The Paschal Hours are the form in which the Little Hours

Little Hours

The Little Hours are the fixed daytime hours of prayer in the Divine Office of Christians, in both Western Christianity and the Eastern Orthodox Church. These Hours are called 'little' due to their shorter and simpler structure compared to the Night Hours...

 are chanted on Pascha

Easter

Easter is the central feast in the Christian liturgical year. According to the Canonical gospels, Jesus rose from the dead on the third day after his crucifixion. His resurrection is celebrated on Easter Day or Easter Sunday...

 (Easter) and throughout Bright Week

Bright Week

Bright Week or Renewal Week is the name used by the Eastern Orthodox Church and Eastern Catholic Churches of the Byzantine Rite for the period of seven days beginning on Pascha and continuing up to the following Sunday, which is known as Thomas Sunday...

 in the Eastern Orthodox Church

Eastern Orthodox Church

The Orthodox Church, officially called the Orthodox Catholic Church and commonly referred to as the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the second largest Christian denomination in the world, with an estimated 300 million adherents mainly in the countries of Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Georgia, Greece,...

 and those Eastern Catholic Churches which follow the Byzantine Rite

Byzantine Rite

The Byzantine Rite, sometimes called the Rite of Constantinople or Constantinopolitan Rite is the liturgical rite used currently by all the Eastern Orthodox Churches, by the Greek Catholic Churches , and by the Protestant Ukrainian Lutheran Church...

.

Specifically, the Paschal Hours replace:

• The First Hour at the end of Matins
  Matins
  Matins is the early morning or night prayer service in the Roman Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran and Eastern Orthodox liturgies of the canonical hours. The term is also used in some Protestant denominations to describe morning services.The name "Matins" originally referred to the morning office also...
  
  
• The Third Hour and Sixth Hour before Divine Liturgy
  Divine Liturgy
  Divine Liturgy is the common term for the Eucharistic service of the Byzantine tradition of Christian liturgy. As such, it is used in the Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Churches. Armenian Christians, both of the Armenian Apostolic Church and of the Armenian Catholic Church, use the same term...
  
  
• The Ninth Hour before Vespers
  Vespers
  Vespers is the evening prayer service in the Western Catholic, Eastern Catholic, and Eastern Orthodox, Anglican, and Lutheran liturgies of the canonical hours...
  
  
• Compline
  Compline
  Compline is the final church service of the day in the Christian tradition of canonical hours. The English word Compline is derived from the Latin completorium, as Compline is the completion of the working day. The word was first used in this sense about the beginning of the 6th century by St...
  
   and the Midnight Office
  Midnight Office
  The Midnight Office is one of the Canonical Hours that compose the cycle of daily worship in the Eastern Orthodox Church. The office originated as a purely monastic devotion inspired by Psalm 118:62, At midnight I arose to give thanks unto Thee for the judgments of Thy righteousness , and also by...
  
  

The Paschal Hours may also be chanted in place of the usual Thanksgiving after Communion

Thanksgiving after Communion

Thanksgiving after Communion is a spiritual practice among Christians who believe in the Real Presence of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist they receive during Holy Communion, maintaining themselves in prayer for some time to thank God for what they believe to be the great gift of receiving God Himself...

. In addition, it is a pious tradition to substitute the Paschal Hours for Morning Prayers and Evening Prayers during all of Bright week.

In this way, the faithful take a little rest from the long prayer services, but do not neglect to give joyous thanks to God, so as not to fall into despondency and gluttony, as they partake of festive foods.

Outline

The Paschal Hours differ from the normal Daily Office in several significant aspects: the entire service is chant

Chant

Chant is the rhythmic speaking or singing of words or sounds, often primarily on one or two pitches called reciting tones. Chants may range from a simple melody involving a limited set of notes to highly complex musical structures Chant (from French chanter) is the rhythmic speaking or singing...

ed (sung) rather than being read; the services are much shorter than usual; and there are no Psalms at all.

The hymnography and prayers center on Christ's victory over sin and death and Christians' hope for salvation.

• Opening blessing
  Blessing
  A blessing, is the infusion of something with holiness, spiritual redemption, divine will, or one's hope or approval.- Etymology and Germanic paganism :...
  
