Festal Prayers to the Most Holy Theotokos
O most holy Theotokos, look down with compassion upon the lowly prayers of us sinners, and entreat thy Son to grant health of soul and body to all who flee to thee, and all that is needful for our eternal and this temporal life; to forgive us all our sins, voluntary and involuntary, and to deliver us from all sorrows and sicknesses, from every assault and every evil circumstance.
O our all-good Lady, our unshakeable hope and invincible intercessor! Turn not away thy face from us for our many transgressions, but stretch out to us the hand of thy motherly compassion and send down upon us a sign for good. Show forth thy rich mercies and show thy goodness with good speed in every deed; turn us away from every beginning of sin and from evil thoughts, that we may glorify thine all-holy name and venerate thy precious icon, and glorify God the Father and His only-begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit, with all the saints, unto the ages of ages. Amen.
O Lady Mother of God, most glorious Mother of bounty and love for mankind, compassionate intercessor for all the world: we thy servants, falling down and fleeing to thy divine mediation, and calling with compunction before thine all-wonderworking icon, entreat thee: fervently entreat thy Son and our God, O all-hymned Lady, that through thee He deliver us from all sicknesses and sorrows, free us from all sins and show us heirs of His heavenly kingdom. Great and ineffable boldness hast thou before Him, as His Mother, and thou canst do all that thou willest, O only good and blessed one. Amen.
To whom shall I cry, to whom shall I flee in my sorrow, if not to thee, O Queen of heaven? Who will hear my lament and receive my sighs, if not thou, O most pure one, hope of Christians and haven of us sinners? Who will guard us in our afflictions more than thou? Hear our sighs and incline thine ear to me, O Lady and Mother of my God; disdain not me who seek thy help, and turn not away from me, a sinner, O Queen of heaven! Teach me to fulfil the will of thy Son, and grant me zeal ever to follow His holy commandments; forsake me not for my sighs in sickness, toil and affliction, but be to me, the faint-hearted, a mother and protector, O my all-good Lady, intercessor for all; cover my transgressions by thy mediation, and guard me from enemies visible and invisible; soften the hearts of those who war against me and warm them with the love of Christ; and to me, the weak, grant thine almighty help to overcome my sinful habits, that, cleansed by repentance and walking in a life of good works, in communion with the holy Church, I may pass the remaining days of this my earthly sojourn. Stand by me, O hope of all Christians, and strengthen my faith at the dread hour of my death. Raise thine almighty prayers for me, a great sinner, in this life and at the hour of my departure, that the Lord may justify me and make me a partaker of His unending joy. Amen. The Annunciation of the Most Holy Theotokos — 25 March (7 April): Prayer 1, Prayer 2. The Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos — 15 (28) August: Prayer
Accept, O all-good helper, most holy Lady, this precious gift offered to thee alone by us thine unworthy servants, O thou chosen out of all generations, shown forth higher than all creatures of heaven and earth; for through thee the Lord of hosts hath been with us, through thee we have known the Son of God, and have been counted worthy of His holy Body and His precious Blood. Wherefore blessed art thou from generation to generation, O God-blessed one, more radiant than the Cherubim, more honourable than the Seraphim. And now, O all-hymned Theotokos and Virgin, cease not to pray for us thine unworthy servants, that we may be delivered from every evil counsel and every surrounding passion, and kept unharmed from every devouring snare of the demons; but keep us unto the end by thy supplication, that, saved by thy mediation and help, we may send up glory, praise, thanksgiving and worship, in all things and for all things, to the Holy Trinity and Creator of all, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
Falling down before thee, the most holy Mother of God, we entreat thee: thou seest, O Lady, how boundlessly I sin and anger thy Son and my God; and though I repent many times, I turn again to falsehood before God; and when I hasten to repentance, that the Lord may not punish me accordingly, again after a short time I commit worse. Seeing all this, why dost thou not have mercy on me, my Lady, most holy Theotokos? Why dost thou not strengthen me, and why dost thou not grant me always to do good works? From this time forth make known to me truly, O Lady, how I may hate my evil deeds and love the divine law of my God with all my mind. I know not, O Lady Theotokos, how I do and accomplish the very thing that I hate. But, O most holy one, let me not do my own will, which is unprofitable, but let the will of thy Son and my God be done in me, that from this time forth I may no longer do defiled things, and hereafter may be saved according to the will of thy Son, to whom is due all glory, honour, worship and majesty, together with His unoriginate Father and His all-holy, good and life-giving Spirit, both now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
O most holy Theotokos and Virgin, O Lady higher than the angels and archangels and more honourable than all creation; greatest wonder of the angels, highest proclamation of the prophets, most glorious praise of the apostles, renowned adornment of the hierarchs, unshakeable strength of the martyrs, saving guide of monastics, unfailing helper of those who fast, purity and glory of virgins, quiet gladness of mothers, instructor and corrector of children, nourisher of widows and orphans, clothing of the naked, healing of the sick, deliverer of captives, calm of those at sea, untroubled haven of the storm-tossed, firm road of travellers, good rest of the weary, swift intercessor of those in affliction, shelter and haven of the oppressed, hope of the hopeless, helper of the afflicted, inexhaustible wealth of the destitute, constant consoler of the sorrowful, loving receiver of the hated, saviour of sinners who leadest them to God, firm wall of all the right-believing, invincible help and mediation: through thee, O Lady, the Invisible became visible, and to thee we thy sinful servants offer our supplication.
