My soul will boast in the LORD; let the afflicted hear and rejoice.
Day 23 of the Blessed Coptic Month of Tute, 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 Twenty-Third Day of the Blessed Month of Tute
Martyrdom of Saints Onanius and Andrews
On this day was the martyrdom of the righteous Saints Onanius and Andrews, his brother. These saints were the sons of elders of the city of Led, and from their youth they had agreed on becoming monks. They went to the holy and honorable Abba Macarius, and they became his disciples and dwelt with him for three years, during which they fasted and prayed continually with love and humility, and their report was heard everywhere. They chose Onanius to be a bishop and Andrews to be a priest. They shepherded the flock of Christ with the best care. The conquered their souls and bodies. Julian, the infidel emperor, heard about them, and he had them brought to him. He commanded them to deny there faith in the Lord Christ, and to adopt paganism. When they would not obey his commands, he tortured them severly and they yielded up their spirits in the hand of the Lord Christ to Him is the glory. Each received three crowns: one for monastic life, strenous fighting and asceticism; one for priesthood and guarding of flock against the devilish wolves; and a third one for martyrdom and the shedding of blood for the Christian faith.
May their prayers and blessings be with us all. Amen.
Commemoration of the Martyrdom of St.Takla
On this day also is the commemoration of the holy martyr, St.Takla, the bride of Christ.
May her prayers be for us all. Amen.
Re-Opening of St.Mary's Church in Haret El-Rum
On this day also of the year 1029, of the martyrs, the Church of the Virgin in Haret El-Rum in Cairo was opened after having been closed for eleven years.
May her prayers and blessings be with us all, and Glory be to God forever. Amen.
Vespers
Vespers Psalm
From the Psalms of our teacher David the prophet.
May his blessings be with us all.
Psalms 64 : 10
Chapter 64
| 10 | The righteous shall be glad in the LORD, and trust in Him. And all the upright in heart shall glory. |
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 Mark the Evangelist.
May His Blessings be with us all.
Mark 4 : 21 - 25
Chapter 4
| 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." |
And Glory be to God forever.
Matins
Matins Psalm
From the Psalms of our teacher David the prophet.
May his blessings be with us all.
Psalms 70 : 5
Chapter 70
| 5 | But I am poor and needy; Make haste to me, O God! You are my help and my deliverer; O LORD, do not delay. |
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 Mark the Evangelist.
May His Blessings be with us all.
Mark 3 : 22 - 27
Chapter 3
| 22 | And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, "He has Beelzebub," and, "By the ruler of the demons He casts out demons." |
| 23 | So He called them to Himself and said to them in parables: "How can Satan cast out Satan? |
| 24 | If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. |
| 25 | And if a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. |
| 26 | And if Satan has risen up against himself, and is divided, he cannot stand, but has an end. |
| 27 | No one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man. And then he will plunder his house. |
And Glory be to God forever.
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 the Philippians .
May his blessings be upon us.
Amen.
Philippians 1 : 1 - 11
Chapter 1
| 1 | Paul and Timothy, bondservants of Jesus Christ, To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, with the bishops and deacons: |
| 2 | Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. |
| 3 | I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, |
| 4 | always in every prayer of mine making request for you all with joy, |
| 5 | for your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now, |
| 6 | being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ; |
| 7 | just as it is right for me to think this of you all, because I have you in my heart, inasmuch as both in my chains and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel, you all are partakers with me of grace. |
| 8 | For God is my witness, how greatly I long for you all with the affection of Jesus Christ. |
| 9 | And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, |
| 10 | that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, |
| 11 | being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God. |
The grace of God the Father be with you all.
Amen.
Catholic Epistle
A Reading from Epistle 1 of St. John .
May his blessing be upon us.
Amen.
1 John 2 : 7 - 11
Chapter 2
| 7 | Brethren, I write no new commandment to you, but an old commandment which you have had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which you heard from the beginning. |
| 8 | Again, a new commandment I write to you, which thing is true in Him and in you, because the darkness is passing away, and the true light is already shining. |
| 9 | He who says he is in the light, and hates his brother, is in darkness until now. |
| 10 | He who loves his brother abides in the light, and there is no cause for stumbling in him. |
| 11 | But he who hates his brother is in darkness and walks in darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes. |
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.
Acts 19 : 11 - 17
Chapter 19
| 11 | Now God worked unusual miracles by the hands of Paul, |
| 12 | so that even handkerchiefs or aprons were brought from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out of them. |
| 13 | Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists took it upon themselves to call the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, "We exorcise you by the Jesus whom Paul preaches." |
| 14 | Also there were seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, who did so. |
| 15 | And the evil spirit answered and said, "Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?" |
| 16 | Then the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, overpowered them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded. |
| 17 | This became known both to all Jews and Greeks dwelling in Ephesus; and fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified. |
The word of the Lord shall grow, multiply, be mighty, and be confirmed, in the holy Church of God.
Amen.
Synaxarium
Day 23 of the Blessed Coptic Month of Tute, 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 Twenty-Third Day of the Blessed Month of Tute
Martyrdom of Saints Onanius and Andrews
On this day was the martyrdom of the righteous Saints Onanius and Andrews, his brother. These saints were the sons of elders of the city of Led, and from their youth they had agreed on becoming monks. They went to the holy and honorable Abba Macarius, and they became his disciples and dwelt with him for three years, during which they fasted and prayed continually with love and humility, and their report was heard everywhere. They chose Onanius to be a bishop and Andrews to be a priest. They shepherded the flock of Christ with the best care. The conquered their souls and bodies. Julian, the infidel emperor, heard about them, and he had them brought to him. He commanded them to deny there faith in the Lord Christ, and to adopt paganism. When they would not obey his commands, he tortured them severly and they yielded up their spirits in the hand of the Lord Christ to Him is the glory. Each received three crowns: one for monastic life, strenous fighting and asceticism; one for priesthood and guarding of flock against the devilish wolves; and a third one for martyrdom and the shedding of blood for the Christian faith.
May their prayers and blessings be with us all. Amen.
Commemoration of the Martyrdom of St.Takla
On this day also is the commemoration of the holy martyr, St.Takla, the bride of Christ.
May her prayers be for us all. Amen.
Re-Opening of St.Mary's Church in Haret El-Rum
On this day also of the year 1029, of the martyrs, the Church of the Virgin in Haret El-Rum in Cairo was opened after having been closed for eleven years.
May her prayers and blessings be with us all, and Glory be to God forever. Amen.
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 16 : 10 - 11
Chapter 16
| 10 | For You will not leave my soul in Sheol, Nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption. |
| 11 | You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore. |
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.
Mark 3 : 28 - 35
Chapter 3
| 28 | "Assuredly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they may utter; |
| 29 | but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation"-- |
| 30 | because they said, "He has an unclean spirit." |
| 31 | Then His brothers and His mother came, and standing outside they sent to Him, calling Him. |
| 32 | And a multitude was sitting around Him; and they said to Him, "Look, Your mother and Your brothers are outside seeking You." |
| 33 | But He answered them, saying, "Who is My mother, or My brothers?" |
| 34 | And He looked around in a circle at those who sat about Him, and said, "Here are My mother and My brothers! |
| 35 | For whoever does the will of God is My brother and My sister and mother." |
And Glory be to God forever.
Nor was that, indeed, a small grace by which was demonstrated even the power of free will, because man was so assisted that without this assistance he could not continue in good, but could forsake this assistance if he would. But this latter grace is by so much the greater, that it is too little for a man by its means to regain his lost freedom; it is too little, finally, not to be able without it either to apprehend the good or to continue in good if he will, unless he is also made to will.