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St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church
Publish Date: 2017-05-14
Bulletin Contents
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St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church

General Information

  • Phone:
  • (781) 237-5561
  • Fax:
  • (781) 237-8612
  • Street Address:

  • 57 Brown Street

  • Weston, MA 02493


Contact Information








Services Schedule

Matins Sunday - 8:30 a.m. Weekdays - 9:00 a.m.

Liturgy Sunday - 9:30 a.m. Weekdays - 9:30 a.m.


Past Bulletins


St. Demetrios Calendar

SUNDAY OF THE SAMARITAN WOMAN, May 14

Mother’s Day

- Orthros & Divine Liturgy, 8:30 am

- Church School

MONDAY, May 15

- Cooking Spanakopita, 9 am

TUESDAY, May 16

- Cooking Pastichio, 9 am

- Greek School, 4 pm

WEDNESDAY, May 17

- Cooking Pastichio, 9 am

- Prayer Shawl Ministry, 1 pm

- Philoptochos General Assembly, 6 pm

THURSDAY, May 18

- Cooking Pastichio, 9 am

- Choir Practice, 7 pm

FRIDAY, May 19

- Greek School Graduation Ceremony, 7 pm

SATURDAY, May 20

- Agape Prayer Group, 8:30 am

- Baking: Koulourakia, 9:30 am

- Hellenic Nursing Home, 3 pm

SUNDAY OF THE BLIND MAN May 21

- Orthros & Divine Liturgy, 8:30 am

- Church School

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Parish News and Events

ST. DEMETRIOS INNER-CITY OUTREACH

Volunteers are needed this Wednesday, May 17th for the St. Demetrios Inner-City Outreach Team which is currently helping St. Francis House in Boston, the largest nonsectarian day shelter in the region. Help is needed in food services and clothing distribution. Transportation is provided. Call Peter Mitsakos at 781.899.6583 or email at tpmitsakos@ comcast.net. Learn more about St. Francis House at www.stfrancishouse.org.

ANNUAL MINISTRY AWARDS BANQUET

This year’s representative from St. Demetrios to the Annual Metropolis Awards Banquet is Patti Dukakis, beloved parishioner, friend and steward of our parish. We thank Mrs. Patti for all that she’s done for our parish. Congratulations! The banquet will be held at Lombardo’s in Randolph on Sunday, June 11. Reception is at 5:30 pm with dinner at 6:30 pm. $75 per person. Please contact the church office to reserve/organize a table.

ST. DEMETRIOS BOOKSTORE

Graduation Day is right around the corner and the bookstore has a variety of items to offer. One of the latest arrivals I English Words Deriving from the Greek Language by our own Matina Psyhogeos. It is an "inexhaustible linguistic source", highlighting approximately 30,000 English words, whose origin is Greek. It would be a wonderful graduation gift and home resource. Also, there are many religious books for adults and children, icons and St. Demetrios crosses.

GREEK SCHOOL GRADUATION 

The St. Demetrios Greek School will be having their graduation THIS Friday, May 19th at 7 pm. Join us to celebrate all the hard work our students have done throughout the year learning our Greek customs and language.

FESTIVAL NEWS & HIGHLIGHTS

Our festival is a scheduled for June 10th &11th and is fast approaching. Spread the news and please give some of your time to make this year’s event a success.

Icon Exhibit and Demonstration– During our festival an icon exhibit and demonstration will be available to all our parishioners and guests. The exhibit will feature original icons of various forms and styles. Iconographers will demonstrate how icons are painted (written) and explain the spiritual and theological meaning. This is a great opportunity for all to appreciate icons, a central element of our Orthodox Church and faith.

Help Needed For Festival- Volunteers are needed to prepare foods and pastries, as well as assisting in various areas on the event days. Your help is essential in making sure the festival is a success. Please consider donating any amount of your time. Sign up sheets are located in the church lobby. For more information contact Georgia Gefteas at 781-431-7479.

Cooking Workshops- We are hosting cooking workshops in preparation for the festival. Consider giving your time and talent to cook. All are welcome and encouraged to attend these great opportunities to learn cooking secrets from some of the best!

