THE HALLOWING
OF MAR THEODORE THE INTERPRETER
of the divine Scriptures, bishop of Mopsuestia

 

First Cycle

 

Glory to you, O Finder of the lost. Glory to you, O Gatherer of the dispersed. Glory to you, who bring near the far off. Glory to you, who return the erring to the knowledge of the truth. Glory to you, my Lord, for you have called me, even feeble me, in your grace, and have brought me near unto you in your compassion, and have established me as a designated member in the great body of your holy catholic church, to offer before you this living, holy, and acceptable sacrifice, which is the memorial of the passion, death, burial, and resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ,- through whom you were well-pleased and reconciled to forgive the sins of all men.

 

Kushapa

 

Yea, our Lord and our God, repeat, do not look upon the multitude of our sins, and do not let your Lordship abhor the burden of our wickednesses, but in your ineffable grace accept this sacrifice from our hands, and through it grant power and authority, that it may be enabled to pardon our many sins, that when you are revealed at the end of times in the humanity which you took from us, we may find grace and mercies before you, and may be deemed worthy to sing praise with the spiritual companies.

 

Gehantha

 

The priest recites softly this prayer before the Altar.

 

O Lord of hosts, omnipotent God repeat, who is alone eternal, and the Cause and Maker of all creatures, glorious King who does incomprehensibly great deeds and ineffably glorious and exalted things, you who, through a marvelous and fearful dispensation, which your Only-begotten, our Lord Jesus Christ, fulfilled through our humanity, provided for us the beginnings of new life, and gave us the earnest of the Holy Spirit in our hearts, and moreover deemed us worthy through your grace of the knowledge of these glorious, holy, (and divine) Mysteries, though we were not worthy, not only to offer and perfect them, but also to receive and have fellowship in them, do not, my Lord, look upon our deficiency and feebleness, but in your goodness and abundant mercies, fill us with the grace of the Holy Spirit, that when we stand before you with a clear conscience and offer you this living, holy, acceptable, and unbloody sacrifice,- we may find grace and mercies before you repeat

 

Qanona

 

with all those who from of old have pleased you, in the grace and mercies of your Only-begotten, for to you, to him, and to the Holy Spirit we lift up glory, honor, confession, and worship, now, always, and for ever and ever. And he signs over himself, and they respond: Amen. And the priest says: Peace be with you. And the people reply, answering: And with you and with your spirit.

 

And the deacon says: Give the peace to one another in the love of Christ. And they give the peace to one another and say: For all catholicoi, bishops, presbyters, and deacons, and every member of a religious profession who has departed from the assembly of the church, and for the life and tranquillity of the world, and for the crown of the year, that it may be blessed and fulfilled in your grace, and for every child of the church who is worthy of the reception of this oblation before you, and for all your servants and handmaidens who stand before you at this hour, for all of them and for all of us may this oblation be accepted for ever. Amen.Then two deacons read the diptychs, that is, the roll of the living and the dead.

 

Then the deacon proclaims: Let us all in purity and with sighs give thanks and beseech and supplicate the Lord. Stand aright and look upon those things which are done in the fearful Mysteries being hallowed. The priest draws near to pray, that by his mediation peace may be multiplied for you. Lower your eyes, and stretch out your mind to heaven. And immediately the priest draws near and inclines before the altar upon his knees and recites this prayer.

 

Kushapa

 

O Lord God of hosts, repeat, assist my weakness in your mercy, and through the aid of your grace make me worthy to offer before you this living and holy sacrifice, for the help of the whole community, and for the praise of your glorious Trinity, O Father, Son, and Holy Spirit for ever.- And when the deacon says, Watchfully and earnestly beseech and supplicate at this hour. Let no one venture to speak. Whoever prays, let him pray in his heart. In silence and awe stand and pray. Peace be with us. The priest at once arises and lifts the veil (discreetly) from the Mysteries and winds it round the chalice and paten, saying: Since by your grace, O my Lord, you have made me worthy of your body and your blood, so make me worthy of confidence before you on the day of judgment. Amen.

 

(Prayer of the incense: With the worshipful and glorious name of your glorious Trinity may this incense be blessed which we offer to your honor and for our pardon for ever. Amen.)

