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Tue05Mar2024
Holy Martyr Conon (249-251)
TUESDAY MORNING MATINS
Sessional Hymn I, Tone 7
You have accepted the tears of Peter and the Harlot,* and You justified the Publican when he groaned from the depths of his heart.* My sins have brought me to despair, O Saviour:* take pity on me and save me.
O Lord, rebuke me not in Your anger, neither chasten me in Your wrath.
You washed away Peter’s denial with his tears;* You forgave the Publican’s sins when he cried to You in sorrow.* O Lord who loves mankind,* glory be to You.
God is wonderful in His saints, the God of Israel.
Rejoice, you righteous, and let the heavens be glad:* for, fighting bravely upon earth, the martyrs have brought error to an end.* Let the Church celebrate a feast of joy and triumph, giving glory to the Judge who alone confers victory,* Christ our God who grants the world great mercy.
Glory… Now…
O blessed Theotokos, you are higher than the powers of heaven,* for you were made a temple of the Godhead,* and have given birth to Christ,* the Saviour of our souls.
Sessional Hymn II, Tone 8
With our souls illumined through abstinence,* let us bow down and worship the salvific Cross upon which Christ has been nailed,* and let us exclaim before it:* Rejoice, delight and sure help of fasters;* Rejoice, destroyer of the passions, and adversary of devils;* Rejoice, O blessed Wood!
Glory… Now…
O faithful, with hymns let us magnify the Theotokos,* the unshakable confirmation of the Faith* and the precious gift of our souls:* Rejoice, O you who held within your womb the Stone of life!* Rejoice, hope of the ends of the earth and aid of the sorrowful!* Rejoice, Bride unwedded!
Sessional Hymn III, Tone 8
The whole of the inhabited world falls down in adoration before Your Cross, O Lord,* and worshiping it as the life of creation, it cries to You:* By the power of Your Cross and through abstinence,* keep in profound peace those who praise and hymn You,* O abundantly merciful One.
Glory… Now…
Rejoice, you who through the Angel received the joy of the world!* Rejoice, you that have given birth to your Creator and Lord!* Rejoice, you that were deemed worthy to be the Mother of God!
Canon
Ode 2
Irmos: Behold now, and see that I am God,* who led the people of Israel in times of old through the Red Sea,* and saved them and fed them,* setting them free from the bitter bondage of Pharaoh.
Glory to Your precious Cross, O Lord.
Today, in the middle of the Fast, we worship with faith the Cross that You have endured in the midst of the earth, O Messiah and Word of God, asking that we also may behold Your Resurrection.
Glory to Your precious Cross, O Lord.
With the rod of power prefigured by Moses, let us rend in two the sea of the passions and so reach the promised land; and let us take our fill of the noetic Manna.
Glory to Your precious Cross, O Lord.
Who will not weep for you? Who will not mourn for you, O soul, lover of wickedness? You have not eagerly sought that which is good, but have despised the righteous Judge, who are ever long-suffering towards you.
Most holy Theotokos, save us.
Assuming flesh without undergoing change O Virgin, you conceived Christ. Diligently pray to Him, that He may deliver from the passions of the flesh those who fall down and worship before the Cross which He endured in the flesh.
Irmos: Behold now, and see that I am your God,* begotten of the Father before all ages,* conceived without a man in these latter times from the Virgin,* abolishing the sin of the forefather Adam, as the Lover of mankind.
Glory to Your precious Cross, O Lord.
Behold now, see that I am your God, who has given the inhabited world My Cross as a weapon of salvation, before which we now fall down and worship; grant that those who adore it may overcome the scheming of the enemy.
Glory to Your precious Cross, O Lord.
Great and abundantly merciful are You, O Lord, for You have granted us to worship before Your life-giving Cross, upon which Your hands and feet were nailed; and over which Blood flowed from Your most pure side, like a fount of life for us.
Glory…
A supremely perfect Unity in three Hypostasis and Godhead, the Father unbegotten, the Son only-begotten, the Spirit proceeding from the Father and manifest through the Son, single in Essence and in Nature, one Lordship and one Kingdom, save us all.
Now…
The wonder of your conception transcends speech, O Mother and Virgin: for how have you given birth and yet remained undefiled? How did you bear a child without knowing a man? “All this is understood by the Word of God, who has been born from me in a supra-natural manner, transcending nature.”
Glory be to You, our God, glory be to You.
The great Moses stretched out his hands and overthrew Amalek, prefiguring you for us, O Cross. And making the sign of the Cross in darkness and in the air, we turn to flight and defeat our enemy, the author of evil, singing the praises of Christ.
Katavasia: Behold now, and see that I am your God,* begotten of the Father before all ages,* conceived without a man in these latter times from the Virgin,* abolishing the sin of the forefather Adam, as the Lover of mankind.
Ode 8
Irmos: O You who cover Your chambers on high with the waters,* You who have set the sands to bound the sea and who uphold all things:* the sun sings Your praises, the moon gives You glory,* every creature offers a hymn to You, as their Creator, throughout the ages.
Glory to Your precious Cross, O Lord.
Having created the foundations of all the earth as God, You have given to the faithful as an unshakable foundation and weapon of salvation: Your Cross, before which we fall down and worship, exalting You above all throughout all ages.
Glory to Your precious Cross, O Lord.
Beholding the Wood of the Cross shining brighter than the rays of the Sun, let us now draw near, radiant with the Fast, and adore it, drawing from it light-bearing grace which drives away darkness, supremely exalting Christ throughout all ages.
Glory to Your precious Cross, O Lord.
O Word, You are the never-changing vivifying water which springs up into eternal life; and pouring forth blood and water from Your side upon the Cross, O Master, You have staunched the rivers of sin, wherefore I entreat You: shrivel up the wicked streams of my passions.
Most holy Theotokos, save us.
O pure and holy Mother of God, you are our noetic sanctification, for you have borne God who reposes among His holy ones. This day He has hallowed all the ends of the earth by the divine veneration of the most holy Cross, upon which He has been affixed in the flesh.
Irmos: Seated upon the throne of glory, and unceasingly glorified as God,* O angels and heavens bless, hymn and supremely exalt Him throughout all ages!.
Glory to Your precious Cross, O Lord.
Come, O people, and behold the lifegiving Wood now set before us, and upon which Christ God was crucified, and with reverent fear let us chant in praise of the Cross throughout all ages.
Glory to Your precious Cross, O Lord.
We hymn the Cross made from three bars of wood as a token of the Trinity; and, falling down before it, we worship it with fear, raising our cry, as we bless, praise and supremely exalt Christ throughout all ages.
We bless the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, the Lord.
God is one in the Trinity: the Father is not begotten like the Son, nor does the Son proceed like the Spirit, but each keeps its own distinctive characteristics; wherefore I glorify the Three as Light and God throughout the ages.
Now…
You alone have conceived without corruption; you alone have given suck to Your child, yet not known the pangs of birth-giving; and you alone have borne your Maker and Master, and are both His Handmaiden and Mother, wherefore we sing your praises, O Virgin Mother, throughout the ages.
Glory be to You, our God, glory be to You.
O Christ, by a word You gave sight to the man blind from birth; open once more the blinded eyes of my heart, that I may behold the light of Your commandments throughout the ages.
We praise, we bless, and we worship the Lord, hymning and supremely exalting Him throughout all ages!
Katavasia: Seated upon the throne of glory, and unceasingly glorified as God,* O angels and heavens bless, hymn and supremely exalt Him throughout all ages!.
Ode 9
Irmos: Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,* who has exalted the horn of salvation on our behalf in the house of His child David,* wherein the Dayspring from on high hath visited us,* and guided us on the path of peace.
Glory to Your precious Cross, O Lord.
Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for He has destroyed the ancient curse by His Cross, which He has given to us as our refuge and firm foundation; and by its power we overthrow our enemies.
Glory to Your precious Cross, O Lord.
I am held fast in the bonds of my countless transgressions, O Christ, and obstinately I refuse to comprehend Your will, which leads me to salvation. In Your ineffable mercy and loving-kindness, turn me back by Your Cross and free me from my blindness.
Glory to Your precious Cross, O Lord.
Sinfully I have followed the Pharisee in his arrogance; bitter and terrible has been my fall, and I lie trampled by the enemy. But have compassion upon me, O Christ, and save me, for out of the abundance of Your pity You have humbled Yourself, O most high King of Glory.
Most holy Theotokos, save us.
All generations call you blessed, O pure One: for Jesus has been born from your womb alone, O Virgin Maiden. Pray to Him that your flock and people may be saved.
Irmos: Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,* who has exalted the horn of salvation on our behalf in the house of His child David,* wherein the Dayspring from on high hath visited us,* and guided us on the path of peace.
Glory to Your precious Cross, O Lord.
Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for He has destroyed the ancient curse by His Cross, which He has set before us for our veneration. Let us adore the Cross in faith and hymn its praises, ever glorifying His great mercy.
Glory to Your precious Cross, O Lord.
O precious Cross, you are the glory of the Church, the weapon of kings, fashioned by God to give peace to all the world. O Cross, joy of the Orthodox, and the guardian of the inhabited land: keep and sanctify those who fall down and worship You.
Glory…
Glory to You, O Holy Trinity, Unity equal in honour, divine Nature, one revered Dominion, the Father, Son, and Spirit, unapproachable Light, beginningless Godhead: save those who worship You, O Creator of all.
Now…
Standing by Your Cross, O Jesus, Your Mother gazed upon You, her Lamb, Shepherd, and Master; and lamenting she wept bitterly, wounded in the depths of her soul, and cried out to You, O Christ, “What is this strange sight? How do You, the Life, die?”
Glory be to You, our God, glory be to You.
As You saved the repentant Manasseh, O God, also save me Your servant, and reject me not, for I repent bitterly with tears, for I have turned aside as did Israel of old, having lived all my days prodigally.
Katavasia: Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,* who has exalted the horn of salvation on our behalf in the house of His child David,* wherein the Dayspring from on high hath visited us,* and guided us on the path of peace.
Aposticha
Tone 8
Consider, my soul, how the vainglorious Pharisee was condemned because of pride,* and how the humble-minded Publican was justified for acknowledging his transgressions.* For the one was cast away for priding himself in virtue,* while the other having sinned, confessed and was accepted.* Through control of the passions rouse yourself to attain to the exaltation of humility which cannot be abased,* given you by Christ in His great mercy.
In the morning, fill us with Your love; we shall exult and rejoice all our days. Give us joy to balance our affliction for the years when we knew misfortune. Show forth Your work to Your servants; let Your glory shine on their children.
Consider, my soul, how the vainglorious Pharisee was condemned because of pride,* and how the humble-minded Publican was justified for acknowledging his transgressions.* For the one was cast away for priding himself in virtue,* while the other having sinned, confessed and was accepted.* Through control of the passions rouse yourself to attain to the exaltation of humility which cannot be abased,* given you by Christ in His great mercy.
Let the favour of the Lord be upon us: give success to the work of our hands, give success to the work of our hands.
Great were your struggles O holy martyrs;* for steadfastly you bravely endured the tortures of lawless men, confessing Christ before kings.* And, departing from this life, you now work miracles throughout all the world,* healing from their passions those in sickness, O holy ones.* Pray that our souls be saved.
Glory… Now…
Your shelter, O Virgin Theotokos, is spiritual healing;* for, having recourse to it,* we are delivered from spiritual infirmities.
VESPERS ON TUESDAY EVENING
At Psalm 140
Tone 6
If You mark iniquities, Lord, who can stand?* But with You forgiveness is that You may be revered.
O compassionate Lord, in the midst of the earth You endured the Cross and Passion,* granting redemption and freedom from the passions to all mankind. * Wherefore, on this middle day of the Fast,* all are invited to fall down and worship You, and with great joy, adore You.* Radiant with the effulgence of the divine virtues,* may we all be deemed worthy to behold Your Passion and life-giving Resurrection, O Word of God,* who alone are abundantly merciful.
I have waited for You as You have commanded; my soul patiently relies on Your promise,* for it has trusted in the Lord.
A lifeless corpse affixed to the Cross,* Your side pierced by the spear, and given gall to drink, O long-suffering Master,* who by the hand of Moses made sweet the waters of Marah;* I entreat You and pray to You:* cast the bitter passions away from my understanding,* and sweeten my mind with the honey of repentance,* and grant me to worship Your precious Passion.
Tone 1
From the morning watch until night* let Israel trust in the Lord.
