Fast of Nineveh

peterfarrington

Can someone describe the full round of services which commemorate the Fast of Nineveh, and all the additional prayers and hymns. Not the texts themselves but just all the services and the changes which take place during this season.

Thanks

Deacon Peter

Unknown

I think coptichertitage.org pretty much says it all:

The rite of the Fast and Feast of Nineveh.

Introduction
Throughout the Fast of Nineveh, the Church fasts for three days, a period in which we reflect on our sins and live in a state of repentance. This fast was first inaugurated during the time of Bishop Zaraa El-Souriany. When fasted by the Church, the fast symbolizes the Ninevites and their thirst for God's mercy. The readings are all read from the Lectionary of the Great Lent. The Fast of Nineveh is ritualistically similar to the Fast of the Great Lent. It is vital to remember that the Vespers Prayers are not prayed during this fast because they symbolize the sacrifices that are to be offered in the evening, which is Christ Himself sacrificed on the wood of the Cross. Rather, the Divine Liturgies during the Fast of Nineveh end at dusk, reminding us of the real sacrifice offered on the altar. Importantly, Christ Himself relieves the church from the need of offering the evening sacrifices of the Vespers Prayers. The hymns of this fast are chanted in the Great Lenten tune, and without the cymbals.


Rite
In the Prime Prayer, the Prayer of Thanksgiving is prayed, followed by =K=e instead of the Verses of Cymbals. In addition, the Litanies for the Sick and those who are Traveling are chanted. The Doxologies are then chanted in the Lenten tune, starting with the Doxology specific to the Fast of Nineveh. After praying V] nai nan , the congregation replies with =K=e thrice in the minor tune, after which the candles on the altar are put out and the sanctuary veil is closed. Meanwhile, the prophesies of the Great Lent are read in Coptic or the language of understanding. This reminds us of the time when the light of the prophets was extinguished from the time of Malachi the Prophet until the coming of Christ the Lord, Who is the True Light of the world. Upon the completion of the prophecies, the veil of the sanctuary is once again opened and the candles on the altar are relit. The Litanies are then prayed simultaneously with prostrations (metanoia). After the reading of the Gospel, the Gospel Response specific to the Fast of Nineveh is chanted according to the day. Afterwards, the entire Creed is recited.

In the Divine Liturgy, the Seven Canonical Hours are prayed (in the monasteries, the Prayer of the Veil is added). The Rite from this point onwards is similar to that of the Great Lent. Following the offering of the Lamb, the hymn `Allyloui`a `ei`e`i `eqoun is chanted. After the Thanksgiving Prayer, Nefcen] qen nitwou and `Klinwmen ta gonata along with its responses are said. Then the Absolution is recited and it is followed by the hymn, `N;o te ]souri . Then, the Hiten specific to the Fast of Nineveh is chanted before that of the Apostles. Following the Catholic Epistle, the hymn Sare V] is chanted. It should be noted that the Gospel Responses should be chanted according to the day of the Fast. After the Prayer of Reconciliation, the Adam Espasmos is said in the same manner it would be in the Lenten days. The priest prays the Fraction of the Lent during the breaking of the Body. During communion, Psalm 150 is chanted in the same tune as that of the Great Lent, without any response, followed by the hymns Je `f`cmarouwt (in the Lenten tune) and Pimairomi . Finally, the concluding hymn, Cwmatoc is chanted, excluding the passage specific to the Lent.

In the Feast of Nineveh, the prayers are chanted in the annual tune. Specific verses for the feast are said in the Prime and Divine Liturgy Gospel Responses, as well as the Hiten . The priest prays the Annual Fraction, and Psalm 150 and the Concluding Canon are chanted in the annual tune.

May the blessings of these blessed days, be with us all. Amen.

Melchoir

Warmest Greetings!

The Prophet Jonah Preaching Repentance to the people of Ninevah

Our Holy Mother, the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church each year reminds us by the observance of the Ninevah fast of the people of Ninevah and the mission of the Prophet Jonah. The Holy Apostles decreed that this period of fasting be observed because it is a fast of repentance, and the repentance of the people of Ninevah was done not only for themselves, but as a pattern for all Orthodox Christians.

"Hear, O my people, and I will speak, O Israel, I will testify against you. I am God, your God. 8 I do not reprove you for your sacrifices; your burnt offerings are continually before me. 9 I will accept no bull from your house, nor he-goat from your folds. 10 For every beast of the forest is mine, the cattle on a thousand hills. 11 I know all the birds of the air, * and all that moves in the field is mine. 12 "If I were hungry, I would not tell you; for the world and all that is in it is mine. 13 Do I eat the flesh of bulls, or drink the blood of goats? 14 Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving, * and pay your vows to the Most High; 15 and call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me." 16 But to the wicked God says: "What right have you to recite my statutes, or take my covenant on your lips? 17 For you hate discipline, and you cast my words behind you. 18 If you see a thief, you are a friend of his; and you keep company with adulterers. 19 "You give your mouth free rein for evil, and your tongue frames deceit. 20 You sit and speak against your brother; you slander your own mother's son. 21 These things you have done and I have been silent; you thought that I was one like yourself. But now I rebuke you, and lay the charge before you. 22 "Mark this, then, you who forget God, lest I rend, and there be none to deliver! 23 He who brings thanksgiving as his sacrifice honors me; to him who orders his way aright I will show the salvation of God!"

Bless you all!

Melchoir

Nineveh is in the air: Islamists are driving Iraqi Christians out of Nineveh -- let's show our solidarity with our Christian brothers and pray for them.

Thanks!

http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=83780

Melchoir

Greetings to you all, Brothers and Sisters!

I am wondering what your Coptic Bible says on the exact days God made his prophecy through Jonah. Almost in all English-speaking Bibles, we read:

"And Jonah began to enter into the city a day's journey, and he cried, and said, Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown.

But I see in Ethiopian and some Jewish Bibles:
"And Jonah began to enter into the city a day's journey, and he cried, and said, in three days, and Nineveh shall be destroyed.

I'll look forward to reading your information and explanations.

Thanks!

peterfarrington

The difference is between the LXX and the Masoretic textual traditions. The difference was known to the Fathers of the Church who just accepted it. Both three and forty days have meaning in the context of the life of our Lord Jesus Christ.

In Christ

Deacon Petet