Saturday, 29 August 2026

Beheading of St John the Baptist

Saturday of the 13th week after Pentecost

139 days after Pascha · Tone 3 · Red cross circle (great feast typikon symbol) · Fast (Strict Fast (Wine and Oil))

Saints commemorated

★ Beheading of the Holy Glorious Prophet, Forerunner and Baptist John

The Beheading of Saint John the Baptist is one of the great feasts of the Lord and his Forerunner, kept by the whole Orthodox Church as a day of strict fasting on account of the grief at the violent death of the Forerunner. The evangelists Matthew and Mark relate how Herod Antipas, tetrarch of Galilee, had imprisoned John for rebuking him for taking to himself Herodias, the wife of his living brother Philip. At a banquet held for the chief men of Galilee on the tetrarch's birthday, the daughter of Herodias danced and so pleased Herod that he swore by oath to grant her whatever she would ask. Prompted by her mother, the girl asked for the head of John the Baptist on a charger; for the sake of his oath and his guests Herod sent the executioner, who cut off the head of the Forerunner in the prison and gave it to the maiden, who carried it to her mother. The disciples of John came and took up his body and laid it in a tomb. Tradition holds that Herodias trampled upon the venerable head and buried it secretly to keep the prophet from rising again. The Forerunner thus completed his course as the Friend of the Bridegroom, going down before Christ even into Hades to announce the glad tidings of his coming. The Orthodox observance of the day is marked by abstinence from food cut by the knife, from food on flat plates, and from anything red or round, in pious sorrow for the unjust death of the Baptist.

Holy New Martyr Anastasius of Bulgaria

Saint Anastasius was a young Bulgarian shepherd from the village of Radolovo near Strumitsa, who as a youth went to seek work in Thessalonica. There he was falsely accused by his Turkish master of having promised to embrace Islam, and dragged before the cadi. Refusing to deny Christ, the eighteen year old confessor was savagely tortured and then condemned to death, and was hanged on 29 August 1794 in Thessalonica before a great crowd of Greeks and Turks. His holy body was rescued by the Christians and afterwards translated to the church of Saint Anastasia in the city, where he is venerated as one of the new martyrs of the Turkish yoke.

Venerable Theodora of Thessalonica

Saint Theodora was born about 812 on the island of Aegina, the daughter of a priest. After the early death of her husband she went with her infant daughter to Thessalonica and there received the monastic tonsure in the Convent of Saint Stephen, taking the name Theodora and entrusting her child to the monastic life under the abbess. She lived as a nun for fifty five years in great humility, obedience and prayer, performing the lowliest tasks and bearing the trials of the community without complaint. After her repose on 29 August 892 her tomb became a source of healing and her relics gave forth fragrant myrrh, and she was glorified as a wonderworker; her life, written shortly after her death by Gregory the Cleric, is one of the treasures of Byzantine hagiography.

Daily readings

Epistle

weekly cycle

1 Corinthians — 1 Corinthians 2.6-9

⁶Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought: ⁷But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory: ⁸Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. ⁹But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.

Gospel

weekly cycle

Matthew — Matthew 22.15-22

¹⁵Then went the Pharisees, and took counsel how they might entangle him in his talk. ¹⁶And they sent out unto him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, Master, we know that thou art true, and teachest the way of God in truth, neither carest thou for any man: for thou regardest not the person of men. ¹⁷Tell us therefore, What thinkest thou? Is it lawful to give tribute unto Caesar, or not? ¹⁸But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, Why tempt ye me, ye hypocrites? ¹⁹Shew me the tribute money. And they brought unto him a penny. ²⁰And he saith unto them, Whose is this image and superscription? ²¹They say unto him, Cæsar’s. Then saith he unto them, Render therefore unto Cæsar the things which are Cæsar’s; and unto God the things that are God’s. ²²When they had heard these words, they marvelled, and left him, and went their way.

