Kyrie Eleison

The Greek phrase Kyrie eleison appears in early Greek Liturgies and as part of the Latin rite from the fifth century. It was used as a response to the petitions of a litany, as it still is in Eastern liturgies. There is no agreement on the origin of the form printed above. One theory is that by the end of the sixth century, the petitions of an original litany were frequently omitted in the Roman rite and a similar phrase Christe eleison had been added. By the end of the eighth century what were originally responses had developed into a ninefold acclamation addressed to Christ: Kyrie eleison three times, Christe eleison three times, Kyrie eleison three times. In later times this pattern was sometimes given a Trinitarian interpretation which was not part of the original. Sometimes additional phrases were added, a development known as “farcing” the Kyrie.

The ninefold pattern remained in the Latin rite until 1969, when it was reduced to a sixfold pattern. Some liturgies of Reformation Churches connected the Kyrie with the confession of sins, a practice also accepted in the 1969 Ordo Missae. Recently some Churches have restored the litany framework by using Kyrie eleison or an English variant (“Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer”) as a response to the Prayers of the Faithful. As well as its place near the beginning of the Eucharist, the Kyrie is found in the monastic Office, and in various forms of Morning and Evening Prayer.

The Consultation suggests that it sometimes be used, especially in the Eucharist, in its Greek version, thus preserving a link with early Greek liturgies similar to that preserved with Hebrew worship in the retention of such forms as Amen, Hallelujah, and Hosanna.