what to do as a catholic going to an orthodox mass
by Frederica Mathewes-Green
1. What's all this mayhem?
During the early part of the service the church may seem to be in a hubbub, with people walking upwards to the front of the church building, praying in front of the iconostasis (the standing icons in front of the chantry), kissing things and lighting candles, even though the service is already going on. In fact, when you came in the service was already going on, although the sign exterior clearly said "Divine Liturgy, 9:30." Yous felt embarrassed to apparently be late, but these people are even later, and they're walking all around inside the church. What's going on here?
In an Orthodox church building there is simply one Eucharistic service (Divine Liturgy) per Sun, and it is preceded by an hour-long service of Matins (or Orthros) and several short preparatory services before that. There is no break between these services--one begins as before long as the previous ends, and posted starting times are merely educated guesses. Birthday, the priest will be at the chantry on Sunday morn for over 3 hours, "standing in the flame," every bit ane Orthodox priest put it.
As a result of this country of continuous flow, there is no signal at which everyone is sitting quietly in a pew waiting for the entrance hymn to start, glancing at their watches approaching 9:30. Orthodox worshippers arrive at any point from the first of Matins through the early part of the Liturgy, a span of well over an hr. No thing when they make it, something is sure to be already going on, and then Orthodox don't permit this hamper them from going through the individual prayers advisable to just entering a church. This is distracting to newcomers, and may even seem disrespectful, but soon you lot brainstorm to recognize it every bit an expression of a faith that is not merely formal simply very personal. Of grade, there is still no practiced alibi for showing up after 9:thirty, but punctuality is unfortunately ane of the few virtues many Orthodox lack.
2. Stand up, stand up for Jesus.
In the Orthodox tradition, the faithful stand up for nearly the entire service. Really. In some Orthodox churches, there won't fifty-fifty be any chairs, except a few scattered at the edges of the room for those who demand them. Expect variation in practice: some churches, particularly those that bought already-existing church buildings, volition take well-used pews. In any example, if you find the corporeality of continuing too challenging you're welcome to take a seat. No 1 minds or probably even notices. Long-term standing gets easier with practice.
3. In this sign.
To say that we brand the sign of the cross ofttimes would be an understatement. We sign ourselves whenever the Trinity is invoked, whenever we venerate the cross or an icon, and on many other occasions in the course of the Liturgy. Simply people aren't expected to practice everything the same way. Some people cross themselves three times in a row, and some finish by sweeping their right hand to the floor. On first entering a church building people may come to an icon, brand a "metania"--crossing themselves and bowing with right mitt to the flooring--twice, then buss the icon, so make i more metania. This becomes familiar with fourth dimension, but at first it tin seem like secret-handshake stuff that y'all are sure to get wrong. Don't worry, you don't take to follow conform.
We cross with our right easily from right to left (push button, not pull), the reverse of Roman Catholics and high-church Protestants. We hold our hands in a prescribed way: thumb and first 2 fingertips pressed together, last two fingers pressed downwards to the palm. Here as elsewhere, the Orthodox impulse is to make everything we exercise reinforce the Organized religion. Tin can yous figure out the symbolism? (Iii fingers together for the Trinity; two fingers brought down to the palm for the two natures of Christ, and his coming downwardly to globe.) This, besides, takes do. A beginner's imprecise organisation of fingers won't get yous denounced as a heretic.
4. What, no kneelers?
Generally, we don't kneel. We do sometimes prostrate. This is non like prostration in the Roman Catholic tradition, lying out apartment on the floor. To make a prostration we kneel, place our hands on the floor and touch on our foreheads down between our hands. Information technology's just like those photos of middle-eastern worship, which look to Westerners like a sea of behinds. At first prostration feels embarrassing, merely no i else is embarrassed, so afterwards awhile information technology feels OK. Ladies will larn that full skirts are best for prostrations, every bit apartment shoes are best for continuing.
Sometimes nosotros do this and get right back up once more, as during the prayer of St. Ephraim the Syrian, which is used ofttimes during Lent. Other times nosotros get down and stay there awhile, as some congregations practice during function of the Eucharistic prayer.
