Month of May

THE 19TH DAY

COMMEMORATION OF OUR FATHER AMONG THE SAINTS DUNSTAN,
ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY
Composed by Reader Isaac Lambertson

At Vespers At Lord, I have cried, these stichera of the holy bishop, in Tone II:
Spec. Mel.: When from the Tree

Sprung forth as a sapling from England's royal stock, O divinely wise and
reverent Dunstan, warmed by the rays of the Sun of righteousness, and
watered by countless tears of compunction, thou grewest in spiritual stature
like a mighty cedar; and even after thou wast felled by death with thy
fragrant redolence thou dost continue to preserve the Holy Church of Christ
from Satan's minions, as from voracious vermin, O wondrous and holy one.

O Dunstan, namesake of that tawny rock wherewith the holy churches of

God have oft been skillfully fashioned, with the sacred doctrines and dogmas
of the Orthodox Faith as with blocks of stone thou hast greatly edified all
faithful Christians, erecting for them a sacred habitation, not on the shifting
sands of worldly principles, but on Christ, our firm Foundation, cut without
the agency of the hands of men from the unquarried mountain of His Virgin
Mother.

The city of Worcester exulteth in thy memory, O Dunstan, for there wast
thou given charge of the sheep of Christ. London likewise rejoiceth in thy
name, O holy one, for within its walls, as in a sheep-fold, didst thou shelter
the lambs of the Lord from the spiritual wolf. But yet more is Canterbury
gladdened, O saint, for unto it didst thou give the full measure of thine
archpastoral zeal, nurturing thy flock on the wholesome pastures of
Orthodox teaching.

Glory, of the holy bishop: Idiomelon, in Tone IV

Come, ye who love the saints of the Church, and with hymns and spiritual
songs let us honor the holy hierarch Dunstan, for, from youth, he loved to
hear the lives of the martyrs and favourites of Christ, and related them to
the faithful with great delight. Wherefore, he now abideth eternally with
them in the mansions of heaven, sharing with them the supernal vision of
the divine Countenance, joining chorus with them before the all-splendid
throne of the Godhead, and lifting up his voice with them in continual
hymns of praise to the All-holy Trinity.

Now & ever, from the Pentecostarion; or Theotokion, or this Stavrotheotokion,

in the same tone: Spec. Mel.: As one valiant among the Martyrs

When she beheld Thee, the Lamb and Shepherd, upon the Tree, the ewe-
lamb who gave birth to Thee lamented and cried out to Thee maternally: 'O
my desired Son, Long-suffering One, how is it that Thou art suspended upon
the tree of the Cross? How is it that Thy hands and feet have been nailed by
the iniquitous, O Word, and that Thou hast shed Thy blood, O Master?'

Aposticha from the Pentecostarion or the Octoechos; and Glory, of the holy
bishop: Idiomelon, in Tone VIII

Now let great England emerge from the slumber of error, roused by the voice
of Dunstan, its holy primate, and let it spring forth to the wakefulness of the
Holy Orthodox Faith in the full rays of Christ our Savior, the Sun of
righteousness, and give voice, like the lark, unto goodly praise of our Author
and Creator, the One God in three Persons the unoriginate Father, the Son
Who is consubstantial with Him, and the Holy Spirit Who proceedeth from
the Father alone. And worshipping the Most High in spirit and in truth, with
the holy bishop let us cry aloud: Holy, Holy, Holy art Thou, O Triune
Godhead! Heaven and earth are full of Thy glory!

Now & ever, from the Pentecostarion; or theotokion, or this stavrotheotokion, in

the same tone: Spec. Mel.: O all-glorious wonder

The unblemished heifer, beholding her Bullock nailed to the Tree of His own
will, cried out, lamenting piteously: 'Woe is me, O most beloved Child! How
hath the thankless assembly of the Jews recompensed Thee, desiring to
leave me bereft of Thee, my Child, O most Beloved?'

Troparion of the holy bishop, in Tone VIII

By thee, O Dunstan, hath the whole land of England been wondrously

adorned, for thou didst labor unceasingly to restore all the monastic houses
laid waste by the heathen, to people them again with zealous monks and
nuns, and to provide them with strict rules of pious order wherewith to
govern their lives. Wherefore, the Church of Christ doth ever praise thine all-
honorable name, O holy bishop.

