Saint John the Apostle and Evangelist

After the usual beginning, we say:

KONTAKIA and OIKOI:

Kontakion 1

Come, all Christian peoples, let us praise the "Son of Thunder," the Apostle and Evangelist John, who wrote and thundered divine dogmas throughout the whole world; to him with faith and piety from the heart let us cry: Rejoice, lover of virginity, John the Apostle, beloved of God!

Oikos 1

The seer of heavenly mysteries, the most pure vessel of virginity, who at the Mystical Supper leaned on the breast of Jesus and was filled from the fountain of the wisdom of the Infinite One, let us all praise, lovers of Christ, and with longing cry out to him thus:

• Rejoice, you who cast away the care of the world;
• Rejoice, you who followed Christ with great love;
• Rejoice, you who from fishing were called to Christ;
• Rejoice, you who with the net of the word drew the peoples;
• Rejoice, for the thunder of your theology was heard throughout the world;
• Rejoice, for you honored your virginal life;
• Rejoice, for because of your blameless life you were loved by the Word of Life;
• Rejoice, most luminous pillar of the Church;
• Rejoice, beloved disciple of Christ;
• Rejoice, for Christ showed you all the great wonders;
• Rejoice, for He entrusted to you the most high mysteries;
• Rejoice, lover of virginity, John the Apostle, beloved of God!

Kontakion 2

On Mount Tabor you saw the glory of Christ, as much as it is possible for man to see, and from the mystical revelation, understanding that He is the Master of death and life, from the heart you sang to Him praise: Alleluia!

Oikos 2

As a most beloved disciple and a most honored friend of Christ, you are always near Him and always love Him from the heart; for which we also praise you and say:

• Rejoice, for at the resurrection of Jairus' daughter you were called by the Lord;
• Rejoice, for at the Lord's crucifixion you stood by His cross;
• Rejoice, for at the awesome mysteries of Christ's Passion you also suffered with your heart;
• Rejoice, for you beheld the Passion of the Lord and Master of Life with a heart full of sorrow;
• Rejoice, for you followed the Lord even to His death;
• Rejoice, for the Lord spoke to you from the cross;
• Rejoice, for He called you the son of His Mother;
• Rejoice, for the Lord entrusted to you His Holy Mother;
• Rejoice, for you took the Most Holy Theotokos for protection and care;
• Rejoice, for at her honored Dormition you served with great piety;
• Rejoice, for you carried the branch brought to her by the Archangel Gabriel before the coffin of the All-Holy One;
• Rejoice, lover of virginity, John the Apostle, beloved of God!

Kontakion 3

After the Dormition of the Most Holy Mother of God and Ever-Virgin Mary, together with your disciple Prochorus, you went to Asia and there preached the word of the Lord and taught all who believed to sing to God: Alleluia!

Oikos 3

Foreseeing with the eyes of your mind the temptations and dangers that awaited you on the path of preaching the Gospel, through fervent faith and love of God you dared to overcome the sorrow and grief that hindered your choice; for this we bless you and say:

• Rejoice, for you preached the word of the Lord in Asia;
• Rejoice, for you endured many dangers and many afflictions for the confession of the truth;
• Rejoice, for together with your disciple Prochorus you entered Ephesus of Asia;
• Rejoice, for there you baptized Romana with all her household;
• Rejoice, for you raised Dominus by the power of Christ;
• Rejoice, for you restored to life Dioscorides, the father of Dominus;
• Rejoice, for through these miracles you turned many to Christ;
• Rejoice, for you also raised three hundred other dead people;
• Rejoice, for you healed the paralytic of twelve years;
• Rejoice, for through other prayers you cast down the temple of Artemis from its foundation;
• Rejoice, for at the fall of the temple no man was harmed;
• Rejoice, for by the command of the emperor Domitian you went bound to Rome;
• Rejoice, lover of virginity, John the Apostle, beloved of God!

Kontakion 4

Being greatly inflamed with the fire of Christ's love, the tyrant emperor's command did not frighten you, but with great joy receiving chains for the Lord, from the heart you praised Him, singing: Alleluia!

Oikos 4

The young soldiers bound you with chains and fetters, leading you to the ship under their guard, to Rome, where you went and submitted with meekness and peace to the providence of your sweet Jesus, for which we also praise you, saying:

• Rejoice, for through the bonds of tyrants you were made like your Master;
• Rejoice, for He, for our salvation, was seized and bound by the lawless;
• Rejoice, for you behaved with great love toward the pagan and tyrant soldiers;
• Rejoice, for you foretold the storm of the sea that was to come;
• Rejoice, for in that journey you terrified all on the ship with your miracles;
• Rejoice, for you always had Christ in your heart;
• Rejoice, for by His power you performed great miracles;
• Rejoice, for the icon of Christ's life was very much formed in you;
• Rejoice, for you loved Him with all your heart;
• Rejoice, for on the path of sufferings you followed Him with great desire;
• Rejoice, for desiring His love, you journeyed to torments with joy;
• Rejoice, for the power of the Lord always supported you, His beloved disciple;
• Rejoice, lover of virginity, John the Apostle, beloved of God!

