So many things about our life are uncertain. This one thing, however, is sure: no matter where, when, or how long, God will be there and will be with us and for us.
Day 12 of the Blessed Coptic Month of Baounah, 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 Twelfth Day of the Blessed Month of Baounah
Commemoration of Archangel Michael
On this day, the church celebrates the commemoration of the angel Michael, the Archangel, the intercessor of the human race. The one who appeared to Joshua the son of Nun, encouraged him, and told him, "Nay, but as captain of the hosts of the Lord am I now come." He made the city of Jericho to fall into his hands, and he stopped the sun for him.
May his intercession be with us. Amen.
Departure of St.Justus, the Sixth Pope of the See of St.Mark
On this day also, of the year 135 A.D., St. Justus, the Sixth Pope of the See of St. Mark, departed. This saint was an honorable and learned man before his ordination. He was baptized by St. Mark the Apostle, along with his father, his mother and others. St. Anianus, the second pope, ordained him a deacon, then a priest, and appointed him to preach, and teach the people. He was chosen for the papacy to succeed Pope Primus. He shepherded his people with the best of care for ten years. He departed at a pleasing good old age.
May his prayer be with us. Amen.
Departure of St.Kyrillos the Second, the 67th Pope of Alexandria
On this day also, the twelfth of Baounah, 808 A.M. (June 6th, 1092 A.D.), the great Pope, St.Kyrillos the Second, the 67th Pope of Alexandria, departed. He became a monk in Sawma'et (Cell) of Singar. Because of his knowledge and righteousness, they chose him a Patriarch, a successor to St. Christodolus, the 66th Pope. His enthronement was on 22nd of Baramhat, 794 A.M. (March 18th, 1078 A.D.). Some of the bishops disobeyed the Pope and decided to depose him. They assembled a council from forty-seven bishops for this purpose. When the Fatimid governor knew of this dissension, he called the bishops to his orchard. He harshly talked to them with words God had put in his mouth. The overseer of the orchard (Yaseeb) sided with those who opposed the Pope. Peter, the pope's disciple, reproved him and an exchange of words took place between them while the Pope was coming out of the meeting. The Pope told the overseer, "If the Governor has authority, Christ has authority over the heaven and earth." The Pope dismounted his horse, and made a matonia before him, which was on Saturday the 23rd of Misra, 802 A.M. On the next Saturday, the governor became enraged with the overseer of his orchard. He went there and ordered the beheading of the overseer. That was in the same place where the Pope had made the matonia to him and in the same hour. The Governor told the dissenting bishops, "You all should be in accordance, and obey your Archbishop." Thus, they all were reconciled, and went to the church of St. Marcurius. They celebrated the Divine liturgy on Saturday and Sunday and then went to their parishes rejoicing. This Pope remained on the Chair for fourteen years, two month, and thirteen days, then departed in peace.
May his prayers be with us. Amen.
Departure of St.Euphemia
This day also, marks the martyrdom of St. Euphemia. She was the wife of a man who feared God, and gave much alms. He kept three festivals each month: the commemoration of the angel Michael, on the twelfth day; the commemoration of the Mother of God (Theotokos), on the twenty-first day; and the commemoration of the Nativity of our Lord, on the twenty-ninth day of each month. When the day of his departure drew near, he commanded his wife, to keep this custom, to not stop the giving of alms, and to do the acts of charity especially on these three festivals. He painted a picture of the honorable angel Michael and gave it to her. After the departure of her husband, she continued to fulfill his will. Satan was jealous of her, and he came to her disguised as a monk, who talked to her expressing his pity for her. He advised her to get married, to bring forth children, and to refrain from doing charitable deeds lest she finish her money. He told her also that her husband had received the Kingdom and he had no need of the alms giving. She answered saying, "I have vowed not to consort with another man after my husband." She went on saying, "If birds as the doves and the ravens do not take second mates, how then can men who are created in the form and likeness of God do this?" The devil left her angry.
