Holy Hieromartyr Hypatios of Gangra in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church

By Fr. George Dorbarakis

Our Venerable Father Hypatios was born in Cilicia and was the Bishop of Gangra. He was present at the First Ecumenical Synod in Nicea (325) and was renowned by all for his pious life and miracle-working. The Emperor Constantius ordered that a likeness of Hypatius be made during the Saint’s lifetime. The emperor kept the likeness in his palace as a weapon against all adverse powers. Once, upon returning from Constantinople, Hypatios was attacked in a narrow gorge by Novatian heretics and was thrown from the road into the mud. At that moment a woman from that group struck him on the head with a stone, and thus the Saint died. Immediately the woman went insane and took that same stone and struck herself with it. When they took her to the grave of Saint Hypatios, he interceded before God on her behalf. She was healed by the greatly compassionate soul of Hypatios, and lived the remainder of her life in repentance and prayer. Saint Hypatius was martyred in the year 326. 

A great wonderworker was Saint Hypatios, one of the God-bearing Fathers of the First Ecumenical Synod, together with Saint Athanasios, Saint Spyridon, Saint Nicholas, Saint Alexander. This means that the Saint had a special illumination in his heart, so as both to proclaim the truth against the heretic Arius and all the offshoots of his demonic heresy — the truth concerning Jesus Christ as the incarnate God — and to become a pure channel of God for the performance of wondrous signs for the sake of his fellow human beings in need. And this is because, of course, no one can see the truth about Christ without the illumination of God — “no one can confess Jesus as God without the light of the Holy Spirit,” the Apostle Paul will say — and no one can acquire the gift of wonderworking without having a pure heart through which the Almighty God acts in him and in the world.

Prologue in Sermons: March 31

The Happiness of Children Is Not in the Wealth Their Parents Leave Them

March 31

By Archpriest Victor Guryev

Parents are most often pursued by the thought: “What will my children be left with after me?” This thought is, in a sense, a good one, for who, indeed, if not parents, ought to care for the future happiness of their children? But the same thought becomes sinful and harmful when it oversteps its proper bounds. And for many, it crosses those bounds often. How many people we see who begin to save money — at first without any special attachment to it — for the sake of providing for their children, but then this thrift turns into greed, and a person, without noticing it, becomes passionately attached to money, becomes miserly, and money — nothing but money — fills his entire life. And then there is no longer any concern for Christian upbringing: neither the fear of God is instilled in the children, nor love for God. And how does all this end? Children who are not raised in the law of God, for the most part, plunge at a very young age into worldly pleasures; and when the father or mother dies and the money so greedily amassed for them falls into their hands, they are utterly ruined by it.

Venerable John of the Ladder, the Saint of Great Lent

By Fr. George Dorbarakis

Today the memory of our Venerable Father John of the Ladder is celebrated, in addition to the Fourth Sunday of the Fast, which is also a day dedicated to him.

That is, we celebrate an ascetical writer who could be characterized as the Saint of Great Lent, since his book, The Ladder, constitutes the principal reading of this period in our monasteries, as well as for many Christians in the world. And this means that an ascetical text, although written primarily for monks, nevertheless remains something in which every believer who truly thirsts for genuine evangelical nourishment may immerse himself, wherever it can be applied.

We must not forget that monasticism, for our Church, constitutes — and must constitute — the purest expression of a consistent Christian life. And from this perspective, it serves as a guide for every Christian.

Prologue in Sermons: March 30

 

Alms Return to Those Who Give Them

March 30

(A word about the maiden Mononia, how Saint Makarios saved her, though she had been unmerciful.)*

By Archpriest Victor Guryev

The Lord says: “Make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous mammon, so that when you fail, they may receive you into the eternal dwellings” (Luke 16:9). What does this mean?

“This means that with earthly, perishable, and fleeting wealth, one can nevertheless, by using it properly, acquire for oneself friends — the poor, the needy, and in general those requiring help and assistance — here on earth; and they can obtain for us eternal dwellings in heaven, since such use of wealth is a virtue, for which there will follow a reward in the Kingdom of Heaven” (Commentary of Bishop Michael on verse 9 of chapter 16 of Luke, p. 474).

