Prayer Before the Reading of the Gospel from the Orthodox Divine Liturgy

The following eloquent commentary on the proclamation of the Gospel of Christ is from Orthodox priest Fr. Lawrence Farley’s, Let Us Attend: A Journey Through the Orthodox Divine Liturgy. May we reverence Christ's wisdom. (H/T Fr. Ted's Blog)

"When we hear the words of the Gospel, we are being entrusted with a treasure, and we must let these words bear fruit in our lives. Otherwise we will hear truth to our condemnation on the Last Day. That is why, before the Gospel is even chanted, the priest prays the Gospel prayer for all who are about to hear it:

‘Illumine our hearts, O Master and Lover of mankind, with the pure light of Your divine knowledge. Open the eyes of our mind to the understanding of Your Gospel teachings. Implant also in us the fear of Your blessed commandments, that trampling down all carnal desires, we may enter upon a spiritual manner of living, both thinking and doing such things as are well-pleasing to You.’"