Books - Sources
Horologion - Midnight Office
For a Weekday
Menaion - September 26
The Translation of St. John the Theologian
__________
MIDNIGHT OFFICE
PRIEST
Blessed is our God always, now and ever and to the ages of ages.
( Amen. )
Glory to You, O God, glory to You.
Heavenly King, Comforter, Spirit of Truth, present in all places and filling all things, treasury of good things and giver of life: come; take Your abode in us; cleanse us of every stain, and save our souls, O Good one. [GOA]
READER
Trisagion Prayers.
Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us. (3)
Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Both now and ever and to the ages of ages. Amen.
All-holy Trinity, have mercy on us. Lord, forgive our sins. Master, pardon our transgressions. Holy One, visit and heal our infirmities for Your name’s sake.
Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Both now and ever and to the ages of ages. 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. [GOA]
PRIEST
For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and to ages of ages.
READER
Amen. Lord, have mercy. (12)
Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Both now and ever and to the ages of ages. Amen.
Come, let us worship and bow down before God our King.
Come, let us worship and bow down before Christ God our King.
Come, let us worship and bow down before Him, Christ our King and God.
Psalm 50 (51).
Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your great mercy; and according to the abundance of Your compassion, blot out my transgression. Wash me thoroughly from my lawlessness and cleanse me from my sin. For I know my lawlessness, and my sin is always before me. Against You only have I sinned and done evil in Your sight; that You may be justified in Your words, and overcome when You are judged. For behold, I was conceived in transgressions, and in sins my mother bore me. Behold, You love truth; You showed me the unknown and secret things of Your wisdom. You shall sprinkle me with hyssop, and I will be cleansed; You shall wash me, and I will be made whiter than snow. You shall make me hear joy and gladness; my bones that were humbled shall greatly rejoice. Turn Your face from my sins, and blot out all my transgressions. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Do not cast me away from Your presence, and do not take Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and uphold me with Your guiding Spirit. I will teach transgressors Your ways, and the ungodly shall turn back to You. Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, the God of my salvation, and my tongue shall greatly rejoice in Your righteousness. O Lord, You shall open my lips, and my mouth will declare Your praise. For if You desired sacrifice, I would give it; You will not be pleased with whole burnt offerings. A sacrifice to God is a broken spirit, a broken and humbled heart God will not despise. Do good, O Lord, in Your good pleasure to Zion, and let the walls of Jerusalem be built; then You will be pleased with a sacrifice of righteousness, with offerings and whole burnt offerings; then shall they offer young bulls on Your altar. [SAAS]
If the Lity was not sung at Vespers, sing the following:
CHOIR
Idiomela. For the Saint.
From Menaion - - -
Mode 1.
Rivers of theology flowed from your precious mouth, O Apostle. The Church of God is irrigated by them, and thus she correctly worships the consubstantial Trinity. O John the Theologian, pray to the Holy Trinity, to strengthen and save our souls. [GOASD]
Mode 1.
That flower of chastity, that sweet fragrance, has risen again for us to pray to him at this present feast, “O Apostle John, you leaned on the Master’s bosom, and you rained down the word on the world. You guarded the Virgin as the apple of your eye. Ask of Christ to send us the great mercy.” [GOASD]
Mode 1.
O Disciple of the Savior, Virgin and Theologian, when Christ our God was hanging on the Cross, He entrusted the Virgin and Theotokos to you as virgin; and you guarded her as the apple of your eye. We pray you intercede for the salvation of our souls. [GOASD]
Mode 1.
As an eyewitness of ineffable mysteries, you loudly proclaimed that the eternal Logos was in the beginning with God, and that He was God, O Apostle John, genuine friend of Christ who leaned on His bosom, delight of the Trinity, unshaken support of Ephesus and Patmos, and our helper as well. O all-blessed Theologian, intercede that we your people be rescued from ungodly enemies, both physical and spiritual, as we always celebrate your memory with faith. [GOASD]
Mode 2.
He is the paramount of the Apostles, the trumpet of theology, the spiritual general, who made the civilized world subject to God: that celebrated Evangelist John. Come believers, let us call him blessed. He was translated from earth, yet not far from earth, but he is alive and awaiting the Lord’s fearful Second Coming. “We pray you, O mystic and bosom friend of Christ: Ask Him that we, who keep your memory with love, may be free of condemnation when He comes again.” [GOASD]
Glory.
From Menaion - - -
Mode 4.
O beloved Disciple, at the Lord’s supper you leaned on the bosom of Christ, the Teacher; and from there you became aware of ineffable mysteries, and you thundered to all those heavenly words: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God; the true light that enlightens everyone who comes into the world, Christ our God, and the Savior of our souls. [GOASD]
Both now.
From Menaion - - -
Mode 4.
With the Father and the Spirit, the Son is also glorified in the heights by the Cherubim. Wishing to refashion first-created man, He emptied himself wholly and ineffably in your womb, O all-lauded Theotokos. Rising from you like the sun, He illumined the entire world with His divinity, and He freed it from the folly of idolatry. In himself He deified humanity, and He joined it to heaven. He is Christ our God and the Savior of our souls. [GOASD]
READER
Trisagion Prayers.
Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us. (3)
Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Both now and ever and to the ages of ages. Amen.
All-holy Trinity, have mercy on us. Lord, forgive our sins. Master, pardon our transgressions. Holy One, visit and heal our infirmities for Your name’s sake.
Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Both now and ever and to the ages of ages. 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. [GOA]
PRIEST
For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and to ages of ages.
READER
Amen.
Apolytikion.
From Menaion - - -
Mode 2.
O Apostle, the beloved of Christ God, hasten to deliver us, a people that has no excuse. He accepts you supplicating Him, for He condescended at the Supper to let you lean on Him. Entreat Him, O Theologian, that He scatter the persistent cloud of hostile nations, and pray for us, for peace and great mercy. [SD]
Lord, have mercy. (40)
Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Both now and ever and to the ages of ages. Amen.
Greater in honor than the Cherubim, and in glory greater beyond compare than the Seraphim; you without corruption gave birth to God the Word, and are truly Theotokos. You do we magnify.
In the name of the Lord, Father, bless!
PRIEST
May God have compassion on us and bless us; may his face shine upon us and have mercy on us.
READER
Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Both now and ever and to the ages of ages. Amen.
Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
Holy father, give the blessing!
PRIEST
May Christ our true God, through the intercessions of His all-pure and all-immaculate holy Mother, (local patron saint); of the holy and righteous ancestors of God Joachim and Anna, and of all the saints, have mercy on us and save us, as He is good, benevolent, and merciful God.
Let us pray for the peace of the world.
CHOIR (intoned after each petition)
Lord, have mercy.
PRIEST
For the pious and Orthodox Christians.
For our our Archbishop (name).
For our nation.
For the armed forces.
For our absent fathers, brothers and sisters.
For those who help us and those who serve us.
For those who hate us and those who love us.
For those who have asked us, the unworthy, to pray for them.
For the release of the captives.
For those sailing the seas.
For those laid up with illnesses.
Let us also pray for the abundance of the fruits of the earth.
And for all our fathers and brethren departed this life, those who lie here in peace, and the Orthodox everywhere.
Let us say for ourselves, also: Lord, have mercy; Lord, have mercy; Lord, have mercy.
Through the prayers of our holy fathers, Lord Jesus Christ our God, have mercy on us.
CHOIR
Amen.