THE KNEELING DIVINE SERVICE ON PENTECOST SUNDAY

Lord, pure and undefiled, existing before all eternity, invisible, incomprehensible, unsearchable, unchanging, surpassed by none, and to be calculated, long-suffering, the only immortal One, You abide in the unapproachable Light. You created heaven and earth, and all the creatures that inhabit them, supplying all their needs even before they ask. To You we pray and You we entreat, loving Master, the Father of our Lord God and Savior Jesus Christ, Who for us and for our salvation came down from heaven to be Incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin May, the Glorious Theotokos. At first You taught in words, but then showed us by deeds, when in enduring the saving Passion You gave to us Your humble, sinful and unworthy servants an example of how to offer our prayers in the bending of our heads and knees for our own transgressions and for the failing of the people….grant forgiveness to those who hope in You; REMIT THEM AND US OUR SINS; CLEANSE US THROUGH THE WORK OF YOUR Holy Spirit; put an end to the wiles of the enemy…Hear our prayer and that of all Your people, and forgive us all our deliberate and unwitting sins; receive our evening petitions and send upon Your inheritance the abundance of Your mercy and compassion. Encompass us with Your Holy Angels; arm us with the weapons of Your Righteousness; fortify us within Your truth; make Your strength our garrison, spare us all adverse circumstances and all assaults of the adversary. Finally, vouchsafe to us this evening, and the impending night, perfect, holy, peaceful, sinless, free of disturbing visions, and all the days of our lives, through the prayers of the Holy Theotokos and of all the Saints who hae pleased You through the ages.

In our Holy Orthodox Church, kneeling is a pious practice during certain parts of the Divine Liturgy, including the Great Vespers service on Pentecost Sunday. During this divine service, the clergy and laity kneel while three special prayers of Saint Basil the Great are read:

PETITIONS: Prayers for God’s mercy, the Holy Spirit, and the souls of the
departed.
FORGIVENESS: Prayers asking for forgiveness, freedom from oppression,
and for prayers to be heard.
RECALLING THE FATHER: Prayers that recall what the Father has done
for us, including creation, the Ministry of Christ, and the sending down
on them the Holy Spirit at Pentecost.

The kneeling prayers are symbolic and have profound meaning. For example, the kneeling signifies that after 60 days of Pascal joy, the Church is about to begin its pilgrimage through history. The prayers also show that our lives are lived under the gaze and grace of the Holy Trinity. The divine prayers were composed by Saint Basil the Great in the 4th century.
The kneeling prayers contain petitions for the mercy of God, for the sending down of the Holy Spirit, and also prayers for the souls of the reposed. These prayers have their own special symbolic meaning. They were introduced into church service in order to give strength to the faithful while keeping within the church mood of piety and humility, and also to enable them, following the example of the Apostles, to be in constant vigilance to receive the Grace of God.

"We are invited to kneel. This is our first kneeling since Pascha. It signifies that after these fifty days of Paschal joy and fullness, of experiencing the Kingdom of God, the Church now is about to begin her pilgrimage through time and history. It is evening again, and the night approaches, during which temptations and failures awaits us, when, more than anything else, we need Divine help, that presence and power of the Holy Spirit, who has already revealed to us the joyful End, who now will help us in our effort towards fulfillment and salvation.."

Together, bowing low, we bowed our hearts and cried out asking the Holy Spirit to help us, yearning to be taught how to pray and better follow the true path in these dark and difficult times where the foundation, and boundaries, of society are crumbling.
Together, bowin-low, we bowed our hearts and called to remembranance all those who have finished "the race" and completed
"the marathon" of life, yet remain united with us through the love of God.

Each day we are all called to bow our hearts “unto the Lord ” and truly realize what an incredible, and sobering, act is to enter into such prayers – supplicating the Holy Trinity is a serious gift.

Knowing that everyone is spiritually ill and that all of us are sinners, how can we not thank God for the opportunity to be forgiven and be healed? How often does our Holy Orthodox Church remind us that the church is a hospital, a place of reconciliation, a place of spiritual renewal, the only place where a believer can be given the immortal medicine from the Divine hands of the Physician of our souls and bodies Himself. All wounds are healed and once again we are restored to spiritual health and well being. But as everyone knows it takes faith, trust, obedience, humility, and being willing to surrender to Him without any hesitation or fear.

No priest should treat the divine service of the Sunday of Pentecost Vespers as a regular vespers because it is not. This Great Vespers is unique in its composition, intent, and outcome. This Office, on the Vigil of the Feast of the Holy Spirit, that is Monday, is conducted immediately after the Divine Liturgy for the Sunday of Pentecost. The Holy Spirit is invoked to bestow His Divine grace, while kneeling, on each member of the Church as well as forgive him/her from all sins committed. The priest reads:
"…As we now pray to You, hear us, and be mindful that we are lowly and deserving of judgment; recall our souls from the bondage of sin. Your own compassion interceding for us. Accept us as we kneel before You cry the familiar, "I have sinned!" We have been dependent on You from our mother’s womb; You are our God. But because our days have been vainly squandered, we are stripped of Your help, without any defense. Even so, encouraged by Your mercies, and purge our secret thoughts…
From Your Holy Dwelling place look down upon the people present here in expectation of Your rich mercy; VISIT US IN YOUR GOODNESS; FREE US FROM THE OPPRESSION OF THE EVIL ONE; MAKE OUR LIVES SECURE WITHIN YOUR HOLY AND SACRED LAWS. ENTRUST YOUR PEOPLE TO A FAITHFUL GUARDIAN ANGEL; GATHER US ALL UNTO YOUR KINGDOM; GRANT FORGIVENESS TO THOSE WHO HOPE IN YOU; REMIT THEM AND US OUR SINS;CLEANSE US THROUGH THE WORK OF YOUR HOLY SPIRIT; PUT AN END TO THE WILES OF THE ENEMY.

As Orthodox priests we have a sacred duty to protect, promote, and preserve our Holy Tradition from any defilement or omission. It is not very hard to begin deletion of one tradition after another. I believe that is called a hatchet job. What does this accomplish, if anything at all. We have witnessed what has taken place in other Christian confessions i.e. Anglican and Roman Catholic and how it has devastated its membership and created the opportunity to implode from within. Their members were left with confusion, fear, sadness, and outright panic. They left in droves to enter another Christian tradition with a more stable,sound, and one with a more secure history. Orthodox Christianity is "Orthodox" because the Church is founded on Jesus Christ Who is indeed the same "YESTERDAY, AND TODAY, AND FOREVER." [Hebrews 13:8] In other words, THE TRUTH DOES NOT CHANGE!

__________
"Glory Be To GOD
For
All Things!"
– Saint John Chrysostomos
+ + +

With sincere agape in His Glorious and Divine Diakonia (Ministry)
The sinner and unworthy servant of God
+ Father George