We celebrate Pentecost and the coming of the Spirit, the appointed time of the promise and the fulfilment of hope. How great is the mystery? Great indeed and revered! And so we cry out to you: Creator of all, Lord, glory to you! (Twice)
With tongues of foreigners, O Christ, you renewed your Disciples, that through them they might proclaim you, the immortal Word and God, who grant our souls your great mercy.
The Holy Spirit gives all things: makes prophecies flow, perfects priests, taught the unlettered wisdom, revealed fishermen to be theologians, welds together the whole institution of the Church. Advocate, consubstantial and equal in majesty with the Father and the Son, glory to you.
Glory. Both now. Tone 8.
When you sent down
your Spirit, Lord, to the Apostles as they were sitting, then the children of
the Hebrews saw it and were beside themselves with amazement; for they were
hearing them speaking in other, strange tongues, as the Spirit gave them; for
though simple men, they had been made wise; and having caught the nations for
the faith, were preaching things divine; and we also cry out to you: You
appeared on earth and saved us; Lord, glory to you.
Aposticha. Idiomels. Tone 2.
We have seen the
true light, we have received the heavenly Spirit, we have found the true faith,
as we worship the undivided Trinity, for the same has saved us. Verse: Create a pure heart in me, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.
In the Prophets you announced to us the way of salvation, our Saviour, and in the Apostles there shone the grace of your Spirit; you are God first of all, and in the future; and to the ages you are our God.
Verse: Do not cast me from your presence; and do not take your Holy Spirit from me.
In your courts I will sing your praise, as the Saviour of the world, and bending the knee I will worship your invincible power, at evening and morning and midday, and at every moment I will bless you, O Lord.
Glory. Both now. Same Tone.
Let us sing the
praise of the consubstantial Trinity, Father and Son with the Holy Spirit; for
thus all the Prophets proclaimed, and the Apostles with the Martyrs.
Apolytikion. Tone 8.
Blessed are you,
Christ our God, who revealed the fishermen to be most wise by sending down to
them the Holy Spirit, and so through them catching the whole world in a net:
Lover of mankind, glory to you!
And Dismissal.
AT GREAT VESPERS
After the Opening Psalm and the 1st Kathisma of the Psalter, at Lord, I have cried, we insert 10 Stichera and sing 3 Idiomels in Tone 1, doubling the 1st; then 5 in Tone 2, again doubling the 1st.
Tone 1.
We celebrate
Pentecost and the coming of the Spirit, the appointed time of the promise and
the fulfilment of hope. How great is the Mystery? Great indeed and revered! And
so we cry out to you: Creator of all, Lord, glory to you! (Twice)With tongues of foreigners, O Christ, you renewed your Disciples, that through them they might proclaim you, the immortal Word and God, who grant our souls your great mercy.
The Holy Spirit gives all things: makes prophecies flow, perfects priests, taught the unlettered wisdom, revealed fishermen to be theologians, welds together the whole institution of the Church. Consubstantial and equal in majesty with the Father and the Son, our Advocate, glory to you.
Tone 2.
We have seen the
true light, we have received the heavenly Spirit, we have found the true faith,
as we worship the undivided Trinity, for the Trinity has saved us. (Twice)In the Prophets you announced to us the way of salvation, our Saviour, and in the Apostles shone the grace of your Spirit; you are God first of all, and in the future; and to the ages you are our God.
In your courts I will sing your praise as the Saviour of the world, and bending the knee I will worship your invincible power, at evening and morning and midday, and at every moment I will bless you, O Lord.
In your courts, Lord, bending the knee of soul and body we the faithful praise you, the Father without beginning, and the Son, likewise without beginning, and the co-eternal and all-holy Spirit, who enlighten and hallow our souls.
Let us sing the praise of the consubstantial Trinity, Father and Son with the Holy Spirit; for thus all the Prophets proclaimed, and the Apostles with the Martyrs.
Glory. Both now. Tone 8.
By the Emperor Leo.
Come, you peoples,
let us worship the Godhead in three persons, the Son in the Father, with the
Holy Spirit; for the Father timelessly begot the Son, co-eternal and
co-reigning, and the Holy Spirit was in the Father, glorified with the Son; one
power, one essence, one Godhead, whom we all worship as we say: Holy God, who
created all things through the Son, with the co-operation of the Holy Spirit.
Holy Strong, through whom we have come to know the Father, and through whom the
Holy Spirit came into the world. Holy Immortal, the Advocate Spirit, who
proceeds from the Father and rests in the Son. Holy Trinity, glory to you.By the Emperor Leo.
Entrance. O joyful Light, the Prokeimenon of the day and the Readings.
The Reading
is from Numbers.
[11:16-17, 24-29]
The Lord said to
Moses: Gather to me seventy men of the elders of the people, whom you know to
be elders of the people, and their scribes; and you shall bring to the Tent of
Witness, and they shall stand there with you. And I shall come down and speak
with you there, and I shall take of the Spirit which is upon you and place it
upon them, and they shall bear the burden of the people with you, and you shall
not bear them alone. And Moses gathered seventy men of the elders of the
people, and stood them around the Tent. And the Lord came down in a cloud and
spoke to Moses, and he took of the Spirit which was upon him and placed it upon
the seventy men, the elders. But as the Spirit rested upon them, they too
prophesied in the camp, and then did so no longer. And two men had been left
behind in the camp; the name of one was Eldad and the name of the second was
Modad, and the Spirit rested upon them; and they were of those who had been
listed, but they had not come to the Tent; and they prophesied in the camp. And
the youth ran and told Moses, and said to him: Eldad and Modad are prophesying
in the camp. And Jesus, son of Navi, who was Moses’ assistant, his chosen one,
said: My Lord Moses, stop them. And Moses said to him: Why, are you jealous for
me? And who would not give that all the Lord’s people were prophets, whenever
the Lord should put his Spirit upon them?[11:16-17, 24-29]
The Reading
is from the Prophecy of Joel.
[2:23-32]
Thus says the
Lord: Children of Sion rejoice, and be glad in the Lord your God, because he
has given you food for justice; and he will send the early and the latter rain
for you, as before; and the threshing floors will be full of corn, and the
presses overflowing with wine and oil. And I shall repay you for the years that
the locust has devoured, the crawling locust, the consuming locust, the chewing
locust and my great power which I sent against you. And eating you shall eat
and be filled, and praise the name of the Lord your God, who has done wondrous
things with you, and my people shall no longer be ashamed for ever. And you
shall know that I the Lord your God am in the midst of Israel, and
there is none beside me, and my people shall no longer be ashamed for ever. And
it shall be after these things that I will pour out of my Spirit upon all
flesh, and your sons and your daughters will prophesy and your elders will
dream dreams and your youths see visions. And upon my servants and my maid
servants I shall pour out of my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy; and
I shall show wonders in the heaven above and signs in the earth beneath, blood
and fire and the vapour of smoke; the sun will be transformed to darkness and
the moon to blood, before the great and manifest day of the Lord comes; and it
shall be that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.[2:23-32]
The Reading
is from the Prophecy of Ezekiel.