Monday, May 15: Spanakopita, 9 am

Tuesday, May 16-Thursday, May 18: Pastichio, 9 am

Saturday, May 20: Koulourakia, 9:30 am

Check the church calendar on our website or the calendar in the church lobby for future dates.

PETER JAMES MEMORIAL GOLF TOURNAMENT

The Peter James Memorial Golf Tournament Committee invites you to play in our 2017 St Demetrios golf tournament in support of our beloved church.  Our committee wants to makes this a successful event again this year and invite you to sign up to play NEXT Monday, May 22, at Woodland Golf Club. We accept foursomes or singles for golf!

We also invite our parishioners to join us for dinner and Raffle/Auction that begins at 5:30pm. (Reservations are limited.) Registration begins at 10:30 with a Shotgun start at 12:30. For More Information: Anthony Marken Agmarken2@gmail.com or 508 353 4377.

SENIOR GUILD

The next Senior guild meeting is May, 25th (The Ascension) following Diving Liturgy. We will discuss the June Event of attending the theatrical performance of  Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat at The Reagle Music Theatre on June 15th at 3 pm. We must be at the theatre by 2:30 pm. The ticket price is $32.00. Please leave your payment at the Church or send it to: Artemis Martakis 2 Riga Road Dover, MA 02030. The latest payment is can be accepted is by May 25th. The Senior Guild hopes to see you there!

PHILOPTCHOS ELECTIONS

The Philoptochos General Assembly and elections of the board will be held on the evening of Wednesday, May 17. We welcome all members of the Philoptochos to participate more fully in the work of the Philoptochos by serving as a member of the board or on a standing committee. This is a wonderful opportunity to offer your talents to our church and have fellowship with the women of our church family. Please contact: Amalie George (781-953-2493) Stephanie Skedros (978-760-3347) or Aida Gennis (508-650-3869) for more information

SUNDAY GREETERS

We are looking for additional people to help greet/welcome our parishioners to church on Sunday mornings. All those who are interested in being a part of this wonderful program please contact Angel Hatgelakas through Marianne at the church office. Tel: 781-237-5561 or email: office@stdemetriosweston.org. Thank you.

GROUND ZERO CHURCH OF ST. NICHOLAS

To learn more about the rebuilding efforts of St. Nicholas National Shrine in New York City and how you can be a part of history please visit: www.stnicholaswtc.org.

USHERING

If you are interested in joining the Usher Team please contact Georgia Gefteas at gghome1@verizon.net or 978-973-7476.

MAKING A CHANGE…

In an increasingly paperless, digital world, we ask those of you who receive church publications and letters in the mail to consider switching to email and digital distribution. Not only will it help save the environment but it will also cut back on church expenses. If you are interested in making this change, please call the main office or email Georgia Gefteas:
gghome1@verizon.net

WWW.GOARCH.ORG

The webpage of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America has a great amount of resources for anyone looking to learn more about the faith. You can find the daily readings of the church, information about saints, what we believe, and prayers for any occasion. Additionally, you can stay up to date with news that affects us as Christians. Be sure to check www.goarch.org regularly!

PHILOXENIA HOUSE

Located near HCHC in Brookline, the Philoxenia House offers a home and hospitality to patients and those who accompany them while they are undergoing treatment in the Boston area.  For several years a few of us visit the home twice a year to try to brighten their lives by planting flowers.  This is a joy for us.  For more information regarding this ministry please contact Betty Titus, 781.237.4748, or Eleanor Spiliakos, 978.443.3746.

WHAT IS THE ORTHODOX CHURCH

Being asked this during our festival a number of times — we as Orthodox Christians ought to respond:

“The Orthodox Christian Church is a worldwide body of believers who  confess and worship Jesus Christ as the Son of God, as Lord and Messiah. This body has a tangible and continuous history of Christian faith and practice from the time of Christ’s Apostles. The use of the adjective ‘orthodox’ to describe the Church dates back to the earliest centuries and was applied to those Christians who maintained the tradition transmitted by Christ’s Apostles (1 Thess 2:15)”

FR. MANIKAS LIBRARY

Come and visit the Fr. Manikas Library and check out one of our many books on a variety of different topics. After Divine Liturgy, please stop by the library and see what we have to offer. See Cindi Dabrowski in the library for assistance on picking out a selection to take home and further your knowledge of our faith.

