يا الهي انا ابنك و عبدك و خادمك
و الناس شايفه كده ....و انا ساتر علي سنين مفضحتنيش بخطاياي قدام البشر رغم اني مكشوف أمامك و امام جنودك السمائيه
و انا في خطاياي عبد أسير لضعفاتي و لشهواتي و انت ساترني عمر كامل ، أرجوك يا الهي حررني من خطاياي عشان الشيطان لا يهزأ بيه و يقول انك مخلصتنيش ويقول ان يديك قصرت عن تخليصي
افرح بي و افرح فىّ و فرح السما بي و فرحني لان عدوي بيعيرني كل يوم و انت ملجاي و نصرتي و خلاصي
Copt4G
Day 25 of the Blessed Coptic Month of Baramoudah, may God make it always received, year after year, with reassurance and tranquility, while our sins after forgiven by the tender mercies of our God my fathers and brothers.
Amen.
The Twenty-Fifth Day of the Blessed Month of Baramoudah
Martyrdom of St.Sarah, and her two sons
On this day, St. Sarah and her two sons, were martyred. She was from the city of Antioch, the wife of a man whose name was Socrates, one of the governors of Emperor Diocletian. This Governor had denied Christ to please Diocletian, pretending before his wife that he did that because of his fear from the Emperor. Sarah had two sons, she could not baptize in Antioch, because of her fear from the Emperor and her husband. She took them and sailed to Alexandria to baptize them there. God willed to reveal the greatness of her faith as a lesson to the generations to come. God brought forth a great tempest and the ship was about to be wrecked and drown. Sarah was afraid that her sons would be drowned without being baptized. She prayed a long prayer, then she wounded her right breast, took some of her blood, anointed them making the sign of the cross upon the foreheads, and over the hearts. Then she dipped them in the sea three times saying: "In the Name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit." After that, the winds died down, a great calm came on the sea, and the ship sailed toward Alexandria. When she arrived, took her sons, went to the church, and handed them to Pope Peter, the seal of the martyrs. He baptized them, together with the children of the city. When the Pope carried one of her sons to baptize him, the water froze. The Pope went on baptizing other children and came back to her sons, but the water froze again. The same thing occurred on the third attempt. The Pope was amazed and asked their mother about her story. She told him about all what happened to her at sea and what she did for her sons. He glorified God and said: "It is indeed one baptism."
When the woman returned to Antioch, her husband denounced what she had done. He related what happened to the Emperor accusing his wife with adultery. The Emperor brought her and reproached her saying: "Why did you go to Alexandria to commit adultery with the Christians?" The Saint answered him: "Christians do not commit adultery, and do not worship idols, and after this do what you wish, for you will not hear another word from me." The Emperor asked her: "Tell me what did you do in Alexandria?" When she did not answer him, he ordered to tie her hands behind her, and to place her two sons on her belly, and to bum all three of them. She turned her face to the east and prayed. They burnt her, with her sons. She delivered up her pure soul along with her sons, and they all received the crown of martyrdom.
May Their prayers be with us. Amen.
Commemoration of Saints Babnuda (Paphnute) the hermit, Theodore the worshipper, and the 100 Martyrs
This day also marks the commemoration of Sts. Babnuda (Paphnute) the hermit, Theodore the worshipper, and the One hundred martyrs, who were martyred in Persia.
May Their prayers be with us and Glory be to our God forever. Amen.
Vespers
Vespers Psalm
From the Psalms of our teacher David the prophet.
May his blessings be with us all.
Psalms 42 : 8 - 11
Chapter 42
| 8 | The LORD will command His lovingkindness in the daytime, And in the night His song shall be with me--A prayer to the God of my life. |
| 9 | I will say to God my Rock, "Why have You forgotten me? Why do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?" |
| 10 | As with a breaking of my bones, My enemies reproach me, While they say to me all day long, "Where is your God?" |
| 11 | Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God; For I shall yet praise Him, The help of my countenance and my God. |
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Our Lord God, Savior, and King of us all, Jesus Christ, the Living Son of God to whom be glory forever.
Amen.
Vespers Gospel
Stand in the fear of God and listen to the Holy Gospel.
A reading from the Gospel according to our teacher Saint Luke the Evangelist.
May His Blessings be with us all.
