C H R I S T I S R I S E N !
I am the Resurrection
and the Life
† 3rd Sunday of St. John
(Myrrh-Bearers)
Holy Hieromartyr Januárius
(Myrrh-Bearers)
Holy Hieromartyr Januárius
and those with him,
St. Anastásios the Sinaite
FOCUS: St. Matthew KJV
8 This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.
8 This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.
ON THE MYRRH- BEARING WOMEN
by Saint John Chrysostomos
There is ever rejoicing among the church of Christ, but much more so on the present, lamp-bearing day of myriads of light, for on this day, Christ, the Master of all, the Sun of Righteousness, from the grave as from a bridle chamber, has shown forth through His resurrection, and before all, to womankind has shown his rays, saying to them: “Rejoice”. The first voice of the resurrection is “rejoice”, for fear has been dispelled and grace has been given.
The first voice of the resurrection is “Rejoice”, and before all, He meets the women,
and to them the Lord said: “Go quickly, tell my Disciples that I have risen from the grave, and I go before you to Galilee, there you will see me.” He met [womankind], among whom had sin been multiplied, and greatly multiplied grace. O, the wisdom of the Lord's deed! He did not send to the Disciples an angel, nor did He go Himself to them, but sent a woman. And not a simple woman, but a faithful woman, who was herself soldier-like. She sent them to the Disciples to bring joy, but also to censure. Joy, for He had risen from the dead and was "free among the dead", but censure, for the Disciples, though they were men, out of fear hid, while the women out of boldness, joyously evangelized the resurrection.
24 Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came unto the sepulcher, bringing the spices which they had prepared, and certain others with them.
2 And they found the stone rolled away from the sepulcher.
3 And they entered in, and found not the body of the Lord Jesus.
4 And it came to pass, as they were much perplexed thereabout, behold, two men stood by them in shining garments:
5 And as they were afraid, and bowed down their faces to the earth, they said unto them, Why seek ye the living among the dead?
6 He is not here, but is risen: remember how he spake unto you when he was yet in Galilee,
7 Saying, The Son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.
8 And they remembered his words,
9 And returned from the sepulcher, and told all these things unto the eleven, and to all the rest.
10 It was Mary Magdalene and Joanna, and Mary the mother of James, and other women that were with them, which told these things unto the apostles.
11 And their words seemed to them as idle tales, and they believed them not.
12 Then arose Peter, and ran unto the sepulcher; and stooping down, he beheld the linen clothes laid by themselves, and departed, wondering in himself at that which was come to pass.
🕀 Acts 6:1-7 KJV
6 And in those days, when the number of the disciples was multiplied, there arose a murmuring of the Grecians against the Hebrews, because their widows were neglected in the daily ministration.
2 Then the twelve called the multitude of the disciples unto them, and said, It is not reason that we should leave the word of God, and serve tables.
3 Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business.
4 But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the word.
5 And the saying pleased the whole multitude: and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Ghost, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolas a proselyte of Antioch:
6 Whom they set before the apostles: and when they had prayed, they laid their hands on them.
7 And the word of God increased; and the number of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly; and a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith.
🕀 Saint Mark 15:43-16:8 KJV
43 Joseph of Arimathaea, an honorable counsellor, which also waited for the kingdom of God, came, and went in boldly unto Pilate, and craved the body of Jesus.
44 And Pilate marveled if he were already dead: and calling unto him the centurion, he asked him whether he had been any while dead.
45 And when he knew it of the centurion, he gave the body to Joseph.
46 And he bought fine linen, and took him down, and wrapped him in the linen, and laid him in a sepulcher which was hewn out of a rock, and rolled a stone unto the door of the sepulcher.
47 And Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses beheld where he was laid.
16 And when the sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome, had bought sweet spices, that they might come and anoint him.
2 And very early in the morning the first day of the week, they came unto the sepulcher at the rising of the sun.
3 And they said among themselves, Who shall roll us away the stone from the door of the sepulchre?
4 And when they looked, they saw that the stone was rolled away: for it was very great.
5 And entering into the sepulcher, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clothed in a long white garment; and they were affrighted.