Kontakion 5

You calmed, O God-speaker, the terrible storm of the sea with your holy prayers. And seeing this miracle, all those on the ship were greatly terrified, recognizing the power of the True God that was in you; and you urged all to sing to God: Alleluia!

Oikos 5

To the island of Patmos, by the command of the pagan emperor Domitian, you were exiled, for there, by the good providence of God, you came for the benefit of many, for which we also with piety praise you thus:

• Rejoice, for you were bound with chains by the tyrant soldiers;
• Rejoice, for under the guard of soldiers you journeyed to Patmos with your disciple Prochorus;
• Rejoice, for on that journey you raised the drowned young man by prayer;
• Rejoice, for with this miracle you terrified all;
• Rejoice, for you also calmed the storm of the sea with your prayer;
• Rejoice, for you healed the sick soldier;
• Rejoice, for you also sweetened the sea water with your prayer;
• Rejoice, for you delivered from death the one dying of thirst on the ship;
• Rejoice, for you preached the Gospel of Christ on the island of Patmos;
• Rejoice, for you made Christians of Myron and all his household;
• Rejoice, for you also cast down the temple of Apollo to the ground with your word;
• Rejoice, for you showed the demonic power of the sorcerer Kynops to be powerless;
• Rejoice, lover of virginity, John the Apostle, beloved of God!

Kontakion 6

At the call of the proconsul, you eased his wife who was suffering greatly in childbirth, merely by crossing their threshold. And seeing this miracle, the proconsul and his household believed in Christ and gave glory to God, singing: Alleluia!

Oikos 6

Spending three years in this place and going to a city whose inhabitants were very darkened by idol worship, you labored greatly for the preaching of the word, to their astonishment, and thus brought a great multitude to Christ; therefore, with longing we praise you thus:

• Rejoice, for you enlightened the inhabitants of that city with the word of truth;
• Rejoice, for you delivered from death the young men bound for sacrifice to the devil;
• Rejoice, for you bound and questioned the devil in the form of a wolf;
• Rejoice, for by the power of Christ you drove him out of that island;
• Rejoice, for you raised the son of the priest of Zeus;
• Rejoice, for you cast down the temple of the idol Dionysus with prayer;
• Rejoice, for you conquered the sorcerer Nukian;
• Rejoice, for you also withered the hand of the proconsul;
• Rejoice, for through the withering of the hand, the proconsul knew the True God;
• Rejoice, for Prochiana, believing in Christ, was baptized;
• Rejoice, lover of virginity, John the Apostle, beloved of God!

Kontakion 7

Before returning to Ephesus, you wrote for those on the island of Patmos the Gospel of Christ and the awesome visions of the Apocalypse, and the multitude of believers there kept what was written for their enlightenment and salvation, as the very words of Christ, and for the wealth of the doctrines in them, they gave glory to God, singing: Alleluia!

Oikos 7

The beginning of your Gospel remained as the beginning of the most high doctrines of the Church of Christ, for you confessed the Word of God as having become incarnate and dwelt among men. Marveling then, as is fitting, at the spiritual height of your wisdom, we praise you saying thus:

• Rejoice, for you confessed the Word of God as true God;
• Rejoice, for you confessed that the Word was with God from the beginning;
• Rejoice, for you showed that nothing that is made was made without Him;
• Rejoice, for the mystery of the Incarnation of the Word is shown to be above all mysteries;
• Rejoice, for truly the mystery of the Incarnation of the Word surpasses all mysteries;
• Rejoice, for you ascended with a mind beyond cataphatic theology;
• Rejoice, for you honored with awe and wonder the things incomprehensible to your mind;
• Rejoice, for you preached to the world, in an apophatic manner, the Mystery of the Incarnation of the Word;
• Rejoice, for no human has interpreted the mystery of the Word's becoming man;
• Rejoice, for the mystery of the Economy of God always remains a mystery;
• Rejoice, lover of virginity, John the Apostle, beloved of God!

Kontakion 8

You showed most brilliantly in your teaching that the Law and the Prophets dwell in the commandment of love for God and love for neighbor. Therefore, as an Apostle of Christian love, the whole Church of Christ praises you and sings to God: Alleluia!

