1 May 2024 (MIA)

Macedonian Orthodox Church Calendar

Venerable John

At the time of the iconoclastic heresy, Emperor Leo the Armenian subjected John to torture along with his teacher Gregory and St. Joseph the Hymnographer. When Gregory departed this life, John became the abbot of the Decapolis Monastery in Constantinople. Having become abbot, he intensified his ascetic efforts for the sake of the kingdom of God. He died peacefully about the year 820 A.D. Following his death, St. Joseph buried him with honors next to the grave of St. Gregory.

Catholic Calendar

St. Joseph

Everything we know about the husband of Mary and the foster father of Jesus comes from Scripture and that has seemed too little for those who made up legends about him. We know Joseph was a compassionate, caring man. When he discovered Mary was pregnant after they had been betrothed, he knew the child was not his but was as yet unaware that she was carrying the Son of God. He planned to divorce Mary according to the law but he was concerned for her suffering and safety. He knew that women accused to adultery could be stoned to death, so he decided to divorce her quietly and not expose her to shame or cruelty. We know Joseph respected God. He followed God’s commands in handling the situation with Mary and going to Jerusalem to have Jesus circumcised and Mary purified after Jesus’ birth. We are told that he took his family to Jerusalem every year for Passover, something that could not have been easy for a working man.