Saint Stephen Byzantine Catholic Church

Great Vespers & Divine Liturgy for 🕀 The Protection of the Theotokos

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The Order of Great Vespers

10-01 Great Vespers Propers

People’s book for the Divine Liturgy

10-01 Divine Liturgy Propers

 

Whenever we are unable to attend the Divine Liturgy, it is traditional to pray Typika in its place:

TYPIKA AT HOME: OCTOBER 1, 2020
FEAST OF THE PROTECTION OF THE THEOTOKOS
Opening Hymn:
Troparion, Tone 4
Protected by your appearance, O Mother of God; today, we devout people solemnly celebrate. Gazing upon your most pure icon, we fervently say: Protect us with your holy veil, and deliver us from all evil, imploring your Son, Christ our God, to save our souls.
Leader: Through the prayers of our holy fathers, O Lord Jesus Christ our God, have mercy on us.
Response: Amen.
Glory to you, our God, glory to you.
Heavenly King, Comforter, Spirit of Truth, everywhere present and filling all things, Treasury of blessings and Giver of Life, come and dwell within us, cleanse us of all stain, and save our souls, O gracious One.
Holy God, Holy and Mighty, Holy and Immortal, have mercy on us. (Three times)
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever and forever. Amen.
Most Holy Trinity, have mercy on us; Lord, cleanse us of our sins; Master, forgive our transgressions; Holy One, come to us and heal our infirmities for your name’s sake.
Lord, have mercy. (Three times)
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever and forever. Amen.
Our Father, who art in heaven, 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 trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
Leader: Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on us.
Response: Amen.
Lord, have mercy. (Twelve times)
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever and forever. Amen
Come, let us worship our King and God.
Come, let us worship Christ, our King and God.
Come, let us worship and bow before the only Lord Jesus Christ the King and our God.
We chant the Typical Psalms:
Psalm 102:
Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and all my being, bless his holy name.
Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and never forget all his blessings.
It is he who forgives all your guilt,
who heals every one of your ills,
who redeems your life from the grave,
who crowns you with love and compassion,
who fills your life with good things,
renewing your youth like an eagle’s.
The Lord does deeds of justice,
gives judgment for all who are oppressed.
He made known his ways to Moses
and his deeds to Israel’s sons.
The Lord is compassion and love,
slow to anger and rich in mercy.
His wrath will come to an end;
he will not be angry forever.
He does not treat us according to our sins
nor repay us according to our faults.
For as the heavens are high above the earth
so strong is his love for those who fear him.
As far as the east is from the west
so far does he remove our sins.
As a father has compassion on his sons,
the Lord has pity on those who fear him;
for he knows of what we are made,
he remembers that we are dust.
As for man, his days are like grass;
he flowers like the flower of the field;
the wind blows and he is gone
and his place never sees him again.
But the love of the Lord is everlasting
upon those who hold him in fear;
his justice reaches out to children’s children
when they keep his covenant in truth,
when they remember his commands and do them.
The Lord has set his throne in heaven
and his kingdom is ruling over all.
Bless the Lord, all his angels,
mighty in power, fulfilling his word,
who heed the voice of his word.
Bless the Lord, all his hosts,
his servants who do his will.
Bless the Lord, all his works,
in every place where he rules.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son,
and to the Holy Spirit,
now and ever and forever. Amen.
Bless the Lord, O my soul!
and all my being, bless his holy name.
Blessed are you, O Lord.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son,
and to the Holy Spirit.
Praise the Lord, O my soul.
I will praise the Lord all my life.
I will make music to my God while I live.
Put no trust in princes,
in mortal men in whom there is no help.
Take their breath, they return to clay
and their plans that day come to nothing.
He is happy who is helped by Jacob’s God,
whose hope is in the Lord his God,
who alone made heaven and earth,
the seas and all they contain.
It is the Lord who keeps faith forever,
who is just to those who are oppressed.
It is he who gives bread to the hungry,
the Lord, who sets prisoners free,
the Lord who gives sight to the blind,
who raises up those who are bowed down,
the Lord, who protects the stranger
and upholds the widow and orphan.
It is the Lord who loves the just
but thwarts the path of the wicked.
The Lord will reign forever,
Zion’s God, from age to age.
Now and ever
and forever. Amen.
Hymn of the Incarnation
O only-begotten Son and Word of God, who, being immortal, deigned for our salvation to become incarnate of the holy Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary, and became man without change; you were also crucified, O Christ our God, and by death have trampled Death, being One of the Holy Trinity, glorified with the Father and the Holy Spirit, save us.
Troparia at the Beatitudes
In your kingdom, remember us, O Lord, when you come in your kingdom.
12. Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11. Blessed are they who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
10. Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the land.
9. Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for
