At Vespers

On whatever date the Sunday of the Holy Forefathers falleth; the service of the saint for that day is not chanted, rather, we chant that service on the previous Friday, at Compline.

Glory..., the composition of Anatolius, in Tone VI—

At “Lord, I have cried...,” 3 stichera of the Resurrection, 3 stichera of the Resurrection composed by Anatolius, and the following 4 stichera of the forefathers, in Tone VIII—

Now & ever…: Theotokion, or this stavrotheotokion: Spec. Mel.: “Having set aside…”—

Troparion of the Resurrection; Glory..., Now and ever..., and that of the Forefathers, in Tone II—

Now and ever..., and the Dogmaticon in the current tone.

Celebrating the memory of the forefathers today, O ye faithful, let us hymn as mighty and powerful Christ the Deliverer, Who exalted them among all nations, the Lord Who hath faithfully wrought most glorious miracles, and Who hath, through them, shown us a staff of power, the pure Mary, the divine Maiden, who alone knew not man, from whom Christ issued forth as a blossom, He Who for all hath put forth life, the inexhaustible food and eternal salvation.

Now and ever..., Theotokion—

O Master, Who delivered the holy youths from the fire and Daniel from the lions’ mouths, Who blessed Abraham, and Isaac Thy servant, and Jacob his son, Whose good will it was to become like unto us through their seed: our forefathers, that had fallen in the past, hast Thou saved by Thy Cross and Resurrection; and, having broken the bonds of death, with Thyself Thou hast raised all among them, dead of ages past, who worshipped Thee, O Christ, King of the ages.

Now and ever..., Theotokion—

Rejoicing in the dew of the Spirit, the godly youths walked in the midst of the flame as in a light rain, mystically imaging forth therein the Trinity and the incarnation of Christ, and, as they were wise, they quenched the power of the fire with faith; and the righteous Daniel was shown to be a restrainer of lions. By their prayers be Thou entreated, O Savior Who lovest mankind; deliver us from the unquenchable fire of eternity, and vouchsafe us Thy kingdom, O Lord.

Glory..., Now and ever..., Theotokion, in the same tone and melody—

Thy faithful and holy youths, who walked in the furnace of fiery flame as in dew, mystically prefigured Thy coming forth from the Virgin, which hath showed forth upon us without consuming us; and the righteous Daniel, wondrous among the prophets, manifestly revealing Thy divine Second Coming beforehand, saith: “I have beheld the thrones set up, and the Judge seated, and the river of fire flowing.” By their prayers may we be delivered therefrom, O Master Christ.

If it be Wednesday or Friday: Glory..., Now and ever..., Stavrotheotokion, in the same tone and melody—

O ye faithful, let us praise today all the fathers before the old Law: Abraham, the beloved of God, and Isaac, who was born according to the promise, and Jacob and the twelve patriarchs, the most meek David, and Daniel, the prophet of desires, glorifying with them the three youths who transformed the furnace into dew; and let us ask remission of Christ God, Who is glorified in His saints.

Now and ever..., Theotokion or this stavrotheotokion, in the same tone—

At the Litia, the sticheron of the temple, and Glory..., in Tone I—

The prophets of great renown, resplendent with the rays of divine eloquence, are ever blessed, and, putting forth the sayings of the Spirit as fruit, they preached to all the ineffable nativity of Christ God; and having lived a most wondrous life, they reached the end of their lives in accordance with the Law.

Behold, the prophecy of Isaiah hath been fulfilled, for a Virgin hath given birth, and after giving birth hath remained a Virgin as before. For God was born; therefore He began nature anew. O Mother of God, disdain not the supplications of thy servants, which are offered unto thee in thy temple; but as thou bearest the Compassionate One in thine arms, have pity on thy servants, and beseech Him that our souls be saved.

The Aposticha stichera from the Octoechos, and Glory..., in Tone III, the composition of Germanus, in Tone III—

Come, ye who love the feasts of the Church, and with psalms let us praise the assembly of the forefathers: Adam, the forefather of us all, Enoch, Noah, Melchizedek, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; and, after the Law, Moses and Aaron, Joshua, Samuel and David, and with them Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel and the twelve prophets, together with Elijah, Elisha and all the rest, Zechariah and the Forerunner; who all preached Christ, the Life and Resurrection of our race.

Through the divine Spirit, by the will of the Father, without seed thou didst conceive the Son of God Who hath existed without mother from before the ages, and for our sake thou gavest birth in the flesh unto Him Who came forth from thee without father; and thou didst nurture Him on milk as a babe. Wherefore, cease not to pray, that our souls be delivered from tribulations.

By faith didst Thou justify the forefathers, O Thou who, through them, didst betroth Thyself aforetime to the Church which was from among the nations. The saints boast in glory, for from their seed hath come a right glorious fruit, even she who gave Thee birth. O Christ God, by their prayers have mercy upon us!

On “Lord, I have cried…”, these stichera, in Tone VI—

Lo! the martyr Myrax crieth aloud: “I hear that my God and Savior hath said: ‘Whosoever rejecteth me shall I also reject on the last day!’ Yet let it not be so with me, the thrice wretched, O Lord. For even though I apostatized from Thee, yet do I know Thee to be merciful and loving: for Thou didst not spurn the tears of Peter who had denied Thee, nor didst Thou reject the repentance of Paul who had persecuted Thee, but didst make both of them steadfast in Thy love. Wherefore, I pray: Accept also my fervent repentance, and, overlooking mine apostasy, restore and save me, for Thou canst do all things soever Thou desirest.”

