 11 ns 2026 • St. Charíton the Confessor; Holy Prophet Baruch; Holy royal Martyr Wenceslaus, Prince of the Czechs ~ MY LIFE IN CHRIST St John of Kronstadt ~ VIGNETTES

SUNDAY

September 28

October 11 ns
2026

St. Charíton the Confessor

Holy Prophet Baruch

Holy Royal Martyr Wenceslaus,

Prince of the Czechs

Charíton was a distinguished and devout citizen of the city of Iconium. Imbued with the spirit of his compatriot, St. Thecla, Chariton openly confessed the name of Christ. When a bitter persecution of Christians began during the reign of Emperor Aurelian, Chariton was immediately brought to trial before the eparch. The judge ordered him to worship the gods, but Chariton replied: "All your gods are demons, and were cast from the heavens into the nethermost hell.''

Chariton clearly proclaimed his faith in the One Living God, the Creator of all, and the Lord Jesus, the Savior of mankind. The eparch ordered that he be tortured and beaten, until his whole body was like one great wound. When Aurelian's evil deeds caught up with him and he died an evil death, Chariton was freed from torture and prison. He then set out for Jerusalem. On the way he was seized by robbers, but escaped from them by God's providence.

Chariton, not wanting to return to Iconium again, withdrew to the wilderness of Pharan, where he founded a monastery and gathered monks. He established a rule for the monastery and then, to avoid the praise of men, withdrew to another wilderness near Jericho. There he founded another monastery called the Monastery of Chariton. Finally, he founded a third monastery, Souka, which the Greeks called the Old Lavra.

Chariton died at a great old age, and took up his abode in the glory of his Lord on September 28, 350. His relics repose in his first monastery. The composition of the rite of monastic tonsure is attributed to St. Chariton.

Saint John 20:11-18 KJV

11 But Mary stood without at the sepulchre weeping: and as she wept, she stooped down, and looked into the sepulchre,

12 And seeth two angels in white sitting, the one at the head, and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain.

13 And they say unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? She saith unto them, Because they have taken away my Lord, and I know not where they have laid him.

14 And when she had thus said, she turned herself back, and saw Jesus standing, and knew not that it was Jesus.

15 Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? whom seekest thou? She, supposing him to be the gardener, saith unto him, Sir, if thou have borne him hence, tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will take him away.

16 Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turned herself, and saith unto him, Rabboni; which is to say, Master.

17 Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God.

18 Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord, and that he had spoken these things unto her.

2 Corinthians 11:31-12:9 KJV

31 The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which is blessed for evermore, knoweth that I lie not.

32 In Damascus the governor under Aretas the king kept the city of the damascenes with a garrison, desirous to apprehend me:

33 And through a window in a basket was I let down by the wall, and escaped his hands.

12 It is not expedient for me doubtless to glory. I will come to visions and revelations of the Lord.

2 I knew a man in Christ above fourteen years ago, (whether in the body, I cannot tell; or whether out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth;) such an one caught up to the third heaven.

3 And I knew such a man, (whether in the body, or out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth;)

4 How that he was caught up into paradise, and heard unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter.

5 Of such an one will I glory: yet of myself I will not glory, but in mine infirmities.

6 For though I would desire to glory, I shall not be a fool; for I will say the truth: but now I forbear, lest any man should think of me above that which he seeth me to be, or that he heareth of me.

7 And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure.

8 For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me.

9 And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

Saint Luke 5:1-11 KJV

5 And it came to pass, that, as the people pressed upon him to hear the word of God, he stood by the lake of Gennesaret,

2 And saw two ships standing by the lake: but the fishermen were gone out of them, and were washing their nets.

3 And he entered into one of the ships, which was Simon's, and prayed him that he would thrust out a little from the land. And he sat down, and taught the people out of the ship.

4 Now when he had left speaking, he said unto Simon, Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught.

5 And Simon answering said unto him, Master, we have toiled all the night, and have taken nothing: nevertheless at thy word I will let down the net.

6 And when they had this done, they inclosed a great multitude of fishes: and their net brake.

7 And they beckoned unto their partners, which were in the other ship, that they should come and help them. And they came, and filled both the ships, so that they began to sink.

