Friday Evening Saturday of Lazarus

LAZARUS SATURDAY Ramsho

INTRODUCTION
DOXOLOGY
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, as we begin and until we conclude.
May mercy and compassion be poured forth upon us
in this world and the next.
O Lord, our God, to you be glory for ever. Amen.

OPENING PRAYER
O God,
may we join in the procession of your elect,
so that we may walk in the path of your teaching.
By your teaching we shall come to you and
be seated at your right hand.
We beseech you in commemoration of your friend,
Lazarus, whom you raised from the dead,
may we always sing of your glory
and praise you, your Father and Holy Spirit,
now and for ever. Amen.

GREETING
Peace be with the Church and her children.

PRAISE OF THE ANGELS

Glory to God in the highest,
and peace on earth and good will to all.

Praise the Lord all you nations,
glorify him all you peoples!

For steadfast is his mercy towards us,
and the truth of the Lord endures for ever.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, now and for ever.
and peace on earth and good will to all.

PSALMODY
FIRST PRAYER
Lord, have mercy on us and save us.
O God,
as we commemorate your friend Lazarus,
fill our hearts with the joy of your Spirit,
that we might proclaim your glory.
Through our faith,
may we know that you alone
are the resurrection of the life.
May we be filled with hope until
you bring us to the kingdom.
May we merit the happiness which you
have prepared for all your holy ones.
With them we shall love you and like them
we shall glorify you for ever. Amen.

PSALM OF THE DAY
Antiphon:
I shall walk before the Lord
in the lands of the living.

Psalm 116: 1-9
I love the Lord because he has heard
my voice in supplication,

Because he has inclined his ear to me
the day I called.

The cords of death encompassed me;
the snares of the nether world seized upon me;
I fell into distress and sorrow,

And I called upon the name of the Lord,
“O Lord, save my life!”

Gracious is the Lord and just;
yes, our God is merciful.

The Lord keeps the little ones;
I was brought low, and he saved me.

Return, O my soul, to your tranquillity,
for the Lord has been good to you.

For he has freed my soul from death,
my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling.

I shall walk before the Lord
in the lands of the living.

I believed, even when I said,
“I am greatly afflicted”,

I said in my alarm,
“No man is dependable.”

How shall I make a return to the Lord
for all the good he has done for me?

The cup of salvation I will take up,
and I will call upon the name of the Lord;

My vows to the Lord I will pay
in the presence of all his people.

Precious in the eyes of the Lord
is the death of his faithful ones.

O Lord, I am your servant;
I am your servant, the son of your handmaid;
you have loosed my bonds.

To you will I offer sacrifice of thanksgiving,
and I will call upon the name of the Lord.

My vows to the Lord I will pay
in the presence of all his people,

In the courts of the house of the Lord,
in your midst, O Jerusalem.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, now and for ever. Amen.

Antiphon:
I shall walk before the Lord
in the lands of the living.

SECOND PRAYER
Lord, have mercy on us and save us.
O God,
be merciful to us whom you have created
in your image and likeness.
Forgive repentant sinners;
on judgment day
raise up believers who rest in your hope.
On this evening of the feast of Lazarus,
may we recall the evening after which
the sun will not shine on the world,
and may we contemplate the sunrise
of your kingdom where the sun will never set.
You are the resurrection and the life,
whoever believes in you will never die, but will live.
We shall praise you who are worthy,
along with your Father and Holy Spirit,
now and for ever. Amen.

EVENING PSALMS
Psalm 141: 1-4
O LORD, to you I call; hasten to me;
hearken to my voice when I call upon you;

Let my prayer come like incense before you;
the lifting up of my hands, like the evening sacrifice.

O LORD, set a watch before my mouth,
a guard at the door of my lips.

Let not my heart incline to the evil
of engaging in deeds of wickedness

With men who are evildoers;
and let me not partake of their dainties.

Psalm 142
With a loud voice I cry out to the LORD;
with a loud voice I beseech the LORD.

My complaint I pour out before him;
before him I lay bare my distress.

When my spirit is faint within me,
you know my path.

In the way along which I walk
they have hid a trap for me.

I look to the right to see,
but there is no one who pays me heed.

I have lost all means of escape;
there is no one who cares for my life.

I cry out to you, O LORD:
I say, “You are my refuge, my portion in the land
of the living.”

Attend to my cry,
for I am brought low indeed.

Rescue me from my persecutors,
for they are too strong for me.

Lead me forth from prison,
that I may give thanks to your name.

The just shall gather around me
when you have been good to me.

Psalm 119: 105-112
A lamp to my feet is your word,
a light to my path.

I resolve and swear
to keep your just ordinances.

I am very much afflicted;
O LORD, give me life according to your word.

Accept, O LORD, the free homage of my mouth,
and teach me your decrees.

