Wednesday, September 9 / August 27 (Church Calendar)

Glory to Jesus Christ! Glory to Him forever!

Saints of the Day

August 27 / September 9. St. Poemen the Great. St. Poemen of Palestine. St. Sabbas of Benephali.St. Liberius, pope of Rome. St. Hosius the Confessor, Bishop of Cordova. Hieromartyr Kushka and St. Pimen (Poemen) of the Kiev Caves. Martyr Anthusa. Translation of the Relics of Saints Theognostus, Cyprian and Photius, Metropolitan of Moscow. Great-Martyr Phanurius the newly-appeared of Rhodes.

Photo of the Day

William (Vasily) and Alexandra Riggins, twelve years on the road as Orthodox Pilgrims, visited our monastery for six days. The Riggins have traveled in over 44 nations, and are now on their way down the coast to San Francisco, where they intend to venerate the holy relics of Saint John the Wonderworker.

Quote of the Day

Your brother writes: ‘The dogmas are clearly formulated postulates. The dogmas were contrived by the Ecumenical Councils.’ Dogmas are not human postulates, clearly formulated, but the divine truth about God – a truth which people themselves could not possibly arrive at had it not been revealed to them by God. Truth can be investigated, truth can be known, truth can be proven, but truth cannot be contrived. Your brother asserts: ‘Dogmas are as far from the Christian spirit as the stars from the earth.’ This is not true. When the incarnate Son of God revealed the dogma of the Holy Trinity to His disciples the Apostles, saying: Go ye therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and the Son and the Holy Spirit, He inextricably united the dogma with the teaching about the spirit of Christianity, saying: teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you (Matt. 28: 19-20)….
Elder Ambrose of Optina

Scripture Readings for the Day

2 Corinthians 13:3-14

³ since you seek a proof of Christ speaking in me, who is not weak toward you, but mighty in you. ⁴ For though He was crucified in weakness, yet He lives by the power of God. For we also are weak in Him, but we shall live with Him by the power of God toward you.
⁵ Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you are disqualified. ⁶ But I trust that you will know that we are not disqualified.

Paul Prefers Gentleness

⁷ Now I pray to God that you do no evil, not that we should appear approved, but that you should do what is honorable, though we may seem disqualified. ⁸ For we can do nothing against the truth, but for the truth. ⁹ For we are glad when we are weak and you are strong. And this also we pray, that you may be made complete. ¹⁰ Therefore I write these things being absent, lest being present I should use sharpness, according to the authority which the Lord has given me for edification and not for destruction.

Greetings and Benediction

¹¹ Finally, brethren, farewell. Become complete. Be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you.
¹² Greet one another with a holy kiss.
¹³ All the saints greet you.
¹⁴ The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen.

Mark 4:35-41

Wind and Wave Obey Jesus

³⁵ On the same day, when evening had come, He said to them, “Let us cross over to the other side.” ³⁶ Now when they had left the multitude, they took Him along in the boat as He was. And other little boats were also with Him. ³⁷ And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling. ³⁸ But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow. And they awoke Him and said to Him, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?”
³⁹ Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace, be still!” And the wind ceased and there was a great calm. ⁴⁰ But He said to them, “Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?” ⁴¹ And they feared exceedingly, and said to one another, “Who can this be, that even the wind and the sea obey Him!”