  
• Troparion of Pascha (thrice)
• Having beheld the Resurrection of Christ, let us worship the holy Lord Jesus, the only sinless One. We venerate your Cross, O Christ, and we praise and glorify your holy Resurrection; for you are our God and we know no other than you and we call upon your Name. Come all you faithful, let us venerate Christ's holy Resurrection, for behold through the Cross joy has come into all the world. Let us ever bless the Lord, praising his Resurrection, for enduring the Cross for us, he has destroyed death by death. (thrice)
• Hypakoe of Pascha: Before the dawn the Mary
  Mary Magdalene
  Mary Magdalene was one of Jesus' most celebrated disciples, and the most important woman disciple in the movement of Jesus. Jesus cleansed her of "seven demons", conventionally interpreted as referring to complex illnesses...
  
   and the women came and found the stone roled away from the tomb. They heard the angel's voice, "Why do you seek among the dead as a man, the One who is everlasting Light? Behold, the clothes in the grave. Go and proclaim to the world: The Lord is risen, he has slain death as he is the Son of God, saving the human race.
• Kontakion
  Kontakion
  Kontakion is a form of hymn performed in the Eastern Orthodox Church. The word derives from the Greek word kontax , meaning pole, specifically the pole around which a scroll is wound. The term describes the way in which the words on a scroll unfurl as it is read...
  
   of Pascha: You descended into the tomb, O Immortal, you destroyed the power of death. You arose in triumph
  Triumph
  -Business:* Triumph , a defunct German motorcycle manufacturer* Triumph Cycle Co. Ltd., a British bicycle brand* Triumph Engineering Co Ltd, a defunct British motorcycle manufacturer* Triumph Group, an aerospace manufacturing and repair company...
  
  , O Christ God, proclaiming, "Rejoice" to the myrrh-bearing women, granting peace to your apostles and giving resurrection to the fallen.
• Troparia:
  • In the tomb with the body and in Hades
    Hades
    Hades , Hadēs, originally , Haidēs or , Aidēs , meaning "the unseen") was the ancient Greek god of the underworld. The genitive , Haidou, was an elision to denote locality: "[the house/dominion] of Hades". Eventually, the nominative came to designate the abode of the dead.In Greek mythology, Hades...
    
     with the soul, in Paradise
    Paradise
    Paradise is a place in which existence is positive, harmonious and timeless. It is conceptually a counter-image of the miseries of human civilization, and in paradise there is only peace, prosperity, and happiness. Paradise is a place of contentment, but it is not necessarily a land of luxury and...
    
     with the thief and on the throne with the Father
    God the Father
    God the Father is a gendered title given to God in many monotheistic religions, particularly patriarchal, Abrahamic ones. In Judaism, God is called Father because he is the creator, life-giver, law-giver, and protector...
    
     and the Spirit
    Holy Spirit
    Holy Spirit is a term introduced in English translations of the Hebrew Bible, but understood differently in the main Abrahamic religions.While the general concept of a "Spirit" that permeates the cosmos has been used in various religions Holy Spirit is a term introduced in English translations of...
    
    , wast Thou, O boundless Christ
    God the Son
    God the Son is the second person of the Trinity in Christian theology. The doctrine of the Trinity identifies Jesus of Nazareth as God the Son, united in essence but distinct in person with regard to God the Father and God the Holy Spirit...
    
     filling all things.
  • Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit
  • Bearing life and more fruitful than Paradise, brighter than any royal chamber, Thy tomb, O Christ, is the fountain of our resurrection
    Resurrection of the dead
    Resurrection of the Dead is a belief found in a number of eschatologies, most commonly in Christian, Islamic, Jewish and Zoroastrian. In general, the phrase refers to a specific event in the future; multiple prophesies in the histories of these religions assert that the dead will be brought back to...
    
    .
  • Both now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
  • Rejoice, O holy and divine abode of the Most High, for through thee, O Theotokos
    Theotokos
    Theotokos is the Greek title of Mary, the mother of Jesus used especially in the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and Eastern Catholic Churches. Its literal English translations include God-bearer and the one who gives birth to God. Less literal translations include Mother of God...
    
    , joy is given to those who cry: Blessed art thou among women, O all-undefiled Lady.
• Lord, have mercy (40 times)
• Blessing by priest
• Troparion of Pascha (thrice)
• Lord, have mercy (thrice)
• Dismissal
  Dismissal
  Dismissal or dismissed may refer to:Dismissal*In litigation, a dismissal is the result of a successful motion to dismiss. See motion *Termination of employment, the end of an employee's duration with an employer...
  
  

Each of the Paschal Hours is exactly the same (in some traditions, a Prayer of St. Basil is added before the dismissal

Dismissal

Dismissal or dismissed may refer to:Dismissal*In litigation, a dismissal is the result of a successful motion to dismiss. See motion *Termination of employment, the end of an employee's duration with an employer...

of Paschal Compline).

External links

• Paschal Hours (full text of the service)