ማዕዶት ዘቤተ ጉባኤ ወገዳማት በኢ/ኦ/ተ/ቤ/ክ ጥንታዊያን ገዳማትና የአብነት ት/ቤት ላይ የተዘጋጀ ልዩ ዐውደ ርዕይ፡፡

በጁባና ዙሪያዋ ለምትገኙ የኦርቶዶክስ እምነት ተከታዮች በሙሉ ዓርብ 12, 2007 ዓ፡ም (June 19,2015) የቅዱስ ሚካኤል ክብረ በዓል የቃልኪዳኑ ታቦት በማውጣት በደማቁ ስለሚከበር በዕለቱ በመገኘት በዕልልታና በዝማሬ በጋራ እንድናከብርና ከቃል-ኪዳኑ ታቦት በረከትን እንድንካፈል ቤተክርስቲያናችን ጥሪዋን ታስተላልፋለች። ታቦቱ ከ4፡30-5፡30 ወጥቶ 6፡00 ቅዳሴ ይጀመራል። ይህ መልዕክት የደረሳችሁ ለሌላው share በማድረግ መልዕክቱን እንድታስተላልፉ በእግዚአብሔር ስም መዕክታችንን እናስተላልፋለን። እንዲሁም ከሐሙስ  እስከ ሰንበት(እሑድ) 11:00(5:00 pm) ጀምሮ የሚካሔደው የትምህርተ ወንጌልና መዝሙር የተዘጋጀ ስለሆነ በአራቱም ዕለታት በሚካሔደው መርሐ ግብር እንድትሳተፉና የሕይወት ስንቅ እንድትይዙ ቤተክርስቲያናችን በድጋሚ ጥሪዋንታስተላልፋለች።

                                                                                                                                ወስብሐት ለእግዚአብሔር።

                                                                                   

                                            

እንኩዋን ለጻድቅና ሰማዕት አባ ቴዎድሮስ ዓመታዊ የዕረፍት በዓል በሰላም አደረሳችሁ

አባ ቴዎድሮስ በ4ኛው መቶ ክ/ዘመን የነበረ ግብፃዊ አባት ነው:: ተወልዶ ባደገባት የእስክንድርያ ከተማ ብሉያትንና ሐዲሳት በወቅቱ ከነበሩ አበው_ሊቃውንት‬ ተምሯል:: ጊዜው ምንም መናፍቃን የበዙበት ቢሆን በዛው ልክ እነ ‪ቅዱስ_እለ_እስክንድሮስና‬ ‪ቅዱስ_አትናቴዎስን‬ የመሰሉ ቅዱሳን_ሊቃውንት‬ ነበሩና ከነሱ የሚገባውን ወስዷል::

+አባ ቴዎድሮስ "አባ" ያሰኘው ሥራው:- ሲጀመር ገና በወጣትነቱ ድንግልናንና ምንኩስናን በመምረጡ ነበር:: ምንም እንኩዋ ሐብት ከእውቀት ጋር ቢስማማለትም ይሕ እርሱን ከምናኔ ሊያስቀረው አልቻለም:: ከከተማ ወጥቶ: በዓት ወስኖ በጾምና በጸሎት ተወሰነ::
+በ340ዎቹ ዓ/ም አካባቢ ግን በምዕመናን ላይ ከባድ ችግር ደረሰ:: የወቅቱ ነገሥታት በስመ ክርስቲያን አርዮሳውያን ነበሩና ሕዝቡን ማስገደድ: አንዳንዴም የአርዮስን እምነት ያልተቀበለውን ማስገደል ጀመሩ:: በዚህ ምክንያትም ‪ታላቁ_የኦርቶዶክስ_ጠበቃ_ቅዱስ_አትናቴዎስን‬ ከመንበሩ አሳደዱት:: በምትኩም አርዮሳዊ ሰው ዻዻስ ተብሎ ተሾመ:: ይህን ጊዜ ነው እንግዲህ እውነተኛ እረኛ ያስፈለገው::
+በበዓቱ የነበረው አባ ቴዎድሮስ አላቅማማም::ቤተ_ክርስቲያን‬ ትፈልገዋለችና መጻሕፍትን ገልጾ ከቦታ ቦታ እየተዘዋወረ ምዕመናንን ያጸናቸው ጀመር:: መናፍቃኑን ተከራክሮ ምላሽ በማሳጣት ሕዝቡን ከኑፋቄ በመጠበቅ የሠራው ሥራ ‪ሐዋርያዊ‬ ቢያሰኘውም ለአርዮሳዊው ዻዻስ (ጊዮርጊስ ይባላል) ሊዋጥለት አልቻለም::
+በቁጣ ወታደሮችን ልኮ አባ ቴዎድሮስን ተቆጣው:: እንዳያስተምርም ገሰጸው:: አባ ቴዎድሮስ ግን እሺ ባለማለቱ ግርፋት ታዘዘበት::
+ወታደሮች እየተፈራረቁ ሲገርፉት ረድኤተ እግዚአብሔር ከእርሱ ጋር ነበርና ከዛ ሁሉ ግርፋት አንዲቷም አካሉ ላይ አላረፈችም:: በዚህ የተበሳጨው አርዮሳዊ ዻዻስ የአባ ቴዎድሮስን እጅና እግር ከፈረስ ጋሪ በሁዋላ አስረው በኮረኮንች መንገድ ላይ በፍጥነት እንዲያሮጧቸው አዘዘ::
+ፈረሶቹ መሮጥ ሲጀምሩ የአባ ቴዎድሮስ አካሉ ይላላጥ ጀመር:: ትንሽ ቆይቶ ግን እጆቹ ተቆረጡ:: በሁዋላም ራሱ ከአንገቱ ተለይታ መንገድ ላይ ወደቀች:: አካሉ በሙሉ መሬት ላይ ተበታተነ:: እግዚአብሔር ቅድስት ነፍሱን ተቀብሎ አሳረጋት::
+ለቅዱሱም 3 አክሊል ከሰማይ ወርዶለታል:-
1.ስለ ፍጹም ምናኔውና ድንግልናው
2.ስለ ሐዋርያዊ የወንጌል አገልግሎቱ
3.ስለ ሃይማኖቱ ደሙን አፍስሷልና
"እምአባልከ ተመቲራ ለእንተ ሠረረት ርዕስ:
እግዚአብሔር አስተቄጸላ በአክሊል ሠላስ" እንዳለ መጽሐፍ::
+ምዕመናን ሥጋውን ሰብስበው በዝማሬና በማኅሌት በክብር ቀብረውታል::
=>አምላካችን ከቅዱሱ በረከት ይክፈለን::
=>ሰኔ 6 ቀን የሚከበሩ ዓመታዊ የቅዱሳን በዓላት=
1.ቅዱስ አባ ቴዎድሮስ ሰማዕት
2.አባ ገብረ ክርስቶስ
3."40" ሰማዕታት
=>ወርሐዊ በዓላት
1.ቅድስት ደብረ ቁስቁዋም
2.አባታችን አዳምና እናታችን ሔዋን
3.አባታችን ኖኅና እናታችን ሐይከል
4.ቅዱስ ኤልያስ ነቢይ
5.ቅዱስ ባስልዮስ ዘቂሣርያ
6.ቅዱስ ዮሴፍ አረጋዊ
7.ቅድስት ሰሎሜ
8.አባ አርከ ሥሉስ
9.አባ ጽጌ ድንግል
10.ቅድስት አርሴማ ድንግል
=>+"+ መልካሙን ገድል ተጋድያለሁ:: ሩጫውን ጨርሻለሁ:: ሃይማኖቴን ጠብቄአለሁ:: ወደ ፊት የጽድቅ አክሊል ተዘጋጅቶልኛል:: ይህንም ጻድቅ: ፈራጅ የሆነው ጌታ ያን ቀን ለእኔ ያሰረክባል:: ደግሞም መገለጡን ለሚወዱት ሁሉ እንጂ ለእኔ ብቻ አይደለም:: +"+ (2ጢሞ. 4:7)
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በስመ አብ: ወወልድ: ወመንፈስ ቅዱስ: አሐዱ አምላክ ግንቦት 29 አባ አፍፄ ወአባ ጉባ Ginbot 29 (June 06) IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER AND THE SON AND THE HOLY SPIRIT, ONE GOD. AMEN.

