Acts 1.1-8 (Epistle)

1Prvu sam ti knjigu napisao o svemu, o Teofile, što poèe Isus i tvoriti i uèiti 2Do dana kad se uznese, pošto Duhom svetijem zapovjedi apostolima koje izabra, 3Pred kojima i po stradanju svome pokaza sebe živa mnogijem i istinitijem znacima, i javlja im se èetrdeset dana, i govori o carstvu Božijemu. 4I sabravši ih zapovjedi im da ne idu iz Jerusalima, nego da èekaju obeæanje oèino, koje èuste, reèe, od mene; 5Jer je Jovan krstio vodom, a vi æete se krstiti Duhom svetijem ne dugo posle ovijeh dana. 6A oni onda koji zajedno bijahu, pitahu ga govoreæi: Gospode! hoæeš li sad naèiniti carstvo Izrailjevo? 7A on im reèe: nije vaše znati vremena i ljeta koje otac zadrža u svojoj vlasti; 8Nego æete primiti silu kad siðe Duh sveti na vas; i biæete mi svjedoci i u Jerusalimu i po svoj Judeji i Samariji i tja do kraja zemlje.

John 1.1-17 (Gospel)

1U poèetku bješe rijeè, i rijeè bješe u Boga, i Bog bješe rijeè. 2Ona bješe u poèetku u Boga. 3Sve je kroz nju postalo, i bez nje ništa nije postalo što je postalo. 4U njoj bješe život, i život bješe vidjelo ljudima. 5I vidjelo se svijetli u tami, i tama ga ne obuze. 6Posla Bog èovjeka po imenu Jovana. 7Ovaj doðe za svjedoèanstvo da svjedoèi za vidjelo da svi vjeruju kroza nj. 8On ne bješe vidjelo, nego da svjedoèi za vidjelo. 9Bješe vidjelo istinito koje obasjava svakoga èovjeka koji dolazi na svijet. 10Na svijetu bješe, i svijet kroza nj posta, i svijet ga ne pozna. 11K svojima doðe, i svoji ga ne primiše. 12A koji ga primiše dade im vlast da budu sinovi Božiji, koji vjeruju u ime njegovo, 13Koji se ne rodiše od krvi, ni od volje tjelesne, ni od volje muževlje, nego od Boga. 14I rijeè postade tijelo i useli se u nas puno blagodati i istine; i vidjesmo slavu njegovu, slavu, kao jedinorodnoga od oca. 15Jovan svjedoèi za njega i vièe govoreæi: ovaj bješe za koga rekoh: koji za mnom ide preda mnom postade, jer prije mene bješe. 16I od punosti njegove mi svi uzesmo blagodat za blagodaæu. 17Jer se zakon dade preko Mojsija, a blagodat i istina postade od Isusa Hrista.

St Isaac the Syrian, abbot of Spoleto, Italy (ca. 550)

This is not the famed Isaac of Syria (commemorated Jan 28) who wrote the Ascetical Homilies, but a monk who settled in Spoleto and was famed for his holy, solitary life, his miracles, and his discernment. The people of Spoleto sought to honor him with money and other gifts, but he refused everything and withdrew to a cell in the forest. Soon a large monastery grew up there as others joined him in his life of prayer.

Once, two nearly naked men came begging clothing from Isaac. He told a monk to go to a hollow tree some distance away, and to bring back what he found there. The monk returned with some clothing, and gave it to the beggars. They were shamed to find that it was their own clothing, which they had hidden in the tree.

A man gave two beehives to the monastery. A monk hid one of them and brought the other to the abbot. Isaac said to him, ‘Be careful when you go back to the beehive that you hid: it has been taken over by poisonous snakes. Be careful that they do not bite you.’

St Basil the Confessor, bishop of Parium (ca. 760)

In the dark days of iconoclasm, this holy bishop refused to sign the imperial order condemning the veneration of icons, and for this was cruelly persecuted in many ways by the heretics for the remainder of his life; all the while he remained ‘firm as a diamond in his Orthodoxy.’ (Prologue)

Our Holy Mother Athanasia (860)

“Born on the island of Aegina of rich and eminent parents, she gave her goods to the poor and went off to a monastery, where she heaped greater and greater asceticism on herself. She took food only once a day, and that only bread and water, and in the Great Fast only once every two days. Only at Christmas and Easter did she taste flesh and oil. Although she was abbess of the monastery, she was the servant of all the other sisters and was ashamed that any should wait on her. She was made worthy of the great gift of wonderworking, both during her lifetime and after her death.” (Prologue)