“Judas, who betrayed Thee by a kiss, refusing to embrace repentance, devoid of fervent love for Thee, neither understanding that Thou hast mercy on all who approach Thee in penitence, departed and hanged himself; but do Thou, O Lord, deliver me from such insane hardness of heart: accept my bitter groanings, raising me up from my fall, and save me who repent, in that Thou art good and full of loving-kindness.”

“Peter, the preëminent apostle, who once denied Thee thrice, O Christ, wept bitterly, and Paul, the teacher of the nations, who had persecuted Thee, called himself the least of the apostles; yet both afterwards served Thee, performing great deeds. But what shall I, who have rejected Thee, offer unto Thee besides tearful repentance? Still, let my blood, which is shed for Thee, cry out for me. Thou inclinest Thy loving-kindness toward me, O Lord, for Thou hast mercy upon all, in that Thou art mighty.

Glory…, in the same tone—

Let him not boast who hath acquired the riches of the world, and power and glory which quickly pass away, for in an instant he will be deprived of them all, and will find himself suddenly standing before the judgment-seat, naked, poor and bereft of glory, having only his trust in Thy boundless compassion, whereby do Thou also save me, O good Savior.

Of old, when the unblemished ewe-lamb, * the immaculate Mistress, * beheld her Lamb * uplifted upon the Cross, * she exclaimed maternally * and, marvelling, cried aloud: * “O my Child most sweet, * what is this new and all-glorious sight? * How is it that the ungrateful assembly hath betrayed Thee to the judgment of Pilate * and condemneth Thee, the Life of all, to death? * Yet do I hymn, O Word, * Thine ineffable condescension.”

At “Lord, I have cried...,” three stichera for the venerable one, in Tone VIII, Spec. Mel: “What shall we call you...”—

What shall we proclaim thee to be, O Daniel? An uprooter of the passions and planter of the virtues, a true wonderworker, an intercessor for sinners, a most valiant exorcist of demons, a beacon radiant with piety, a dwelling place of the Spirit and champion of the Church. Pray thou who our souls be saved.

What shall we name thee, O Daniel? A faster, for thou didst subject the passions to thy mind; a sufferer, for thou didst endure all manner of discomfort, lifted high above the ground on thy pillar; a most diligent athlete and a most skilled physician. Pray thou who our souls be saved.

What shall we now call thee, O Daniel? A model for monastics and teacher of abstinence, an adornment of the faithful and worker of healings, a beacon shining forth light upon those who are in darkness, a fellow citizen of the angels, equal in honor to them, an inhabitant of paradise and a heavenly man. Pray thou who our souls be saved.

And three stichera of the Theotokos, in the same tone and melody—

[These stichera are only chanted on weekdays during the Nativity Fast, if the pastor elect to serve the services in lenten fashion, with the chanting of “Alleluia” at Matins instead of “God is the Lord.” In such a case, at Vespers the stichera of the Theotokos are chanted first on “Lord, I have cried...,” followed by the stichera of the saint.]

Strange and awesome is the mystery of thy seedless birthgiving, surpassing all of man’s thought in majesty, O pure Virgin. For thou gavest birth in the flesh unto Him Who hath never departed from the Father’s substance, upon Whom the many-eyed cherubim dare not gaze and before Whom all the ranks of angels tremble. We glorify thee who gavest Him birth, O Bride of God!

To whom hast thou likened thyself, in no wise rousing thyself to repentance, O my wretched soul, neither fearing the fire which awaiteth the wicked? Arise, and call upon her who alone is quick to help, and cry out: O Virgin Mother, entreat thy Son and our God, that He deliver me from the snares of the deceiver!

O pure and undefiled one, who gavest birth unto the unbearable Fire which utterly consumeth sins and bedeweth the faithful: By thy supplications burn up the tinder of my countless offenses, and with dew cool thou my soul which withereth because of the passions, that I, thy servant, may magnify aloud thy mercy and power.

O Mistress, help of all, send down a drop of the oil of thy mercy upon me who am tempest-tossed upon the sea of darkness and ever compassed about by the billows and waves of the evils of this life; extend unto me a helping hand, and vouchsafe me the portion of the elect and the righteous, for thou gavest birth unto He Who loveth mankind.

When she beheld the Lamb stretched out upon the Tree of the Cross, the ewe-lamb cried out maternally, weeping and in pain: “O my Son, what is this strange thing that I see? How is it that Thou diest, Who as Lord givest life to all, O Long-suffering One, granting resurrection to mortals? I glorify Thy great condescension, O my God!”

If “God is the Lord...” is to be sung at Matins, then we chant: Glory..., in Tone V, the composition of the Studite—

Having made good the talant entrusted thee by Christ, O venerable father, even after death thou hast been shown to be an expeller of demons and a physician for those suffering from divers ills, a pillar and foundation, a holy mountain of the Church of Christ. Wherefore, we beseech thee, O wonderworker Daniel: Ask peace and great mercy for our souls!

Standing by the Cross, O Jesus, she who gave Thee birth lamented, weeping and crying out: “I cannot bear to behold Thee to Whom I gave birth, nailed to the Tree. And though I escaped the pangs of childbirth, in that I knew not a man, how am I now beset by pain and wounded in heart? For now have the words spoken by Symeon been fulfilled: A sword will pierce thy heart, O immaculate one! Yet arise now, O my Son, and save those who hymn Thee!”