Prayers during the Easter period. Easter Clock
Prayers during the Easter period. Easter Clock
Hours of Holy Pascha during worship in the Temple
The hours separating Easter Matins from the Liturgy pass unnoticed for many, because they are not read, as usual, but sung, and do not consist of psalms (which form their basis), but of selected Easter hymns, easily recognizable by ear.
Likewise, other services of Easter and the entire Bright Week (i.e., until next Sunday) consist almost exclusively of singing (with the exception of the reading of the Apostle and the Gospel, priestly exclamations and deaconal litanies). In general, the reading of the Psalter, a collection of Hebrew religious hymns and prayers, is abolished for the entire Bright Week because “the canopy of the Old Testament no longer has a place in the radiant radiance of New Testament grace.”
Cell prayers during the Easter period
According to a long-standing tradition, the usual morning and evening prayers are replaced on Bright Week Easter hours. All hours: 1st, 3rd, 6th, 9th - are exactly the same and read the same way. This is a follow up Easter Hours contains the main Easter chants. It begins, of course, “Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death and giving life to those in the tombs,” “Having seen the Resurrection of Christ...” is sung three times, then the ipakoi, exapostilary, and so on are sung. This sequence of reading times is much shorter than the usual morning and evening rule. Ordinary prayers, which contain both repentant prayers and other types, are all replaced by Easter chants, which express our joy at this great event.
Easter clock
Christ rose from the dead, trampling down death by death and giving life to those in the tombs. ( Three times)
Having seen the Resurrection of Christ, let us worship the holy Lord Jesus, the only Sinless One. We worship Your Cross, O Christ, and we sing and glorify Your holy Resurrection. For You are our God, don’t we know otherwise to You, your name we call it. Come, all faithful, let us worship the Holy Resurrection of Christ: behold, joy has come through the Cross to the whole world. Always blessing the Lord, we sing His Resurrection: having endured the crucifixion, destroy death by death. ( Three times)
Having anticipated the morning of Mary, and having found the stone rolled away from the tomb, I hear from the angel: in the light of the ever-present Being, with the dead, why do you seek like a man? You see the graveclothes, preach to the world that the Lord has risen, the slayer of death, as the Son of God, saving the human race.
Even though you descended into the grave, Immortal, you destroyed the power of hell, and you rose again as a conqueror, Christ God, saying to the myrrh-bearing women: Rejoice, and grant peace to your apostles, grant resurrection to the fallen.
In the tomb carnally, in hell with the soul like God, in heaven with the thief, and on the throne you were, Christ, with the Father and the Spirit, fulfilling everything, indescribable.
Glory: Like the Life-Bearer, like the reddest of Paradise, truly the brightest of every royal palace, Christ, Thy tomb, the source of our Resurrection.
And now: Highly illuminated Divine village, rejoice: for you have given joy, O Theotokos, to those who call: blessed art thou among women, O All-Immaculate Lady.
Lord have mercy. ( 40 times)
Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto ages of ages, amen.
We magnify You, the most honorable cherub and the most glorious seraphim without comparison, who gave birth to the Word of God without corruption, the real Mother of God.
Christ rose from the dead, trampling down death by death and giving life to those in the tombs. ( Three times)
(first week of Easter) instead of evening and morning prayers() are sung or read. The Hours of Easter are also sung instead of Compline and Midnight Office. The Hours of Easter are read until the morning of Saturday of Bright Week inclusive.
From the day of Holy Easter to the Feast of the Ascension of the Lord (40 days), all prayers (including thanksgiving prayers according to Holy Communion) are preceded by three readings of the troparion of Easter: « Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death, and giving life to those in the tombs.”. Read more . From Ascension to Trinity (10 days) all prayers begin with Trisagion.
From Easter to Trinity Day (50 days) prayer « » not readable.
From the day of Holy Easter to the Feast of the Ascension of the Lord (40 days): prayer « »
is replaced by:
“The angel cried out with grace: Pure Virgin, rejoice! And again the river: Rejoice! Your Son is risen three days from the grave and raised up the dead; people, have fun! Shine, shine, new Jerusalem, for the glory of the Lord is upon you. Rejoice now and be glad, O Zion. You, Pure One, show off, O Mother of God, about the rising of Your Nativity.”.
