Liturgy of the catechumens: how it goes, meaning and purpose, advice from priests

2024 Author: Miguel Ramacey | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 06:11

Christianity, like any other established and established religion, has a large number of rituals. They allow the flock to feel part of something important and to strive for this with all their thoughts and actions. Divine services and rituals in Orthodoxy and Catholicism have much in common, but there are also many differences between them. Usually, for beginners who have just come to God, they do not become noticeable immediately, since churching is a long process, during which the meaning of all the sacraments and rituals is gradually revealed. However, even those parishioners who consider attending divine services an invariable part of their lives cannot always explain their meaning, talk about the meaning and list the service. The liturgy of the catechumens is a church service that seems to be one of the most difficult for the Orthodox to understand. Many can't even tell when it starts and how it ends. But onin fact, the liturgy of the catechumens is an important part of the collective service to God in Christianity and has its own history of formation, referring us to the times when the followers of religion were subjected to mass persecution. Today we will talk in detail about this liturgy and separately highlight all its stages.

Liturgy: let's turn to terminology

In order to begin telling readers directly about the liturgy of the catechumens, it is important to have some understanding of Orthodox terminology. First of all, let's look at what exactly this worship service is.

The word "liturgy" came to us from the Greek language. In translation, it means "common cause", which perfectly characterizes the essence of this action. From the time when Christianity was in its infancy, worship services have been collective in nature. Initially, this was the only opportunity to praise the Creator and gain knowledge about Christianity.

Today many people also participate in the liturgy. They can be roughly divided into four categories:

• clergyman leading the service;
• deacons;
• chors;
• parishioners.

The actions of all participants in worship are usually quite coordinated and subject to certain rules. At the same time, many parishioners consider themselves just listeners of prayer, which is a fundamentally wrong attitude to the liturgy. After all, ordinary people who come to the temple cannot be passive spectators of everything that happens at the altar. They are directly involved in everything. And this is especially true for prayer. After all, inIn Christianity, collective prayer is endowed with special power. At such services, you need to turn to God not only with your problems and worries, but also delve into the words of the priest in order to turn your heart to the Creator in a single impulse. At such moments, a true blessing descends on all who pray.

Previously, it was believed that without such prayers it was impossible to perform the sacrament of communion, since bread and wine would not turn into the blood and body of Christ. However, to this day in many churches the same attitude has remained towards the liturgy of the catechumens. In part, it can be considered true, but nevertheless this worship service has another meaning. First of all, it should be perceived as an important part of the Great Liturgy, which can be both everyday and festive.

Short description

When we talk about divine services in Orthodoxy, then almost one hundred percent we mean the Byzantine rite. It arose almost at the dawn of Christianity and consists of several parts, one of which is the liturgy of the catechumens.

The main goal of the Byzantine rite is considered to be the preparation of the believer for communion. He must once again recall all the foundations of Christianity, moments from the earthly life of Christ and his suffering at the crucifixion. The Church for a limited time interval explains to the parishioners why God sent His Son to people and explains the importance of the sacraments. It is in this way that one can briefly describe the essence of the liturgy of the catechumens.

But why is it named like that? This question is of interest to almost everyone who has recently come to God andonly gets acquainted with most of the rites. The answer to it is extremely simple. The divine service, which is usually called "liturgy", is a single action. But it consists of several parts. The Liturgy of the catechumens and the Liturgy of the Faithful are the most important and impressive in terms of time. The names were given to them in ancient times, and they are associated with the sacrament of communion.

The fact is that a certain category of parishioners does not have the right to take part in this ceremony. This group includes people who are excluded from communion, those who repent for committing sins, and those who are just preparing for baptism. They may attend the entire service, except for its final stage. At this time, they must go outside the temple. The signal to leave the church is the announcement of the priest, so the part of the service available to the listed category of people was called the “liturgy of the catechumens.”

Meaning of the Liturgy

Today this part of the service is underestimated by many Orthodox, they do not understand its importance and perceive it as a stage preceding communion. However, in Ancient Russia, all church sacraments were taken very seriously. An outsider who did not go through a long preparatory stage simply could not become a Christian. The time interval from the will of a person to accept Orthodoxy to the sacrament itself could stretch for years. This was especially characteristic of the Old Believers, but even in an ordinary church, a person underwent several months of training and only then received the right to become a Christian. The process of learning about religionmandatory included attending the main worship services as an active participant throughout the time allotted by the spiritual mentor for training.