6 And he saith unto them, Be not affrighted: Ye seek Jesus of Nazareth, which was crucified: he is risen; he is not here: behold the place where they laid him.
7 But go your way, tell his disciples and Peter that he goeth before you into Galilee: there shall ye see him, as he said unto you.
8 And they went out quickly, and fled from the sepulcher; for they trembled and were amazed: neither said they any thing to any man; for they were afraid.
44 And Pilate marveled if he were already dead: and calling unto him the centurion, he asked him whether he had been any while dead.
45 And when he knew it of the centurion, he gave the body to Joseph.
46 And he bought fine linen, and took him down, and wrapped him in the linen, and laid him in a sepulcher which was hewn out of a rock, and rolled a stone unto the door of the sepulcher.
47 And Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses beheld where he was laid.
16 And when the sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome, had bought sweet spices, that they might come and anoint him.
2 And very early in the morning the first day of the week, they came unto the sepulcher at the rising of the sun.
3 And they said among themselves, Who shall roll us away the stone from the door of the sepulchre?
4 And when they looked, they saw that the stone was rolled away: for it was very great.
5 And entering into the sepulcher, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clothed in a long white garment; and they were affrighted.
6 And he saith unto them, Be not affrighted: Ye seek Jesus of Nazareth, which was crucified: he is risen; he is not here: behold the place where they laid him.
7 But go your way, tell his disciples and Peter that he goeth before you into Galilee: there shall ye see him, as he said unto you.
8 And they went out quickly, and fled from the sepulcher; for they trembled and were amazed: neither said they any thing to any man; for they were afraid.
DISCOURSES
OF
SAINT DOROTHEOS OF GAZA
H U M I L I T Y
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I recall once we were conversing about humility and one of the great lights of Gaza, hearing us declare, "The closer a man is to God, the more he reckoned himself to be a sinner," was awestruck, and said, "how can this be?" He did not know, and desired to hear the answer. I said to him, "Lord of the First Rank, tell me, how do you consider yourself with regard to the other laymen here?" And he told me, "I consider myself as great, and the first among the men of this city." I said then, "If you should travel to Caesarea, how would you consider yourself then?" "I would think somewhat less of my greatness." Then I said, "If you were to travel to Antioch, what then?" And he answered, "I would consider myself as a member of the common folk." I said, "And if you went from Caesarea to stand before the Emperor, what would consider yourself then?" He answered, "I should consider myself as just one of the poor people." Then I told him, in the same manner, the saints, the closer they draw near to God, the more they regard themselves as sinners."
Abraham, when he beheld God, referred to himself as "dust and ashes." And Isaiah declared, "Woe to me, for my lips are polluted." Just the same when Daniel was in the den of the lion, and Habakkuk came to him with a meal and said to him, "Receive the food, which the Lord has sent to you." And Daniel answered, "For the Lord has remembered me." He had a very humble heart when he was in the lion's cave for they did not consume him once and for all, not even after that, and so with wonder he cried, "the Lord has remembered me."
~ Paragon Archives ~
Do you believe the writings of the saints
serve to expedite the acquisition of the Holy Spirit?
Do you believe Christ quickens the saints with revelations about this life, the LIFE to come
and about His Nature?
Does Christ quicken you?
Have you acquired the Holy Spirit and no longer thirst, if not, be eager to not only read -
but emulate the saints!
but emulate the saints!
There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when ye shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the Kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrust out.
St. Luke 13:28 KJV
the faith
of the
chosen people
by Saint Nicolai Velimirovitch
"I am the Lord your God, you shall have no other gods besides Me."
This was the first testimony of God concerning Himself, the first revelation to men on earth concerning God from God, and the first commandment of God. "You shall have no other gods besides Me," commands God; for if you will have other gods, you will bring two disasters upon yourself.
First: you will be believing in false, non-existent, imaginary, illusory gods. Second: you will be sharing reverent fear and love, which entirely belongs to Me, the One, Living, and True God, with these false gods. In this way you will darken your faith in Me, and weaken your reverent fear and love for Me. And I shall withdraw far from you, offended and insulted.