From Ascension to the Day of the Holy Trinity, both of these Mother of God prayers are not read (10 days)
On Bright Week, the canons of the Penitential, Theotokos and Guardian Angel are replaced.
The “Rule for Holy Communion” (M., 1893) says: Be aware that on Bright Week of Easter, instead of the evening and morning prayers, the hours of Easter are sung, and instead of the canon of the Lord Jesus and the Paraclesis of the Mother of God, the canon of Easter with its Mother of God is read, and the rest, on the days of the week. are going down." The approach to Holy Communion and prayers after Communion are preceded by three readings of the troparion: “Christ is risen from the dead...”; psalms and the Trisagion (with troparia during fasting) are not read.
From the day of Holy Easter to the day of the Holy Trinity, earthly days are canceled (50 days).
General notes on worshipfrom St. Thomas Week until Easter (from the Liturgical Instructions)
1) From the Week of St. Thomas until Easter, all church services and services are preceded by three times of singing or reading the troparion “Christ is risen from the dead...” (see also in paragraph 5).
2) At the all-night vigil, “Christ is risen from the dead...” (three times) is sung, according to tradition, instead of “Come, let us worship...” and after “The blessing of the Lord is upon you...”, before the start of the six psalms (cf.: paragraph 5).
3) At the Sunday all-night vigil, at the end of the Easter stichera at the vespers stichera, the troparion “Christ is risen from the dead...” is sung (once): it is included in the last stichera, being its conclusion.
4) At the Liturgy, “Christ is risen from the dead...” (three times) is sung after “Blessed is the Kingdom...”.
- Note. Usually, at the beginning of the all-night vigil and Liturgy, the clergy sing the troparion 2 times in its entirety, and the 3rd time, ending with the words: “... trampling death upon death,” and the singers finish: “And to those in the tombs he gave life.” In some churches, the troparion “Christ is Risen...” is sung (once) by the clergy, and then (once) by both choirs. Before the Six Psalms, “Christ is Risen...” is usually sung by the choir all three times.
5) “Christ is risen from the dead...” (three times) is read at the beginning of the hours, Vespers, Compline, Midnight Office and Matins: at the 3rd, 9th hours, Compline and Midnight Office - instead of “The King of Heaven...”, and at 1- m, 6 o’clock and Vespers (if the 9th hour is read immediately before its start), according to tradition, instead of “Come, let us worship...”.
6) At the Liturgy, “Christ is risen from the dead...” is sung (once) instead of “We have seen the True Light...”. Entrance: “Come, let us worship... risen from the dead...”.
7) At the end of the Liturgy, at the exclamation: “Glory to Thee, Christ our God, our Hope, glory to Thee,” the singers sing: “Christ is risen from the dead...” (three times). At all other services, after the exclamation: “Glory to Thee, Christ our God, our Hope, glory to Thee,” the ending is as usual. Dismissal at all services begins with the words: “Risen from the dead...”.
8) On Sunday, after the holiday Liturgy, after ancient custom, the priest overshadows the people with the Cross three times and proclaims: “Christ is risen!”, as in the days of Bright Week. The singers sing the final “Christ is risen from the dead...” (three times), “And we have been given eternal life, we worship His three-day Resurrection” (once). On weekdays there is no overshadowing of the Holy Cross.
9) The troparion “Christ is risen from the dead...” is also sung at the beginning of prayers, memorial services, Baptism, funeral services and other services.
10) “To the Heavenly King...” is not read or sung until the day of the Holy Trinity.
11) Services of happened saints in all Sundays Holy Pentecost (except for Martyr George, Apostle John the Theologian, St. Nicholas, St. Equal to the Apostles Constantine and Helena, temple and polyeleos feasts) are not combined with the Sunday service, but are performed at Compline along with the canon of the Theotokos from Octoechos and the three-canticle of the Colored Triodion (placed in the Triodion appendix).
12) “Having seen the Resurrection of Christ...” at Sunday matins is sung three times, and on other days at matins, before the 50th Psalm, once.
