For all Akathists published on our site, click here. This Akathist was recently provided in English by Maxim, who kindly asks all Orthodox Christians to keep him in their prayers for his repentance.
Feast Day: January 29
Translator’s Note: Saint Aphrahat the Persian is the first Syriac Church Father. Aphrahat (c. 270 – c. 345 was a Syriac-Christian author of the 3rd century from the Adiabene region of Northern Mesopotamia, which was within the Persian Empire, who composed a series of twenty-three expositions or homilies on points of Christian doctrine and practice. He was born in Persia around 270, but all his known works, the Demonstrations, come from later on in his life. He was an ascetic and celibate, and was almost definitely a son of the covenant (an early Syriac form of communal monasticism). He may have been a bishop, and later Syriac tradition places him at the head of Mar Matti monastery near Mosul, in what is now northern Iraq. He was a near contemporary to the slightly younger Ephrem the Syrian, but the latter lived within the sphere of the Roman Empire. Called the Persian Sage (Syriac: ܚܟܝܡܐ ܦܪܣܝܐ, ḥakkîmâ p̄ārsāyā), Aphrahat witnesses to the concerns of the early church beyond the eastern boundaries of the Roman Empire.
He was a martyr.
His work “Demonstrations” can be read for free online here: https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/3701.htm
Kontakion 1
To the one who proved himself to be the first Syrian church father, skilled in the use of the pen and a devout servant of the Word of God, we offer praise to Saint Martyr Aphrahat. And you, Holy Father Aphrahat, as a benefactor of those who pray to you, intercede before the Throne of the Holy Trinity for us who honor you: Rejoice, Holy Martyr Aphrahat, open the inner eyes of our hearts and grant us the priesthood of the heart!
Ikos 1
The depths of thought became the blessed cup of your mind, Holy Aphrahat, for God dripping into it the dew of spiritual knowledge, you became like the Angels in wisdom and laid down in words the divine Light that changes the heart to prayer, and we, your supplicants, sing to you:
Rejoice, theologian of the Highest;
Rejoice, preacher of the love of God;
Rejoice, teacher of inner prayer;
Rejoice, you who revealed to the world the mystery of the departure of the mind;
Rejoice, you who open the heart to receive the mind;
Rejoice, spiritual father of those who seek salvation;
Rejoice, Holy Martyr Aphrahat, open the inner eyes of our hearts and grant us the priesthood of the heart!
Kontakion 2
You were born in Syria in the 3rd century, Holy Father, into a family of pagan worshippers of the Zoroastrian religion who had fire as their god, and when you reached the age of understanding, you left the temporary world to devote your life to the True God, for you yourself testified: “I praise God who delivered me from the deception of idols”: Alleluia!
Ikos 2
You embraced the Christian faith with your whole being, abandoning the god of fire, your pagan companions, and your rich and illustrious family, and set out to perfect yourself spiritually, first arriving in Edessa, where you received Holy Baptism, and then in Antioch, traveling like Saint Ignatius Theophoros toward the treasure in your heart:
Rejoice, for on the way you met Christian hermits;
Rejoice, for you have been enriched by their knowledge;
Rejoice, for you have gathered their words like honey in a honeycomb;
Rejoice, for their holy advice has worked deeply within you;
Rejoice, for you have mastered the science of spiritual warfare;
Rejoice, for you have learned the way of humility as a ladder to Heaven;
Rejoice, Holy Martyr Aphrahat, open the inner eyes of our hearts and grant us the priesthood of the heart!
Kontakion 3
Receiving monasticism as a divine gift, you clothed yourself in angelic wings like a new garment and praised God for bringing you out of the darkness of idol worship and leading you to the bright pasture of those delivered from deception: Alleluia!
