Missions, Theology and
Liturgy
East and West
The Germanization of Western Europe: “Franks”
Merovingian Franks

Clovis (466-511), a Frank, married a
Burgundian princess who insisted he
become Catholic.

After winning a battle, he converted in 496 and
supported missionaries. He also forced conversions
among the Franks and those he conquered.

Germanic Gaul became Christian and began the fusion of
Germanic and Roman culture.

Clovis is the first “French” King.
St. Patrick (385-461), Apostle to
the Irish


Patrick was a missionary
among the Irish Celts.
Native Welsh (Maewyn),
former slave, 12 years in
Gaul.

Monasticism was a dominant feature of Irish Christianity since the
population was almost entirely rural. They preserved classical
learning in the western world and promoted education (e.g.,
influencing even England at York where schools flourished)

Irish monks evangelized Scotland, Burgundy, Switzerland and
northern Italy.
Conversion of England

After the fall of Rome, England was overrun by pagan
Saxons, Angles and Jutes between 450-500.

Irish monks evangelized in England (primarily northern),
but also Augustine of Rome was sent by Pope Gregory I
in 597. He converted Ethelbert (560-616; a Jute), King
of Kent, in 601 and established the bishopric of
Canterbury (later center of the English church).

Celtic and Augustinian (Roman) Christianity had their
differences and this created tension.
Resolution to Side with Rome

Celtic Church older with own traditions
– Existed in Scotland, Northern England and Ireland
– Emphasized monasticism and learning

Roman and Celtic missionaries “compete” for
English Northumberland.
– King Oswy of Northumberland called synod
– Synod of Whitby (664)
– Oswy decided for Roman based on the “Petrine
Thesis” (Roman primacy).
Boniface, Apostle of Germany

Boniface (675-754),
Anglo-Saxon from
southern England,
pioneered missionary
work among the Saxons
of Hesse.

He was ultimately
appointed Archbishop of
Mainz.

He was martyred while
preaching among the
pagans in Frisia.
Empire of Charlemagne
Carolingian Franks

Pope Zacharias (741-752) approved the plan of Pepin the Short to
seize the throne for himself after the last Merovingian died.

Pope Stephen II (752-757) appealed to Pepin for help against the
Germanic Lombards and the Byzantine Empire.

Pepin conquered Italy and received the title of “father-protector of
the Romans”. He gave the Papacy the lands the Pope claimed in
Italy (“the Papal States”), which was called the “Donation of Pepin.”

The document entitled “Donation of Constantine” appeared which
gave the Pope of Rome jurisdiction over the whole of the western
church unhindered by the emperor.
The Papal States
Charles the Great (768-814)
Creates an empire
– 53 military campaigns
– Crowned emperor 800

Rules well
–
–
–
–
–

Appoints own household staff
Primitive law: ordeals
Creates feudal army
Builder
Weights and Measures
Generous to church, but master of church
Charlemagne (742-814)

Pacified the Saxons in Germany, extended the
border to the Danube in eastern Europe, pacified
the Lombards in Italy and crossed the Pyrennes
into Spain.

When Pope Leo III (795-816) was forced out of
Rome by local nobles, Charlemagne arranged his
return. In Rome, December 25, 800 A.D.,
Charlemagne was crowned emperor of the “Holy
Roman Empire.”
Charlemagne receiving gifts
Empire of Charlemagne
Carolingian Renaissance

600 years before the Italian Renaissance, it successfully merged
Germanic and Greco-Roman cultures into “Christian Europe.”

Alcuin of York (740-804), one of Charlemagne’s scholars at Aachen
(near Cologne), taught at a palace school. The net effect was
higher educational and moral standards for clergy. Education was
popularized in France.

Alcuin established the basic liberal arts educational philosophy:
– Elementary disciplines: grammar, rhetoric, dialectic (logic)
– Advanced disciplines: arithmetic, geometry, music, astronomy
– Highest discipline: theology
Alcuin of York
Appointed head of Charlemagne’s Palace School
Aix-la-Chapelle (780-790)
Carolingian kings of France not
competent after division

Invasion of Vikings
– Carolingian kings unable to protect people
– Paris withstood the onslaught (888)

Normans invade and settle in north
– Rollo first Duke of Normandy 933
– Normandy strongest area in France

Lords ask Hugh Capet to be king 987
– Son of Eudes’ brother Robert
– Beginning of Capetian Dynasty
Two Kingdoms Emerge

Frankish (French) Kingdom:
Hugh Capet (987-996).

