January 15, 2025

Events of the day

• Repose of St Seraphim of Sarov, Wonderworker

  Polyeleos rank

• St Sylvester, Pope of Rome

  Commemoration

• Forefeast: Holy Theophany. The Baptism of the Lord

Fasting

No fast

Christmastide (25 Dec – 4 Jan Old Style) is fast-free: no fasting.

Food rules are reference church information. Agree your personal measure of fasting with a priest; consult a doctor if you are ill.

Readings of the day

• Vespers

  Wisdom of Solomon 3:1–9

• Vespers

  Wisdom of Solomon 5:15–6:3

• Vespers

  Wisdom of Solomon 4:7–15

• Matins Gospel

  Matthew 11:27–30

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  ²⁷All things have been delivered to me by my Father. No one knows the Son, except the Father; neither does anyone know the Father, except the Son, and he to whom the Son desires to reveal him.

  ²⁸“Come to me, all you who labor and are heavily burdened, and I will give you rest.

  ²⁹Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart; and you will find rest for your souls.

  ³⁰For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

• Epistle

  Hebrews 10:1–18

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  ¹For the law, having a shadow of the good to come, not the very image of the things, can never with the same sacrifices year by year, which they offer continually, make perfect those who draw near.

  ²Or else wouldn’t they have ceased to be offered, because the worshipers, having been once cleansed, would have had no more consciousness of sins?

  ³But in those sacrifices there is a yearly reminder of sins.

  ⁴For it is impossible that the blood of bulls and goats should take away sins.

  ⁵Therefore when he comes into the world, he says, “You didn’t desire sacrifice and offering, but you prepared a body for me.

  ⁶You had no pleasure in whole burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin.

  ⁷Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come (in the scroll of the book it is written of me) to do your will, O God.’ ”

  ⁸Previously saying, “Sacrifices and offerings and whole burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin you didn’t desire, neither had pleasure in them” (those which are offered according to the law),

  ⁹then he has said, “Behold, I have come to do your will.” He takes away the first, that he may establish the second,

  ¹⁰by which will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

  ¹¹Every priest indeed stands day by day serving and often offering the same sacrifices which can never take away sins,

  ¹²but he, when he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down on the right hand of God,

  ¹³from that time waiting until his enemies are made the footstool of his feet.

  ¹⁴For by one offering he has perfected forever those who are being sanctified.

  ¹⁵The Holy Spirit also testifies to us, for after saying,

  ¹⁶“This is the covenant that I will make with them: ‘After those days,’ says the Lord, ‘I will put my laws on their heart, I will also write them on their mind;’ ” then he says,

  ¹⁷“I will remember their sins and their iniquities no more.”

  ¹⁸Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin.

• Epistle · St Seraphim

  Galatians 5:22–6:2

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  ²²But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith,

  ²³gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

  ²⁴Those who belong to Christ have crucified the flesh with its passions and lusts.

  ²⁵If we live by the Spirit, let’s also walk by the Spirit.

  ²⁶Let’s not become conceited, provoking one another, and envying one another.

  ¹Brothers, even if a man is caught in some fault, you who are spiritual must restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; looking to yourself so that you also aren’t tempted.

  ²Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.

• Gospel

  Mark 12:28–37

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  ²⁸One of the scribes came, and heard them questioning together, and knowing that he had answered them well, asked him, “Which commandment is the greatest of all?”

  ²⁹Jesus answered, “The greatest is, ‘Hear, Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one:

  ³⁰you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment.

  ³¹The second is like this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

  ³²The scribe said to him, “Truly, teacher, you have said well that he is one, and there is none other but he,

  ³³and to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love his neighbor as himself, is more important than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.”

  ³⁴When Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from God’s Kingdom.” No one dared ask him any question after that.

  ³⁵Jesus responded, as he taught in the temple, “How is it that the scribes say that the Christ is the son of David?

  ³⁶For David himself said in the Holy Spirit, ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies the footstool of your feet.” ’

  ³⁷Therefore David himself calls him Lord, so how can he be his son?” The common people heard him gladly.

• Gospel · St Seraphim

  Luke 6:17–23

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  ¹⁷He came down with them, and stood on a level place, with a crowd of his disciples, and a great number of the people from all Judea and Jerusalem, and the sea coast of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear him and to be healed of their diseases;

  ¹⁸as well as those who were troubled by unclean spirits, and they were being healed.

  ¹⁹All the multitude sought to touch him, for power came out of him and healed them all.

  ²⁰He lifted up his eyes to his disciples, and said, “Blessed are you who are poor, God’s Kingdom is yours.

  ²¹Blessed are you who hunger now, for you will be filled. Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh.

  ²²Blessed are you when men hate you, and when they exclude and mock you, and throw out your name as evil, for the Son of Man’s sake.

  ²³Rejoice in that day, and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven, for their fathers did the same thing to the prophets.

Source: Orthocal: lectionary data — Slavic tradition, Julian calendar. Text: World English Bible.

Saints and icons

• St Seraphim of Sarov
• Prayer of the day: The Trisagion