Menaion of the Orthodox Church

The 9th Day of the Month of February

Commemoration of the Holy Martyr Nicephorus

At Vespers

On “Lord, I have cried…”, these stichera, in Tone II, Special Melody: “When from the Tree…”

Submitting to the laws of Him Who, for our sake, assumed our flesh on earth and endured His honored sufferings, O divinely blessed one, thou didst show love for thy neighbor, which is the epitome of the law and the prophets. Wherefore, thou didst receive a blessed end, O Nicephorus, and standest now before the Wellspring of love.

Thou bendest thy neck to God, before Whom all knees do bend, O wondrous martyr, thy head is severed and parted from thy comely body, and with thy most honored mind thou art united to Christ, the Head of all. And now drawing close to His light, O Nicephorus, beseech enlightenment for us who praise thee.

Thou hast sanctified the earth with streams of thy blood shed for Christ, O martyr, and by thy spirit thou hast gladdened the spirits of the incorporeal hosts, and hast enlightened the whole flock of the martyrs, O blessed one, united with them as a valiant warrior and an invincible martyr; and thou prayest to God in our behalf.

Glory…, the composition of John the Monk, in Tone VI

O athlete Nicephorus, thou hast clearly shown to all that he who loveth not his neighbor cannot love the Master; wherefore, in purity thou didst love thine own neighbor Sapricius. Hence, thou didst take wing to divine Desire, and lay down thy life in confession of Christ and the Faith. But Sapricius of ill repute, having conceived for thee an implacable hatred, showed himself also a betrayer of Christ the Master. Standing now before Him, pray thou that our souls be saved.

Now and ever…, Theotokion, or this Stavrotheotokion, Special Melody: “Having set all aside…”

O all-pure Mistress, a sword pierced thy heart, as Symeon said, when thou didst behold Him Who shone forth from thee in manner past recounting, lifted up on the Cross by the iniquitous as one condemned, given vinegar and gall to drink, His side pierced, His hands and feet run through with nails; and, lamenting, thou didst exclaim, crying out maternally: “What is this new mystery, O my Child most sweet?”

Troparion of the martyr, in Tone IV

In his suffering, O Lord, Thy martyr Nicephorus received an imperishable crown from Thee, our God; for, possessed of Thy might, He set at nought the tyrants, and crushed the feeble audacity of the demons. By his supplications save Thou our souls.

At Matins

Canon of the martyr, the acrostic whereof is: “With songs I hymn Nicephorus, glorious among athletes”, the composition of Theophanes, in Tone VIII

Ode I

Irmos: The staff of Moses, once working a wonder, striking the sea in the form of the Cross and dividing it, drowned the mounted tyrant Pharaoh, and saved Israel who fled on foot, chanting a hymn unto God.

O Christ, Author of peace, as Thou art our Benefactor, through the entreaties of Thy martyr bring the ship of my soul, which is cruelly tossed by the perils and billows of the raging sea of life, into a profound calm.

With rational thought, O all-wise one, thou didst piously subject the passion of anger to the mind of thy soul, and didst hasten to thy friend Sapricius, yearning to be reconciled with him, O wondrous one, submitting to the laws of the Savior.

Triadicon: Confessing the thrice-radiant effulgence of the One Godhead, which is equal in might and essence, equally enthroned and equal in nature, let us honor God in three Persons, professing the Word, the Father and the Spirit to be indivisible.

Theotokion: Truly even a heavenly intelligence is unable to comprehend thine unapproachable mystery, O most lauded one; for it was the good pleasure of Him Who is equally enthroned with the Father to make His abode in thy womb and to become known in two natures.

Ode III

Irmos: O Christ, Who in the beginning established the heavens in wisdom and founded the earth upon the waters, make me steadfast upon the rock of Thy commandments; for none is holy as Thee, O Thou Who lovest mankind.

Summoned forth, Nicephorus was shown to be a victor in his deeds; for dispelling the gloom of deception, he drove it far away, crying aloud: There is none as holy as Thee, Who alone lovest mankind!

Believing in the Master Who was slain for thy sake, thou didst hasten of thine own will to death, desiring His voluntary mortality, strengthened as a victorious martyr by the power of God.

Nicephorus, the favorite of Christ, hath clearly been shown to be a struggler on earth and a champion in the heavens, crying out with the incorporeal ranks: There is none as holy as Thee, Who alone lovest mankind!

