A The Master, working wonders, saved the people, having long ago dried up the flowing wave of the sea. But born willingly of a Virgin, He makes for us a passable path to heaven, He whom, according to essence equal to the Father, we praise as man. A consecrated womb bore the Word, clearly prefigured by the unburned bush; He who was God, having mingled with the human form, undoing the bitter womb of Eve of old, we glorify as man.
A star showed to the Magi the Word who is before the sun, having come to put an end to sin, clearly in a poor cave, the compassionate One, wrapped in swaddling clothes, whom they beheld with joy, both man and Lord. Incline toward the hymns of your servants, O Benefactor, humbling the lifted eyebrow of the enemy. And, O All-seeing One, establish us firmly above sin, O Blessed One, as singers upon the foundation of faith.
B A choir, having been deemed worthy to behold beyond understanding the vastly rich birth of the all-pure Bride, was moved in a wondrous way—the field-dwellers [shepherds] and the order of the bodiless ones singing together to King Christ, incarnate without seed.
Rule of the heavens, by compassion He exists among us from a wedlock-less Virgin, being immaterial before, but in the last times the Word became thickened with flesh, having reached the one who had fallen, so that He might draw to Himself him whom He first created.
The prophet Habakkuk, singing of the restoration of the mortal race, long ago announced it, having been deemed worthy to behold the type in an ineffable way. For a new infant, the Word, came forth from the mountain, that is, the Virgin, for the reformation of the nations. You went forth, O Christ, equal to us, willingly.
C INTERPRETATION OF J. BILLIUS
He granted salvation to the people, in a wondrous manner, Christ, once the sea was suddenly turned to dry land. But born of a maiden, He opens the path to heaven for us; whom we believe to be equal to God the Father, and again truly equal to us.
The consecrated womb, which the thorn—not scorched by fire—formerly signified, carried the God subject to death, yet joined with flesh: so that He might dissolve the dire womb of Eve, to which we were once condemned; whom we raise up with praises.
The star showed the Magi Him who is older than the sun; who had come to dissolve our harms, the compassionate One for our misery, in a lowly cave; and wrapped in swaddling clothes, most joyful, whom they beheld simultaneously as both Man and God.
Grant assistance, O God, to the hymns of your servants, I pray, depressing the pride of the cruel enemy, and lifting our minds above harm, O You who see all things, and O Blessed One, firmly upon the foundation of faith for all time.
D The rustic company, seeing the rich birth of the Holy Parent, by God's gift, moved itself at the miracle of the thing, and hearing the angels singing together, [perceived] Him who put on my flesh without seed.
The Emperor of heaven, compassionate toward our evils, becomes like me from a wedlock-less Virgin. For when He was formerly without flesh, afterward He clothed Himself in this, so that He might draw to Himself the one whom He first formed, whom wickedness had laid low.
The holy prophet Habakkuk announced the restoration of the mortal race, seeing the figure of this thing divinely. For from the mountain, that is, the Virgin, the infant came forth, creating us again by His blood.
You came forth, O Christ, equal to us mortals, willingly, drawing a body from a Virgin, so that you might repel the pestilent poison of the serpent, and lead all back from the dark gates, as God, to the light of everlasting life.
A O nations that were once overwhelmed by corruption, Having utterly escaped the destruction of the enemy, Lift up your hands with hymnic applause, Worshipping Christ alone as benefactor, Who has compassionately arrived among us. O Virgin, sprung from the root of Jesse, Thou didst transcend the boundaries of human nature, Bringing forth the Word, who was before the ages from the Father, As He himself was pleased, in a wondrous self-emptying, To pass through thy sealed womb. To us, Christ, who now vigilantly complete this hymn, Having escaped the night of the works of darkened error, Mayest thou come, providing an easy path, By which, as we run, we may find glory.
B The Lord, having cut asunder the cruel hostility toward Himself By the presence of the flesh, Destroyed the power of the most ferocious tyrant, Connecting the world to the incorporeal substances, And making the Creator of the world gentle. The people who were formerly darkened have seen The day-light of the beacon from on high; And the Son offers the nations as an inheritance to God, Bestowing there an ineffable grace, Where sin had blossomed most abundantly. Jonah, dwelling in the depths of the sea, Besought the Lord to come and destroy the storm; But I, wounded by the dart of the tyrant, Call upon thee, Christ, the destroyer of evils, To come quickly, before my own sloth takes hold.
C He who was in the beginning with God, the God-Word, Now strengthens that which was long ago powerless; Beholding our nature in bondage, He lowered Himself, Again manifesting a second communion, free from passions. Because of us, He came from the loins of Abraham To raise up those sons who had fallen miserably Into the darkness of transgressions and were bowed down; He, who dwells in light, now willingly endured Even a manger, unfit for Him, for the salvation of mortals. The children despised the desire of the King of all, And snared by the hook of the fiercely raging Tyrant’s godless blasphemy— D
A To whom the unquenchable fire yielded, they say to the Master: "Blessed art Thou unto the ages." A It burns the ministers furiously, but the roaring flame saves the youths, towering in sevenfold heat, whom the abundant flame crowned, while the Lord granted dew for the sake of piety. O Christ, helper, A Thou didst confound the adversary of mortals, having the Incarnation as a shield in an ineffable manner, bringing the riches of divinity; being formed now, for whose hope we came down from above into the hiding places of darkness. B Thou didst omnipotently submerge the sin of the world, that which arrogantly reveled and wildly raged, fiercely proud, and which He previously dragged into the snares, but today, O Benefactor, Thou savest, having been willingly incarnate. The youths, enveloped in the old fire, figure forth the womb of the Virgin, who brings forth supernaturally, being sealed. And grace, beholding both as one miracle, rouses the peoples to a hymn. B Fleeing the error of being divinized—the harm—all creation incessantly hymns the Word who empties Himself, youthfully and with trembling, fearing to bear worthless glory, for it had become flowing, even if wisely it expected. C Thou art come, turning back the wandering flock to the flower-bearing pasture from the desert hills; O resurrection of nations, O human nature, to extinguish the violent strength of the manslayer, appearing as both Man and God through providence. C To love Thee is easy for us, as it is without danger, in fear of silence; but, O Virgin, it is difficult to weave hymns intently according to desire. But also, O Mother, grant strength according to how much resolution I possess. C Beholding dim types and cast shadows, O pure Mother of the Word, the New One having appeared from the closed gate, D [J. BILLII INTERPRETATIO] Where formerly wickedness flourished most, Jonah made supplication from the savage sea, that Thou mightest immediately still the high waves. But I, wounded by the weapon of the tyrant, pray Thee, O Christ, driver away of all evils, to free me from the sloth that besets me. That Word, Who in the beginning was God with God, now strengthens our substance, seeing that we were unable enough to keep our ancient state: and by humbling Himself, He shows a different exchange, which is free from turbulent movements. Because of us, who lay in the black mire of sins, He went forth from the loins of Abraham, to raise up children from the earth. And He who dwells in light now descends to the manger for the sake of our salvation. The pious youths, glowing with the love of the Most High, despised the impious threats of the king, whom fierce fury had enkindled. D To these the fire yielded: they sing to God, "Blessed art Thou through the ages, O all-powerful divinity." Here it burns the ministers: but on the contrary, it spares the pious youths, although it was intensely hot, and increased seven times higher than usual, like a crown to whom the pyre was huge. Therefore, for the sake of virtue, God granted dew. O Helper, O Christ, Thou hast brought great disgrace to the enemy of mortals by wearing flesh. Thou, O Lord, art born, willing the riches of divinity: by whose hope our race was enticed from heaven, and fell into the lowest darkness. Fierce harm, which boasted too much—and more than too much—Thou, O God, hast driven far from the world by Thy supreme power. And those whom these [nets] held before, now, while Thou willingly takest on flesh, Thou settest free. The youths, whom the pyre, though they were engulfed in it, did not harm, shadow forth the womb of the Virgin.
