Canons of the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God

Canons of the Theotokos, with the acrostic “O thou who art full of grace, grant me the grace to chant the words of a most simple hymn”, in Tone VIII.

Ode I, Irmos: Having passed through the water as upon dry land, * and having escaped the malice of the Egyptians, * the Israelites cried aloud: * Unto our God and Redeemer let us sing.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

O omnipotent Trinity, three-sunned Unity! Having illumined my soul, heart and mind and sanctified them with grace, I pray Thee Who art supremely good, lead me up to Thy divine love and teach me to hymn with devotion the compassion of the blessed Ever-virgin.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

O good Mother of the good King, who dost readily hearken to the petitions of all and art almighty in thy benefactions, shine forth the grace of thy light upon us and fill us with grace today, O thou who art full of the grace of God, that we may begin to chant hymnody unto thee.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

For the choirs of the angels the glorification of thy present feast is the cause of joy, O Sovereign Lady, for today they are moved to praise. But what shall we, who are clay, offer unto thee? If not only our fervent hymns of thanksgiving.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

We chant unto thee the cry of the archangel: Rejoice, O pure one! And even though we are unworthy, O Lady, accept this hymnody instead of goodness, illumining us with the light of thy mercy and granting grace unto all.

Second Canon, in Tone IV. Irmos: I shall open my mouth, * and be filled with the Spirit, * and utter discourse to the Queen and Mother; * and be seen radiantly keeping festival, * joyfully praising her wonders.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

O Christ, Bestower of light, on this notable day of the most glorious appearance of the icon of her who gaveth birth to Thee, grant that I may keep splendid festival and may ever hymn her miracles with gladness, in fear and joy.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

O Virgin who hast given birth in the flesh to the light-bestowing Word of God, the Wisdom of the Father: enlighten the profound darkness of mine ignorance and provide me with the words to hymn thy wonders.

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

Today are the assemblies of the faithful enlightened and the hordes of the heretics put to shame, O Sovereign Lady, seeing thine icon traversing the air like the sun, destroying the gloom of impiety and illumining the faithful.

Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

With God, O divine Bride, thou alone art our greatness and boast; for through thee are we saved from misfortunes, to thee do we flee, and we pray earnestly: O Sovereign Lady, from everlasting torment deliver thy servants who hymn thy wonders!

Ode III. Canon I, Irmos: O Christ fortify me on the rock of Thy commandments, * Thou who in the beginning didst establish the heavens with understanding * and didst establish the earth upon the waters, * for there is none holy save Thee, O only Lover of mankind.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

Come ye faithful, and behold a most glorious sight, looking upon the most pure Virgin, who with reverence shineth forth on high in her most pure image, illumining with grace us who reverently chant: There is none more pure than thee, O Lady!

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

The mind of each of the faithful is hallowed by thy grace, O Theotokos, and exalted by the wondrous coming of thine icon. Grant unto us, thy servants, who honor it with piety and glorify thee with faith, O Lady, to partake thereof.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

O Bride of God, grant that we may tread the heavenly path unassailed, strengthening us to do godly works; that leaving the path of the evil one’s wiles by thy help, O Virgin, we may have a share in eternal glory.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

With the beams of Christ the true Light, the Creator of the angels, Who shone forth ineffably from thee, O Mother of God, and with thine own grace, illumine the souls and hearts of us who are in darkness. O thou who art full of grace, sanctify us, guiding us to the love of heavenly light.

Canon II, Irmos: O Theotokos, thou living and plentiful fount, * establish in spiritual fellowship those who sing hymns to thee, * and in thy divine glory * grant them crowns of glory.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

O Christ Jesus, pre-eternal King Who art full of mercy, illumine us with the appearance of the most pure image of Thee and the Ever-virgin who gaveth birth to Thee, and grant us forgiveness of sins and deliverance from misfortunes.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

When the people beheld thy most pure icon invisibly borne aloft by the angels and suspended in the air amid radiance, O Sovereign Lady, illumined with the light of thy mercy they were filled with ineffable joy.

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

O God-loving hierarchs and priests, kings and princes, and all the people, radiantly join chorus today, for a radiant beam hath shone forth on high, holding the true Light depicted in the flesh. With Him she hath come down to us, granting enlightenment to all the world.

Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Through thy most precious icon did the Creator of all work wonders of old and save the Imperial City from the incursions of aliens. So also be thou a protection and help for the land of Russia, O Sovereign Lady and Queen, saving it from all the assaults of the enemy.

Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.

Sessional Hymn, Tone IV: Thy most pure image, O Lady, truly more precious than the ark of old, shining more brightly than an electric cloud, emitteth rays of thy mercy revealing them to all, in every place, in abundance, and with the grace of God mercifully preserveth those who honor its most glorious coming. And fervently rejoicing therein, O Sovereign Lady, we keep festival and glorify thy maternal loving-kindness toward us.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit; now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

The foregoing is repeated.

Ode IV. Canon I, Irmos: Thou, O Lord, art my strength and Thou art my power, * Thou art my God and Thou art my joy, * Thou Who, while never leaving the bosom of Thy Father, * hast visited our poverty. * Therefore with the Prophet Habbakuk I cry unto Thee, * ‘Glory to Thy power, O Lover of mankind!’

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

The Creator and Fashioner of all, Who upholdeth all things by His omnipotent power, hath today arrived most gloriously, O pure Virgin, borne on thine arm in His and thy divine and miraculous image, for the salvation and healing of all mankind.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

Come, ye faithful, let us bow down before the ineffable gift of God, the icon of Christ the light and the most pure Virgin, and with love let us fall down, crying aloud: For the sake of the kind Ever-virgin who hath given birth to Thee, O Benefactor, send down grace and mercy upon us, Thy servants.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

O Queen of the angels, noetic ark: God hath adorned and glorified thy most pure image with ineffable miracles and grace beyond that of the ark of the law, and hath commanded even the angels to venerate it. With them, O all-hymned one, do thou pray to Him on behalf of us who glorify His saving providence, that we also may obtain thy salvation.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

O all-good and immaculate helper given by God in His grace unto all of us Christians, entreat Him, that He overlook our countless sins and deliver us from flaming retribution and the outermost darkness, and from every torment.

Canon II, Irmos: He who sitteth in glory upon the throne of the Godhead, * Jesus the true God, * is come in a swift cloud * and with His sinless hands he hath saved those who cry: * Glory to Thy power, O Christ.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

Let all the earth and the air be glad today, and let the sea cause joy to rain down, for by the miraculous journey of the most precious image of the Mother of God the land of Russia hath been most gloriously illumined.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

As behooveth servants, the ranks of the angels minister to thee, the Queen of all, and reverently honor thy most precious icon, hymning thee, the most holy Virgin. But how can we, the lowly, hymn thee, the all-pure one, as is meet?

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

We cry out to thee the hymn of the archangel: Rejoice, O Bride of God, the Lord is with thee! Rejoice, thou joy of the angels and gladness of all mankind who truly glorify thee! Save the souls of those who hymn thee, O pure Theotokos!

Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

O Birthgiver of God, bestower of joy: fill thou with ineffable joy those who with faith glorify thee and hymn thee with all their soul O Virgin, and grant them never- waning light, O Sovereign Lady who art full of grace.

Ode V. Canon I, Irmos: O God my spirit seeketh Thee early at dawn, * for the light of Thy commandments proceedeth Thy coming: * with them illumine our minds, O Master, * and guide us on the path of life.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

In thy merciful good pleasure, O thou who art full of grace, today thou hast graciously enlightened our land with thy godly appearance, and hast sent down the mystical illumination of thy light upon the world, guiding the faithful to the light of heavenly glory, O Theotokos.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

We have become darkened by our thoughts and weighed down by our sins, O Sovereign Lady, and we are at a loss how to confess thy radiant grace and mercy; but illumine us, O most holy Virgin, visit us and make us rich through thy mystical gifts of divine desires, directing us to the light of the right path.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

Go thou before those who, from every direction, hasten to thy most honored icon, O Mother of God, who bow down before it with fervor and call upon thee with faith in every place; and save all from every misfortune, delivering them from cruel infirmities, and driving away evil spirits, imparting tranquility and health unto all, O Sovereign Lady.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

Forsake us not, neither disdain us, O Birthgiver of God, who are cruelly vexed by grievous thoughts, vile memories and the wicked enemy; but enshroud us with thy grace, protecting us from them and helping us, O blessed of God, saving us from all their assaults.

Canon II, Irmos: All creation stands in awe of thy divine glory; * for thou, O Virgin who hast not known wedlock, * didst contain within thy womb the God of all, * and gave birth to the timeless Son, * bestowing peace, upon all who hymn thee.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

In the wilderness, O Mother of God, the reverent man was deemed worthy to behold thee manifestly with the holy hierarch, and he received from thee the words of thy good pleasure, for the great confirmation and furthering of the salvation of the world, O Queen.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

Wretched am I, O all-pure one, and unworthy of the grace to behold thee now; yet grant that I may behold thee in the future, and meet thy Son Who shall come in glory, and hear the divine voice crying in the kingdom of heaven.