አባ አፍፄና አባ ጉባ ቁጥራቸው ከተስዓቱ (ዘጠኙ) ቅዱሳ

አባ አፍፄ

ጻድቁ የተወለዱት እስያ ውስጥ በ5ኛው መቶ ክ/ዘመን ሲሆን ወላጆቻቸው አቡሊዲስና አቅሌስያ ይባላሉ:: ገና በሕጻንነታቸው ብሉይ ከሐዲስ ጠንቅቀው ወደ ግብፅ ወርደዋል:: በዚያም በአባ መቃርስ እጅ መንኩሰዋል:: አባ አፍፄ ወደ ኢትዮዽያ የመጡት በአልዐሜዳ ዘመን ከ8ቱ ባልንጀሮቻቸው ጋር ነው::
+ጻድቁ ጸበል እያፈለቁ ብዙ ድውያንን ፈውሰዋል:: ትግራይ ውስጥ የሐ የተባለው ቦታም ማረፊያቸው ነበር::
+ለጻድቁ በጥቂቱ እነዚሕን እንጠቅሳለን:-
1.ከ100 ዓመት በላይ አበ ምኔት ሆነው በኖሩበት ገዳማቸው በፍጹም ትጋት: በጾምና በጸሎት አገልግለዋል::
2.በመጀመሪያ ያስከተሏቸውን 366 ደቀ መዛሙርት ጨምሮ ብዙ መናንያንን አፍርተው በሃገራችን ገዳማዊ ሕይወትን አስፋፍተዋል::
3.ቅዱሳት መጻሕፍትን ከሱርስትና ከጽርዕ ቁዋንቁዋ ወደ ግዕዝ ተርጉመዋል::
4.በስብከተ ወንጌል ለሃገራችን ብርሃን አብርተዋል:: ሕዝቡ በጣዕመ ስብከታቸው ይገረም ስለ ነበር "አፍፄ (አፈ-ዐፄ)" ብሏቸዋል:: "የዐፄ (የንጉሥ) አንደበት ያለው" ወይም "ንግግር አዋቂ" ማለት ነው::
+ጻድቁ ከ200 ዓመታት በላይ ቤተ ክርስቲያንን አገልግለው በዚሕች ቀን በ684 ዓ/ም ተሠውረዋል:: እግዚአብሔርም በስማቸው ለተማጸነ: ገዳማቸውን ለተሳለመ የምሕረት ቃል ኪዳን ሰጥቷቸዋል::

 አባ ጉባ

ጻድቁ የተወለዱት ታሕሳስ 29 ቀን በ336 ዓ/ም በመንፈቀ ሌሊት ነው:: አባታቸው ጌርሎስ: እናታቸው ቴዎዶክስያ ደጐች ነበሩ::
+አባ ጉባ ("ባ" ጠብቆ ይነበብ) በተወለዱ ቀን ጌታችን ከመላእክቱ ጋር በመውረዱ ቤታቸው ለ7 ቀናት በብርሃን ተሞልቶ ነበር:: ሕጻኑ ጉባም ፈጣሪያቸውን ሃሌ ሉያ ብለው አመስግነዋል::
+በልጅነታቸው መጻሕፍትን አጥንተው: ወደ ገዳመ አስቄጥስ ገብተው መንነዋል:: ለበርካታ ዓመታት ከተጋደሉ በሁዋላ ሊቀ መላእክት ቅዱስ ገብርኤል "ወደ ቅድስት ሃገር ኢትዮዽያ ሒድ" ብሏቸው ከ8ቱ ቅዱሳን ጋር ወደ ሃገራችን መጥተዋል:: በወቅቱ ዕድሜአቸው ከ140 በላይ ነበር::
+ጻድቁ አባ ጉባ እንደመሰሎቻቸው በስብከተ ወንጌል: መጻሕፍትን በመተርጐም: ገዳማትን በማስፋፋትና አብያተ ክርስቲያናትን በማነጽ ቆይተዋል:: በተለይ ራማ ኪዳነ ምሕረት የእርሳቸው ናት ይባላል::
+ጻድቁ ቅዳሴ ሲቀድሱ ከመሬት ከፍ ብለው ነበር:: ብዙ ጸበሎችን አፍልቀው ድውያንን ፈውሰዋል:: ሙታንንም አንስተዋል:: እመቤታችንም የብርሃን መስቀል ሰጥታቸዋለች:: ጻድቁ ከበርካታ የቅድስና ዘመናት በሁዋላ በዚህች ቀን ዐርፈው በገዳማቸው ተቀብረዋል::
+በዘመኑ ትኩረት ካጡ ታላላቅ ገዳማት አንዱ ይሔው ትግራይ ውስጥ የሚገኘው የአባ ጉባ ገዳም ነው::
(በነገራችን ላይ "ጉባ" ማለት "አፈ-መዐር: ጥዑመ-ልሳን" ማለት ነው)
=>ቸሩ መድኃኔ ዓለም ክርስቶስ የጻድቃኑን በረከት ያድለን:: በጸሎታቸውም በደላችንን ይቅር ይበለን::
=>ግንቦት 29 ቀን የሚከበሩ ዓመታዊ የቅዱሳን በዓላት=
1.አባ አፍፄ (ከዘጠኙ ቅዱሳን)
2.አባ ጉባ (ከዘጠኙ ቅዱሳን)
3.አባ ስምዖን ገዳማዊ (በ7 ዓመታቸው መንነው ለ81 ዓመታት በተጋድሎ የኖሩ ሶርያዊ)
4.አባ ይስሐቅ ጻድቅ
=>ወርኀዊ በዓላት
1.የፈጣሪያችንና ጌታችን ኢየሱስ ክርስቶስ በዓለ ልደት
2.ቅድስት አርሴማ ድንግል
3.ቅዱስ ዼጥሮስ ተፍጻሜተ ሰማዕት
4.ቅዱስ ማርቆስ ዘቶርማቅ
5.ቅድስት ፍቅርተ ክርስቶስ ኢትዮዽያዊት
6.ቅዱስ ዘርዐ ክርስቶስ (ጻድቅና ሰማዕት)
=>+"+ ነቢይን በነቢይ ስም የሚቀበል የነቢይን ዋጋ ይወስዳል:: ጻድቅን በጻድቅ ስም የሚቀበል የጻድቁን ዋጋ ይወስዳል:: ማንም ከእነዚህ ከታናናሾቹ ለአንዱ ቀዝቃዛ ውሃ ብቻ በደቀ መዝሙር ስም የሚያጠጣ እውነት እላቹሃለሁ ዋጋው አይጠፋበትም:: +"+ (ማቴ. 10:41)
<ወስብሐት ለእግዚአብሔር>

