Daily Bread
Wednesday, June 25, 2025
“... I pray... that you may discern your affairs in a manner pleasing to God and may so act and endeavor that you may find Christ, as He even now cooperates with you, and in time to come will bestow on you abundantly the enjoyment of the illumination that comes from Him. Do not follow the wolf instead of the shepherd (cf. Mt. 7:15), nor enter into a flock that is diseased (cf. Ezek. 34:4). Do not be alone by yourself.”
St. Symeon the New Theologian
Romans 8:2-13
Brethren, the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set me free from the law of sin and death. For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do: sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the just requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, indeed it cannot; and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
But you are not in the flesh, you are in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Any one who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, although your bodies are dead because of sin, your spirits are alive because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also through his Spirit which dwells in you.
So then, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh-for if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body you will live.
Matthew 10:16-22
The Lord said, “Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. Beware of men; for they will deliver you up to councils, and flog you in their synagogues, and you will be dragged before governors and kings for my sake, to bear testimony before them and the Gentiles. When they deliver you up, do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say; for what you are to say will be given to you in that hour; for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. Brother will deliver up brother to death, and the father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death.”
Virgin Martyr Febronia of Nisibis
The Virgin Martyr Febronia suffered during the reign of Diocletian (284-305). She was raised at a monastery in the city of Sivapolis (Assyria). The head of the women’s monastery was the abbess Bryaίnē, the aunt of Saint Febronia. Being concerned about her niece’s salvation, she assigned her a stricter form of life than the other nuns. According to their monastic rule, on Fridays the sisters put aside their other duties and spent the whole day in prayer and the reading of Holy Scripture. The abbess usually assigned the reading to Saint Febronia.
News of her pious life spread throughout the city. The illustrious young widow Hieria, a pagan, began to visit her, and under the influence of her guidance and prayer she accepted holy Baptism, bringing her parents and kinsfolk to the Christian Faith.
Diocletian sent a detachment of soldiers to Assyria under the command of Lysimachus, Selinus and Primus for the destruction of Christians. Selenos, the uncle of Lysimachus, was noted for his fierce attitude against Christians, but Lysimachus was of a different frame of mind from him, since his mother had sought to inspire love for the Christian faith in her son, and she had died a Christian. Lysimachus had discussed with his kinsman Primus how it would be possible to deliver Christians from the hands of the torturer. When the detachment of soldiers approached the convent, its inhabitants hid. There remained only the abbess Bryaίnē, her helper Thomais and Saint Febronia, who was seriously ill at the time.
It grieved the abbess terribly that her niece might fall into the hands of the torturers, who might defile her. She prayed fervently that the Lord would preserve her and strengthen her in the confession of Christ the Savior. Selinus gave orders to bring him all the nuns of the convent. Primus with the detachment of soldiers found no one, except the two old women and Saint Febronia. He regretted that they had not hidden, and he suggested to the nuns that they flee. But the nuns decided not to leave the place of their labors and they entrusted themselves to the will of the Lord.
Primus told Lysimachus about the particular beauty of Saint Febronia and advised him to take her for himself. Lysimachus said that he would not seduce a virgin dedicated to God, and he asked Primus to hide the other nuns somewhere so that they would not fall into the hands of Selinus. One of the soldiers overheard the conversation and told Selinus. They led Saint Febronia off to the military commander with her hands bound and a chain around her neck. Selinus urged her to deny Christ, promising her honors, rewards, and marriage with Lysimachus. The holy virgin firmly and fearlessly answered that she had an Immortal Bridegroom, and she would not exchange Him for any mortal man. Selinus subjected her to fierce torture. The saint prayed, “My Savior, do not abandon me in this terrible hour!”
They beat the martyr for a long time, and blood flowed from her wounds. In order to intensify the suffering of Saint Febronia, they tied her to a tree and set a fire under it. The tortures were so inhuman, that the people began to demand an end to the torture, since there was no confession of guilt by the girl. Selinus continued to mock and jeer at the martyr, but Saint Febronia became silent. Because of weakness she was unable to utter a word. In a rage Selinus gave orders to tear out her tongue, smash her teeth, and finally, to cut off both hands and feet. The people were unable to bear such a horrid spectacle and they left the scene of the torture, cursing Diocletian and his gods.
Among the crowd was the nun Thomais, who afterwards recorded Saint Febronia’s martyrdom in detail, and also her student Hieria. She came forth out of the crowd and in the hearing of all reproached Selinus for his boundless cruelty. He gave orders to arrest her, but learning that Hieria was of illustrious standing whom he could not readily subject to torture, he said, “By your speech you have brought on Febronia even greater torment.” Finally, they beheaded the holy Martyr Febronia.
Departing the place of execution, Lysimachus wept and withdrew to his quarters. Selinus made ready to eat, but he was not able to take food, and went off to the quiet of his own chambers. Suddenly, he became like one deranged. Looking up to the heavens, he raved and bellowed like a bull, then fell down and struck his head on a marble column and died. When Lysimachus learned of this, he said, “ Great is the God of the Christians, Who has avenged Febronia’s blood, so unrighteously shed!” He prepared a coffin, placed the martyr’s body in it, and took it to the convent.
Abbess Bryaίnē fell senseless, seeing the mutilated remains of Saint Febronia. Later, she recovered her senses and gave orders to open the convent gates so that all would be able to come and venerate the holy martyr and glorify God Who had given her such endurance in suffering for Christ. Lysimachus and Primus renounced their idol worship and accepted both Baptism and monasticism. Hieria gave her wealth to the convent and petitioned Abbess Bryaίnē to accept her at the convent in place of Saint Febronia.
