8th Week of Pentecost

THURSDAY
Acts 17:1-12
When they took the road through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they reached Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews. Following his usual custom, Paul joined them, and for three sabbaths he entered into discussions with them from the scriptures, expounding and demonstrating that the Messiah had to suffer and rise from the dead, and that “This is the Messiah, Jesus, whom I proclaim to you.” Some of them were convinced and joined Paul and Silas; so, too, a great number of Greeks who were worshipers, and not a few of the prominent women. But the Jews became jealous and recruited some worthless men loitering in the public square, formed a mob, and set the city in turmoil. They marched on the house of Jason, intending to bring them before the people’s assembly. When they could not find them, they dragged Jason and some of the brothers before the city magistrates, shouting, “These people who have been creating a disturbance all over the world have now come here, and Jason has welcomed them. They all act in opposition to the decrees of Caesar and claim instead that there is another king, Jesus.” They stirred up the crowd and the city magistrates who, upon hearing these charges, took a surety payment from Jason and the others before releasing them. The brothers immediately sent Paul and Silas to Beroea during the night. Upon arrival they went to the synagogue of the Jews. These Jews were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with all willingness and examined the scriptures daily to determine whether these things were so. Many of them became believers, as did not a few of the influential Greek women and men.

Luke 11:14-23
Jesus was driving out a demon (that was) mute, and when the demon had gone out, the mute person spoke and the crowds were amazed. Some of them said, “By the power of Beelzebul, the prince of demons, he drives out demons.” Others, to test him, asked him for a sign from heaven. But he knew their thoughts and said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself will be laid waste and house will fall against house. And if Satan is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? For you say that it is by Beelzebul that I drive out demons. If I, then, drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your own people drive them out? Therefore they will be your judges. But if it is by the finger of God that (I) drive out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. When a strong man fully armed guards his palace, his possessions are safe. But when one stronger than he attacks and overcomes him, he takes away the armor on which he relied and distributes the spoils. Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.

Prayer of the Faithful, vol. III Night Prayer – Proemion
Praise, glory and honor, to the beautiful splendor of the supreme and eternal Trinity;
to the One, who wipes away the human stain;
to the incorruptible Myron and Way to blessedness.
To the Good One is due glory and honor this night,
and all the days of our lives,
now and for ever.
Amen.

Saint of the Day: Saint Arethas (Abdullah ibn Kaab) 427-523 A.D.
Martyred in the persecutions of Dhu Nowas (Dunawan), King of the Hymeritesalong with a large number of fellow Christians whose names have not come down to us. He was beheaded in 523 in Nedshran, Arabia.

Meditation:
The famous British convert to Catholicism G. K. Chesterton wrote, “The Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting. It has been found difficult; and left untried.” (G. K. Chesterton, Whats Wrong With The World) Judged by this world’s standards of self-esteem, self-affirmation and material gain; the call to Christian holiness seems in comparison to be a failure, for the focus of one’s life becomes less about myself and more about Christ and my neighbor. The Lutheran martyr Dietrich Bonhoeffer, who was executed by the Nazi regime in Germany, felt that there could be no true Christian confession of faith that did not embrace Christlike suffering. Bonhoeffer once wrote that, “When Christ calls a person, he bid them come and die.” (Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship) While speaking primarily about the culture of nineteenth century Denmark, and the Protestant State Church, which he felt had nothing to do with true Christian discipleship; the Father of Existential philosophy Søren Kierkegaard, levies criticisms that are apt descriptions of our culture today: “Let others complain that our age is wicked; my complaint is… it lacks passion. Men’s thoughts are thin and flimsy like lace;…They think that even if the Lord keeps a careful set of books, they may still cheat Him a little.” (Søren Kierkegaard, Either/Or) His criticism is that we Christians have become so “lukewarm” that our lack of passion does not spur us on to become great sinners, nor great saints!
What does God ask of us? The call to holiness is summed up for us in the Gospel of Matthew, “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given you besides.” (Matthew, 6:33) Saints are sinners who realize that all things of earth and flesh are passing, flickering lights that dim and die. Christ is the light that never fades, in his light there is no darkness, and his light is the path to our true and eternal home; the Kingdom of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. The righteousness of Christ, is the bond of love, the relationship of love we have with God, purchased through the blood of the Cross. Jesus taught us to love God with all our being, and to love our neighbor as if they were ourselves; this is the wisdom of holiness, this is what God asks of us.