Akathist to St. Peter and Paul

AKATHIST TO STS. PETER AND PAUL

 

Kontakion I

The Lord Who said of Himself: I am the good Shepherd, said to you, O first-enthroned Peter: If you love me, feed My sheep.  And He Who said: I am Jesus, said of you, O preeminent Apostle Paul:  He is a chosen vessel by Me, to bear My name before the Gentiles.  And likewise to all your  colleagues, His apostles, He said: As My Father has sent Me, even so send I you ; go  and teach all nations.  And you, receiving such grace from your good Chief Shepherd, as the foremost shepherds and teachers of all the world, from all misfortunes preserve us on the pasture of salvation that we may cry out to you:  Rejoice, O holy first-enthroned Peter and Paul, with all the holy apostles!

Ikos I

Blessed art you, Simon, son of Jonas!  said Christ, the Son of the living God, to you, O right glorious Apostle Peter.  How then can we worthily call you blessed who has been called blessed by God Himself?  Yet drawn faithfully, by a debt of love alone, we cry out to you:

Rejoice, first among the apostles, foundation of the holy Church;
Rejoice, mighty pillar and ground of the Orthodox Faith!
Rejoice, ardent lover of the teaching of Christ;
Rejoice, first-seated among the council of the apostles!
Rejoice, good gate-keeper of the kingdom of heaven;
Rejoice, renowned physician for them that repent of their sins!
Rejoice, you who spurned the vanity of the world and loved the spiritual life;
Rejoice, you who did forsake corruptible nets and did fish the whole world with incorruptible ones!
Rejoice with Peter, O Paul, for you both shone forth like two great beacons;
Rejoice, O you who like a pair of steeds were harnessed by God to His chariot of noetic light!
Rejoice, all you holy apostles, beholders of God, for you are the light of all the world;
Rejoice, for through you the Faith which saves us hath shone forth from Christ in every place!
Rejoice, O holy first-enthroned Peter and Paul, with all the holy apostles!

Kontakion II

O teacher of the gentiles, who received your title wondrously from on high, you believed when Jesus said to you:  Saul, why do you persecute Me Who cannot be touched by unbelief?  Yet believe henceforth; for, lo!  contrary audacity darkened you, but I have chosen you to be a witness to My judgments before the rulers, the nations and the children of Israel.  And you, O Apostle Paul, called such things by God, cried out: Alleluia!

Ikos II

Hearing a voice from heaven, O Saul, you were thereafter unable to see; for you had adversely persecuted the Inaccessible One and did receive blindness of your   eyes in return for your zeal for the law; but, guided to the font, you attained to divine baptism, where, having been immersed with faith, the sight of your bodily and spiritual eyes was restored.  Wherefore, mindful of your miraculous calling, we cry out to you:

Rejoice, O apostles called by God, sent forth to preach to all the nations;
Rejoice, chosen vessel which pours forth the sweetness of the Faith of Christ upon all men!
Rejoice, beholder of the divine Light which illumines from on high;
Rejoice, you who more than others were enlightened by grace after the shadow of the Old Covenant!
Rejoice, you who on earth conversed with the Lord Jesus Who appeared to you;
Rejoice, you who with His strength dared to denounce them that were adamant in their unbelief!
Rejoice, you who have enlightened the whole world with your divinely wise writings;
Rejoice, you who, following Christ, labored more than others for the salvation of man!
Rejoice with Paul, O Peter, for you overshadow the holy Church as the two cherubim did the ark;
Rejoice, you who stand before the throne of the Most High like two seraphim!
Rejoice, all you holy apostles, for you are like the heavens which proclaim the glory of God;
Rejoice, for you are the stars which crown the Church, the Bride of Christ!
Rejoice, O holy first-enthroned Peter and Paul, with all the holy apostles!

Kontakion III

You were struck with horror, O holy Apostle Peter, beholding the sheet descending from on high, filled with all manner of living creatures, moreover with unclean beasts that set forth a parable of God’s love for man, signifying it is not fitting to reject them that from all the nations desiring to believe in Christ Jesus.  And understanding this mystery, you cried out to God: Alleluia!

