historical facts §the great lent l preparation week: 7 days l holy 40 days: 40 days l lazarus...
TRANSCRIPT
Historical Facts
The Great Lent Preparation Week: 7 days Holy 40 days: 40 days Lazarus Saturday: 1 day Holy Pascha Week: 7 days
The most sacred week of the yearUsed to be celebrated separate from
the great lent until the 2nd centuryPascha = Passover
Last Friday of Great Fast
Unction of the Sick: The only time in the church that we pray
the Unction of the Sick Prayed after Raising of Incense. “Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the
elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.” (Jam 5:14-16)
Last Friday of Great FastWhy do we pray the Unction at the end of the
Fast? If fasted properly, people may be weak It is prayed to strengthen them during Holy Week There are 7 prayers: The seven spirits of God
Whoever participates must be: A believer (it is a sacrament) Fasting Should have confessed (every sacrament begins with
confession and is completed with Communion)
Lazarus Saturday
Six days before the Passover (Cruicifixion): "Then, six days before the Passover, Jesus
came to Bethany, where Lazarus was who had been dead, whom He had raised from the dead" (Jn 12:1).
Lazarus Saturday
Holy Week is between 2 resurrections – Lazarus and Christ: “Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first
resurrection. Over such the second death has no power”(Rev 20:6)
1st Resurrection: Baptism (Rom 6:4) Sufferings: Repentance, carrying the cross
(Lk 9:23) 2nd Resurrection: Resurrection of the Dead - “We look for
the Resurrection of the dead…” (Orthodox Creed)
Two Resurrections
Lazarus: Someone else raised himChrist: Raised Himself
Lazarus: Raised with same mortal bodyChrist: Raised with glorified immortal body
Lazarus: Came out wrapped in grave clothsChrist: Rose freed of the grave cloths
Lazarus Saturday
After Baptism, we rise with same mortal body, we go through temptations and sufferings, and we live a life of repentance, then we die, to be risen up again in the last day.
Lazarus Saturday: A renewal of vows/commitments to live repentance to be glorified.
PALM SUNDAY
What Did Jesus Do? He left Bethany and entered Jerusalem riding
on a colt on Nissan 10• (similar to the Passover lamb)
The crowd were shouting “OSANNA” Jesus entered the temple and kicked out those
who were selling and buying. Jesus returns back to Bethany
PALM SUNDAYWhat Does the Church Do?
Title of the day“Accepting Christ as a King”
All hymns are in joyful tunes Procession of the Cross – Morning Incense
• The Cross is the sign of His Kingdom• We are invited to accept him as a king in
our life.• Palms signify: peace, royalty, strength• 12 stations – 12 Gospel
PALM SUNDAY
What Does the Church Do? The general funeral Prayer:
• Participate in the Lord’s death• The church focuses on the Passion of the
Lord• The church sets us in the mood of passion
week, by accepting the death of Christ in our life – “ Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him” (Rom 6:8)
Pascha Week
Pascha: “Passover”. The Passing-over of the Angel of Death: Now the blood shall be a sign for you on the houses
where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you… (Exo 12:13)
Christ is our Passover “For indeed Christ, our Passover, was
sacrificed for us.” (1Cor 5:7) Through Christ’s Blood, we are saved from
the devil, the punishment of sin and death
PASCHA: GENERAL OUTLINEWe follow the Savior step by step We pray outside the alter…Why?All attention is to the passion of
our Savior: No liturgies except….. Why? No Agpya prayers… Why? All prayers in a sad tune
PASCHA: GENERAL OUTLINE
We pray outside the alter, WHY?- we were cast outside of the Paradise and remained outside, until the crucifixion- Christ suffered outside of Jerusalem: “therefore let us go forth to Him, outside the camp, bearing His reproach.” Heb 13:13
PASCHA: GENERAL OUTLINE
No liturgies except on Thursday because the Passover lamb was kept for 4 days (Exo 12:3-7)