[36:24-28]
Thus says the
Lord: I shall take you from among the nations and gather you from all the lands
and bring you into your own land; and I shall sprinkle pure water upon you, and
you will be purified from all your impurities and from all your idols, and I
shall purify you; and I shall give you a new heart and I shall give you a new
spirit; and I shall take away the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a
heart of flesh; and I shall put my spirit in you and make you walk in my
statutes and you shall keep my judgements and do them; and you shall dwell on
the land which I gave to your fathers, and you shall be my people, and I shall
be your God.[36:24-28]
At the Liti, Idiomel Stichera. Tone 2
In the Prophets
you announced to us the way of salvation, our Saviour, and in the Apostles
shone the grace of your Spirit; you are God first of all, and in the future;
and to the ages you are our God.In your courts I will sing your praise as the Saviour of the world, and bending the knee I will worship your invincible power, at evening and morning and midday, and at every moment I will bless you, O Lord.
In your courts, Lord, bending the knee of soul and body we the faithful praise you, the Father without beginning, and the Son, likewise without beginning, and the co-eternal and all-holy Spirit, who enlighten and hallows our soul.
Glory. Both now. Tone 8.
When you sent down
your Spirit, Lord, to the Apostles as they were sitting, then the children of
the Hebrews saw it and were beside themselves with amazement; for they were
hearing them speaking in other, strange tongues, as the Spirit gave them; for
though simple men, they had been made wise; and having caught the nations for
the faith, were preaching things divine; and we also cry out to you: You
appeared on earth and saved us; Lord, glory to you.
At the Aposticha, Idiomel Stichera. Tone
8.
The nations, Lord,
not knowing the power of the all-holy Spirit which had come to the Apostles,
thought the change of tongues was drunkenness; but we, established by them,
unceasingly say: Do not take your Holy Spirit from us, we implore, O Lover of
mankind.Verse: Create a clean heart in me, O God; and renew a right Spirit within me.
The coming of the Holy Spirit, Lord, filled your Apostles and made them ready to speak in other tongues; therefore the marvel was thought by the unbelieving to be drunkenness, but by believers to be the agent of salvation; make us too worthy of its illumination, we implore, O Lover of mankind.
Verse: Do not cast me away from your presence; and do not take your Holy Spirit from me.
Heavenly King, Paraclete, Spirit of Truth, present everywhere, filling all things, Treasury of blessings and Giver of life; come and dwell in us, cleanse us from every stain, and, O Good One save our souls.
Glory. Both now. Tone 8.
Once tongues were
confused through the presumption of building the tower; but now tongues have
been made wise through the glory of the knowledge of God. There God condemned
the impious for their offence; here Christ has enlightened the fishermen with
the Spirit. Then discord was wrought for punishment; now concord is renewed for
the salvation of our souls.
Apolytikion. Tone 8.
Blessed are you,
Christ our God, who revealed the fishermen to be most wise by sending down to
them the Holy Spirit, and so through them catching the whole world in a net:
Lover of mankind, glory to you!
3 times. The same at The Lord is God.
AT MATINS
After the 1st Reading from the Psalter, Kathisma.
Tone 4. Joseph was amazed.
Believers, let us
radiantly celebrate the post-festal and final feast; for this is Pentecost,
fulfilment of the promise and the appointed time; for on this day the fire of
the Advocate came down immediately to earth, as in the form of tongues, and
enlightened the Disciples, and revealed them as initiates of heaven. The light
of the Advocate has come and enlightened the world. (Twice)Tone 4. Joseph was amazed.
After the 2nd Reading, Kathisma.
Same melody.
The well-spring of
the Spirit, coming down on those on earth and parted into fire-bearing rivers,
spiritually bedewed the Apostles and guided them to light; and the fire became
for them a cloud of dew and a flame of rain enlightening them, through whom we
have received grace through fire and water. The light of the Advocate has come
and enlightened the world. (Twice)Same melody.
SELECTION FOR THE POLYELEOS
The firmament. Alleluia.
The heavens
declare the glory of God: the firmament proclaims the work of his hands.By the Word of the Lord the heavens were established; and by the Spirit of his mouth all their power.
For he leaned out from his holy height; the Lord looked from heaven, he saw all the children of humankind.
Fire will go before him. Coals were kindled by it.
He bowed the heavens and came down.
From the brightness before him the clouds broke through.
The wings of a dove covered in silver. Its back with the lustre of gold.
From Sion the loveliness of his beauty, when the heavenly one gives orders.
Kings upon her will be as snow on Selmon.
All the ends of the earth will remember and turn back to the Lord.
And all the tribes of the nations will worship before him:
For the Kingdom is the Lord’s, and he is Master of the nations.
The law of the Lord is spotless, converting souls.
The testimony of the Lord is faithful, making infants wise.
The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart.
The commandment of the Lord is clear, enlightening the eyes.
The earth was shaken and the heavens melted before the face of the God of Sinai, before the face of the God of Israel.
You granted generous rain, O God, to your inheritance, which was weak; but you restored it.
Instead of your fathers, sons will be born to you. You will establish them as princes over all the earth.
Their sound has gone out into all the earth; and their word to the ends of the earth.
You will send forth your Spirit and they will be created, and you will renew the face of the earth.
Your good Spirit will guide me in an upright land.
Create a clean heart in me, O God; and renew a right Spirit within me.
Do not cast me from your presence, and do not take your Holy Spirit from me.
Give me the joy of your salvation, And establish me with a sovereign Spirit.
The Lord will give the word to those who preach the Gospel with great power.
The Lord will give strength to his people. The Lord will bless his people with peace.
Glory. Both now. Alleluia.
After the Polyeleos, Kathisma. Tone 8.
Taking knowledge.
After your Rising
from the tomb, O Christ, and your divine Assumption to the height of heaven,
you sent down your glory to your Disciples who had seen God, renewing a right
spirit within them, O Merciful Saviour; therefore as a tuneful lyre they
mystically made clear as with a divine plectrum your melodies and your
dispensation. (Twice)Taking knowledge.
The 1st Antiphon of the Anavathmi in Tone
4.
Prokeimenon. Tone 4.
Your good Spirit
will lead me in an upright land.Prokeimenon. Tone 4.
Verse: Lord, hear my prayer; give ear to my supplication.
Then Let everything that has breath and the 9th Dawn Gospel. We do not say We have seen the Resurrection of Christ, but at once Psalm 50 and then:
Glory. Tone 2.
Through the
prayers of the Apostles, O Merciful, blot out the multitude of my offences.
Both now.
Through the
prayers of the Mother of God, O Merciful, blot out the multitude of my
offences.
And the following Idiomel. Tone 6.
Verse: Have mercy on me, O God, in
accordance with your great mercy, and according to the multitude of your
compassion blot out my transgressions.Heavenly King, Paraclete, Spirit of Truth, present everywhere, filling all things, Treasury of blessings and Giver of life; come and dwell in us, and cleanse us of every stain, and save our souls, O Good One.
The Canons; that in Tone 7 with the Irmi to 8 and that in Tone 4 with the Irmi to 6. The Canon whose acrostic is:
We celebrate Pentecost
A Composition of Monk Kosmas.
Ode 1. Tone 7. Irmos.
He who brings wars
to nothing with his upraised arm covered Pharao and his chariots in the deep;
let us sing to him, for he has been glorified.Ode 1. Tone 7. Irmos.
Troparia
As you promised
your Disciples of old, you have sent forth the Advocate Spirit in deed, O
Christ, and shed light on the world, O Lover of mankind.That which was proclaimed of old in Law and Prophets has been fulfilled; for to-day the grace of the divine Spirit has been poured out on all believers.
Another Canon, in Iambics, whose acrostic is contained in the following elegiac couplets:
Only-begotten of God, from the heart of the Father
you sent to
Those upon earth once again other Advocate, Spirit divine,
Bringing, in tongues made of fire, of the pure, immaterial Godhead,
Sign of your nature and grace for those who are minstrels of praise.
