Canon of the Martyr Luppus, the composition of Joseph, in Tone IV—

Exapostilarion: Spec. Mel.: “By the Spirit in the holy place…”—

Irmos: O Thou Who wast born of the Virgin, drown Thou, I pray Thee, the three parts of my soul in the depths of dispassion, as of old Thou didst drown the mounted captains of Pharaoh; that, in the mortality of my body, as on a timbrel, I may chant a hymn of victory.

Kontakion of the martyr Agathonicus, in Tone I: Spec. Mel.: “The choir of the angels…”—

The choir of the divine apostles assembled to bury thee with all honor, O most pure Theotokos; and with them the ranks of angels hymned thy repose, crying out with all praise. Leaping up together with joy, O pure one, we, the faithful, offer laudation unto thee with voices of hymnody, and we exclaim: Rejoice, O intercessor of those who ever honor thee!

Sessional hymn of the martyr Agathonicus, in Tone VIII: Spec. Mel.: “Of the Wisdom…”—

On the Aposticha, these stichera, in Tone II: Spec. Mel.: “O house of Ephratha…”—

Theotokion: Like the dawn did Jesus, the enlightenment and God of all, shine forth magnificently from thy womb, O Mistress who knewest not wedlock, destroying the night of polytheism and illumining the world with splendors which never wane.

O warrior of Christ, valiant athlete, who art ever illumined and standest before the divine Light: enlighten with never-waning radiance my soul, which hymneth thy splendid and luminous memory.

Glory…, Now & ever…, Exapostilarion of the feast—

Irmos: O Christ, Thou creative and almighty Wisdom and Power of God, establish the Church immovable and unshaken; for Thou alone art holy Who restest in the saints.

Kontakion of the feast, in Tone II—

The choir of the apostles assembled, borne as on a cloud to Sion from the ends of the earth, to serve thee, the light cloud through whom God Most High, the Sun of righteousness, hath shone forth upon those who are in darkness and shadow.

Glory…: Sessional hymn of the martyr Luppus, in Tone I: Spec. Mel.: “Thy tomb, O Savior…”—

Escorting thy precious body, which had received God, the divine apostles cried out with hymns: “Whither goest thou now, O Mistress?”

Theotokion: The Uncircumscribable One, Who formed Himself of thee according to our nature, O Mistress, took upon Himself our form in the flesh, and is known in two essences and volitions.

Manfully entering upon the struggles of martyrdom, thou didst confess God Who had appeared on earth and deified human nature, O all-wise one; and thou didst destroy the gods of the pagans with the power of the Spirit.

Irmos: Let my heart be made steadfast in Thy will, O Christ God, Who didst establish the second heaven above the waters and didst found the earth upon the waters, O Almighty One.

The choir of angels buried thy body, which had received God, gazing upon it with fear, and exclaiming with a loud voice: O Theotokos who ascendest to thy Son in the heavenly mansions, thou ever savest thine inheritance!

Now & ever…, sessional hymn of the feast, in the same tone: Spec. Mel.: “When the stone had been sealed…”—

Stichos: Arise, O Lord, into Thy rest, Thou and the ark of Thy holiness.

Theotokion: God, making His abode in the midst of thee, O pure one, as is known, did not disturb the seal of thy virginity. He hath made all firm on the immovable rock of the Faith.

Filling thy heart with streams of vivifying waters, as with a divine river, thou didst dry up deception; and therewith thou hast given faith as drink for the thoughts of men, which put forth heavenly fruit.

Irmos: Like a barren woman hath the Church of the nations given birth, and she could scarce bear the great assembly of children. Let us cry out to our wondrous God: Holy art Thou, O Lord!

Come, O ye mortals, let us form a choir, crying out hymns of parting at the repose of the Theotokos today!

Theotokion: He Who travelleth upon the backs of the cherubim, O pure one, was in godly manner incarnate of thee as a man. He sitteth in thine embrace as a babe and acteth like a babe, saving the first-created man who of old had the intelligence of a babe.