righteousness, for they will be satisfied.
8. Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.
(Tone 1) Rejoice, mystical earth, who without plowing have given forth a divine wheat! Rejoice, living table who support the bread of life! Rejoice, O Lady, unfailing fountain of living water!
7. Blessed are the pure of heart, for they will see God.
– We your servants stand in your church awaiting your mercy, O Lady; aid us in our lowliness and defend all Christians of the true Faith from all evil with the protection of your veil.
6. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.
– O praiseworthy Virgin, the prophets once spoke about you; with them, pray to God that we may celebrate your protection with radiance and joy. .
5. Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
– Gideon foretold you when he spoke about the fleece, for Christ descended upon you like dew upon the fleece. You gave birth to God; now ask him to protect all true Christians, that overcoming their opponents- like the people of Midian – they may give glory on your holy feast.
4. Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you
and utter every kind of evil against you falsely because of me.
– The holy priests and pious people are present in your church awaiting your mercy, O Theotokos. For you have given birth to the joy that absolved all from sin, and thus changed our grief into gladness.
3. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven.
– The whole world offers you gifts as Queen and Mother of God. Emperors and princes hail you and all people rejoice, protected from every evil by your prayers, O Theotokos.
2. Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.
– Daniel described you as a mighty mountain, for Christ was born from you, but not of mortal seed. He destroyed the plots of the devil and filled the earth with faith in himself. Pray to him for those who glorify the feast of your protection.
1. Now and ever and forever. Amen.
– We raise our voices to you like the angel: Rejoice, O throne of God upon which Ezechiel saw the Lord in human likeness, carried aloft by the cherubim. With them, O Mother of God, beg him to save our souls!
Prokeimenon, Tone 3:
My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.
Verse: For he has looked with favor on the humility of his servant; from this day forward, all generations will call me blessed.
Epistle: Hebrews 9:1-7
Leader: A reading from the Letter of the Saint Paul the Apostle to the Hebrews.
Brothers and Sisters: Now the first covenant had regulations for worship and an earthly sanctuary. For a tabernacle was constructed, the outer one, in which were the lampstand, the table, and the bread of offering; this is called the Holy Place. Behind the second veil was the tabernacle called the Holy of Holies, in which were the gold altar of incense and the ark of the covenant entirely covered with gold. In it were the gold jar containing the manna, the staff of Aaron that had sprouted, and the tablets of the covenant. Above it were the cherubim of glory overshadowing the place of expiation. Now is not the time to speak of these in detail. With these arrangements for worship, the priests, in performing their service, go into the outer tabernacle repeatedly, but the high priest alone goes into the inner one once a year, not without blood that he offers for himself and for the sins of the people.
Alleluia, Tone 8: Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
Verse: Listen, O daughter, and see and incline your ear.
Verse: The rich among the people will seek your favor.
Leader: A reading from the gospel of the holy apostle and evangelist Luke. (Luke 10:38-42; 11:27-28)
Response: Glory to you, O Lord, glory to you.
Leader:
At that time: As they continued their journey Jesus entered a village where a woman whose name was Martha welcomed him. She had a sister named Mary who sat beside the Lord at his feet listening to him speak. Martha, burdened with much serving, came to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me by myself to do the serving? Tell her to help me.” The Lord said to her in reply, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things. There is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part and it will not be taken from her.” While he was speaking, a woman from the crowd called out and said to him, “Blessed is the womb that carried you and the breasts at which you nursed.” He replied, “Rather, blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it.”
Response: Glory to you, O Lord, glory to you.
Then:
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
now and ever and forever. Amen.
Remember us, O Lord,
when you come in your kingdom.
Remember us, O Master,
when you come in your kingdom.
Remember us, O Holy One,
when you come in your kingdom.
The heavenly choir praises you and says,
Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of hosts;
heaven and earth are filled with your glory.
Look towards him and be radiant;
let your faces not be abashed.
The heavenly choir praises you and says,
Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of hosts;
heaven and earth are filled with your glory.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son,
and to the Holy Spirit.
The choir of holy angels and archangels, with all the heavenly powers, praises you and says,
Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of hosts;
heaven and earth are filled with your glory.
Now and ever
and forever. Amen.
Profession of Faith
