Saint Andrew of Crete … the Fifth Thursday of Lent is marked in Greece with the Great Canon of Saint Andrew of Crete
Patrick Comerford
I am staying in Rethymnon for five days, having arrived here late yesterday afternoon. I am staying in the Brascos Hotel in the centre of the town, and woke this morning to the sound of the church bells of the Church of the Four Martyrs, just a few steps from the hotel, at the end of Daskalaki Street, and the cathedral nearby.
It is still Lent in the calendar of the Greek Orthodox Church. The Fifth Week of Lent in Greece is marked by its intensity, and many people find they are tested and challenged, yet nourished and comforted, by the spiritual therapy it offers.
Today, the Fifth Thursday of Lent, is marked with the Great Canon of Saint Andrew of Crete, which seems an appropriate coincidence as I am in Crete, although this service is usually held the previous (Wednesday) evening, and I was present for part of that in the cathedral in Rethymnon last night.
Inside the Church of the Four Martyrs in Rethymnon this afternoon (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2024)
The Great Canon is also known as the Canon of Repentance or the Great Canon of Repentance, and is an eighth-century masterpiece by Saint Andrew of Crete, the. It is the longest canon ever composed, with 250 strophes or verses of nine odes, and it runs to 49 pages in the standard English translation. It is written primarily in the first person, and goes chronologically through the entire Old Testament and New Testament, drawing examples (both negative and positive) that it correlates to the need of the sinful soul for repentance and a humble return to God.
Saint Andrew’s Great Canon has been described as ‘a kind of walk through the Bible.’ It is divided into four parts that are chanted at Great Compline on the first four nights of Great Lent (one part per night). Later, it is chanted in its entirety at Matins on this Thursday.
Saint Andrew begins with Adam and Eve and goes through the full biblical text, as he speaks to his soul, and to us, by applying the stories and characters of the Bible.
When speaking of the Great Canon, the great Orthodox theologian Father Alexander Schmemann says ‘the events of sacred history are revealed as events in my life, God’s acts in the past as acts aimed at me and my salvation, the tragedy of sin and betrayal as my personal tragedy. My life is shown to me as part of the great and all-embracing fight between God and the powers of darkness which rebel against him … The canon begins on a deeply personal note … one after another, my sins are revealed in their deep connection with the continuous drama of man’s relation to God; the story of man’s fall is my story.’
Saint Andrew of Crete (Ἀνδρέας Κρήτης) also known as Andrew of Jerusalem, was an eighth century bishop, theologian, preacher and hymn-writer.
Andrew was born in Damascus ca 650, to Christian parents, and was mute until the age of seven. According to his biographers, he was miraculously cured after receiving Holy Communion. He began his ecclesiastical career at 14 in the Lavra of Saint Sabbas the Sanctified, near Jerusalem, where he quickly gained the notice of his superiors.
Theodore, the locum tenens of the Patriarchate of Jerusalem (745-770) made him his archdeacon, and sent him to the imperial capital of Constantinople as his official representative at the Sixth Ecumenical Council (680-681), which had been called by Emperor Constantine Pogonatus to counter the heresy of Monothelitism.
Shortly after the council, he was summoned back to Constantinople from Jerusalem and appointed Archdeacon at the Great Church of Hagia Sophia. Eventually, Andrew was appointed to the metropolitan see of Gortyna, in Crete.
Although he had been an opponent of Monothelitism, he nevertheless attended the conciliabulum of 712, in which the decrees of the Ecumenical Council were abolished.
He repented the following year and returned to Orthodoxy. From then on, he spent his time preaching and composing hymns. As a preacher, his sermons are known for their dignified and harmonious phraseology, and he is regarded as one of the great church orators of the Byzantine Era.
Today, Saint Andrew of Crete is primarily known as a hymn writer. He is said to have invented, or at least introduced into the liturgy the canon, a new form of hymnody. Previously, the portion of the Matins service that is now the canon was composed of chanting the nine biblical canticles, with short refrains inserted between scriptural verses. Saint Andrew expanded these refrains into fully developed poetic odes, each beginning with the theme (irmos) of the scriptural canticle, but he then goes on to expound the theme of the feast being celebrated that day.
His masterpiece, the Great Canon – also known as the Canon of Repentance or the Great Canon of Repentance – is the longest canon ever composed, with 250 strophes. It is written primarily in the first person, and it goes chronologically through the entire Old Testament and New Testament, drawing examples, both negative and positive, that it correlates to the need of the sinful soul for repentance and a humble return to God. It is divided into four parts or odes that are chanted at Great Compline on the first four nights of Great Lent, one part each night. Later, it is chanted in its entirety at Matins on Thursday of the fifth week of Great Lent, which falls today (18 April).
