Terminology -

EVLOGITARIA – These are Troparia sung at Matins and Funeral services, accompanied by: “Blessed art Thou, O Lord, teach me Thy statutes”.

INRI – Latin, Jesus Nazareourun Rex Judeorum – Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews.

IRMOLOGION – This gives the text of the Irmoi sung at the beginning of the various Canticles of the Canon.

EIS POLLA ETI DESPOTA – Greek for ‘Many Years, Master.’

JIBEE (RIASA) – The black flowing robe worn by the clergy (different than the cassock).

KAIRON  – ‘Time’ or ‘permission.’ The prayers said by the clergy prior to the Liturgy in preparation for such service.

KALIMAVKI – The black, perpendicular headdress, draped with the black veil, worn by monastics, archimandrites, and bishops.

MAKARIZMOI – A Greek term referring to ‘The Beatitudes’.

METALEPSIS – A Greek word meaning communion. It refers to the divine communion prayers of preparation for receiving the Communion and the prayer of thanksgiving which follows.

METANOIA – A little prostration made by bending down to touch the ground with your hand.

PROSOMION (pl., PROSOMIA) – Also called PODOBEN. It is a Troparion (Sticheron) whose meter and melody are taken from that of an Automelon which serves as its model. Prosómia are a large, specific group of hymns of the Eastern Orthodox Church, which are used as models and paradigms for the composition of other hymns. In… Read More

QUADRAGESIMA – Latin for the time of the 40-day Lenten Fast.

SYNAPTES – Petitions that refer either to the Great or Little Ektenia (Litany).

AERIAL TOLL-HOUSES – The teaching of Aerial Toll-Houses regards the soul’s journey after its departure from the body, and is related to the particular judgment. In its most general form, it refers to the idea that after death, the demons attempt to find a basis for taking the soul to Hades, while the angels and… Read More

ASSEMBLY OF BISHOPS – The Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of North and Central America (formerly known as the Episcopal Assembly of North and Central America) is one of twelve bishops’ assemblies which have been established in different geographical regions throughout the world. It is made up of all the active, canonical Orthodox bishops of… Read More

JURISDICTION – The term jurisdiction refers to a given ecclesiastical entity and its parishes. Traditionally and canonically, all the parishes in a given region are governed by one bishop. Jurisdiction is used particularly in those areas where this traditional order has been upset and multiple ecclesiastical entities claim parishes in overlapping territories. Thus, it is… Read More

CRYPT – A crypt is an architectural feature found in churches of Europe, particularly in western Europe, that may be used as a chapel or a burial place. The crypt is located in the lower part of the church usually under the main floor, generally underground.

CATACOMES – Catacomb (from the Greek kata kumbas, meaning “near the low place or ravine”) was originally the name of a particular district in Rome, but later referred to subterranean Christian burial places throughout the Roman Empire. Catacombs have been discovered in Anatolia, Malta, and North Africa, and in the cities of Naples, Paris, Syracuse,… Read More

Funeral – The Sacraments

^{V. Rev. Thomas Hopko}

The funeral service in the Orthodox Church, although not considered as specifically sacramental, belongs among the special liturgical rites of the People of God.

We have already seen that the Church has a particular sacramental service for the consecration of human suffering, and special prayers for the departure of the soul from the body in death. When a person dies, the Church serves a special vigil over the lifeless body, called traditionally the parastasis or panikhida, both of which mean a “watch” or an “all-night vigil.”

The funeral vigil has the basic form of matins. It begins with the normal Trisagion Prayers and the chanting of Psalm 90(91), followed by the special Great Litany for the dead. Alleluia replaces God is the Lord, as in Great Lent, and leads into the singing of the funeral troparion.

Chrismation – The Sacraments

^{V. Rev. Thomas Hopko}

In the sacrament of Chrismation we receive “the seal of the gift of the Holy Spirit” ^{(See Rom 8, 1 Cor 6, 2 Cor 1:21-22)}. If baptism is our personal participation in Easter — the death and resurrection of Christ, then chrismation is our personal participation in Pentecost — the coming of the Holy Spirit upon us.

The sacrament of chrismation, also called confirmation, is always done in the Orthodox Church together with baptism. Just as Easter has no meaning for the world without Pentecost, so baptism has no meaning for the Christian without chrismation. In this understanding and practice, the Orthodox Church differs from the Roman Catholic and Protestant churches where the two sacraments are often separated and given other interpretations than those found in traditional Orthodoxy.

Holy Eucharist – The Sacraments

^{V. Rev. Thomas Hopko}

The Holy Eucharist is called the “sacrament of sacraments” in the Orthodox tradition. It is also called the “sacrament of the Church.” The eucharist is the center of the Church’s life. Everything in the Church leads to the eucharist, and all things flow from it. It is the completion of all of the Church’s sacraments — the source and the goal of all of the Church’s doctrines and institutions.

As with baptism, it must be noted that the eucharistic meal was not invented by Christ. Such holy ritual meals existed in the Old Testament and in pagan religions. Generally speaking the “dinner” remains even today as one of the main ritual and symbolic events in the life of man. The Christian eucharist is a meal specifically connected with the Passover meal of the Old Testament. At the end of his life Christ, the Jewish Messiah, ate the Passover meal with his disciples. Originally a ritual supper in commemoration of the liberation of the Israelites from slavery in Egypt, the Passover meal was transformed by Christ into an act done in remembrance of him: of his life, death and resurrection as the new and eternal Passover Lamb who frees men from the slavery of evil, ignorance and death and transfers them into the everlasting life of the Kingdom of God.

The Sacraments

^{V. Rev. Thomas Hopko}

The sacraments in the Orthodox Church are officially called the “holy mysteries.” Usually seven sacraments are counted: baptism, chrismation (or confirmation), holy eucharist, penance, matrimony, holy orders and the unction of the sick.

The practice of counting the sacraments was adopted in the Orthodox Church from the Roman Catholics. It is not an ancient practice of the Church and, in many ways, it tends to be misleading since it appears that there are just seven specific rites which are “sacraments” and that all other aspects of the life of the Church are essentially different from these particular actions. The more ancient and traditional practice of the Orthodox Church is to consider everything which is in and of the Church as sacramental or mystical.

Penance – The Sacraments

^{V. Rev. Thomas Hopko}

The sacrament of penance is our formal act of reconciliation with God in the Church when sin has severed us from the Church’s life. Because penance is the way to communion with God when that communion has been broken by sin, it is often referred to in Church Tradition as the renewal of baptism, or as the reestablishment of that condition of life with God which was given to men in the basic sacraments of inauguration into the Christian life.

Not every sin requires the necessity of formal penance through sacramental ritual. This is obvious because Christians are never completely without sin. Certain grave sins or the prolonged separation from Holy Communion, however, do call for the act of sacramental penance. Also, Christians living in communion with Christ are expected to make use of this sacrament periodically in order to humble themselves consciously before God and to receive guidance in the Christian life from their pastor in the Church. It is the teaching of the Orthodox Church that sacramental penance is necessary for those receiving Holy Communion when they have committed grave sins or when they have been separated from the eucharistic meal for a long time.

Holy Unction – The Sacraments

^{V. Rev. Thomas Hopko}

Unction of the Sick

Christ came to the world to “bear the infirmities” of men. One of the signs of his divine messiahship was to heal the sick. The power of healing remains in the Church since Christ himself remains in the Church through the Holy Spirit.

The sacrament of the unction of the sick is the Church’s specific prayer for healing. If the faith of the believers is strong enough, and if it is the will of God, there is every reason to believe that the Lord can heal those who are diseased.