Pascha Week PrayersLocation of Prayers - In the second division of
Church, “outside the camp”: We were cast outside of the Paradise and remained
outside, until the crucifixion When Christ tore the “middle wall”
(the veil of the temple) The priest opens the curtain of the
Sanctuary on the 12th hour of Good Friday Christ suffered outside of Jerusalem:
“Therefore let us go forth to Him, outside the camp, bearing His reproach.” (Heb 13:13)
Pascha Week
Arrangement of the Hours The new day starts with the night before or the “eve” “So the evening and the morning were the first day.” (Gen 1:5) The Hours: EVE: DAY:
1st 6:00 am
3rd 9:00 am
6th Noon
9th 3:00 pm
11th 5:00 pm
1st 6:00 pm
3rd 9:00 pm
6th Midnight
9th 3:00 am
11th 5:00 am
PASCHA: GENERAL OUTLINE
OVERVIEW ON DAYS
SUN MON TUES WED THUR FRI SATP A P A P A P A P A P A P
N D N D N D N D N D N D MON TUE WED THUR FRI SAT
NO LITRUGIES
PASCHA: GENERAL OUTLINEDAILY PRAYERS
DAILY PRAYERS(e.g. Wednesday)
NIGHT(Tuesday evening)
DAY(Wednesday morning)
1ST 3RD 6TH 9TH 11TH
1ST 3RD 6TH 9TH 11TH
Good Friday: 1st, 3rd, 6th, 9th, 11th, 12th
PASCHA: GENERAL OUTLINE
Contents of Each PrayerPropheciesThine is the power, the glory, the
blessings, and the majesty: for ever Amen O Emmanuel: Our God and Our King... Replaces the Agpeya psalms It is not man made, Revelation 7:12-
13
PASCHA: GENERAL OUTLINE
Contents of Each PrayerA psalm of David
Sad tuneThe Holy GospelThe expositionEnd of each night or day:
Litanies The conclusion (O King of Peace)
Monday of the Holy PaschaWhat Did Jesus Do?
He left Bethany to the temple in Jerusalem On the way, He saw a fig tree that has leaves
but no fruits. Christ curses the tree saying: No man will eat fruit of you for ever
Jesus spent the day in the temple teaching The priests try to catch him with a mistake: By
what authority do you do these things? Christ returns back to Bethany
Monday of the Holy PaschaWhat Does the Church Do?
Title of the day:“FRUITFUL LIFE NOT APPEARANCE”
“DON’T DECEIVE YOURSELF” All prophesies, psalms, and gospels focus on
this objective. Examples• First Hour: Isaiah 5:1-9: “What shall I do any more
to my vineyard, that I have not done to it?”
• Sixth Hour: Exodus 32:7-15: “They Have made for themselves a calf and worshiped it!”
Tuesday of the Holy Pascha
What Did Jesus Do? He left Bethany to the temple in Jerusalem On the way, They saw the fig tree and
remembered Christ’s words Jesus spent the day in the temple teaching The Pharisees try to catch him with a mistake:
Should we pay taxes to Caesar? Christ talks about the end of the world and his
second coming in detail. He gives a lot of signs for the last day.
Tuesday of the Holy PaschaWhat Did Jesus Do?
Christ emphasized the need to be always prepared by several proverbs:
• The ten virgins
• The Talents
• The wedding ceremony Christ returns back to Bethany
Tuesday of the Holy PaschaWhat Does the Church Do?
Title of the day:“BE WATCHFUL”
“MARAN-ATHA -- The Lord’s coming is near” All prophesies, psalms, and gospels focus on this
objective. Examples• Ninth Hour: Genesis 6-9: “The flood and Noah’s Ark”
• Eleventh Hour: Isaiah 30:25: A prophesy about the end of the world
Tuesday of the Holy PaschaWhat Does the Church Do?
Very Important: THE ELEVENTH HOUR
CHRIST Talked in detail about
judgement and the last day
Determined the time of his crucifixion for the first time
Left the temple and NEVER came back to it; a sign of the collapse of the Jewish religion
CHURCH Adds “My Good
Savior” to “Thine is the power....”
Reads Psalm 44:9 “Thy Throne, O God, is forever and ever” with the Royal Tune
Wednesday of the Holy PaschaWhat Did Jesus Do?
Christ spent the whole day in Bethany A day of contradictions:
• Judas contacts the chief priests to betray Christ
• A woman breaks an alabaster box of ointment of spikenard, very precious, and pours it on Christ’s head.
Wednesday of the Holy PaschaWhat Does the Church Do?
