Feast Day: October 1st
The Life of Saint Romanos the Melodist: That evening at the all-night Vigil Saint Romanos sang, in a wondrous voice, his first Kontakion: “Today the Virgin gives birth to the Transcendent One…”…
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Prayers
Apolytikion: Thou didst gladden Christ’s Church by thy melodies, like an inspired heavenly trumpet. For thou wast enlightened by the Mother of God, and didst shine on the world as God’s poet. We lovingly honour thee, O Venerable Romanos.
Kontakion: From thy childhood divine virtues and gifts of the Spirit were bestowed on thee, O wise Romanos. Thou wast a precious adornment of the Church with thy beautiful chanting, O blessed one. We entreat thee to grant us thy divine gift that we may cry to thee: Rejoice, O most blessed Father, comeliness of the Church.
Saint Romanos was Ordained a Monk and spent his nights alone in a field, or in the Blachernae Church, in Prayer to Our Lord and His Most Blessed Mother. Saint Romanos was very saddened because he struggled reading and chanting in the Church, and therefore received great ridicule from the clergy. On the evening of the Nativity of Christ he read the Kathisma Verses so poorly that another reader had to take his place.
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Saint Romanos had a vision of the Most Holy Mother of God on the day of her Nativity, while he was Praying before her Kyriotissa Icon. She gave him a scroll and told him to eat it, and thereby he was given the gift of understanding, composition and hymnography from Our Lady the Theotokos.
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That evening at the All-night Vigil, Saint Romanos sang in a beautifully Heavenly voice his first Kontakion: “Today the Virgin gives Birth to Him Who is above all being, and the Earth offers a cave to Him Whom no one can approach. Angels with shepherds give Glory, and magi journey with a star, for to us there has been born a little Child, God before the ages.”
All the Hymns of Saint Romanos have became known as Kontakia, this is in reference to the scroll given to him by the Theotokos. Saint Romanos was also the first Hymnographer to write in the form of the Oikos.
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Saint Romanos was thereafter Ordained a Deacon and became a teacher of song to those who wished to Glorify the Lord in chanting.
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The Hierodeacon Romanos the Melodist composed almost one thousand Hymns, eighty of which are still used today, including the Akathist to the Theotokos. He reposed around the year 556.
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“[Saint] Romanos was entirely within the Grace of Christ and whatever he wrote was perfect.” – Saint Porphyrios of Kavsokalyvia
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