Thoughts on Today's Verse...
Worthy of respect! What a goal for our lives whether we are men or women! Don't you want your life to reflect the character of God because our faith expresses itself in a life of self-control and godliness? This work of the Spirit in our lives happens only as we dedicate ourselves to being what he is at work trying to accomplish in us.
My Prayer...
Father, please strengthen me through your Spirit so that I may gain better control of my passions, my speech, my example, and my habits. Help me put to death the things that would rob me of my spiritual passion and my influence for good to those who do not know Jesus. Make my faith stronger as I try to lovingly treat others and persevere in faith through difficult times. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
Day 1 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 First Day of the Blessed Month of Tute
Feast of El-Nayrouz (Beginning of the Blessed Coptic Year)
Today is the beginning of the blessed Coptic year. It is necessary to keep it a holy day with full purity and chastity. Let us start a new demeanor as St.Paul the Apostle says, "Therefeore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; Behold, all things become new. And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to Himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation." (2 Cor. 5:17-18) And Isaiah the Prophet says, "The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; He hath sent me to bind the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives. To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord." (Isaiah 61:1-2) And David the Prophet says, "Thou crownest the year with Thy goodness; and Thy paths drop fatness." (Psalms 65:11)We ask our God to keep us without sin and help us to act according to His will with the intercessions of the pure Saint Mary and all the Martyrs and Saints. Amen.
Departure of St.Bartholomew, the Apostle
On this day also was the departure of the holy Apostle Bartholomew, one of the twelve disciples. to this Apostle fell the lot that he was to go to the oasis (the great oasis, Al-Khargah). He and Peter went together. There he proceeded and preached to the people. He called them to the knowledge of God, after performing before them signs and wonders that amazed their minds. He had originally entered the city with Peter, who sold him as a slave. He worked in the vineyards of a rich man and whenever he trimmed the vine branches, they immediately bore fruit. It happened that the son of the governor of that city died, and Bartholomew the Apostle raised him up from the dead. Then all the people believed and he strengthened them in the knowledge of God. After that, our Lord Jesus Christ commanded him to go to the land of the Berbers and sent St.Andrew, his disciple, to help him.
The people of that city were exceedingly wicked, and would not accept any of the signs or wonders the disciples performed. Yet the two disciples continued to preach and teach them until they entered the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ. Then, they appointed priests over them, built churches for them, and after that they departed. St.BAtholomew left for the cities on the Mediterranean coast, where the inhabitants knew not God, and preached unto them and converted them to the knowledge of God and the belief in our Lord Jesus Christ. He taught them to perform the works which were worthy of Christianity and commanded them to be pure and chaste. When King Agrippa heard of him, he was exceedingly enraged and commanded his servants to put him in a hair sack, to fill the sack with sand, and cast it into the sea. And so were consumated the struggle and martyrdom of St.Bartholomew.
May his blessings and prayers be with us all. Amen.
Departure of St.Melyos, Pope of Alexandria, the Third
Also on this day in the year 98 A.D., departed St.Melyos, the third Pope of Alexandria after St.Mark. This Saint was appointed in the fifteenth year of the reign of Domitian, the son of Vespian, Emperor of Rome, fifty-five years after the Ascension of our Lord Jesus Christ. He pastured and guarded the flock twelve years and departed in peace.
May his blessings and prayers be with us all. Amen.
Job and His Washing
On this day also Job, the righteous man, was washed in water and was healed of all his sickness. The people were then in the habit of dipping themselves in water whereby they were blessed for the rest of the year.
May his blessings be upon 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 30 : 4,10
Chapter 30
| 4 | Sing praise to the LORD, you saints of His, And give thanks at the remembrance of His holy name. |
| 10 | Hear, O LORD, and have mercy on me; LORD, be my helper!" |
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 Matthew the Evangelist.
May His Blessings be with us all.
Matthew 11 : 11 - 13
Chapter 11
| 11 | "Assuredly, I say to you, among those born of women there has not risen one greater than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. |
| 12 | And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force. |
| 13 | For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John. |
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 31 : 1,19
Chapter 31
| 1 | In You, O LORD, I put my trust; Let me never be ashamed; Deliver me in Your righteousness. |
| 19 | Oh, how great is Your goodness, Which You have laid up for those who fear You, Which You have prepared for those who trust in You In the presence of the sons of men! |
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 Matthew the Evangelist.
May His Blessings be with us all.