Ikos III

Nothing vile or unclean hath ever passed my lips! you said, O most blessed Apostle Peter.  But divine Providence answered you with a voice from heaven, saying:  What God has cleansed,  do you  not revile by calling it unclean; for the Savior came not to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance!  And we, knowing what was revealed to you, cry out:

Rejoice, O apostle, who mercifully opens the kingdom of heaven;
Rejoice, you who not only watches over men, but over the affairs of all the nations!
Rejoice, you who with your love covers the multitude of our sins;
Rejoice, you who perfects our meager repentance with your mercy!
Rejoice, speedy helper for them that call upon you amid spiritual tribulations;
Rejoice, you who by your supplication raised up those dead of body and soul!
Rejoice, you who strengthens with the Holy Spirit the faithful who hearken unto your word;
Rejoice, you who wound the unbelieving with your words, as with darts!
Rejoice with Peter, O Paul, in that you are as the two eyes of the Church, endued with divine sight;
Rejoice, ever-vigilant guides watching over the new Israel!
Rejoice, all you holy apostles, for you are as a guard upon the walls of Jerusalem;
Rejoice, O our instructors, who keep watch over the souls of Christians!
Rejoice, O holy first-enthroned Peter and Paul, with all the holy apostles!

Kontakion IV

To the Jews living in Damascus  you  began to preach, O apostle Paul, enlightened of God, that they might believe in Christ Jesus the Son of God; and they were astonished at how one who before had persecuted those who  believed in the name of Christ had – O, the wonder! – himself been transformed into a believer!  Wherefore, they took counsel together to slay you; but knowing their intent and the hardness of their hearts, you left them in the blindness of their unbelief and, let down over the wall in a basket by the faithful, you cried out to God:  Alleluia!

Ikos IV

With great zeal, O holy Paul, you preached to turn away from the prescriptions of the old law and circumcision and towards the font of divine baptism, proclaiming this not only to the Jews, but also to the gentiles whose most loving teacher you were.  Wherefore, we exclaim to you:

Rejoice, preacher sent by God to announce repentance to sinners;
Rejoice, teacher of piety with thunderous voice, denouncer of ungodliness!
Rejoice, merciful inviter of them among the gentiles that are astray, towards the Faith of Christ;
Rejoice, true guide to the straight path!
Rejoice, ship which keeps the faithful from drowning in sin;
Rejoice, helmsman who guides us to the haven of the pleasing of God!
Rejoice, quickly interceding comforter of the sorrowful;
Rejoice, healer who accepts no recompense for curing ailments of body and soul!
Rejoice with Paul, O Peter, for you are like two wings furnished to the Church by Christ, the great Eagle;
Rejoice, for you are like two wings given to her, the dove, by the Holy Spirit!
Rejoice, all you holy apostles, who are whole as doves and through hope have been furnished with wings like eagles;
Rejoice, for where Christ was in the body, there were you gathered together!
Rejoice, O holy first-enthroned Peter and Paul, with all the holy apostles!

Kontakion V

Sweating from your earthly labors and providing for yourself by fishing, O holy Apostle Peter, you were called to be an apostle and believe in Christ Who nurtures abundantly, who fed a thousand people with five loaves; and you followed Him, laboring for food which doesn’t perish, but abides to everlasting life; and you cried to Him as God:  Alleluia!

Ikos V

Forbidden by the chief priests and elders of the Jews to teach the name of the Lord Jesus, O blessed Apostle Peter, arming yourself with steadfast faith, you answered:  We ought to obey God rather than man!  And having endured imprisonment and stripes for this, you departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for the name of the Lord.  Wherefore, we also offer to you exclamations of joy, saying:

Rejoice, you who put the council of the Jews to shame by the writings of the prophets concerning Christ;
Rejoice, you who tore asunder the false threats of the Pharisees and Sadducees like a spider’s web!
Rejoice, you who worked many miracles through the grace of the Holy Spirit;
Rejoice, you who grants sight to the blind and the ability to walk to the lame!
Rejoice, you who by your shadow raised the sick from their beds of pain;
Rejoice, you who healed them that suffered from many unclean spirits!
Rejoice, you who summoned fishermen to a wondrous catch;
Rejoice, you who draws the unbelieving to faith as if they were voiceless fish!
Rejoice with Peter, O Paul, for you  are like two pillars of the Church, the Bride of Christ, our Mother;
Rejoice, for you are like two grapes of the voice, which nourish us and make us glad!
Rejoice, all you holy apostles, for you are branches of Christ, the true Vine;
Rejoice, for you are good husbandmen of the vineyard of Christ!
Rejoice, O holy first-enthroned Peter and Paul, with all the holy apostles!

