June 27, 2018 Why Does the Priest Say “Singing the Triumphant Hymn, Shouting, Proclaiming and Saying” during the Divine Liturgy? The Eucharistic canon is the heart of the Divine Liturgy because it is during this moment in the service the bread and wine become…
June 25, 2018 The Trisagion Hymn in the Context of the Divine Liturgy In the Divine Liturgy, after the antiphons, comes the Trisagion Hymn, prefaced by a prayer in which the celebrant prays that the God who…
June 12, 2018 The Divine Liturgy as a Gift of the Holy Spirit to Humanity The Divine Liturgy is truly a gift of the Holy Spirit to humanity. It is an initiation into the mysteries of the Spirit, a…
May 28, 2018 Historical Meaning of Antiphons Sung during Liturgy In the Divine Liturgy, after the Great Litany, come the three antiphons and their litanies/ prayers. These antiphons exist in several forms. The original…
May 21, 2018 “It is Time for the Lord to Act”: the Significance of Assembling According to the official OCA service book, the Divine Liturgy begins when the deacon “bows his head to the priest and says, ‘It is…
May 11, 2018 St. John Chrysostom on Why We Should Go to Church Many Christians are lazy to go to Church. Even on feast days, in some churches the bell rings just like in a desert, and…
April 26, 2018 The Importance of Attending Church Cycles of Services in Orthodoxy Nothing is so spiritually uplifting, and so rewarding then prayer before God in the Church. The Orthodox Church has a cycle of services, and…
April 19, 2018 Metaphorical References to the Holy Eucharist from Early Liturgical Texts Speaking of the Holy Eucharist, the Fathers and early liturgical texts of the Church have recourse to the metaphor of the flaming coal (anthrax,…
April 17, 2018 Pastoral Advice on Holy Communion during the Holy and Bright Week To partake of Holy Communion and to confess in the right way means to do this with the fear of God and humility in…
March 1, 2018 The History and Development of Great Lent In the seven weeks approaching Pascha, the Orthodox fast and pray during a season that we call, “Lent.” Lent is a practice that has…