تعالوا النهارده نحول الايه دي لصلاه من قلوبنا كلنا لأجل المضطهدين في مناطق كثيره في مصر و سوريا و الشرق الأوسط
تعالوا نقول لربنا بصلوات من ألقلب
يارب ارفع يدك يارب لا تنسي المساكين
يارب أعمل من احل اسمك و من اجل اولادك
Copt4G
Day 4 of the Blessed Coptic Month of Bashans, 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 Fourth Day of the Blessed Month of Bashans
Departure of Pope John (Youhanna) the First, the 29th Patriarch of the See of St.Mark
On this day of the year 221 A.M. (April 29th., 505 A.D.), Pope John the first, the twenty ninth Pope of Alexandria, departed. This father was born in Alexandria to Christian parents, and was attracted since his youth to the monastic life. He became a monk in the wilderness of St.Macarius, and he was chosen Patriarch after the departure of his predecessor Pope Athanasius the second. He did not accept but was taken by force by the bishops, priests, and lay leaders and ordained him on the first of Babah of the year 213 A.M. (September 29th., 496 A.D.). After his enthronement, he gave special attention to education and preaching for the edification and the steadfastness of the faithful in the Orthodox faith. He was the first Patriarch to be chosen from among the monks. The Roman Emperor in Constantinople, at that time, was the righteous Emperor Zenon. For this reason the hand of the Patriarch was strengthened in spreading the Orthodox faith in all of Egypt. The Emperor sent all the needs of the monasteries from wheat, oil, wine and money to renew the buildings of their cells and to restore their churches. All the days of this pope were days of peace and tranquility. When he finished his good course, he became sick for a short time, and then departed in peace, after he had been on the throne of St. Mark for eight years and seven month.
May his prayers be with us. Amen.
Departure of Pope Yoannis the Fifth, the 72nd Patriarch
On this day also of the year 882 A.M. (April 29th., 1166 A.D.), Pope Yoannis the fifth, the 72nd. Patriarch of Alexandria, departed. He was John the monk from the monastery of Abu-Yehnis (John). He was enthroned on the 2nd. of El-Nasi (Intercalary days), year 863 A.M. (August 25th., 1147 A.D.) He was a holy, righteous, and pure man. In his days, the Copts (El-Nasarah - Christians) were persecuted by the Moslem governors (Emams) and Khalifas, and many were killed or sold as slaves. A monk named "Bashnouna" from the monastery of St. Macarius was martyred on the 24th. of Bashons year 880 A.M. (1164 A.D.) and his body was burned for he refused to change his faith. The bones of this Saint were preserved in the church of Abu-Serga. They also destroyed the church of St. Mina in Haret El-Rome, and the church of El-Zohari and many other churches in different parts of Cairo after they plundered what was in them. But God permitted these churches to be rebuilt by the Coptic layman Abu El-Fakher Salib Ebn-Mikhail. The Patriarch was arrested during the days of El-Aadel Ebn El-Selar and was imprisoned because he refused to ordain a Metropolitan for Ethiopia instead of its Metropolitan who was still alive. The metropolitan name was Anba Michael El-Atfihi who was ordained by Pope Macarius. The Pope was released two weeks later because of the death of El-Aadel. During the days of this Patriarch, the words "Life-giving" was added to the confession which became: "This is the life-giving Flesh that Thine Only-Begotten Son, Our Lord, God and Savior, Jesus Christ, took from our Lady ..." He departed after he had been on the throne of St. Mark for 18 years, 8 month, and 4 days.
May his prayers be with us 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 70 : 1 - 2
Chapter 70
| 1 | Make haste, O God, to deliver me! Make haste to help me, O LORD! |
| 2 | Let them be ashamed and confounded Who seek my life; Let them be turned back and confused Who desire my hurt. |
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 8 : 10 - 15
Chapter 8
| 10 | immediately got into the boat with His disciples, and came to the region of Dalmanutha. |
| 11 | Then the Pharisees came out and began to dispute with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, testing Him. |
| 12 | But He sighed deeply in His spirit, and said, "Why does this generation seek a sign? Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this generation." |
| 13 | And He left them, and getting into the boat again, departed to the other side. |
| 14 | Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, and they did not have more than one loaf with them in the boat. |
| 15 | Then He charged them, saying, "Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod." |
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 : 1,5
Chapter 70
| 1 | Make haste, O God, to deliver me! Make haste to help me, O LORD! |
| 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 4 : 26 - 29
Chapter 4
| 26 | And He said, "The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground, |
| 27 | and should sleep by night and rise by day, and the seed should sprout and grow, he himself does not know how. |
| 28 | For the earth yields crops by itself: first the blade, then the head, after that the full grain in the head. |
| 29 | But when the grain ripens, immediately he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come." |
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 Romans .