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

We flee to thy goodness, O pure Virgin, and direct the eyes of our hearts towards thee; and bending our knees while weeping, we entreat thee; disdain not our sighing, and be thou a protection and helper for us on the day of judgment.

Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Thou art an intercessor for all Christians, O most pure Mother of God. Hearken to our supplication; look upon us, O all-hymned one, save thy city and monastery, and illumine thy flock with the radiance of the grace of thine aid.

Ode VI. Canon I, Irmos: I will pour out my prayer unto the Lord, * and to Him will I proclaim my grief; * for my soul is filled with evils, * and my life unto Hades hath drawn nigh, * and like Jonah I pray unto Thee: * Raise me up from corruption, O God.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

In the most glorious arrival of thine icon, O Queen, the expanse of air and our land hath been filled with the grace of thy miracles and divine gifts, unto the confirmation of piety and of all the faithful, O all-hymned one. Thereby are our adversaries humbled today, and those who glorify thee are made firm in might.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

O city of God, holy habitation, Virgin Bride of God: from the assaults of the adversary and all the attacks of the enemy preserve thy holy dwelling, and all cities and lands where Christians dwell, who hymn thee with love and with faith honor thy most precious image.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

O Mother of God, ever grant sanctification, health and salvation to the souls and bodies of us who piously venerate thy divine icon, reverently and fearfully kissing it with both mouth and heart, faithfully hymning thee with all our soul.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

Having acquired thee as a mighty protection and an unassailable rampart, O Ever– virgin Theotokos, after God it is on thee that we, the faithful, set our hope; and we earnestly pray: by thy power show forth the darts of the enemy and all the wiles of the demons to be as impotent and ineffective as those of children, O our mighty helper.

Canon II, Irmos: Celebrating the divine and solemn feast * of the Mother of God * O ye divinely wise, * let us come, clapping our hands, * and glorify God who was born of her.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

O thy most wondrous miracle, O Sovereign Lady! For disobeying thy command, a man was caught up in horror from the pinnacle of the church, but, by thy mercy, O all-merciful one, he found himself on the ground, unharmed.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

No one hath disobeyed the commands of God as have I, wretch that I am. Wherefore, falling down before thee, I pray, O Sovereign Lady; before I perish utterly, guide me to the path of truth, and save me, O pure one.

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

O Mother of God, who hast given birth unto Him Who endured crucifixion on the tree of the Cross for our sake, ever beseech Him that we who commemorate His holy suffering may do His divine will and become heirs to the eternal good things.

Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

O pure Virgin Sovereign Lady, deliver us from all cruel circumstances, entreating Him Who nailed our sins to the Cross, and grant that we may worthily stand at His right hand when He shall come in His glory.

Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit; now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Kontakion, Tone VIII: O ye people, let us make haste to the Virgin Theotokos and Queen, * giving thanks to Christ our God; * and gazing with compunction upon her miraculous icon, * let us fall down and cry out to her: * O our Sovereign Lady Mary, do thou visit this land in the miraculous appearance of thy precious icon, * save our Orthodox hierarchs and all Christians in peace and prosperity, * showing us to be inheritors of the life of heaven. * For to thee do we cry with faith: ** Rejoice, O Virgin, thou salva- tion of the world!

Ikos: Beholding the most wondrous appearance of the Mother of God, let us ascend to the summit of the virtues and lift our mind up to heaven; for she hath come, traversing the heavens, that she may draw up to the heights those who cry aloud to her saying: Rejoice, O blessed Virgin, chosen by God from among all generations; rejoice, Queen of heaven, Mother of the Lord God, the Creator of all! Rejoice, Object of the angels’ most joyous hymnody; rejoice, sight most desired by all the world! Rejoice, immovable foundation of the Faith of piety; Rejoice, most splendid knowledge of grace; rejoice, goodwill of God towards mankind! Rejoice, thou who hast led mortals to God; rejoice, consolation of our oppressed souls! Rejoice, speedy help for all the faithful; rejoice, intercessor given by God to the Christian people, whom do thou earnestly preserve from all misfortunes and evils, that we may cry out to thee: Rejoice, O Virgin, salvation of the world!

Ode VII. Canon I, Irmos: Once in Babylon the fire stood in awe * of God’s condescension; * for which sake the youths in the furnace, * dancing with joyous steps as in a meadow, chanted: * O God of our fathers, Blessed art Thou!

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

Thine image, O Sovereign Lady, which even the angels revere, ever shineth with ineffable grace and power; for today thou dost illumine mortals with its gifts, guiding them to the heavens, and leading them to everlasting life, in thine ineffable goodness, O thou who art full of grace.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

The mouths of orators are in nowise able to confess thy godly manifestation, the most glorious arrival of thine icon, and the abyss of thy miracles, O pure one. What then shall we, who are coarse, say? Only: have mercy and save us, O all-merciful Lady!

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

O renowned helper of the faithful and bestower. of all good things: accept us who fall down in faith and cry out to thee with love: Have mercy upon us, O Sovereign Lady, have mercy upon us; and today, as in the age to come, be thou our helper and aid!

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

O merciful Mother of God, open unto us today the portals of thy mercy, and snatch us from the jaws of the noetic wolves who would devour us and destroy us utterly. Have mercy, we pray thee, O Lady, have mercy! Turn not away from thy servants who have been put to shame!

Canon II, Irmos: Refusing to worship created things * in place of the Creator, * the divinely wise youths bravely trampled down the threatening fire * and rejoicing they sang aloud: * O supremely hymned Lord and God of our Fathers, Blessed art Thou.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

O the wonder! Thine only-begotten Son, the God of all, preserved thy most pure image unharmed amid the flame, O Mother of God; for it was found, shining with grace more brightly than the sun, illumining the faithful who chant with faith: Blessed art Thou, O God!

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

O Theotokos, the ranks of heaven rejoice with those born on earth on thy splendid festival. With the light of thy radiance, O most pure one, illumine us who celebrate it and who stand with fear before thy most pure image; and save us all.

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

O Queen, thou hast given birth in the flesh to the Word of God, the King of heaven, One of the Trinity. Beseech the Godhead, O Sovereign Lady, that victory be granted to our Orthodox hierarchs over all heresies and schisms; and to all the faithful aid, forgiveness of sins and salvation of soul.

Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

In that thou hast given birth to the Benefactor of all, O pure one, with thy light- giving and divine grace cover thy servants, who hymn thee and pray to thee with unwavering faith; protect and preserve us from all the assaults of the enemy.

Ode VIII. Canon I, Irmos: O Thou who dost cover Thy chambers on high with the waters, * Thou Who hast set the sands to bound the sea * and Who upholdest all things: * the sun doth sing Thy praises, * the moon giveth Thee glory, * every creature offereth a hymn unto Thee, * as their Fashioner, throughout the ages.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

The excellent ranks of heaven piously reverence thy most pure image, and its most wondrous arrival, O all-pure one, which is shown forth as most glorious under the heavens and hath moved the Orthodox people to lift up their voices in hymnody and glorify thy Son as Creator of all, throughout the ages.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

Chanting most glorious hymns today, with devotion we lovingly bow down before thine image, which is revered even by the angels, O Sovereign Lady and Queen. With thy divine grace cover our Orthodox hierarchs, who glorify thee; strengthen them against heresies and schisms, and maintain their authority in peace.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

Rejoice, O all-blessed and all-immaculate one, cause of joy! Rejoice, thou who art full of grace, our might, rampart and refuge of salvation! Save us, thy servants, who have no help than thee before God; for in thee do we trust, and thee do we hymn throughout the ages.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

Thee do we have, with God, as the sole preserver of our life and our mighty hope of salvation. O tenderly compassionate one, we beseech thee to mediate for us until the end, that we may be delivered from the reckoning which is to come, and may find thy Son and God merciful on the day of judgment.

Canon II, Irmos: The Offspring of the Theotokos * saved the holy children in the furnace. * He who was then prefigured hath now been born on earth, * and He gathereth all creation to hymn thee: * all ye works praise ye the Lord * and supremely exalt Him throughout all ages.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

O thy most glorious wonders, O pure one! For the builders of thy holy church, who were buried beneath the stones for three days, were found alive and unharmed, preserved by thy protection; and they sent up cries of praise to thee, the Queen of all.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

Thou gavest life instead of death to one who had died, O Theotokos. Wherefore, O Bride of God, preserve unharmed by the enemy us, who have been slain because of our many sins, and lead us up to the better life, saving our souls.

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

Today all the faithful are filled with joy and gladness because of thine icon, O Theotokos, for thou hast been revealed to be a cause of life for those in the jaws of death, an ever-flowing fountain pouring forth gifts of healing and imparting salvation unto all.

Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

O all-praised one, accept the supplication of the people who have come together from all places, fittingly to hymn the glorious arrival of the most pure image of thee and the Babe Whom thou didst bear, the true God; and fulfill their petitions.

Ode IX. Canon I, Irmos: Heaven was stricken with awe, * and the ends of the earth were filled with amazement, * for God hath appeared in the flesh, * and thy womb was rendered more spacious than the heavens. * Wherefore, the ranks of men and of angels * magnify thee as the Theotokos.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

Thine icon, O Lady, traveling upright a path through the luminous air, and radiantly traversing invisible ways, moved by God, hath illumined with grace on earth the faithful who cry with faith: Truly thou art higher in honor than all others, O pure Virgin!

