Thursday 15th January 2026
Saint Paul of Thebes
Today we commemorate:
St. John Kalyvites (‘the Hut-dweller’) in Constantinople, monk (450). Monk-Martyr Pansophius of Alexandria (c.251). St. Maurus, disciple of St. Benedict (584). St. Gabriel, founder of Lesnovo Monastery, Serbia-Bulgaria (11th C)
British Isles and Ireland:
St. Ita of Killeedy, nun (570). St. Teath of Wales, daughter of King Brychan (6th C). St. Lleudadd, abbot of Bardsey (6th C). St. Sawl, father of St. Asaph (6th C). St. Ceolwulf, King of Northumbria, monk (764). Hieromartyr Blaithmaic, abbot of Iona (823).
James 4:7-5:9; Mark 5:1-20
For the Commemoration: Galatians 5:22-6:2; Luke 12:32-40
Readings in bold type are those appointed by the Typikon for use at the Liturgy
James 4:7-5:9
Brothers and sisters, submit to God. Stand up to the devil and he will flee from you. Come close to God and he will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you who are in two minds. Be miserable and grieve and wail; let your laughter be turned to lamentation and your gladness to gloom. Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord and he will exalt you. Do not slander one another, brothers and sisters. Those who slander their brothers and sisters and condemn them, slander the law and condemn the law; and if you condemn the law, you are not keeping the law but judging it. There is but one Lawgiver and Judge who is able to save and to destroy. Who are you that you should judge another? Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we shall go to such a city and spend a year there and do business and make a profit.’ You know nothing about tomorrow, for what is your life? It is a haze that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead of saying, ‘If the Lord wills, and if we live, we shall do this or that,’ you now boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. And so for anyone who knows how to do good, not doing it is a sin. Come now, you who are rich, weep aloud; howl over the miseries that are coming upon you. Your riches have rotted and your clothes have become moth-eaten. Your gold and silver have corroded; their dross will be evidence against you, and it will eat your flesh like fire. You have heaped up treasure in the last days. Listen! The wages of the labourers who harvested your fields, fraudulently kept back by you, are crying out; and the loud appeals of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of Hosts. On the earth you lived in luxury and debauchery. You fattened your hearts as if for the day of slaughter. You condemned, you murdered the Righteous One who did not resist you. Be patient then, brothers and sisters, until the coming of the Lord. The farmer, you see, waits for the precious fruit of the earth; he is patient with it until it receives the early season and the late season rain. You too be patient. Strengthen your hearts because the coming of the Lord is near. Do not grumble against one another, brothers and sisters, so that you are not condemned. Be aware that the Judge stands at the doors.
Mark 5:1-20
At that time Jesus arrived at the far side of the sea in the land of the Gergesenes, and as soon as he left the boat a man with an unclean spirit came out of the tombs towards him. He was living among the tombs and no one was able to tie him up, not even with chains. He had often been shackled hand and foot, but the manacles had been wrenched apart by him and the fetters smashed in pieces, and no one was strong enough to restrain him. All the time, night and day, in the tombs and in the mountains, he was howling and cutting himself with stones. He saw Jesus in the distance, ran and bowed before him, and cried out in a mighty voice, saying, ‘What am I to you, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I appeal to you by God, do not torment me.’ For he was saying to him, ‘Unclean spirit, come out of the man.’ And he asked him, ‘What is your name?’ He replied, ‘Legion is my name, for we are many.’ And he begged him earnestly not to expel them from the region. A large herd of pigs was there, feeding on the hillside, and all the demons begged him, saying, ‘Send us to the pigs so that we may go into them.’ At once Jesus gave them leave, and the unclean spirits departed and went into the pigs, and the herd rushed over the cliff into the sea. There were about two thousand of them, and they were drowned in the sea. The herdsmen then fled, and they carried the news to town and country. The people came out to see what had happened, and coming up to Jesus they saw the demoniac who had had the legion sitting there, clothed and sane, and they were afraid. Those who had witnessed it explained to them what had happened to the demoniac, and about the pigs. They then began to urge him to leave their country. As he was getting into the boat, the demoniac pleaded with him, that he should be with him. He would not allow it, but told him, ‘Go to your house, to your people, and tell them the great things that the Lord has done for you and that he showed you mercy.’ And so he went away and began to proclaim in the Ten Towns the great things that Jesus had done for him, and everyone was amazed.
Galatians 5:22-6:2
Brothers and sisters, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, honesty, goodness, faith, humility and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit. Let us not become arrogant, irritating one another, envious of one another. Brothers and sisters, if someone has been caught unawares by some lapse, you who are of the Spirit should restore such a person in a spirit of humility, having regard for yourself so that you are not tempted as well. Carry one another’s burdens and so fulfil the law of Christ.
Luke 12:32-40
The Lord said, ‘Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father is pleased to give you the Kingdom. Sell your possessions and give alms. Make for yourselves purses that do not wear out, an inexhaustible treasure in the heavens that no thief goes near, no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Let your belts be fastened and the lamps lit, and be like people waiting for their master when he returns from the wedding, so that immediately he arrives and knocks they may open up for him. Blessed are those servants whom the master finds keeping watch when he comes. Truly I tell you that he will fasten his belt, give them a place at the table, and come forward to serve them. If he should arrive in the second watch, or it may be the third watch, and find it so, blessed are those servants. But be aware of this, that if the householder had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and not allowed his house to be broken into. You too are to be prepared, for the Son of Man is coming at a time you do not expect.’