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Melkite Greek Catholic Church Information Center

Holy and Glorious Pascha Celebration Fifthteenth Day - Third Sunday of: Sunday of the Myrrh-Bearing Women

The Third Sunday of Holy and Glorious Pascha commemorates The Holy Myrrh-Bearing Women.
The Holy Myrrh-Bearing Women were the first to learn that Holy God the Son within the Holy Trinity / Our Lord, God and Savior, Jesus Christ had risen from the dead.

Early on the third day, the Holy Myrrh-Bearing Women went to the tomb of Holy God the Son within the Holy Trinity / Our Lord, God and Savior, Jesus Christ to finish preparing His Body for burial.
According to Jewish burial custom, a body is annointed with spices before its burial.
According to Jewish law, a body can not be prepared for burial (wrapped and annointed) on the Sabbath and can not be buried on the Sabbath. (The Sabbath begins at sunset on Friday and ends just before sunset on Saturday.)
When the Body of Holy God the Son within the Holy Trinity / Our Lord, God and Savior, Jesus Christ was taken down from the cross, the time was late on Friday on which the Sabbath began. It was almost sunset, it was almost the Sabbath. Then, the Body of Holy God the Son within the Holy Trinity / Our Lord, God and Savior, Jesus Christ was very quickly and minimally prepared for burial (wrapped, not annointed) and was very quickly placed in an above ground rock-hewn tomb. (The Body of Holy God the Son within the Holy Trinity / Our Lord, God and Savior, Jesus Christ was not placed in a coffin in the ground.)
At the first daylight after the Sabbath (early Sunday morning), the Holy Myrrh-Bearing Women went to the tomb of Holy God the Son within the Holy Trinity / Our Lord, God and Savior, Jesus Christ to finish preparing His Body for burial, to annoint his body.

The Holy Myrrh-Bearing Women are called the "Myrrh-bearers" because they brought myrrh and other spices and oils to finish the anointing of the Body the Holy God the Son within the Holy Trinity / Our Lord, God and Savior, Jesus Christ for burial.
The three Holy Myrrh-Bearing Women named in the Gospels at the tomb are:
The Myrrh-bearing Woman Mary Magdalen, the Equal of the Apostles; Mary the mother of James, and Salome.
Mt 28:1 "After the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb. [Mt 27:56 Among them were Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James and Joseph, and the mother of the sons of Zebedee."]
Mk 16:1 "When the sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary, the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go and anoint him."
Lk 24:10 "The women were Mary Mgdalene, Joanna, and Mary the mother of James, ...."
John 20:1 "On the first day of the week, Mary Mgdalene came to the tomb early in the morning ...."

However, eight women are generally identified as the Holy Myrrh-Bearing Women. They stayed with Holy God the Son within the Holy Trinity / Our Lord, God and Savior, Jesus Christ at the cross and at the tomb. These eight women are: Mary Magdalene, The Theotokos, Joanna, Salome, Mary the wife of Cleopas / Alphaeus, Susanna, Mary of Bethany, and Martha of Bethany.
Further, Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Susanna, Mary of Bethany, and Martha of Bethany seemed to have financial resources and provided for Holy God the Son within the Holy Trinity / Our Lord, God and Savior, Jesus Christ out of their own means/possessions.

The Resurrection According to the Flesh of Holy God the Son within the Holy Trinity / Our Lord, God and Savior, Jesus Christ was on the third day, Sunday. The day count begins on the day of the Crucifixion, Friday.

Apostolos

Acts 6:1-7 This reading is the story of the earliest days of the Christian Church, probably written by St Luke.
These verses tell how the Apostles decided to appoint or ordain "seven men of good standing, full of the Spirit and wisdom" to help with the daily work of feeding the believers' widows and children. These seven men were the first deacons.
The last verse of this reading tells us that the word of Holy God continued to spread in Jerusalem and many people, including Jewish priests, came to believe in Holy God the Son within the Holy Trinity / Our Lord, God and Savior, Jesus Christ as the Messiah.

