The Cherubimic Hymn
Choir: We who mystically represent the Cherubim, and sing to the life-giving Trinity the thrice-holy hymn, let us now lay aside all earthly care: that we may receive the King of all, who comes invisibly upborne by the Angelic Hosts. Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia.
The Prayer of the Cherubimic Hymn
Priest: (quietly) No one who is bound with the desires and pleasures of the flesh is worthy to approach or draw nigh or to serve thee, O King of Glory: for to serve thee is a great and terrible thing even to the Heavenly Powers. Nevertheless, through thine unspeakable and boundless love toward mankind thou didst become man, yet without change or alteration, and as Lord of all didst take the name of our High Priest, and deliver unto us the ministry of this liturgic and unbloody sacrifice. For thou alone, O Lord our God, rulest over those in heaven and on earth; who art born on the Seraphim and King of Israel, who alone art holy and restest in thy Holy Place.
Wherefore I implore thee who alone art good and art ready to listen: Look down upon me, a sinner, and thine unprofittable servant, and cleanse my soul and my heart from an evil conscience; and by the power of thy Holy spirit enable me, who am endued with the grace of the priesthood, to stand before this thy Holy Table, and perform the sacred Mystery of thy holy and immaculate Body and precious Blood. For I draw near unto thee: not thy face from me, neither cast me out from among thy children; but vouchsafe that these gifts may be offfered unto thee by me, thy sinful and unworthy servant: for thou thyself are he that offered, that accepts and is distributed, O Christ our God: and unto thee we ascribe glory, together with thy Father who is from everlasting, and thine all-holy, and life-giving Spirit: now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen.
(The Priest now says the Cherubimic Hymn, censes the Altar, the ikons, and the people , saying Psalm 50 as he goes. He makes three low bows before the Altar, kisses the Antimins and the Altar, turns and bows to the people, and goes to the Prothesis Table; he censes the holy Gifts, bows, and says:)
Priest: (quietly)
O God, be gracious unto me a sinner, and have mercy upon me. (Then he takes up the Aer and places it upon his shoulders saying)
Priest: (quietly)
Lift up your hands to the holy Places, and bless ye the Lord. (The Priest takes up the Diskarion in his left hand, and the holy Chalice in his right hand, and preceded by the Cross and the taper and censer-bearers proceeds around the Temple, saying aloud: )
Priest: The Lord God remember us all in his kingdom, always: now and ever, and unto ages of ages.
Choir: Amen.
(In many Churches, the Priest also stands at the foot of the Altar steps and makes remembrances in the following fashion:)
Priest: (aloud)
Our Most Reverend Arch-bishop(or Bishop, or Metropolitan) N.: the Lord God remember him in his Kingdom always; now and ever, and unto ages of ages.
Choir: Amen.
Priest: The President of ______ and all civil authorities, and our Armed Forces everywhere: The Lord God Remember them in his Kingdom, always: now and ever, and unto ages of ages.
Choir: Amen.
Priest: The Orthodox servant (s) of God N., (NN.): that they may have mercy, life, peace, health, salvation and pardon and remission of sins: the Lord God remember them in his Kingdom always: now and ever, and unto ages of ages.
Choir: Amen.
Priest: The Orthodox servant (s) of God departed this life N., (NN.): the Lord God remember them in his Kingdom always: now and ever, and unto ages of ages.
Choir: Amen.
Priest: The Lord God remember you all in his Kingdom always: now and ever, and unto ages of ages.
Choir: Amen.
(Then the Priest enters the Sanctuary while the Choir sings the remainder of the Cherubinic Hymn; he places the holy Gifts on the Altar, saying quietly:)
Priest: The noble Joseph, when he had taken down thy spotless body from the tree, wrapped it in fine linen and spices, and sorrowing placed it in a new tomb.
In the Grave with the body, but in Hades with the soul, as God; in Paradise with the Thief, and on the Throne with the Father and the Spirit wast thou, O Christ, filling all things, thyself uncircumscribed.
As giving life, as more splendid than Paradise, and more radiant than any royal chamber, O Christ, is shown forth thy tomb, the fountain of our resurrection.
(The Priest censes the holy Gifts thrice, saying quietly the last part of Psalm 50:)
Priest: Then shall they offer young bullocks upon thine altar. (Thrice)
The Ektenia of the Prothesis
Priest: Let us complete our prayer unto the Lord.
Choir: Lord, have mercy.
Priest: For the precious Gifts now offered, let us pray to the Lord.
Choir: Lord, have mercy.
Priest: For this holy House, and for those who with faith, reverence, and fear of God enter therein, let us pray to the Lord.
Choir: Lord, have mercy.
Priest: For our deliverance from all tribulation wrath, danger, and necessity, let us pray to the Lord.
Choir: Lord, have mercy.
Priest: Help us; save us; have mercy on us; and keep us, O God, by thy grace.
Choir: Lord, have mercy.