Kontakion VI

An Israelite of the tribe of Benjamin, a Pharisee according to the law, a persecutor of the Church of God in your zeal, you called yourself, O holy Apostle Paul, not hiding your former hot temper against those that believed in Christ Jesus; but as you   greatly persecuted the Church of God and strived to destroy it, so now, gloriously adorned by you, and made steadfast in might by your mellifluous teachings, it cries to God:  Alleluia!

Ikos VI

Who shall separate us from the love of God?  Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or like things? You said, O Apostle Paul, preacher of the Word beloved of God, bringing all to the love of Christ Who sincerely believe in Him, that with boldness and thanksgiving we may endure tribulation for God’s sake.  Wherefore, we lovingly exclaim these things to you:

Rejoice, you who were   a zealot for the law named Saul;
Rejoice, lover of Christ, named Paul, perfected in grace!
Rejoice, light of divine knowledge, illumining them that are in the darkness of unbelief;
Rejoice, star guiding them who languish in the depths of iniquity!
Rejoice, you who betrothed the souls of the faithful to Christ and summon them to the heavenly bridal chamber;
Rejoice, you who endured many tribulations and have made others also steadfast to endure them!
Rejoice, you into whose hands God placed mighty powers;
Rejoice, you whose sweat-soaked kerchief healed the sick!
Rejoice with Paul, O Peter, for you are like the two pillars which uphold the Church of the heavenly Solomon;
Rejoice, you who, like two lilies on its pillars, adorn the sanctuary of God!
Rejoice, all you holy apostles, for like flowers do you impart fragrance to all the world;
Rejoice, you who through your fragrance dispel the stench of all iniquity!
Rejoice, O holy first-enthroned Peter and Paul, with all the holy apostles!

Kontakion VII

On your   arrival in Lydda, O blessed Apostle Peter, you amazed the people living there when by the name of Jesus Christ you raised up Aeneas, who had laid in bed, sick of the palsy for eight years, and caused him to walk; in Joppa you did likewise, by your supplication, returned to life the dead Tabitha; and, summoned to Caesarea, you   enlightened with divine baptism Cornelius the centurion with all in his household.  Wherefore, we all straightway cry aloud to God in unity of soul:  Alleluia!

Ikos VII

Simon Magus sought to acquire the grace of the Holy Spirit with silver; but you, O blessed Apostle Peter, condemned him to inherit damnation with his silver and sternly forbid both the avaricious practice of simony and the theft of sacred things.  Wherefore, we exclaim to you:

Rejoice, you who enriched the Church of Christ with the grace of the Spirit;
Rejoice, you who forbid the reception of recompense for holy things in the Church!
Rejoice, you by whom avarice was cut off, as the root of all evils, through the grace of the Spirit;
Rejoice, you by whom covetousness is cast away by sanctity as a type of idolatry!
Rejoice, you who lead a hard life for the sake of Christ;
Rejoice, you who fulfilled well the commandment of Christ:  you cannot serve God and Mammon!
Rejoice, you who sternly punished the sacrilege of Ananias with death;
Rejoice, you who likewise committed Sapphira, who was guilty of that sin, to the same punishment!
Rejoice with Peter, O Paul, for you are like two olive trees which pour forth mercy;
Rejoice, for you are like two lamps radiating wisdom!
Rejoice, all you holy apostles, as tender olive shoots;
Rejoice, for because of you is all like a fruitful olive tree in the house of God!
Rejoice, O holy first-enthroned Peter and Paul, with all the holy apostles!

Kontakion VIII

Having attained the third heaven because of your sanctity of body and soul and having been enriched with ineffable benefactions, you  descended from there, O divinely blessed Apostle Paul, and
astonished all, filling those of the Jews and of the gentiles who believed in Christ with your teachings of the knowledge of God.  And together with them, all we, the faithful, who have a share of your   heavenly teaching, cry out to God:  Alleluia!

Ikos VIII

A model for the faithful, you joyfully endured many stripes, beatings and stonings of your body for the sake of sweet Jesus, O Apostle Paul, called by God, manifestly indicating that it is the part of them that believe in Christ Jesus to undergo all manner of tribulations thankfully, for His sake.  Wherefore, we also cry out to you, using such exclamations as these:

Rejoice, you who did joyfully bear the wounds of the Lord on your body;
Rejoice, adamantly firm of body and soul, who mightily endured all manner of tribulation!
Rejoice, insuperable confessor of Christ before the nations and their rulers;
Rejoice, teacher invincible in the face of the Israelite teachers of the law!
Rejoice, luminous star which shone forth from the third heaven;
Rejoice, greatly fruitful branch which buds forth from paradise, full of spiritual food!
Rejoice, you who by your teaching have illumined all the earth as with an unwaning light;
Rejoice, you  who have fed the faithful throughout the world with the produce of your works as with most comely fruits!
Rejoice with Paul, O Peter, for you are as two trees in the midst of the garden of the Church;
Rejoice, you who put forth the fruit of life and good understanding!
Rejoice, all you holy apostles, who are like noetic palm trees and cedars;
Rejoice, you who have been transplanted to heaven as the garden of the heavenly Father!
Rejoice, O holy first-enthroned Peter and Paul, with all the holy apostles!

