The Praises

This prayer is said out loud at this Litany:

Reader: Let every breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord from the heavens, praise Him in the highest. To Thee is due praise, O God.

Tone 1: What earthly sweetness remaineth unmixed with sorrow? / What glory on earth continueth unchanged? / All things are more feeble than shadows, / all things are more deceptive than dreams; / yet one moment, and Death shall take away them all. / But in the light of Thy countenance, O Christ, / and in the enjoyment of Thy beauty, / give rest unto him whom Thou hast chosen, // for Thou art the lover of mankind.

Glory Theotokion: Thou hast been shown to be a fervent intercessor for all, O Theotokos, / thou protection of all and might of those who through God have recourse unto thee,/ thou helper of those in need and speedy deliverance of those held captive. / For Christ hath set thee as an avenger against the barbarians, / an ally, an indestructible rampart, / invincible strength for the powerless, // and the bestower of peace for our souls.

Praise Him, all ye His angels; praise Him, all ye His hosts. To Thee is due praise, O God. Praise Him, O sun and moon; praise Him all ye stars and light. Praise Him, ye heavens of heavens, and thou water that art above the heavens. Let them praise the name of the Lord; for He spake, and they came to be; He commanded, and they were created. He established them forever, yea, for ever and ever; He hath set an ordinance, and it shall not pass away. Praise the Lord from the earth, ye dragons, and all ye abysses. Fire, hail, snow, ice, blast of tempest, which perform His word.

The Prayer of Absolution

Priest: Glory to Thee Who hast showed us the light.

The Lord is my shepherd, and I shall not want.

Glory Theotokion: O blessed Virgin Theotokos, / thou impassible gate mystically sealed, / accept our entreaties, / and bring them to thy Son and God, // that through thee He save our souls.

The mountains and all the hills, fruitful trees, and all cedars.

Reader: Glory to God in the highest, and on earth, peace and good will among men. We praise Thee, we bless Thee, we worship Thee, we glorify Thee, we give thanks to Thee for Thy great glory. O Lord, heavenly King, God the Father Almighty; O Lord, the only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ; and O Holy Spirit. O Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father, that takest away the sin of the world; have mercy on us; Thou that takest away the sins of the world, receive our prayer; Thou that sittest at the right hand of the Father, have mercy on us. For Thou only art holy; Thou only art the Lord, O Jesus Christ, to the glory of God the Father. Amen.

By Thy deeds Thou showest that Thou art the resurrection of all, O my Savior, / and by Thy word Thou didst raise up Lazarus from the dead, O Word. / Then were the gates broken down and the portals of hades shaken; / then was the death of man shown to be but sleep. / O Thou Who camest to save Thy creation, and not to condemn it, / grant rest unto him whom Thou hast chosen, // in that Thou lovest mankind.

Glory Theotokion: O Virgin Theotokos, we who are tempest-tossed / upon the deep of life have thee as a refuge of salvation. / Wherefore, entreat God Who through thee was incarnate without seed // and ineffably became man, that He save our souls.

The beasts and all the cattle, creeping things and winged birds.

Then these stichera idiomela, the composition of John of Damascus, are chanted:

Tone 2: Woe is me! What manner of ordeal doth the soul endure / when it is torn from the body! / Alas! How it weepeth then, / and there is none to have mercy on it! / To the angels it lifteth up its eyes, / it prayeth without avail; / stretching out its hands to mortals, it findeth none to help. / Wherefore, my beloved brethren, / having pondered upon our short life, / let us ask of Christ repose for the departed, // and for our souls great mercy.

Glory Theotokion: O only pure and immaculate Virgin, / who without seed gavest birth unto God, // pray that our souls be saved.

Kings of the earth, and all peoples, princes and all the judges of the earth. Young men and virgins, elders with the younger; let them praise the name of the Lord, for exalted is the name of Him alone. His praise is above the earth and heaven, and He shall exalt the horn of His people. This is the hymn for all His saints, for the sons of Israel, and for the people that draw nigh unto Him. Sing unto the Lord a new song; His praise is in the church of the saints. Let Israel be glad in Him that made him, let the sons of Zion rejoice in their King. Let them praise His name in the dance; with the timbrel and the psaltery let them chant unto Him. For the Lord taketh pleasure in His people, and He shall exalt the meek with salvation.