Though constantly I take my life in my hands,
yet I forget not your law.

The wicked have laid a snare for me,
but from your precepts I have not strayed.

Your decrees are my inheritance forever;
the joy of my heart they are.

I intend in my heart to fulfill your statutes
always to the letter.

Psalm 117

Praise the LORD, all you nations;
glorify him, all you peoples!

For steadfast is his mercy towards us,
and the truth of the Lord endures for ever.

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, now and for ever. Amen.

HOOSOYO
PROEMION
Praise, glory and honor to the One
who is the Source of life, the Creator of all beings, the origin of all blessings.
He raises the dead and raised Lazarus to new life
with a word from his mouth.
To the Good One is due glory and honor this evening,
and all the days of our life,
now and for ever. Amen.

SEDRO
O God, you created man in your image and likeness;
you adorned your creature with beauty;
by your power you gave him authority over all of creation.
You required only that he love you
with all his heart, all his soul, all his spirit,
and all his strength.

But he disobeyed your commandments and
wanted to dominate the world.
Thus, he fell under the power of death.
This curse touches all of his posterity
and all became sons of perdition,
but your mercy surrounds him with a marvelous act of love.
You descended from the heavens to find him;
you took flesh from the Virgin Mary;
you experienced all things but sin;
you gave him your body as food and your blood as drink, a pledge of resurrection and life:
“whoever eats my body and drinks my blood
has eternal life and I shall raise him up on the last day.”
You showed the truth of this pledge by raising Lazarus from the tomb.
Lazarus is a symbol of Adam:
just as you called the first man to paradise with a word from your mouth,
you called Lazarus from the tomb.
You then said,
“Whoever believes in me, even if he is dead, will live.”
O God,
we thank you for what you have done for us:
for your abasement and incarnation,
for giving us your body and blood.
Though the intercession of your Mother and your saints, we ask you to keep us from eternal death,
and let us share in your resurrection and eternal life.
May we always live with you in the communion of the Trinity, for ever. Amen.

QOLO
Accept, O Lord, our prayers as a pleasing perfume
and have mercy on those who rest in the hope of your resurrection.

After spending four days in the tomb, Lazarus is raised; his sisters, Martha and Mary, rejoice.

The gates of hell are shaken to their foundations,
one hears the voices of fear and trembling:
Now, yes now the power of death is ended.
ETRO
O God,
may we share in the glory of the just ones
who have served you from morning until evening.

Through their intercession,
grant us, the workers who came at the eleventh hour, your glory.
May we share in your resurrection and life,
when we shall praise you for ever. Amen.

READINGS
MAZMOORO
Blessed are you, friend of Christ,
through the power of Christ, you are raised
and through the consolation of Christ, you
consoled your sisters.

Our Lord says: “I am the resurrection and the life;
whoever believes in me, even if he is dead, lives.”

Glory to you, Lord Jesus!
By a word from your mouth, you raised Lazarus
and revealed you are the true resurrection and the life.

SYNAXARION
As the Season of Great Lent draws to a close the Church turns to the person of Lazarus and the story of his resurrection from the dead. Lazarus was the brother of Mary and Martha and lived in the town of Bethany. Lazarus and his sisters were friends of Jesus and always offered him hospitality when he was in the area.
The sickness and death of Lazarus is the occasion for Christ to perform a miracle which would clearly show his messianic power. As a result of this miracle God’s Son would be glorified and his power even over death would be manifested.
This miracle is a crowning of all the other miracles of Christ for it reminds us as we prepare to follow Christ up to Jerusalem, where he will suffer and be crucified, that death has no power over him, the Lord and giver of life. Lazarus Saturday is thus clearly meant to console and strengthen us and arouse in us the same faith that Jesus called forth from Martha:
“I am the resurrection and the life;
whoever believes in me,
though he should die, will come to life;
and whoever is alive and believes in me
will never die.
Do you believe this?”

Even as we face the death of Christ on the cross we are asked to profess our faith in him who will rise to glory on Easter morning.
Lazarus is also a reminder for us that we will not suffer eternal death if we are faithful to him, but rather, we will rise to eternal life in the Lord. Death, for Christ’s faithful, no longer is to be feared, it has no power over us. May Lazarus assist us with his prayers.
Amen.

SCRIPTURE READING
A Reading from the Book of Genesis
Genesis 49: 1-12
Jacob called his sons and said: “Gather around, that I may tell you what is to happen to you in days to come. “Assemble and listen, sons of Jacob, listen to Israel, your father.
“You, Reuben, my first-born, my strength and the first fruit of my manhood, excelling in rank and excelling in power! Unruly as water, you shall no longer excel, for you climbed into your father’s bed and defiled my couch to my sorrow. “Simeon and Levi, brothers indeed, weapons of violence are their knives. Let not my soul enter their council, or my spirit be joined with their company; For in their fury they slew men, in their willfulness they maimed oxen. Cursed be their fury so fierce, and their rage so cruel! I will scatter them in Jacob, disperse them throughout Israel. “You, Judah, shall your brothers praise
— your hand on the neck of your enemies; the sons of your father shall bow down to you.
Judah, like a lion’s whelp, you have grown up on prey, my son. He crouches like a lion recumbent, the king of beasts — who would dare rouse him? The scepter shall never depart from Judah, or the mace from between his legs, While tribute is brought to him, and he receives the peoples’ homage.

