KYRIE

the vocative case of the Greek word kyrios (lord). The word Kyrie is used in the Septuagint, the earliest Greek translation of the Old Testament, to translate the Hebrew word Yahweh. In the New Testament, Kyrie is the title given to Christ, as in Philippians 2:11. As part of the Greek formula Kyrie eleison (Lord, have mercy), the word is used as a preliminary petition before a formal prayer and as a congregational response in the liturgies of many Christian churches.