The Holy Martyr Codratus and Those with Him (249-51).
Great Fast Day 19. Abstention from meat and foods that contain meat. According to liturgical prescriptions, the Divine Liturgy is not celebrated today.
Sixth Hour – Isaiah 13:2-13; Presanctified – Genesis 8:4-21; Proverbs 10:31-11:12.
Read Genesis 8:4-21
Glory to Jesus Christ! Glory forever!
Noah “also sent out from himself a dove, to see if the waters had receded from the face of the ground. But the dove found no resting place for the sole of her foot, and she returned into the ark to him . . . then the dove came to him in the evening, and behold, a freshly plucked olive leaf was in her mouth; and Noah knew that the waters had receded from the earth” (Gen. 8:8-9, 11).
The story of the flood is filled with symbolic imagery. The flood itself is a symbol of baptism – it wipes away sin and brings about new life in grace with God. The dove foreshadows the coming of the Holy Spirit, and the olive leaf in its beak foreshadows the grace that God bestows on us in the Sacraments. Additionally, the olive leaf in its beak symbolizes man’s reconciliation with God.
After the flood waters receded and Noah left the ark, the first thing he did was build an altar to God and make sacrifices upon it. God accepted his sweet-smelling sacrifices and vowed never to curse the earth or destroy every living thing again. Upon being saved from the flood, Noah’s first response to God was to offer sacrifice to Him.
Christ has saved us from sin and death by His Death and Resurrection. We, like Noah, can offer a sacrifice to God in thanksgiving for salvation. Whenever we attend the Divine Liturgy, we pray in thanksgiving for everything that God has done for us and our salvation. As Christians, it is very important to be people of gratitude, especially of gratitude to God for Who He is and all He has done for us.