Title of the day:“WHERE IS MY HEART”
“WHAT WOULD I OFFER TO CHRIST” All prophesies, psalms, and gospels focus on this
objective. Very Important: Third Hour of Thursday’s Eve
• Psalm: 54:18: “His words are smoother than oil, yet they are darts” (Royal tune)
• Gospel: Mark 14:3-11: The woman with ointment and Judas betrayal!
The Great ThursdayWhat Did Jesus Do?
That was the 14th of Nissan, the day of slaying the Passover lamb
Christ asks Peter and John to prepare the Passover
They prepare for the Passover in St. Mark’s house
The disciples fight: who is the greatest. Before supper, Christ washed the disciples’ feet Christ gives the disciples his body and blood Christ prophesizes about his betrayal Judas leaves to go to the chief priests
The Great Thursday
What Does the Church Do? We pray in the sanctuary We start with the Matin rising of incense The book of acts: Selecting a new apostle instead of
Judas. It is scary!!!!!! Procession to rebuke Judas (OURSELVES) in the
opposite direction
The Great Thursday
What Does the Church Do? Pascha prayers (1st, 3rd, 6th, 9th) about preparations
for the Passover The prophesies of the ninth hour are very significant
• Genesis 22:1-19 The sacrifice of Isaac
• Genesis 14:17-20 Melckizedek
• Isaiah 61:1-6 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me…”
The Great Thursday
What Does the Church Do? The Liturgy of the Blessing of Water
• Objectives:– HUMBLENESS & SALVATION THOUGH WATER (BAPTISM)
• We pray with annual tune in front of a basin filled with water
• Several prophesies about salvation through water (e.g., crossing the Red Sea and Jordan River
• Gospel: John 13:1-7 -- Christ washes the feet of the disciples
• At the end, the priest washes the feet of the congregation
The Great Thursday
What Does the Church Do? The Liturgy of the Eucharist
• Objective: The sacrifice of Christ
• Annual tune
• No Agpeya, no Catholic Epistle, no Book of Acts
• Gospel: Matthew 26:20-29 -- Christ gives his body and blood to the disciples
• No prayer of Reconciliation, no commemoration of the saints
• Fraction of the Sacrifice of Isaac
The Great Thursday
What Does the Church Do? During communion, we pray the 11th hour of the Pascha
• Prophesy from Isaiah 52– And we saw him but he had no form nor beauty…He was a man
of suffering and acquainted with the bearing of sickness…He was dishonored and not esteemed. He bears our sins and is pained for us…He was wounded on account of our sins, and was bruised because of our iniquities…He was led as a sheep to the slaughter and as a lamb before the shearer is dumb, so he opens not his mouth….
• Gospel from John:13– And when He had dipped the sop, He gave it to Judas Iscariot,
And after the sop, Satan entered into him
The Eve of the Great Friday
We add “The Lord is my strength, my praise and has become my salvation”
We read four gospels each hour from Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John Except the first hour where the four
gospels are from John 13-17 (The Paraclete)
FROM NOW ON:
The Eve of the Great Friday
First Hour Christ’s last talk with the disciples and
his promise to send the Holy Spirit His prayer to the Father in John 17
Third Hour Christ leaves with the disciples on
their way to Gethemane Before the cock crow, you shall deny
me three times
The Eve of the Great FridaySixth Hour
Christ prays in Gethemane while the disciples are asleep
Watch ye and pray, lest you enter into temptation
Ninth Hour Judas arrives with the soldiers
to arrest Jesus Peter cut the right ear of the
servant of the high priest
The Eve of the Great Friday
Eleventh Hour Psalm: “Why did the heathen rage, and
the nations imagine vain things? The kings of the earth stood up, and the rulers gathered themselves together against the Lord, and against his Christ
Gospels: First trial in front of the chief priests and all the council. Peter denies for three times
The Great FridayFirst Hour
Christ is being sent to Pontius Pilate
Pilate sends Him to Herod
Third Hour Christ goes back to Pilate Pilate sentences him to death
The Sixth Hour of the Great Friday
Prophesies Numbers 21: The brass serpent Isaiah 53 Amos 8: The sun shall go down at noon, and
the light shall be darkened on the earth by day
The Sixth Hour of the Great Friday
HYMNS TAI SHOREE VAI ETAV ENF
• This is He who presented upon the cross, an acceptable sacrifice for the salvation of our race
Pauline Epistle:• But God forbid that I shall glory, save
in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ
The Sixth Hour of the Great Friday
Part From the AgpeyaO MONO GENEES
O Only Begotten, eternal, and Immortal Word of God….Holy Mighty, who by weakness showed forth what is greater than power.