I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible; and in one Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, the only-begotten, born of the Father before all ages. Light from light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, one in essence with the Father; through whom all things were made. For us and for our salvation, he came down from heaven and was incarnate from the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary, and became man. He was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate, and suffered and was buried. He rose on the third day according to the scriptures. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father, and he is coming again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end. And in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the Creator of Life, who proceeds from the Father. Together with the Father and the Son he is worshiped and glorified; he spoke through the prophets. In one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church. I profess one baptism for the remission of sins. I expect the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen.
Remit, pardon, and forgive our transgressions, voluntary and involuntary, in deed and in word, with knowledge and in ignorance, in thought and in desire, by night and by day, forgive them all, O God, for you are good and love us all.
Our Father, who art in heaven, 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 trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
Leader: Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on us.
Response: Amen.
Kontakion, Tone 3:
Today the virgin is present in the Church and with the choirs of saints invisibly prays to God for us. The angels worship with the hierarchs, the apostles rejoice with the prophets, because the Theotokos prays for us to the eternal God.
Lord, have mercy. (Twelve times)
Leader: Most holy Trinity, Consubstantial Power, Indivisible Kingdom, Cause of all good things, look favorably upon me, a sinner, at this present hour. Take away all the defilement of my mind and enlighten my understanding that I may always praise, glorify, and say:
Response: One is holy, one is Lord Jesus Christ, to the glory of God the Father. Amen
The Leader bows his head and together with the faithful makes a spiritual Communion praying aloud:
O Lord, I believe and confess that you are truly Christ,
who came into the world
To save sinners of whom I am the first.
Although I cannot be a partaker now of your mystical supper, O Son of God,
Come at least spiritually into my heart by Your Divine Grace
for the healing of my soul and body.
For I will not reveal your mystery to your enemies,
Nor will I give you a kiss as did Judas,
But like the thief I profess to you:
+ Remember me, O Lord, when you come in your kingdom.
+ Remember me, O Master, when you come in your kingdom.
+ Remember me, O Holy One, when you come in your kingdom.
O Lord, I also believe and profess, that this,
Which I would receive, and which is now here present with us in Mystery,
Is truly your most precious Body, and your life-giving Blood,
Which, I pray, I may one day receive again
For the remission of all my sins and for life everlasting. Amen
Then immediately:
Psalm 33
I will bless the Lord at all times,
his praise always on my lips;
In the Lord
my soul shall make its boast
The humble shall hear
and be glad.
Glorify the Lord with me.
Together let us praise his name.
I sought the Lord and he answered me;
from all my terrors he set me free.
Look towards him and be radiant;
let your faces not be abashed.
This poor man called, the Lord heard him
and rescued him from all his distress.
The angel of the Lord is encamped,
around those who revere him, to rescue them.
Taste and see that the Lord is good.
He is happy who seeks refuge in him.
Revere the Lord, you his saints.
They lack nothing, those who revere him.
Strong lions suffer want and go hungry
but those who seek the Lord lack no blessing.
Come, children, and hear me
that I may teach you the fear of the Lord.
Who is he who longs for life and many days,
to enjoy his prosperity?
Then keep your tongue from evil
and your lips from speaking deceit.
Turn aside from evil and do good;
seek and strive after peace.
The Lord turns his face against the wicked
to destroy their remembrance from the earth.
The Lord turns his eyes to the just
and his ears to their appeal.
The just cried out and the Lord heard them,
and rescued them from all their distress.
The Lord is close to the broken-hearted;
those whose spirit is crushed he will save.
Many are the trials of the just,
but from them all the Lord will rescue them.
He will keep guard over all their bones,
not one of their bones shall be broken.
Evil brings death to the wicked;
those who hate the good are doomed.
The Lord ransoms the souls of his servants.
Those who hide in him shall not be condemned.
More honorable than the cherubim, and beyond compare more glorious than the seraphim; who, a virgin, gave birth to God the Word, you, truly the Theotokos, we magnify.
Leader: Through the prayers of our holy fathers, O Lord Jesus Christ our God, have mercy on us.
Response: Amen.
Closing Hymn:
We hasten to your patronage, O Maiden full of grace
We seek your help in every need, our Queen and Advocate.
And keep us free from sinful deeds, O Virgin most beloved.
We ask you not to forsake us not, give mercy from above.
O loving Mother, guide us now, who cry to you for aid.
All those who place their hope in you remain so unafraid.
And cover with your mantle blue your children who await
Salvation and redemption day, our Queen and Advocate.
Your son will hear your every prayer, O Mother of our Lord.
We chance to perish without help, for such is sin’s reward.
O Mother Mary, pray for us to your most gracious Son.
With you to speak on our behalf, salvation’s goal is won.

