30 Baramudah 1749
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 111 : 1,3
| 1 | Praise the LORD! I will praise the LORD with my whole heart, In the assembly of the upright and in the congregation. |
| 3 | His work is honorable and glorious, And His righteousness endures forever. |
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 : 16 - 23
| 16 | Now when evening came, His disciples went down to the sea, |
| 17 | got into the boat, and went over the sea toward Capernaum. And it was already dark, and Jesus had not come to them. |
| 18 | Then the sea arose because a great wind was blowing. |
| 19 | So when they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and drawing near the boat; and they were afraid. |
| 20 | But He said to them, "It is I; do not be afraid." |
| 21 | Then they willingly received Him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land where they were going. |
| 22 | On the following day, when the people who were standing on the other side of the sea saw that there was no other boat there, except that one which His disciples had entered, and that Jesus had not entered the boat with His disciples, but His disciples had gone away alone-- |
| 23 | however, other boats came from Tiberias, near the place where they ate bread after the Lord had given thanks-- |
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 111 : 3 - 4
| 3 | His work is honorable and glorious, And His righteousness endures forever. |
| 4 | He has made His wonderful works to be remembered; The LORD is gracious and full of compassion. |
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 : 24 - 33
| 24 | when the people therefore saw that Jesus was not there, nor His disciples, they also got into boats and came to Capernaum, seeking Jesus. |
| 25 | And when they found Him on the other side of the sea, they said to Him, "Rabbi, when did You come here?" |
| 26 | Jesus answered them and said, "Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. |
| 27 | Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him." |
| 28 | Then they said to Him, "What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?" |
| 29 | Jesus answered and said to them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent." |
| 30 | Therefore they said to Him, "What sign will You perform then, that we may see it and believe You? What work will You do? |
| 31 | Our fathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written, "He gave them bread from heaven to eat."' |
| 32 | Then Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but My Father gives you the true bread from heaven. |
| 33 | For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." |
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 Ephesians.
May his blessings be with us. Amen.
Ephesians 2 : 19 - 3 : 10
| 19 | Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, |
| 20 | having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, |
| 21 | in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, |
| 22 | in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit. |
| 1 | For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for you Gentiles-- |
| 2 | if indeed you have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which was given to me for you, |
| 3 | how that by revelation He made known to me the mystery (as I have briefly written already, |
| 4 | by which, when you read, you may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ), |
| 5 | which in other ages was not made known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to His holy apostles and prophets: |
| 6 | that the Gentiles should be fellow heirs, of the same body, and partakers of His promise in Christ through the gospel, |
| 7 | of which I became a minister according to the gift of the grace of God given to me by the effective working of His power. |
| 8 | To me, who am less than the least of all the saints, this grace was given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, |
| 9 | and to make all see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the ages has been hidden in God who created all things through Jesus Christ; |
| 10 | to the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places, |
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 : 10 - 20
| 10 | He who believes in the Son of God has the witness in himself; he who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed the testimony that God has given of His Son. |
| 11 | And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. |
| 12 | He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. |
| 13 | These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe in the name of the Son of God. |
| 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. |
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 20 : 1 - 12
| 1 | After the uproar had ceased, Paul called the disciples to himself, embraced them, and departed to go to Macedonia. |
| 2 | Now when he had gone over that region and encouraged them with many words, he came to Greece |
| 3 | and stayed three months. And when the Jews plotted against him as he was about to sail to Syria, he decided to return through Macedonia. |
| 4 | And Sopater of Berea accompanied him to Asia--also Aristarchus and Secundus of the Thessalonians, and Gaius of Derbe, and Timothy, and Tychicus and Trophimus of Asia. |
| 5 | These men, going ahead, waited for us at Troas. |
| 6 | But we sailed away from Philippi after the Days of Unleavened Bread, and in five days joined them at Troas, where we stayed seven days. |
| 7 | Now on the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul, ready to depart the next day, spoke to them and continued his message until midnight. |
| 8 | There were many lamps in the upper room where they were gathered together. |
| 9 | And in a window sat a certain young man named Eutychus, who was sinking into a deep sleep. He was overcome by sleep; and as Paul continued speaking, he fell down from the third story and was taken up dead. |
| 10 | But Paul went down, fell on him, and embracing him said, "Do not trouble yourselves, for his life is in him." |
| 11 | Now when he had come up, had broken bread and eaten, and talked a long while, even till daybreak, he departed. |
| 12 | And they brought the young man in alive, and they were not a little comforted. |
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 111 : 9 - 10
| 9 | He has sent redemption to His people; He has commanded His covenant forever: Holy and awesome is His name. |
| 10 | The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; A good understanding have all those who do His commandments. His praise endures forever. |
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 : 35 - 45
| 35 | And Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst. |
| 36 | But I said to you that you have seen Me and yet do not believe. |
| 37 | All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out. |
| 38 | For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. |
| 39 | This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that of all He has given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day. |
| 40 | And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day." |
| 41 | The Jews then complained about Him, because He said, "I am the bread which came down from heaven." |
| 42 | And they said, "Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How is it then that He says, "I have come down from heaven'?" |
| 43 | Jesus therefore answered and said to them, "Do not murmur among yourselves. |
| 44 | No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day. |
| 45 | It is written in the prophets, "And they shall all be taught by God.' Therefore everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me. |
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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