The Divine Liturgy of ST John Chrysostom
The Divine Liturgy of ST John Chrysostom
The Divine Liturgy of ST John Chrysostom
Compiled by
the Rev. Presbyter Maxim D. Hayes
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Priest: For this city, for every city, community, and for the faithful living in them, let us pray
to the Lord.
Response: Lord, have mercy.
Priest: For favorable weather, for an abundance of the fruits of the earth, and for peaceful
times, let us pray to the Lord.
Response: Lord, have mercy.
Priest: For those who travel by sea, air, and land, for the sick, the suffering, the captive and
for their salvation, let us pray to the Lord.
Response: Lord, have mercy.
Priest: For the vulnerable, marginalized, and oppressed, that all transgressions against them
be met with justice, let us pray to the Lord.
Response: Lord, have mercy.
Special petitions, including those for the deceased, may be inserted here.
Whenever a general commemoration of those who have fallen asleep is made, the following is
added:
Priest: For the souls of all who through the ages
Have fallen asleep in the Eastern Christian faith
And in the hope of resurrection and eternal life:
For our forebearers and siblings who have fallen asleep,
For the founders and benefactors of this holy temple,
For our parents and relatives,
For those buried and those inscribed here,
And for all Eastern Christians everywhere,
And for their blessed repose,
Let us pray to the Lord.
Response: Lord, have mercy.
Priest: That they may stand uncondemned
Before the fearsome judgment-seat of Christ,
And that their souls be committed
To the place of light and life
Where all the Saints and righteous repose,
Let us pray to the Lord.
When the commemoration is for a particular person or persons:
Response: Lord, have mercy.
Priest: For the servant of God N.,
(or: For the servants of God N. and N.,)
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And for (his/her/their) blessed memory,
And that (his/her/their) every transgression,
Voluntary and involuntary, be forgiven,
Let us pray to the Lord.
Response: Lord, have mercy.
Priest: That (he/she/they) may stand uncondemned
Before the fearsome judgment-seat of Christ,
And that (his/her/their) soul(s) be committed
To the place of light and life
Where all the Saints and righteous repose,
Let us pray to the Lord.
Response: Lord, have mercy.
Priest: That we be delivered from all affliction, wrath, and need, let us pray to the Lord.
Response: Lord, have mercy.
Priest: Protect us, save us, have mercy on us, and preserve us, O God, by your grace.
Response: Lord, have mercy.
Priest: Commemorating our most holy, most pure, most blessed and glorious Lady, ✠ the
Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary with all the saints, let us commit ourselves and one
another and our whole life to ✠ Christ our God.
Response: To you, O Lord.
Priest: For to you, ✠ Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, is due all glory, honor, and worship, now
and ever and forever.
Response: Amen.
The first antiphon (Sundays)
Shout joyfully to the Lord, all the earth,
Sing praise to His name; give to him
Glorious praise.
Through the prayers of the Theotokos,
O Savior, save us.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and
To the Holy Spirit,
Now and ever and forever. Amen.
Through the prayers of the Theotokos,
O Savior, save us.
The SECOND antiphon (Sundays)
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Be gracious to us, O God, and bless us;
Let your face shine upon us,
And have mercy on us.
O Son of God, risen from the dead,
Save us who sing to you:
Alleluia!
Glory to the Father, and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,
Now and ever and forever. Amen.
The 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.
The THIRD antiphon (Sundays)
Come let us sing joyfully to the Lord;
Let us acclaim God our Savior.
O Son of God, risen from the dead,
Save us who sing to you:
Alleluia!
The Prayer of the Entrance
Priest: Wisdom! Be attentive!
Come let us worship and bow before Christ.
O Son of God, risen from the dead,
Save us who sing to you: Alleluia!
The faithful may SIT as the Third Antiphon concludes with the appropriate TROPARIA and
KONTAKIA.
TROPARION OF THE MUSTARD SEED
By Your divine intercession, O Lord,
As You healed the afflicted,
So expel my doubts and restore my soul;
For you revealed to the disciples:
Faith the size of a mustard seed can move mountains.