Deemed worthy of the light of truth, We worthily bless your womb. Having attained the desire and presence of God, The Christ-loving people, having been deemed worthy, Now pray for the grace of regeneration, That you, pure Virgin, may grant it as the life-giver, That we may worship this glory.
OF THE SAME: ON THE THEOPHANY
(Whose acrostic is:)A Today, having cast with unpolluted, God-brightened torch, He buries the sin of men in the waters of the Spirit; The good Son of the All-Sovereign, having blazed forth, and looking down, Grants grace to those who sing these melodies. He treads upon the surging billows of the sea, Showing forth Israel as land once more, But the black sea, a watery tomb covering all, Concealed the Egyptian captains By the mighty power of the Most High’s right hand.
At the appearing of the light-bearing dawn to mortals, Now from the desert to the streams of Jordan, O King, Thou didst submit Thy neck to the sun, To snatch the forefather from the darksome place, And to cleanse the creation of all filth. O Beginningless Word, with those buried in the currents with Thee, Thou makest new him who was corrupted by deception. Having received this ineffably from the Father, This supreme voice, "This is my beloved," The Son manifests Himself as equal to Me in nature.
B As many as have been loosed from the snares of old, With the jaws of the roaring lions broken, Let us rejoice and open wide our mouth, Weaving melodies from words in praise of the Word, By whom we are gladdened by His gifts. Death, who formerly sowed in creation, Having taken the form of a wicked beast in nature, Is obscured by the bodily presence, Falling upon the Master as the dawn shines forth, Crushing his own most hostile head. He draws to Himself the nature fashioned by God, Confined within the limits of the tyrant’s womb. He regenerates it again for the reformation of earth-born men,
J. BILLI’S INTERPRETATION.
For that wondrous Virgin, while she brings forth, remains so, And by one miracle accomplishes these two things, Stirring all peoples to hymns by grace. Error being driven away, which false hope had led, Every created thing, seeing itself empty, sings always trembling. She fears to bear a beauty that is unbecoming, since it is frail, Although she hopes that this may at length come to pass. Approach to us, Awakener of the nations, That Thou mayest lead back our race, wandering through desolate places, Mountains, and hollows, to the pasture; And break the strength of the most hostile foe, While Thou art seen both as man and as God. It is surely easy, and free from danger, To be silent; but to weave praises to Thy praises, O Virgin, as is fitting, is a difficult task. But grant, O Divine Mother, these powers to me, D Grant that they may be equal to my affection. O chaste Mother of the Word, while we look upon the obscure types And shadows, and the closed gate brought forth to Christ, And now by the gift of God, May the light of truth shine for us, O your own, Therefore we lift up your womb with praises. Having now attained her vow, the people, joyful In the presence of God and Christ, now seek The gifts of the life-giving water, by which we are ruled. Do you, O Virgin pure of stain, wish to grant this to us, That we may piously worship your glory. Of St. John of Damascus on the Theophany, iambic pentastichs: the first letters of which in Greek form these two distichs. Today Christ immerses human stains and crimes In the waters with the ethereal light of the Spirit.
In Theophania
A The Lord, accomplishing the most excellent work, Comes, for He desires to heal it. Purified by the fire of mystical contemplation, The prophet praises the renovation of mortals. He breaks the roaring voice through the Spirit, Displaying the ineffable Incarnation of the Word, By whom the powers of the rulers were crushed. Sent from the Father, the most radiant Word, To pursue the dark habit of the night, You come to root out the sin of mortals, And to draw sons together with Your baptism, O Blessed One, shining from the streams of the Jordan. Beholding Him, the most glorious Word, Clearly the herald proclaims to the creation: "This one who existed before me, appearing in the flesh, Has shone forth, conformable in divine strength, To destroy our most hostile sin." Bearing toward it the life-giving pasture, He hunts, rushing into the nests of the dragons, The God-Word, casting down the infinite circles, And with His heel, He strikes one who destroys all the race, Chaining this one, He saves the creation. From the poison of the dark and foul enemy, Washed by the purgation of the Spirit, We have moored our ship on a new, unerring path, Leading to the inaccessible delight, Approachable only to those with whom God has been reconciled. B Beholding the Creator in the darkness of transgressions, Whom He formed with His fingers, bound in inescapable chains, He places him upon His shoulders, lifting him on high, Now washing him in the many-flowing whirlpools, From the ancient shame of the sickness of Adam. With piety, let us hasten eagerly To the immaculate fountains of saving irrigation, Beholding the Word, the pure one, Offering a draught of divine thirst, Gently healing the disease of the world. The Father manifested the desired One with a pre-wealthy Voice, which He belched forth from His womb, Saying: "Indeed, this is My connatural Son, Shining forth from the human race."