The Liturgy of the catechumens was the only opportunity to attend the service preceding Communion. After being baptized, the believer received the full right to defend the service completely and not leave the church after the announcement.

It is interesting that the priests themselves are always happy to tell the parishioners about the meaning of the liturgy from the point of view of the church. They say that each stage is symbolic of certain events. For example, the first words of the divine service are a kind of angelic song announcing to mankind the birth of the Son of God. The obligatory chants make reference to the sermons of Christ, which he led at different times. The small entrance can be correlated with the journey of Jesus through Palestine and preaching in all cities and villages of the true faith. The further stages of the liturgy should remind people that they need to pray not only for loved ones, but also for those who have not found the grace of eternal life without accepting the Almighty as their only god. This category needs guidance and guidance, which means that prayer can become a kind of guiding star for them.

In Constantinople and other cities in ancient times, liturgies were held very magnificently. They were accompanied by a religious procession with mass sermons. Usually, such services were held as a thank you for getting rid of the epidemic, in honor of the end of the war, or as a petition for protection in difficult times. Ancient times in the templethe liturgy of the catechumens was not always celebrated. Quite often, after the procession to the church doors, people stayed behind them and listened to the service from the street. They were considered direct participants in the action, regardless of their location. After the announcement, the doors of the temple were closed, and only those who had the legal right to take communion in the sacrament of communion were inside.

Stages of the Liturgy

In Orthodoxy, there is a special science of conducting divine services - liturgy. The liturgy of the catechumens, according to its canons, consists of several parts. Each has its own meaning and is subject to a strict sequence. We will outline all the stages of the service in a simplified and concise version:

• Proskomedia. To be as precise as possible, this is not the liturgy itself, but its eve. At this stage, a kind of sacrifice is made of bread and wine, which will then be used for communion of parishioners.
• The Great Litany. Litanies are an important part of all church services and represent a list of petitions to the Lord.
• Antiphons. This term hides the chants that the choristers should pronounce. In ancient times, this was done through two choirs located opposite each other.
• Anthem.
• Small Litany.
• Singing.
• Small entrance.
• Explanation of the Christian faith. This process includes reading the gospel.
• Four litanies, going in succession one after another: ominous, about the dead, about the entrance of the catechumens and about the exitcatechumens.

For beginners, all of the above steps may seem incomprehensible, and the service itself may seem too long. How long the liturgy of the catechumens lasts, it is impossible to answer exactly. Despite the fact that all its parts are subject to strict order and clearly regulated, each clergyman puts his whole soul and faith in God into it. Therefore, there may be serious discrepancies in the time of serving the Almighty.

The most common questions regarding the liturgy

Very often, parishioners who have just embarked on the path of faith are embarrassed to ask questions about worship services. As a result, they lose interest in these important activities and sometimes miss significant milestones that would make them stronger and stronger in spirit in the future.

Often, interest is in what liturgy is more important - festive or daily. There can't be two answers on this topic. In Orthodoxy, any appeal to God is an important and significant action. And taking part in common prayer, which in a sense is the liturgy, gives a person spiritual strength and strengthens him in faith. Therefore, be sure to set aside time and take part in this action, which is very important for every Christian. At the same time, one should not divide the liturgies among themselves according to their significance.

When it comes to church-going people who not so long ago came into the bosom of the church, they are characterized by the error associated with dividing one divine service into parts according to the degree of importance. The liturgy of the catechumens and the liturgy of the faithful are considered different in this approach. First baptized peopleperceived as optional for presence. And the second, after which communion occurs, is considered extremely important. Priests categorically oppose such an approach to serving God. They argue that the liturgy of the catechumens is a preparatory stage for the sacrament, and therefore it should never be missed.

In order to make it easier for readers to understand the main essence of the liturgy and take a conscious part in it, we will give some clarifications to its most important stages.

Beginning of Liturgy

After the proskomedia, the priest and the deacon begin to prepare parishioners for the sacrament of communion. The first words of the liturgy are prayers for the calling of the Holy Spirit. They are pronounced by the priest and the deacon in turn. They are echoed by the choristers. The flock usually repeats only the last words of the text, which are a kind of seal confirming and consolidating what was said.

