The Finding of the Lord in the Temple








♰الْمَجْدُ للهِ! ♰Praise be to God always!♰ܬܶܫܒܽܘܚܬܳܐ ܠܰܐܠܳܗܳܐ! ♰



Entrance Hymn

With His Parents Jesus Went

Syriac: msheeho natareh l’eedtokh

or msheeho natareh l’eedtokh (Abdallah)

With his parents Jesus went to the temple of the Lord,
for they wished to celebrate the great feast of Passover.
But as they were going home, they did not know
he had stayed behind.
Searching for the Righteous One anxiously in every house,
they found him at last in the temple of the Lord.
Questioning the teachers and convincing them,
he astonished one and all.
In your Father's house you loved meditating deep in prayer.
As his Son you spoke of him to the teachers gathered there.
You wanted to stay and teach and be for them
an eternal Light.
To your Mother you replied: "From the Father, in his name,
I come as his Son, who obeys what he commands,
to reveal and to proclaim the Hidden One
and to save the human race.”

Opening Prayers

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, now and for ever. Amen.

Incarnate Word of God, make us worthy to praise you with sincerity, to glorify you with angelic psalms, and to celebrate with purity and holiness this feast when you were found in the temple, that we may glorify you, your Father, and your Holy Spirit, forever.

Prayer of Forgiveness (Husoyo)

Proemion

Let us raise glory, honor, and praise to the eternal Father, who sent his only-begotten Son for our salvation; and to the Son, who today explained his teachings to the scribes and the teachers; and to the life-giving Spirit, who has spoken through the prophets and the apostles. To the Good One be glory and honor, on this feast, and all the days of our lives, and forever. Amen.

Sedro

Blessed are you, Jesus Christ our Lord and God, you chose to go up to the temple with Mary and Joseph to fulfill the law of the Passover, which you had previously established and placed in the hands of your prophets.
Today we celebrate the feast when you were found in the temple sitting among the teachers. You taught us that God must be the first and the last in all that we do, for our lives have no meaning except in our Lord and God.
Now we ask you, with the fragrance of this incense, to enlighten our minds, that we may understand your love for us which is the foundation of all your holy commandments. Strengthen our wills to act only for you, guide our minds to think only of you, and fill our hearts with the true joy of pleasing you and doing your will. May our goal be the accomplishment of your works and those of your Father and of your Holy Spirit. To you be glory and thanks, forever. Amen.

Hymn (Qolo)

Christ Our Lord, in Jerusalem

Syriac: ehnono noohro shareero

Christ our Lord, in Jerusalem
in the holy temple, prayed.
He, the Lord of all times and feasts,
praised his Father and exclaimed:
“One thing do I ask and pray,
and how sweet and good it is,
that I dwell within God’s house,
gazing on my Father's face
with pure love and lasting peace.”
In the temple Isaiah heard
voices of the seraphim:
“Holy, holy, most holy Lord,
praised in heaven and on earth!”
With the Spirit’s burning coal,
he was cleansed to go and teach.
And he said, “O Lord, my God,
grant me now your word to speak
to your people in your name.”
In the temple, still yet a boy,
to his mother Jesus said:
“From on high does my Father call
and I ought to be with him.
Something tells me in my heart
to proclaim good news to all.
For my Father's house I burn
with a living flame in me.
This is God my Father's will.”

Etro

Glory to you, O Holy God, you entered the temple as a child to fulfill the law. Now accept our incense and our prayers, and through them sanctify our souls and bodies, that we may become pure temples for you to dwell in us. We glorify you, your Father, and your Holy Spirit, forever. Amen.