13) The Canon of Easter is sung at Sunday matins on the Sunday of the Myrrh-Bearing Women, the paralytic, the Samaritan and the blind man, with all the troparions and the Theotokos, without the final “Christ is risen from the dead...” for each song and without choruses for the 9th song of the canon. On weekdays (at weekday services), the Easter canon is not supposed to be sung. On the Sunday of Antipascha and on holidays, with great doxology, it is necessary to sing the irmos of Easter (except for Midnight and its celebration).
14) In all the Weeks (i.e. Sundays) before the celebration of Easter, “The Most Honest” is not sung at Sunday Matins. Every church ceremony takes place on the 9th song of the canon.
15) Exapostilary “Having fallen asleep in the flesh...” is sung at Sunday matins in the week when the canon of Easter is due.
16) At the 1st hour on all days from the Week of St. Thomas until the Ascension, it is customary to sing instead of “The Chosen Voivode...” the kontakion of Easter, tone 8: “Even to the grave...”.
17) At the Liturgy, on all days before the Ascension, except for the feast of Mid-Apocalypse and its giving, the venerable hymn is sung: “The angel cried out...” and “Shine, shine...”.
18) Communicated with Easter “Receive the Body of Christ...” is sung on all days before the celebration of Easter, except for the Week of St. Thomas and Midsummer with the afterfeast.
19) Prostrations to the ground before the day of the Holy Trinity are canceled by the Charter.
In the sequence of Monday of the 2nd week, the beginning of Matins is shown as follows: “Glory to the Holy Ones and Consubstantial...”, “Christ is risen...” (three times). And “abie” (immediately) after “Christ is risen...” - “Glory to God in the highest” and the usual six psalms. At the same time, it was noted that such a beginning of Matins should be “even before the Ascension.”
See: Valentin, Hierom. Additions and amendments to the archpriest’s book “A Guide to the Study of the Charter of Divine Services” Orthodox Church" 2nd ed., add. M., 1909. P. 19.
See: Rozanov V. Liturgical Charter of the Orthodox Church. P. 694.
See: Rozanov V. Liturgical Charter of the Orthodox Church. P. 676. There is an opinion that “Christ is Risen...” at the beginning of the 1st hour is read only if there was a holiday at Matins; after daily matins, the 1st hour, according to this point of view, as an attached service, begins immediately with “Come, let us worship...” (see: Michael, Hierom. Liturgics: Course of Lectures. M., 2001. P. 196).
About the prayer rule during the celebration of Holy Easter
On all days of Easter week - the first week after the Feast of the Resurrection of Christ - instead of evening and morning prayers, prayers are sung or read. They are included in most prayer books.
Those preparing for Communion, instead of the penitential canon to the Lord Jesus Christ, the canons to the Most Holy Theotokos and the Guardian Angel, should read, as well as Follow-up to Holy Communion.
All prayers(including prayers of thanksgiving for Holy Communion) preceded by three times reading the troparion of Easter: “ Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death, and giving life to those in the tombs" Psalms and prayers from the Trisagion (“Holy God…”) through “Our Father…” (with troparia after it) are not read.
The Hours of Easter are also sung instead of Compline and Midnight Office.
From the second week of Easter the reading of the usual morning and evening prayers begins again, as well as the Rules for Holy Communion, including the canons to the Lord Jesus Christ, the Most Holy Theotokos, the Guardian Angel and the Follow-up to Holy Communion.
However, you need to pay attention to the following features.
Before the Feast of the Ascension of the Lord, on the eve of which the celebration of Easter is celebrated, instead of praying to the Holy Spirit(“To the Heavenly King…”) the Easter troparion (“Christ is risen from the dead…”) is read three times.
Also from Monday of the First Week of Easter until Ascension: instead of the prayer “It is worthy to eat”, reads:
« The angel cries out for grace: Pure Virgin, rejoice! And again the river: Rejoice! Your Son is risen three days from the grave and raised up the dead; people, have fun!
Shine, shine, new Jerusalem, for the glory of the Lord is upon you. Rejoice now and be glad, O Zion. You, Pure One, show off, O Mother of God, about the rising of Your Nativity.”
From the Ascension to the Day of the Holy Trinity prayers begin with the Trisagion(“Holy God…”) - a prayer to the Holy Spirit (“Heavenly King…”) is not read or sung until the Feast of the Holy Trinity. Until the day of the Holy Trinity, prostrations to the ground are also cancelled.