J. BILLI'S INTERPRETATION
If you ask why He grants these gifts to us, Goodness did this, and the love of me did this. The people of Israel walk boldly through the stormy sea, Suddenly returned to land. But the Egyptian forces, the angry sea Covered utterly, like a sepulcher, By the mightiest forces of the right hand of the Thunderer. In this light, the light which He brought to mortals, You, Christ the King, submit Your head to the waves of the Jordan, So that You might draw the parent of our race from the dark, Most sorrowful seats of Orcus, And purge us from all the filth of crimes. You renew me, buried with You in the sacred bath, Whom the crafty enemy, hearing the voice of the Father Sent from on high, had corrupted with deceitful guile: "You are My dear Son, And in substance entirely equal to Me." We who are loosened from our former snares, Flee the most savage tooth of the lions, D Let us open our lips, let joy occupy the heart. Let us offer words to the Word: by which the melody, Like a rejoicing, is rendered to its own gifts. The enemy who had sown death for us beforehand, When he had put on the form of a beast, Draws down darkness upon Christ as He puts on flesh, And the miserable one, while he seeks his own master, Breaks his own perfidious head. Christ draws to Himself our mortal race, Formed by the hand of God, devoured by the tyrant, Again, that He might recreate us, while He is born, Performing a work than which nothing greater could be said. For He came to us, that He might bring us aid. By the clear light of mystical contemplation, The prophet, with filth removed, divinely Singing of the refashioned race of mortals, Utters words fashioned from flesh by the Word, Which utterly destroyed the strength of the tyrant.Showing to all salvation at the end of the ages. With the glorious portals of the heavens opened, The initiate sees Him proceeding from the Father, And the Spirit remaining in the all-pure Word, Coming in an ineffable manner as a dove, And he shows to the crowds Him running to the Master. He burned the heads of the dragons in the stream, He who once lulled the lofty flame of the furnace That was bearing down upon the pious youths, And washes away entirely the intractable mist B Of sin with the dew of the Spirit. Thou makest the Assyrian flame that depicted Thee, Which was terrifying, to stand converted into dew, Water from whence Thou art now clothed, burning, O Christ, the wicked devil who was hidden, Calling him toward the slippery path. With the Jordan broken asunder of old, The Israelite people crossed as it were an isthmus, And Thee, the most powerful One, bringing the creature, Thou portrayest now hastily in the streams, Toward the trackless and better path. We know that the first ruinous deluge Miserably brought destruction upon all, C O Thou who workest things thrice-great and strange! But now, O Christ, Thou who hast washed away sin For the sake of goodness and the salvation of mortals. The creation is acknowledged as free. But those once darkened are now children of light; Only the prince of darkness groans. Now let the entire wretched generation of the nations Earnestly bless their Author.
J. BILLI INTERPRETATIO
Thou comest, that Thou mightest repel the gloomy darkness of night, and utterly blot out my guilty plague; and through the gift of Thy mystical baptism, a holy son from the Jordan’s streams. Having beheld this renowned herald, he cries out to all with loud voices: He who is before me is indeed, but in the flesh He is younger than I, and shone in equal form, that He might destroy our sin by whatever power He possesses. Bearing us toward the life-giving pasture, He hunts, entering the very dens of the serpents. The Son of God, laying low a thousand battalions: and Him who aforetime wounded the sole of all, He Himself locks away, and sets free those whom He had created. He dispelled the poison of the dark and most filthy enemy: and we have arrived at the path D ignorant of all error, and which leads to everlasting joy, which is open to those whom the Thunderer has spared. Behold the Creator in the black darkness of crimes, whom He had fashioned in chains, He lifts him up high upon His shoulders, washing away from him every stain of crimes, which the guilt of the first parent had contracted. Now with a holy mind and swift steps let us seek the life-giving fountain of baptism, beholding the Word, who indeed offers a draught to quench holy thirst, and puts to flight the grave sickness which had previously occupied the world. With a most clear voice the Father indicated the Desired One, whom He had brought forth from His womb. This, He says, is He who is my equal in substance, the Illuminator of mortals has stood forth, and He is my living Word, and henceforth man. The pious one had been in the belly of the whale for three nights. When the prophet was once closed within the innermost parts, he returned thence, clearly indicating that it would be so, that through the mystical waters we might emerge from the jaws of Satan in the final ages. With the most shining gates of heaven reclosed, the prophet sees the Spirit sent from the Father, and falling upon the pollutions, I say, he discerns Him like a dove, coming from the height of the ether, and shows Him to those present. He burned the head of the dragons with mystical waters, He who is powerful had extinguished the flame of the furnace which of old was bearing upon the pious youths: and the dense darkness which guilt brought upon us, He now drives away with the dew of the most holy Spirit. Thou hast rendered the Assyrian flame dew-like, O Christ, which was bearing a type of Thee. Whence Thou hast now put on the burning waters.
A
Three divine forms, cooling with dew in the flame, Shining with three-fold, all-radiant purity, Clearly revealed the most high nature, In the mixing with man, turning the flame into dew, Most desirably destroying all deadly error. Let all earthly nature be clothed in white, Now raised up from its fall to the heavens: For by the Word, by whom all things are sustained, Having washed away its sins in flowing streams, It has fled from what it was before, washed in all-radiant light. O, the miracles regarding thy birth, surpassing the mind, All-pure Bride, blessed Mother, Through whom, having obtained complete salvation, We praise thee worthily as a benefactor, Bringing as a gift a hymn of thanksgiving. B We know the things shown to Moses in the bush, Here wrought through strange laws; For just as the Virgin, carrying fire, was saved, Giving birth to the radiance-bearing Benefactor, So were the streams of the Jordan revealed. Thou anointest and perfectest human substance, O King without beginning, by the communion of the Spirit; Having cleansed it with pure floods, and having triumphed Over the exalted strength of darkness, Thou now leadest it to an unending life.