On this day is celebrated the festival of the Birth of our Lord and God and Redeemer, Jesus Christ; the sons of the Church celebrate it each month, and beg for mercy and forgiveness for their sins.  Salutation to Thy Birth, O our Lord.

And on this day also died the holy father Abba Simon, of the monastery of Antioch.  The name of the father of this saint was John, and the name of his mother was Martha, and through him signs and wonders took place.  Thus before his mother conceived him, Saint John the Baptist came to her in a dream, and told her about the birth of this John, and he revealed unto her what would happen to him.  And having been born, and his days being six years, Simon departed to the monastery of Antioch, and brought himself under the yoke of the monastic life; and he became an ascetic and fought a strenuous spiritual fight.  And the angels appeared unto him, when he was asleep, on several nights, and taught him how to fight the spiritual fight, even as they had taught Abba Pachomius.  And they revealed to this saint the work which cannot be destroyed, and the strife of the monastic life, and they gave him strength, and this saint fought a sublime and superhuman fight, for did not the angels bring unto him spiritual food at all times?  And after very great strife, he went up on a pillar [and lived there] for seven years, and then he went to a larger (higher?) pillar and stood on it for eight years.  Then he departed to a mountain and lived in it for twenty years inside [a house] of stones, which he made for himself, and he did not go outside it until the end of the twenty years. Then he went up on the top of a large (high?) pillar, and he stood up on the front of it for five and forty years; and all the days of his life were five and eighty years.  [He lived] in his father’s house for six years, and nine and seventy years he passed in the spiritual fight.  As for his miracles, who can describe them?  Now many of his miracles are written in the story of his strife.  And this father composed many Homilies, and Admonitions, and Sayings, which are profitable for the monastic life, and for the salvation of the soul; and he translated (or, expounded) many of the Books of the Church, and died in peace.  Salutation to Simon whose life, before he was conceived, was foretold by John the Baptist.

And on this day also are commemorated Abba ‘Afse, and Abba Guba, who were of the ninety saints of ‘Engelga, and Isaac, the monk, and the death of Alexander the king, the son of Philip. Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints.  Amen.

በስመ አብ: ወወልድ: ወመንፈስ ቅዱስ: አሐዱ አምላክ ግንቦት 28 ቅድስት ዓመተ ክርስቶስ

=>ቅድስቷ እናታችን በነገድ እሥራኤላዊ ስትሆን የተወለደችው ኢየሩሳሌም ውስጥ በ5ኛው መቶ ክ/ዘመን አካባቢ ነው:: ወላጆቿ ክርስቲያኖች በመሆናቸው በሚገባው ፈሊጥ አሳድገው ወደ ትምሕርት አስገቧት::
+አስተማሪዋ ገዳማዊ መነኮስ ነበርና ከተማ ውስጥ አያድርም:: አስተምሯት ዕለቱኑ ወደ በዓቱ ይመለስ ነበር እንጂ:: ዓመተ ክርስቶስ ብሉይ ከሐዲስ ጠንቅቃ ተማረች::
+አንድ ቀን እንደ ልማዷ ልትማር ብትጠብቀውም መምሕሯ ሊመጣ አልቻለም:: ቅድስት ዓመተ ክርስቶስ መነኮሱን ልትጠይቅ: አንድም ልትማር ወደ በዓቱ ሔደች::
+በሩ ላይ ደርሳ ብታንኩዋኩዋም መልስም: የሚከፍትም አልነበረም:: ከውስጥ ግን ምርር ያለ የለቅሶ ድምጽ ተሰማት:: "ጌታ ሆይ! ይቅር በለኝ?" እያለ በተደጋጋሚ ይጮሃል:: ያ ደጉ መነኮስ ነበር::
+ቅድስት ዓመተ ክርስቶስ በቅጽበት አንድ ሐሳብ መጣላት:: "እርሱ በንጽሕና እየኖረ ስለ ነፍሱ እንዲሕ ከተማጸነ እኔማ እንደምን አይገባኝ!" ብላ ወደ ቤቷ ተመለሰች:: የለበሰችውን ልብስ አልቀየረችም:: ቤተሰቦቿን አልተሰናበተችም:: ከቤቷ አተር በዘንቢል እና ውሃ በትንሽ እቃ ይዛ ወደ ጐልጐታ ገሰገሰች::
+ከጌታችን ኢየሱስ ክርስቶስ መቃብር ላይ ወድቃ አለቀሰች:: ጸለየችም:- "ጌታ ሆይ! ነፍሴን ወደ ዕረፍት አድርሳት? ከክፉ ጠላትም ጠብቀኝ? ይሕንን አተርና ውሃ ለእድሜ ዘመን ሁሉ ባርክልኝ::"
+ይሕን ብላ እየፈጠነች ከኢየሩሳሌም ተነስታ በእግሯ ቃዴስን: ሲናይ በርሃን አቁዋርጣ ግብፅ ደረሰች:: ምርጫዋ ብሕትውና ሆኗልና ልምላሜ ከሌለበት: ፀሐዩ እንደ ረመጥ ከሚፋጅበት በርሃ ገባች::
+በዚያም ከያዘችው አተር ለቁመተ ሥጋ እየበላች: ከውሃውም በጥርኝ እየተጐነጨች: ማንንም ሰው ሳታይ በፍጹም ተጋድሎ ለ38 ዓመታት ቆየች:: የቀኑ ሐሩር: የሌሊቱ ቁር (ብርድ) ልብሷን ቆራርጦ ቢጨርሰው እግዚአብሔር ፀጉሯን አሳድጐ አካሏን ሸፈነላት::
+ጊዜ ዕረፍቷ ሲደርስ የቅዱሳንን ዜና የሚጽፈው ታላቁ አባ ዳንኤል ወደ እርሷ ደረሰ:: እንዳያት ተከተላት:: እርሷ ግን በተሰነጠቀ አለት ውስጥ ገብታ ተደበቀች:: አባ ዳንኤል በውጪ ሆኖ ተማጸነ:- "እባክህ አባቴ! ውጣና ባርከኝ" አለ:: ሴት መሆኗን አላወቀም ነበርና:: እርሷ ግን "ራቁቴን ነኝና አልወጣም" አለችው::
+ልብሱን አውጥቶ ሰጥቷት ወጥታ ተጨዋወቱ:: በፈቃደ እግዚአብሔር ዜናዋን ሁሉ አወቀ:: ወደ በዓቷ ዘወር ሲል በዘንቢል የሞላ አተር ተመለከተ:: ለ38 ዓመታት ተበልቶ ዛሬም ሙሉ ነው:: አባ ዳንኤል ይፈትነው ዘንድ ከአተሩ በደንብ በላለት:: ከውሃውም ጠጣለት:: ግን ሊጐድል አልቻለም::
+እያደነቀ "እናቴ ሆይ! ልብሴን ውሰጂው" ቢላት "ሌላ አዲስ አምጣልኝ" አለችው:: ይዞላት በመጣ ቀን ግን ተሠውራለችና አላገኛትም::
+አንድ ቀን ግን (ማለትም ግንቦት 28) አረጋውያን መነኮሳት መጥተው የገጠማቸውን ነገር ነገሩት:: እንዲሕ ሲሉ:- "ሰው ተመልክተን ወደ በዓቱ ስንገባ አተር በዘንቢልና ውሃ በመንቀል አገኘን:: ስንበላው ወዲያው አለቀ::" አባ ዳንኤል ነገሩን ገና ሳይጨርሱለት አለቀሰ::
+አተሩ አለቀ ማለት ቅድስት ዓመተ ክርስቶስ አርፋለች ማለት ነውና:: አረጋውያኑ ግን ቀጠሉ:- "ከበዓቱ ስንወጣ በጸጉሯ አካሏ ተሸፍኖ ወደ ምሥራቅ ሰግዳ አርፋ አግኝተን ከሥጋዋም ተባርከን ቀበርናት" አሉ:: አባ ዳንኤል ዜናዋን ጽፎላት ዛሬ ቤተ ክርስቲያን ታከብራታለች::
=>አምላካችን በቅድስት ዓመተ ክርስቶስ ጸሎት ይማረን:: ከበረከቷም ያድለን::
=>ግንቦት 28 ቀን የሚከበሩ ዓመታዊ የቅዱሳን በዓላት=
1.ቅድስት ዓመተ ክርስቶስ ተጋዳሊት (ገዳማዊት)
2.ቅዱስ ኤዺፋንዮስ ሊቅ (ሥጋው ቆዽሮስ የደረሰበት)
3.አባ መርቆሬዎስ ገዳማዊ
4.አባ ጌርሎስ (ጻድቅና ሰማዕት)
5."45" ሰማዕታት (የአባ ጌርሎስ ደቀ መዛሙርት)
6.ቅዱስ አጋቦስ ሰማዕት
=>ወርኀዊ በዓላት
1.አማኑኤል ቸር አምላካችን
2.ቅዱሳን አበው (አብርሃም: ይስሐቅና ያዕቆብ)
3.ቅዱስ እንድራኒቆስና ሚስቱ ቅድስት አትናስያ
4.ቅዱስ ቴዎድሮስ ሮማዊ (ሰማዕት)
=>+"+ ለእናንተም ጠጉርን በመሸረብና ወርቅን በማንጠልጠል ወይም ልብስን በመጐናጸፍ በውጭ የሆነ ሽልማት አይሁንላችሁ:: ነገር ግን በእግዚአብሔር ፊት ዋጋው እጅግ የከበረ የዋህና ዝግተኛ መንፈስ ያለውን የማይጠፋውን ልብስ ለብሶ የተሰወረ የልብ ሰው ይሁንላችሁ:: +"+ (1ዼጥ. 3:3)
<ወስብሐት ለእግዚአብሔር>