German and Saxon Kingdom:
Otto the Great (936-973). Otto continued
the legacy of the “Holy Roman Empire” as
he sought to control Italy as part of his
territory.
Otto I, 936-973
 Makes
Germany great
– Establishes authority
– Dreams of re-creating Roman Empire
– Builds up alliances
– Uses middle class as civil service
– Puts down revolt of nobles
 Defeats
Magyars at Lech 955
Germany Becomes Empire
 962
Otto crowned emperor
– Son married to Byzantine princess
 Church
is weak
– Otto deposes 2 popes, elects 2
– Otto meddles in Italian affairs
 Otto
re-creates Carolingian Empire
Papacy and Frankish Empire
Frankish/German Emperors control the
Papacy
 Popes tortured, killed, desecrated
 48 popes, 880-1046
 Most were immoral, incompetent
 Deliberate strategy of German emperors

Diminished Empire after Justinian
1.
Germanic Lombards invade and conquer Italy
2.
Visigoths retake previously lost parts of Spain.
3.
Slavs (primarily Bulgars) take Balkan provinces
except Thrace
4.
Arabs take Africa and the east (including
Jerusalem) except for Asia Minor
Map of Post-Justinian Empire, ca. 700
Significance of Byzantium

Strengths:
–
–
–
–

Geography encourages trade
Impregnable city of Constantinople
Strong imperial personalities, autocracy
Hellenistic culture and religiously united (except for
some Christian “heresies”—the monophysites)
Weaknesses:
– Problems with Succession (2/3 killed)
– Isolated, Separatistic
– Cultivated luxurious, pleasure-seeking culture
Significance of Byzantium

Language and Literature
–
–
–
–

Preserved Greek, including Bible MSS.
Half of literature was theological
Based education on Greek classics
Preserved Greek culture while the West was overrun
with “Barbarian” cultures
Influence on Slavic Culture
– the West was overrun with “Barbarian” cultures
– Gave them religion, alphabet, art, architecture
– Christian Slavic nations looked to Byzantium for
leadership
Byzantium and the West

Had territories in Italy till 1100.

Substantial commerce between
Constantinople, Venice and other Italian
cities.

Preserved Roman law and Greek culture
for the West to rediscover
Slavic Missions: Cyril & Methodius



Invited by the Prince
Ratislav to Moravia in 862
The brothers led Moravia
into Christianity, and their
disciples evangelized the
Bulgars and other Slavs.
Moravia ultimately came
under Roman Catholic
control but the influence
of the brothers continued
among the other Slavs.
Cyril and Methodius
They created a written language for Slavonic—
provided Slav churches with alphabet,
translations of creeds, liturgies and texts (“Old
Church Slavonic”).
 Unlike the West where Latin was the only
liturgical language, the East had from the
beginning used the language of the people for
liturgy.
 The Cyrillic alphabet, developed in the 10th
century, was based on their old alphabet and
language.

The Primary Chronicle
Vladimir again called together his vassals and the elders. The Prince
announced the return of the envoys who had been sent out, and
suggested that their report be heard. He commanded them to speak
out before his vassals. The envoys reported: "When we traveled
among the Bulgars, we saw how they worship in their temple, called
a mosque, while they lounge about slackly. Bulgarians bow, sit
down, and look here and there as if possessed. There is no
happiness among them, but instead only sadness and bad smells.
Their religion is not good. Next we went among the Germans. We
saw them performing many ceremonies in their temples, but we saw
no glory there. Then we went on to Greece. The Greeks led us to
the edifices where they worship their God, and we did not know
whether we were in heaven or on earth. On earth there is no such
splendor or such beauty, and we are at a loss how to describe it. We
know only that God lives there among men, and that the Greek
service is fairer than the ceremonies of other nations. We cannot
forget that beauty. Once he has tasted sweetness, no man is willing
to settle for bitterness.
Conversion of Rus



Vladimir, the prince of
Rus, invited Byzantine
teachers to Kiev in 988.
All Russians were
commanded to be
baptized in order to stay
in favor with the Prince.
Vladimir married the
sister of the Byzantine
Emperor in 989.
Russian History
Russian Christianity was centered in Kiev
from 988 to 1240 when Mongols burned
Kiev to the ground.
 The center of Russian Christianity moved
to Moscow in the 14th century when in the
1380s Mongols (Tartars) were first
defeated by Muscovite princes.
 Moscow becomes the Patriarch of Russian
Christianity in the late 14th century.

