The Lives of the Saints
1. HOLY MARTYRS JULIAN AND BASILISSA
They were both born from noble and wealthy parents. Married in wedlock, they vowed to live virginally as brother and sister. They distributed all their property to the poor, and they took monastic vows, and Julian founded a men's monastery, and Basilissa a women's monastery. Julian had up to ten thousand monks, and Basilissa up to a thousand nuns.
When fierce persecution of Christians arose under Diocletian, Basilissa prayed to God that not one of her nuns would be frightened by torments or depart from the Orthodox faith. The Lord heard the prayer of His worthy handmaiden and in the course of six months took unto Himself all the nuns, in order, and finally their abbess Basilissa. Before death Basilissa had a vision of her sisters from that world: they all appeared to her bright and joyful like the angels of God and they called their spiritual mother to come to them as soon as possible. Julian's monastery, however, was burned by fire by the tormentors, and Julian was inhumanly tortured and worn out by the most severe torments. In the torments the Lord encouraged and strengthened him, so that he endured everything heroically, maintained the faith, and glorified the name of Christ. Together with Julian were beheaded: the son and wife of the torturer Marcian; Celsus and Marionilla, who seeing Julian's heroism in enduring torments, converted themselves to the faith of Christ; twenty Roman soldiers; seven brothers from that place; the presbyter Anthony, and a certain Anastasius, whom Julian during the torment raised from the dead by prayer. All suffered honorably for Christ and became citizens of the Heavenly Kingdom around the year 313.
2. VENERABLE GEORGE THE CHOZEBITE
He practiced asceticism in the seventh century in the Chozebite monastery, on the road from Jerusalem to Jericho where the Venerable John the Chozebite first practiced asceticism.
3. SAINT DOMINICA
In the time of Emperor Theodosius she came as an unbaptized person from Carthage to Constantinople with four other pagan maidens. Patriarch Macarius baptized them and blessed them to live as nuns. Saint Dominica gave herself to asceticism with great zeal and in that zeal did not weaken until her very death in deep old age. She reposed in the Lord around the year 474. Enlightened by the Holy Spirit, she was able to perceive events in the future and to work miracles by prayer.
4. SAINT GREGORY, BISHOP OF OHRID
A pious teacher and shepherd of Christ's flock. He reposed in the year 1012. In one inscription in the church of Hagia Sophia in Ohrid he is called "Gregory the Most Wise."
Hymn of Praise
Bound by marriage, more bound by Christ,
A spiritual bond—the bond is more enduring.
The Spirit inscribed them in the Book of the Living:
"Brother Julian, sister Basilissa."
They abandoned all, they went after Christ,
And when the hour struck they gave their lives
For the love of God, the thrice-radiant love,
They despised glory, all earthly glory;
By love for God they glorified themselves
And left to us a wondrous example.
The Church's wealth, and ornament and glory:
The wonder-working blood of wondrous martyrs.
“They abandoned all, they went after Christ, and when the hour struck they gave their lives.”
Reflection
On one plaque in the church of Hagia Sophia these words were carved: "Wash your sins and not only your face." Whoever entered that glorious church read this inscription and remembered that the Christian faith demands of him moral purity: purity of soul, heart and mind. But since in the heart the whole spiritual man is concentrated, the Lord also said: Blessed are the pure in heart. All outward purity helps nothing in obtaining the Heavenly Kingdom. Oh if we would invest as much effort in washing ourselves from sin as we invest daily in washing our face! In our heart then, truly, God would be seen as in a mirror.
“Wash your sins and not only your face.”
Contemplation
Contemplate the three temptations by which Satan tempted the Lord Jesus, namely:
1. Love of pleasure (temptation with bread);
2. Love of glory (lifting up above the temple);
3. Love of silver (offering possession of the entire world).
Homily
on the necessary caution of those who think they stand
Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall (I Corinthians 10:12)
The Apostle, who gives such counsel, rightly knew human nature and all its weakness. Day by day experience confirms this, that just as a man raises himself from sinful mire, he already begins to totter and falls again. Just as he has healed from the vice of love of silver, he already falls into the vice of love of glory. Or, just as he has opened his hand to help a poor man, pride casts him down on the other side. Or, just as he has become a little accustomed to prayer, he opens wide his mouth to revile those who have not yet become accustomed to prayer. Or, just as he has felt that the Spirit of God is leading him on the path of salvation, he immediately imposes himself as a teacher to the whole world, while, alas, thereby he completely drives the Spirit from himself. When the Lord foretold to His disciples that they would all deny Him and scatter, then Peter, self-confident in his constancy, cried out: Though all men shall be offended because of thee, yet will I never be offended. Seeing through only his heart, and seeing him already fallen into self-conceit and pride, the Lord answered him: This night, before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice! So if such a fall happened to an apostle, in the immediate nearness of the Lord, how can it not happen to us? Therefore, brethren, when we rise and turn from some sin, and stand upright, we must attribute this to the power and mercy of God and not to ourselves; and we must look around well, and guard ourselves, and pray to God, that we not fall again, either to one side or to the other, but that we walk straight on the Lord's path.
O Lord all-seeing, help us to raise ourselves by the Spirit unto Thee; and when we raise ourselves, uphold us, that we fall no more. To Thee be glory and praise forever. Amen.
“If such a fall happened to an apostle, in the immediate nearness of the Lord, how can it not happen to us?”