Easter clock
Easter clock- part of the Easter day service (including Matins, Easter Hours, Liturgy and Vespers).
Read in Easter week(until Saturday morning inclusive) instead of morning and evening prayers (prayer rule).
From this day of the holy and great week of Easter until Saturday, the hours, midnight and compline are sung as follows:
The priest proclaims:
Blessed be our God now, and always, and unto ages of ages.
The layman begins:
Through the prayers of our holy fathers, Lord Jesus Christ our God, have mercy on us.
We answer: Amen.
Christ rose from the dead, trampling down death by death and giving life to those in the tombs. ( Three times)
Sunday Carol
Having seen the resurrection of Christ,
Let us worship the Holy Lord Jesus,
the only sinless one.
We worship Your Cross, O Christ,
and we sing and glorify Your Holy Resurrection,
for You are our God,
We don’t know anyone else but You,
We call on Your name.
Come, all you faithful,
let us worship the holy resurrection of Christ,
for behold, I came through the Cross
joy to the whole world.
Always blessing the Lord,
we sing of His resurrection,
for He, having endured crucifixion,
by death he crushed death. ( Three times)
Ipakoi, voice 4
The wives who came with Mary before dawn
and they found the stone rolled away from the tomb,
heard from the Angel: “In the eternal light of the Abiding
What are you looking for among the dead as a person?
Look at the grave clothes
run and tell the world,
that the Lord has risen, having put death to death,
for He is the Son of God, who saves the human race!”
Kontakion, tone 8
Although You have descended into the grave, Immortal,
but destroyed the power of hell
and rose again as a conqueror, O Christ God,
shouting to the myrrh-bearing women: “Rejoice!”
and giving peace to Your Apostles,
You who give resurrection to the fallen.
Troparion
In the grave with flesh, and in hell with soul like God,
in heaven with the robber
and on the throne were You, Christ, with the Father and the Spirit,
filling everything, boundless.
Glory: The bearer of life, truly the most beautiful paradise, and the brightest of every royal palace, appeared Your tomb, Christ, the source of our resurrection.
And now, Theotokos:
Divine consecrated Tabernacle of the Most High, rejoice!
For through You, Mother of God, joy is given to those who cry:
“Blessed are You among women, all-immaculate Lady!”
Lord have mercy ( 40 times),
Glory, And now:
Honor the highest Cherubim
and the incomparably most glorious Seraphim,
the virgin who gave birth to God the Word,
true Mother of God - We magnify You.
Bless in the name of the Lord, father.
Priest: Through the prayers of our holy fathers, Lord Jesus Christ our God, have mercy on us.
We are: Amen.
And we sing again:
Christ rose from the dead,
death trampled on by death
and those who are in the tombs,
giving life. ( Three times)
Glory, And now: Lord have mercy ( Three times), Bless. And let go.
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From the author's bookEaster prayers Stichera, tone 6 Thy Resurrection, O Christ the Savior, Angels sing in heaven, and grant us on earth with a pure heart to glorify Thee. Troparion, tone 5 Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death, and giving life to those in the tombs. Ipakoi, tone 4 Preceding the morning
According to a long-standing tradition, the usual morning and evening prayers are replaced by Easter hours on Bright Week. All hours: 1st, 3rd, 6th, 9th are exactly the same and read the same way. This sequence of the Easter Hours contains the main Easter hymns. It begins, of course, “Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death and giving life to those in the tombs,” “Having seen the Resurrection of Christ...” is sung three times, then the ipakoi, exapostilary, and so on are sung. This reading time sequence is much shorter than the usual morning and evening rule. Ordinary prayers, which contain both repentant prayers and other types, are all replaced by Easter chants, which express our joy at this great event.
How do they receive communion on Bright Week? What is the charter of the Church?
There are no regulations of the Church regarding the specifics of Communion on Bright Week. They receive communion in exactly the same order as they receive communion at other times.
But there is different traditions. There is a tradition of the synodal period of the pre-revolutionary Church. It was that people received communion quite rarely. And, mainly, they received communion by fasting. It was not customary to receive communion on Easter. Back in the 70-80s, in the Pukhtitsa Monastery, the desire to receive communion on Easter night was perceived as a very strange movement; it seemed that it was absolutely unnecessary. Well, as a last resort, on Holy Saturday, but in general, on Holy Thursday, it was believed that one should take communion. The same thing applied to Bright Week. The logic by which this practice is justified in this case is approximately that Communion is always associated with repentance, with confession before Communion, and since we celebrate great holiday and, in general, other great holidays, then what kind of repentance is there on a holiday? And no repentance means no Communion.