DAILY READINGS APP

The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America has developed and released a Daily Readings App for iOS and Android. It offers the daily Epistle and Gospel readings of the day as well as the saints that are commemorated on that day. Furthermore, it offers prayers,  dates of future Feast Days and fasting guidelines.

It’s a great resource that is offered by our Archdiocese. Sign into your app store and download it today!

BE THE BEE WEBSERIES 

The National Office of Youth and Young Adult Ministries offers a weekly web video series on YouTube called “Be the Bee” each week a question or theme about our faith is answered in just 5 minutes! Check out this new and interesting approach to learning about our faith! Go to: www.youtube.com/user/y2am to see the entire series! 

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Readings and Information

Today’s Epistle Reading (Acts 11:19-30) is found on page 52 in your Red Liturgy Book.

Today’s Gospel Reading (John 4:5-42) is found on page 53 in your Red Liturgy Book.

Resurrectional Apolytikion, “The Heavenly Powers” is found on page 171 in your Red Liturgy Book.

Thanksgiving prayers, for after Communion, are found on page 40 in your Red Liturgy Book.

TODAY’S USHERS: George Doukas, Captain; Arthur Stameris; Arthur Kalivas; Jack Markis; David Newkirk; Nancy; Voudouris; Steve Damaskos; Tom Gennis

TODAY’S MEMORIAL: there are no memorials today. Mr. and Mrs. Nicholas Philopoulos would like to extend an invitation to the community to attend next Sunday’s coffee hour in memory of their son, James Philopoulos.  

FELLOWSHIP HOUR: is graciously hosted by GOYA.

TODAY’S GREETERS: Cindi Dabrowski. 

 

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Gospel and Epistle Readings

Epistle Reading

Prokeimenon. Fourth Tone. Psalm 103.24,1.
O Lord, how manifold are your works. You have made all things in wisdom.
Verse: Bless the Lord, O my soul.

The reading is from Acts of the Apostles 11:19-30.

IN THOSE DAYS, those apostles who were scattered because of the persecution that arose over Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia and Cyprus and Antioch, speaking the word to none except Jews. But there were some of them, men of Cyprus and Cyrene, who on coming to Antioch spoke to the Greeks also, preaching the Lord Jesus. And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number that believed turned to the Lord. News of this came to the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. When he came and saw the grace of God, he was glad; and he exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose; for he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a large company was added to the Lord. So Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul; and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year they met with the church, and taught a large company of people; and in Antioch the disciples were for the first time called Christians. Now in these days prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. And one of them named Agabos stood up and foretold by the Spirit that there would be a great famine over all the world; and this took place in the days of Claudius. And the disciples determined, every one according to his ability, to send relief to the brethren who lived in Judea, and they did so, sending it to the elders by the hand of Barnabas and Saul.


Gospel Reading

Sunday of the Samaritan Woman
The Reading is from John 4:5-42

At that time, Jesus came to a city of Samaria, called Sychar, near the field that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. Jacob's well was there, and so Jesus, wearied as he was with his journey, sat down beside the well. It was about the sixth hour.

There came a woman of Samaria to draw water. Jesus said to her, "Give me a drink." For his disciples had gone away into the city to buy food. The Samaritan woman said to him, "How is it that you, a Jew, ask a drink of me, a woman of Samaria?" For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans. Jesus answered her, "If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, 'Give me a drink,' you would have asked him and he would have given you living water." The woman said to him, "Sir, you have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep; where do you get that living water? Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank from it himself, and his sons, and his cattle?" Jesus said to her, "Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst; the water that I shall give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life." The woman said to him, "Sir, give me this water, that I may not thirst, nor come here to draw."

