Day 5 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 Fifth Day of the Blessed Month of Abib
Martyrdom of Saints Peter and Paul, the Apostles
On this day, the two great saints Peter and Paul, were martyred. Peter was from Bethsaida, and he was a fisherman. The Lord chose him on the second day of His baptism after He chose Andrew his brother. He had fervent faith and strong zeal. When the Lord asked His disciples: "Who do men say that I am?" So they answered, "Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets." ... Simon Peter answered and said, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." (Mat. 16:13-20) After he received the grace of the Holy Spirit, he went around in the world preaching of the crucified Christ, and he converted many to the faith. God wrought great and innumerable signs and wonders by his hands. He wrote two catholic Epistles to the believers. When he came to the city of Rome, he found there St. Paul the Apostle. Through their preaching, most of the people of Rome believed, so Nero seized Peter and commanded to crucify him. Peter asked them to crucify him head downwards, and he delivered up his soul into the hand of the Lord. As of St. Paul the Apostle, he was born in Tarsus two years before the advent of the Savior. He was a Jew, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee. He was well learned in the Law of the Torah, and he was jealous for it. He persecuted the Christians. When they stoned St. Stephen, Paul was guarding the clothes of those who were stoning him. He took from Caiaphas, the high priest, letters to the synagogues of Damascus, to bind the Christians and bring them to Jerusalem. As he journeyed, he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven. Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?" And he said, "Who are You, Lord?" And the Lord said, "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads."
Then He ordered him to go to Ananias in Damascus, who baptized him, and he received his sight at once. He was filled by the grace of the Comforter, and he proclaimed boldly the Faith. He went around in the world preaching of the crucified Christ. He suffered much beatings, imprisonment, and was bound with fetters, some of which are mentioned in the book of the Acts of the Apostles and in his Epistles. He went to Rome and proclaimed the Faith there and many believed by his hands. He wrote for them the Epistle to the Romans which was the first of his fourteen Epistles. Finally, Nero seized him, tortured him severely and ordered his head cut off. While St. Paul was passing along with the executioner, he met a damsel who was a kinswoman of the Emperor Nero, and who had believed through him. She walked along with St. Paul, weeping, to where they carried out the sentence. He comforted her and asked her for her veil. He wrapped his head with the veil, and asked her to return back. The executioner cut off his head and left it wrapped in the veil of the young girl, and that was in the year 67 A.D. The young girl met the executioner on his way back to the Emperor, and asked him about Paul and he replied, "He is lying where I left him and his head is wrapped in your veil." She told him, "You are lying, for he and Peter had just passed by me, they were arrayed in the apparel of kings, and had crowns decorated with jewels on their heads, and they gave me my veil, and here it is." She showed it to the executioner, and to those who were with him. They marvelled, and believed on the Lord Christ. God wrought by the hands of Peter and Paul many great signs and wonders, that they even carried the sick out into the streets ... that as Peter came by ... his shadow might fall on them ... and they were all healed. (Acts 5:15) The handkerchiefs or aprons were brought from Paul's body to the sick, and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out of them. (Acts 19:12)
May their 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 68 : 11,35
Chapter 68
| 11 | The Lord gave the word; Great was the company of those who proclaimed it: |
| 35 | O God, You are more awesome than Your holy places. The God of Israel is He who gives strength and power to His people. Blessed be God! |
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 3 : 7 - 21
Chapter 3
| 7 | But Jesus withdrew with His disciples to the sea. And a great multitude from Galilee followed Him, and from Judea |
| 8 | and Jerusalem and Idumea and beyond the Jordan; and those from Tyre and Sidon, a great multitude, when they heard how many things He was doing, came to Him. |
| 9 | So He told His disciples that a small boat should be kept ready for Him because of the multitude, lest they should crush Him. |
| 10 | For He healed many, so that as many as had afflictions pressed about Him to touch Him. |
| 11 | And the unclean spirits, whenever they saw Him, fell down before Him and cried out, saying, "You are the Son of God." |
| 12 | But He sternly warned them that they should not make Him known. |
| 13 | And He went up on the mountain and called to Him those He Himself wanted. And they came to Him. |
| 14 | Then He appointed twelve, that they might be with Him and that He might send them out to preach, |
| 15 | and to have power to heal sicknesses and to cast out demons: |
| 16 | Simon, to whom He gave the name Peter; |
| 17 | James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of James, to whom He gave the name Boanerges, that is, "Sons of Thunder"; |
| 18 | Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, Simon the Cananite; |
| 19 | and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him. And they went into a house. |
| 20 | Then the multitude came together again, so that they could not so much as eat bread. |
| 21 | But when His own people heard about this, they went out to lay hold of Him, for they said, "He is out of His mind." |
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 145 : 10 - 12
Chapter 145
| 10 | All Your works shall praise You, O LORD, And Your saints shall bless You. |
| 11 | They shall speak of the glory of Your kingdom, And talk of Your power, |
| 12 | To make known to the sons of men His mighty acts, And the glorious majesty of His kingdom. |
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 6 : 12 - 23
Chapter 6
| 12 | Now it came to pass in those days that He went out to the mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God. |
| 13 | And when it was day, He called His disciples to Himself; and from them He chose twelve whom He also named apostles: |
| 14 | Simon, whom He also named Peter, and Andrew his brother; James and John; Philip and Bartholomew; |
| 15 | Matthew and Thomas; James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon called the Zealot; |
| 16 | Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot who also became a traitor. |
| 17 | And He came down with them and stood on a level place with a crowd of His disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea and Jerusalem, and from the seacoast of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear Him and be healed of their diseases, |
| 18 | as well as those who were tormented with unclean spirits. And they were healed. |
| 19 | And the whole multitude sought to touch Him, for power went out from Him and healed them all. |
