Infernal Bodies: Lazarus Saturday in the Development of the Triodion

This project examines early manuscripts of the Greek Triodion to investigate the development and celebration of Lazarus Saturday in centuries leading up to the Byzantine Rite. The results create a manuscript classification system based on the weekday structure of the early Triodia. This shows concretely the diversity of early Triodia manuscripts, implying a wide variety of sources. It also identifies elements specific to Triodia which may be used to date further manuscripts: the adoption of triadika troparia throughout the kanon, the transmission of the kanon for Lazarus of Andrew of Crete, and the placing of another troparion after what would normally be the last troparion of the ode in the weekday kanons of Theodore the Studite. Concerning the content of the hymns, the project examines the relationship in the hymns of the sixth week of Lent between the Lazarus of Luke 16 and the Lazarus of John 11, the use of ‘rewritten Bible exegesis’, and the central theme of Lazarus Saturday: the anticipation and promise of the Harrowing of Hades, which will be celebrated a week later.