Page:The Nestorians and their rituals, volume 1.djvu/288

234 Thy name, answer Thou me. Listen, O, to my words, and accept this service at the hands of Thy servants.

Be, O, a help unto me; O , be Thou my keeper at sunset, sunrising, and at noon, and deliver me in this transitory world from the power of the hater.

Hear, O, and have mercy upon me, O. In Thee, O, have I put my trust, let me not be confounded at the last day. Rebuke me not, O, in Thine anger for ever. Hear, O, my voice when I call upon Thee, O Thou who dost exist from eternity, in the afternoon, at morning-tide, and at noon, by day and by night. Thou art my, Thou art my , upon Thee do I wait; save me from mine enemies, and have mercy upon me, O.

O, forgive the dead who confess Thy glorious natures, and who were baptized in Thy name, O , , and , who rejoicest all, and have mercy upon us."

The above anthem concluded, the lambs are cut up and divided amongst those present, and so also the bread. On these occasions many come from distant villages to join with their brethren in commemorating the festival. A similar custom prevails among the Jacobites, Papal Syrians, and Chaldeans of these parts. Such of them as can afford it kill a lamb, and distribute bread and other provisions among the poor a week or month after the decease of any of their near relatives, with the idea that these offerings in some way profit the souls of the departed. We have already noticed a yearly feast of the Yezeedees very nearly allied to the practice of the Nestorians as above described; but whether kept up with the same design it is difficult to determine.

Dr. Grant notices another species of sacrifice which is occasionally offered up among the Nestorians. These, he says, "are usually offered to return thanks for God's benefits, or to obtain new favours from Him; as, for instance, the recovery of sick friends, or their own restoration to health. The animal is then usually slain before the door of the church, when a little of the blood is often put upon the door or lintel. The right shoulder and breast belong to the officiating priest of the church, though he does not always receive them, either through neglect