Triadicon: Illumined through faith by the divinely inspired commandments, we all confess the one uncreated Godhead: the Word Who came forth from the great mind of God, and the Spirit Who likewise proceedeth from Him.

Theotokion: Having conceived in thy womb, without knowing wedlock, Him Who was begotten of the Father before time began, O Virgin, for us thou hast given birth to the God and man, in Whom each nature is perfect and undivided.

Kontakion of the martyr, in Tone I, Special Melody: “The choir of the angels…”

Bound by the bond of love, O Nicephorus, thou didst manifestly destroy the malice of hatred, and wast beheaded by the sword, as a divine martyr of the incarnate Savior. Him do thou entreat, in behalf of us who hymn thy glorious memory.

Sessional hymn, in Tone I, Special Melody: “When the stone had been sealed…”

Thou didst dye thy purple robe in thine own blood, and invested therewith as an invincible warrior, and bearing the Cross as a scepter, thou didst hasten from earth to the heavens, O blessed Nicephorus, and standest before the King of all. Glory to Him Who gave thee strength! Glory to Him Who hath crowned thee! Glory to Him Who, through thee, worketh healings for all!

Glory…. Now and ever…: Theotokion

Stretching forth thy divine arms, wherewith thou didst bear the Creator Who in His goodness became incarnate, O all-pure virgin, implore Him to deliver from temptations, sufferings and tribulations us who praise thee with love and cry out: Glory to Him Who made His abode within thee! Glory to Him Who issued forth from thee! Glory to Him Who hath delivered us by thy birthgiving!

Stavrotheotokion

Beholding Thee stretched out, dead, upon the Cross, O Christ, Thine all-immaculate Mother cried out: “O my Son, Who with the Father and the Spirit art without beginning, what is this Thine ineffable dispensation, wherewith Thou hast saved the work of Thine all-pure hands, O Compassionate One?”

Ode IV

Irmos: Thou art my strength, O Lord, Thou art my power; Thou art my God, Thou art my joy, Who, without leaving the bosom of the Father, hast visited our lowliness. Wherefore, with the Prophet Habbakuk I cry unto Thee: Glory to Thy power, O Thou Who lovest mankind!

Accounted worthy of divine illumination, O blessed Nicephorus, thou didst receive a godly life and dost now illumine splendidly with divine light those who keep thy memory and cry out with faith, O divinely wise one: Glory to Thy power, O Thou Who lovest mankind!

Having joined the martyrs of Christ, thou shinest forth; for thou didst destroy the falsehood of polytheism, thy head being severed, and with the torrents of thy blood didst drown the deception of idolatry, crying out to the Master: Glory to Thy power, O Thou Who lovest mankind!

Sapricius, who did not keep Thy laws, O Savior, is stripped of Thy divine grace; and, going over to Thine enemies, the wretch is deprived of the glory of Thy martyrs. Wherefore, marvelling at Thy just providence, we cry out: Glory to Thy power, O Thou Who lovest mankind!

Triadicon: The unoriginate Father, the Author of all, is Light. The Word is Light. The Holy Spirit is Light. The three-Sunned Godhead, which shineth forth ineffably from the Father, as from a wellspring, from before all the ages, is known in one Essence, Power and Glory.

Theotokion: O all-pure one, He Who within thee is wholly united to mankind doth renew all of mankind, without leaving the bosom of the Father; for, deigning to dwell in thy womb, in the richness of His loving-kindness He voluntarily impoverished Himself, enriching the world with divinity.

Ode V

Irmos: Wherefore hast Thou turned Thy face from me, O Light never-waning? And why hath a strange darkness covered me, wretch that I am? But turn me, and guide my steps to the light of Thy commandments, I pray.

With the torrents of thy blood springing forth like the four principal divine virtues, thou hast watered the garden of the Church, O blessed Nicephorus; and we draw forth divine gifts for our souls therefrom.

The sower of discord captured the wretched one through remembrance of wrongs; but the Author of goodness and peace drew forth, in his place, the divinely wise martyr Nicephorus, who is adorned by the vision of the light of God.

Emulating Thy voluntary suffering, O Savior, the divinely wise one is sanctified; for, sprinkled with the drops which fall from Thy side, he offereth unto Thee streams of his own blood, approaching Thee beheaded by the sword.