May his blessings be upon us.
Amen.
Romans 3 : 37,31
Chapter 3
| 31 | Do we then make void the law through faith? Certainly not! On the contrary, we establish the law. |
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 4 : 1 - 6
Chapter 4
| 1 | Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world. |
| 2 | By this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, |
| 3 | and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world. |
| 4 | You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. |
| 5 | They are of the world. Therefore they speak as of the world, and the world hears them. |
| 6 | We are of God. He who knows God hears us; he who is not of God does not hear us. By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error. |
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 5 : 34 - 36
Chapter 5
| 34 | Then one in the council stood up, a Pharisee named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law held in respect by all the people, and commanded them to put the apostles outside for a little while. |
| 35 | And he said to them: "Men of Israel, take heed to yourselves what you intend to do regarding these men. |
| 36 | For some time ago Theudas rose up, claiming to be somebody. A number of men, about four hundred, joined him. He was slain, and all who obeyed him were scattered and came to nothing. |
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 24 : 1,4
Chapter 24
| 1 | The earth is the LORD's, and all its fullness, The world and those who dwell therein. |
| 4 | He who has clean hands and a pure heart, Who has not lifted up his soul to an idol, Nor sworn deceitfully. |
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.
John 10 : 34 - 38
Chapter 10
| 34 | Jesus answered them, "Is it not written in your law, "I said, "You are gods"'? |
| 35 | If He called them gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture cannot be broken), |
| 36 | do you say of Him whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, "You are blaspheming,' because I said, "I am the Son of God'? |
| 37 | If I do not do the works of My Father, do not believe Me; |
| 38 | but if I do, though you do not believe Me, believe the works, that you may know and believe that the Father is in Me, and I in Him." |
And Glory be to God forever.
In your minds you must be the same as Christ Jesus:
His state was divine,
yet he did not cling
to his equality with God
but emptied himself.
—Philippians 2:5-7
Could this first stanza from one of the earliest hymns of the church be applied not only to Jesus, but also to the entire Trinity? I believe so. The Three all live as an eternal and generous self-emptying, the Greek word being kenosis.
The Franciscan philosopher/theologian Bonaventure (1221–1274) described the Trinity as a fountain fullness of Love. Picture three buckets on a moving waterwheel. Each bucket fills and empties out, then swings back to be filled again. The Father empties into the Son, nothing held back. The Son empties into the Spirit, nothing held back. The Spirit empties into the Father, nothing held back. The reason they can empty themselves out is they know they will be filled again. They know that the center of the universe is infinite love.
But if you don’t believe that infinite love is the center of the universe, you live in a scarcity model where there’s never enough—food, money, security, health care, mercy—to go around. You can’t risk letting go because you’re not sure you’ll be refilled. If you’re protecting yourself, if you’re securing your own image and identity, then you’re still holding on. Your ego remains full of itself, which is the opposite of kenosis. This is the nature of almost all human institutions and systems created by the egoic mind.
Interestingly, the names, roles, and energies of each member of the Trinity are interchangeable. It’s not that important to typecast the Father as the only infinite one, the Son as the only immanent one, or the Spirit as the only intimate one. All is absolutely given to the other and let go of; but for the sake of human understanding, it’s helpful to identify three persons with different functions and gifts.
When all three of those divine qualities start drawing you, and when you’re at home with Infinity, Immanence, and Intimacy—all Three—you’re living inside Trinitarian spirituality.
I have often noticed these divine qualities in people who are marginalized, oppressed, called “poor,” or “mentally disabled” more than in many others. They have to trust love. They need communion. They know that only the vulnerable people understand them. They want to be in mutual relationship. They find little ways to serve others. They know that only a suffering God can save them.
You can take such a pattern as a sign that one lives in God. People filled with the flow will always move away from any need to protect their own power and will be drawn to solidarity with the powerless, the edge, the bottom, the plain, and the simple. They have all the power they need—and it always overflows, and like water seeks the lowest crevices to fill. No wonder Christians begin their spiritual journey by being dipped into water.
References:
Adapted from Richard Rohr, Trinity: The Soul of Creation (Center for Action and Contemplation: 2017), MP4 download; and
Richard Rohr with Mike Morrell, The Divine Dance: The Trinity and Your Transformation (Whitaker House: 2016), 90-91.