www.byzcath.org Forums Faith & Christian Life Faith & Theology Being called to the Byzantine

Please remember I'm new and mean no disrespect to anyone, any faith or any Rite.

May I ask what Holy Week(before Easter) is like? (In general)Any special things I can look forward to? And may I also inquire about fasting, we are encouraged for Fridays throughout the year, and during Lent.
Did the Byzantine Catholics ever celebrate Christmas on the Feast of the Kings? Someone told me a long time ago that was true. In addition, do any Byzantines go by the other calendar(Orthodox)?
In prayerful gratitude,
Mari

Gee, I thought we've been pretty good lately.

I wish I'd just got to the point and made the "inherited guilt" versus "inherited mortality" distinction in my posting instead of rambling all over the place about Augustine, limbo, et. al. Mea culpa.

Mari,

Depending upon the parish......

Holy Week is the one time during the year when I'm tempted to simply put a cot in the back of the church & not bother going home. Monday, Tuesday & Wednesday, the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts is celebrated, as it has been through the Great Fast (hopefully. This is a "new" thing in some previously heavily Latinized parishes) with the addition on Wednesday of the Mystery of the Annointing of the Sick , which is administered to ALL present, because we are all sick, at least with that terminal disease called sin. Thursday there is a Vesper+Liturgy service recalling & reliving the institution of the Eucharist. Great Friday can have a bunch of services - few parishes outside of monasteries celebrate them all - Matins witht the reading of the 12 Gospels, Royal Hours, the service of Great Friday (taken in all/most parishes) Jerusalem Matins. Saturday is "the day that never ends." Vespers and Liturgy of St. Basil is prescribed - it is hauntingly beautiful - Christ rests in the tomb, but we know the rest of the story. It is sadness shot through with hope and joy.

Pascha itself - there are no words to describe it. It is purest joy, brightest light. I live the entire year in anticipation of Holy Saturday at midnight, when Resurrection Matins begins, then ends only to give way to the most joyous Divine Liturgy of the year. "CHRIST IS RISEN!" we sing over and over again! "CHRIST IS RISEN!" we want to tell the whole world. After the Liturgy is complete, we troop over to the hall. People set out their baskets, filled with paschal food (and the sacred Chocolate Bunny, LOL) pysanki, candles, decorated cloths - and all of it is blessed as we sing "CHRIST IS RISEN" again & again.

Then everybody goes home, and the cantors try to catch a couple hours of sleep before going back for Sunday morning Divine Liturgy for the folks who don't drive at night. (The cruelest years are the ones when Daylight Savings Time begins on Pascha. You've been singing your heart out for hours, it's 2:00am, and all of a sudden it's 3:00am, and you've got an hour less to sleep.)

About fasting - In the West, it's the practice to state the minimum requirements - a floor, if you will. In the East, it's the practice to state the "ideals," i.e. a ceiling. Not everybody is cut out to live "in the rafters." The three "legs" of any fast are bodily fasting, prayer, and works of mercy. If you are unable to "lean" on one "leg" you can usually lean a bit more on the others. It's important though that you do not blithely decide on your own how to keep a fast - it should always be something you discuss with your Spiritual Father (or Mother).

As for calendar stuff, yes, there are some Eastern Catholic Churches which go by the "Old Calendar." With some it's a point of pride or tradition, for others, it's a matter of where they are located. Rome has "suggested" (I don't remember how pointed the suggestion was) that we keep the calendar which is dominant wherever we are - so churches located in countries where the Old Calendar is in the fore are more likely to go by the Old Calendar (except when they don't...) and vice versa.

Old Calendar folks celebrate Christmas when New Calendar folks celebrate Theophany. Until we came to AAmerica, Theophany was a much bigger deal in the Eastern Churches than Christmas. I am not one to get into a tizz about calendars - it seems to me though that Old Calendar folks have an advantage, in that they can shop the after-Christmas sales before Christmas. (grin)

Best,

Sharon


Sharon Mech, SFO
Cantor & sinner
sharon@cmhc.com

[ 06-18-2002: Message edited by: Sharon Mech ]

Wow! I have always loved Lent and Easter, but I don't think I've really experienced such beauty as is described. I'm really looking forward to this!
I hope to be picking up some of the books suggested this week.
Thank you.

Mari,

As long as you are shopping, pick up a copy of "Great Lent" also by Alexander Schmemann. (Both Schmemann titles can be puchased directly from St. Vlavimir Seminary Press

http://www.svots.edu/SVS-Bookstore/

I usually shop online then order via their 800 number. Always have had excellent service.)

It's the BEST explantion of the Eastern "take" on the Great Fast - considered a modern classic.

Best,

Sharon

Welcome Mari;

I hope we can be of genuine help to you! It's good to hear that you are pleased by celebrating the Divine Mysteries with us.