And Saint John Chrysostom says: “He who distributes wealth to the poor uses it for the benefit of his soul” (Homily on Avarice). The same truth is confirmed by examples.

Holy Martyrs Mark the Bishop of Arethusa, Cyril the Deacon and Those With Them in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church

Fr. George Dorbarakis

Saint Mark, living during the reign of Constantine the Great, was stirred by great zeal and destroyed many pagan altars and temples. But when Julian the Apostate ascended the throne, he restored paganism and began to persecute Saint Mark as well as all those who had taken part in the destruction of the pagan temples. Then the Saint hid for a while, but when he learned that others were being dragged away because of him, he revealed himself and delivered himself to the deniers of the faith.

They then stripped him naked, wounded his entire body, and threw him into filthy sewers. After this, they brought him out and handed him over to small children to wound him with needles. Then they soaked his body with brine and finally smeared him with honey, in the height of summer, and hung him upside down in the sun, so that he might burn and become food for bees and wasps. All these torments the wondrous Mark endured with courage and patience, so that his torturers might not rebuild again the destroyed altars. Indeed, the steadfastness of his faith prevailed. Seeing him endure bravely and with youthful vigor, the pagans believed in Christ.

Something similar also happened in Phoenicia, again during the time of Julian. For they seized Cyril the deacon, who had also destroyed certain pagan idols, and because he boldly confessed his faith, they opened his belly, took out his entrails, and displayed them as a spectacle to those gathered. And it is said that something befell them which shows divine justice: their teeth were knocked out, and their tongues and eyes were destroyed. By the same death several virgin women also ended their lives in Ashkalon and Gaza, as well as certain clergy, whose memory is celebrated together on this day.

+ + + 

 

Two are the points on which the Holy Hymnographer of the Church, George, especially insists in his hymnography of the Holy Bishop Mark: first, his holiness as a priest before his martyrdom, and second, his very martyrdom, which reveals the power it contains, since it is accomplished for the sake of love toward the Lord Jesus Christ.

Indeed, George presents the position of Saint Mark in the Church as a “radiant lamp that illumines her fullness” (Ode 1), since “the Saint was nurtured and grew up in the faith of Christ until he reached the height of martyrdom” (Ode 1). The Saint, notes the Hymnographer, throughout all the years of his life was a preacher and guide of people toward Christ, distinguished especially for his reverence and purity of soul in the celebration of the Divine Liturgy — something that enabled him to strengthen and guide his fellow athletes toward the greatest love for Christ: to give even their lives for His sake (Ode 1).

Moreover, the preaching gift of Saint Mark was so great, says the holy poet, that his words — clearly grounded in his holy life — functioned on the one hand as a flame that dried up all the muddy rivers of the delusion of the pagans, and on the other as a spring from which flowed the streams of the knowledge of God for people (Ode 3). And George, as the mouth of the Church, goes on to explain even what might be considered the violence of his action in destroying certain pagan temples. The cause of this action, he notes, was the philanthropy of the Saint. For the far-seeing Saint perceived that the idols served by demons prevent people from finding rest and peace; they create a continual disturbance and upheaval in their mind and life.

Thus he demolishes the houses of demons in order to build in their place, chiefly through his word, the house of the true God, that is, to make people themselves “temples of the living God,” members of Christ. And this constitutes the greatest benefaction a person can offer to the world: to establish them upon the almighty God, Christ. In the words of the Hymnographer: “You shook the temples of idols, O blessed one, and you established the people who were shaken and trembling upon Christ” (Ode 6).

And then the Hymnographer focuses on the martyrdom itself, which constitutes the greatest confirmation of the Saint’s faith and love for Christ. And what does he note? That, apart from the sacrifice of the Saint — who at the hour of martyrdom “offered himself as a sacred sacrifice to the Lord” (Ode 7) — this very martyrdom, because it was carried out not with anger, wrath, or a sense of revenge against his enemies, but with what the Lord Himself showed upon the Cross, that is, with love and long-suffering even toward his persecutors, therefore it functioned as a tremendous power that humbled the arrogance of the instruments of the Evil One and exalted as victor the one considered defeated (Ode 5).

