The canon of the apostle, the acrostic whereof is: “I hymn Peter, the foundation of the dogmas,” the composition of Joseph, in Tone IV
Ode I, Irmos: The people of Israel, having fled across the watery deep of the Red Sea with dry-shod feet, beholding the mounted captains of the enemy drowned therein, sang with gladness: Let us chant unto our God, for He hath been glorified!
Holy, glorious, all-praised chief of the apostles, Peter, pray to God for us.
The whole Church of Christ keepeth festival in spirit, joining chorus and praising thee with faith, and lovingly kissing the precious chains which thou didst wear when thou wast bound, thereby binding the tyrant.
Holy, glorious, all-praised chief of the apostles, Peter, pray to God for us.
Fishing for men in the deep of deception, O Peter, thou didst draw them forth like fish unto Him Who chose thee from among fishermen to be truly the foremost of all His disciples. Wherefore, we kiss the chains which thou didst wear.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
Upon the foundation of faith didst thou build up the souls of all the faithful; and having demolished the temples of delusion, O Peter, thou didst found Churches which ever honour thee aloud, and the chains which thou didst wear.
Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
All the weapons of the deceitful enemy have utterly failed, O all-pure Virgin, and the Word Who made His abode in thine immaculate womb was not wounded in the least. I entreat thee: Let my heart now be wounded with the most sweet desire for Him.
Ode III, Irmos: The bow of the mighty is become weak, and the strengthless have girded themselves with power; wherefore, my heart is established in the Lord.
Holy, glorious, all-praised chief of the apostles, Peter, pray to God for us.
Wholly united to the Light most pure through divine partaking thereof, O Peter, thou hast been shown to be a secondary luminary enlightening our souls.
Holy, glorious, all-praised chief of the apostles, Peter, pray to God for us.
Thou hast confirmed the laws of Christ and hast taught observance of the law unto the most iniquitous, as the foremost of the apostles, the immovable foundation of the dogmas.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
With thy sacred tongue thou didst preach God Who suffered and was crucified on the Cross. Wherefore, O Peter, we honour the chains which bound thee.
Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
The irresistible onslaught of death came to a halt before thee, for thou gavest birth unto the Wellspring of immortality, O Theotokos, Virgin Mother.
Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
Kontakion, Tone II, Spec. Mel. “Seeking the highest…”: Christ the Rock most splendidly glorifieth the rock of faith, the first-enthroned of His disciples; for He summoneth all to celebrate the wonders of thy precious chains, O Peter, and granteth forgiveness of offences.
Sessional hymn, Tone IV, Spec. Mel. “Having been lifted up….”: With faith do we praise thee, O apostle, as the chief of the wise apostles and the keeper of the keys to the kingdom of heaven; and with a pure conscience we kiss the chains which thou didst wear as though thou wast a malefactor, O Peter, thereby setting at naught the evil deeds of the enemy. From which pray thou that we be delivered. (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: O thou who art more exalted than the cherubim and seraphim, and more spacious than heaven and earth, thou art shown to surpass creation, visible and invisible, in an ineluctable comparison; for He Whom the space of the heavens could not contain thou didst contain within thy womb, O pure one. Him do thou entreat, that thy servants be saved.
Stavrotheotokion (replaces the Theotokion on Wednesdays and Fridays): She who in latter days gave birth in the flesh unto Thee Who wast begotten of the unoriginate Father, O Christ, seeing Thee hanging upon the Cross, cried out: “Woe is me, O Jesus, most blessed Christ! How is it that Thou Who art glorified as God by the angels dost now deign to be crucified by iniquitous men, O my Son? I hymn Thee, O Long-suffering One!”
Ode IV, Irmos: Out of love for Thine image Thou didst stand affixed to the Cross, O Compassionate One, and the nations melted away; for Thou art my strength and boast, O Thou Who lovest mankind.
Holy, glorious, all-praised chief of the apostles, Peter, pray to God for us.
Speaking as a rhetor concerning the mighty works of the Master, thou didst convert the hearts of the disobedient Jews to the divine Faith, in that thou art the foundation of the Faith.
Holy, glorious, all-praised chief of the apostles, Peter, pray to God for us.
Thy journeys were known unto their Object: Him Who with all-abundant love walked upon the waters, O Peter, and related to thee the ways of God.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
As thy divine chains possess the power to heal all manner of ailments, O blessed one, we kiss them with faith, honouring thee.
Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
The King of all, having made His abode in thy holy womb as in a spacious palace, appeared incarnate, O all-immaculate Mistress.
Ode V, Irmos: Send down upon us Thine enlightenment, O Lord, and free us from the gloom of transgressions, O Good One, granting us Thy peace.
Holy, glorious, all-praised chief of the apostles, Peter, pray to God for us.
By divine revelation Thou didst preach the Son Who with the Father is equally without beginning, and wast vouchsafed blessedness from the lips of the Blessed One.
Holy, glorious, all-praised chief of the apostles, Peter, pray to God for us.
When thou didst behold on Tabor the light which shone forth, blotting out the rays of the sun, thou wast illumined by the light which comest from the Light, O Peter, and hast enlightened the faithful.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
Thou didst preach Christ Who was dead for three days, and for Whose sake thou didst wear chains, O Peter. Accounted worthy to bow down before them, we piously honour thee.
Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
Lighten now the burden of me who am heavy laden with the weight of my many sins, O all-pure one, giving me strength to bear the easy yoke of Christ.
Ode VI, Irmos: Prefiguring Thy three-day burial, the Prophet Jonah, praying within the sea monster, cried out: Deliver me from corruption, O Jesus, King of hosts!
