Bowing, Crawling, Kissing Falling...

[Cappadocian]

I feel like Orthodox liturgy and worship is the "language" that God has given us to honor him and to pay respect to the ONE who created us and heals us. At my church there are some standard motions that people engage in during worship -- of course the crossing of the body as well as bowing before the cross, kissing the cross, pressing foreheads against the ground before the cross, touching the priestly vestments, kissing the priest's ring, etc.

Are there any other unusual or exciting motions and rituals that you guys participate in or have seen? I would love to have some video clips of divine liturgies in the monasteries on Mt. Athos just to see if there is some new "slang" or new "lingo" that people are using in this process of worshipping God.

:bow: :bow: :liturgy: :liturgy:

[Matrona]

I remember watching a novice on Mount Athos doing his prostrations. It was like watching a dancer, he was so coordinated and his motion was so fluid, getting down and standing back up, over and over.

[repentant]

I feel like Orthodox liturgy and worship is the "language" that God has given us to honor him and to pay respect to the ONE who created us and heals us. At my church there are some standard motions that people engage in during worship -- of course the crossing of the body as well as bowing before the cross, kissing the cross, pressing foreheads against the ground before the cross, touching the priestly vestments, kissing the priest's ring, etc.

Are there any other unusual or exciting motions and rituals that you guys participate in or have seen? I would love to have some video clips of divine liturgies in the monasteries on Mt. Athos just to see if there is some new "slang" or new "lingo" that people are using in this process of worshipping God.

:bow: :bow: :liturgy: :liturgy:

Well there isn't really any new 'slang' or 'lingo', but at the Monastery's they tend to do a bow or prostation when ever the Holy Theotokos is mentioned. This is something I haven't seen in other community Church's here. People just normally make the sign of the cross instead.

Also what ring are you reffering to that you kiss, I have never seen a Priest wearing a ring other than a wedding ring, and no one kisses that.

[Marjorie]

One thing I like that I picked up at the monastery is making a deep, sweeping bow (+ sign of the cross) during each "alleluia, alleluia, alleluia, glory to Thee O God..."

In IC XC,
Marjorie

[Akathist]

Also what ring are you reffering to that you kiss, I have never seen a Priest wearing a ring other than a wedding ring, and no one kisses that.

I kiss the wedding ring. He wears his ring on his right hand.

[repentant]

I kiss the wedding ring. He wears his ring on his right hand.

Oh, I see. That's not really an Orthodox thing to do, but there is no problem with it. That's why I didn't know what you were reffering to. I just kiss the back side of his hand, or at the Monastery they make the ICXC sign with their hand and I kiss that.

[Annoula]

never heard of kissing the wedding ring either...

why does an orthodox kiss a ring... and a wedding ring?? it's not even a cross or something.....

i think ring kissing was done to emperors showing respect.

Peace!

[repentant]

never heard of kissing the wedding ring either...

why does an orthodox kiss a ring... and a wedding ring?? it's not even a cross or something.....

i think ring kissing was done to emperors showing respect.

Peace!

Yeah that's not a common thing, but it's shouldn't be a problem, it could just be the way he sticks his hand out that people kiss his ring.

[Grand_Duchess-Elizaveta]

In my fiance's parish, the priest blesses people with the chalice during the Great Entrance. People kneel along the main isle, and Father places the chalice on the head of each person desiring a blessing. It's very moving. I believe this is a Carpatho-Rusyn custom.

[Matrona]

In my parish, people walk up and touch the priest's vestments as he walks by during the Great Entrance.

[elizabethevangeline]

OK...rabbit trail sorta off topic.

Yesterday I attending church with my husband (a non-denom church) and they sang a song that talked about kneeling and kissing the feet of Christ. I had to bite my tongue not to point out to hubby that you would never actually see that happen at that church.

I like that I'm learning to stop talking about such things and learning to actually DO them.

[HandmaidenOfGod]

In my fiance's parish, the priest blesses people with the chalice during the Great Entrance. People kneel along the main isle, and Father places the chalice on the head of each person desiring a blessing. It's very moving. I believe this is a Carpatho-Rusyn custom.

In the Ukrainian Orthodox Church I was raised in, people would form one line for communion. After the priest had administered the Eucharist to the Communicant, the Communicant would go to the right, get a piece of antidoran and small serving of wine from the altar boys, then walk around the church and form a second line next to the line of people waiting to receive Communion.

When the priest had administered communion to all of the Communicants, he would then bless the Communicants in the "new" line by lightly tapping them on the head with the Holy Chalice.

I'm not sure if this is a common Ukrainian practice, but it was something I was raised with. We do not follow this tradition (little "t") in the OCA parish I currently attend.

In XC,

Maureen

[HandmaidenOfGod]

Another Ukrainian tradition I was raised with, that I have not seen practiced in other Orthodox Churches, is that when the choir sings the Beatitudes, (not sure of the "official" name of this part of the service) the priest would come out with the Gospel, and the faithful would line up to kiss the Gospel before the Gospel reading.


In XC,

Maureen

[Mary of Bethany]

One thing I like that I picked up at the monastery is making a deep, sweeping bow (+ sign of the cross) during each "alleluia, alleluia, alleluia, glory to Thee O God..."

In IC XC,
Marjorie

We do that in our parish.

Also, regarding kissing the priest's ring - sometimes people kiss his hand after kissing the chalice after receiving the Holy Mysteries. I don't think it's meant for his ring - just kissing his hand. That's my understanding, anyway.

Mary

[Marjorie]

We lign up to kiss the gospel here at Orthros; some (including me because I love it) also kiss the priest's hand.

