The liturgical readings, prayers and hymns
The service in the Orthodox church consists of various readings, prayers and hymns, which are bound to one another by a quite definite rule, the typikon.
The readings are of the following kinds: the Gospel reading, the reading of the Apostle, the prophetic readings (readings from the books of the Old Testament), the sermons of the holy fathers.
The prayers are of the following kinds:
The secret prayer — such prayers the priest says silently.
The common prayers — these prayers are said by every person in the morning, before sleep, before dinner, before beginning any task, before a journey, and on other occasions.
The exclamation — this is the name of the short prayer which a priest or hierarch says aloud, in distinction from the secret prayer. (Only a hierarch and a priest have the right to say an exclamation.) For example: “For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto ages of ages,” “Let us lift up our hearts,” “Let us give thanks unto the Lord,” “Let us love one another, that with one mind we may confess,” and so on. Most exclamations are followed by the choir's “Amen” or by some hymn.
The troparion — together with the kontakion it is the chief prayer of a given feast (or saint), by which we ask the intercession (the help, the advocacy) of the saints before God. In Georgian the troparion is called “okhita.” Their index is placed in the book called the Horologion. Certain verses of a canon are also called troparia.
The kontakion — together with the troparion it is the chief prayer of a given feast (or saint); it is read after the troparion and is included in the Hours (the First, Third, Sixth and Ninth Hours, and also in the canon, before the oikos). (The Hours are one of the kinds of service.)
The canon — a set of 9 odes. Each ode contains five verses (or more). Each canon is dedicated to some feast or saint. There are general and particular canons. In the general canons (hymns) this or that rank of saints is praised and glorified. For example, there is a canon dedicated to the archangels, and ones dedicated to the venerable fathers, to the martyrs, to the hierarchs and to others. Into these we can insert the name of this or that saint (according to their rank), and we can use this canon to glorify that saint. For example, the canon dedicated to the apostles we may sing both for the glorification of the apostles Peter and Paul and for the glorification of Andrew the First-called, John the Theologian, St Nino, King Mirian and the other apostles, and of others equal to the apostles as well. The particular canons, however, are dedicated to a quite definite feast or saint.
The heirmos — the first verse of each ode of the canon. The second and third verses of each ode of the canon are called troparia.
The triadikon — the next-to-last verse of each ode of the canon (or of some other prayer or hymn), in which we sing to the most holy Trinity — the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Before the verse of the “triadikon” the insertion is always said: “Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.”
The theotokion — the last verse of every hymn (including the odes of the canon), which is dedicated to the Mother of God. Before this verse it is always said: “Both now and ever, and unto ages of ages, amen.”
The katavasia — the concluding verse of each ode of the canon (that is, the “covering” one). Heirmoi are used as katavasiai (sometimes of the same canon, sometimes of another).
The litany — a series of short prayers said by the deacon, to which the choir answers now “Lord, have mercy,” now “Grant it, O Lord,” now “To Thee, O Lord.”
The kinds of litany are these: the small litany (it has three petitions and an exclamation); the great litany (it has 7–8 petitions or more); the litany of supplication (unlike the great and small litanies, the choir answers some of its petitions, besides “Lord, have mercy,” with “Grant it, O Lord”); the augmented litany (to each petition the choir answers with a threefold “Lord, have mercy”). The litany for the departed is of two kinds: small and augmented. The difference between them is that the first begins with “Again and again,” and the second with “Have mercy on us”; and to the petitions of the first the choir answers with a single “Lord, have mercy” (in a minor mode), and to the petitions of the second with a threefold one.
The oikos — a long verse, which is read in the canon after the sixth ode, together with the canon. The long verses of an akathist are also called oikoi (the verses of an akathist are also called hypakoai).
The hypakoe — a prayer read at Matins after the Beatitudes (after the 19th kathisma).
The antiphon — a prayer of several verses, read at Matins after the hypakoe.
The aghsavlebi (or antiphons) — this is the name of the first three hymns of the Liturgy, which coincide with the first three prayers of the Typika. The feasts of the Lord have their own particular aghsavlebi.
The exapostilarion — a prayer of three verses read at Matins (after the canon).
The “geri” — a small Matins prayer, which is included in the stichera on the Praises (as the next-to-last verse). It is also read during the all-night vigil, after the Gospel, in place of “Jesus is risen from the tomb.”
The psalms — the hymns of the king of the Hebrews and prophet David; at the services they are read more abundantly than all other prayers.
The stichologia (Greek, “the reading of verses”) — the reading of some one kathisma of the Psalter is meant.
The stichera — a set of prayers which are inserted into the last verses of this or that long prayer. For example, at “Lord, I have cried,” at the aposticha, at the “Praise ye,” and others.
The prokeimenon — two small verses, which are read alternately by the deacon and the choir (or by the psalm-reader and the choir) in the following way:
Deacon: the first verse. Choir: the first verse. Deacon: the second verse. Choir: the second verse. Deacon: half of the first verse. Choir: finishes the first verse.
There are prokeimena of the day, of the tone, of the saint, of the feast, and particular ones (performed at church services).
Besides the two-verse prokeimenon there are also great (four-verse) prokeimena.
The “ganitsade” (the communion verse) — a small hymn which is sung in the last part of the Liturgy.
The verses of the alleluiarion — two small verses which are joined to the reading of the Apostle; after these verses the choir sings “Alleluia” (three times).
The akathist — a long hymn which consists of kontakia and oikoi read alternately. The kontakion is a prayer of small size, the oikos a longer one. In an akathist there is one introductory kontakion, 12 other kontakia, and into them 12 oikoi are inserted. Each oikos consists of an introductory part and 12 “Rejoice”s. The thirteenth “Rejoice” is a repetition of the ending of the introductory kontakion. The other kontakia end with the word “Alleluia.”
Used as hymns are: selected prayers (of the Saviour, of the Mother of God, of Symeon the God-receiver, and others), the songs of the angels (“Holy God,” “Glory to God in the highest”), the heirmoi and katavasiai, the troparion, the kontakion, the aghsavali, the prokeimenon, the alleluia, the communion verse, the litanies, and various insertions (refrains).
