Tomorrow's rehearsal will focus on our feast day's liturgy this Saturday with Bishop Paul. In addition to His Grace visiting us, at Saturday's liturgy we will have an ordination. Deacon Herman Klarr from Three Hierarch's Mission in North Field, MN will be ordained to the priesthood.
Just to remind you (as well as me), an ordination to the priesthood happens immediately after the Great Entrance. The deacon who is to be ordained is led into the altar by two other deacons, each of whom, at the appropriate time exclaims "command" and then gestures for the candidate to prostrate. The soon-to-be-ordained is met at the royal doors by a priest, who leads him around the holy table singing "You holy martyrs, who fought the good fight and had received your crowns..." (one of the same troparia that is sung at a wedding). The choir then repeats this same troparion. Two more times a priest leads the candidate around the holy table, each time singing "Glory to Thee, O Christ our God...." and "Rejoice, O Isaiah! A virgin is with child..." Then choir, then, each time repeats the troparion.
Then, the bishop chants the prayer, "The Grace Divine, which heals that which is infirm...", followed by the clergy singing, "Lord, have mercy." The choir then repeats in a very solemn and contemplative way, "Kirye Eleison."
Next there is a litany, and another prayer by the bishop. After this the bishop exclaims "Axios," and begins to vest the new priest. As the bishop is vesting him, the clergy in the altar repeat "Axios" three times, and then the choir as well.
The ordination goes rather quickly actually, maybe only lasting about 10 or 15 minutes.
So, at Wednesday's rehearsal we will review some of these points mentioned above, as well as the more "normal" elements of a hierarchical liturgy: entrance, vesting pslams, Ton Dhespotin, Eis Polla, Come Let us Worship, the Trisagion, etc.
It's a big weekend a head, not only because of Saturday's liturgy, but also because of our choir's 125th anniversary celebration, and our banquet on Sunday at Jax Cafe (I hear there's already 147 tickets sold for the banquet!).
