Twelfth Sunday after Pentecost

Placing of the Sash of the Theotokos

August 31, 2014

Saints of the Day:  Gennadius, Patriarch of Constantinople; Hieromartyr Cyprian, Bishop of Carthage; John, Metropolitan of Kiev; Aidan, Bishop of Lindisfarne

Hymns of the Day

Troparion of the Resurrection, Tone 3

Let the heavens rejoice and the earth be glad, for the Lord hath done a mighty act with His own arm. He hath trampled down death by death, and became the first-born from the dead. He hath delivered us from the depths of Hades, granting the world the Great Mercy.

Troparion of the placing of the Virgin’s sash, Tone 8

Thou hast bestowed upon thy city, O ever-virgin Theotokos and shelter of mankind, the robe and the belt of thy pure body, as a secure mantle, which by thy seedless birth-giving have remained without corruption; for by thee are nature and time regenerated. Wherefore, we implore thee to grant thy city safety, and our souls the Great Mercy.

Troparion of St Joseph, Tone 2

Proclaim, O Joseph to David, the ancestor of God, the amazing wonder, for by the angel they were revealed unto thee. For thou hast seen a Virgin great with child, and thou gave glory with the shepherds and didst worship with the Magi. Wherefore, plead with Christ God to save our souls.

Kontakion of the placing of the Virgin’s sash Tone 4

O pure Virgin, the Church joyously celebrates the placing of thy divine belt and cries out to thee in supplication: Save us all from powerful enemies, crush the arrogance of unbelievers, and direct our lives to the doing of the divine will of the Lord.

Epistle – Hebrews 9: 1-7

Brethren, even the first covenant had regulations for worship and an earthly sanctuary. For a tent was prepared, the outer one, in which were the lamp stand and the table and the bread of the Presence; it is called the Holy Place. Behind the second curtain stood a tent called the Holy of Holies, having the golden altar of incense and the ark of the covenant covered on all sides with gold, which contained a golden urn holding the manna, and Aaron’s rod that budded, and the tables of the covenant; above it were the cherubim of glory overshadowing the mercy seat. Of these things we cannot now speak in detail. These preparations having thus been made, the priests go continually into the outer tent, performing their ritual duties; but into the second only the high priest goes, and he but once a year, and not without taking blood which he offers

for himself and for the errors of the people.

Gospel - Matthew 19: 16-26

At that time, a young man came up to Jesus, kneeling before him and saying, “Good Teacher, what good deed must I do, to have eternal life?” And Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? There is no good but One, and that is God. If you would enter life, keep the commandments.” He said to Jesus, “Which?” And Jesus said, “You shall not kill, You shall not commit adultery, You shall not steal, You shall not bear false witness, Honor your father and mother, and, You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” The young man said to Jesus, “All these I have observed from my youth; what do I still lack?” Jesus said to him, “If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” When the young man heard this, he went away sorrowful; for he had great possessions. And Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly, I say to you, it will be hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of Heaven. Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” When the disciples heard this they were greatly astonished, saying, “Who then can be saved?” But Jesus looked at them and said to them, “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

St Aidan of Lindisfarne – August 31^st

An Irishman, possibly born in Connaught, Aidan was a monk at the monastery on the island of Iona in Scotland.

The Roman Empire had spread Christianity into England, but due to its decline, paganism was seeing resurgence in Northern England. St Oswald of Northumbria had been living at the Iona monastery as a king in exile since 616 A.D. There he converted to Christianity and was baptized. In 634 he gained the crown of Northumbria, and was determined to bring Christianity to the mostly pagan people there.

Due to his past at Iona, he requested missionaries from that monastery instead of the Roman-backed monasteries in England. At first the monastery sent a new bishop named Corman, but he returned to Iona and reported that the Northumbrians were too stubborn to be converted. Aidan criticized Corman's methods, and was soon sent as a replacement in 635.

Aidan chose the island of Lindisfarne, close to the royal castle at Bamburgh, as his diocese. King Oswald, who spoke Irish Gaelic, often had to translate for Aidan and his monks, who did not speak English at first. When Oswald died in 642, he received continued support from King St Oswin of Deira, and the two became close friends.

An inspired missionary, St Aidan would walk from one village to another, politely conversing with the people he saw, slowly interesting them in Christianity. The king gave Aidan a horse so that he wouldn't have to walk, but Aidan gave the horse to a beggar. By patiently talking to the people on their own level, Aidan and his monks slowly restored Christianity to the Northumbrian communities. Aidan also took in twelve English boys to train at the monastery, to ensure that the area's future religious leadership would be English.

In 651 a pagan army attacked Bamburgh and attempted to set its walls ablaze. Aidan prayed for the city, after which the winds turned and blew the smoke and fire toward the enemy, repulsing them.

Aidan's friend St Oswin of Deira was murdered in 651. Twelve days later Aidan died, on August 31, in the 17th year of his episcopacy.

St Aidan's expression of the Orthodox Christian faith was more from the native Celtic strand rather than the Roman/Latin variety growing in the south of England, but his character and energy in missionary work won him the respect of Popes Honorius I and Felix I.

The monastery he founded grew and helped found churches and other monasteries throughout the area. It also became a center of learning and a storehouse of scholarly knowledge. The Venerable Bede would later write Aidan’s hagiography and describe the miracles attributed to him.

Taken from Orthodox Wiki