Prayer
of St. Symeon the New Theologian
From sullied lips,
From an abominable heart,
From an unclean tongue,
Out of a polluted soul,
Receive my prayer, O my Christ.
Reject me not,
Nor my words, nor my ways,
Nor even my shamelessness,
But give me courage to say
What I desire, my Christ.
And even more, teach me
What to do and say.
I have sinned more than the harlot
Who, on learning where Thou wast lodging,
Bought myrrh,
And dared to come and anoint
Thy feet, my Christ,
My Lord and my God.
As Thou didst not repulse her
When she drew near from her heart,
Neither, O Word, abominate me,
But grant me Thy feet
To clasp and kiss,
And with a flood of tears
As with most precious myrrh
Dare to anoint them.
Wash me with my tears
And purify me with them, O Word.
Forgive my sins
And grant me pardon.
Thou knowest the multitude of my evil-doings,
Thou knowest also my wounds,
And Thou seest my bruises.
But also Thou knowest my faith,
And Thou beholdest my willingness,
And Thou hearest my sighs.
Nothing escapes Thee, my God,
My Maker, my Redeemer,
Not even a tear-drop,
Nor part of a drop.
Thine eyes know
What I have not achieved,
And in Thy book
Things not yet done
Are written by Thee.
See my depression,
See how great is my trouble,
And all my sins
Take from me, O God of all,
That with a clean heart,
Trembling mind
And contrite spirit
I may partake of Thy pure
And all-holy Mysteries
By which all who eat and drink Thee
With sincerity of heart
Are quickened and deified.
For Thou, my Lord, hast said:
"Whoever eats My Flesh
And drinks My Blood
Abides in Me
And I in Him."
Wholly true is the word
Of my Lord and God.
For whoever partakes of Thy divine
And deifying Gifts
Certainly is not alone,
But is with Thee, my Christ,
Light of the Triune Sun
Which illumines the world.
And that I may not remain alone
Without Thee, the Giver of Life,
My Breath, my Life,
My Joy,
The Salvation of the world,
Therefore I have drawn near to Thee
As Thou seest, with tears
And with a contrite spirit.
Ransom of my offences,
I beseech Thee to receive me,
And that I may partake without condemnation
Of Thy life-giving and perfect Mysteries,
That Thou mayest remain as Thou hast said
With me, thrice-wretched as I am,
Lest the tempter may find me
Without Thy grace
And craftily seize me,
And having deceived me, may seduce me,
From Thy deifying words.
Therefore I fall at Thy feet
And fervently cry to Thee:
As Thou receivedst the Prodigal
And the Harlot who drew near to Thee,
So have compassion and receive me,
The profligate and the prodigal,
As with contrite spirit
I now draw near to Thee.
I know, O Saviour, that no other
Has sinned against Thee as I,
Nor has done the deeds
That I have committed.
But this again I know
That not the greatness of my offences
Nor the multitude of my sins
Surpasses the great patience
Of my God,
And His extreme love for men.
But with the oil of compassion
Those who fervently repent
Thou dost purify and enlighten
And makest them children of the light,
Sharers of Thy Divine Nature.
And Thou dost act most generously,
For what is strange to Angels
And to the minds of men
Often Thou tellest to them
As to Thy true friends.
These things make me bold, my Christ,
These things give me wings,
And I take courage from the wealth
Of Thy goodness to us.
And rejoicing and trembling at once,
I who am straw partake of fire,
And, strange wonder!
I am ineffably bedewed,
Like the bush of old
Which burnt without being consumed.
Therefore with thankful mind,
And with thankful heart,
And with thankfulness in all the members
Of my soul and body,
I worship and magnify
And glorify Thee, my God,
For Thou art blessed,
Now and throughout the ages.
Tr. from Bulgarian:
Author: St. Simeon the New Theologian
Come, you, true light. Come, O eternal life.
Come,
cherished secret. Come, nameless Treasure.
Come, unspoken thing. Come, Face unattainable.
Come, incessant Joy. Come, unsetting
Light.
Come, true hope to all who want to be saved.
Come you standing to those lying. Come, Resurrection of the dead.
Come, Mighty, who always do
everything,
transform and change with one desire.
Come, invisible,
completely untouchable and intangible.
Come, you who always dwell still,
and hourly move the whole of you forward
and you come to us those who
lie in hell, you who abide above heaven.
Come, reincarnated, constantly proclaimed Name –
it
is quite impossible for us to say or know what You are,
and what kind of
seed you are. Come, eternal joy. Come on, unfading Wreath.
Come, the
Porphyraix of the Great God and the King.
Come, crystalline and
decorated with precious stones Belt.
Come, inaccessible Footing.
Come,
the royal purple mantle and truly autocratic Right-hand.
Come, you who have beloved and love my unhappy soul.
Come, Yourself to the one alone, because as you see, I am alone.
Come, Yourself, who created a desire in me,
so
that I may desire you completely inaccessible.
Come, my Breath and
Life. Come, consolation of my humble soul.
Come, Joy and Glory and my
unremitting Comfort.
I thank You that You are the Existing God above all,
who
has become one spirit with me, unmerged, unalterably, unchangeable,
and have become for me all things: an unspeakable Meal, delivering
perfect gifts,
and overpouring in the mouth of my soul,
and the abundantly
flowing Source of my heart in a brilliant attire,
and you burn up the demons, and with purifying purify me with unceasing and holy tears
which your presence bestows upon those to whom you come.
I thank You that You have become a day for me - that has no evening - and an unsetting sun,
you who have nowhere to hide, and you fill
all things together with your glory.
For You have never hid from anyone,
but we - not wanting to come to you - hide ourselves from You.
Yes, and
where shall thou hide thyself, who has no place for your rest?
Or would
You hide for, you who does not loathe or abhor anyone?
So, settle in me now, O Master, and dwell and abide in
me, your servant,
O Blessed, not separated and inseparably,
so that I may also
be - even in my exit and after it - in you, good,
and to reign with You the Lord, who is above all.
Stay [with me], O Master, and do not leave me alone
lest my
enemies swallow me up, who always want to swallow up my soul,
so that
when they come and find you abiding in me, they may utterly flee
and not
strengthen themselves up against me,
when they see you, the Strongest of
all, to be a at rest inside, within the house of my humble
soul.
O Master, how did you remembered me when I was in the world, and whom I
did not know you,
You chose me yourself, you separated me from the world,
and set me before the face of Your glory,
and so now by Your abiding in me preserve me to always stay in and still,
in order to contemplate
you continually and I the dead one to live and have you,
I the always poor one - to be be richer
than all the kings.
and that [while] eating and drinking You and dressing myself in You every hour,
I may enjoy unspeakable blessings now and in the future.
For You are every good and every Comfort
and to you
befits the glory of the holy and one and life-giving Trinity,
in
the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit - venerated, known, and worshipful,
and to whom all the faithful serve now and forever and unto the ages. Amen.