Vespers

OT — Composite 8 - Isaiah 40, 41, 45, 48, 54

Thus says the Lord: Comfort, comfort my people, says God. Priests, speak to the heart of Jerusalem. Comfort her, because her humiliation has been completed; for her has sin has been abolished, because she has received from the Lord’s hand double for her sins. A voice of one crying in the wilderness: Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight the paths of our God. Every valley will be filled and every mountain and hill made low; what is crooked will become straight, and the rough ways will be made smooth; and all flesh shall see the salvation of God. Go up onto a high mountain, you who bring good tidings to Sion; lift up your voice with strength, you who bring good tidings to Jerusalem. Lift it up, do not be afraid. I the Lord God, I, the God of Israel, will hearken and will not forsake them; but I will open rivers from the mountains and springs in the middle of plains. I will turn the wilderness into water meadows and the thirsty earth with water courses. Let the heavens rejoice from on high and let the clouds rain justice. Let the earth sprout and blossom with mercy and justice. Announce a voice of gladness to the end of the earth and let this be heard: Say that the Lord has delivered his servant Jacob. And if they thirst through deserts, he will bring water for them from a rock. Rejoice you barren who have never given birth, break out and shout, you who have never known birth pangs, for the children of the deserted are more than those of her who has a husband.

Vespers

OT — Composite 9 - Malachi 3, 4

Thus says the Lord Almighty: See, I am sending my Angel, my messenger, before your face, who will prepare your way before you. And the Lord whom you seek will come to his temple. And who will endure the day of his entrance? And who will withstand at his appearing? Because he will enter like fire in a smelting furnace and like the lye of launderers. And he will come to you in judgement; and he will be a swift witness against the wicked and against adulteresses and against those swear falsely in his name and those who do not fear him, says the Lord Almighty. Because I am the Lord your God, and I have not changed and you, children of Jacob, have perverted the laws and not kept them. Therefore turn back to me and I will turn back to you, says the Lord Almighty. And all the nations will call you blessed and you will know that I am the Lord who discern between just and lawless on the day on which I make a peculiar possession of those who love me. Know then and remember the law of Moses my servant, as I gave him commandment on Horeb, to all Israel ordinances and judgements. And see, I will send you Elias the Thesbite, before the great and manifest day of the Lord comes; he will turn again the heart of father to son and of a man to his neighbour, lest when I come I smite the earth grievously, says the Lord Almighty, God the Holy One of Israel.

Vespers

OT — Composite 3 - Wisdom of Solomon 4, 5

A just man if he comes to his end will be at rest. A just man who dies will condemn the ungodly who are alive; for they will see the end of a just man and will not understand what they counselled concerning him. For the Lord will break the ungodly, render them voiceless and cast them headlong, and he will shake them from the foundations and they will be utterly worsted in sorrow, and their memory shall perish. They shall come with fear at the accounting of their sins, and their iniquities will convict them to their face. Then the just will stand with much boldness in the face of those who afflicted him and made his toils of no account. When they see this they will be troubled with great fear and will be amazed at the wonder of his salvation. For they will say as they repent and with anguish they will groan and say: Is this he whom we fools once made a laughing stock and a byword of reproach? We reckoned his life folly and his end dishonour. How has he been numbered among the children of God and his lot with the Saints? Therefore we have erred from the way of truth and the light of righteousness has not shone on us and the sun has not dawned on us. We have been filled with paths of lawlessness and destruction and journeyed through trackless paths, but have not known the way of the Lord.

Matins Gospel

Matthew — Matthew 14.1-13

¹At that time Herod the tetrarch heard of the fame of Jesus, ²And said unto his servants, This is John the Baptist; he is risen from the dead; and therefore mighty works do shew forth themselves in him.