Sermon on Luke 5.1-11

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Let us press in upon Jesus to hear the word of God (cf. Luke 5:1). When we do, maybe he’ll withdraw a little, as if getting into Simon’s boat and putting out a little from the land, but he won’t neglect to teach us (Luke 5:3).  Let us each seek out and listen to the word of God in our own lives. He is always speaking to us, I believe, in the language of our lives. But it can be difficult to make out what he’s saying over the crashing of the waves.

The word of God to us is often counterintuitive.

What he’s telling us often isn’t what we want to hear.

It’s often not easily recognized or understood, agreeable or believable to us.

Hearing the word of God and keeping it requires a little faith.

Hearing the word of God is like toiling all night in a boat on the lake in the grueling and backbreaking work of fishing. Casting nets, pulling them in, catching nothing. Casting again, pulling in again, catching nothing again. All night long. Hour after hour. Then, exhausted and disheartened, giving up, coming near the shore to wash your fruitless nets and call it quits only to hear a man command you to put out again into the deep and to let down your nets again for a catch (Luke 5:4).

You know how good it feels to get home from work after a long day. But how would it feel if, when you just get home, your boss calls you and tells you to come back in and get back to work? My first thought probably wouldn’t be that this is the word of God to me. My first thought would probably have more to do with what my boss could do with his suggestions. To recognize such a seemingly mad suggestion as the word of God would take a little faith.

Simon, who Jesus will later call Peter, has a little faith. He says to Jesus, “Master, we toiled all night and took nothing! Nevertheless, at your word I will let down the nets” (Luke 5:5). Notice that he doesn’t say, “for a catch.” Jesus tells him to let down the nets “for a catch,” but Peter just says that he’ll let down the nets. He’s holding on to a little skepticism, I think, but he also has a little faith. As it happens, God is the master of more than fish, and so the haul they take in by heeding his word was enough to nearly sink two boats.

