GREAT VESPERS
Kathisma Reading
“Blessed is the man…” is sung.
At Psalm 140
In Tone 1
- Lead my soul forth from prison* that I may give thanks to Your name.
Accept our evening prayer, O holy Lord,
and grant us forgiveness of sins,
for You alone manifested the Resurrection to the world.
- The just shall gather around me* when You have been good to me.
O you people, walk around Zion and encompass her.
And there give glory to Him Who is risen from the dead.
For He is our God
Who delivers us from our sins.
- Out of the depths I cry to You, O Lord;* O Lord, hear my voice!
Come you people, praise and worship Christ.
Glorify His Resurrection from the dead;
for He is our God Who delivered the world
from the deceit of the enemy.
- Let Yours ears be attentive* to the voice of my prayer.
Rejoice, O you heavens;
sound the trumpets, you foundations of the earth;
cry out with joy, O you mountains.
For behold, Emmanuel has nailed our sins to the Cross;
the Giver of Life has put Death to death;
and the Lover of Mankind
has raised up Adam.
- If You mark iniquities, Lord, who can stand?* But with You forgiveness is that You may be revered.
Let us praise the Lord
Who for our sake was willingly crucified in the flesh.
He suffered, was buried, and rose from the dead.
Therefore, let us sing to Him:
O Christ, keep Your Church in the orthodox faith
and bring peace to our lives;
for You are gracious and love mankind.
- I have waited for You as You have commanded; my soul patiently relies on Your promise,* for it has trusted in the Lord.
O Christ our God, as we stand unworthily before Your life-bearing grave,
we offer a hymn of praise to Your ineffable tenderness of heart.
For You, O Sinless One,
in Your loving-kindness have accepted the Cross and death
in order to grant
resurrection to the world.
In Tone 6
From the morning watch until night* let Israel trust in the Lord.
The pollution of past sins
prevented you from entering the church
to see the elevation of the Holy Cross;
but then my conscience and the awareness of your actions
turned you, O wise in God,
to a better way of life.
And, having looked upon the icon of the blessed Maid of God,
You have condemned all your previous transgressions,
O Mother worthy of all praise,
and so have gone with boldness to venerate the precious Cross.
For with the Lord there is mercy, and with Him there is plentiful redemption;* and He shall redeem Israel from all its iniquities.
The pollution of past sins
prevented you from entering the church
to see the elevation of the Holy Cross;
but then my conscience and the awareness of your actions
turned you, O wise in God,
to a better way of life.
And, having looked upon the icon of the blessed Maid of God,
You have condemned all your previous transgressions,
O Mother worthy of all praise,
and so have gone with boldness to venerate the precious Cross.
Praise the Lord, all the nations;* proclaim His glory, all you people.
Having worshipped at the holy places with great joy,
you have received saving grace for the journey of virtue,
and with all haste you have set out upon the good path you have chosen.
Crossing the stream of the Jordan,
with eagerness you have gone to live
in the dwelling place of the Baptist.
you have tamed the savagery of the passions
through your ascetic way of life,
and boldly you have broken the rebelliousness of the flesh,
O Mother ever-glorious.
Strong is the love of the Lord for us;* eternally will His truth endure.
Having gone to dwell in the wilderness,
you had blotted out from your soul the images of your sensual passions,
and marked upon it the God-given imprint of holiness.
You attained such glory, blessed Mother,
as to walk upon the surface of the water,
and in your prayers to God you were raised up from the earth.
And now, all-glorious Mary,
standing before Christ with boldness,
entreat Him for our souls.
In Tone 4, Glory…
The power of Your Cross, O Christ,
has worked wonders,
for even the woman who was once a harlot
chose to follow the ascetic way.
Casting aside her weakness,
bravely she opposed the devil;
and having gained the prize of victory,
she intercedes for our souls.
In Tone 1, Now…
Let us sing a hymn of praise to the Virgin Mary,
glory of the whole world!
She was herself formed by human seed,
yet she became the Mother of the Master, the Gate of heaven,
the theme of the angels’ hymn and beauty of the faithful.
She was seen as being heavenly
and the Tabernacle of the Godhead.
She indeed tore down the wall of enmity between God and man,
and brought peace in its place, she opened up the kingdom of heaven.
Let us therefore cling fast to her for she is the anchor of faith,
and let us receive as our stronghold the Lord Who was born of her.
Be of good cheer, then, and have confidence, O people of God,
for He will fight our enemies for us, He is all-powerful!
Aposticha
In Tone 1
O Christ, by Your Passion we have been freed from suffering;
and by Your Resurrection we have been delivered from corruption.
O Lord, glory to You!
The Lord reigns, He is clothed in majesty. Robed is the Lord, and girt about with strength.
Let all creation rejoice, let the heavens be glad,
let the nations clap their hands with joy.