Every year, on the day of the martyric death of Saint Febronia, a solemn feast was celebrated at the convent. During the time of the all-night Vigil the nuns always saw Saint Febronia, at her usual place in church. From the relics of Saint Febronia occurred numerous miracles and healings. The Life of Saint Febronia was recorded by the nun Thomais, an eyewitness to her deeds.
In the year 363 the relics of Saint Febronia were transferred to Constantinople.
Soon after the death of Saint Febronia, Saint James the Bishop of Nisibis (January 13) built a church and transferred into it a portion of the of the holy martyr’s relics.
Summer Vacation: Renewing the Powers of the Soul
George Stavros, PhD
"I'm bored… there's nothing to do… are we there yet… play with me." These are the calls of our children during summer vacation. Rather than hearing these statements as pesky intruders, it is possible to think of them as voices crying out from the wilderness of the young soul, seeking activity, connection, and stimulation within the safe environment of the family vacation.
The Orthodox Christian spiritual tradition thinks of the human being as having a powerful ability, the ability to see God and His creative love in all things. This ability is located within the nous. The nous is that part of each of us which looks out into the world, at other people, and into our own hearts and tries to make sense of what it sees. The healthy nous always sees God's love at work. The broken or injured nous tends to be more self-serving, competitive, fearful, vindictive, unrealistic, and deceptive.
Most of all, the nous is seeking ways in which to engage others, and all of God's creation, with the powers of the soul. While our spiritual tradition speaks of many powers of the soul, the ones most commonly referred to are thymos, epithymia, and dianoia. Each of these powers requires loving care, discipline, and exercise in order for the nous to do its work of finding God's love.
Thymos
Thymos is the fiery power of healthy aggression, and it is the basis for virtues such as courage, protectiveness, honor, moral strength, and righteousness. It is what gets tapped into when children defend peers against unfair attacks. It is the source of conviction in children saying "no" to temptation or pressure from schoolmates. Injured thymos is the source of bitter rivalry, deceptive game-playing tactics, and hopeless resignation.
Epithymia
Epithymia is the magnetic desire for beauty and connection, and it is the basis for the human ability to reach out in compassion and affection, to appreciate deeply the beauty of art and the natural majesty of the created world. Injured epithymia is the source of exploitative relationships, ones designed to gratify only one person. Injured epithymia triggers greed, relentless hunger, and distorted desire for control of beautiful objects.
Dianoia
Dianoia is the human ability to reason, to make sense of things in an intellectual way, to find meaning in the events and situations of everyday life. Healthy dianoia is realistic, with an ever-present hopefulness. It finds meanings which are intellectually sound while still remaining open to mystery. Unhealthy dianoia either insists on absolute and rigid explanations for events, or gives up any hope that there is life-giving meaning to be found.
The Powers of the Soul on Vacation
The powers of the soul, then, need both discipline and freedom in order to blossom. They require both healthy input (prayer, images, relationships, teaching) and opportunities for vigorous and safe expression. Summer vacation is an ideal time to try out some ways to build up the powers of the family's soul. The key here is to participate in activities mindfully and skillfully, allowing the activities to serve as expressions of thymos, epithymia, and dianoia.
Prayerful Structure
The best structure for developing healthy powers of the soul is the structure of everyday life. Make use of the events and transitions during vacation to build in a prayerful mindfulness, a constant gratitude, for God's loving presence with the family. Adopt a prayerful orientation to each day of the vacation. Without letting this become burdensome, some ways to do this include:
Start each leg of the journey with a prayer and the sign of the Cross
Say a prayer before each meal
Recite the Jesus Prayer out loud, together, 5-10 times, once each day
Spend 3-5 minutes per day while driving reciting the Jesus Prayer silently
End each day with a prayer review of the day, emphasizing gratitude
Bring an icon to keep by each family member's bed
Practice
One of the keys to spiritual life is nepsis, or watchfulness. Basically, this means we have to stay awake and aware of what we are doing. This takes practice. The good news, however, is that you are supposed to still have fun, maybe even more because you notice that you are having fun. You can practice building up and renewing the powers of the soul with the activities of the vacation. This can include:
Building sandcastles
Hiking and swimming
Miniature golf
Watching sunrises and sunsets
Stopping at scenic views
Showing each other physical affection
Eating great, fresh food
Going to movies
Reading books
Talking to each other
Playing road games
Conclusion
In the end, this is meant to be simple, and yet, it is never easy. It can be very difficult to develop a sense of awakeness, especially on vacation. At the same time, the powers of our souls cry out for this. By tapping into the simple structures and rhythm of a prayerful vacation, the whole family can experience their time together with abundance and pleasure.
This week’s calendar reminders:
Monday 6/23: Matins 8:30 a.m.
Tuesday 6/24: no services or events
Wednesday 6/25: no services or events
Thursday 6/26: Matins 8:30 a.m.; Men’s Group 7 p.m.
Friday 6/27: Matins 8:30 a.m.
Saturday 6/28: Catechumen Class 4:30 p.m.; Memorial Service 5:30 p.m.; Great Vespers 6 p.m.
Sunday 6/29: Hours & Divine Liturgy 9:15 a.m.; Feast of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul
CLICK BELOW to donate online:
Christ the Savior Orthodox Church is located in Southbury, Connecticut, and is part of the New England Diocese of the Orthodox Church of America.
Mailing address: Christ the Savior Church, 1070 Roxbury Road, Southbury, CT 06488
PLEASE DONATE to help our parish do the work of the Lord, thrive and grow, and extend the Kingdom of God. May the Lord bless your generosity!
Fr. Moses Locke can be reached at frmoseslocke@gmail.com