When the feast of the Angel had come, and she had prepared all what she needed as her custom, Satan appeared to her in the form of an angel and said to her, "Peace be to you, the angel Michael has sent me to you, commanding you to cease from these alms, and to marry a believing man." Then he told her, "A woman without a man is like a ship without a captain," and he began to bring her proofs out of the Holy Bible in regard of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, David, and others like them who married wives and pleased God. She replied saying, "If you are an angel of God, where is the Cross, the symbol of your military service? For the soldier of the King never goes to any place without this symbol with him." When Satan heard these words from her, he returned to his original form, and jumped on her to choke her. She cried for the angel Michael, whose feast she was celebrating, and he delivered her immediately from him. The angel Michael told her, "Go and arrange your affairs, for you shall depart from this world today. And behold the Lord has prepared for you what eye has not seen, and ear has not heard, nor has it occurred to the heart of man," then he gave her the greeting of peace, and went up into heaven. After, St. Euphemia had celebrated the feast of the angel Michael, she sent for the father the bishop and the priests. She gave them all her money to give to the poor and the needy. Then, she took the Picture of the honorable angel Michael and prayed before it. She laid it upon her face and breast, then departed in peace.
May her 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 149 : 1 - 2
Chapter 149
| 1 | Praise the LORD! Sing to the LORD a new song, And His praise in the assembly of saints. |
| 2 | Let Israel rejoice in their Maker; Let the children of Zion be joyful in their King. |
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 13 : 44 - 52
Chapter 13
| 44 | "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. |
| 45 | "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls, |
| 46 | who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it. |
| 47 | "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet that was cast into the sea and gathered some of every kind, |
| 48 | which, when it was full, they drew to shore; and they sat down and gathered the good into vessels, but threw the bad away. |
| 49 | So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come forth, separate the wicked from among the just, |
| 50 | and cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth." |
| 51 | Jesus said to them, "Have you understood all these things?" They said to Him, "Yes, Lord." |
| 52 | Then He said to them, "Therefore every scribe instructed concerning the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings out of his treasure things new and old." |
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 104 : 4,3
Chapter 104
| 4 | Who makes His angels spirits, His ministers a flame of fire. |
| 3 | He lays the beams of His upper chambers in the waters, Who makes the clouds His chariot, Who walks on the wings of the wind, |
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 15 : 3 - 10
Chapter 15
| 3 | So He spoke this parable to them, saying: |
| 4 | "What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it? |
| 5 | And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. |
| 6 | And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, "Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!' |
| 7 | I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance. |
| 8 | "Or what woman, having ten silver coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds it? |
| 9 | And when she has found it, she calls her friends and neighbors together, saying, "Rejoice with me, for I have found the piece which I lost!' |
| 10 | Likewise, I say to you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents." |
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 Hebrews .
May his blessings be upon us.
Amen.
Hebrews 1 : 1 - 2 : 4
Chapter 1
| 1 | God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, |
| 2 | has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds; |
| 3 | who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, |
| 4 | having become so much better than the angels, as He has by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they. |
| 5 | For to which of the angels did He ever say: "You are My Son, Today I have begotten You"? And again: "I will be to Him a Father, And He shall be to Me a Son"? |
| 6 | But when He again brings the firstborn into the world, He says: "Let all the angels of God worship Him." |
| 7 | And of the angels He says: "Who makes His angels spirits And His ministers a flame of fire." |
| 8 | But to the Son He says: "Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom. |
| 9 | You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness; Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You With the oil of gladness more than Your companions." |
| 10 | And: "You, LORD, in the beginning laid the foundation of the earth, And the heavens are the work of Your hands. |
| 11 | They will perish, but You remain; And they will all grow old like a garment; |
| 12 | Like a cloak You will fold them up, And they will be changed. But You are the same, And Your years will not fail." |
| 13 | But to which of the angels has He ever said: "Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool"? |
| 14 | Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation? |
Chapter 2
| 1 | Therefore we must give the more earnest heed to the things we have heard, lest we drift away. |
| 2 | For if the word spoken through angels proved steadfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just reward, |
| 3 | how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation, which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed to us by those who heard Him, |
| 4 | God also bearing witness both with signs and wonders, with various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit, according to His own will? |
The grace of God the Father be with you all.
