Homily on the Resurrection of the Son of the Widow (Patriarch John VIII Xiphilinos of Constantinople)

 

By Patriarch John VIII of Constantinople the Xiphilinos (+ 1075)

 

The great mystery of the Resurrection is taught to us by our Savior and God as much through His words as through His works. And in His commands and teachings and miracles, the Lord begins with the lowest, and proceeds to the greatest. As by some steps He ascends from the lowest to the highest, and slowly raises the human race to the glory and knowledge and concept of His Godhead. One can see this in many other cases as well, but particularly in this case. For first the Lord indicated and announced the power of the Resurrection in the case of a serious illness for which they could do nothing, when He rebuked the fever that was burning Peter's mother-in-law, and caused such a change in her condition as to strengthen her in the service of visitors, the one everyone expected to die.

The Miracles of the Great Martyr Menas

 

 

By Timothy, Archbishop of Alexandria

After the death of the impious Roman pagan emperors Diocletian and Maximian, who hated Christ, the pious Emperor Constantine came to the throne, and the faith which is in our Lord Jesus Christ spread throughout every land. At that time, certain men, citizens of Alexandria and lovers of Christ, found the place where the holy relics of the holy and glorious martyr of Christ, Menas were laid and built a church dedicated to him.

1. It happened that a merchant from the land of Isauria came to Alexandria to purchase wares. Hearing of the numerous miracles and healings which took place at the church of Saint Menas, he said to himself, "I will go to church, that through the prayers of His holy sufferer, God may have mercy on me." So the man took a bag full of gold and left for the church. Reaching Lake Mareotis, which lies near the sea, he crossed on a ferryboat to Loxonetus where he looked about for a place to sleep that night.  He entered one of the houses there and said to the master, "Friend, be so kind as to accept me as a guest in your house tonight, for the sun has already set. I am afraid to continue alone."

Synaxarion of our Venerable Mother Matrona of Chios

 

St. Matrona of Chios (Feast Day - October 20)

Verses

Leaving the world completely non-worldly,

Now bride Matrona you stand before the Bridegroom.

 

The Venerable one had the island of Chios as her homeland, and was from a village called Volissos. Her parents were called Leo and Anna, who were modest in their manners, and were notable among others in their lineage and wealth. The blessed one, due to the fact that even in her young age she was very knowledgeable, because of this she loved God. For this reason she turned away from every other earthly love and passionate attachment to the worldly. And leaving behind her village and family and parents, she became a stranger and sojourner, on behalf of the Lord who appeared as a stranger on earth for us. From the inheritance she received from her parents, a portion she distributed to widows and orphans, and from what remained she paid the expenses for and built a church with much care, and this she dedicated to the name of the Savior Christ. 

 

Father Timothy Strelkov: A Russian Priest Who Was Beheaded in 1918, Miraculously Survived for 12 Years, and Was Hacked to Pieces in 1930

 

A great miracle took place in the life of the priest Father Timothy Strelkov. He was condemned to death by the communists, beheaded, but by the miraculous intervention of God his head was restored. This miracle of modern times has been likened to that which took place in the life of Saint John of Damascus in the eighth century, whose hand was cut off but healed by the Lord and grown back on again.

 

These events happened in the following manner.

 

Father Timothy Porfirievich Strelkov lived in the village of Mikhailovka in the Urals, twelve kilometres from the regional center of Duvan. This priest of deep faith was the younger brother of another priest, Father Theodore Strelkov, who left with the armies of Admiral Kolchak to the East, to Harbin, where he died.

The Resurrection of a Dead Baby by Saint George of Chozeba

There was once a farmer from Jericho, who was dearly loved by the brothers of the [Lavra at Kalamon]. He had an only child, an infant, that - alas! - died. Thereupon the father placed the infant into a basket. On top, he placed a few fruits, which he had grown, and then covered them with vine leaves. He then took the basket and went to the lavra. Once there, he knocked on the door to the cells. Abba George came out and let him in. After the farmer entered, he made a prostration before the elder and placed the basket in front of the brethren, requesting that they bless the fruit of his field. He then took their leave. The brothers took the fruits from the basket, only to find the dead infant.