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On December 28, the Afterfeast of the Nativity Feast, the Orthodox Church remembers the 20,000 martyrs of Nicomedia who were burned in their church while celebrating the Nativity of the Lord in 302.
Troparion — Tone 4
Your Nativity, O Christ our God, / has shone to the world the Light of knowledge; / for by it, those who worshipped the stars / were taught by a star to adore You, / the Sun of Righteousness,1 / and to know You, the Dayspring2 from on High. / O Lord, glory to You!Kontakion — Tone 3
(Original Melody)
Today the Virgin gives birth to the Transcendent One, / and the earth offers a cave to the Unapproachable One! / Angels with shepherds glorify Him. / The wise men journey with a star, / since for our sake the Pre-Eternal God was born as a young Child.3
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Saint Joseph the Betrothed was of the lineage of King David. He had four sons from his previous marriage: James, Judah, Joses, and Simon (or Symeon), and three daughters: Esther, Martha, and Salome, who was the mother of Saint John the Theologian. After he became a widower, Saint Joseph led a life of strict temperance. He was chosen to be the husband and guardian of the Most Holy Theotokos, who had taken a vow of virginity.
An angel told him of the Incarnation of the Son of God through her. Saint Joseph was present when the shepherds and the Magi worshiped the new-born divine Infant. On the orders of the angel, he fled into Egypt with the Mother of God and the Infant Jesus, saving them from the wrath of King Herod. He lived in Egypt with the Virgin Mary and the divine Child, working as a carpenter. Saint Joseph reputedly died at the age of one hundred.
Saint Joseph is commemorated on the Sunday after the Nativity. If there is no Sunday between December 25 and January 1, his Feast is moved to December 26. The Righteous Joseph is also commemorated on the Sunday of the Holy Forefathers.
O Joseph, proclaim the wonders to David, the ancestor of God: / you have seen a Virgin great with child; you gave glory with the shepherds; / you worshipped with the Magi; / you received an answer from the Angel.1 / Beseech Christ God to save our souls.
1 Matthew 1: 20-21.
Kontakion — Tone 3
(Podoben: “Today the Virgin..”)
Today the godly David is filled with gladness / and Joseph offers praise with James. / Having received the crown of their kinship with Christ, they rejoice, / praising in song Him Who is inexpressibly born on earth, / crying out: “O Compassionate One, save those who honor You!”
Kontakion — Tone 3
(Podoben: “Today the Virgin..”)
Today the godly David is filled with gladness / and Joseph offers praise with James. / Having received the crown of their kinship with Christ, they rejoice, / praising in song Him Who is inexpressibly born on earth, / crying out: “O Compassionate One, save those who honor You!”
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During a battle with the Philistines, he vanquished the giant Goliath in single combat, which decided the outcome of the war in favor of the Israelites. He endured many things from King Saul, who saw him as a favorite of the people and his rival. David, however, showed his own decency and magnanimity. Twice, when he had the possibility of killing Saul, he did not do so.
After Saul and his son perished, David was proclaimed king of the southern part of Israel, and after Saul’s second son was killed, he became king of all Israel. He built a new capital, Jerusalem (“the City of Peace”), and a new tabernacle. His great wish to build a Temple was not realized. It was foretold to him that his son would build the Temple.
The life of the Prophet David was darkened by a grievous falling: he took Uriah’s wife for himself, and sent Uriah to his death in battle. He was also an example of great repentance, humbly and with faith bearing the sorrows sent in punishment for his sins. Saint David gave a model for repentance in Psalm 50/51. King David died in great old age with steadfast faith in the coming of the promised Messiah, our Lord Jesus Christ. His divinely-inspired Psalter is widely used in the divine services and in personal prayers. (See the Books of Kings and Chronicles).
The holy Prophet-King David is invoked by those facing a difficult situation, such as an interview, etc.
Troparion — Tone 2
O Joseph, proclaim the wonders to David, the ancestor of God: / you have seen a Virgin great with child; you gave glory with the shepherds; / you worshipped with the Magi; / you received an answer from the Angel.1 / Beseech Christ God to save our souls.