With Best Wishes;
Stefan-Ivan

Hey,

Don't forget that our Lent starts on the Monday before Ash Wed., along with Holy Week goes all the prepartio before hand. The three nights a week in church in addition to daily liturgy. When you are done you feel that you have truly walked to the cross with Christ. Another thing I love is the Akathist of the Theotokos. The Eastern Churches place a lot of emphasis on her i the liturgy, but this is special for her, and a delightful treat for all. I love Pre-Sanctified, it is so awesome to prostrate before God as a church.

Rose

Glory to Jesus CHrist!

With regards to the previous post, the first day of Lent depends if your parish is following the more traditional Julian calendar or the Gregorian calendar. The Byzantine-Ruthenian metropolia follows the Gregorian across the board, while in my own Ukrainian Catholic eparchies we have some parishes that are still on the Julian calendar.

Also, since Schmemann came up earlier, his "For the Life of the World" would be my first choice for a first-time read of Schmemann. This book had a profound effect on my "sacramental outlook" from the Eastern Christian perspective, and after now reading almost all of his books I realize that this was in fact the best place to start, and is one of his most readible.

Other good primer books are Kallistos Ware's "The Orthodox Way" and "Eastern Christianity-the Byzantine Tradition written by Deacon (now priest) Lawrence Cross of the Russian Catholic Church. The three-part Light for Life adult catechetical series is great stuff as well. May our God who loves mankind through the outpouring of His life-giving Spirit guide you on your way.
Subdeacon Randolph, a sinner

Stefan-Ivan,Rose, Diak, Sharon,and Subdeacon Randolph and All:
Can't tell you how much your help means! My reading list is growing! Many prayers of thanks to God who shines thru you all.

MariM,

Welcome! I can understand where you are coming from. I was brought up in the Roman Church, but became increasingly dissatisfied with the lack of reverence and holiness that often seems to be prevelent in the post-Vatican II Roman Church. Especially the lack of reverence for the Holy Mysteries (i.e. Communion). As a person who is very traditional in mindset, I wanted something that seemed more holy. Plus I was interested in Russia, and teaching myself to read Russian (this was 5 years ago...I now speak and read conversational Russian very well). My first time in a Byzantine church for Divine Liturgy was amazing! I still love it every time I go to church or listen to a recording of the Liturgy. I'm the only Byzantine in my family and my mom still doesn't really feel comfortable with the differences between the Roman rite and the Byzantine rite. She knows we're Catholic, but it's all "odd" to her. Plus she doesn't have a clue when it comes to Slavonic, etc. (which I use frequently in private prayers and my parish uses occasionally). So here I am, 19 years old and happily Byzantine. I follow the Russian traditions by choice, so my pronunciation of Slavonic words are different slightly and my customs also differ slightly from most Byzantines on this board. But, it's all good . Anything I can help you with, let me know...

Yours in Christ,

Timothy, servant of God

Dear MariM,

I am always glad to hear when someone is discovering the Eastern and Byzantine Church. May the Lord God himself direct your searching.

Elias

I friendly and non hostile word of advice from a (At times unfortunatly sounding like) young grump

Be careful about the general use of Orthodox theological books and discourses. Although many of them are very valuable in explaining the Eastern perspective, they non the less are authored by people who do not profess the Catholic faith and therefore are also, at times hostile to the Church. Bishop Kallistos may have, for instance, produced some fine books on Eastern Christianity, but they are written from an Orthodox perspective and therefore meant to entice people into the Orthodox faith. When I converted to Orthodoxy for a time, it was greatly helped by my reading of Wares book "the Orthodox Church" (As well as Seraphim Rose's "Orthodox and the Religion of the Future").
Although many may consider these writings helpful, they unfortunatly can mislead many honost seekers of Greek Catholicism into Orthodoxy. Therefore IMHO, these writings should only be cultivated by those who have matured enough in their Greco-Byzantine Catholic faith as to be able to distinguish that which is truly spiritualy bennificial from mere propaganda.

It would be really nice if Greek Catholics could produce more of their own theological writings so that they wouldnt have to keep borrowing from others.

A good Cathecism, if your interested, is Our Religion by Fr. Luhovy (I think thats his name anyway). It is simple and down to the point in its answers. Although I unfortunatly do not know where to excatly order it, but perhaps someone else can help with that info.

I'm glad you addressed that issue. Even while doing research on the net, sometimes I get confused between the two. The sites may speak about Eastern tradition, and that may well be Orthodox or Byzantine(or others), or a combination.
I appreciate the "heads up". Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend. I will remember you all in prayer.
MariM

Hello friends!
I have started my reading, and continue to attend Divine Liturgy. Thank you so much for the encouragment and prayers.
MariM

[ 07-05-2002: Message edited by: MariM ]

[ 07-05-2002: Message edited by: MariM ]

Thank you to all for the suggested reading. It has kept me quite busy,and growing in my faith. Although I always liked going to church, the beauty of Divine Liturgy is beyond words. I thank God for this Rite, and the chance to experience it.
Praying that God will bless all of you for your example of faith and your willingness to share.