Acts 10.1-16 (Epistle)

1A u Æesariji bješe jedan èovjek po imenu Kornilije, kapetan od èete koja se zvaše Talijanska. 2Pobožan i bogobojazan sa cijelijem domom svojijem, koji davaše milostinju mnogijem ljudima i moljaše se Bogu bez prestanka; 3On vidje na javi u utvari oko devetoga sahata dnevi anðela Božijega gdje siðe k njemu i reèe mu: Kornilije! 4A on pogledavši na nj i uplašivši se reèe: što je Gospode? A on mu reèe: molitve tvoje i milostinje iziðoše na pamet Bogu; 5I sad pošlji u Jopu ljude i dozovi Simona prozvanoga Petra: 6On stoji u nekoga Simona kožara, kojega je kuæa kod mora: on æe ti kazati rijeèi kojima æeš se spasti ti i sav dom tvoj. 7I kad otide anðeo koji govori Korniliju, dozvavši dvojicu od svojijeh slugu i jednoga pobožna vojnika od onijeh koji mu služahu, 8I kazavši im sve posla ih u Jopu. 9A sjutradan kad oni iðahu putem i približiše se ka gradu, iziðe Petar u gornju sobu da se pomoli Bogu u šesti sahat. 10I ogladnje, i šæaše da jede; a kad mu oni gotovljahu, doðe izvan sebe, 11I vidje nebo otvoreno i sud nekakav gdje silazi na njega, kao veliko platno, zavezan na èetiri roglja i spušta se na zemlju; 12U kome bijahu sva èetvoronožna na zemlji, i zvjerinje i bubine i ptice nebeske. 13I postade glas k njemu: ustani, Petre! pokolji i pojedi. 14A Petar reèe: nipošto, Gospode! jer nikad ne jedoh što pogano ili neèisto. 15I gle, glas opet k njemu drugom: što je Bog oèistio ti ne pogani. 16I ovo bi triput, i sud se opet uze na nebo.

John 6.56-69 (Gospel)

56Koji jede moje tijelo i pije moju krv stoji u meni i ja u njemu. 57Kao što me posla živi otac, i ja živim oca radi; i koji jede mene i on æe življeti mene radi. 58Ovo je hljeb koji siðe s neba: ne kao što vaši ocevi jedoše manu, i pomriješe; koji jede hljeb ovaj življeæe vavijek. 59Ovo reèe u zbornici kad uèaše u Kapernaumu. 60Tada mnogi od uèenika njegovijeh koji slušahu rekoše: ovo je tvrda besjeda! ko je može slušati? 61A Isus znajuæi u sebi da uèenici njegovi vièu na to, reèe im: zar vas ovo sablažnjava? 62A kad vidite sina èovjeèijega da odlazi gore gdje je prije bio? 63Duh je ono što oživljava; tijelo ne pomaže ništa. Rijeèi koje vam ja rekoh duh su i život su. 64Ali imaju neki meðu vama koji ne vjeruju. Jer znadijaše Isus od poèetka koji su što ne vjeruju, i ko æe ga izdati. 65I reèe: zato vam rekoh da niko ne može doæi k meni ako mu ne bude dano od oca mojega. 66Od tada mnogi od uèenika njegovijeh otidoše natrag, i više ne iðahu s njim. 67A Isus reèe dvanaestorici: da neæete i vi otiæi? 68Tada mu odgovori Simon Petar: Gospode! kome æemo iæi? Ti imaš rijeèi vjeènoga života. 69I mi vjerovasmo i poznasmo da si ti Hristos, sin Boga živoga.

Our Fathers among the Saints Epiphanios, bishop of Cyprus (403) and Germanos, Archbishop of Constantinople (740)

Saint Epiphanios was born a Jew in Palestine, but he and his sister came to faith in Christ and were baptized together. Epiphanios gave all his possessions to the poor and became a monk. He knew St Hilarion the great (October 31), and traveled among the monks of Egypt to learn their ways and wisdom. The fame of his virtue spread so widely that several attempts were made to make him bishop, first in Egypt, then in Cyprus. Whenever Epiphanios heard of these plans, he fled the area. He was finally made bishop by means of a storm: told to go to Cyprus, he took ship instead for Gaza, but a contrary wind blew his ship directly to Cyprus, where “Epiphanios fell into the hands of bishops who had come together to elect a successor to the newly-departed Bishop of Constantia, and the venerable Epiphanios was at last constrained to be consecrated, about the year 367.” (Great Horologion). He guarded his flock faithfully for the remainder of his life, working many miracles, defending the Church against the Arian heresy, and composing several books, of which the best-loved is the Panarion (from the Latin for ‘bread-box’), an exposition of the Faith and an examination of eighty heresies. He was sometimes called the ‘Five-tongued’ because he was fluent in Hebrew, Egyptian, Syriac, Greek, and Latin.

Saint Germanos was the son of a prominent family, in Constantinople. He became Metropolitan of Cyzicus, then was elevated to the throne at Constantinople in 715. It was he who baptized the infant Constantine, who for his whole life was nicknamed “Copronymos” because he defecated in the baptismal font (though he was neither the first nor the last infant to do so). At this incident, Patriarch Germanos is said to have prophesied that the child would one day bring some foul heresy upon the Church, which he did, becoming a notorious iconoclast as emperor. Germanos openly opposed the decree of the Emperor Leo the Isaurian which began the persecution of the holy icons. For this he was deposed and driven into exile in 730. He lived the rest of his life in peace. Saint Germanos is the composer of many of the Church’s hymns, notably those for the Feast of the Meeting in the Temple.

These two Saints are always commemorated together.