Then these stichera are chanted: Tone 8: For those who live prodigally, infinite is the torment, /

Unto the Lord in mine affliction have I cried, and He heard me. Come ye, let us all look upon a wonder past understanding: / he who was yesterday with us, now lieth dead. / Come, let us acknowledge that in yet a little while / we too shall die and be wrapped in a shroud. / Those who anoint themselves with sweet-smelling ointments will lie in stench. / Those who adorn themselves with gold will lie unadorned and ugly. / Wherefore, my beloved brethren, mindful that our life is short, / let us ask of Christ rest for him who hath passed from us, // and great mercy for our souls.

Glory Theotokion: Thee do we entreat as the Mother of God, / O blessed one: // Pray that we be saved. Tone 6: Thy creative command was my beginning and foundation; / for, desiring to fashion of me a living being / out of that which is invisible and that which is visible, / Thou didst form my body out of earth, / and didst give me a soul by Thy divine and life-creating breath. / Wherefore, grant rest unto Thy servant, O Christ, // in the land of the living, in the habitations of the righteous.

The saints shall boast in glory, and they shall rejoice upon their beds.

Priest: For Thine is the kingdom and the power, and the glory: of the Father and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages.

O Lord, deliver my soul from unrighteous lips.

Glory Theotokion: We have recognized as God / Him Who became incarnate of thee, O Virgin Theotokos. // Him do thou entreat, that our souls be saved.

The high praise of God shall be in their throat, and two-edged swords shall be in their hands. To do vengeance among the heathen, punishments among the peoples. To bind their kings with fetters, and their nobles with manacles of iron. To do among them the judgment that is written This glory shall be to all His saints. Praise ye God in His saints, praise Him in the firmament of His power. Praise Him for His mighty acts, * praise Him according to the multitude of His greatness.

Reader: Amen.

Farewell, vain life! / Farewell, all my friends, kinfolk and children! / For I take now the path which I have never trodden. / Yet, mindful of my love for you, come, follow ye, / and commit this my clay to the grave; / and with tears entreat Christ, Who will judge my lowly soul, // that He snatch me from the unquenchable fire.

Glory Theotokion: We, the faithful have thee, O Theotokos, as an indestructible rampart and hope. / Wherefore, O Mistress, never cease thou to pray for thy servants / who have fallen asleep with faith, / that they find release at the judgment, when thy Son and God will sit

Tone 6: Now deified in his repose by Thy life-creating Mystery, O Christ, / Thy godly minister hath passed over to Thee. / Take his soul in Thy hands like a fledgling bird, / cause him to dwell in Thy courts, / and give rest in the angelic choirs unto him / whom Thou hast taken by Thy command, // in Thy great mercy.

And these troparia:

Tone 3: Behold, my beloved brethren, / I lie in the midst of all, mute and silent; / my mouth is idle, my tongue hath stopped, / and my lips have been stilled; my hands are bound, and my feet fettered. / Mine appearance hath been altered, and mine eyes extinguished, / so that they no longer see those who make lamentation; / mine ears do not take in the cries of the mourners, / my nose senseth not the sweet savor of the incense. / But true love never dies; / wherefore, I beseech all who know me, and my friends: / Remember me before the Lord, that on the day of judgment // I may find mercy at the dread tribunal!

Glory Theotokion: Thy protection is spiritual healing, O Virgin Theotokos; / for finding refuge therein, // we are delivered from infirmities of soul.

Praise Him with the sound of trumpet, * praise Him with the psaltery and harp. Now deified in his repose by Thy life-creating Mystery, O Christ, / Thy godly minister hath passed over to Thee. / Take his soul in Thy hands like a fledgling bird, / cause him to dwell in Thy courts, / and give rest in the angelic choirs unto him / whom Thou hast taken by Thy command, // in Thy great mercy.

Deacon: Have mercy on us, O God, according to Thy great mercy, we pray Thee, hearken and have mercy.

I will lift up mine eyes to the mountains, from whence cometh my help.

Praise Him with timbrel and dance, * praise him with strings and flute.

Choir: Lord, have mercy. Thrice.