Those upon earth once again other Advocate, Spirit divine,
Bringing, in tongues made of fire, of the pure, immaterial Godhead,
Sign of your nature and grace for those who are minstrels of praise.
A Composition of Kyr John Arklas.
Ode 1. Tone 4. Irmos.
The slow of
tongue, covered in divine darkness,Ode 1. Tone 4. Irmos.
Proclaimed the law written by God;
For shaking the dust from his mind’s eye,
He sees the One Who Is, and is initiated
Into knowledge of the Spirit, as he gives praise with songs inspired.
Troparia
The revered and
august mouth spoke:For you my friends there will be no absence.
For I, once seated on my Father’s highest throne,
Will pour out the unstinted grace of the Spirit
To shine on those who yearn.
The firm Definition, most precise Word,
Brings calm perfection to the heart;
For, his work accomplished, Christ gladdened his friends,
With a mighty wind and tongues of fire,
Apportioning the Spirit, as he had promised.
Katavasias
He who brings
wars.The slow of tongue.
Ode 3. Irmos.
You told your
Disciples, O Christ: Wait in Jerusalem,
until you are clothed with the power from on high; while I will send you
another Advocate as myself, my Spirit and the Father’s, in whom you will be
established.
Troparion.
When the power of
the divine Spirit came down, it divinely united in one harmony the voice
divided of old of those who had wickedly agreed together, as to believers it
gave understanding of knowledge of the Trinity, in which we have been
established.
Another Irmos.
Only the prayer of
the prophetess AnnaOf old, who brought a broken spirit
To the Mighty One and God of knowledge,
Broke the fetters of a childless womb
And the harsh insult of one with many children.
Troparia
Inapprehensible is
the blaze of the Godhead;For it revealed the unlettered to be orators,
Bridling the mouths of sophists in abundance with a word,
And raising from deep night
Unnumbered peoples by the Spirit’s lightning flash.
From the unbegotten light proceeded
The imperishable Splendour, illuminating with almighty operation,
Whose fiery sound now reveals the consubstantial beacon
Of the Father’s authority through the Son
In Sion to the nations.
Katavasias
You told your
Disciples.Only the prayer.
Kathisma. Tone 8. Taking knowledge.
The lovers of the
Saviour were filled with joy, and they, who before had been cowardly, took
courage, for the Holy Spirit came down to-day upon the house of the Disciples,
and each spoke in a different tongue to the peoples; for tongues, seen as fire,
were parted, yet did not burn them up but rather bedewed them. (Twice)
Ode 4. Irmos
The prophet, O
Christ, perceiving your coming in the last times, cried out: I have heard of
your power, Lord, for you have come to save all your anointed.
Troparia
He who spoke in
the Prophets and was proclaimed through the Law before to the imperfect, the
true God, the Advocate, is made known to-day to the servants and witnesses of
the Word.Bearing the sign of the Godhead, the Spirit was divided among the Apostles by fire, and by strange tongues it was manifested that from the Father as divine might he comes of his own accord.
Another Irmos.
Monarch of
monarchs, Alone from the Alone,Word who came forth from the Father without cause,
As Benefactor you have unerringly sent out
Your Spirit, equal in strength, to the Apostles,
As they sing: Glory to your might, O Lord.
Troparia.
Having mixed the
divine laver of regenerationBy a word for a compounded nature,
You rain down upon me a stream from your undefiled
Pierced side, O Word of God,
Sealing me with the fervour of the Spirit.
All things bend the knee to the Advocate
To the Offspring of the Father, to the consubstantial Father;
For they know in three Persons one
Unerring, unapproachable, timeless Essence;
For light has shone, the grace of the Spirit.
Katavasias
The Prophet, O
Christ.Monarch of monarchs.
Ode 5. Irmos.
Through fear of
you, Lord, the Spirit of salvation, conceived in the womb of the Prophets, and
brought to birth on earth, creates clean hearts in the Apostles, and renews a
right Spirit in the faithful; for your commandments are light and peace.
Troparia
The strength which
has come down to-day is the good Spirit, Spirit of the Wisdom of God; Spirit
proceeding from the Father and made manifest to us the faithful through the
Son; giving freely to those in whom he dwells of the holiness in which he is
perceived by nature.
Another Irmos.
O light-formed
children of the Church,Receive the Spirit’s fire-breathing dew,
A redeeming purification of offences;
For now a law has gone out from Sion,
The torch-tongue-formed grace of the Spirit.
Troparia
As he was
well-pleased of his own authorityThe un-mastered Spirit comes down from the Father,
Making the Apostles wise with tongues,
Might of the Father, one in form, setting the seal
Upon the life-bearing word, which the Saviour spoke.
God the Word, all-sovereign, healed the minds
Of the Apostles of sin, and made ready
An immaculate dwelling for himself;
Now the light of the Spirit dwells in them,
Equal in strength and consubstantial.
Katavasias
Through fear of
you.O light-formed children.
Ode 6. Irmos
Sick on the
rolling swell of the cares of this life, thrown overboard by the sins that sail
with me, and hurled to the soul-destroying beast, as Jonas, O Christ, I cry to
you: Bring me up from this death-dealing deep.
Troparia
From your Spirit,
Lord, as you said, you have poured out richly on all flesh, and the whole
creation has been filled with your knowledge; because from the Father you came
as Son without change, and the Spirit proceeds without division.
Another Irmos.
O Christ, the
Master, you shone from the VirginAs pardon and salvation for us,
That like the prophet Jonas from the belly
Of the sea beast, you might snatch from corruption
The whole fallen race of Adam.
Troparia
Almighty, renew a
cherished, a right SpiritWithin us, to hold it eternally,
Who is ever united and proceeding from the Father,
Purging minds of hateful matter, of burning
Defilements and filth.
For the Apostles who awaited your coming
In Sion you establish with fiery wind
A longed for dignity, O Spirit,
Knowledge of the Word begotten of the Father,
Swiftly exposing the wild chatter of the nations’ babblings.
Katavasias
Sick on the
rolling swell.O Christ, the Master.
Kontakion. Tone 8.
When the Most High
came down he confused the tongues, divided the nations; but when he parted the
tongues of fire, he called all to unity, and with one voice we glorify the
all-holy Spirit.
Ikos
Give swift and
stable comfort to your servants, Jesu, in the despondency of our spirits; do
not part from our souls in troubles, do not be far from our minds in perils,
but ever anticipate us. Be near us, be near you, who are everywhere; as you are
also always with your Apostles, so unite yourself, O compassionate, with those
who long for you, that united to you we may hymn and glorify your All-holy
Spirit.Synaxarion from the Menaion, then the following:
On the same day, the eighth Sunday from Pascha, we celebrate the holy Pentecost.
Verses.
With mighty wind, in form like tongues of fire
Christ gives God’s Spirit now to the Apostles.
Spirit on this great day on fishers poured.
This feast we also took from the
Hebrew Bible; for just as they celebrate Pentecost, honouring the number seven,
and that when they had passed through fifty days from Pascha they received the
Law, so we too as we celebrate for fifty days after Pascha receive the all-holy
Spirit, who gives laws and guides into all truth and lays down what is pleasing
to God.With mighty wind, in form like tongues of fire
Christ gives God’s Spirit now to the Apostles.
Spirit on this great day on fishers poured.
