Lives of the Saints
1. HOLY APOSTLE JAMES, SON OF ALPHAEUS
The son of Alphaeus and one of the Twelve Great Apostles. The brother by birth of the Apostle and Evangelist Matthew. A true witness of the words and miracles of the Lord and Savior, our Jesus Christ, a witness of His suffering, resurrection and ascension. After the descent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, it fell to the Apostle James to preach the Gospel of Christ in Eleutheropolis and the surrounding places, and afterward in Egypt, where he also suffered for his Savior. With great power, in both word and deed, Saint James carried the saving good tidings of the incarnate God the Word, destroying idolatry, casting out demons from men, healing every infirmity and every disease in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. His labor and his zeal were crowned with great success. Many pagans believed in Christ the Lord, churches were founded and organized, and priests and bishops were appointed. He suffered in Egypt, in the city of Ostracina, being crucified by pagans. And so this great and wondrous Apostle of Christ passed over into the heavenly Kingdom, to reign immortally with the King of Glory.
2. VENERABLE ANDRONICUS AND HIS WIFE ATHANASIA
Citizens of Antioch from the time of Theodosius the Great. Andronicus was a goldsmith by trade. Both he and his wife were exceedingly pious, striving ceaselessly to walk in the way of the Lord. Of their earnings they gave one third to the poor, another to the Church, and by the third they sustained themselves. After two children were born to them, they agreed to live thenceforth as brother and sister. But by God's unfathomable Providence, both their children died on a single day. And they were in great sorrow, until the holy Martyr Julian appeared at the cemetery to Athanasia and comforted her with the tidings that their children were in the Kingdom of God, and that it was better for them than with their parents on earth. After this, both of them forsook everything, departed for Egypt and received the monastic tonsure: Saint Andronicus under the elder Daniel in the Scete, and Athanasia in a women's monastery in Tabennisi. Having pleased God through their long years of ascetic labors, they passed over into the eternal Kingdom of Christ -- first Saint Athanasia, and eight days later Saint Andronicus.
3. HOLY RIGHTEOUS ABRAHAM AND LOT
Read about them in the Book of Genesis.
4. SAINT DEMETRIUS, PATRIARCH OF ALEXANDRIA
The eleventh bishop of Alexandria after Saint Mark the Evangelist. He governed his flock wisely and for a long time, from the year 189 to 231. In his time, at the request of the Indians, Saint Pantaenus, the head of the famous catechetical school in Alexandria, was sent to India to preach the Gospel. Pantaenus found in India a Gospel written by Saint Matthew in the Hebrew language.
5. SAINT STEPHEN, DESPOT OF SERBIA
The son of Despot Djuradj and Jerina. He lived for some time with his sister Mara at the court of Sultan Murad II. He was blinded at Adrianople together with his brother Grgur. He received the authority of despot over Serbia in the year 1458. He soon had to flee his own land into Albania, where he married Angelina, the daughter of Skanderbeg. Blind and unfortunate, yet ever devoted to God, he reposed in the Lord in the year 1468 in Italy. His relics rest in the Monastery of Krusedol, the endowment of his son, Saint Maximus.
“God glorified with eternal glory this Stephen, and his wife Angelina, and their children Maximus and John.”
Hymn of Praise
Sent by the Lord, obedient to the Lord,
The all-praised Apostle James labored
To sow the seed of the Gospel everywhere,
That from it Christ-believing people might spring forth.
He traversed both Syria and ancient Egypt,
Everywhere diligently carrying the heavenly honey,
The healing, wondrous honey from the lips of Christ,
Feeding the hungry people with that honey.
Wherever James passed, he left a trace everywhere:
Full cups of honey, brimming and whole,
Inexhaustible cups of life-giving honey --
These are the holy churches, rich and white.
In them the infinite Creator is glorified
And the wondrous works of God's Son;
Christ is that honey which is given to the faithful --
The life-giving manna of bread and wine.
James finished his path with a crimson mark,
With the martyr's blood that poured from the cross,
And a crown from Christ he received in heaven,
As did the other Apostles of God in their turn.
“Christ is that honey which is given to the faithful -- the life-giving manna of bread and wine.”
Reflection
How God both punishes and shows mercy is clearly shown to us in the lives of the last Serbian despots in the time of the Turkish conquest of Serbian lands. It was not the Turks who came to the Balkans of their own power and will to subjugate the Christian nations, Greeks, Bulgarians and Serbs, but by the permission of God, just as Nebuchadnezzar conquered Jerusalem and led the Jews into captivity not by his own strength but by the permission of God. Because of the sins of the princes and the nobles, the Serbian people suffered bitterly, but even more bitterly did the princes and nobles themselves suffer. Despot Djuradj died in exile; his sons Grgur and Stephen were blinded by the Turks; his daughter was forced to become the wife of the Sultan; his middle son rose against his mother Jerina and his brother Grgur, and by force seized the tottering throne in Smederevo, but died suddenly. The blind Stephen had no sooner become despot than he had to flee into Albania, and then into Italy, where he died as an exile and a wretched man in a foreign land. All of this is the punishment of God. But where is the mercy? God glorified with eternal glory both this Stephen, and his wife Angelina, and their children Maximus and John. After eight years of lying in the grave, the body of Stephen was exhumed and found to be whole and filled with a fragrant aroma. And many miracles were manifested from those holy relics of his. Likewise, his wife and sons were glorified and sanctified by the grace of God.
“How God both punishes and shows mercy is clearly shown to us in the lives of the last Serbian despots in the time of the Turkish conquest of Serbian lands.”
Contemplation
Contemplate the miraculous bringing down of fire from heaven by the Prophet Elijah (I Kings 18), namely:
1. How the holy Elijah prayed to God on Mount Carmel, in the presence of King Ahab and the priests of the idols;
2. How fire fell from heaven and consumed the sacrifice which Elijah offered to God.
Homily
on how only the foolish deny God
The mind is the helmsman of man's entire being. It counsels, it persuades, it guides. Both soul and body are directed by the mind. If the mind is right before God, the whole man is right. If the mind is not right before God, the whole man is not right. If someone merely thinks, "There is no God," this is immediately manifested in his deeds. First the evil thought sprouts, and evil deeds immediately follow. Do you see how well the inspired prophet knows human nature? He sets forth the cause first, and then cites the consequences. From evil thoughts, evil deeds inevitably proceed. Therefore, brethren, do not believe him who says: "I do not believe in God, but I do good." First of all, he who does not believe in God does not know what is good, nor can he distinguish good from evil. By unbelief in God, a man cuts himself off from the chief Good and the source of every good. Furthermore, look carefully and you will see that the deeds of all the godless are corrupt and abominable: corrupt, because they are evil, worthless and transient; abominable, because they are contrary to the will of the living God. The godless man cannot even distinguish good from evil, for only in the light of the law of God can it be precisely determined what is good and what is evil. But it also happens that one who with his lips says he believes in God does corrupt and abominable deeds. That is: with the lips he confesses God, but by his deeds he denies Him. It is good to confess God with the lips, but this is far from sufficient: one must also acknowledge Him with the heart and confirm one's faith by deeds. And it further happens that a man believes in his heart and confesses with his lips, and yet still sins. This happens either through weakness of will or from the arrows of the devil. Let such a one repent, and that immediately, and he will be forgiven. Repentance is, moreover, salvific for the godless as well, and all the more so for the believer. As long as a man is on earth, there is still time for repentance. But who can be certain that his time will not expire this very night? Hence the postponement of repentance is utter foolishness.
O most gracious Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, help us to repent as Thou dost help us to breathe. To Thee be glory and praise forever. Amen.
“The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works.”