OF THE SAME: FOR PENTECOST
Whose acrostic begins: God-born Word, Thou hast sent again another Paraclete Spirit, From the Father’s bosom to those on earth, In the form of tongues of fire, bringing the matter of the Godhead, C A sign of Thy generation, and grace to those who sing.J. BILLIUS’ INTERPRETATION
Fighting against the hidden enemy, Who drags us by deceit to the slippery path. Once, with the waters of Jordan broken by heaven, The people of Israel passed through unharmed (a wondrous thing), Bearing thus a figure of Thee, quickly in step, Thou who placest us on the path through the purifying flow of baptism. We know that Thou alone, O King Christ, Performest great and plainly wondrous things, Having destroyed all the world with avenging waters; Against this, Thou hast now overwhelmed our guilt with waters, Pitying us while Thou providest for salvation. Now the entire choir of mortals is free, Children of light, who were before entirely black. The sole prince of darkness groans. Therefore, let the wretched nations now lift up with praises The author of this supreme good. The three, like the dew in the flame where it burned, Through triple sanctities most clearly Indicated the supreme substance of the Divinity, Which, joined to flesh, happily D Burns away every sin in the pure dew. Let human nature, now raised from its heavenly fall, Be clothed in a white garment. For by the power of the Word, which guards all things, It wipes away the shameful marks of former sins Through the pure waves of mystical baptism. Thy birth, O most holy Virgin and Mother, Surpasses the grasp of the human mind: Through which, having obtained salvation from heaven, We exalt thee with the highest praise by rightful claim, Bringing the offering of Eucharistic praise. Here things were done in a new manner, which the greatest God Once indicated to Moses in the bush. For just so did the Virgin feel no harm, bearing The fire, bringing forth the shining Son. And the bush bore the type of baptism. Eternal Prince, leading the choir of mortals, Thou joinest them by the communion of the Spirit, Washing them with pure streams: and having triumphed Over the leader of horrid darkness, Thou leadest us now to an age devoid of end.Of the same, pentastich iambics on Pentecost, whose first letters form these two distichs in Greek.
Christ, another Paraclete is now sent to us, Coming from the bosom of the Father from the citadel of heaven.A Clothed in the divine cloud, he who was slow of speech, Pronounced to them the law written by God. For shaking off the mire from his mental eye, He beholds Him who is, and is initiated into the Spirit By the knowledge he praises in divine songs. The venerable and holy mouth said, Division shall not be for you, my friends. For I, sitting upon the paternal throne on high, Will pour out of the Spirit, To shine upon those longing for the infinite grace. The Word, having standing firm as a perfect boundary, Completes the heart in a serene form. For having finished the work, he gladdened his friends With a violent breath, and with tongues of fire, Having distributed the Spirit, as Christ promised. He broke the bonds of the barren womb, And the intolerable arrogance of the fruitful one, By the prayer alone of the prophetess of old, Hannah, who brought a contrite spirit Before the Mighty One, and the God of knowledge. Incomprehensible is the most divine sovereignty. For he showed the unlettered to be orators, Sufficiently silencing the sophists with his word, And snatching from the deep night Infinite peoples with the lightning of the Spirit. He existed, proceeding from the unbegotten light, The all-powerful, light-working, incorruptible splendor, Whose light, through the paternal authority of the Son, Now manifests a connatural illumination, A fiery sound in Sion to the nations. King of kings, alone from the Alone, The Word proceeding from the uncaused Father, Sent your co-equal Spirit to the apostles, Truly enlightening them as a benefactor, They sing glory to your power, O Lord. The divine bath of regeneration, Tempering through the Word with the composite nature, You pour out for me a stream from your undefiled, Pierced side, O Word of God, Sealing it with the fervor of the Spirit. B C
INTERPRETATION OF J. BILLIUS
The indication of the Godhead is given in flaming tongues, And he favors his own, the holy seers. Covered by a divine cloud, the slower of tongue, Moses, brought forth the law of the Thunderer to his own. For he, cleansing the light of his mind, Beholds the Being, and learns the notion of the Spirit, Honoring God with pious songs. Christ said to his dear company, I will not leave you, friends, believe me: For trusting in my paternal throne, In a few days I will pour out upon you The immense gifts of the Spirit with a generous hand. Christ, having been carried up to the high mount of Sion, Pours pious tranquility into their hearts. Having finished his work, he delights his own With a vehement breath, and likewise with tongues of fire, Imparting the Spirit to them, as he had promised. The prayer of Hannah alone once broke the fetters Of an unfruitful womb, and the insolence of the fruitful, A prayer which she poured forth, D Carrying a heart oppressed with heavy grief To the Almighty, the God of knowledge. God surpasses the grasp of the human mind, For he rendered the unlettered as rhetoricians; But he struck the loquacious mouths of the doctors. And in the thick night the lightning of the sacred Spirit Liberated peoples whom no one could count. From the unbegotten light, the Potentate of all things, The Parent of light, went forth a shining beam, Whose paternal and Son-like substance, The fiery sound now shows not obscurely To the nations in Sion, as a light equal and the same. He reigns supreme, alone from the Alone, Proceeding from the Parent, caused by none, The equal Spirit, which is power to you, You have truly given to your dear disciples, Singing your glory, O mighty King. You, mixing the holy bath of regeneration Through the Word with two distinct substances, From your thrice-holy, wounded side,A All things bend the knee to the Paraclete, And to the Son of the Father, most akin to the Father. For in three persons He knows the substance Truly inaccessible, devoid of time, one. For the light has shone, the grace of the Spirit. Be perfected, all who are servers, By the God-ruling, tri-radiant substance. For He acts supernaturally as a benefactor, And Christ provides a fiery form for salvation, Offering the whole grace of the Spirit. Receive the fire-breathing dew of the Spirit As a dissoluble purification of sins, O light-formed children of the Church. For now the law has gone forth from Sion, The fire-tongued grace of the Spirit. As He willed of His own authority, The Spirit descends from the Father without a master. Making the apostles wise in tongues, Sealing the life-bearing Word, Sharply formed from the Father, whom the Father spoke. The God Word, prince of all, was healing The minds of the apostles from sin, And preparing them for Himself in an immaculate house; And now the light of the Spirit, Equal in strength and consubstantial, sits within. Propitiation for us, O Christ, and salvation, Present, you shone forth from the Virgin, That, as from the sea-beast you snatched the prophet Jonas, you might snatch from corruption The whole Adam, fallen with all his race. Renew in us the desired upright Spirit In our inmost parts, to have it eternally, Proceeding from the Father, bound on all sides, The consuming fire of hostile, material stains, And purifier of all filth, O Almighty. The desirable dignity to the apostles, To those of Sion awaiting your presence, A mark, O Spirit, of the Word begotten of the Father, Quickly showing the crude trifles Of the flatteries of the nations, within them like fire. The harmonious song of instruments cried out To worship the golden, soulless image. B C
