4 Baunah 1743
Readings for Friday of sixth of of the Holy Fifty Days
Vespers Psalm & Gospel
From the Psalms of our father David the prophet and the king, may his blessings be with us all. Amen.
Psalms 99 : 1 - 2
| 1 | The LORD reigns; Let the peoples tremble! He dwells between the cherubim; Let the earth be moved! |
| 2 | The LORD is great in Zion, And He is high above all the peoples. |
Blessed is he who comes in the Name of the Lord. Our Lord, God and Savior Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, unto Him be the glory forever, Amen.
Stand in the fear of God and listen to the Holy Gospel. A reading from the Holy Gospel according to our teacher Saint Mark the Evangelist. May His Blessings be with us all. Amen.
Mark 8 : 34 - 9 : 1
| 34 | When He had called the people to Himself, with His disciples also, He said to them, "Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. |
| 35 | For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel's will save it. |
| 36 | For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? |
| 37 | Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? |
| 38 | For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels." |
| 1 | And He said to them, "Assuredly, I say to you that there are some standing here who will not taste death till they see the kingdom of God present with power." |
Glory be to God forever.
Matins Psalm & Gospel
From the Psalms of our father David the prophet and the king, may his blessings be with us all. Amen.
Psalms 110 : 1 - 2
| 1 | The LORD said to my Lord, "Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool." |
| 2 | The LORD shall send the rod of Your strength out of Zion. Rule in the midst of Your enemies! |
Blessed is he who comes in the Name of the Lord. Our Lord, God and Savior Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, unto Him be the glory forever, Amen.
Stand in the fear of God and listen to the Holy Gospel. A reading from the Holy Gospel according to our teacher Saint Mark the Evangelist. May His Blessings be with us all. Amen.
Mark 9 : 2 - 7
| 2 | Now after six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John, and led them up on a high mountain apart by themselves; and He was transfigured before them. |
| 3 | His clothes became shining, exceedingly white, like snow, such as no launderer on earth can whiten them. |
| 4 | And Elijah appeared to them with Moses, and they were talking with Jesus. |
| 5 | Then Peter answered and said to Jesus, "Rabbi, it is good for us to be here; and let us make three tabernacles: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah"-- |
| 6 | because he did not know what to say, for they were greatly afraid. |
| 7 | And a cloud came and overshadowed them; and a voice came out of the cloud, saying, "This is My beloved Son. Hear Him!" |
Glory be to God forever.
Divine Liturgy
Pauline Epistle
Paul, the servant of our Lord Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, appointed to the Gospel of God. A reading from the Epistle of our teacher Paul to the Corinthians.
May his blessings be with us. Amen.
1 Corinthians 11 : 2 - 16
| 2 | Now I praise you, brethren, that you remember me in all things and keep the traditions just as I delivered them to you. |
| 3 | But I want you to know that the head of every man is Christ, the head of woman is man, and the head of Christ is God. |
| 4 | Every man praying or prophesying, having his head covered, dishonors his head. |
| 5 | But every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head, for that is one and the same as if her head were shaved. |
| 6 | For if a woman is not covered, let her also be shorn. But if it is shameful for a woman to be shorn or shaved, let her be covered. |
| 7 | For a man indeed ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God; but woman is the glory of man. |
| 8 | For man is not from woman, but woman from man. |
| 9 | Nor was man created for the woman, but woman for the man. |
| 10 | For this reason the woman ought to have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels. |
| 11 | Nevertheless, neither is man independent of woman, nor woman independent of man, in the Lord. |
| 12 | For as woman came from man, even so man also comes through woman; but all things are from God. |
| 13 | Judge among yourselves. Is it proper for a woman to pray to God with her head uncovered? |
| 14 | Does not even nature itself teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a dishonor to him? |
| 15 | But if a woman has long hair, it is a glory to her; for her hair is given to her for a covering. |
| 16 | But if anyone seems to be contentious, we have no such custom, nor do the churches of God. |
The grace of God the Father be with you all. Amen.
Catholic Epistle
A Reading from Epistle of St. John . May his blessings be upon us. Amen.
1 John 5 : 14 - 21
| 14 | Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. |
| 15 | And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him. |
| 16 | If anyone sees his brother sinning a sin which does not lead to death, he will ask, and He will give him life for those who commit sin not leading to death. There is sin leading to death. I do not say that he should pray about that. |
| 17 | All unrighteousness is sin, and there is sin not leading to death. |
| 18 | We know that whoever is born of God does not sin; but he who has been born of God keeps himself, and the wicked one does not touch him. |
| 19 | We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one. |
| 20 | And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us an understanding, that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life. |
| 21 | Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen. |
Do not love the world or the things in the world. The world passes away, and its desires; but he who does the will of God abides forever. Amen.
Acts of the Apostles
The Acts of our fathers the apostles, may their blessings be with us. Amen.
Acts 22 : 6 - 10
| 6 | "Now it happened, as I journeyed and came near Damascus at about noon, suddenly a great light from heaven shone around me. |
| 7 | And I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?' |
| 8 | So I answered, "Who are You, Lord?' And He said to me, "I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you are persecuting.' |
| 9 | "And those who were with me indeed saw the light and were afraid, but they did not hear the voice of Him who spoke to me. |
| 10 | So I said, "What shall I do, Lord?' And the Lord said to me, "Arise and go into Damascus, and there you will be told all things which are appointed for you to do.' |
The word of the Lord shall grow, multiply, be mighty, and be confirmed, in the holy Church of God. Amen.
