The Shepherd, March 2005
“THE HOUSE OF GOD AND THE CHURCH SERVICES”, 4
At the end of the second part:
“Have mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us; for at a loss for any defence, this prayer do we sinners offer unto Thee as Master, have mercy on us. Glory. O Lord, have mercy on us; for we have hoped in Thee, be not angry with us greatly, neither remember our iniquities; but look upon us now as Thou art compassionate, and deliver us from our enemies; for Thou art our God, and we Thy people, all are the works of Thy hands, and we call upon Thy name. Both now. The door of compassion open unto us, O blessed Theotokos, for hoping in thee, let us not perish; through thee may we be delivered from adversities, for thou art the salvation of the Christian race.”
[Fr Antonov notes that this is not always sung but sometimes read. In the practice we use at Brookwood, in the first section we also chant the “God is with us,” and “The bodiless natures” in the first section.]
At the end of the third section, we sing:
“O Lord of hosts, be Thou with us: for we have no other help in afflictions save Thee. O Lord of hosts, have mercy on us. Praise God in His saints; praise Him in the firmament of His power. O Lord of hosts, be Thou with us: for we have no other help in afflictions save Thee. O Lord of hosts, have mercy on us. Praise Him for His mighty acts; praise Him according to the multitude of His greatness. O Lord of hosts, be Thou with us: for we have no other help in afflictions save Thee. O Lord of hosts, have mercy on us. Praise Him with the sound of the trumpet; praise Him with the psaltery and harp. O Lord of hosts, be Thou with us: for we have no other help in afflictions save Thee. O Lord of hosts, have mercy on us. Praise Him with the timbrel and dance; praise Him with strings and flute. O Lord of hosts, be Thou with us: for we have no other help in afflictions save Thee. O Lord of hosts, have mercy on us. Praise Him with tuneful cymbals; praise Him with cymbals of jubilation. Let every breath praise the Lord. O Lord of hosts, be Thou with us: for we have no other help in afflictions save Thee. O Lord of hosts, have mercy on us. Praise God in His Saints. Praise Him in the firmament of His power. O Lord of hosts, be Thou with us: for we have no other help in afflictions save Thee. O Lord of hosts, have mercy on us. [Then we usually read, but may chant:] Glory. O Lord, if we had not Thy saints as intercessors, and Thy goodness being merciful to us, how should we have dared, O Saviour, to hymn Thee, Whom angels do unceasingly glorify? O Thou that knowest the hearts, spare our souls. Both now. Greatly multiplied, O Theotokos, are my sins; unto thee have I fled, O pure one, imploring salvation. Do thou visit mine enfeebled soul, and pray to thy Son and our God that He grant me forgiveness for the evil I have done, O thou only blessed one. O all-holy Theotokos, throughout my lifetime forsake me not, to human protection entrust me not, but do thou thyself defend and have mercy on me. All my hope I place in thee, O Mother of God, keep me under thy protection.”
§ 106. The Order of Great Compline. [In this paragraph, Fr Antonov simply lists the psalms and prayers which comprise the service. He does mention, however, that in the First Week of Great Lent, the Great Canon of Saint Andrew of Crete is inserted into the first section of the service. This is one of the most distinctive elements in the services of the First Week, and for this reason Orthodox Christians try as best they can to attend these services.]
… to be continued in the next issue with ‘Great Lenten Mattins’
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