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Event Information:

• Wed

  07

  Mar

  2018

  Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts for Wednesday of the Fourth Week of the Great Fast

  

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  LITURGY OF THE PRESANCTIFIED GIFTS

  At Psalm 140

  In Tone 4

  10. Lead my soul forth from prison* that I may give thanks to Your name.

  The Fast that brings integrity has now run half its course.
  These past days have proved acceptable,
  and now we see the need of the days to come.
  Our perception of their value will make them yield more abundant fruit.
  Therefore, let us beseech Christ our Benefactor
  who fasted and endured the Cross for us:
  Grant that we might share in Your divine Pascha without condemnation
  and pass our lives in peace,
  worthily glorifying You, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

  In Tone 5

  9. The just shall gather around me* when You have been good to me.

  Those who do good deeds in secret
  and receive a spiritual reward,
  do not boast in public about their deeds,
  but they carry them in their hearts;
  and He who sees the secret deeds of all
  grants us the reward of self-control.
  Let us then complete this Great Fast without putting on a gloomy face;
  but while praying in the secrecy of our souls,
  let us cry out unceasingly:
  Our Father, who art in heaven,
  lead us not into temptation, we pray,
  but deliver us from evil.

  8. Out of the depths I cry to You, O Lord;* O Lord, hear my voice!

  With your souls filled with unquenchable love, O holy martyrs,
  you endured the most terrible sufferings without ever denying Christ;
  and you laid low the impudence of the torturers.
  You kept the faith unwavering and unharmed
  and have gone to dwell in heaven.
  Therefore, having the boldness to approach the Lord,
  beg Him to grant us His great mercy.

  In Tone 1

  7. Let Yours ears be attentive* to the voice of my prayer.

  Let us all wash our souls in the water of the Fast
  and approach the precious and all-praiseworthy Cross of the Lord.
  Let us faithfully bow to it,
  drawing divine illumination from it
  and reaping the fruit of eternal salvation,
  which is peace and great mercy.

  6. If You mark iniquities, Lord, who can stand?* But with You forgiveness is that You may be revered.

  O precious Cross, the boldness of the apostles,
  You are revered by the Archangels, Powers and Principalities.
  Save from all evil those who bow before You,
  and make us worthy to pass through the course of the Fast in a holy way,
  that we may see Your salvation and holy Resurrection.

  In Tone 7

  5. I have waited for You as You have commanded; my soul patiently relies on Your promise,* for it has trusted in the Lord.

  Bowing before the Cross of the Lord on this day, let us sing:
  Rejoice, O Tree of Life;
  You are the joy of the world who destroy Hades and Death;
  Your strength puts the demons to flight.
  You are the invincible weapon and support of believers;
  preserve and sanctify those who bow before You.

  In Tone 4

  4. From the morning watch until night* let Israel trust in the Lord.

  Holy and inspired Theophilactus,
  we know you as a foundation of truth and a confirmer of the faith.
  Your understanding of the dogmas was exceptional.
  You were a composer of piety, and an abode of purity;
  a chosen vessel, and the sweet fragrance of the Spirit.
  You were a great treasury of teaching
  and a pillar of the Church of Christ.

  3. For with the Lord there is mercy, and with Him there is plentiful redemption;* and He shall redeem Israel from all its iniquities.

  Holy and inspired Theophilactus,
  we know you as a foundation of truth and a confirmer of the faith.
  Your understanding of the dogmas was exceptional.
  You were a composer of piety, and an abode of purity;
  a chosen vessel, and the sweet fragrance of the Spirit.
  You were a great treasury of teaching
  and a pillar of the Church of Christ.

  2. Praise the Lord, all the nations;* proclaim His glory, all you people.

  You were a successor to the throne of the apostles;
  you are of one mind with the martyrs.
  And you emulate ascetics zealously.
  Therefore we honour you, O praiseworthy God-bearer;
  for you are the seal of teachers and the image of God.
  You were initiated into the mysteries of Christ.
  O wise Theophilactus, you are the river of understanding
  that drowns the schemes of the lawless blasphemers.

