TIP of the day: from the blogs - Orthodox service of the 12 Gospels
The final list of scripture I wish to present is the Orthodox Churches' Twelve Gospels of the Holy Thursday celebration.
From the Orthodox Wiki entry on Holy Week:
Orthodox wiki said:
The Mystical SupperHoly Thursday
Holy Thursday begins with the celebration of vespers and the Divine Liturgy of St. Basil, in representation of the earthly presence of Christ realized at the Last Supper. In the evening, anticipating the Matins of Friday morning, the Holy Passion service of the reading of the Twelve Gospels is conducted. In these readings Christ's last instructions to his disciples are presented, as well as the prophecy of the drama of the Cross, Christ's prayer, and his new commandment. The twelve readings are:
a brief description of the service
Friday Mattins are usually ‘anticipated’ and held on Thursday evening. They take a special form, with a series of twelve Gospel readings that begins with Christ’s discourse at the Last Supper and ends with the account of His burial. In the Greek use there comes a ‘high point’ shortly before the sixth Gospel, when the priest carries a large Cross from the sanctuary and sets it up in the centre of the church. This ceremony, which originated in the Church of Antioch, was only adopted at Constantinople as recently as 1824;78 it is not found in the practice of the Slav Churches. Here we find the principle of dramatic representation carried a stage further than hitherto, through the use not only of words but of visible actions.
Orthodox Church, “The,” in The Lenten Triodion, trans. Kallistos Ware with Mother Mary, The Service Books of the Orthodox Church (South Canaan, PA: St. Tikhon’s Seminary Press, 2002), 61–62.
for anyone wanting to see the 12 Gospels in their "native habitat"
Sergei D. Arhipov said:
E. GREAT AND HOLY FRIDAY
Matins on Thursday Evening
The Holy and Saving Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ
(also called the Service of the Twelve Gospels)
This service, the Matins of Great and Holy Friday, is ordinarily celebrated on Thursday evening, according to the Typicon “at the second hour of the night,” or, our time, 8:00 p.m. In some places it is repeated on Great Friday morning.
The priest vests in the epimankia, epitrachelion and phelonion of a dark-hued color, preferably purple. The same vestment is worn throughout the entire service, as there is no reason whatever to change the vestments to various colors for the readings of the Gospel.
The curtain is opened, and the royal doors remain closed. The beginning is the customary one for Matins. After the Great Litany (Special melody), “Alleluia” with the appointed verses and the troparion in Tone 8: “When the glorious disciples were enlightened at the washing of their feet before the Supper …” (THRICE).
When there is no deacon, the priest says the Great Litany in front of the closed royal doors on the soleas. He re-enters the sanctuary after the fourth verse of the “Alleluia.” After a metania and kissing the Altar, the priest, at the start of the singing of the troparion, opens the royal doors, and through them brings out the Holy Gospel which he places upon the analogion in the center of the temple (nave), facing the Altar, so that the priest will read the Gospel facing the Altar. Candles are distributed to all assisting clergy and to all the people. Ordinarily, the main celebrant receives several lighted candles from the deacon, and gives a candle to each priest and deacon. Each priest kisses the main celebrant’s hand (even if he is another priest), who in turn kisses the priest’s hand, as he receives the candle—the main celebrant does not kiss the deacon’s hand.
NOTE: It is a custom in certain traditions that the candles are put out after the conclusion of the first Gospel reading. They are re-lighted at the beginning of each reading, and put out at the conclusion of each reading. There is also a custom among some to keep the candle lighted following the last Gospel reading and to take it home while it is still burning.
The main celebrant does a complete censing: the Altar, sanctuary, iconostasis, the people, the entire temple, starting and ending at the analogion with the Gospel. If there is a deacon, he goes in front of the priest, as is customarily done during such censings. Following the conclusion of the troparion, the censing, the Little Litany, the exclamation is: “For Thine is the dominion, and Thine are the Kingdom, and the power, and the glory, of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto ages of ages.” Choir: “Amen.”
Deacon: And that we may be accounted worthy to hear the Holy Gospel, let us pray to the Lord God.
Choir: Lord have mercy. (THRICE)
Deacon: Wisdom! Aright! Let us hear the Holy Gospel!
Priest: Peace be unto all!
Choir: And to thy spirit.
Priest: The Reading from the Holy Gospel according to St. John.
Choir: Glory to Thy Passion, O Lord.
And the priest reads the first Gospel. At the conclusion of the reading:
Choir: Glory to Thy Longsuffering, O Lord.
The same order is followed before and after each of the twelve Gospel readings. Also, the bell is struck the number of times as is the number of the Gospel sequence, viz., before the reading of the first Gospel, the bell is struck one time, before the second reading, it is struck two times, etc., and, following the last Gospel reading, there is a short ringing of the trezvón. Thereafter, trezvón remains silent, and is not to be rung until Holy Pascha.
After each of the first five Gospel readings there is set a series of 15 special antiphons broken down into a seriesof three, each followed by the Little Litany, and its exclamation. These are followed by a kathisma (sedalen) hymn, during which the lesser censing takes place and the faithful remain standing.
If conditions are such that make it difficult to sing all of the required verses of the antiphons, they may be chanted. It is suggested, however, that the first one or two verses of the first antiphon in each sequence be sung (and the rest may be read).
After the First Gospel is read, Antiphon 1, Tone 8: “The rulers of the people took counsel …,” “They laid a lawless accusation against Me …,” “Let us bring to Christ pure senses and affections …,” Glory …, “As a virgin inviolate …, Now and ever … Amen. “As a virgin inviolate.…” Antiphon 2, Tone 6: “Judas ran to the lawless scribes …,” “In loving compassion …,” Glory …, “Cease not to pray, O Virgin …,” Now and ever … Amen. “Cease not to pray, O Virgin.…” Antiphon 3, Tone 2: “Because of the raising of Lazarus …,” “At Thy Supper, O Christ our God …,” “When John asked Thee, O Lord …,” “With thirty pieces of silver, O Lord …,” “During the washing of The feet, O Christ our God …,” “Watch and pray …,” Glory …, “Keep thy servants safe from danger …,” Now and ever … Amen, “Keep thy servants safe from danger.…”
The Little Litany now follows and the exclamation: “For unto Thee are due all glory, honor and worship, to the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto ages of ages.” Choir: “Amen.” And the kathisma (sedalen) hymn in (Tone 7): “As Thou gavest food to the disciples.…”
After the Second Gospel is read, Antiphon 4, Tone 5: “Today Judas forsakes the Master …,” “Today Judas makes a pretense …,” Tone 1: “As brethren in Christ …,” Glory …, “Glorious things are spoken of thee …,” Now and ever … Amen. “Glorious things are spoken of thee.…” Antiphon 5, Tone 6: “The disciple agreed upon the price …,” “Today the Creator of heaven and earth …,” Glory …, “O Virgin who in the last days …,” Now and ever … Amen. “O Virgin who in the last days.…” Antiphon 6, Tone 7: “Today Judas watches how he may deliver up the Lord …,” “Today the Jews …,” “O Lord, as Thou camest to Thy voluntary Passion …,” Glory …, “Rejoice, O Mother of God, who hast contained within thy womb …,” Now and ever … Amen. “Rejoice, O Mother of God.…”
The Little Litany now follows and the exclamation: “For blessèd and glorified is Thine honored and majestic Name, of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto ages of ages.” Choir: “Amen.” And the kathisma (sedalen) hymn (Tone 7): “What reason led thee, Judas to betray the Savior?…”
After the Third Gospel is read, Antiphon 7, Tone 8: “Suffering the transgressors to lay hold on Thee …,” “Peter denied Thee three times …,” Glory …, “The holy Virgin is a gateway of salvation.…” Now and ever … Amen. “The holy Virgin is a gateway.…” Antiphon 8, Tone 2: “O ye transgressors …,” “ ‘Let Him be crucified!’ they cried …,” Glory …, “As there is no boldness in us …,” Now and ever … Amen. “As there is no boldness in us.…” Antiphon 9, Tone 3: “They took the thirty pieces of silver …,” “They gave Me gall to eat …,” Glory …, “We Gentiles sing of thee, O pure Mother of God …,” Now and ever … Amen. “We Gentiles sing of thee.…”
The Little Litany now follows and the exclamation: “For Thou art our God and unto Thee do we send up glory, to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto ages of ages.” Choir: “Amen.” And the kathisma (sedalen) hymn (Tone 8): “O how could Judas, who was once Thy disciple.…”
After the Fourth Gospel is read, Antiphon 10, Tone 6: “He who clothes Himself in light …,” “The disciple denied Thee …,” Glory …, “O Lord who lovest mankind …” Now and ever … Amen. “O Lord who lovest.…” Antiphon 11, Tone 6: “In return for the blessings …,.” “The people of the Hebrews …,” “Neither the quaking of the earth …,” Glory …, “O Theotokos Virgin, who alone art pure …,” Now and ever … Amen. “O Theotokos Virgin, who alone art pure.…” Antiphon 12, Tone 8: “Thus saith the Lord to the Jews …,” “Today the veil of the temple is rent in twain …,” “O lawgivers of Israel …,” Glory …, “Rejoice, O gate of the King of Glory …,” Now and ever … Amen. “Rejoice, O gate of the King of Gloty.…”
