The Lives of the Saints
1. The Holy Great Martyr Kyriake (Nedelja)
In the time of the Christ-hating emperors Diocletian and his son-in-law Maximian, there lived in Anatolia two pious elderly souls, Dorotheus and Eusebia. They were devout Christians, wealthy but childless. By unceasing prayer they besought from God a child, this holy Kyriake. From childhood Kyriake dedicated herself to God, abstaining from everything that dissolute children do. When she grew up, beautiful in body and soul, many suitors pressed upon her, but she rejected them all, saying that she had betrothed herself to Christ the Lord and desired nothing but to die a maiden. One of the rejected suitors accused both Kyriake and her parents before the Emperor Diocletian as Christians. The emperor ordered that the parents of Kyriake be tortured, and after their tortures he banished them to the city of Melitene, where they ended their lives in sufferings for Christ. As for holy Kyriake, Diocletian sent her to Maximian for judgment. When Kyriake confessed her faith in Christ before Maximian, he ordered that she be laid on the ground and beaten with ox sinews. Then the emperor handed her over to his commanders, first to Hilarion and after his death to Apollonius. They tortured her savagely in every possible way, but all was in vain. When holy Kyriake lay in prison, covered with wounds, Christ the Lord appeared to her, healed her, and said to her: "Fear not the torments, Kyriake, My grace is with thee." And indeed the grace of Christ saved this martyr both from fire and from wild beasts, where the godless judges supposed she would surely meet her death. Seeing the miraculous deliverance of Kyriake from so many deaths, many pagans believed in Christ. But all of them were beheaded. Saint Kyriake said to Apollonius: "By no means canst thou turn me from my faith. If thou castest me into fire, I have the example of the Three Youths; if thou castest me before wild beasts, I have the example of Daniel; if thou castest me into the sea, I have the example of Jonah the Prophet; if thou givest me over to the sword, I shall remember the Honorable Forerunner. For me, to die for Christ is to live." Then Apollonius ordered that she be beheaded with the sword. Kyriake knelt and raised her hands to heaven and prayed to God, that God would have mercy upon and save all those who would celebrate her memory, and that He would grant rest to her soul together with the souls of her parents. Having finished her prayer, she surrendered her soul to God before the sword descended upon her head. She suffered honorably and departed to eternal joy in the year 289, in Nicomedia.
2. The Venerable Thomas of Malea
This Thomas was at first a military commander, famed for his bravery and wealth. He was very large of body and struck fear into his enemies. But when he came to love Christ more than the world and everything in the world, he left all and withdrew into the wilderness, where he was tonsured a monk and gave himself to asceticism. Saint Elijah the Prophet appeared to him and led him to a mountain called Malea, near the Holy Mountain. There he lived alone and solitary, with God alone, in day-and-night prayer. Although he hid himself from the world, a city set on a hill cannot be hid. When people learned of the holiness of his life, they began coming to him and bringing their sick. And Saint Thomas healed people of every illness and every affliction. And when he presented himself before God (in the tenth century), his relics continued to help all who approached them with faith.
3. The Venerable Martyrs Epictetus and Astion
Astion, the only child of his parents, was led to the faith of Christ by the priest Epictetus, who baptized and tonsured him. Afterward they moved from somewhere in the eastern lands to the Scythian regions and settled in the Scythian city of Almiridus (now Ramzinu) at the mouth of the Danube where it flows into the Black Sea. They were tortured and beheaded for the faith of Christ around the year 290. Both appeared after death in great light to the parents of Saint Astion, Alexander and Marcellina, who converted to Christ and were baptized by Bishop Evangelus, who himself was afterward beheaded for Christ — "Evangelus, another angel," as it was sung of him.
“And indeed the grace of Christ saved this martyr both from fire and from wild beasts, where the godless judges supposed she would surely meet her death.”
Hymn of Praise
Only child, the holy maiden Kyriake,
Her parents for the faith did die,
Her parents, saints of God Most High.
An orphan, the holy maiden Kyriake,
What she had she gave to the poor,
Only her body and garment remained,
And even these she sacrificed for Christ.
