Great Lent #19 - 25/03/2011

Holy Qurbana – 6

The Eucharistic Prayer

The dialogue between the priest and people which follows is one of the most ancient liturgical formulas found in all liturgies at this point. The people are asked to lift up their hearts and minds to where Christ sits, at the right hand of God the Father, and then to give thanks. Then the congregation breaks with the song of the angels ‘Holy, holy, holy…’ (Isaiah 6: 3) and ‘Blessed is He that cometh…’ (Psalms 118: 26) recalling that the angels are present at this solemn moment, joining their praise to that of the church on earth.

“The people are directed to lift up their heart to heaven, to see heaven not earth, the heavenly altar not the earthly altar, the heavenly priest not the earthly priest, the heavenly Body and Blood, not the earthly bread and wine, the heavenly worshipping host, not the earthly congregation.” (Bishop Pakenham Walsh p. 36)

Celebration of the Holy Qurbana

The priest narrates that which the Lord did, and blesses the bread and wine by making the sign of the cross. Thus, they become the Body and Blood of our Lord. If we allow Him to bless us, just as the ordinary bread is changed to His Body, we ordinary men and women, our ordinary lives, are thus transformed into the vehicle of God’s grace (Jn 2:9). By giving His blood, our Lord has given us everything He has. He makes our whole being His, when He blesses us.

Great Lent #18 - 24/03/2011

Holy Qurbana – 5

Bowing of Head
After the kiss of peace, we bow our heads. This is to express our humility and receptive mood for Gods blessings. According to Bar Sleebi, we collectively bow before Christ who sees all secrets and cleanses, lightens, and completes each one as he or she deserves.
The covering and Lifting of the Anaphora
When the Holy sacrifice is about to begin the veil is lifted form the paten and chalice and solemnly waved over the offering. The prayer which the priest says, compares the veil to the stone which covered the sepulcher (tomb) of Christ, which is now rolled away and to the rock of the desert which gave water to the people of God, signifying the water of life which Christ gives to his people in the Qurbana (2 Cor. 10:4).

Benediction given by the priest
When the celebrant turns to bless, he turns to the right side after making the sign of cross on him-self and then makes the sign of the cross on the people. The priest blesses the people three times during the Qurbana. The first blessing is using the words of St. Paul: “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all” (2 Cor. 13:14)

Great Lent #17 - 23/03/2011

Holy Qurbana – 4

THE ANAPHORA OF THE FAITHFUL

The word ‘Ana’ means ‘Up’ and ‘Phora’ means ‘to carry’. The Anaphora is the solemn prayer of thanksgiving which our Lord uttered at the Last Supper and the works and actions which He used when he instituted the Eucharist. The original Anaphora of the rite of Antioch is that of St. James, but there are a great many others, eighty-eight in all, which were introduced in later times. Of these about sixty-four have their authors identified, which may be used for celebration.

The Kiss of Peace

The kiss of peace is of apostolic origin (Rom 16:16, 1 Cor. 16:20) and is used in every liturgy to signify the ‘fellowship of the Spirit’ of which the Eucharist is the outward sign. It shows the love and harmony which should exist among the followers (disciples) of Christ. By this we fulfill the word of the Lord which says, “If thou offer thine offering and remembers that thy brother hath aught against thee; leave thine offering, and go, be reconciled with thy brother” (Mathew 5:23)

Great Lent #16 - 22/03/2011

Holy Qurbana – 3

The Nicene Creed

We believe the following:

· In the one True God, the Father Almighty

· In the one Lord Jesus Christ who took birth for the salvation of humanity

· In the one living Holy Spirit

· In the One Holy, Catholic (universal) and Apostolic Church

· We acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins

· In the Resurrection of the dead

· In the new life in the world to come

· St. Mary is described as the Mother of God and so this is a confession of faith against Nestorians

What does the priest pray privately in the kneeling position?

While the creed is being said, the priest turns to the clergy and people and asks for forgiveness and requests them to pray to the Lord to accept his oblations. The priest then kneels before the altar and beseeches the Lord for remission of sins and acceptance of his offering. The priest prays for and makes the sign of the cross with his right thumb on the altar mentioning the names of those alive and departed for whom prayers have been requested.

The deacon goes about the whole nave and returns to the altar. This signifies that:

o God the Word came down from heaven and offered himself for us all

o This is a sign for the un-baptized to leave

Great Lent #15 - 21/03/2011

Holy Qurbana – 2

Readings of the Scripture

In the Syrian Orthodox Church, there are three readings, one from the Acts, one from St. Paul and one from the Gospel. They are each preceded by a chant.