Jesus said to her, "Go, call your husband, and come here." The woman answered him, "I have no husband." Jesus said to her, "You are right in saying, 'I have no husband'; for you have had five husbands, and he whom you now have is not your husband; this you said truly." The woman said to him, "Sir, I perceive that you are a prophet. Our fathers worshiped on this mountain; and you say that Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship." Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for such the Father seeks to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth." The woman said to him, "I know that the Messiah is coming (he who is called Christ); when he comes, he will show us all things." Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am he."

Just then his disciples came. They marveled that he was talking with a woman, but none said, "What do you wish?" or, "Why are you talking with her?" So the woman left her water jar, and went away into the city and said to the people, "Come, see a man who told me all that I ever did. Can this be the Christ?" They went out of the city and were coming to him.

Meanwhile the disciples besought him, saying "Rabbi, eat." But he said to them, "I have food to eat of which you do not know." So the disciples said to one another, "Has anyone brought him food?" Jesus said to them, "My food is to do the will of him who sent me, and to accomplish his work. Do you not say, 'There are yet four months, then comes the harvest'? I tell you, lift up your eyes, and see how the fields are already white for harvest. He who reaps receives wages, and gathers fruit for eternal life, so that sower and reaper may rejoice together. For here the saying holds true, 'One sows and another reaps.' I sent you to reap that for which you did not labor; others have labored, and you have entered into their labor."

Many Samaritans from that city believed in him because of the woman's testimony. "He told me all that I ever did." So when the Samaritans came to him, they asked him to stay with them; and he stayed there two days. And many more believed because of his word. They said to the woman, "It is no longer because of your words that we believe, for we have heard ourselves, and we know that this is indeed Christ the Savior of the world."


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Wisdom of the Fathers

THE persecution turned out to be no slight benefit as "to them that love God all things work together for good." (Rom. viii. 28.) If they had made it their express study how best to establish the Church, they would have done no other thing than this--they dispersed the teachers.[*] Mark in what quarters the preaching was extended. "They travelled," it says, "as far as Phenice and Cyprus and Antioch; to none however did they preach the word but to Jews only." Dost thou mark with what wise purposes of Providence so much was done in the case of Cornelius? This serves both to justify Christ, and to impeach the Jews. When Stephen was slain, when Paul was twice in danger, when the Apostles were scourged, then the Gentiles received the word, then the Samaritans. Which Paul also declares: "To you it was necessary that the Word of God should first be spoken; but since ye thrust it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy, lo, we turn unto the Gentiles." (ch. xiii. 46.)..."And the hand of the Lord," it says, "was with them," that is, they wrought miracles; "and a great number believed, and turned unto the Lord." (v. 21.) Do you mark why now also there was heed of miracles (namely) that they might believe? "Then tidings of these things came unto the ears of the church which was in Jerusalem: and they sent forth Barnabas, that he should go as far as Antioch." (v. 22.) What may be the reason that, when such a city received the word, they did not come themselves? Because of the Jews. But they send Barnabas. However, it is no small part of the providential management even so that Paul comes to be there. It is both natural, and it is wisely ordered, that they are averse to him, and (so) that Voice of the Gospel, that Trumpet of heaven, is not shut up in Jerusalem..."And when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch." (v. 26.) Verily this is the reason why it was there they were appointed to be called Christians, because Paul there spent so long time!
St. John Chrysostom
Homily 25 on Acts 11, 4th Century

The example of the good Samaritan shows that we must not abandon those in whom even the faintest amount of faith is still alive.
St. Ambrose of Milan
Two Books of St. Ambrose, Bishop of Milan, Concerning Repentance, Chapter 11

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Hymns of the Day

Apolytikion of Great and Holy Pascha in the Plagal First Tone

Christ is risen from the dead, by death, trampling down upon death, and to those in the tombs He has granted life.

Resurrectional Apolytikion in the Fourth Tone

Having learned the joyful proclamation of the Resurrection from the Angel, and having cast off the ancestral condemnation, the women disciples of the Lord spake to the Apostles exultantly: Death is despoiled and Christ God is risen, granting great mercy to the world.