Gospel

(Mk. 15:43-16:8) Joseph of Arimathea obtained the Body of Holy God the Son within the Holy Trinity / Our Lord, God and Savior, Jesus Christ from the Romans for burial. (Joseph of Arimathea is the "noble Joseph" whom we sing about in the troparion of the Feasts of Feasts Holy and Glorious Pascha.) Joseph of Arimathea quickly prepared the body for burial with just the minimal preparation and very quickly placed in Joseph of Arimathea's above ground rock-hewn tomb. The Holy Myrrh-Bearing Women watched. Then, early in the morning on the day after the Sabbath, the Holy Myrrh-Bearing Women went to the tomb to prepare the body with myrrh and scented oils for proper burial according to Jewish burial customs. There, they found the tomb empty and were terrified when the angel spoke to them about Holy God the Son within the Holy Trinity / Our Lord, God and Savior, Jesus Christ's Resurrection. Also, the angel told them to go and tell Holy, Glorious and Illustrious Prince of the Apostles Peter, the First Pope and the First Patriarch / Batriyark of Antioch and the other disciples that Holy God the Son within the Holy Trinity / Our Lord, God and Savior, Jesus Christ had risen as He said He would, and that He would meet his followers in Galilee.
This story reminds us of the need to be faithful to Holy God the Son within the Holy Trinity / Our Lord, God and Savior, Jesus Christ, even when all hope seems to be dead, and to tell His Good News, even when we are afraid.

Kontakion, Troparion, Exapostilarion, and Vespers Sticheron or Doxastikon

The tone for this week is 2.

KONTAKION (TONE 2)
O Christ God, when You greeted the Myrrh-Bearing Women, You wiped away the tears of our first mother Eve, and told the women to bring news to the disciples that Christ was risen from the tomb.

TROPARION (TONE 2)
The angel stood by the tomb and cried out to the Myrrh-bearing Women:
"Myrrh is for the dead, but Christ has proved Himself free from corruption. Cry out, then, "The Lord is risen and has bestowed great mercy upon the world!"

Icon

Two types of ikons show the Holy Myrrh-Bearing Women.

1. The Holy Myrrh-Bearing Women with the empty tomb. Usually, two or three women are shown. However, some ikons have more women, up to eight women.
2. The Eight Holy Myrrh-Bearing Women without the tomb.

Eparch Cyrille Bustros's Message, Melkite Greek Catholic Church, Eparchy of Newton, Roslindale, Massachusetts, United States

May2006

Pascha Cycle

The Sundays of Holy and Glorious Pascha or Sundays after Holy and Glorious Pascha are between Holy and Glorious Pascha and Pentecost.

How to determine when the Sundays of Holy and Glorious Pascha occur.

Date of Pascha

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Melkite Greek Catholic Church Information Center is dedicated to my cousins: Bucky (Richard C. Liles), Shirley (Shirley Jean Liles Buck), and Donna (Donna Bertha Liles Campbell). Bucky fell asleep in the Lord on Dec. 12, 2000, Shirley fell asleep in the Lord on Nov. 8, 2001, and Donna fell asleep in the Lord on March 9, 2020.
O God of all spirits and of all flesh, who have destroyed death, overcome the devil, and given life to the world: grant, O Lord, to the souls of your servants Bucky and Shirley, who has departed from this life, that it may rest in a place of light, in a place of happiness, in a place of peace, where there is no pain, no grief, no sighing. And since You are a gracious God and the Lover of Mankind, forgive him/her every sin he/she has committed by thought, or word, or deed, for there is not a man who lives and does not sin : You alone are without sin, your righteousness is everlasting, and your word is true. You are the Resurrection and the Life, and the repose of your departed servants Bucky and Shirley. O Christ our God, and we send up glory to You, together with your eternal Father and your all-holy, good and life-giving Spirit, now and always and for ages upon ages. Amen.

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