Note that there are three Feasts among the Hebrews, Pascha, Pentecost and Tabernacles. They keep Pascha to commemorate the crossing of the Red Sea - for word Pascha means ‘crossing’. While this same feast showed our crossing and ascent from the darkness of sin towards Paradise.
They celebrated Pentecost in commemoration of their suffering in the wilderness, and how they were brought through many afflictions in the land of promise, for then they enjoyed fruit, corn and wine. And it showed our misery through unbelief and our entry into the Church; for then we also receive communion of the Body and Blood of the Master. Some say that this is the reason that Pentecost is celebrated by the Hebrews. Others however say that it is honour of the fifty days that Moses fasted and received the Law written by God. At the same time they commemorate the sacrifice to the calf and the other things which Moses performed, ascending and descending the Mount. Differently it was thought that Pentecost was observed by the Hebrews because of honour for the number seven, as has been said; for this number multiplied by itself makes fifty days less one. The honour of the Pentecostal fifty is not only in days but in years, from which was born the Jubilee among them; for this happens when years are multiplied seven times. Then they leave the ground unsown and give relief to animals and they allow bought slaves to leave.
The third feast is that of Tabernacles, celebrated after the harvest, that is to say five months after Pascha. It was established to commemorate the day when Moses first fixed the Tabernacle that had been revealed on Mount Sinai through a cloud and which had been constructed by the master craftsman Beseleκl. For they would make tabernacles and celebrate this feast, living in the fields and giving thanks to God, and they would bring in the fruits of their own labours. And it seem that it was for this that David entitled the Psalms For the wine vats. This was a type of our resurrection from the dead, when our earthly tabernacles are dissolved and put together again and we shall enjoy the fruits of our own labours and keep festival in eternal tabernacles.
It is to be noted that on this day, when Pentecost was completed, the Holy Spirit came to dwell upon the Disciples. But since it seemed good to the holy Fathers to divide the feasts, because of the greatness of the all-holy and life-giving Spirit, because the Spirit is one of the holy Trinity, source of life, so we too will say tomorrow how the holy Spirit came to dwell.
At the prayers of the holy Apostles, Christ our God, have mercy on us. Amen.
Ode 7. Irmos
Cast into the
furnace of fire, the holy Youths changed the fire to dew through their hymns of
praise, as thus they sang: Blessed are you, O Lord, the God of our fathers.
Troparia
As the Apostles
eloquently proclaimed the mighty works of God, the operation of the Spirit was
thought by the unbelieving to be drunkenness, that operation through which the
Trinity is known, one God of our fathers.With right belief we confess the undivided nature, God the Father without beginning, the Word and Spirit of the same authority, as we cry: Blessed are you, the God of our fathers.
Another Irmos.
Harmonious melody
of instruments decreedReverence to the lifeless idol wrought of gold.
But the Advocate’s life-bearing grace
Inspires with reverence to cry: Only Trinity,
Equal in strength, without beginning, blessed are you.
Troparia
Fools did not
recognise the voice spokenIn prophecy, called it drunkenness from wine,
When they heard the Apostles sayings in strange tongues;
We the devout, inspired, cry out to you:
Renewer of the universe, blessed are you.
The seer Joel, inspired, thundered an oracle
Spoken by the divine Word:
Those on whom I pour my Spirit
Will cry out together: Nature,
Shining with threefold splendour, blessed are you.
The third hour was made rich with grace,
That it might indicate the worship of
Three Persons in singleness of authority;
But now on the one Sovereign of days,
Son, Father, Spirit, blessed are you.
Katavasias
Cast into the
furnace.Harmonious melody.
Ode 8. Irmos.
Unconsumed by fire
the bush on Sinai spoke and made God known to the slow-tongued Moses, clumsy in
speech; and their burning zeal for God revealed the three young men unharmed by
fire and singing: All you works of the Lord, praise the Lord, and highly exalt
him to all the ages.
Troparia
When from on high
the mighty, living wind of the All-holy Spirit came to the fishermen with sound
in the form of fiery tongues, they began with eloquence to proclaim the mighty
works of God: All you works of the Lord, praise the Lord, and highly exalt him
to all the ages.As we advance to the mountain which must not be touched, unafraid of the terrifying fire, come, let us stand on mount Sion, in the city of the living God, as we now dance with the spirit-bearing Disciples: All you works of the Lord, praise the Lord, and highly exalt him to all the ages.
Another Irmos.
The triple radiant
type of Godhead’s sourceLooses the bonds and turns the flame to dew;
Youths give praise; while all created nature
Blesses the only Saviour and Creator
Of all as Benefactor.
Troparia
Coming to rest in
the form of tongues of fire,The Spirit, wrought remembrance of the saving words
Which Christ heard from the Father and told
To the Apostles. Creation, once estranged,
Now reconciled, sings of you as blessed.
As Saviour, coming of your own authority,
Light shining of itself and provider of light,
You came as a precious wind;
While to your servants you distribute
The Spirit so earnestly prayed for.
The spirit-filled mouth of Prophets sang
Of your sojourning, high Lord, in bodily form.
And your Spirit proceeding from the Father’s bosom,
Uncreated-cofashioning-cothroned,
You send to believers for the worship of the incarnation.
Katavasias.
Unconsumed by
fire.The triple-radiant type.
Ode 9. Irmos.
Conceiving without
knowing corruption, lending your flesh to the Word, the deviser of all, Mother
knowing no man, Virgin, Mother of God, vessel of the uncontainable, space for
your infinite Maker: we magnify you.
Troparia
The fire-breathing
zealot of old, riding with joy on the blazing fiery chariot, showed forth the
breath which has now shone out on the Apostles from on high, enlightened by
which they have made known the Trinity to all.A strange thing, outside the law of nature, has been heard: for when the one voice of the Disciples rang out, by the grace of the Spirit peoples, tribes and tongues were diversely instructed in the mighty works of God and were initiated into knowledge of the Trinity.
Another Irmos.
Hail, Queen,
glorious virgin mother;For every fluent, every eloquent mouth
With oratory has not the strength to sing you worthily;
But every mind is dizzy when it seeks to understand
Your giving birth; therefore with one accord we glorify you.
Troparia.
It is right to
tell of the Maiden who produced life;For she alone concealed in her round womb the Word,
Who heals the sick nature of mortals;
Who now, seated on the throne on the right hand
Of the Father, has sent the grace of the Spirit.
On as many as the grace which flows from God has breathed,
Resplendent, dazzling, transformed,
With a strange, most glorious transformation,
We have come to know the Essence of equal might, indivisible,
Wise, of triple radiance; and we give glory.
Katavasias
Conceiving without
knowing.Hail, Queen.
Exapostilarion. Tone 3.
All-holy Spirit,
proceeding from the Father, and through the Son dwelling in the unlettered
Disciples, save and sanctify all those who acknowledge you as God. (Twice)
Another. Same melody.
The Father is
light, the Word is light, and the Holy Spirit is light, who was sent to the
Apostles in fiery tongues; and through him the whole world is guided by light
to worship the holy Trinity.At Lauds we insert 6 Stichera, and we chant the following Idiomels, in Tone 4, doubling them.