Divine Liturgy Psalm & Gospel
From the Psalms of our father David the prophet and the king, may his blessings be with us all. Amen.
Psalms 69 : 32,33,30
| 32 | The humble shall see this and be glad; And you who seek God, your hearts shall live. |
| 33 | For the LORD hears the poor, And does not despise His prisoners. |
| 30 | I will praise the name of God with a song, And will magnify Him with thanksgiving. |
Blessed is he who comes in the Name of the Lord. Our Lord, God and Savior Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, unto Him be the glory forever, Amen.
Stand in the fear of God and listen to the Holy Gospel. A reading from the Holy Gospel according to our teacher Saint John the Evangelist. May His Blessings be with us all. Amen.
John 14 : 26 - 31
| 26 | But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you. |
| 27 | Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. |
| 28 | You have heard Me say to you, "I am going away and coming back to you.' If you loved Me, you would rejoice because I said, "I am going to the Father,' for My Father is greater than I. |
| 29 | "And now I have told you before it comes, that when it does come to pass, you may believe. |
| 30 | I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming, and he has nothing in Me. |
| 31 | But that the world may know that I love the Father, and as the Father gave Me commandment, so I do. Arise, let us go from here. |
Glory be to God forever.
Not to be read in the Church during this time of the year.
Synaxarium
Day 4 of the Blessed Coptic Month of Baunah.
May God make it always received, year after year, with reassurance and tranquility, while our sins are forgiven by the tender mercies of our God my fathers and brothers. Amen.
The Fourth Day of the Blessed Month of Baunah
Martyrdom of St.Shenousi (Sanusi)
On this day, St. Sanusi (Shenousi), who was from Balkim, was martyred. When he was a young man, he tended the sheep. He used to give his food to the young shepherds, and spend his day fasting. He visited the sick and those who were in prison. One night, the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a vision and told him, "Rise up, and go before the governor and confess your God to receive the crown of martyrdom." When he woke up from his sleep, he told that to his mother. She was sorry and wept for she was unable to prevent him. He had heard about a righteous holy woman, in the city of Shoubra, whose name was Mariam. She received the poor and the sojourners and did many good deeds. He went to her, and both agreed on receiving the crown of martyrdom. They went to Arsanos, the governor, who was residing in a ship anchored on the bank of the river Nile. They cried out before him saying, "We are Christians." He ordered that they be tortured. While they were torturing them, St. Mariam delivered up her soul in the hand of the Lord. The Lord Christ comforted and strengthened St. Sanusi. When the Governor failed to change his conviction, he sent him with many others to the Governor of Ansena (Antinoe), who tortured him severely. Then, he brought a sorcerer from Akhmeem, who gave the Saint a drink mixed with poison. The Saint having made over it the sign of the Cross, drank it, and no harm came to him. When the governor was tired of torturing him, he ordered him put to death. They cut off his head with the sword. The sorcerer believed when he saw that, so they cut off his head also. Both received the crown of martyrdom.
May their prayers be with us. Amen.
Martyrdom of Saint Anba Amoun and the Righteous Sophia
On this day also, Saint Anba Amoun and St. Sophia were martyred.
May their prayers be with us. Amen.
Martyrdom of John of Herakleia
. This day also, marks the martyrdom of St. John of Herakleia.
May his prayer be with us. Amen.
Departure of Saint Aba-Hour
Today also, marks the departure of the Saint Aba-Hour in the mount of El-Amoud in the East.
May his prayer be with us. Amen.
Departure of Pope Yoannis the Eighth, the 80th Patriarch
On this day also, of the year 1036 A.M. (May 29th, 1320 A.D.) Pope Yoannis the Eighth (80th Patriarch), departed. He was from Meniat Bani-Khosaim, and was known as El Mo'ataman Ebn El-Kedees, and his name was Yohanna Ben-Ebsal. He became a monk in the monastery of El-Shahran, and was ordained Patriarch on the nineteenth of Amshir, 1016 A.M. (February 14th, 1300 A.D.). During his days severe tribulations befell the Christians. They forced them to tinge their turbans with the color blue. Churches were closed in old Cairo, Cairo, and then in different parts of the country except the monasteries in Alexandria, and some churches in other cities. An envoy from the king of Spain came to intercede on behalf of the Christians. Two churches were opened, one of them was the Coptic church of the Virgin Lady in Haret Zeewailah and the other was the Malachite church of St.Nicholas in Elhamzawe. He was a contemporary of the Saint Anba Barsouma known as El-Erian Ebn-Eltaban, who departed during his days. The Patriarch prayed over him on the 5th of Nasie 1021 A.M. This Patriarch was the last to reside in the church of Abu-Saifain in Cairo. He was the first to relocate the patriarchal chair to the church of the Virgin Lady in Haret Zeewailah. He was residing there in the year 1303 A.D. when a severe earthquake took place that destroyed a large part of Syria and Egypt. Ebn-kabre indicated that this Patriarch had made some changes in the Liturgy. He departed after remaining on the chair for twenty years, three months, and fifteen days and was buried in the monastery of El-Shahran.
May his prayers be with us and Glory be to God forever. Amen.