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Daily Readings
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Sunday, 23rd July 2017 --- 16 Abib 1733
Readings for Third Sunday of Abib
Vespers
Vespers Psalm
From the Psalms of our teacher David the prophet.
May his blessings be with us all.
Psalms 52 : 9,8
Chapter 52
| 9 | I will praise You forever, Because You have done it; And in the presence of Your saints I will wait on Your name, for it is good.
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| 8 | But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God; I trust in the mercy of God forever and ever.
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Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Our Lord God, Savior, and King of us all, Jesus Christ, the Living Son of God to whom be glory forever.
Amen.
Vespers Gospel
Stand in the fear of God and listen to the Holy Gospel.
A reading from the Gospel according to our teacher Saint Luke the Evangelist.
May His Blessings be with us all.
Luke 14 : 7 - 15
Chapter 14
| 7 | So He told a parable to those who were invited, when He noted how they chose the best places, saying to them:
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| 8 | "When you are invited by anyone to a wedding feast, do not sit down in the best place, lest one more honorable than you be invited by him;
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| 9 | and he who invited you and him come and say to you, "Give place to this man,' and then you begin with shame to take the lowest place.
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| 10 | But when you are invited, go and sit down in the lowest place, so that when he who invited you comes he may say to you, "Friend, go up higher.' Then you will have glory in the presence of those who sit at the table with you.
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| 11 | For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."
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| 12 | Then He also said to him who invited Him, "When you give a dinner or a supper, do not ask your friends, your brothers, your relatives, nor rich neighbors, lest they also invite you back, and you be repaid.
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| 13 | But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind.
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| 14 | And you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you; for you shall be repaid at the resurrection of the just."
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| 15 | Now when one of those who sat at the table with Him heard these things, he said to Him, "Blessed is he who shall eat bread in the kingdom of God!"
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And Glory be to God forever.
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Matins
Matins Psalm
From the Psalms of our teacher David the prophet.
May his blessings be with us all.
Psalms 134 : 1 - 1
Chapter 134
| 1 | Behold, bless the LORD, All you servants of the LORD, Who by night stand in the house of the LORD!
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Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Our Lord God, Savior, and King of us all, Jesus Christ, the Living Son of God to whom be glory forever.
Amen.
Matins Gospel
Stand in the fear of God and listen to the Holy Gospel.
A reading from the Gospel according to our teacher Saint Luke the Evangelist.
May His Blessings be with us all.
Luke 24 : 1 - 12
Chapter 24
| 1 | Now on the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they, and certain other women with them, came to the tomb bringing the spices which they had prepared.
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| 2 | But they found the stone rolled away from the tomb.
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| 3 | Then they went in and did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.
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| 4 | And it happened, as they were greatly perplexed about this, that behold, two men stood by them in shining garments.
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| 5 | Then, as they were afraid and bowed their faces to the earth, they said to them, "Why do you seek the living among the dead?
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| 6 | He is not here, but is risen! Remember how He spoke to you when He was still in Galilee,
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| 7 | saying, "The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again."'
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| 8 | And they remembered His words.
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| 9 | Then they returned from the tomb and told all these things to the eleven and to all the rest.
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| 10 | It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the other women with them, who told these things to the apostles.
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| 11 | And their words seemed to them like idle tales, and they did not believe them.
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| 12 | But Peter arose and ran to the tomb; and stooping down, he saw the linen cloths lying by themselves; and he departed, marveling to himself at what had happened.
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And Glory be to God forever.
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Liturgy Gospel
Paulines 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 Timothy .
May his blessings be upon us.
Amen.
1 Timothy 6 : 3 - 16
Chapter 6
| 3 | If anyone teaches otherwise and does not consent to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which accords with godliness,
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| 4 | he is proud, knowing nothing, but is obsessed with disputes and arguments over words, from which come envy, strife, reviling, evil suspicions,
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| 5 | useless wranglings of men of corrupt minds and destitute of the truth, who suppose that godliness is a means of gain. From such withdraw yourself.
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| 6 | Now godliness with contentment is great gain.
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| 7 | For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.
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| 8 | And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content.
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| 9 | But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition.
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| 10 | For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.
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| 11 | But you, O man of God, flee these things and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, gentleness.
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| 12 | Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, to which you were also called and have confessed the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.
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| 13 | I urge you in the sight of God who gives life to all things, and before Christ Jesus who witnessed the good confession before Pontius Pilate,
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| 14 | that you keep this commandment without spot, blameless until our Lord Jesus Christ's appearing,
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| 15 | which He will manifest in His own time, He who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings and Lord of lords,
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| 16 | who alone has immortality, dwelling in unapproachable light, whom no man has seen or can see, to whom be honor and everlasting power. Amen.
