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Event Information:
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Sun13Feb2022
Sunday of the Prodigal Son; Octoechos Tone 5; Our Venerable Father Martinian
GREAT VESPERS
Kathisma Reading
“Blessed is the man...” is sung.
At Psalm 140
In Tone 5
10. Lead my soul forth from prison* that I may give thanks to Your name.
With Your precious cross, O Christ,* You have put the Devil to shame.* With Your resurrection You have deadened the sting of sin,* and have saved us from the gates of death.* We, therefore, glorify You, O only-begotten Son of God.
9. The just shall gather around me* when You have been good to me.
O Christ, who granted resurrection to mankind,* You were led like a lamb to the slaughter.* Then the princes of Hades were struck with terror* as they saw the gates of their tearful domain being lifted up;* for Christ, the King of Glory, entered therein* and exclaimed to those in chains: Go forth from here!* And to those in darkness: Go forth into the light!
8. Out of the depths I cry to You, O Lord;* O Lord, hear my voice!
What a great wonder!* The Creator of invisible beings suffered in the flesh for mankind,* and rose from the dead as immortal.* Come, therefore, all you nations and adore Him;* for through His compassion we have been freed from the snares of the Devil,* and we have learned to praise the one God in three Persons.
7. Let Your ears be attentive* to the voice of my prayer.
We offer to You our evening worship,* O Light whom the darkness of night can never extinguish.* For in these latter days Your radiance has appeared to the world,* shining in Your flesh as light reflected from a mirror.* Your brilliance has descended even to the depths of Hades and dissolved its gloom.* O Lord, Giver of Light, glory to You;* for You have shown the radiance of Your resurrection to all the nations.
6. If You mark iniquities, Lord, who can stand?* But with You forgiveness is that You may be revered.
Let us glorify Christ, the Author of our Salvation;* for by His resurrection from the dead,* the world has been delivered from the deception of Satan.* The choirs of angels rejoice as the treachery of evil spirits vanishes.* Fallen Adam arises, and the devil is vanquished.
5. I have waited for You as You have commanded; my soul patiently relies on Your promise,* for it has trusted in the Lord.
Those who guarded the tomb of Christ* were told by the evil men who hired them:* Take this silver and keep silent.* Tell no one of the resurrection of Christ;* rather tell everyone that while you were sleeping His body was stolen.* But who has ever heard of a body being stolen,* a body which had already been anointed?* Why would anyone take a body from the grave naked,* and leave the burial shroud in the tomb?* Do not deceive yourselves, O people of Judea.* Study the teachings of the prophets,* and you will come to understand that Jesus Christ is Almighty God,* and truly the Saviour of the world.
In Tone 1
4. From the morning watch until night* let Israel trust in the Lord.
I was entrusted with a sinless and living land,* but I sowed the ground with sin and reaped with a sickle the ears of slothfulness;* in thick sheaves I garnered my actions,* but winnowed them not on the threshing floor of repentance.* But I beg You, my God, the pre-eternal husbandman,* with the wind of Your loving-kindness winnow the chaff of my works,* and grant to my soul the corn of forgiveness;* shut me in Your heavenly storehouse* and save me.
3. For with the Lord there is mercy, and with Him there is plentiful redemption;* and He shall redeem Israel from all its iniquities.
I was entrusted with a sinless and living land,* but I sowed the ground with sin and reaped with a sickle the ears of slothfulness;* in thick sheaves I garnered my actions,* but winnowed them not on the threshing floor of repentance.* But I beg You, my God, the pre-eternal husbandman,* with the wind of Your loving-kindness winnow the chaff of my works,* and grant to my soul the corn of forgiveness;* shut me in Your heavenly storehouse* and save me.
2. Praise the Lord, all the nations;* proclaim His glory, all you people.
Brethren, let us learn the meaning of this mystery.* For when the Prodigal Son ran back from sin to his Father's house,* his loving Father came out to meet him and kissed him.* He restored to the Prodigal the tokens of his proper glory,* and mystically he made glad on high, sacrificing the fatted calf.* Let our lives, then, be worthy of the loving Father who has offered sacrifice,* and of the glorious Victim* who is the Saviour of our souls.
1. Strong is the love of the Lord for us;* eternally will His truth endure.
Brethren, let us learn the meaning of this mystery.* For when the Prodigal Son ran back from sin to his Father's house,* his loving Father came out to meet him and kissed him.* He restored to the Prodigal the tokens of his proper glory,* and mystically he made glad on high, sacrificing the fatted calf.* Let our lives, then, be worthy of the loving Father who has offered sacrifice,* and of the glorious Victim* who is the Saviour of our souls.
