Romans 15.17-29 (Epistle)

17I have therefore my boasting in Christ Jesus in things pertaining to God. 18For I will not dare to speak of any things except those which Christ worked through me for the obedience of the Gentiles, by word and deed, 19in the power of signs and wonders, in the power of God’s Spirit; so that from Jerusalem and around as far as to Illyricum, I have fully preached the Good News of Christ; 20yes, making it my aim to preach the Good News, not where Christ was already named, that I might not build on another’s foundation. 21But, as it is written, “They will see, to whom no news of him came. They who haven’t heard will understand.”

22Therefore also I was hindered these many times from coming to you, 23but now, no longer having any place in these regions, and having these many years a longing to come to you, 24whenever I travel to Spain, I will come to you. For I hope to see you on my journey, and to be helped on my way there by you, if first I may enjoy your company for a while. 25But now, I say, I am going to Jerusalem, serving the saints. 26For it has been the good pleasure of Macedonia and Achaia to make a certain contribution for the poor among the saints who are at Jerusalem. 27Yes, it has been their good pleasure, and they are their debtors. For if the Gentiles have been made partakers of their spiritual things, they owe it to them also to serve them in material things. 28When therefore I have accomplished this, and have sealed to them this fruit, I will go on by way of you to Spain. 29I know that when I come to you, I will come in the fullness of the blessing of the Good News of Christ.

Matthew 12.46-13.3 (Gospel)

46While he was yet speaking to the multitudes, behold, his mother and his brothers stood outside, seeking to speak to him. 47One said to him, “Behold, your mother and your brothers stand outside, seeking to speak to you.”

48But he answered him who spoke to him, “Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?” 49He stretched out his hand toward his disciples, and said, “Behold, my mother and my brothers! 50For whoever does the will of my Father who is in heaven, he is my brother, and sister, and mother.”

1On that day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the seaside. 2Great multitudes gathered to him, so that he entered into a boat and sat; and all the multitude stood on the beach. 3He spoke to them many things in parables, saying, “Behold, a farmer went out to sow.

Synaxis of Archangel Gabriel

On this day all the many visitations and miracles of the holy Archangel, recorded in Holy Scripture and ever since, are commemorated. This feast duplicates the Synaxis of the Archangel Gabriel that is celebrated on March 26, the day after Annunciation; it is thought that it was added to the calendar here some time in the ninth century, so that it could be celebrated more festively outside of Great Lent.

Holy Martyr Golinduc of Persia (6th c.)

She was a Persian noblewoman during the reign of Chosroës II (590-628). Through a vision of an angel, she came to belief in Christ and received holy baptism; her name in baptism was Maria. Her furious husband reported her to King Chosroës, who had her thrown into a foul dungeon known as Oblivion for eighteen years. During these years she was repeatedly told to renounce Christ and was tormented in many ways. She was thrown to venomous snakes, which refused to harm her. Some lawless young men were sent to her cell to defile her, but God made her invisible to them. Many Persians, amazed and inspired by her patient sufferings, accepted Christ. She was finally set free through the visitation of an angel, traveled to Jerusalem and Constantinople, and reposed in peace.

She is commemorated July 12 on the Slavic calendar. Oddly, she is called a Martyr in all accounts, though she died free and in peace; presumably her eighteen years of cruel imprisonment earned her the title.

Saint Julian, Bishop of Cenomanis (Le Mans) (1st c.)

He was made bishop by the Apostle Peter and sent to Gaul as a missionary. Some believe that he was Simon the Leper, whom the Lord healed, later named Julian in Baptism. In Gaul, despite great difficulty and privation, he converted many to faith in Christ and worked many miracles — healing the sick, driving out demons, and even raising the dead. In time the local prince, Defenson, was baptised along with many of his subjects. He reposed in peace.

Repose of Photios Kontoglou (1965) (June 30 OC)

He is called “Blessed Photios” by many, but has not yet been officially glorified. In the twentieth century, he almost singlehandedly restored the practice of true Byzantine iconography to the Church. He was born in 1895 in one of the many Greek towns of Asia Minor. He and his family fled to Greece during the “exchange of populations” of 1923, when more than a million Greeks were driven from Turkey and resettled in Greece. He studied to be a secular artist, but was increasingly drawn to Byzantine iconography, the practice of which had almost disappeared: he learned the iconographic ethos and technique by copying ancient models and studying with the few monks on the Holy Mountain who still practiced true iconography. Initially his work was scorned, since secular western standards had come to dominate even the art of the Church. Slowly, through his tireless labors, an understanding of Orthodoxy iconography was restored to the Church, not only in Greece, but throughout the world. Though married, he lived his life in poverty, often donating his work to churches or performing it for nominal fees. His deeply spiritual writings are greatly honored in Greece, though most remain untranslated into English.