December 30, 2027

Events of the day

• Prophet Daniel and the Three Holy Youths Ananias, Azarias and Misael

  Commemoration

Fasting

Fast day · Nativity Fast

Nativity Fast, Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday: fish is allowed.

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

By the Typikon (ch. 33) Tuesday and Thursday of the Apostles' and Nativity Fasts call for oil and wine only, fish only for a saint with a polyeleos; lay practice per the ROC calendar allows fish.

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

• Epistle

  Titus 1:5–2:1

  Show the text

  ⁵I left you in Crete for this reason, that you would set in order the things that were lacking and appoint elders in every city, as I directed you,

  ⁶if anyone is blameless, the husband of one wife, having children who believe, who are not accused of loose or unruly behavior.

  ⁷For the overseer must be blameless, as God’s steward, not self-pleasing, not easily angered, not given to wine, not violent, not greedy for dishonest gain;

  ⁸but given to hospitality, a lover of good, sober minded, fair, holy, self-controlled,

  ⁹holding to the faithful word which is according to the teaching, that he may be able to exhort in the sound doctrine, and to convict those who contradict him.

  ¹⁰For there are also many unruly men, vain talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision,

  ¹¹whose mouths must be stopped: men who overthrow whole houses, teaching things which they ought not, for dishonest gain’s sake.

  ¹²One of them, a prophet of their own, said, “Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, and idle gluttons.”

  ¹³This testimony is true. For this cause, reprove them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith,

  ¹⁴not paying attention to Jewish fables and commandments of men who turn away from the truth.

  ¹⁵To the pure, all things are pure; but to those who are defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure; but both their mind and their conscience are defiled.

  ¹⁶They profess that they know God, but by their deeds they deny him, being abominable, disobedient, and unfit for any good work.

  ¹But say the things which fit sound doctrine,

• Gospel

  Mark 9:10–16

  Show the text

  ¹⁰They kept this saying to themselves, questioning what the “rising from the dead” meant.

  ¹¹They asked him, saying, “Why do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?”

  ¹²He said to them, “Elijah indeed comes first, and restores all things. How is it written about the Son of Man, that he should suffer many things and be despised?

  ¹³But I tell you that Elijah has come, and they have also done to him whatever they wanted to, even as it is written about him.”

  ¹⁴Coming to the disciples, he saw a great multitude around them, and scribes questioning them.

  ¹⁵Immediately all the multitude, when they saw him, were greatly amazed, and running to him, greeted him.

  ¹⁶He asked the scribes, “What are you asking them?”

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

Saints and icons

• Prayer of the day: Prayer to the Holy Spirit “O Heavenly King”