On this day of the year 43 A.D., the body of St. Epiphanius (His biography is under the 17th. of Bashans), arrived to the island of Cyprus. The boat that carried his body arrived to Cyprus from Constantinople on the 28th. day of Bashans. The priests and the people came with crosses, gospels, candles and incense and carried his body to the church. When they started to dig his tomb, two deacons did not allow them. They were excommunicated by the saints for their bad reputation. The body remained in the church for four days without a change or a stench. His body looked as if he was asleep. A saintly deacon came near the body and said: "I know of your relationship with God, and that you can restrain these evil opponents." He then took an ax and hit the ground with it. The two opposing deacons fell on their faces immediately, and they were carried to their homes and died on the third day.
The body of the Saint was anointed and wrapped, they buried him in a marble sarcophagus in he church. Many miracles appeared from his body.
May his prayers be with us, and glory be to God forever. Amen.

IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER AND THE SON AND THE HOLY SPIRIT, ONE GOD. AMEN. Ginbot 27 (June 04)

On this day died the holy father, Abba John, the thirtieth Archbishop of the city of Alexandria.  This saint was a Christian, and a good man, and he became a monk in his early years, and he fought a strenuous spiritual fight.  Then he shut himself up in a cell, but his knowledge and his excellence became noised abroad, and they seized him and made him Archbishop of Alexandria, and during the days of his office he composed many Homilies.  And God exalted the horn of the Church in the days of this father; now, the emperor who reigned in his days was Anastasius, a believer and a just man.  And Saint Abba Severus, Archbishop of the city of Antioch, wrote an epistle on the True Faith to this father Abba John, wherein he said, “Our Lord Christ, our God, after His union, is One Essence (or, being), without mixture, even according to the belief of our fathers Abba Cyril, and Abba Demetrius, and Abba Dioscoros.”  And Abba John and all his bishops received the letter, and thanked God and glorified Him because of the conversion of the members who were separated, and who had come into their proper places.  Then this father Abba John wrote an answer to this letter, with words full of the grace of the True Faith, concerning the unity of the Godhead of God, One Essence, and concerning the Incarnation of the Son of God in the nature of man, and how He is one with the Godhead, without separation, and without mingling, and without change, and that He is One and not Two.  And he anathematized all those who separate our Lord Christ, or who mix His natures.  And he anathematized all those who say that He Who suffered, and died, and was crucified for the children of men, was a mere man, or those who attribute suffering to the Divine Nature.  On the contrary, by the True Faith we know that it was God, the Word, Who suffered for us in the flesh, which He took from us.  And this is the path of the kingdom, and he who walketh therein shall never go astray, and never stumble.  And when Abba Severus read the Epistle of this Saint Abba John, he received it with great satisfaction and pleasure, and he read it publicly in the city of Antioch; and there were peace and agreement in the city of Alexandria concerning the True Faith.  And this father continued to teach the people and his flock for eleven years, and he admonished them, and protected them, and confirmed them in the True Faith, and he died in peace.  Salutation of John who shut himself in his cell, until they elected him Archbishop of Alexandria.  And on this day also died Lazarus, the just man, the brother of Mary and Martha, having been appointed Bishop of the city of Cyprus, after our Lord rose from the dead.  Our Lord suffered in that week, and this saint followed the Apostle from that time.  After the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete, had descended upon the Apostles, they laid their hands upon him, and made him Bishop of the city of Cyprus.  And he guarded his flock well, and he sat for forty years and died in peace.  Salutation to Lazarus.

Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints.  Amen.

ጦምን ለመሻር ጥቅስ አያስፈልግም

 

                                       


¤አንዳንድ ሰዎች ሕግን ለመጣስ: ጦምን ለመሻር: ሥርዓቱንም ለማፍረስ ሲፈልጉ "ወደ አፍ የሚገባ ሁሉ አያረክስም . . ." ዓይነት ያልተረዱትን ጥቅስ ይጠቅሳሉ:: ወይም ደግሞ ለጾም "የሽማግሌ": "የቄስ": "የመነኮስ": "የሕጻን" . . . የሚል ስምን ይለጥፋሉ::
+ግንኮ! . . . ሕግን ለመጣስ ከሕግ መጽሐፍ ባልተገባ መንገድ መጥቀስ አያስፈልግም:: ጦመንም ለመሻር የማታለያ ምክንያቶችን መደርደር ግብዝ (አላዋቂ) ቢያሰኝ እንጂ ሌላ ትርፍ አይኖረውም::

ለምሳሌ:-
¤አንድ ሰው ሒሳብ (Mathematics) ትምሕርት "ይከብደኛል: አልችለውም . . ." ከፈለገም "አልማርም" ሊል መብቱ አለው:: "የሒሳብ ትምሕርት አያስፈልግም: አይጠቅምም" ሊል ግን ፍጹም አይችልም:: (ቢልም አላዋቂነቱን ይገልጣል)
+እንደዚሁም ሁሉ አንድ ሰው "መጾም ይከብደኛል: አልችልም . . ." ከፈለገም "አልጾምም" ሊል ይችላል:: (እንዲህ ብሎ ክርስቲያን መሆን ባይችልም)
+ምክንያቱም እንኩዋን ምግባራት አምልኮም ቢሆን በፈቃድ (በነጻነት) የሚፈጸም ጉዳይ ነውና:: ‪#‎እግዚአብሔር‬ የነጻነት አምላክ ነውና ማንንም አያስገድድም::
+ነገር ግን . . . ያ ሰው "ጾም ይከብደኛል: አልጾምም . . ." ለማለት መብቱ ቢኖረውም "ጾም አያስፈልግም" ሊል ግን መብቱ ሊኖረው አይችልም:: (ቢልም የሰይጣን የግብር ልጅ ከመሆን ሌላ ትርፍ አይኖረውም)
+ሰው (በተለይም ክርስቲያን) ለድኅነት: ለበጐነትና ለቅድስና ይጠቅሳል: ምክንያትንም ይፈጥራል እንጂ ቅዱስ ቃሉን እያጣመመ የጥፋትን መንገድ አይጠርግም::
+እኛ ግን:-
¤‪#‎ነቢያትን‬ (ዘጸ. 24:18, ዘዳ. 9:9, 1ነገ. 19:8, ዳን. 10:2, መዝ. 108, 109:24)
¤‪#‎ሐዋርያትን‬ (ሐዋ. 13:2)
¤‪#‎ጻድቃን_ሰማዕታትን‬: ‪#‎ደናግል_መነኮሳትን‬ (‪#‎ገድላተ_ቅዱሳን‬) . . . አብነት አድርገን ለድኅነት እንጦማለን::
+ይልቁኑ ግን ከክብር ባለቤት ‪#‎ከመድኃኒታችን_ክርስቶስ‬ አብነትን ነስተን (ማቴ. 4:1): ትምሕርቱን ሰምተን: ለሕይወት እንጦማለን:: "ስትጦሙ እንደ ግብዞች አትጠውልጉ" እንዳ ለጌታችን:: (ማቴ. 6:16)
=>‪#‎ቸር_አምላከ_ቅዱሳን‬ መዋዕለ ጦሙን ‪#‎የበረከትና_የአኮቴት‬ ያድርግልን::
<< ወስብሐት ለእግዚአብሔር >>

Explaining the Trinity to Muslims By Fr. Brendan Pelphrey in The Sounding Aug 25, 2014 ⋅ Comment(s) ⋅ Tags: Father, Holy Spirit, Jesus, Muslim, Trinity

