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THE
THIRTEENTH
MONTH IN THE NAME
OF THE FATHER AND THE SON AND THE HOLY SPIRIT, On this day died Saint Titus the apostle, unto whom Paul the apostle wrote one of his Epistles. The birthplace of this saint was the city of Wartes, and he was the son of the sister of the governor of the city, and his kinsfolk were Greeks. And from his childhood he studied the learning of the Greeks, and he was exceedingly wise in his understanding, and sincere in his disposition, and his acts were good, and he loved the poor and needy. And one night he saw [a vision] and it seemed as if one said unto him, “Fight, O Titus, for the salvation of thy soul, for this world is unprofitable unto thee”; and when he awoke from his dream he was frightened and did not know what to do. Now the story of our Lord Jesus Christ had been preached abroad and it was heard of in the city of, and the people thereof talked among themselves about His doctrine and about His miracles. And when the governor of the city, whose name was ‘Akrates, heard of this miracle he marveled exceedingly, and he wished to know with certainty if the story which he had heard about the Lord and His miracles were true. And he sought out a wise and understanding man whom he could send to the city of Jerusalem to verify the story of our Lord, and to put His miracles to the test, and to find out whether He was a being from the infernal regions, or whether He was a magician, or whether He was truly God; and he chose Titus to send, for he found no one better than he, and he sent him and commanded him to search into these matters with very great care and attention. And when Titus came to the land of Judah, and saw the miracles of our Lord Jesus Christ, and His marvelous deeds, and heard the Life-giving words of our Lord, he distinguished between the words and miracles of our Lord, and the words and deeds of the Greeks; and he found a great difference between them, and he knew that the faith of the Greeks was as nothing. Then he believed on our Lord Jesus Christ and followed Him. And he sent to the governor, his mother’s brother, and informed him of what he had seen and heard of the signs and wonders of our Lord Jesus Christ. And when our Lord chose His Twelve Disciples, He chose this Saint Titus to be of their number. And after the Ascension of our Lord the grace of the Holy Spirit Paraclete descended upon him, as upon the Apostles, in the upper chamber of Zion; and he went with the Apostles into the preaching. And when our Lord chose Paul the apostle, this Saint Titus followed him, and went with him into many cities. And after Paul the apostle became a martyr in the city of Rome, this saint returned to his native city of ‘Ekertes, and built a church therein; and he appointed priests and deacons over the cities which were round about. And having finished his apostolic fight he departed to God, Whom he loved. Salutation to Titus.
Glory
be to God Who is glorified in His Saints.
Amen. |
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