Pope Innocent I (401-417)
The western Emperor Honorius had moved his
government to Ravenna.
 Innocent I was Pope when Rome was sacked by
the Visigoths in 410.
 Innocent I took the opportunity to extend his
authority in both political and theological
contexts.

– He confirmed the decisions of the North African
churches against Pelagianism as he sided with
Augustine.
– He took on political and judicial functions in the city
of Rome, especially the absence of imperial authority.
Pope Leo I (the Great), 440-461
Leo centralized western ecclesial
government and located juridical
power in Rome.
 Leo also led the city politically and
was praised for dissuading Attila
the Hun from sacking Rome in
452.
 Stressed the priority of Rome in
the universal government of the
church, especially as he sought to
maintain jurisdiction over
Illyricum.
 Leo is sometimes regarded as the
“first Roman Pope” since he
stressed his universal
responsibility for the church based
on Petrine supremacy and his
rights as the successor of Peter.

Gregory I (the Great, 590-605)
Born of aristocratic
Roman family
 Comes with political,
diplomatic experience

– Papal ambassador to
Constantinople
Roman official then
monk, then Pope
 Sends Augustine to
England as Missionary

Gregory I (the Great)

Takes over the political rule of city of Rome
– (Helps when Rome besieged)

Works for high morals in church
– (Encouraged monks to be faithful to their vows)
Uses family home as a church; Did not want titles or
honor
 Developed idea of Purgatory; emphasized penance over
grace
 Encouraged idea of Communion as literal body & blood
 Wrote and collected songs: Gregorian Chants; Prolific
writer

John of Damascus (676-752)




From an Arab Christian family,
he became a monk in 717 in
Palestine. He was later
ordained a priest as well.
Ealier in his life he was an
administrative official under
the Khalif (Caliph).
His Arabic name was Mansur
(the victor) and also received
the title Chrysorrhoas (goldpouring) due to his eloquence.
He lived through periods of
persecution from the
Iconoclastic Emperor Leo and
the Khalif Ahlid II (who killed
leading Christian bishops).
John of Damascus
His theological works are still foundational in
many Orthodox seminaries.
 His most significant book is “The Fountain of
Knowledge” which consists of three parts.

– Theological Method (Aristotle’s Dialectic)
– “Of Heresies”
– “Exposition of the Orthodox Faith.”
The latter embodies the finished result of
theological thought in the early Greek church.
 Some of his hymns are still used such as “The
Day of Resurrection”

Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274)



Born near Aquino, Italy.
Sent to study at a
monastery at the age of
five, and then studied at
the University of Naples
for six years.
He joined the Dominicans
at the age of 17 and he
went to study at Cologne,
Germany under Albert the
Great (Magnus) as well at
the University of Paris.
Teaching Career
Receiving his Doctor of Theology from the
University of Paris, he began teaching. He
traveled extensively between Paris and Rome.
 He devoted himself to preaching and writing,
even refusing the archbishopric of Naples and
refusing to be the abbot of Monte Cassino.
 He stopped writing his Summa Theologiae in
December 1273 after a mystical experience: "I
cannot go on...All that I have written seems to
me like so much straw compared to what I have
seen and what has been revealed to me."

Summa Theologia
 Systematic
Christian
Theology
 Not accepted at first
 Complex, vast,
ordered system
 Used Aristotle’s
dialectic.
Aquinas’ Five Proofs for God
There is a gradation of things to the
greatest, which produces all that are less,
the cause of all goodness and perfection
 Observation of nature shows a governance
by which it operates to achieve maximum
good that show design rather than chance
and point to an intelligent being by whom
all natural things are directed to their end.

