(Death, Heaven, Purgatory, Hell)
Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults
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"Before the Divine Liturgy begins, the priest puts on his vestments. They are modeled after both the garments worn by Jewish priests in the temple [Ex 28] and the attire of kings because during the Divine Liturgy the priest mystically makes present to us Christ, who reigns with his Father in the kingdom of heaven."
Hymn: Khorhoort khooreen (O mystery deep)
O mystery deep, inscrutable, without beginning, you have decked your supernal realm as a nuptial chamber to the light unapproachable and adorned with splendid glory the ranks of the fiery spirits.
Heavenly king, preserve your Church unshaken and keep in peace those who worship your name.
I. Preparation
In the preparation the priest and faithful spiritually prepare to offer a "sacrifice of praise" in the Divine Liturgy. The priest, in humility, first turns to the faithful confessing his sinfulness and requests prayers on his behalf. Then he, on our behalf, petitions God for forgiveness of sins "by the intercession of the Holy Mother of God and all the saints."
II. Synaxis (Gk. = Meeting): Liturgy of the Catechumens
1. The Divine Liturgy begins
The Preparation now completed, we begin the Divine Liturgy proper with the words by the priest "Blessed is the Kingdom of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit..." These words tell us that in the Divine Liturgy we mystically ascend to the angles and saints in the heavenly kingdom and join their unending praise of the Holy Trinity.
The ancient hymn by the pious Emperor Justinian, "Only-Begotten," follows. It teaches us the profound truth that Jesus Christ is "One of the Holy Trinity" who became man and was crucified for us in order to "trample down death by death.".
Hymn: Meeyadzeen Vortee (Only-begotten Son)
Only-begotten Son and Word of God and Being immortal, who deigned to take body through the holy Mother of God and Ever-Virgin. You the unchangeable One, became man and you were crucified, O Christ our God, and you trampled down death by death. You, one of the Holy Trinity, are equal in glory with the Father and the Holy Spirit; save us.
2. The Lesser Entrance: The Gospel Procession, Trisagion, Lections and Homily
"The elevation of the Gospel book and the procession with it around the altar expresses our belief that the Gospel is the Word of God. The Gospel's authority is so vast that in reading it, we encounter not only Christ's words, but Christ the Lord himself. To him we sing the ancient Christian hymn of the Three Holies, Soorp Asdvadz, proclaiming the one who rose from the dead to be "Holy God, holy and mighty, holy and immortal."
Hymn: Soorp Asdvadz (Holy God)
Holy God, holy and mighty, holy and immortal, who rose from the dead, have mercy on us. (three times)
3. The Nicene-Athanasian Symbol of Faith
"This confession of faith was agreed upon by all the churches at the first ecumenical council held in 325 AD in the city of Nicea, near Constantinople. The Nicene Creed is solemnly chanted by all the people as an official declaration of the most important articles of the Church's doctrine. It is essential that all those who have assembled for the Divine Liturgy be of one theological mind. If our worship is to be truly the corporate act of Christ's body, the Church, then there can be no diversity of opinion regarding who God is, and who we are relative to him. This is what the Nicene Creed declares."
Havadamk: We believe
We believe in one God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of things visible and invisible.
And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, begotten of God the Father, only-begotten, that is of the substance of the Father. God from God, light from light, true God from true God, begotten and not made; of the same nature of the Father, by whom all things came into being in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible; Who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven, took body, became man, was born perfectly of the holy virgin Mary by the Holy Spirit. By whom he took body, soul and mind and everything that is in man, truly and not in semblance. He suffered and was crucified and was buried and rose again on the third day and ascended into heaven with the same body and sat at the right hand of the Father. He is to come with the same body and with the glory of the Father to judge the living and the dead; of His kingdom there is no end.
We believe also in the Holy Spirit, the uncreate and the perfect; who spoke through the Law and through the Prophets and through the Gospels; Who came down upon the Jordan, preached through the apostles and dwelled in the saints.
We believe also in only one catholic and apostolic holy Church; In one baptism with repentance for the remission and forgiveness of sins; In the resurrection of the dead, in the everlasting judgment of souls and bodies, in the kingdom of heaven and in the life eternal.
III. Eucharist: Liturgy of the Faithful
The Synaxis now completed, the catechumens are instructed to depart. This is because, at one time, this most sacred part of the Liturgy was reserved only for the faithful. This instruction has been retained because "it is a reminder that participation in the Divine Liturgy -and membership in the Church- is a profound privilege."
1. The Great Entrance: The Body of the Lord... & Laying of the Gifts
The Great Entrance begins the Holy Eucharist. Gifts of bread and wine are solemnly transferred to the altar as the Hymn of the Great Entrance announces "The body of the Lord and the blood of the Savior are laid up before us" preparing us for the Mystical Supper we are about to partake of.