AT MATINS

At God is the Lord: If the feast fall within the period of Pentecost, the troparion
of the Pentecostarion, twice; Glory, that of the bishop; Now & ever, as
prescribed by the Pentecostarion. But if the feast fall after the Pentecost
period, the troparion of the hierarch, twice; Glory, Now & ever: Theotokion.

Canon from the Pentecostarion, or those from the Octoechos; and that of the
holy bishop, with 6 troparia, the acrostic whereof is Dunstan setteth us on the
Rock of Faith, in Tone V

Ode I
Irmos: Treading the impassable path at the command of the Master, Israel
sang, rejoicing: Let us sing unto the Lord, for gloriously hath He been
glorified!

Deign Thou to send down on me Thy grace, O All-holy Trinity, that, purified
of my sins, I may hymn the holy Dunstan, who hath been glorified by Thee.
Unto the wondrous Dunstan let us now lift our voices in praise, O ye
faithful, for he was wholly consumed with love for chastity and all the
monastic virtues.

Now doth the sacred Monastery of Glastonbury rejoice exceedingly, O

Dunstan; for as its abbot thou didst adorn it again with reverent monastic
Order. . Theotokion: Seeing thy Son suffering in agony on the Cross, O
Theotokos, thou wast pierced with pain, as by a sword; but thou didst later
rejoice in His resurrection.

Ode III

Irmos: Upon the rock of Thy commandments establish me, who am whirled
about; lift high my horn in the understanding of Thy precepts; that,
rendering praise, I may cry unto Thee: There is none holy save Thee, O Lord
of hosts!

Thy kinsman, the godly thelm, and the holy Oda, Archbishops of
Canterbury, inspired thee, O Dunstan, to establish again in the monasteries
of England the precepts of the venerable and God-bearing Benedict, father of
monastics.

All the vanities of life at the court of the kings of England didst thou reject, O
sacred bishop; wherefore, thou didst flourish greatly in the courts of our
God, and ever criest aloud to Him: There is none holy save Thee, O Lord of
hosts!

None is holy save Thee, O Lord of hosts! didst thou cry out in humility of
mind, O blessed one, when thou didst receive the sacred tonsure and the
angelic habit at the hands of the holy bishop lphege of Winchester.

Theotokion: Seraphim and cherubim, thrones and dominions, principalities

and powers, angels and archangels, and all the hosts of the bodiless
spiritual beings stand in awe of thee, O most immaculate Mother of God,
pure Ever-Virgin.

If the feast fall within the period of Pentecost, the kontakion & ikos of the holy
bishop are sung here. But if the feast fall after the Pentecost period, the
kontakion & ikos of the holy bishop are instead sung after Ode VI.

Kontakion of the holy bishop, in Tone III

Like a master helmsman, O Dunstan, thou didst ably pilot the ship of
Church and state in England, skillfully avoiding the treacherous rocks and
reefs hidden beneath the tides of thy times, and bringing it safely to the calm
harbour of heaven, fully laden with its freight of men's souls, which thou
didst deliver, rejoicing, to Christ thy Master.

Ikos: Like a deer panting in thirst, O venerable Dunstan, from childhood

thou didst earnestly seek after the waters of wisdom and the knowledge of
God; wherefore, moved by jealousy and hatred, the ignorant beset thee like a
pack of savage dogs. But thou fleddest to the refuge of holy Glastonbury,
where thou didst dedicate thyself wholly to devotion and piety; and ever after
thou didst champion the true monastic rule, didst restore the ruined
monasteries and convents of England, and didst defend them with all thy
might, so that through thine efforts the Holy Church in thy land was
adorned as with many splendid lamps, burning brightly with the oil of
prayers offered up, rejoicing, to Christ the Master.

Sessional hymn of the holy bishop, in Tone V: Spec. Mel.: The Word Who with
the Father and the Spirit is equally unoriginate.

With hymns let us honour the holy bishop of the Lord as a true man of
prayer who smote the passions with the cudgel of abstinence, who with skill
truly put the adversary to shame and set his arrogance at nought, and now
prayeth earnestly that his native land be made steadfast in Orthodoxy.

