Orthodox Calendar

30. јул 2025.
Wednesday of the 8th week after Pentecost

Fast

Commemorations

  • Apostles Silas, Silvanus, Crescens, Epenetus, and Andronicus of the Seventy
  • Hieromarytyr Polychronius, Bishop of Babylon, and those with him (251)
  • Venerable Angelina, Princess of Albania.

Scripture Readings

1 Corinthians 10.12-22 (Epistle)

12Jer koji misli da stoji neka se èuva da ne padne. 13Drugo iskušenje ne doðe na vas osim èovjeèijega; ali je vjeran Bog koji vas neæe pustiti da se iskušate veæma nego što možete, nego æe uèiniti s iskušanjem i kraj, da možete podnijeti. 14Zato, ljubazna braæo moja, bjegajte od idolopoklonstva. 15Kao mudrima govorim; sudite vi šta govorim. 16Èaša blagoslova koju blagosiljamo nije li zajednica krvi Hristove? Hljeb koji lomimo nije li zajednica tijela Hristova? 17Jer smo jedan hljeb, jedno tijelo mnogi; jer svi u jednome hljebu imamo zajednicu. 18Gledajte Izrailja po tijelu: koji jedu žrtve nijesu li zajednièari oltara? 19Šta dakle govorim? da je idol što? ili idolska žrtva da je što? 20Nije; nego što žrtvuju neznabošci, da ðavolima žrtvuju, a ne Bogu; a ja neæu da ste vi zajednièari s ðavolima. 21Ne možete piti èaše Gospodnje i èaše ðavolske; ne možete imati zajednice u trpezi Gospodnjoj i u trpezi ðavolskoj. 22Ili da prkosimo Gospodu? Eda li smo mi jaèi od njega?

Matthew 16.20-24 (Gospel)

20Tada zaprijeti Isus uèenicima svojijem da nikom ne kazuju da je on Hristos. 21Od tada poèe Isus kazivati uèenicima svojijem da njemu valja iæi u Jerusalim, i mnogo postradati od starješina i od glavara sveštenièkijeh i književnika, i da æe ga ubiti, i treæi dan da æe ustati. 22I uzevši ga Petar poèe ga odvraæati govoreæi: Bože saèuvaj! to neæe biti od tebe. 23A on se obrnuvši reèe Petru: idi od mene sotono; ti si mi sablazan; jer ne misliš što je Božije nego ljudsko. 24Tada Isus reèe uèenicima svojijem: ako ko hoæe za mnom iæi, neka se odreèe sebe, i uzme krst svoj i ide za mnom.

Commemorations

Apostles Silas, Silvanus, Crescens, Epenetus, and Andronicus of the Seventy

St Silas was a companion and fellow-worker of the Apostle Paul (see Acts 15). He became Bishop of Corinth and reposed in peace. St Silvanus became Bishop of Thessalonica and reposed in peace. St Crescens, mentioned by St Paul in 2 Timothy 4:10, became Bishop of Chalcedon. St Epenetus, praised by St Paul in Romans 16:5 as “my well-beloved Epenetus, the first-fruits of Achaia” (that is the first Christian from the Greek land) became Bishop of Carthage. St Andronicus and his fellow-worker Junia are also commemorated May 17.

Hieromarytyr Polychronius, Bishop of Babylon, and those with him (251)

“When the Emperor Decius conquered Babylon, he arrested Polychronius, together with three priests, two deacons and two baptised princes, Eudin and Senis. Polychronius would make no reply before the Emperor, but kept silent, while St Parmenius, one of the priests, spoke for them all. The Emperor took the bishop and priests to Persia, to the city of Kordoba, and had them beheaded with an axe, but he took the princes with him to Rome, threw them first to the wild beasts and then had them slain with the sword. They all suffered with honour in 251.” (Prologue)

Venerable Angelina, Princess of Albania.

She was the daughter of Scanderbeg, Albania’s national hero. She married Stefan, Prince of Serbia, a kinsman of Scanderbeg who sought refuge in his court. Stefan, a gentle, God-fearing man, had been blinded by the Turkish Sultan. Princess Angelina, loving him despite his loss of his vision and his worldly kingdom, married him with her father’s blessing. Together they had two sons, George and John. When their sons were grown, Albania was ravaged by an invasion of the Turks. Stefan, with Angelina and their sons, fled to Italy, where they lived until his repose in 1468. The widowed Angelina buried her husband in his Serbian homeland and devoted her remaining years to good works. Her elder son George gave up his princely title and entered monastic life. John married but died without children in 1503. When Angelina had outlived her two sons as well as her husband she too entered monastic life. She was buried with her sons at Krušedol monastery in northern Serbia. There her miracle-working relics are venerated to this day, and a service is held each year in her memory. She, her husband and her two sons are all glorified as saints of the Church.