Aquinas’ Five Proofs for God
There has to be a first cause of change
that is not changed by anything
 There has to be a first efficient cause of
everything in order for there to be
intermediate and ultimate causes, for
nothing can be the efficient cause of itself
 There has to be something which cannot
not exist for anything to exist, for what
has the potential not to exist cannot begin
to exist

East and West:
Theological Orientations Contrasted

Liturgical

Intellectual

Mystical

Rational

Transformation

Reconciliation

Relational

Legal

Communal

Individual

Contemplative

Deductive Reasoning
John Climacus (579-649)
“Do you imagine plain words can precisely or
truly or appropriately describe the love of the
Lord…and assurance of the heart? Do you
imagine that talk of such matters will mean
anything to someone who has never
experienced them? If you think so, then you will
be like a man who with words and examples
tries to convey the sweetness of honey to
people who have never tasted it. He talks
uselessly. Indeed I would say he is simply
prattling.” (The Ladder of Ascent, step 25).
The Mystery of God
“God cannot be grasped by the mind. If He
could be grasped, He would not be God.”
(Evagrious of Pontus)
 “The true knowledge of God and vision of God
consist in tis—in seeing that He is invisible,
because what we seek lies behind all knowledge,
being wholly separated by the darkness of
incomprehensibility.” (Gregory of Nyssa)
 “God’s name is not known, it is wondered at”
(Gregory of Nyssa).

Apophatic Theology

Maximus the Confessor (580-662): “negative statements
about divine matters are the only true ones.” Book of
Ambiguities, 20.

The way of apophasis (denial) is the description of God
through negatives—the ways in which he is unlike us.

This acknowledges the breakdown of human thought
before the radical transcendence of God which is a
prostration before the living God, radically ungraspable,
unknowable because he is personal and the plentitude of
personal existence. Apophasis is the inscription in
human language, in theological language, of the mystery
of faith.
Simeon the New Theologian
“Think of a man standing at night inside his house, with
all the doors closed; and then suppose that he opens a
window just at that moment when there is a sudden
flash of lightning. Unable to bear its brightness, at once
he protects himself by closing his eyes and drawing back
from the window. So it is with the soul that is enclosed
in the realm of the senses; if ever she peeps out through
the window of the intellect, she is overwhelmed by the
brightness, like lightning, of the pledge of the Holy Spirit
that is within her. Unable to bear the splendor of
unveiled light, at once she is bewildered in her intellect,
and she draws back entirely upon herself, taking refuge,
as in a house, among sensory and human things.”
Gregory of Nyssa
“Imagine a sheer, steep crag with a projecting edge at
the top. Now imagine what a person would probably feel
if he put his foot on the edge of this precipice and,
looking down into the chasm below, saw no solid footing
nor anything to hold on to. This is what I think the soul
experiences when it goes beyond its footing in material
things, in its quest for that which has no dimension and
which exists from all eternity. For here there is nothing
it can take hold of, neither place, nor time, neither
measure nor anything esle; our minds cannot approach
it. And thus the soul, slipping at every point from what
cannot be grasped, becomes dizzy and perplexed and
returns at once again to what is connatural with it,
content now to know merely this about the
Transcendent, that it is completely different from the
nature of the things that the soul knows.”
Western Perspective
The West acknowledges the mystery of God’s
essence.
 But the West stresses the

– Accomodative nature of God’s revelation
– The analogous nature of language that describes God
– The primacy of reason over experience and
mysticism.

The West tended to think of God as an object to
be studied or described—an object of intellectual
knowledge rather than triune persons to be
experienced.
Human Identity

Western (Augustine): God created a perfect
world in which human beings had received
Platonic illumination and perfect communion
with God.

Eastern (Irenaeus): God created humanity with
the potential (image) for growing into his
likeness. Humanity has the self-determining
faculty to seek the fullness of communion with
God. “If the Word is made man, it is that men
might become gods” (Ireaneus)
Theosis:
The Eastern Human Vocation



Theosis refers to the process of transfiguration or
transformation into the likeness of God and the
experience of the full communion with God—to partake
of the “divine nature” (cf. 2 Peter 1:4).
This “deification” is neither hypostatic (a union of
persons) nor substantial (we do not become gods in
essence). Rather, it is a mystical union with God in his
communion relationship (his energies).
Eastern theologians talk about “becoming gods”:
– “God became man so that men might become gods”
(Athanasius)
– “From the Holy Spirit there is the likeness of God, and the
highest of all things to be desired, to become God” (Basil the
Great)
Theosis: Three Components
1.
2.
3.
Development of godly qualities in life—a
cooperative process of transformation by which
God shares his likeness with us.
Participation in God’s immortality—sharing in
God’s eternal existence as the human being is
elevated to the divine sphere to breathe
eternal life.
Communing with God through mystical
experience—sharing fellowship with God. But
this is not an individualistic idea, but rather a
communal one—to unite the whole world with
God.
Representative Quotes

Maximus the Confessor: “All that God is, except for an
identity in ousia, one becomes when one is deified by
grace.”