The Little Litany now follows and the exclamation: “Blessèd and glorified is the power of Thy Kingdom, of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto ages of ages.” Choir: “Amen.” And the kathisma (sedalen) hymn (Tone 8): “When Thou the Judge, O God.…”
After the Fifth Gospel is read, Antiphon 13, Tone 6: “The assembly of the Jews besought Pilate …,” “He before whom all things quake and tremble …,” Glory …, “O Theotokos, who through a word in ways past speech …,” Now and ever … Amen. “O Theotokos, who through a word.…” Antiphon 14, Tone 8: “O Lord, Thou hast taken as Thy companion the thief …,” “Few were the words that the thief uttered upon the Cross …,” Glory …, “Rejoice, for through the angel thou hast received the Joy …,” Now and ever … Amen. “Rejoice, for through the angel.…” Antiphon 15, Tone 6: “Today He who hung the earth upon the waters …,” “Let us not keep festival as the Jews …,” “Thy Cross, O Lord, is life and resurrection to Thy people …,” Glory …, “Beholding Thee hanging on the Cross …,” Now and ever … Amen. “Beholding Thee hanging on the Cross.…”
The Little Litany now follows and the exclamation: “For blessèd is Thy Name and glorified is Thy Kingdom, of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto ages of ages.” Choir: “Amen.” And the kathisma (sedalen) hymn (Tone 4): “Thou hast redeemed us from the curse of the Law.…”
After the Sixth Gospel is read, the Beatitudes in Tone 4 with the stikhera by Macarius (“the Makarismatics”) on 8 are sung antiphonally by the choir and the deacon does the lesser censing. The Little Litany now follows and the exclamation: “For all the powers of heaven praise Thee, and unto Thee do they send up glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto ages of ages.” Choir: “Amen.” The deacon now announces the prokeimenon in Tone 4: “They divided My garments among them, and cast lots upon My vesture.” Verse: “My God, My God, attend to Me: why hast Thou forsaken Me?”
After the Seventh Gospel, Psalm 50 is immediately read; there is no censing, and no Little Litany. At its conclusion, the next Gospel reading is introduced by the deacon: “And that we be accounted worthy.…”
The Eighth Gospel is read, immediatley followed by the Three-ode Canon by St. Cosmas (Odes 5, 8 and 9). Before the troparia, the bidding is: “Glory to Thee, our God, glory to Thee!” Ode 5, Irmos: “I seek Thee early in the morning …,” and the troparia: “Their feet were washed …,” “ ‘See that ye be not troubled, O My friends …,’ ” Katavasia: “I seek Thee early in the morning.…” The Little Litany now follows and the exclamation: “For Thou art the King of peace and the Savior of our souls, and unto Thee do they send up glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto ages of ages.” Choir: “Amen.”
The kontakion in Tone 8, “Come, and let us all sing the praises of Him who was crucified for us …,” and the ikos, “Seeing her own Lamb led to the slaughter.…”
Ode 8, Irmos: “The holy children …,” and the troparia: “ ‘Shake the deep sleep now from your eyelids …,’ ” “ ‘No profane words shall ever pass my lips …,’ ” Glory …, now and ever … Amen. “ ‘Thou dost protest, O Simon Peter …,” We praise, bless and worship the Lord …, Katavasia: “The holy children.…”
Ode 9. We do not sing the Magnificat. The deacon intones the first part of the irmos: “More honorable than the Cherubim …” and the choir continues: “… and more glorious beyond compare than the Seraphim.…” The troparia: “The destructive band of evil men …” “Ignorant of the Law in their impiety …” “Moved by jealous wickedness …,” Glory …, now and ever … Amen. “Like many dogs they compassed Thee, O King.…” Katavasia: “More honorable than the Cherubim.…”
The Little Litany now follows and the exclamation: “For all the powers of heaven praise Thee, and unto Thee do we send up glory, to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto ages of ages.” Choir: “Amen.” The exapostilarion: “The wise thief didst thou make worthy of paradise in a single moment, O Lord. By the wood of the Cross enlighten me as well and save me” is sung three times, separated by “Glory …” and “Now and ever … Amen.”
At the conclusion of the singing of the exapostilarion for the third time, the deacon intones: “And that we may be accounted worthy to hear the Holy Gospel …,” and the rest, as usual.
The Ninth Gospel is read, followed immediatley by the Praises (ainoi, khvalítny) which are sung (the psalms are not read):
Let every breath praise the Lord; Praise the Lord in heaven;
Praise Him in the highest: To Thee, O God, is due a song.
