HOW TO READ THE EPISTLE AT THE DIVINE LITURGY

At the conclusion of the trisagion, the priest says: Peace be unto all!

And the reader, in the center of the church, responds: And to thy spirit!

Deacon: Wisdom!

Reader: The prokeimenon in the ___ tone! And he intones the (first) prokeimenon.

And the choir responds.

And the reader intones the stichos.

And the choir repeats the prokeimenon.

If there be one prokeimenon: The reader then intones the first half of the prokeimenon, and the choir chants the second half.

But if there be two prokeimena:

Reader: [Another prokeimenon,] in the ____ tone!

And he intones the second prokeimenon.

And the choir responds.


Deacon: Wisdom!

Reader: The reading is from

  • the Acts of the Holy Apostles.
  • the Epistle of the Holy Apostle Paul to _____.
  • the Epistle General of _____.

Deacon: Let us attend!

And the reader reads the Epistle reading, with the appropriate introductory phrase.

If there be two readings, he reads the second one immediately after finishing the first. He does not announce the second reading,but he does begin with the appropriate introductory phrase.

But if there be three readings, two of them (the exact combination is usually specified in the Typicon) are combined and read in sequence as one reading, with no break and no second introductory phrase.

Priest: Peace be unto thee!

Reader: And to thy spirit!


If there be one alleluia:

Deacon: Wisdom!

Reader: The Alleluia in the ____ tone!

And the choir chants Alleluia in the appointed tone.

And the reader intones the alleluia verse.

And the choir responds.

And the reader intones the stichos.

And the choir responds.


But if there be two alleluias:

Deacon: Wisdom!

Reader: The Alleluia in the ____ tone! And he intones the first alleluia.

And the choir sings Alleluia in the appointed tone.

And the reader intones the stichos of the first alleluia. And the choir responds.

Reader: In the ___ tone! And he intones the second alleluia.

And the choir responds.

 

 

 




We confidently recommend our web service provider, Orthodox Internet Services: excellent personal customer service, a fast and reliable server, excellent spam filtering, and an easy to use comprehensive control panel.

St Nicholas Russian Orthodox Church, McKinney, Texas