O Joseph, proclaim the wonders to David, the ancestor of God: / you have seen a Virgin great with child; you gave glory with the shepherds; / you worshipped with the Magi; / you received an answer from the Angel.1 / Beseech Christ God to save our souls.
1 Matthew 1: 20-21.
Kontakion — Tone 3
(Podoben: “Today the Virgin..”)
Today the godly David is filled with gladness / and Joseph offers praise with James. / Having received the crown of their kinship with Christ, they rejoice, / praising in song Him Who is inexpressibly born on earth, / crying out: “O Compassionate One, save those who honor You!”
The Holy Apostle James, Brother of the Lord, was the eldest son of Joseph the Betrothed from his first marriage with Solomonia. The Apostle James is remembered after the Feast of the Nativity of Christ together with his father Joseph and the Prophet-King David, since he accompanied his family on the Flight into Egypt and lived there with the Infant Jesus, the Mother of God and Joseph. Later, he returned to Israel with them.
After the Ascension of the Lord, Saint James was the first Bishop of Jerusalem, gaining the great esteem not only of Christians, but also of Jews. He was thrown from the roof of the Jerusalem Temple because he had publicly preached to the people about the God-Manhood of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Holy Apostle James is also commemorated on October 23.
Troparion — Tone 2
O Joseph, proclaim the wonders to David, the ancestor of God: / you have seen a Virgin great with child; you gave glory with the shepherds; / you worshipped with the Magi; / you received an answer from the Angel.1 / Beseech Christ God to save our souls.
Gregory Khomyshyn was a Greek Catholic Bishop. He was ordained on November 18, 1893. He studied theology at Vienna, Austria, from 1894 to 1899. He was Rector of the seminary in Lviv, Ukraine, in 1902. Bishop of Stanislaviv (modern Ivano-Frankivsk), Ukraine, on 6 May 1904. Arrested for his faith in 1939. Arrested again in April 1945; deported to Kyiv, Ukraine. Died in prison. One of the many Martyrs killed under the Communist regimes in Eastern Europe.
Kontakion — Tone 3
(Podoben: “Today the Virgin..”)
Today the godly David is filled with gladness / and Joseph offers praise with James. / Having received the crown of their kinship with Christ, they rejoice, / praising in song Him Who is inexpressibly born on earth, / crying out: “O Compassionate One, save those who honor You!”
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The Holy Apostle James, Brother of the Lord, was the eldest son of Joseph the Betrothed from his first marriage with Solomonia. The Apostle James is remembered after the Feast of the Nativity of Christ together with his father Joseph and the Prophet-King David, since he accompanied his family on the Flight into Egypt and lived there with the Infant Jesus, the Mother of God and Joseph. Later, he returned to Israel with them.
After the Ascension of the Lord, Saint James was the first Bishop of Jerusalem, gaining the great esteem not only of Christians, but also of Jews. He was thrown from the roof of the Jerusalem Temple because he had publicly preached to the people about the God-Manhood of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Holy Apostle James is also commemorated on October 23.
Troparion — Tone 2
O Joseph, proclaim the wonders to David, the ancestor of God: / you have seen a Virgin great with child; you gave glory with the shepherds; / you worshipped with the Magi; / you received an answer from the Angel.1 / Beseech Christ God to save our souls.
1 Matthew 1: 20-21.
Kontakion — Tone 3
(Podoben: “Today the Virgin..”)
Today the godly David is filled with gladness / and Joseph offers praise with James. / Having received the crown of their kinship with Christ, they rejoice, / praising in song Him Who is inexpressibly born on earth, / crying out: “O Compassionate One, save those who honor You!”
Kontakion — Tone 3
(Podoben: “Today the Virgin..”)
Today the godly David is filled with gladness / and Joseph offers praise with James. / Having received the crown of their kinship with Christ, they rejoice, / praising in song Him Who is inexpressibly born on earth, / crying out: “O Compassionate One, save those who honor You!”
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