Terminology -

MARTYROLOGY – A list for every day of the year of martyrs and other saints whose feast or commemorations occur on each day.

MARY, THE ALL-HOLY VIRGIN  – The Mother of our Lord Jesus Christ; Christ is God, therefore she is the Mother of God. The Orthodox venerate her with an honor above that accorded to other saints and regard her “above the Cherubim and more glorious than the Seraphim.”  MARY is called Theotokos, meaning “God-bearer” or “the… Read More

MASS – In the Western Church it is the service of the Eucharist. In the Orthodox Church this service is called the Divine Liturgy.

MATRIMONY – The Sacrament which blesses and sanctifies the contract of Christian marriage and gives special grace for harmonious and peaceful living.

MATUSHKA (Sl.) – (Gr. Presbytera) The wife of a priest (and in Slavic tradition, the wife of a deacon) is addressed in this manner. The word is an endearing term for “mother.”

MAUNDY THURSDAY – (Holy Thursday) Thursday of the Holy Week. Liturgy of St. Basil is served and the Reserved Sacraments are prepared. In cathedrals the ceremony of the washing of the feet takes place. In the evening the Matins service contains the reading of the twelve Passion Gospels.

MENAIA – Twelve books – one for each month – containing the services for commemoration of the Saints for each day and the feasts of the Virgin Mary. The Monthly Menaion contains the prayers and hymns in honor of the saints for each day of the year, as well as the solemn festival services for… Read More

METROPOLITAN – The head archbishop of an ecclesiastical province, with primacy of jurisdiction. As a mark of distinction the Metropolitan wears a white klobuk with a cross on it. The title of archbishop or metropolitan may be granted to a senior bishop, usually one who is in charge of a large ecclesiastical jurisdiction. He may… Read More

MILITARY CHAPLAINS – Priests who have been temporarily relieved of parish duties to devote their entire time to serve the spiritual needs of military personnel.

MIRACLE – An act or event which is above the natural order, done by special intervention of God for a religious end. Jesus Christ worked many miracles during His life on earth.  A sign whereby God supersedes the normal laws of nature in a mysterious way in order to manifest His power as Master of… Read More

MISSIONARY – One who is sent, whether Bishop, Priest or Layman, to do the work of the Church where it has not been established.

MITRE – Official headdress of a bishop, archimandrite, and sometimes the privilege to wear a mitre is given to archpriests as an award for meritorious service to the Church.

MITRATE – A Protoiereos given the right and honor of wearing the mitre. This right is given by the Council of Bishops as a reward for special services to the Church. He assumes the title of “The Right Reverend.”

MIXED MARRIAGE – A marriage between an Orthodox and a non-Orthodox.

MNOGAYA LYETA – A prayerful wish for many years of life, health and good fortune.

MOLEBEN – Molieben (from Church Slavonic Mol’ba – prayer, supplication) (L. Te Deum) A service of thanksgiving for favors received, or prayers of petition for protection from misfortune. It is a short liturgical service usually centered on a particular need or occasion: the new year, a journey, an illness, an act of thanksgiving, etc. It… Read More

MONASTERY – The dwelling place of a community of monks or nuns (convent) where they practice the rules of prayer and vows.

MONK– (Gr. monachos, solitary) One who renounces the world to lead a religious life under the monastic vows of chastity, poverty and obedience.

MOTHER OF GOD (Gr. Theotokos) The Virgin Mary gave birth to Jesus Christ, the Son of God. She is therefore the Mother of God. This is the teaching of the Orthodox Church denned by the Council of Ephesus in 431. It does not mean that Mary generated the Godhead, for the Word (the Son of… Read More

MOVABLE FEASTS -The feasts (holidays) which depend on the date of Easter. Ascension Day comes forty days after Easter, and Pentecost Day comes on the fiftieth day after Easter.

MYRRH – (Chrysm) The sacred oil which is used for annointing in the Sacrament of Chrysmation. This sacred oil is a mixture of many substances and is made by several bishops on Holy Thursday.

LAITY – (Sl. Miryane) Members of the Church, the people of God. Sometimes the term laity is used for those who are not ordained.

LANCE – A small knife, double edged and pointed with a handle ending with a small cross, which is used to cut out the particles from the prosphora during the service of Preparation –Proskomidiya.

LANGUAGE, LITURGICAL – In the Orthodox Church the language of any ethnic group becomes the language of the Church in that particular nation. The Greek language is used in church services among the Greeks, and Slavonic among the Russians, Serbs and Bulgarians, Japanese for people of Japan.