Holy, glorious, all-praised chief of the apostles, Peter, pray to God for us.
Most wondrously didst thou endure crucifixion upside-down; for thus didst thou prepare thy feet for the path to heaven. Do thou strengthen us also to walk it, O disciple of Christ.
Holy, glorious, all-praised chief of the apostles, Peter, pray to God for us.
Thou didst make thine abode in the Life of the living and, bound for His sake, thou didst break the bonds of Belial who had bound thee. Wherefore, we honour thy chains.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
Entreat the Master of creation, O most blessed one, that He send down purification, peace and mercy upon those who glorify thee, in that thou art His most fervent disciple.
Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
Our forefather hath been stripped of the skin garments of mortality, for the Creator hath robed Himself therein through thy blood, becoming incarnate in manner past description, O all-immaculate 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 II, Spec. Mel. “The Theotokos who is ever-vigilant in prayer….”: Let us praise the great Peter, the chief and first among the apostles, the godly disciple of the Truth, and with faith let us kiss his chains, receiving release from our transgressions.
Ikos: What human tongue is able worthily to praise the great and glorious disciple of the Lord? What mind can praise him whom the Word of God blessed with a blessing? Yet what one attaineth according to his own powers, that should he bring as an offering unto God; and this I attempt to do. O ye who love the feasts of the Church, let us piously crown the first-enthroned one with hymns, receiving released from our transgressions.
Ode VII, Irmos: Once, in Babylon, the children of Abraham trampled upon the flame of the furnace, crying aloud in hymns: O God of our fathers, blessed art Thou!
Holy, glorious, all-praised chief of the apostles, Peter, pray to God for us.
Thrice didst thou deny Christ; wherefore by a threefold question did He compensate for thine offence, O all-glorious Peter; and He showed forth the steadfastness of many who waver.
Holy, glorious, all-praised chief of the apostles, Peter, pray to God for us.
As a prisoner for Christ thou didst have thy share of divers bonds because of thy most sweet desire. Wherefore, with faith we bow down before thy chains which release us from the passions, O Peter.
Holy, glorious, all-praised chief of the apostles, Peter, pray to God for us.
Making a transit of the whole world like the sun most great, O Peter, glory of the apostles, who thyself didst behold Christ, thou hast banished the profound darkness of cruel polytheism.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
Thou didst glorify Christ with thy members and didst become His boast, O all-glorious Peter. Wherefore, we glorify thee and bow down before the chains which bound thee.
Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
He that descended upon the earth like rain hath in His divine knowledge watered the whole earth; and He hath shown thee forth, O pure Virgin, as more honourable than all the angels.
Ode VIII, Irmos: O Almighty Deliverer of all, descending into the midst of the flame Thou didst bedew the pious youths and didst teach them to chant: Bless and hymn the Lord, all ye works!
Holy, glorious, all-praised chief of the apostles, Peter, pray to God for us.
Working hard hearts like the soil, O Peter, thou didst render them most fertile for the Husbandman of creation Who gave thee the divine keys and the authority to loose and bind transgressions.
Holy, glorious, all-praised chief of the apostles, Peter, pray to God for us.
We ever bless thee, O Peter, and we venerate the chains which thou didst bear as though thou wert a malefactor, slaying the prince of evil and binding him with thy chains, O apostle.
Holy, glorious, all-praised chief of the apostles, Peter, pray to God for us.
Preserving the fullness of the Church by thine immovable rock of faith, O Peter, drive temptations from its midst and ask a peaceful estate therefor, O blessed Peter.
Holy, glorious, all-praised chief of the apostles, Peter, pray to God for us.
Thou didst splendidly preach Him Who bound hades and death with His bonds and all-pure sufferings; wherefore, O most blessed one, we are sanctified, kissing thy chains.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
Like the ranks of heaven we now cry out with thrice-holy voices, glorifying the Father, the Cause of all, and the Son and the Spirit: one Essence, one Power, and one Activity.
Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
In writing the prophet described thee beforehand as a noetic candlestick bearing the divine Candle which hath illumined those who before were benighted by the darkness of evil, O Theotokos.
Ode IX, Irmos: Thy birth-giving was shown to be incorrupt: God came forth from thy womb, appeared on earth as a mortal, and dwelt with men. Wherefore, we all magnify thee as the Theotokos.
Holy, glorious, all-praised chief of the apostles, Peter, pray to God for us.
Thou wast accounted worthy to behold things afar off for which thou didst with faith hope, O Peter; and, rejoicing, thou hast received honours for thy labours from God Who loveth mankind, Whose divine suffering thou didst depict with thy flesh.
Holy, glorious, all-praised chief of the apostles, Peter, pray to God for us.
As the divine keeper of the keys of the kingdom, open the gates thereof unto those who faithfully honour thee on earth and kiss the precious chains wherewith thou wast bound, O Peter.
Holy, glorious, all-praised chief of the apostles, Peter, pray to God for us.
Whilst thou wast with the Son on Tabor, thou wast vouchsafed to hear the voice of the Father reveal Him; for, cleansed by the divine Spirit, thy heart was most gloriously illumined, O Peter.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
O Peter, ask thou cleansing, release from debts and the delight of the kingdom of heaven for us that with love honour thee and kiss the chains wherewith thou wast bound.
Now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
Thou wast the abode of the Light, O Maiden; wherefore, by thy light guide me who am benighted by all the temptations of the enemy, that I may magnify thee with faith, O most pure Virgin Mother.
Troparion, Tone IV: Without leaving Rome, thou art come to us in the precious chains which thou didst bear, O first-enthroned of the apostles; and, bowing down before them with faith we pray: By thy supplications unto God grant us great mercy!