³For Herod had laid hold on John, and bound him, and put him in prison for Herodias’ sake, his brother Philip’s wife. ⁴For John said unto him, It is not lawful for thee to have her. ⁵And when he would have put him to death, he feared the multitude, because they counted him as a prophet. ⁶But when Herod’s birthday was kept, the daughter of Herodias danced before them, and pleased Herod. ⁷Whereupon he promised with an oath to give her whatsoever she would ask. ⁸And she, being before instructed of her mother, said, Give me here John Baptist’s head in a charger. ⁹And the king was sorry: nevertheless for the oath’s sake, and them which sat with him at meat, he commanded it to be given her. ¹⁰And he sent, and beheaded John in the prison. ¹¹And his head was brought in a charger, and given to the damsel: and she brought it to her mother. ¹²And his disciples came, and took up the body, and buried it, and went and told Jesus.

¹³When Jesus heard of it, he departed thence by ship into a desert place apart: and when the people had heard thereof, they followed him on foot out of the cities.

Epistle

— Forerunner

Acts — Acts 13.25-33

²⁵And as John fulfilled his course, he said, Whom think ye that I am? I am not he. But, behold, there cometh one after me, whose shoes of his feet I am not worthy to loose. ²⁶Men and brethren, children of the stock of Abraham, and whosoever among you feareth God, to you is the word of this salvation sent. ²⁷For they that dwell at Jerusalem, and their rulers, because they knew him not, nor yet the voices of the prophets which are read every sabbath day, they have fulfilled them in condemning him. ²⁸And though they found no cause of death in him, yet desired they Pilate that he should be slain. ²⁹And when they had fulfilled all that was written of him, they took him down from the tree, and laid him in a sepulchre. ³⁰But God raised him from the dead: ³¹And he was seen many days of them which came up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are his witnesses unto the people. ³²And we declare unto you glad tidings, how that the promise which was made unto the fathers, ³³God hath fulfilled the same unto us their children, in that he hath raised up Jesus again; as it is also written in the second psalm, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee.

Gospel

— Forerunner

Mark — Mark 6.14-30

¹⁴And king Herod heard of him; (for his name was spread abroad:) and he said, That John the Baptist was risen from the dead, and therefore mighty works do shew forth themselves in him. ¹⁵Others said, That it is Elias. And others said, That it is a prophet, or as one of the prophets. ¹⁶But when Herod heard thereof, he said, It is John, whom I beheaded: he is risen from the dead. ¹⁷For Herod himself had sent forth and laid hold upon John, and bound him in prison for Herodias’ sake, his brother Philip’s wife: for he had married her. ¹⁸For John had said unto Herod, It is not lawful for thee to have thy brother’s wife. ¹⁹Therefore Herodias had a quarrel against him, and would have killed him; but she could not: ²⁰For Herod feared John, knowing that he was a just man and an holy, and observed him; and when he heard him, he did many things, and heard him gladly. ²¹And when a convenient day was come, that Herod on his birthday made a supper to his lords, high captains, and chief estates of Galilee; ²²And when the daughter of the said Herodias came in, and danced, and pleased Herod and them that sat with him, the king said unto the damsel, Ask of me whatsoever thou wilt, and I will give it thee. ²³And he sware unto her, Whatsoever thou shalt ask of me, I will give it thee, unto the half of my kingdom. ²⁴And she went forth, and said unto her mother, What shall I ask? And she said, The head of John the Baptist. ²⁵And she came in straightway with haste unto the king, and asked, saying, I will that thou give me by and by in a charger the head of John the Baptist. ²⁶And the king was exceeding sorry; yet for his oath’s sake, and for their sakes which sat with him, he would not reject her. ²⁷And immediately the king sent an executioner, and commanded his head to be brought: and he went and beheaded him in the prison, ²⁸And brought his head in a charger, and gave it to the damsel: and the damsel gave it to her mother. ²⁹And when his disciples heard of it, they came and took up his corpse, and laid it in a tomb. ³⁰And the apostles gathered themselves together unto Jesus, and told him all things, both what they had done, and what they had taught.