  1. Strong is the love of the Lord for us;* eternally will His truth endure.

  You multiplied the talent of wisdom, O glorious Confessor,
  and became worthy of the joy of your Lord.
  O Theophilactus, adorned with divine rays of grace,
  you shone with the light of spiritual wisdom,
  and now stand before the Life-bringing Right Hand
  from which we also receive the light.

  In Tone 8, Glory… Now…

  Today the inaccessible Lord draws me close to Him.
  He endures His Passion to free me from my passions.
  He who gives light to the blind, receives spitting from impure lips
  and permits Himself to be scourged to save the captives.
  When His Mother, the Virgin, saw Him on the Cross, she sighed and said:
  Alas, O my beloved Child!
  You surpass every mortal in beauty; yet You are now without charm or attraction,
  having neither grace, nor form, nor life.
  Alas! O Light of my eyes,
  a sword pierces my hear, and I suffer inwardly to see You so.
  I sing and praise Your Passion,
  I venerate Your infinite mercy,
  O long-suffering Lord, glory to You.

  Prokeimenon I, Tone 4
  Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,* who alone does wondrous things.
  verse: O God, give Your judgment to the king, and to the king’s son Your justice.

  Reading I
  Genesis 9:18-10:1
  The sons of Noah who went out of the ark were Shem, Ham, and Japheth; and Ham was the father of Canaan. These three were the sons of Noah, and from these the whole earth was populated. Then Noah began to be a husbandman, and he planted a vineyard. So he drank of the wine and was drunk and naked in his house. Now Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brothers outside. But Shem and Japheth took a garment, laid it on both their shoulders, and walking backwards they covered their father’s nakedness. Since their faces were turned away, they did not see his nakedness. Thus when Noah became sober and knew what his younger son had done to him, he said:

  “Cursed be Canaan;
  A servant of servants shall he be to his brothers.”

  He also said,
  “Blessed be the Lord God of Shem,
  And Canaan shall be his servant.
  May God enlarge Japheth,
  And let him dwell in the habitations of Shem.
  Let Canaan be his servant as well.”

  Now Noah lived three hundred and fifty years after the flood. So all the days of Noah were nine hundred and fifty years, and he died. Now this is the genealogy of Noah’s sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth, and sons were born to them after the flood.

  Prokeimenon II, Tone 4
  To be near God is my happiness.* I have made the Lord God my refuge.
  verse: How good God is to Israel, to those who are pure of heart.

  Reading II
  Proverbs 12:23-13:9
  Nothing unrighteous will ever be pleasing to the righteous,
  But the ungodly will be filled with evil things.
  Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord,
  But he who shows faithfulness is acceptable to Him.
  A man of understanding is a throne of perception,
  But the heart of the undiscerning will meet with curses.
  The hand of the chosen shall prevail easily,
  But the deceitful shall be for captivity.
  A fearful word troubles the heart of a righteous man,
  But a good message makes him glad.
  A righteous arbiter shall be his own friend,
  But the decisions of the ungodly are unreasonable.
  Evil things shall pursue sinners,
  And the way of the ungodly will lead them astray.
  A deceitful man will not gain his prey,
  But a pure man is a precious possession.
  In the ways of righteousness there is life,
  But the ways of remembering wrongs are unto death.
  An astute son is obedient to his father,
  But a disobedient son is for destruction.
  A good man eats from the fruits of righteousness,
  But the souls of the lawless will destroy themselves before their time.
  He who guards his mouth keeps his own soul,
  But he who is hasty with his lips will dismay himself.
  Every idle man has desire,
  But the hands of the courageous are diligent.
  A righteous man hates an unrighteous word,
  But an ungodly man is ashamed and will not have confidence.
  Righteousness guards the simple,
  But sin makes the ungodly worthless.
  There are those with nothing who make themselves rich,
  And there are those, though very rich, who humble themselves.
  The ransom of a man’s soul is his own wealth,
  But the poor man does not withstand a threat.
  Light is with the righteous continually,
  But the light of the ungodly is extinguished.