Amen.
Catholic Epistle
A Reading from Epistle of St. Jude .
May his blessing be upon us.
Amen.
Jude 1 : 1 - 13
Chapter 1
| 1 | Jude, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, To those who are called, sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ: |
| 2 | Mercy, peace, and love be multiplied to you. |
| 3 | Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints. |
| 4 | For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into lewdness and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ. |
| 5 | But I want to remind you, though you once knew this, that the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed those who did not believe. |
| 6 | And the angels who did not keep their proper domain, but left their own abode, He has reserved in everlasting chains under darkness for the judgment of the great day; |
| 7 | as Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities around them in a similar manner to these, having given themselves over to sexual immorality and gone after strange flesh, are set forth as an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire. |
| 8 | Likewise also these dreamers defile the flesh, reject authority, and speak evil of dignitaries. |
| 9 | Yet Michael the archangel, in contending with the devil, when he disputed about the body of Moses, dared not bring against him a reviling accusation, but said, "The Lord rebuke you!" |
| 10 | But these speak evil of whatever they do not know; and whatever they know naturally, like brute beasts, in these things they corrupt themselves. |
| 11 | Woe to them! For they have gone in the way of Cain, have run greedily in the error of Balaam for profit, and perished in the rebellion of Korah. |
| 12 | These are spots in your love feasts, while they feast with you without fear, serving only themselves. They are clouds without water, carried about by the winds; late autumn trees without fruit, twice dead, pulled up by the roots; |
| 13 | raging waves of the sea, foaming up their own shame; wandering stars for whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever. |
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 : 1 - 20
Chapter 19
| 1 | And it happened, while Apollos was at Corinth, that Paul, having passed through the upper regions, came to Ephesus. And finding some disciples |
| 2 | he said to them, "Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?" So they said to him, "We have not so much as heard whether there is a Holy Spirit." |
| 3 | And he said to them, "Into what then were you baptized?" So they said, "Into John's baptism." |
| 4 | Then Paul said, "John indeed baptized with a baptism of repentance, saying to the people that they should believe on Him who would come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus." |
| 5 | When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. |
| 6 | And when Paul had laid hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke with tongues and prophesied. |
| 7 | Now the men were about twelve in all. |
| 8 | And he went into the synagogue and spoke boldly for three months, reasoning and persuading concerning the things of the kingdom of God. |
| 9 | But when some were hardened and did not believe, but spoke evil of the Way before the multitude, he departed from them and withdrew the disciples, reasoning daily in the school of Tyrannus. |
| 10 | And this continued for two years, so that all who dwelt in Asia heard the word of the Lord Jesus, both Jews and Greeks. |
| 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. |
| 18 | And many who had believed came confessing and telling their deeds. |
| 19 | Also, many of those who had practiced magic brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted up the value of them, and it totaled fifty thousand pieces of silver. |
| 20 | So the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed. |
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 103 : 20 - 21
Chapter 103
| 20 | Bless the LORD, you His angels, Who excel in strength, who do His word, Heeding the voice of His word. |
| 21 | Bless the LORD, all you His hosts, You ministers of His, who do His pleasure. |
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 13 : 24 - 54
Chapter 13
| 24 | Another parable He put forth to them, saying: "The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field; |
| 25 | but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way. |
| 26 | But when the grain had sprouted and produced a crop, then the tares also appeared. |
| 27 | So the servants of the owner came and said to him, "Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have tares?' |
| 28 | He said to them, "An enemy has done this.' The servants said to him, "Do you want us then to go and gather them up?' |
| 29 | But he said, "No, lest while you gather up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them. |
| 30 | Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, "First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn.' |
| 31 | Another parable He put forth to them, saying: "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field, |
| 32 | which indeed is the least of all the seeds; but when it is grown it is greater than the herbs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches." |
| 33 | Another parable He spoke to them: "The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal till it was all leavened." |
| 34 | All these things Jesus spoke to the multitude in parables; and without a parable He did not speak to them, |
