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The Triodion A Time of Preparation The Triodion Period is the period of time in our Orthodox...
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Transcript of The Triodion A Time of Preparation The Triodion Period is the period of time in our Orthodox...
The Triodion A Time of Preparation
The Triodion Period is the period of time in our Orthodox Liturgical year that encompasses 3 segments of time, that of the Pre-Lenten cycle, of Great Lent itself and of Holy Week.
The word "Triodion" literally means "3
odes" referring to a series of hymns that
are sung, but also applying to the 3
segments of time and the associated
observances in each of these time
segments.
The Triodion Period begins on the 4th Sunday before Great Lent.
During the church services, "The Triodion" is used which contains special readings and hymns. The book is used during Pre-Lenten, through Lent, Holy Week, up until Holy Saturday night.
There is a special service known as "The Saturday of Souls" that are observed in which we commemorate and remember our departed relatives.
Two of these services are held during the Pre-Lenten Period, and one more is celebrated on the First Saturday of Lent.
Saturday of Souls Through the Apostolic Constitutions (Book VIII,
ch. 42), the Church of Christ has received the
custom to make commemorations for the
departed on the third, ninth, and fortieth days
after their repose. Many throughout the ages,
because of an untimely death in a faraway place,
or other adverse circumstances, have died without
being deemed worthy of the appointed memorial
services.
The divine Fathers, being so moved in their love
for man, have decreed that a common memorial
be made this day for all pious Orthodox
Christians who have reposed from all ages past,
so that those who did not have particular
memorial services may be included in this
common one for all.
Also, the Church of Christ teaches us that alms
should be given to the poor by the departed one's
kinsmen as a memorial for him.
Since we make commemoration of the Second
Coming of Christ, and since the reposed have
neither been judged, nor have received their
complete recompense (Acts 17:31; II Peter 2:9;
Heb. 11:39-40), the Church rightly
commemorates the souls today, and trusting in
the boundless mercy of God, she prays Him to
have mercy on sinners.
. Furthermore, since the commemoration is for all
the reposed together, it reminds each of us of his own
death, and arouses us to repentance.
Each of the four Sundays of the Pre-Lenten Period
have special themes and Bible Readings. Each
Sunday initiates the week. Certain observances occur
on certain weeks.
The Publican and the Pharisee
The Sunday of the Publican and the
Pharisee is the first Sunday of the three-
week period before Lent. These three
weeks are in preparation for the spiritual
journey we are all about to take together as
Orthodox Christians. In three weeks, we
will begin our journey through Lent. This
is the time we can all come closer to God
through worshiping together, praying
together, fasting together and sharing with
each other.
Sunday of the Prodigal Son
The Theme for this week is the
warm gentle love of a father toward
his child. The 'son' took his
inheritance and squandered it on
things unworthy. Yet, when he
chose to return, his father forgave
all things, thankful that his 'son'
who was lost, found his way home,
to the loving arms of the father.
The Theme of a 'loving and forgiving Father' is also here for all of us. We often misuse the 'gifts' that God has gifted us with and we often sin against 'Heaven and before God and yet......
God wants us all to rejoice
when any one of our brothers
and sisters in Christ leaves
the safety of God’s embrace.
but returns, realizing the
necessity and rightness of
living in our Heavenly
Father's loving embrace.
Judgment Sunday The Theme of this week is that
we must all see Christ in
everyone. We must be prepared
to meet our Lord and Savior,
Jesus Christ, during His
second coming. At this time,
Jesus shall begin to separate us
and begin the process of our
judgment. We will be judged,
and we will learn where we will
live Eternity.
The most important aspect of this Theme is that the way we will be judge is based on how we helped those less fortunate that us, how we can clothe them, feed them and comfort them.
Much of our judgment will rely on how we showed mercy on others and each other. What we do reflects our true inner self. We are told that we must take care of those who are ‘the least of my brethren’.
We must work on our spiritual and physical needs. Therefore, when we hear ‘thus you saw me hungry and you gave me to eat’, we need to become aware that all who are hungry should be given food to sustain them. This is the hope of our own salvation.
Sunday of Forgiveness
This weeks Theme reminds us
that Jesus expects us to forgive
one another before we receive
God’s forgiveness. Therefore,
those who are unable to forgive
are NOT forgiven. To not forgive
one another causes us to lose the
forgiveness of our God.
This Theme also reminds us that if we hold our ‘treasures’ on Earth as more important than our Heavenly treasures, we become slaves to ‘material things’ and forget about attaching ourselves to God, our true treasure.
Fasting is not only from food, but
our way of trying to escape the
control of the passions. Fasting,
therefore, is our way of growing in
our spirituality and to glorify God,
not to show those around us that we
are sacrificing and how hard it is.
