The Sunday of St. John Climacus

Tone 3 / Fourth Sunday of Lent

Great Vespers: Blessed is the man.

Lord I have Cried, Tone 3, on 10: Octoechos 7; Triodion 3 (O holy father John); G: Triodion (O holy father); N: Sunday Dogmatic in the tone of the week.

Entry; O Gladsome Light; Prokimenon of the day, Tone 6: The Lord is King.

Aposticha: Octoechos; G: Triodion (Let us honor John); N: Theotokion, Tone 2 (O new wonder)

Troparia: O Theotokos and Virgin x3.

Matins: God is the Lord, Tone 3; Troparia: Resurrection x2; G: Saint (O John our father); N: Resurrectional Theotokion, Tone 1 (When Gabriel announced to thee).

After each Kathisma: Sessional hymns from the Octoechos.

Blessed are the blameless; Evlogitaria (The assembly of angels was amazed).

Hypakoe; Hymns of Ascent; and Prokimenon, Tone 3.

Matins Gospel 11, John 21:15-25 (§67).

Having beheld the Resurrection; Psalm 50; G: The doors of repentance; N: Guide me in the paths of salvation; Have mercy on me, O God; When I think of the multitude of evil things I have done. Save, O God, Thy people.

Canon: Resurrection 4 Glory to Thy Holy Resurrection, O Lord.

Theotokos 2 Most Holy Theotokos, save us.

Triodion 4 Have mercy on me, O God, have mercy on me.

Saint (in the Triodion) 4 Venerable Father John, pray to God for us.

Irmos of the Resurrectional canon, Tone 3.

Katavasia: I shall open my mouth. 

After Ode 3, Kontakion (Truly the Lord hath set thee) and Ikos of the Saint [The English Triodion has the Kontakion after Ode 6]; Sessional hymn of the Triodion (With Thy Holy Cross as our weapon); G: Triodion (Shining with the glory of the virtues); N: Theotokion (He who is enthroned).

After Ode 6, Kontakion and Ikos of the Resurrection.

At Ode 9, More Honorable.

Holy is the Lord, our God.

Exapostilaria: Resurrection; G: Saint (Thou hast rejected as burdensome); N: Theotokion in the Triodion (Saved through thee, O Lady).

Praises, Tone 3, on 9: Octoechos 8, with the last two psalm verses being:

1. I will confess Thee, O Lord, with my whole heart, I will tell of all Thy wonders.

2. I will be glad and rejoice in Thee, I will chant unto Thy name, O Most High.

And then the verse Arise, O Lord my God, followed by the sticheron in the Triodion: Come, let us work; G: Triodion (Come, let us work); N: Most blessed art thou. After the Great Doxology, the Troparion: Today is salvation; the two remaining Litanies and Resurrectional Dismissal; after the Dismissal: G/N: Gospel Sticheron; followed by First Hour.

Hours: Troparia: Resurrection; G: Saint; Kontakion: Resurrection.

Liturgy of St. Basil the Great: Beatitudes on 8, from the Octoechos.

After the entrance: Troparia & Kontakia as in Appendix I, B.

Prokimenon, Tone 3: O chant unto our God, chant ye. & of the Saint, Tone 7: The saints shall boast in glory and they shall rejoice upon their beds.

Epistle: Heb. 6:13-20 (§314); Eph. 5:9-19 (§229).

Alleluia, Tone 3 & Tone 2*.

Gospel: Mark 9:17-31 (§40); Matt. 4:25-5:12 (§10).

Instead of It is truly meet: All creation Rejoiceth.

Communion Hymn: Praise the Lord in the heavens. & In everlasting remembrance.

Resurrectional Dismissal.

*The Slavonic Apostol calls for the Alleluia verse of the Saint to be sung in Tone 4, but the Jordanville Calendar has long called for it to be in Tone 2, as it is done when that verse is used on Cheesefare Saturday.

Sunday Evening Vespers: As on Cheesefare Sunday.

Lord I have Cried, Tone 3, on 10: Penitential Stichera from the Octoechos 4 (With incense and with spiritual songs – Triodion, p. 185); Triodion 3 (O ye faithful, let us taken upon ourselves); Saint 3 (O venerable father John – St. John Climacus – from the Menaion, March 30); G/N: Theotokion in the Menaion (I beseech thee, O most honored one).

Entry; O Gladsome Light; Great Prokimenon, Tone 8: Turn not Thy countenance away from Thy servant, for I am afflicted; quickly hearken unto me. Attend unto my soul and deliver it.

During the final repetition of the prokimenon, the priest closes the royal doors, removes his phelonion and puts on a dark epitrachilion, and goes out to the Ambon. All the other liturgical covers are likewise changed. Vouchsafe, O Lord.

Then the Litany, Let us complete our evening prayer unto the Lord, with the choir singing the responses according to the penitential Lenten melody.

Aposticha: Triodion (Stichera and verses, beginning with Having planted His vineyard), G/N: Theotokion in the Triodion (With the Archangel, O ye faithful).

Now lettest Thou Thy servant. Troparia: O Theotokos and Virgin (with a great prostration); G: O Baptizer of Christ (with a great prostration): N: Plead in our behalf (great prostration); Beneath thy compassion (without a prostration). Lord, have mercy x40; G/N: More Honorable. In the name of the Lord, father bless. Priest: He that is is blessed. Reader: O Heavenly King, strengthen Orthodox Christians. Then the priest says the prayer of St. Ephrem with 3 prostrations, then the Dismissal.