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Nothing will be impossible for you.
O Christ God, you enlightened the world.
Glory to you!
Priest: For you are holy, Our God, and we give glory to you, ✠ Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
now and ever and forever.
Response: Amen.
The faithful STAND for the Thrice-Holy (Trisagion) Hymn.
✠ 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.
Holy and Immortal, have mercy on us.
✠ Holy God, Holy and Mighty, Holy and Immortal,
Have mercy on us.
Liturgy of the Word
Priest: Let us be attentive!
✠ Peace be to all.
Wisdom! Be attentive!
The faithful sing the PROKEIMENON. The Priest or Lector chants the verse.
Priest: Wisdom!
The Priest or Lector announces the title of the Apostolic Reading.
Priest: Let us be attentive!
The faithful SIT while the Priest or Lector chants the Apostolic Reading.
Priest: Peace be to you, Reader.
Wisdom! Be attentive!
The faithful STAND as the Alleluia is sung.
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia! (With verses)
Priest: Wisdom! Let us stand and listen to the holy Gospel Peace be to all.
Response: And to your spirit.
Priest: A reading from the holy Gospel according to St. (N.).
Response: Glory to you, O Lord, glory to you.
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Priest: Let us be attentive!
The Priest proclaims the holy Gospel.
Response: Glory to you, O Lord, glory to you.
The faithful SIT during the homily, responding to the Priest’s greeting (depending on the season):
Priest: Glory to Jesus Christ! Response: Glory forever!
Priest: Christ is among us! Response: He is and always shall be!
Priest: Christ is Risen! Response: Indeed He is Risen!
Priest: Christ is born! Response: Glorify Him!
They may also sit during the Litany of Fervent Supplication which follows:
Priest: Let us all say with our whole soul and with our whole mind, let us say:
Response: Lord, have mercy.
Priest: O Lord almighty, God of our Forebearers, we pray you, hear and have mercy.
Response: Lord, have mercy.
Priest: Have mercy on us, O God, according to your great mercy, we pray you, hear and
have mercy.
Response: Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
Priest: For you are a merciful and loving God, and we give glory to you, Father, Son, and
Holy Spirit, now and ever and forever.
Response: Amen.
Litany For Those Who Have Fallen Asleep
If the offering is for those who have fallen asleep, the priest says this ektenija (supplication):
Priest: Have mercy on us, O God,
According to Your great mercy;
We pray You, hear and have mercy.
Response: Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
Priest: Again we pray for the repose of the soul(s)
Of the servant(s) of God (N.)
Who have fallen asleep;
And that (his/her/their) every transgression,
Voluntary and involuntary
Be forgiven (him/her/them).
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Response: Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
Priest: That the Lord God commit (his/her/their) soul(s)
To the place where the just repose.
Response: Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
Priest: For the mercy of God,
The kingdom of heaven,
And the forgiveness of (his/her/their) sins,
Let us beseech Christ,
The immortal King and our God.
Response: Grant this, O Lord.
Priest: Let us pray to the Lord.
Response: Lord, have mercy.
The Priest quietly prays:
Priest: O God of spirits and of all flesh,
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And Your all-holy, good, and life-creating Spirit,
Now and ever and forever.
Response: Amen.
Liturgy of the Eucharist
The faithful sing:
Let us who mystically represent the Cherubim,
And sing the thrice-holy hymn to the life-creating Trinity,
now set aside all earthly cares,
Set aside all earthly cares.
Priest: May the Lord God remember in His kingdom,
Our most reverend Archbishop and Metropolitan N.,
And our God-loving Protopresbyter N.,
The entire priestly, diaconal, and monastic order,
Our civil authorities and all in the service of our country,
The noble and ever-memorable founders and benefactors
Of this holy church,
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Priest: For an angel of peace, a faithful guide,
A guardian of our souls and bodies,
Let us beseech the Lord.
Response: Grant this, O Lord.
Priest: For the pardon and remission of our sins and offenses,
Let us beseech the Lord.
