Mach 27/ April 9 ns 2026 † GREAT THURSDAY ~ THE MYSTICAL SUPPER • Holy Martyr Matrona of Thessalonica ~ Fast day

 

I AM THE

RESURRECTION

AND THE

LIFE

As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you; continue ye in My love. If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in My love; even as I have kept My Father's commandments, and abide in His love. These things have I spoken unto you, that My joy might remain in you, and that your joy may be full. This is my commandment, that ye love one another, as I have loved you.

Saint John 15:11 KJV

Rejoice, thou who makest manifest

the life of the Angels.

HOLY & GREAT THURSDAY

 THE MYSTCAL SUPPER

• Holy Martyr Matrona of Thessalonica

FAST DAY

March 27/ April 9 ns 2026

GREAT THURSDAY MORNING
during the Divine Liturgy of Saint Basil, we commemorate our Savior's establishment of Holy Communion during the Mystical Supper wherein He proclaims that the bread and wine become His Body and Blood given to us for Eternal Life. We are also reminded of the betrayal by Judas Iscariot and Christ's vigil in the Garden of Gethsemane.


GREAT THURSDAY EVENING
retells the entire story of Christ's Passion through the reading of the twelve Gospel lessons. After the fifth Gospel reading, the Crucifixion is re-enacted when the priest carries the Crucifix in procession and places It in the center of the Church for veneration. The following Antiphon is chanted.

Today is suspended upon the Tree, He who suspended the earth over the waters. x3
A crown of thorns crowns Him, who is the King of the angels.
He is wrapped in the purple robe of mockery, who wraps the heavens with clouds.
He receives smiting, who freed Adam in the Jordan.
He is transfixed with nails, Who is the Son of the Virgin.
We worship Thy passion, O Christ. x3
Show us also Thy glorious Resurrection!

Photo: Where they laid Him

Church of the Holy Sepulcher, Jerusalem

1962

It is not meet for you to be unknown Holy Martyr Matrona even though you died secretly in prison.

As an orphan girl Matrona was a servant in the home of a Jew in Thessalonica.

The wife of the Jew continuously mocked Matrona because of her faith in Christ and tried to persuade her to deny Christ and to attend the synagogue. But the meek Matrona went about her work conscientiously and did not say anything to her mistress. But in secret she prayed to Christ the God.

On one occasion the Jewess discovered that Matrona was attending church unbeknown to her and, in anger, questioned her as to why she did not attend the synagogue rather than the church? To that, Matrona replied, "Because in the Christian churches, God lives and He withdraws from the Jewish synagogues." Furious, because of this type of bold reply, the Jewess beat Matrona, locked her up in a dark room, and, in addition to that, bound her hands. The next day as she was kneeling in prayer and glorifying God, her ropes had fallen off by the power of God.

Afterwards, on two occasions, she was locked up again and, in the end, died of starvation. This evil Jewish woman then took the body of this holy maiden and hurled it to the ground from the heights of her home. Christians took the body of this martyr and buried it with honors. Alexander the bishop, learning of the many miraculous works of this holy martyr, erected a church over her grave. The evil Jewess received her just punishment when she slipped, fell to the pavement, and was smashed to death from the same spot at the top of the house from which she hurled down Matrona's body.

March 26/April 8 ns 2026 †GREAT WEDNESDAY ~ THE HARLOT WHO ANOINTED THE LORD WITH MYRRH • Sýnaxis of the Archangel Gabriel ~ Fast day

I AM THE
RESURRECTION

AND THE
LIFE

As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you; continue ye in My love. If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in My love; even as I have kept My Father's commandments, and abide in His love. These things have I spoken unto you, that My joy might remain in you, and that your joy may be full. This is my commandment, that ye love one another, as I have loved you.

Saint John 15:11 KJV

 Rejoice, for thou didst bring back to their senses those dispossessed of their spiritual minds.

HOLY & GREAT WEDNESDAY

 THE HARLOT WHO ANOINTED
THE LORD WITH MYRRH

• Sýnaxis of the Archangel Gabriel

FAST DAY

March 26/ April 8 ns 2026

On Holy & Great Wednesday the Church invites the faithful to focus their attention on two figures: the sinful woman who anointed Jesus shortly before the passion (St. Matt 26:6-13), and Judas, the disciple who betrayed the Lord. The former acknowledged Jesus as Lord, while the latter severed himself from the Master. The one was set free, while the other became a slave. The one inherited the kingdom, while the other fell into perdition. These two people bring before us concerns and issues related to freedom, sin, hell and repentance.