Apolytikion for Mid-Pentecost in the Plagal Fourth Tone

At Mid-feast give Thou my thirsty soul to drink of the waters of piety; for Thou, O Saviour, didst cry out to all: Whosoever is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. Wherefore, O Well-spring of life, Christ our God, glory be to Thee.

Seasonal Kontakion in the Plagal Fourth Tone

Though You went down into the tomb, You destroyed Hades' power, and You rose the victor, Christ God, saying to the myrrh-bearing women, "Hail!" and granting peace to Your disciples, You who raise up the fallen.
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Saints and Feasts

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May 14

Sunday of the Samaritan Woman

One of the most ancient cities of the Promised Land was Shechem, also called Sikima, located at the foot of Mount Gerazim. There the Israelites had heard the blessings in the days of Moses and Jesus of Navi. Near to this town, Jacob, who had come from Mesopotamia in the nineteenth century before Christ, bought a piece of land where there was a well. This well, preserved even until the time of Christ, was known as Jacob's Well. Later, before he died in Egypt, he left that piece of land as a special inheritance to his son Joseph (Gen. 49:22). This town, before it was taken into possession by Samaria, was also the leading city of the kingdom of the ten tribes. In the time of the Romans it was called Neapolis, and at present Nablus. It was the first city in Canaan visited by the Patriarch Abraham. Here also, Jesus of Navi (Joshua) addressed the tribes of Israel for the last time. Almost three hundred years later, all Israel assembled there to make Roboam (Rehoboam) king.

When our Lord Jesus Christ, then, came at midday to this city, which is also called Sychar (John 4:5), He was wearied from the journey and the heat, and He sat down at this well. After a little while the Samaritan woman mentioned in today's Gospel passage came to draw water. As she conversed at some length with the Lord and heard from Him secret things concerning herself, she believed in Him; through her many other Samaritans also believed.

Concerning the Samaritans we know the following: In the year 721 before Christ, Salmanasar (Shalmaneser), King of the Assyrians, took the ten tribes of the kingdom of Israel into captivity, and relocated all these people to Babylon and the land of the Medes. From there he gathered various nations and sent them to Samaria. These nations had been idolaters from before. Although they were later instructed in the Jewish faith and believed in the one God, they worshipped the idols also. Furthermore, they accepted only the Pentateuch of Moses, and rejected the other books of Holy Scripture. Nonetheless, they thought themselves to be descendants of Abraham and Jacob. Therefore, the pious Jews named these Judaizing and idolatrous peoples Samaritans, since they lived in Samaria, the former leading city of the Israelites, as well as in the other towns thereabout. The Jews rejected them as heathen and foreigners, and had no communion with them at all, as the Samaritan woman observed, "the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans" (John 4:9). Therefore, the name Samaritan is used derisively many times in the Gospel narrations. After the Ascension of the Lord, and the descent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, the woman of Samaria was baptized by the holy Apostles and became a great preacher and Martyr of Christ; she was called Photine, and her feast is kept on February 26.


May 14

Isidore the Martyr of Chios

This Saint was a soldier from Alexandria. He came with the Roman fleet to Chios, where he was betrayed as a Christian to Numerian, Commander of the Fleet. Because he boldly pro-fessed himself to worship Christ as God and refused to worship any other, he was tormented and beheaded in 251, during the reign of Decius.