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

In nowise are we able to fittingly adorn the accounts of thine exalted miracles with rhetoric, O pure Queen; we can only pray fervently to thee, that having entreated thy Son, the Master and King of all, Who hath given thee to us as a most glorious helper, He may deem us worthy of His heavenly kingdom.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

O thou who art full of the grace of God, accept from us this song of hymnody in thanksgiving for thine ineffable tender compassion, fulfilling those of our petitions which are profitable; and lead us all up to the heights of heaven, for we cry out to thee with faith: Truly thou art higher than all, O all-immaculate Virgin!

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

All of us, the generations of mortals, joyously call thee blessed, O Theotokos, for thou hast filled us all with joy by the most glorious arrival of thine icon, O most pure one. And bowing down before it today, we entreat thee with compunction: in the age to come, O Lady, forget not to grant thy servants the joy of the elect!

Canon II, Irmos: Let every mortal born on earth, * radiant with light, in spirit leap for joy; * and let the host of the angelic powers * celebrate and honor the holy feast of the Mother of God, * and let them cry aloud: * Rejoice! O all-blessed Theotokos, * thou pure Ever-Virgin.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

Who doth not marvel at the appearance of thy most precious icon, O Lady; who is not amazed? For thou didst send it, as a light-bearing gift, through the air to the land of Russia, which hymneth thee with joy and magnifieth thee with faith.

Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

O Sovereign Lady, who hast given ineffable joy to the world through the manifestation of thy most pure icon; from every grief deliver those who bow down before it with faith and kiss it with fear. O most holy one, save and have mercy upon all, and grant us the kingdom of heaven.

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

O Sovereign Lady, who hast given birth to God Who is the Lover of mankind, in thy love for us thou hast visited us in thy divine icon; and ever having recourse to it and gazing upon its magnificence, we cry out to thee with compunction: O Theotokos, ever save thine inheritance!

Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

With humble lips have I offered thee this meager hymnody, O most hymned one; but though I am coarse and full of sin, and am unworthy to hymn thee as is meet, yet I trust fervently in thy compassions, in that thou hast given birth to the Savior of the whole world. Disdain this not, O Queen, but accept it and save me.

Troparion, Tone IV: Today thy most precious icon hath shone forth upon us in the air * like the most radiant sun O Lady, * illumining the world with rays of mercy; * and Russia, reverently receiving it from on high as a gift of God, * doth glorify thee O Mother of God as the Sovereign Lady of all, * joyously magnifying Christ our God Who was born of thee. * Him do thou entreat, O Lady, Queen and Theotokos, * that He preserve all cities and lands where Orthodox Christians dwell, * unharmed by all the assaults of the enemy, * saving those who with faith worship before the all-honored image of Him and thee, ** O Virgin who knewest not wedlock.

Parish News – Nativity of St John the Forerunner

Dear brothers and sisters, 

Greetings as we celebrate the Nativity of the Holy Prophet, Forerunner and Baptist, John, the bridge between the old and new covenants, who (after the Mother of God) we hold up as first in honour among the saints.

May we all seek to emulate the Forerunner in being prophets, challenging falsehood and speaking the truth as authoritarianism seeks to silence those courageous enough to speak out against tyranny, in a world in which even standing in silence can now warrant arrest in Britain, whether praying near an abortion clinic, or standing in solidarity with the Palestinian people in the wake of the genocide they face each and every day. 

As more and more Herods sit upon their thrones (or green House of Commons benches) in shameless godlessness and tyranny, the world needs prophetic voices like the Forerunner to call it to realisation and repentance, and as a first step to simply say NO!

We should all honour the Forerunner, as we celebrate his nativity and, if possible, read the canons or an akathist.

Canons in English: https://russianorthodoxchurchcardiff.com/greetings-for-the-nativity-of-st-john-the-forerunner

The Slavonic text me be found here: https://azbyka.ru/days/caa/106

After a quiet few weeks, yesterday was a lively and busy celebration of not only the feast of the Vladimir Icon of Mother of God, but also our annual celebration of the memory of St Calogèro the Hermit, following his feast last week.

Again it was a joy to welcome the Citro family from our London cathedral parish, and Nicolò from Bologna, who just happened to be visiting Cardiff and came to his first Orthodox Liturgy, yesterday of all days. We send our greetings to Father Efraim Augello, painter of our icon of St Calogèro, and matushka Olympiada.

Dio benedica tutti voi e le vostre famiglie!

Thanks to our choir who sang well and laboured much, chanting the moleben as well as the Liturgy. Thanks also to those who fed the faithful!

It was wonderful to have so many confessing and communing, and it made clear why we need two priests, despite the relatively small size of our parish.

This week will see our usual Thursday and Friday services.

Compline and an akathist hymn to the Mother of God will be chanted in Nazareth House on Thursday, and the Akathist Hymn to the Cross in the Oratory on Friday.

I will be happy to hear confessions before and after the services on both days.

We look forward to celebrating the feast of St Peter and St Paul on Saturday, when the Divine Liturgy, and the blessing of bells will be celebrated in Warminster.

Confessions will be heard from 10:00 and the Hours and Liturgy will commence at 10:30, followed by the blessing of the bells in the medieval tower.

We will have our customary bring-and-share lunch after the services, and look forward to breaking the Fast.

Address: Chapel of St Lawrence, High St, Warminster BA12 9AG.

At yesterday’s anointing with oil from the Hawaiian Myrrh-Weeping icon, one of our visitors asked about its significance, which is a good question, given that we take so much for granted in our Orthodox life.

We are greatly blessed that God touches us with His Divine Grace, and not only through the Holy Mysteries, but also through wonderworking icons and the relics of the saints.

We have so many wonderworking icons, particularly of the Mother of God, but very few of them are myrrh-bearing. 

We look forward to the visit of the Kursk-Root icon of the Mother of God in the autumn, and many people will, no doubt ask, what “signs” are manifested by the icon. The simple but wonderful answer is the countless miracles wrought by the Mother of God, century by century.

Some people seem surprised when they are told that there is no sensory surprise when we are visited by the Kursk-Root Icon: no perfume and no exuding myrrh, “just” a continuous outpouring of grace, which is the quiet, steadfast reality of nearly all wonderworking icons.

So… given the usual quieter reality, what IS the meaning of myrrh-weeping icons or, indeed, myrrh-weeping relics, such as those of St Demetrios or St Symeon the Myrrh-Gusher, as well as the myrrh-weeping relics in the holy Kiev-Caves Lavra?

Even before the Church’s equation of oil and mercy, which both come from the same root in Greek, this connection was already established in the Old Testament, as can be seen in the Psalms with their oil-mercy references.

God’s instruction for consecrated oil to be used in anointing as the sign of His Grace, sanctifying power, mercy, and goodness, shows this as part of the sacred-patterns of Faith and His relationship with the Old Israel. 

This understanding was later reflected in the sacramental life of the Church, which experiences the manifest reality of God’s Grace and power by the operation of the Holy Spirit through the elements of creation: in the waters of baptism, the myron of chrismation, the transformation of bread and wine into the Saviour’s Body and Blood.

Additionally God touches us through the sanctity of holy places, through the relics of the saints and through miraculous icons, and just as He manifests His mercy and grace through the various anointings in the life of the Church, so He likewise manifests this same mercy and grace through the miraculous gift of myrrh.

The myrrh which weeps from icons and relics of the saints is sometimes a sign of God’s Grace in specific  times of need, trial and sorrow: a sign of God’s mercy and love to encourage and strengthen us, showing us that He is glorified not only in the lives of His saints, but even in their sacred relics in which the Grace of the Holy Spirit still abides, or from their sacred icons, through which a connection and communion is established between the faithful and God’s saints.

Those of us who have witnessed such miraculous blessings, with our eyes and our noses, simply know that God continues to console and heal us, banishing sickness and making the seemingly-impossible possible through the anointing of myrrh from holy icons and sacred relics, and the Grace received in this Divine gift.

Glory to God!

Finally, I would like us all to reflect upon the fact that despite our present lack of vigil services, the evening before receiving Holy Communion should be spent prayerfully. The Church’s expectation is that those communing will have been to the service the evening before communion and will have been in Church from the beginning of the Hours before Liturgy has even started.

Not only does this banish the question, “How late can I arrive in Liturgy and still commune?” but also challenges our pre-communion routines. As we have no possibility of celebrating the vigil, it is incumbent on us all to find a spiritual way to spend evenings before Communion.

In our own icon corners we can ALL pray the canons and prayers before communion, but just as importantly, we can all pray compline or the Rule of the 12 Psalms, read the Psalms, pray akathist hymns, or simply say the Jesus Prayer.

Some of the faithful, of course, have no choice but to be at work. That’s both understandable and different.

Whatever we may be able to do, we need to be clear that for those receiving Holy Communion, the previous evening is NOT an evening for the pub, gaming, the cinema, social entertainments or gatherings, sitting in front of the computer, mobile phone or television: it is a time for withdrawal, preparation and prayer!

If this is a challenge, then people need to commune less often, and with far greater prayer, care and spiritual focus.