 

And the priest censes the paten with the incense, saying: O our Lord and our God, may the sweet incense which we offer you before your holy altar within your glorious temple please you, and may it be for the gladness of your holy name, and for the pardon of your servants and your flock, O Father, Son, and Holy Spirit for ever.-

 

And the priest says to the deacon: May Christ strengthen you to do his will continually. And he continues (in an audible voice):

 

Qanona

 

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God the Father, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with us all, now, always, and for ever and ever. And he signs over the Mysteries, and they respond: Amen.

 

And he continues:

 

Let your minds be above. And they respond: With you, the God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Israel, O glorious King. (For Feasts: Above in the exalted heights, in the fearful place of praise, in the place where the rustling of the wings of cherubim and the pleasant sounds of the hallowings of seraphim continue without ceasing, there let your minds be. And they respond: With you, the God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Israel, O glorious King.)

 

And he continues:

 

The oblation is offered unto God, the Lord of all. And they respond: It is meet and right.

 

(For Feasts: The living and rational offering of our first-fruits, and the unslain and acceptable sacrifice of the Son of our race [addition: which the prophets depicted in a mystery, and the apostles proclaimed openly, and the martyrs purchased with the blood of their necks, and the teachers interpreted in the churches, and the priests sacrificed on the altar of holiness, and the levites bore upon their arms, and the people received for the pardon of their debts] is offered to God, the Lord of all, for utterly all creatures. And they respond: It is meet and right.) And the deacon says: Peace be with us.

 

Kushapa

 

Lord, Lord, grant us confidence before you, that with the liberty which is from you we may fulfill this living and holy ministry, our consciences being clear of all evil and bitterness. Sow among us love, tranquillity, and unity with each other and with all men.-

 

And he rises and kisses the altar.- Also, it is necessary to know this, that at the beginning of each gehantha and at its end he makes a genuflection and kisses the altar. And the priest continues, his hands outstretched (from now on) in an orderly fashion. And he says this gehantha softly.-

 

It is meet, O my Lord, every day, repeat, and right at all times, and worthy at every hour, to confess your holy name and to worship your Lordship in every land and in every place—you, O God, the Father of truth, the everlasting Being, and your Only-begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit for ever, amen.- For you are the Lord and Maker of all that is seen and all that is unseen, who through your Only-begotten Son, God the Word, who is the brightness of your glory, the effulgence from you, and the image of your Being, created and set in order the heavens and the earth, and all that is in them; and by the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of truth, who is from you, Father, all rational natures, visible and invisible, are strengthened, sanctified, and made worthy to lift up praise to your worshipful Godhead. For before you, O God, the Father of truth, and before your Only-begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, and before the Holy Spirit stand thousands upon thousands of those on high, and ten thousand times ten thousand holy angels, who for the delight of their lives, in constancy of their wills, hallow your great and holy name with continual praise. Through your grace, O my Lord, you have also made worthy the weak race of mortal men to offer up praise and honor to your all-ruling Lordship with all the companies of those on high, with those who at all times cry out before the greatness of your holiness, praising your glorious Trinity,- which is confessed in three equal and inseparable qnome,- repeat,

 

Qanona

 

crying and singing praise ceaselessly, calling to one another and saying,

 

And they respond: Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God of hosts, for heaven and earth are full of his praises, and of the nature of his Being, and of the excellency of his glorious splendor. And they continue on Feasts: Hosanna in the heights. Hosanna to the son of David. Blessed is he who came and comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the heights. And with each cry of “holy” the priest makes a genuflection before the altar. And he kneels and says this kushapa:

 

Kushapa

 

Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God of hosts, for heaven and earth are full of his praises, and of the nature of his Being, and of the excellency of his glorious splendor, even as “Heaven and earth are filled by me,” says the Lord. You are holy, O God, the Father of truth, from whom all fatherhood in heaven and on earth is named. You are holy, O eternal Son, through whom all came about. You are holy, O Holy Spirit, Being through whom all is hallowed.- Woe is me! Woe is me! for I am amazed. For I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell among a people whose lips are unclean, and my eyes have seen the King, the mighty Lord. How terrible is this place, for today I have seen the Lord face to face, and this is nothing if not the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.- Now let your grace be upon us, O Lord.- Repeat. Purify our uncleanness, sanctify our lips, and, O my Lord, join our deficient voices with the hallowing of the seraphim and the praises of the angels. Glory to your mercies, for you have given creatures of dust fellowship with spiritual beings. And he rises and says: Bless, O my Lord, bless, O my Lord, bless, O my Lord, my brothers, pray for me. And he recites this gehantha softly:

