“Through the Holy Spirit comes our restoration to paradise, our ascension into the kingdom of heaven, our return to the adoption of sons, our liberty to call God our Father, our being made partakers of the grace of Christ, our being called children of light, our sharing in eternal glory, and, in a word, our being brought into a state of all “fulness of blessing,” both in this world and in the world to come, of all the good gifts that are in store for us, by promise hereof, through faith, beholding the reflection of their grace as though they were already present, we await the full enjoyment.”
+ St. Basil the Great, “On the Holy Spirit”
Daily Scripture Reading
Epistle: 1 Corinthians 1:18-24
18 For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
19 For it is written: “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.”
20 Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?
21 For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.
22 For Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom;
23 but we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness,
24 but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.
Gospel: Matthew 10:32-36; 11:1
32 Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven.
33 But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven.
34 Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword.
35 For I have come to ‘set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law’;
36 and ‘a man’s enemies will be those of his own household.’
1 Now it came to pass, when Jesus finished commanding His twelve disciples, that He departed from there to teach and to preach in their cities.
Procession of the Honorable Wood of the Lifegiving Cross of the Lord - August 1
First of the three “Feasts of the Savior” in August
The origin of this Feast is explained in the Greek Horologion of 1897: “Because of the illnesses which occur during the month of August, it was customary at Constantinople to carry the Precious Wood of the Cross in procession throughout the city for its sanctification, and to deliver it from sickness.”
On the eve (July 31), the Cross was removed from the imperial treasury and placed it upon the Holy Table of the Great Church of Hagia Sophia (which is dedicated to Christ, the Wisdom of God). From August 1 until the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos, there was a procession throughout the entire the city, and then the Cross was placed where all the people could venerate it.
In the Russian Church this Feast is combined with the remembrance of the Baptism of Rus on August 1, 988. In the “The order of services for the holy, catholic, and apostolic Great Church of the Dormition,” which was compiled in 1627 by order of Patriarch Philaret of Moscow and All Rus, there is a similar explanation of the Feast: "On the day of the Procession of the Precious Cross there is a Cross Procession with the Sanctification of Water, for the enlightenment of the people, in all the towns and places."
Knowledge of the day of the actual Baptism of Rus is preserved in the Chronicles of the XVI century: “The Baptism of the Great Prince Vladimir of Kiev and of all Rus took place on August 1.”
In the current practice of the Russian Church, the service of the Lesser Sanctification of Water on August 1 takes place either before or after Liturgy. Because of the Blessing of Water, this first Feast of the Savior in August is sometimes called “the Savior of the Water.” Along with the Blessing of Water, there may also be a Blessing of Honey (thus it is also called “the Savior of the Honey),” because on this day, the newly-gathered honey is blessed and tasted.
Sermon on the Eve of the Feast of the Procession of the Honorable Wood of the Life-Giving Cross of the Lord
by Metropolitan Trifon Turkestanov, 1907
Again, at the onset of fasting, preparation for communion, repentance, and ascetic feats, the Cross of Christ is erected before us; and it makes us think of ourselves, of our soul, of its Christian destiny.
Indeed, we usually go about our daily lives, our everyday pursuits, worries, anxieties, and spite; sometimes we rejoice, sometimes we are sad, sometimes we are irritated, sometimes we have fun and do not think at all about our Christian calling. Just imagine that some trouble has hit us, some grief has befallen us, especially the death of our loved one, our father or mother: doesn’t it seem obvious that our mood immediately changes? We become sad, depressed, and most importantly, we begin to believe more deeply; everything that interested us a minute ago now seems empty and insignificant in the face of death.
In the same way, beloved brethren, the Exaltation of the Lord’s Cross affects us: it also reminds us of the death of Christ the Savior, which He went through for our sins; it vividly reminds us of the Savior’s power to fight sin. The power of this struggle is the Cross! The cross is a symbol of self-crucifixion! Thus, we see that the cross has become a symbol of a Christian, not because Christ was crucified on it, but because when we look at the cross, we must remember that we will suffer in life and then die. In fact, all the Sacraments and rites remind us of this. What is the Sacrament of Baptism? Death for sin. The Sacrament of Repentance and Communion of the Holy Mysteries of Christ is our partaking of the painful life of Christ the Savior. The cross on the church dome and on your chest should remind a Christian of the struggle against sin.
There is a split in our souls, for sin lives in them; two persons live in us. One is kind: he loves the good; he is ready to accept the whole world; he is humble, tolerant, and loves his enemies. The other one loves the flesh; he’s vain, jealous, and voluptuous… Our whole life goes in the struggle between these two persons, that is, the struggle of good with the yoke of evil. Our struggle to conquer evil is the goal of the entire life of a Christian.
July 31, 1907
Translated by The Catalogue of Good Deeds
This week’s calendar reminders:
Monday 7/29: Matins 8:30 a.m.
Tuesday 7/30: no services
Wednesday 7/31: no services
Thursday 8/1: Matins 8:30 a.m.
Friday 8/2: Matins 8:30 a.m.
Saturday 8/3: Great Vespers 6 p.m.
Sunday 8/4: Divine Liturgy 9: 15 a.m.