Oikos 8

You said, O divine Apostle of Christ, that God is love, and that he who abides in love abides in God and God in him, thereby showing us the highest things of the Law of Grace, for which, as is fitting, we say to you:

• Rejoice, for you called God love;
• Rejoice, for you taught us to love God, Who first loved us;
• Rejoice, for from you we have known the love of God;
• Rejoice, for you said: He who has love is born of God;
• Rejoice, for you showed us His words, that he who hates his brother is a murderer;
• Rejoice, for your teaching urges us to love and guards us from hatred;
• Rejoice, for you showed God's love toward the world;
• Rejoice, for I have learned love of neighbor from you;
• Rejoice, for you said that God loved us;
• Rejoice, for according to your testimony, God, out of love for the world, sent His beloved Son into the world;
• Rejoice, for according to your testimony, out of His love for us He suffered death;
• Rejoice, for rightly has the Church of Christ called you the Apostle of love;
• Rejoice, lover of virginity, John the Apostle, beloved of God!

Kontakion 9

Lover of virginity and lover of God, beloved Apostle and Evangelist John, the Lord revealed to you great and awesome mysteries, because you lived a blameless life and loved Him with all your heart and in your heart sang to Him thus: Alleluia!

Oikos 9

Your pure mind, being in awe and being caught up by the Holy Spirit on a Sunday, ascended to your higher work and the great mystery was revealed to you from the Alpha and Omega, for which we honor you and say to you thus:

• Rejoice, for on the island of Patmos you saw the Lord among seven lampstands;
• Rejoice, for you received great revelations from Him;
• Rejoice, for you received from Him the command to write;
• Rejoice, for writing to the seven Churches, you fulfilled the Lord's command;
• Rejoice, for the glory of the Throne of Christ was revealed to you;
• Rejoice, for in spirit you beheld the twenty-four elders;
• Rejoice, for you also saw the book with seven seals;
• Rejoice, for you beheld the opening of that book;
• Rejoice, for the mystery of the seven seals was revealed to you;
• Rejoice, for the number of the virgins was symbolically shown to you, lover of virginity;
• Rejoice, for you saw seven angels and seven trumpets before God;
• Rejoice, for at the trumpeting of the first angels, fire and blood fell upon the earth;
• Rejoice, lover of virginity, John the Apostle, beloved of God!

Kontakion 10

God, the All-Holy and All-Pure, poured out from His Spirit into you, chosen vessel of virginity, and deemed you worthy of the revelation of the most high mysteries, for which we also praise you and sing to God: Alleluia!

Oikos 10

You became a most chosen Church of God, through your innocent and blameless life, for the measuring of the Church and the Altar of God was mysteriously entrusted to you; receive, we pray, even from us, the humble, these hymns:

• Rejoice, for you measured the Church and the Altar in heaven, in the revelation;
• Rejoice, for you took the court of the Church for the entry of the Gentiles;
• Rejoice, for you announced to the world the persecution of the Church by the Antichrist;
• Rejoice, for you revealed to the world the beast with seven heads and ten horns;
• Rejoice, for the time of the beast's rule was not hidden from you;
• Rejoice, for you mysteriously showed the Church the name of the beast;
• Rejoice, for you clearly saw the beast with horns like a lamb;
• Rejoice, for the Lord also showed you the final harvest;
• Rejoice, for the great winepress of the Lord's wrath was also revealed to you;
• Rejoice, for you announced to the world the seven angels with the seven bowls of God's wrath;
• Rejoice, for the mystery of great Babylon was revealed to you;
• Rejoice, lover of virginity, John the Apostle, beloved of God!

Kontakion 11

The great joy and gladness of the wedding of the Lamb of God was revealed to you by the Holy Spirit, and you heard from the heavenly powers the song of victory over the beast, who sang with thunderous voices glory to Christ God: Alleluia!

Oikos 11

You, the beloved disciple of Christ, honored the words of the divine Scriptures by your deeds. Therefore God also deemed your mind worthy of the vision of heavenly mysteries and shone it with most deep understanding. For which we, who are weak in understanding good things, praise you:

• Rejoice, for your mind was enlightened by the Holy Spirit;
• Rejoice, for in your vision you saw the dragon bound;
• Rejoice, for you clearly saw the Last Judgment in a vision;
• Rejoice, for in your vision you saw the heavenly Jerusalem, its eternal inheritor;
• Rejoice, for you saw the Bride of the Lamb adorned;
• Rejoice, for you showed your city to be most radiant with twelve foundations and twelve gates;
• Rejoice, for that city had twelve pearls instead of gates;
• Rejoice, for its gates of pearl shone most beautifully;
• Rejoice, for one of these gates mysteriously prefigured you;
• Rejoice, for you also saw the foundations of the city of precious stone;
• Rejoice, for the Lord made you one of the twelve foundations of that city;
• Rejoice, lover of virginity, John the Apostle, beloved of God!