And this is an exceptional observation of the Holy Hymnographer, one that we Christians often overlook, turning instead to worldly methods in our daily relationships: at the very moment when we endure the hostility of any fellow human being and “respond” to his attack with humility and love, at that very moment we “overthrow” him, to use a beautiful scriptural expression; that is, at that moment we are victorious, because through us the omnipotence of the Cross is set in motion.

“In the anger of your enemies you set against them, as an imitator of Christ, your long-suffering, O righteous one. And by this long-suffering you humbled their arrogance and were shown to be victorious” (Ode 5).

Source: Translated by John Sanidopoulos.

 

Prologue in Sermons: March 29

On the Veneration of Holy Icons

March 29

(Commemoration of our Venerable Father and Confessor Eustathios, Bishop of Bithynia)

By Archpriest Victor Guryev

Our Venerable Father and Confessor Eustathios, Bishop of Bithynia, lived in the time of the iconoclasts, that is, of those who rejected the veneration of holy icons. For his veneration of the holy icons he endured from them threats, spitting, beatings, imprisonments; he witnessed many disturbances and uprisings among his flock; he was struck with rods and clubs and, finally, was deprived of his episcopate and condemned to exile. In the latter he spent many years and was insulted, mistreated, deprived, suffering hunger, thirst, and nakedness, and in such afflictions he died. And Eustathios was not the only one who endured such torments from the iconoclasts. Not only thousands, but tens of thousands of Orthodox Christians, for the veneration of the holy icons, suffered from them the same as Eustathios.

What does this mean, that the iconoclasts treated the holy icons with such hostility? Could it be that they were right in rejecting them? No, brethren, they were not right, and this we shall now prove to them.

Saint Dionysios the Merciful, Metropolitan of Larissa (+ 1510)

For Saint Dionysios the Merciful, Metropolitan of Larissa and founder of the Monastery of Saint Nicholas Anapafsas in Meteora, no hagiographical texts, services, synaxaria, or life have been preserved, nor is any date of the celebration of his memory recorded anywhere. Therefore, we do not have detailed information about his life and activity.

He is depicted in a fresco of 1627 in the left aisle of the Church of the Holy Unmercenaries in Trikala, where, in chronological order from left to right, seven “holy archbishops of Larissa” are portrayed:

Saint Thomas of Goriani (1264–1273), Saint Cyprian the Wonderworker (Oct. 1318), Saint Anthony the Most Learned and New Theologian (June 1340 – March 21, 1362), Saint Bessarion the Former (in 1489–90 he was transferred from the Bishopric of Demetrias to the Metropolis of Larissa), Saint Dionysios the Merciful, Saint Mark the Hesychast (1499 – late 1526 or early 1527), and Saint Bessarion of the Savior (this refers to the well-known Metropolitan Bessarion II, founder and builder of the Monastery of the Savior of the Great Gates, known as the Monastery of Dousikou, who served as archbishop in Larissa from March 1527 to September 13, 1540).

Venerable Hilarion the New in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church

By Fr. George Dorbarakis

“Having given to the earth his earthly flesh, Hilarion dwelt in the blessed land of the blessed” (Verses of the Synaxarion).

Venerable Hilarion served as abbot of the Monastery of Pelekete in Trigleia and was distinguished for his ascetic ethos, his love of God, his gift of almsgiving, and his spiritual struggles. For this reason, God granted him the gift of foresight. The Saint reposed in peace in the year 754.

We do not have many details from the life of Saint Hilarion the New, beyond the fact that he was abbot of the Monastery of Pelekete, a monastery whose foundation dates to the eighth century and whose name is related to its location upon a steep rock. The actual name of the monastery is that of Saint John the Theologian, which is situated near present-day Trigleia, in medieval Bithynia. The monastery, whose ruins from the Byzantine period are preserved even today, was, according to historians, a center of the Orthodox who struggled against the heresy of the iconoclasts; for this reason the monks suffered many tortures from their iconoclast persecutors, to the point that many of them became martyrs for their faith. Saint Joseph the Hymnographer therefore quite naturally emphasizes also the persecutions that the Venerable Martyr and Abbot Hilarion suffered from these heretics: “Precious was your death before God, most sacred Father,” he notes, “for you honored His Icon and endured, being afflicted, the persecutions of the tyrants; thus you were shown to be a martyr” (Ode 8).