Holy Communion must never become part of a regular routine, but must always be a pilgrimage to the Gate of Heaven, which is the place where we stand before the chalice and meet the Saviour in the Mysteries if His True Body and Blood. Our attitude must be like Moses, standing with bared feet before God’s Presence in the Burning Bush:

“For our God is a consuming Fire, and they, therefore, who with faith and fear draw near to the God and King and Judge of us all, shall burn and scorch their sins; and It shall enlighten and sanctify their souls. But It shall burn and scorch with shame, the souls and bodies of them that draw near with unbelief.”

(St John Chrysostom)

Pray for Alexander presently in Georgia, for Natalia as she visits family in Ukraine, and for Svetlana, Richard, Anna and Sophia on their forthcoming Belarussian and Russian travels.

May God bless you all.

In Christ – Hieromonk MarK

Parish News – Sunday of All Saints of the British Isles

Dear brothers and sisters, having written the news email, I’m afraid that I’ve somehow wiped it from my draft documents, and apologise for the lateness of this rewritten post.

After Thursday and Friday memorial services for the departed servants of God, Nikolai and Lyudmila, Saturday saw our pilgrimage to Bournville’s church of St Lazar to mark the feast of St Vitus and the martyrdom of St Lazar and his Christian Serbian warriors by the Ottomans at the battle of Kosovo Polje.

We were greatly blessed to be able to venerate the relics of both St Lazar and St Vitus, and once more extend our thanks to Fr Nenad and his community.

Thanks to those who contributed to Sunday’s Liturgy and trapéza.

It was good to welcome parishioners back from their travels, as well as new and recent worshippers.

Having travelled to Wessex, I gave a talk on the senses in Orthodox worship in the minster church of St Denys in Warminster yesterday evening, and was happy to have some parishioners join me.

Our next celebration in Warminster will be on Saturday 12 July, and after our Liturgy for the feast of St Peter and St Paul, I will consecrate the bells in the restored medieval tower of the Chapel of St Lawrence. It will be something of a rare occasion and a real joy to perform the rite of the “baptism” of the bells, with their intended dedications to Saint Alfred the King, St Aldhelm and St Birinus.

We very much hope that parishioners  from Cardiff and its environs will join us.

This Thursday will see a return to Nazareth House for our evening akathist at 18:00, with the opportunity for confessions before and after the service.

Friday afternoon’s Oratory service will be at 15:00, with confessions afterwards.
Next Sunday, following Liturgy, there will be a litia to St Calogèro the Hermit, whose icon was sent as a gift from Sicily whilst we were in Newman Hall.

His feast falls today according to the patristic calendar, but since receiving the gift of his icon, we have honoured his memory on the Sunday after his feast.

Venerable Father, Calogèro, pray to God for us!

Of your charity we ask your prayers for Matrona (unwell), for Nathalie (currently homeless due to a fire), Porphyrios’s sick father, Paul (non-O), for Anastasia (travelling), for the newly departed Valery, and for the departed Vladimir and Vladimir, whose anniversaries fall at this time.

We also ask your prayers for the newly ordained priest, Razvan, who was a friend of our parish during our sojourn in Newman Hall. Axios! Many years!

Asking your forgiveness for Christ’s sake.

May God bless you.

Hieromonk Mark

Parish News – All Saints of Rus

Dear brothers and sisters,

Having celebrated Pentecost and the memory of All Saints who have been glorified by God for their holy lives, as living temples of the Holy Spirit, it is a blessing for us to have continued our celebration of holiness with the celebration of All  Saints who shone forth in the lands of Rus.

Looking upon the icon of the feast, we see men, women and children of all ages, all strata of society, and of different ethnic and cultural groups of the ancient Rus lands and the later empire.

Martyrs, holy fools, venerable monks and nuns, hierarchs, confessors, royal saints, princes, nobles, and righteous lay people all bear witness to different paths to holiness, and the diverse gifts of the Holy Spirit manifested in those obedient to Christ in spiritual labours.

It was a very great joy for us to baptise Adam and Juliana (Serwa) on Friday evening, before their first Liturgy participating in the worship of the Church as newly-baptised Christians, and partaking of the Holy Mysteries. We congratulate them both and wish them many, blessed years of life in Christ, into Whose death and resurrection they were initiated in their baptismal burial and arising.

Yesterday was blessed with the visit of the Cardiff clergy and several sisters to Cheltenham for our June Liturgy in Prestbury, where our celebration honoured the Yaroslavl icon of the Mother of God. Our next visit will be on Saturday 19 July.

Thanks to all who contributed to our Cardiff Sunday Liturgy, at which it was good have Llanelli parishioners and welcome old friends. 

May we make the important request that those who start doing jobs actually finish what they are doing, especially in the kitchen, which is constantly left in a messy state that others have to then rectify? We greatly appreciate help, but half completed jobs simply create stress for others, especially when it is presumed that tasks have been completed, and we discover – at the last minute – that this is not the case.

I think we unfortunately need to repeat that whilst everyone is keen to eat at trapéza, few people contribute to our shared lunch, putting pressure on those who constantly bring food week by week. This is meant to be a “bring-and-share” lunch. The clue is in the name.

This week is affected by events in Nazareth House and the Oratory, with no possibility of our usual Thursday evening service in Cathays or Friday service in St Alban’s.

However, we will chant a memorial service for Lyudmila, Valery and our other faithful departed in the Oratory on Thursday afternoon at 15:00, after which I will hear confessions.

A group of us is looking forward to visiting Lazarica on Saturday. Though Vidovdan, the feast of St Vitus and the battle of Kosovo will principally be celebrated the following day, Saturday is actually the calendric feast and our visit allows us to be in our own parish on Sunday. Liturgy commences at 09:00.

We will celebrate the Sunday of All Saints of the British Isles next weekend, honouring the saints who have sanctified our islands since the Roman Empire reached to England and Wales.

As well as asking your continued prayers for the newly departed Lyudmila and Valery, please pray for our oltarnik, Panagiotis, who flies to Greece on Tuesday, for McKenna as her pregnancy gathers pace and for dad-to-be Joe, for our cathedral friend Nathalie after the fire which has left her homeless, and for our newly baptised young people, Adam, Juliana (Serwa) and Macarius (Chris).

Wendy, who is the St Philip’s equivalent of Branka, is keen for local parishioners to know that they are very welcome to the coffee morning at St Philip’s each Wednesday from 09:00 to 11:00. 

Finally, can we all please ensure that no parking obstructs residents’ drive-ways on Sundays? 

Asking your forgiveness for Christ’s sake.

May God bless you.

Hieromonk Mark

Prayers needed for the Monastery of St Catherine

Given the Egyptian government threats against the ancient Monastery of St Catherine on Sinai and its brotherhood, Archbishop Damianos and the monks need our prayers!

Canon to the Great Martyr Catherine, the acrostic whereof is: “With hymns do I hymn the ever-memorable Catherine,” by Theophanes, in Tone VIII

Irmos, Ode I: The wonderworking staff of Moses, * striking and dividing the sea in the figure of a cross, * once drowned Pharaoh the pursuing charioteer, * while it saved the fleeing people of Israel * as they fled on foot, * chanting a hymn unto God.

Holy Great-Martyr, Catherine, pray to God for us.

Let us hasten today, honoring the Theotokos with hymns, and let us celebrate a spiritual feast; for she is offered as a gift to God in the temple.

Holy Great-Martyr, Catherine, pray to God for us.

By the prayers of the all-wise martyr Catherine, O Christ, enlighten Thou the darkened eye of my soul, granting me a ray of thy splendor, O Master, which destroyeth all the gloom of my soul-destroying falls.

Holy Great-Martyr, Catherine, pray to God for us.

O all-wise one, guided by the divine commandments of the Master and consumed with love for Him, thou didst hasten to thy struggles rendering the tormentors awestruck with thy knowledge, discourse, wisdom and grace.

Holy Great-Martyr, Catherine, pray to God for us.

Directed by the mighty hand of Christ, thou didst escape the tempests of idolatry, O martyr, voyaging dryshod with the sail of the Cross and the divine winds of the Spirit, chanting a hymn unto God.

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

Rejoicing in the beauties of virginity, O wise Catherine, and possessed of divine knowledge from heaven, thou didst right boldly and courageously put to shame the proponents of false knowledge, mightily vanquishing them.

Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

O most pure one, he Who proclaimeth thee to be the Theotokos doth reject every heresy; for thou hast given birth unto the ever-existing Word of God, Who immutably assumed flesh, O Birthgiver of God, who art more exalted than all creation.

Irmos, Ode III: O Christ fortify me on the rock of Thy commandments, * Thou who in the beginning didst establish the heavens with understanding * and didst establish the earth upon the waters, * for there is none holy save Thee, O only Lover of mankind.

Holy Great-Martyr, Catherine, pray to God for us.

Striving voluntarily of thine own will, thou didst go to thy suffering, emulating Christ; and, having radiantly vanquished myriads of the princes of this world, thou wast revealed to be crucified, O God-pleasing Catherine.

Holy Great-Martyr, Catherine, pray to God for us.

