31st
Sunday after Pentecost / St. Theophan the Recluse /
Afterfeast of Theophany
Beatitudes on 12: Octoechos: 4; Feast: 4, from Ode 5; Hierarch: 4, from Ode 6.
1. Remember me when Thou comest in Thy kingdom, O
God my Savior, and save me, for Thou alone lovest mankind.
2. By a tree was Adam deceived; yet again by the
Tree of the Cross was the thief saved, who cried out: Remember me in Thy
kingdom, O Lord!
3. O Bestower of life, Who hadst broken down the
gates and portals of hades, Thou hast saved all who cry out to Thee, O Savior:
Glory to Thine arising!
4. O Thou Who by Thy burial hast made death
captive, and by Thy resurrection hast filled all with joy: remember me, in that
Thou art compassionate.
5. When countless people went down to be
baptized of John, Thou Thyself didst stand in their midst. And he announced to those present: “Who hath
told you, O rebellious ones, to avoid the impending wrath? Bring forth fruits worth of Christ; for He
standeth before you, granting peace.”
6. Standing in their midst, the Creator and
Fashioner alone trieth the hearts of all; and taking
his winnowing-fan in His hand, He most wisely doth separate the harvest of the
whole world, letting the chaff fall away; and He granteth eternal life to the
fruitful.
7. Beholding him whom He
had formed of dust bound by inescapable bonds in the darkness of sin, the
Creator raised him up and laid him on His shoulders; and now, in the midst of
abundant waters, He cleanseth him of the ancient shame of Adam’s inclination
toward sin.
8. With piety let us eagerly hasten to the most
pure wellsprings of the stream of salvation: and, gazing upon the Word Who is
come forth from the incorrupt Virgin, let us drink the pure water which
quencheth our holy thirst, gently healing the infirmity of the world.
9. Thou didst tread the narrow path to
salvation, and as one meek didst cry unceasingly to the Meek One: It is good
for me to cleave unto God!
10. Desiring the Truth of
Christ, thou didst joyfully endure tribulations and afflictions, ever mindful
that as there is no crown save there be a victory, so is there no victory
except there be struggle.
11. As thou abidest in the house of the heavenly Father, O father
Theophanes, forget not us, thy children, but by thy supplications vouchsafe
that we also may enter the wedding-chamber of the Lord of glory.
12. Who doth not call thee
blessed, O all-holy Virgin? Who doth not
hymn thine all-pure birthgiving? Entreat
thy Son and God, O pure and most blessed one, that our souls may find mercy.
Troparia Tone 6: Angelic hosts were above Thy tomb, /
and they that
guarded Thee became as dead. /
And Mary stood
by the grave seeking Thine immaculate body. /
Thou didst
despoil hades and wast not tempted by it. /
Thou didst meet
the Virgin and didst grant us life. //
O Thou Who didst
rise from the dead, O Lord, glory be to Thee.
Glory… Tone 8: O guide of Orthodoxy, teacher
of piety and purity, /
ascetic of Vyshensk,
divinely wise and holy hierarch Theophan: /
By thy writings thou didst
explain the Word of God, /
and hast shown the way to
salvation unto all the faithful. //
Entreat Christ God, that
our souls be saved.
Both now… Tone 1:
When Thou, wast baptized in
the Jordan, O Lord, /
the worship of the Trinity
was made manifest; /
for the voice of the
Father bare witness to Thee, /
calling Thee His beloved
Son. /
And the Spirit in the form
of a dove /
confirmed the certainty of
the word. /
O Christ our God, Who hast
appeared //
and hast enlightened the
world, glory be to Thee.
The Epistle
Reader: The Prokimenon in the 1st Tone: Let Thy mercy, O Lord, be upon us,
according as we have hoped in Thee.
Choir: Let Thy mercy, O Lord, be upon us, according as we
have hoped in Thee.
Reader: Rejoice
in the Lord, O ye righteous; praise is meet for the upright.
Choir: Let Thy mercy, O Lord, be upon us, according
as we have hoped in Thee.
Reader: In the Same
Tone: My mouth shall speak wisdom, and the meditation of my heart shall be
of understanding.
Choir: My mouth shall
speak wisdom, and the meditation of my heart shall be of understanding.
Reader: The Reading is from the Epistle of the Holy Apostle
Paul to the Ephesians:
[Eph. 4:7-13 (§224 mid); Heb. 7:26-8:2 (§318)].
Reader: Alleluia in the
5th Tone: Of Thy mercies, O Lord, will I sing for
ever. Unto generation and generation will I declare Thy truth will
my mouth.
Choir: Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia!
Reader: Mercy
shall be built up for ever. In the heavens shall Thy truth be
established.
Choir: Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia!
Reader: In the 2nd
Tone: The mouth of the righteous shall meditate wisdom, and his tongue
shall speak of judgment.
Choir: Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia!
Gospel [Matt. 4:12-17
(§8); John 10:9-16 (§36)].
Kontakia
Tone 6:
Having
by His life bestowing hand raised up all the dead out of the dark abysses, /
Christ
God, the Giver of life, hath bestowed the Resurrection upon the fallen human
race; /
for
He is the Savior of all, //
the
Resurrection, and the Life, and the God of all.
Glory… Tone 4: O
holy hierarch Theophan, /
namesake of the Theophany:
/
By thy teachings thou
didst enlighten many of the people. /
And standing now with the
angels before the throne of the Holy Trinity, //
pray thou unceasingly in
behalf of us all.
Both now... Tone 4:
Thou hast appeared today unto
the whole world, /
and Thy light, O Lord,
hath been signed upon us /
who with knowledge chant
unto Thee: /
Thou hast come, Thou hast
appeared, //
O Light Unapproachable.
Instead of “It is truly
meet…” we chant the Irmos of the 9th Ode of the First Canon of the
feast, Second Tone:
Refrain: Magnify, O my soul, her who is more
honorable than the host on high, the most pure Virgin Theotokos.
Irmos: Every tongue is at a loss to praise thee as is due:
/
even
a spirit from the world above is filled with dizziness, when it seeketh to sing
thy praises, O Theotokos. /
But
since thou art good, accept our faith: /
Thou
knowest well our love inspired by God, //
for
thou art the Protector of Christians and we magnify thee.