7 Bashans 1741
Readings for Thursday of fourth 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 127 : 2 - 3
| 2 | It is vain for you to rise up early, To sit up late, To eat the bread of sorrows; For so He gives His beloved sleep. |
| 3 | Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD, The fruit of the womb is a reward. |
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 7 : 1 - 4
| 1 | Then the Pharisees and some of the scribes came together to Him, having come from Jerusalem. |
| 2 | Now when they saw some of His disciples eat bread with defiled, that is, with unwashed hands, they found fault. |
| 3 | For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash their hands in a special way, holding the tradition of the elders. |
| 4 | When they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash. And there are many other things which they have received and hold, like the washing of cups, pitchers, copper vessels, and couches. |
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 97 : 7 - 8
| 7 | Let all be put to shame who serve carved images, Who boast of idols. Worship Him, all you gods. |
| 8 | Zion hears and is glad, And the daughters of Judah rejoice Because of Your judgments, O LORD. |
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 4 : 21 - 25
| 21 | Also He said to them, "Is a lamp brought to be put under a basket or under a bed? Is it not to be set on a lampstand? |
| 22 | For there is nothing hidden which will not be revealed, nor has anything been kept secret but that it should come to light. |
| 23 | If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear." |
| 24 | Then He said to them, "Take heed what you hear. With the same measure you use, it will be measured to you; and to you who hear, more will be given. |
| 25 | For whoever has, to him more will be given; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from 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 Romans.
May his blessings be with us. Amen.
Romans 3 : 21 - 26
| 21 | But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, |
| 22 | even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference; |
| 23 | for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, |
| 24 | being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, |
| 25 | whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed, |
| 26 | to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. |
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 3 : 18 - 24
| 18 | My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth. |
| 19 | And by this we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before Him. |
| 20 | For if our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and knows all things. |
| 21 | Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence toward God. |
| 22 | And whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do those things that are pleasing in His sight. |
| 23 | And this is His commandment: that we should believe on the name of His Son Jesus Christ and love one another, as He gave us commandment. |
| 24 | Now he who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. And by this we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us. |
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 5 : 30 - 33
| 30 | The God of our fathers raised up Jesus whom you murdered by hanging on a tree. |
| 31 | Him God has exalted to His right hand to be Prince and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. |
| 32 | And we are His witnesses to these things, and so also is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey Him." |
| 33 | When they heard this, they were furious and plotted to kill them. |
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 67 : 1,6,7
| 1 | God be merciful to us and bless us, And cause His face to shine upon us,Selah |
| 6 | Then the earth shall yield her increase; God, our own God, shall bless us. |
| 7 | God shall bless us, And all the ends of the earth shall fear Him. |
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 8 : 54 - 59
| 54 | Jesus answered, "If I honor Myself, My honor is nothing. It is My Father who honors Me, of whom you say that He is your God. |
| 55 | Yet you have not known Him, but I know Him. And if I say, "I do not know Him,' I shall be a liar like you; but I do know Him and keep His word. |
| 56 | Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad." |
| 57 | Then the Jews said to Him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?" |
| 58 | Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM." |
| 59 | Then they took up stones to throw at Him; but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by. |
Glory be to God forever.
Not to be read in the Church during this time of the year.
Synaxarium
Day 7 of the Blessed Coptic Month of Bashans.
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 Seventh Day of the Blessed Month of Bashans
Departure of St.Athanasius the Apostolic, the 20th Pope of Alexandria
On this day of the year 89 A.M. (373 A.D.)
the great Pope Anba Athanasius the apostolic, the 20th. Pope of Alexandria,
departed. He was born to pagan parents about the year 295 - 298 A.D. It
happened that when he was in school, he saw some Christian children acting
the Christian rituals some as priests, some as deacons and one of them
as a bishop. He asked their permission to participate with them, but they
refused saying: "You are pagan, and you are not allowed to mix with us."
He answered them: "I am from now on a Christian." They rejoiced with him,
they made him a patriarch over them in the play, they enthroned him on
a high place, and they offered him honor and respect. At that time pope
Alexandros passed by, when he saw them, he said to those who were with
him about Athanasius: "This child would be in a great position one day."
When Athanasius' father died, his mother brought him to Pope Alexandros,
who taught them the principles of the Christian faith and baptized them.