With strength of mind didst thou denounce the tormentors, who were overwhelmed in the abyss of godlessness, O all-praised martyr, plainly expounding the dogmas of the knowledge of God, illumined with the wisdom of God.

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

He who whispered thoughts of equality with God into the ears of Eve is now trod underfoot by a young maiden; for, defended with the sword of the Cross, the martyr Catherine hath put him to shame, immeasurably glorying over him.

Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

O Birthgiver of God, who alone art most pure, raise up my morbid mind through the activity of the Life Who, from thee, manifested Himself to the world, cleansing the wounds and stripes of my sins.

Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.

Sessional Hymn of the Great Martyr Catherine, in Tone IV, Spec. Mel.: “Having been lifted up on the Cross …”: Thou didst love Christ thy Bridegroom, radiantly trimming thy lamp and shining forth with virtue, O glorious one. Wherefore, with Him thou hast entered into the bridal chamber, receiving a crown of suffering from Him. From misfortunes do thou deliver us who keep thy memory, O Catherine.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit; now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Repeat hymn.

Ode IV, Irmos: Thou, O Lord, art my strength and Thou art my power, * Thou art my God and Thou art my joy, * Thou Who, while never leaving the bosom of Thy Father, * hast visited our poverty. * Therefore with the Prophet Habbakuk I cry unto Thee, * ‘Glory to Thy power, O Lover of mankind!’

Holy Great-Martyr, Catherine, pray to God for us.

O ever-memorable martyr Catherine, showing the determination of a spiritual athlete, with great endurance thou didst set thyself against the hostile one, trampling him beneath thy beautiful feet by the power of the Cross, O passion-bearer, thou boast of the martyrs.

Holy Great-Martyr, Catherine, pray to God for us.

O all-blessed Catherine, bride of Christ, thou art luminous with the radiant beams of divine beauty, splendid in comeliness. Wherefore, in gladness dost thou chant unto the Master: Glory to Thy power, O Lover of mankind!

Holy Great-Martyr, Catherine, pray to God for us.

Thou didst set at naught the audacity of the tyrant by the godly discourse of thy wisdom, for thou didst rescue from the abyss of the false worship of demons those who were deceived thereby, teaching them to cry aloud to Christ in hymns: Glory to Thy power, O Lover of mankind!

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

O all-praised one, who hast mightily trampled down the audacity of the enemy, the right glorious and splendid festival of thy memory hath dawned like the sun, and thereon we cry aloud to the Master: Glory to Thy power, O Lover of mankind!

Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

The might of those who reject the veneration of the icons of thee, O pure Maiden, and of Him who, in a manner surpassing understanding, was incarnate of thee and enlightened the whole world, and of all the saints, hath now been cast down. Enlighten those who honor thee with faith, O thou who alone art all-hymned.

Ode V, Irmos: O Light never-waning, * why hast Thou turned Thy face from me * and why hath the alien darkness surrounded me, * wretched though I be? * But do Thou guide my steps I implore Thee * and turn me back towards the light of Thy commandments.

Holy Great-Martyr, Catherine, pray to God for us.

Aflame with the fire of love for thy Master, O all-glorious martyr, and seeking to behold His incomprehensible beauty, thou didst willingly give thyself over to wounds, radiant with the graces of virginity.

Holy Great-Martyr, Catherine, pray to God for us.

Having splendidly adorned thyself with most-sacred sufferings, O good virgin maiden, thou didst ascend to the heavenly bridal chamber of Christ, and hast now been radiantly joined to thy Bridegroom in gladness, O all-blessed one.

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

Thou wast revealed to be an all-radiant maiden who having loved Him Whom thou didst desire, and having followed in His steps by finishing a most difficult struggle, cried aloud unto Him as the fragrance of thy noetic myrrh: I have come, O my Bridegroom!

Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Knowing thee to be the true Theotokos, and knowing the Word of God Who was born from thee, O most pure Lady, we all preach Him Who is known in two independent natures and wills, O Mother and Bride of God.

Ode VI, Irmos: The abyss of my sins and the storm of my transgressions * disquieten me and thrust me down * into the depths of despondency; * but do Thou stretch forth Thy mighty arm, * unto me as Thou didst to Peter, * and save me, O my Guide.

Holy Great-Martyr, Catherine, pray to God for us.

The good and most pure Word, beholding thee all resplendent in the radiance and beauty of virginity and empurpled in the blood of thy martyrdom, O maiden, brought thee to dwell in the mansions of heaven.

Holy Great-Martyr, Catherine, pray to God for us.

By the Cross thou didst do away with the dominion of the tyrants, denouncing the vanity of earthly wisdom and pouring forth dogmas of divinely inspired teaching, O most wise and ever-memorable Catherine.

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

Mightily enduring the pain of thy wounds, O all-glorious martyr, thou didst cast down to the ground him who of old drove Adam from the sweetness of paradise through deceit, and thou hast been crowned with the crowns of the kingdom.

Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

By thy prayers, O Mother, Virgin Theotokos, make thy Son and our Judge, Who doth deliver us from evil circumstances, to be merciful unto me on the day of Judgment, for in thee alone do I place my trust.

Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit; now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Kontakion of the Great Martyr Catherine, in Tone II, Spec. Mel. “Seeking the highest…”: O ye who love the martyrs, * raise up an honored chorus in a most godly manner, * honoring the all-wise Catherine; * for in the arena she preached Christ and trod upon the serpent, ** trampling down the knowledge of the rhetors.

Ikos: Having received the wisdom of God from childhood, O martyr, thou didst also master well all external wisdom; and learning therefrom the movement of the elements and creation through discourse and Him that by His word fashioned them in the beginning, day and night didst thou render thanksgiving unto Him, setting at naught idols and those who worship them, putting down the knowledge of the rhetors.

Ode VII, Irmos: Once in Babylon the fire stood in awe * of God’s condescension; * for which sake the youths in the furnace, * dancing with joyous steps as in a meadow, chanted: * O God of our fathers, Blessed art Thou!

Holy Great-Martyr, Catherine, pray to God for us.

Thou art the boast of martyrs and a teacher of piety, leading a multitude of martyrs unto Christ, thy radiant Bridegroom. And with them dost thou cry aloud, O all-praised one, chanting: O God of our fathers, Blessed art Thou!

Holy Great-Martyr, Catherine, pray to God for us.

Thy most wise discourse brought many out of the madness of idolatry unto salvation, and thou didst show them forth as all-radiant martyrs, who cry aloud with thee: O God of our fathers, Blessed art Thou!

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

Following in Thy footsteps, the maiden was brought to Thee beheaded by the sword, emulating Thy most pure Passion, crying aloud unto Thee, our Creator, and saying: O God of our fathers, Blessed art Thou!

Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

The Holy of Holies dwelt within thee in a hallowed manner, O pure Virgin Theotokos, and He became incarnate from thee to save those who cry out in faith: O God of our fathers, Blessed art Thou!

Ode VIII, Irmos: In his wrath the Chaldean Tyrant made the furnace blaze, * with heat fanned sevenfold for the servants of God; * but when he perceived that they had been saved by a greater power * he cried aloud to the Creator and Redeemer; * ‘ye children bless, ye priests praise, * ye people, supremely exalt Him throughout all ages’.

Holy Great-Martyr, Catherine, pray to God for us.

The empress, converted by thy teachings, advanced in piety and, mightily enduring the infliction of pain, was clearly deemed worthy of the everlasting kingdom of heaven, crying out to the Master: Ye priests bless; ye people exalt supremely Christ throughout all ages!

Holy Great-Martyr, Catherine, pray to God for us.

Let the entreaties of the faithful be entrusted to the martyrs, for the passion-bearer doth stand before Christ, asking that which is best for all and mediating salvation for those who earnestly celebrate her most holy and honored memory and faithfully cry aloud: Ye people supremely exalt Christ throughout all ages!

Holy Great-Martyr, Catherine, pray to God for us.

Opening wide the gateways of paradise, the Bridegroom doth receive thee, O all-wise one; and hath made thee a most radiant dwelling place, revealing thee to be one who shares in His kingdom and His suffering. And, standing now before Him, splendidly adorned, O daughter of the King, forget us not.

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

The tyrant tempted thee with alluring words; the cruel one sought to deceive thee with persuasions, hoping thereby to weaken thy resolve, O glorious one; but, wishing to betroth thyself to Christ, thou didst cry out to the Master: Ye priests hymn; ye people, supremely exalt Christ throughout the ages!

Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

O all-immaculate Theotokos, thou art more sacred than the supranatural ranks of angels, for from thy virginal womb, which kneweth not wedlock, thou hast given birth unto their Creator and Lord in two natures, unconfused and immutable, God incarnate in a single hypostasis.

Ode IX, Irmos: Heaven was stricken with awe, * and the ends of the earth were filled with amazement, * for God hath appeared in the flesh, * and thy womb was rendered more spacious than the heavens. * Wherefore, the ranks of men and of angels * magnify thee as the Theotokos.

Holy Great-Martyr, Catherine, pray to God for us.

Adorned with bridal ornaments, thou hast passed on to the splendid bridal chambers, holding the lamp of virginity in thy right hand and thy severed head in the other. And now, standing before Christ, thy Bridegroom, preserve thou those who hymn thee.