J. BILLII INTERPRETATION
You pour out waves for me, O sacred offspring of God, Marking with the fervor of the most holy Spirit. There is nothing that does not bend its knee To the Paraclete and the Father’s most similar Son. For although the person is threefold: yet There is but one substance throughout. For He poured forth the light of the fostering Spirit with graces. Consecrate yourselves straightway to the highest God, Him who sustains the worship of the tri-radiant essence. He wondrously perfects the hearts of mortals: And makes them ardent for salvation in Christ, While the Spirit offers all grace. That your sins may be blotted out for you, Draw, I pray, the fiery dew of the Spirit, O light-formed ones whom the Church has brought forth. For now the holy law has gone out from Sion, Namely, the ignited grace of the Spirit’s tongue. D He comes by His own will, and most freely, And as His own master, the Spirit from the Parent. And He teaches the apostles with fiery tongues, And marks the vital Word, and at the same time, That which the Father dictates as sown from Himself, being equal to Him. He had granted a remedy to sick minds, And Christ prepares his disciples In the holy house of Sion, in purity. Now again, endowed with equal substance, And with power, the light of the Spirit sits in them. You are our certain pardon, Christ, and salvation, You proceeded from the pure Virgin without stain: That, just as you snatched Jonas from the beast’s Jaws, so you might powerfully draw The race of the first parent, which fell, From the stain of horrible death. Renew your desired upright Spirit, O Christ, in our hearts,
A And the light-bearing grace of the Comforter Makes us worthy to cry out: O Trinity alone, Equal in power, without beginning, blessed are You. Those who were ignorant of the voice uttered by the prophet Called it wine-induced, O foolish ones, drunkenness; Strange languages were heard, as those of the apostles. But we, the pious, cry out to You divinely: O Renewer of the universe, blessed are You. The seer Joel, full of God, thundered forth a divine oracle Of the most sovereign authority: To those upon whom I shall pour out—speaking as of the Word— The nature of My Spirit, they shall cry out together: O triply-radiant nature, blessed are You. The third hour obtained the grace So that You might manifest three hypostases, B To be worshipped in the simplicity of power. But in this one day, O Lord, Son, Father, and Spirit, blessed are You. It loosens the bonds, and bedews the flame, The triply-radiant type of the Godhead; The youths chant, "Praise the only Savior, and Creator of all, and Benefactor," The entire created universe. Christ, remembering the life-giving words Which He heard from the Father, said to the apostles, The Spirit makes an offering to God with fiery tongues; C Resting upon them, making blessed that which is brought near, And the alienated creation sings to You. In a saving manner, seeing clearly as the absolute Master, You came, O Light self-radiant and bestower of light, Filling the apostles, Honored as the breath for Your servants, And distributing the brilliant Spirit. The Spirit-filled mouth of the prophets sang Of Your corporeal advent, O Lord, And the Spirit, brought forth from the Father’s bosom, Uncreated, co-creator, seated on the same throne with You, D As a sacred object of worship for the faithful of the incarnation.
J. BILLII INTERPRETATION
He who comes forth from the Father, and is joined entirely, Burns away the foul stains of crimes, And washes away all spots by His supreme power. The glory to be sought, O Sionite, is your presence For the apostles who remain; O Spirit, you declare the Word sown by the Father, And showing the mere trifles and absurdities of the nations, You dwell in them like fire. The king commanded, with instruments playing, That worship be offered immediately to the golden statue. Against this, the light-bearing grace of the Holy Spirit D Wishes us to cry out: Praise to You alone, O Triad, Without beginning, and of equal power. Those who knew not the prophet’s voice (what madness!) Said the apostles were sodden with new wine, When new voices were suddenly heard by them. But we cry out to You divinely: O Renewer of the world, let praise be to Your name. Thundering through the mouth of the prophet Joel, the highest Father says: "Those upon whom, as the Word, I shall pour My holy Spirit, they will proclaim this with a common mouth, that every creature may declare praise to You, O Triply-Radiant Nature." The third hour obtained the grace, That it might teach us to worship three hypostases In the simple unity of power. But now on this day, sacred to God, I speak praise to You, Spirit, Word, and Father. And the triply-radiant type of the supreme Godhead Breaks the bonds and turns the flame into dew. The young men chanting say: "Let whatever is created in the world sing to the highest Parent of all things, for His most ample merits." Taught by the Father what He had said to His apostles, Full of certain salvation, their memory of these things the Spirit refreshes, Resting upon them in tongues of fire. Brought back to You in grace, we lift You up with praises. Towards certain salvation, directly and masterfully, O clear Light through You, and granter of light, You came, that You might fill all the apostles Like a breath. May You be willing to grant the Spirit To your servants who ask for it. The prophets, stirred divinely, sang In the flesh, O supreme King, of Your presence, And of the Holy Spirit proceeding from the Father’s bosom.A Hail, Queen, glory of the mother-virgin. For every well-turning, eloquent mouth, using rhetoric, has not the strength to praise thee worthily. Every mind grows dizzy in trying to understand thy childbirth, wherefore we glorify thee with longing. It is fitting to sing of the life-giving maiden; for she alone hid in the depths the Word, who heals the ailing nature of mortals, who, now seated at the right hand of the Father’s throne, has sent the grace of the Spirit. Those whom the God-streamed grace has breathed upon—shining, flashing, changed—knowing of the divine, most becoming, co-equal, indivisible, wise transformation, we glorify the three-bright essence.
OF THE SAME DAMASCENE
On the Sunday of Pascha
C The day of Resurrection; let us be radiant, O peoples! Pascha of the Lord, Pascha! For from death to life, and from earth to heaven, Christ God has brought us over, as we sing the song of victory.