8 When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord.

9 For he was astonished, and all that were with him, at the draught of the fishes which they had taken:

10 And so was also James, and John, the sons of Zebedee, which were partners with Simon. And Jesus said unto Simon, Fear not; from henceforth thou shalt catch men.

11 And when they had brought their ships to land, they forsook all, and followed him.

It is incomprehensible how Jesus Christ is united with the sign of the Cross, and gives it the wonderful power of driving away passions, demons, and to calm the troubled soul. It is likewise incomprehensible how the spirit of our Lord Jesus Christ is united with the bread and wine, transforming them into His own Flesh and Blood, and manifestly cleansing our soul from sins, bringing into it heavenly peace and tranquility and making it good, gentle, humble, and full of hearty faith and hope. This is partly explained by the fact that the Almighty, creating spirit of our Lord Jesus Christ is everywhere, and that everywhere He "calleth those things which be not as though they were"; [41] and therefore much more can He make what exists other from what it was. And in order that the unbelieving heart should not think that both the sign of the Cross and the name of Christ act miraculously by themselves, apart from and independently of Christ Himself, this same Cross and name of Christ do not perform any miracles, until I see Jesus Christ with the eyes of my heart, or by faith, and until I believe with my whole heart all that which He has accomplished for our salvation. "I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world."

claims that our galaxy, the Milky Way is about 1,000,000,000,000,000,000 km across and it is just one galaxy of the approximately 2 trillion that Harvard and MIT claim compose the universe.

That being considered as somewhat accurate, if one is the greatest pantologist that ever lived, in possession of a universe of accurate facts, including trivia, from astrophysics to alphabet blocks, how would he act if he was acquainted with one who is omniscient?

ABOUT BOB

In an attempt at humility, Bob once said: I know nothing. To which he received the following response: That in fact, Bob, is the problem. Bob smiled feeling he had achieved some collaboration.

No Bob, the problem is that you do know something and only when we are totally empty, including attachments and desires, we have invited He who is not only omniscient but also omnipresent and omnipotent.

Who is that? Bob asked.

The only One, our Creator, Lord, God and Savior Jesus Christ.

If we wish God's gifts for loving and obeying Him, then we must stop rewarding our hearts with more and more quantities of temporary things that we will leave here when He calls us from this ‘life’.

Does He not give in excess even without our asking? Yet, does He not clearly command that our hearts must exclusively be His?

GOD, US AND ANIMALS - A DISCUSSION

After a discussion with an individual concerning the relationship of God and animals I came to the following:

I have to agree with those who say that animals do not know God as we do.

And, although illumination isn't available to them, it appears they function with each other and their environment as though governed, and without question, without wavering and are admirably remarkably adherent as one would expect from a servant and his or her mater .

I think God is their Lord, but they don't know God as Lord, Savior or the Son of the Father.

Rather than go too far with this, yet I feel confident to say in conclusion, that they are not, in any way, capable of the following: "Thou shalt have no other gods before me" {Exodus 20:3 KJV}

SUPPLANTING ETERNITY OF THE SOUL ,

AND THE CHURCH BUILDING WITH IT

It's easy

Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle. {2Thess 2:15}

HOW DOES DEPARTURE FROM CHRIST ACTUALLY HAPPEN?

The only effort required to supplant illumination from a Life in Christ is to increase to excess social activities and attach ourselves (body and soul) to temporary objects, (apparently the most prevalent choice in this world) both of which are transient because our time in this life is ephemeral and soon 'Churches' become social clubs or organizations where God is honored with the lips - but with hearts distant. {St. Matthew 15:8 KJV}

Friday, October 9, 2026

Saturday Sept 27 / Oct 10 ns 2026 • Holy Martyr Callístratos and those with him, Holy Virgin-Martyr Aquilina the New ~ QUOTE: UNWORTHY OF ENTRANCE by St John Chrysostomos ~ VIGNETTES ~ WHY THE PARAGON ~ QUOTE: READING PRAYERS IS NOT ENOUGH b y St. Ephraim of Katounakia

Rejoice, precious Diadem of pious Kings

Saturday Sept 27 / Oct 10 ns 2026

Holy Martyr Callístratos

and those with him;

Holy Virgin Martyr

Aquilína the New

Callístratos was born in Carthage. He was a Christian from birth, for his father and grandfather were Christians. One of Callistratos ancestors, Neochorus by name, was a soldier in Jerusalem under Pontius Pilate, at the time of the Crucifixion of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Witnessing the many miracles at the time of Christ's death, Neochorus believed in Him, and was instructed in the Faith and baptized by an apostle. Returning home to Carthage, Neochorus brought his Christian Faith with him as a precious pearl. So it was that in time Callistratos was born, baptized and raised a Christian.