Holy Great-Martyr, Catherine, pray to God for us.

Thy prayer was accepted, O divinely wise one, for the Master doth save from temptations those who call upon thy name with faith, O honored one, bestowing health upon them, and delivering them from divers spiritual and bodily ailments. Wherefore, in gladness we bless thee, O Catherine.

Holy Great-Martyr, Catherine, pray to God for us.

Thou hast now attained unto the calm harbor, O martyr, having easily sailed over this world’s sea of threefold waves, and in good order, without succumbing to temptation, O all-wise virgin; bringing an offering of varied riches unto Christ, a multitude of martyrs, O all-blessed Catherine.

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

Joining chorus now with the choirs of virgins within the bridal chambers of heaven, and illumined with rays of thy sufferings, O all-wise Catherine, thou hast loosed the bonds of my falls, earnestly entreating the Benefactor of all, for Whom thou didst shed thy blood.

Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Thou hast been revealed, O Virgin Mother of God, to have given birth in the body, in a manner transcending nature, to the good Word, Whom the Father brought forth from His own heart before all ages, in that He is good, and Whom we now know to be more exalted than all bodies, even though clad in a body Himself.

Troparion of the Great Martyr Catherine, in Tone IV: Thy ewe-lamb Catherine O Jesus, crieth out with a loud voice: * “Thee do I love, O my Bridegroom, * and, seeking Thee, I endure suffering. * in Thy baptism I am crucified and buried with Thee. * I suffer for Thy sake, that I may reign with Thee; * I die for Thee, that I may live with Thee. * Accept me, who with love sacrifice myself for Thee, * as an unblemished offering!” ** By her supplications save Thou our souls, O most merciful One.

Sunday of All Saints – Parish News

Dear brothers and sisters, after our Thursday and Friday services in Nazareth House and the Oratory, this weekend has been something of a whirlwind with our Warminster Liturgy, Wessex barbecue and today’s celebration of the Sunday of All Saints.

Having South Wales parishioners joining their brothers and sisters beyond the Bridge was wonderful, with reinforcements for the barbecue in the afternoon.

Having unrushed, relaxed, quality time together is so important, and even huddling together under the gazebo around Branka’s cooking pot during the rain showers was a time of fellowship, and conversation… and even entertainment, when the natural performers of the parish broke into enthusiastic, operatic song!

It is very important that we make an effort to connect with wider ROCOR life, particularly in our thinly spread presence on this western side of the mainland, as well as having a connection to our cathedral.

When we next celebrate in Warminster, it will be the feast of the Holy Apostles, Peter and Paul, on 12 July, and after our festal Liturgy, we will celebrate the solemn blessing (baptism) of the bells in the medieval tower of the chapel, anointing them in their consecration and naming them for the Holy and Right-Believing King Alfred, St Aldhelm and St Birinus.

This will be a rare and special occasion, and we are delighted to be asked to do so by the feoffees of the chapel, which is a “peculiar” outside the jurisdiction of the Anglican diocese, and a sanctuary in which our spiritual place is highly valued and in which we have a welcome degree of autonomy.

I very much hope that a few pilgrims might make their way from Cardiff to Warminster for this occasion.

With students away, parishioners on holiday, Wessex parishioners attending the Ukrainian parish Liturgy near Bristol, and Fathers’ Day, we were a little thin on numbers today, but celebrated the Sunday of All Saints in Cardiff with joy and enthusiasm.

We were happy to welcome back recent acquaintances and have first time visitors, whom we hope to see again soon.

Being the ninth day after the repose of Hierodeacon Avraamy’s father, Valery, we celebrated a litia, also praying for Lyudmila, Leonid, Alexey, and Irina, and for the departed kinsfolk of our parishioners.

In the week ahead, we will have our usual compline with akathist and confessions in Nazareth House at 18:00 on Thursday, and will chant the akathist to the Precious and Life-Giving Cross in the Oratory on Friday at 15:00, with confessions being heard after the service.

Later on Friday, Adam and Serwa’s baptism will be at 19:00 in St Philip’s, and I hope that local parishioners will be able to support our young people on this special day.

As announced on WhatsApp, Saturday will see our Cheltenham Liturgy, celebrated in Prestbury United Reformed Church, Deep St, Cheltenham GA52 3AN. 

The Hours and Liturgy begin at 10:00 and we will celebrate the feast of the Yaroslavskaya Icon of the Mother of God, with our usual bring-and-share lunch after the service.

I am happy to hear that some of our Cardiff sisters are looking forward to this, and hope that a few more people may be inspired to venture to visit our lovely little Gloucestershire community.

The following Saturday (28 June) is St Vitus day, and the solemn commemoration of the battle of Kosovo and the Holy Great-Martyr, St Lazar. A number of us will make the journey to Lazarica, in Bournville for the Divine Liturgy at 09:00.

Next week’s Liturgy will mark the Sunday of All Saints of the Lands of Rus’, and the variables for Liturgy can be found at:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ndLMA9dYyv0B-Vu2WPa3aD1rIMYVDjyM/view

The Apostles’ Fast begins in the morning, lasting until Saturday 12 June (Warminster Liturgy).

Calendars vary slightly regarding the allowance of fish according to local customs, and we should simply stick to the calendar we usually use, and not chop and change to reap the benefits of more generous allowances!

We should ALL try to do something extra in our prayers and spiritual reading during the Fast – perhaps reading a kathisma of the Psalter each day; reading from the Spiritual Psalter of St Ephraim the Syrian; reading the sayings of the desert father; trying to pray an akathist or canon to our name saint each day… and we can help you find this; or reading the appointed supplicatory canon to the Mother of God each evening. We should have a book for spiritual reading, and read every day.

Whatever we do, the days of the fast should NOT simply be like any other day. They should be days of extra prayer, spiritual struggle and devotion, consecrated and made holy to the Lord.

It may not be Great Lent, but it is, nevertheless, a God-given period of fasting and preparation, shaped by the guidance of the Holy Spirit in the life of the Church. So… Let us attend!

Asking your forgiveness, for Christ’s sake, and praying that you have a blessed and holy fast.

In Christ  – Hieromonk Mark

Adapted Confession of St Dimitri of Rostov

As our young people approach baptism, this is a time of learning about the mystery of repentance, and the Orthodox approach to confession.

We have examples of confessions left to us by different saints, and below is an adaptation from St Dimitri of Rostov.

We have probably shared this before, but gladly do so again, hoping that this will be of value to our parishioners in their preparation for confession.

I confess to the Lord my God and before you, venerable father, all my countless sins, committed by me unto this very day and hour, in deed, word, and thought.

I sin daily and hourly by my lack of gratitude toward God for His great and countless blessings and His constant watchfulness over me.

I have sinned through: idle talking, making fun of others, telling inappropriate jokes or laughing at those of others, speaking irreverently, cursing, swearing, slandering others, gossiping, and all other worthless speech.

I have overeaten, drunk too much, or have dwelt immoderately upon food or drink in my thoughts.

I have been proud, judged and criticised others, been stubborn, hardhearted, vainglorious, self-willed and disobedient. I have excused my sins while magnifying the sins of others, been ambitious, and thought too highly of myself.

I have sinned through anger, arguing with others (in my thoughts, on the internet, and in person), being contentious, irritable, impatient, quicker to speak than to listen, and remembering wrongs committed against myself or others.

I have sinned through lustful and impure thoughts, motivations, desires, glances, words, speech, and actions. (One may add any other related sin here)

I have envied others, greedily desired that which God has not given me, and lacked faith in God’s providential care for me.

I have been inattentive, indifferent, careless, rendered evil for evil, been embittered, light minded – not taking seriously the spiritual warfare that constantly surrounds me; I have tempted others and been dishonest.

I have allowed despondency to plague me, having negative or hopeless thoughts. I have doubted the love of God for me. I have thought or said inappropriate or blasphemous things about God, His Mother, the saints, or those within the Church.

I have been absent from divine services because of laziness and carelessness, absent- minded at prayer both in church and at home. I have skipped my prayer rule and the reading of Scriptures for dishonourable reasons. I have been lazy or procrastinated, not doing the work allotted for the day.

My merciful Lord, I have sinned in deed, word, and thought; in sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch and the rest of my mental and physical senses; of all my sins I repent and beg forgiveness.

(One should mention specifically any other sins, or elaborate on one of the sins above, if there is something burdening the soul.)

I also repent and ask forgiveness for all those sins that I have not confessed because of their multitude and my forgetfulness.

Forgive and absolve me, venerable father, and bless me to commune of the holy and life- creating Mysteries of Christ unto the remission of sins and life everlasting.

Source: https://www.orthodoxroad.com/confession-history-how-to-and-faq/

Pentecost Parish News

Dear brothers and sisters, greetings for the feast of Pentecost, following our Sunday celebration of Troitsa, for which we thank all who contributed do generously: our oltarniky, including Denys on his first Sunday in the oltar; our devoted singers; and our sisters who worked so hard to ptovide flowers and greenery, especially posies for everyone to hold during vespers for the Day of the Holy Spirit.

The celebration was a blessing not only for us as the people of God, but also for St Philip’s, where must oray for God’s grace and heavenly blessing to permeate its very walls, as stark and bare as they are.

