GM Eustathius / Afterfeast of the Exaltation
Beatitudes
on 8: Feast: 4, from Ode 8; Martyrs 4, from Ode 6.
1. O ye Children, equal in number to the Trinity, bless ye God the Father and creator; sing ye the praises of the Word who descended and changed the fire to dew; and exalt ye above all for ever the most Holy Spirit, who giveth life unto all. 2. O hosts of heaven, chant ye to the exalted Tree which was drenched in the blood of God the Word incarnate, celebrating the restoration of those on earth. Ye people, worship the Cross of Christ, whereby the resurrection of the world is accomplished forever! 3. O ye mortal stewards of grace, in sacred manner raise on high with your hands the Cross whereon Christ God stood and the spear which pierced the body of God the Word, that all the nations may see the salvation which is of God, glorifying Him forever! 4. O faithful Christian kings, forechosen by divine decree, be ye glad! And having received from God the precious Cross, rejoice in it, the weapon of victory, for thereby tribes of warriors seeking courage are scattered abroad forever. 5 & 6. Thou didst desire Christ Who had appeared to Thee, O glorious one, and didst unite thyself to Him with love; for thou wast shown to be adorned, clad in the purple robe of thy blood. 7. Thou didst make haste to follow the divine steps of Christ, and, crowned with all thy household, O martyr, wast most perfectly shown to share in His sufferings and kingdom. 8. Using now the words of Gabriel, O most immaculate Virgin, we cry out: Rejoice, O only blessed Mother! Rejoice, O thou who didst have within thee the Sun of righteousness!
At the entry: O come let us worship and fall down before Christ, Who was crucified in the flesh, O Son of God, save us who sing to Thee: Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia.
Troparia & Kontakia Tone 1: O Lord, save Thy people /
and bless Thine inheritance. /Grant Thou victory unto Orthodox Christians /over their enemies, /and by the power of Thy Cross //do Thou preserve Thy commonwealth. [Troparion of the Temple]
Tone 4: In
their sufferings O Lord, /
Thy martyrs received imperishable
crowns from Thee, our God; /
for, possessed of Thy
might, /
they cast down the
tormentors and set at naught the feeble audacity of the demons. //
By their supplications
save our souls.
[Kontakion of the Temple]
Glory… Tone 2:
Manifestly emulating the sufferings of Christ, /
and having drained His cup
with fervor, O Eustathius, /
thou wast a partaker and
fellow heir of glory, //
receiving divine remission
from on high from the God of all Himself.
Both now… Tone 4:
O Thou Who wast
lifted up willingly on the Cross, /
bestow Thy
mercies upon the new community named after Thee, O Christ God; /
gladden with Thy
power the Orthodox Christians, /
granting them
victory over enemies; //
may they have as
Thy help the weapon of peace, the invincible trophy.
The Epistle
Reader: The Prokimenon in the 7th Tone: Exalt ye the Lord our
God, and worship the
footstool of His feet for
it is holy.
Choir: Exalt
ye the Lord our God, and worship the footstool of His feet for it is holy.
Reader: The Lord is king, let the peoples rage.
Choir: Exalt ye the Lord our
God, and worship the footstool of His feet for it is holy.
Reader: In the 4th
Tone: In the saints that are in His earth hath the Lord been wondrous;
He hath wrought all His
desires in them.
Choir: In the saints that are in His earth hath the
Lord been wondrous; He hath wrought
all His desires
in them.
Reader: The Reading is from the
First Epistle of the Holy Apostle Paul to the Corinthians: [I Cor. 1:26-29 (§125 mid); I Cor. 14:20-25 (§156); Eph 6:10-17 (§233)]
Reader: Alleluia in the 1st Tone:
Remember Thy congregation which Thou hast
purchased from the beginning.
Choir: Alleluia, Alleluia,
Alleluia!
Reader: But God is our king before the ages, He
hath wrought salvation in the midst of
the earth.
Choir: Alleluia, Alleluia,
Alleluia!
Reader: In the 4th Tone:
The righteous cried, and the Lord heard them, and He delivered
them out of all their
tribulations.
Choir: Alleluia, Alleluia,
Alleluia
Gospel [John
8:21-30 (§30); Matt. 25:1-13 (§104); Luke 21:12-19 (§106)]
Instead
of “It is truly meet…” we chant the Irmos of the 9th Ode of the First Canon of
the feast, Eighth Tone:
Refrain: Magnify, O my soul, / the most precious Cross
of the Lord.
Irmos: O Theotokos, thou art a mystical Paradise, /
who untilled hast brought forth Christ. /
He hath planted upon the earth the life-giving Tree of the Cross:
/
therefore at its exaltation on this day, //
we worship Him and thee do we magnify.
Communion Verse: The light of Thy countenance, O Lord, hath been signed upon
us. Rejoice in the Lord, O ye righteous;
praise is meet for the upright. Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia!