Acts 8.40-9.19 (Epistle)

40A Filip se obrete u Azotu; i prolazeæi propovijedaše jevanðelje svima gradovima, dok ne doðe u Æesariju.

1A Savle još dišuæi prijetnjom i smræu na uèenike Gospodnje pristupi k poglavaru sveštenièkome, 2I izmoli u njega poslanice u Damask na zbornice, ako koga naðe od ovoga puta, i ljude i žene svezane da dovede u Jerusalim. 3A kad bješe na putu i doðe blizu Damaska, ujedanput obasja ga svjetlost s neba, 4I padnuvši na zemlju èu glas gdje mu govori: Savle! Savle! zašto me goniš? 5A on reèe: ko si ti, Gospode? A Gospod reèe: ja sam Isus, kojega ti goniš: teško ti je protivu bodila praæati se. 6A on drkæuæi od straha reèe: Gospode! šta hoæeš da èinim? I Gospod mu reèe: ustani i uði u grad, pa æe ti se kazati šta ti treba èiniti. 7A ljudi koji iðahu s njim stajahu i èuðahu se, jer èujahu glas a ne viðahu nikoga. 8A Savle usta od zemlje, i otvorenijem oèima svojijem nikoga ne viðaše. A oni ga uzeše za ruku i uvedoše u Damask. 9I bješe tri dana slijep, i ne jede, niti pi. 10A u Damasku bješe jedan uèenik, po imenu Ananija, i reèe mu Gospod u utvari: Ananija! A on reèe: evo me, Gospode! 11A Gospod mu reèe: ustani i idi u ulicu koja se zove Prava, i traži u domu Judinom po imenu Savla Taršanina; jer gle, on se moli Bogu, 12I vidje u utvari èovjeka, po imenu Ananiju, gdje uðe i metnu ruku na nj da progleda. 13A Ananija odgovori: Gospode! ja èuh od mnogijeh za toga èovjeka kolika zla poèini svetima tvojima u Jerusalimu; 14I ovdje ima vlast od glavara sveštenièkijeh da veže sve koji prizivaju ime tvoje. 15A Gospod mu reèe: idi, jer mi je on sud izbrani da iznese ime moje pred neznabošce i careve i sinove Izrailjeve. 16A ja æu mu pokazati koliko mu valja postradati za ime moje. 17I poðe Ananija, i uðe u kuæu, i metnuvši ruke na nj reèe: Savle, brate! Gospod Isus, koji ti se javi na putu kojijem si išao, posla me da progledaš i da se napuniš Duha svetoga. 18I odmah otpade od oèiju njegovijeh kao krljušt, i odmah progleda, i ustavši krsti se. 19I pošto pojede okrijepi se; i bi Savle nekoliko dana s uèenicima koji bijahu u Damasku.

John 6.48-54 (Gospel)

48Ja sam hljeb života. 49Ocevi vaši jedoše manu u pustinji, i pomriješe. 50Ovo je hljeb koji silazi s neba: da koji od njega jede ne umre. 51Ja sam hljeb živi koji siðe s neba; koji jede od ovoga hljeba življeæe vavijek; i hljeb koji æu ja dati tijelo je moje, koje æu dati za život svijeta. 52A Jevreji se prepirahu meðu sobom govoreæi: kako može ovaj dati nama tijelo svoje da jedemo? 53A Isus im reèe: zaista, zaista vam kažem: ako ne jedete tijela sina èovjeèijega i ne pijete krvi njegove, neæete imati života u sebi. 54Koji jede moje tijelo i pije moju krv ima život vjeèni, i ja æu ga vaskrsnuti u pošljednji dan:

Hieromartyr Basil, bishop of Amasia and Righteous Virgin Glaphyra (322)

Licinius was co-emperor with Constantine the Great. At his accession, he had agreed to tolerate Christianity in his territories, but soon turned to persecuting the Christians, and to a variety of carnal sins. He conceived a passion for Glaphyra, a Christian virgin handmaid of the Empress Constantia. When Glaphyra told Constantia of this, the Empress sent her away to Amasia in the East for her protection. There she was received and protected by Bishop Basil of that city. Licinius learned where Glaphyra was hiding and ordered that both she and the bishop be brought to him as prisoners. The soldiers who came for her found that she had already died, so they returned with only Bishop Basil, who was subjected to cruel tortures, then beheaded. His body was cast into the sea, but, with the help of an angel of God, his people found his body, retrieved it from the sea, and returned it to Amasia.

The Prologue adds, “The Emperor Constantine raised an army against Licinius, overcame him, arrested him and sent him into exile in Gaul, where he ended his God-hating days.”

St Stephen,Bishop of Perm (1396)

As a young man he entered monastic life at the monastery of St Gregory the Theologian in Rostov. Learning that the land of Perm (on the western slopes of the Ural Mountains) was still immured in paganism, he was filled with a desire to bring the Gospel to its people. He set about learning the language, created an alphabet and translated the service books. With the blessing of the Metropolitan of Moscow he then set out and began his apostolic labors. When, after much difficulty and many sufferings, he had gathered a community of baptised Christians, he was made Bishop of the region. Once, in his old age, he returned to Moscow, where he reposed in 1396.