Hymn: Marmeen Deroonagan (The Body of the Lord)
The body of the Lord and the blood of the Savior are laid up before us. The heavenly hosts invisibly sing and say with unceasing voice: Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord of hosts.
2. The Kiss of Peace: Christ in our midst...
"We know from St. Paul that the earliest Christians greeted one another 'with a holy kiss' [Rom 16:16, 1Cor 16:20, 2Cor 13:12, 1Th 5:26], a sign of their unity and love in Christ. This is the meaning of the Kiss of Peace. In the Eucharist, Christ comes to unite his people to each other and to himself by offering them his Body and Blood. For our part in this divine union, we must see to it that we are completely reconciled with each other so that in the Eucharist we can truly become Christ's body, the Church. The Kiss of Peace is the liturgical seal of the reconciliation and love that we should actualize in our daily lives.
"It is perfectly acceptable for the faithful to greet each other with a kiss on each cheek, or, with a more ritualized inclination of the head, first to the left, then to the right of the person being greeted. The person offering the Kiss of Peace says, 'Christ is revealed among us.' The response is, 'Blessed is the Revelation of Christ.'"
Hymn: Kreesdos ee mech (Christ in our midst)
Christ in our midst has been revealed; He Who Is, God, is here seated. The voice of peace has resounded; holy greeting is commanded. This Church has now become one soul, the kiss is given for a full bond. The enmity has been removed; and love is spread over us all. Now, Ministers, raise your voices, and give blessings with one accord To the Godhead consubstantial, while angles sing: "Holy, Holy, Holy."
3. The Anaphora (Gk. = Offering up) of St. Athanasius
"The priest begins to pray the Anaphora, or Eucharistic Prayer, the longest and most important prayer of the Divine Liturgy. The prayer expresses the faith of the Armenian Church. Addressed to God the Father, the prayer commemorates our salvation through the special ministry of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. The prayer recalls the key biblical events by which Christ has brought us 'freedom from condemnation:' his incarnation [becoming man], his suffering, crucifixion, death and burial, his resurrection on the third day, his ascension into heaven with the Father, and his second coming." Note: The Anaphora is intertwined with hymns and includes the Words of Institution.
Anaphora of St. Athanasius
The Priest: It is truly proper and right with most earnest diligence to adore and glorify you, Father almighty, who did remove the hindrance of the curse by your imponderable Word, your co-creator, who, having taken the Church to be a people to himself, made his own those who believe in you, and was pleased to dwell among us as the divine master-builder building a new work, he thereby made this earth into heaven.
For he, before whom the companies of vigilant angels could not bear to stand, being amazed at the resplendent and unapproachable light of his divinity, even he, becoming man for our salvation, grant to us that we should join the heavenly ones in spiritual choirs, and in one voice with the seraphim and the cherubim, we should sing holy songs and make melodies and, boldly crying out, shout with them and say:
Holy, holy, holy are you truly and all-holy; and who is he that will presume to contain in words the outpouring of your infinite loving kindness to us? From the very beginning you did care for him who had fallen into sin and did comfort him in diverse manners by the prophets, by the giving of the law, by the priesthood and by the prefigurative offering of animals.
And at the end of these days, tearing up the sentence of condemnation for all our debts, you gave us your only-begotten Son, both debtor and debt, immolation and anointed, lamb and heavenly bread, high priest and sacrifice; for he is distributor and he himself is distributed always in our midst without ever being consumed.
For having become man truly and without illusion, and having become incarnate through union without confusion, through the Mother of God, the holy virgin Mary, he journeyed through all the passions of our human life without sin and came willingly to the world-saving cross, which was the occasion of our redemption.
Taking the bread in his holy, divine, immortal, spotless and creative hands, he blessed it, gave thanks, broke it and gave it to his chosen, holy disciples, who were seated, saying: Take, eat; this is my body, which is distributed for you and for many, for the expiation and remission of sins.
Likewise taking the cup, he blessed it, gave thanks, drank and gave it to his chosen, holy disciples, who were seated, saying: Drink this all of you. This is my blood of the new covenant, which is shed for you and for many for the expiation and remission of sins.
And your only-begotten beneficent Son gave us the commandment that we always do this in remembrance of him.
And descending into the lower regions of death in the body which he took of our kinship, and mightily breaking asunder the bolts of hell, he made you known to us the only true God, the God of the living and of the dead.
And now, O Lord, in accordance with this commandment, bringing forth the saving mystery of the body and blood of your Only-begotten, we remember his redemptive sufferings for us, his life-giving crucifixion, his burial for three days, his blessed resurrection, his divine ascension and his enthronement at your right hand, O Father; his awesome and glorious second coming, we confess and praise. And we offer to you yours of your own from all and for all.
