2 Timothy 3.1-9 (Epistle)

1Să ştii că în zilele din urmă vor fi vremuri grele. 2Căci oamenii vor fi iubitori de sine, iubitori de bani, lăudăroşi, trufaşi, hulitori, neascultători de părinţi, nemulţumitori, fără evlavie, 3fără dragoste firească, neînduplecaţi, clevetitori, neînfrânaţi, neîmblânziţi, neiubitori de bine, 4vânzători, obraznici, îngâmfaţi; iubitori mai mult de plăceri decât iubitori de Dumnezeu; 5având doar o formă de evlavie, dar tăgăduindu-i puterea. Depărtează-te de oamenii aceştia. 6Sunt printre ei unii care se vâră prin case şi momesc pe femeile uşuratice, îngreuiate de păcate şi frământate de felurite pofte, 7care învaţă întotdeauna, şi nu pot ajunge niciodată la deplina cunoştinţă a adevărului. 8După cum Iane şi Iambre s-au împotrivit lui Moise, tot aşa şi oamenii aceştia se împotrivesc adevărului, ca unii care sunt stricaţi la minte şi osândiţi în ce priveşte credinţa. 9Dar nu vor mai înainta; căci nebunia lor va fi arătată tuturor, cum a fost arătată şi a celor doi oameni.

Luke 20.46-21.4 (Gospel)

46„Păziţi-vă de cărturari, cărora le place să se plimbe în haine lungi şi să le facă lumea plecăciuni prin pieţe; ei umblă după scaunele dintâi în sinagogi şi după locurile dintâi la ospeţe;

47şi casele văduvelor le mănâncă, în timp ce, de ochii lumii, fac rugăciuni lungi. De aceea vor lua o mai mare osândă.” 1Isus Şi-a ridicat ochii şi a văzut pe nişte bogaţi care îşi aruncau darurile în vistierie. 2A văzut şi pe o văduvă săracă, aruncând acolo doi bănuţi. 3Şi a zis: „Adevărat vă spun că această văduvă săracă a aruncat mai mult decât toţi ceilalţi; 4căci toţi aceştia au aruncat la daruri din prisosul lor; dar ea a aruncat, din sărăcia ei, tot ce avea ca să trăiască.”

St Meletios, archbishop of Antioch (381)

Our holy father Meletios, an Armenian by birth, became archbishop of Antioch at the height of the Arian controversy. Though he was appointed by influential Arians who thought that he shared their views, as soon as he was raised to the throne he began to preach the consubstantiality of the Son with the Father. “At this, the archdeacon, an Arian, put his hand over the bishop’s mouth; Meletios then extended three fingers towards the people, closed them, and extended one only, showing by signs the equality and unity of the Trinity. The embarrassed archdeacon then seized his hand, but released his mouth, and Meletios spoke out even more forcibly in defense of the Council of Nicea” (Great Horologion). It was St Meletios who ordained St John Chrysostom reader and deacon in Antioch. He presided at the Second Ecumenical Council in 381. At his repose, St Gregory of Nyssa gave his funeral oration, lamenting: “Our Elijah has been caught up, and no Elisha is left behind in his place.”

St Alexis, metropolitan of Moscow and wonder-worker of all Russia (1378)

He was born early in the 14th century to a family of court dignitaries in Moscow. Despite a fine education, he was not drawn to worldly success and became a monk at the age of twenty. In time Alexis was consecrated Bishop of Vladimir, then Metropolitan of Moscow, at that time the highest rank in the Russian church (which was still under the Patriarchate of Constantinople). Russia was then under the cruel domination of the Tatars. Saint Alexis traveled twice to the Golden Horde, where the Tatar Khan kept court. On his first visit (1359), he healed the Khan’s wife of a blindness which had afflicted her for three years — a miracle that did much to soften the Tatars’ treatment of their Russian vassals, and to preserve the liberty of the Church.

His ceaseless labors in the world did not deprive the Saint of his love for monasticism: he conferred with holy monks at every opportunity, and founded many new monasteries. As he neared the end of his life he tried without success to persuade his friend St Sergius of Radonezh (September 25) to succeed him. He reposed in peace in 1378. His incorrupt relics are venerated in the Cathedral of the Theophany in Moscow.