Anastasius of Sinai (600s): “Theosis is the elevation to
what is better, but not the reduction of our nature to
something less, nor is it an essential change of our
human nature…That which is of God is that which has
been lifted up to a greater glory, without its own nature
being changed.”

Favorite analogy: marriage (Chrysostom) or Maximus
the Confessor dares to theosis an “erotic union.”
Two-Act Drama

The first act—God creates us in his image as
God seeks to share his life with us.

The second act—God cooperates with us as we
seek to become like him in order to participate
in his nature (theosis).

This stresses the human vocation as not a
restoration to an original blessedness but rather
the elevation to a new level of blessedness.
The Fall

Western: The Fall was a radical change in the nature of
human beings—humans inherit original guilt and
corruption. Their greatest need is for forgiveness and a
change in their nature. Humans fell from a original
perfect and static state. Sin annihilated the image of
God.

Eastern: The Fall is more like an alternative path—
humans become lost and do not know the path to God
anymore. Humans have lost their way on the journey
toward God. Sin is a malady that needs healing but did
not destroy the human identity in the image of God.
Salvation

Western: salvation is the forgiveness of the sin
(guilt) and the restoration of the original nature
of humanity (regeneration). Salvation is the
restoration of the original blessedness.

Eastern: salvation is the renewal of the process
of theosis by the divine initiative which we could
not discover ourselves or accomplish for
ourselves. Salvation is the experience of the
blessedness for which created us and intended
us to pursue from the beginning.
The Work of Christ

Western: the primary work of Christ is the cross
by which he redeems us from the guilt and
power of sin. A key idea in Western theology is
“satisfaction” and altar sacrifice. Christ satisfies
the demands of honor or justice by the cross.

Eastern: the primary work of Christ is the
incarnation (which includes his participation in
death with us). But the function of Christ’s work
is to reorient us to theosis and enable our return
to godlikeness.
Ephrem the Syrian
His Hymns
“The Most High knew that Adam wanted to
become a god, so He sent His Son, who put him
on in order to grant him his desire.”
 “Divinity flew down and descended to raise and
draw up humanity. The Son has made beautiful
the servant’s deformity, and he has become a
god, just as he desired.”
 “He gave us divinity, we gave Him humanity.”

Liturgical Expressions
Liturgy of St. James: “You have united, O Lord,
your divinity with our humanity and our
humanity with your divinity; your life with our
mortality and our mortality with your life; you
have received what was ours and has given to
us what was yours; for the life and salvation of
our souls. Praise be to you in eternity.”
 Matins for Holy Thursday: “In my kingdom, said
Christ, I shall be God with you as gods.”

Means of Theosis

It is by grace through faith working in love.
– Union with God is God’s gracious initiative.
– Union with God is actively pursued by faith.

Macarius of Egypt: “We receive salvation by grace and
as a divine gift of the Spirit. But to attain the full
measure of virtue we need to possess faith and love,
and to struggle to exercise our free will with integrity. In
this manner we inherit eternal life as a consequence of
both grace and justice. We do not reach the final stage
of spiritual maturity through divine power and grace
alone, without ourselves making any effort; but neither
on the other hand do we attain the final measure of
freedom and purity as a result of our own diligence and
strength alone, apart from any divine assistance.”
The Function of the Church
Theosis is the work of the Holy Spirit in people,
but this work is primarily communal.
 The church is the primary means by which the
Holy Spirit works as he “deifies” people through
the sacraments and liturgy.
 The church is the presence of divine grace in the
world; we find grace through the church.
 The sacraments have an instrumental, but also
institutional, function in Eastern theology as they
serve the goal of theosis. They are “divine
mysteries” rather than primarily “divine
commandments.”