Prologue in Sermons: March 28

Where the Souls of Sinners Are After Their Separation from the Body

March 28

(A Discourse about a certain soldier, named Taxiotis, who rose from the dead.)

By Archpriest Victor Guryev

Where, brethren, are the souls of sinners after their separation from their bodies? Let us speak about this for our edification.

There was in the city of Carthage a certain man, named Taxiotis, who lived a sinful life. Once, a pestilence struck Carthage, from which many people were dying. Taxiotis turned to God and repented of his sins. Leaving the city, he withdrew with his wife to a certain village, where he remained, spending his time in meditation on God.

After some time, he fell into sin with the wife of a farmer; but a few days later, he was bitten by a snake and died.

Not far from that place stood a monastery; the wife of Taxiotis went to this monastery and begged the monks to come, take the body of the deceased, and bury it in the church; and they buried him at the third hour of the day. When the ninth hour came, a loud cry was heard from the grave: “Have mercy, have mercy on me!” The monks, approaching the grave and hearing the cry of the one buried, immediately dug it up and found Taxiotis alive. In terror, they were amazed and asked him what had happened to him. But Taxiotis, because of intense weeping, could not tell them anything and only asked to be taken to Bishop Tarasios; and he was taken to him. The bishop urged him for three days to tell him what he had seen there, but only on the fourth day did Taxiotis begin to speak and recounted the following:

Holy Martyr Matrona of Thessaloniki in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church

By Fr. George Dorbarakis

Saint Matrona was a servant of a certain Jewish woman, who was called Pantilla. She would follow her mistress as far as the synagogue, but she did not enter inside; rather, she would turn back and go to the church of the Christians. Once she was seen doing this, and so they seized her and beat her very severely, and afterwards they shut her up in prison for four days, without anyone being able to approach her and without food. Then they brought her out and lacerated her with whips. Again they imprisoned her and left her there for many days, where she also gave up her soul to God. It is said that her holy relic was thrown down from the wall by Pantilla, and for this she suffered a just punishment, falling by accident into the winepress, into which the pressed must was being poured from above. There she ended her life and her soul departed.

The contrast is striking: on the one hand, Saint Matrona, the servant, the obscure one, the despised; and on the other, Pantilla, the mistress, the glorious, the rich. By worldly standards, there is no basis for comparison. The scale tilts automatically toward the side of Pantilla. Would not the modern secularized man say this, even if he is a “Christian”? When, for example, what appears as a priority for most people — the pursuit of pleasures, money, and glory — s what Pantilla represents, who would not choose her position, while pitying the “wretchedness” of Matrona? And yet how much delusion there is in such a value judgment! For it is the judgment of the surface. In depth, there where the heart is and where the Lord, the righteous Judge, sees — there where things operate on the level of eternity — things are entirely different: Matrona is the glorious one and the mistress, the bright star, and Pantilla is the obscure one, the non-existent, the servant and the miserable one. The Hymnographer of our Church, Saint Theophanes the Hymnographer, repeatedly emphasizes this reality, because he operates precisely with the criteria of the regenerated person, the Christian, who sees things from the perspective of the revelation in Christ, that is, of the truth.

The Synaxis of the Archangel Gabriel in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church

By Fr. George Dorbarakis

On the 26th of the month of March we celebrate the Synaxis of the Archangel Gabriel, which has been handed down to us from the beginning and from God, because this Archangel ministered in the divine, supernatural, and ineffable mystery of the economy of Christ.

According indeed to the note of the Venerable Nikodemos the Hagiorite in his Great Synaxaristes, “Gabriel means man and God (that is, man of God), according to Proclus of Constantinople. For this reason he is the one who served in the mystery of the incarnate economy of God the Word. And Theophanes Kerameus, the Bishop of Tauromenium, also says that the seven letters contained in the name Gabriel signify that Christ, whose Birth Gabriel proclaimed, will come for the salvation of the whole world, which is measured by the week and comes to completion in seven ages.”