And you will be an atheist, no matter how much you imagine you are rich in piety on account of your belief in many gods. For in the final analysis a polytheist and an atheist are the same thing. Both the one and the other are without one God, without the One, Living, and True God.
Belief in one God, the One, Living, and True God, is the faith of the humble and the wise. This is not the faith of the proud, whom pride makes unwise. For they either deify themselves or some creature of the Creator, but not the Creator. The more humble a man is, the wiser he is; the more arrogant he is, the more foolish he is. God gives understanding to the humble, so that they may know and understand, but He opposes the proud. The more the humble are at peace with the Lord, the more the Lord endows them with understanding. And understanding is light that leads to the One, Living, and True God.
Blessed are they who have understanding, to see the transitoriness of this world and the nothingness of man.
Blessed are they who feel small and insignificant, for God will elevate them to the highest knowledge, to the knowledge of the existence and majesty of the Most High God.
This is your faith, Christ-bearers, and the faith of your most humble and most wise forefathers. Let this also be the faith of your children, from generation to generation, until the end of time. This is the salvation-bearing Orthodox Faith, which has never been put to shame. By this faith your fathers were saved. Truly, this is the faith of the chosen people, of those who bear the image of God in themselves. At the Fearful Judgment they shall not be put to shame before the faces of the angels and the righteous. Instead they shall receive glory, and shall be called blessed.
Read and understand why Christ Himself
warns us, now in this life!
 |
| Saint John of Damascus |
"All images reveal and make perceptible those things which are hidden. For example, a man does not have immediate knowledge of invisible things, since the soul is veiled by the body. Nor can man have immediate knowledge of things which are distant from each other or separated by place, because he himself is limited by place and time. Therefore the icon was devised that he might advance in knowledge, and that secret things might be revealed and made perceptible. Therefore, icons are a source of profit, help, and salvation for all, since they make things so obviously manifest, enabling us to perceive hidden things. Thus, we are encouraged to desire and imitate what is good and to shun and hate what is evil."
The Precious Pearl
"The enjoyment of this present life, though it seems to give delight and sweetness, is well thrust from us. At the very moment of its being it ceases to be, and for our joy repays us with sorrow sevenfold. Its happiness and its sorrow more frail than a shadow, and, like the traces of a ship passing over the sea, or a bird flying through the air, quickly disappear. But the hope of the life to come which the Christians preach is certain and quite sure; howbeit in this world it has tribulation, whereas our pleasures now are short-lived, and in the beyond they only win us correction and everlasting punishment without release. For the pleasures of life are temporary, but its pain eternal; while the Christians labors are temporary but their pleasure and gain immortal. Therefore, right it is to exchange the corruptible for the incorruptible."
A S C E T I C A L H O M I L I E S
by Saint Isaac the Syrian
Prayer offered up at night possesses a great power, more so than the prayer of the daytime. Therefore all the righteous prayed during the night, while combating the heaviness of the body and the sweetness of sleep and repelling corporeal nature.
There is nothing which even Satan fears so much as prayer that is offered during vigilance at night. And even if it is offered with distraction, it does not return empty, unless perhaps that which is asked for is unsuitable.
For unless those who travel on the road go forward day by day, shortening their journey -- and, on the contrary, should they stand in one place -- the road before them will never diminish and they will never arrive at their destination.
So it is with us also.
If we do not constrain ourselves little by little, we shall never have the strength to abstain from bodily things so as to gaze toward God.
A M U T U A L E X C H A N G E
by Saint Isaac the Syrian
And this is life eternal, that they might know thee
the only true God, and Jesus Christ,
whom thou hast sent.
St. John 17:3 KJV
the only true God, and Jesus Christ,
whom thou hast sent.
St. John 17:3 KJV
At the time of prayer, when a person's mind is collected and all the senses are brought into harmony, an encounter between God and the person praying takes place. This explains why all spiritual gifts and all mystical visions have been given to the saints at the time of prayer, It was during prayer that an angel appeared to Zacharias and announced the conception of John the Baptist; it was during prayer of the sixth hour that Peter beheld the divine vision; it was while Cornelius the Centurion prayed that an angel appeared to him.