All things of man are vain which do not last beyond death: / wealth is not abiding, neither doth glory endure; / for when death arriveth, all these things become as nought. / Wherefore, let us cry aloud to Christ Who is immortal: / Unto him who hath departed from us grant rest // where all those who rejoice have their abode.

Strange is the mystery of death, / for it cometh to all unexpectedly. / Nature perforce becometh corrupt; / it taketh old men; / it bringeth to corruption abbots, scribes, and teachers / who meditate vain things, / as well as bishops and pastors. / Yet let us cry out with tears: / Grant rest unto him whom Thou hast taken by Thy command, O Lord, // in Thy great mercy.

Deacon: Again we pray for the repose of the departed servant of God, N. and that he may be forgiven every transgression, both voluntary and involuntary.

The Lord shall keep thy coming in and thy going out, from henceforth and forevermore.

Praise Him with tuneful cymbals, praise Him with cymbals of jubilation. * Let every breath praise the Lord.

Choir: Lord, have mercy. Thrice.

Why trouble yourselves in vain, O men? /

Thy priest, O Christ, having lived in piety and been adorned therewith, / who sacrificed and offered up the divine Mysteries, / hath at Thy divine command passed over to Thee from the tumults of life. / Receiving him as a priest, O Savior, / save him, and grant rest with the righteous // unto him whom Thou hast taken in Thy great mercy.

Deacon: That the Lord God commit his soul to where the righteous repose.

The race we run is swift and hard. /

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

Choir: Lord, have mercy. Thrice.

Life is but smoke, mist and ashes. / In a little while we shall be dust, and shall wither like a flower. / Wherefore, let us cry out to the immortal Christ: / Where the habitation of all who rejoice is, // there grant rest unto him who hath passed from among us.

O Virgin Theotokos, / we have acknowledged God Who became incarnate of thee. // Him do thou entreat, that our souls be saved.

Deacon: The mercy of God, the kingdom of Heaven, and the remission of his sins, let us ask of Christ the Immortal King and our God.

Tone 4: Where is worldly inclination? / Where the imaginings of the ephemeral creatures of a day? / Where are the gold and the silver? / Where is the multitude of servants and noise? / All is dust, all ashes, all a shadow. / But come let us cry unto the Immortal King: / O Lord, vouchsafe Thine eternal good things unto him who hath departed from us, // granting him rest in Thine unaging blessedness.

Small Doxology

Choir: Grant this, O Lord.

I was glad because of them that said unto me: Let us go into the house of the Lord. Death came like a robber, /

Every day will I bless Thee, and I will praise Thy Name forever, yea, forever and ever. Lord, thou hast been our refuge in generation and generation. I said: O Lord, have mercy on me, heal my soul, for I have sinned against Thee. O Lord, unto Thee have I fled for refuge, teach me to do Thy will, for Thou art my God. For in Thee is the fountain of life, in Thy light shall we see light. O continue Thy mercy unto them that know Thee. Vouchsafe, O Lord, to keep us this day without sin. Blessed art Thou, O Lord, the God of our Fathers, and praised and glorified is Thy name unto the ages. Amen. Let Thy mercy, O Lord, be upon us, according as we have hoped in Thee. Blessed art Thou, O Lord, teach me Thy statutes. Blessed art Thou, O Master, give me understanding of Thy statutes. Blessed art Thou, O Holy One, enlighten me by Thy statutes.

Deacon: Let us pray to the Lord

the corrupter came and hath laid me low. /

O Lord, Thy mercy endureth forever; disdain not the works of Thy hands. To Thee is due praise, to Thee is due a song, to Thee glory is due, to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Choir: Lord, have mercy.

He came, and showed me to exist no more; / he came, and, being earth, I lie as one who is no longer. / Truly, we men are a dream, truly we are a phantasm. / Yet come ye, let us cry out to the immortal King: / O Lord, vouchsafe Thine everlasting good things / unto him who hath departed from us, // granting him rest in the life which ageth not.

Tone 5: Unto Thy servant grant rest with the righteous, O our Savior, / and cause him to dwell in Thy courts, as it is written, / overlooking, in that Thou art good, all his transgressions, voluntary and involuntary, / committed in knowledge and in ignorance, // O Thou Who lovest mankind.

