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| Old Style
February 14
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Friday |
New Style
February 27
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1st Week of Great Lent.
Tone 4.
Великий пост. |
 Monastic rule: xerophagy (bread, uncooked fruits and vegetables).
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St. Auxentius, monk, of Bithynia (ca. 470). 
St. Cyril, Equal-to-the-Apostles, teacher of the Slavs (869).
St. Maron, hermit of Cyrrhus (ca. 433). St. Abraham, bishop of Charres in Mesopotamia (5th c.). St. Isaac, recluse of the Kiev Caves (ca. 1090). Translation of the relics of Martyrs Prince Michael and his counselor Theodore, of Chernigov (1578).
New Hieromartyr Onesimus (Pylaev), bishop of Tula (1937).
St. Peter, patriarch of Alexandria (380). Hieromartyr Philemon, bishop of Gaza. New Martyr Nicholas of Corinth (1554). New Monk-martyr Damian of Philotheou and Kissavos, at Larissa (1568). New Martyr George the Tailor, of Mytilene, at Constantinople (1693). St. Hilarion the Georgian (the New) of Imereti and Mt. Athos (1864). St. Raphael, bishop of Brooklyn (1915).
Repose of Archimandrite Barsanuphius of Valaam and Morocco (1952), Righteous Barbara (Arkhangelskaya) the Recluse, of Ufa (1966), and Elder Ephraim of Katounakia (1998).
Thoughts for Each Day of the Year
According to the Daily Church Readings from the Word of God
By St. Theophan the Recluse
Friday.
The Lord scorneth the scorners: but He giveth grace unto the lowly (Prov. 3:34). Particularly remember these words when you go to confession. Nothing like pride binds your tongue to keep it from saying, “I am a sinner.” Humble yourself before the Lord, do not spare yourself, do not fear the face of man. Reveal your shame for it to be washed; show your wounds for them to be healed; tell of all your unrighteousness that you be justified. The more merciless you will be with yourself, the more compassion the Lord will show towards you, and you will leave with a sweet feeling of forgiveness. This is that grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, given from Him to those who humble themselves through sincere confession of their sins.[1]
[1] In Russia people traditionally went to confession on the evening of this first Friday of Great Lent, in preparation for Holy Communion the next day. See the footnote for Tuesday of this week.
Friday.
The souls of the righteous are in the hand of God (Wisdom 3:1). But in whose hand are the souls of sinners? The Saviour said to the apostles that satan seeks to sift them like wheat, that is, he seeks to knock them from the right path, to take them into his hands and do with them what he wants. That is why everyone turning away from the Lord is in the hands of satan, and he sifts them and casts them wherever he desires. Due to this the heads of sinners are constantly spinning, because the enemy, dragging them here and there, does not give them a chance to come to their senses. As soon as the enemy notices that someone is starting to have second thoughts, he starts to shake him even more strongly, so that his head again becomes clouded and his thoughts become scattered.