Qadishat Aloho (Trisagion)

ܩܰܕܺܝܫܰܬ ܚܰܝܶܠܬܳܢܳܐ. ܩܰܕܺܝܫܰܬ ܠܳܐ ܡܳܝܽܘܬܳܐ. ܐܶܬܪܰܚܰܡ ܥܠܰܝܢ.
ܡܫܺܝܚܳܐ ܕܶܬܺܝܠܶܕ ܡܶܢ ܒܰܪ̱ܬ ܕܰܘܺܝܕ. ܩܰܕܺܝܫܰܬ ܐܰܠܳܗܳܐ.
Qadishat Aloho. Qadishat Hayeltono. Qadishat lo moyuto.
MsheeHo dethiled men bat Dawid, etraHam 3alayn.
You are holy, O God. You are holy, O Strong One. You are holy, O Imortal One.
O Christ, born of the daughter of David, have mercy on us.
قُدُوسٌ أَنْ يا الله، قُدُوسٌ أَنْتَ يا قَوِي، قُدُوسٌ أَنْتَ يا مَنْ لا يَموتْ
يا مَسِيح الَّذِي وُلِدَ مِنْ بِنْتِ دَوِيد، إِرْحَمْنا

Holy and immortal Lord, sanctify our minds and purify our consciences, that we may praise you with purity and listen to your Holy Scriptures. To you be glory forever. Amen.

Psalm of the Readings

Syriac: ramremain

All this vast world around us
is the temple of the Lord,
where in joy we can praise God,
its Creator from of old.
Shout with joy from the mountains:
“See the temple of the Lord!”
Offer praise to the Lord God,
its Creator from of old.
Christ, the Lord of the temple,
you are the true temple now.
So through you, to your Father
and your Spirit we give praise.

Epistle

A reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to the . Your blessing, Father.

Glory to the Lord of Paul and the apostles! May the mercy of God descend upon the reader and the listeners and upon this parish and her children forever. Amen.

Brothers and Sisters:
Now if perfection had been attainable through the levitical priesthood—for the people received the law under this priesthood—what further need would there have been to speak of another priest arising according to the order of Melchizedek, rather than one according to the order of Aaron? For when there is a change in the priesthood, there is necessarily a change in the law as well. Now the one of whom these things are spoken belonged to another tribe, from which no one has ever served at the altar. For it is evident that our Lord was descended from Judah, and in connection with that tribe Moses said nothing about priests. It is even more obvious when another priest arises, resembling Melchizedek, one who has become a priest, not through a legal requirement concerning physical descent, but through the power of an indestructible life. For it is attested of him, “You are a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek.” There is, on the one hand, the abrogation of an earlier commandment because it was weak and ineffectual (for the law made nothing perfect); there is, on the other hand, the introduction of a better hope, through which we approach God.
(Hebrews 7:11-19)

Praise be to God always!

Gospel

Alleluia! Alleluia!
“Why were you searching for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?”
(Luke 2:49)
Alleluia!

Before the proclamation of the Gospel of our Savior, announcing life for our souls, we offer this incense and ask for your mercy, O Lord.

Peace be with you.

And with your spirit.

From the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Saint , who proclaimed life to the world.
Let us listen to the proclalation of life and salvation for our souls.

Remain silent, O listeners, for the Holy Gospel is about to be proclaimed to you.
Listen and give glory and thanks to the Word of the living God.

The Evangelist wrote:
Now every year his parents went to Jerusalem for the festival of the Passover. And when he was twelve years old, they went up as usual for the festival. When the festival was ended and they started to return, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but his parents did not know it. Assuming that he was in the group of travelers, they went a day’s journey. Then they started to look for him among their relatives and friends. When they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem to search for him. After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers. When his parents saw him they were astonished; and his mother said to him, “Child, why have you treated us like this? Look, your father and I have been searching for you in great anxiety.” He said to them, “Why were you searching for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” But they did not understand what he said to them. Then he went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them. His mother treasured all these things in her heart. And Jesus increased in wisdom and in years, and in divine and human favor.
(Luke 2:41-52)

This is the truth! Peace be with you!

Praise and blessings to Jesus Christ, our Lord and God, for giving us his words of life.