Non everyone prostrates. Some kneel, some stand up with head bowed; in a pew they might slide forward and sit crouched over. Standing there feeling bad-mannered is all correct likewise. No one will notice if you don't prostrate. In Orthodoxy there is a wider acceptance of individualized expressions of piety, rather than a sense that people are watching you and getting offended if you do it wrong.
One one-time Episcopal priest said that seeing people prostrate themselves was one of the things that made him most eager to get Orthodox. He idea, "That's how we should be before God."
5. With Honey and Kisses
We kiss stuff. When we get-go come into the church, nosotros kiss the icons (Jesus on the feet and other saints on the hands, ideally). Y'all'll likewise notice that some kiss the chalice, some osculation the edge of the priest's vestment as he passes by, the acolytes kiss his hand when they requite him the censer, and we all line upward to kiss the cross at the end of the service. When we talk near "venerating" something nosotros usually mean crossing ourselves and kissing information technology.
Nosotros buss each other before we take communion ("Greet one another with a kiss of love," i Peter 5:14). When Roman Catholics or high-church building Protestants "pass the peace," they give a hug, handshake, or peck on the cheek; that'due south how Westerners greet each other. In Orthodoxy different cultures are at play: Greeks and Arabs osculation on two cheeks, and Slavs come dorsum again for a third. Follow the lead of those effectually you and endeavor non to bump your nose.
The usual greeting is "Christ is in our midst" and response, "He is and shall be." Don't worry if you forget what to say. The greeting is not the 1 familiar to Episcopalians, "The peace of the Lord be with you." Nor is it "Hi, nice church building you have here." Exchanging the kiss of peace is a liturgical act, a sign of mystical unity. Chatting and fellowship is for after.
6. Blest bread and consecrated bread.
Only Orthodox may take communion, but anyone may have some of the blest bread. Hither's how it works: the round communion loaf, baked by a parishioner, is imprinted with a seal. In the preparation service before the Liturgy, the priest cuts out a section of the seal and sets it aside; it is called the "Lamb". The rest of the breadstuff is cut up and placed in a large basket, and blessed by the priest.
During the eucharistic prayer, the Lamb is consecrated to be the Body of Christ, and the chalice of wine is consecrated every bit His Blood. Here's the surprising part: the priest places the "Lamb" in the chalice with the wine. When we receive communion, we file up to the priest, continuing and opening our mouths wide while he gives us a fragment of the wine-soaked bread from a golden spoon. He also prays over the states, calling us by our first name or the saint-name which we chose when we were baptized or chrismated (received into the church past anointing with blessed oil).
Every bit we file past the priest, we come to an altar boy holding the basket of blessed breadstuff. People will accept portions for themselves and for visitors and not-Orthodox friends around them. If someone hands yous a piece of blessed staff of life, do not panic; it is not the eucharistic Torso. Information technology is a sign of fellowship.
Visitors are sometimes offended that they are not allowed to receive communion. Orthodox believe that receiving communion is broader than me-and-Jesus; it acknowledges faith in celebrated Orthodox doctrine, obedience to a item Orthodox bishop, and a commitment to a item Orthodox worshipping customs. There's nothing exclusive virtually this; everyone is invited to make this delivery to the Orthodox Church. Merely the Eucharist is the Church's treasure, and it is reserved for those who have united themselves with the Church. An analogy could be to reserving marital relations until later the wedding.
Nosotros also handle the Eucharist with more gravity than many denominations practice, farther explaining why nosotros guard it from common admission. We believe it is truly the Trunk and Blood of Christ. We ourselves do non receive communion unless nosotros are making regular confession of our sins to a priest and are at peace with other communicants. Nosotros fast from all nutrient and drink--yep, fifty-fifty a morning cup of java--from midnight the night before communion.
This leads to the full general topic of fasting. When newcomers acquire of the Orthodox practice, their usual reaction is, "You lot must be kidding." Nosotros fast from meat, fish, dairy products, vino and olive oil most every Wednesday and Fri, and during four other periods during the year, the longest being Slap-up Lent before Pascha (Easter). Altogether this adds up to nigh half the yr. Here, as elsewhere, expect great variation. With the counsel of their priest, people decide to what extent they can go on these fasts, both physically and spiritually--attempting as well much rigor too soon breeds frustration and defeat. Nobody's fast is anyone else's business organisation. As St. John Chrysostom says in his love Paschal sermon, everyone is welcomed to the banquet whether they fasted or not: "You sober and you heedless, honor the twenty-four hour period...Rejoice today, both you who have fasted and you lot who have overlooked the fast."