Ikos 3
You then settled near the city of Antioch, leading a life of asceticism, virginity, and holiness. You used the excellent education you received from childhood wisely, understanding those around you, knowing the sciences of nature and the arrangement of the stars in the sky, using all this to distinguish between earthly and spiritual knowledge, to the gratitude of those who praise you:
Rejoice, for looking at the sky, you understood the greatness of God;
Rejoice, for you understood all the deceitfulness of this world;
Rejoice, for you discerned the mystery of the elevation of the heart to Heaven;
Rejoice, for uncreated grace descended upon your head;
Rejoice, for it has enlightened you in judgment;
Rejoice, for it has turned your gaze toward God;
Rejoice, Holy Martyr Aphrahat, open the inner eyes of our hearts and grant us the priesthood of the heart!
Kontakion 4
You lived in a small cell not far from the city walls, fasting completely, immersing yourself in prayer and abstinence, eating a little bread dipped in water and cleansing your body as a vessel of the Holy Spirit: Alleluia!
Ikos 4
For your good faith and self-denial, God endowed you with great spiritual gifts, giving you the power to cast out demons, to heal through prayer, and to wisely guide the faithful on the path to salvation, and we honor you:
Rejoice, for your fame spread throughout the city;
Rejoice, for many came to you for healing;
Rejoice, for you were a skilled spiritual father;
Rejoice, for you brought the pagans to the faith;
Rejoice, for you put shame on the worship of idols;
Rejoice, for you were a Doctor without money for the body and soul;
Rejoice, Holy Martyr Aphrahat, open the inner eyes of our hearts and grant us the priesthood of the heart!
Kontakion 5
Although you knew very little Greek and spoke a semi-barbaric dialect, you managed to make yourself understood to the inhabitants of Antioch, for Christ God said: “…do not worry about how or what you will say, for it will be given to you in that very hour what you are to say! For it is not you who will speak, but the Spirit of your Father who will speak through you.” Alleluia!
Ikos 5
You performed countless miracles, Holy Aphrahat, having power from Heaven to drive away locusts by sprinkling a field with holy water, for the Heavenly Father did not leave the light hidden under a bushel but brought you into the open so that His gifts might multiply in you through the people who praised you thus:
Rejoice, for a noble woman had her husband bewitched by a sorceress;
Rejoice, for he could no longer bear her;
Rejoice, for the woman spoke to you from the door of your cell;
Rejoice, for you, Holy One, broke the spells with prayer;
Rejoice, for you blessed the oil to anoint the bewitched husband;
Rejoice, for he was healed of the witch’s plots;
Rejoice, Holy Martyr Aphrahat, open the inner eyes of our hearts and grant us the priesthood of the heart!
Kontakion 6
All your life you preached that God turns His face toward those who truly repent, who change their ways and guard their senses, receiving the crown of the bloodless martyrs who fought to the last moment against the world, the passions, and the devil, overcoming them all in the name of the Lord: Alleluia!
Ikos 6
In those difficult times when idol worship was the greatest destruction, you were the lantern in the desert that brought salvation to many from destruction, for your word, strengthened by the grace of God, worked in the hearts of the pagans, succeeding in bringing them to Christ with their whole race, so that they glorified you:
Rejoice, for you strengthened the new Christians in the sufferings of persecution;
Rejoice, for you held spiritual gatherings;
Rejoice, for you spoke to them about death for Christ as a blessing;
Rejoice, for you advised them to sacrifice themselves;
Rejoice, for you showed them the joys of salvation;
Rejoice, for you did not let them return to sin out of fear;
Rejoice, Holy Martyr Aphrahat, open the inner eyes of our hearts and grant us the priesthood of the heart!
Kontakion 7
You witnessed the persecutions that began in Persia against Christians, seeing with your own eyes the torments to which those who did not renounce God were subjected, and there was also great turmoil because of the Arian heresy that afflicted the minds of those weak in faith like a plague, but you, Holy One, prayed fervently to the Lord to put an end to these lawless deeds: Alleluia!
Ikos 7
Seeing that the Orthodox bishops and pastors had been exiled from Antioch by order of Emperor Valens and that the flock of Christ was left without protection, you left your cell in the desert and went to the city to uphold the true faith:
Rejoice, for you met the emperor in the marketplace;
Rejoice, for he asked you why you left the desert;
Rejoice, for you told him that it was because of him that you did so;
Rejoice, for you showed him that the Church, that is, the House of the Heavenly Father, is on fire;
Rejoice, for the one who set the fire is the emperor;
Rejoice, for you spoke the truth without fear;
Rejoice, Holy Martyr Aphrahat, open the inner eyes of our hearts and grant us the priesthood of the heart!