Fr. Brendan Pelphrey responds:
Christians believe that God is love. The Trinity defines love: the love of the Father for the Son, and the Son for the Father, of the Father for the Spirit, of the Son for the Spirit, and of the Spirit for the Father and the Son. It is, finally, a love which is so great that it went out of itself. This is why God created and sustains all that exists.
Here we see that love is not a feeling or emotion, as many people think. Rather, love is a permanent relationship of self-giving and eternal mercy and compassion. Jesus Christ is the revelation to humanity of that permanent love, in which the Son lives in the Father, and the Father in the Son, and the Spirit in the Father and the Son.
This kind of love is beyond our understanding. It is not rational. We cannot argue about it or prove it. However, we can experience it, and this experience changes lives and brings us into loving relationship with everything that exists, because God loves all things and is at work in all that exists.
Mara’s friend has not experienced divine love. Divine love is very different from religion, in which people agree with certain dogmas and therefore congregate with other like-minded people. Mara’s friend left religion, which he called “Christianity,” because certain things did not make sense to him. So while his objections deserve answers, we have to realize that arguments like this will not change his life. Such arguments do not create love in the hearts of people who see God only in terms of rationality.
Beyond this, Muslim objections to the Trinity are part of a whole set of assertions that together make up Islam. For every false assertion that we can correct, there will always be more objections to Christian faith. For example, if we show that in the Bible there are clear images of the Trinity, then it will be objected that the Bible is inaccurate or that it has less importance than the Qur’an.
Nevertheless, it is possible to show how the Muslim objections cited above are false.
To do this carefully requires more than just a few words, so in the future we hope to present a series on the Christian doctrine of the Trinity. We will see what the doctrine of the Trinity actually is, where it appears in the Bible, what this means about the nature and person of Jesus Christ; and some practical implications of the mystery of the Trinity for Christian life. In the meantime, the following is a “short version” in response to the objections raised by Mara’s friend.
Jesus never claimed to be God. Actually, He did. In fact, this is exactly why He was crucified. There are many examples of this in the Gospels, but perhaps the clearest are in the Gospel of John. Jesus says, “I and the Father are one” (John 10:30); “If you knew me, you would know the Father also” (John 8:19); “He who has seen me has seen the Father” (John 14:8); and “I am in the Father and the Father is in me” (John 14:10). These statements are unambiguous.
The accounts of Jesus’ trial also tell us that the main charge brought against Him was that He made Himself equal with God. Here we should remember that in Jewish faith, the promised Messiah (or in Greek, “the Christ”) was considered to be Emmanuel, meaning “God among men” (Isaiah 7:14). In Mark 12:35-36, Jesus points out that the Messiah is not simply the son of David, but is called “Lord” (meaning God) by David himself. There is no question that Jesus identified Himself with the promised Messiah, who was understood to proceed from God and to be divine.
In Matthew 26:57 ff., we read that Jesus was accused of saying He could rebuild the temple in three days—something which only God could do. Then the High Priest asked Him, “I adjure you by the living God, tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God.” Jesus answered, “You have said it!” (or, “You have said so!”). Then Jesus said, “After this you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power, and coming on the clouds of Heaven.” In other words, the assertion was true.
Jesus often referred to Himself as “the Son of Man” (cf. John 6:62). This phrase does not mean an ordinary man, but is a direct reference to Daniel 7:13 ff. in which the prophet Daniel describes a vision of the Messiah who would bring mankind to the presence of the Father. In John 8:28, Jesus says clearly, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am he…” Here He clearly identifies Himself both as the Messiah, and God.
There is no evidence that Jesus was God in the flesh. Actually, Jesus’ whole ministry was filled with evidence that He had the power of God and proceeded from the Father. He fulfilled hundreds of specific signs of the Messiah that are prophesied in the Old Testament. These included healing the sick, casting out demons, restoring sight to the blind, making the lame walk, causing the deaf to hear, and healing withered limbs. He fulfilled prophecies of where He would be born, and how. Jesus’ birth from the Virgin Mary was the first of the signs that He was indeed the promised Messiah. This sign is acknowledged even by Muslims, although some Muslims claim—contrary to history—that Jesus was born in Babylon and not in Bethlehem.
The Old Testament never mentions the Trinity. Actually there are over fifty references to the Trinity in the Old Testament. Some examples are in Genesis 18, Psalm 110, Proverbs 30:4, Isaiah 9:6, Isaiah 48, Isaiah 49, and Zechariah 3. Perhaps the most striking of the “theophanies” (appearances of God) in the Old Testament is the story of the visit of God to Abraham at Mamre (Genesis 18).
The Bible says that the LORD (Hebrew, YHWH) appeared to Abraham in the form of three angels. In the story, the verbs used for the angels are sometimes plural and sometimes singular: thus there are three, but there is only One. Historically, this passage left rabbis puzzled as they tried to interpret it. How could there be One who is Three? But in the Book of Genesis, God is always referred to both in the singular, as one God (El), and in the plural (Elohim). This is illustrated in Genesis 1:26: “And God said, let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” Even the first two verses of the Bible (Genesis 1:1-3) refer to the Trinity: God created, the Spirit hovered over the Deep, and the Word of God (Dabar) created light.
It does not make sense for God to be One and Three at the same time. To the prophet Isaiah, God said, “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways” (Isaiah 55:09). The logic of God is not our logic. That is why what is impossible for man, is possible for God (compare Matthew 19:26). We are not God, and we cannot know the essence of God.
However, the “mathematics” of God, as revealed in Christ, are: 1 + 1 + 1= 1.
Therefore, the nature of the Trinity is considered by the Church to be a mystery which, as God’s creatures, we cannot explain. However, it can be illustrated by the idea of “co-inherence” in contemporary physics. Science has discovered that certain sub-atomic particles must be considered as both separate particles, and as existing only within (or “one with”) other particles at the same time. Historically, the Church has used the example of three separate candle flames that come together and burn as one: the flames are all one, even though they are three.
The Greek word used for the “co-inherence” of the Three Persons of the Trinity is perichoresis, which literally means “running in a circle.” It means that when we see the Son, we see the Father, who has sent the Spirit to reveal the Son, who gives the Spirit, who draws us to the Father, who is only seen in the Son…  Each One reveals the Others, and is found only in, and with, the other divine Persons.
This mode of existence defines what it means to be “person.” We cannot be real persons in isolation. Christians believe that our own nature, as persons, is a mirror of the person-hood of the Holy Trinity.
It does not make sense for Jesus to be God and Man at the same time. Although we cannot understand how or why God came to live among men, this is exactly what God promised that He would do, as recorded by the Old Testament prophets. He did this without ceasing to be God. St. Athanasius used this illustration: imagine pouring a glass of wine into a glass of water, in which the water becomes “all wine,” but the volume of water does not change. In other words, the water and wine coexist in the same time and place, even though wine and water have different qualities altogether. This is the co-inherence of God in man, and man in God, so that there is no change in either. Jesus is both fully God, and fully man. (Also, see the previous answer.)
The idea of the Trinity was made up by “Paulus” (St. Paul). No. The Trinity is mentioned not only in all of the Gospels, but also in the Old Testament. While it is true that the Gospel of John was written after the letters of Paul, it is also true that the Gospels of Mark and Luke, and possibly Matthew, were earlier—even before Paul’s conversion to Christian faith. Jesus mentions the Trinity clearly in Matthew 28:19: “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit…”
The Holy Bible was written by men. Later translations changed its meaning. Therefore, the Bible does not have the authority of the Holy Qur’an, which was dictated to the Prophet directly by the angel Jibriel, revealing the very words of Allah’ (God). It is interesting that Muslims insist that the Qur’an has to be read in Arabic if it is to be understood. This is opposite to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which from the beginning was preached in all languages (see Acts 2), but without changing its meaning. This was because the self-revelation of God in Jesus Christ was not in words, but in the flesh, just as God promised through the prophets of old. Jesus was himself the living Word (logos) of God.
It is also worth pointing out that in history there have been many other books that claimed to contain the exact words of God. However, these books do not agree with one another. Which one is true? Jesus said, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). Jesus also warned that many people would come after Him, claiming to be the Messiah or claiming to be the only path to God. These are false prophets.
How do we know what is true? Perhaps the only way is to judge according to people’s works. Human nature tells us that murdering everyone who does not agree with us is not what we were intended to do with our lives. It can never be justified, even though religious groups often do it in the name of God. But Jesus said, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me; for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden light” (Matthew 11:28). For me, at least, this sounds like Truth.
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Posted by the Orthodox Christian Network.  You can find the Orthodox Christian Network on Google+.

እንኩዋን ለእመቤታችን ቅድስት ድንግል ማርያም ዓመታዊ የስደት በዓል በሰላም አደረሳችሁ Ginbot 24 (June 01) IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER AND THE SON AND THE HOLY SPIRIT, ONE GOD. AMEN.

የአርያም ንግሥት: የፍጥረታት ሁሉ እመቤት ድንግል ማርያም የባሕርይ አምላክ ልጇን አዝላ በዚህች ቀን ወደ ምድረ ግብፅ ወርዳለች::
+በወንጌል ላይ (ማቴ. 2:1-18) እንደተጻፈው ጌታችን በተወለደ በ2 ዓመቱ የጥበብ ሰዎች (ሰብአ ሰገል) ወደ ቤተ ልሔም መጥተው ሰግደውለት: ወርቅ እጣን ከርቤውን ገበሩ: አገቡለት::