Saint Andrew of Crete is reputed to have written 24 canons. Of these, we can be more or less certain that he wrote 14, including: the canons for the Resurrection of Lazarus, chanted at Compline on the Saturday, ie Friday night, before Palm Sunday; the Conception of Saint Anne (9 December); the Maccabean Martyrs (1 August); Saint Ignatius of Antioch (20 December); as well as four Triodia, and no fewer than 107 irmoi.
There is no consensus among Church historians on the date of his death. But it is known that he died on the island of Mytilene on his way back to Crete from Constantinople, where he had been on church business. His relics were later moved to Constantinople. The piousRussian pilgrim Stephen of Novgorod saw his relics at the Monastery of Saint Andrew of Crete in Constantinople in 1349. At modern Skala Eresou on Lesbos (ancient Eresos), a large, Early Christian basilica-style church is named in honour of Saint Andrew of Crete. His feast day is on 4 July in the Eastern Orthodox liturgical calendar.
The Great Canon of Saint Andrew of Crete has been described as a kind of ‘Walk through the Bible’
18 April 2024
Daily prayer in Easter 2024:
19, 18 April 2024
The Church of the Four Martyrs … one of the largest churches in Rethymnon (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2024)
Patrick Comerford
Easter is a 50-day season that continues until the Day of Pentecost. The week began yesterday with the Third Sunday of Easter (Easter III). Throughout this Season of Easter, my morning reflections each day include the daily Gospel reading, the prayer in the USPG prayer diary, and the prayers in the Collects and Post-Communion Prayer of the day.
I am staying in Rethymnon for five days, having arrived here yesterday afternoon. I am staying in the Brascos Hotel in the centre of the town, and I awoke this morning to the sound of the church bells from the Church of the Four Martyrs, just a few steps away from the hotel, and the neigighbouring cathedral.
It is still Lent in the calendar of the Greek Orthodox Church. Today, the Fifth Thursday of Lent, is marked with the Great Canon of Saint Andrew of Crete, which seems an appropriate coincidence as I am in Crete, although this service is usually held the previous (Wednesday) evening, as I found when I visited the cathedral.
The masterpiece of Saint Andrew of Crete, the Great Canon (also known as the Canon of Repentance or the Great Canon of Repentance), is the longest canon ever composed with 250 strophes, and it runs to 49 pages in the standard English translation. It is written primarily in the first person, and goes chronologically through the entire Old Testament and New Testament, drawing examples (both negative and positive) that it correlates to the need of the sinful soul for repentance and a humble return to God. It is divided into four parts (called methymony) that are chanted at Great Compline on the first four nights of Great Lent (one part per night). Later, it is chanted in its entirety at Matins on this Thursday in the fifth week of Great Lent.
Before this day begins, I am taking some quiet time to give thanks, for reflection, prayer and reading in these ways:
1, today’s Gospel reading;
2, a prayer from the USPG prayer diary;
3, the Collects and Post-Communion prayer of the day.
Inside the Cathedral in Rethymnon last night during the Great Canon of Saint Andrew of Crete (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2024)
John 6: 44-51 (NRSVA):
[Jesus said:] 44 ‘No one can come to me unless drawn by the Father who sent me; and I will raise that person up on the last day. 45 It is written in the prophets, “And they shall all be taught by God.” Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me. 46 Not that anyone has seen the Father except the one who is from God; he has seen the Father. 47 Very truly, I tell you, whoever believes has eternal life. 48 I am the bread of life. 49 Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. 50 This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. 51 I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live for ever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.’
Christ the Pantocrator in the dome in the Church of the Four Martyrs in Rethymnon (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)
Today’s Prayers (Thursday 18 April 2024):
The theme this week in ‘Pray With the World Church,’ the Prayer Diary of the Anglican mission agency USPG (United Society Partners in the Gospel), is ‘The effect of Climate Change in the Solomon Islands.’ This theme was introduced on Sunday by the Revd Kate Komepwaisiho, Trustee of the Melanesian Mission.
The USPG Prayer Diary today (18 April 2024) invites us to pray:
Lord God, we pray for the people of the Solomon Islands. May they continue to serve together as a community, caring for each other and their environment.
