January 3, 2025

Events of the day

No commemorations in the content package for this day yet

• 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

• 1st Hour, Prophecy

  Isaiah 35:1–10

• 1st Hour, Epistle

  Acts 13:25–33

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  ²⁵As John was fulfilling his course, he said, ‘What do you suppose that I am? I am not he. But behold, one comes after me, the sandals of whose feet I am not worthy to untie.’

  ²⁶Brothers, children of the stock of Abraham, and those among you who fear God, the word of this salvation is sent out to you.

  ²⁷For those who dwell in Jerusalem, and their rulers, because they didn’t know him, nor the voices of the prophets which are read every Sabbath, fulfilled them by condemning him.

  ²⁸Though they found no cause for death, they still asked Pilate to have him killed.

  ²⁹When they had fulfilled all things that were written about him, they took him down from the tree, and laid him in a tomb.

  ³⁰But God raised him from the dead,

  ³¹and he was seen for many days by those who came up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are his witnesses to the people.

  ³²We bring you good news of the promise made to the fathers,

  ³³that God has fulfilled this to us, their children, in that he raised up Jesus. As it is also written in the second psalm, ‘You are my Son. Today I have become your father.’

• 1st Hour, Gospel

  Matthew 3:1–11

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  ¹In those days, John the Baptizer came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea, saying,

  ²“Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!”

  ³For this is he who was spoken of by Isaiah the prophet, saying, “The voice of one crying in the wilderness, make the way of the Lord ready! Make his paths straight!”

  ⁴Now John himself wore clothing made of camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey.

  ⁵Then people from Jerusalem, all of Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him.

  ⁶They were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins.

  ⁷But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming for his baptism, he said to them, “You offspring of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?

  ⁸Therefore produce fruit worthy of repentance!

  ⁹Don’t think to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham for our father,’ for I tell you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones.

  ¹⁰“Even now the ax lies at the root of the trees. Therefore every tree that doesn’t produce good fruit is cut down, and cast into the fire.

  ¹¹I indeed baptize you in water for repentance, but he who comes after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you in the Holy Spirit.

• 3rd Hour, Prophecy

  Isaiah 1:16–20

• 3rd Hour, Epistle

  Acts 19:1–8

• 3rd Hour, Gospel

  Mark 1:1–8

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  ¹The beginning of the Good News of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

  ²As it is written in the prophets, “Behold, I send my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way before you:

  ³the voice of one crying in the wilderness, ‘Make ready the way of the Lord! Make his paths straight!’ ”

  ⁴John came baptizing in the wilderness and preaching the baptism of repentance for forgiveness of sins.

  ⁵All the country of Judea and all those of Jerusalem went out to him. They were baptized by him in the Jordan river, confessing their sins.

  ⁶John was clothed with camel’s hair and a leather belt around his waist. He ate locusts and wild honey.

  ⁷He preached, saying, “After me comes he who is mightier than I, the thong of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and loosen.

  ⁸I baptized you in water, but he will baptize you in the Holy Spirit.”

• 6th Hour, Prophecy

  Isaiah 12:3–6

• 6th Hour, Epistle

  Romans 6:3–11

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  ³Or don’t you know that all we who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?

  ⁴We were buried therefore with him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we also might walk in newness of life.

  ⁵For if we have become united with him in the likeness of his death, we will also be part of his resurrection;

  ⁶knowing this, that our old man was crucified with him, that the body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be in bondage to sin.

  ⁷For he who has died has been freed from sin.

  ⁸But if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him;

  ⁹knowing that Christ, being raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over him!

  ¹⁰For the death that he died, he died to sin one time; but the life that he lives, he lives to God.

  ¹¹Thus consider yourselves also to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

• 6th Hour, Gospel

  Mark 1:9–11

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  ⁹In those days, Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized by John in the Jordan.

  ¹⁰Immediately coming up from the water, he saw the heavens parting, and the Spirit descending on him like a dove.

  ¹¹A voice came out of the sky, “You are my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”

• 9th Hour, Prophecy

  Isaiah 49:8–15

• 9th Hour, Epistle

  Titus 2:11–14, 3:4–7

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  ¹¹For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men,

  ¹²instructing us to the intent that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we would live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present age;

  ¹³looking for the blessed hope and appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ,

  ¹⁴who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify for himself a people for his own possession, zealous for good works.

  ⁴But when the kindness of God our Savior and his love toward mankind appeared,

  ⁵not by works of righteousness which we did ourselves, but according to his mercy, he saved us through the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit,

  ⁶whom he poured out on us richly, through Jesus Christ our Savior;

  ⁷that being justified by his grace, we might be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

• 9th Hour, Gospel

  Matthew 3:13–17

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  ¹³Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him.

  ¹⁴But John would have hindered him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and you come to me?”

  ¹⁵But Jesus, answering, said to him, “Allow it now, for this is the fitting way for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he allowed him.

  ¹⁶Jesus, when he was baptized, went up directly from the water: and behold, the heavens were opened to him. He saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove, and coming on him.

  ¹⁷Behold, a voice out of the heavens said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”

• Epistle

  Titus 1:15–2:10

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  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,

  ²that older men should be temperate, sensible, sober minded, sound in faith, in love, and in perseverance:

  ³and that older women likewise be reverent in behavior, not slanderers nor enslaved to much wine, teachers of that which is good,

  ⁴that they may train the young wives to love their husbands, to love their children,

  ⁵to be sober minded, chaste, workers at home, kind, being in subjection to their own husbands, that God’s word may not be blasphemed.

  ⁶Likewise, exhort the younger men to be sober minded.

  ⁷In all things be showing yourself an example of good works. In your teaching, be showing integrity, seriousness, incorruptibility,

  ⁸and soundness of speech that can’t be condemned, that he who opposes you may be ashamed, having no evil thing to say about us.

  ⁹Exhort servants to be in subjection to their own masters and to be well-pleasing in all things, not contradicting,

  ¹⁰not stealing, but showing all good fidelity, that they may adorn the doctrine of God, our Savior, in all things.

• Gospel

  Mark 13:1–8

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  ¹As he went out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him, “Teacher, see what kind of stones and what kind of buildings!”

  ²Jesus said to him, “Do you see these great buildings? There will not be left here one stone on another, which will not be thrown down.”

  ³As he sat on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter, James, John, and Andrew asked him privately,

  ⁴“Tell us, when will these things be? What is the sign that these things are all about to be fulfilled?”

  ⁵Jesus, answering, began to tell them, “Be careful that no one leads you astray.

  ⁶For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am he!’ and will lead many astray.

  ⁷“When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, don’t be troubled. For those must happen, but the end is not yet.

  ⁸For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places. There will be famines and troubles. These things are the beginning of birth pains.

Source: Orthocal: lectionary data — Slavic tradition, New Calendar (OCA practice). Text: World English Bible.

Saints and icons

• Prayer of the day: Short penitential prayers