Menaion of the Orthodox Church

The 20th Day of the Month of April

THE COMMEMORATION OF OUR VENERABLE AND GOD-BEARING FATHER ANASTASIUS, ABBOT OF SINAI

At Vespers

At “Lord, I have cried…,” these stichera, in Tone I

Emulating the God-seer of old, thou didst ascend Mount Sinai, that, living there angelically, thou mightest learn true knowledge of God and inscribe the law of Christ in the hearts of thy disciples. Wherefore, we honor thy memory with love. Pray thou that our souls be saved.

Aflame with divine zeal, thou didst thunder against the heretics with thy fiery writings, O all-praised Anastasius; wherefore, Christ God, Who hath great mercy, hath vouchsafed a twofold crown unto thee who contended for the truth and didst not forsake the stillness of the sacred mount.

The wondrous author of the Ladder didst thou love, O most wise Anastasius, beholding his spiritual eminence, manifesting in thyself the truth of his writings; for making ascent each day within thy soul, thou didst mount to the heavens of the virtues, as by a divine ladder. Wherefore, we bless thee unceasingly, O all-praised one. Pray thou that our souls be saved.

Glory…, in Tone VIII

Come ye, let us all praise the wondrous Anastasius, the namesake of the resurrection, who in this life was crucified and buried with Christ God in his struggles, and rose with Him unto new and everlasting life, as guide, instructor of monks, champion of Orthodoxy, emulator of Moses the God-seer, priceless treasure of the monastery of Sinai, and intercessor for our souls.

At the Aposticha, Glory…, in Tone VI, Special Melody: “Having set all aside…”

Having set aside all the tumult of this vain life, thou didst choose the quietude of Mount Sinai, and there struggling, thou didst show thyself to be a true beholder of God, a genuine preacher of the law of Christ, and an engraver thereof in the hearts of the faithful, a guide to the heavenly kingdom; wherefore, multitudes of monks and assemblies of the Orthodox gathering together today keep festival, blessing thy memory, O Anastasius, our father.

Troparion, in Tone VIII

In thee, O father, that which is fashioned according to the image of God was preserved; for, having taken up thy cross, thou didst follow Christ, and by thine example didst teach that the flesh is to be disdained as transitory, but that the soul must be cared for as a thing immortal. Wherefore, thy spirit doth rejoice with the angels, O venerable Anastasius.

At Matins

Canon of the saint, the acrostic whereof is: “Let us honor the namesake of the resurrection”, the composition of Valeria, 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.

Come, ye faithful, let us hymn the divinely wise Anastasius, the namesake of the resurrection, who was buried with Christ God and rose with Him.

O most sacred father, grant us strength by thy prayers, that as is meet we may hymn thy struggles whereby Christ God hath glorified thee.

Come ye, with hymns let us honor the resident of Sinai’s quietude, the citizen of the heavenly Jerusalem, a member of the chorus of the assembly of the righteous.

Theotokion: Adorn thyself, O all-pure Virgin, and rejoice in the resurrection of thine Offspring, whereby salvation hath been wrought for the world. Unceasingly naming thee in our prayer to Him, we hope to be saved.

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.

Unceasingly didst thou raise thy venerable hands on high to Him who giveth prayer to him who prayeth, conquering the noetic Amalek and chanting to the Lord without ceasing.

As many things as are true, and pure, and lovely, these didst thou contemplate and didst teach, O venerable father.

Having adorned the ark of thy soul for the King of kings, O divinely wise one, thou wast vouchsafed the overshadowing of His grace, which hath poured forth abundantly from thy lips, sanctifying those who honor thee.

Theotokion: O pure and blessed one, entreat God the Word Who was born of thee that He be not mindful of our sins, but grant us His grace, that, saved, we may hymn thee.

Kontakion, in Tone II

Come ye, with hymns let us now bless the namesake of the resurrection, the hesychast of Sinai, for emulating Moses the God-seer, he ascended the sacred mountain, that he might obey the divine voice and have the law of grace divinely engraved upon the tablets of his heart. Wherefore, praising him as an initiate of the mysteries of God and emulator of the angels, a champion of Orthodoxy and divinely wise instructor of monks, let us cry out with heartfelt love: Rejoice, O Anastasius, thou boast of Sinai!

Ikos: Tell us, O venerable one, how thou didst spend so many years in quietude; how, having buried the old man, thou didst rise with Christ; how, having His law divinely inscribed in thy soul, thou didst struggle for the truth, and didst thunder against the heretics; how thou didst shepherd the spiritual sheep with the staff of righteousness; how thou didst fly up the ladder of the virtues as upon wings; how thou hast been made manifest as a true partaker in the never-waning Light. Wherefore, then, art thou humble-minded, O father? Why answerest thou not? Yet, as thou art silent, we cry aloud: Rejoice, O Anastasius, thou boast of Sinai!

Sessional hymn, in Tone VII

With what praises shall we honor the venerable one? With what hymns shall we adorn the memory of him who fled the glories of the world and acquired the glory of Heaven, who emulated the angels by his struggles and enlightened men by his teachings? Wherefore, falling down before him, let us cry: Remember us at the throne of God, O most sacred father!