From my point of view, this does not stand up to any theological criticism. And the practice of the ancient Church of the pre-Synodal period, both in Russia and in general in the ancient Church everywhere, was that precisely on great holidays people always sought to partake of the Holy Mysteries of Christ. Because to experience the fullness of the celebrated event, to truly participate in the event that the Church celebrates, is possible only in Communion. And if we experience this event only speculatively, then this is not at all what the Church wants and can give to us, believers. We must join in! To physically join the reality that is remembered on this day. And this can be done only by fully participating in the Sacrament of the Eucharist, which takes place on this day.
Therefore, modern practice in most churches is such that people are under no circumstances denied Communion on Bright Week. I think that it is reasonable for those who wish to receive communion these days to limit themselves to the confession that took place during Holy Week. If a person came to Holy days and confessed, and he no longer feels such serious internal reasons that would separate him from the opportunity to receive communion, some sins during this Easter period, then, I think, it would be completely possible to receive communion without confession. However, under no circumstances do I recommend doing this without consulting with your confessor, and somehow agreeing with the priest in whose church you are receiving communion. Just so that there are no misunderstandings or differences of opinion.
Why is it that on Holy Saturday, on Easter itself and throughout Bright Week, instead of the Trisagion, “Those who were baptized into Christ, who put on Christ!”, which is sung at the baptism of people, is sung instead of the Trisagion?
This means that this period is ancient church was a period of mass baptism. And if people were baptized on Holy Saturday, which was practiced extremely widely, so that they would already take part in the Easter service as faithful, and not as catechumens, then throughout Holy Week these people were constantly in the church. They were anointed with myrrh, and the places anointed with myrrh were tied with special bandages. In this form, people sat in the temple without leaving. It was a little like how now, when one is tonsured a monk, the newly tonsured person is constantly in the church and participates in all services. The same thing happened to the newly baptized for seven days. And, in addition, this was the time when sacramental or secret conversations were held with them (mystogogy in Greek). We can read these conversations of St. Maximus the Confessor, other famous preachers of the ancient Church, who did a lot to educate the newly baptized. These are the conversations and daily prayer and Communion in church. And on the eighth day, the very rituals that we perform immediately after Baptism were performed: cutting hair, wiping off the world, and so on. All this took place on the eighth day after the period of a person’s dedication, real churching, introduction into church life. They wiped him off, took off the bandages, and he emerged as a truly experienced spiritual Christian and began his further church life. Therefore, in the ancient church such people, and the laity along with them, received communion daily. Everyone praised God together for His great benefits.
Bright Week is continuous, what to do with fasting?
Here you can refer to the practice of priests. We all serve in these bright days, and the priests do not fast at all. This fast before Communion is associated with the tradition of relatively rare communion. If people take communion regularly, say, once a week, come to church on Sundays, come to take communion on the Twelfth Feast, then I think that most priests do not require these people to fast specially before Communion, other than the natural ones fast days– Wednesdays and Fridays, which are for all people and always. And if, as we know, these days do not exist on Bright Week, it means that on these days we do not fast and receive communion without this special fast before Communion.
Is it possible to read akathists on Bright Week, at least privately? Maybe only the Lord can be glorified this week, but the Mother of God and the saints are not allowed?
Indeed, now all our spiritual experiences are directed towards this main Event. Therefore, in churches you notice that priests on vacations do not, most often, commemorate the daily saints, but say the festive Easter vacation. In services, we also do not use the memory of saints, although a prayer service on Holy Easter, if performed, then the commemoration of the saints of the day is provided there, and the troparion can be sung. There is no such strict statutory rule that the commemoration of saints during this period is strictly prohibited. But such services as akathists and others, which are dedicated to events not related to the Resurrection, will somewhat unfocus our spiritual attention. And, perhaps, indeed, during this period you should not study the calendar too carefully and see what events are there, but rather immerse yourself more in the experiences of Easter events. Well, if there is such a great inspiration, then, of course, you can read the akathist privately.