He tethers his donkey to the vine, his purebred ass to the choicest stem. In wine he washes his garments, his robe in the blood of grapes. His eyes are darker than wine, and his teeth are whiter than milk.

SUPPLICATION
O Son, by your fast you have saved the Church from error; hear our supplications and have mercy on us.

You reconciled heaven and earth,
grant peace to your Church and keep her children in the light of the cross.

Jesus enters Bethany which is in tears. He goes to the house of Lazarus, his friend. “Your friend has been in the tomb for four days.
If only you had been here, Lord, my brother would not have died.”
Jesus goes to the grotto and orders the stone to be moved.
He than thanks his Father and cries out in a loud voice:
“Lazarus, come out.”

The dead man rises, his hands and feet are wrapped. Jesus orders them to be unbound. Glory to the Father, who sent his Son as life for the world; adoration to the Son, who gives life to the world; thanksgiving to the Spirit, who sanctifies all life. One Trinity, to you be glory for ever.

May Christ who accepted the fasting of our ancestors, accept our fasting and our prayers and have mercy on us.

Exalt, O Lord, the memory of your Mother and your saints; through their prayers grant pardon to us and our deceased. Through the prayers of your Mother, the prophets, apostles and martyrs, watch over the living, and in your mercy, forgive those who have died.

HOOTOMO
Let us confess, adore, and praise the holy and glorious Trinity: Father, Son, + and Holy Spirit.

TRISAGION

Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.

Holy are you, O God;
Holy are you, O Strong One;
Holy are you, O Immortal One;
have mercy on us.

Lord, have mercy on us.
Lord, forgive us and have mercy on us.
Lord, hear us and have mercy on us.
Lord, accept our worship and our prayers.
Lord, come to our assistance and have mercy on us.

LORD’S PRAYER
Our Father, who are in heaven,
hallowed be your name;
your kingdom come;
your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our trespasses
as we forgive those who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power and the glory are yours,
now and for ever. Amen.

O Lord
the night and the day are yours;
you uphold the light and the sun.
Through your power you direct the sequence of the seasons.
O Lord,
you have brought the day to its close and called forth the night.
Be for us that great Day that never ends.
In the evening let your light shine in our hearts,
and in the darkness of the night,
enlighten us with the knowledge of your truth.
And so, through all the days of our lives,
we shall praise you, Father, Son, Holy Spirit.
Amen.

EXAMINATION OF CONSCIENCE
Let us thank God for all the graces he has bestowed on us this day which has passed in calm and peace.
Let us recall our failings against the commandments of God and the Church in thought, word, deed, or omission.

We ask for God’s pardon as we pray.

“Forgive us, Jesus!”

Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.

Glory be to you, O Lord.
Glory be to you, O Lord.
Glory be to you, O Lord.

God,
Father in heaven,
by your living and holy name,
keep us from evil and lead us not into temptation:
for we call upon you, O Lord, our God, our constant hope, glory to you for ever.
O Lord, our Lord,
may our humble worship be pleasing to you;
may our prayers come before you and our actions give
you honor.
Let your mercy, kindness, help, grace and divine love be poured abundantly upon us poor sinners,
both in heaven and on the earth
which you have created in your goodness.
O Lord, our God, to you be glory for ever.
Amen.

DISMISSAL
Peace be with you.
And also with you.

O God,
through the prayers of your Mother and the saints who have believed in you;
through the prayers of the prophets, apostles, martyrs and confessors;
through the prayers of the just, the priests, the holy fathers, the pastors and doctors of true faith;
through the prayers of N., Pope of Rome, N., our Patriarch, and N., our Bishop,
forgive your people and have mercy on your flock.
May God bless, forgive, sanctify, purify, and keep each of the faithful united with us in this spiritual office.
May mercy and compassion be upon us and all the faithful who dwell here.
May peaceful rest be granted to those who have died in the faith.
May the faithful who live here experience the protection of his victorious cross.
May we and all his servants who adore him with bowed head, receive the mercy of the holy and glorious Trinity:
Father, Son, + and Holy Spirit,
to whom be glory now and for ever.
Amen.

May God forgive your sins,
pardon your failings,
and deliver you from the power of the enemy.
May he grant you the remission of your offenses.
Go in peace, and pray to Christ for me.