Priest: O God of spirits and of all flesh, Who hast trampled down death, and overthrown the devil, and given life to Thy world: Do Thou Thyself, O Lord, give rest to the soul of Thy departed servant N., in a place of light, a place of green pasture, a place of repose, whence all sickness, sorrow and sighing are fled away. Pardon every sin committed by him in word, deed, or thought, in that Thou art a good God, the Lover of mankind; for there is no man that liveth and sinneth not, for Thou alone art without sin, Thy righteousness is an everlasting righteousness, and Thy word is truth.

Tone 5: I remembered what the prophet cried: / I am dust and ashes. / And again I looked into the graves, and saw the bones laid bare, / and said: Who then is king, or warrior, or rich, or poor, or righteous, or sinner? / But give rest, O Lord, // with the righteous unto Thy servant.

Tone 4: In the place of Thy rest, O Lord, / where all Thy saints repose, // give rest also to the soul of Thy servant, for Thou alone art the Lover of mankind.

Priest: For Thou art the Resurrection, and the life, and the repose of Thy departed servant N., O Christ our God, and unto Thee do we send up glory, together with Thine unoriginate Father, and Thy most holy and good and life-creating Spirit, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages.

Our feet have stood in thy courts, O Jerusalem.

Tone 2: O holy Mother of the ineffable Light, / honoring thee with angelic hymns, // we piously magnify thee.

Choir: Amen.

Thou didst say, O Christ: He who believeth on Me shall not see death; / yet as I am the Light, from the Light in the Light, / so be ye enlightened in Me, in My glory; / for as God I have come to save those who in true Orthodoxy worship Me / as the one Lord God, two in nature

The censing is done as at the previous litanies.

Deacon: Let us pray to the Lord.

Wherefore, in the light of Thy countenance / grant rest with the saints unto Thy faithful servant, // who thus confessed Thee.

Koliva may be blessed here:

Choir: Lord, have mercy.

Unto Thee have I lifted up mine eyes, unto Thee Who dwellest in heaven.

Priest: O Lord, Who has perfected all things through Thy Word, and hast commanded the earth to bring forth all manner of fruit for our enjoyment and food, Who through that which is sown has made the Three Children and Daniel fairer than the Babylonians who lived in luxury: Do Thou Thyself, O All-gracious King, bless also this grain and various fruits, and sanctify them that will partake of them, for they have been offered by Thy servants to Thy glory, and as a memorial to them that have departed this life in devout faith. Grant, O Good One, unto them that have decorated these and keep this memorial, all their petitions that are unto salvation, and the enjoyment of Thine eternal good things: Through the prayers of our Most-pure Sovereign Lady, the Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary, and of all Thy Saints. For it is Thou Who blesses and sanctifiest all things, O our God, and unto Thee do we send up glory: to the Eternal Father, together with Thine Only-begotten Son, and Thy Most-holy, Good, and Life-giving Spirit, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages.

O Word, with Thine own image didst Thou honor the creation of Thy hands; / for having fashioned in material form the likeness of a noetic being, / Thou didst cause me to share therein, / appointing me to govern creation on earth with mine own authority. / Wherefore, O Savior, grant rest to Thy servant // in the land of the living, in the tabernacles of the righteous.

Choir: Amen.

Tone 7: In the beginning having created man / according to Thine image and likeness, / in paradise Thou didst place him to rule over Thy creation; / but beguiled through the envy of the devil, / he partook of the fruit, becoming a transgressor of Thy commandments. / Wherefore, Thou didst condemn him to return again to earth from whence he was taken, O Lord, // and to beg for repose.

Then all give the last kiss to the departed, as the Choir chanteth these stichera, in Tone II: Spec. Mel.:

How beloved are Thy dwellings, O Lord of hosts.

Deacon: Let us pray to the Lord.

Death, which was imposed upon the nature of Adam, releaseth from all sorrow; / for we became corrupt when we partook of the fruit. / We therefore acknowledge that, having been fashioned of earth, / we will return again to dust and ashes, as we were before. / Wherefore, let us entreat the Creator with a voice of weeping, // that He grant release and mercy unto him who hath departed from us.