Marvellous things all the nations saw to-day in the city of David, when the holy Spirit came down in tongues of fire, as Luke, God’s mouthpiece, declared. For he said: When Christ’s Disciples were assembled, there came a sound as of a mighty wind, and filled the whole house where they were sitting; and all began to speak with strange words, strange doctrines, strange teachings of the holy Trinity. (Twice)
The holy Spirit always was, and is, and will be, neither beginning nor coming to an end, but always ranked and numbered with the Father and the Son; life and giver of life; light and bestower of light; goodness itself and source of goodness; through whom the Father is known and the Son glorified and by all is known, one power, one order, one worship of the holy Trinity. (Twice)
The holy Spirit is light and life and living, spiritual spring. Spirit of wisdom, Spirit of understanding; good, right, spiritual, sovereign, cleansing faults. God and making divine; fire and proceeding from fire, speaking, working, distributing the gifts of grace; through whom all the prophets and Apostles of God with the Martyrs have been crowned. Strange tidings, strange sight: fire divided for the apportioning of gifts. (Twice)
Glory. Both now. Tone 6.
Heavenly King,
Paraclete, Spirit of Truth, present everywhere, filling all things, Treasury of
blessings and Giver of life; come and dwell in us, cleanse us from every stain,
and, O Good One save our souls.
Great Doxology and Dismissal.
AT THE LITURGY
Antiphon 1. Tone 2. [Psalm
18]
The heavens
declare the glory of God: the firmament proclaims the work of his hands.
At the prayers of the Mother of God, O Saviour save
us.
Day to day utters
the word: and night to night proclaims knowledge.
At the prayers of the Mother of God, O Saviour save
us.
There is no speech
or language: where their voices are not heard.
At the prayers of the Mother of God, O Saviour save
us.
Their sound has
gone out into all the earth: and their words to the ends of the world.
At the prayers of the Mother of God, O Saviour save
us.
Glory. Both now.
At the prayers of the Mother of God, O Saviour save us.
At the prayers of the Mother of God, O Saviour save us.
Antiphon 2. The same tone. [Psalm
19]
The Lord hear you
in the day of trouble: the name of the God of Jacob shield you.
Good Paraclete, save us who sing to you: Alleluia.
May he send you
help from the sanctuary: and support you out of Sion.
Good Paraclete, save us who sing to you: Alleluia.
May he remember
your every sacrifice: and accept your burnt offering.
Good Paraclete, save us who sing to you: Alleluia.
Glory. Both now.
Only-begotten Son and Word of God.
Only-begotten Son and Word of God.
Antiphon 3. Tone 8. [Psalm
20]
The king will
rejoice in your strength, O Lord: he will exult exceedingly in your salvation.Blessed are you, Christ our God, who revealed the fishermen to be most wise by sending down to them the Holy Spirit, and so through them catching the whole world in a net: Lover of mankind, glory to you!
You have given him his heart’s desire: you have not denied him the request of his lips.
Blessed are you, Christ our God.
For you came to meet him with blessings of goodness: and placed a crown of precious stones upon his head.
Blessed are you, Christ our God.
He asked you for life: and you gave him length of days for ever and ever.
Blessed are you, Christ our God.
Entrance
Be exalted, O
Lord, in your power: we shall sing and chant your mighty deeds.
Good Paraclete, save us who sing to you: Alleluia.
Apolytikion. Tone 8.
Blessed are you,
Christ our God, who revealed the fishermen to be most wise by sending down to
them the Holy Spirit, and so through them catching the whole world in a net:
Lover of mankind, glory to you!
[The Apolytikion is sung
three times after the Entrance.]
Glory. Both now. Kontakion.
Tone 8.
When the Most High
came down and confused the tongues, he parted the nations; when he divided out
the tongues of fire, he called all to unity, and with one voice we glorify the
All-holy Spirit.
Instead of the Trisagion:
As many of you as
have been baptised into Christ, have put on Christ. Alleluia.
Apostle
Prokeimenon. Tone 8.
Their sound has
gone out into all the earth: and their words to the ends of the world.Verse: The heavens declare the glory of God: and the firmament proclaims the work of his hands.
The Reading
is from the Acts of the Apostles.
[2:1-11]
When the day of
Pentecost had come, all the Apostles were together in one place. And suddenly a
sound came from heaven like the rush of a mighty wind, and it filled the whole
house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues as of fire,
divided and resting on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy
Spirit and began to speak in other tongues, as the Spirit gave them power of
utterance. Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem
devout Jews from every nation under heaven. And at this sound the multitude
came together, and they were bewildered, because each one heard them speaking
in their own language. And they were amazed and astonished, saying, ‘Are not
all these who are speaking Galileans? And how is it that we hear, each of us in
their own native language? Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of
Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia,
Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both
Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians, we hear them telling in our own
tongues the mighty works of God.’
Alleluia. Tone 1. [Psalm
32]
Verse 1: By the word of the Lord
the heavens were established, and all their power by the Spirit of his mouth.Verse 2: From heaven the Lord has looked upon the earth: he saw all the children of humankind.
Instead of It is truly right, Tone
7.
Conceiving without
knowing corruption, lending your flesh to the Word, the Deviser of all, Mother
knowing no man; Virgin Mother of God, Vessel of the uncontainable, Space for
your infinite Maker, we magnify you!
Communion
Your good Spirit will
lead me in an upright land. Alleluia.
Instead of We have seen the true Light:
Blessed are you,
Christ our God, who revealed the fishermen to be most wise by sending down to
them the Holy Spirit, and so through them catching the whole world in a net: Lover
of mankind, glory to you!
AT VESPERS
The
signal is given earlier because of the Service of Kneeling. After the Opening
Psalm the Litany of Peace by the Deacon, if there is one, if not, by the
Priest.Deacon: In peace, let us pray to the Lord.
People: Lord, have mercy. And so after each petition.
Deacon: For the peace from on high and for the salvation of our souls, let us pray to the Lord.
For the peace of the whole world, for the welfare of the holy Churches of God, and for the union of all, let us pray to the Lord.
For this holy house, and for those who enter it with faith, reverence and the fear of God, let us pray to the Lord.
For all devout and Orthodox Christians, let us pray to the Lord.
For our Archbishop N., for the honoured order of presbyters, for the diaconate in Christ, for all the clergy and the people, let us pray to the Lord.
[For our Sovereign Lady, Queen Elizabeth, the Royal Family, her Government, and all in authority, let us pray to the Lord.]
For this city, for every city, town and village, and for the faithful who dwell in them, let us pray to the Lord.
For favourable weather, an abundance of the fruits of the earth, and temperate seasons, let us pray to the Lord.
For those who travel by land, air or water, for the sick, the suffering, for those in captivity, and for their safety and salvation, let us pray to the Lord.
For the people here present who await the grace of the Holy Spirit, let us pray to the Lord.
For those who bend their hearts and their knees before the Lord, let us pray to the Lord.
For us to be strengthened for the fulfilment of what is well-pleasing, let us pray to the Lord.
For there to be sent down upon us the his rich mercies, let us pray to the Lord.
For the bending of our knees to be accepted in his sight like incense, let us pray to the Lord.
For those who are in need of help from him, let us pray to the Lord.
For our deliverance from all affliction, wrath, danger and constraint, let us pray to the Lord.
Help us, save us, have mercy on us, and keep us, O God, by your grace.
Commemorating our all-holy, pure, most blessed and glorious Lady, Mother of God and Ever-Virgin Mary, with all the Saints, let us entrust ourselves and one another and our whole life to Christ our God.
People: To you, O Lord.
Priest: For to you belong all glory, honour and worship, to the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and for ever, and to the ages of ages.
People: Amen.
At Lord, I have cried we insert 6 Stichera and sing the 3 following Idiomel Stichera, doubling them.
Tone 4.
