My beloved brothers and sisters in Christ Our Only True Lord, God, and Savior,
CHRIST IS IN OUR MIDST! HE WAS, IS, AND EVER SHALL BE.
Apolytikion (Dismissal) Hymn. Second Tone
O APOSTLE, beloved of Christ our God, hasten to deliver a
defenseless people. He that allowed thee to recline on His
breast, receiveth thee bowing in intercession. Implore Him,
O Theologian, to dispel the persistent cloud of the heathen,
and ask for us His peace and great mercy.
Kontakion Hymn. Second Tone
WHO can tell thy mighty works, O virgin Saint? For thou pourest
forth miracles, and art a source of healings, and thou dost intercede
for our souls, as the Theologian and the friend of Christ.
This Holy Apostle was from Bethsaida of Galilee, and was the son of Zebedee and Salome, and the brother of James the elder. First a fisherman by trade, he became an Apostle and the beloved Disciple of Christ. Only he of all the Disciples followed Him even to the Cross, and was entrusted with the care of our Savior’s Mother, as it were another son to her caring for her and serving her, looking after her right up to her falling-asleep. After this, he and his disciple Prochorus, preached throughout Asia Minor, especially in Ephesus. By his inspired preaching and miracles, he brought many pagans to Christianity and undermined the foundations of paganism. The angry pagans When bound him and sent him to Rome to be condemned by the Roman Emperor. Second Persecution against the Christians began in the year 96 A.D., during the reign of the pagan Roman emperor Domitian, he was taken in bonds to Rome, and there was cast into a vat filled to the brim with boiling oil. Coming forth therefrom unharmed, he was exiled to the Greek island of Patmos, where he wrote the Book of Apocalypse (Revelation). Returning again to Ephesus after the death of the tyrant, he wrote his Gospel (after the other Evangelists had already written theirs) and his Three Catholic Epistles (Letters). In all, he lived some 95 years and fell asleep in the Lord during the reign of Trajan in the year 100 A.D. He was called THEOLOGIAN because he loftily expounded in his Gospel the theology of the inexpressible and Eternal Birth of the Son and Logos/Word of God the Father. It is for this cause that an EAGLE–A SYMBOL OF THE GIFT OF THE HOLY SPIRIT, as Saint Irenaeus says–IS DEPICTED IN HIS ICON, FOR THIS WAS ONE OF THE FOUR SYMBOLIC LIVING CREATURES THAT THE PROPHET EZEKIEL SAW [Ezekiel 1:10]. Saint Mark was given the symbol of the King, Lion; Luke the lowly Servant, Ox; Matthew the Angel, and John the Eagle. When his disciples later opened his grave, they found that his body was not there. Every year, on May 8th, a fine, fragrant dust endowed with healing power rose from his grave. After a long and fruitful life of labour upon earth, this beloved disciple of Christ and pillar of the Church entered into the joy of the Lord, to peace and Eternal rejoicing.
The EAGLE is Saint John’s symbol, an inspirational motif for the SOARING MAJESTY of his Gospel. In the very first lines of his Gospel, he soars up to the contemplation of the eternal generation of the Logos/Word. The same inimitable spirit of charity reigns through all his writings.
As he bears the title "Theologian," he loftily expounded in his Gospel the theology of the inexpressible and eternal birth of the Son and Logos/Word of the Father. For this reason, an eagle- a symbol of the gift of the Holy Spirit, as Saint Irenaeus explains, is depicted in his icon, for this was one of the Four symbolic creatures that the Prophet Ezekiel saw.
"John, then the (last of the Evangelists}" says, Saint Clement of Alexandria, "seeing that the bodily features had been brought to light in the Gospel, and being urged by the disciples and divinely inspired by the Holy Spirit, composed a spiritual Gospel."
He wrote THREE EPISTLES. His First is addressed TO ALL CHRISTIANS (Catholic), especially his converts, whom he urges to purity and holiness of life and cautions against crafty seducers. Another one was directed to a local church while the third, to Gaius, a covetous entertainer of Christians.
