THE HOLY PROPHET DANIEL (DEC. 17TH)
The Traditional Icon of St. Daniel the Prophet, Showing His Head Covered with God’s Word in the Form of a Large Phylacteries or Tefillin Edited by Bp. Joseph ( Ancient Church of the West ) On December 17, the Western Orthodox Church commemorates the Holy Prophet Daniel, one of the Four Great Prophets of the Old Testament alongside Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel. According to the Byzantine Kalendar, it is also the commemoration of his three friends, Azariah, Hananiah and Mishael. St. Daniel’s life and witness are set in the era of the Babylonian Captivity, when the people of Judah were exiled under King Nebuchadnezzar, and his prophetic ministry continued through the reigns of the mighty kings Darius I and Cyrus the Great. His story is one of steadfast faith, unshaken courage, and divine deliverance, offering a foreshadowing of Christ’s victory over sin and death. As a youth of noble lineage, Daniel was taken captive to Babylon, where he and his companions - better known as Sh...