Therapon
May 14

Holy Hieromartyr Therapontus


May 14

Holy New Martyrs Mark and John


May 14

Serapion the Holy Martyr


May 14

Leontius, Patriarch of Jerusalem


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May 15

Pachomius the Great

Saint Pachomius was born of pagan parents in the Upper Thebaid of Egypt. He was conscripted into the Roman army at an early age. While quartered with the other soldiers in the prison in Thebes, Pachomius was astonished at the kindness shown them by the local Christians, who relieved their distress by bringing them food and drink. Upon inquiring who they were, he believed in Christ and vowed that once delivered from the army, he would serve Him all the days of his life. Released from military service, about the year 313, he was baptized, and became a disciple of the hermit Palamon, under whose exacting guidance he increased in virtue and grace, and reached such a height of holiness that "because of the purity of his heart," says his biographer, "he was, as it were, seeing the invisible God as in a mirror." His renown spread far, and so many came to him to be his disciples that he founded nine monasteries in all, filled with many thousands of monks, to whom he gave a rule of life, which became the pattern for all communal monasticism after him. While Saint Anthony the Great is the father of hermits, Saint Pachomius is the founder of the cenobitic life in Egypt; because Pachomius had founded a way of monasticism accessible to so many, Anthony said that he "walks the way of the Apostles." Saint Pachomius fell asleep in the Lord before his contemporaries Anthony and Athanasius the Great, in the year 346. His name in Coptic, Pachom, means "eagle."


Achilles
May 15

Achillius the Wonderworker, Archbishop of Larissa

Saint Achillius was one of the 318 God-bearing Fathers who were present at the First Ecumenical Council; after returning to Larissa he cast down many pagan temples, delivered many from the demons, and raised up churches to the glory of God. He reposed about the middle of the fourth century.


May 15

Barbaros the Myrrhbearer of Kerkyra


May 15

Andrew the Hermit & Wonderworker


May 15

Placing of the Honorable Head of the Apostle Titus


May 16

Theodore the Sanctified

This Saint, who was born in the Upper Thebaid of Christian parents, joined the community of Saint Pachomios at about the age of fourteen years, and became the greatest of his disciples. Because of Theodore's utter humility and unquestioning obedience, Pachomios called him more and more to his aid in governing the monasteries he had established. Although some found fault with this, because Theodore was younger than they, Pachomios continued to put his confidence in him, to such a degree that once he told the brotherhood, "Theodore and I fulfil the same service for God; and he also has the authority to give commands as father." Pachomios was succeeded as governor of the monks by Saint Orsiesius in 346, and Orsiesius later took Theodore as his fellow abbot. At Theodore's death in the year 368, the monks mourned him so bitterly that the sound of their crying was heard on the other side of the river.


May 16

Holy Martyr Peter of Blachernae


May 16

New Martyr Nicholas of Metsovos (1617)


May 16

Nicholas the Mystic, Patriarch of Constantinople


May 16

Alexandros, Archbishop of Jerusalem


May 16

Brendan the Navigator


May 17

The Holy Apostles Andronicus and Junia

These Apostles are mentioned by Saint Paul in his Epistle to the Romans, where he writes: "Greet Andronicus and Junia, my kinsmen and my fellow prisoners, who are of note among the Apostles, who also were in Christ before me" (Rom. 16:7).


May 17

Holy Godbearing Nectarius, the Builder of the Holy Monastery of Varlaam of Meteora


May 17

Theodotos the Martyr of Ancyra & the 7 Virgin-martyrs


May 17

Athanasios, Archbishop of Christianopolis


May 17

The New Martyrs of Batak, Bulgaria


May 17

Nicholas the Younger who was martyred in Metsovo, Epirus


May 18

Holy Martyrs: Peter, Dionysius, Andrew, Paul, Christina, Heraclius, Paulinus and Benedimus

These Saints all contested in martyrdom during the reign of Decius (249-251)- Peter was from Lampsacus in the Hellespont. For refusing to offer sacrifice to the idol of Aphrodite, his whole body was crushed and broken with chains and pieces of wood on a torture-wheel; having endured this torment courageously, he gave up his soul.

Paul and Andrew were soldiers from Mesopotamia brought to Athens with their governor, there they were put in charge of two captive Christians, Dionysios and Christina. The soldiers, seeing the beauty of the virgin Christina, attempted to move her to commit sin with them, but she refused and, by her admonitions, brought them to faith in Christ. They and Dionysios were stoned to death, and Christina was beheaded.