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The grace of God the Father be with you all.
Amen.
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Catholic Epistle
A Reading from Epistle of St. James .
May his blessing be upon us.
Amen.
James 3 : 1 - 12
Chapter 3
| 1 | My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment.
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| 2 | For we all stumble in many things. If anyone does not stumble in word, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle the whole body.
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| 3 | Indeed, we put bits in horses' mouths that they may obey us, and we turn their whole body.
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| 4 | Look also at ships: although they are so large and are driven by fierce winds, they are turned by a very small rudder wherever the pilot desires.
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| 5 | Even so the tongue is a little member and boasts great things. See how great a forest a little fire kindles!
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| 6 | And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity. The tongue is so set among our members that it defiles the whole body, and sets on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire by hell.
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| 7 | For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and creature of the sea, is tamed and has been tamed by mankind.
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| 8 | But no man can tame the tongue. It is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.
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| 9 | With it we bless our God and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the similitude of God.
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| 10 | Out of the same mouth proceed blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be so.
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| 11 | Does a spring send forth fresh water and bitter from the same opening?
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| 12 | Can a fig tree, my brethren, bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Thus no spring yields both salt water and fresh.
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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.
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Acts of the Apostles
The Acts of our fathers the apostles, may their blessings be with us.
Acts 18 : 12 - 23
Chapter 18
| 12 | When Gallio was proconsul of Achaia, the Jews with one accord rose up against Paul and brought him to the judgment seat,
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| 13 | saying, "This fellow persuades men to worship God contrary to the law."
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| 14 | And when Paul was about to open his mouth, Gallio said to the Jews, "If it were a matter of wrongdoing or wicked crimes, O Jews, there would be reason why I should bear with you.
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| 15 | But if it is a question of words and names and your own law, look to it yourselves; for I do not want to be a judge of such matters."
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| 16 | And he drove them from the judgment seat.
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| 17 | Then all the Greeks took Sosthenes, the ruler of the synagogue, and beat him before the judgment seat. But Gallio took no notice of these things.
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| 18 | So Paul still remained a good while. Then he took leave of the brethren and sailed for Syria, and Priscilla and Aquila were with him. He had his hair cut off at Cenchrea, for he had taken a vow.
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| 19 | And he came to Ephesus, and left them there; but he himself entered the synagogue and reasoned with the Jews.
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| 20 | When they asked him to stay a longer time with them, he did not consent,
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| 21 | but took leave of them, saying, "I must by all means keep this coming feast in Jerusalem; but I will return again to you, God willing." And he sailed from Ephesus.
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| 22 | And when he had landed at Caesarea, and gone up and greeted the church, he went down to Antioch.
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| 23 | After he had spent some time there, he departed and went over the region of Galatia and Phrygia in order, strengthening all the disciples.
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The word of the Lord shall grow, multiply, be mighty, and be confirmed, in the holy Church of God.
Amen.
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Synaxarium
Day 16 of the Blessed Coptic Month of Abib, may God make it always received, year after year, with reassurance and tranquility, while our sins after forgiven by the tender mercies of our God my fathers and brothers.
Amen.
The Sixteenth Day of the Blessed Month of Abib
Departure of St.John, of the Golden Gospel
On this day, St. John, the owner
of the Golden Gospel, departed. This saint was born in the city of Rome.
His father was a rich man whose name was Atrofius (Trabius). His father
gave him a copy of the Gospel of St. John written in letters of gold and
bound with a golden cover and from this he was generally known as "John
of the Golden Gospel." John rejoiced exceedingly with this gift. A monk,
who was on his way to Jerusalem, came to visit his father's house. John
asked the monk to take him with him. The monk told him that he was going
to Jerusalem and not to the monastery. He also told him that he was young
and could not endure the rough life that the monks practiced. Nevertheless,
John was sincere in his intention, so he embarked on a ship, without telling
anyone, to the monastery of that monk. When the Abbot saw him, he refused
to accept him because of his young age, and explained to him that the monastic
life was difficult for one like him. John pleaded with him, and when the
Abbot saw his firm intention and strong conviction, he accepted him. He
shaved his head, and arrayed him in the holy garb of the monastic life.
John devoted himself to the ascetic life with many worships. The Abbot
often advised him saying, "Have pity on yourself, and do as the rest of
the brethren." But John used to answer, saying, "The power of God and your
prayers support me."