St. John Chrysostom writes: “What good is it if we
abstain from eating birds and fish, but bite and devour our brother?”
Sunday of OrthodoxyFor more than one hundred years,
the Church of Christ was troubled
by the persecution of the Iconoclasts
of evil belief, ending in the reign of
Theophilus (829-842). After
Theophilus's death, his widow the
Empress Theodora, together with
the Patriarch Methodius established
Orthodoxy anew.
This is the holy deed that all we, the Orthodox, commemorate today, and we call this radiant and venerable day the Sunday of Orthodoxy, that is, the triumph of true doctrine over heresy.
St. Gregory PalamasPrayer, as defined by St. John Climacus,
is the “friendship with God”, that is
setting of the mind on the meditation of
God and the love of His Divine Word. St.
John wrote “The Ladder of Divine
Ascent”. The 80 chapters help us
understand the progress of our spiritual
struggle to attain salvation. “For no one
can climb a ladder in just one stride”, it
requires patience and time. (Step 7)
Sunday of the Holy Cross
This Sunday commemorates the venerable
Cross and the Crucifixion of our Lord,
Jesus Christ. The passages read this day
repeat the calling of the Christian by
Christ to dedicate his life for “If any man
would come after me, let him deny himself
and take up his cross and follow me.” The
Adoration of the Cross is expressed by the
faithful through prayer, fasting,
almsgiving and forgiveness of the
trespasses of others.
Theme: Building a Foundation of love and
humility The Ladder of Divine Ascent teaches how
build a foundation, fight the evils which
tempt us, and how to be a good person and
live with love and humility. It is considered
to be so important that it is universally read
in its entirety in monasteries during the
Great Fast.
St. Mary of Egypt
This Sunday commemorates the life of St. Mary
of Egypt, who is a shining example of
repentance from sin through prayer and fasting.
The Church commemorates St. Mary for her
recognition of her own sins as an example of
how one can free oneself from the slavery and
burdens of wrongdoings. This recognition of sin
is important during Lent, for the faithful, as a
means of self-examination and preparation for a
more virtuous life in anticipation of the
Crucifixion and the Resurrection of Christ.
Saturday of Lazarus
The miracle of Jesus raising Lazarus
from the dead was the last of the
seven signs about Jesus found in the
Gospel of John. This miracle is the
final sign, which sealed the fate of
our Lord, because it caused the
Jewish authorities to want to put
Jesus to death.
When Lazarus became ill, his sister sent a message to Jesus
saying, “Lord, behold, him who You love is sick.?
(John11:3) Jesus responded: “This sickness is not unto
death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be
glorified”. This, in other words, was an act that would
bring glory to the Father and to the Son. Jesus did not go
to Lazarus immediately.
Then, Jesus told His disciples that His friend Lazarus was
ill and slept, but that now He would need to go to him and
wake him. The disciples were worried that Jesus would
come to harm if He went to Bethany and they told Him that
if Lazarus was sleeping then he will become well. Finally,
Jesus explained: “Lazarus is dead.” (John 11:14)
When Jesus came to Bethany, Martha came to Him and
said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not
have died.” (John 11:21) Jesus told he, “Your brother
will rise again.” Jesus asked her if she believed and she
said, “Yes, Lord, I believe that You are the Christ, the
Son, of God, who is to come into the world.”
They came to a tomb, which had a large stone in front of
it. Jesus asked that the stone be removed. Martha
explained that Lazarus had been dead for four days and
that there would be a terrible smell. But Jesus explained,
“Did I not say to you that if you would believe you would
see the glory of God?”
At this point, Jesus prayed to His Father to thank
Him. He then called, “Lazarus, come forth.”
Lazarus came out of the tomb and lived again.
Those who saw this miracle were astonished. Many
came to believe n Jesus as the Son of God and the
glorified Him. Others did not, and they would run
to tell the Pharisees what they had witnessed to
condemn our Lord.
Palm SundayThis day is a day of celebration and
triumph for Jesus. It is a day that He is
welcomed happily by the people. He enters
the city after many have witnessed the
raising of Lazarus from the dead. The
people laid palm branches on the ground
as He passed. It was prophesied earlier
that Jesus would enter the city riding on a
colt that had never been ridden. Jesus sent
His disciples to bring the colt to Him so
that He may ride it into the city.
Jesus would enter into the city triumphantly, but
there where there had been joy and glad tidings,
only anger and discontent were found.
The symbolic aspic to this day is that Jesus rode
into the time when He would be betrayed, denied,
questioned, found guilty and crucified, as a
common thief. He came into the city knowing
His time on earth was drawing near.