AGIOS (sad tune)Psalm and Gospel
Lights are off
The Sixth Hour of the Great Friday
Prayer with the right thief Remember me O Lord when
you come into your kingdom …. O Master …. …. O Holy-One ...
End of the Sixth Hour and lights are back
The Ninth Hour of the Great Friday
HYMNS TEE SHOREE VAI ETAV ENF Pauline Epistle:
• And being found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself, and became obedient unto death, the death of the cross
Part from the Agpeya Agious
Psalm and Gospels
The Twelfth Hour of the Great Friday
Prophesies Lamentations of
Jeremiah Jonah
Psalm 44: The Royal Tune Your Throne, O God, is
forever and everGospels
The Twelfth Hour of the Great Friday
Exposition and LitaniesMETANIAS in all directionsProcessionThe Burial and GOLGOTHAThe Book of Psalms
Spirituality of Pascha Week
Re-live every step which the Lord Christ took during His last week on earth
Intense repentance and regret confession ascetic fasting constant prayers with tears Prostrations readings
“But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The
chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed”(Isa 53:5)
APOCALYPSE
Objectives: Heaven is open, therefore we read the
book of Revelations Transition between sadness and joy Let us think about what Christ has
done for us and praise him for that
APOCALYPSE
We start with this psalm 151 I am the youngest among my brethren
and a youth in my father’s house…..My brothers are handsome and greater than me and the Lord delighted not in them…. I went out to meet the Palestinian, so he cursed me by his idols. But I withdrew his sword that was in his hand and beheaded him and removed the reproach from the Israelites: Alleluia
APOCALYPSELayout
•Praises and prayers of the prophets
•Matins’ raising of incense
•Prayers of the third and sixth hours
•Reading of the book of revelations
•Prayers of the ninth hour
•The Liturgy
APOCALYPSE
The first Procession: Starts with “Let us thank Christ our
Lord” hymn of Maran o-onh This is to proclaim their joy in the
Lord’s salvation over Satan (the spiritual Goliath)
APOCALYPSE
The first Hos: the 1st praise of Moses This tells the story of the Lord’s
deliverance of His people by Moses, through the Red Sea.
This was a symbol of the Lord’s deliverance of Satan (pharaoh) who enslaved us by sin
Called the praise of the Lamb (Rev 15:1-3)
APOCALYPSE
The 2nd praise of Moses(Deu 32: 1-43) These are Moses' last words to the
children of Israel. In it he reminds them of God’s aid to them and calls them to repent and seek the Lord.
It ends with joy in the his salvation The church is calling us to repentance
so that we may partake of the joy of the Lord’s salvation and enter the heavenly Jerusalem.
APOCALYPSE
We read several praises from the Old and New Testament Hannah (mother of Samuel), this is
the prayer of thanksgiving of Hannah when she brought her son Samuel into the temple, fulfilling her promise to God
The church likewise thanks God for granting her a Son (Christ) to redeem her from death.
APOCALYPSE
The prayer of the prophet Daniel Three young men in the furnace
• As the 3 young men were condemned to death, but they came out alive, likewise humanity was condemned to death, but Christ granted it life through his death
• Whoever wishes to see the Lord, must pass through the fire of temptations and overcome it with the power of God.
APOCALYPSE
Jonah, Isaiah, Jeremiah, king Solomon, Baruch, Habakkuk, etc.
We read the story of Susanna (very Important) As God sent Daniel to save Susanna,
God sent his Son Jesus Christ to save everyone
APOCALYPSE
The 2nd procession: the praise of the three young men This is a portion of the Praise of
Azarius while in the furnace, as he proclaims that he’ll follow the Lord under any condition (even in the furnace)
After the church head all the prayer and praises, it goes around the church assuring the Lord that it will follow him chanting “we follow thee” ten ouweeh enthok “
APOCALYPSE
We pray the first, third, and sixth hour of Saturday similar to regular pascha first half with sad tune, second with
annual Readings: preparations for
resurrection