Sacraments East and West
Eastern Baptism and
Anointing
Western Baptism and
Anointing
This is the means by
which God begins the
process of theosis as we
enter the community of
grace. The anointing of
the Holy Spirit
immediately follows the
trine immersion in water
since the Spirit is given
through the chrismation.
The divine gift of
forgiveness for sins both
original and actual. The
anointing (laying on of
the hands of the bishop)
comes at confirmation at
the age of twelve in
preparation for first
communion.
Sacraments: East and West
Eastern Eucharist
The participant is purified,
sanctified, spiritually nourished
and mystically rendered
incorruptible. Thus, through
eating they become partakers
of the divine nature as
members of the mystical body
of Christ since they are linked
by the Spirit to receive divine
life and deification. The church
accepts the real and essential
presence of Christ. Uses
leavened bread and both bread
and cup are received.
Western Eucharist
The primary function is to
receive the forgiveness of sins
and to experience union with
Christ’s death for the sake of
forgiveness. The church, since
1200, has affirmed the
transubstantiation of the
elements into the body and
blood of the Lord. In the 10th
century the church changed to
unleavened bread and by the
13th century only the bread
was given to the people.
Sacraments: East and West
Eastern Penance
It is a second baptism as the
clergy proclaim absolution by
God’s forgiveness. Regulations
(consequences) are given but
not for satisfaction or
punishment but as discipline
for improving the spiritual life.
They are therapeutic. The
penalties are neither essential
nor supplementary to the
sacrament. It is a renewal of
grace in the life of the believer
towards theosis.
Western Penance
The primary function is
forgiveness and satisfaction.
The discipline attached is
conceived as the temporal
penalty of sin which must be
satisfied by works of penance.
It involves: confession,
absolution, and works of
satisfaction.
Other Sacraments
Ordination
 Holy Marriage
 Holy Unction (for healing) or, in Roman
Catholicism, “Last Rites” (for death).

Veneration of the Saints
Eastern Perspective





Communal
Intercessors
Models of Theosis
Guides to Theosis
Categories:
–
–
–
–
–
–
Apostles
Prophets
Martyrs
Fathers
Monks
Exemplary Clergy or Laity
Western Perspective



Individual
Intercessors
Supplies of Excess Merit
Icons in Eastern Theology
Icons are emblems of the incarnation—
they bear witness to the reality of God in
the flesh.
 Icons are means (not mere reminders) by
which God calls us into union with himself
and gives grace for theosis.
 They are symbols of theosis and the
coming victory. Icons, then, sanctify their
surroundings.

Role of Mary
Western Perspective
Eastern Perspective




Greatest of all the Saints:
complete devotion to theosis
throughout her life.
Sinless but not immaculately
conceived.
She alone has received
complete theosis—she
represents the whole church in
hope and in the experience of
grace
Guide toward theosis.





Queen of Heaven
Co-Mediatrix; CoRedemptrix
Sinless and also
immaculately conceived
Intercessor for people
True and pure human
whereas Jesus is only
true human.
Theological Summary:
East
West





Liturgical
Trinitarian theology
begins with
threeness.
Christ as Mighty
Victor.
Deification (theosis)
Mystical Theology—
how am I united with
God?
Legal or Juridical
 Trinitarian Theology
begins with oneness.

Christ as Crucified
Victim.
 Redemption
 Practical Theology—
how am I saved from
my sins?

'On the day called Sunday, all who live in cities or in the country gather
together to one place, and the memoirs of the apostles or the writings of
the prophets are read, as long as time permits; then when the reader has
ceased, the president verbally instructs, and exhorts to the imitation of
these good things. Then we all rise together and pray, and, as we before
said, when our prayer is ended, bread and wine and water are brought,
and the president in like manner offers prayers and thanksgivings,
according to his ability, and the people assent, saying Amen; and there is
a distribution to each, and a participation of that over which thanks have
been given, and to those who are absent a portion is sent by the
deacons. And they who are well to do, and willing, give what each thinks
fit; and what is collected is deposited with the president, who succors
[give assistance to] the orphans and widows, and those who, through
sickness or any other cause are in want, and those who are in bonds,
and the strangers sojourning among us, and in a word takes care of all
who are in need. But Sunday is the day on which we all hold our
common assembly, because it is the first day on which God, having
wrought a change in the darkness and matter, made the world; and
Jesus Christ our Savior on the same day rose from the dead.'
Justin Martyr (2d Century)
1.OT Reading
2.NT Reading
3.Sermon
4.Intercessory Prayers
5.Kiss of Peace
6.Presentation of bread and wine
7.Great Thanksgiving
8.Distribution of bread and wine--by the deacons
9.Extended distribution to the absent
10.Gathering
11.Giving of tithes and offerings
Orthodox Liturgy