The first reading is done by the deacon from the northern side of the chancel, standing on the steps. It represents preaching of the gospel to the Jews.

The second reading is done form the southern side, representing preaching of the gospel to the gentiles.

The reading from the Gospel is done with great solemnity, as in all liturgies, the priest standing in the center of the sanctuary, while the servers carry lights and incense.

Proemion and Sedro

The proemion and Sedro are the typical form of solemn prayers in the Syriac church. It first offers praise and thanksgiving for the blessing which God has bestowed on us, above all in the sacrifice of his Son, then makes petition for his grace to be given to his people. There are seven different proemions and sedros which may be used for the Qurbana.

Blessing of the Censer

The prayers for the blessing of the censer are proclamations of the faith in Trinity. The chains on the censer represent the Holy Trinity. The first chain stands for God the Father. The second and third chains represent the human and Godly nature of the son. The fourth chain represents the Holy Spirit.

The priest puts incense in the censer and grasps one of the chains and makes sign of cross over it and says: ‘Holy is the Holy Father’. Grasping two more chains the priest proclaims: ‘Holy is the Holy Son’ and finally he grasps the last chain and says ‘Holy is the Holy Spirit’.

Great Lent #14 - 20/03/2011

Holy Qurbana - 1

At the beginning of the public service, the veil closing the sanctuary is drawn aside, signifying the appearance of the promised Messiah. At this time we speak of St. Mary who brought forth the Christ and John the Baptist who baptized Him. The whole congregation sings a song of praise while the priest, the deacon and the servers go solemnly around the altar carrying lights and incense, and waving the fans. These two Saints are remembered and their prayers are asked for because they were the two most intimately connected with the incarnation of the Lord, Mary who brought Him forth and John who prepared His way.

The priest offering incense along with deacons holding candles move in a procession around the altar. The priest represents Christ, the High Priest. The deacon who leads the procession represents John the Baptist, and the other deacons represent the Apostles and Disciples of Christ.

Trisagion

“Holy art thou, O God!

Holy art thou, Almighty,

Hoy art thou, Immortal,

Crucified for us,

Have mercy on us.”

According to Bar Sleebi three sets of angels came down at the time of burial of Christ. They sang, the first set ‘Holy art thou god’, the second, ‘Holy are Thou mighty’, and the third ‘Holy art Thou immortal’ and Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemose (Mark 15:43) inspired by the Holy Spirit burst forth ‘Thou that was crucified for us have mercy on us’.

God is a trinity and so the number three has special significance. After the Trisagion the priest and the congregation chant kurielaison (Lord have mercy upon us) thrice.

Great Lent #13 - 19/03/2011

Meaning of Church Vessels contd.

The Chalice and Paten - The Chalice which holds the Eucharistic wine is the most important of all sacramental vessels. The Patent holds the Eucharistic bread. The Paten and Chalice recall the mystery of the Last Supper, the bread standing for the Body of Christ and the Wine for His precious Blood.

Shushafo (Veil) - This white veil is used to cover the Paten and Chalice. It represents the fact that the Divine Mysteries are hidden from the understanding of men and that the divinity and humanity united in Christ, the Divine Word, is beyond human comprehension just the same way as the transformation of bread and wine to flesh and blood of Christ is beyond our perception.

The Censer - It has a lower half and upper half, four chains and 12 bells. The lower cup of the censer represents the earth and the upper cup the heaven. The coal in it represents the sinners. The chains represent the Holy Trinity. The first chain stands for God the Father. The second and third chains represent the human and Godly nature of the son. The fourth chain represents the Holy Spirit. The 12 bells represent the 12 Apostles of Christ. The four chains have a total of 72 links to represent the 72 evangelists of the Old Testament who prepared men to be worthy of the new covenant with God. The fire signifies the Holy Spirit by whose contact the black coal shines and glows. The incense shows the grace of the Holy Trinity. As the smoke goes up to the high so also our prayers should go high (Psalm 141:2)

Marvahtho (Fan) - A Fan shaped silver object mounted on a long pole. In the center of the fans, the seraphic face and wings are represented. The fans symbolize the presence of angels around the altar. The sounds represent the seraphim's and the flutter of their wings around the mysteries. It is carried in processions and shaken at the most solemn parts of the Qurbana.

The Lectern (Gospel stand or Evengelion table) - This is the pulpit which symbolizes the heights of Mount Sinai from where God spoke to Moses and handed him the stone tablets (Exodus 34:2). Mathew 5:1 tells us that Christ went up a mountain to preach the gospel to the multitude. Therefore the Book of gospel, which points to Christ Himself, is placed on the gospel stand.