| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| BALDACHIN | BALDACHIN – A canopy over the altar, usually supported on pillars. |
| AXIOS | AXIOS – (Gr. worthy) An exclamation made by the bishop and co-celebrants at the moment of ordination or elevation of a priest or bishop. The choir repeats the exclamation three times. |
| AUTOCEPHALOUS CHURCH | AUTOCEPHALOUS CHURCH – A term used in the early Church to describe a community that ruled itself administratively though remaining in spiritual communion with the body of the Orthodox Church. |
| AUTHORIZED VERSION | AUTHORIZED VERSION ? The English translation of the Bible ordered to be made by King James I of England and published in 1611. It is the official English translation used in the churches of the Anglican communion and favored by the Orthodox Church. |
| AUTONOMY | AUTONOMY – The status of being self-ruled without severing ties with the Mother Church. |
| ATTRIBUTES OF GOD | ATTRIBUTES OF GOD – The powers and virtues that make God what He is – Almighty, Eternal, Omniscient, Omnipresent, Merciful, Just. Also, He is – ineffable, inconceivable, invisible, incomprehensible, ever-existing and eternally the same. |
| ATONEMENT, THE | ATONEMENT, THE – That act of reconciling man to God, which Jesus Christ as Mediator effected by His death for the redemption of man. |
| BAPTISMAL GARMENT | BAPTISMAL GARMENT – (Sl. Krizhma) The white linen cloth which is placed on the arms of the godfather to receive the child immediately after the immersion. Placing the child the priest says: The servant of God (N) is clothed with the robe of righteousness. . . . |
| BAPTISMAL NAME | BAPTISMAL NAME – The name given in Baptism, preferably a saint’s name. It is a common custom to receive the name of the saint on whose day one was born. |
| BEADS | BEADS – A string of beads with a tassel or cross worn on the wrist by a bishop as a reminder of continuous prayer. They were used to help the memory in devotions or set numbers of prayers were involved. (Sl. Chotky) |
| BELFRY | BELFRY – The tower where the church bells are hung. The tower may be attached to the church or separate. |
| BELLS | BELLS – The ringing of the bells serves two functions in the Orthodox Church. The first is for calling the faithful to divine services, and the second is to announce the beginning of various parts of the services to those faithful who are absent from the church. |
| BETROTHAL | BETROTHAL– (Sl. Obrucheniye) The first part of the Rite of Matrimony in which a formal and binding promise of marriage is made and rings are placed on the fingers of the bride and groom. |
| BIBLE, THE HOLY | BIBLE, THE HOLY – (Gr. the books) A collection of Sacred Writings divided into the Old Testament, consisting of 39 books written before the Incarnation of our Lord, and the New Testament, 27 books written after the life of Christ on earth. The Bible contains truths revealed by God through inspired writers. The Church, through… Read More |
| BLAHOCHINIYE | BLAHOCHINIYE – (Sl.) A district of a diocese supervised by a Dean. |
| BLASPHEMY | BLASPHEMY – Speech, writings, gestures or thoughts which show contempt for God, His Church, the saints or sacred things. |
| BLESSING | BLESSING – A ceremony or rite by which the Church dedicates persons, places or things to a sacred purpose, or attaches to them a spiritual value. Places that are blessed – a church, cemetery, house; things – water (on the Feast of the Baptism of our Lord), vestments, icons, food on Easter Day. |
| ABBOT | ABBOT – The head of a monastery appointed by a bishop. His authority is the administration of the property and to enforce the rule of community life in the monastery. In Slavonic his title is “the Nastoyatel.” His rank is usually an Archimandrite., or Egumen. |
| ABSTINENCE | ABSTINENCE – A penitential practice, consisting in abstaining from meats and meat products. Days of Abstinence in the Orthodox Church are observed every Wednesday and Friday through the year, except the weeks after Christmas, Easter and Pentecost. Certain holydays are days of strict abstinence – no meat or milk products – the Beheading of St…. Read More |
| ACADEMY, THEOLOGICAL | ACADEMY, THEOLOGICAL – A post-graduate theological school. |
| ACTS OF THE APOSTLES | ACTS OF THE APOSTLES – The fifth book of the New Testament written by St. Luke, the author of the Third Gospel. It traces the early history of the Christian Church from the Ascension of our Lord to St. Paul’s first visit to Rome. The ‘Epistle’ is read from the ACTS OF THE APOSTLES during… Read More |
| A D | A.D. (abbrev. Lot) Abbreviation for the Latin words Anno Domini meaning literally “in the year of our Lord.” and denoting the years after the Incarnation of the Son of God from which time we now reckon our calendar. |
| PRIEST’S SERVICE BOOK | PRIEST’S SERVICE BOOK – (Gr. Hieratikon, Sl. Sluzhebnik) The Priest’s Service Book is used by priests and deacons. It contains the order of Vespers, Matins and the Liturgy, emphasizing the parts said by those serving. At the end of the book are found the dismissals, prokeimena, megalynaria and a menologion (a list of saints commemorated… Read More |
| ANTIPHON | ANTIPHON – (pl. antiphons) a general title for a hymn or a section of the Psalter; the title describes the manner in which the hymn or Psalter are to be chanted, i.e., by two choirs in turn. An antiphon consists of one or more psalm verses (or sentences from Holy Scripture), alternating with verses which contain… Read More |