Kontakion 8
Hearing such words of rebuke spoken in front of so many, the emperor became angry with you, Saint Aphrahat, and one of his eunuchs threatened you with death, but a little later the eunuch was caught by divine justice because he drowned in a boiling bath he was preparing for the emperor, and he, frightened, gave up pursuing you and left you alone: Alleluia!
Ikos 8
Being honored with the abundance of God’s grace, you received the honor of bishop, ordaining many priests and teaching the clergy to serve purely in the Altar, being a fierce defender of dogmas and church teachings:
Rejoice, for you brought shepherds to Christ’s flock;
Rejoice, for you spoke to them with the authority of the high priest anointed by God;
Rejoice, for you remained the same humble monk;
Rejoice, for you did not abandon your asceticism among people;
Rejoice, for fasting remained your pillar;
Rejoice, for you multiplied love;
Rejoice, Holy Martyr Aphrahat, open the inner eyes of our hearts and grant us the priesthood of the heart!
Kontakion 9
You have left us many holy writings, Reverend Father, through which you guide us to an honest life of repentance and prayer, being called the first Syrian church writer, beginning the tradition of Christian scholars in Syria who received the gifts of the Holy Spirit in the desert and then left them as signs for Christians to follow in the darkness of worldly life: Alleluia!
Ikos 9
You called yourself “a disciple of the Holy Scriptures,” but you revealed through your writings that you were the most learned connoisseur of Scripture in Syria at that time, having a great influence on ascetic theology, bringing a new breath to what was known until then about the ascetic’s struggle with himself:
Rejoice, for you wrote about faith, love, and fasting;
Rejoice, for you left notes about prayer, repentance, and virginity;
Rejoice, for you preached about the second coming of the Savior;
Rejoice, for you also wrote wisely about shepherds;
Rejoice, for you knew the Old Testament very well;
Rejoice, for you were a consummate theologian;
Rejoice, Holy Martyr Aphrahat, open the inner eyes of our hearts and grant us the priesthood of the heart!
Kontakion 10
You confessed that there is One God, who created heaven, earth, and then man in His likeness, Who accepted Abel’s sacrifice, raised Enoch with his body to heaven, sheltered Noah for his righteousness, and sent Jesus Christ into the world, the Messiah, Who at His Second Coming will raise the dead and bring eternal peace: Alleluia!
Ikos 10
You called the Eucharist “the return to Eden,” insisting on the unity of man in body, mind, and soul, showing that prayer that begins with the lips then penetrates the mind and descends into the heart, for the whole man is a living soul animated by the Holy Spirit that God breathed into Adam:
Rejoice, for the body is the horizontal reflection of the wounds of sin;
Rejoice, for the body also has a vertical dimension;
Rejoice, for this is found in the heart;
Rejoice, for God sees into the heart;
Rejoice, for the heart also sees God;
Rejoice, for the mind is the servant of the heart;
Rejoice, Holy Martyr Aphrahat, open the inner eyes of our hearts and grant us the priesthood of the heart!
Kontakion 11
You were a fierce denouncer of the Jews, accusing them of idolatry and betrayal of God, showing that through Holy Baptism Christians inherit immortality by receiving the Son of God into their hearts and driving out the devil who has nested there since the fall of Adam, for the Savior came for this: to destroy the reign of evil in man and bring eternal life: Alleluia!
Ikos 11
You were called to speak to the clergy of Ctesiphon about all these truths in the name of the Council of the Church, being received with honor as a great theologian, and all who heard you speak honored you:
Rejoice, for you revealed to them the mystery of asceticism;
Rejoice, for you also taught them about hesychasm;
Rejoice, for you left holiness as a path to follow;
Rejoice, for the struggle with oneself brings the crown of the saints;
Rejoice, for you frightened them with the punishment of those who do not keep the Holy Sacraments;
Rejoice, for you have brought priests to the desire for deification;
Rejoice, Holy Martyr Aphrahat, open the inner eyes of our hearts and grant us the priesthood of the heart!