+ንጉሥ ተወልዷል መባሉን የሰማ ሔሮድስ 144,000 ሕጻናትን ሲፈጅ በቅዱስ ገብርኤል ትዕዛዝ እመቤታችን ቅድስት ድንግል ማርያም 1 አምላክ ልጇን አዝላ: በአንዲት አህያ ጥቂት ስንቅ ቁዋጥራ: ከዮሴፍና ከሰሎሜ ጋር ስደት ወጣች::
+ከገሊላ ተነስታ በጭንቅ በመከራ: በረሃብና በጥም: በሐዘንና በድካም: በላበትና በእንባ ተጉዛ በዚሕች ቀን ምድረ ግብፅ ገብታለች::
+የአምላክ እናቱ
*እሳትን አዝላ በብርድ ተንገላታለች::
*ለእኛ የሕይወት እንጀራን ተሸክማ እርሷ ተራበች::
*የሕይወትን ውሃ ተሸክማ ተጠማች::
*የሕይወት ልብስን ተሸክማ ተራቆተች::
*የሕይወት ፍስሐን ተሸክማ አዘነች::
*እመ አምላክ ተራበች: ተጠማች: ታረዘች: ደከመች: አዘነች: አለቀሰች: እግሯ ደማ: ተንገላታች::
+ለሚገባው ይሕ ሁሉ የተደረገው ለእኛ ድኅነት ነው:: በእውነት ይህንን እያወቀ ለድንግል ማርያም ክብር የማይሰጥ ሰይጣን ብቻ ነው:: አራዊት: ዕፀዋትና ድንጋዮች እንኩዋ ለአመላክ እናት ክብር ይሰጣሉ::
+አረጋዊው ቅዱስ ዮሴፍና ቅዱስ ሰሎሜ ደግሞ የክብር ክብር ይገባቸዋል:: ከአምላክ እናት ከድንግል ማርያምና ከቸር ልጇ ጋር መከራ መቀበልን መርጠዋልና::
=>መድኃኔ ዓለም ጌታችን ኢየሱስ ክርስቶስ ለምን ተሰደደ?
ለምንስ ስደቱን ወደ ግብፅና ኢትዮዽያ አደረገ?
1.ትንቢቱን ይፈጽም ዘንድ:: በፈጣን ደመና ወደ ግብፅ እንደሚወርድ ተነግሯልና (ኢሳ. 19:1, ዕን. 3:7)
2.ምሳሌውን ለመፈጸም:: የሥጋ አባቶቹ እነ አብርሃም: ያዕቆብ (እሥራኤል): ኤርምያስ ወደዚያው ተሰደዋልና::
3.ከግብፅ ጣዖት አምልኮን ያጠፋ ዘንድ:: (ኢሳ. 19:1)
4.የግብፅና የኢትዮዽያ ገዳማትን ይቀድስ ዘንድ::
5.ሰው መሆኑ በአማን እንጂ ምትሐት እንዳልሆነ ለማጠየቅ:: ሰው ባይሆን ኑሮ አይሰደድም ነበርና:: ሔሮድስ ቢያገኘው ደግሞ ሊገድለው አይችልም:: ያለ ፈቃዱና ያለ ዕለተ ዐርብ ደሙ አይፈስምና::
6.ስደትን ለሰማዕታት ባርኮ ለመስጠት:: እና
7.የአዳምን ስደት በስደቱ ለመካስ ነው::
=>ቸሩ መድኃኔ ዓለም የድንግል እናቱን ስደት አስቦ ከመንግስተ ሰማያት ስደት ይሠውረን:: ከስደቱ በረከትም ያድለን::
=>ግንቦት 24 ቀን የሚከበሩ ዓመታዊ የቅዱሳን በዓላት=
1.ቅዱስ ዕንባቆም ነቢይ
2.ቅዱስ ዮሴፍ አረጋዊና ቅድስት ሰሎሜ
3.ቅዱስ አብቁልታ ሰማዕት
4.ቅዱስ አልዓዛር ካህን (የአሮን ልጅ)
=>ወርኀዊ በዓላት
1.ቅዱስ አቡነ ተክለ ሃይማኖት
2.ቅዱስ አጋቢጦስ (ጻድቅ ኤዺስቆዾስ)
3.ቅድስት ክርስቶስ ሠምራ
4.ቅዱስ ሙሴ ፀሊም
5.ቅዱስ ቶማስ ዘመርዐስ
6.ቅዱስ አብላርዮስ ታላቁ
7."24ቱ" ካኅናተ ሰማይ (ሱራፌል)
8.አቡነ ዘዮሐንስ ጻድቅ (ኢትዮዽያዊ)
=>+"+ ዘንዶውም ሴቲቱ በወለደች ጊዜ ሕጻኑዋን እንዲበላ ልትወልድ ባላት ሴት ፊት ቆመ:: አሕዛብንም ሁሉ በብረት ዘንግ ይገዛቸው ዘንድ ያለውን ልጅ: ወንድ ልጅ ወለደች:: ልጇም ወደ እግዚአብሔርና ወደ ዙፋኑ ተነጠቀ:: ሴቲቱም ሺህ ከሁለት መቶ ስድሳ ቀን በዚያ እንዲመግቧት በእግዚአብሔር ተዘጋጅቶላት ወደ ነበረው ሥፍራ ወደ በረሃ ሸሸች:: +"+ (ራዕይ. 12:4-7)
<ወስብሐት ለእግዚአብሔር>" source Zikre Kidusan"

