اعمال رسولان ۱۴.۲۰-۲۷ (رساله)

۲۰امّا چون شاگردان گرد او جمع شدند، برخاست و به شهر بازگشت. فردای آن روز، او و برنابا رهسپار دِربِه شدند. ۲۱آنان در آن شهر نیز بشارت دادند و بسیاری را شاگرد ساختند. سپس به لِستْره و قونیه و اَنطاکیه بازگشتند. ۲۲در آن شهرها شاگردان را تقویت کرده، آنان را به پایداری در ایمان تشویق کردند و پند دادند که «باید با تحمل سختیهای بسیار به پادشاهی خدا راه یابیم.» ۲۳ایشان در هر کلیسا مشایخ بر ایمانداران گماشتند و با دعا و روزه آنها را به خداوندی که به وی ایمان آورده بودند، سپردند. ۲۴سپس از ایالت پیسیدیه گذشتند و به ایالت پامفیلیه رفتند، ۲۵و در پِرجه کلام را موعظه کرده، به آتّالیه فرود آمدند. ۲۶از آتّالیه با کشتی به اَنطاکیه بازگشتند، همان‌جا که ایشان را به فیض خدا سپرده بودند تا عهده‌دار کاری شوند که اکنون به انجامش رسانیده بودند. ۲۷چون بدان‌جا رسیدند، کلیسا را گرد آورده، بازگفتند که خدا به واسطۀ آنها چه‌ها کرده و چگونه درِ ایمان را بر غیریهودیان گشوده است.

یوحنا ۹.۳۹-۱۰.۹ (انجیل)

۳۹عیسی گفت: «من برای داوری به این جهان آمده‌ام، تا کوران بینا و بینایان کور شوند.» ۴۰بعضی از فَریسیان که نزد او بودند، چون این را شنیدند، پرسیدند: «آیا ما نیز کوریم؟» ۴۱عیسی به ایشان گفت: «اگر کور بودید گناهی نمی‌داشتید؛ امّا حال که ادعا می‌کنید بینایید، گناهکار باقی می‌مانید. ۱«آمین، آمین، به شما می‌گویم، آن که از در به آغل گوسفندان داخل نشود، بلکه از راهی دیگر بالا رود، دزد و راهزن است. ۲امّا آن که از در به درون آید، شبان گوسفندان است. ۳دربان، در بر او می‌گشاید و گوسفندان به صدای او گوش فرا می‌دهند؛ او گوسفندان خویش را به نام می‌خواند، و آنها را بیرون می‌برد. ۴چون همۀ گوسفندان خود را بیرون بَرَد، پیشاپیش آنها گام برمی‌دارد و گوسفندان از پی او می‌روند، زیرا صدایش را می‌شناسند. ۵امّا هرگز از پی بیگانه نمی‌روند، بلکه از او می‌گریزند، زیرا صدای بیگانگان را نمی‌شناسند.» ۶عیسی این تمثیل را برایشان بیان کرد، امّا آنان درنیافتند بدیشان چه می‌گوید. ۷پس بار دیگر بدیشان گفت: «آمین، آمین، به شما می‌گویم، من برای گوسفندان، ’در‘ هستم؛ ۸آنان که پیش از من آمدند، همگی دزد و راهزنند، امّا گوسفندان به آنان گوش فرا ندادند. ۹من ’در‘ هستم؛ هر که از راه من داخل شود نجات خواهد یافت، و آزادانه به درون خواهد آمد و بیرون خواهد رفت و چراگاه خواهد یافت.

نبی ارمیا

He is the author of the Old Testament book that bears his name and of the Book of Lamentations; and Baruch, his scribe and disciple, composed the Old Testament book that bears his own name. Jeremiah was the son of Helkiah, of the tribe of Levi, from the city of Anathoth in the land of Benjamin. He prophesied for thirty years, from 613 to 583 BC. When the Hebrew people were taken into captivity in the reigh of Zedekiah, the Prophet remained behind and mourned the downfall of the Jerusalem: this is the origin of the book of Lamentations. The Jews who remained fled into Egypt, forcibly taking Jeremiah and his scribe Baruch with them. In Egypt, his prophecies continued to disturb his own people, who stoned him to death by in 583.

His name means “The Lord is exalted.” He is ranked second among the great Prophets, after Isaiah.

The holy Prophets and Forefathers, who lived before Christ’s coming in the flesh are counted as Saints of the Church because they foresaw His coming, spoke of it in their prophecies, looked forward to it with Joy, and greeted Jesus as their Savior when he descended into Hades before his Resurrection.

قدیس تامارا (تامار), ملکه گرجستان (۱۲۱۲)

‘Saint Tamara was the only child of King George III. Upon his death in 1184, she became Queen at the age of twenty-four. Despite her youth, she ruled the country with such wisdom and godliness — leading it to unprecedented military triumphs over the neighboring Moslem countries in defence of her kingdom, fostering arts and letters, and zealously strengthening Orthodoxy — that her reign is known as the Golden Age of Georgia. After her coronation, she convoked a local council to correct disorders in church life. When the bishops had assembled from all parts of her kingdom, she, like Saint Constantine at the First Ecumenical Council, honoured them as if she were a commoner, and they Angels of God; exhorting them to establish righteousness and redress abuses, she said in her humility, “Do away with every wickedness, beginning with me, for the prerogative of the throne is in no wise that of making war against God.” Saint Tamara called herself “the father of orphans and the judge of widows,” and her contemporaries called her “King” instead of “Queen.” She herself led her army against the Moslems and fearlessly defeated them; because of the reverence that even the enemies of Georgia had for her, entire mountain tribes renounced Islam and were baptized. She built countless churches and monasteries throughout her kingdom, and was a benefactress also to the Holy Land, Mount Athos, and holy places in Greece and Cyprus. She has always been much beloved by her people, who have memorialized her meekness, wisdom, piety, obedience, and peace-loving nature in innumerable legends, ballads, and songs; the poem written in her honor by Shota Rustaveli, “The Knight of the Panther Skin,” is the masterpiece of Georgian literature. The great Queen Tamara departed the earthly kingdom for the heavenly in the year 1212.’ (Great Horologion)

مجمع سه جدید عادل شهیدان مقدس کوه, اِفتیمیوس, ایگناتیوس, و آکاکیوس (۱۸-۱۸)

All three were monks on Mt Athos. All three had renounced Christ in their youth and embraced Islam, but had repented and pursued the Christian life with fervor. All three, at different times, returned to Constantinople and declared themselves Christians, dooming themselves to death under Islamic law. Acacius’s poor and pious mother told him, ‘As you voluntarily denied the Lord, so you must now voluntarily and courageously receive martyrdom for our sweet Jesus.’ All three were beheaded in Constantinople. The holy relics of all three are kept at the Skete of the Venerable Forerunner on the Holy Mountain, where they had been monks.