The repentance of the sinful harlot is contrasted with the tragic fall of the chosen disciple. It is clear that Judas perished, not simply because he betrayed his Master, but because, having fallen into the sin of betrayal, he then refused to believe in the possibility of forgiveness. 

If we deplore the actions of Judas, we do so, not with vindictive self-righteousness, but conscious always of our own guilt. In general, all the passages that seem to be directed against the Jews should be understood in this same way. When the passage denounces those who rejected Christ and delivered Him to death, we recognize that these words apply not only to others, but to ourselves: for have we not betrayed the Savior many times in our hearts and crucified Him anew?

I have transgressed more than the harlot, O loving Lord, yet never have I offered Thee my flowing tears. But in silence I fall down before Thee and with love I kiss Thy most pure feet, beseeching Thee as Master to grant me remission of my sins; and I cry to Thee, O Savior: Deliver me from the filth of my works.

While the sinful woman brought oil of myrrh, the disciple came to an agreement with the transgressors.
She rejoiced to pour out what was very precious,     Judas made haste to sell the One who is above all price.
She acknowledged Christ as Lord, he severed himself from the Master.
She was set free, but Judas became the slave of the enemy.
Grievous was his lack of love.
Great was her repentance.

Grant such repentance also unto me, O Savior who has suffered for our sake, and save us.

Saint Matthew 26:6-16 KJV

6 Now when Jesus was in Bethany, in the house of Simon the leper,

7 There came unto him a woman having an alabaster box of very precious ointment, and poured it on his head, as he sat at meat.

8 But when his disciples saw it, they had indignation, saying, To what purpose is this waste?

9 For this ointment might have been sold for much, and given to the poor.

10 When Jesus understood it, he said unto them, Why trouble ye the woman? for she hath wrought a good work upon me.

11 For ye have the poor always with you; but me ye have not always.

12 For in that she hath poured this ointment on my body, she did it for my burial.

13 Verily I say unto you, Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached in the whole world, there shall also this, that this woman hath done, be told for a memorial of her.

14 Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went unto the chief priests,

15 And said unto them, What will ye give me, and I will deliver him unto you? And they covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver.

16 And from that time he sought opportunity to betray him.

March 25/April 7 ns 2026 † GREAT TUESDAY ~THE PARABLE OF THE TEN VIRGINS † THE ANNUCIATION OF THE THEOTOKOS; St. Tíkhon of Moscow ~ Wine and olive oil are permitted ~ Gospel at Matins: St. Luke 1:39-49, 56; Feast: Heb. 2:11-18; St. Luke 1:24-38

GREAT TUESDAY

 THE PARABLE OF THE 10 VIRGINS

† THE ANNUCIATION
OF THE THEOTOKOS

St. Tíkhon of Moscow

FAST DAY

March 25/ April 7 ns 2026

The Parable of the Ten Virgins is called the Service of the Bridegroom (Akolouthia tou Nimfiou). The name comes from the central figure in the well-known parable of the ten virgins (St. Matt 25:1-13). The title Bridegroom suggests the intimacy of love. It is not without significance that the Kingdom of God is compared to a bridal feast and a bridal chamber. The Christ of the Passion is the Divine Bridegroom of the Church.

The imagery connotes the final union of the Lover and the beloved.
In the patristic tradition, the aforementioned parable is related to the Second Coming; and is associated with the need for spiritual vigilance and preparedness, by which we are enabled to keep the divine commandments and receive the blessings of the age to come. The troparion "Behold the Bridegroom comes in the middle of the night…", which is sung at the beginning of the Orthros of Great Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, relates the worshiping community to that essential expectation: watching and waiting for the Lord, who will come again to judge the living and the dead.

The Church calls to remembrance two parables, which are related to the Second Coming. The one is the parable of the Ten Virgins; the other the parable of the Talents. These parables point to the inevitability of the Parousia (Theology) and deal with such subjects as spiritual vigilance, stewardship, accountability and judgment.