Response: Grant this, O Lord.
Priest: For what is good and beneficial to our souls
And for peace in the whole world,
Let us beseech the Lord.
Response: Grant this, O Lord.
Priest: That we may spend the rest of our life
In peace and repentance,
Let us beseech the Lord.
Response: Grant this, O Lord.
Priest: For a Christian, painless, unashamed,
Peaceful end of our life,
And for a good account
Before the fearsome judgment-seat of Christ,
Let us beseech the Lord.
Response: Grant this, O Lord.
Priest: Remembering our most holy, most pure,
Most blessed and glorious Lady,
The Theotokos and ever-Virgin Mary,
With all the Saints,
Let us commit ourselves and one another,
And our whole life, to Christ our God.
Response: To You, O Lord.
Priest: Grant this through the mercies of your only-begotten Son with whom you are
blessed, together with your all-holy, good, and life-creating Spirit, now and ever and
forever.
Response: Amen.
Priest: ✠ Peace be to all.
Response: And to your spirit.
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Priest: Let us love one another,
So that with one mind we may confess:
Response: The Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit,
The Trinity, one in essence and undivided.
Priest: [The doors! The doors!] In wisdom let us be attentive!
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.
Anaphora
Priest: Let us stand aright; let us stand in awe; let us be attentive to offer the holy Anaphora
in peace.
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Response: Mercy, peace, a sacrifice of praise.
Priest: The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
And the love of God the Father,
And the communion of the Holy Spirit
✠ Be with all of you.
Response: And with your spirit.
Priest: Let us lift up our hearts.
Response: We lift them up to the Lord.
Priest: Let us give thanks to the Lord.
Response: It is proper and just.
Priest: It is proper and just to sing hymns to You,
To bless You, to praise You, to give thanks to You,
To worship You in every place of Your kingdom;
For You are God ineffable, inconceivable, invisible,
Incomprehensible, ever existing yet ever the same;
You, and Your only-begotten Son, and Your Holy Spirit;
You brought us forth from nonexistence into being,
And raised us up when we had fallen,
And left nothing undone until You brought us to heaven
And bestowed upon us Your future kingdom.
For all this we give thanks to You,
And to Your only-begotten Son,
And to Your Holy Spirit,
For all that we know and that we do not know,
The manifest and the hidden benefits bestowed upon us.
We thank You also for this liturgy,
Which You have willed to accept from our hands,
Even though there stand before You thousands of archangels,
Tens of thousands of angels,
Cherubim and Seraphim,
Six-winged, many-eyed, soaring aloft on their wings,
Singing, shouting, crying aloud, and saying the triumphal hymn:
The proper liturgical posture is to STAND.
Response: Holy, holy, holy, holy is the Lord of Hosts,
Heaven and earth are filled with Your glory,
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord,
Hosanna in the highest.
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Priest: With these blessed Powers,
O loving and kind Master,
We too cry out and say:
Holy are You and all-holy,
You, and Your only-begotten Son,
And your Holy Spirit;
Holy are You and all-holy and splendorous is Your glory,
Who so loved Your world
That You gave Your only-begotten Son,
That whoever believes in Him should not perish,
But should have life everlasting;
Who, having come
And having fulfilled the whole divine plan concerning us,
On the night He was betrayed,
Or rather,
When He surrendered Himself for the life of the world,
He took bread
Into His holy and all pure and immaculate hands,
He gave thanks
And blessed, sanctified, and broke it,
He gave it to His holy disciples and apostles saying:
Take, eat, this is My Body which is broken for you
For the remission of sins.
Response: Amen.
Priest: Likewise He took the chalice after supper,
Saying:
Drink of this, all of you, this is My Blood of the New Covenant,
Which is shed for you and for many,
For the remission of sins.
Response: Amen.
Priest: Remembering, therefore, this saving command,
And all that was done on our behalf:
The Cross, the Tomb, the Resurrection on the third day,
The Ascension into heaven, the Sitting at the Right Hand,
The Second and Glorious Coming Again.
