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Святитель Герман, патриарх Константинопольский

Святой праведный Симеон Верхотурский с житием

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May 12/25

St. Epiphanius, bishop of Cyprus (403), and St. Germanus, patriarch of Constantinople (740) (Heb. 7:26-8:2; Matt. 5:14-19). Martyr Pancratius of Rome (304). St. Sabinus, archbishop of Cyprus (5th c.). St. Polybius of Cyprus, bishop of Rinokyr in Egypt (5th c.). St. Philip of Agira, Sicily (5th c.). St. Theodore of Cythera, monk (922). New Martyr John of Serres (15th-16th c.). St. Dionysius (1633) and St. Anthony (Medvedev) (1877), archimandrites of St. Sergius Lavra. New Martyr John of Wallachia, at Constantinople (1662). Glorification (1913) of St. Hermogenes, patriarch of Moscow and all Russia (1612). New Martyr Athanasia (Lepeshkin), abbess of the Smolensk Hodigitria Convent near Moscow (1931).

Commemoration of Monk Dorotheus (1622), disciple of St. Dionysius of St. Sergius Lavra.

Friday
Afterfeast of the Ascension
Acts 19:1-8
John 14:1-11
Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos
of Pec
Fast Day
Wine and oil allowed

Thoughts for Each Day of the Year
According to the Daily Church Readings from the Word of God
By St. Theophan the Recluse

Friday. [Acts 19:1–8; John 14:1–11]

If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also (John 14:7). Therefore, deists do not know God, in spite of the fact that they bear His name (Deus means God; from here comes the word deist), and reason eloquently about Him. There is no true God without the Son and without the Holy Spirit. He who believes in God, but does not confess Him as the Father of the Son, does not believe in a god that is the true God, but in some personal invention. The true God gave His Son, gave power to become the sons of God (John 1:12), loves them, and hears each of their prayers, for the sake of the Son. That is why he who has the Son has the Father; and he who does not have the Son, does not have the Father. No one comes to the Father except through the Son, and receives nothing from the Father, except through the Son. Apart from the Son there is no path to the true God; and he who thinks to invent Him is deluded.

Russian version

SAINT THEOPHAN THE RECLUSE (1815–1894) was one of the most prolific and beloved spiritual writers of nineteenth-century Russia. His works, which comprise over twenty volumes, include such classics as The Path to Salvation and A Commentary on Psalm 118, as well as many volumes of letters. Although he lived the last twenty-eight years of his life as a hermit, his impact on his homeland was immense. His articles appeared in the popular spiritual journals of his time, his books were in great demand, and he personally replied to an average of thirty letters daily.
In the present book, Thoughts for Each Day of the Year, St. Theophan takes us through the yearly cycle of Gospel and Epistle readings, humbly and reverently offering us brief but powerful daily meditations on the word of God. He also addresses the problems of his day—lack of faith, coldness of heart, trust in the rational mind rather than in the revealed Truth of God—which are problems of our day as well.
Contemplating the sacred texts together with St. Theophan, the reader will learn to penetrate more deeply into Holy Scripture, and will receive answers to many dogmatic, moral, and spiritual questions which touch upon our salvation. Thoughts for Each Day of the Year can help us to more closely connect our lives with the life of Christ in His Holy Church, and to gain a better knowledge of how to fulfill His commandments. By reading St. Theophan's daily exhortations and taking them to heart, one can be changed by the grace-filled power of our Savior, in accordance with the teaching of the Apostle Paul: Be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God (Rom. 11:2).
Thoughts for Each Day of the Year is published by St. Herman of Alaska Brotherhood and Sretensky Monastery.
It is available at stherman.com.

For further information on the Saint Herman Calendar contact St. Herman Press:
St. Herman Press, P.O. Box 70, Platina, CA 96076
http://www.sainthermanpress.com/catalog/chapter_fifteen/sthermancalendar.htm

Thoughts for Each Day of the Year According to the Daily Church Readings from the Word of God By St. Theophan the Recluse

Thoughts for Each Day of the Year
According to the Daily Church Readings from the Word of God
By St. Theophan the Recluse