Zechariah 8.7-17 (6th Hour)

7Ovako veli Gospod nad vojskama: evo, ja æu izbaviti svoj narod iz zemlje istoène i iz zemlje zapadne. 8I dovešæu ih, i oni æe nastavati usred Jerusalima, i biæe mi narod i ja æu im biti Bog, istinom i pravdom. 9Ovako veli Gospod nad vojskama: neka vam se ukrijepe ruke koji slušate u ovo vrijeme ove rijeèi iz usta proroèkih od dana kad se osnova dom Gospoda nad vojskama da se sazida crkva. 10Jer prije tijeh dana ne bješe plate ni za èovjeka ni za živinèe, niti bješe mira od neprijatelja ni onome koji odlažaše ni onome koji dolažaše, i pustih sve ljude jednoga na drugoga. 11A sada neæu biti kao prije ostatku toga naroda, govori Gospod nad vojskama. 12Nego æe usjev biti miran, vinova æe loza nositi plod svoj, i zemlja æe raðati rod svoj, i nebo æe davati rosu svoju; i sve æu to dati u našljedstvo ostatku toga naroda. 13I kao što bijaste uklin meðu narodima, dome Judin i dome Izrailjev, tako æu vas izbaviti te æete biti blagoslov; ne bojte se, neka vam se okrijepe ruke. 14Jer ovako veli Gospod nad vojskama: kao što vam namislih zlo uèiniti, kad me razgnjeviše oci vaši, veli Gospod nad vojskama, i ne raskajah se, 15Tako opet u ove dane namislih da dobro èinim Jerusalimu i domu Judinu; ne bojte se. 16Ovo je što treba da èinite: govorite istinu jedan drugom, sudite pravo i mirno na vratima svojim; 17I ne mislite jedan drugome zlo u srcu svom, i ne ljubite krive zakletve, jer na sve to mrzim, govori Gospod.

Zechariah 8.19-23 (Vespers)

19Ovako veli Gospod nad vojskama: post èetvrtoga mjeseca, i post petoga i post sedmoga i post desetoga obratiæe se domu Judinu u radost i veselje i u praznike vesele; ali ljubite istinu i mir. 20Ovako veli Gospod nad vojskama: još æe dolaziti narodi i stanovnici mnogih gradova; 21Dolaziæe stanovnici jednoga u drugi govoreæi: hajdemo da se molimo Gospodu i da tražimo Gospoda nad vojskama; idem i ja. 22Tako æe doæi mnogi narodi i silni narodi da traže Gospoda nad vojskama u Jerusalimu i da se mole Gospodu. 23Ovako veli Gospod nad vojskama: u to æe vrijeme deset ljudi od svijeh jezika narodnijeh uhvatiti jednoga Judejca za skut govoreæi: idemo s vama, jer èujemo da je Bog s vama.

St Gregory the Great (the Dialogist), Pope of Rome (604)

He was born in Rome to a wealthy senatorial family. He received a good education in secular and spiritual learning, and became Prefect of Rome. While still in the world, he used his great wealth mostly for the good of the Church, building six monasteries in Sicily and another in Rome itself. At this monastery, dedicated to the Apostle Andrew, Gregory was tonsured a monk. He was appointed Archdeacon of Rome, then, in 579, Papal legate to Constantinople, where he lived for nearly seven years. He returned to Rome in 585 and was elected Pope in 590.

He is famed for his many writings, his generous charity (he gave almost all his income to the poor, and often invited the poor to share his table), and for initiating missionary work among the Anglo-Saxon peoples. The Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts, celebrated on Wednesday and Friday evenings during Great Lent, was compiled by him. St Gregory introduced elements of the chanting that he had heard in Constantinople into Western Church chant: The Gregorian Chant which beautified the Western churches for many years is named for him. Its system of modes is related to the eight tones of the Eastern church. He is called ‘the Dialogist’ after his book The Dialogues, an account of the lives and miracles of Italian saints.

Saint Gregory reposed in peace in 604.

Our Holy Father Theophanes the Confessor (818)

He was born in 760 to an illustrious and very wealthy family — he was a kinsman of the Emperor Leo the Isaurian. In early life he lived in great luxury, married, and became a member of the Emperor’s court. Later, with his wife’s consent, he abandoned his home, his fortune and his rank to live humbly in a monastery. (His wife also entered monastic life; both of them entered monasteries that they had established with their wealth). Theophanes, though accustomed to a life of splendor and ease, joyfully lived as the lowest of monks for many years. He became so well-known for his faith, purity and wisdom that he was invited to the Seventh Ecumenical Council at Nicaea in 787. He prayed unceasingly for the sick and distressed, and was granted the gift of wonder working: his prayers healed all kinds of illnesses, but especially mania and madness. When he himself fell seriously ill for a long period, he refused to pray for his own healing, but accepted his infirmity with thanksgiving.

When a second iconoclast period arose under the Emperor Leo the Armenian, Theophanes, who was widely known for his defense of the holy icons, was taken to Constantinople and imprisoned under extremely harsh conditions for two years. The Emperor then sent him into exile on the island of Samothrace. There, his body broken by his cruel imprisonment, he lived for only twenty-three days before giving up his soul to God.

Repose of St Symeon the New Theologian (1021)

His main commemoration is on October 12.