“Let us arise at deep dawn, and instead of fragrant oil, let us offer a hymn to our Lord.” - St. John Damascene The Psalm Verses of the Antiphons Compiled by Rev. Fr. John Maheras Dr. Nicolas Maragos Published by The National Forum of Greek Orthodox Church Musicians 44 Occasionally it is importNanTt tIoP reHfleOctN onA pLro perS liAtuLrgMical praEctRicSe,E reSevaluating and educating ourselves in the process. To this end we have compiled the list of verses from the Psalms of David for thAe first (Tes presvies), sPecond (SosonV imas), and th ird (the Apolytikion of the Feast) antiphonal responses for every Divine Liturgy throughout the year. The practice of chanting the psalms before each response has fallen into disuse in recent past, probably because of either lack of knowledge of what is proper, or lack of ability to look these verses up in the several different sources in which they occur. With the resurgence of proper liturgical practice by our younger priests it is time also to reju-venate this practice. Choir directors and Psaltai should ensure that the chanting of the antiphonal verses occurs at each liturgical celebration, and making the proper verses available in both the Greek and English languages will hopefully let us attain this goal. The position of the antiphons in the Divine Liturgy has been well-established since the early years of Christianity. Scholarly research suggests that the antiphons appeared in the Church in a number of forms and from differing sources. They are first noted in Antioch, chanted by the congregation and led by the chanter from the pulpit which, at the time, was placed in the center of the Church. Thus, was created a double chorus: one on either side of the pulpit. Later on the singing and chanting were done by two choirs who had their own particular hymns. In addition, the chanters had other hymns to sing, and the congregation was invited to offer their own as well. Therefore the singing of Church hymns, specifically the Psalms of David, was antiphonal from the time of the Holy Apostles. In the early Church antiphonal singing was led by a director or head chanter who stood in the pulpit, and each side of the congregation would chant or sing their verse or verses as directed. Indeed, the acts of the Synod of 536 in Constantinople points this out most vividly, noting the active participation of the congregation in the singing, chanting and praying. From the fourth century the chanter was recognized as a distinct order, certain of them being chosen to ascend the pulpit and guide the antiphonal singing of the congregation. Athanasius mentioned, in his Apology for leaving Egypt, that during the services he would urge the deacon to intone a verse from a designated psalm while the congregation responded, “His mercy endures forever,” to each verse (refrain Psalm 135). Basil extolled the idea of antiphonal singing and chanting as a unifying factor in the worship service, uniting and making the congregation a whole, a unit, as is proper for the worship service. Chrysostom also verified the existence of common chanting and singing from early times. He saw congregational unification in the act of antiphonal singing, intermixing the voices of women, men, elders and children, in response to the verses and prayers by the clergy and chanters. Finally, the minutes of the Synod of 536 in Constantinople record the people chanting “Blessed is the Lord God of Israel, who has visited His people and given them salvation” as the response to a psalm, after which the chanters were allowed to go up into the pulpit and begin singing the Trisaghion hymn prior to the readings. Revitalizing the antiphonal psalms cannot but further beautify our Divine Liturgy today. The antiphonal listings below are divided into four parts: Ordinary Sundays and Feast days, Special Sundays of the Fixed Season, Special Sundays of the Triodhion and Pentecostarion, and Ordinary Weekdays. To use this compilation one should look first to the Special sections (or to the Table of Contents on the following page); if the day in question is not listed, then the Ordinary psalms are to be sung. Special Feast Day Psalms are sung every day during the Feast, from the Feast Day itself through its Apodosis (conclusion). Finally, though the Liturgical Guidbook does not list the liturgies for weekday services, we have included those antiphons here for the sake of completeness. Good singing! Nick Maragos Rev. Fr. John