| 35 | that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying: "I will open My mouth in parables; I will utter things kept secret from the foundation of the world." |
| 36 | Then Jesus sent the multitude away and went into the house. And His disciples came to Him, saying, "Explain to us the parable of the tares of the field." |
| 37 | He answered and said to them: "He who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. |
| 38 | The field is the world, the good seeds are the sons of the kingdom, but the tares are the sons of the wicked one. |
| 39 | The enemy who sowed them is the devil, the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are the angels. |
| 40 | Therefore as the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of this age. |
| 41 | The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and those who practice lawlessness, |
| 42 | and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth. |
| 43 | Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears to hear, let him hear! |
| 44 | "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. |
| 45 | "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls, |
| 46 | who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it. |
| 47 | "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet that was cast into the sea and gathered some of every kind, |
| 48 | which, when it was full, they drew to shore; and they sat down and gathered the good into vessels, but threw the bad away. |
| 49 | So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come forth, separate the wicked from among the just, |
| 50 | and cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth." |
| 51 | Jesus said to them, "Have you understood all these things?" They said to Him, "Yes, Lord." |
| 52 | Then He said to them, "Therefore every scribe instructed concerning the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings out of his treasure things new and old." |
| 53 | Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished these parables, that He departed from there. |
| 54 | When He had come to His own country, He taught them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished and said, "Where did this Man get this wisdom and these mighty works? |
And Glory be to God forever.
Struggling with one’s own shadow self, facing interior conflicts and moral failures, undergoing rejection and abandonment, all daily humiliations, experiencing any kind of abuse or form of limitation, can be gateways into deeper consciousness and the flowering of the soul—if we allow them to be. These experiences give us a window into our naked nowness, because very real contradictions are always staring us in the face. Except for God, nothing is perfectly anything. Even as we set necessary and healthy boundaries, we are also invited to forgive what is, to weep over and accept our own interior poverty.
In facing the contradictions that we ourselves are, we become living icons of both/and. Once you can accept mercy, it is almost natural to hand it on to others (see the story of the unforgiving debtor in Matthew 18:23-35). You become a conduit of what you yourself have received. If you have never needed mercy and do not face your own inherent contradictions, you can go from youth to old age dualistically locked inside a mechanistic universe. That, in my opinion, is the “sin against the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 23:31-32). It cannot be forgiven because there is a refusal to recognize that you even need mercy or forgiveness. You have blocked the conduit that you are.
John of the Cross (1542–1591) consistently wrote of divine love as the template and model for all human love, and human love as the necessary school and preparation for any transcendent encounter. If you have never experienced human love, it will be very hard for you to access God as Love. If you have never let God love you, you will not know how to love humanly in the deepest way. Of course, grace can overcome both of these limitations.
To put it another way, what I let God see and accept in me also becomes what I can see and accept in myself. And, even more, it becomes that whereby I see everything else. This is “radical grace.” This is why it is crucial to allow God and at least one other person to see us in our imperfection and even in our nakedness, as we are—rather than as we ideally wish to be. It is also why we must give others this same experience of being looked upon tenderly in their imperfection; otherwise people on either side will never know divine love. I pray there is at least one person before whom you can be imperfect. I have several in my life, and they are such a relief and joy to be around.
Such utterly free and gratuitous love is the only love that validates, transforms, and changes us at the deepest levels of consciousness. It is what we all desire and what we were created for. Once you allow it for yourself, you will almost naturally become a conduit of the same for others.
Can you let God “look upon you in your lowliness,” as Mary put it (Luke 1:48), without waiting for some future moment when you believe you are worthy? Consider these words inspired by John of the Cross: “Love what God sees in you.” [1]
References:
[1] John of the Cross, Spiritual Canticle: Songs between the soul and the Bridegroom, stanza 32 (My paraphrase). See The Collected Works of John of the Cross, trans. Kieran Kavanaugh and Otilio Rodriguez (ICS Publications: 2017; ©1991), 79.