We additionally offered a litia for Father Avraamy’s newly departed father, Valery, and given the stranglehold of the Phanariote-schismatics in Dnipro, and the impossibility of an Orthodox funeral, we will chant the funeral service in Father Luke’s garden chapel tomorrow at 18:00. Please keep the soul of Valery, together with the newly departed Leonid, Lyudmila and Irina in your prayers. Eternal Memory!

This week is, of course, a fast free week, before we begin the Apostles’ Fast, which will last from next Monday (16 June) until the feast of Saints Peter and Paul, which will be celebrated in Warminster on Saturday 12 July (New Style).

As announced, this coming Saturday will not only see our Warminster Liturgy, in the Chapel of St Lawrence, but also our Wessex barbecue at 15:00.

Sunday will see the third session of chanting/voice tuition, given at 4pm in the Catholic Church Hall in Chipping Sodbury. Please contact Masha for further details.

On Friday 20 June, our catechumens Adam and Serwa will be baptised in St Philip’s at 19:00 in the evening, and I hope the faithful who live locally will support them in this great moment in their spiritual lives.

Saturday 21 June will be marked by our clergy visit to Gloucestershire, and our monthly Cheltenham Liturgy in Prestbury United Reformed Church, beginning with the Hours at 10:00.

Our Wessex evening of prayers and Christian fellowship will be at Frankleigh House on Monday 23 June, and I will give a talk on the rôle of the senses in Orthodox worship in the minster church of St Denys, in Warminster, on Monday 30 June.

Saturday 28 June is the feast of St Vitus, Vidovdan, and the anniversary of the Battle of Kosovo Polje, and group of us will make a pilgrimage to Lazarica to honour St Lazar and his martyred Orthodox Christian warriors on this solemn and holy feast. Liturgy will commence at 09:00.

Looking further ahead, our cathedral will celebrate its lower altar-feast on 17 July, which is also the first anniversary of Father Mark’s priestly ordination, and we very much hope that parishioners will be able to join us in travelling to Chiswick to share in the feast.

Looking forward to next Sunday, given that our Liturgy now finishes two hours before it did in St John’s, Father Mark and I have discussed the issue of trapéza. 

As we now finish in the morning, rather than the early afternoon, we feel that we should ordinarily stick to breaking our fast with a cup of tea or coffee and simple finger food, as we did last week. Provision of food has continued to fall to too few people and has placed pressure on too few sisters. We can now be home in time for lunch, so we should keep things simple, and save more substantial hot food for feastdays.

As we continue to celebrate Pentecost, I very much encourage you to pray the Canon to the Holy Spirit, by the Venerable Theophanes:

English: https://russianorthodoxchurchcardiff.com/a-canon-to-the-holy-spirit-by-theophanes

Slavonic: https://azbyka.ru/molitvoslov/kanon-svjatomu-duhu.html

Asking your forgiveness, for Christ’s sake.

May God bless you.

Hieromonk Mark

On the Feast of Pentecost

O Divine Holy Spirit, Who distributest gifts unto all men and doest all things by Thy will, inspire me with Thy luminous gift, that I may glorify Thee Who art one with the Father and the Son. 

(Ode 1: the Canon to the Holy Spirit, by Theophanes)

Dear brothers and sisters, knowing that not all parishioners were able to be with us for Pentecost-Trinity, we send our greetings for this wonderful, salvific feast to our brothers and sisters wherever they are: to our students away for vacation; to parishioners on holiday with families; to those struggling under the pressure of work or studies; to those who are unwell.

We particularly pray for the newly-baptised, Macarius, and his baptismal companions who entered the holy font a little over a week ago, and for our catechumens who will soon receive Illumination.

On this Great Feast, we celebrate the sending of the Holy Spirit, not simply as a foundational, historic event in the life of the Church, but as the continuing gift of God’s Grace and Divine Power, ever-outpoured and ever-giving: in the transformative cleansing of Holy Baptism, as our catechumens are born again, through water and the Spirit; in the restorative Grace of confession trough the Mystery of Repentance; in the consecrating Divine Grace through which bread and wine become the Very Body and Blood of the Saviour, Who promised us the Comforter at His Ascension; in the Grace with which God blesses us in prayer and liturgy, in which come together to worship Him, in Spirit and in Truth.

The Church is the House which Wisdom, our Lord and Saviour, built, not only for Himself, but to the glory of His Unoriginate Father, and as the Temple of the Holy, Good, Life-Giving and Uncreated Spirit: the Temple in which the Comforter dwells, shining through the lives of the saints; revealing eternal Truth as the authoritative Voice of the Church; speaking through the holy and God-bearing fathers and Seven Ecumenical Councils; protecting and preserving the Church and her children through the holy canons and God-revealed wholeness of sacred Tradition, which is the abiding sign of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in the life of the Church, from century to century, and from generation to generation.

Our beloved father, St Seraphim of Sarov, teaches us that the acquisition of the Holy Spirit, is the central and essential meaning of our Christian life, and as we celebrate this feast of the Trinity and the Sending of the Comforter, each of us is called to actively seek the life of the Holy Spirit in both the life of the Church and our individual lives, by active engagement, involvement and spiritual-labour.

Our personal pursuit of the Holy Spirit is a life ceaselessly seeking Divine Grace, in tireless, continual labour and spiritual activity – by prayer, fasting and noetic struggle.

We cannot pray, “Come and dwell in us, cleanse us of every impurity, and save our souls, O Good One…” unless we struggle to unite and align our weak and fragile human will with God’s Will, so that through His promised Comforter, we may be bandaged, healed and made whole.

For this process of healing and restoration, we must each be active in seeking the power of the Holy Spirit; active in living the Christian life; active in trying to sweep out the filth and detritus of our fallen lives, as we try to make ourselves dwellings and vessels worthy of the Holy Spirit.

But, in these life-giving days of Pentecost, let us be active in pursuing the power and life of the Holy Spirit not simply for ourselves, but for the life, healing and salvation of the world.

Let us immerse ourselves in continual, persistent, humble and repentant prayer, praying the canons and akathist to the Holy Spirit, calling and longing for the sanctifying power of the Comforter to purify us and restore the Divine Image and Likeness in which we created, heeding St Seraphim’s words, “… every good deed done for Christ’s sake gives us the grace of the Holy Spirit, but prayer gives us this grace most of all, for it is always at hand, as an instrument for acquiring the grace of the Spirit.”

Let us understand Pentecost as the continuing indwelling of the Comforter, day by day, week by week, year by year, only possible through conscious, deliberate, determined searching, seeking and labour, if the Holy Spirit is to be an abiding and continued presence in our lives, and let us weigh and ponder every word and phrase of the invocation with which we once more begin our prayers:

O Heavenly King, Comforter, Spirit of Truth, Who art everywhere present and fillest all things, Treasury of good things and Giver of life: Come and dwell in us, and cleanse us of all impurity, and save our souls, O Good One.

In the days ahead, let us continually return to this prayer, with compunction, concentration, and with awe at that as vessels of clay, the Saviour nevertheless vouchsafes us the seal, gift and indwelling of the Holy Spirit, with Whom He and the Father dwells in unoriginate and everlasting glory.

The Canon to Saints Constantine and Helena

Dear brothers and sisters – on this day on which we celebrate the Meeting of the Vladimir Icon, we also celebrate the Holy Equals to the Apostles Constantine and Helena.

Though we have a lack of Constantine’s, we greet our sisters baptised in honour of the Holy Empress Helena, congratulating them, asking God’s blessing and praying that he will preserve them for many years!

Многая и Благая лѣта!

Canon of the saints, Tone VIII.

Ode I, Irmos: Having passed through the water as upon dry land, * and having escaped the malice of the Egyptians, * the Israelites cried aloud: * Unto our God and Redeemer let us sing.

Holy Equals to the Apostles, Constantine and Helena, pray to God for us.

O Thou Who alone art the King of heaven, through the entreaties of Thy favoured ones, free Thou my lowly soul from sin, which now reigneth within me.

Holy Equals to the Apostles, Constantine and Helena, pray to God for us.

As one who loved the kingdom on high, O blessed Constantine, believing with a pure mind, thou didst worship the King and Master of all.

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

Illumined with divine light, O divinely wise Helena, thou didst truly forsake the darkness of ignorance and most sincerely enslave thyself to the King of the ages.

Now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

O Lady, thou portal of the divine East, open unto me the door of repentance, and by thine intercession deliver me from the gates of deadly sin.

Ode III, Irmos: O Lord, Creator of the vault of Heaven * and Builder of the Church, * do Thou strengthen me in Thy love, O Summit of desire, * O Support of the faithful, * O only Lover of mankind.

Holy Equals to the Apostles, Constantine and Helena, pray to God for us.

Thou didst strive to receive heavenly rewards; wherefore, O divinely wise father, thou didst follow Him Who called thee, forsaking the darkness of the falsehood bequeathed to thee, and didst become a luminary through the divine Spirit.

Holy Equals to the Apostles, Constantine and Helena, pray to God for us.