On this day our Lord Jesus Christ came to the land of Egypt, and He was a child whose days were two years, even as the Holy Gospel saith.  And the angel of God appeared unto Joseph in a dream, saying, “Rise up, take the child and His mother, and depart to the land of Egypt and remain there until I tell thee.”  And the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ took place for two reasons, in the operation of His wisdom, firstly:  If Herod, the infidel, found Him, and was able to kill Him, others would think that His Incarnation was from below; and secondly:  That the men of the land of Egypt might not be deprived of His grace, and of His going about in their midst, and that He might smash the idols which were in the land of Egypt, and that the prophecy of Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled which said, “Behold, God shall mount upon a swift (or, light) cloud, and shall come to the land of Egypt, and the idols of Egypt shall fall down” (Isaiah xix, I).  Our Lord, in the operation of His wisdom, fled before Herod, but it was not through fear that He fled.  And the first city at which Joseph, and our holy Lady, the Virgin Mary, the God-bearer, and our Lord Jesus Christ, and Salome, whose name was “Balata,”  arrived, would not receive them.  And they dug there a well of water, and it became a means of healing, not only to the men of that city, but also to all other men.  Thence they departed to the monastery of Gamnudi, and they crossed the river towards the west.  And the Lord put His foot upon a stone, and the mark of the sole of His foot is in the stone to this day, and the name of that place is called “the place of the sole of the foot of the Lord Jesus.”  And our Lord said unto His mother, the holy Lady, the Virgin Mary, “Know thou, O Mary, my mother, that in this place a church shall be built in thy name and in mine.  And I will make manifest therein signs and wonders, until the end of the world, and it shall be called ‘Debre Mitmak.’”  Thence they departed towards the river, and crossed over towards the west, and He saw the desert of Scete from afar, and our Lord Jesus Christ blessed it, and He said unto His mother, “Know, O my mother Mary, that in this desert there shall live many monks, [and] ascetics, and spiritual fighters, and they shall serve God like the angels.”  Thence He came to Debre Mesrak.  And there was a staff in the hand of Joseph, wherewith he used to smite (?) our Lord Jesus Christ, and Joseph gave Him the staff.  And when He took it He said unto His mother, “We will tarry here”; and that place and its desert, and the well of water, which is the first there, became known as Matareya (Near Heliopolis).  And our Lord took Joseph’s staff, and broke it into little pieces and planted these pieces in that place, and He dug with His own divine hands a well, and there flowed from it sweet water, which had an exceedingly sweet odor.  And our Lord took some of the water in His hands, and watered therewith the pieces of wood which He had planted, and straightway they took root, and put forth leaves, and an exceedingly sweet perfume was emitted by them, which was sweeter than any other perfume.  And these pieces of wood grew and increased and they called them “Balsan” (i.e. the balsam trees).  And our Lord Jesus Christ said unto His mother, the holy Virgin Mary, “O my mother, these Balsan, which I have planted, shall abide here for ever, and from them shall be [taken] the oil for Christian baptism, when they baptized in the Name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.”  Thence they went to the city of Behensa, and to a place, which is called Bet Iyasus, which is interpreted “House of Jesus”; and our Lord Jesus Christ dug there a well whereof the water cured every sickness and every pain.  And He also set a sign in a certain well of the river of Egypt, which rose [in flood] every year.  At the time of prayer at which they offered up incense at mid-day to God by that well, as soon as the reading of the Gospel was ended the water which was in the well would rise up and come to the mouth of the well; and they used to receive a blessing from it, and straightway the water would recede until it reached its former level; and the people used to measure by the cubit the height to which it rose above its normal level at the bottom of the well.  If the height were twenty cubits, there would be great abundance in the land of Egypt that year; if the height were eighteen or seventeen cubits, there would also be abundance, but if the height were only sixteen cubits there would be a great famine throughout the land of Egypt.  And then they went to ‘Eshmunayn, and our Lord broke the idols which were therein; and they dwelt there for a few days with a man whose name was ‘Apelon.  And there were there some komol trees, and they bowed [their heads] before our Lord Jesus Christ, and they have remained bent until this day.  Thence they went to Debre Kuskuam, and they remained therein for six months, and our Lord placed a well therein, the water of which healed every sickness.  And when our Lord had finished living in the land of Egypt the days which He wanted to live there, that is to say, three years and six months, and Herod was dead, the angel of the Lord appeared unto Joseph in a dream, and again he spoke to him, saying, “Rise up and take the Child, and His mother, and depart to the land of Israel.”  When they returned from that place, they came to the city of Mahareka; and having come to Mesr (Cairo), they dwelt in the cave, which is the church of Saint Sergius in Mesr (Cairo).  After this they went out from Mesr (Cairo) and came to Matariyah, and they bathed there, and the well therein which our Lord Jesus Christ made became holy and blessed from that hour, even as has already been said.  And thence went forth the oil “Balasan,” [the plants of which] our Lord planted, and with this oil Christian baptism is made perfect, and with it churches and altars, and sacred property are consecrated.  And with it they give relief and healing to all those who are sick, and they present it as a gift to kings, who boast themselves of its possession.  And from this place they went to Mehdab.  And by His return was fulfilled the prophecy of Hosea the prophet, saying, “Out of Egypt have I called My Son” (Hosea 11:1).  And it is meet to us to celebrate a spiritual festival on this day, and we should sing on it the words of David the prophet, “God hath wrought signs in the land of Egypt, and wonders in the Field of Zoan” (Psalm 78:12).  And also, “He hath wrought in thee the signs of Egypt, and in the Egyptians,” and with them.  “Glory be to God our Lord Jesus Christ, and to this Good Father, and to the Holy Life-giving Spirit, for ever and ever.  Amen.”  Salutation to Thy coming to the land of Egypt.

And on this day also died Habakkuk, the prophet, one of the Twelve Sons of the Minor Prophets.  One day this prophet cooked some lentils in a pot, and as he was carrying the pot, with some bread, to the men who were reaping in the fields outside the city, the angel of God appeared unto him, and said unto him, “Take this food to Daniel the prophet in the den of lions of the city of Babylon.”  And Habbakkuk said unto him, “I have not seen Babylon and I do not know the den therein.”  And the angel of God seized him by the hair of his head, as he was carrying the food, and brought him to the pit of the city of Babylon, which was shut, and he gave that food to Daniel and he ate; and immediately the angel of God brought him back to the land of Judah.  Now he was a very old man.  When the children of Israel returned from captivity, and built the sanctuary, Habakkuk came to Jerusalem, and they welcomed him with great joy, and they made the sanctuary beautiful and assembled to hear his prophecy.  And he opened his mouth in the Holy Spirit and said, “O God, I heard the sound of Thee and I was afraid.  I saw Thy work and I marveled.”  And then he spoke in his prophecy concerning the Incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ.  And concerning His birth in Bethlehem of Judah, he saith, “God shall come from Mount Faran”; and then he continued his prophecy to the end and he wrote it and he mixed it with the prophecy of the prophets.  And he dwelt in Jerusalem.  And a certain woman of the sons of Israel came unto him weeping, and she said unto him, “I had two sons, and certain men required of them to worship idols, and they refused to do so, and the men killed them and cast their bodies out on the highway.”  And Habakkuk went forth with her to the place where the young men who had been killed were lying, and he besought God to give them back their souls; and God accepted his prayer, and made the two young men to live again.  When the time drew nigh for him to die he called his kinsfolk, and told them that he was going to die.  And he continued to gaze upwards for the space of an hour, and behold a great arm, like the hand [and arm] of a man, opened the roof of the house, and came down from above, and reached itself out to his mouth, and took his soul.  And when Anastasius, the Christian emperor, read the story of the strife of Habakkuk, he built a church in his honor in the city of Kartas, in the north of Egypt, and it was consecrated as on this day.  Salutation to Habakkuk. 

And on this day also the blessed and chosen fighter Abba Abkuelta became a martyr.  This saint belonged to a noble family of the city of ‘Ensena, and he was a pure priest and a wise physician, and he did great good to all the suffering folk who came unto him, and he healed them without payment; moreover he also gave them food, and drink, and raiment, and anything of which they stood in need.  In those days Diocletian, the infidel emperor, sent orders into the region of Upper Egypt, to the governor whose name was Arianus that he was to compel the men of that country to worship idols.  Thereupon they took this saint and carried him away from ‘Ensena to the city of ‘Eshmunayn, and set him before the governor.  And the governor spoke unto him with words of gentleness, in order to persuade him to abandon the True Faith, but he count not make him do so.  And straightway the governor ordered his soldiers to torture him with divers kinds of tortures, and they did so, until his skin melted, and then they burnt him alive in the fire; thus he finished his martyrdom on the twenty-fourth day of the month of Genbot.  And certain believers came, and swathed him for burial in costly cloths, and they buried him in one of the upper hills near his city.  Salutation to Abba ‘Abkuelta.

And on this day also took place the death of Eleazar, the priest, the son of Aaron.  And on this day also are commemorated ‘Akledis (Clitas), and Teflas, and Da’ala Maryu.

Glory be to God Who is glorified in His Saints.  Amen.