Luke 18 : 35 - 43
Chapter 18
| 35 | Then it happened, as He was coming near Jericho, that a certain blind man sat by the road begging. |
| 36 | And hearing a multitude passing by, he asked what it meant. |
| 37 | So they told him that Jesus of Nazareth was passing by. |
| 38 | And he cried out, saying, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!" |
| 39 | Then those who went before warned him that he should be quiet; but he cried out all the more, "Son of David, have mercy on me!" |
| 40 | So Jesus stood still and commanded him to be brought to Him. And when he had come near, He asked him, |
| 41 | saying, "What do you want Me to do for you?" He said, "Lord, that I may receive my sight." |
| 42 | Then Jesus said to him, "Receive your sight; your faith has made you well." |
| 43 | And immediately he received his sight, and followed Him, glorifying God. And all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God. |
And Glory be to God forever.
Matins
Matins Psalm
From the Psalms of our teacher David the prophet.
May his blessings be with us all.
Psalms 111 : 1 - 2
Chapter 111
| 1 | Praise the LORD! I will praise the LORD with my whole heart, In the assembly of the upright and in the congregation. |
| 2 | The works of the LORD are great, Studied by all who have pleasure in them. |
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Our Lord God, Savior, and King of us all, Jesus Christ, the Living Son of God to whom be glory forever.
Amen.
Matins Gospel
Stand in the fear of God and listen to the Holy Gospel.
A reading from the Gospel according to our teacher Saint John the Evangelist.
May His Blessings be with us all.
John 5 : 37 - 47
Chapter 5
| 37 | And the Father Himself, who sent Me, has testified of Me. You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His form. |
| 38 | But you do not have His word abiding in you, because whom He sent, Him you do not believe. |
| 39 | You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me. |
| 40 | But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life. |
| 41 | "I do not receive honor from men. |
| 42 | But I know you, that you do not have the love of God in you. |
| 43 | I have come in My Father's name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive. |
| 44 | How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God? |
| 45 | Do not think that I shall accuse you to the Father; there is one who accuses you--Moses, in whom you trust. |
| 46 | For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me. |
| 47 | But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?" |
And Glory be to God forever.
Liturgy Gospel
Paulines Epistle
Paul, the servant of our Lord Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, appointed to the Gospel of God.
A reading from the Epistle of our teacher Paul to Timothy .
May his blessings be upon us.
Amen.
2 Timothy 2 : 8 - 15
Chapter 2
| 8 | Remember that Jesus Christ, of the seed of David, was raised from the dead according to my gospel, |
| 9 | for which I suffer trouble as an evildoer, even to the point of chains; but the word of God is not chained. |
| 10 | Therefore I endure all things for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory. |
| 11 | This is a faithful saying: For if we died with Him, We shall also live with Him. |
| 12 | If we endure, We shall also reign with Him. If we deny Him, He also will deny us. |
| 13 | If we are faithless, He remains faithful; He cannot deny Himself. |
| 14 | Remind them of these things, charging them before the Lord not to strive about words to no profit, to the ruin of the hearers. |
| 15 | Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. |
The grace of God the Father be with you all.
Amen.
Catholic Epistle
A Reading from Epistle 2 of St. John .
May his blessing be upon us.
Amen.
2 John 2 : 21 - 25
Do not love the world or the things in the world.
The world passes away, and its desires; but he who does the will of God abides forever.
Amen.
Acts of the Apostles
The Acts of our fathers the apostles, may their blessings be with us.
Acts 9 : 31 - 35
Chapter 9
| 31 | Then the churches throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and were edified. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, they were multiplied. |
| 32 | Now it came to pass, as Peter went through all parts of the country, that he also came down to the saints who dwelt in Lydda. |
| 33 | There he found a certain man named Aeneas, who had been bedridden eight years and was paralyzed. |
| 34 | And Peter said to him, "Aeneas, Jesus the Christ heals you. Arise and make your bed." Then he arose immediately. |
| 35 | So all who dwelt at Lydda and Sharon saw him and turned to the Lord. |
The word of the Lord shall grow, multiply, be mighty, and be confirmed, in the holy Church of God.
Amen.
Divine Psalm
Stand in the fear of God and listen to the Holy Gospel.
