Holy Martyr Charitína
St. John, Bishop of Evchaïta;
St. Methodía the New of Kímolos
FAST DAY
Having been orphaned in infancy, Charitína was adopted by an eminent Christian man named Claudius, who raised her as his own daughter. Charitína was meek, humble, obedient and quiet. She studied the Law of God day and night, and vowed to live her life in chastity, as a true bride of Christ.
Since Charitína also brought others to the Christian Faith, Dometius, Emperor Diocletian's eparch, heard of her, sent soldiers to take her from her foster father, and brought her to trial. The judge questioned her: "Is it true, young maiden, that you are a Christian, and that you deceive others, leading them to this profane Faith?'' Charitína courageously replied: "It is true that I am a Christian, but it is a lie that I deceive others; rather, I lead those in error to the true path, by leading them to my Christ.''
The evil judge condemned her. Her hair was shorn and hot coals were poured onto her head. Even so, she was saved by the power of God. They threw her into the sea, but God delivered her again. They tied her to a wheel and began to turn it, but an angel of God stopped the wheel, and Charitína remained unharmed. Then the depraved judge sent some dissolute young men to defile her. Fearing this dishonor, St. Charitína prayed to God to receive her soul before those degenerates could defile her virginal body. While she knelt, praying to God, her soul departed from her and was translated to the Immortal Kingdom of Christ.
Ephesians 4:17-25 KJV
17 This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind,
18 Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart:
19 Who being past feeling have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness.
20 But ye have not so learned Christ;
21 If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus:
22 That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts;
23 And be renewed in the spirit of your mind;
24 And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.
25 Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another.
Saint Luke 7:31-35 KJV
31 And the Lord said, Whereunto then shall I liken the men of this generation? and to what are they like?
32 They are like unto children sitting in the marketplace, and calling one to another, and saying, We have piped unto you, and ye have not danced; we have mourned to you, and ye have not wept.
33 For John the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinking wine; and ye say, He hath a devil.
34 The Son of man is come eating and drinking; and ye say, Behold a gluttonous man, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners!
35 But wisdom is justified of all her children.
Saint Symeon the New Theologian
God said to Adam 
In the day that thou eatest of it (that is, of the forbidden tree), thou will die the death (Genesis 2:17) that is, the death of the soul. This happened immediately: man was stripped of the garment of immortality. God said nothing more than that decree, nor did anything special happen after that. God, foreseeing that Adam was to sin and desiring to forgive him if he repented, did not say anything more than the above. But Adam refused to acknowledge his sin and did not repent even when he was accused by God; for he said, "the woman whom Thou gave us to be with me she deceived me (Genesis 3:12). Oh woe to his blinded soul! Seeing this, it was as Adam said to God: Thou Thyself are guilty because the woman whom Thou gavest me, has deceived me.
This very same thing I myself now suffer, wretched and miserable, when I do not desire to be humbled, and say that with my whole heart: "that person over there inspired me to do or say this. He advised me and knocked me off the path." Woe is my poor soul which speaks such words - filled with sin! O most shameless and irrational words of a shameless and irrational soul.
BOREDOM
Does one who keeps perpetual company with the Creator ever become bored?
No comments:
Post a Comment