Kyrie Eleison

Kyrie Eleison (Gr. Kuriē eleōson, 'Lord, have mercy'), a form of prayer which occurs in all the ancient Greek liturgies, and is retained in the Roman Catholic mass. It follows immediately after the introit, the priest and the server saying alternately 'Kyrie eleison' thrice, 'Christe eleison' thrice, and again 'Kyrie eleison' thrice; the triplets are understood to be addressed to the three Persons of the Trinity. The Greek words have always been left untranslated in the Latin liturgy. In their translated form they are known to Anglican churchmen as the 'lesser litany,' and occur in the order for morning and evening prayer, and also in the Litany: processional litanies in the early church began with the phrase, and sometimes included as many as a hundred repetitions. The First Prayer-book of Edward VI. (1549) retained the 'lesser litany' after the introit; but in 1552 it was embodied in the short petition that follows each of the commandments, which were then inserted in the communion office.