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Liturgies in the ortodox church

TheDivine Liturgyis the primary worship service of theChurch. The Divine Liturgy isa eucharisticservice. It contains two parts: theLiturgy of theCatechumens, sometimescalled theLiturgy of the Word, at which theScripturesare proclaimed and expounded;and theLiturgy of the Faithful, sometimes called theLiturgy of theEucharist, in whichthe gifts of bread and wine are offered and consecrated. The Church teaches thatthe gifts truly become the body and blood ofJesus Christ, but it has never dogmatizeda particular formula for describing this transformation. TheProthesis(orProskomedia),the service of preparing the holy gifts, can be considered a third part which precedesthe Liturgy proper.

There are three Divine Liturgies that are in common use in the Eastern Orthodox

Church and Byzantine Catholic churches:

1. The Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom(5th century A.D.) , used on mostdays of the year, and as a vesperal liturgy on the Annunciation.

2. The Divine Liturgy of St. Basil the Great (4th century A.D.) used on the 5Sundays ofGreat Lent, and onSaint Basil's feast day (January 1). On the eves oftheNativity and Theophany, and on Holy Thursday and Holy Saturday, it is celebratedas a vesperal liturgy. In some traditions, Saint Basil's Liturgy is also celebrated onthe Exaltation of the Life-giving Cross on September 14. All together, St. Basil'sliturgy is celebrated 10 times out of the liturgical year.

3. The Divine Liturgy of St. James of Jerusalem (1st century A.D.) , celebratedonce a year in Jerusalem (and a few other churches) on the feast day ofSt. James,brother of the Lord and first bishop of Jerusalem, to whom this Liturgy is traditionallyattributed.

Additionally, the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts (6th century A.D.), is used onWednesdays and Fridays during Great Lentand on the first three days ofHolyWeek. It is essentially the office ofvespers with a communion service added, the

Holy Gifts having been consecrated and reserved the previous Sunday. It istraditionally attributed to St. Gregory the Dialogist. The Divine Liturgy of St. Markwas also observed in the Orthodox (Chalcedonian) Patriarchate of Alexandria on atleast that Saint's day until fairly recent times.

The Divine Liturgy of St. James is the oldest Eucharistic service in continuous use.It is the ancient liturgy of the Church of Jerusalem and is attributed tothe ApostleJames the Just, the Brother of the Lord. It is often celebrated in EasternOrthodox Churches on the feast of St. James (October 23).

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History of the Liturgy

The general scholarly consensus is that this liturgy originated in Jerusalem duringthe late fourth or early fifth century. It quickly became the primary liturgy inJerusalem and Antioch. Although it was later superseded in Jerusalem and Antiochby the Liturgy of St. Basiland the Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom, it had already

spread to other areas of the Church. The oldest manuscript traditions are in Greekand Syriac, and there are also extant manuscripts in Armenian, Ethiopic, Georgian,and Old Slavonic.One leading theory today is that of John Fenwick, who argues that the similaritiesbetween this liturgy and that of St. Basil demonstrate their respective developmentsfrom a common source, now lost, but which is best preserved in the Egyptianrecension of the Liturgy of St Basil. Fenwick suggests that the Liturgy of St. Jameswas composed by St. Cyril of Jerusalemc. 370.Today it is the principal liturgy of the Churches of the West Syrian tradition: theSyriac Orthodox Church, the Syrian Catholic Church, the Indian Orthodox Church,the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church, and the Mar Thoma Church.

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