Orthodox liturgy stresses beauty. Its liturgy seeks to perceive the
beauty of the spiritual world in worship and express it through
their worship. This seems to be a peculiar gift of the Orthodox to
the Christian heritage, especially that of Byzantium and Russia.
Orthodox liturgy stresses that worship is nothing less than heaven
on earth. The holy liturgy embraces two worlds at once—the
liturgy of heaven and earth is the same. When the church
gathers for Eucharist, it gathers with the whole church around the
world in the heavenly places at the throne of God. The Liturgy of
the Presanctified states at the time of the Great Entrance: “Now
the celestial powers are present with us, and worship invisibly.”
Orthodox liturgy is primary in their faith and theology. Their
approach to religion is primarily a liturgical or doxological one—
the Orthodox understand doctrine in the context of worship. The
church is first of all a worshipping community. Their invitation to
the non-orthodox is to “come and see.” Consequently, ritual is
extremely important for the Orthodox.
Contrast: East and West

Vladimir’s envoys reported: “We knew not whether we were in
heaven or on earth, for surely there is no such splendor or beauty
anywhere upon earth. We cannot describe it to you; only this we
know, that God dwells there among humans, and that their service
surpasses the worship of all other places. For we cannot forget that
beauty.”

In contrast, one Russian cleric responded to worship in 14th century
Florence by the Roman church in this way: “What have you seen of
worth among the Latins? They do not even know how to venerate
the church of God. They raise their voices as the fools, and their
singing is a discordant wail. They have no idea of beauty and
reverence in worship, for they strike tombones, blow horns, use
organs, wave their hands, trample with their feet, and do many
other irreverent and disorderly things which bring joy to the devil.”
Common Liturgy
The Liturgy of the Word
– Gloria
– Collect—prayers of the
church
– Old Testament Readings
(followed by Psalms)
– Readings from Epistles
(followed by Psalms)
– Allelulia
– Gospel Readings
– Homily (Sermon)
– Nicene Creed
(Dismissal of Catechumens)
The Liturgy of the Table
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
Kiss of Peace
Offertory
Prayer over the gifts
Sanctus
Words of Institution
Anamnesis
Epiclesis
Intercessions
Lord’s Prayer
Fraction
Giving of Bread and Wine
Communion Song
Main Parts of the Mass
Entrance (Gathering)
 Liturgy of the Word

– Reading (OT, Epistles, Gospel)
– Explaining (Homily)
– Prayers (Intercesions)

Liturgy of the Table
– Offering (Preparatory)
– Consecrating (Prayer)
– Communing (Eating & Drinking)

Benediction (Dismissal—”ite missa est”)
East and West:
East
A cappella—service is
chanted by choir
 Greek Cross Architecture
 Leavened Bread
 Iconostasis
 Mystical in Theology
 Gratitude in Mood
 Surrounded by Icons

th
11
Century
West
Instrumental—use of
choirs
 Roman Cross Architecture
 Unleavened Bread
 Altar (sanctuary) area
 Legal in Theology
 Penitential in Mood
 Surrounded by Altars

Table Difference
Eastern
Stressed a thanksgiving
atmosphere in their
Eucharist which served
theosis, joy and heavenly
presence. The table is
more eschatological—it is
the present table of
kingdom reality.
Western
Stressed the altar and
penitential dimension of
the table. Medieval
additions to the liturgy
included: Psalm 43
preface, ablutions, “I’m
not worthy” priestly
prayers, and singing
Agnus Dei.
The Gospel in Stone: The
Development of Gothic Architecture
Earliest Christian
architecture: Basilica
 Followed by Romanesque
 Gothic developed by
scholars at Cathedral
School of Chartres
 First Gothic cathedral St.
Denis 1137

Abbot Suger of St. Denis Church,
1144

He wrote: “Among the crowded multitude…who strove to flock in to
worship and kiss the holy relics, no one among the countless
thousands of people because their very density could move a foot.”

He tore down bulky walls, enlarged windows, and dispersed the
general gloom of the Romanesque setting.

He envisioned a church where walls would be thin and skeletal, and
external light would illuminate the interior.

“Man may rise to the contemplation of the divine through senses,”
he wrote, and be “transported from this inferior to that higher
world.”