Triadicon: Knowing Orthodoxy to be the foundation of salvation, we profess in three Persons the Father, Son and Holy Spirit Who are equally without beginning: the one Godhead, one Essence, one Volition, one Activity.

Theotokion: Noetically did the assembly of the prophets learn of thy mysteries, for the Master showed thee to be the portal of heaven on earth; and, incarnate of thee, O Virgin, the Sun of righteousness hath shone forth upon those in darkness.

Ode VI

Irmos: The abyss of my sins and the tempest of my transgressions discomfit me and thrust me down into the depths of violent despondency; but stretch forth Thy mighty arm unto me, as Thou didst to Peter, and save my, O my Guide.

Heal thou the wounds of my heart, O divinely wise Nicephorus, and, dispelling the gloom of the passions, drive it away with the beams of the divine radiance which is within thee, entreating Christ the Deliverer, O blessed one.

Calmly traversing the tempest of the threefold waves of idolatry with the sail of the Cross and the winds of the Spirit, O invincible martyred athlete Nicephorus, thou hast attained unto the calm harbor of Christ.

Thou didst suffer in martyrdom and hast truly become a victor, destroying the machinations of the serpent right mightily; and having shared in the sufferings of the Master, O blessed one, thou hast now been glorified as is meet.

Theotokion: The noetic hosts of the angels are in awe, marvelling as they behold Him, Who is with the Father and the Spirit since before time began, born in the flesh, of thy womb, as a babe, O all-pure Theotokos.

Kontakion, in Tone III, Special Melody: “Today the Virgin…”

Soaring aloft in the love of the Lord, O glorious one, and taking His glorious Cross upon thy shoulder, thou didst put to shame the wiles of the devil, didst suffer even unto death, and hast been shown to be a bearer of the trophy of truth, a warrior and initiate of the mysteries of the grace of God.

Ikos: Thou didst manifestly love the teaching of Paul and didst plant it in thy breast, O glorious one, crying out: “Love vaunteth not itself! The perfect Creator of man hath given it to us. For the sake of love He endured all the nails and the Cross, vinegar and spittle; with a spear was His holy side pierced, and thereby He hath poured forth upon us His divine blood and water.” And having desired Him, thou hast been shown to be a victor, a warrior by profession, and an initiate of the mysteries of the grace of God.

Ode VII

Irmos: Once, in Babylon, the fire stood in awe of the condescension of God; wherefore, the youths, dancing with joyous step in the furnace, as in a meadow, chanted: Blessed art Thou, O God of our fathers!

For thee death was a departure from the things of this world, O blessed Nicephorus, and thou didst ascend to heaven and the things of heaven, where, joining chorus now with the angels, thou chantest: Blessed art Thou, O God of our fathers!

Strengthened by the suffering of the Almighty, O divinely wise one, thou didst cast down to the ground the lofty eye and the superior brow of weakness, crying out to the Creator: Blessed art Thou, O God of our fathers!

Running, Nicephorus finished the race of martyrdom, his heart enlarged through the activity of the divine Spirit; and now he crieth out to Thee earnestly, O Master: Blessed art Thou, O God of our fathers!

Triadicon: Knowing Thee, the Father, to be the first and beginningless Mind, Who begat the equally unoriginate Word without suffering and outside of time, and Who brought forth the All-holy Spirit, we cry aloud: Blessed art Thou, O God of our fathers!

Theotokion: Thou wast both Virgin and Mother, O pure Theotokos, ineffably conceiving God in thy womb, Who was incarnate of thee and is known in two natures, having dwelt on earth as both God and man.

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!

Signed with the grace of the Savior, when called thou didst set thyself apart for the contest, O martyr of Christ; and gaining the victory over the adversary, thou wast adorned with crowns of victory, chanting in godly manner: Ye children, bless; ye priests, hymn; ye people, exalt Him supremely for all ages!

Sanctified by water and the Spirit, O most blessed Nicephorus, and stained with the blood of thy martyrdom, as a true martyr of Christ God thou hast acquired radiant splendor, wherein thou now criest out: Ye children, bless; ye priests, hymn; ye people, exalt Him supremely for all ages!

