30 Baramudah 1743
Readings for Martyrdom of St. Mark
Vespers Psalm & Gospel
From the Psalms of our father David the prophet and the king, may his blessings be with us all. Amen.
Psalms 119 : 10 - 11
| 10 | With my whole heart I have sought You; Oh, let me not wander from Your commandments! |
| 11 | Your word I have hidden in my heart, That I might not sin against You. |
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 6 : 54 - 58
| 54 | Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. |
| 55 | For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed. |
| 56 | He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him. |
| 57 | As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who feeds on Me will live because of Me. |
| 58 | This is the bread which came down from heaven--not as your fathers ate the manna, and are dead. He who eats this bread will live forever." |
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 77 : 2
| 2 | In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord; My hand was stretched out in the night without ceasing; My soul refused to be comforted. |
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 20 : 19 - 23
| 19 | Then, the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, "Peace be with you." |
| 20 | When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. |
| 21 | So Jesus said to them again, "Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you." |
| 22 | And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. |
| 23 | If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained." |
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 Colossians.
May his blessings be with us. Amen.
Colossians 1 : 12 - 23
| 12 | giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light. |
| 13 | He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, |
| 14 | in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins. |
| 15 | He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. |
| 16 | For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. |
| 17 | And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist. |
| 18 | And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence. |
| 19 | For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell, |
| 20 | and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross. |
| 21 | And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled |
| 22 | in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight-- |
| 23 | if indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard, which was preached to every creature under heaven, of which I, Paul, became a minister. |
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 1 : 1 - 7
| 1 | That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the Word of life-- |
| 2 | the life was manifested, and we have seen, and bear witness, and declare to you that eternal life which was with the Father and was manifested to us-- |
| 3 | that which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. |
| 4 | And these things we write to you that your joy may be full. |
| 5 | This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. |
| 6 | If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. |
| 7 | But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. |
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 4 : 19 - 31
| 19 | But Peter and John answered and said to them, "Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you more than to God, you judge. |
| 20 | For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard." |
| 21 | So when they had further threatened them, they let them go, finding no way of punishing them, because of the people, since they all glorified God for what had been done. |
| 22 | For the man was over forty years old on whom this miracle of healing had been performed. |
| 23 | And being let go, they went to their own companions and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said to them. |
| 24 | So when they heard that, they raised their voice to God with one accord and said: "Lord, You are God, who made heaven and earth and the sea, and all that is in them, |
| 25 | who by the mouth of Your servant David have said: "Why did the nations rage, And the people plot vain things? |
| 26 | The kings of the earth took their stand, And the rulers were gathered together Against the LORD and against His Christ.' |
| 27 | "For truly against Your holy Servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, were gathered together |
| 28 | to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose determined before to be done. |
| 29 | Now, Lord, look on their threats, and grant to Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your word, |
| 30 | by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus." |
| 31 | And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness. |
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 119 : 73 - 73
| 73 | Your hands have made me and fashioned me; Give me understanding, that I may learn Your commandments. |
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 Luke the Evangelist. May His Blessings be with us all. Amen.
Luke 9 : 28 - 35
| 28 | Now it came to pass, about eight days after these sayings, that He took Peter, John, and James and went up on the mountain to pray. |
| 29 | As He prayed, the appearance of His face was altered, and His robe became white and glistening. |
| 30 | And behold, two men talked with Him, who were Moses and Elijah, |
| 31 | who appeared in glory and spoke of His decease which He was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. |
| 32 | But Peter and those with him were heavy with sleep; and when they were fully awake, they saw His glory and the two men who stood with Him. |
| 33 | Then it happened, as they were parting from Him, that Peter said to Jesus, "Master, it is good for us to be here; and let us make three tabernacles: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah"--not knowing what he said. |
| 34 | While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were fearful as they entered the cloud. |
| 35 | And a voice came out of the cloud, saying, "This is My beloved Son. Hear Him!" |
Glory be to God forever.
Not to be read in the Church during this time of the year.
Synaxarium
Day 30 of the Blessed Coptic Month of Baramudah.
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 Thirtieth Day of the Blessed Month of Baramudah
Martyrdom of the Great Saint Mark, the Apostle, the Evangelist of the Land of Egypt
On this day, which coincided with the
26th. of April 68 A.D., the great apostle St. Mark, the evangelist of the
land of Egypt, was martyred. He was the first Pope of Alexandria and one
of the Seventy Apostles. His name was John, as the Holy Bible says: "He
came to the house of Mary, the mother of John whose surname was Mark, where
many were gathered together praying" (Acts 12:12). He was the one that
the Lord Christ, to Whom is the glory, meant when He said: "Go into the
city to a certain man, and say to him, The Teacher says, My time is at
hand; I will keep the Passover at your house with My disciples" (Matthew
26:18). His house was the first Christian church, where they ate the Passover,
hid after the death of the Lord Christ, and in its upper room the Holy
Spirit came upon them. This Saint was born in Cyrene (One of the Five Western
cities, Pentapolis - in North Africa). His father's name was Aristopolus
and his mother's name was Mary. They were Jewish in faith, rich and of
great honor. They educated him with the Greek and Hebrew cultures. He was
called Mark after they emigrated to Jerusalem, where St. Peter had become
a disciple to the Lord Christ. St. Peter was married to the cousin of Aristopolus.