The Collect:
Almighty Father,
who in your great mercy gladdened the disciples
with the sight of the risen Lord:
give us such knowledge of his presence with us,
that we may be strengthened and sustained by his risen life
and serve you continually in righteousness and truth;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
Post Communion Prayer:
Living God,
your Son made himself known to his disciples
in the breaking of bread:
open the eyes of our faith,
that we may see him in all his redeeming work;
who is alive and reigns, now and for ever.
Additional Collect:
Risen Christ,
you filled your disciples with boldness and fresh hope:
strengthen us to proclaim your risen life
and fill us with your peace,
to the glory of God the Father.
Yesterday’s reflection
Continued Tomorrow
An icon of the Four Martyrs of Rethymnon by Alexandra Kaouki and once in the Rectory in Askeaton, Co Limerick (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)
Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicised Edition copyright © 1989, 1995, National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. http://nrsvbibles.org
Patrick Comerford
Easter is a 50-day season that continues until the Day of Pentecost. The week began yesterday with the Third Sunday of Easter (Easter III). Throughout this Season of Easter, my morning reflections each day include the daily Gospel reading, the prayer in the USPG prayer diary, and the prayers in the Collects and Post-Communion Prayer of the day.
I am staying in Rethymnon for five days, having arrived here yesterday afternoon. I am staying in the Brascos Hotel in the centre of the town, and I awoke this morning to the sound of the church bells from the Church of the Four Martyrs, just a few steps away from the hotel, and the neigighbouring cathedral.
It is still Lent in the calendar of the Greek Orthodox Church. Today, the Fifth Thursday of Lent, is marked with the Great Canon of Saint Andrew of Crete, which seems an appropriate coincidence as I am in Crete, although this service is usually held the previous (Wednesday) evening, as I found when I visited the cathedral.
The masterpiece of Saint Andrew of Crete, the Great Canon (also known as the Canon of Repentance or the Great Canon of Repentance), is the longest canon ever composed with 250 strophes, and it runs to 49 pages in the standard English translation. It is written primarily in the first person, and goes chronologically through the entire Old Testament and New Testament, drawing examples (both negative and positive) that it correlates to the need of the sinful soul for repentance and a humble return to God. It is divided into four parts (called methymony) that are chanted at Great Compline on the first four nights of Great Lent (one part per night). Later, it is chanted in its entirety at Matins on this Thursday in the fifth week of Great Lent.
Before this day begins, I am taking some quiet time to give thanks, for reflection, prayer and reading in these ways:
1, today’s Gospel reading;
2, a prayer from the USPG prayer diary;
3, the Collects and Post-Communion prayer of the day.
Inside the Cathedral in Rethymnon last night during the Great Canon of Saint Andrew of Crete (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2024)
John 6: 44-51 (NRSVA):
[Jesus said:] 44 ‘No one can come to me unless drawn by the Father who sent me; and I will raise that person up on the last day. 45 It is written in the prophets, “And they shall all be taught by God.” Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me. 46 Not that anyone has seen the Father except the one who is from God; he has seen the Father. 47 Very truly, I tell you, whoever believes has eternal life. 48 I am the bread of life. 49 Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. 50 This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. 51 I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live for ever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.’
Christ the Pantocrator in the dome in the Church of the Four Martyrs in Rethymnon (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)
Today’s Prayers (Thursday 18 April 2024):
The theme this week in ‘Pray With the World Church,’ the Prayer Diary of the Anglican mission agency USPG (United Society Partners in the Gospel), is ‘The effect of Climate Change in the Solomon Islands.’ This theme was introduced on Sunday by the Revd Kate Komepwaisiho, Trustee of the Melanesian Mission.
The USPG Prayer Diary today (18 April 2024) invites us to pray:
Lord God, we pray for the people of the Solomon Islands. May they continue to serve together as a community, caring for each other and their environment.
The Collect:
Almighty Father,
who in your great mercy gladdened the disciples
with the sight of the risen Lord:
give us such knowledge of his presence with us,
that we may be strengthened and sustained by his risen life
and serve you continually in righteousness and truth;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
Post Communion Prayer:
Living God,
your Son made himself known to his disciples
in the breaking of bread:
open the eyes of our faith,
that we may see him in all his redeeming work;
who is alive and reigns, now and for ever.
Additional Collect:
Risen Christ,
you filled your disciples with boldness and fresh hope:
strengthen us to proclaim your risen life
and fill us with your peace,
to the glory of God the Father.
Yesterday’s reflection
Continued Tomorrow
An icon of the Four Martyrs of Rethymnon by Alexandra Kaouki and once in the Rectory in Askeaton, Co Limerick (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)
Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicised Edition copyright © 1989, 1995, National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. http://nrsvbibles.org
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