Saturday September 17 / 30 ns 2023 • Holy Martyrs Sophía, Faith, Hope, and Charity (Love) ~ HYMN OF PRAISE Saint Nikolai Velimirovich ~ Quote from: Abba Isaac of the Holy Mountain Athos

 Holy Martyrs Sophía, Faith, Hope, and Charity (Love)

Sophia, Faith, Hope and Love all lived and suffered in Rome during the reign of Emperor Hadrian. Sophia was wise, as her name implies. She was left a widow, and had established herself and her daughters well in the Christian Faith. When the persecuting hand of Hadrian extended even over the virtuous home of Sophia, Faith was only twelve years old; Hope, ten years old; and Charity (Love), nine years old. Brought before the emperor, these four held each other's hands ``like a woven wreath,'' humbly but steadfastly confessed their faith in Christ the Lord and refused to offer sacrifices to the pagan idol Artemis. Before their suffering, the mother encouraged her daughters to endure to the end: ``Your heavenly Bridegroom, Jesus Christ, is eternal health, inexpressible beauty and eternal life. When your bodies are slain by torture, He will clothe you in incorruption and the wounds on your bodies will shine in the heavens as stars.'' One by one the torturers inflicted cruel torments, first on Faith, then on Hope, and then on Love. They beat them, slashed them, cast them into fire and boiling pitch, and finally beheaded them with the sword one after another. Sophia took the dead bodies of her daughters outside the town and honorably buried them. She remained at their grave for three days and three nights, praying to God. Then she gave her spirit to God, flying off to Paradise, where the blessed souls of her glorious daughters awaited her.

1 Corinthians 1:26-2:5 KJV

26 For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called:

27 But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;

28 And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are:

29 That no flesh should glory in his presence.

30 But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:

31 That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.

2 And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God.

2 For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.

3 And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling.

4 And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power:

5 That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.

Saint John 8:21-30 KJV

21 Then said Jesus again unto them, I go my way, and ye shall seek me, and shall die in your sins: whither I go, ye cannot come.

22 Then said the Jews, Will he kill himself? because he saith, Whither I go, ye cannot come.

23 And he said unto them, Ye are from beneath; I am from above: ye are of this world; I am not of this world.

24 I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins.

25 Then said they unto him, Who art thou? And Jesus saith unto them, Even the same that I said unto you from the beginning.

26 I have many things to say and to judge of you: but he that sent me is true; and I speak to the world those things which I have heard of him.

27 They understood not that he spake to them of the Father.

28 Then said Jesus unto them, When ye have lifted up the Son of man, then shall ye know that I am he, and that I do nothing of myself; but as my Father hath taught me, I speak these things.

29 And he that sent me is with me: the Father hath not left me alone; for I do always those things that please him.

30 As he spake these words, many believed on him.

HYMN OF PRAISE

Saint Nikolai Velimirovich

Sophia, all-wise, glorified the Lord;

As a sacrifice to Him, she offered three most-beautiful daughters.

To her daughters she said: ``Be not afraid, my daughters;

Strengthen yourselves in Christ; endure in the Faith;

And be not afraid of torture or bitter misfortunes.

Do not grieve over your bodies-it is better in heaven:

God will give you wonderful bodies in heaven.

Do not grieve over your beauty-with divine beauty 

You will shine among the angels in the Kingdom of God,

As the daughters of the King of kings!

Do not grieve over life-what is this earthly life worth?

Its span is at most a hundred years.

In heaven, life without end awaits you:

Life without end, life without beginning.

Do not grieve for the company of earthly friends,

For the company of wonderful saints awaits you there.

Nor should the company of worldly kinsmen cause you grief-

For your kin in the heavens are the glorious martyrs.'' 

Thus the saintly mother instructed her holy daughters,

As, one by one, they flew off to heaven:

Three white doves, innocent and pure,

Flew swiftly to the bosom of Christ.

And with her soul uplifted, their mother flew after them,

And joined her glorious daughters in Paradise;

And our merciful God receives their prayers.

From Abba Isaac 

There are tears that burn and tears that bedew; the former are caused by fear, but the latter by love. Now, the first, namely, those which flow on account of our sins, dry up and burn the body and give rise to pain in the soul—for oftentimes, when these tears come forth, a man cannot restrain himself; whereas the second, which come to someone after he has shed enough of the former kind and thereby washed away his sins, by God’s mercy flow naturally and with spiritual pleasure.

When one’s soul has tasted Divine Grace, he then sheds tears without feeling pain, and such tears as these strengthen, benefit, and enrich the body and alter the countenance, as Scripture says: “When the heart rejoiceth, the countenance is cheerful; but when it is in sorrow, the countenance is sad” (Proverbs 15:13). If we desire to enjoy the latter, let us cultivate the former (tears of repentance), as far as possible; for, if we do, we shall soon, by God’s Grace, receive the latter.

Question:  And is it possible to be always in a state of contrition?

Answer:
It is possible, because the entire pursuit of a monk in his cell consists of nothing other than lamentation, and his activity is contrition. Contrition is his very name; it reminds him of this and spurs him on to it. He is called “the mournful one,” that is, bitter in heart. All of the Saints departed this life with contrition in their souls. Now, if the Saints were always in mourning, how will one who is full of wounds be able to cease lamenting? Your soul, which is of greater worth to you than the whole world, has been deadened by sins and lies dying before you, and yet you do not feel that you need to weep? Consolation for a monk is born from weeping. Indeed, it is not possible for one who mourns constantly to be bothered by the passions. He who has ceased to think of the passions is cleansed and, by virtue of this cleansing, is made worthy of consolation from God, which He promised to grant to those who mourn without ceasing (St. Matthew 5:4).