From these parables we learn at least two basic things

First, Judgment Day will be like the situation in which the bridesmaids (or virgins) of the parable found themselves: some ready for it, some not ready. The time one decides for God is NOW and not at some undefined point in the future.

Second, we are reminded that watchfulness and readiness do not mean a wearisome, spiritless performance of formal and empty obligations. Most certainly it does not mean inactivity and slothfulness. Watchfulness signifies inner stability, soberness, tranquility and joy. It means spiritual alertness, attentiveness and vigilance. Watchfulness is the deep personal resolve to find and do the will of God, embrace every commandment and every virtue, and guard the intellect and heart from evil thoughts and actions.
Watchfulness is the intense love of God.

When the All-Holy Virgin completed the fourteenth year after her birth and was entering her fifteenth year, after having spent eleven years of living and serving in the Temple of Jerusalem, the priests informed her that, according to the Law, she could not remain in the Temple but was required to be betrothed and enter into marriage. What a great surprise to the priests was the answer of the All-Holy Virgin that she had dedicated her life to God and that she desired to remain a Virgin until death, not wanting to enter into marriage with anyone!

Then, according to Divine Providence, Zacharias, the high priest and father of the Forerunner, under the inspiration of God, and in agreement with the other priests, gathered twelve unwed men from the Tribe of David to betroth the Virgin Mary to one of them to preserve her virginity and to care for her. She was betrothed to Joseph of Nazareth who was her kinsman. In the house of Joseph, the All-Holy Virgin continued to live as she did in the Temple of Solomon, occupying her time in the reading of Sacred Scripture, in prayer, in Godly-thoughts, in fasting and in handiwork. She rarely went anywhere outside the house nor was she interested in worldly things and events. She spoke very little to anyone, if at all, and never without special need. More frequently she communicated with both of Joseph's daughters.

When the fullness of time had come, as prophesied by Daniel the Prophet, and when God was pleased to fulfill His promise to the banished Adam and to the Prophets, the great Archangel Gabriel appeared in the chamber of the All-Holy Virgin and, as some priestly writers wrote, precisely at that same moment when she held open the book of the Prophet Isaiah and was contemplating his great prophecy: "Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a son!" (Isaiah 7:13). Gabriel appeared in all of his angelic brightness and saluted her: "Rejoice, highly favored one! The Lord is with you" (St. Luke 1:28), and the rest in order as it is written in the Gospel of the saintly Luke.

With this angelic annunciation and the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Virgin, the salvation of mankind and restoration of all creation began. The history of the New Testament was opened by the words of the Archangel Gabriel: "Rejoice, highly favored one" This is to imply that the New Testament was to signify joy to mankind and to all created things. It is from this that the Annunciation is considered not only a great feast, but a joyful feast as well.

Orthros Saint Luke 1:39-49, 56 KJV

39 And Mary arose in those days, and went into the hill country with haste, into a city of Juda;

40 And entered into the house of Zacharias, and saluted Elisabeth.

41 And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit:

42 And she spake out with a loud voice, and said, Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb.

43 And whence is this to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?

44 For, lo, as soon as the voice of thy salutation sounded in mine ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy.

45 And blessed is she that believed: for there shall be a performance of those things which were told her from the Lord.

46 And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord,

47 And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.

48 For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden: for, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.

49 For he that is mighty hath done to me great things; and holy is his name.

56 And Mary abode with her about three months, and returned to her own house.

Hebrews 2:11-18 KJV

11 For both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren,

12 Saying, I will declare thy name unto my brethren, in the midst of the church will I sing praise unto thee.

13 And again, I will put my trust in him. And again, Behold I and the children which God hath given me.

14 Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;

15 And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.

16 For verily he took not on him the nature of angels; but he took on him the seed of Abraham.

17 Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people.

18 For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succour them that are tempted.

Saint Luke 1:24-38 KJV

24 And after those days his wife Elisabeth conceived, and hid herself five months, saying,

25 Thus hath the Lord dealt with me in the days wherein he looked on me, to take away my reproach among men.

26 And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth,

27 To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary.

28 And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.

29 And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be.

30 And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God.

31 And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus.

32 He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:

33 And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.

34 Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?

35 And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Spirit shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.

36 And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren.

37 For with God nothing shall be impossible.

38 And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her.