 

Gehantha

 

Truly, Lord, repeat, you are holy, and you are glorious for ever and ever. You are holy, O God, the Father of truth, and truly holy as well is your Only-begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, and indeed, holy in truth is the Holy Spirit, uncreated divine nature, Maker of everything, who naturally is holy for ever. Holy is his name and holy his dwelling-place, and in truth he sanctifies all who are deemed worthy to receive the gift of his grace, and we lift up praise, honor, confession, and worship to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, now, always, and for ever and ever. Amen.-

 

We worship you, O my Lord, repeat, and we confess you and glorify you for all your kindnesses towards us, for you created us from nothing, and you deemed us worthy of the great honor of freedom and of intelligence, who from of old and at every moment concern yourself with the condition of our life. Before your great and fearful name we bow down and worship, and with us all the companies on high also give glory and confession for your ineffable goodness. For on behalf of us men and for our salvation the Only-begotten God the Word, who is the likeness of God, did not consider this, that he was the equal of God, as something to be forcibly grasped, but emptied himself out and took the likeness of a servant, when he descended from heaven and clothed himself with our humanity, a mortal body and a rational, sentient, and immortal soul, of the holy Virgin, by the power of the Holy Spirit, through which he fulfilled and perfected all this great and marvelous dispensation, which was prepared in your foreknowledge before the foundations of the world. And you have fulfilled it now, in the last times, through your beloved Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, in whom dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. And he is the Head of the church and the First-born from the dead, and he is the Fullness of all, and all is made complete in him, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God and sanctified us with the offering of his body once. And he, by himself, reconciled through the blood of his cross whatever is in heaven and whatever is on earth, for he was delivered for our sins, and rose that he might justify us.

 

For with his holy apostles, on the night in which he was betrayed, he appointed this great, holy, and divine Mystery, taking bread in his holy hands, and blessing and breaking it, and giving it to his disciples, saying, This is my body which is broken for the life of the world and for the forgiveness of sins. In the same way also he gave thanks over the cup and gave to them and said, This is my blood of the new testament which is shed for many for the forgiveness of sins. Take, therefore, all of you, and eat of this bread and drink of this cup. You must do the same, whenever you gather for my memorial.

 

And as we have been commanded, so we have gathered, even we, your deficient, feeble, and miserable servants, that with the permission of your grace we may perform this great, fearful, holy, and divine Mystery,- in which is great salvation for the entire race of men, repeat,

 

Qanona

 

lifting up praise, honor, confession, and worship to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, now, always, and for ever and ever. And he signs over the Mysteries, and they respond: Amen.

 

And the deacon says: Pray in your minds. Peace be with us.

 

Kushapa

 

O Lord God of hosts, accept this oblation (from my feeble hands) for all the holy catholic church, for all the just and righteous fathers who were well-pleasing before you, for all the prophets and apostles, for all the martyrs and confessors, for all mourners and distressed, for all the needy and harassed, (for all priests, kings, and rulers,) for all the sick and afflicted, for all the departed who have departed and gone from among us, for this people which looks for and awaits your mercies,- and for my feebleness, misery, and poverty. Repeat. Yea, our Lord and our God, according to your mercies and the abundance of your kindness, act toward your people and toward my misery, not according to my sins and offenses, but may we be deemed worthy, I and these, of the pardon of debts and the forgiveness of sins, through this holy body which we receive in true faith through the grace which is from you. Amen.- And he rises and says: Bless, O my Lord. Three times.- And he recites this gehantha softly:

 

Gehantha

 