Having cleaved unto Christ and set all thy hope on Him, O most honoured one, thou didst attain unto His sacred places, wherein the Supremely good One, having become incarnate, endured His most pure sufferings.

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

Burning with divine desire, O divinely blessed one, thou didst uncover the precious Cross, the weapon of salvation, the insuperable victory, the hope of Christians, which had been hidden in malice.

Now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Having fallen away from my sacred citizenship, O most pure one, I have become like a beast and am wholly condemned. O thou who hast given birth to the Judge, deliver and save me from all condemnation.

Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.

Sessional Hymn of the saints, Tone VIII, Spec. Mel. “Of the Wisdom…”: Having stretched forth thy senses toward heaven and acquired the beauty of the stars, thou wast taught by them the mysteries of the Lord of all; and the weapon of the Cross shone forth in their midst, signifying that in which thou shouldest conquer and achieve dominion. Wherefore, opening the eyes of thy soul, thou didst read the writings and learn about the image. O most honored Constantine, entreat Christ God, that He grant remission of sins unto those who celebrate thy holy memory with love. (Twice)

Glory be to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit; now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Theotokion, Tone VIII: Having conceived the Wisdom and Word in thy womb without being consumed, O Mother of God, thou hast given birth for the world unto the Nourisher of all and Fashioner of creation; and thou didst bear in thine arms Him Who holdeth all things. Wherefore, I beseech thee, O all-holy Virgin, and glorify thee with faith: May I be delivered from transgressions, and, on the day of judgment when I shall stand before the face of my Creator, O pure Virgin Sovereign Lady, grant me thine aid; for thou canst do all things whatsoever thou dost will, O thou who art all-hymned.

Ode IV, Irmos: O Lord, I have heard the mystery of Thy dispensation; * I have considered Thy works, * and I have glorified Thy Divinity.

Holy Equals to the Apostles, Constantine and Helena, pray to God for us.

Christ the Lord pursued thee from heaven, as He had Paul of old, O Constantine, teaching thee to worship Him as the only King.

Holy Equals to the Apostles, Constantine and Helena, pray to God for us.

With a most radiant sign of stars, O blessed one, Christ the Sun illumined thee, showing thee to be a luminary for the darkened.

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

O blessed one, thou wast God-loving in nature and right wondrous in thy divine works; wherefore, we glorify thee with faith.

Now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

O Ever-Virgin who hast given birth to the Sun of righteousness, illumine my soul, which hath been darkened by sins.

Ode V, Irmos: Rising early we cry to Thee, O Lord; * save us, for Thou art our God, * and we know none other besides Thee.

Holy Equals to the Apostles, Constantine and Helena, pray to God for us.

Having risen at dawn unto the never-waning Sun and Master, O divinely wise emperor, thou wast filled with light.

Holy Equals to the Apostles, Constantine and Helena, pray to God for us.

Wearing love and perfect loving-kindness like a robe of royal purple, thou hast now made thine abode in the kingdom on high.

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

O Helena, thou hast joined the choirs of the incorporeal ones, having pleased God by thy virtuous works.

Now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Cleanse thou my soul, which hath been defiled by carnal pleasures through the treachery of the serpent, O Virgin.

Ode VI, Irmos: I will pour out my prayer unto the Lord, * and to Him will I proclaim my grief; * for my soul is filled with evils, * and my life unto Hades hath drawn nigh, * and like Jonah I pray unto Thee: * Raise me up from corruption, O God. Most gloriously didst thou assemble the divine choir of the God-bearing fathers,

Holy Equals to the Apostles, Constantine and Helena, pray to God for us.

O Constantine, and through them make steadfast the storm-tossed hearts of all, that they might glorify the Word as equal in honor and co-enthroned with the One Who begat Him.

Holy Equals to the Apostles, Constantine and Helena, pray to God for us.

Having believed on the living Lord Who giveth life unto all, O Helena, thou didst spurn the abominable worship of vain idols and joyously received the kingdom of heaven.

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

Guided by Thy hand, O Word, through Thee the sovereigns thrust aside the most profound darkness of ignorance and the tempest of cruel godlessness, and arrived, rejoicing, at the calm havens of piety.

Now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Heal thou my heart, which hath grown incurably sick and hath been grievously wounded by the sting of the evil one, O Maiden, and by thine entreaties grant healing unto me, and save me who trust in thee, O most pure one.

Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit; now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Kontakion, Tone III, Spec. Mel. “Today the Virgin …”: Today Constantine and his mother Helena * have revealed the Cross, the most precious Tree, * which putteth to shame all the Jews * and is the weapon of faithful kings against the adversary. ** For our sake the great standard hath appeared, terrible in battle.

Ikos: Let us honor Constantine, and Helena his mother; for, hearing the words of David, they recognized the three parts of the Cross in the cedar, the pine and the cypress, upon which the suffering of the Savior was accomplished. And having found it, in preparation to display it before the people, they set it before all the Jews, hidden because of their hatred and jealousy; revealing it to be the great justification. Wherefore, they have been revealed to all as victors, bearing the invincible trophy, the great standard, terrible in battle.

Ode VII, Irmos: The Hebrew children in the furnace * boldly trampled upon the flames, * changing the fire into dew, they cried aloud: * ‘Blessed art Thou, O Lord our God, throughout the ages’.

Holy Equals to the Apostles, Constantine and Helena, pray to God for us.

Keeping Thy precepts, Constantine submitted to Thy law. Wherefore, he hath cast down hordes of the iniquitous, crying out to Thee: Blessed art Thou, O Lord God!

Holy Equals to the Apostles, Constantine and Helena, pray to God for us.

The Tree which hath drawn all from the pit of destruction, O right wondrous one, and which was buried out of malice, thou didst disclose unto us, burying the most pernicious demons forever.

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

By godly works thou didst make thy heart a temple of God, O Helena, and didst likewise build sacred churches for Him, where for our sake He endured His most pure sufferings for our sake.

Now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Willingly committing sins, and enslaved by unseemly habits, I flee now to thy tender compassion. O most holy Sovereign Lady, save me who am in despair!

Ode VIII, Irmos: In his wrath the Chaldean Tyrant made the furnace blaze, * with heat fanned sevenfold for the servants of God; * but when he perceived that they had been saved by a greater power * he cried aloud to the Creator and Redeemer, * ‘O ye youths bless, O ye priests praise, * O ye people, supremely exalt Him throughout all ages’.

Holy Equals to the Apostles, Constantine and Helena, pray to God for us.

Arrayed in loving-kindness as in a robe and in goodly meekness as in cloak, O glorious one, thou wast adorned with a mind perfect in the virtues as with a crown; and having been translated from earth to the kingdom on high, thou dost cry aloud: O ye priests bless; O ye people supremely exalt Christ throughout all ages!

Holy Equals to the Apostles, Constantine and Helena, pray to God for us.

Beholding thee rejoicing with thy divinely wise son, in the kingdom of God, O glorious Helena, we magnify Christ Who hath shown us your honoured festival, which illumineth us more brightly than the rays of the sun, wherefore we chant with faith: O ye people supremely exalt Christ throughout all ages!

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

Wondrous is thy desire and godly thy character, O glorious Helena, thou boast of women! For having attained unto the places where the precious sufferings took place, thou didst adorn them with all-beauteous temples of the Master of all, crying: O ye people supremely exalt Christ throughout all ages!

Now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

O Theotokos, enlighten the eyes of my soul, which have been blinded by many crimes; grant peace to my mind and heart, which have been vexed by multifarious pleasures, I pray, and save me who cry: O ye priests bless; ye people supremely exalt the pure one throughout all ages!

Ode IX, Irmos: Heaven was stricken with awe, * and the ends of the earth were filled with amazement, * for God hath appeared in the flesh, * and thy womb was rendered more spacious than the heavens. * Wherefore, the ranks of men and of angels * magnify thee as the Theotokos.

Holy Equals to the Apostles, Constantine and Helena, pray to God for us.

The tomb wherein thy sacred and precious body doth lie, O Constantine, doth ever pour forth the radiance of divine healings upon those whoever approach it in purity, driving away the darkness of divers passions and illumining those who praise thee with never-waning light.

Holy Equals to the Apostles, Constantine and Helena, pray to God for us.

Having finished thy life in holiness, thou hast now made thine abode with the saints, full of sanctity and enlightenment. Wherefore, ever pouring forth rivers of healings, thou dost burn up our sufferings, giving drink to our souls, O blessed Helena.

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

O unoriginate and immortal King, Thou hast vouchsafed Thy heavenly kingdom to the holy Helena and the great Constantine, whom of old thou didst grant to reign piously on earth, and who loved Thee in purity, O Lord. By their supplications have pity on us all.

Now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Having conceived, thou hast given birth to the King and Creator of all, O Virgin. And, lo! as a Queen thou standest forth now at His right hand. Wherefore, I beseech thee: at the hour of judgment deliver me from the left side, and number me with the sheep on the right.

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Troparion, Tone VIII: Beholding the image of Thy Cross in the sky, * and like Paul receiving a call not from men, * Thine apostle among kings placed the imperial city in Thy hands, O Lord. * Do Thou ever preserve it in peace, ** through the supplications of the Theotokos, O Thou Who alone art the Lover of mankind.