THE 8th DAY OF THE MONTH OF MARCH:

THE COMMEMORATION OF OUR VENERABLE FATHER THEOPHYLACTUS THE CONFESSOR, BISHOP OF NICOMEDIA

AT VESPERS:

On “Lord, I have cried...,” these stichera, in Tone I: Spec. Mel: “O all-praised martyrs....”—

Watched over by divine guardians, thou wast preserved unharmed, O father Theophylactus; and thou didst show thyself to be an unshaken pillar of the Church, undaunted by the trials of the snares of the heretics. And now do thou pray, that peace and great mercy be granted to our souls.

O blessed father Theophylactus, beholding God accessibly and visibly, and delighting in Him through a higher union, and deified by this communion, rejoicing, thou didst receive the Blessed One Whom alone Thou didst desire, O most honored hierarch, making thine abode now with the angels.

Having departed the earth, O father Theophylactus, thou didst soar aloft to heaven, O blessed one, and wast vouchsafed to live in the heavenly mansions, because of the persecution which thou didst endure for Christ. Him do thou now beseech, that He grant peace and great mercy unto our souls.

Glory..., Now and ever...: Theotokion, in the same tone and melody—

Heal thou my soul which hath been grievously afflicted by evil passions, O all-holy one who gavest birth unto Christ, the Healer and Savior of all, Who hath healed every wound inflicted by the devil’s malice, and hath abolished death for us.

Or this Stavrotheotokion—

The Mistress, the unblemished Ewe-lamb, as she beheld her Lamb upon the Cross, bereft of form and comeliness, lamenting, said: “Woe is me! Whither hath Thy comeliness gone, O most Sweet One? Where is Thy splendor? Where is the brilliant grace of Thine image, O my Son most beloved?”

AT MATINS:

Canon to the holy hierarch, the acrostic whereof is: “I praise the godly Theophylactus in hymns,” the composition of St. Theophanes the Branded,

in Tone VIII—

Ode I

Irmos: Let us chant unto the Lord, Who led His people through the Red Sea, for He alone hath gloriously been glorified.

Standing before the throne of the Master, O God-bearing father Theophylactus, preserve those who with faith keep thy memory.

The grace of the Spirit anointed thee as was meet, O most blessed one, for the sake of the truth and the goodness of thy manner of life.

That thou mightest obtain heavenly things, O blessed one, thou didst trample all things earthly under thy feet, and didst follow after Christ God.

Theotokion: All desire, sweetness and unwaning light is He Who was well-pleased to be born of thy womb, O Bride of God.

Ode III

Irmos: Thou art the confirmation of those who have recourse to Thee, O Lord; Thou art the light of the benighted; and my spirit doth hymn Thee.

Obedient to the laws of thy Master, O glorious high priest, thou didst spurn the laws of the most iniquitous emperors.

With honor didst thou venerate the divine and all-pure depiction of Christ, shunning the dishonor of the impious.

At first thou didst endure torment of conscience with fasting, and now thou hast been invested with the crown of martyrdom.

Theotokion: That Thou mightest show us the path which leadeth to holiness, O Master, in most holy manner Thou madest Thine abode in the all-pure womb of the Virgin.

Sessional hymn, in Tone VIII: Spec. Mel: “Of the Wisdom....”—

Having fasted, thou wast anointed as a hierarch, O wise and venerable father, to perform the divine mysteries for the preservation of souls. And, honoring the icon of Christ, thou didst endure exile, tribulation and prolonged imprisonment. Wherefore, pouring forth healings after thy repose, thou healest the suffering and enlightenest those who sing, O holy hierarch Theophylactus: Entreat Christ God, that He grant remission of sins unto those who honor thy holy memory with love.

Glory..., Now and ever...: Theotokion—

Having fallen into most devious temptations wrought by foes visible and invisible, and been caught in the tempest of my countless offenses, I flee to the haven of thy goodness as to my fervent aid and protection, O pure one. Wherefore, O all pure one, earnestly pray to Him Who was seedlessly incarnate of thee, in behalf of all thy servants who unceasingly entreat thee, O all-pure Theotokos, ever beseeching Him to grant remission of offenses unto those who hymn thy glory as is meet.

Or this Stavrotheotokion—

The Ewe-lamb, beholding the Lamb, Shepherd and Deliverer upon the Cross, cried out, weeping and, bitterly lamenting, exclaimed: “The world rejoiceth, receiving deliverance through Thee; but my womb doth burn, beholding Thy crucifixion, which Thou dost endure in the loving-kindness of Thy mercy. O long-suffering Lord, abyss of mercy, inexhaustible wellspring: take pity, and grant remission of offenses unto those who with faith hymn Thy divine sufferings!”

Ode IV

Irmos: I have heard, O Lord, the mystery of Thy dispensation; I have understood Thy works, and have glorified Thy divinity.

The fire of temptations did not affright thee, O most blessed and divinely inspired Theophylactus, nor did the sweetness of food diminish thy strength.