Heraclius, Paulinus, and Benedimus were Athenians, and preachers of the Gospel who turned many of the heathen from their error to the light of Christ. Brought before the governor, they confessed their Faith, and after many torments were beheaded.


May 18

Julian the Martyr


May 18

Euphrasia the Martyr of Nicea


May 18

Stephen I, Patriarch of Constantinople


May 19

Our Righteous Father Memnonus the Wonderworker


May 19

Patrick the Hieromartyr and Bishop of Prusa and His Fellow Martyrs Acacius, Menander, and Polyaenus

Saint Patrick was Bishop of Prusa, a city in Bithynia (the present-day Brusa or Bursa). Because of his Christian Faith, he was brought before Julius (or Julian) the Consul, who in his attempts to persuade Patrick to worship as he himself did, declared that thanks was owed to the gods for providing the hot springs welling up from the earth for the benefit of men. Saint Patrick answered that thanks for this was owed to our Lord Jesus Christ, and explained that when He, Who is God, created the earth, He made it with both fire and water, and the fire under the earth heats the water which wells up, producing hot springs; he then explained that there is another fire, which awaits the ungodly. Because of this, he was cast into the hot springs, but it was the soldiers who cast him in, and not he, who were harmed by the hot water. After this Saint Patrick was beheaded with the presbyters Acacius, Menander, and Polyaenus. Most likely, this was during the reign of Diocletian (284-305).


May 19

Theotima & Kyriake the Martyrs


May 20

The Holy Martyr Thalleleus

Saint Thalleleus was from the region of Lebanon in Phoenicia, the son of Berucius, a Christian bishop; his mother's name was Romula. Raised in piety, he was trained as a physician. Because of the persecution of Numerian, the Saint departed to Cilicia, and in Anazarbus he hid himself in an olive grove; but he was seized and taken to Aegae of Cilicia to Theodore, the ruler. After many torments he was beheaded in 284. Saint Thalleleus is one of the Holy Unmercenaries.


May 20

Mark the Hermit


May 20

Father Alexis, Metropolitan of Moscow

Our holy and wonderworking Father Alexis, Metropolitan of Moscow, was born in Moscow in 1292, and consecrated bishop in 1350. Chosen as Metropolitan in 1354, he was ordained by Ecumenical Patriarch Philotheus. He founded several monasteries, including the first women's convent in the city of Moscow. From the Greek he translated and wrote out the Holy Gospel. For the good of the Church and his country he twice journeyed to the Horde and did much to propitiate the Khan and ease the burden of the Tartar yoke; he also healed Taidula, the Khan's wife. His relics are laid to rest in the Chudov Monastery in Moscow, which he founded on land granted him by the Khan and his wife in thanksgiving. Today is the feast of the translation of his holy relics, which took place in 1485, and again in 1686.


May 20

Lydia of Philippi, Equal to the Apostles


May 20

John, Joseph, and Nikitas the Monks of Chios


May 21

Sunday of the Blind Man

The Lord Jesus was coming from the Temple on the Sabbath, when, while walking in the way, He saw the blind man mentioned in today's Gospel. This man had been born thus from his mother's womb, that is, he had been born without eyes (see Saint John Chrysostom, Homily LVI on Matthew; Saint Irenaeus, Against Heresies, Book V:15; and the second Exorcism of Saint Basil the Great). When the disciples saw this, they asked their Teacher, "Who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind?" They asked this because when the Lord had healed the paralytic at the Sheep's Pool, He had told him, "Sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee" (John 5:14); so they wondered, if sickness was caused by sin, what sin could have been the cause of his being born without eyes. But the Lord answered that this was for the glory of God. Then the God-man spat on the ground and made clay with the spittle. He anointed the eyes of the blind man and said to him, "Go, wash in the Pool of Siloam." Siloam (which means "sent") was a well-known spring in Jerusalem used by the inhabitants for its waters, which flowed to the eastern side of the city and collected in a large pool called "the Pool of Siloam."