Is it possible to remember the dead during Holy Week and Bright Week?
According to tradition, it is not customary in the Church to perform funeral services on Holy and Bright Weeks. If a person dies, he is buried with a special Easter rite, and the first mass commemoration of the dead, which takes place after Easter, is Radonitsa: Tuesday of the second week after Easter. Strictly speaking, it is not provided for by the charter, but, nevertheless, it is a tradition that has long been established. On these days, cemeteries are often visited and memorial services are held. But, of course, you can commemorate it privately. At the Liturgy, if we perform proskomedia, of course, we commemorate both the living and the deceased. You can also submit notes, but public commemoration in the form of a memorial service is usually not accepted at this time.
What is read in preparation for Communion on Bright Week?
There may be different variants. If three canons are usually read: penitential, Mother of God, Guardian Angel, then at least penitential canon not so necessary in this combination. The rule for Holy Communion (and prayers) is certainly worth reading. But it makes sense to replace the canons with the reading of one Easter canon.
How to combine the Twelfth Feasts or Holy Week and worldly work?
This is a really difficult, serious, painful problem. We live in a secular state that is not at all focused on Christian holidays. True, there are some changes in this matter. Here Christmas is made a day off. Easter always falls on a Sunday for us, but they don’t give us a day off after it. Although, say, in Germany and other countries it is always for big holiday a day off follows. They have Easter Monday, that's what it's called. The same thing on Trinity, on other Christian holidays traditional countries, where there was no revolution, there was no godless government that eradicated all this, uprooted it by the roots. In all countries, these holidays are recognized, despite the fact that the state is secular in nature.
Unfortunately, we don’t have this yet. Therefore, we have to apply it to the circumstances of life in which the Lord judges us to live. If the work is such that it does not tolerate the possibility of taking time off or rescheduling it to other days, or somehow shifting it more or less freely, then you have to choose. Or do you stay at this job and sacrifice some of your need to be at work? church services more often, or you should try to change your job so that you have more freedom to attend church services. But still, very often it is possible to negotiate good relations to let you leave work a little earlier, or to warn you that you’ll be back a little later. There are early services - Liturgy, say, at 7 o'clock in the morning. On all major holidays and on Holy Week, on Holy Thursday, two Liturgies are always served in large churches. You can go to the early Liturgy, and by 9 o’clock you will already be free, at the beginning of 10. So by 10 o'clock you can get to work, almost anywhere in the city.
Of course, combine work with attending all Divine services Holy Week both morning and evening, impossible. And I think that there is no urgent need to break with normal, good work if it does not provide the opportunity to be in all services. At least on the main ones, say, on Great Thursdays. The removal of the Shroud is a wonderful service, but it is performed during the day, which means you will not be there, but you can come to the rite of Burial in the evening at 6 o’clock. And you can be a little late, it won’t be a big deal either. The 12th Gospel is celebrated on Thursday evening - also a service that is very good to be at. Well, if the work is daily or some kind of complex schedule, you have to work 12 hours a day, then you will inevitably miss some services, but the Lord sees your desire to be at these services, to pray, and will reward you. Even your absence will be credited to you as if you were there.
What is important is your heartfelt desire, not your personal presence. Another thing is that we ourselves want to be in these special moments the life of the Savior in the temple and, as it were, closer to Him, closer to experiencing everything that He was destined to experience, but circumstances do not always allow. Therefore, if your job does not limit you so much that you cannot go to church at all, you should not change it. You must try to find such moments and negotiate with your superiors so that they give you some small concessions, but at other times you will try to work better, more, so that there are no complaints.
Our everyday life always poses before us some problems of how we can combine life in the world with our spiritual life, with our church life. And here we need to show some flexibility. We cannot refuse work, we cannot go somewhere underground, or then we must choose the monastic path, then our entire life will be devoted to God and service. But if there is a family, this is impossible, and here it is necessary to apply it. Sometimes it’s not even work that can limit us, but household chores and children that require our attention. If the mother is constantly in church, and the child is always alone at home, little good will happen either. Although the mother prays in the temple, sometimes it is more important to simply be personally present and participate in the lives of her children. So, be “wise as serpents” in resolving such issues.