The Holy Hymnographer, namely Joseph the Hymnographer, is moved ecstatically as he refers to the “all-great Gabriel.” There is almost no troparion either at Vespers or in the Canon for the Archangel that does not reveal his admiration and his awe-filled stance toward him, not only for the fact of Gabriel’s participation in the revelation of the mystery of the coming of God into the world as a man to the pure maiden Mariam, but also for his twofold unceasing and eternal stance before the Lord of all, the Triune God: the glorification of His holy name and the readiness of obedience to the commands of His will. For example:

Prologue in Sermons: March 26

Why the Archangel Gabriel Is Called the Herald of Joy

March 26

(Synaxis of the Holy Archangel Gabriel)

By Archpriest Victor Guryev

The Holy Archangel Gabriel is called among us the Herald of Joy. Why is this so?

First, because he proclaimed to people, in general, only one thing — joy. In the Prologue it is said of him:

“This Holy Archangel Gabriel is one of the great princes of the heavenly hosts, who from the beginning is sent by God to the earth, proclaiming every joy to human nature.”

Then the Archangel Gabriel announced joy to the Prophet Daniel concerning the deliverance of God’s people from the Babylonian captivity and about the time of the Messiah. 

He announced joy to Zechariah concerning the birth of the Forerunner from a barren mother and said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer is heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John; and you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth” (Luke 1:13–14).

The Annunciation of the Theotokos in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church

 

By Fr. George Dorbarakis

March 25th is “a festival of faith and freedom,” according to the poet. It is a day on which we are called to remember the struggles undertaken by our heroic forefathers in order to cast off the four-hundred-year slavery under the Turks. It is a sacred landmark, since it is considered the starting point for the acquisition of our national freedom. But it is also a day that more deeply calls us, the faithful — who perceive the depth of these events — not merely to remember something or to take example from something, but to participate in the greatest event ever realized in human history: the incarnation of the Son and Word of God within the All-Holy Virgin. And if the one feast is great because it marks the beginning of our national freedom, the other — the Annunciation — is a most great feast, because it marks the beginning of our existential and eternal salvation.

The Apolytikion (Dismissal Hymn) of the day helps us approach the meaning of the feast, and so we will comment briefly on it below:

“Today is the beginning of our salvation and the manifestation of the mystery from all eternity. The Son of God becomes the Son of the Virgin, and Gabriel proclaims the good tidings of grace. Therefore we also, together with him, cry aloud to the Theotokos: Rejoice, O Full of Grace, the Lord is with You.”

March: Day 25: Teaching 3: Annunciation of the Most Holy Theotokos

March: Day 25: Teaching 3:
Annunciation of the Most Holy Theotokos
 
(What Does the Annunciation Mean, and What Does It Teach Us?)

By Archpriest Grigory Dyachenko

I. Why is the present day called the day of the Annunciation? — Obviously, because of some good tidings for all of us. What is this tidings?

a) It is the tidings that to us poor ones on earth there has now descended the Only-begotten Son of God, the eternal Word, by Whom all things visible and invisible were created and are sustained in being. He descended to such an extent that He clothed Himself in our nature, became in all things like us except for sin, a man, and this not for some temporary period, whether small or great, but for all eternity.

b) It is the tidings that this incarnate Son of God will accomplish for our salvation everything that is necessary: He will enlighten us with the light of truth and show us the way to eternal life; He will take upon Himself our sins and blot them out by His sufferings; He will descend into the grave and by His Resurrection dispel for us the darkness of the tomb and the fear of death; He will grant us the Holy Spirit and with Him the fullness of the gifts of grace, so that, being cleansed from every impurity, we may become capable of dwelling in heaven with the angels.

Prologue in Sermons: March 25

One Must Not Approach the Holy Mysteries Without Preparation

March 25

(A Word of John of Damascus on the Communion of the Body of Christ)

By Archpriest Victor Guryev

One must not approach the Communion of the Holy Mysteries without preparation, as the Holy Apostle Paul also says: “Let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread and drink of that cup. For he who eats and drinks unworthily eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Body of the Lord” (1 Cor. 11:28–29).