We do indeed praise you and give thanks to you at all times, O Lord our God, who, having overlooked our unworthiness, have made us ministers of this awesome and ineffable mystery.
Not by reason of any good works of our own, of which we are always altogether bereft and at all times find ourselves void, but ever taking refuge in your overflowing forbearance, we make bold to approach the ministry of the body and blood of your Only-begotten, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, to whom is befitting glory, dominion and honor, now and always and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
4. The Sanctus: Holy, Holy, Holy...
"The angelic song of the three holies (called 'Sanctus') is the hymn sung by the angels in the unending praise of God in heaven [Is 6:3, Rev 4:8]. The heavenly hosts are God's perfect worshippers. Christ's self-revelation and sacrifice have restored us from our former state of exile from God and made us worthy to worship God our Father as perfectly as the angels do, by joining their choir of praise."
Hymn: Soorp, Soorp, Soorp (Holy, Holy, Holy)
Holy, holy, holy Lord of hosts; heaven and earth are full of your glory. Blessing in the highest. Blessed are you who did come and are to come in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest.
5. The Words of Institution: Take, eat; this is my body...
"On the night before his death, Jesus joined his disciples in a final evening meal, during which he took plain bread and wine, blessed them and gave thanks; and giving them to his disciples to eat, he proclaimed them to be his own Body and Blood, a gesture of loving self-sacrifice and communion. He commanded that we should repeat this ritual in commemoration of him: 'Do this in remembrance of me' [1Cor 11:24-25, Lk 22:19]. The communion of Christ's Body and Blood is therefore the heart of our worship, and of our commemoration of Jesus Christ in the Divine Liturgy."
6. The Epiclesis (Gk. = Invocation): Spirit of God...
For Eastern Christians, the Epiclesis is the most sacred part of the Divine Liturgy. "At this point in the Eucharist the priest calls on God the Father to send his Holy Spirit upon all of the assembled faithful and on the gifts of bread and wine, to make them truly the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. This is our ultimate desire and prayer, that in this Eucharist the Holy Spirit will unite all the faithful together with each other and with Christ by way of his Body and Blood so that we will truly come to constitute the Church in its fullest sense."
The Priest: We bow down and beseech and ask you, beneficent God, send upon us and upon these gifts set forth, your co-eternal and consubstantial Holy Spirit. Whereby blessing this bread, make it truly the body of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. (3 times) Whereby blessing this cup, make it truly the blood of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. (3 times) Whereby blessing this bread and this wine, make them truly the body and blood of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, changing them by your Holy Spirit. (3 times) So that for all of us who approach it, this may be for acquittal, for expiation and for remission of sins.
Hymn: Hokee Asdoodzo (Spirit of God)
Spirit of God, who, descending from heaven, accomplishes through us the mystery of him who is glorified with you, by the shedding of his blood, we beseech you, grant rest to the souls of those of ours who have fallen asleep.
7. The Intercessions
"The Divine Liturgy is the prime opportunity to pray to our heavenly Father for all of our cares and concerns: for peace in the world, for the Armenain Church, for [the Pope of Rome,] our Catholicos, clergy and civil leaders, for travelers, prisoners, captives, for the sick and the suffering, for temperate weather and sufficient food, for those who help the poor, for all the living and all the dead. The priest tailors the prayer to the individual requests and prayers of the community" To each intercession the people reply, "Be mindful, Lord, and have mercy."
The Priest: That the Mother of God, the holy virgin Mary, and John the Baptist, the first martyr Stephen and all the saints be remembered in this holy sacrifice, we beseech the Lord.
The Deacon: That the holy apostles, prophets, doctors, martyrs and all holy patriarchs, apostolic bishops, presbyters, orthodox deacons and all the saints be remembered in this holy sacrifice, we beseech the Lord.
That our leaders and first enlighteners, the holy apostles Thaddeus and Bartholomew, and Gregory the Enlightener, Areesdages, Vrtanes, Hooseeg, Kreekorees, Nerses, Sahag, Daniel and Khat; Mesrob the Vartabed and Gregory of Nareg, Nerses of Kla, John of Vorodn, Gregory and Moses of Datev, and Kreekor and Nerses and their companions and all the pastors and chief-pastors of the Armenians be remembered in this holy sacrifice, we beseech the Lord.
That the holy hermits, the virtuous and God-instructed monks Paulus, Anthony, Paul, Macarius, Onophrius, Mark the Abbot, Serapion, Nilus, Arsenius, Evagrius, Barsumas; John and Simeon and their companions; Vosgee and Sookyas and their fellow martyrs; and all the holy fathers and their disciples throughout the world be remembered in this holy sacrifice we beseech the Lord.
That the devout kings, Saints Abgar, Constantine, Drtad and Theodosius and all saintly and pious kings and God-loving princes be remembered in this holy sacrifice, we beseech the Lord.
That all the faithful everywhere, men and women, old and young of every age, who in faith and holiness have fallen asleep in Christ, be remembered in this holy sacrifice, we beseech the Lord.
The Priest: Be mindful, Lord, and have mercy and bless your holy, catholic and apostolic Church, which you have saved by the precious blood of your Only-begotten, and have freed by the holy cross. Grant her unshaken peace.
Be mindful, Lord, and have mercy and bless all the orthodox bishops who impart to us the word of truth in orthodox doctrine. And more specially grant us to have [His Holiness, our Pope (N. N.) and his beatitude our Patriarch (N. N.) and our Bishop (N. N.) ] for length of days in orthodox doctrine.
The Deacon: Thanksgiving and glory we offer to you, O Lord our God, for this holy and immortal sacrifice which is on this holy altar, that you will grant it to be to us for holiness of life.
Let us pray for the forces and the victories of Christian kings and pious princes. Let us also beseech the Lord for the souls of those who are at rest, and especially for our prelates who are at rest, and for the founders of this holy church, and for those who are laid to rest under her shadow.
Let us ask deliverance for those of our brethren who have been made captive, and grace to the congregation here present, and rest for those who have ended their life in Christ with faith and holiness. That these be remembered in this holy sacrifice, we beseech the Lord.
8. The Lord's Prayer: Our Father...
"No gesture or ritual more clearly demonstrates our redeemed dignity than when the faithful stand boldly before almighty God and are privileged to call him "Our Father."
9. Lord have mercy...
"The choir and people sing the hymn, Der Voghormya [by St. Nerses Schnorhali], an opportunity for personal prayer and reflection before receiving Holy Communion."
Hymn: Der Voghormya (Lord have mercy)
Lord have mercy. Lord have mercy. Lord have mercy. Lord have mercy. O all-holy Trinity, grant peace to the world. And healing to the sick, the Kingdom to those at rest. Lord have mercy. Lord have mercy. Jesus, Savior, have mercy on us. By means of this holy and immortal and life-giving sacrifice. Receive, Lord, and have mercy.
10. The Hymn of Communion: Blessed is God, Christ is Sacrificed...
"The ancient communion hymn, Orhnyal eh Asdvadz Kreesdos badarakyal [by St. Nerses Schnorhali], responds to the deacon's exhortation to 'Sing psalms to the Lord our God.' The words, 'Taste and see how sweet is the Lord" (Psalm 33:8 LXX) refer to the Communion we are about to receive."
Hymn: Orhnyal eh Asdvadz (Blessed is God)
Blessed is God! Christ is sacrificed and distributed among us. Alleluia. His Body he gives us for food, and his holy Blood he bedews for us. Alleluia. Draw near to the Lord and take the light. Alleluia. Taste and see that the Lord is sweet. Alleluia. Praise the Lord in the heavens. Alleluia. Praise him in the heights. Alleluia. Praise him all his angels. Alleluia. Praise him, all his hosts. Alleluia.
IV. Prayer and Dismissal
1. Prayer of St. John Chrysostom
"The Prayer Amid the Church is a closing prayer, spreading, as it were, the blessings of the Holy Sacrifice over the whole Church of Christ and the world." [Archbishop Tiran Nersoyan]
The Priest: O Lord, who bless those who bless you and sanctify those who put their trust in you; Save your people and bless your inheritance. Guard the fullness of your Church. Sanctify those who have greeted in love the beauty of your house. Glorify us with your divine power and forsake not those who put their trust in you. Grant peace to the whole world, to churches, to priests, to Christian rulers and to their armed forces, and to all your people. For all good gifts and all perfect bounties come down form above, from you, the Father of light; and to you is befitting glory, dominion and honor, now and always and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
2. Anthem of Dismissal and Final Blessing
"Filled with spiritual joy and nourishment the faithful leave the church" [Rev. Dr. Gorun Shirikian] after singing the anthem of dismissal, "I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise shall at all times be in my mouth. [Psalm 33:1 LXX]" The priest follows with the final blessing invoking the grace of the Holy Spirit upon the faithful.
by William Der Ghazarian Wolfe
Original taken from the web-site: The Armenian Catholic Church
All quotes unless otherwise noted are taken from the 1999 "Divine Liturgy of the Armenian Church," St. Vartan Press
The photo, used here, is takem from: Spasi Hospodi: Eastern Catholic Hymns web-site