Offering You, Your own, from Your own,
Always and everywhere.
Response: We praise You, we bless You, we thank You, thank You, O Lord,
And we pray to You, our God.
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The Epiklesis
Priest: Moreover we offer to You
This spiritual and unbloody sacrifice,
And we implore, pray, and entreat You,
Send down Your Holy Spirit upon us
And upon these Gifts lying here before us.
Priest: And make this bread the precious Body of Your Christ.
Priest: And that which is in this chalice,
The precious Blood of Your Christ.
Priest: Changing them by Your Holy Spirit.
Priest: That to those who partake of them,
They may be for the purification of soul,
For the remission of sins,
For communion of Your Holy Spirit,
For the fullness of the kingdom of heaven,
For trust in You,
But not for judgment or condemnation.
Moreover, we offer to You this spiritual sacrifice
For those who have departed in the faith:
The Forebearers, Parents, Exalted Ones, Prophets,
Apostles, Preachers, Evangelists,
Martyrs, Confessors, Ascetics,
For every just spirit brought to perfection in faith.
Especially for our most holy, most pure, most blessed
And glorious Lady, the Theotokos and ever-Virgin Mary.
Response: It is truly proper to glorify You,
O Theotokos,
The ever-blessed, immaculate and the Mother of our God.
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.
Or in place of the ‘It is truly proper,’ the Irmos of the feast is sung with its verse.
Priest: Among the first, O Lord,
Remember our most reverend Archbishop and Metropolitan N.,
And our God-loving Protopresbyter N.,
Preserve them for Your holy churches,
In peace, safety, honor, and health for many years
As they faithfully impart the word of your truth.
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Response: And remember all your people.
Priest: And grant that we, with one voice and one heart,
May glorify and praise
Your most honored and magnificent name,
✠ Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
Now and ever and forever.
Response: Amen.
Preparation for Communion
Priest: May the mercies of our great God and Savior,
Jesus Christ ✠ be with all of you.
Response: And with your spirit.
Priest: Now that we have commemorated all the saints,
Again and again, in peace, let us pray to the Lord.
Response: Lord, have mercy.
Priest: For the precious gifts offered and consecrated,
That our God who loves us all
May receive them on his holy, heavenly and mystical altar
As an aroma of spiritual fragrance,
And send down upon us in return
His divine grace and the gift of the Holy Spirit,
Let us pray.
Response: Lord, have mercy.
The following petitions may be intoned:
Priest: That we be delivered from all affliction, wrath, and need, let us pray to the Lord.
Response: Lord, have mercy.
Priest: Protect us, save us, have mercy on us, and preserve us, O God by Your grace.
Response: Lord, have mercy.
Priest: That this whole day be perfect, holy, peaceful, and without sin, let us beseech the
Lord.
Response: Grant this, O Lord.
Priest: For an angel of peace, a faithful guide and guardian of our souls and bodies, let us
beseech the Lord.
Response: Grant this, O Lord.
Priest: For the pardon and remission of our sins and offenses, let us beseech the Lord.
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Response: Grant this, O Lord.
Priest: For what is good and beneficial to our souls and for peace in the world, let us
beseech the Lord.
Response: Grant this, O Lord.
Priest: That we may spend the rest of our life in peace and repentance, let us beseech the
Lord.
Response: Grant this, O Lord.
Priest: For a Christian, painless, unashamed, peaceful end of our life, and for a good
account before the fearsome judgment-seat of Christ, let us beseech the Lord.
Response: Grant this, O Lord.
Priest: Asking for unity in the faith and for communion of the Holy Spirit, let us commit
ourselves and one another and our whole life to Christ our God
Response: To You, O Lord.
Priest: And make us worthy, O Master,
That we may with confidence
And without condemnation
Dare call you “Father,” God of heaven and say:
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 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.
Priest: For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory,
✠ Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
Now and ever and forever.
Response: Amen.
Priest: ✠ Peace be to all.
Response: And to your spirit.
Priest: Bow your heads to the Lord.
