Upcoming Days

New Texts arriving in the evening of April 17, 2024!

Event Information:

  • Sun
    14
    Jul
    2019

    Fifth Sunday after Pentecost, Octoechos Tone 4; The Holy Apostle Aquila

    GREAT VESPERS

    Kathisma Reading
    “Blessed is the man...” is sung.

    At Psalm 140

    In Tone 4

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

    We never cease to adore Your life-giving Cross, O Christ our God,* And we glorify Your resurrection on the third day.* For You, Almighty One, have thereby restored the corrupted nature of all* and reopened the way to heaven,* since You alone are gracious and You love mankind.

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

    O Saviour, You have absolved the penalty of disobedience,* committed through the tree of Eden,* by willingly being nailed to the tree of the Cross.* As Almighty God, You descended into Hades* and broke asunder the bonds of death.* We, therefore, venerate Your resurrection from the dead,* and joyfully cry out to You:* Almighty Lord, glory to You!

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

    O Lord, You have battered down the gates of Hades,* and by Your death You have dissolved the realm of death.* You have freed mankind from corruption,* bestowing life, incorruption, and Your great mercy upon the world.

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

    Come, all you people,* let us sing the praises of our Saviour’s resurrection on the third day.* For we have, thereby, been delivered from the invincible bonds of Hades,* and we have received incorruption, together with eternal life.* Therefore, we cry out to You* after Your crucifixion, burial, and resurrection:* Save us by Your resurrection, for You love mankind.

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

    O Saviour, with the angels we sing the praises of Your resurrection on the third day.* For the very ends of the universe have, thereby, been enlightened,* and we have been saved from the deceit of the enemy.* Therefore, we cry out to You,* Almighty Saviour, Giver of Life, and Lover of Mankind:* Save us by Your resurrection.

    1. 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, You have demolished the brazen gates of Hades.* You have broken asunder the bonds of death,* and lifted up the fallen human race.* Therefore, we cry out with one accord:* O Lord, Who arose from the dead, glory to You!

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

    O Lord, Your birth from the Father is timeless and eternal;* Your incarnation from the Virgin is beyond the understanding of all,* and beyond the expression of our words.* Your descent into Hades and victory over Death* caused Satan and his angels to tremble with fear.* Your resurrection on the third day* brought to mankind incorruption and great mercy.

    In Tone 1

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

    Blessed and divinely wise Aquila,* the great Paul, that sun upon earth,* sent you forth as a bright beam of light into the world,* to illumine with the clear radiance of your words,* the people of old who were in peril* in the night of ignorance!

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

    Aquila, preacher of God,* richly illumined with the bright rays of the divine Spirit,* your pure heart destroyed the fierce Hellenic darkness* through the grace of God,* revealing itself to be truly radiant!

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

    Those who hasten to your divine temple, Aquila,* and pray there to you with faith* are delivered by the holiness of your prayers* from every sickness, sorrow and misfortune.* Through your holy intercession they approach the presence of God!

    In Tone 4, Glory… Now…

    O Mother of God, because of You David the Prophet* became an ancestor of God;* he foretold and sang a joyous hymn of praise* and cried out to Him who worked wonders in you:* “The Queen stood at your right hand.”* God revealed you as a life-giving mother,* when He chose to be incarnate of you without a father.* He renewed in man His image which the passions had corrupted.* He found the lost sheep in the mountains, carried it on His shoulders,* offered it to the Father, generously numbered it among the powers of heaven,* and saved the whole world, since He is Christ of great and rich mercy.

    Aposticha

    In Tone 4

    In being lifted upon the Cross, O Lord,* You abolished the curse which we had inherited from our ancestors.* By going down into Hades,* You freed from eternal captivity those imprisoned there,* and granted incorruption to the human race.* We, therefore, praise Your life-giving and redeeming resurrection.

    The Lord reigns, He is clothed in majesty. Robed is the Lord, and girt about with strength.

    By hanging on the Cross, O Almighty One,* You shook the whole creation to its foundations.* When You Yourself were laid in the grave,* You raised to life those who had been lying in the graves,* and You granted life and incorruption to mankind.* We, therefore, praise and glorify Your resurrection on the third day.

    For He has made the world firm, which shall not be moved.

    O Christ, the lawless people showed their ingratitude to You, their Benefactor,* by delivering You to Pilate who condemned you to be crucified.* But You willingly suffered death and burial;* and, as God, You rose by Your own power on the third day,* granting us everlasting life and great mercy.

    Holiness befits Your house, O Lord, for length of days.

    The women, shedding bitter tears, came to see You in Your tomb;* and not finding Your body, they lamented, saying:* O Saviour and King of All, how were You stolen?* What place holds Your life-bearing body?* An angel answered them, saying:* Do not weep, but go and proclaim that the Lord is risen,* filling our hearts with joy;* for He alone is most compassionate.

    Glory… Now…

    O most pure Virgin, hear the petitions of your servants.* Remove the burdens which oppress us,* and deliver us from our sorrows;* for you are the only firm and constant support on whom we rely.* O Mother of God, never permit us who call upon you* to be overwhelmed by our cares.* Hasten to fulfil the supplications of all who, in faith, cry out to you:* Rejoice, O Lady, helper of all mankind,* the joy, the refuge, and the salvation of our souls.

    Troparia

    In Tone 4
    When the disciples of the Lord learned from the angel* the glorious news of the resurrection* and cast off the ancestral condemnation,* they proudly told the apostles:* “Death has been plundered!* Christ our God is risen,*granting to the world great mercy.”

    In Tone 3, Glory…
    Holy Apostle, Aquila, intercede with the merciful God* to grant our souls forgiveness of sins.

    Now...
    We sing your praises, O Virgin;* for, as the Mother of God, you always intercede for the salvation of the human race.* It is from you that our God and Your Son took flesh. * Then, by suffering the passion on the Cross,* and out of love for mankind, He delivered us from corruption.

     

    DIVINE LITURGY

    Troparia and Kontakia
    Troparion, Tone 4: When the disciples of the Lord learned from the angel* the glorious news of the resurrection* and cast off the ancestral condemnation,* they proudly told the apostles:* “Death has been plundered!* Christ our God is risen,* granting to the world great mercy.”

    Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.

    Kontakion, Tone 4: My Saviour and Deliverer from the grave* as God raised out of bondage the children of the earth* and shattered the gates of Hades;* and as Master, He rose on the third day.

    Now and for ever and ever. Amen.

    Theotokion, Tone 4: By your birth, O immaculate one,* Joachim and Anna were freed from the reproach of childlessness,* and Adam and Eve* from the corruption of death.* And your people, redeemed from the guilt of their sins,* celebrate as they cry out to you:* “The barren one gives birth to the Mother of God* and nourisher of our life.”

    Prokeimenon, Tone 4
    How great are Your works, O Lord* You have made all things in wisdom.
    verse: Bless the Lord, O my soul: O Lord my God, You are exceedingly great. (Psalm 103:24,1)

    Epistle
    Romans 10:1-10

    Alleluia, Tone 4
    verse: Poise yourself and advance in triumph and reign in the cause of truth, and meekness, and justice.
    verse: You have loved justice and hated iniquity. (Psalm 44:5,8)

    Gospel
    Matthew 8:28-9:1

    Communion Hymn
    Praise the Lord from the heavens;* praise Him in the highest.* Alleluia, alleluia,* alleluia. (Psalm 148:1)