In what, then, should preparation for receiving the Holy Mysteries consist?

Saint John of Damascus reasons about this as follows:

“Many receive the Body of Christ simply out of custom, and not as they ought according to the law, with a pure thought and mind, during the holy Fast and in the Paschal season. First of all, one must pass through the holy Fast in purity and cleanse one’s conscience, and only then partake; otherwise, one who is unclean will be unworthy to taste of the Table of Christ. Remember that even in the Old Testament people approached the sacrifices with fear and purified themselves beforehand. But we receive the Body and Blood of Christ with defiled hands and without fear, whereas even the angels tremble before them.

And you, Christian, know the time of Communion, yet you do not prepare yourself for Communion itself. Consider: can you approach even an earthly king with foul-smelling lips? How then shall we approach the Heavenly King with them? Do you not hear what is proclaimed in the Church? ‘Let those in the state of catechumens depart, and let those who are not in repentance not receive!’

Therefore, let only the worthy approach Holy Communion, and let the unworthy not partake, because they will receive the Holy Mysteries unto judgment for themselves, unto condemnation and torment. For this reason the priest proclaims: ‘The holy things are for the holy!’ that is, let only the holy approach. It is not said simply ‘pure,’ but ‘holy.’ ‘He who eats this Bread and drinks this Cup unworthily is guilty of the Body and Blood of the Lord.’”

Prologue in Sermons: March 24

Against Dancing Among the Common People

March 24

(A Homily of Saint John Chrysostom on Games and Dancing)

By Archpriest Victor Guryev

Among you, Orthodox Christians, there exists a very bad custom, especially on Sundays and feast days, of gathering in your village streets and beginning dances there. This custom both angers God and brings about destructive consequences.

In order to abandon it, listen to what Saint Chrysostom says about it.

“Dancing,” says the universal teacher, “is not a human but a demonic activity. Demons teach it to us so that they may not be the only ones tormented in hell. And of all amusements it is the worst, for it draws a person away from God and leads him down to the depths of hell. And a woman who dances is called the bride of Satan, the adulteress of the devil, and the consort of demons; and she who dances will not only herself be brought down to the depths of hell, but also all who danced with her. She does not preserve her honor, and through her the devil tempts many, both in sleep and in wakefulness. All who love dancing will be condemned to the unquenchable fire. And it is vile and shameful for a man to live with such a woman.

Listen to what happened: people sat down to eat and drink, became full and drunk, and began to dance — and then to commit sin. After that they turned to idols and began to offer sacrifices to them. Then the earth opened and swallowed twenty-three thousand of them. Thus the Lord showed an image of punishment to all who sin and do not do the will of God. Therefore, brothers and sisters, beware and do not love unlawful, demonic amusements. Especially avoid dancing, lest you be condemned to eternal torment.”*

Holy Hieromartyr Nikon and Those With Him in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church

 

By Fr. George Dorbarakis

 

Saint Nikon lived during the time of the governor Quintilian and was from the land of the Neapolitans. He was a handsome young man and radiant in appearance, and in wars his bravery struck fear into his opponents. His father was an idolater, while his mother was a Christian. In a great war, and indeed in a fierce battle, the blessed one remembered the exhortations of his mother, and after sighing deeply and saying, “Lord Jesus Christ, help me,” he made the sign of the Cross as though he were being surrounded by a wall, and advanced mightily into the midst of the enemy. Some he struck with the sword, others with the spear, and he did not cease until he had utterly defeated them all and put them to flight. All were astonished at his conduct, because the war turned favorably for them; thus, together with the others, he returned to his home. He revealed to his mother his intention for the future, and he sailed to the regions of Constantinople.

When he arrived at an island called Chios, he went up its mountain and remained there for seven days, devoted to fasting, vigils, and prayers. Then a divine angel informed him to go down to the shore with a staff, which the one who appeared to him had given him. Reaching the shore, he found a ship, boarded it, and after two days, when he disembarked, he arrived at Mount Ganos. By divine providence, a bishop appeared to him in the guise of a monk, and taking him by the hand, led him to a cave where he himself dwelt. There he catechized him and baptized him in the name of the Holy Trinity, also imparting to him the Holy Mysteries. After three years he ordained him a presbyter, and then a bishop.