Response: To You, O Lord.
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Priest: We give You thanks, O King invisible,
Who by Your immeasurable power have fashioned all things,
And in the abundance of Your mercy
Have brought all things from nonexistence into being.
O Master, look down from heaven,
Upon those who bow their heads to You,
For they do not bow to flesh and blood
But to You, the awesome God.
Therefore, O Master,
Make straight the path that lies before us,
According to the need of each:
Sail with those who sail,
Travel with those who travel,
And cure those who are sick,
O Physician of our souls and bodies.
Through the grace, the mercies, and the loving-kindness
Of your only-begotten Son with whom you are blessed,
Together with your all-holy, good, and life-creating Spirit,
Now and ever and forever.
Response: Amen.
Communion
Priest: Let us be attentive!
Priest: Holy gifts to holy people!
Response: One is holy, One is Lord, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus Christ,
To the glory of God the Father. Amen.
The proper liturgical posture is to STAND.
O Lord, I believe and profess that you are truly Christ, the Son of the living
God, who came into the world to save sinners of whom I am the first.
May the partaking of your holy mysteries, O Lord, be not for my judgment or
condemnation but for the healing of soul and body.
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O Lord, I also believe and profess that this, which I am about to receive, is
truly your most precious body and your life-giving blood, which, I pray, make
me worthy to receive for the remission of all my sins and for life everlasting.
Amen.
The Priest uncovers the holy chalice, holds the veil and lention (linen cloth) with their left hand, and
gives communion with the spoon to each, saying:
The faithful may REMAIN STANDING while others are receiving holy communion. When Holy
Communion has been distributed, the Priest says:
Priest: ✠ Blessed is our God, always, now and ever and forever.
Response: Amen.
Priest: Arise! Now that we have received the divine, holy, most pure, immortal, heavenly,
life-creating, and awesome mysteries of Christ, let us worthily thank the Lord.
Priest: Help us, save us, have mercy on us, and preserve us, O God by Your grace.
Priest: Asking that the whole day be perfect, holy, peaceful, and without sin, let us commit
ourselves and one another, and our whole life to ✠ Christ our God.
Response: Amen.
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Priest: O Lord, blessing those who bless You,
And sanctifying those who trust in You,
Save Your people and bless Your inheritance,
Preserve the fullness of Your Church,
Sanctify those who love the beauty of Your house;
Glorify them in return by Your divine power,
And do not forsake us who hope in You.
For every good gift and every perfect gift is from above,
Coming down from You, the Father of lights;
And we send up glory, thanksgiving, and worship to You,
✠ Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
Now and ever and forever.
Response: Amen.
✠ Blessed be the Name of the Lord, now and forever, now and forever, now
and forever.
Response: Amen.
Dismissal
Priest: Glory to You, O Christ our God, our hope, glory to You.
Response: Glory to the ✠ Father, and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,
Now and ever and forever. Amen.
Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
Give the blessing.
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Through the prayers of his most pure Mother;
And of the holy, glorious, and illustrious Apostles;
Of our Holy Father John Chrysostom,
Archbishop of Constantinople,
And through the prayers of all the saints;
For Christ is good and loves us all.
Response: Amen.
Seasonal Greetings:
Priest: Glory to Jesus Christ! Response: Glory forever!
Priest: Christ is among us! Response: He is and always shall be!
Priest: Christ is Risen! Response: Indeed He is Risen!
Priest: Christ is born! Response: Glorify Him!
On more festive liturgical occasions, the Priest, facing the faithful, intones the chant for long life:
Response: God grant (him/her/them) many years. God grant (him/her/them) many
years. God grant (him/her/them) many blessed years. In health and
happiness, in health and happiness, God grant (him/her/them) many blessed
years.
Priest: In blessed repose, grant, O Lord, eternal rest to your departed servant(s) N. and
remember (him/her/them) forever.
When appropriate during Pascha, the Paschal Greeting and Intonations are added:
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Priest: Christ is risen from the dead! By death he trampled Death; And to those in the
tombs he granted life.
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