In Tone 2
Glory…
Of what great blessings in my wretchedness have I deprived myself!* From what a kingdom in my misery have I fallen!* I have wasted the riches that were given to me,* I have transgressed the commandment.* Alas, unhappy soul!* You are henceforth condemned to the eternal fire.* Therefore before the end cry out to Christ our God:* Receive me as the Prodigal Son, O God,* and have mercy upon me.
In Tone 5
Now…
A symbol of the undefiled Virgin and bride* was revealed in the Red Sea.* There, Moses divided the waters;* here, Gabriel is the messenger of the miracle.* There, the Israelites crossed the deep and their feet were not even wet;* here, the Virgin gives birth to Christ without human seed.* There, the sea remained uncrossed after the passing of Israel;* here, the immaculate remained incorrupt after giving birth to Emmanuel.* Therefore, O immortal God, who appeared in the flesh as true Man,* have mercy on us!
Aposticha
In Tone 5
O Christ our Saviour,* we lift up our voices in song to glorify You.* For, in Your love for mankind,* You became incarnate without leaving heaven;* You accepted the cross and death;* You cast down the gates of Hades;* and on the third day You arose from the dead* for the salvation of our souls.
The Lord reigns, He is clothed in majesty. Robed is the Lord, and girt about with strength.
O Giver of Life,* streams of forgiveness, life, and salvation* poured forth from Your pierced side upon us all.* By accepting physical death, You granted us immortality;* by lying in the tomb, You freed us from Hades,* and as God, by rising from the dead,* You raised us with Yourself in glory.* Therefore, we cry out to You:* O Lover of mankind, glory to You!
For He has made the world firm, which shall not be moved.
O Lover of mankind,* Your crucifixion and descent into Hades are most wondrous.* For, as God, You thereby conquered the power of Hades,* and raised up in glory, with Yourself, those who were long imprisoned there.* You reopened Paradise and enabled them to enter.* Grant forgiveness of sins to us* who glorify Your resurrection on the third day,* for You alone are all-merciful.
Holiness befits Your house, O Lord, for length of days.
O Lover of mankind,* You accepted suffering in the flesh* and rose from the dead on the third day.* Therefore, heal the passions of our flesh,* raise us from our dreadful iniquities, and save us.
In Tone 6
Glory…
I have wasted the wealth which the Father gave to me,* and in my wretchedness I have fed with dumb beasts.* Yearning after their food, I remained hungry and could not eat my fill.* But now I return to the compassionate Father* and cry out with tears:* I fall down before Your loving-kindness,* receive me as a hired servant, and save me.
Now…
Christ the Lord, our Creator and Redeemer,* came forth from your womb, O most pure Virgin.* He clothed Himself in our human flesh* to set us free from the original curse of Adam.* Therefore, O Mary, we praise you, without ceasing,* as the true Virgin Mother of God,* and we sing with the angels:* Rejoice, O Lady, advocate, protector, and salvation of our souls.
Troparia
In Tone 5
Let us the faithful acclaim and worship the Word,* co-eternal with the Father and the Spirit,* and born of the Virgin for our salvation.* For He willed to be lifted up on the cross in the flesh, to suffer death* and to raise the dead by His glorious Resurrection.
Glory... Now...
Rejoice, O impassable door of the Lord!* Rejoice, O rampart and protection of those who have recourse to you!* Rejoice, O tranquil haven and Virgin,* who gave birth in the flesh to your Maker and God!* Fail not to intercede for those* who sing and worship the Child you bore.
DIVINE LITURGY
Troparia and Kontakia
Troparion, Tone 5: Let us the faithful acclaim and worship the Word,* co-eternal with the Father and the Spirit,* and born of the Virgin for our salvation.* For He willed to be lifted up on the cross in the flesh, to suffer death* and to raise the dead by His glorious resurrection.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, now and for ever and ever. Amen.
Kontakion, Tone 3: Foolishly have I fled from Your glory, O Father,* wasting the wealth You gave me on vices.* Therefore, I offer You the words of the Prodigal:* Loving Father, I have sinned before You.* Take me, for I repent, and make me as one of Your hired hands.
Prokeimenon, Tone 5
You, O Lord, will guard us and will keep us* from this generation and for ever.
verse: Save me, O Lord, for there is no longer left a just man. (Psalm 11:8,2)
Epistle
1 Corinthians 6:12-20
Alleluia, Tone 5
verse: Your mercies, O Lord, I will sing for ever; from generation to generation I will announce Your truth with my mouth.
verse: For You have said: Mercy shall be built up for ever; in the heavens Your truth shall be prepared. (Psalm 88:2,3)
Gospel
Luke 15:11-32
Communion Hymn
Praise the Lord from the heavens;* praise Him in the highest.* Alleluia, alleluia,* alleluia. (Psalm 148:1)