Glory, Now & ever: Sessional hymn from the Pentecostarion; or this
theotokion, in the same tone & melody

Awesome is the miracle of thy conceiving; and the ineffable image of the
birthgiving known in thee, O pure Ever-Virgin, filleth my mind with awe and
amazeth my thoughts. Thy glory hath spread over all, O Theotokos, unto the
salvation of our souls.

Stavrotheotokion

Beholding Thee hanging of Thine own will upon the Cross between the
thieves, O Christ, Thy Mother said, her womb rent with pain: 'O my sinless
Son, how is it that Thou hast been unjustly nailed to the Cross like a
malefactor, since thou desirest to bring life to the human race, in that thou
art compassionate?'

Ode IV

Irmos: The workings of Thy dispensation filled the Prophet Habbakuk with
awe, O Lord; for Thou didst issue forth for the salvation of Thy people, Thou
didst come to save Thine anointed ones.
England boasteth in thy glory, O God-bearer; for in the workings of His
dispensation the Most High raised thee to the primacy of its Church, for the
salvation of His people.

Truly didst thou give good counsel unto kings and princes, O noble-minded
Dunstan; for in humility and obedience thou didst receive wisdom, for the
salvation of His anointed ones.

The godly King Edgar embraced thine excellent prudence and Christian
virtue of soul, O holy Dunstan, and had thee consecrated Bishop of London,
for the salvation of his pious flock.

Theotokion: Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard the extent of thy mighty works,
O Bride of God, nor can the tongue of man describe thy supernal beauties,
which pass all human understanding.

Ode V

Irmos: Rising at dawn, we cry to Thee: Save us, O Lord! for Thou art our
God, and we know none other than Thee.

The severed realm of England was united under the peaceable king, and
thou, O saint, becamest its spiritual head.

Hallowed was the sceptered isle of England by thy great holiness and grace,
O wondrous bishop Dunstan.

Unto our merciful God didst thou continually cry aloud: Save us, O Lord, for
we know none other than Thee!

Theotokion: Save us from the talons of the evil dragon, our primordial foe, O
Virgin, for we have none other help than thee.

Ode VI

Irmos: In the latter times Adam cried aloud: O my God, deliver me who have
fallen! And having become like unto him, Thou didst come to save us.

O thy pastoral boldness, O holy one! For thou didst in no wise hesitate to
rebuke even kings for the benefit and salvation of their immortal souls.

Never shall we cease to sing thy praises, O holy bishop; for thou didst raise
up that which was fallen, unto the salvation of mens immortal souls.

Thy love of inner stillness and monastic prayer filled the whole land of
England with the sweetness of grace, O thou who art rich in grace divine.

Theotokion: Help us, O Sovereign Lady, for we are all perishing in sore
distress. As thou hast boldness before thy Son, come unto us, and save us.
If the feast fall within the Pentecost period, the kontakion & ikos from the
Pentecostarion are sung here; otherwise, the kontakion & ikos of the holy
bishop (see after Ode III) are sung at this point.

Ode VII

Irmos: Blessed art Thou, O God of our fathers, Who quenched the fiery
furnace in Babylon and preserved the children therein as in a bridal-
chamber!

Edward the king found shelter under the wings of thy wise counsel, O
Dunstan; wherefore, in his martyr's death he shone forth radiantly.

Returning the monasteries of England to true monastic discipline, O saint,

thou didst restore them in goodly order unto Christ the Lord.

Over the great Council of Winchester thou didst preside, O venerable one,
codifying the rule and order of monastic life and governance.

Theotokion: Celts and Britons, Angles and Saxons, Picts and Scots, all lift up
their voices in sweet hymnody, praising the all-pure Mother of the King of
all.

Ode VIII

Irmos: Hymn the Author of creation, of Whom the angels are in awe, O ye
people, and exalt Him supremely for all ages.

King Edward's relics didst thou reverently escort from Wareham to the
Convent of Shaftesbury, O saint.

Overcome with grief at the depredations of the heathen, Dunstan immersed

himself in prayer, withdrawing farther from the world.

Full of years, the holy bishop received the divine Mysteries and surrendered
his soul into the hands of his Lord.