For Christ our Saviour, in His love for mankind,
has nailed our sins to the Cross;
He has put Death to death,
and by raising our fallen forefather, Adam,
He has given life to all mankind.
For He has made the world firm, which shall not be moved.
O God, You are above all understanding;
You are King and Lord of heaven and earth.
Yet of Your own free will,
You allowed Yourself to be crucified because of Your love for mankind.
When You descended below,
Hades was filled with bitterness as You confronted it;
but the souls of the just received You with great joy.
Adam arose when he saw You, his Creator, down in the depths.
What a wonder this is!
You are the life of all and have tasted death
in order to dispel the darkness of the world with Your light.
O Lord, risen from the dead, glory to You!
Holiness befits Your house, O Lord, for length of days.
The myrrh-bearing women were filled with grief
as they hastened with spices to Your tomb;
but they did not find Your most pure body.
Instead, they found an angel
who proclaimed Your unique and glorious Resurrection,
and commanded them to announce to Your Apostles:
The Lord is risen, granting great mercy to the world.
In Tone 2, Glory…
The desire of your soul and the passions of your flesh
you have cut down with the sword of abstinence;
your sinful thoughts you have choked with the silence of the ascetic life.
With the streams of your tears you have watered all the wilderness,
and caused the fruits of repentance to spring up for us:
therefore, O saint, we celebrate your memory.
Now …
We now behold a new wonder,
greater than the wonders of old.
For who has ever known a mother to bear a child without the help of man?
Who has known a mother to hold in her arms the Source of all Creation?
It was God’s own will to be born in this manner;
and you, O most pure Virgin, carried Him as an infant in your arms.
Because of this, you can approach God with the boldness of a mother.
Therefore, we venerate you, and ask you to always beseech Him
to have mercy on us and save our souls.
Troparia
In Tone 1
Though the stone was sealed by the Judeans* and soldiers guarded Your most pure body,* You arose, O Saviour, on the third day* and gave life to the world.* And so the heavenly powers cried out You, O Giver of Life:* Glory to Your Resurrection, O Christ!* Glory to Your Kingdom!* Glory to Your saving plan!** O only Lover of Mankind.
Glory… Now…
O Holy Tabernacle, when Gabriel called out to you:* Rejoice, O Virgin, full of grace,* the Lord of All became incarnate of you,* as the righteous David had foretold.* In bearing your Creator, you have shown yourself to surpass the vastness of the heavens.* We, therefore, cry out: Glory to Him Who dwelt in you!* Glory to Him Who came forth from you!* Glory to Him Who has set us free* through your life-giving birth!
DIVINE LITURGY
[Divine Liturgy Music – PDF – MP3]
Troparia and Kontakia
Troparion, Tone 1: Though the stone was sealed by the Judeans,* and soldiers guarded Your most pure body,* You arose, O Saviour, on the third day,* and gave life to the world.* And so the heavenly powers cried out to You, O Giver of Life:* Glory to Your resurrection, O Christ!* Glory to Your kingdom!* Glory to Your saving plan,* O only Lover of mankind.
Troparion, Tone 8: The divine image was faithfully preserved in you, O mother,* for taking up the Cross, you followed Christ.* By your deeds you have taught us to see beyond the flesh, which passes,* and care for the soul, a thing immortal.* And so, O venerable Mary,* your spirit rejoices with the angels.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, now and for ever and ever. Amen.
Kontakion, Tone 3: Once you were filled with every impurity,* now through repentance you have been revealed as a bride of Christ,* following the angelic life, you crushed demons with the weapon of the Cross.* Therefore, O glorious Mary, you have been shown to be a bride of the kingdom.
Prokeimenon, Tone 1
Let Your mercy, O Lord, be upon us, as we have hoped in You.
verse: Rejoice in the Lord, O you just; praise befits the righteous. (Psalm 32:22,1)
Prokeimenon, Tone 4
God is wonderful in His saints,* the God of Israel. (Psalm 67:36)
Epistle
Hebrews 9:11-14; Galatians 3:23-29
Alleluia, Tone 1
verse: God gives me vindication, and has subdued people under me.
verse: Making great the salvation of the king, and showing mercy to His anointed, to David, and to His posterity forever. (Psalm 17:48,51)
Gospel
Mark 10:32-45; Luke 7:36-50
Hymn to the Mother of God
In you, O Full of Grace, all creation rejoices: the angelic ranks and all the human race. Sanctified temple and spiritual paradise, virgins’ pride and boast, from whom God is made flesh and became a little Child; and He who is our God before all ages, He made your womb a throne, and He made it wider that all the heavens. In you, O Full of Grace, all creation rejoices. Glory be to you.
Communion Hymn
Praise the Lord from the heavens;* praise Him in the highest. (Psalm 148:1)* The just man shall be in everlasting remembrance;* of evil hearsay he shall have no fear.* Alleluia, alleluia,* alleluia. (Psalm 111:6)