The glorious apostles, seeing thee to be a mortal woman, yet, in manner transcending nature, the Mother of God, O all-immaculate one, with awe touched with their hands thee who art resplendent in glory, perceiving thee to be a habitation acceptable to God.

Irmos: The sayings and indistinct images of the prophets showed forth Thine incarnation from the Virgin, O Christ. The effulgence of Thy radiance issueth forth to enlighten the nations, and the deep crieth out to Thee with gladness: Glory to Thy power, O Thou Who lovest mankind!

Stichos: The Lord hath sworn in truth unto David, and He will not annul it.

Theotokion: Jesus, the abyss of wisdom, descended upon thee like rain, O Virgin Theotokos, and found thee alone to be pure; and with divine grace He hath drowned the cruel torrents of impiety.

When God preserved with the glory of His divinity the honor of the animate ark wherein the Word became flesh, the judgment of retribution overtook the insolent one through the severing of his audacious hands.

Irmos: Foreseeing in the Spirit the incarnation of the Word, O Prophet Habbakuk, thou didst announce, crying out: When the years draw nigh, Thou shalt be acknowledged; when the season cometh, Thou shalt be shown forth! Glory to Thy power, O Lord!

The earth is blessed by thy burial, O Virgin; and the air is sanctified by the strange ascent, when thou diest according to the law of nature.

Theotokion: Foreseeing thy wonders through the divine Spirit, Isaiah cried out: “O pure one, behold! thou shalt receive in thy womb the Infinite One, incarnate!”

The vain-minded one hoped to ensnare thee deceitfully with blandishments, but his vain idea was set at nought when thou, O martyr, didst set thyself firmly upon the rock of the true Faith.

Irmos: Seated in glory upon the throne of the Godhead, Jesus most divine hath come on a light cloud, and with His incorrupt arm hath saved those who cry: Glory to Thy power, O Christ!

Glory…, Now & ever…, in the same melody—

Theotokion: With pure mind let us honor the pure one, the beauty of Jacob; and adorned with divine actions, let us piously hymn her as the Mother of our God.

Having navigated the abyss of the wounds and pangs of thy body by the helm of Christ, O martyr Agathonicus, thou didst set sail for the noetic havens, rejoicing.

Irmos: We confess the divine and ineffable beauty of Thy virtues, O Christ; for having shone forth from eternal Glory as the co-eternal and hypostatic Effulgence, incarnate of the Virgin’s womb Thou hast shone forth like the Sun upon those in darkness and shadow.

O all ye mortals, with the incorporeal ones let us diligently make haste to bury her who gave birth unto the Maker of creation.

Theotokion: Having given birth unto Christ, thou remainest a virgin as thou wast before, O pure one, and dost most gloriously feed with milk Him Who giveth food unto all. Wondrous is the miracle and beyond attaining!

“Let laceration and rending of the body come upon me this day, for I fear neither the sword, the grill, the fire, the wild beasts, nor death!” thou didst cry out, O athlete Agathonicus.

Irmos: Shine forth thy radiant and everlasting light upon us who rise early unto the judgments of Thy commandments, O Master Christ our God, Who lovest mankind.

Theotokion: Thou gavest birth unto Him Whom the Father had begotten without beginning outside of time, O pure one, and with thy breasts thou didst nourish the Nourisher. O wonder past understanding and mystery past recounting!

Made firm for thy struggles by the invincible power of the Spirit, O martyr, thou didst enter upon them manfully and didst set at nought the arrogance of deception, O most blessed Luppus.

Irmos: The ungodly perceive not Thy glory, O Christ; but, waking at dawn out of the night, we hymn Thee, O Only-begotten One Who lovest mankind, Thou effulgence of the glory of the Father’s divinity.

Theotokion: God became man through thee by unification, O pure one, deifying humanity and causing to share in the divine essence those who bless thee, O pure one, as truly blessed among women.

The savage tyrant, perceiving thee to be one who beareth witness to the sufferings of Christ, hoped to lead thy mind astray with blandishments; but the most wicked one was proved false.

Irmos: The inner fire of the sea from the deep which giveth rise to the whales was a prefiguring of Thy three-day burial, whereof Jonah was shown to be the proclaimer; for, remaining unharmed as he was before he was sent forth, he cried: I will sacrifice to Thee with a voice of praise, O Lord!

Theotokion: He alone Who dwelleth in the heavens chose thee alone, the beauty of Jacob; and, making His abode within thee, O pure and blessed one, He in no wise disturbed the seal of thy virginity.

Struck like a harp by the all-accomplishing Spirit, in the presence of the tormenters thou didst joyfully give voice to a hymn of divine understanding, and didst delight those who came with faith.

Irmos: Emulating the Prophet Jonah, I cry out: O Good One, free me from corruption! O Savior of the world, save me who cry out: Glory to Thee!

Theotokion: O Virgin Mary, who art ever blessed, thee do we call the tabernacle and the table, the divine ark, the jar which held the Manna of life, and the holy mountain.

Having acquired a good name, O divinely wise one, thou didst convert wicked men to the Faith, not fearing tortures, O glorious Agathonicus. Wherefore, thou hast become an heir to good things, and with those who suffered with thee hast thou received worthy crowns.

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!

Theotokion: All creation blesseth thy birthgiving, O Virgin, with the blessing of Him Who hath crowned us and removed the curse. O thou who alone art blessed and all-glorious, who hast brought grace upon our race!

Ikos: Entreat the Good One Who loveth mankind, O most wise Agathonicus, that He transform the wickedness of my heart into good and grant me the words with which to hymn worthily the struggles which thou didst undergo for thy faith in Christ our God. For like a shepherd, O martyr, thou watchest over all, driving away the wolves; and thou didst guide thy flock to the land of truth, crying out with boldness: “We have been counted like sheep for the slaughter! Wherefore, let us die, that we may receive crowns of incorruption!”

Irmos: The divine will, opposing the shameless rage and the fire, bedewed the fire and put wrath to shame by the divinely inspired three-stringed lyre of the venerable youths, opposing the musical instruments amid the flames, chanting: O all-glorious God of our fathers, blessed art Thou!

Theotokion: Possessed of a sin-loving character, an uncorrected life, a sinful soul and a heart defiled, prodigal that I am, I fall down before thee, O Mistress. Help me and grant me correction before death will cut me off.

Drowning the noetic Pharaoh and His armies in the streams of thy blood, O glorious one, thou didst pass over to the land where dwell the meek and all the martyrs, receiving a crown of incorruption, O right wondrous one. Wherefore, thou pourest forth healings upon the faithful and dost ease their sufferings, and drivest away evil spirits. O athlete Agathonicus, entreat Christ God, that He grant remission of sins unto those who with love honor thy holy memory.

Irmos: The fire neither touched nor vexed Thy children in the furnace, O Savior; for then, as with one mouth, the three hymned and blessed Thee, saying: Blessed is the God of our fathers!

Theotokion: With rays of the light which is within thee, O Bride of God, enlighten my soul; raise it up, for it lieth in the pit of destruction, and set at nought those who ever trouble my heart and impel me toward the passions.

Luminous in thy suffering, like gold in a crucible, O wise one, thou art lustrous with the radiance of healings and dispelled the darkness of the demons by grace. Wherefore, we all celebrate thy holy memory, O divinely blessed Luppus, boast of the martyrs.

Irmos: O all-hymned Lord God of our fathers, Who saved the children of Abraham in the fire, slaying the Chaldæans whom justice rightly overtook: blessed art Thou!

Behold, O ye people, and marvel, for the holy and openly manifest mountain of God is exalted on high to the mansions of heaven: the earthly heaven becometh a celestial and incorrupt habitation.

Irmos: The almighty Angel of God showed forth for the youths a flame which bedewed the venerable and utterly consumed the ungodly; and He made the Theotokos a life-creating wellspring pouring forth destruction for death and life for those who chant: O ye who have been delivered, let us hymn and exalt the one Creator for all ages!

Thy death became a passage to an everlasting and better life, O pure one, translating thee from transitory life to that which is truly divine and eternal, that thou mightest behold thy Son and Lord in gladness, O pure one.

Irmos: Him of Whom the angels and all the hosts of heaven stand in awe as their Creator and Lord, hymn, ye priests; glorify, ye children; bless, ye people, and exalt Him supremely for all ages!

The gates of heaven were raised and the angelic choirs chanted; and Christ received the vessel of His Mother’s virginity. The cherubim lifted her up with gladness, and the seraphim glorify her, rejoicing.

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!

Thou didst enter the tribunal of martyrdom, O wise one, splendidly defending thyself with the sword of the divine Faith; and, wrestling with the enemy, thou didst mightily vanquish him and set him beneath thy feet, O martyr and athlete Agathonicus.

Irmos: In thee are the laws of nature overcome, O pure Virgin, for thy birthgiving is virginal and death is betrothed to life. A Virgin giving birth and alive after death, O Theotokos, thou hast saved thine inheritance.

By the wisdom of thy words and the divine revelation of sacred acts thou didst affright the enemy, who had hoped to overcome the steadfastness of thy mind and lead thee into deception, O Agathonicus, martyr of Christ.

Irmos: The radiant cloud upon which the unoriginate Master of all descended from heaven, like rain upon the fleece, and of whom He was incarnate, becoming man for our sake, let us all magnify as the pure Mother of God.

Thy mind aflame with the fire of divine love, O glorious one, thou wast not afraid of the fire of thine adversaries, but didst burn like a coal and consume the tinder of ungodliness, O sacred martyr Agathonicus.

Irmos: Eve, through weakness, abode under the curse of disobedience; but thou, O Virgin Theotokos, hast put forth blessing for the world through the Offspring of thy child-bearing. Wherefore, we all magnify thee.

Transcending the earthly bounds of human weaknesses, O blessed and all-glorious Luppus, beaten with staves thou didst endure wounds, bearing the saving staff of salvation, the Cross of our God.

Trusting in God , O athlete Luppus, with divine help thou didst remain unshaken like a mountain. Wherefore, elevated to heaven by divine desire, thou didst endure the breaking of thy limbs.

Full of faith, wisdom and grace, thou didst confess the Word of God in the midst of the iniquitous; and thou didst disdain the arrows loosed at thee, which were stopped by the power of Christ from approaching thee.

More melodious than clarions, the God-pleasing tongues of the theologizing men sounded forth to the Theotokos, playing a funeral hymn inspired by the Spirit: Rejoice, O incorrupt fountain of God’s life-creating incarnation which saveth all!

As a lawful martyr, O glorious one, thou didst oppose the laws of the tyrant with the saving law of Christ our God, the Bestower of the law Who hath dominion over all.

Agathonicus is now blessed as a splendid and all-glorious martyr, and he ever rejoiceth radiantly with the hosts of heaven.

Thou didst wish to die rather than live, O glorious one, that thou mayest forever acquire the everlasting life which is to come. Wherefore, thou didst bow thy head beneath the sword that severed thy neck.

Thine enemies vowed to cut off thy members, O wise one, but instead they cut themselves, moved by God’s hand, and beheld thee preserved unharmed and unwounded.

Having made the eye of thy soul steadfast upon an unbreakable rock, O martyr, thou wast in no wise shaken by the waves of bitter torments, being strengthened by the power of God.

With the sprinkling of thy blood thou didst quench the burning of idolatry, O athlete, and, set aflame by the Holy Spirit, with the fire of thy sufferings thou didst utterly consume falsehood.

