Thursday
October 9/22 ns 2026
Holy Apostle James, the Son of Alphæus,
of the Twelve;
Sts. Andrónicos and Athanasía;
Righteous Abraham and his nephew Lot
James, the son of Alphaeus, was one of the Twelve Apostles. He was the blood-brother of the Apostle and Evangelist Matthew. He was a witness of the true words and miracles of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and a witness of His suffering, Resurrection and Ascension.
After the descent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, the lot fell to James to preach the Gospel of Christ in Eleutheropolis and the surrounding areas, and then in Egypt, where he suffered for his Savior. With great power in word and in deed, James disseminated the saving news of the incarnate Word of God, destroying idolatry, driving demons out of men, and healing every infirmity and disease in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. His labor and zeal were crowned with great success. Many pagans came to believe in Christ, churches were built and organized, and priests and bishops were ordained.
James suffered in the Egyptian town of Ostracina, being crucified by the pagans. Thus, this great and wonderful apostle of Christ took up his abode in the Heavenly Kingdom, to reign eternally with the King of Glory.
1 Corinthians 4:9-16 KJV
9 For I think that God hath set forth us the apostles last, as it were appointed to death: for we are made a spectacle unto the world, and to angels, and to men.
10 We are fools for Christ's sake, but ye are wise in Christ; we are weak, but ye are strong; ye are honourable, but we are despised.
11 Even unto this present hour we both hunger, and thirst, and are naked, and are buffeted, and have no certain dwellingplace;
12 And labour, working with our own hands: being reviled, we bless; being persecuted, we suffer it:
13 Being defamed, we intreat: we are made as the filth of the world, and are the offscouring of all things unto this day.
14 I write not these things to shame you, but as my beloved sons I warn you.
15 For though ye have ten thousand instructers in Christ, yet have ye not many fathers: for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel.
16 Wherefore I beseech you, be ye followers of me.
Saint Matthew 9:36-10:8 KJV
36 But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd.
37 Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few;
38 Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest.
10 And when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease.
2 Now the names of the twelve apostles are these; The first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother;
3 Philip, and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew the publican; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus;
4 Simon the Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him.
5 These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not:
6 But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
7 And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.
8 Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give.
on St. Matthew 10:8
Nothing is more fitting to a teacher than humility and detachment. These two virtues He shows here: “Freely you have received, freely give.” Do not be proud, though you have received great gifts and distribute them, for you received them freely by grace. With humility, be also without possession: “freely give.” Uprooting the root of all evils, He continues:
First, one must clean his field, to find out what is going on and why he is not joyous. Then, he must pursue joy within himself, and then the peace of God will take the place of joy. Thus, man should keep his relationship with God and with his Elder [or Spiritual Father], and should seek a true life.
Am I good, faithful, perfect, holy?
Am I a teacher?
If I am not joyous, then I am nothing.
It is important when they tell me: "Physician, heal thyself, and then, offer him to God." God cannot enter into a heart that is not joyful, He cannot find a place of contact, because He is peace, He is the fulfillment of joy.
Only like things can unite, and because of this, God can only unite with a joyous soul. For the monk who is not joyous, the Elder cannot do anything at all, his hands are totally tied.
Whoever thinks that he is approaching to reach "the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ", but is not joyous, can understand that he is totally deluded. Joy is the criterion, the thermometer.
Joy is something external, but it is also something internal.
Ultimately, it is a necessary presupposition, because the lack of joy makes man study things differently and to become changed. For example, if one puts even one drop of nitric oxide into pure water, immediately he changes its essence. Thus, exactly, one drop of bitterness, depression, sadness transforms the whole atmosphere of a person, and extinguishes God.
But joy must also exist in a brotherhood [or a family], because it is an element both of one's personal life and of the brotherhood.
I cannot be joyous if all those around me do not have the tendency and the atmosphere of joy, neither, however, can I have any benefit if I do not take on this joy from the brotherhood.