Let us purify our senses, and we shall behold Christ, flashing with the inaccessible light of the resurrection, and we shall clearly hear Him saying "Rejoice!" as we sing the song of victory.
Let the heavens worthily rejoice, and let the earth exult; and let the world keep festival—all that is visible and all that is invisible—for Christ is risen, an everlasting joy.
Come, let us drink a new drink, not one miraculously produced from a barren rock, but a fountain of incorruption dripping from the grave of Christ, in whom we are established.
Now all things are filled with light, heaven and earth and the lower regions; let all creation keep festival for the rising of Christ, in whom it is established.
Yesterday I was buried with Thee, O Christ; I arise today with Thee in Thy rising. I was crucified with Thee yesterday; do Thou Thyself glorify me with Thee, O Savior, in Thy kingdom.
D Upon the divine watch, let the God-inspired Habakkuk stand with us and show the light-bearing angel who clearly speaks: Today there is salvation to the world, for Christ is risen as all-powerful...
Today is salvation for the world, because Christ is risen as omnipotent. A
As a male, he opened the virgin womb and appeared as Christ; as a mortal, he was called a lamb; as one without blemish and free from taint, he is our Pasch; and as true God, he is called perfect.
As the yearling lamb, the crown that is blessed for us, Christ was sacrificed of his own will for all, the expiatory Pasch; and again from the sepulcher there shone forth for us the beautiful sun of justice.
David, the ancestor of God, danced leaping before the shadowy ark; but let us, the holy people of God, beholding the fulfillment of the symbols, rejoice divinely, because Christ is risen as omnipotent.
Let us keep watch at the crack of dawn, and instead of myrrh, offer a hymn to the Master, and we shall see Christ, the sun of justice, causing life to dawn for all. B
Beholding your immeasurable compassion, those bound by the chains of Hades hastened toward the light, O Christ, with exultant foot, celebrating an eternal Pasch.
Let us approach with torches, as to a bridegroom coming forth from the tomb, to meet Christ, and let us celebrate the feast together with the festal ranks, celebrating an eternal Pasch.
You descended into the lowest parts of the earth and shattered the eternal bars that held the prisoners fast, O Christ, and on the third day, as Jonah from the whale, you arose from the tomb.
You rose from the tomb while keeping the seals intact, O Christ; you who did not violate the keys of the Virgin in your birth, and you opened for us the gates of paradise. C
My Savior, the living and unslain sacrifice, as God you offered yourself of your own will to the Father, and raised up with yourself the whole race of Adam, rising from the tomb.
He who rescued the children from the furnace, having become man, suffers as a mortal; and through his passion, he clothes that which is mortal in the beauty of incorruption, the only blessed God of our fathers and most glorious.
God-minded women ran after you with myrrh; but seeking with tears him whom they thought mortal, they adored him with joy as the living God, and brought the good news of the mystical Pasch to Christ’s disciples. D
Let us celebrate the mortification of Death, the destruction of Hades, the firstfruits of another, eternal life; and, leaping for joy, let us hymn the Author, the only blessed God of our fathers and most glorious.
How truly sacred and all-festal is this saving night, and bright with light, being the herald of the radiant day of the resurrection, in which the timeless light shone forth in the body from the tomb to all.
This is the called and holy day, the one day of the Sabbath, the queen and mistress, the feast of feasts and celebration of celebrations, in which we bless Christ unto the ages.
A Come, let us share in the new fruit of the vine, of divine gladness, on the auspicious day of the resurrection, the kingdom of Christ, praising him as God unto the ages. Lift up your eyes round about, O Sion, and see; for behold, they have come to you, endowed with divine light like torches, from the west, the north, the sea, and the east, your children, blessing Christ in you unto the ages. Father almighty, and Word, and Spirit, essence existing in three persons, greater in substance and divinity, in you we have been baptized, and you we bless always unto the ages. Shine, shine, new Jerusalem, for the glory of the Lord has risen upon you. Dance now and exult, O Sion; and do you, O holy Theotokos, rejoice in the rising of your offspring. B O divine, O beloved, O sweetest voice of yours; for you promised without falsehood to be with us until the ends of the age, O Christ, holding which as an anchor of hope, we faithful exult. O great and most holy Pascha, O Christ, O wisdom and Word of God, and power! Grant us to share in you more clearly in the unwaning day of your kingdom.
OF THE SAME
On the Ascension of our Lord Jesus Christ
To the Savior God, who led his people through the sea with dry feet, and drowned Pharaoh with his whole army, to him alone let us sing, for he has been glorified. C Let us all, O peoples, sing a hymn of victory to Christ, who ascended on the shoulders of the Cherubim and seated us at the right hand of the Father, for he has been glorified. The choirs of angels, seeing the mediator of God and men, Christ, with flesh in the highest, were struck with awe, and in harmony they sang a hymn of victory, for he has been glorified. By the power of your cross, O Christ, strengthen my mind, to sing and glorify your saving ascension. D The orders of the angels, O Christ, beholding mortal nature ascending with you, were ceaselessly struck with wonder, and they glorified him. I have heard, O Lord, the report of the power of the cross, how paradise is opened through it, and I cried: Glory to your power, O Lord. You were taken up in glory, O King of angels, to send us the Paraclete from the Father, so that we may cry: Glory to your power, O Lord. As the Savior ascended to the Father with his flesh, the hosts of angels were struck with awe at him, and they cried: Glory to your power, O Lord. The powers above cried to those higher than them: Lift the gates for Christ our King, whom we sing with the Father and the Spirit. Watching from the dawn, we cry to you, O Lord: Save us!
A For you are our God, and besides you we know no other.
Filling all things with gladness, O merciful One, you arrived among the supernal powers in the flesh. The powers of the angels, seeing you being lifted up, cried out: "Lift up the gates for our King." An abyss encircled me, the sea monster became my tomb; yet I cried out to you, the lover of mankind, and your right hand, O Lord, saved me. The apostles leaped for joy, seeing the Creator being carried up on high today; in the hope of the Spirit and in fear they cried out: "Glory to your ascension!" The angels stood by, crying out to your disciples, "O Christ: as you have watched Christ being lifted up, so in the flesh shall the just Judge of all come." As the supernal powers saw you, our Savior, being lifted up in the heights with your body, they cried out in fear: "Great, O Master, is your loving-kindness."