O all-merciful and all-wonderworking Lady, Mother of the spiritual Light, who gavest birth to the King, Christ our God, the Giver of life to all; magnified by those of heaven and praised by those of earth; understanding of the angels, morning star of dawning rays, holier than the holy, Queen of queens, Ruler of all creation, divinely radiant Maiden, undefiled Bride, palace of the all-holy Spirit, fiery throne of the invisible King, heavenly ark, bearer of the Word of God, chariot of fiery aspect, resting-place of the living God, ineffable portion of the flesh of Christ, nest of the heavenly eagle, turtledove of many songs, innocent dove, gentle and meek, child-loving mother, abyss of mercy, dispeller of the clouds of God’s wrath, measureless depth, ineffable mystery, unsearchable in wonders, Church not made with hands of the only King of all ages, censer of sweet fragrance, precious robe, God-woven purple, spiritual paradise, plant of the life-giving garden, beautiful flower that maketh heavenly gladness spring forth for us, rod of our salvation, chalice of the heavenly King, in which was mingled the wine of the inexhaustible grace of the Holy Spirit, advocate of the law, planter of the true faith of Christ; unshakeable pillar, drowner of heretics, sword of God’s wrath raised against those who fight against God, terror of the demons, victor in battles, sure protector of all Christians and renowned saviour of the whole world!
O all-merciful Virgin Theotokos, hearken to us thy suppliants and show forth thy mercy upon thy people; entreat thy Son to free us from all evil, and preserve the monasteries, cities and lands of the righteous, and all men who in piety flee to thee and call upon thy holy name, from every assault, from slaughter and famine, from burning and ruin, from fire and sword, from invasion of foreign peoples and from civil war, from every sickness and calamity; that thy people may not flee to thee in wounds, nor in fear, nor in affliction, nor under any of the wrath of God that justly cometh upon them; but preserve and save them by thy mercy, O Lady; entreat for them, and grant us seasonable weather at the time of harvest. Relieve us, raise us up and have mercy on us, O all-merciful Lady Theotokos, most hymned, all of us who are in every trial and affliction. Remember thy servants, and disregard not our tears and sighs, and renew us by the grace of thy mercy, that, consoled, we may gain thee as our helper with thankfulness. Be merciful, O most holy Lady, to thy weak people, O our hope. Gather the scattered, set the erring on the way of truth, turn back those who have fallen away from the faith of our fathers, strengthen old age, give understanding to the young, bring up the children, magnify those who magnify thee, and keep the Church of thy Son in honour and shelter it for many days.
O merciful and most merciful Lady of heaven and earth, Theotokos, Ever-Virgin! By thine intercession have mercy on all Orthodox Christians; shelter them under the protection of thy mercy; preserve them with thy protection, and entreat Christ our God, who took flesh of thee without seed, that He shelter us by power from on high from all our enemies visible and invisible, of foreign and of our own race, who have risen up against us and against our Orthodox faith. Save and have mercy, O Lady, on the most holy and most blessed Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia and Metropolitan of Bichvinta and Tskhum-Abkhazia, the great lord, our father Ilia; the most reverend Metropolitans, Archbishops and Bishops, the honourable priests and deacons and all the ranks of the Church, and all the Orthodox people who venerate thee and pray before thy precious icon. Look upon us all with the merciful eye of thy mediation; raise us up from the depths of sin, and enlighten the eyes of our hearts to see salvation; be merciful to us here and at the dread judgement of thy Son, and entreat Him for us.
Number thy servants who have departed this world in faith among the angels and archangels and all the saints in life eternal, that they may stand at the right hand of thy Son and God; and make all Orthodox Christians worthy of life with Christ and of blessedness in the heavenly mansions with the angels, in joy. For thou, O Lady, art the glory of those in heaven and the hope of those on earth; thou art the hope and intercessor of all who flee to thee and entreat thy holy help; for thou art a fervent suppliant before thy Son and our God; thy motherly prayer availeth much, that the King may have mercy on us; and through thy mediation before the throne of grace we dare to approach to receive His all-holy and life-giving Mysteries, though we are not worthy to receive them. Wherefore, beholding thy most precious icon and the Almighty depicted upon it, whom thou bearest in thine arms, we sinners rejoice, and falling down with compunction we kiss it with love, and we have hope, O Lady, that through thy prayer acceptable to God we shall attain to the unending heavenly life and stand unashamed at the right hand of thy Son and God, glorifying Him, together with His unoriginate Father and His all-holy, good, life-giving and consubstantial Spirit, unto the ages of ages. Amen.
