From the calendar, 2026.

Friday, May 1

Prophet Jeremiah

Wine & oilWine and oil are allowed. No meat, dairy, eggs or fish.

Appointed to be read.

At the
1. EpistleActs 8:40–9:19
2. GospelJohn 6:48–54

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Epistle.

Acts 8:40–9:19

3 min read

40But Philip was found at Azotus. And passing through, he preached in all the cities till he came to Caesarea.

9:1Then Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest

2and asked letters from him to the synagogues of Damascus, so that if he found any who were of the Way, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.

3As he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around him from heaven.

4Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?'

5And he said, 'Who are You, Lord?'

6Then the Lord said, 'I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads.' So he, trembling and astonished, said, 'Lord, what do You want me to do?'

7Then the Lord said to him, 'Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.' And the men who journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice but seeing no one.

8Then Saul arose from the ground, and when his eyes were opened he saw no one. But they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus.

9And he was three days without sight, and neither ate nor drank.

10Now there was a certain disciple at Damascus named Ananias; and to him the Lord said in a vision, 'Ananias.'

11And he said, 'Here I am, Lord.' So the Lord said to him, 'Arise and go to the street called Straight, and inquire at the house of Judas for one called Saul of Tarsus, for behold, he is praying.

12And in a vision he has seen a man named Ananias coming in and putting his hand on him, so that he might receive his sight.'

13Then Ananias answered, 'Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much harm he has done to Your saints in Jerusalem.

14And here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call on Your name.'

15But the Lord said to him, 'Go, for he is a chosen vessel of Mine to bear My name before Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel.

16For I will show him how many things he must suffer for My name's sake.'

17And Ananias went his way and entered the house; and laying his hands on him he said, 'Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you came, has sent me that you may receive your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.'

18Immediately there fell from his eyes something like scales, and he received his sight at once; and he arose and was baptized.

19So when he had received food, he was strengthened. Then Saul spent some days with the disciples at Damascus.

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Gospel.

John 6:48–54

1 min read

48I am the bread of life.

49Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and are dead.

50This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that one may eat of it and not die.

51I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world.'

52The Jews therefore quarreled among themselves, saying, 'How can this Man give us His flesh to eat?'

53Then Jesus said to them, 'Most assuredly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you.

54Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.

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In remembrance.

Prophet JeremiahRead the life

He is the author of the Old Testament book that bears his name and of the Book of Lamentations; and Baruch, his scribe and disciple, composed the Old Testament book that bears his own name. Jeremiah was the son of Helkiah, of the tribe of Levi, from the city of Anathoth in the land of Benjamin. He prophesied for thirty years, from 613 to 583 BC. When the Hebrew people were taken into captivity in the reigh of Zedekiah, the Prophet remained behind and mourned the downfall of the Jerusalem: this is the origin of the book of Lamentations. The Jews who remained fled into Egypt, forcibly taking Jeremiah and his scribe Baruch with them. In Egypt, his prophecies continued to disturb his own people, who stoned him to death by in 583.

His name means “The Lord is exalted.” He is ranked second among the great Prophets, after Isaiah.

Read the full life

Ven. Paphnutius of Borovsk

Saint Tamara (Tamar), Queen of Georgia (1212)Read the life

‘Saint Tamara was the only child of King George III. Upon his death in 1184, she became Queen at the age of twenty-four. Despite her youth, she ruled the country with such wisdom and godliness — leading it to unprecedented military triumphs over the neighboring Moslem countries in defence of her kingdom, fostering arts and letters, and zealously strengthening Orthodoxy — that her reign is known as the Golden Age of Georgia. After her coronation, she convoked a local council to correct disorders in church life.

Read the full life

Synaxis of the Three New Righteous Martyrs of the Holy Mountain, Euthymius, Ignatius, and Acacius (1814-1815)Read the life

All three were monks on Mt Athos. All three had renounced Christ in their youth and embraced Islam, but had repented and pursued the Christian life with fervor. All three, at different times, returned to Constantinople and declared themselves Christians, dooming themselves to death under Islamic law. Acacius’s poor and pious mother told him, ‘As you voluntarily denied the Lord, so you must now voluntarily and courageously receive martyrdom for our sweet Jesus.’ All three were beheaded in Constantinople. The holy relics of all three are kept at the Skete of the Venerable Forerunner on the Holy Mountain, where they had been monks.

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Divine Liturgy. The Church's main service, at which Holy Communion is given. Its Epistle and Gospel are what most people mean by the day's readings.

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