They gave their money to the poor, and stayed with the Pope, who taught
Athanasius the church subjects, and ordained him deacon and made him a
personal secretary. The gifts of the Holy spirit increased in him. He was
chosen Patriarch on the 8th. of Bashans of the year 44 A.M. (May 5th.,
328 A.D.) after the departure of Pope Alexanderos.
Pope Alexanderos had recommended Athanasius, his deacon, for the Papacy, who lived with St.Antonios the father of the monks and followed his example in asceticism. He manifested his brilliancy in exposing "Arius" in the universal council, when Arius said about Christ that he was "similar" in essence with the Father, St.Athanasius said: "One in essence with the Father." In this fashion he manifested his excellence. St. Athanasius hid himself in the mountains, after the departure of Pope Alexanderos for he believed of his unworthiness to this serious and important position. The people sought him until they found him, and brought him to the bishops, and was ordained Pope in 328 A.D. The historian Socrates testified about him saying: "Athanasius fluency in speech and his outspokenness in the council of Nicea brought over him all the hardships that he encountered in his life." After he became a Pope, he ordained for Ethiopia its first Metropolitan whose name was Anba "Salama". The church of Ethiopia have followed the church of Alexandria since that time. The spiritual and religious state in Ethiopia had established and settled since that time.
St. Athanasius was exiled away from his Chair five times:
1. The First Exile: Arius, after he had been excommunicated, tried to
return to Alexandria, by sending a misleading and flattering letter to
Emperor Constantine, which touched him. The Emperor asked Pope Athanasius
to take him back. Athanasius refused to accept him because that would be
a contradiction to the decision of the Universal Council.
The Arians accused Pope Athanasius with these charges:
1. That he supported
Pope Philominus who rebelled against the government.
2. That he broke
the communion cup of the priest Eskira, and destroyed his altar.
3. That he killed
bishop Arsanius, and used his arms in sorcery.
4. That he also raped
a nun.
The Pope cleared himself from the first charge. A council was assembled in Tyre, most of the attendants were Arians, were against Athanasius to look into these charges. In the second charge, the Lord moved the priest Eskira's heart, who had conspired with them to testify falsely against him, and he cleared the Pope from that charge. With regard of the third charge, Arsanius the bishop, who had agreed with them to accuse the Pope falsely for his murder, came to the council. Pope Athanasius kept him in an adjacent room. The Arians brought two arms of a dead person and claimed that they were the arms of Arsanius. Then Arsanius was brought in, and showed his arms to the council and declared his regrets. The Arians said that Athanasius was a sorcerer and he was able to make arms for him. They became violent against Arsanius who left the council and went to the Emperor. Then they looked in the matter of the rape, they brought a harlot who claimed that Athanasius raped her. One of the entourage of Pope Athanasius, a priest called Timothy said to her: "How dare you to say that I came to your house, and overpowered your will?" She thought that the priest was Athanasius for she did not know him, and she said: "You are". At once the false claim was exposed. Athanasius could not meet the Emperor because of the interferences of the Arians, who accused him before the Emperor that he prevented the export of the wheat from Alexandria to the Emperor. The Emperor gave his order to exile Athanasius to Trefe (Treves) in France in February 5th., 335 A.D. where its bishop had met him with great honor.
Arius died a horrible death as Socrates said: "God made Arius to die in a public washroom, where his bowels poured out of his body, and the people regarded his death as a punishment from the Divine Justice." When the Emperor heard about the death of Arius, he recognized the innocence of Athanasius, and recommended while he was on his death bed, in the year 337 A.D. that Athanasius be returned to Alexandria. After the departure of Constantine, the Empire was divided, Constantine II over France, Egypt became under the rule of Constantius, and Constance over Italy. With the mediation of Constantine, the Pope returned in the year 338 A.D. The people of Alexandria received him with great joy.