Saint LUKE was an Antiochian by birth, a physician by trade, an artist by avocation, and a disciple and companion of Saint Paul by conversion. He was unmarried and included among the Seventy Disciples. Together with Saint Cleopas, he saw the Risen Lord on the road to Emmaus (Luke 24). He ended his life in martyrdom, according to Saint Gregory the Theologian.
His emblem is the CALF, the Third symbolic beast mentioned by Ezekiel (1:10), which is A SYMBOL OF CHRIST’S SACRIFICIAL AND PRIESTLY OFFICE, as Saint Irenaeus says. His Gospel begins with the priestly service of Zachariah. He was the only non-Jew among the Evangelists. He wrote his Gospel in Greek and then wrote the Acts of the Apostles. He dedicated both works to Theophilos, who was the governor of Achaia, Greece.
His eyewitness Gospel emphasizes the universality of Christ’s Message, that SALVATION BELONGS TO ALL NATIONS. Illustrating this point, hiisis the only Gospel to tell the story of the "Good Samaritan." Likewise, he is the only one to record Christ’s Ascension into heaven as he reveals His Divine Nature FULLY GOD, YET FULLY MAN. His Gospel is also the only one to give a full account of the Annunciation to the Blessed Ever-Virgin, her visit to Elizabeth and her journeys to Jerusalem.
According to Holy Tradition, he depicted (painted) the first icon of the Most Holy Virgin and Theotokos, carrying the Pre-Eternal Infant, Our Lord Jesus Christ, in her arms. After that Saint Luke painted the images of the Holy Apostles, Ss. Peter and Paul. He is therefore regarded as the founder of Christian iconography or hagiography.
In his icon, he is depicted with an OX next to him, A SYMBOL OF CHRIST’S PRIESTLY OFFICE. Saint Luke’s expression displays wonderful attention to the voice of the Holy Spirit in his heart.
Saint MARK was a Gentile from Cyrene of Pentapolis, which is near Libya. It was in his house in the Upper Room where the Passover was held and where the disciples used to assemble together: Having come to the Faith of Christ, he followed Saint Peter to Rome. He later traveled to Egypt, preaching the Gospel and establishing the first church there in Alexandria. The idolaters, unable to bear his preaching, seized him, bound him with ropes, and dragged him through the streets until he gave up his soul.
His Gospel was written ten years after the Ascension of Christ. It is likened to A LION because his Gospel begins with the phrase: "A voice of one crying in the wilderness" [Mark 1:3]. Mark is preeminently the Gospel of service with the Lord Jesus Christ set forth as the Servant obedient unto death. The Servant character of the Lord Jesus is seen throughout the book and is clearly stated in Mark 10:45. A particular emphasis is given to the miracles which Christ performed. Christ is seen primarily as a Worker rather than a Teacher.
Saint Mark wrote primarily for the Gentiles who were not familiar with the Old Testament prophecies. Therefore, he uses only a few Old Testament references. His Gospel is known for its brevity and its vividness. In the icon, he is depicted with A LION next to him, one of the living creatures mentioned by Prophet Ezekiel, and a symbol OF CHRIST’S ROYAL OFFICE, as Saint Irenaeus of Lyons writes. Saint Mark’s expression displays wonderful attention to the voice of the Holy Spirit in his heart.
Saint MATTHEW the Evangelist has been represented by the figure of A MAN { Ez, 1:10; Revelation 4:7) because his Gospel begins with the Genealogy of Christ. His icon is to be found in one of the four circles connected to the arches of the dome of the Church. Saint Matthews Gospel vividly asserts that Jesus Christ is the real Messiah, foretold by the Prophets, and that there is no other (Matthew 11:3). The Evangelist present the Savior’s life, teaching 26-27).s and deeds using three divisions which represent the three aspects of the Messiah’s service as PROPHET and LAW-GIVER (ch. 5-7), as Lord over the world both visible and invisible, and finally as High-Priest offered as Sacrifice for the sins OF ALL MANKIND, [ch. 26-27).
The Eastern Orthodox Christian Ethos 