The of import point is that the fast is not rigid rules that you interruption at grave run a risk, nor is it a punishment for sin. Fasting is practice to stretch and strengthen us, medicine for our souls' health. In consultation with your priest as your spiritual medico, you tin can get in at a fasting schedule that will stretch but not interruption you. Adjacent year you may be set for more. In fact, as fourth dimension goes by, and as they experience the esprit of fasting together with a loving community, most people discover they start relishing the challenge.
7. Where's the Full general Confession?
In our experience, we don't have whatever general sins; they're all quite specific. There is no complete confession-prayer in the Liturgy. Orthodox are expected to be making regular, individual confession to their priest.
The role of the pastor is much more that of a spiritual father than information technology is in other denominations. He is not called past his first name solitary, just referred to equally "Father Firstname." His married woman also holds a special part as parish mother, and she gets a championship too, though it varies from one culture to another: either "Khouria" (Arabic), or "Presbytera" (Greek), both of which mean "priest'southward married woman;" or "Matushka" (Russian), which means "Mama."
Another difference yous may observe is in the Nicene Creed, which may be said or sung, depending on the parish. If nosotros are saying that the Holy Spirit gain from the Father, and you from force of habit add, "and the Son," you volition exist alone. The "filioque" was added to the Creed some six hundred years subsequently it was written, and nosotros attach to the original. Loftier-church visitors will too notice that nosotros don't bow or genuflect during the "and was incarnate." Nor do we restrict our use of "Alleluia" during Lent (when the sisters at ane Episcopal convent are referring to it as "the 'A' give-and-take"); in fact, during Matins in Lent, the Alleluias are more plentiful than ever.
8. Music, music, music.
About seventy-five percentage of the service is congregational singing. Traditionally, Orthodox use no instruments, although some churches will take organs. Normally a pocket-size choir leads the people in a capella harmony, with the level of congregational response varying from parish to parish. The style of music varies also, from very Oriental-sounding solo chant in an Arabic church to more than Western-sounding four-part harmony in a Russian church, with lots of variation in between.
This constant singing is a petty overwhelming at first; information technology feels like getting on the offset step of an escalator and being carried along in a rush until you lot step off 90 minutes later on. It has been adequately said that the liturgy is one continuous song.
What keeps this from being exhausting is that it's pretty much the *same* song every week. Relatively little changes from Sunday to Sun; the same prayers and hymns appear in the same places, and before long you know it by heart. Then y'all fall into the presence of God in a way you never can when flipping from prayer book to message to hymnal.
9. Making editors squirm.
Is there a curtailed way to say something? Can extra adjectives be deleted? Tin the briskest, most pointed prose exist boiled downwardly i more time to a more than refined level? So information technology's not Orthodox worship. If there'due south a longer mode to say something, the Orthodox volition observe it. In Orthodox worship, more is e'er more, in every area including prayer. When the priest or deacon intones, "Let us consummate our prayer to the Lord," expect to still be continuing in that location fifteen minutes subsequently.
The original liturgy lasted something over five hours; those people must have been on burn for God. The Liturgy of St. Basil edited this down to virtually ii and a half, and later (effectually 400 A.D.) the Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom further reduced it to most one and a half. Most Sundays we utilise the St. John Chrysostom liturgy, although for some services (e.g., Sundays in Lent, Christmas Eve) we utilise the longer Liturgy of St. Basil.
10. Our Champion Leader
A constant feature of Orthodox worship is veneration of the Virgin Mary, the "champion leader" of all Christians. We often accost her every bit "Theotokos," which ways "Mother of God." In providing the physical means for God to become homo, she made possible our salvation.
But though nosotros honor her, as Scripture foretold ("All generations will call me blessed," Luke ane:48), this doesn't hateful that we recall she or whatsoever of the other saints have magical powers or are demi-gods. When we sing "Holy Theotokos, save u.s.," we don't hateful that she grants u.s. eternal salvation, but that nosotros seek her prayers for our protection and growth in organized religion. Just as we ask for each other'south prayers, we ask for the prayers of Mary and other saints besides. They're not dead, after all, just departed to the other side. Icons surround u.s. to remind usa of all the saints who are joining us invisibly in worship.
eleven. The three doors.