He who in the furnace of fire saved the chanting children: Blessed is the God of our fathers. B Carrying on your shoulders, O Christ, the nature that had gone astray, you were taken up and brought it to God and the Father. You who were taken up in a cloud of light and saved the world: Blessed is the God of our fathers. You who ascended from earth to the incorporeal Father: Blessed is the God of our fathers.
The Son and God begotten of the Father before the ages, and incarnate in the last times of a Virgin mother, O priests, hymn; O people, superexalt him through all ages. Christ, the giver of life, who flew into the heavens in two substances with glory and is seated with the Father, O priests, praise; O people, superexalt him through all ages. He who redeems the creation from the slavery of idols and presents it free to his own Father, him, O priests, praise; O people, superexalt him through all ages. He who by his own descent brought down the adversary, and by his own ascent lifted up man, him, O priests, praise; O people, superexalt him through all ages.
C You, the Mother of God beyond mind and word, who in time ineffably gave birth to the One outside of time, we the faithful unanimously magnify. You, the Savior of the world, Christ the God, whom the apostles saw being lifted up divinely, we magnify, exulting with fear. You who descended to the ends of the earth and saved man, and by your ascension exalted him, him we magnify. Hail, Theotokos, Mother of Christ the God: for him whom you brought forth, seeing him today flying up from earth with the angels, you have magnified. D
OF THE SAME On the Transfiguration of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Acrostic: Moyses beheld the face of God on Thabor.
Moyses, having prophetically beheld in the sea, in the cloud, and in a pillar of fire of old the glory of the Lord, cried out: Let us sing to our Redeemer and God. Protected by the deified rock in his body, Moyses, the beholder of God, gazing upon the Invisible, cried out: Let us sing to our Redeemer and God. Thou, who on the legal mount A and in Thabor were seen by Moyses in dark of old, art seen now in the unapproachable light of Divinity. The overshadowing glory in the tabernacle of old, speaking to Moyses thy servant, became a figure of thy unspeakably flashing transformation on Thabor, O Lord. The summit of the apostles gathered with thee, O Word, only-begotten, most high, on Mount Thabor; and Moyses and Elias stood with them as servants of God, O thou who alone lovest mankind. Being wholly God, thou hast become wholly mortal, mixing thy humanity with the whole of thy divinity in thine own essence, which Moyses and Elias beheld in two essences on Mount Thabor. From thy flesh went forth rays of divinity, prophets and apostles, whence the elect B singing cried out: Glory to thy power, O Lord. Thou who didst keep the bush unharmed while it encountered fire, didst show to Moyses thy flesh endowed with divine light, O Lord, as he sang: Glory to thy power, O Lord. The sensible sun was hidden by the rays of thy divinity, as it saw thee, my Jesus, transfigured on Mount Thabor: Glory to thy power, O Lord. Fire not burning the matter of the body was seen, immaterial, as thou wast seen by Moyses and Elias and the apostles, O Lord, one out of two, in two perfect natures. An eloquent tongue cannot speak thy mighty works; for as one commanding life and reigning over death, thou didst stand Moyses and Elias on Mount Thabor, testifying to thy divinity. Thou who with invisible hands didst form man according to thine image, O Christ, C didst show thine archetypal beauty in the creature, not as in an image, but as thou thyself being according to essence, God together and man. Mingled inconfusedly, thou didst show to us a coal of divinity, consuming indeed sins, but illuminating souls on Mount Thabor; and Moyses and Elias and the leaders of the disciples were astonished. How great and terrible a spectacle was seen today! From heaven a sensible, and from earth an incomparable sun of righteousness shone forth, intelligible, on Mount Thabor. D
CARMINA.
A The shadow of the Law has passed away, weakened; but Christ, the Truth, has clearly come. Moses cried out on Mount Tabor, beholding Thy divinity. The pillar signified to Moses Christ who was transfigured, and the cloud most clearly manifested the grace of the Spirit which overshadowed Him on Tabor. Now the invisible things have been seen by the apostles: the Divinity, flashing in the flesh on Mount Tabor, while they cry: Blessed art Thou, O Lord God, unto the ages. The apostles, struck with fear, shuddered at the beauty of the divine kingdom on Mount Tabor, crying: Blessed art Thou, O Lord God, unto the ages. Now things unheard have been heard. For the Son, who is without a father, is gloriously proclaimed by the Father’s voice from the Virgin, as God and man, the same unto the ages. Thou hast not become the Son of the Most High by adoption; but existing in essence as the beloved Son, Thou didst commune with us immutably. Blessed art Thou, O Lord God, unto the ages. Having heard, O Master, the testimony from the Father, and not being able to endure the sight of the flashing of Thy face—which is more solid than human eyesight—the disciples fell to the ground in fear, chanting: O children, bless; O priests, hymn; O people, superexalt Him unto all ages. B Thou art the most beautiful King of those who reign, the Lord of those who hold sway everywhere, a blessed ruler and a light dwelling in unapproachable brightness, to whom the disciples, struck with awe, cried: O children, bless; O priests, hymn; O people, superexalt Him unto all ages. C To Thee, O Christ, who art the Lord of heaven, who reignest over the earth, and who hast dominion over those beneath the earth, they stood beside Thee: the apostles from the earth, the Thesbite Elijah as from heaven, and Moses from the dead; and they chanted unceasingly: O children, bless; O priests, hymn; O people, superexalt Him unto all ages. Cares that beget sloth were left behind on earth by the calling of the apostles, O Lover of mankind, so that they followed Thee to the divine life that is raised up from the earth. Whence, rightfully chosen as participants in Thy divine manifestation, they chanted: O children, bless; O priests, hymn; O people, superexalt Him unto all ages. In order that Thou mightest clearly show Thy secret second descent, so that the Most High God might be seen standing in the midst of gods, Thou didst shine ineffably in Tabor to the apostles with Moses and Elijah; therefore, do we all, O Christ, magnify Thee. Come to me, obey me, O peoples, and ascending the holy, heavenly mount, let us stand in immaterial fashion in the city of the living God, and let us contemplate with our mind the divinity of the Father and the Spirit, flashing forth immaterially in the only-begotten Son. D Thou hast charmed me with desire, O Christ, and transformed me by Thy divine love; but burn up my sins with Thy immaterial fire, and let me be filled with the delights that are in Thee.
