'Daily Bread'
Wednesday, July 17, 2024
“To yield and give way to our passions is the lowest slavery, even as to rule over them is the only liberty.”
+St. Justin Martyr
Daily Scripture Reading
Epistle: Romans 11:2-12
2 God has not cast away His people whom He foreknew. Or do you not know what the Scripture says of Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel, saying,
3 LORD, they have killed Your prophets and torn down Your altars, and I alone am left, and they seek my life?
4 But what does the divine response say to him? “I have reserved for Myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal.”
5 Even so then, at this present time there is a remnant according to the election of grace.
6 And if by grace, then it is no longer of works; otherwise grace is no longer grace. But if it is of works, it is no longer grace; otherwise work is no longer work.
7 What then? Israel has not obtained what it seeks; but the elect have obtained it, and the rest were blinded.
8 Just as it is written: “God has given them a spirit of stupor, eyes that they should not see and ears that they should not hear, to this very day.”
9 And David says: “Let their table become a snare and a trap, a stumbling block and a recompense to them.
10 Let their eyes be darkened, so that they do not see, and bow down their back always.”
11 I say then, have they stumbled that they should fall? Certainly not! But through their fall, to provoke them to jealousy, salvation has come to the Gentiles.
12 Now if their fall is riches for the world, and their failure riches for the Gentiles, how much more their fullness!
Gospel: Matthew 11:20-26
20 Then He began to rebuke the cities in which most of His mighty works had been done, because they did not repent:
21 “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.
22 But I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you.
23 And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades; for if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.
24 But I say to you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you.”
25 At that time Jesus answered and said, “I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes.
26 Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.
Great Martyr Marina (Margaret) of Antioch (4th c.)
How Saint Marina Became Known as Saint Margaret in the West
There was a divergence in the veneration of Saint Marina in Eastern and Western Christianity, which culminated in the adoption in the Western tradition of the new name of the Great Martyr from Antioch - Margaret. The adoption of this new name has a long history. Already in 494 Pope Gelasius I declared her life apocryphal. West European scholars claim that her ancient liturgical veneration did not exist, and that her first hagiographic mention dates back to the 9th century (Martyrology of Rabanus Maurus).
The actions of Pope Gelasius were not applied in the East. Instead her veneration grew in the East and all inscriptions of her icons bear the name "Marina". In the 8th century the Roman Empress Maria, wife of Emperor Leo III the Isaurian, had part of the relics of Saint Marina transferred to Constantinople, where they were kept in the Pantocrator Monastery till 1204, when the city was taken by the Crusaders. In 1213 John de Borea took a portion of the relics of Saint Marina from Constantinople, and on the reliquary it said "Relic of Saint Marina" - in the 17th century this relic was seen in Venice in the church dedicated to her name (in the 19th century this relic was moved to the Church of Saint Thomas in the same city). Another portion of her relics were brought to Italy from Antioch in 908, and they were laid in Montefiascone of Tuscany.
Evil Spirits and How They Attack Humans
By Fr. Valery Dukhanin / Source: Pravmir.com
We may have heard the opinion that the dark powers influence people only in relation to the evil eye or sorcery. Hardly anyone pays attention to the very tangible impact that demons have on us human beings outside of the magic realm. Therefore, we have to seek proper understanding of the nature of demons and the ways that they use to attack people.
Who are demons?
They are personal sentient and incorporeal beings who separated themselves from God and built their own special world that is hostile to all good. Deprived of the spiritual Heaven, they reside in the air (cf. Ephesians 2: 2) and turn their evil gaze primarily on the world of humans.
They possess some kind of power in this world because man – the crown of God’s creation – ceded his throne as the king of the world to the wily seducer. Therefore, it is clear that evil powers are capable of doing some harm. The Book of Tobit, which is part of the Holy Scripture, mentions a demon named Asmodeus, who killed seven husbands of Sarah daughter of Raguel, one by one (cf. Tobit 3: 8). The Book of Job contains a story about fire, which the devil ordered to fall from above and burn Job’s sheep and shepherds (cf. Job 1: 16). The dark powers also brought about a hurricane while all Job’s children had a dinner together, which ruined the house and all of them died (cf. Job 1: 18–19). In fact, there is one thing worth pointing out in this story: it was God who allowed all the disasters that befell Job and his family to happen in order to test the faith of that righteous man (cf. Job 1: 6–12).
This week’s calendar reminders:
Monday 7/15: Matins 8:30 a.m.
Tuesday 7/16: no services
Wednesday 7/17: no services
Thursday 7/18: Matins 8:30 a.m.
Friday 7/19: Matins 8:30 a.m.
Saturday 7/20: No Catechumen Class; Choir Rehearsal 5 p.m.; Great Vespers 6 p.m.
Sunday 7/21: Divine Liturgy 9: 15 a.m. (Blessing of the Vehicles)
