Tuesday, July 14 / July 1 (Church Calendar)

The Orthodox Church is evangelical, but not Protestant. It is orthodox, but not Jewish. It is catholic, but not Roman. It isn’t non-denominational – it is pre-denominational. It has believed, taught, preserved, defended and died for the Faith of the Apostles since the Day of Pentecost 2000 years ago.

Glory to Jesus Christ! Glory to Him forever!

Saints of the Day

. July 1 / 14. Holy and wonderworking unmercenaries Cosmas and Damian, Martyrs at Rome. Martyr Potitus at Naples. St. Peter, monk of Constantinople. St. Angelina of Serbia. Translation of the Relics of St. John of Rila from Tirnovo to Rila. St. Gallus, Bishop of Clermont (Gaul). (Greek Calendar: Martyr Maurice. 25 Martyrs in Nicomedia. St. Basil, founder of the Monastery of the Deep Stream. Martyr Constantine the Wonderworker and those with him of Cyprus. St. Leo the Hermit.)

Photo of the Day

My spiritual son, Paul Neustrom, of Bonners Ferry, Idaho, together with Brother Christos, staining the  porch beams of the trapeza.

Quote of the Day

“For through certain small and worthless things our inordinate desires bind us again to the world without our realizing it.
…..let us learn to cut off our desires….
…nothing helps men so much as to cut off self-will, for thereby a man prepares the way for nearly all the virtues.”

Dorotheos of Gaza

Scripture Readings for the Day

1 Corinthians 1:1-9

Greeting

¹ Paul, called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and Sosthenes our brother,

² To the church of God which is at Corinth, to those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all who in every place call on the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours:

³ Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Spiritual Gifts at Corinth

⁴ I thank my God always concerning you for the grace of God which was given to you by Christ Jesus, ⁵ that you were enriched in everything by Him in all utterance and all knowledge, ⁶ even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed in you, ⁷ so that you come short in no gift, eagerly waiting for the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ, ⁸ who will also confirm you to the end, that you may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. ⁹ God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Matthew 13:24-30

The Parable of the Wheat and the Tares

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.”‘”