Before our eyes today* we see set before us the mighty Cross* that Moses once prefigured with outstretched hands,* putting Amalek to flight.* Wherefore with trembling, O ye peoples,* let us touch it with pure minds and lips,* for upon it Christ hath been raised slaying death;* that we all may be worthy of His grace,* and, praising the Savoir of all with hymns inspired by God,* let us pray that we may arrive at His saving Resurrection.
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.
Come, let us worship the Cross of Christ God,* the Wood that brings us life,* which is placed before us this day.* For by the Cross death has been wounded* and the power of Your Resurrection has been revealed to us the fallen ones,* having been delivered let us cry aloud:* You have willingly suffered for our sake,* to save the whole of creation;* O our God, glory be to You.
Praise the Lord, all the nations;* proclaim His glory, all you people.
Your Cross, O Saviour, has been given to us Christians, as an invincible power:* for by it the hosts of the enemy are put to flight* and Your Church, O Christ, rightly confessing the true faith, is overshadowed with peace.* Adoring it, we raise our fervent cry to Your:* Count us also worthy of the inheritance of Your saints.
Strong is the love of the Lord for us;* eternally will His truth endure.
Having cleansed the senses of our soul with tears,* making them pure by fasting,* come let us fall down and worship the Wood of the Cross:* by which through abstinence, we subdue the rebelliousness of our flesh,* crying to Him who was crucified thereupon:* “O Saviour, count us worthy to worship Your radiant arising on the third day.”
Tone 8
Glory… Now…
Today the Master of creation and Lord of Glory is affixed to the Cross,* His side pierced with a spear;* and He who is the sweetness of the Church tastes of gall and vinegar.* A crown of thorns, is placed upon Him who covers the heavens with clouds.* Clothed in a cloak of mockery, He who formed man with His hands is struck by a hand of clay.* He who wraps the heaven in clouds is smitten upon His back.* He accepts spitting and scourging, reproach and buffeting;* and all these things my Redeemer and God endured for the sake of me who am condemned,* that in His compassion He may save the world from delusion.
Prokeimenon I, Tone 6
Sing to God,* chant to His name.
verse: Prepare the way for Him that rides upon the setting of the sun.
Reading I
Genesis 9:8-17
Prokeimenon II, Tone 6
Poor and in sorrow am I;* may Your salvation, O God, be quick to help me.
verse: Let beggars behold it and be glad; seek after God, and your soul shall live.
Reading II
Proverbs 12:8-22
Aposticha
Tone 3
I have surpassed the Publican in my transgressions,* yet I vie not with him in repentance;* I have not attained the virtues of the Pharisee,* yet I imitate his self-conceit.* O Christ my God, in Your exultant humility You have destroyed devilish arrogance upon the Cross:* make me a stranger to the sins of the Publican* and to the exceeding foolishness of the Pharisee;* establish within my soul the good possessed by each of them,* and save me.
I have lifted up my eyes to You enthroned in heaven. Behold, as the eyes of servants are on the hands of their masters, as the eyes of a maid are on the hands of her mistress, so are our eyes on the Lord our God until He has mercy on us.
I have surpassed the Publican in my transgressions,* yet I vie not with him in repentance;* I have not attained the virtues of the Pharisee,* yet I imitate his self-conceit.* O Christ my God, in Your exultant humility You have destroyed devilish arrogance upon the Cross:* make me a stranger to the sins of the Publican* and to the exceeding foolishness of the Pharisee;* establish within my soul the good possessed by each of them,* and save me.
Have mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us; for we have been filled with shame; our soul is all too full of the mockery of the rich, of the contempt of the proud.
The prophets, the apostles of Christ,* and the martyrs having taught mankind to sing the praises* of the consubstantial Trinity;* have given light to the nations that had gone astray,* making of the sons of men companions of angels.
Tone 5
Glory… Now…
Beholding You, the Fashioner and Creator of all,* hanging naked upon the Cross,* the whole of creation was transformed by fear and lamented;* the light of the sun grew dark and the earth quaked;* rocks were shattered and the splendour of the temple was rent in two;* the dead arose from their tombs and angelic powers cried in amazement:* “O strange wonder!* The Judge is judged and willingly suffers,* for the salvation and renewal of the world.”