Kontakion IX

You were possessed of an all-embracing concern for all who came to the Faith of Christ, O blessed Apostle Peter, that their heart and soul become one.  Wherefore, you  appointed for their needs a minister, Stephen, and six other deacons; and you yourself, together with the rest of the apostles, dedicated yourself to prayer and the preaching of the Word, instructing all the faithful, who cried out with oneness of mind to God:  Alleluia!

Ikos IX

Aflame with zeal for your Lord, you cut off the ear of Malchus, for he seemed to you as one disinclined to heed the writings of the prophets concerning Jesus Christ. But, reproved for such audacity by your Teacher, O blessed Apostle Peter, you did thankfully bear His reproach and all its contrary results.  Wherefore, mindful of your zeal, we cry aloud to you:

Rejoice, you who surpassed the rest of the disciples in your zeal for Christ;
Rejoice, manful sword-bearer of Christ in the garden!
Rejoice, you who followed Christ, Who was being led to His suffering, even to the house of Caiaphas;
Rejoice, you who were prepared for prison and death for the sake of your Lord!
Rejoice, you who with bitter lamentation healed our weakness in denying your Master;
Rejoice, you who after the Lord’s resurrection were summoned to your former dignity!
Rejoice, you who have provided a model of repentance for the rest of us sinners;
Rejoice, you who vowed to forgive the weakness of the penitent many times over!
Rejoice with Peter, O Paul, for you are like the tables of the law of the Lord;
Rejoice, teachers of love for God and neighbor!
Rejoice, all you holy apostles, who perfectly kept all the commandments of the Lord;
Rejoice, you who left all and followed after Christ, and found all in Him!
Rejoice, O holy first-enthroned Peter and Paul, with all the holy apostles!

Kontakion X

You produced great testimony   from the sayings of the prophets concerning Christ in the face of the leaders of the Jews, and before the Procurator Festus and King Agrippa, O Apostle Paul, who were called of God, and all were utterly set at naught; for many of the Jews quoted books to you in their frenzy, and you were accused by both Festus and Agrippa falsely, and were condemned to be sent to Rome.  But, enduring everything with thanksgiving, you cried out with the faithful to God:  Alleluia!

Ikos X

O Apostle Paul, who were led to proclaim the life-creating Trinity in the third heaven, most elect vessel of the great mysteries of God:  declaring the good news before the gentiles, the judges and rulers, you promised salvation to them that desire to believe in Christ Jesus and receive holy baptism in the name of the Trinity.  Wherefore, we the faithful, being of good hope concerning that salvation, cry out to you:

Rejoice, mystagogue of great understanding of the revelation of the Lord;
Rejoice, confessor of the one God in three Persons!
Rejoice, you who proclaimed Christ to be the one Foundation of the faithful;
Rejoice, you who have made all the pious steadfast in that confession!
Rejoice, you who endured raging reproaches from the unbelieving Festus;
Rejoice, you who uttered words of truth in his presence!
Rejoice, you who most clearly recounted your heavenly vision to King Agrippa;
Rejoice, you who manifestly denounced his error which is not consonant with the Faith of Christ!
Rejoice, O Paul, with Peter, for you are like two silver trumpets of Moses;
Rejoice, you who call those of earth and beneath the earth to battle against evil!
Rejoice, all you holy apostles, who have suffered cruelly as valiant warriors of Christ;
Rejoice, you who have vanquished the kingdoms of the earth by faith and have received heavenly things!
Rejoice, O holy first-enthroned Peter and Paul, with all the holy apostles!

Kontakion XI

Having slain James, the brother of John, Herod went on to seize you as well, O divinely blessed Apostle Peter; and he placed you under heavy guard in prison to await execution.  Yet while fervent prayer was being offered up by the Church for your deliverance, the angel of the Lord loosed your bonds and led you through the gates, which opened of themselves, and you thought you were beholding a dream.  But when the angel departed, you came to your senses and truly realized you had been freed; and you cried out to God in thanksgiving:  Alleluia!