Marvellous things
all the nations saw to-day in the city of David,
when the holy Spirit came down in tongues of fire, as Luke, God’s mouthpiece,
declared. For he said: When Christ’s Disciples were assembled, there came a sound
as of a mighty wind, and filled the whole house where they were sitting; and
all began to speak with strange words, strange doctrines, strange teachings of
the holy Trinity. (Twice)The holy Spirit always was, and is, and will be, neither beginning nor coming to an end, but always ranked and numbered with the Father and the Son; life and giver of life; light and bestower of light; goodness itself and source of goodness; through whom the Father is known and the Son glorified and by all is known, one power, one order, one worship of the holy Trinity. (Twice)
The holy Spirit is light and life and living, spiritual spring. Spirit of wisdom, Spirit of understanding; good, right, spiritual, sovereign, cleansing faults. God and making divine; fire and proceeding from fire, speaking, working, distributing the gifts of grace; through whom all the prophets and Apostles of God with the Martyrs have been crowned. Strange tidings, strange sight: fire divided for the apportioning of gifts. (Twice)
Glory. Both now. Tone 6.
Heavenly King,
Paraclete, Spirit of Truth, present everywhere, filling all things, Treasury of
blessings and Giver of life; come and dwell in us, and cleanse us of every
stain, and, O Good One, save our souls.Entrance, O Joyful Light, and the Great Prokeimenon.
Tone 7.
What god is great
as our God? You are the God who alone works wonders.Verse 1: You have made known your power among the peoples; with your arm you have redeemed your people.
What god is great as our God? You are the God who alone works wonders.
Verse 2: And I said, ‘Now I have begun. This change is of the right hand of the Most High’.
What god is great as our God? You are the God who alone works wonders.
Verse 3: I have remembered the works of the Lord, because I shall remember your wonders from the beginning.
What god is great as our God? You are the God who alone works wonders.
Then the Deacon says:
Again and again on
bended knees, let us pray to the Lord.People: Lord, have mercy.
And as we bend our knees to the ground and uncover, the Priest reads the prayers from the Bema, facing west, in a loud voice for all to hear.
Immaculate, undefiled, without beginning, invisible, incomprehensible, unsearchable, unchangeable, unsurpassable, immeasurable, long-suffering Lord, who alone possess immortality and dwell in unapproachable light; who made the heaven, the earth and the sea and all that was created in them; who grant to all their requests before they ask; we pray and beseech you, Master who love mankind, the Father of our Lord and God and Saviour Jesus Christ, who for our sake and for our salvation came down from heaven and was incarnate from the Holy Spirit and Mary, the Ever-Virgin and glorious Mother of God.
Teaching us first by words and later also showing us by deeds, when he underwent the saving Passion, he granted us, your humble, sinful and unworthy servants, an example to offer supplications by the bending of neck and knees for our sins and those committed in ignorance by the people. Do you, then, who are full of mercy and love for mankind, hear us on whatever day we call upon you; but especially on this day of Pentecost, on which after our Lord Jesus Christ had been taken up and been enthroned at your right hand, God and Father, he sent down on his disciples and Apostles the holy Spirit, who settled on each one of them and they were all filled with his inexhaustible grace and spoke in strange tongues of your mighty works and prophesied.
Now therefore hear us as we pray, remember us, humble and condemned, and turn back the captivity of our souls. Receive us as we fall before you and cry out, ‘We have sinned’. On you we have been cast from the womb. From our mother’s womb you are our God. But because our days have wasted away in vanity, we have been stripped of your help, we have been deprived of all defence. But confident of your compassion we cry, ‘Do not remember the sins of our youth and cleanse us of our secret faults. Do not cast us aside in the time of old age. When our strength fails, do not abandon us. Before we return to the earth, count us worthy to turn back to you and give heed to us with kindness and grace. Measure our iniquities by your acts of compassion. Set against the multitude of our offences the depth of your compassion. Look from your holy height, Lord, upon your people here present and who await from you rich mercy. Visit us in your goodness; deliver us from the oppression of the devil; make our lives safe with your holy and sacred laws. Entrust your people to a faithful Angel guardian; gather us all into your kingdom; give pardon to all who hope in you; forgive their sins and ours; purify us by the operation of your holy Spirit; destroy all the wiles of the foe against us’.
He adds this prayer:
Blessed are you
Lord, Master almighty, who made the day light with the light of the sun and the
night radiant with the rays of fire; who have granted us to pass through the
length of the day and to draw near the beginnings of the night. Hear our supplication
and that of all your people. And pardoning all of us our offences, voluntary
and involuntary, accept our evening entreaties and send down the multitude of
your rich mercy and acts of compassion on your inheritance. Wall us about with
your holy Angels; arm us with the arms of justice; fence us with the rampart of
your truth; guard us by your power; deliver us from every misfortune and from
every trick of the adversary. Grant us also that both the present day with the
coming night and all the days of our life may be perfect, holy, peaceful,
sinless, without stumbling, without dreams, at the prayers of the holy Mother
of God and of all the Saints who have been well-pleasing to you since time
began.
Deacon:
Help us, save us,
have mercy on us, raise us up and guard us, O God, by your grace.People: Lord, have mercy.
Commemorating our all-holy, pure, most blessed and glorious Lady, Mother of God and Ever-Virgin Mary, with all the Saints, let us entrust ourselves and one another and our whole life to Christ our God.
People: To you, O Lord.
For yours it is to show and mercy and to save us, O our God, and to you we give glory, to the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and for ever, and to the ages of ages.
People: Amen.
Deacon: Let us all say, with all our soul and with all our mind, let us say.
People: Lord, have mercy.
Deacon: Lord almighty, the God of our fathers, we pray you, hear and have mercy.
People: Lord, have mercy.
Deacon: Have mercy on us, O God, according to your great mercy, we pray you, hear and have mercy.
People: Lord, have mercy. Three times. And so after the remaining petitions.
Deacon: Also we pray for our Archbishop N.
Also we pray for our Sovereign Lady, Queen Elizabeth, the royal family, her government and all in authority.
Also we pray for mercy, life, peace, health, salvation, visitation, pardon and forgiveness of sins for the servants of God, all devout and Orthodox Christians, those who dwell in or visit this city and parish, the wardens and members of this church and their families; [and for the servants of God N. & N. (Here he may name those for whom he has been asked to pray), and all who have asked for our prayers, unworthy though we are.]
Also we pray for the blessed and ever-remembered founders of this holy church, and for all our brothers and sisters who have gone to their rest before us, and who lie asleep here in the true faith; and for the Orthodox everywhere[, and for the servants of God N. & N. (Here he may name those for whom he has been asked to pray), and that they may be pardoned all their offences, both voluntary and involuntary].
Also we pray for those who bring offerings, those who care for the beauty of this holy and venerable house, for those who labour in its service, for those who sing, and for the people here present, who await your great and rich mercy.
Priest For you, O God, are merciful, and love mankind, and to you we give glory, to the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and for ever, and to the ages of ages.
People: Amen.
Deacon:
Again and again,
on bended knees, let us pray to the Lord.