Choir: Lord, have mercy.

for thou knowest our nature, / that it hath now been confused by all manner of sins // that we may all call thee blessed.

Priest: May our Lord Jesus Christ, through His divine grace, gift, and power, given through His holy disciples and apostles to bind and loose the sins of men (for He said unto them: Receive ye the Holy Spirit: whosesoever sins ye remit, they are remitted, and whosesoever sins ye retain, they are retained; and whatsoever ye shall bind or loose on earth shall be bound or loosed also in heaven), which was passed down from them to us, being transmitted from one to another, forgive through me, the lowly one, this my spiritual child [name] all things wherein, as a mortal, he hath sinned against God, in word, or deed, or thought, and in all his senses, voluntary or involuntary, known or unknown. If he be under the ban or excommunication of a bishop or priest, or hath incurred the curse of his father or mother, or hath fallen under his own curse, or hath transgressed by an oath, or hath been bound as a mortal by any sins whatsoever, but hath repented of all these things with contrition of heart, may He absolve him of the guilt and bonds of all these; whatsoever he hath forgotten through the weakness of nature, may He forgive him all these things for the sake of His love for mankind, through the intercessions of our most-pure and most-blessed Lady Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary, of the holy glorious and all-praised apostles, and of all the saints. Amen.

Tone 8: I weep and I lament, when I think about death, / and see our beauty, fashioned according to God s image, / lying in the graves, disfigured, without glory, bereft of form. / O marvel! What is this mystery concerning us? / How have we been given up to corruption? How have we been linked with death? / Truly, as it is written, by the command of God, // Who giveth repose unto the departed.

Deacon: Wisdom!

How have we become corrupt who have borne the image of incorruption / and received an immortal soul through the breath of God, / becoming mingled, as it is written? / How have we violated the commandments of God? / O the wonder! / How, forsaking the fruit of life, did we eat the fruit, / which brought about bitter death? / How, being deceived, have we been deprived of life divine? / But let us cry out again unto Christ: // Him whom thou hast translated do Thou cause to dwell in Thy courts.

Priest: O most holy Theotokos, save us.

the gnashing of teeth, the inconsolable weeping, /

Choir: More honorable than the Cherubim, and beyond compare more glorious than the Seraphim; who without corruption gavest birth to God the Word, the very Theotokos, thee do we magnify.

the gloom devoid of light, the outermost darkness, /

Priest: Glory to Thee, O Christ God, our hope, glory to Thee.

the worm which sleepeth not, /

Choir: Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, both now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

the tears unavailing, and the pitiless judgment. /

Priest: May Christ our true God, Who rose from the dead, through the intercessions of His most pure Mother, of our holy and God-bearing fathers, and of all the saints, commit the soul of His servant N., that hath departed from us, to the tabernacles of the righteous, give him rest in the bosom of Abraham, and number him with the righteous, and have mercy on us and save us, for He is good and the Lover of mankind.

Wherefore, before the end let us cry out, saying: / O Christ our Master, grant rest with Thine elect // unto him whom Thou hast chosen.

Choir: Amen.

The trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall arise as from sleep, /

Deacon: In a blessed falling asleep, grant, O Lord, eternal rest unto Thy departed servant N., and make his memory to be eternal.

desiring to receive the life of heaven. / For this cause, do not condemn Thy servant, who trusted in Thee, /

Choir: Memory Eternal. Thrice.

the Creator and Lord, /

Priest: Blessed is our God, always, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages.

because for our sake didst Thou become mortal, O Immortal One. / Wherefore, before the end let us cry out, saying: / O Christ our Master, grant rest with Thine elect // unto him whom Thou hast chosen.

Choir: Amen. Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us. Thrice.

Lo! the elements, heaven and earth will be changed, / and all creation will be clothed in incorruption: / corruption will be abolished, and darkness will be destroyed in Thy coming; / for Thou wilt come again with glory, as it is written, / to render unto each according to his works. / O Christ our Master, grant rest with Thine elect // unto him whom Thou hast chosen.