Kontakion 12

You saw, O Apostle beloved of God, the pure and clear river like crystal of the Water of Life flowing from the Throne of God and of the Lamb, for which we, the unworthy, honor the things mysteriously shown to you and sing to God: Alleluia!

Oikos 12

Truly, Christ is the Tree of Life and of eternal immortality, for through Him the human race, long dead through the transgression of the commandments, came into being; all the peoples of the earth glorify Him, but they bless you, His beloved disciple, singing thus:

• Rejoice, for you also were one of the mystical fruits of the Tree of Life;
• Rejoice, for you saw Christ as the Tree of Life with twelve fruits;
• Rejoice, for you also became a tree of life, after partaking of grace;
• Rejoice, for through your preaching many believed in Christ;
• Rejoice, for through your preaching many heard the Word of Life;
• Rejoice, for through preaching the Gospel you fed many with the bread of life;
• Rejoice, for through preaching the Word you watered many with the Water of Life;
• Rejoice, for through the knowledge of Christ, the Tree of Life, the nations were healed of the wound of death;
• Rejoice, for you sprang from the root of the Tree of Life;
• Rejoice, for the root of the Tree of Life nourished you;
• Rejoice, for with the Grace of Christ, you brought forth fruit a hundredfold to the Tree of Life;
• Rejoice, lover of virginity, John the Apostle, beloved of God!

Kontakion 13

O divine Apostle and Evangelist of Christ, John, who was greatly loved by the Lord and deemed worthy of the vision of the most high mysteries from Him, with your holy prayers help us, that on the great day of the Last Judgment we may receive mercy and forgiveness of sins from our Lord Jesus Christ, Who is the Alpha and the Omega, to Whom let us sing praise thus: Alleluia! (this kontakion is said three times)

Then again the First Oikos is said

The seer of heavenly mysteries, the most pure vessel of virginity, who at the Mystical Supper leaned on the breast of Jesus and was filled from the fountain of the wisdom of the Infinite One, let us all praise, lovers of Christ, and with longing cry out to him thus:

• Rejoice, you who cast away the care of the world;
• Rejoice, you who followed Christ with great love;
• Rejoice, you who from fishing were called to Christ;
• Rejoice, you who with the net of the word drew the peoples;
• Rejoice, for the thunder of your theology was heard throughout the world;
• Rejoice, for you honored your virginal life;
• Rejoice, for because of your blameless life you were loved by the Word of Life;
• Rejoice, most luminous pillar of the Church;
• Rejoice, beloved disciple of Christ;
• Rejoice, for Christ showed you all the great wonders;
• Rejoice, for He entrusted to you the most high mysteries;
• Rejoice, lover of virginity, John the Apostle, beloved of God!

And the First Kontakion Come, all Christian peoples, let us praise the "Son of Thunder," the Apostle and Evangelist John, who wrote and thundered divine dogmas throughout the whole world; to him with faith and piety from the heart let us cry: Rejoice, lover of virginity, John the Apostle, beloved of God!

After this is said this:

PRAYER

With faith, love, and piety, from the heart we come to you, O Holy Apostle and Evangelist John, divinely-speaking and most beloved friend of Christ, and with all humility we beseech you to help us, the unworthy, with your holy and all-powerful prayers, to pass with peace and consolation over all the turbulent waves of this present age and not to fall into the most crafty traps and snares of evil men and cunning devils. To you, O eagle flying most high in theology, we pray to intercede for us with the Most Merciful God and our Savior, Jesus Christ, that He may enlighten with His Grace our minds darkened by passions, that we also may receive the wisdom that is from the Spirit of God and know the doctrines of the right faith and the wonders in His Law, and work according to our power on the things we shall understand. To you, the most beloved disciple of Christ, who preached to the world the love of God and love of neighbor, we pray to help us with your intercession with the Lord, that we also, through the Grace of God, may come to love God with all our heart, with all our mind, and with all our strength, and our neighbor as ourselves. To you, the most pure vessel of virginity, we set as intercessor with the Most Good God, that through His help and mercy He may deliver us from the fierce wars of anger and bodily lusts, as well as from the flood of unclean thoughts, which ever spring from the heart and, like clouds of darkness scattering from the deep, darken our mind to the destruction of our souls. To you, O most blessed disciple and apostle, who was called by the Lord son of His Most Holy and Most Pure Mother, and served Her until Her departure from this world, we fall down with all humility and contrition of our hearts, that together with the Most Pure Mother of God and Ever-Virgin Mary, who is the Mother of the Lord, your Mother and the Mother of us all who have believed in Christ, you may intercede for us with our Most Sweet Savior, that through His mercy and compassion He may not abandon us all the days of our life, nor at the hour of our end, when we shall stand before Him and He will judge us. Amen.