While Callistratos was in the army there were no other Christians in his regiment besides him. One of his companions, seeing how St. Callistratos arose at night and prayed to God, reported him as a Christian to the commander, Persentinian. Persentinian was a cruel torturer of Christians. In order to confirm that Callistratos was indeed a Christian, the commander ordered him to offer sacrifice to the idols, which Callistratos straightway refused to do. He was then severely beaten and thrown into the sea. However, the power of God saved him, and he emerged from the sea in sound health. Seeing Callistratos endurance and miracles, forty-nine other soldiers came to believe in Christ. They were beaten and thrown into prison with Callistratos . In prison Callistratos taught his companions the Faith, and strengthened them. They displayed great bravery in suffering, and the Lord manifested great power through them. Then the evil torturer sent soldiers to the prison by night, and they slew St. Callistratos and his forty-nine companions. They suffered for the truth in the year 304. A church was later built over their relics.

Aquilína was from the village of Zaklivera in the diocese of Jedrene, Aquilína was a girl of eighteen. Her father embraced Islam and put pressure on his daughter to do the same, but her mother inclined her to the Christian faith. After much torture, all wounded and bloodied, she breathed her last in her mother's arms and received the wreath of martyrdom on September 27th, 1764.

1 Corinthians 15:58-16:3 KJV

58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.

16 Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given order to the churches of Galatia, even so do ye.

2 Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come.

3 And when I come, whomsoever ye shall approve by your letters, them will I send to bring your liberality unto Jerusalem.

Saint Luke 4:31-36 KJV

31 And came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and taught them on the sabbath days.

32 And they were astonished at his doctrine: for his word was with power.

33 And in the synagogue there was a man, which had a spirit of an unclean devil, and cried out with a loud voice,

34 Saying, Let us alone; what have we to do with thee, thou Jesus of Nazareth? art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art; the Holy One of God.

35 And Jesus rebuked him, saying, Hold thy peace, and come out of him. And when the devil had thrown him in the midst, he came out of him, and hurt him not.

36 And they were all amazed, and spake among themselves, saying, What a word is this! for with authority and power he commandeth the unclean spirits, and they come out.

UNWORTHY OF ENTRANCE

by Our Holy Father Saint John Chrysostomos

Let us not then make ourselves unworthy of entrance into the bride-chamber: for as long as we are in this world, even if we commit countless sins it is possible to wash them all away by manifesting repentance for our offenses: but when once we have departed to the other world, even if we display the most earnest repentance it will be of no avail, not even if we gnash our teeth, beat our breasts, and utter innumerable calls for succor, no one with the tip of his finger will apply a drop to our burning bodies, but we shall only hear those words which the rich man heard in the parable ‘Between us and you a great gulf has been fixed.’ [St. Luke 16:26 KJV]

Let us then, I beseech you, recover our senses here and let us recognize our Master as He ought to be recognized. For only when we are in Hades should we abandon the hope derived from repentance: for there only is this remedy weak and unprofitable: but while we are here even if it is applied in old age itself it exhibits much strength. Wherefore also the devil sets everything in motion in order to root in us the reasoning which comes of despair: for he knows that if we repent even a little we shall not do this without some reward. But just as he who gives a cup of cold water has his recompense reserved for him, so also the man who has repented of the evils which he has done, even if he cannot exhibit the repentance which his offenses deserve, will have a commensurate reward. For not a single item of good, however small it may be, will be overlooked by the righteous judge. For if He makes such an exact scrutiny of our sins, as to require punishment for both our words and thoughts, much more will our good deeds, whether they be great or small, be reckoned to our credit at that day.