Therefore, the Saviour sent the blind man to this pool that he might wash his eyes, which had been anointed with the clay-not that the pool's water had such power, but that the faith and obedience of the one sent might be made manifest, and that the miracle might become more remarkable and known to all, and leave no room for doubt. Thus, the blind man believed in Jesus' words, obeyed His command, went and washed himself, and returned, no longer blind, but having eyes and seeing. This was the greatest miracle that our Lord had yet worked; as the man healed of his blindness himself testified, "Since time began, never was it heard that any man opened the eyes of one that was born blind," although the Lord had already healed the blind eyes of many. Because he now had eyes, some even doubted that he was the same person (John 9:8-9); and it was still lively in their remembrance when Christ came to the tomb of Lazarus, for they said, "Could not this man, who opened the eyes of the blind man, have caused that even this man should not have died?" Saint John Chrysostom gives a thorough and brilliant exposition of our Lord's meeting with the woman of Samaria, the healing of the paralytic, and the miracle of the blind man in his commentaries on the Gospel of Saint John.


May 21

Constantine and Helen, Equal-to-the Apostles

This great and renowned sovereign of the Christians was the son of Constantius Chlorus (the ruler of the westernmost parts of the Roman empire), and of the blessed Helen. He was born in 272, in (according to some authorities) Naissus of Dardania, a city on the Hellespont. In 306, when his father died, he was proclaimed successor to his throne. In 312, on learning that Maxentius and Maximinus had joined forces against him, he marched into Italy, where, while at the head of his troops, he saw in the sky after midday, beneath the sun, a radiant pillar in the form of a cross with the words: "By this shalt thou conquer." The following night, our Lord Jesus Christ appeared to him in a dream and declared to him the power of the Cross and its significance. When he arose in the morning, he immediately ordered that a labarum be made (which is a banner or standard of victory over the enemy) in the form of a cross, and he inscribed on it the Name of Jesus Christ. On the 28th Of October, he attacked and mightily conquered Maxentius, who drowned in the Tiber River while fleeing. The following day, Constantine entered Rome in triumph and was proclaimed Emperor of the West by the Senate, while Licinius, his brother-in-law, ruled in the East. But out of malice, Licinius later persecuted the Christians. Constantine fought him once and again, and utterly destroyed him in 324, and in this manner he became monarch over the West and the East. Under him and because of him all the persecutions against the Church ceased. Christianity triumphed and idolatry was overthrown. In 325 he gathered the First Ecumenical Council in Nicaea, which he himself personally addressed. In 324, in the ancient city of Byzantium, he laid the foundations of the new capital of his realm, and solemnly inaugurated it on May 11, 330, naming it after himself, Constantinople. Since the throne of the imperial rule was transferred thither from Rome, it was named New Rome, the inhabitants of its domain were called Romans, and it was considered the continuation of the Roman Empire. Falling ill near Nicomedia, he requested to receive divine Baptism, according to Eusebius (The Life of Constantine. Book IV, 61-62), and also according to Socrates and Sozomen; and when he had been deemed worthy of the Holy Mysteries, he reposed in 337, on May 21 or 22, the day of Pentecost, having lived sixty-five years, of which he ruled for thirty-one years. His remains were transferred to Constantinople and were deposed in the Church of the Holy Apostles, which had been built by him (see Homily XXVI on Second Corinthians by Saint John Chrysostom).

As for his holy mother Helen, after her son had made the Faith of Christ triumphant throughout the Roman Empire, she undertook a journey to Jerusalem and found the Holy Cross on which our Lord was crucified (see Sept. 13 and 14). After this, Saint Helen, in her zeal to glorify Christ, erected churches in Jerusalem at the sites of the Crucifixion and Resurrection, in Bethlehem at the cave where our Saviour was born, another on the Mount of Olives whence He ascended into Heaven, and many others throughout the Holy Land, Cyprus, and elsewhere. She was proclaimed Augusta, her image was stamped upon golden coins, and two cities were named Helenopolis after her in Bithynia and in Palestine. Having been thus glorified for her piety, she departed to the Lord being about eighty years of age, according to some in the year 330, according to others, in 336.


May 21

Pachomios the Righteous New Martyr


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