Sunday Readings

Apostolic Reading – Hebrews 6:13-20

Gospel – Mark 9:17-31

Hymns: See our Church’s website for Audio Recordings: holycrossmelkite.org/hymns



Troparion of the Resurrection (Tone 8)

You descended from on high, O compassionate One, and consented to burial for three days that You might free us from suffering. O Lord, our life and our resurrection, glory to You.

Troparion of the Holy Cross (Tone 1)

O Lord save your people and bless your inheritance, granting peace to the world; and protect your community by the power of your Cross.

Troparion of St. John Climacus (Tone 8)

Your abundant tears made the wilderness to sprout and bloom, and your deep sighs of love made your labors fruitful a hundredfold; you became a shining star showering miracles upon the world. Holy Father John, pray to Christ God that He may save our souls.

Kondakion of the Annunciation (Tone 8)

Triumphant leader to you belongs our prize of victory! And since you saved us from adversity, we offer you, our thanks. We are your people O mother of God! So, as you have that invincible power, continue to deliver us from danger that we may cry out to you Hail, O Virgin and bride ever pure.

Prokimenon

The Lord will give strength to his people; the Lord will bless his people with peace.

Stichon

Give to the Lord. You sons of God, give to the Lord glory and praise.

Reading from the Epistle to St. Paul to the Hebrews (6:13- 20)

Brethren, when God made his promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater to swear by, he swore by himself, saying, “I will surely bless you, and will surely multiply you.” And so, after patient waiting, Abraham obtained the promise. For men swear by one greater than themselves, and an oath given as a guarantee is the final settlement of all their disagreements.  Hence God, meaning to show more abundantly to the heirs of the promise the firmness of his will interposed an oath, so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to deceive, we may have the strongest comfort ― we who have sought refuge in holding fast the hope set before us. This hope we have as a sure and firm anchor of the soul, reaching even behind the veil where our forerunner Jesus has entered for us, as he became a high priest forever according to the order of Melchisedek.

Alleluia

Remember your congregation which you have acquired from the beginning: you redeemed the scepter of your inheritance.

Stichon

God is our King forever: he brought about salvation in the midst of the earth.

The Holy Gospel According to St. Mark (9:17-31)

At that time one of the crowds came to Jesus and bowed to him saying: “Master, I have brought to you my son, who has a dumb spirit; and whenever it seizes him it throws him down, and he foams and grinds his teeth; and he is wasting away. And I told your disciples to cast it out, but they could not.” And he, answering him, said, “O unbelieving generation, how long shall I be with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring him to me.” And they brought him to him; and the spirit, when it saw Jesus, immediately threw the boy in convulsions, and he fell down on the ground and rolled about foaming at the mouth. So, he asked his father, “How long is it since this has come upon him?” And he said, “From his infancy. Oftentimes, it has thrown him into the fire and into the waters to destroy him. But if you can do anything have compassion on us and help us.” But Jesus said to him, “If you can believe, all things are possible to the man of faith.” At once the father of the boy cried out and said with tears, “I do believe; help my unbelief.” Now when Jesus saw that a crowd was rapidly gathering, he rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, “You deaf and dumb spirit, I command you, go out of him and enter him no more.” And crying out and violently convulsing him, it went out of him, and he became like one dead, so that many said, “He is dead.” But Jesus took him by the hand, and raised him and he stood up. And when he had come into the house, his disciples asked him privately, “Why could we not cast it out?” And he said to them, “This kind can be cast out in no way except by prayer and fasting.” And leaving that place, they were passing through Galilee, and he did not wish anyone to know it. For he was teaching his disciples, and saying to them, “The Son of Man is to be betrayed into the hands of men, and they will kill him; and having been killed, he will rise again on the third day.”