Love And Prayer Are Interconnected
If we find fault in others, our judgmental attitude prevents us from having a successful communion with God. Prayer is born of love, while fault-finding, idle talk, and self-indulgence are the death of prayer. Love and prayer are interconnected because both involve God, and if we love God we are given the power to keep our mind on Him both day and night. Nothing keeps us from Him, and nothing hinders our communion with him. Even the distractions and temptations of the world fade away as nothing, for as God’s love grows in us, so does love of our neighbor grow.
With love in Christ,
Abbot Tryphon
Photos: Father Joseph Ramos, and his son Father Seraphim, together with Presvytera Olenka and their children, visited the monastery on Friday.
Saturday May 28, 2022 / May 15, 2022
Fifth Week of Pascha. Tone four.
Venerable Pachomius the Great, founder of cenobitic monasticism (346).
St. Isaiah, bishop and wonderworker of Rostov (1090).
The slain Crown Prince Demetrius of Moscow (1591).
Venerable Isaiah, wonderworker of the Kiev Caves (1115).
Venerable Pachomius, abbot and Silvanus of Nerekhta (1384).
Venerable Euphrosynus (Eleazar), abbot, wonderworker of Pskov (1481), and his disciple St. Serapion (1480).
Finding of the relics of Venerable Arsenius, abbot of Konevits (1991).
Venerable Achilles, bishop of Larissa (330).
Venerable Pachomius, abbot of Nerekhta (1384), and St. Silvanus, of Nerekhta.
St. Macarius (Glukharev), archimandrite, of Altai (1847).
St. Barbaras the Myrrh-gusher of Greece (9th c.) (Greek).
St. Andrew the hermit and wonderworker (Greek).
New Hieromartyrs Pachomius, archbishop of Chernigov (1938), his brother Abercius, archbishop of Zhitomir (1937), their father Priest Nicholas Kedrov (1936), and their brother-in-law Priest Vladimir Zagarsky (1937).
St. Dymphna, martyr of Geel, Flanders (7th c.) (Neth.).
St. Arethas of Verkhoturye and Valaam (1903).
St. Hallvard of Husaby.
St. Colman of Oughval (7th c.) (Celtic & British).
The Scripture Readings
Acts 15:35-41
35 Paul and Barnabas also remained in Antioch, teaching and preaching the word of the Lord, with many others also.
Division over John Mark
36 Then after some days Paul said to Barnabas, “Let us now go back and visit our brethren in every city where we have preached the word of the Lord, and see how they are doing.” 37 Now Barnabas was determined to take with them John called Mark. 38 But Paul insisted that they should not take with them the one who had departed from them in Pamphylia, and had not gone with them to the work. 39 Then the contention became so sharp that they parted from one another. And so Barnabas took Mark and sailed to Cyprus; 40 but Paul chose Silas and departed, being commended by the brethren to the grace of God. 41 And he went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches.
John 10:27-38
27 My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. 28 And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand. 30 I and My Father are one.”
Renewed Efforts to Stone Jesus
31 Then the Jews took up stones again to stone Him. 32 Jesus answered them, “Many good works I have shown you from My Father. For which of those works do you stone Me?”
33 The Jews answered Him, saying, “For a good work we do not stone You, but for blasphemy, and because You, being a Man, make Yourself God.”
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 Scripturecannot 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.”