Cf. Western Humanities, p. 250 (9.20, 21).
Influence of Gothic

From St. Denis outside of Paris to Spain
and Scandinavia, Gothic dominated
architecture for nearly 400 years.

Towns constructed churches, town halls,
hospitals and universities in this style.

This was aided by new technology, wealth
and the patronage of the monarchs.
Context

Impressed by the light of Hagia Sophia,
Crusaders returned with new technology
– Winches to hoist heavy stones
– Renewed interest in geometry
– Pointed arches and the rib vault
– Flying buttresses that enabled larger windows
– Sense of interior unity and pronounced
vertical emphasis.
Gothic Height and Light

Ribbed vaults distribute the weight of the walls as they are
supported by vertical piers.

Flying buttresses function as exterior supports to the walls.

Pointed arches are more flexible since the angle can vary while
keeping the keystone at the same height.

As the engineering was perfected with trial and error, churches were
adapted (e.g., before buttresses, the walls of Notre Dame were 5
feet thick, but now they are 16 inches).

Since the stress is on the vertical piers, the flying buttresses and
distributed through arches, the walls now could have larger widows
and thus give more light to the interior.
Technical Innovations
 Ribbed
vaulting
Technical Innovations

Ribbed vaulting
 Pointed
arches
Technical Innovations
Ribbed vaulting
 Pointed arches

 Flying
buttresses
Gothic Architecture

Where: France, northern Europe

When: 1140-1500

Major Building Form: Cathedral,
University, and Guild Halls
Gothic Style

Plan: Unified Interior, Expanded Apse
(including choir)

Support: Piers, Flying Buttresses

Hallmark: Pointed Arch, Rib Vault

Décor: Sculpture, stained glass
Gothic Style

Effect: Soaring, Vertical, skeletal

Ambiance: airy, bright

Inspiration: Heavenly Light

Goal: To impress, uplift; create more space for
pilgrims
Notre Dame (1163-1250)

Victor Hugo: “a vast symphony of stone”

First Cathedral of colossal scale and
prototype of all that followed.

Previously 69’ foot nave vaults were the
highest, but Notre Dame’s are 115’.
Floor Plan of Notre Dame

Enlarged Apse with Choir

Non-Projecting Transept.

Four aisles and a central Nave.

Gallery above the aisles
Notre Dame, Paris
Notre Dame, Paris
Worship in Gothic Cathedrals
Place where humanity could meet God
 Priest brought humanity to God/Christ

– Through communion & sacraments

As pastor he brought God to humanity
– Through Word
– People could experience God
 Grace, righteousness, power
Effect

Sanctuary flooded with light
– Diffused through color of stained glass

Stone seemed to soar to heaven
– Lift worshipper to God
– Like praying hands
Everything to the glory of God
 Every aspect of church teaches

Chartres Cathedral
St. Denis:
Nave
Purpose
Teaching
Worship
Community
Use
Teaching
Preeminence of God
 In every dimension of the building
 In stained glass and in statuary

– Light = Christ, Truth, Word, Gospel
– Color illustrates story line

Becomes Bible story book
– Reflects mysteries of faith
Reflects all creation

Symbolizes universe over which God rules
– Ordered, proportional
– Universe that looks to God
– But illuminated by God
Three doors = Trinity
 Rose window = Mary
 Front: Story of Creation

Goal: Make known whole of Biblical
History
Music, incense, objects to touch
 Communion to taste – all senses
 Learn lives of martyrs, saints
 Virtues and vices
 Promise of heaven; punishment of hell

Judgment from Amiens Cathedral
Architecture should be worthy of
God’s presence
–Church would reach up to heaven
–Symbolize the presence of God
–Appropriate for miracle of
communion: transformation of
elements into body and blood of
Christ
Communal Use
– Place of refuge, help, public meeting
– Poor could come to be fed, cared for
– Homeless could sleep there
– Plays performed in front of cathedral
– Square in front where people gathered
for various public events
– Door became public bulletin board
Dominating the Skyline
Made statement as to
what was most
important
 Shows how God has
triumphed over all
through His Gospel

Spread of Gothic Architecture

France was its
homeland
Chartres
Notre Dame
Rheims
Spread of Gothic Architecture

Developed in
Germany
St. Stephens
Vienna
Spread of Gothic Architecture

England
Winchester
Salisbury
Spread of Gothic Architecture
 Milan,
Italy