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Daily Scripture Readings and Lives of the Saints for Wednesday, May 21, 2025

Fast Day (Wine and Oil Allowed)

Feasts and Saints celebrated today:

Constantine and Helen, Equal-to-the Apostles

Pachomios the Righteous New Martyr

Readings for today:

John 10:9-16

Acts of the Apostles 26:1, 12-20

John 10:1-9

Constantine and Helen, Equal-to-the Apostles

Reading from the Synaxarion:

This great and renowned sovereign of the Christians was the son of Constantius Chlorus (the ruler of the westernmost parts of the Roman empire), and of the blessed Helen. He was born in 272, in (according to some authorities) Naissus of Dardania, a city on the Hellespont. In 306, when his father died, he was proclaimed successor to his throne. In 312, on learning that Maxentius and Maximinus had joined forces against him, he marched into Italy, where, while at the head of his troops, he saw in the sky after midday, beneath the sun, a radiant pillar in the form of a cross with the words: "By this shalt thou conquer." The following night, our Lord Jesus Christ appeared to him in a dream and declared to him the power of the Cross and its significance. When he arose in the morning, he immediately ordered that a labarum be made (which is a banner or standard of victory over the enemy) in the form of a cross, and he inscribed on it the Name of Jesus Christ. On the 28th Of October, he at tacked and mightily conquered Maxentius, who drowned in the Tiber River while fleeing. The following day, Constantine entered Rome in triumph and was proclaimed Emperor of the West by the Senate, while Licinius, his brother-in-law, ruled in the East. But out of malice, Licinius later persecuted the Christians. Constantine fought him once and again, and utterly destroyed him in 324, and in this manner he became monarch over the West and the East. Under him and because of him all the persecutions against the Church ceased. Christianity triumphed and idolatry was overthrown. In 325 he gathered the First Ecumenical Council in Nicaea, which he himself personally addressed. In 324, in the ancient city of Byzantium, he laid the foundations of the new capital of his realm, and solemnly inaugurated it on May 11, 330, naming it after himself, Constantinople. Since the throne of the imperial rule was transferred thither from Rome, it was named New Rome, the inhabitants of its domain were ca lled Romans, and it was considered the continuation of the Roman Empire. Falling ill near Nicomedia, he requested to receive divine Baptism, according to Eusebius (The Life of Constantine. Book IV, 61-62), and also according to Socrates and Sozomen; and when he had been deemed worthy of the Holy Mysteries, he reposed in 337, on May 21 or 22, the day of Pentecost, having lived sixty-five years, of which he ruled for thirty-one years. His remains were transferred to Constantinople and were deposed in the Church of the Holy Apostles, which had been built by him (see Homily XXVI on Second Corinthians by Saint John Chrysostom).

As for his holy mother Helen, after her son had made the Faith of Christ triumphant throughout the Roman Empire, she undertook a journey to Jerusalem and found the Holy Cross on which our Lord was crucified (see Sept. 13 and 14). After this, Saint Helen, in her zeal to glorify Christ, erected churches in Jerusalem at the sites of the Crucifixion and Resurrection, in Bethlehem at the cave where our Saviour was born, another on the Mount of Olives whence He ascended into Heaven, and many others throughout the Holy Land, Cyprus, and elsewhere. She was proclaimed Augusta, her image was stamped upon golden coins, and two cities were named Helenopolis after her in Bithynia and in Palestine. Having been thus glorified for her piety, she departed to the Lord being about eighty years of age, according to some in the year 330, according to others, in 336.

Apolytikion of Constantine and Helen in the Plagal of the Fourth Tone

He beheld the image of Your Cross in the Heavens and, as Paul, he too did not receive the call from men. Your Apostle among Kings placed the care of the Royal City in Your hands. Through the intercessions of the Theotokos, O only Loving Lord, keep it ever in peace.

Kontakion of Constantine and Helen in the Third Tone

Today, Constantine with his mother Helen present the Cross, the most precious wood. It shames unbelievers. It is a weapon of faithful kings against their adversaries. A great sign has come forth for us which is awesome in battle.

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Reading (c) Holy Transfiguration Monastery - Brookline, MA

Apolytikion of Constantine and Helen (c) Narthex Press

Kontakion of Constantine and Helen (c) Narthex Press

Prayer Before Reading Scripture

Shine within our hearts, loving Master, the pure light of Your divine knowledge and open the eyes of our minds that we may comprehend the message of Your Gospel. Instill in us also reverence for Your blessed commandments, so that having conquered all sinful desires, we may pursue a spiritual life, thinking and doing all those things that are pleasing to You. For You, Christ our God, are the light of our souls and bodies, and to You we give glory together with Your Father who is without beginning and Your all holy, good, and life giving Spirit, now and forever and to the ages of ages. Amen.

Orthros Gospel Reading

The Reading is from John 10:9-16

The Lord said, "I am the door; if any one enters by me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. He who is a hireling and not a shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. He flees because he is a hireling and cares nothing for the sheep. I am the good shepherd; I know my own and my own know me, as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. And I have other sheep, that are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will heed my voice. So there shall be one flock, one shepherd."

