The Morning Offering

REMEMBRANCE

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Remembrance of God leads to Conversion of Heart

The importance of having a regular confessor can not be underestimated. Most of us find it uncomfortable to think upon our faults, failures, and sins, because we like to "feel good" about ourselves. We puff up our image around others, brag about our accomplishments, and feign humility. We try to keep a good public image with our friends and coworkers, while refusing to examine, closely, those behaviors in need of change. 

Having a regular confessor is the very best way to orchestrate conversion of heart, for if we meet regularly with a priest who knows us, we have an ally who can help us see those sins we'd like to ignore. A regular confessor can help us work through the sins that have become habitual, and help us attain true conversion of heart. He can direct us into a deeper prayer life, one that is based in repentance, and, by God's grace, bring about transformation of heart. 

Living a life of repentance allows us to have a relationship with Christ which enables conversion of heart, for only in the remembrance of God, can conversion of heart can take place. "Very few men can accurately recognize all their own faults; indeed, only those can do this whose intellect is never torn away from the remembrance of God (St. Diadochos of Photiki)".

Love in Christ,

Abbot Tryphon

Photo: Father Kyrillos Ibrahim of Saint Marina Coptic Orthodox Church in Irvine, CA., visited the monastery on Friday.

Saturday September 14, 2013 / September 1, 2013

12^th Week after Pentecost. Tone two.

Church New Year. 
Venerable Symeon Stylites (the Elder) (459) and his mother St. Martha (428).
Virgin-martyrs Tatiana and Natalia (1937).
Martyr Aeithalas of Persia (380).
Holy Forty Virgin-martyrs: Laurencia the deaconess, Celsina, Theoclia, Theoctista, Dorothy, Eutychia, Thecla, Aristaineta, Philadelphia, Mary, Veronica, Euthymia, Lamprotatia, Euphymia, Theodora, Theodota, Teteia, Aquilina, Theodulia, Aplodora, Lampadia, Procopia, Paula, Junilla, Ampliana, Percissa, Polynicia, Maura, Gregoria, Cyria, Bassa, Callinica, Barbara, Cyriacia, Agathonica, Justa, Irene, Matrona, Timothea, Tatiana, and Anna, and Martyr Ammon the deacon, their teacher, at Heraclea in Thrace (321-3).
Martyrs Callista and her brothers Evodus and Hermogenes, at Nicomedia (309).
Righteous Joshua the Son of Nun (1400 B.C.).
Synaxis of the Most Holy Theotokos in Miasena Monastery, in memory of the finding of Her Icon (864).
"Chernigov-Gethsemane" (1869), Alexandria, August (1914) and named "All-Blessed" at Kazan Icons of the Most Holy Theotokos.
Venerable Meletius the Younger of Thebes (1095-1124).
New Martyr Angelis of Constantinople (1680) (Greek).
Venerable Nicholas of Courtaliatis in Crete, monk (1670) (Greek).
Venerable Symeon of Lesbos (Greek).
St. Evanthia (Greek).
St. Verena of Zurzach (350) (Switzerland).
St. Aegidius of Camargue (590) (Gaul).
St. Haido of Stanos (1820-21).
Commemoration of the Great Fire at Constantinople about 470 A.D.

You can read the life of the saint in red, by clicking on the name.

THANKS to all of you who have been able to contribute towards the support of the monastery. These difficult times of economic hardship have impacted the monastery, and those of you who have been able to donate, have been our lifeline. May God bless you for your generosity, and kindness.

With love in Christ,  
Abbot Tryphon

Donations can be made directly to the monastery through PayPal, or you may send donations to:

All-Merciful Saviour Monastery
PO Box 2420 
Vashon Island, WA 98070-2420 USA 

The Scripture Readings for the Day

1 Timothy 2:1-7

Pray for All Men

2 Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, ² for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. ³ For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, ⁴ who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. ⁵ For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, ⁶ who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time, ⁷ for which I was appointed a preacher and an apostle—I am speaking the truth in Christ and not lying—a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.

Luke 4:16-22

Jesus Rejected at Nazareth

¹⁶ So He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read. ¹⁷ And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written:

¹⁸ “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me,
Because He has anointed Me
To preach the gospel to the poor;
He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted,
To proclaim liberty to the captives
And recovery of sight to the blind,
To set at liberty those who are oppressed;
¹⁹ To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.”

²⁰ Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him. ²¹ And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” ²² So all bore witness to Him, and marveled at the gracious words which proceeded out of His mouth. And they said, “Is this not Joseph’s son?”