Theotokion: Fain would we offer thee goodly praises, O Queen, yet our
tongues of clay produce no sounds fit for thy praise

Ode IX

Irmos: We magnify Thy most immaculate and pure Mother, O Christ, for she
gave birth to Thee in the flesh supernaturally, delivering us from all
deception and corruption.

All thy thoughts didst thou fix upon Christ, O sanctified Dunstan, at the end
of thine earthly life, and thou didst yearn for the sight of His all-radiant
countenance.
In thy primatial cathedral at Canterbury was thy precious body solemnly
entombed, O saint, to await and serve as a token of the universal
resurrection of all men.

Through the centuries did thy holy relics shine like a radiant lamp, O holy
one; yet for our sins, and to awaken our conscience, God let the ungodly
remove them, we know not whither.

Theotokion: Hither have we come with haste, O Bride unwedded, to venerate

thy holy icons and to extol thee with hymns of praise. Wherefore, be thou
ever merciful unto us sinners.

Exapostilarion of the holy bishop: Spec. Mel.:Heaven with stars

Like as the night skies are resplendent with numerous stars, their
constellations unerringly guiding travelers, so do the sainted archbishops of
Canterbury adorn the skies of the English Church like the Pleiades, the
great Dunstan shining most brightly in their midst.

Glory, Now & ever, from the Pentecostarion; or this Theotokion

Let me, who have fallen through manifold transgressions, glorify thine
indisputable grace, O all-pure one; and by thy might rescue me from my
sinful falls; for by thine invincible power thou savest those whom thou
desirest to rescue from all tribulations.

Aposticha from the Pentecostarion or Octoechos; and Glory, of the holy bishop,
Idiomelon, in Tone I

Aaron, the first high priest of the Most High, wore a breastplate designed by
God, and wrought of gold and many costly stones; but in spirit the great
bishops of England were themselves like precious jewels adorning the breast
of the One Church of Christ, and in their setting Dunstan shone forth with
splendor, more brilliant than a diamond, reflecting the light of the Sun of
righteousness, and filling the faithful with delight by the supernal beauty
and grace of his wondrous soul. Wherefore, let us offer high praise unto him,
who by his supplications on our behalf doth enrich us beyond all measure.

Now & ever, from the Pentecostarion; or theotokion, or this stavrotheotokion:

Spec. Mel.: O most praised martyrs

When she beheld the Lamb upon the Cross bereft of form and beauty, the
most immaculate ewe-lamb and Mistress said, weeping: Woe is me! Where
hath Thy comeliness gone, O Thou Who art most sweet? Where is the
shining grace of Thine image, O my Son most beloved?

At the Liturgy

Prokimenon of the holy bishop, in Tone I

My mouth shall speak wisdom, and the meditation of my heart shall be of
understanding.

Stichos: Hear this, all ye nations; give ear, all ye that inhabit the world.

Epistle to the Hebrews, 318 (Heb. 7: 26-8: 2)

Brethren: Such a High Priest became us, Who is holy, harmless, undefiled,
separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens; Who needeth not
daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins, and
then for the people's: for this He did once, when He offered up Himself.. For
the law maketh men high priests who have infirmity; but the word of the
oath, which was since the law, maketh the Son, Who is consecrated for
evermore. Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have
such a High Priest, Who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty
in the heavens; a Minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle,
which the Lord pitched, and not man.

Alleluia of the holy bishop, in Tone II

Stichos: The mouth of the righteous shall meditate wisdom, and his tongue
shall speak of judgment.

Stichos: The law of God is in his heart, and his steps shall not be tripped.

Gospel according to John, 36 (Jn. 10: 9-16)

The Lord said to the Jews who came to Him: I am the door: by Me if any man
enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. The
thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that
they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. I am the
good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. But he who is
a hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the
wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth them,
and scattereth the sheep. The hireling fleeth, because he is a hireling, and
careth not for the sheep. I am the good Shepherd, and know My sheep, and
am known of Mine. As the Father knoweth Me, even so know I the Father:
and I lay down My life for the sheep. And other sheep I have, which are not
of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear My voice; and there
shall be one fold, and one shepherd.

Communion verse of the holy bishop

In everlasting remembrance shall the righteous be, he shall not be afraid of

evil tidings. .