"UNDERSTANDING THE DIVINE LITURGY"

     (A Guide For Participating In The Divine Liturgy Of St. John Chrysostom)

 

History, according to one point of view, is the eternal “carriage of world reality”, which takes every man from the first moment of his life, and transports him to his eternal destination.  Man, as a persona, i.e. a God-created, free being, deposits his acts (RES GESTAE) in History and at the same time he self-actualizes in accordance with the purpose of his existence. Christianly speaking, however, History has a “mind”.  It is not just an arbitrary flow and interweaving of events and occurrences; it simultaneously offers itself to Man as a possibility for affirmation of his worth, for the fulfillment of his destiny.  That is, universal history is comprised of the personal histories of all men, as success or   failure to realize this common purpose of every man.

"We have seen the true Light, we have received the heavenly Spirit;
we have found the true Faith, worshiping the undivided Trinity: for He has saved us."

The Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom

We are pleased to endorse this excellent book and video, UNDERSTANDING THE ORTHODOX LITURGY by the Very Reverend Michel Najim and T.L. Frazier. We authorize its use in all the churches of the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America, and recommend it to all English-speaking Orthodox Christians everywhere. It will be especially useful to all those who have an interest in Orthodox Christianity and the formative years of the Church.

Father Michel and T.L. Frazier have captured for us the true meaning of our liturgical prayers, chants and ritual. Every word and movement of the Holy Liturgy has a specific reality -- to lead us to the undivided Trinity and salvation in God's Kingdom. Holy Orthodoxy means "of true worship." It is because of liturgy that the Church has survived for almost 2000 years, for those who worship and understand what and who they worship, have embraced the Eternal Light of Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

Given at the Archdiocesan Office, on the 16th day of May, 1995 in Englewood, New Jersey

Metropolitan PHILIP
Primate
Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese 

Page created: 24-12-2012.

Last update: 24-12-2012.