Lives of the Saints
1. SAINT NICHOLAS THE WONDERWORKER, ARCHBISHOP OF MYRA IN LYCIA
This glorious saint, celebrated even today throughout the entire world, was the only son of his distinguished and wealthy parents, Theophanes and Nonna, residents of the city of Patara in Lycia. As an only son, granted to them by God, they in turn consecrated him to God, and thereby gave him to God as an offering. Saint Nicholas learned the spiritual life from his uncle Nicholas, Bishop of Patara, and was tonsured a monk in the monastery of New Zion, founded by this same uncle of his. After the death of his parents, Nicholas distributed his inherited estate to the poor, keeping nothing for himself. As a priest in Patara he became renowned for his mercy, though he carefully concealed his merciful deeds, fulfilling the Lord's word: Let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth (Matt. 6:3). When he gave himself to solitude and silence, intending to live thus until death, a voice came to him from on high: Nicholas, go forth to struggle among the people, if thou desirest to be crowned by Me. Immediately thereafter, by the wondrous Providence of God, he was chosen as Archbishop of the city of Myra in Lycia. Merciful, wise, fearless, Saint Nicholas was a true Good Shepherd to his flock. During the persecution of Christians under Diocletian and Maximian he was cast into prison, but even in prison he taught the people the law of God. He was present at the First Ecumenical Council in Nicaea, and from great zeal for the truth, struck the heretic Arius with his hand. For this deed he was removed from the Council and from archiepiscopal service until the Lord Christ Himself and the Most Holy Theotokos appeared to several of the first hierarchs at the Council and declared Their favor toward Nicholas. A defender of God's truth, this wondrous saint was also always a courageous defender of justice among people. On two occasions he saved three men each from undeserved death penalty. Merciful, truthful, just, he walked among people as an angel of God. Even during his lifetime people considered him a saint and called upon him for help in sorrows and miseries; and he appeared, in sleep and in waking, to those who called upon him, equally easily and quickly both near and far, and helped. From his face shone light as from the face of Moses, and by his very appearance he brought comfort, tranquility and good will among people. In old age he fell slightly ill and reposed in the Lord, much-laboring and much-fruitful, to rejoice eternally in the Kingdom of Heaven, continuing to help the faithful on earth by miracles and to glorify his God. He reposed on December 6, 343 (see May 9).
2. SAINT NICHOLAS, BISHOP OF PATARA
The uncle of the great Saint Nicholas, who guided him to the spiritual life and ordained him a priest.
3. HOLY MARTYR NICHOLAS KARAMAN
For the Christian Faith he was fiercely tortured by the Turks and hanged in Smyrna in the year 1657.
4. SAINT THEOPHILUS, BISHOP OF ANTIOCH
Well educated in Greek philosophy, he, after reading Holy Scripture, was baptized and became a great defender of the Christian Faith. His work On the Faith has been preserved to this day. He governed the Church of Antioch for thirteen years, and reposed in the year 181.
“From his face shone light as from the face of Moses, and by his very appearance he brought comfort, tranquility and good will among people.”
Hymn of Praise
Holy Father Nicholas
The four corners of the world glorify
As a knight of mighty faith,
Of God's faith, of true faith.
From the cradle dedicated to God,
From the cradle until the end;
And God also glorified him —
His faithful Nicholas.
In life he was glorious,
And after death even more glorious,
Mighty he was on earth,
And from heaven even mightier.
Of bright spirit, pure heart,
He was the temple of the Living God:
Nations therefore glorify him
As a wondrous saint.
Rich in glory, O Nicholas,
He loves his celebrants,
Before the throne of the eternal God
For their good he prays.
Bless, O Nicholas,
Bless thy people,
Who before God and before thee
In prayer humbly stand.
“In life he was glorious, and after death even more glorious, mighty he was on earth, and from heaven even mightier.”
Reflection
On icons of Saint Nicholas there are usually depicted on one side the Lord Savior with the Gospel in His hands, and on the other the Most Holy Virgin Theotokos with the archiepiscopal omophorion in her hands. This has a twofold historical significance, namely in the first instance it signifies the calling of Nicholas to archiepiscopal service, and in the second his justification from punishment because of the conflict with Arius. Saint Methodius, Patriarch of Constantinople, writes: *One night Saint Nicholas saw our Savior in glory standing near him and extending to him the Gospel, adorned with gold and pearls, and on the other side he saw the Theotokos, who placed upon his shoulders the archiepiscopal omophorion. A little after this vision, John, Archbishop of Myra, reposed, and Nicholas was appointed Archbishop of that city. * This is the first instance. The second instance occurred at the time of the First Council in Nicaea. Unable by reasoning to stop the madness of Arius in his blasphemy of the Son of God and His Most Pure Mother, Saint Nicholas struck him with his hand upon the face. The Holy Fathers at the Council, indignant because of such conduct, removed Nicholas from the Council and took away from him all the signs of his archiepiscopal rank. That same night several of the Holy Fathers saw the identical vision, namely: around Saint Nicholas standing on one side the Lord Savior with the Gospel and on the other the Most Holy Theotokos with the omophorion, extending to the saint the signs of archpriesthood that had been taken from him. Seeing this, the Fathers were amazed, and quickly restored to Nicholas what had been taken from him, and began to honor him as a great favorite of God and to interpret his conduct toward Arius not as a deed of unreasoning anger, but as an expression of great zeal for God's truth.
Contemplation
Contemplate the sinful fall of Adam and Eve, namely:
1. How God cursed the serpent;
2. How He imposed upon Eve the pain of childbirth and upon Adam the toil of labor;
3. How He cursed the earth in man's works;
4. How He cursed not the earth as earth but in thy works, that is, in man's works.
Homily
on the absence of sin in God's works
And God saw that it was good (Gen. 1)
All is pure and sinless, brethren, which was created and as it was created by the most pure and sinless God. Every creature of God is pure and sinless as long as it is turned toward God, as long as it is not separated from God and as long as it has not become hostile to God. Every creature by itself praises and glorifies God as long as it is pure and sinless. Therefore the Psalmist also says: *Let every thing that hath breath praise the Lord. Alleluia! * (Ps. 150:6). Every rational creature of God feels as its natural and chief purpose to praise the Lord. But since it is so, brethren, people ask: but since it is so, whence comes evil in the world? From sin, only from sin. Sin transformed the bright angel into the devil. The devil voluntarily made himself a vessel of sin, and then hastened to make other creatures of God such vessels as well. By free self-determination other angels also consented to sin along with the devil, and after them the first people, Eve and Adam. Hence arose the mixture of good and evil in the world. But that which is from God in creatures is even today good as in the first days of creation. The poison came from sin, for sin is indeed poison, the most bitter poison that exists. Sin caused the curse, brought the darkening of minds, aroused the hostility of creatures toward their Creator, distanced man from God and man from man, and man from nature, and nature from man. O my brethren, from God is all good, and from sin all evil. There exists no evil connected with God, and there exists no evil unconnected with sin. Many philosophers have examined the essence of evil, and by the coarseness of their minds have asserted that evil is in matter, that matter is evil. However, only we Christians know that the essence of evil is sin, and that evil has no other essence except sin. Hence it is clear that if we wish to preserve ourselves from evil, we must guard ourselves from sin.
O sinless God, help us to preserve ourselves from sin and sinful corruption. To Thee be glory and praise forever. Amen.
“Every creature of God is pure and sinless as long as it is turned toward God.”