2. The Second Exile:The Arians did not stop at that, but assembled a council, where they excommunicated Athanasius. They appointed instead someone called Gregory, and they sent their decision to Julius, Bishop of Rome. Pope Athanasius assembled a council in Alexandria in 340 A.D. where he protested against the Arians, then he wrote a letter to all the churches to declare his innocence. However, the Arians influenced Philogorius to help to install their appointed Patriarch Gregory to take over the churches of Alexandria, and they also influenced Emperor Constantius. The people of Alexandria were horrified, and decided to resist, but the Arians attacked the churches in Alexandria on Good Friday, raped and slained many worshipers. Pope Athanasius sought the help of all the churches in the world, left his Chair, and traveled to Rome. A council was assembled in Sardica, where they declared:
a. The innocence of Pope Athanasius
b. Confirmed the cannons and the Creed of faith of the Council of Nicea.
c. They excommunicated the Arian bishops.
d. Deposed Gregory from his office.
They delegated two bishops to meet Emperor Constans, the ruler of Italy, who agreed on what the council had decided, and threatened his brother Emperor Constantius with war if he did not return Athanasius to Alexandria. At the same time, some Egyptian radicals rose up and killed Gregory in 349 A.D. Athanasius returned for the second time to his Chair, and the people received him with joy. Gregory the Theologian, the writer of the liturgy, described this reception saying: "The people came as the flood of the Nile," and he also pointed out to the palm branches, the carpets, and the many clapping hands.
3. The Third Exile:The Arians did not like the return of Athanasius to Alexandria, and waited unwillingly until the death of Emperor Constans. The Arians accused Athanasius before Constantius that he collaborated with Magneutius who was the enemy of the Emperor. Constantius obtained a condemnation of Athanasius and his exile from a council assembled at Arles and another one at Milan. The soldiers went to the church of St. Mary which was built by Pope Theonas (The 16th. Patriarch). Athanasius was praying the Vespers service. The soldiers rushed inside the church to arrest him, but God blinded them from recognizing him from the rest of the people and the lamps were extinguished. Athanasius escaped and went to the desert, and remained for sometime with the monks. The Arians appointed George of Cappadocia, bishop on Alexandria, but the Orthodox refused to accept him and anathematized him. He took over all the churches and its properties. Nevertheless, the pagans whom he persecuted, killed him and burnt his body.
4. The Fourth Exile:After the death of Constantius, Julian his cousin became Emperor. He wanted to rally the people of Alexandria so he returned Athanasius. Athanasius assembled a council in 362 A.D., and provided conditions for the acceptance of the Arians that wish to return to the church. He also gave a special attention to the preaching among the pagans. This was not appreciated by Emperor Julian, who loved and supported the pagans. He ordered the arrest of Athanasius. Athanasius went out of Alexandria, and took a boat to Upper Egypt. The Governor followed him in another boat, and when he approached the boat of Athanasius, he asked about the boat of the Pope. They said to him that he was not too far away. The Governor went on his way in hurry but he did not find Athanasius, for he hid himself in another place. Those around the Pope were greatly saddened because of the much tribulations that befell him. Athanasius told them, that in times of persecution, he felt great inner peace and that God took care of him and embraced him with His grace more than any other time in his life. He also said: "The persecution of Emperor Julian is like a summer cloud that will go away." While they were in these conversation, the news came to them that Julian was killed in his war with the Persians, and that he was killed by St. Mercurius (Abu Sefain), and that he said just before his death: "You have overcome me, O You son of Mary."
5. The Fifth Exile:Jovian became Emperor after Julian had been killed, then Valens became Emperor and he was Arian. In 367 A.D. Valens ordered the exile of Athanasius again. Athanasius was forced to leave Alexandria and hid in the tomb of his father. Meanwhile, the Emperor killed 30 bishops who were pro-Athanasius. The Emperor saw the determination of the Copts, and decided to lift the persecution, and to return Athanasius to his Chair in 368 A.D. Although Athanasius reached the age of 72, he did not compromise in performing his duties. For his steadfastness and his firm stand for justice, the world described him by the saying: "Athanasius against the world." He wrote several books about the Arians, on the Incarnation, and other subjects. Abba Cosma (The 44th. Patriarch) praised these publications by saying: "I ask anyone who would find the books of Athanasius to write them on paper, and for those who could not find paper, to write them on their clothes."
Athanasius was the first Pope to wear the monastic tunic from the hand of St. Antonios. He made it the uniform for bishops and patriarchs. He was the one who ordained St. Antonios a priest, and then Archpriest. He departed in peace after he had been on the Apostolic Throne for forty five years.
May his prayers be with us, and glory be to God forever. Amen.
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