'Daily Bread'
Monday, October 21, 2024
“Do not think that you have a right to complain when your prayers are not answered. God fulfills your desires in a manner that you do not know.”
— St. Nektarios of Aegina
Daily Scripture Readings
Ephesians 4:25-32 (Epistle)
25 Therefore, putting away lying, “Let each one of you speak truth with his neighbor,” for we are members of one another.
26 Be angry, and do not sin: do not let the sun go down on your wrath,
27 nor give place to the devil.
28 Let him who stole steal no longer, but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something to give him who has need.
29 Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers.
30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
31 Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice.
32 And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.
Luke 10:22-24 (Gospel)
22 All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.”
23 Then He turned to His disciples and said privately, “Blessed are the eyes which see the things you see;
24 for I tell you that many prophets and kings have desired to see what you see, and have not seen it, and to hear what you hear, and have not heard it.”
Venerable Hilarion the Great
Saint Hilarion the Great was born to pagan parents in the year 291 in the Palestinian village of Thabatha near Gaza. As a young man, he was sent to Alexandria for his education. There he became acquainted with Christianity and was baptized. After hearing an account of the angelic life of Saint Anthony the Great (January 17), Hilarion went to meet him, desiring to study with him and learn what is pleasing to God. Hilarion soon returned to his native land to find that his parents had died. After distributing his family’s inheritance to the poor, Saint Hilarion went forth into the desert surrounding the city of Maium.
In the desert the Saint endured violent struggles with impure thoughts, vexations of the mind, and the burning passions of the flesh, but he defeated them through heavy labor, fasting and fervent prayer. The devil sought to frighten him with phantoms and apparitions. While he was praying Saint Hilarion would sometimes hear children crying, women wailing, and the roaring of lions and other wild beasts. He understood that the demons were causing these terrors in order to drive him out of the wilderness. He overcame his fear by resorting to fervent prayer. Once, some thieves fell upon Saint Hilarion, and he persuaded them to forsake their lawless life by the power of his words.
Soon all of Palestine heard about Saint Hilarion and of the miracles he worked. The Lord granted the holy ascetic the power to cast out unclean spirits. With this gift of grace he loosed the bonds of many of those who were afflicted. The sick came for healing, and the Saint cured them without asking for any payment, saying that the grace of God is freely received, and must be freely given (Matthew 10:8).
Such was the grace that he received from God that he could tell by the smell of someone’s body or clothing which passion was afflicting his soul. They came to Saint Hilarion desiring to save their souls under his guidance. With his blessing, monasteries began to spring up throughout Palestine. Going from one monastery to another, he instituted a strict ascetic manner of life.
About seven years before his death (+ 371-372) Saint Hilarion moved back to Cyprus, where the ascetic lived in a solitary place until the Lord summoned him to Himself.
Saint Hilarion is sometimes depicted holding a scroll which reads: "The tools of a monk are steadfastness, humility, and love according to God." In iconography, is depicted as an old man with a brown, rush-like beard divided into three points.
What Is the Lord Jesus All About?
What was the Lord Jesus all about? What were His aims? What were the essential traits of His ministry? How is His life and work connected to our own lives today? A verse from today’s Gospel reading (Mat. 9:27-35) gives us a summary of Jesus’ ministry on earth.
“Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every disease and every infirmity.” (Mat. 9:35) This verse sums up the three basic aspects of Jesus’ saving work prior to His death and resurrection. The three aspects are teaching (didaskon), preaching (kerysson) and healing (therapeuon).
Jesus was first of all a keryx, a herald, like a town crier when there were no newspapers or radios. The aim of a town crier was to announce a public message of immediate interest or of great urgency. Jesus went about in towns and villages announcing the news of the arrival of God’s kingdom, an event of the utmost urgency and significance. The way St. Mark the Evangelist says it: “Jesus came into Galilee, preaching (kerysson) the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” (Mark 1:14-15).
Jesus’ message is called the gospel of God (euangelion tou Theou). It is a message that derives from God and carries God’s authority. Elsewhere in the New Testament this is also called the gospel of Christ, referring to all of Jesus’ life and work, including His death and resurrection. The gospel is not just any of many messages. It is the core message of Holy Scripture. Gospel (euangelion) means good news, because it reveals the presence and power of God’s kingdom which is the source of all blessings for our salvation. And the Church continues to announce the same message today.
That God is King and that His kingdom rules over all creation is a teaching of the Old Testament too. The prophets to St. John the Baptist exhorted people to turn to God as Lord and King, to trust Him fully, and to worship Him as the only true God. God in His royal authority, presence and power is the source of all life, truth, love, mercy, forgiveness, healing, joy, blessedness. What is new in Christ’s preaching is that God’s kingdom was now powerfully arriving and active in the person, the words and the actions of Jesus. Indeed, because of the mystery of the Incarnation, God took on human flesh, and was fully present in the Lord Jesus, who is Lord and King Himself, and who bestows grace and new life to all.
This week’s calendar reminders:
Monday 10/21: Matins 8:30 a.m.
Tuesday 10/22: no services or events
Wednesday 10/23: no services or events
Thursday 10/24: Matins 8:30 a.m.;
Friday 10/25: Matins 8:30 a.m.
Saturday 10/26: Great Vespers 6 pm
Sunday 10/27: Divine Liturgy 9: 15 a.m.
