Greek Orthodox Church Experience Essay

I had the privilege to attend the St. Nicolas Greek Orthodox Church, and grasp an understanding and first hand experience on an unfamiliar Christian denomination. Greek Orthodoxy is based mainly or equivalent to Eastern Orthodoxy. The term Orthodox is the denotation of the “correct” or “right belief”, and the church is considered Greek because Greek was the native language of the First Early Christian Church. The start of Eastern Orthodox can date all the way back to the Pentecost in 33AD, in which Christ gave them the order to spread the Word. From there, the 12 holy apostles started to travel to speak the gospel in Eastern Europe, Greece, Asia Minor, and eventually Rome. Apostle Paul was very significant in his spread of gospel in Rome,

in which established the beginning of the first early unified holy Christian Church. With the spread of early Christianity throughout Europe, the rise of Christian Emperor Constantine I resulted in the establishment, power, and influence of the Catholic Church throughout the entire Roman Empire. With Christianity as the official religion, the Church was unified for centuries. Unfortunately, there was constant growth of political and social implications between the East and Western empires in which led to the split of the Church, or “The Great Schism” in 1054, in which eastern orthodoxy, or the Church of Eastern Europe was established. Just as any religious denomination, the Greek (Eastern) Orthodoxy Church abide by certain beliefs and everyday lifestyle to live to God’s approval and spiritual needs. The church believes in the importance of baptism, Holy Scripture, honoring iconic figures of early Christianity such as Chrystdom and Justin Martyr, the apostles, the Nicene Creed, which is the statement and guide of their faith, the trinity of the father, son, and holy spirit, and most importantly, the Eucharist, or the Divine Liturgy. (Quote from the pamphlets and list of beliefs site).
As my friend Karen and I arrived to St. Nicolas, we were somewhat surprised to see the architecture of the church was structured like a small house. The only indications that the building was a church was the sign on the side that said “St. Nicolas,” and the cross that hung over the entrance. As we entered the building through the narthex, or the porch, I noticed that there were multi-colored stained glass windows with crosses on the sides of the building, and an archway surrounded the double doors, very similar to one you may see in Roman architecture. Once we walked into the foyer, I was at a loss for words. I was first taken aback by the robust, yet soothing smell of the incenses. They smelled strong, but not pungent, with a spicy aroma. I noticed the dim lighting next, flooding through the beautiful windows and flickering from the candles, giving everything a soft, ethereal glow. Finally, I was captivated by the large portrait of Christ on a stand at the side of the room. When I walked into the chapel, the first things I noticed were the gorgeous portraits hanging on all of the walls depicting familiar religious figures, such as John Chrystydom, Constantine, Mary, Jesus Christ, and the Archangels. The carpet throughout the congregation room was red, the walls were a warm mahogany, and they lead up to the nave, where the choir would recite hymnals, and the patriarch of the church would give his benedictions. The nave also consists of the congregational pews and two embroidered chairs known as the bishop thrones. The lights cascaded down from the ornate chandelier, and the small candles in the front of the room gave me a feeling of intimacy with both the congregation and with Christ. Once seated in the congregation, I was introduced to choir member Sarah Atkins, who helped me throughout the service. When the liturgy started, Pastor Ted entered the room and removed the screen in the front of the altar that revealed a separate room behind the nave. This room, known as the sanctuary, consisted of the altar, tabernacle, and sacred ancient books of scripture. After the end of the service, Ms. Atkins thoroughly explained to me that the architectural and artistic design within the church gives the member a full experience of worship. She continued to explain that the portraits of the religious figures such as Mary, John Chrysostom, and Constantine are not meant for worship, but for honoring their work and sacrifices to God. As I pointed out the two thrones in front of the nave, Ms. Atkins described the chairs as the deacon thrones, which are designated for the bishops when they attend the Divine Liturgy. Even without Atkin’s explanation, I felt an amazing, full experience of worship through the artistic and architectural layout. I believe that without the incense, portraits, dim lights, and eastern orthodox architecture, I wouldn’t have gain the full experience of worship.
Throughout the liturgy, there were certain duties and roles that the congregation and leaders partaken in. Before the beginning of the service, there was a gentleman dressed in a nice traditional suit that welcomed us into the foyer, and handed us numerous pamphlets about Eastern Orthodoxy. The man, who was presumably one of the greeters of the church, directed us to the pews. During the liturgy, a reader, dressed with a black-buttoned suit, recited passages of scripture to the congregation, and stood at attention in the back of the congregation if any assistance was needed. Throughout the service, there were three to four altar boys, or acolytes, that took the duty of holding the candles for the altar, and the incenses for the blessing of the communion. In the beginning of the service, the choir, or chanters, lined up against the wall in front of congregation. Visually, the ensemble was dressed in nice Sunday clothes like the church members in the congregation, and had a chant director, or Protopsaltis, who would initiate each hymnal. This group conducted the thanksgiving worship of Greek hymnals that were before and after the priest’s blessing of the communion and sermon of scripture. Of course, the priest, Father Ted, had the most important role of conducting the liturgy and the blessing of the Eucharist. Priest Ted wore a beautiful embroidered liturgical robe called a phelonion, and wore a dark-red stole that was placed over the vestment called an epitrachelion. The epitrachelion, covered with six crosses, symbolizes the priest’s position in office during liturgies and formal processions. (Quote) The priest also wore formal cuffs to symbolize his hands are used for the work of God, a belt used to symbolize the strength to conduct the Divine Liturgy, and wears a chain with a cross to symbolize Christ crucifixion and resurrection. The priest must bless the cross before he is allowed to wear it for the Divine Liturgy.
