When this one came from heaven to earth for the sake of the one who suffers, and had clothed himself with that very one through the womb of a virgin, and having come forth as man, he accepted the sufferings of the sufferer through his body which was capable of suffering. And he destroyed those human sufferings by his spirit which was incapable of dying. He killed death which had put man to death. (65-66)” We sing, “Today is the summit of our salvation.” (Troparion)

(*) It may fall in Bright Week, but this is rare. In 2035 and 2046, it will fall on Pascha itself, and these are the only two instances in the rest of the twenty-first century. On the Julian calendar, it will fall on Bright Tuesday in 2037 and 2048.

(**) This has been the case since the Council of Trullo (692 a.d.). The feast itself was established in its modern form about 560 a.d. Earlier, it may have been transferred to Saturday or Sunday (Akathistos Saturday may be a remnant of this). Also, it may have been celebrated only with a Liturgy of a Word, or only in churches dedicated to the Theotokos. This is discussed by Stefanos Alexopoulos in his book, The Presanctified Liturgy in the Byzantine Rite, pp. 67-77.

Meditation by Archpriest David Petras