Let us listen carefully for the word of God in our lives and be open to it, because it can be counterintuitive. Our God is a God of surprises.

Hearing the word of God is also like long suffering from a thorn in the flesh – a weakness of body or spirit or condition of life – and asking the Lord to remove it, yet still suffering it and so asking the Lord again to remove it and yet still suffering it and so asking a third time for the Lord to remove it, and finally hearing the word of the Lord: “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power reaches perfection in weakness” (2 Cor 12:9).

The word of the Lord isn’t always what we want to hear. Sometimes he has to tell us three times before we’ll accept it. Accepting it requires a little faith. Paul finally accepts his weakness and even boasts of it, saying, “for the sake of Christ, I am content with weaknesses” (2 Cor 12:10). The word of God can be hard to hear.

Hearing the word of God is also like trying to sleep at night but being woken by the voice of your teacher calling your name, getting up, going to see what he wants and hearing, “I didn’t call you. Go back to sleep.” Then, trying to sleep again, hearing him call you again, getting up and going to him only to hear again, “I didn’t call you, my son. Go back to sleep.” And again a third time – but this time at last your teacher recognizes that the voice you’ve been hearing is the voice of the Lord (1 Sam 3:3-10).

Sometimes we mistake the voice of the Lord for the voice of our human teachers, just as sometimes we mistake the voice of our human teachers for the voice of the Lord. His voice in our lives can be hard to recognize, but our teachers, if they are wise and humble, can help us to recognize him when he calls us.

The priest Eli is a good example of this kind of teacher. It is Eli who finally recognizes the Lord calling the boy Samuel in the night, only to learn that the Lord will punish his house for the iniquity of his sons, to which news Eli says, “It is the Lord; let him do what seems good to him” (1 Sam 3:18). This demonstrates a rare humility and openness to the word of God, necessary in teachers who would help us to hear the word of God in our own lives.

Hearing the word of the Lord is also like suffering the oppression of another nation for seven years and them destroying all the produce of the land and taking all the livestock, instigating famine (Judges 6:1, 4) making you so weak and so powerless against them that you just know that there’s nothing you can do about it (6:15), so you call out the Lord and ask him, “Why don’t you do something? Where are your wonderful deeds? Why don’t you deliver your people?” (6:13) only to hear back from the Lord, “Why don’t you deliver your people?” (6:14). Sometimes we ask the Lord, “Why don’t you help us?” only to hear him say, “You are the help I have sent.”  Sometimes we see our own particular problems because God is telling us to deal with our own particular problems.

This is how it went with Gideon against the Midianites. What the Lord was asking him to do to was unbelievable to him. He was of the weakest clan in Manasseh and he was the least in his family and yet the Lord chose him, of all people, to deliver Israel from the Midianites (6:15). He took a lot of convincing.

The word of God can be like that. It confounds us. It calls us to do things we think are impossible. And they would be impossible without God, but they are not without God. When God calls us to seemingly insurmountable tasks he says to us, as he says to Gideon, “But I will be with you” (6:16), and that makes all the difference.

Sometimes people say that God will never let you suffer more than you can bear, but I don’t think that’s true. Rather, we may get crushed by our problems, but he will bear them in us. He’s the one who can bear them, not us. He will be with us and he will raise us up when we fall (Ps 145:14). It really was impossible for Gideon to drive out the Midianites, but God in Gideon can do anything.

Of myself, I can’t do anything.

God can do anything.

In God, I can do anything God wills.

So, with the guidance of wise and humble teachers, we must listen carefully for the word of God in our lives so that we can know his will for our lives and live in him who accomplishes great, surprising, new, impossible, confounding, and glorious works in and through us.

Liturgical Service Times

Sunday & Saturday morning at 10:00am

Wednesday & Friday evening at 7:00pm

All Services are in English.

for Feasts & other service times, please see the calendar. 

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