Today's Vignette is old but your comment about it would be appreciated. Leave a comment HERE
PEOPLE ARE SO MUCH LIKE EGGS
You need not be an artist to admire the simple yet elegant shape, beauty and art of the modest egg. It reminds me of how many of us, who admire ourselves, who have it good in this life, (not everyone does however) love our life, our hobbies, our interests, our good fortune, our good looks (if so endowed) our abilities our talents, etc.
The reality however is that our life, whether good or bad, distinguished or dim, is nothing more than the shell of the egg, if it remains un-cracked. If one never cracks the egg how can its inner beauty, far surpassing its outer beauty, be known?
Not one of us is an empty shell but no matter how illustrious or lowly our shell may be, few of us find the treasure contained within.
But wait! There is even more to the lowly egg besides food and beauty. Waiting to get out is a new creature!
And within the shell we call our body, it is Christ Himself.
by Elder Aimilianos of Simonopetra
Monastery on Mt. Athos
"The lack of joy is a pathological state of man, a willing closure within one's self. And whatever he wishes to do he will not be successful.
First, one must clean his field, to find out what is going on and why he is not joyous. Then, he must pursue joy within himself, and then the peace of God will take the place of joy. Thus, man should keep his relationship with God and with his Elder [or Spiritual Father], and should seek a true life.
Am I good, faithful, perfect, holy?
Am I a teacher?
If I am not joyous, then I am nothing.
It is important when they tell me: "Physician, heal thyself, and then, offer him to God." God cannot enter into a heart that is not joyful, He cannot find a place of contact, because He is peace, He is the fulfillment of joy.
Only like things can unite, and because of this, God can only unite with a joyous soul. For the monk who is not joyous, the Elder cannot do anything at all, his hands are totally tied.
Whoever thinks that he is approaching to reach "the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ", but is not joyous, can understand that he is totally deluded. Joy is the criterion, the thermometer.
Joy is something external, but it is also something internal.
Ultimately, it is a necessary presupposition, because the lack of joy makes man study things differently and to become changed. For example, if one puts even one drop of nitric oxide into pure water, immediately he changes its essence. Thus, exactly, one drop of bitterness, depression, sadness transforms the whole atmosphere of a person, and extinguishes God.
But joy must also exist in a brotherhood [or a family], because it is an element both of one's personal life and of the brotherhood.
I cannot be joyous if all those around me do not have the tendency and the atmosphere of joy, neither, however, can I have any benefit if I do not take on this joy from the brotherhood.
For previous VIGNETTES, click HERE
Today's Vignette is old but your comment about it would be appreciated. Leave a comment HERE
PEOPLE ARE SO MUCH LIKE EGGS
You need not be an artist to admire the simple yet elegant shape, beauty and art of the modest egg. It reminds me of how many of us, who admire ourselves, who have it good in this life, (not everyone does however) love our life, our hobbies, our interests, our good fortune, our good looks (if so endowed) our abilities our talents, etc.
The reality however is that our life, whether good or bad, distinguished or dim, is nothing more than the shell of the egg, if it remains un-cracked. If one never cracks the egg how can its inner beauty, far surpassing its outer beauty, be known?
When the egg is cracked, which, relative to its size requires some force, a completely new reality, a new identity is revealed.
An identity that not only pleases the eye as did the shell but all the senses and even more. And seemingly infinite possibilities are found. How many of its uses and rewards can you name? The shell is not without value of course but what is it compared to the treasure within? Moreover, its consumption sustains life like no shell can ever do.
An identity that not only pleases the eye as did the shell but all the senses and even more. And seemingly infinite possibilities are found. How many of its uses and rewards can you name? The shell is not without value of course but what is it compared to the treasure within? Moreover, its consumption sustains life like no shell can ever do.
To reveal that which is within the egg, a force is required. So it is with that which lies within each one of us. But with man however the force needed may be either as slight as a single breath or, sadly, greater than splitting an atom. Wonderfully, that force need be nothing more than sincere desire.
Not one of us is an empty shell but no matter how illustrious or lowly our shell may be, few of us find the treasure contained within.
But wait! There is even more to the lowly egg besides food and beauty. Waiting to get out is a new creature!
The Kingdom of Heaven is within!
Get crackin’!!!
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