Glory…, Now and ever…: Sessional hymn from the Pentecostarion.

Ode IV

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

Not the law of the shadow on tablets of stone, but the law of Christ was engraved on the tablets of thine heart, O venerable one; and following it in thy life as was meet, thou art shown to be a beholder of the unwaning Light.

On hearing John, the son of thunder, proclaim: “Love ye not the world!,” fleeing the sin-loving world, thou didst dwell in quietude on the holy mount, O divinely wise one.

Offering Christ as a gift the flower of thy youth and a heart enflamed, thou didst fervently make haste to the mountain of the Lord, that thou mightest be vouchsafed true knowledge of God.

Theotokion: Through thee, O Virgin, hath joy shone forth upon all: He Who was incarnate of thee, O all-immaculate one. Thee alone doth it become to rejoice; wherefore, we cry to thee unceasingly: Rejoice!

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.

Of old, he who was slow of tongue drowned the Egyptians in the sea; but thou, O father, unceasingly crying aloud to our mighty God, didst drown with torrents of grace the hordes of demons that fought against thee.

The law given on Sinai hath been abolished, for the grace of the Cross of Christ hath now shone forth throughout all the world, summoning a new people from the West and from the North and from the sea, whose guide to salvation thou wast, O venerable one.

Well didst thou shepherd the lambs of thy pasture, O father, ever going before them in thy struggles, seeking out those who were astray, and leading them to the eternal folds.

Theotokion: Maternal boldness hast thou before thy Son and God, O all-immaculate Virgin. Wherefore, ceasing not to pray for thy servants, thou hast received their adoption from His lips.

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.

Emulating Moses the God-seer, thou didst ascend Mount Sinai, that thou mightest hear the voice of God in thy heart and that His law be inscribed on the tablets thereof.

Having left the one and saving path, we have gone astray into a wilderness devoid of the virtues, yet do thou, O venerable father, come forth to meet us, guiding us to the promised kingdom.

Thou dost not pour forth water from a rock for the people, O all-praised Anastasius, but givest all to drink of thy teachings, drawing forth from the living water of the Gospel of Christ.

Theotokion: O Theotokos and Queen, may the tongue that doth not proclaim thee, whom all creation doth glorify unceasingly, fall silent, forever shamed.

Kontakion & Ikos from the Pentecostarion

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 humbled thy body and hallowed thy soul, O wondrous Anastasius, delighting in peace and quietude which transcendeth the earth, thou didst cry to the Creator of all: O God of our fathers, blessed art Thou!

Acquiring the faith of Abraham, O blessed one, like a son thou didst offer thy life to the Lord; and showing forth as the father of a multitude of the saved, thou didst cry out in thanksgiving: O God of our fathers, blessed art Thou!

Ever mindful of things on high, but not of earthly things, thou didst struggle on the mountain, O venerable one, ascending to the heavenly city by the divine ladder of the virtues, and chanting: O God of our fathers, blessed art Thou!

Theotokion: O all-immaculate Mother of the Son, chosen from before the ages by the heavenly Father, O habitation of the Holy Spirit all adorned, O Mistress Theotokos: blessed art thou!

Ode VIII

Irmos: The King of heaven, Whom the hosts of angels hymn, praise and exalt ye supremely for all ages!

Thy life was in accord with thy name, O venerable father, for crucified with Christ and risen in the Spirit, thou dost proclaim the resurrection to the world.

O Anastasius of great renown, thy sacred memory, illumined with the rays of Christ’s resurrection, doth summon the assemblies of the faithful to thy praise.

Delighting now in the most sweet vision of our Savior, Who loveth mankind, and more clearly partaking thereof in the unwaning day, O glorious one, thou dost hymn the Trinity unto the ages.

Theotokion: We confess thee to be the true Theotokos, the fervent helper of the world, saving us under thy protection unto the 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.

Embodying the mystery of the age to come, thou didst sojourn in the quietude of Mount Sinai, O venerable one, attending in thy heart unto the voice of God alone. Wherefore, we honor thee, O thou that art exceeding great.

If thou hast departed from us in the flesh, O Anastasius our father, yet in thy spirit dost thou remain with us who magnify thee with love.

Do thou now fall prostrate before Christ God, with Whom thou wast crucified and didst rise again, O thrice-blessed father, entreating Him, that thy servants obtain resurrection of life, that we may magnify Him in His Kingdom.

Theotokion: O all-immaculate Mother of God, most blessed Mary, at a loss how to praise thee as is meet, we magnify thee with heartfelt love and reverence.

Exapostilarion, in Tone V

Lo! the day of radiant festivity now hath dawned! Come ye all, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, which doth not breathe fire and terrify with thunder, but is overshadowed by the still, small voice and resoundeth with hymns and spiritual songs. Come ye, let us enter the holy gates and form one chorus with the multitude of monks, ever blessing the great instructor, the radiant adornment of the mountain and monastery of Sinai, the most wondrous and divinely wise Anastasius, mighty intercessor for the world.

Glory…, Now and ever…: Exapostilarion from the Pentecostarion.