Kyriake, pure as the morning dew,
She would not let herself be bribed,
She would not let herself be lured,
Nor would she let herself be frightened.
But to torments as to a wedding she went,
Heavy torments, and wounds so deep,
But sweet is the name of Jesus!
Bitter pains, fierce humiliations,
But sweet is the eternal reign!
Her whole body bathed in blood,
But sweet is the joy of Paradise!
O Kyriake, chosen one of God,
And wondrous martyr for Christ,
From earth thou wast driven by the sword,
In heaven thou wast crowned with glory.
Teach us to honor the faith,
Embolden us to give our lives for it,
Help us by thy prayers,
Wondrous candle among the candles of Paradise.
“Heavy torments, and wounds so deep, but sweet is the name of Jesus! Bitter pains, fierce humiliations, but sweet is the eternal reign!”
Reflection
The example of Saint Kyriake, a beautiful maiden, and the example of Saint Astion, a wealthy young man, who both gave themselves to tortures and death for Christ the Lord, lead us to reflect upon the power of Christ — incomparable to anything in history — by which young people conquer themselves and through that everything else. To win a victory over oneself is the greatest victory. The Church numbers such victors in the thousands, and many thousands. Saint Cyprian, writing about virginity, says: "To conquer pleasure is the greatest pleasure, nor is there a greater victory than the victory over one's own desires. He who has conquered one enemy has shown himself stronger than some other person, but he who has conquered desire has shown himself stronger than himself. Every evil is easier to conquer than pleasure, for all other evils are repulsive, while pleasure is an attractive evil. He who has freed himself from desire frees himself also from fear, for fear arises from desire."
“To conquer pleasure is the greatest pleasure, nor is there a greater victory than the victory over one's own desires.”
Contemplation
Contemplate the miraculous bringing forth of water from the rock at Horeb (Exodus 17), namely:
1. How the thirsty Israelites doubted that God was among them, and grumbled against Moses,
2. How by the command of God Moses struck the rock with his staff, and water flowed from the rock,
3. How my own heart turns to stone from doubt, and how streams of tears flow from it when the grace of faith touches it.
Homily
On the Rational Milk
As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby: if so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious (I Peter 2:2-3)
The great Apostle regards Christians as newborn babes. Baptism is a new birth, and from baptism a man's new life is counted. And the newborn spiritual infants must be nourished with wholesome food just as are newborn bodily infants. What food does the Apostle recommend to Christians? The sincere milk of the word. A bodily infant is fed with milk that is not rational, which is only an image of the true milk, the rational milk, with which the spiritual infant must be nourished. And what is that sincere and rational milk with which a Christian must be nourished? The Apostle himself answers this when he says: if so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious. It is, therefore, the Lord Jesus Himself, living and life-giving. The words of Christ are the sincere and rational milk. Blessed are you, brethren, if you nourish your soul with the words of Christ as with sweet milk, for your soul shall expand and be ennobled and be made ready for the Kingdom of God.
The miracles of Christ are the sincere and rational milk. Blessed are you, brethren, if you nourish your soul with that sweet milk, for you shall be like the angels, who day and night sing of the wonders of God.
The Body and Blood of Christ are the sincere and rational milk. Blessed are you, brethren, if you nourish your soul with that sweet milk, for you shall be incorporated into the living and immortal Body of Christ in heaven.
The Paschal victory of Christ over death is the sincere and rational milk. Blessed are you, brethren, if you nourish your soul with that sweet milk, for even in this life you shall walk as victors, and in the next you shall stand at the right hand of Christ the Victor.
The whole of Christ, brethren, is the sincere and rational milk. Let us desire that milk before all else, that we may grow thereby unto salvation. It is the only food for salvation; all else is for corruption and the grave.
O Lord Jesus, Lamb of God, who art wholly the sincere and rational milk, nourish us with Thyself, as Thou didst nourish Thy holy Apostles, that we too may grow sufficiently unto salvation. To Thee be glory and praise forever. Amen.
“The Body and Blood of Christ are the sincere and rational milk.”