It is believed that during the liturgy the Lord himself directs everything that happens. And the participants in the action are his assistants. Moreover, the status of a person is not important here - priests and ordinary parishioners are equal before God.

Next comes the turn of the great litany. It should be held only in a good mood, so the priest begins it with a prayer designed to instill peace in the hearts of the parishioners. In Christianity, it is strictly forbidden to bring any sacrifice to the Lord, which includes prayer, while in anger or an irritated state.

Prayer is read in several stages, each includes certain petitions. In the process, the priest embracesalmost all spheres of human life, special emphasis is placed on spiritual insight. It also asks for mercy on all those who pray and the church itself. In addition to the points already mentioned, a petition for a blessing is considered important. It is during the liturgy that the grace of God descends on all those who take part in it.

Antiphons

Singing is an essential part of serving the Lord. But it has some differences depending on what kind of service is being conducted. During the liturgy, considerable attention is paid to the antiphons. They are psalms sung in whole or in groups of several verses. A distinctive feature of antiphons from other chants is the manner of their performance. Both choirs should sing psalms alternately.

This creates a special atmosphere that fills the temple with the glorification of God. Antiphons consist entirely of glorifying texts, and when singing comes from all sides, special goodness descends on those who pray, filling their hearts and souls with love for the Lord.

Interestingly, antiphons were originally independent chants. They were often performed by parishioners on their way to the temple. Then they began to be used during processions of the cross before the start of the liturgy.

And only over time they became a full-fledged part of worship. Today it is quite difficult to imagine the liturgy without these eulogies interspersed with prayer.

We note right away that the choir sings several antiphons. They are combined with a small litany and a prayer of a clergyman. When the first antiphon is sung, the minister of the church reads a prayer for the protection of allOrthodox, and in particular those who belong to the parishioners of this church. In parallel, a small litany is read, to the words of which all those present join in a single impulse.

The second antiphon is entirely dedicated to the Son of God. The chants tell how the divine and human principles merged in Jesus Christ, which allowed him to love all people without exception and give his life for them. In parallel, the priest reads a prayer for the granting of eternal life and blessings. Immediately after it, another small litany is pronounced.

The third antiphon is dedicated to the commandments of God. In hymns the Lord is glorified, who judged wisely, giving people a set of rules, according to which they can live righteously. There is usually little entry at this stage.

Small entrance: description and meaning

Even in the process of performing the psalms in chorus, the clergyman comes behind the altar. A few minutes later he comes out with the Gospel and walks around all those present. In parallel, a prayer is read, to which the parishioners join. All actions together are aimed at glorifying the activities of the Lord.

It is interesting that the small entry has two meanings - spiritual and practical. The second came to us from the time when religion was just going through the stage of formation. The fact is that the Gospel is a very valuable book, which not all ordinary people could have. Even the church often received it as an invaluable gift from a we althy parishioner. The book was kept in a certain place and often not in the temple. This could have saved hertheft in case of looting of the church by enemies. Therefore, during the liturgy, the Gospel was solemnly brought into the temple for reading in front of all those gathered.

Also, the small entrance has a spiritual or symbolic meaning. It is believed that he depicts the appearance of the church as such to glorify the Lord.

Reading texts

After the antiphons, the liturgy continues with the reading of troparia, kontakia and texts from the Holy Scriptures. All this is chosen in accordance with the day on which the service takes place.

Final litanies

At the end of the Liturgy of the catechumens, the clergyman reads several litanies. Sugubaya is dedicated to prayers for the heads of the Orthodox Church. The next after it is a memorial dedicated to the commemoration of all Orthodox who have left this world. However, it should be borne in mind that on Sundays and public holidays it is skipped. The final stage of this liturgy is the litany of the catechumens. During its reading, explanations are given to the sacrament of baptism and the meaning of preparation for it. After the end of the text, the clergyman demands the catechumens to leave the temple. Thus, the liturgy ends for them.

"Liturgy of the catechumens" by Alexei Rybnikov

In recent years, interest in the Orthodox Church among the people has increased significantly. Churches are being revived in towns and villages, people are being baptized and getting married, and artists are even putting on performances on the theme of Christianity.

Back in the nineties of the last century, a production at the theater by Alexei Rybnikov - "The Liturgy of the Catechumens" - made a lot of noise. She connectedin itself divine and ordinary, thereby proving that the church is inseparable from people. Today, based on the production, a film has been created that is no less interesting and unusual than the play.