☦ Eastern Orthodoxy/Pandemic Prayers from the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America

[sprinkleeninow]

Prayer To Be Offered in the Morning

Lord our God, You who are rich in mercy, and with careful wisdom direct our lives, listen to our prayer, receive our repentance for our sins, bring an end to this new infectious disease, this new epidemic, just as you averted the punishment of your people in the time of David the King. You who are the Physician of our souls and bodies, grant restored health to those who have been seized by this illness, raising them from their bed of suffering, so that they might glorify You, O merciful Savior, and preserve in health those who have not been infected. By your grace, Lord, bless, strengthen, and preserve, all those who out of love and sacrifice care for the sick, either in their homes or in the hospitals. Remove all sickness and suffering from your people, and teach us to value life and health as gifts from You. Give us Your peace, O God, and fill our hearts with unflinching faith in Your protection, hope in Your help, and love for You and our neighbor. For Yours it is to have mercy on us and save us, O our God, and to You we ascribe glory: to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, now and forever, to the ages of ages. Amen.

A HYMN TO SAINT NIKIFOROS THE LEPER

1st Mode. To the melody,
“The stone had been secured.”

All the Angels were awestruck by the courage and fortitude * of Saint Nikiforos the Leper * in ascetic deeds and contests, * for like another Job he suffered pains * with patience, ever glorifying God, * who has crowned him now with glory, granting him grace * to work great and wondrous miracles. * Rejoice, O guide of monastics and their aid, * Rejoice, O shining beacon of light, * Rejoice for your relics now exude * a fragrance bringing joy to all.

A Prayer To Be Offered in the Evening

Lord Jesus Christ our God, You traveled through towns and villages “curing every disease and illness.” At Your command, the sick were made well.

Come to our aid now, in the midst of the global spread of this virus, that we may experience Your healing love. Heal those O Lord who are suffering with this pandemic's illness. May they regain their strength and health through medical care.

Heal us from our fears, which prevent nations from working together and neighbors from helping one another. Heal us from our pride, which can make us claim invulnerability to a disease that knows no borders. Lord Jesus Christ, healer of all and physician of our souls and bodies, stay by our side in this time of uncertainty and sorrow.

Be with those who have died from the virus. May they be at rest with You in Your eternal peace. Be with the families of those who are sick or have died. As they worry and grieve, defend them from illness and despair. May they know Your peace.

Be with the doctors, nurses, researchers and all medical professionals who seek to heal and help those affected and who put themselves at risk in the process. May they know Your protection and peace.

Be with the leaders of all nations. Give them the foresight to act with charity and true concern for the well-being of the people they are meant to serve. Give them the wisdom to choose long-term solutions that will help prepare for or prevent future outbreaks. May they know Your peace, as they work together to achieve it on earth.

Whether we are home or abroad, surrounded by many people suffering from this illness or only a few, Lord Jesus Christ, stay with us as we endure and mourn, persist and prepare. In place of our anxiety, give us your peace.

For You are the Physician of our souls and bodies Christ our God and to You do we offer glory, thanksgiving and worship together with Your eternal Father and Your all-holy, good and life-giving Spirit, now and forever and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Another Prayer, To Be Offered At Any Time

O Holy Father, God of unknown, uncreated depth, You are beyond all description and expectation. You are the Creator of all worlds, physical and metaphysical. As You are only love, in love You created everything that truly is. Through Your Son, everything has form and purpose, and through Your Spirit, everything lives and moves back toward You.

O Father, we are troubled by this scourge that is infecting Your people around the world. From the ancient Fall away from You, there are many consequences that we cannot begin to understand. As traces of this pestilence are being studied in labs, we shiver at its demonic malevolence for destruction, especially of the frail and the elderly.

Our hearts are open to You, loving Father; we come to You as children, meek and lowly. We beg You to help the doctors who work to find a cure. We beg You to help our leaders to put away childish things, to forget political advantage, and to be good stewards of their people. We beg You to help us to be wise ourselves and to care for human life in the least of those around us.

We cry out to You as One Who did not send this plague. We cry out to You as One Who only heals and redeems. You did not send this, but we know You can destroy it.

So Father, cease this plague, and turn it back to the abyss from which it came.

Heal Your people, the humanity of this earth, cleanse us and strengthen us toward You.

We are weak, but You are strong, and in our weakness Your strength is revealed. Help us, we beg You, in the Name of Your Son, the Great Physician, Who, together with You and our Comforter, the Holy Spirit, Are due all glory and honor, to the ages of ages. Amen.

A HYMN TO SAINT NIKIFOROS THE LEPER

4th Mode. To the melody,
“On this day You have appeared.”

Next to God who honored you, * O Nikiforos, * you do stand with boldness now, * like the tenth leper who returned * in great thanksgiving and gratefulness; * so, as is fitting, we honor your memory.

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you... do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.

~ John 14:27

SERVICE OF PROTECTION FROM THE CORONAVIRUS

To Be Prayed By the Faithful as a Community

PRIEST: Blessed is our God always, now and ever and to the ages of ages.

PEOPLE: Amen.

THE TRISAGION HYMN *

Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us. (3)

Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Now and forever and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Holy Immortal, have mercy on us.

DEACON: Dynamis!

Dynamis. Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us.

