13th SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST — Translation of the Relics of Rt. Blv. Great Prince St. Alexander Nevsky (1724). Sts. Alexander (340), John (595), and Paul the New (784), Patriarchs of Constantinople.
Tone 4 Troparion (Resurrection)
When the women disciples of the Lord learned from the angel the joyous message of Your Resurrection, they cast away the ancestral curse and elatedly told the apostles: “Death is overthrown! Christ God is risen,// granting the world great mercy!”
Tone 4 Troparion (St. Nicholas)
The truth of your deeds has revealed you to your flock as a rule of faith, an image of meekness and a teacher of self-control; your humility exalted you; your poverty enriched you.// O Father Bishop Nicholas, pray to Christ God that our souls may be saved.
Tone 2 Troparion (Forerunner)
The memory of the righteous is celebrated with hymns of praise, but the Lord’s testimony is sufficient for you, O Forerunner. You were shown in truth to be the most honorable of the Prophets, for you were deemed worthy to baptize in the streams of the Jordan Him Whom they foretold. Therefore, having suffered for the truth with joy, you proclaimed to those in hell God Who appeared in the flesh, Who takes away the sin of the world// and grants us great mercy.
Tone 4 Kontakion (Sts. Alexander, John, and Paul)
O God of our Fathers, always act with kindness towards us; take not Your mercy from us, but guide our lives in peace// through the prayers of the Patriarchs Alexander, John, and Paul!
Tone 4 Kontakion (Resurrection)
My Savior and Redeemer as God rose from the tomb and delivered the earth-born from their chains. He has shattered the gates of hell, and as Master,// He has risen on the third day!
Tone 3 Kontakion (St. Nicholas)
You proved yourself to be be a holy priest, O Nicholas. You served God in Myra and lived the gospel of Christ. You offered your life for your people, And rescued the innocent from death. Therefore God has glorified you as a trustworthy guide of things divine.
Tone 5 Kontakion (Forerunner)
The glorious beheading of the Forerunner became an act of divine dispensation, for he preached to those in hell the coming of the Savior. Let Herodias lament, for she entreated lawless murder, loving not the Law of God, nor eternal life,// but that which is false and temporal.
Tone 8 Kontakion (Sts. Alexander, John, and Paul)
Set a flame by the love of Christ, O glorious ones, you took up the yoke of His precious Cross, revealing yourselves as followers in His footsteps by your way of life, and you became partakers of His divine glory, divinely-wise Alexander, with wonderful John and glorious Paul.// As you stand before His throne, earnestly pray for our souls!
Tone 6 Kontakion (Steadfast Protectress)
Steadfast Protectress of Christians, Constant Advocate before the Creator; despise not the cry of us sinners, but in your goodness come speedily to help us who call on you in faith. Hasten to hear our petition and to intercede for us, O Theotokos, for you always protect those who honor you!
Tone 4 Prokeimenon (Resurrection)
O Lord, how manifold are Your works; / in wisdom have You made them all. (Ps. 103:26)
V. Bless the Lord, O my soul! O Lord, my God, You are very great! (Ps. 103:1)
1 Corinthians 16:13-24 (Epistle)
Watch, stand fast in the faith, be brave, be strong. Let all that you do be done with love. I urge you, brethren – you know the household of Stephanas, that it is the firstfruits of Achaia, and that they have devoted themselves to the ministry of the saints – that you also submit to such, and to everyone who works and labors with us. I am glad about the coming of Stephanas, Fortunatus, and Achaicus, for what was lacking on your part they supplied. For they refreshed my spirit and yours. Therefore acknowledge such men. The churches of Asia greet you. Aquila and Priscilla greet you heartily in the Lord, with the church that is in their house. All the brethren greet you. Greet one another with a holy kiss. The salutation with my own hand – Paul’s. If anyone does not love the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be accursed. O Lord, come! The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. My love be with you all in Christ Jesus. Amen.
Tone 4
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia!
V. Go forth, prosper and reign, for the sake of meekness, righteousness and truth! (Ps. 44:3b)
V. For You love righteousness, and hate iniquity. (Ps. 44:6)
Tone 8
V. Arise, O Lord, into Your rest, You and the Ark of Your sanctification!(Ps. 131:8)
Matthew 21:33-42 (Gospel)
Hear another parable: There was a certain landowner who planted a vineyard and set a hedge around it, dug a winepress in it and built a tower. And he leased it to vinedressers and went into a far country. Now when vintage-time drew near, he sent his servants to the vinedressers, that they might receive its fruit. And the vinedressers took his servants, beat one, killed one, and stoned another. Again he sent other servants, more than the first, and they did likewise to them. Then last of all he sent his son to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ But when the vinedressers saw the son, they said among themselves, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him and seize his inheritance.’ So they took him and cast him out of the vineyard and killed him. Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those vinedressers?” They said to Him, “He will destroy those wicked men miserably, and lease his vineyard to other vinedressers who will render to him the fruits in their seasons.” Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures: ‘The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone. This was the LORD’s doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes’?
Translation of the relics of Saint Alexander Nevsky
The Holy Prince Alexander Nevsky (in monastic schema Alexis) died on the return journey from the Horde at Gorodtsa on the Volga, on November 14, 1263, and on November 23, 1263 he was buried in the Cathedral Church of the Nativity Monastery in the city of Vladimir.1
Veneration of the Prince began right at his burial, where a remarkable miracle took place. The saint extended his hand for the prayer of absolution (a written document placed in the coffin). Great Prince John (1353-1359), in his spiritual testament written in the year 1356, left to his son Demetrius (1363-1389), the future victor of the Battle of Kulikovo, “an icon of Saint Alexander.” The incorrupt relics of the holy Prince were uncovered, because of a vision, before the Battle of Kulikovo in the year 1380, and then they were sent forth for a local celebration.
Russian commanders asked for the intercession of the holy Prince, glorified by his defense of the Fatherland, in the following times: On August 30, 1721 Peter I, after a lengthy and exhausting war with the Swedes, concluded the Nishtad Peace. On this day it was decided to transfer the relics of the holy Prince Alexander Nevsky from Vladimir to the new northern capital, Peterburg, on the banks of the Neva. Removed from Vladimir on August 11, 1723, the holy relics were greeted at Shlisselburg on September 20 of that year and remained there until 1724. On August 30, they were placed in the Trinity Cathedral of the Alexander Nevsky Lavra, where they now rest in Saint Petersburg. By an edict on September 2, 1724 a feastday was established on August 30.2
Archimandrite Gabriel Buzhinsky (later Bishop of Ryazan, + April 27, 1731) compiled a special service in remembrance of the Nishtad Peace, combining with it a service to Saint Alexander Nevsky.
The name of the Defender of the borders of Russia and the Patron of Soldiers is famous far beyond the borders of Russia. The numerous temples dedicated to Saint Alexander Nevsky bear witness to this. The most famous of them: the Patriarchal Cathedral at Sofia, the Cathedral church in Talinin, and a church in Tbilisi. These churches are a pledge of friendship of the Russian National-Liberator with brother nations.
1 There is now a memorial to the holy prince at the Cathedral Church of the Nativity Monastery. Another memorial is in the city of Pereslavl-Zalessk.
2 In 1727, the feast was discontinued because of secular matters, which involved clique struggles at the imperial court. In 1730, the Feast was again re-established.
On the mysterious ancestry of Christ
…And who shall declare His generation? (Isaiah 53:8)
For the Jews, the ancestry of the Lord Jesus was hidden, like the hidden spring of a great river. They read and knew that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem, yet when He was born in Bethlehem they did not recognize Him. They knew that the Messiah would come from the lineage of David, and He was born of the lineage of David through His Most-holy Mother, but they did not recognize or acknowledge Him. They read that He would be born of a Virgin; that He would flee into Egypt; that He would be called out of Egypt; that His forerunner would appear before Him, crying in the wilderness; that He would shine as a great light in the darkness and shadow of the deathly lands of Zabulon and Nephthali—and all the rest that the prophets foretold and wrote as signs of His coming. Still, the Jews did not recognize or acknowledge Him, but crucified the King of Glory like a criminal. If He were an ordinary man, would the prophet have delved into His ancestry and origin? Who else in the history of Israel had a hidden ancestry? Melchisedek! Such lineage was hidden from the Jews, and is always hidden from unbelievers; but from believers it is not hidden anymore. We know that Christ is “Light of Light, true God of true God, begotten, not made.” That is Him in eternity. We know that “He was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary,” and that He appeared in the world as true God and true man. That is Him in time. His ancestry is wondrous, mysterious, glorious and majestic. When we say everything that was revealed to us about Him, we can still ask ourselves: Who shall declare His generation? Not because His ancestry is unknown, but rather because His ancestry is unreachable, incomprehensible, beyond our understanding, and above nature. O Lord Jesus Christ our God, enlighten us by Thy divine understanding, and raise us up to Thee by Thy mankind-loving power. To Thee be glory and praise forever. Amen.
— Velimirovic, Saint Nikolai. The Prologue of Ohrid
From Our Thoughts Determine Our Lives
The fear of God is not the animal-like fear of this world. Our fear is like that, and we must strive to conquer this. Such fear is from hades. Our life is filled with fear. We fear what tomorrow will bring, what the future has in store for us…. That is an animal-like fear. The fear of God is when you love Him, when you truly love Him with all your heart and you strive never to offend or sadden Him—not only with your deeds, actions, and words, but also with your thoughts. You try to please Him in everything you do or say. That is the fear of God—the fear of doing anything that might sadden or offend our Parent.
When we are among a large number of people, say at our workplace, people often argue there, especially at large meetings. It is always best to keep silent at large gatherings. Let the others bring out their suggestions. We should keep silent. If you absolutely must say something, then say it so as not to offend anyone’s dignity. It is better not to become involved. Mind your own business and try to keep your peace. I often find that I want to defend justice, but always seem to end up having injustice done to me…. We can defend justice, but will justice be done? The Lord knows why He has permitted injustice to happen. We will not prevent injustice by our words. With words we can only offend someone and make him hurt the other person even more. We think we are defending someone, but we are, in fact, only making matters worse. If a person is in the power of the spirits of evil, such a person breeds evil. Are we going to prevent this with our words? Quite the contrary. Even if we say something while trying to defend someone from injustice, we are not doing that person a favor. The best we can do is turn to the One Who alone gives justice… Now this is how one should defend justice. Not with words—words will only irritate someone and cause him to hurt others even more. We must turn to the Almighty, to Him Who is Master of all minds and hearts, and everything will be well.
— Smiljanic, Ana. Our Thoughts Determine Our Lives: the Life and Teachings of Elder Thaddeus of Vitovnica
Sunday Bulletin August 23, 2026