A reading from the Gospel according to our teacher Saint John the Evangelist.
May His Blessings be with us all. Amen.
From the Psalms of our teacher David the prophet, and the Good King.
May his blessings be with us all.
Psalms 107 : 20,22
Chapter 107
| 20 | He sent His word and healed them, And delivered them from their destructions. |
| 22 | Let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving, And declare His works with rejoicing. |
Hallelujah.
Divine Gospel
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Our Lord God, Savior, and King of us all, Jesus Christ, the Living Son of God to whom be glory forever.
Amen.
John 6 : 1 - 14
Chapter 6
| 1 | After these things Jesus went over the Sea of Galilee, which is the Sea of Tiberias. |
| 2 | Then a great multitude followed Him, because they saw His signs which He performed on those who were diseased. |
| 3 | And Jesus went up on the mountain, and there He sat with His disciples. |
| 4 | Now the Passover, a feast of the Jews, was near. |
| 5 | Then Jesus lifted up His eyes, and seeing a great multitude coming toward Him, He said to Philip, "Where shall we buy bread, that these may eat?" |
| 6 | But this He said to test him, for He Himself knew what He would do. |
| 7 | Philip answered Him, "Two hundred denarii worth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may have a little." |
| 8 | One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, said to Him, |
| 9 | "There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two small fish, but what are they among so many?" |
| 10 | Then Jesus said, "Make the people sit down." Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, in number about five thousand. |
| 11 | And Jesus took the loaves, and when He had given thanks He distributed them to the disciples, and the disciples to those sitting down; and likewise of the fish, as much as they wanted. |
| 12 | So when they were filled, He said to His disciples, "Gather up the fragments that remain, so that nothing is lost." |
| 13 | Therefore they gathered them up, and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves which were left over by those who had eaten. |
| 14 | Then those men, when they had seen the sign that Jesus did, said, "This is truly the Prophet who is to come into the world." |
And Glory be to God forever.
A cosmic notion of Christ takes mysticism beyond the mere individual level to the transpersonal, social, and collective levels. Cynthia Bourgeault, another of our core faculty members and an Episcopal priest, explores Jesus’ resurrection from a universal, mystical perspective:
What Jesus so profoundly demonstrates to us in his passage from death to life is that the walls between the realms are paper thin. Along the entire ray of creation, the “mansions” are interpenetrating and mutually permeable by love. The death of our physical form is not the death of our individual personhood. Our personhood remains alive and well, “hidden with Christ in God” (to use Paul’s beautiful phrase in Colossians 3:3) and here and now we can draw strength from it (and [Christ]) to live our temporal lives with all the fullness of eternity. If we can simply keep our hearts wrapped around this core point, the rest of the Christian path begins to fall into place.
Yes, [Jesus’] physical form no longer walks the planet. But if we take him at his word, that poses no disruption to intimacy if we merely learn to recognize him at that other level, just as he has modeled for his disciples during those first forty days of Eastertide.
Nor has that intimacy subsided in two thousand years—at least according to the testimony of a long lineage of Christian mystics, who in a single voice proclaim that our whole universe is profoundly permeated with the presence of Christ. He surrounds, fills, holds together from top to bottom this human sphere in which we dwell. The entire cosmos has become his body, so to speak, and the blood flowing through it is his love. These are not statements that can be scientifically corroborated, but they do seem to ring true to the mystically attuned heart. . . .
Without in any way denying or overriding the conditions of this earth plane, he has interpenetrated them fully, infused them with his own interior spaciousness, and invited us all into this invisible but profoundly coherent energetic field so that we may live as one body—the “Mystical Body of Christ,” as it’s known in Christian tradition—manifesting the Kingdom of Heaven here and now. Jesus in his ascended state is not farther removed from human beings but more intimately connected with them. He is the integral ground, the ambient wholeness within which our contingent human lives are always rooted and from which we are always receiving the help we need to keep moving ahead on the difficult walk we have to walk here. When the eye of our own heart is open and aligned within this field of perception, we recognize whom we’re walking with.
Reference:
Cynthia Bourgeault, The Wisdom Jesus: Transforming Heart and Mind—A New Perspective on Christ and His Message (Shambhala: 2008), 133-135. Learn more from Cynthia Bourgeault at cynthiabourgeault.org.