Kontakion 12
You show us that God wants us to have a clean, pure heart, free from passions, liberated from ourselves and from ties to the temporal, for what is eternal cannot dwell in uncleanness but only in white linen, washed in the tears of repentance that bring true prayer, being among the first teachers of “prayer of the heart”: Alleluia!
Ikos 12
Living a life of virtue, becoming a great miracle worker and living with your heart in Heaven and not on earth, you received a martyr’s death in your old age by being cut down with the sword by the pagans, and thus you departed with your soul to God, where you hear these praises from us:
Rejoice, you who revealed to us the mysteries of the theology of Scripture;
Rejoice, you who still show us the way to “Lord have mercy”;
Rejoice, spiritual father of those who seek to penetrate the heart with prayer;
Rejoice, guide of hermits in the world;
Rejoice, helper of spiritual breath;
Rejoice, skilled fighter against the temptations to prayer;
Rejoice, Holy Martyr Aphrahat, open the inner eyes of our hearts and grant us the priesthood of the heart!
Kontakion 13
Most honored Father Aphrahat, Saint of Persian Wisdom, enlighten our minds and unblock the path to our hearts, open our arms to embrace grace, remove all obstacles that prevent us from praying purely, melt the seals and open our hearts so that God may see into them and we may see God through them, so that, receiving the gift of prayer, we may ascend with our spirits to Heaven, singing to the Holy Trinity: Alleluia!
This Kontakion is said 3 times.
Ikos 1
The depths of thought became the blessed cup of your mind, Holy Aphrahat, for God dripping into it the dew of spiritual knowledge, you became like the Angels in wisdom and laid down in words the divine Light that changes the heart to prayer, and we, your supplicants, sing to you:
Rejoice, theologian of the Highest;
Rejoice, preacher of the love of God;
Rejoice, teacher of inner prayer;
Rejoice, you who revealed to the world the mystery of the departure of the mind;
Rejoice, you who open the heart to receive the mind;
Rejoice, spiritual father of those who seek salvation;
Rejoice, Holy Martyr Aphrahat, open the inner eyes of our hearts and grant us the priesthood of the heart!
Kontakion 1
To the one who proved himself to be the first Syrian church father, skilled in the use of the pen and a devout servant of the Word of God, we offer praise to Saint Martyr Aphrahat. And you, Holy Father Aphrahat, as a benefactor of those who pray to you, intercede before the Throne of the Holy Trinity for us who honor you: Rejoice, Holy Martyr Aphrahat, open the inner eyes of our hearts and grant us the priesthood of the heart!
Prayer to Saint Aphrahat the Persian Sage
Holy Martyr Aphrahat, bishop of Christ, great theologian and spiritual teacher, with humility and kneeling, we offer these prayers and, calling upon your love for people, we ask you to give us the ordination of the priesthood of the heart, that we may support our lives only on the true rock that is the Savior, that the inner man may be born and grow in us, who ceaselessly brings to God the incense of prayer, serving Him day and night from the voice of the heart.
Intercede for us the gift of prayer, which is the work of the priesthood in the heart, for it is built on sacrifice and love, and teach us to keep our soul and breath gathered in the name of Christ, for Christ the Lord dwells in us and God dwells in Christ. Direct our hearts toward the heights and our eyes to look down to enter the chamber of our inner man, to pray in secret to our Heavenly Father and to be like His Angels.
Revive in us the secret man created before the fall of Adam, open the inner eyes of our hearts to consciously meet the Son of God as the ultimate goal of salvation, being dispassionate and acquiring virtues through faith, fasting, prayer, and obedience, that we may be a good house in which the Lord may dwell in us, and then at the end of our lives, may we be welcomed to live with Him in His Heavenly Kingdom, now and forever and ever. Amen.
Saint Aphrahat the Persian Sage, pray to God for us!
