Doxastikon of Saint George

This Doxastikon is chanted at the Matins service for St George, the Great-martyr, victory-bearer and wonderworker. Although the Saint’s feast day is normally celebrated on April 23, this date is moved to Bright Monday (the day after Easter) if it falls before Easter. In this way, the Church always celebrates St George’s memory after Holy Pascha, which is why the chant commences with calling the faithful to ‘be merry’ given that ‘Christ’s resurrection has shone brightly’. In a similar manner to how Christ defeated death and brought us the joy of the resurrection, St George defeated the worldly tortures of Emperor Diocletian and brought us the joy of his example. The remainder of the Chant then expresses why our Church has such great love and reverence for the Great martyr. As a ‘good soldier’ unafraid of his enemies, St George ‘stood up manfully’ towards the Emperor and refused to denounce his faith even in the face of extreme pain and tortures.

These tortures included running wheels with knives over his body, beatings with metal whips, and the forced ingestion of poisons. None of these tortures had any effect, and the Saint’s enduring faith put his adversaries ‘utterly to shame’. This led to the conversion of many who witnessed it, including the Emperor’s own wife. Ultimately, the great Saint knew that the ‘clay vessel of his own body’ was temporary, and by enduring the ‘tortures’ that were forced upon him without renouncing his faith, he ‘exchanged’ his earthly body for an eternal one. St George is a great example about the power of Christ over this life, and the importance of focusing on our eternal soul. We pray to him in the concluding words: ‘O victorious Martyr, earnestly entreat for the salvation of our souls.

Source: Lychnos April 2022 /May 2022