Once a year, when the High Priest, during the dread time of prayer, entered the Holy of Holies and cast himself down upon his face . . . he heard the oracles of God through an awesome and ineffable revelation. O how awesome was the mystery which was ministered in this ceremony! So also at the time of prayer were all the visions and revelations made manifest to the saints. For what other time is so holy, and by its sanctity so apt for the reception of gifts, as the time of prayer, wherein a man converses with God? At this time, when we make our petitions and our supplications to God, and we speak with Him, a human being forcefully gathers together all the movements and deliberations of his soul and converses with God alone, and his heart is abundantly filled with God.
PRAYERS BY THE LAKE
A SOUL THAT LOVES GOD
by St. Nicolai Velimirovitch
You are the only event of my life, O lamp of my soul. When a child scurries to the arms of his mother, events do not exist for him. When a bride races to meet her bridegroom, she does not see the flowers in the meadow, nor does she hear the rumbling of the storm, nor does she smell the fragrance of the cypresses or sense the mood of the wild animals--she sees only the face of her bridegroom; she hears only the music from his lips; she smells only his soul.
When love goes to meet love, no events overtake it. Time and space make way for love. Aimless wanderers and loveless people have events and have history. Love has no history, and history has no love.
ARE YOU EAGER FOR CHRIST OR LUKEWARM?
{Ed.}
As the period of increased Prayer and Fasting brought us to the Resurrection, have we resurrected a little so we can gaze upon Christ, or are we back to the
"same old, same old" carnal, temporary pursuits?
So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot,
I will spue thee out of my mouth. Revelation 3:16 KJV
Are you are eager to have this or that, to go here and there, veracious for just about anything in Creation and yet minimally attentive (lukewarm) that the Creator of all things wants you to enjoy them with restraint but yet, at the same time, forsake this life entirely because He wants ALL OF YOUR YOUR BEING, ALL OF YOUR HEART? You can indeed gain much from this mortal, temporary life but for how long and at what cost? Are you willing to lose Jesus Christ, Who is Himself, Paradise without end?
There WILL be those who will hear from Christ:
"I never knew you!"
In fact, they never knew Him.
If our love for Christ, is confirmed in us by Him, then we need not fear.
Ask yourself: Do you believe Him when He says that all of the hairs of your head are numbered? Do you believe He knew every thought you would have before He made you? And, the same for all the people and all of Creation, who are and have gone before and will come after us?
Be honest, can any transient mind, a mind still inclined to hate, war, ambition, even begin to grasp such a God exists?
Furthermore, ask yourself, did He make this life a desert, void of joy etc.? No! Like a mother who pacifies and indulges her child while pushing it to walk on its own, our most merciful and loving God gives us innumerable delights in this brief life but is He not clear about what He expects from us in return?
Well, are you eager for Him? Or are you like those who live in a fantasy, a dream with little to no thought about your judgement date; the time of which you have no say.
Is this life anything more than ultra real tangible dream, confirmed when we wake from it after death? Yes, but only one thing needful!!
It is an opportunity to PLEASE CHRIST GOD! An opportunity to avoid suffering the consequences from DISPLEASING CHRIST GOD!
And lets ask ourselves: How hard was it for God to incarnate? How hard to resurrect from the dead? Was it something He "needed" to do? Did He not call all things into being without even breathing or a thought? Did He need help to do so and from where would it come?
As the Great Andrew of Crete calls: Arise my soul! Why are you sleeping? The Holy Trinity has NO needs. Nevertheless, we know with certainty that He did so in order for us to believe that we, WE, who are temporarily carnal, can live, die to this life, resurrect and our immortal souls ascend with Him into PARADISE/LIFE ETERNAL !
If we are not eager for Him with all our heart then what value a life of death? Many individuals, even "religions", fast just as strictly and some even more frequently for who? for what? for peace? for health? for a god who is not God? -Christ is the Prince of Peace, there is no peace without Him. He IS Truth, the Life and the Resurrection.
Who does the following describe?
This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.
St Matthew 15:8 KJV
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