Triadicon: With the incorporeal ranks bless, ye children, hymn, ye priests, and exalt supremely for all ages, ye people, the one ever-flowing Source of goodness: the unbegotten, beginningless and all-perfect Godhead, the Creator and King of all,

Theotokion: More holy than the heavenly ranks of angels wast thou, O most lauded Theotokos; for, by thy virginal womb which knew not wedlock, thou gavest birth unto the Creator and Lord: God incarnate in one Hypostasis and two Natures, without confusion or change.

Ode IX

Irmos: Heaven was stricken with awe, and the ends of the earth were amazed, that God hath appeared in the flesh, and that thy womb became more spacious than the heavens. Wherefore, the ranks of men and angels magnify thee as the Theotokos.

Clad, like a bridegroom, in garments woven of the blood of torment, O most blessed Nicephorus, thou didst depart to partake of the divine splendor of the Benefactor of all, Who adorned and embellished thee with His honored suffering on the Cross.

Thou wast drawn by the beauties of the Master, than which there is nought more comely; and, yearning to delight in His never-waning and magnificent splendor, aflame with the love of thy Lord, thou didst urge the tormenters to cut off thy head with the sword, O Nicephorus.

Having contended splendidly against deception and vanquished it as a victor, O glorious martyr of Christ, thou didst receive for thy head a crown of spiritual gifts. And now thou joinest chorus martyrically with the choirs of the martyrs before the throne of the King of all, O Nicephorus.

Triadicon: Glorifying the Son, Who was divinely begotten of the unbegotten Father, and the upright Spirit, Who proceedeth from before the ages, we honor the three Hypostases of the transcendent and reigning Trinity, united in a Unity unconfused; and theologizing, we magnify God.

Theotokion: Thou hast been shown, O Virgin Mother of God, to have given birth, in manner transcending nature, to the all-good Word, Whom the Father begat from His heart before all the ages, in that He is good. Him do we now also understand as transcending all bodies, though He wrapped Himself in the flesh.

Exapostilarion, Special Melody: “The heaven with stars…”

Thou wast shown to be a true namesake of victory, O Nicephorus, having vanquished the tyrants by thy love and torment. Wherefore, thou hast received from the Lord a crown of victory.

Glory…, Now and ever…: Theotokion

With thy mighty protection, O pure one, preserve all thy servants unharmed by the assault of the enemy; for thee alone have we acquired as a refuge amid our needs.

Directive Concerning the Leave-taking of the Feast of the Meeting of the Lord

Be it known that if the leaving-taking of the Meeting falleth before the Sunday of the Publican & Pharisee, on any weekday, the service of the leave-taking is done as followeth:

At Vespers, after the usual kathisma, on “Lord, I have cried…”, 6 stichera (those chanted on the feast itself). Glory…, Now and ever…: the doxasticon idiomelon of the feast. (But if it be Friday evening: Glory…: the Doxasticon; Now and ever…: the Dogmaticon of the current tone.) There is no Entrance. Prokimenon of the day. The Readings are not done. All the Aposticha stichera as on the feast itself, with their stichoi. Troparion of the feast, once. Litany and dismissal.

At Compline, after the Trisagion prayers, the Kontakion of the feast.

Nocturns is done as usual, with the kathisma and the usual Troparia.

At Matins, on “God is the Lord…”, the Troparion of the feast, thrice. After both kathismata, the Sessional hymns of the feast. The canon of the feast, with 14 Troparia, including the irmos. The same irmoi are used as the katavasiae. After Ode III, the Sessional hymn of the feast, twice. After Ode VI, the Kontakion & ikos of the feast. Before Ode IX we do not chant the Magnificat, but sing instead the refrains of the feast, as on the feast itself. Exapostilarion of the feast, twice. On the Praises, the 4 stichera of the feast, followed by the festal doxasticon. Then the Great Doxology, followed by the Troparion, once. Litanies, and dismissal, whereupon we go to the narthex to read the First Hour.

On the Hours, the Troparion and Kontakion of the feast.

At Liturgy, 6 Troparia from Ode IX, including the irmos. After the Entrance, the Troparion of the feast; Glory…, Now and ever…, the Kontakion of the feast. Prokimenon, Alleluia and Communion Hymn of the feast. Epistle and Gospel appointed for the day.

The service of the saint whose feast the leave-taking falleth upon is chanted at Compline, or whenever the superior desireth to serve it.