God, the King of all, giveth thee that which transcendeth nature; for, as He kept thee a virgin during thy birthgiving, so did He preserve thy body untouched by corruption in the tomb; and He glorified thee with Himself by a divine translation, rendering thee honor as a Son to His Mother.

Truly, O Virgin, thine Offspring set thee in the Holy of Holies as the splendid candlestick of the immaterial Light, the golden censer of the divine Coal, the jar and the staff, the divinely inscribed tablet, the holy ark, the table of the Word of life.

With the weakness of thy flesh thou didst vanquish the myriad-numbered multitude of noetic moors, O wise one, and didst unite thyself to tens of thousands of sacred servants.

Manfully didst thou tread the path of martyrdom and didst restrict the paths of evil, O athlete; and thou hast attained the spacious habitations of heaven.

Made luminous like gold in the crucible of cruel sufferings, O Agathonicus, wise one of Christ, thou wast shown to be a standard kept in the treasuries of God.

Mightily didst thou endure the tortures of the flesh, tormenting the ungodly thoughts of the iniquitous and bitterly wounding multitudes of the demons, O right wondrous one.

Thou didst cause the gods of the ungodly to quake, reducing them to dust; and thou didst raise thyself up as an animate pillar of piety and a model of courage, O divinely inspired one.

Replete with tortures, thou didst rejoice, O glorious athlete, and in the Spirit didst foresee the crowns and eternal glory of the martyrs which is to come.

The tomb and mortality could not hold the Theotokos, who is untiring in her supplications and our certain hope in her intercessions. For, as the Mother of Life, she hath passed over to the Life Who dwelt within her ever-virgin womb.

Ikos: Guard thou my thoughts, O my Christ, for I make bold to hymn the bulwark of the world, Thy pure Mother. Establish me firmly in the bastion of my words, and help me in the midst of difficult thoughts; for Thou fulfillest the entreaties of those who cry out and ask with faith. Wherefore, grant unto me a deft tongue and a ready mind, for every good deed of enlightenment cometh down from Thee, O Bestower of light, Who dwelt within her ever-virgin womb.

Enraged, Moses smashed the divinely wrought tablets which had been inscribed by the divine Spirit; but the Master, preserving unharmed her who gave birth to Him, hath now caused her to dwell in the mansions of heaven. Celebrating with her, let us cry out to Christ: O all-glorious God of our fathers, blessed art Thou!

On the cymbals of pure lips, with the music of a radiant heart, on the high-sounding clarion of exalted thought, clapping our diligent hands on the renowned and chosen day of the repose of the pure Virgin, let us cry aloud: O all-glorious God of our fathers, blessed art Thou!

Gather ye together, O divinely wise people, for the dwelling-place of the glory of God is translated from Sion to the habitation of heaven, where is the pure voice of those who keep festival, the voice of the unutterable rejoicing of those who cry out to Christ in gladness: O all-glorious God of our fathers, blessed art Thou!

Thou didst share in the glory of heaven, hastening past all those on earth, having loved the Master of heaven and earth with all thy soul, O glorious one. Wherefore, we faithfully honor thy holy memory.

Following the sufferings of Christ Who hath poured forth dispassion upon all the faithful, thou didst endure oppression, tribulation, and an undeserved death, O martyr, when, rejoicing, thou wast beheaded with the sword.

Thou didst in no wise bow down before the lifeless altars, worshipping the immortal God Who manifested Himself as a mortal for our sake and hath slain the strength of the deceiver. Wherefore, thou hast obtained true life, O wise martyr.

Made luminous by the beauties of virtuous sufferings, thou dost now stand, rejoicing, shining with divine effulgence, before Him Who for our sake endured suffering on the Cross.

Water was most gloriously poured forth upon thee from heaven; and it enlighteneth and strengtheneth thy soul, commanding it to cry aloud: O all-hymned Lord God of our fathers, blessed art Thou!