Ikos XI

That which had been asked by Philip:  Lord, show us the Father! did you come to know, O blessed Apostle Peter, on Mount Tabor, whereon, beholding the all-glorious transformation of the countenance of the transfigured Lord, you heard the voice of God the Father say of Him from heaven:  This is My beloved Son, in Whom I am well pleased; hear Him!  And we cry out to you who were   counted worthy of such a revelation:

Rejoice, reliable witness of the transfiguration of Christ;
Rejoice, renowned one who heard the divine voice of the Father from heaven!
Rejoice, you who beheld the countenance of the Son of God illumined like the sun.

Rejoice, you who most splendidly received the overshadowing of the Holy Spirit in the cloud!
Rejoice, you to whom the most exalted mystery was disclosed upon the mountain;
Rejoice, you to whom the majestic glory of the all-holy Trinity was made manifest!
Rejoice, you who heard the departure of Christ was to take place in Jerusalem;
Rejoice, you who, following Christ, accomplished your departure on a cross in Rome!
Rejoice with Peter, O Paul, for you are two noetic mountains like Tabor and Hermon;
Rejoice, you who from the east and the west revealed the Promised Land in heaven!
Rejoice, all you holy apostles, like the mountains of Sion;
Rejoice, you who let the sweetness of salvation fall upon us!
Rejoice, you holy first-enthroned Peter and Paul, with all the holy apostles!

Kontakion XII

We hymn you who stands on equal footing with the cherubim, O most blessed Apostle Paul, who were enlightened by divine wisdom in the third heaven; for, hearing ineffable words there which it is not lawful for a man to utter, you traveled the whole world, teaching all to believe in the crucified Christ, the Son of God, and to chant unceasingly to Him as the true God:  Alleluia!

Ikos XII

Full of the great revelation of divine mysteries, O chosen vessel of Jesus, all-wise Apostle Paul, you diligently bear forth the name of God Who had appeared in the flesh and saved those who believe in Him; and having converted many of the Gentiles and fought the good fight, in the city of Rome you finished your course most gloriously for the name of your Lord, and then received a crown of righteousness.  Wherefore, we cry out to you:

Rejoice, great lover of the name of Jesus, who suffered greatly for Him;
Rejoice, you who bore witness before those of heaven, of earth and beneath the earth, concerning His name!
Rejoice, for you boar witness   concerning the Lord in Jerusalem;
Rejoice, you who were commanded by Him to bear witness also in Rome!
Rejoice, you   who denounced the Emperor Nero and converted his consort to the Christian Faith;
Rejoice, you who in the same Rome bowed your head beneath the sword, executed with Peter, who was crucified head down!
Rejoice, for at the severing of your honored head milk flowed forth;
Rejoice, for this great wonder drew many soldiers to the Faith!
Rejoice with Paul, O Peter, for you are like two rivers of living water gushing forth from the wellspring of the Holy Spirit;
Rejoice, you who were shown forth by the confluence of the two rivers named Jor and Dan!
Rejoice, all you holy apostles, like torrents of rivers which gladden the city of the Church of God;
Rejoice, for you are like streams of sweetness which give all the faithful to drink from the cup of salvation!
Rejoice, O holy first-enthroned Peter and Paul, with all the holy apostles!

Kontakion XIII

O most glorious and laudable disciples of Christ, Peter and Paul, first-enthroned and equally enthroned holy Apostles, who have enlightened all the universe with the holy Faith and will come with Christ to judge the whole world!  Your proper dignity is not on earth, but is the glory and praise rendered in heaven.  Accepting now our unworthy entreaty, by your worthy supplications preserve us from all misfortunes, and beseech Christ, the just Judge, to be merciful to us at the last judgment, that, saved by your mediation, we may chant to God our Savior:  Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia! (Three times).

(Kontakion 13 is chanted three times; and is then followed by Kontakion 1

Conclude with the usual ending prayers….It is truly proper….May Christ our True God…..

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I  am  indebted to St. Peter and Paul Antiochian Orthodox Church, and its website http://www.peterandpaul.net/akathist-saints-peter-paul, for the contents of this prayer.  Any errors are the sole responsibility of the editor.

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This publication was edited by Deacon Mark Koscinski  CPA D.Litt.   It is solely for private use and has not been approved for liturgical use.

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