We worship you, O my Lord, repeat, and give thanks to you, and glorify you, for though we are not worthy because of our sins, you have brought us near to you because of your many mercies, and you have renewed us and sanctified us through the grace of the Holy Spirit. You have made us worthy to minister before you this fearful and divine ministry for the salvation of our life, while we offer before you confession with much thanksgiving for the great salvation which is ours through your beloved Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. And we offer before your glorious Trinity, with a broken heart and a lowly spirit, this living, holy, and acceptable sacrifice, the Mystery of the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, beseeching you, and supplicating you, that your worshipful Godhead may be pleased, O my Lord, and in your mercy this pure and holy oblation may be accepted, through which you have been satisfied and appeased for the sins of the world.-

 

Now too, O my Lord, repeat, lo, this oblation is offered before your great and fearful name for all the holy catholic church, that you may make your peace and tranquillity to dwell within it all the days of the world.- Yea, our Lord and our God, repeat, make your tranquillity and peace to dwell within it all the days of the world, and may persecution, tumults, strife, schisms, and divisions be put far from it, and may all of us be joined, one to another, in one unity, with a pure heart and perfect love.- And for all our fathers, the bishops, visitors, presbyters, and deacons who are in this ministry of truth, that they may be established and serve before you purely, circumspectly, and in holiness, and may please your will, so that they may be deemed worthy to receive from you good and exalted ranks at the appearance of our Lord Jesus Christ;- and for all the children of the holy catholic church, here and everywhere, that they may grow strong in the worship of your Lordship, in true faith and with good and excellent deeds, for the salvation of their life; and for your sinful and offending servant, that by your grace, O my Lord, you may pardon my sins and make my offenses to pass away, those which knowingly and unknowingly I have committed and done before you; and for all those for whom this oblation is offered, that they may find mercies and compassion before you, and may be saved; - and for the fruits of the earth and the temperature of the air, that the crown of the year may be blessed through your grace. Repeat three times.- And for the whole race of men who are in sin and error, that through your grace, O my Lord, you will deem them worthy of the knowledge of the truth and of the worship of your Lordship, that they may know you, that you are God, the only Father of truth, the Good One, who desires that all men should live and turn to the knowledge of the truth and know that you are the Lord from of old and for ever, the divine, uncreated nature, the Maker of everything, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. For on behalf of us men and for our salvation, the Son of God, God the Word, clothed himself with a complete man, our Lord Jesus Christ, and he was perfected and justified by the power of God and the Holy Spirit, and became the Mediator between God and men, and the Giver of life for ever and ever to all who draw near to God the Father through him, to whom be praises and blessings for ever and ever, amen.-

 

Yea, our Lord and our God, repeat, accept from us in your grace this sacrifice of praise, which is the rational fruit of our lips, that there may be a good memorial before you for the righteous of old, the holy prophets and blessed apostles, the martyrs and confessors, the bishops and teachers, the presbyters and deacons, and all the children of the holy catholic church who in the true faith have departed from this world,- here he makes the sign and stretches out upon his face, that in your loving-kindness, O my Lord, you may pardon for them all the sins and offenses which in this world, in a mortal body and a mutable soul, they have committed and done before you,- for there is no man who does not sin, or does not need mercy and pardon from you. Repeat.

 

And we beseech you, O my Lord, and supplicate you, and worship you, and petition you, that your worshipful Godhead and your mercifulness may be well-pleased, O my Lord,

AND THERE MAY COME

upon us and upon this oblation the grace of the Holy Spirit. May he dwell and rest upon this bread and upon this cup, and may he bless, consecrate, and seal them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. By the power of your name may this bread become the holy body of our Lord Jesus Christ, and this cup the precious blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, and whoever in true faith eats this bread and drinks this cup, may they be to him, O my Lord, for the pardon of debts, the forgiveness of sins, the great hope of resurrection from the dead, the salvation of his body and soul, and for life and glory for ever and ever.

 

Make us all worthy through the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that with all those who have been pleasing to your will, and have conducted themselves according to your commandments, we may take delight in the kingdom of heaven in the good things to come which do not pass away. Repeat.

 

And when the priest says “And may there come upon us”, the deacon says: In silence and in awe stand and pray. Peace be with us.

 

Qanona

 

And here as well as there may we all together equally confess, worship, and glorify the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, now, always, and for ever and ever. And he signs over the Mysteries, and they respond: Amen.

 

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