April 2

1. THE VENERABLE TITUS THE MIRACLE-WORKER

From his youth, Titus loved Christ the Lord and detested the vanities of the world. Because of this, he retreated from the world, entered a monastery and received the angelic habit [The Great Schema-The Angelic Face]. Without regret, he dedicated himself to the somber and narrow path of monasticism. Through great patience, he attained two basic virtues: humility and obedience. In these virtues he surpassed "not only the brethren, but also all men." From his youth he preserved the purity of his soul and body. At the time of the iconoclastic heresy he proved himself to be an unwavering pillar of the Church of God. Because of his great humility and purity, God bestowed upon him the gift of performing miracles, both during his lifetime and after his death. When he went to the Lord he left behind a countless number of disciples. He died peacefully in the ninth century.

2. THE HOLY MARTYRS AMPHIANUS AND EDESIUS

These two young men were blood brothers from the city of Patara, of distinguished but pagan parents. While they were studying the secular sciences in the city of Beirut, they were enlightened by the Spirit of God and, acknowledging the falsehood of paganism, they discerned the truth of Christianity. When they returned home, they could no longer live with their pagan parents and kinsmen and secretly fled to Caesarea in Palestine, to the presbyter Pamphilius, renowned for his sanctity and spiritual learning. With Pamphilius, they studied the Law of God day and night and practiced Christian asceticism. It is said of Amphianus that he was twenty years old according to the flesh, but in understanding and generosity he was a hundred. When a persecution began during the reign of Maximian, many Christians fled the city and hid themselves. Others willingly and joyfully gave themselves into the hands of the persecutors in order to suffer for the Name of Him Who first suffered for them. Amphianus was among the latter. Unafraid, he entered a pagan temple where Prince Urban was offering sacrifices to the idols, seized the prince's hand that was holding the sacrifice, and cried out to him to refrain from serving dead idols and offering sacrifices to them, and to acknowledge the true God. Some of the pagans, who heard these words and witnessed the great courage of Amphianus, repented and embraced the Christian Faith. The enraged prince subjected Amphianus to torture. Among other tortures, they wrapped Amphianus's legs with cotton and set them on fire. When he remained alive, they cast him into the sea with a stone around his neck. The sea became turbulent and hurled his martyred body back to the city.

Edesius was first sent to a copper mine in Palestine and was later taken to Egypt. In Alexandria, Edesius was filled with holy zeal against a certain Prince Hierocles, who assembled Christian nuns, maidens and virtuous women in the market place and gave them over to the most shameful degenerates for mockery. Edesius, filled with holy zeal, struck the disgraceful prince. For that, he was tortured and drowned in the sea as was his brother Amphianus. Like two innocent lambs, they were sacrificed for Christ in about the year 306 A.D. and went to the glorious mansions of the Lord.

HYMN OF PRAISE

SAINT AMPHIANUS AND EDESIUS

Two brothers offered themselves to God as a sacrifice,

Despising the decaying world, the dead corpse.

Amphianus and Edesius, brothers from the womb,

Wonderful brothers, in sufferings like unto Christ.

He who has faith in God does not value the world;

But for a dead soul, the world can replace God.

Whoever has love for Christ is not afraid of death;

Even before death he is already numbered among the immortal.

Whoever considers death as the gloomy end, the inglorious end,

Must also consider himself a slave of despair.

The martyrs considered death the veil of heaven;

They showed that to fear death is not necessary.

Do not fear, O man, that there is no heaven,

But fear the Dreadful Judgment which heaven prepares.

For a sinner it would be easier if heaven did not exist.

That is why the sinner angrily asks:

"But where is heaven?"

O sinner, heaven is not where you are,

You and heaven will never be together.


REFLECTION

"It is better to be a simpleton and approach God with love than to be a learned man and at the same time an enemy of God." These are the words of the hieromartyr St. Irenaeus of Lyons. The truth of these words has been confirmed in all times and is also confirmed in our time. One thing must be added to this: namely, that the lovers of God are not simpletons, because they know God well enough to be able to love Him. Of all human knowledge, this knowledge is the most important and the greatest. To this it must be added that the enemies of God cannot be highly learned--even though they consider themselves as such--because their knowledge is unavoidably chaotic, without a source and without order. The source and order of all knowledge is God. Some of the saints, such as Paul the Simple, did not know how to read or write, yet with the strength of their spirit and divine love they surpassed the entire world. Whosoever approaches God with love is not capable of crime. Knowledge without love toward God is motivated by the spirit of criminality and war. St. Euthymius the Great taught: "Have love; for what salt is to food, love is to every virtue." Every virtue is tasteless and cold if it is not seasoned and warmed by divine love.

CONTEMPLATION

Contemplate the Lord Jesus in hades:

1. How His plan for salvation is all-abundant, encompassing all generations and all ages from the beginning to the end;

2. How He came to earth in the flesh, not only for the sake of those who lived on earth then and for the sake of those who would live, but also for those who had already lived;

3. How He, while His lifeless body lay in the tomb, descended into hades with His soul and announced salvation and redemption to the fettered.

HOMILY

on the Living God and His living children

"Whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord's" (Romans 14:8).

Whose are we while we live? We are the Lord's. Whose are we after we die? We are the Lord's. Whose are the righteous? They are the Lord's. Whose are the sinners? They are the Lord's. The Lord embraces all, both the living and the dead, those of the past, those of the present and those of the future. No one is so all-embracing as is the Lord Jesus. Who of the so-called benefactors of mankind--teachers, leaders or enlighteners--ever attempted to perform any good for the dead? This can be decisively answered: No one! Even the thought alone would be ridiculous in the eyes of the world--to do something good for the dead! This is amusing to all those who think that death is mightier than God, and that that which death swallows up is destroyed forever. To be concerned for the dead, to do good for the dead, has ceased to be amusing since the revelation of the Lord Jesus, Who revealed that He is God--the God of the living--and Who showed it by His actions, by descending into hades to redeem and save the souls of the righteous, from the time of Adam to the time of His death on the Cross.

Our Lord is all-embracing and all-glorious, first of all by His discerning thoughts (for He thinks about everyone and sees everyone born of women, both those who are above the graves and those who are in the graves); then by His love (for He embraces all the souls of the righteous, regardless of the time or place in which they are concealed); and finally by His labors (for He labors for everyone), to redeem them, to save them, to lead them into the Kingdom, and to glorify them before the face of His Heavenly Father, the Life-giving Spirit and the myriads of holy angels.

To Thee be glory and praise forever. Amen.

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