Maheras 45 NTIPHON ABLE OF ONTENTS Antiphons of OArdinary SundayTs and Feast DCays Page 46 Antiphons of Fixed Feastdays September 8-12 Nativity of the Theotokos Page 47 14-21 Elevation of the Holy Cross Page 48 November 21-25 Presentation of the Theotokos in the Temple Page 49 D ecember 25-31 Nativity of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ Page 50 26 Synaxis of the Theotokos Page 50 January 1 Circumcision of our Lord and Saviour Page 51 Jesus Christ; Feast of St. Basil the Great 6-14 Epiphany of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ Page 52 7 Synaxis of St. John the Baptist Page 52 F ebruary 2-9 Hypapante: Presentation of our Lord and Page 53 Saviour Jesus Christ in the Temple M arch 25 Annunciation of our Most Holy Lady Page 54 the Theotokos August 6-13 Metamorphosis of our Lord and Saviour Page 55 Jesus Christ 15-23 Koimisis of our Most Holy Lady the Theotokos Page 56 ******** Dedication of a Church Page 63 Anti phons of the Triodhion/Pentecostarion First Sunday of Lent – Sunday of Orthodoxy Page 57 Third Sunday of Lent – Adoration of the Cross Page 58 Pa lm Sunday – The entrance of our Lord and Saviour Page 59 Jesus Christ into Jerusalem Holy Pascha – The Resurrection of our Loanrdd and Page 60 Saviour Jesus Christ, All Days of the Paschal Season (through Friday of the Following Week) Ascension Thursday Page 61 (through Friday of This Week) Pentecost Page 62 Monday of the Holy Spirit Page 62 Antiphons of Ordinary Weekdays Page 64 Antiphons References Page 65 46 NTIPHONS of RDINARY AUNDAYS AND EAST AYS ÉAnt¤fvnon AÄ First Antiphon O S FBy the int,e rDcessions of the Ta›w presbe¤aiw t∞w YeotÒkou, Theotokos Sav ior, Save us. S«ter, S«son ≤mçw. Verse 1. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and St¤x. aÄ. EÈlÒgei ≤ cuxÆ mou, tÚn all that is within me blePsss aHlmis 1h0o2ly:1 KÊrion, ka‹ pãnta tå §ntÒw mou tÚ name. ˆnoma tÚ ëgion aÈtoË. Verse 2. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and St¤x. bÄ. EÈlÒgei ≤ cuxÆ mou, tÚn forget not all that He haPss daolmne 1 f0o2r: 2you. KÊrion, ka‹ mØ §pilanyãnou pãsaw tåw éntapodÒseiw aÈtoË. Verse 3. The Lord in heaven has St¤x. gÄ. KÊriow §n t“ oÈran“ ≤to¤mase prepared His throne, and His kingdom Psalm 102:17 tÚn yrÒnon aÈtoË, ka‹ ≤ basile¤a rules over all. aÈtoË pãntvn despÒz ei. ÉAnt¤fvnon BÄ Second Antiphon S«son ≤mçw, Ufl¢ YeoË, ı énaståw §k nekr«n, Save us, O Son of God, Who arose from cãllontãw Soi: ÉAllhloÊÛa. the dead. We sing to You: Alleluia. V erse 1. Praise the Lord, O my soul; I St¤x. aÄ. A‡nei, ≤ cuxÆ mou, tÚn KÊrion: will praise the Lord in my life; I will afin°sv KÊrion §n tª zvª mou: cal« chant unto my God for aPss laolnmg 1a4s5 I: 1-2 t“ Ye“ mou ßvw Ípãrxv. have my being. Verse 2. Blessed is He of whom the God St¤x. bÄ. Makãriow, oı YeÚw ÉIak∆b of Jacob is his help, whoPssea hlmop 1e4 i5s: 5in bohyÚw aÈtoË, ≤ §lp‹w aÈtoË §p‹ the Lord his God. KÊrion tÚn YeÚn aÈtoË. Verse 3. The Lord shall be King unto St¤x. gÄ. BasileÊsei KÊriow efiw tÚn eternity; your God, O Zion, from afi«na, ı YeÒw sou, Si≈n, efiw geneån generation to generation. Psalm 145:10 ka‹ geneãn. ÉAnt¤fvnon GÄ Third Antiphon Apolytikion of the Sunday ÉApolut¤kion t∞w Kuriak∞w Verse 1. This is the day the Lord has St¤x. aÄ. AÏth ≤ ≤m°ra, ∂n §po¤hsen ı made; let us be glad andP rseajlomice 1 1i7n: 2it4. KÊriow: égallias≈meya ka‹ eÈfrany«men §n aÈtª. Verse 2. Let the heavensP asnadlm t h6e8 :e3art4 h St¤x. bÄ. Afinesãtvsan AÈtÚn ofl praise Him. oÈrano‹ ka‹ ≤ g∞. 47 NTIPHONS of IXED EAST AYS EPTEMBERA ATIVITY FOF THE FHEOTOKDOS S ÉAnt¤8f-v1n2o:n ANÄ T By tFhier isntt,e Arcne stsiiponhso onf the Ta›w presbe¤aiw t∞w YeotÒkou, Theotokos Savior, Save us. S«ter, S«son ≤mçw. Verse 1. Lord, remember David and all Psalm 131:1 St¤x. aÄ. MnÆsyhti, KÊrie, toË Dab‹d, his weakness. ka‹ pãshw t∞w praÒthtow aÈtoË. Verse 2. Behold, we heard of it in St¤x. bÄ. ÉIdoÁ ±koÊsamen aÈtØn §n Ephratha; we found it inP sthalem f i1e3ld1s:6 o f ÉEfrayç, eÏromen aÈtØn §n to›w the wood. ped¤oiw toË drumoË. Verse 3. Glorious things have been St¤x. gÄ. Dedojasm°na §lalÆyh per‹ spoken of you, O city of GPsoadl.m 86:3 soË ≤ pÒliw toË YeoË. Verse 4. God is in the miPdsta lomf h4e5r;:5 she St¤x. dÄ. ÑO YeÚw §n m°sƒ aÈt∞w, ka‹ oÈ shall not be moved. saleuyÆsetai. S«son ≤mçw, ÉUflA¢n Yt¤efoËv, ın oéna BstÄå w §k nekr«n Save us, SOe Scoonn odf GAondt, iWphhoo arn ose from (≥ ı §n ÑAg¤oiw yaumastÚw), cãllontãw Soi: the dead (or Who are wondrous among ÉAllhloÊÛa.