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Event Information:
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Sun04Nov2018
Twenty-fourth Sunday after Pentecost, Tone 7; our Venerable Father Joannicius the Great (846); the Holy Martyrs Nicander, Bishop of Myra and the Priest Hermas
GREAT VESPERS
Kathisma Reading
“Blessed is the man...” is sung.At Psalm 140
In Tone 7
- Lead my soul forth from prison* that I may give thanks to Your name.
Come, let us rejoice in the Lord,
Who destroyed the power of death
and enlightened the human race;
and let us cry out with the angels:
Glory to You, our Creator and Saviour!- The just shall gather around me* when You have been good to me.
O Saviour, for our sake You suffered crucifixion and burial;
and, as God, You destroyed death by Your death.
Therefore, we adore Your resurrection on the third day
and we sing: Glory to You, O Lord!- Out of the depths I cry to You, O Lord;* O Lord, hear my voice!
On seeing the resurrection of the Creator,
the Apostles were amazed,
and they sang an angelic hymn of praise:
This is the glory of the Church,
this is the richness of the Kingdom!
O Lord, Who suffered for our sake, glory to You!- Let Yours ears be attentive* to the voice of my prayer.
O Christ, although You were taken captive by Your enemies,
I still acknowledge You as my God,
and am not ashamed of You;
I will not hide the fact that You were nailed to the Cross.
Your death is my life, almighty Lord,
and I extol Your resurrection.
O Lover of mankind, glory to You!- If You mark iniquities, Lord, who can stand?* But with You forgiveness is that You may be revered.
In fulfilment of the prophecy of David,
Christ revealed His majesty to His disciples in Sion.
He showed Himself to be worthy of equal praise
with His Father and the Holy Spirit;
for He existed from all eternity as God the Word, without a body;
then, out of love for mankind, He became incarnate,
and for our sake He was put to death as a man;
finally, by His own power He arose from the dead.- 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, of Your own free will, You descended into Hades;
and, as God the Lord, You destroyed death.
On the third day You arose from the dead and raised up Adam
from the bonds of Hades and corruption.
In joy he cried out and said:
Glory to Your resurrection, O Lover of mankind!- From the morning watch until night* let Israel trust in the Lord.
O Lord, You were placed in the tomb as one sleeping,
and on the third day You arose in might and power.
You raised up Adam from the corruption of death,
for You alone are almighty.In Tone 4
- For with the Lord there is mercy, and with Him there is plentiful redemption;* and He shall redeem Israel from all its iniquities.
You were illumined by divine light
when you lifted up your eyes with purity of mind,
preferring the things to come eternally
to those which are perishing.
Father, you received fire in your heart!
You panted like a hart for divine love!
Unmindful of flesh and blood,
you prepared yourself for ascetic struggles,
making the passions of your body subject to your soul!- Praise the Lord, all the nations;* proclaim His glory, all you people.
You made your dwelling in the heights
in order to ascend the mountains of God
without being brought low by the wakeful needs of this lowly body,
father Joannicius,
for uniting yourself to the good One by standing whole nights and days in prayer,
you were illumined,
receiving the gift of prophecy,
beholding things afar off as if they were near,
foretelling to the faithful the things to come.
Therefore we glorify you as a divine teacher!- Strong is the love of the Lord for us;* eternally will His truth endure.
You mightily blunted the assaults and arrows of the demons
with the entreaties of your prayers!
By the power of God, you triumphed over them, all glorious one!
Therefore, since you were refreshed by the humility of your heart,
the good One gave you miracles as honours.
Your precious relics pour forth fragrant myrrh,
for you have revealed yourself to be the sweet fragrance of Christ,
father Joannicius!In Tone 6, Glory…
The sound of your teachings has gone out into all the earth, venerable Father!
Therefore you have found the reward of your labours in the heavens.
You destroyed the hosts of demons
and reached the ranks of angels whose life you blamelessly followed!
Since you have boldness before Christ our God,
entreat peace for our souls!In Tone 7, Now...
Immaculate Mother of God,
you became a mother outside the laws of nature,
remaining a virgin in a way that exceeds all description
and human understanding.