Reader: Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, both now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Glory Tone 6: Come ye all, and see what all acknowledge to be a strange and terrible sight, / an image now beheld; / and no longer set your minds on transitory things. / Today the soul is parted from the body and sent into the eternal world; / it goeth by a path it hath never trodden, / to the impartial Judge, where the ranks of angels are in attendance. / Strange is that tribunal, O my brethren, where all must stand forth naked! / For some will be crowned, and some put to shame. / Wherefore, let us cry out to the immortal King: / When Thou shalt come to try the hidden things of man, / spare Thy servant whom Thou hast taken to Thyself, // O Lord Who lovest mankind.

Priest: For Thine is the kingdom and the power, and the glory: of the Father and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages.

Both now Through the supplications of her who gave Thee birth, / of Thy forerunner, the apostles, prophets, hierarchs, /

Choir: Amen.

the venerable and the righteous, and of all the saints, //

Deacon: Have mercy on us, O God, according to Thy great mercy, we pray Thee, hearken and have mercy.

O Christ, grant rest unto Thy servant who hath fallen asleep.

Choir: Lord, have mercy. Thrice.

Psalm 91 It is good to give praise unto the Lord, and to chant unto Thy name, O Most High, To proclaim in the morning Thy mercy, and Thy truth by night, on a psaltery of ten strings, with an ode upon the harp. For Thou hast gladdened me, O Lord, by Thy deeds, and in the works of Thy hands will I rejoice. How great are Thy works, O Lord, exceeding deep are Thy thoughts. A mindless man shall not know it, nor shall a stupid man understand it. When the sinners spring up like grass, and all that work iniquity look loftily down, It is that they may be utterly destroyed unto ages of ages; but Thou art Most High for ever, O Lord. For lo, Thine enemies, O Lord, for lo, Thine enemies shall perish; and scattered shall be all they that work iniquity. And lifted high as that of a unicorn shall be my horn, and mine old age shall be strengthened with rich oil. And mine eye hath looked down upon mine enemies, and mine ear shall hear concerning the wicked that rise up against me. The righteous man shall flourish like a palm tree, and like a cedar in Lebanon shall he be multiplied. They that are planted in the house of the Lord, in the courts of our God they shall blossom forth. They shall still increase in a ripe old age, and happy shall they be to proclaim that upright is the Lord our God, and there is no unrighteousness in Him.

Deacon: Again we pray for the repose of the departed servant of God, N. and that he may be forgiven every transgression, both voluntary and involuntary.

Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us. Thrice.

Choir: Lord, have mercy. Thrice.

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

Deacon: That the Lord God commit his soul to where the righteous repose.

O Most Holy Trinity, have mercy on us. O Lord, blot out our sins. O Master, pardon our iniquities. O Holy One, visit and heal our infirmities for Thy name's sake.

Choir: Lord, have mercy. Thrice.

Lord have mercy. Thrice.

Deacon: The mercy of God, the kingdom of Heaven, and the remission of his sins, let us ask of Christ the Immortal King and our God.

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

Choir: Grant this, O Lord.

Our Father, Who art in the Heavens, hallowed be Thy Name. Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

Deacon: Let us pray to the Lord

Tone 2 [Spec. Melody: When from the Tree]: Come, brethren, let us give the last kiss to the dead, / rendering thanks unto God, / for this one hath disappeared from among his kindred, / and hasteneth to the grave, no longer having concern with vanities / and the many passions of the flesh. / Where now are kindred and friends? / Behold, we are parted from him // for whom let us pray the Lord to grant repose.

Choir: Lord, have mercy.

What is the parting, O brethren? / What this weeping, what this wailing at the present hour? / Come then, kiss him who was but lately with us, / for he is given over to the grave, / is covered with a stone, in darkness dwelleth, / is buried with the dead, and now is parted from all kindred and friends; // for him let us pray the Lord to grant repose. s evil triumph of vanity destroyed; / for the spirit hath gone from its dwelling, /

Priest: O God of spirits and of all flesh, Who hast trampled down death, and overthrown the devil, and given life to Thy world: Do Thou Thyself, O Lord, give rest to the soul of Thy departed servant N., in a place of light, a place of green pasture, a place of repose, whence all sickness, sorrow and sighing are fled away. Pardon every sin committed by him in word, deed, or thought, in that Thou art a good God, the Lover of mankind; for there is no man that liveth and sinneth not, for Thou alone art without sin, Thy righteousness is an everlasting righteousness, and Thy word is truth.

the clay is ashes, the vessel is broken, /

Priest: For Thou art the Resurrection, and the life, and the repose of Thy departed servant N., O Christ our God, and unto Thee do we send up glory, together with Thine unoriginate Father, and Thy most holy and good and life-creating Spirit, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages.

voiceless, unfeeling, dead, motionless. / Committing him to the grave, // let us pray the Lord to give him eternal rest.