Thou didst stand amid thine enemies like a steadfast pillar, unshakable in mind by the machinations of multifarious torments, O glorious athlete; and with great intelligence thou didst set falsehood at nought.

With discourses the whole multitude of theologians accompanied the sacred coffin of the Theotokos in Sion, exclaiming: Whither goest thou, O tabernacle of the living God? Cease not to regard those who chant with faith: O ye who have been delivered, let us hymn and exalt the one Creator for all ages!

Thou goest forth, O all-immaculate one, lifting up thine hands, the hands wherewith thou didst bear God in the flesh; and as a Mother thou didst with boldness say to Him Who was born of thee: Preserve Thou forever those whom Thou hast given to me, who cry out to Thee: O ye who have been delivered, let us hymn and exalt the one Creator for all ages!

Dragged from place to place, O athlete, thou didst hallow the earth with thy steps; and, bowing thy neck beneath the severing sword, thou wast parted from the flesh and united unto God.

Aflame with desire for God, thou didst overcome all manner of beatings and tortures of the flesh; and having finished thy good race, thou didst join the myriads on high.

The strength of the incorporeal foe was cast down, and the martyrs of Christ vanquished him in the weakness of their flesh, strengthened by the omnipotent might of the Master.

After many torments, O blessed one, thou didst bow thy head to God, beheaded by the sword; and with faith thou didst sever the heads of thine iniquitous enemies amid their terror.

Thou didst give thyself over to voluntary slaughter as an unblemished lamb, emulating the Lamb of God Who taketh away the sins of the world, Who neither crieth out nor complaineth.

Thy shrine hath become the healing of all manner of infirmities and the unexpected cure of souls; for it hath been made rich with grace from God, O all-praised Luppus.

The angelic hosts were amazed, seeing their Master in Sion, bearing in His arms a woman’s soul; for as befitteth a Son, He exclaimed to her in all-pure manner: Come, O pure one, and be glorified with thy Son and God!

O wise Agathonicus, as one crowned thou now standest radiantly before the Trinity, amid the holy choirs of the sacred apostles, in the mansions of the athletes, in the folds of the venerable, honored with the prophets, and rejoicing with them.

In that thy love was wondrous, thy faith firm, thy hope in God good, thy life luminous, and thy death full of grace, O martyr and athlete, He hath made thee to share in immortal glory.

As is meet, O wise Agathonicus, we praise thee as a lamb of Christ, a sacred immolation, the beauty of athletes, a wellspring of miracles, the comely adornment of the Church, O divinely wise one.

Thy most holy memory which sanctifieth the world hath now come upon us, O most glorious martyr; and thereon we pray to receive thine aid, honoring thee with love, O Agathonicus, as a good favorite of the Word.

Even in the flesh thou wast able, O all-glorious one, to trample down the ancient serpent by divine power, and thou wast crowned with a crown of victory. Wherefore, rejoicing with the martyrs, thou dwellest in the heavens.

Thou wast shown to be a star of great brilliance, shining forth the sun upon those who sit in the darkness of perdition, O martyr. And enlightened thereby, they have been shown to share in the never-waning light by faith, O right glorious one.

Today thy memory hath shone forth more brightly than the sun, illumining the whole earth, driving clouds away from men’s souls and dispelling the gloom of the passions. And with supplication we celebrate it.

Sion on high, the city of the elect, beareth thy spirit, rejoicing; the Church of the first-created is made luminous; and we, the faithful, honor thee, asking that, by thy supplications, we be saved, O divinely wise and most blessed Luppus.

As the namesake of good things and of victory, O martyr Agathonicus, entreat God, Who loveth compassion, that I may have a share of everlasting good things with those who with faith hymn thy radiant and right laudable memory.

O ye apostles, come ye together to bury the body of the one Bride of God and Mother of the Lord! Rejoice now, O Garden of Gethsemane, and chant funeral hymns to her who hath flown up to the heavens and joineth chorus with the angels in never-ending glory!