The Priest prays as before:
Lord
Jesus Christ our God, who, while still present with us in this life, gave your
peace to humankind, and ever grant the gift of the all-holy Spirit to the
faithful as an inheritance which cannot be taken away, you sent down this grace
today in a more manifest form to your Disciples and Apostles and gave eloquence
to their lips with tongues of fire, through which we, every race of humankind,
having received the knowledge of God in our own language by the hearing of the
ear, have been enlightened by the light of the Spirit, delivered from the
darkness of error and, by the distribution and supernatural force of the
perceptible tongues of fire, have been taught faith in you and have been
illumined to speak of you as God with the Father and the holy Spirit in one
Godhead, power and authority.Do you, then, the radiance of the Father, the unchangeable and unalterable stamp of his Essence and nature, the source of salvation and grace, open also the lips of me, a sinner, and teach me how I should and for whom I ought to pray, for you know the multitude of my sins, but your compassion will overcome their measureless number. For see, with fear I stand before you, having cast away despair of my soul into the sea of your mercy. Govern my life, by the ineffable power of your wisdom, you who govern all creation by a word, who are the fair haven of the storm-tossed, and make known to me the way in which I shall walk.
Grant to my thoughts the Spirit of your wisdom, to my folly the Spirit of understanding, with the Spirit of your fear overshadow my deeds. Renew a right Spirit within my inward parts and make firm the instability of my mind with the sovereign Spirit, so that guided each day by your good Spirit to what is profitable, I may be found worthy to do your commandments and always keep in mind your Coming, which searches out all that we have done. Do not neglect me, so that I become deceived by the corrupted pleasures of the world, but give me strength to yearn for the enjoyment of the treasures which are to come. For you said, Master, that whatever someone asks in your name they receive without restraint from your co-eternal God and Father. And so I a sinner at the coming of your holy Spirit implore your goodness, ‘The things that I have prayed for grant me for my salvation’. Yes, Lord, the loving and most generous giver of every benefaction, for it is you who give superabundantly more than we ask. It is you who are compassionate, merciful, who without sin became a partaker in our flesh and who in loving compassion bend down to those who bend the knee to you and became the atonement for our sins. Give your people, Lord, your acts of pity; hear us from your holy heaven; sanctify us by the power of your saving right hand; shelter us in the shelter of your wings; do not despise the works of your hands. Against you alone we have sinned, but it is you alone that we adore. We do not know how to worship a strange god, nor to spread out our hands, Master, to another god. Forgive us our offences and, accepting our supplications on our bended knees, stretch out to us all a helping hand. Accept the prayer of all as acceptable incense, rising up before your kingdom, above all goodness.
And he adds the following prayer:
Lord, Lord, who
have delivered us from every arrow that flies by day, deliver us also from
every deed that walks in darkness. Accept as an evening sacrifice the lifting
up of our hands. Count us worthy also to pass through the stadium of the night
untried by evils, and rescue us from every disturbance and fear which comes to
us from the Devil. Grant our souls the grace of compunction and our thoughts
concern for the examination at your dread and just judgement. Nail down our
flesh with fear of you, and deaden our members that are on earth, so that, in
the calm of sleep, we may be made radiant with joy by the contemplation of your
judgements. Remove from us every unseemly imagining and harmful desire. Raise
us up at the time for prayer strengthened in the faith and advancing in your
commandments.
Deacon:
Help us, save us,
have mercy on us, raise us up and guard us, O God, by your grace.People: Lord, have mercy.
Commemorating our all-holy, pure, most blessed and glorious Lady, Mother of God and Ever-Virgin Mary, with all the Saints, let us entrust ourselves and one another and our whole life to Christ our God.
People: To you, O Lord.
Priest:
By the good pleasure and grace of your only-begotten Son, with whom you are blessed, with your all-holy, good, and life-giving Spirit, now and for ever, and to the ages of ages.
People: Amen.
Then Grant, Lord, this evening.
After which the Deacon:
Again and again,
on bended knees, let us pray to the Lord.
The Priest prays:
Christ our God,
ever-flowing Spring, source of life and illumination, co-eternal creative power
of the Father, for the salvation of mortals, who fulfilled the whole
dispensation with surpassing goodness; tore apart the indissoluble bonds of
Death and the bars of Hell, trampling down multitudes of evil spirits; offered
yourself as an unblemished oblation for our sake, giving your most pure body,
intangible and inaccessible to every sin, as a sacrifice, and through this
dread and inexpressible offering you granting us the grace of everlasting life.
You descended into Hell, smashed the everlasting bars and showed the way up to
those who sat below. With a bait of divine wisdom you hooked the author of
evil, the dragon of the deep, bound him with cords of darkness in Tartarus and
secured him with the unquenchable fire and the exterior darkness through your
infinitely powerful strength. Glorious wisdom of the Father, who appeared to
those in distress as a mighty helper and enlightened those who sat in darkness
and the shadow of death, Lord of unending glory, beloved Son of the most high
Father, eternal light from eternal light, Sun of justice, hear us who entreat
you and give rest to the souls of your servants who have fallen asleep before
us, our fathers, mothers and brethren and the rest of our relatives according
to the flesh and all our kinsfolk of the household of the faith, whose memory
we too now keep, because in you is the might of all things and in your hand you
hold all the ends of the earth.Master almighty, God of our fathers and Lord of mercy, Creator of the mortal and immortal race and of every human nature that is brought together and again dissolved, of life and death, of our sojourn here and our translation there, you apportion times to the living and establish the moments of death. You lead down to Hell and you lead up. You bind with weakness and release with power. You dispose all things for our use and direct what is to come for our advantage. You give life by hope of resurrection to those wounded by the sting of Death. Master of all things, our God and Saviour, the hope of all the ends of the earth and of those far off upon the sea, who on this final, great and saving day of Pentecost revealed to us the mystery of the holy, consubstantial, co-eternal, undivided and uncompounded Trinity and the coming and presence of your holy and life-giving Spirit poured out in the form of tongues of fire on your holy Apostles, setting them as Evangelists of our true faith, revealing them as confessors and heralds of true theology; who have also been pleased on this most perfect and saving Feast to receive suppliant prayers of atonement for those who are immured in Hell, granting us great hopes that repose and comfort will be sent down from you to the departed from the pains which hold them, hear us, lowly and wretched, who entreat you, and give rest to the souls of your servants who have fallen asleep before us in a place of light, a place of green pasture, a place of refreshment, from which all grief, sorrow and sighing have fled away, and establish their spirits in the tents of the Just and count them worthy of peace and repose. Because the dead will not praise you, O Lord, nor do those in Hell have the freedom to offer you thanksgiving, but we the living bless you and implore you and bring before you atoning prayers and sacrifices on behalf of their souls.
And he adds this Prayer:
God, great and
eternal, holy and lover of humankind, who have counted us worthy to stand at
this hour before your unapproachable glory to hymn and praise your wonders, be
gracious to us, your unworthy servants. Grant us grace to offer you without
conceit and with a broken heart the thrice-holy hymn of glory and thanksgiving
for your great gifts, which you have made us and always do so.Remember, Lord, our weakness and do not destroy us with our iniquities, but in our humiliation show us your great mercy, so that fleeing the darkness of sin we may walk in the daylight of justice; and having put on the weapons of light we may persevere unassailed by any assault of the evil one, and that with boldness we may glorify you for all things, the only true God and lover of humankind. For indeed, Master and Maker of all things, truly great is your mystery: the temporary dissolution of your creatures and after this their restoration and repose to the ages. We give thanks to you for all things, for our entrances into this world and for our departures, which through your unfailing promise betoken for us beforehand our hopes of resurrection and unending life. Would that we may enjoy it at your future second Coming, for you are the author of our resurrection and the impartial judge who loves humankind of what we have done in life, the Master and Lord of our reward.