A Make me worthy, O Good One, that I may magnify Thy two comings by leaping for joy.
BY THE SAME
A Poem for the Feast of the Annunciation of the most blessed Mother of God.
Hear, O maiden, pure Virgin; let Gabriel now speak the ancient counsel of the Most High: be truly ready for the reception of God, for through you the Incomprehensible dwells with mortals. Therefore, I also cry out with joy: bless the Lord, all you works of the Lord.
Every understanding of mortals is overcome, the Virgin answered, asking: "The things that you speak to me are paradoxical; I have been gladdened by your words. But I am struck with fear, lest by some deception, like Eve, you cast me far from God. Yet, nevertheless, I already cry out: bless the Lord, all you works of the Lord."
Behold, O maiden, the doubt is resolved for you, Gabriel says in response to these things: "For you have rightly called the matter beyond conjecture, obeying the words of your lips. Henceforth do not doubt as if it were a fiction, but believe as in a reality. For I, too, cry out with joy: bless the Lord, all you works of the Lord."
"This law, divinely established for mortals, is irreproachable," she says again, "that offspring should proceed from shared love. I am utterly ignorant of marital pleasure. How then do you say that I shall give birth? I fear lest you speak in deception. Yet, nevertheless, I already cry out: bless the Lord, all you works of the Lord."
"The words which you speak to me, O Venerable One," the angel cries out again, "are the common way of birth for mortal men. I proclaim to you, in truth, God incarnate beyond reason and thought, as He knows how, from you. Therefore, I also cry out with joy: bless the Lord, all you works of the Lord."
"You seem to me an orator of truth," the Virgin replied. "For you have come as a messenger of common joy; since I have been purified in soul by the Spirit, let it be done to me according to your word; let God dwell within me, to whom I cry out: bless the Lord, all you works of the Lord."
As to a living ark of God, let no uninitiated hand touch her; but let the lips of the faithful, perpetually echoing the voice of the angel to the Mother of God, cry out in exultation: Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you.
Conceiving God beyond understanding, you neglected the laws of nature, O maiden; for in giving birth you surpassed those things which are mothers', although you consist of a flowing nature; whence you worthily hear: Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you.
How you pour forth milk, O pure Virgin, no mortal tongue can tell. For a wondrous thing of nature is demonstrated, surpassing the lawful bounds of birth; whence you worthily hear: Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you.
To Moses, the interpreter of holy things, the bush and the fire revealed a sign. Seeking the end in the passing of time, he said that he beheld it in a pure maiden, who should be called Mother of God: Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you.
"> A Daniel calls you an intelligible mountain, Isaiah the Mother of God; Gideon sees you as a fleece, David calls you a sanctuary, and another calls you a gate; but Gabriel cries out to you: "Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you."
PRAYER OF SAINT JOHN OF DAMASCUS
In Anacreontic verses. Translated by Jacques Billy.From defiled lips, from a heart full of stain, from impure speech and a wretched soul, receive my prayers, O my Christ. And do not, having cast me off B because of my words, because of my base and impudent conduct, deny me; but grant me boldness to say what my mind desires to speak, O my Christ. Nay, rather teach me what I ought to do and speak. I have sinned more than the harlot who, hearing where you were, bought ointment and came boldly to anoint the feet of God C, the feet of my Master and my Christ. As you did not cast her off when she approached with a pious heart, do not abhor me, O Word. But grant me to hold your feet and to kiss them, and with a torrent of tears, as if with precious ointment, to anoint them boldly. Wash me with my tears; purify me with them, O Word; forgive also my faults. You know the multitude of my evils, D you know the wounds and the bruises of my soul. But you also see my faith, you view my zeal, and you hear my sighs. Nothing is hidden from you, my God, my Creator, my Redeemer; neither a drop of tears, nor any part of a sigh, nor any movement of the heart. What is in me that is unfinished, your eyes have seen, and in your book are inscribed even those things which I have not yet performed. Look upon my heart lying in the dust; behold my labors; and forgive me, O Christ, all my sins, I pray, that with a pure heart, with a trembling mind, and with a soul crushed by the power of grief, I may take the holy communion, by which everyone who eats and drinks with a pure heart lives and is made divine. For this word flowed from you: "Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood, he will remain in me, and I in him."
A I abide in him. Verily, this is the Word of the Most High Lord and God. And he who partakes of the divine and deifying graces is, therefore, not alone; but, O my Christ, he is with you, who are the Light of the Trinity. That I might not therefore be left alone, bereft of you, the Giver of life, my breath, my life, my joy, and the salvation of the world—for this reason I have come to you, as you see me with tears and a contrite soul, B entreating to receive the ransom for my sins, and to partake of your life-giving and blameless mysteries without condemnation. That you may remain, as you said, with me, the most wretched one. That the deceiver of souls may not find me lacking your grace, and snatch me away by guile, and, having led me astray, draw me away from your deifying words—for this reason I fall before you, and fervently call out to you. As you received the prodigal, and the harlot who approached, so receive me, the lecher and the prodigal, O merciful One, who now approach you with a contrite soul. C I know, O Savior, that no other has sinned against you as I, nor has done the deeds which I have committed.
But this, again, I know: that no magnitude of transgressions, no multitude of sins, and no baseness of actions, exceeds the great love for mankind of my God. But in the mercy of your compassion, you purge those who fervently repent for having sinned, and you make them radiant, and you make them partakers of your light, and plentifully workers of communion with your Divinity. D And—a thing strange to angels and to the minds of men—you often converse with them as with your own genuine friends. These things make me bold; these things give me wings, O Christ, and being confident in your bountiful benefits toward us, I take of the fire while simultaneously rejoicing and trembling, being stubble, and—marvelous wonder—now being dewed without burning, just as the bush of old, which burned without being consumed. Therefore, with a grateful mind, and a grateful heart, and with grateful members of my soul and body, I worship and magnify and praise you, my God, as being blessed, now and unto the ages.