www.byzcath.org Forums Faith & Christian Life The Christian East & West Mitred Abesses?

CHRIST IS BORN! GLORIFY HIM!

Dear Teen, In fact you don't even have to be a 'mitred' one to bless, ALL Orthodox abbesses are allowed to bless from the day of their consecration. Many times I was priveledged to receive the blessing of Mother Euphrasynia in Polotsk, Belarus. Mother was not only the abbess of the convent, and a nun for OVER 70 years, but also clairvoyant. The remarkable thing about being in her presence and having her tell you something (about yourself) was...that it was not frightening in the least...even though what she told you was something that censured you.

In His great love for us,
+Father Archimandrite Gregory

In mediaeval Europe, these Latin 'mitred' abbesses sometimes had 'juristiction' over a small territory like a diocese. In this sense they could authorize the ordination of priests, who would be 'incardinated' to the abbey, and could serve the abbey and those parishes subjected to it. In that way, they would owe obedience (with the ritual respect) to the person of the Abbess. These abbesses did not wear their mitres, except on the day of their consecration, but the mitres often were placed behind or near the abbatial throne. As signs of ordinary 'juristiction', their symbolism was different than the crown in the Orthodox Church.

Father Archimandrite Gregory,

Thanks for the information. I find it interesting, if not a bit confusing. Would the blessing of an abbess be identical to that of a regular layperson (we can bless ourselves, and I believe even others, with the Sign of the Cross, correct?)? Since females cannot be ordained and can never be actual clergy, I don't see how abbesses could impart some type of clerical blessing. Is ordination a necessary prerequisite for the type of blessings abbesses give, or does the Church have the power to allow the abbesses to do this outside of ordination?

Perhaps I'm misunderstanding something.

Logos Teen

Dear Logos Teen,

It is my understanding that everyone can bless, each in his appropriate way. A mother gives a motherly blessing to her children before they go to bed or leave the house. A father of the family, as head of the household, can give a fatherly blessing that is appropriate to him. (I always commend this important duty to new parents, as they say their evening prayers with their children.)

A religious superior blesses his (her) subjects in a way that is like this, but somehow greater, given the special blessing they themselves receive as a religious superior, and head of their family.

This again is different to the blessing an ordained priest would give (which is appropriate to the priest, as priest).

Each is proper to the person, from the giver, and appropriate. Given this, the source of all blessings and good things is God, who orders all for the good of his servants. This includes, in a wonderful way, the ability of Christians to bless and sanctify one another through sincere and heartfelt prayer.

Hieromonk Elias,

Thanks for the information. Are laymen allowed to bless others with the Sign of the Cross? I thought this was prohibited (at least in the Latin Church; I don't know about the Eastern Churches). If not, how would a layman bless someone else?

Logos Teen

Teen, I bless my children by making the sign of the Cross over them (as they would make it themselves, touching their forehead, belly, right shoulder, left) and they usually kiss my hand. We do this right before bed after prayers are finished. It is not as a priest's blessing which is given by the priest to the person receiving the blessing in crossed hands.

Dear Teen,
My grandparents used to bless my siblings and I the same way with the sign of the cross and we're Latin (in both senses of the word). They would make the Sign three times while calling on the Holy Trinity and the Holy Virgin and we would finish by kissing their right hand. It's not unusual to see parents bless their children like this in Latin America.

I don't know what the teaching is for the Eastern Churches. I remember watching a program on EWTN where two priests were discussing this (from a Western perspective I assume). One felt that lay people really shouldn't do this. Among other things he said it might confuse the faithful as to their proper roles. The other priest was more sympathetic to some situations, such as when parents bless their children. He was the older of the two priests and noted that in the old days this had been fairly common among older generations. As far as I know this priest isn't Mexican so I guess it was true of more than one nationality.

Growing up I knew this wasn't the same as a priest's blessing because it was my grandparent's blessing us, of course!

So I guess I don't know if it is "technically" correct to bless this way among laypeople but it isn't unheard of, especially by the elders in a family.

Peace,
Manuel

I have a friend from Mexico and any time I have visited his family with him, his mother always gives him a blessing before we leave...and also includes me too. I consider a parent's blessing just as sacred (and in some cases more so) than a priest's. Don

There is nothing to prevent one Christian from blessing another (using some form of words to state that it is God's blessing which is invoked). One might very properly use Holy Water for the purpose. Incognitus

Yes, indeed, that is the same Dom Urban.

The monks at St. Anselm's are really exemplars of Benedictine hospitality. It is a very welcoming monastery and Fr. Abbot is a wonderful person and, IMHO, a brilliant homilist. It reminds me of some monasteries I visited in England when I was in school. (I understand that they are English congregation Benedictines, and somehow related back to the old monastery that was on Loch Ness, so I guess it is no coincidence.)

The other monastery I am quite fond of locally is the Monastery of the Holy Cross, which of course, is the same community that runs the Icon and Book Store that is so often referred to on these boards.

May Fr Urban rest in well-earned peace. God bless him!
I have always loved the chapel at St Anselm's:simple but elegant. In the midst of DC [albeit in the very Catholic corner of NE where monks in habit are an everyday sight] one felt as if transported to medieval England...if you ignored the modern Bauhaus buildings adjacent to it . When I first started visiting the monastery it was the early 80s and Br Placid and Br Maurus were still alive; one of them [I can't remember which] did the elaborate woodcarving of the monk's stalls and the altar.