The wonder of your birth-giving could not be told in human language,
for your conception of Christ blinded intelligence,
and your birth-giving exceeded understanding:
for whenever God so desires, the laws of nature are broken.
Wherefore, we all firmly believe that you are the Mother of God,
and we eagerly beseech you to intercede for the salvation of our souls.Aposticha
In Tone 7
O Saviour of the world, You arose from the grave,
and together with Your own flesh You raised up mankind.
O Lord, glory to You!The Lord reigns, He is clothed in majesty. Robed is the Lord, and girt about with strength.
Come, let us worship Christ Who arose from the dead
and enlightened all creation.
For by His resurrection on the third day,
He set us free from the oppression of Hades,
granting us life and His great mercy.For He has made the world firm, which shall not be moved.
O Christ, Lover of mankind,
You descended into Hades and destroyed death.
Then You arose on the third day;
and, together with Yourself You lifted up all of us
who glorify Your mighty resurrection.Holiness befits Your house, O Lord, for length of days.
O Lord, what a fearful sight it was to see You lying in the tomb as if asleep.
Yet on the third day You arose in great power,
and at the same time You raised up Adam who joyfully cried out:
Glory to Your resurrection, O Lover of mankind!In Tone 8, Glory…
We honour you, Joannicius our father,
the instructor of a multitude of monks!
We have indeed learned to walk rightly in your footsteps!
You are blessed, for having laboured for Christ,
you denounced the power of the enemy!
Conversor with the angels,
companion of the venerable and righteous ones!
Together with them, entreat the Lord that He may grant mercy to our souls!Now...
O Virgin, You have never known wedlock,
Yet You conceived God in the flesh
in a manner which words can never describe.
You thus became the Mother of God on high.
O Immaculate Lady, receive the supplication of your servants
and grant us the cleansing of our sins.
Accept now our prayers and beseech God to save all of us.Troparia
In Tone 7
By Your cross You destroyed death;* You opened Paradise to the thief;* You changed the lamentation of the myrrh-bearers to joy,* and charged the apostles to proclaim* that You are risen, O Christ our God,* offering great mercy to the world.In Tone 8, Glory…
By a flood of tears you made the desert fertile,* and your longing for God brought forth fruits in abundance.* By the radiance of miracles you illumined the whole universe!* Our holy father Joannicius, pray to Christ our God to save our souls!Now...
O gracious Lord, for the sake of mankind You were born of a virgin;* through Your death on the cross You conquered death;* and through Your resurrection You revealed yourself as God.* O merciful Lord, do not disdain those whom You have created with Your own hands,* but show forth Your love for mankind.* Accept the intercession which the Mother, who bore You, makes in our behalf.* O Saviour, save Your despairing people!
DIVINE LITURGY
Troparia and Kontakia
Troparion, Tone 7: By Your cross You destroyed death;* You opened Paradise to the thief;* You changed the lamentation of the myrrh-bearers to joy,* and charged the apostles to proclaim* that You are risen, O Christ our God,* offering great mercy to the world.Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
Kontakion, Tone 7: No longer shall the dominion of death be able to hold humanity,* for Christ went down shattering and destroying it s powers.* Hades is bound.* The prophets exult with one voice.* The Saviour has come for those with faith, saying:* “Come forth, O faithful, to the resurrection!”
Now and for ever and ever. Amen.
Theotokion, Tone 7: O all-praised treasury of our resurrection, we hope in you,* bring us up from the pit and depth of sin,* for you have saved those subject to sin* by giving birth to our Salvation,* O Virgin before childbirth, and Virgin in childbirth,* and still a Virgin after childbirth.
Prokeimenon, Tone 7
The Lord will give strength to His people;* the Lord will bless His people with peace.
verse: Bring to the Lord, O you sons of God; bring to the Lord young rams. (Psalm 28:11,1)Epistle
Ephesians 2:14-22Alleluia, Tone 7
verse: It is good to give praise to the Lord; and to sing to Your name, O Most High.
verse: To announce Your mercy in the morning, and Your truth every night. (Psalm 91:2,3)Gospel
Luke 8:41-56Communion Hymn
Praise the Lord from the heavens;* praise Him in the highest.* Alleluia, alleluia,* alleluia. (Psalm 148:1)