Epistle Reading

The Reading is from Acts of the Apostles 26:1, 12-20

IN THOSE DAYS, King Agrippa said to Paul, "You have permission to speak for yourself." Then Paul stretched out his hand and made his defense: "I journeyed to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests. At midday, O king, I saw on the way a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, shining round me and those who journeyed with me. And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language, 'Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? It hurts you to kick against the goads.' And I said, 'Who are you, Lord?' And the Lord said, 'I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. But rise and stand upon your feet; for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to appoint you to serve and bear witness to the things in which you have seen me and to those in which I will appear to you, delivering you from the people and from the Gentiles-to whom I send you to open their eyes, that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, tha t they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.' "Wherefore, O King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision, but declared first to those at Damascus, then at Jerusalem and throughout all the country of Judea, and also to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God and perform deeds worthy of their repentance."

Gospel Reading

The Reading is from the Gospel According to John 10:1-9

The Lord said to the Jews who had come to him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber; but he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the gatekeeper opens; the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers." This figure Jesus used with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them. So Jesus again said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and robbers; but the sheep did not heed them. I am the door; if any one enters by me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture."

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posttexasstressdisorder · 2 months ago

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WhatMatters

Your guide to California policy and politics

By Lynn La

May 5, 2025

Presented by California Community Foundation, Greenpeace, California Strawberry Commission and Upway

Good morning, California.

CA lawmakers move slowly on ‘urgent’ affordability plans

A customer walks by a display of fresh eggs at a grocery store in the San Anselmo area of Marin County on Sept. 25, 2024. Photo by Justin Sullivan, Getty Images

Five months after Democratic legislative leaders urged their colleagues to focus on bills that would make California more affordable, lawmakers don’t have much to show for it.

As CalMatters’ Yue Stella Yu explains, last week Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas of Salinas unveiled four new select committees — which are essentially working groups tasked with addressing specific policies — to tackle what Rivas said are the “biggest cost drivers for Californians.” The committees will take aim at:

Lowering the cost of child care;

Making food more affordable;

Making housing more affordable;

Reviewing the effectiveness of California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard, which some argue leads to higher gas prices.

The committees, however, won’t meet until June. In the meantime, Rivas has backed a handful of measures that would speed up housing construction. Senate Democrats also unveiled three bills last week to lower energy costs, increase housing supplies and expand job training.

But some analysts question whether the state can legislate its way out of its most intractable issues — especially while President Donald Trump’s tariffs are increasing prices and have the potential to upend various California industries.

Garry South, longtime Democratic strategist: “(The bills) all sound good on the surface, but I don’t think there’s any predictability that if any of them pass, or all pass, that all of a sudden we are going to be out of the housing crisis in California.”

Read more here.

University of California looks to Texas for new leader

James Milliken has been selected as the new president of the University of California. Photo via the University of California Office of the President

From CalMatters higher education reporter Mikhail Zinshteyn:

California and Texas are contrasts in the country’s culture and political wars, but are also home to two of the nation’s most prominent public university systems. So it’s no wonder that a vacancy in California is filled by a Texan. On Friday the Board of Regents of the University of California voted to hire the chancellor of the University of Texas system, James B. Milliken, as the next president of the UC. His base salary will be $1,475,000. The current president, Michael V. Drake, said last year he’d step down July, 2025. Milliken takes the job in August. Milliken brings higher-education governance experience in politically liberal and conservative states, having led the large and economically diverse City University of New York, which includes numerous community colleges. That diversity of contexts will likely benefit his tenure as UC’s leader: He must navigate the pressures of a largely progressive California Legislature that seeks access to more low-income students at the UC while also facing the Trump administration’s deep scrutiny of the nation’s universities’ practices and missions, including the UC’s. Milliken sought to address those pressures last Friday, without mentioning the political climate by name.

Milliken, to regents after his appointment: “Talent is not determined by zip code, national origin, race, gender or wealth. But too often, over history, opportunity has been. Education, and particularly public higher education, is the most effective bridge we have found to connect talent and opportunity.”

And lastly: CalMatters story prompts proposed lawsuit

A Covered California Enrollment Center in Chula Vista on April 29, 2024. Photo by Adriana Heldiz, CalMatters

Last week an investigation by CalMatters and The Markup revealed how digital trackers on Covered California’s website sent visitors’ health information to LinkedIn. Following the story’s publication, a proposed class-action lawsuit has been filed alleging that the tracking violates state and federal law, and a California congressman has called for a federal probe. Find out more from CalMatters’ Colin Lecher and Tomas Apodaca.

California Voices

Gov. Gavin Newsom’s proposed Hollywood tax credits are necessary, but California must go further to support its film industry and workers, writes Ed Lammi, a former executive vice president of production for Sony Pictures Television.

Other things worth your time:

Some stories may require a subscription to read.

CA job market flops as it lands near bottom among US states // The Mercury News

Speed up CA’s ballot count? It’ll come at a cost, Secretary of State warns // The Sacramento Bee

Visa uncertainty hits CA community colleges’ international students // EdSource

How CA’s farmers can recharge the aquifers they’ve drained // Grist

As Trump pares back ocean protections, CA weighs expanding them // AP News

CA high-speed rail project plans to downsize massive Fresno station // The Fresno Bee

It was just a rumor on Facebook. Then a militia showed up in Oakdale // The New York Times

When FEMA failed to test soil after LA fires, The Times had it done. The results were alarming // Los Angeles Times

LA federal prosecutors resign over plea deal for convicted sheriff’s deputy, sources say // Los Angeles Times

How San Diego County farms are getting squeezed by funding freezes and tariffs // The San Diego Union-Tribune

See you next time!

Tips, insight or feedback? Email [email protected]. Subscribe to CalMatters newsletters here. Follow CalMatters on Facebook and Twitter.

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