LITANY

DEACON: Have mercy on us, O God, according to Your great mercy, we pray to You, hear us, and have mercy.

PEOPLE: Lord, have mercy. (3)

DEACON: Again we pray for pious and Orthodox Christians.

PEOPLE: Lord, have mercy. (3)

DEACON: Again we pray for our Archbishop (name) and all our brothers and sisters in Christ.

PEOPLE: Lord, have mercy. (3)

DEACON: Again we pray for mercy, life, peace, health, salvation, protection, forgiveness, and remission of the sins of the servants of God, those who are under impending threat of the Coronavirus, those who are suffering and those who are recovering from this affliction.

PEOPLE: Lord, have mercy. (3)

As the deacon offers the following petition, the choir chants “Lord, have mercy” 40 times, quietly.

DEACON: Again we pray for the protection of this holy church, this city and every city and land, from wrath, famine, pestilence, earthquake, flood, fire, sword, foreign invasions, civil strife, and accidental death, and that our good and loving God may be merciful, gracious and favorable to us by turning and keeping from us all wrath and sickness, and deliver us from His just rebuke, and have mercy on us.

PEOPLE: Lord, have mercy. (3)

DEACON: Again we pray for the blessed and ever- memorable founders of this holy church, and for all our fathers and brethren who have fallen asleep before us, who here have been piously laid to their rest, as well as the Orthodox everywhere.

PEOPLE: Lord, have mercy. (3)

DEACON: Again we pray for those who bear fruit and do good works in this holy and all- venerable church, for those who labor and those who sing, and for the people here present who await Your great and rich mercy.

PEOPLE: Lord, have mercy. (3)

DEACON: Again we pray that the Lord God may hear the prayer of us sinners and have mercy on us. Lord, have mercy. (3)

PRIEST: For You are a merciful God Who loves mankind, and to You we ascribe glory, to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, now and forever and to the ages of ages.

PEOPLE: Amen.

DEACON: Let us pray to the Lord.

PEOPLE: Lord, have mercy.

The Priest, bowing his head, says the following prayer:

PRAYER OF PROTECTION
FROM THE CORONAVIRUS

by Grace Bishop Alexis (Trader) of Bethesda

O God Almighty, Lord of heaven and earth, and of all creation visible and invisible, in Your ineffable goodness, look down upon Your people gathered in Your name. Be our helper and defender in this day of affliction. You know our weakness. You hear our cry in repentance and contrition of heart. O Lord who loves mankind deliver us from the impending threat of the corona virus. Send Your Angel to watch over us and protect us. Grant health and recovery to those suffering from this virus. Guide the hands of physicians, and preserve those who are healthy that we may continue to serve You in peace and glorify Your most honorable and majestic Name, of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, now and forever and to the ages of ages.

PEOPLE: Amen.

DISMISSAL

PRIEST: Glory to You, O God, our Hope. Glory to You.

PEOPLE: Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, both now and ever and to the ages of ages. Amen. Lord, have mercy. (3) Holy Father, give the blessing.

PRIEST:

May Christ our true God, through the inter-

cessions of His all-pure and all-immaculate Holy Mother; the power of the precious and life- giving Cross; the protection of the honorable, bodiless powers of Heaven; the supplications of the honorable, glorious Prophet and Forerunner John the Baptist; of the holy, glorious and praise-worthy Apostles; of the holy, glorious and triumphant Martyrs; of our righteous and God-bearing Fathers; of the holy and righteous ancestors of God Joachim and Anna; of (saint of the day), whose memory we celebrate today; and of all the saints; have mercy on us and save us, for He is good and loves mankind.

PRIEST: Through the prayers of our holy fathers, Lord Jesus Christ, our God, have mercy on us and save us.

PEOPLE: Amen.

SYNAXARION

During the reign of the Emperor Theodosius, the city of Constantinople was shaken by earth- quakes for almost four months. The Emperor, the Patriarch Saint, and the people joined in a barefoot procession to make prayer to God for their safety. While they were gathered, the tremors increased dramatically, and a young boy was lifted up into the sky in the sight of the people, who fearfully cried out, “Lord, have mercy!” When the boy came down from the heavens, he said that he had been among choirs of Angels who sang the hymn: “Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us!”, and that a voice had commanded him to tell the Patriarch that the people should make supplication to God in this way. The Patriarch instructed the people to chant this hymn, whereupon the ground stopped shaking. The Empress Pulcheria asked the Patriarch to order that this hymn be chanted henceforth in the Divine Liturgy, as it still is today.

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* Unbeknownst to many, the Trisagion Hymn has often been chanted during times of catastrophe not unlike that which threatens our world today. In fact, there is even a miracle which took place in the Byzantine Empire during a time of dire need and danger – namely, the threat of earthquake – and which is commemorated every year on the 25th of September. For the edification of the faithful, and to encourage them to chant this hymn especially now at this time of crisis, we include here the account of the Miracle of the Trisagion Hymn.


The Fruits of True Prayer

Prayer is doxology, praise, thanksgiving, confession, supplication and intercession to God. "When I prayed I was new," wrote a great theologian of Christian antiquity, "but when I stopped praying I became old." Prayer is the way to renewal and spiritual life. Prayer is aliveness to God.

~~'ICXC NIKA'/'Jesus Christ Conquers'~~

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