Orthodox Calendar

Thursday, March 16, 2079
Thursday of the Second Week of Lent

Lenten Fast — Abstain from meat, fish, dairy, eggs, wine, and oil

Scripture Readings

Commemorations

Scripture Readings

Isaiah 6.1-12 (6th Hour)

1And it came to pass in the year in which king Ozias died, that I saw the Lord sitting on a high and exalted throne, and the house was full of his glory. 2And seraphs stood round about him: each one had six wings: and with two they covered their face, and with two they covered their feet, and with two they flew. 3And one cried to the other, and they said, Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory. 4And the lintel shook at the voice they uttered, and the house was filled with smoke. 5And I said, Woe is me, for I am pricked to the heart; for being a man, and having unclean lips, I dwell in the midst of a people having unclean lips; and I have seen with my eyes the King, the Lord of hosts. 6And there was sent to me one of the seraphs, and he had in his hand a coal, which he had taken off the altar with the tongs: 7and he touched my mouth, and said, Behold, this has touched your lips, and will take away your iniquities, and will purge off your sins. 8And I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go to this people? And I said, behold, I am here, send me. And he said, Go, and say to this people, 9You⌃ shall hear indeed, but you⌃ shall not understand; and you⌃ shall see indeed, but you⌃ shall not perceive. 10For the heart of this people has become gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes have they closed; lest they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and be converted, and I should heal them. 11And I said, How long, O Lord? And he said, Until cities be deserted by reason of their not being inhabited, and the houses by reason of there being no men, and the land shall be left desolate. 12And after this God shall remove the men far off, and they that are left upon the land shall be multiplied.

Genesis 5.1-24 (Vespers)

1This is the genealogy of men in the day in which God made Adam; in the image of God he made him: 2male and female he made them, and blessed them; and he called his name Adam, in the day in which he made them. 3And Adam lived two hundred and thirty years, and begot a son after his own form, and after his own image, and he called his name Seth. 4And the days of Adam, which he lived after his begetting Seth, were seven hundred years; and he begot sons and daughters. 5And all the days of Adam which he lived were nine hundred and thirty years, and he died. 6Now Seth lived two hundred and five years, and begot Enos. 7And Seth lived after his begetting Enos, seven hundred and seven years, and he begot sons and daughters. 8And all the days of Seth were nine hundred and twelve years, and he died. 9And Enos lived one hundred and ninety years, and begot Cainan. 10And Enos lived after his begetting Cainan, seven hundred and fifteen years, and he begot sons and daughters. 11And all the days of Enos were nine hundred and five years, and he died. 12And Cainan lived one hundred and seventy years, and he begot Maleleel. 13And Cainan lived after his begetting Maleleel, seven hundred and forty years, and he begot sons and daughters. 14And all the days of Cainan were nine hundred and ten years, and he died. 15And Maleleel lived one hundred and sixty and five years, and he begot Jared. 16And Maleleel lived after his begetting Jared, seven hundred and thirty years, and he begot sons and daughters. 17And all the days of Maleleel were eight hundred and ninety and five years, and he died. 18And Jared lived one hundred and sixty and two years, and begot Enoch: 19and Jared lived after his begetting Enoch, eight hundred years, and he begot sons and daughters. 20And all the days of Jared were nine hundred and sixty and two years, and he died. 21And Enoch lived one hundred and sixty and five years, and became the father of Mathusala. 22And Enoch was well-pleasing to God after his begetting Mathusala, two hundred years, and he begot sons and daughters. 23And all the days of Enoch were three hundred and sixty and five years. 24And Enoch was well-pleasing to God, and was not found, because God translated him.

Proverbs 6.3-20 (Vespers)

3My son, do what I command you, and deliver yourself; for on your friend's account you are come into the power of evil men: faint not, but stir up even your friend for whom you are become surety. 4Give not sleep to your eyes, nor slumber with your eyelids; 5that you may deliver yourself as a doe out of the toils, and as a bird out of a snare. 6Go to the ant, O sluggard; and see, and emulate his ways, and become wiser than he. 7For whereas he has no husbandry, nor any one to compel him, and is under no master, 8he prepares food for himself in the summer, and lays by abundant store in harvest. Or go to the bee, and learn how diligent she is, and how earnestly she is engaged in her work; whose labors kings and private men use for health, and she is desired and respected by all: though weak in body, she is advanced by honouring wisdom. 9How long will you lie, O sluggard? and when will you awake out of sleep? 10You sleep a little, and you rest a little, and you slumber a short time, and you fold your arms over your breast a little. 11Then poverty comes upon you as an evil traveller, and lack as a swift courier: but if you be diligent, your harvest shall arrive as a fountain, and poverty shall flee away as a bad courier. 12A foolish man and a transgressor goes in ways that are not good. 13And the same winks with the eye, and makes a sign with his foot, and teaches with the beckonings of his fingers. 14His perverse heart devises evils: at all times such a one causes troubles to a city. 15Therefore his destruction shall come suddenly; overthrow and irretrievable ruin. 16For he rejoices in all things which God hates, and he is ruined by reason of impurity of soul. 17The eye of the haughty, a tongue unjust, hands shedding the blood of the just; 18and a heart devising evil thoughts, and feet hastening to do evil, —are hateful to God. 19An unjust witness kindles falsehoods, and brings on quarrels between brethren. 20My son, keep the laws of your father, and reject not the ordinances of your mother:

Commemorations

Martyrs Eutropius, Cleonicus and Basiliscus

They were fellow-soldiers and kinsmen of St Theodore the Tyro (Feb. 17). When St Theodore received his martyrdom, they were kept in prison because the governor of Amasia was unwilling to execute them. But a new and crueler governor, Asclepiodotus, took his place and ordered the three soldiers of Christ to be brought to him. At first, the governor used flattery and bribery to attempt to turn the three from Christ. He invited Eutropius to dine with him, but Eutropius refused, quoting the Psalm ‘Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsels of the ungodly.’ He then offered them a huge amount of silver, which they likewise refused, telling the governor that Judas lost his soul for silver. The governor then turned to torture, subjecting the three to extreme torments. At last, he condemned Eutropius and Cleonicus to crucifixion, for which they joyfully gave thanks that they had been found worthy to die the same death as Christ. Basiliscus was held in prison awhile longer in hopes that the deaths of his companions would weaken his resolve; but when he remained steadfast in the Faith, he was beheaded, on May 22 (on which he is also commemorated) in 308.

An Unknown Girl in Alexandria (?)

“She was from a wealthy house, having a good father who suffered much and had a difficult death, and an evil mother who had an easy life, died in peace and was buried with honour. In uncertainty whether to live by the example of her father or her mother, this maiden had a vision, in which the state of her father and of her mother were shown to her. She saw her father in the Kingdom of God, and her mother in darkness and torment. This determined her to devote her whole life to God, and, like her father, follow the commandments of God without regard to any opposition or misfortune that she might have to endure. And she followed the commandments of God to the end, with His help, and was made worthy of the Kingdom of heaven, in which she was reunited with her beloved father.” (Prologue)