Choir: Amen.

What is our life? A flower, and smoke, and truly a morning dew. / Come then, let us look clearly upon the tombs; / where is the beauty of the body? Where is youth? / Where are the eyes and the bodily form? / All like grass have withered, all have perished. // Come let us fall down before Christ with tears.

Deacon: Wisdom!

Great is the weeping and wailing, / great the sighing, and the need, at the parting of the soul; / hades and destruction await; / transitory life is but a fleeting shadow, a deceptive dream; /

Priest: O most holy Theotokos, save us.

the toil of earthly life is an untimely phantasy. /

Choir: More honorable than the Cherubim, and beyond compare more glorious than the Seraphim; who without corruption gavest birth to God the Word, the very Theotokos, thee do we magnify.

Far let us flee from every earthly sin, // that we may inherit heavenly things.

Priest: Glory to Thee, O Christ God, our hope, glory to Thee.

Gazing upon the dead who lieth before us, / let us all accept this image of the final hour; / for he is gone from the earth like smoke, / is faded like a flower, cut down like grass, / wrapped in a winding sheet, covered with earth. / Having left him hidden from sight, // let us pray Christ to give him rest unto the ages.

Choir: Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, both now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Come ye descendants of Adam, / let us behold him who is made according to our image laid low in the earth, / all grandeur put aside, dissolved in the grave s decay, / by worms in darkness consumed, covered by earth. / Having left him hidden from sight, // let us pray Christ to give him rest unto the ages. When the soul is snatched away from the body by the dread angels, / it forgetteth all its kindred and acquaintances,/ and is concerned with its appearance at the judgment to come, / which shall decide regarding vanities and toils of the flesh; / then importuning the Judge, let us all pray // that the Lord will forgive him whatsoever he hath done.

Priest: May Christ our true God, Who rose from the dead, through the intercessions of His most pure Mother, of our holy and God-bearing fathers, and of all the saints, commit the soul of His servant N., that hath departed from us, to the tabernacles of the righteous, give him rest in the bosom of Abraham, and number him with the righteous, and have mercy on us and save us, for He is good and the Lover of mankind.

Come, brethren, let us gaze into the grave / upon the dust and ashes from which we were formed. / Whither go we now? What are we become? / What is the poor or the rich? / or what the master? or what the free? / And are not all dust? /

Choir: Amen.

The beauty of the countenance is gone, //

Deacon: In a blessed falling asleep, grant, O Lord, eternal rest unto Thy departed servant N., and make his memory to be eternal.

and all the flower of youth death hath withered.

Choir: Memory Eternal. Thrice.

Truly vanity and corruption are all the things of life, / illusory and inglorious; for we all disappear, / all die, kings and princes, judges and tyrants, /

Choir: Amen.

the rich and the poor, and all of mortal nature; /

for now they who before were alive are cast into the grave, // for whom let us pray the Lord to grant repose.

All the bodily organs now are seen to be idle, / which a little while ago were active, / all is useless, dead, senseless; / for the eyes have sunken inward, /

the feet are bound, the hands are stilled, /

and the hearing with them; /

the tongue is locked in silence, given up to the grave. //

Truly all mortal things are vanity.

O thou who savest them that hope in thee, / Mother of the Unsetting Sun, O Theotokos; / through thine intercessions entreat the most-good God / to give rest where the spirits of the righteous repose / to him who hath now departed; / show him to be an heir of divine good things, / in the courts of the righteous, // in eternal remembrance, O all-blameless one. Tone 6: As ye behold me lying before you voiceless and breathless, / weep for me, brethren and friends, / kindred and acquaintances; / for yesterday I conversed with you, / and suddenly the dread hour of death came upon me; / but come ye, all that love me, and kiss me with the final kiss; / for no longer will I walk or talk with you; / for unto the Judge do I depart, /

where there is no respect of persons; / for servants and master together stand, / king and warrior, rich and poor in equal worthiness; / for each according to his deeds is either glorified or put to shame. / But I beg and implore all, / pray unceasingly to Christ God for me, / that I be not brought down according to my sins to a place of torment; // but that He may number me where is the light of life.