Praise Him all you angels of His; Praise Him all His hosts:
To Thee, O God, is due a song.
And four stikhera in Tone 3. The first is repeated as only three are given in the Triodion: “Israel, My first-born son …” (TWICE), “Every member of Thy holy body …,” “Seeing Thee crucified, O Christ …,” Glory …, (Tone 6): “They stripped Me of My garments …,” Now and ever … Amen. “I gave My back to scourging.…”
The Tenth Gospel is read, and the the reader immediatley begins, “Glory to Thee, who hast shown us the light.” and reads the Lesser Doxology: “Glory to God in the highest.…” (in some places it is customary that the priest intones, “Glory to Thee, who hast shown us the light”).
Now the Litany of Supplication (Morning Litany): “Let us complete our morning prayer unto the Lord …,” and the exclamation: “For Thou art the God of mercy, goodness and love for mankind, and unto Thee do we send up glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto ages of ages.” Choir: “Amen.”
The Eleventh Gospel is read, followed by the singing of the the Apostikha in Tone 1: “The whole creation was changed by fear …” Verse: They parted My garments among them, and ast lots upon My vesture. “Why does the impious and transgressing people …” Verse: They gave Me gall to drink; and in My thirst they gave Me vinegar to drink. “Today the most pure Virgin saw Thee hanging on the Cross …” Verse: God is our King before the ages: He has wrought salvation in the midst of the earth. “Seeing Thee hanging on the Cross, O Christ …” Glory … (Tone 8): “Lord, when Thou hast ascended on the Cross …,” Now and ever … Amen (Tone 6): “Already the unjust judges have dipped their pens in ink.…” During the singing of the stikhera of the Apostikha, a complete censing of the temple is done.
The Twelfth Gospel is read and a short trezvón is rung as the priest carries the Holy Gospel back to the Altar. The reader: “It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord, and to sing praises to Thy Name, O Most-high: to tell of Thy mercy in the morning and Thy truth by night” and reads the Trisagion prayers through “Our Father.” After “Amen,” the troparion in Tone 4: “Thou hast redeemed us from the curse of the Law …”
The Litany of Fervent Supplication: “Have mercy on us, O God, according to Thy great mercy, we pray Thee, hearken, and have mercy …” “Lord, have mercy” (THRICE), and its exclamation: “For Thou art a merciful God and lovest mankind, and unto Thee do we send up glory, to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto ages of ages.” Then: “Wisdom!” “Father (MASTER), bless!” “Christ our God, the Existing, is blessed …” “Amen. Preserve, O God, the Holy Orthodox Faith, and Orthodox Christians …,” as usual, and the dismissal: “May He who endured spitting and scourging, the Cross and death, for the salvation of the world, Christ our True God.…”
The First Hour is not read at the end of Matins, but rather on Holy Friday morning as part of the Royal Hours.
NOTES:
1. In reading the Twelve Gospels, if two or more priests concelebrate, the main celebrant, as a rule, reads the first Gospel and also the last.
2. There is a custom in Greek and Antiochian (Syrian) churches, instituted by Patriarch Sophronius of Constantinople in 1864, that the archpriest carry the Cross from the sanctuary in procession via the north deacon’s door to the center of the temple after the conclusion of the Fifth Gospel. While he is carrying the Cross, he sings the first verse of the 15th Antiphon. The Cross is placed into a marble base, and all the faithful come forward to venerate the Cross. In the meantime, the choir sings the first verse of the 15th antiphon.
3. The Liturgical Directives for 1946 of the Russian Church specify that according to custom, the processional Cross (sanctuary Cross) be carried out from the sanctuary through the north deacon’s door after the Fifth Gospel to the analogion on which the Gospel is read, during the singing of the 15th antiphon (after the Fifth Gospel) and placed at the back of the analogion.
4. It is also customary in some places to read all 12 Gospels in front of the Golgotha Cross that has been moved to the center of the nave.
5. Liturgy is not celebrated on Great and Holy Friday. Should the Feast of Annunciation coincide with Great and Holy Friday, a special order for the Liturgy is followed.
6. Special “passion week” musical settings and melodies, even for the litanies, are to be used.
Sergei D. Arhipov, An Abridged Typicon, ed. Feodor S. Kovalchuk, Third Edition, Revised and Updated (Waymart, PA: St. Tikhon’s Monastery Press, 2013), 183–190.
Orthodox Bishop Alfeyev: "To be a theologian means to have experience of a personal encounter with God through prayer and worship."; Orthodox proverb: "We know where the Church is, we do not know where it is not."