Mark visited St. Peter's house often, and from him he learned the Christian
teachings.
Once Aristopolus and his son Mark were walking near the Jordan river, close by the desert, they encountered a raving lion and a lioness. It was evident to Aristopolus that it would be his end and the end of his Son, Mark. His compassion for his son compelled him to order him to escape to save himself. Mark answered, "Christ, in whose hands our lives are committed, will not let them prey on us." Saying this, he prayed, "O, Christ, Son of God protect us from the evil of these two beasts and terminate their offspring from this wilderness." Immediately, God granted this prayer, and the two beasts fell dead. His father marvelled and asked his son to tell him about the Lord Christ. He believed in the Lord Christ at the hands of his son who baptized him. After the ascension of the Lord Christ, he accompanied Paul and Barnabas to preach the Gospel in Antioch, Seleucia, Cyprus, Salamis, and Perga Pamphylia where he left them and returned to Jerusalem. After the Apostolic Council in Jerusalem, he went with Barnabas to Cyprus. After the departure of Barnabas, with the order of the Lord Christ, St. Mark went to Afrikia, Berka, and the Five Western cities. He preached the Gospel in these parts, and believed on his hands most of its people. From there, he went to Alexandria in the 1st. of Bashans 61 A.D.
When he entered the city, his shoe was torn because of the much walking in preaching and evangelism. He went to a cobbler in the city, called Anianus, to repair it. While he was repairing it the awl pierced his finger. Anianus shouted in Greek saying "EIS THEOS" which means "O, ONE GOD". When St.Mark heard these words his heart rejoiced exceedingly. He found it suitable to talk to him about the One God. The Apostle took some clay, spat on it and applied it to Anianus' finger, saying in the Name of Jesus Christ the Son of God, and the wound healed immediately, as if nothing happened to it. Anianus was exceedingly amazed from this miracle that happened in the Name of Jesus Christ, and his heart opened to the word of God. The Apostle asked him about who was the only God that he cried for when he was injured. Anianus replied "I heard about him, but I do not know him." St. Mark started explaining to him from the beginning, the creation of heaven and earth, the transgression and fall of Adam, the flood, how God sent Moses, who brought the children of Israel out of Egypt, and gave them the Law, the captivity of the children of Israel to Babylon, and the prophecies that foretold the coming of Christ.
Anianus invited him to go to his house and brought to him his children. The Saint preached and baptized them in the Name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. When the believers in the Name of Christ increased and the pagan people of the city heard that, they were raged with anger and thought of slaying St. Mark. The faithful advised him to get away for a short while for the sake of the safety of the church and its care. St. Mark ordained St. Anianus a Bishop for Alexandria, three priests and seven deacons. He went to the Five Western Cities, remained there for two years preaching, and ordained bishops, priests, and deacons. He returned to Alexandria where he found the believers had increased in number, and built a church for them in the place known as Bokalia (The place of cows), east of Alexandria on the sea shore. It came to pass, when he was celebrating the feast of the Resurrection on the 29th day of Baramudah, year 68 A.D., the same day coincided with the great pagan Celebration for the feast of the god Syrabis, a multitude of them assembled and attacked the church at Bokalia and forced their way in. They seized St. Mark, bound him with a thick rope and dragged him in the roads and streets crying, "Drag the dragon to the place of Cows." They continued dragging him with severe cruelty. His flesh was torn and scattered everywhere, and the ground of the city was covered with his blood. They cast him that night into a dark prison.
The angel of the Lord appeared to him and told him: "O Mark, the good servant, rejoice for your name has been written in the book of life, and you have been counted among the congregation of the saints." The angel disappeared, then the Lord Christ appeared to him, and gave him peace. His soul rejoiced and was glad. The next morning (30th of Baramudah), the pagans took St. Mark from the prison. They tied his neck with a thick rope and did the same as the day before, dragging him over the rocks and stones. Finally, St. Mark delivered up his pure soul in the hand of God, and received the crown of martyrdom, the apostolic crown, the crown of evangelism, and the crown of virginity. Nevertheless, St. Mark's death did not satisfy the rage of the pagans and their hatred. They gathered much firewood and prepared an inferno to burn him. A severe storm blew and heavy rains fell. The pagans became frightened, and they fled away in fear. The believers came and took the holy body, carried it to the church they built at Bokalia, wrapped it up, prayed over him and place it in a coffin. They laid it in a secret place in this church.
The prayers of this great Saint and honorable Evangelist be with us and Glory be to our God forever. Amen.
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