Priest: That the whole day may be perfect, holy, peaceful, and sinless, let us ask of the Lord.
Choir: Grant this, O Lord.
Priest: An angel of peace, a fainthful guide, a guardian of our souls and bodies, let us ask of the Lord.
Choir: Grant this, O Lord.
Priest: Pardon and remission of our sins and transgressions, let us ask the Lord.
Choir: Grant this, O Lord.
Priest: All things good and profitable for our souls and peace for the world, let us ask the Lord.
Choir: Grant this, O Lord.
Priest: That we may complete the remaining time of our life in peace and repentance, let us ask the Lord.
Choir: Grant this, O Lord.
Priest: A Christian ending to our life, painless, blameless, peacefull; and a good defense before the dread Judgment Seat of Christ, let us ask of the Lord.
Choir: Grant this, O Lord.
Priest: Calling to remembrance our all-holy, immaculate, most blessed and glorious Lady Theotokos and ever-virgin Mary, with all the Saints, let us commend ourselves and each other, and all our life unto Christ our God.
Choir: To thee, O Lord.
The Prayer of the Prothesis
Priest: (quietly)O Lord God Almighty, who alone art holy: who dost accept the sacrifice of praise from those who call upon thee with their whole heart: Accept also the prayer of us sinners, and bear it to thy holy Altar, and enable us to offer unto thee gifts and spiritual sacrifices for our sins and for the errors of the people; And make us worthy to find grace in thy sight, that our sacrifice may be acceptable unto thee; and that the good spirit of thy grace may dwell upon us and upon these gifts here offered, and upon these gifts here offered, and upon all thy people:
Priest: (aloud) Through the compassions of thine Only-Begotten Son, with whom thou art blessed, together with thine all-holy and good and life-giving Spirit: now and ever, and unto ages of ages.
Choir: Amen.
Priest: Peace be to all.
Choir: And to thy spirit.
Priest: Lel us love one another, that with one accord we may confess:
Choir: Father, Son , and Holy Spirit : the Trinity, one in Essence and undivided.
(The Priest make three low bows before the Altar, kisses the veil covering the holy Gifts, and says quietly thrice:)
Priest: I will love thee, O Lord, my strength: the Lord is my firm foundation, my refuge, and my deliverer.
Priest: (aloud) The Doors! The Doors! In Wisdom let us attend.
The Creed
People: I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible.
And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Only-begotten, Begotten of the Father before all words, Light of Light, Very God of Very God, Begotten, not made; of one essence with the Father, by whom all things were made:
Who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven, and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary, and was made man;
And was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate, and suffered and was buried;
And the third day He rose again, according to the Scriptures;
And ascended into heaven, and sitteth at the right hand of the Father;
And He shall come again with glory to judge the quick and the dead, Whose kingdom shall have no end.
And I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of Life, Who proceedeth from the Father, Who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified, Who spake by the Prophets;
And I believe in One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church.
I acknowledge one Baptism for the remission of sins.
I look for the Resurrection of the dead,
And the Life of the world to come.
Amen.
The Anaphora
Priest: Let us stand aright; let us stand with fear; let us attend, that we may offer the Holy Oblation in peace.
Choir: A mercy of peace, a sacrifice of praise.
Priest: The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God the Father, and the communion of the Holy Spirit, be with you all.
Choir: And with thy spirit.
Priest: Let us lift up our hearts.
Choir: We lift them up unto the Lord.
Priest: Let us give thanks unto the Lord.
Choir: It is meet and right to worship Father, Son and Holy Spirit: the Trinity, one in Essence, and undivided.
(The Priest turns toward the Altar and prays quietly:)
Priest: It is meet and right to hymn thee, to bless thee, to praise thee, to give thanks unto thee, and to worship thee in every place of thy dominion: for thou art God ineftable, inconceivable, invisible, incomprehensible, ever existing and eternally the same, thou and thine Only-begotten Son and thy Holy Spirit. Thou it was who didst bring us from non-existence into being, and when we had fallen away didst raise us up again, and didst not cease to do all things until thou hadst brought us back to heaven, and hadst endowed us with thy kingdom which is to come. For all these things we give thanks unto thee, and to thine. Only-begotten Son, and thy Holy Spirit; for all things of which we know, and of which we know not, and for all the benefits bestowed upon us, both manifest and unseen.And we given thanks unto thee also for this ministry which thou dost vouchsafe to receive at our hands, even though there stand beside thee thousands of Archangels and ten thousands of Angels, the Cherubim and the Seraphim, six-winged, many eyed, soaring aloft, borne on their pinions,
Priest: (aloud) Singing theTriumphal Hymn, shouting, proclaiming and saying :
Choir: Holy, holy, holy, Lord Sabaoth; heaven and earth are full of thy glory; Hosanna in the highest. Blessed is He that cometh in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest.