Wherefore, even if thou art not able to return again to the most exact state of discipline, yet if thou withdraw thyself in a slight degree at least from thy present disorder and excess, even this will not be impossible: only set thyself to the task at once, and open the entrance into the place of contest; but as long as thou tarriest outside this naturally seems difficult and impracticable to thee. [Matt. xxv. 34; 249 Luke xvi. 26]. For before making the trial even if things are easy and manageable they are wont to present an appearance of much difficulty to us: but when we are actually engaged in the trial, and making the venture the greater part of our distress is removed, and confidence taking the place of tremor and despair lessens the fear and increases the facility of operation, and makes our good hopes stronger.

For this reason also the wicked one dragged Judas out of this world lest he should make a fair beginning, and so return by means of repentance to the point from which he fell. For although it may seem a strange thing to say, I will not admit even that sin to be too great for the succor which is brought to us from repentance. Wherefore I pray and beseech you to banish all this Satanic mode of thinking from your soul, and to return to this state of salvation.

GOD, US AND ANIMALS - A DISCUSSION

After a discussion with an individual concerning the relationship of God and animals I came to the following:

I have to agree with those who say that animals do not know God as we do.

I think God is their Lord, but they don't know God as Lord, Savior or the Son of the Father.

Rather than go too far with this, yet I feel confident to say in conclusion, that they are not, in any way, capable of the following: "Thou shalt have no other gods before me" {Exodus 20:3 KJV}

SUPPLANTING ILLUMINATION AND THE CHURCH BUILDING WITH IT - MODERNISM

Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle. {2Thess 2:15}

HOW DOES DEPARTURE FROM HOLY TRADITION {ORTHOPRAXIS} ACTUALLY HAPPEN?

Thursday, October 8, 2026

Friday Sept 26 / Oct 9 ns 2026 † The Dormition of St. John the Theologian, St. Neilos of Calabria ~ Wine and olive oil are permitted ~

FRIDAY

September 26

October 9 ns
2026

† The Dormition of St. John the Theologian
St. Neilos of Calabria

When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by, whom He loved, He saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son!
Then saith he to the disciple, Behold thy mother! And from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home.

John was the son of Zebedee the fisherman and Salome the daughter of Joseph, the betrothed of the Holy Theotokos.

Called by the Lord Jesus, John immediately left his father and his fishermen's nets and, with his brother James, followed Christ. From then on, he was not separated from his Lord until the end. With Peter and James, he was present at the raising of Jairus's daughter and the Transfiguration of the Lord. At the Mystical (aka Last) Supper, he inclined his head on Jesus' breast.

When all the other apostles had abandoned the crucified Lord, John and the Holy Mother of God remained beneath the Cross. In obedience to the Lord, he was as a son to the Holy Virgin Mary, and carefully served and watched over her until her Dormition. After her Dormition, John took his disciple Prochorus to preach the Gospel in Asia Minor. He lived and labored mostly in Ephesus. By his inspired preaching and miracles he converted many to Christianity and shook paganism to its foundation.

The embittered pagans bound him and sent him to Rome, to face Emperor Dometian. Dometian had him tortured and flogged, but neither the bitterest poison he was given to drink, nor the boiling oil into which he was thrown, did him any harm. This terrified the emperor and, thinking him immortal, Dometian sent him into exile to the island of Patmos. There St. John converted many to Christianity by words and miracles, and confirmed well the Church of God. He also wrote his Gospel and Revelation on Patmos.

In the time of Emperor Nero, who granted freedom to all prisoners, John returned to Ephesus, where he lived for some time, confirming the work he had begun earlier. He was over one hundred years old when he went to the Lord. When his disciples later opened his grave, they did not find his body.

On May 8 of every year, a fine dust, fragrant and healing, rose from his grave. After a long, laborious and fruitful life on earth, this beloved disciple of Christ, a true pillar of the Church, took up his habitation in the joy of His Lord.

1 Saint John 4:12-19 KJV

12 No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us.

13 Hereby know we that we dwell in him, and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit.

14 And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world.

15 Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God.

16 And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.

17 Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.

18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.

19 We love him, because he first loved us.

Saint John 19:25-27, 21:24-25 KJV

19:25 Now there stood by the cross of Jesus his mother, and his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene.

26 When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by, whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son!

27 Then saith he to the disciple, Behold thy mother! And from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home.

21:24 This is the disciple which testifieth of these things, and wrote these things: and we know that his testimony is true.

25 And there are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. Amen.

HYMN OF PRAISE

SAINT JOHN THE THEOLOGIAN,

APOSTLE AND EVANGELIST