January 4, 2026

Events of the day

• Great-martyr Anastasia the Deliverer from Bonds

  Polyeleos rank

• Forefeast: Nativity of our Lord, God and Saviour Jesus Christ

Fasting

Fast day · Nativity Fast

Nativity Fast (from 20 Dec Old Style), Saturday and Sunday: food with oil, no fish.

• Meat: not allowed
• Dairy & eggs: not allowed
• Fish: not allowed
• Oil: allowed
• Wine: allowed

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

  Genesis 14:14–20

• Vespers

  Deuteronomy 1:8–11, 15–17

• Vespers

  Deuteronomy 10:14–21

• 8th Matins Gospel

  John 20:11–18

  Show the text

  ¹¹But Mary was standing outside at the tomb weeping. So as she wept, she stooped and looked into the tomb,

  ¹²and she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head, and one at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain.

  ¹³They asked her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “Because they have taken away my Lord, and I don’t know where they have laid him.”

  ¹⁴When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing, and didn’t know that it was Jesus.

  ¹⁵Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Who are you looking for?” She, supposing him to be the gardener, said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.”

  ¹⁶Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned and said to him, “Rabboni!” which is to say, “Teacher!”

  ¹⁷Jesus said to her, “Don’t hold me, for I haven’t yet ascended to my Father; but go to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’ ”

  ¹⁸Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord, and that he had said these things to her.

• Epistle · Sunday before Nativity

  Hebrews 11:9–10, 17–23, 32–40

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  ⁹By faith, he lived as an alien in the land of promise, as in a land not his own, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise.

  ¹⁰For he looked for the city which has the foundations, whose builder and maker is God.

  ¹⁷By faith, Abraham, being tested, offered up Isaac. Yes, he who had gladly received the promises was offering up his one and only son,

  ¹⁸to whom it was said, “Your offspring will be accounted as from Isaac,”

  ¹⁹concluding that God is able to raise up even from the dead. Figuratively speaking, he also did receive him back from the dead.

  ²⁰By faith, Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau, even concerning things to come.

  ²¹By faith, Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph, and worshiped, leaning on the top of his staff.

  ²²By faith, Joseph, when his end was near, made mention of the departure of the children of Israel, and gave instructions concerning his bones.

  ²³By faith, Moses, when he was born, was hidden for three months by his parents, because they saw that he was a beautiful child, and they were not afraid of the king’s commandment.

  ³²What more shall I say? For the time would fail me if I told of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and the prophets,

  ³³who through faith subdued kingdoms, worked out righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions,

  ³⁴quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, from weakness were made strong, grew mighty in war, and caused foreign armies to flee.

  ³⁵Women received their dead by resurrection. Others were tortured, not accepting their deliverance, that they might obtain a better resurrection.

  ³⁶Others were tried by mocking and scourging, yes, moreover by bonds and imprisonment.

  ³⁷They were stoned. They were sawn apart. They were tempted. They were slain with the sword. They went around in sheep skins and in goat skins; being destitute, afflicted, ill-treated—

  ³⁸of whom the world was not worthy—wandering in deserts, mountains, caves, and the holes of the earth.

  ³⁹These all, having had testimony given to them through their faith, didn’t receive the promise,

  ⁴⁰God having provided some better thing concerning us, so that apart from us they should not be made perfect.

• Gospel · Sunday before Nativity

  Matthew 1:1–25

  Show the text

  ¹The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.

  ²Abraham became the father of Isaac. Isaac became the father of Jacob. Jacob became the father of Judah and his brothers.

  ³Judah became the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar. Perez became the father of Hezron. Hezron became the father of Ram.

  ⁴Ram became the father of Amminadab. Amminadab became the father of Nahshon. Nahshon became the father of Salmon.

  ⁵Salmon became the father of Boaz by Rahab. Boaz became the father of Obed by Ruth. Obed became the father of Jesse.

  ⁶Jesse became the father of King David. David became the father of Solomon by her who had been Uriah’s wife.

  ⁷Solomon became the father of Rehoboam. Rehoboam became the father of Abijah. Abijah became the father of Asa.

  ⁸Asa became the father of Jehoshaphat. Jehoshaphat became the father of Joram. Joram became the father of Uzziah.

  ⁹Uzziah became the father of Jotham. Jotham became the father of Ahaz. Ahaz became the father of Hezekiah.

  ¹⁰Hezekiah became the father of Manasseh. Manasseh became the father of Amon. Amon became the father of Josiah.

  ¹¹Josiah became the father of Jechoniah and his brothers, at the time of the exile to Babylon.

  ¹²After the exile to Babylon, Jechoniah became the father of Shealtiel. Shealtiel became the father of Zerubbabel.

  ¹³Zerubbabel became the father of Abiud. Abiud became the father of Eliakim. Eliakim became the father of Azor.

  ¹⁴Azor became the father of Zadok. Zadok became the father of Achim. Achim became the father of Eliud.

  ¹⁵Eliud became the father of Eleazar. Eleazar became the father of Matthan. Matthan became the father of Jacob.

  ¹⁶Jacob became the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, from whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ.

  ¹⁷So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; from David to the exile to Babylon fourteen generations; and from the carrying away to Babylon to the Christ, fourteen generations.

  ¹⁸Now the birth of Jesus Christ was like this: After his mother, Mary, was engaged to Joseph, before they came together, she was found pregnant by the Holy Spirit.

  ¹⁹Joseph, her husband, being a righteous man, and not willing to make her a public example, intended to put her away secretly.

  ²⁰But when he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, don’t be afraid to take to yourself Mary, your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.

  ²¹She shall give birth to a son. You shall name him Jesus, for it is he who shall save his people from their sins.”

  ²²Now all this has happened that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying,

  ²³“Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and shall give birth to a son. They shall call his name Immanuel;” which is, being interpreted, “God with us.”

  ²⁴Joseph arose from his sleep, and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took his wife to himself;

  ²⁵and didn’t know her sexually until she had given birth to her firstborn son. He named him Jesus.

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

Saints and icons

• Prayer of the day: The Symbol of Faith (Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed)