January 17, 2024

Events of the day

No commemorations in the content package for this day yet

Fasting

Fast day · Wednesday / Friday

Wednesday and Friday: fast without meat, dairy or eggs. Whether fish is allowed depends on the day's feast — check the church calendar.

• Meat: not allowed
• Dairy & eggs: not allowed
• Fish: not specified
• Oil: allowed
• Wine: allowed

Food rules are reference church information. Agree your personal measure of fasting with a priest; consult a doctor if you are ill.

Readings of the day

• Vespers

  Wisdom of Solomon 5:15–6:3

• Vespers

  Wisdom of Solomon 3:1–9

• Vespers

  Wisdom of Solomon 4:7–15

• Matins Gospel

  Matthew 11:27–30

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  ²⁷All things have been delivered to me by my Father. No one knows the Son, except the Father; neither does anyone know the Father, except the Son, and he to whom the Son desires to reveal him.

  ²⁸“Come to me, all you who labor and are heavily burdened, and I will give you rest.

  ²⁹Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart; and you will find rest for your souls.

  ³⁰For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

• Epistle

  2 Timothy 4:9–22

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  ⁹Be diligent to come to me soon,

  ¹⁰for Demas left me, having loved this present world, and went to Thessalonica; Crescens to Galatia; and Titus to Dalmatia.

  ¹¹Only Luke is with me. Take Mark, and bring him with you, for he is useful to me for service.

  ¹²But I sent Tychicus to Ephesus.

  ¹³Bring the cloak that I left at Troas with Carpus when you come, and the books, especially the parchments.

  ¹⁴Alexander, the coppersmith, did much evil to me. The Lord will repay him according to his deeds,

  ¹⁵of whom you also must beware; for he greatly opposed our words.

  ¹⁶At my first defense, no one came to help me, but all left me. May it not be held against them.

  ¹⁷But the Lord stood by me and strengthened me, that through me the message might be fully proclaimed, and that all the Gentiles might hear. So I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion.

  ¹⁸And the Lord will deliver me from every evil work, and will preserve me for his heavenly Kingdom. To him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

  ¹⁹Greet Prisca and Aquila, and the house of Onesiphorus.

  ²⁰Erastus remained at Corinth, but I left Trophimus at Miletus sick.

  ²¹Be diligent to come before winter. Eubulus salutes you, as do Pudens, Linus, Claudia, and all the brothers.

  ²²The Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Grace be with you. Amen.

• Epistle · St Anthony

  Hebrews 13:17–21

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  ¹⁷Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they watch on behalf of your souls, as those who will give account, that they may do this with joy, and not with groaning, for that would be unprofitable for you.

  ¹⁸Pray for us, for we are persuaded that we have a good conscience, desiring to live honorably in all things.

  ¹⁹I strongly urge you to do this, that I may be restored to you sooner.

  ²⁰Now may the God of peace, who brought again from the dead the great shepherd of the sheep with the blood of an eternal covenant, our Lord Jesus,

  ²¹make you complete in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is well pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

• Gospel

  Luke 20:1–8

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  ¹On one of those days, as he was teaching the people in the temple and preaching the Good News, the priests and scribes came to him with the elders.

  ²They asked him, “Tell us: by what authority do you do these things? Or who is giving you this authority?”

  ³He answered them, “I also will ask you one question. Tell me:

  ⁴the baptism of John, was it from heaven, or from men?”

  ⁵They reasoned with themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say, ‘Why didn’t you believe him?’

  ⁶But if we say, ‘From men,’ all the people will stone us, for they are persuaded that John was a prophet.”

  ⁷They answered that they didn’t know where it was from.

  ⁸Jesus said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.”

• Gospel · St Anthony

  Luke 6:17–23

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  ¹⁷He came down with them, and stood on a level place, with a crowd of his disciples, and a great number of the people from all Judea and Jerusalem, and the sea coast of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear him and to be healed of their diseases;

  ¹⁸as well as those who were troubled by unclean spirits, and they were being healed.

  ¹⁹All the multitude sought to touch him, for power came out of him and healed them all.

  ²⁰He lifted up his eyes to his disciples, and said, “Blessed are you who are poor, God’s Kingdom is yours.

  ²¹Blessed are you who hunger now, for you will be filled. Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh.

  ²²Blessed are you when men hate you, and when they exclude and mock you, and throw out your name as evil, for the Son of Man’s sake.

  ²³Rejoice in that day, and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven, for their fathers did the same thing to the prophets.

Source: Orthocal: lectionary data — Slavic tradition, New Calendar (OCA practice). Text: World English Bible.

Saints and icons

• Prayer of the day: The Trisagion