Every Orthodox church will have an iconostasis earlier its altar. "Iconostasis" means "icon-stand", and it tin can be as simple as a big image of Christ on the correct and a respective paradigm of the Virgin and Child on the left. In a more than established church, the iconostasis may be a literal wall, adorned with icons. Some of versions shield the altar from view, except when the central doors stand open.
The basic set-up of two large icons creates, if you lot apply your imagination, 3 doors. The cardinal 1, in front of the altar itself, is called the "Holy Doors" or "Regal Doors," because in that location the King of Glory comes out to the congregation in the Eucharist. Simply the priest and deacons, who bear the Eucharist, use the Holy Doors.
The openings on the other sides of the icons, if at that place is a complete iconostasis, accept doors with icons of angels; they are termed the "Deacon'due south Doors." Altar boys and others with business backside the altar use these, although no one is to become through any of the doors without an appropriate reason. Altar service--priests, deacons, altar boys--is restricted to males. Females are invited to participate in every other expanse of church life. Their contribution has been honored as with men's since the days of the martyrs; you can't expect at an Orthodox altar without seeing Mary and other holy women. In most Orthodox churches, women do everything else men exercise: lead congregational singing, paint icons, teach classes, read the epistle, and serve on the parish council.
12. Where does an American fit in?
Flipping through the Xanthous Pages in a large city yous might see a multiplicity of Orthodox churches: Greek, Romanian, Carpatho-Russian, Antiochian, Serbian, and on and on. Is Orthodoxy actually so tribal? Do these divisions represent theological squabbles and schisms?
Not at all. All these Orthodox churches are one church. The ethnic designation refers to what is called the parish's "jurisdiction" and identifies which bishops hold authority at that place. There are virtually 6 1000000 Orthodox in N America and 250 meg in the world, making Orthodoxy the second-largest Christian communion.
The astonishing matter near this ethnic multiplicity is its theological and moral unity. Orthodox throughout the world hold unanimously to the fundamental Christian doctrines taught by the Apostles and handed downwardly by their successors, the bishops, throughout the centuries. They also hold to the moral standards of the Apostles; abortion, and sex exterior heterosexual marriage, remain sins in Orthodox optics.
I could attribute this unity to historical accident. We would aspect it to the Holy Spirit.
Why so the multiplicity of ethnic churches? These national designations obviously represent geographic realities. Since N America is also a geographic unity, i twenty-four hours we volition likewise have a unified national church building--an American Orthodox Church building. This was the original plan, but due to a number of complicated historical factors, it didn't happen that fashion. Instead, each ethnic grouping of Orthodox immigrating to this country developed its own church structure. This multiplication of Orthodox jurisdictions is a temporary abnormality and much prayer and planning is going into breaking through those unnecessary walls.
Currently the largest American jurisdictions are the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese, The Orthodox Church in America (Russian roots), and the Antiochian Archdiocese (Arabic roots). The liturgy is substantially the same in all, though in that location may be variation in linguistic communication used and type of music.
I wish it could be said that every local parish eagerly welcomes newcomers, merely some are notwithstanding and so close to their immigrant experience that they are mystified as to why outsiders would be interested. Visiting several Orthodox parishes will aid yous learn where y'all're virtually comfy. You will probably exist looking for 1 that uses plenty of English in its services. Many parishes with high proportions of converts volition have services entirely in English.
Orthodoxy seems startlingly dissimilar at first, but as the weeks get by it gets to exist less so. Information technology volition begin to feel more and more like home, and will gradually describe you into your true home, the Kingdom of God. I hope that your beginning visit to an Orthodox church building will be enjoyable, and that it won't be your concluding.
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This article is bachelor every bit a printed booklet from Ancient Faith Publishing, equally part of their popular series of bonny and informative booklets and brochures virtually the basic teachings of the ancient Orthodox Christian organized religion. This essay is copyrighted by Aboriginal Faith Publishing.
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Source: http://ww1.antiochian.org/content/first-visit-orthodox-church-twelve-things-i-wish-id-known
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