| 20 | Then He lifted up His eyes toward His disciples, and said: "Blessed are you poor, For yours is the kingdom of God. |
| 21 | Blessed are you who hunger now, For you shall be filled. Blessed are you who weep now, For you shall laugh. |
| 22 | Blessed are you when men hate you, And when they exclude you, And revile you, and cast out your name as evil, For the Son of Man's sake. |
| 23 | Rejoice in that day and leap for joy! For indeed your reward is great in heaven, For in like manner their fathers did to the prophets. |
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 10 : 4 - 18
Chapter 10
| 4 | For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes. |
| 5 | For Moses writes about the righteousness which is of the law, "The man who does those things shall live by them." |
| 6 | But the righteousness of faith speaks in this way, "Do not say in your heart, "Who will ascend into heaven?"' (that is, to bring Christ down from above) |
| 7 | or, Who will descend into the abyss?"' (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). |
| 8 | But what does it say? "The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart" (that is, the word of faith which we preach): |
| 9 | that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. |
| 10 | For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. |
| 11 | For the Scripture says, "Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame." |
| 12 | For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. |
| 13 | For "whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved." |
| 14 | How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? |
| 15 | And how shall they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: "How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, Who bring glad tidings of good things!" |
| 16 | But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, "LORD, who has believed our report?" |
| 17 | So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. |
| 18 | But I say, have they not heard? Yes indeed: "Their sound has gone out to all the earth, And their words to the ends of the world." |
The grace of God the Father be with you all.
Amen.
Catholic Epistle
A Reading from Epistle 2 of St. Peter .
May his blessing be upon us.
Amen.
2 Peter 1 : 12 - 21
Chapter 1
| 12 | For this reason I will not be negligent to remind you always of these things, though you know and are established in the present truth. |
| 13 | Yes, I think it is right, as long as I am in this tent, to stir you up by reminding you, |
| 14 | knowing that shortly I must put off my tent, just as our Lord Jesus Christ showed me. |
| 15 | Moreover I will be careful to ensure that you always have a reminder of these things after my decease. |
| 16 | For we did not follow cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of His majesty. |
| 17 | For He received from God the Father honor and glory when such a voice came to Him from the Excellent Glory: "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." |
| 18 | And we heard this voice which came from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain. |
| 19 | And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts; |
| 20 | knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, |
| 21 | for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. |
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 3 : 1 - 16
Chapter 3
| 1 | Now Peter and John went up together to the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour. |
| 2 | And a certain man lame from his mother's womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms from those who entered the temple; |
| 3 | who, seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, asked for alms. |
| 4 | And fixing his eyes on him, with John, Peter said, "Look at us." |
| 5 | So he gave them his attention, expecting to receive something from them. |
| 6 | Then Peter said, "Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk." |
| 7 | And he took him by the right hand and lifted him up, and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength. |
| 8 | So he, leaping up, stood and walked and entered the temple with them--walking, leaping, and praising God. |
| 9 | And all the people saw him walking and praising God. |
| 10 | Then they knew that it was he who sat begging alms at the Beautiful Gate of the temple; and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him. |
| 11 | Now as the lame man who was healed held on to Peter and John, all the people ran together to them in the porch which is called Solomon's, greatly amazed. |
| 12 | So when Peter saw it, he responded to the people: "Men of Israel, why do you marvel at this? Or why look so intently at us, as though by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk? |
| 13 | The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers, glorified His Servant Jesus, whom you delivered up and denied in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let Him go. |
| 14 | But you denied the Holy One and the Just, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you, |
| 15 | and killed the Prince of life, whom God raised from the dead, of which we are witnesses. |
| 16 | And His name, through faith in His name, has made this man strong, whom you see and know. Yes, the faith which comes through Him has given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all. |
The word of the Lord shall grow, multiply, be mighty, and be confirmed, in the holy Church of God.
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 19 : 1,4
Chapter 19
| 1 | The heavens declare the glory of God; And the firmament shows His handiwork. |
| 4 | Their line has gone out through all the earth, And their words to the end of the world. In them He has set a tabernacle for the sun, |
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.
Matthew 10 : 1 - 15
Chapter 10
| 1 | And when He had called His twelve disciples to Him, He gave them power over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease. |
| 2 | Now the names of the twelve apostles are these: first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; |
| 3 | Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus; |
| 4 | Simon the Cananite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him. |
| 5 | These twelve Jesus sent out and commanded them, saying: "Do not go into the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter a city of the Samaritans. |
| 6 | But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. |
| 7 | And as you go, preach, saying, "The kingdom of heaven is at hand.' |
| 8 | Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give. |
| 9 | Provide neither gold nor silver nor copper in your money belts, |
| 10 | nor bag for your journey, nor two tunics, nor sandals, nor staffs; for a worker is worthy of his food. |
| 11 | "Now whatever city or town you enter, inquire who in it is worthy, and stay there till you go out. |
| 12 | And when you go into a household, greet it. |
| 13 | If the household is worthy, let your peace come upon it. But if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you. |
| 14 | And whoever will not receive you nor hear your words, when you depart from that house or city, shake off the dust from your feet. |
| 15 | Assuredly, I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city! |
And Glory be to God forever.