Priest: (quietly) With these blessed Powers we also, O Master who lovest mankind, cry aloud and say: Holy art thou and all-holy, thou and thine Only-begotten Son, and thy Holy Spirit: holy art thou and all-holy, and magnificicent is thy glory: Who hast so loved thy world as to given thine Only-begotten Son, that all who believe in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life; Who when he had come and had fulfilled all the dispensation for us, in the night in which he was betrayed,- or rather, gave himself up for the life of the world, - took bread in his holy and pure and blameless hands; and when he had given thanks and blessed it, and hallowed it and broken it, he gave it to his holy Disciples and Apostles, saying:
Priest: (Aloud) Take, eat: this is my Body which is broken for you, for the remission of sins.
Choir: Arnen.
Priest: (quietly) Likewise, after supper, he took the cup, saying:
Priest: (Aloud) Drink ye all of this: this is my Blood of the New Testament, which is shed for you and for many, for the remission of sins.
Choir: Amen.
Priest: (quietly) Having in remembrance, therefore, this saving commandment and all those things which have come to pass for us: the Cross, the Grave, the Resurrection on the third day, the Ascension into heaven, the Session at the right hand, and the second and glorious Advent:
(The Priest takes up the Diskarion and the Chalice and elevates them over the Antimins; he makes the sign of the Cross with them over the Antimins as he lowers them, saying:)
Priest: (Aloud) Thine own of thine own we offer unto thee, in behalf of all, and for all.
Choir: We praise thee, we bless thee, we give thanks unto thee, O Lord, and we pray unto thee, O our God.
(The Priest makes a low bow befor the Altar, and continues with the Prayer of Consecration)
Priest: (quietly) Again we offer unto thee this reasonable and unbloody service, and beseech thee and pray thee and supplicate thee: send down thy Holy Spirit upon us and upon these Gifts here spread forth:
(The Priest signs the Holy Bread with the sign of the cross, saying quietly:)
And make this bread the precious Body of thy Christ;
(The Priest makes the sign of the Cross over the Chalice, saying quietly:)
And that which is in this cup, the precious Blood of thy Christ.
(The Priest makes the sign of the Cross over both the holy Gifts, saying quietly:)
Priest: Changing them by thy Holy Spirit; Amen, Amen, Amen.
(The Priest makes a low bow befor the Altar and continues the prayer quietly:)
That to those who shall partake thereof they may be unto cleansing of soul, unto the remission of sins, unto the communion of thy Holy Spirit, unto the fulfilment of the kingdom of Heaven, unto boldness toward thee, and not unto judgment or unto condemnation.
And again we offer unto thee this reasonable service for all those who in faith have gone before us to their rest: Patriarchs, Prophets, Apostles, Preachers, Evangelists, Martyrs, Confessors, Ascetics, and every righteous spirit made perfect in faith:
Priest: (Aloud) Especially our all-holy, immaculate, most blessed and glorious Lady Theotokos and ever-virgin Mary:
Choir: It is truly meet to bless thee, O Theotokos, who art ever blessed and all-blameless, and the mother of our God. More honorable than the Cherubim, and more glorious beyond compare than the Seraphim, thou who without stain barest God the Word, and art truly Theotokos: we magnify thee.
(Meanwhile the Priest continues the prayer quietly)
Priest: (quietly) And for the holy Prophet, Forerunner, and Baptist John; Saint (s) N (NN.), whose memory we celebrate; and all thy Saints, at whose supplications look down upon us, O God. And be mindful of all those who have fallen asleep before us in the hope of Resurrection unto life eternal; (especially N, NN), and grant them rest, O our God, where the light of thy countenance shine upon them.
And again we beseech thee: be mindful, O Lord, of every Bishop of the Orthodox, who rightly divide the word of thy truth; of all the priesthood, the Diaconate in Christ, and of every hieratic and minastic order.
And again we offer unto thee this resonable service, for the whole world, for the holy catholic and apostolic Church, for those who live in chastity and holiness of life, for all civil Authorities, and our Armed Forces every-where; grant them, O Lord, peaceful times, that we, in their tranquility, may lead a calm and peaceful life in all godliness and sanctity.
Priest: (Aloud) Among the first be mindful, O Lord, of our Archbishop N., whom do thou grant unto thy holy churches in peace, safety, honor, health and length of days, and rightly dividing the word of thy truth.
Choir: And of all mankind.
Priest: (quietly) Be mindful, O Lord, of this city in which we dwell, and of every city and countryside, and of those who in faith dwell therein. Be mindful, O Lord, of those who travel, by land, and by air; of the sick, the suffering, captives, and their salvation. Be mindful, O Lord, of those who bear fruit and do good works in thy holy churches, and who remember the poor; and upon us all send forth thy mercies:
Priest: (aloud)And grant us with one mouth and one to glorify and praise thine all-honorable and majestic name: of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit: now and ever, and unto ages of ages.
Choir: Amen.
(The Priest, turning towards the people, blesses them, saying:)
Priest: And the mercies of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ be with you all.
Choir: And with thy spirit.