Prologue in Sermons: March 23

What Does Complete Renunciation of the World Consist In?

March 23

(A word about a merchant who entered the monastic rank and was saved.)

By Archpriest Victor Guryev

I ask you, brethren, what must one do in order to renounce the world completely? What will you say to this? You will say: “One must go into monasticism.” That is true, brethren, I agree with you, but still, in my opinion, this alone is not enough; something more is required. What is it?

Once the Venerable Paphnutios prayed to God that He would show him to whom he was comparable. And the Lord revealed this to him. He heard a voice saying to him: “You are like a merchant seeking good pearls. Arise, then, do not be slothful, and you will find one like yourself.” Paphnutios left his cell and met a certain man from Alexandria, very rich and at the same time pious and merciful. This man conducted great trade with the Thebaid and had three ships transporting his goods. Everything that he gained from his trade he gave to the poor, and his servants followed him carrying food for them as well. Seeing this, Paphnutios exclaimed: “What does this mean, my friend?” The pious merchant replied: “These are the fruits of my trade, offered to God through the hands of the righteous.” Paphnutios said: “And when will you receive the monastic name?” “I will try to do so,” answered the merchant. Paphnutios continued: “How long will you carry on earthly trade and forget the heavenly? The latter is higher than the former. Leave all earthly things now and follow the Savior, and soon you will depart entirely to Him.” After this, the pious merchant gave all his possessions to the poor, keeping nothing for himself, went to the mountain where two monks had died before him, and there, shutting himself in a cave, he soon left his earthly body and became a citizen of heaven.

Holy Hieromartyr Basil the Presbyter of Ancyra in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church

By Fr. George Dorbarakis

The Saint lived when the emperor was Julian the Apostate (4th century) and the governor of Ancyra was Saturninus. He himself was a presbyter of the Church in Ancyra. He was accused of being a Christian and for this reason was brought before the governor. When he was questioned about his faith and confessed Christ, they suspended him on a cross, tore his sides, and threw him into prison. They brought him out of prison again and tortured him even more by binding him with irons, and thus they imprisoned him once more. After some days, they led the Saint to the emperor, who happened to be passing through Ancyra. After he too interrogated him and saw the steadfastness of his faith, he gave orders to the count Flaventios to cut his body into strips, which immediately began to be done in the presence of the emperor. And after they had flayed him, front and back, so that strips hung from his body, Basil, who possessed adamantine faith, himself tore off one strip and threw it into the face of Julian. Enraged, he immediately ordered that he be burned with red-hot spits and that they pierce his belly and back and every other part that was still intact. In this manner he delivered up his spirit to God.

Prologue in Sermons: March 22

Everyone Must Prepare for Death: Both Young and Old

March 22

(A Homily of Saint Chrysostom on the Judgment)

By Archpriest Victor Guryev

We, brethren, somehow think little about death, and only a few of us prepare for it. “We have now grown old, and we no longer have the strength to pray,” say the elderly. And the young say that they will still have time to repent; their time has not yet passed them by. Thus speak both the old and the young. But do they speak the truth?

Saint Chrysostom addresses both and says the following to them:

“Fathers and brethren, mothers and sisters! Do not say: ‘We have lived our life, and we no longer have the strength to make prostrations!’ O elderly people! You already know that soon the Lord will call you to His Judgment; therefore do not be slothful in preparing to give an answer. O young brothers and sisters, do not deceive yourselves with the words: ‘We are young, and therefore it is permitted for us now to drink, to eat, and to make merry. The time will come, and we too shall repent.’ O brethren, do not forget that just as dew dries up under the sun, so also your youth will soon fade and weaken if you give yourselves over to evil deeds. O man, when you sleep, do you hear that a thief has entered your house? So also you do not know when the Angel will come and take your soul, unpurified by repentance. Then you will begin to repent, but it will already be too late. Therefore, while we have time, brethren, let us adorn ourselves with virtues and fulfill the commandments of God, that we may become heirs of the Kingdom of God.”