Matthew 21 : 23 - 27
Chapter 21
| 23 | Now when He came into the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people confronted Him as He was teaching, and said, "By what authority are You doing these things? And who gave You this authority?" |
| 24 | But Jesus answered and said to them, "I also will ask you one thing, which if you tell Me, I likewise will tell you by what authority I do these things: |
| 25 | The baptism of John--where was it from? From heaven or from men?" And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "If we say, "From heaven,' He will say to us, "Why then did you not believe him?' |
| 26 | But if we say, "From men,' we fear the multitude, for all count John as a prophet." |
| 27 | So they answered Jesus and said, "We do not know." And He said to them, "Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things. |
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 Timothy .
May his blessings be upon us.
Amen.
1 Timothy 1 : 12 - 19
Chapter 1
| 12 | And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord who has enabled me, because He counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry, |
| 13 | although I was formerly a blasphemer, a persecutor, and an insolent man; but I obtained mercy because I did it ignorantly in unbelief. |
| 14 | And the grace of our Lord was exceedingly abundant, with faith and love which are in Christ Jesus. |
| 15 | This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief. |
| 16 | However, for this reason I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might show all longsuffering, as a pattern to those who are going to believe on Him for everlasting life. |
| 17 | Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, to God who alone is wise, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen. |
| 18 | This charge I commit to you, son Timothy, according to the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you may wage the good warfare, |
| 19 | having faith and a good conscience, which some having rejected, concerning the faith have suffered shipwreck, |
The grace of God the Father be with you all.
Amen.
Catholic Epistle
A Reading from Epistle of St. James .
May his blessing be upon us.
Amen.
James 1 : 22 - 27
Chapter 1
| 22 | But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. |
| 23 | For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; |
| 24 | for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. |
| 25 | But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does. |
| 26 | If anyone among you thinks he is religious, and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this one's religion is useless. |
| 27 | Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world. |
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 13 : 25 - 33
Chapter 13
| 25 | And as John was finishing his course, he said, "Who do you think I am? I am not He. But behold, there comes One after me, the sandals of whose feet I am not worthy to loose.' |
| 26 | "Men and brethren, sons of the family of Abraham, and those among you who fear God, to you the word of this salvation has been sent. |
| 27 | For those who dwell in Jerusalem, and their rulers, because they did not know Him, nor even the voices of the Prophets which are read every Sabbath, have fulfilled them in condemning Him. |
| 28 | And though they found no cause for death in Him, they asked Pilate that He should be put to death. |
| 29 | Now when they had fulfilled all that was written concerning Him, they took Him down from the tree and laid Him in a tomb. |
| 30 | But God raised Him from the dead. |
| 31 | He was seen for many days by those who came up with Him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are His witnesses to the people. |
| 32 | And we declare to you glad tidings--that promise which was made to the fathers. |
| 33 | God has fulfilled this for us their children, in that He has raised up Jesus. As it is also written in the second Psalm: "You are My Son, Today I have begotten You.' |
The word of the Lord shall grow, multiply, be mighty, and be confirmed, in the holy Church of God.
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 31 : 26,19
Chapter 31
| 19 | Oh, how great is Your goodness, Which You have laid up for those who fear You, Which You have prepared for those who trust in You In the presence of the sons of men! |
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 7 : 28 - 36
Chapter 7
| 28 | For I say to you, among those born of women there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he." |
| 29 | And when all the people heard Him, even the tax collectors justified God, having been baptized with the baptism of John. |
| 30 | But the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the will of God for themselves, not having been baptized by him. |
| 31 | And the Lord said, "To what then shall I liken the men of this generation, and what are they like? |
| 32 | They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another, saying: "We played the flute for you, And you did not dance; We mourned to you, And you did not weep.' |
| 33 | For John the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinking wine, and you say, "He has a demon.' |
| 34 | The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, "Look, a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!' |
| 35 | But wisdom is justified by all her children." |
| 36 | Then one of the Pharisees asked Him to eat with him. And He went to the Pharisee's house, and sat down to eat. |
And Glory be to God forever.
Finally, certain angels, of whom the chief is he who is called the devil, became by free will outcasts from the Lord God. Yet although they fled from His goodness, wherein they had been blessed, they could not flee from His judgment, by which they were made most wretched. Others, however, by the same free will stood fast in the truth, and merited the knowledge of that most certain truththat they should never fall. For if from the Holy Scriptures we have been able to attain the knowledge that none of the holy angels shall fall evermore, how much more have they themselves attained this knowledgeby the truth more sublimely revealed to them!