Seven years later, he saw in a
vision, who told him, "Rise, and go to your parents, that you might receive
their blessings before your departure from this world." This vision was
repeated on three consecutive nights, and he told the Abbot about it. The
Abbot told him that this was from God, and advised him to go to see his
parents. When he left the monastery, he found a poor man wearing ragged
garments, he took them from him, and gave him his own monk's garb. When
he arrived at his father's house, he lived for three years, near the door
of the house, in a small hut made of straw. He ate, during this time, the
fragments from his father's table which the servants threw to him. Whenever
his mother passed by him, she was disgusted by his smell and the appearance
of his clothes. When his departure drew near, the Lord made it known to
him that after three days he would depart from this world. St. John sent
and called his mother. Without telling her that he was her son, he made
her swear to bury him in that hut with whatever clothes he had on. Then,
he gave her the golden Gospel and said to her, "Whenever you read in it,
remember me." When his father returned to the house, she showed him the
Gospel, and immediately he recognized that it was the Gospel of his son
John. They came in haste to St. John and asked him about the Gospel and
about their son. He asked them to assure him that they would not bury him
except in the clothes that he had on, and then he told them that he was
their son. They wept with a great weeping. When the nobles of the city
of Rome heard that, they gathered to see this righteous monk. After three
days, he departed and his mother clothed him with the clothes that she
had prepared for his wedding day before he went to the monastery. Thereupon
she fell sick, and her husband remembered the oath that they had given.
Immediately he removed the clothes of his son and clothed him with the
old ragged cloth that he had on and buried him in the hut in which he had
lived. Many miracles were manifested from his body. Then they built a church
in his name and placed his body in it.
May his prayers with us. Amen.
Recovery of the Holy Relics of St.George,
the Great Martyr
On this day also, was the
arrival of the holy relics of St. George, the great martyr, to his church
in Old Cairo. A monk called Fr. Marcus, who was the hegumen and Abbot of
El-Qualamoun monastery, used to visit the villages and the cities every
year to visit the Christians. One night, while he was visiting someone
in one of the villages he used to visit, he saw St. George (Gawargios)
in a vision, who told him, "Take my body from the woman that will be coming
to you tomorrow, and place it in my church that is in Old Cairo." On the
next day, a woman came to him and told him that she had a box that her
father had brought before his death from the church of St. George in Palestine.
This fulfilled the vision, and he went with her and examined the box. Then,
he went to Pope Gabrial, 88th Pope, and told him about the vision and the
box. Immediately the Pope rose up and took with him the priests and the
deacons, and went to where the box was. After they took the blessings of
the holy relics and gave some money to the woman, they carried the box
in a venerable celebration. They brought it to the church of St. George
in Old Cairo where many signs were manifested from it.
May his prayers be with us and Glory be to God forever. Amen.
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Divine Psalm
Stand in the fear of God and listen to the Holy Gospel.
A reading from the Gospel according to our teacher Saint John the Evangelist.
May His Blessings be with us all. Amen.
From the Psalms of our teacher David the prophet, and the Good King.
May his blessings be with us all.
Psalms 145 : 17 - 18
Chapter 145
| 17 | The LORD is righteous in all His ways, Gracious in all His works.
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| 18 | The LORD is near to all who call upon Him, To all who call upon Him in truth.
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Hallelujah.
Divine Gospel
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Our Lord God, Savior, and King of us all, Jesus Christ, the Living Son of God to whom be glory forever.
Amen.
Luke 9 : 10 - 17
Chapter 9
| 10 | And the apostles, when they had returned, told Him all that they had done. Then He took them and went aside privately into a deserted place belonging to the city called Bethsaida.
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| 11 | But when the multitudes knew it, they followed Him; and He received them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed those who had need of healing.
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| 12 | When the day began to wear away, the twelve came and said to Him, "Send the multitude away, that they may go into the surrounding towns and country, and lodge and get provisions; for we are in a deserted place here."
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| 13 | But He said to them, "You give them something to eat." And they said, "We have no more than five loaves and two fish, unless we go and buy food for all these people."
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| 14 | For there were about five thousand men. Then He said to His disciples, "Make them sit down in groups of fifty."
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| 15 | And they did so, and made them all sit down.
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| 16 | Then He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, He blessed and broke them, and gave them to the disciples to set before the multitude.
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| 17 | So they all ate and were filled, and twelve baskets of the leftover fragments were taken up by them.
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And Glory be to God forever.
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Acknowledgement
Opening page