God set a watch over thy mouth and lips, O venerable one; wherefore, thou didst remain unshaken when the impious rose up against thee.

With patience thou didst wait patiently for the Most High Who set thy feet upon a rock and was attentive unto thee, when thou didst bow down before His image.

Theotokion: Delivered from the debt of sin by thy birthgiving, O all-immaculate Bride of God, we joyfully send up hymnody to thee.

Ode V

Irmos: Waking at dawn, we cry to Thee: Save us, O Lord! For Thou art our God, and we know none other than Thee.

Thine arms, lifted up to the Creator, O venerable and divinely inspired father, vanquished the ungodly.

Taking thee by the hand, the Most High led thee to the delight of Heaven, O God-bearing father.

Having trod the narrow way, O wondrous Theophylactus, thou didst attain unto the vastness of paradise.

Theotokion: Those who do not acknowledge thee to be the Theotokos will not behold the light of Him Who was born of thee, O all-pure Mother of God.

Ode VI

Irmos: Grant me a robe of light, O Thou Who coverest Thyself with light as with a garment, O most merciful Christ our God.

Having mortified the senses with asceticism, thou didst come to control the passions; and now, O Theophylactus, thou delightest in the splendors of dispassion.

Thou didst teach all to bow down before the image of the Savior, having shone forth in thy works and teachings, O Theophylactus.

Christ showed thee to be a cloud which poureth forth a shower of life, O Theophylactus, holy hierarch of God.

Theotokion: Though He became flesh for our sake, yet in the beauty of His divinity was thy Son more comely than all men, O all-pure one.

Kontakion, in Tone II: Spec. Mel: “Seeking the highest....”—

Thou wast shown to be a radiant beacon unto the ends of the earth, O holy hierarch Theophylactus; and having preached the Word Who is of one essence with the Father and the Spirit, thou didst enlighten the council of the godly fathers, and wast shown to be a favorite of the Trinity, standing before Whom pray thou unceasingly in behalf of us all.

Ode VII

Irmos: In the furnace the Hebrew children boldly trod the flame underfoot and transformed the fire into dew, crying out: Blessed art Thou, O Lord God, forever!

Having finished the divine course and kept the Faith until the end, thou didst receive a crown for thy pangs, O wise one, crying aloud: Blessed art Thou, O Lord God, forever!

Riding the chariot of divine virtues, thou wast taken up to the heights of Heaven, and dost now stand before God, crying aloud: Blessed art Thou, O Lord God, forever!

The Creator Who alone knoweth the hearts of men, O God-bearer, set that which in thy heart is divine upon the thrones of teaching, O thrice-blessed Theophylactus.

Theotokion: To thee do I now have recourse, and to thy protection and divine intercession, O Theotokos; and I pray that I may be delivered from evils, O blessed and all-pure one who gavest birth unto God in the flesh.

Ode VIII

Irmos: Madly did the Chaldæan tyrant heat the furnace sevenfold for the pious ones; but, beholding them saved by a higher Power, he cried out to the Creator and Deliverer: Ye children, bless; ye priests, hymn; ye people, exalt Him supremely for all ages!

Thou hast now made thine abode where the habitation of those who rejoice is, O confessor and champion of the Truth; and light hath shone upon thee, O most wise one, as upon a righteous man who suffered the torments of the martyrs. With them thou also dost cry out: Ye priests, bless; ye people, exalt Him supremely for all ages!

Thou hast received a crown of endurance, O thou who art pleasing unto God; for thou didst dwell in a bitter exile, expecting to receive the reward of thy suffering, and wast not mistaken in thy goodly hope, crying out now to Christ: Ye priests, bless; ye people, exalt Him supremely for all ages!

With manifest splendor is thy commemoration, radiant with the light of confession, now celebrated, O God-bearer; for thou didst honor the images of Christ, of the Theotokos and of all the saints, and with them dost thou now cry out: Ye priests, bless; ye people, exalt Him supremely for all ages!

Theotokion: Blot out the wounds of my soul and the stripes inflicted upon me by sin, O all-pure Mother of God who through thy virginal womb gave birth unto Him Who is over all, O pure Maiden. Him do the children bless, priests hymn, and people exalt supremely for all ages!

Ode IX

Irmos: Saved by thee, O pure Virgin, we confess thee to be in truth the Theotokos, magnifying thee with the incorporeal choirs.

Great gifts wast thou vouchsafed, having endured misfortune with steadfastness of mind, O God-bearing and divinely blessed father.

Watch over us who hymn thee, O blessed one, delivering us from temptations and tribulations, and trampling down the snares of the heretics.

Manifest as one who as a priest lived chastely and righteously, O martyr, thou didst become splendid, weaving for thyself a cloak dyed purple in thine own blood.

Theotokion: Thou didst shine forth like the dawn upon those lost in darkness, O Virgin, bearing in thine arms Christ the Son of righteousness.