Both now Through the intercessions of her who gave Thee birth, O Christ, / and of Thy Forerunner, the Apostles, Prophets, Hierarch, / Monastics and Righteous Ones, and all the Saints, // give rest unto Thy servant who hath fallen asleep.

Lord have mercy. Thrice.

Father, bless.

The priest takes the censer, and does a small censing

Then, departing to the grave, the Priests chant the Irmoi of the Great Canon of Saint Andrew of Crete, in Tone 6:

He is for me unto salvation Helper and Protector. / He is my God and I glorify Him, / God of my fathers is He / and I exalt Him, // for He is greatly glorified.

Attend, O heaven, / and I shall speak and sing in praise of Christ, / who took flesh from a Virgin // and came to dwell among us.

See now, see that I am God, / who rained down manna in the days of old, / and made springs of water flow from the rock, / for My people in the wilderness, // by My right hand and by My power alone.

Upon the unshaken rock of Thy commandments, O Christ, // make firm Thy Church.

O Lord, upon the rock of Thy commandments / make firm my wavering heart, // for Thou alone art Holy and Lord.

The Prophet heard of Thy coming, O Lord, /

and he was afraid: / how thou wast to be born of a Virgin and revealed to men, / and he said: I have heard the report of Thee and I was afraid. // Glory to Thy power, O Lord.

From the night I seek Thee early, O Lover of mankind: / give me light, I pray Thee, / and guide me in Thy commandments, // and teach me, O Savior, to do Thy will. With my whole heart / I cried to the all-compassionate God: / and He heard from the lowest depths of hell, // and brought my life out of corruption.

We have sinned, we have transgressed, we have done evil in Thy sight; / we have not kept or followed Thy commandments. / But reject us not utterly, // O God of our fathers.

The host of heaven give Him glory; /

before Him tremble cherubim and seraphim; / let everything that has breath and all creation praise Him, / bless Him, and exalt Him // above all forever.

Conception without seed; / nativity past understanding, / from a Mother who never knew a man; / childbearing undefiled, / for the birth of God makes both natures new. / Therefore, as Bride and Mother of God, / with true worship // all generations magnify thee.

During the funeral of a Hierarch, as they carry the remains to the grave, first they circle the temple celebrating a brief Litia at each side. The Body of a deceased Priest usually is carried around the temple, in which he served during the final time of his life. During the Funeral Procession, the banners, Cross and Gospel Book usually are carried before the coffin.

O Most Holy Trinity, have mercy on us. O Lord, blot out our sins. O Master, pardon our iniquities. O Holy One, visit and heal our infirmities for Thy name's sake.

Lord have mercy. Thrice.

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

Our Father, Who art in the Heavens, hallowed be Thy Name. Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

Tone 4: With the souls of the righteous that have passed away, / give rest, O Savior, to the soul of Thy servant, // preserving him in the blessed life which is with Thee, O Lover of mankind.

In the place of Thy rest, O Lord, / where all Thy saints repose, // give rest also to the soul of Thy servant, for Thou alone art the Lover of mankind.

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

Thou art the God Who descended into hades and loosed the chains of the captives;// do Thou Thyself give rest also to the soul of Thy servant.

Both now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

O only pure and blameless Virgin, who without seed gavest birth to God, // pray that his soul be saved.

Lord have mercy. Thrice.

Father, bless.

And while this is sung, the coffin is lowered into the grave. The priest then takes the shovel, and pours some earth upon the coffin, in the form of a cross, while saying:

The earth is the Lord

s, and the fullness thereof, the world, and all that dwell therein.

And then he scatters the ashes from the censer upon the coffin.

At the conclusion of the burial, the priest says:

May God bless and give him rest, and have mercy on us, for He is good and the Lover of mankind.

Revised 11/18/2024 he priests take up the remains, and bear them to the narthex of the church, and If the Funeral service will be served after the