In IC XC,
Marjorie

[moses916]

Sorry to get off topic, but all this talk about kissing rings and hands makes me wanna tell you all about this story at my friends parish, at my friends parish the priest announced to the congregation that there would be a priest visiting the following week, and he made sure to tell the entire congregation that it is forbidden to kiss their own hands when getting a blessing, it seems alot of ppl at this parish, would ask for a blessing and kiss their own hand and not the Priests :doh: , i thought it was funny that he mentioned it to the whole church.

[Akathist]

You know, I don't deliberately kiss the priests wedding ring, it is just the angle that he offers his had for kissing makes that the closest thing to me.

Our priest has said that we are NOT to try to kiss his hand when taking the Eucharist, only the challis. Not sure why.

[Khaleas]

You know, I don't deliberately kiss the priests wedding ring, it is just the angle that he offers his had for kissing makes that the closest thing to me.

Our priest has said that we are NOT to try to kiss his hand when taking the Eucharist, only the challis. Not sure why.

One less chance to bump the gifts... A lot of priests don't even let you kiss the chalice because of that risk. We do tho...
Our priest takes off his wedding ring when he serves DL (he puts it on the chain that he carries his baptismal cross on).

[Cappadocian]

What about crawling around the ground like a caterpillar?

[Matrona]

In my parish, we kiss both the chalice and the priest's hand after communing. I can see why some people might worry, but we don't, apparently.

(I also kiss the priest's hand after venerating the Gospel during Orthros, and after kissing the blessing cross after liturgy. Oh, and after he gives me a blessing, too.)

[Greg the byzantine]

One thing that I really love, and that causes my hairs to stick on end (in a good way) is during the fridays of lent when our priest does the Salutations of the Theotokos He prostrates himself in front of the icon of the thotokos with a kombosxini/chotki/prayer rope (he turns a new not for each hail) in his hand and chants very powerfully the salutations (the ones that begin with Hail/rejoice/xaipe or whatever your translation or language uses). It is one of the most moving things I have ever seen or heard and it sends chills all over my body.

[Annoula]

as far as i know, after communion we don't kiss the priest's hand or the icons because we are supposed to have taken Christ. and one that has the Christ in themselves does not need or maybe should not kiss, kneel or whatever in front of anything-anyone else.

Peace!

[Kolya]

In my parish, we kiss both the chalice and the priest's hand after communing. I can see why some people might worry, but we don't, apparently.

(I also kiss the priest's hand after venerating the Gospel during Orthros, and after kissing the blessing cross after liturgy. Oh, and after he gives me a blessing, too.)

as far as i know, after communion we don't kiss the priest's hand or the icons because we are supposed to have taken Christ. and one that has the Christ in themselves does not need or maybe should not kiss, kneel or whatever in front of anything-anyone else.


I think this is a Russian thing, but we only kiss the Chalice after communing.
At the end of the service when we go to kiss the Holy Cross, we kiss the Cross and the priests hand before receiving the anti-doron.

[repentant]

as far as i know, after communion we don't kiss the priest's hand or the icons because we are supposed to have taken Christ. and one that has the Christ in themselves does not need or maybe should not kiss, kneel or whatever in front of anything-anyone else.

Peace!

You shouldn't kiss anything or spit after Communion, becasue of the possibility that the Communion may still be in your mouth or saliva.

[repentant]

I think this is a Russian thing, but we only kiss the Chalice after communing.
At the end of the service when we go to kiss the Holy Cross, we kiss the Cross and the priests hand before receiving the anti-doron.

Also your not supposed to get antidoron if you take Communion, antidoron means "instead of the gift" so only people who didn't take Communion, receive it instead of the gift of Communion.

[Kolya]

Also your not supposed to get antidoron if you take Communion, antidoron means "instead of the gift" so only people who didn't take Communion, receive it instead of the gift of Communion.

What jurisdiction are you? In the Russian church, those who have communed get Anti-doron first! Then they go to the after-communion prayers.

I noticed in the Greek church that the people getting anti-doron do not kiss the priest's hand, where we ROC do.

[repentant]

What jurisdiction are you? In the Russian church, those who have communed get Anti-doron first! Then they go to the after-communion prayers.

I noticed in the Greek church that the people getting anti-doron do not kiss the priest's hand, where we ROC do.

Greek Orthodox...when we take Communion you get "blessed bread" as your walking back to your seat. But the antidoron is at the end of the service, where people who did not take Communion receieve the "blessed bread" or antidoron. The people who took Communion already received the blessed bread, so they shouldn't go up after Church to get it again. We kiss the Preists hand when receiving antidoron, because again, if your getting antidoron, you shouldn't have received Communion anyways. The name says it all..

[Monica, child of God]

It is a custom in churches of Russian heritage to have antidoron and a small cup of blessed wine after communion to ensure that all particles of the Eucharist have been swallowed and will not remain in one's mouth. Sometimes this bread is not called antidoron in english but rather blessed bread.

M.

[Kolya]

It is a custom in churches of Russian heritage to have antidoron and a small cup of blessed wine after communion to ensure that all particles of the Eucharist have been swallowed and will not remain in one's mouth. Sometimes this bread is not called antidoron in english but rather blessed bread.

M.

That is quite so, immediatly after the communion.
But I was referring to after the dismissal. EVERYONE in chuch - communicants included - receive anti-doron and kiss the Cross and the Priests' hand. That is a Russian Orthodox tradition. It is not necessarily 'wrong'.
We ROC often percieve Greek Orthodox practices as 'unusual' - like very seldom crossing oneself in church and recieving communion without confessing first.