On Sunday mornings, the Eastern Orthodox Church partakes in the Holy Eucharist, or also known as the formal Divine Liturgy. The term Eucharist is the Greek word for thanksgiving, and liturgy means “the people’s work”, which signifies the congregation of the church to celebrate and honor the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ through hymnal, scriptural, and communal worship. Once my friend and I were seated in the pews for the Divine Liturgy, and most of the congregation was present, the priest, Father Ted, entered through the wall doors and retrieved one of the elaborate books of scripture from the Sanctuary. From the Sanctuary, Father Ted proceeded through the nave, or congregational pews, while carefully holding a book of worship. The members of the congregation would silently acknowledge the priest with nods, head bows, or making the sign of the cross. Ms. Atkins explained to me later that this symbolizes the church’s honor, blessing, and respect towards the Holy Scripture and sermon that would be read for the day. After the blessing of the Holy Scripture, Priest Ted returned to the front of the sanctuary and began to read from the same book of scripture. Priest Ted recited a general statement of faith, or Nicene Creed, away from the congregation in Greek and English translation, and the congregation recited the same statement. The priest continued to bless and pray in both English and Greek, and following him, Sarah and the other cantors began to sing and recite ancient Greek hymnals while the congregation joined along. The hymns were recited as chants, and the priest offered another prayer of thanks, and preceded to his sermon over the Lost Protocol Son. In the Orthodox Church, certain Sundays are dedicated to Christian iconic figures such as martyrs, important theologians, angels, and saints. For this Sunday service, the church was learning from the story of the Protocol Son, honoring the martyr of Theodore Stratelates, and the after feast of the Meeting of Our Lord. The priest explained that the Protocol Son shows that no matter how much we turn from or distance ourselves from our Holy Father, he will always be there waiting for his children to come back home with faith, and rejoice in our homecoming. After the sermon, the liturgy preceded to the communion, which is probably the most important part of the Divine Liturgy. Holding two drinking goblets high in air, Priest Ted walked from the sanctuary and went around the congregational pews like he did the book of worship. In front of the priest, there were two to three altar boys who held a candleholder, a model of a sun, and a cross. Ms. Atkins explained to me afterwards that the sun symbolizes God and his angels, and the cross represents Christ’s glory and remembrance of his crucifixion and resurrection. Once the priest returned back to the altar, he retrieved a censer, and started to slowly swing the censer three times in each direction, with the sounds of the censer’s bells ringing throughout the chapel. The smoke produced from the censer symbolizes the prayers blessings of the members of the church going into the heavens, and the blessings and honor of the archangels, saints, Mary and Jesus Christ. Once the blessings were finished, the bread and wine were pronounced as blessed and perfect symbols of Christ’s flesh and blood. The congregation then walked in a single filed line to receive the bread and wine by the priest, which is considered the most intimate and holiest part of the Liturgy. My friend and I were not allowed to participate in this practice since we were not Orthodox. Although, after the communion, one of the readers gave us a peace of the holy bread, which was allowed since the bread was already blessed and received to the members.
After the Liturgy, I felt a beautiful presence of God, and a spiritual satisfaction in participating in a very intimate experience of worship.

Living in a non-denominational Christian home, I never had the opportunity in experiencing a very formal act of worship such as an Eastern Orthodox Liturgy. With the non-denominational church services being more liberal with worship processions, I was a bit overwhelmed by the formality of the service and the conservative views of the church. I personally did not fall in love with the hymnal chants in comparison to modern gospel songs. On the other hand, I really enjoyed the visual and theological beliefs and traditions of the church. The constant reminder of the spiritual icons in the portraits, vestments worn by the priest and altar boys, incents, and eastern architecture tremendously increased my concentration on worshiping Christ, and made me feel as if Christ’s actual presence was among us. I believe that some churches in America could use more reminders of worship such as portraits, incents, and more strict order in services to gain a more intimate connection with Christ during worship and communion. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed experiencing the Orthodox Church, and now have a better understanding and respect for other Christian

denominations.