Through your supreme condescension you became a partaker with us in the same flesh and blood and in those passions of ours that are blameless by willingly submitting to temptation, and, possessing compassionate pity, having yourself suffered by being tempted, and, as you promised, have yourself become a helper for us who are tempted, and so you have also led us to dispassion. Accept therefore, Master, our supplications and entreaties, and give rest to all the fathers and mothers, brothers and sisters, and children of each, and to every other kinsman and relative, and to all the souls who have gone to their rest before us in the hope of resurrection to eternal life, and establish their spirits and their names in the book of life and in the bosoms of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and in the land of the living, for the kingdom of heaven, in the Paradise of pleasure, through your shining Angels introducing them into your holy mansions. With them raise our bodies also on the day which you have appointed in accordance with your holy and unfailing promises. There is therefore no death for your servants, Lord, when we go out from the body and come to you, O God, but a translation from sorrowful things to better and more desirable, and rest and joy. But if we have in anything sinned against you, be gracious to us and them, because no one is clean of defilement before you, though they last but a day, except you alone, who appeared sinless upon earth, our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we all hope to obtain mercy and forgiveness of sins. Therefore, as you are good and love humankind, remit, forgive, pardon us our faults, voluntary and involuntary, in knowledge and in ignorance, manifest and unnoticed, in deed, in thought, in word, of all our actions and movements. Give freedom and respite to those who have gone before us and bless all of us here present, granting a good and peaceful end to us and to all your people, and opening to us the compassion of your mercy and love for humankind at your dread and fearful Second Coming, and make us all worthy of your kingdom.
He also adds this.
Great and most
high God, who alone possess immortality and dwell in unapproachable light, who
made all creation with wisdom, who made a separation between the light and the
darkness and placed the sun to rule the day and the moon and the stars to rule
the night, who have counted us sinners worthy on this present day to come
before your face with thanksgiving and to offer you our evening worship. Direct
our prayer, Lord, like incense before you and accept it as a sweet fragrance.
Grant us also that the present evening and the coming night may be peaceful;
clothe us with the weapons of light; deliver us from every terror of the night
and from every deed that operates in darkness, and give us sleep, which you
have given for the repose of our weakness, free from every diabolical vision.
Yes, Master of all things, giver of blessings, may we, being moved to
compunction on our beds, call to mind your all-holy Name in the night, and made
radiant by the meditation of your commandments may we rise up with joy of soul
to give glory to your loving-kindness, offering supplications and entreaties to
your compassion for our sins and those of all your people. Visit them in your
mercy at the prayers of the holy Mother of God.
Deacon:
Help us, save us,
have mercy on us, raise us up and guard us, O God, by your grace.People: Lord, have mercy.
Commemorating our all-holy, pure, most blessed and glorious Lady, Mother of God and Ever-Virgin Mary, with all the Saints, let us entrust ourselves and one another and our whole life to Christ our God.
People: To you, O Lord.
The Priest, aloud:
For you are the repose of our souls and bodies and to you we give glory, to the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and for ever, and to the ages of ages.
People: Amen.
Deacon: Let us complete our evening prayer to the Lord.
Help us, save us, have mercy on us and keep us, O God, by your grace.
That the whole day may be perfect, holy, peaceful and sinless, let us ask of the Lord.
People: Grant this, O Lord. And so after each of the following petitions.
Deacon: An angel of peace, a faithful guide, a guardian of our souls and bodies, let us ask of the Lord.
Pardon and forgiveness of our sins and offences, let us ask of the Lord.
Things good and profitable for our souls, and peace for the world, let us ask of the Lord.
That we may live out the rest of our days in peace and repentance, let us ask of the Lord.
A Christian end to our life, painless, unashamed and peaceful, and a good defence before the dread judgement seat of Christ, let us ask.
Commemorating our all-holy, pure, most blessed and glorious Lady, Mother of God and Ever-Virgin Mary, with all the Saints, let us entrust ourselves and one another and our whole life to Christ our God.
People: To you, O Lord.
Priest:
For you, O God, are good and love mankind, and to you we give glory, to the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and for ever, and to the ages of ages.
People: Amen.
Priest: Peace to all.
People: And to your spirit.
Deacon: Let us bow our heads to the Lord.
People: To you, O Lord.
The Priest reads this quietly:
Lord, our God, who
bowed the heavens and came down for the salvation of the human race, look upon
your servants and upon your inheritance; for to you the fearful Judge who love
mankind your servants have bowed their heads and inclined their necks, not
waiting for any human help, but awaiting your mercy and looking for your
salvation. Guard them at every moment, during both the present evening and the
approaching night, from every foe, from every hostile operation of the devil,
and from vain thoughts and evil desires.(Aloud): Blessed and glorified be the might of your Kingdom, of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, now and for ever, and to the ages of ages.
People: Amen.
At the Aposticha we sing the Idiomels in
Tone 3.
Now the tongues
have clearly become a sign to all: for the Jews, from whom came Christ
according to the flesh, have become sick through unbelief and fallen from
divine grace, and we from the nations have been counted worthy of the divine
light, established by the words of the Disciples, as they declaim the glory of
God the benefactor of all things; with them, as we bow our hearts with our
knees, in faith let us worship, established by the holy Spirit, the Saviour of
our souls.Verse: Create a clean heart in me, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.
Now the Advocate Spirit has been poured out on all flesh: for beginning with the choir of the Apostles, from them he has unfolded grace by participation to the faithful, and he confirms his mighty descent distributing the tongues in the form of fire to the Disciples, to the praise and glory of God. And so with hearts spiritually illumined and established in faith in the holy Spirit, we entreat that our souls may be saved.
Verse: Do not cast me away from your presence: and take not your holy Spirit from me.
Now the Apostles of Christ are clothed with might from above; for the Advocate, being renewed in them, renews them with mystical newness of knowledge, which they proclaim in strange voices and lofty words, teaching us to reverence the eternal, simple and three-personned nature of the God of all things. And so enlightened by their doctrines, let us worship the Father with the Son and the Spirit, imploring that our souls may be saved.
Glory. Both now. Tone 8.
Come, you peoples,
let us worship the Godhead in three persons, the Son in the father, with the
Holy Spirit; for the Father timelessly begot the Son, co-eternal and
co-reigning, and the Holy Spirit was in the Father, glorified with the Son; one
power, one essence, one Godhead, whom we all worship as we say: Holy God, who
created all things through the Son, with the co-operation of the Holy Spirit.
Holy Strong, through whom we have come to know the Father, and through whom the
Holy Spirit came into the world. Holy Immortal, the Advocate Spirit, who
proceeds from the Father and rests in the Son. Holy Trinity, glory to you.Then Now, Master, the Trisagion etc., and the Apolytikion of the Feast three times.
Apolytikion. Tone 8.
Blessed are you,
Christ our God, who revealed the fishermen to be most wise by sending down to
them the Holy Spirit, and so through them catching the whole world in a net:
Lover of mankind, glory to you!
Then the Priest gives the Dismissal:
May he who emptied
himself from the bosom of the Father and took up our whole human nature and
made it divine, and who after he had gone up again to heaven and sat down at
the right hand of his God and Father sent down the divine, holy,
consubstantial, co-eternal Spirit, identical in power and identical in glory,
upon his holy Disciples and Apostles, and through him enlightened them, and
through them the whole inhabited world, Christ our true God, at the prayers of
his all-pure and all-blameless holy Mother, of the holy, glorious and all-praised
Apostles, heralds of God, and of all the Saints, have mercy on us and save us
through his own loving-kindness.Reader: Amen.
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