If you’ve been thinking about a trip to NYC but are unsure of where to start, read on. You’ll learn about the Chrismation, Divine Liturgy, and Tiffany stained glass windows. But what’s it like to worship in an Orthodox church? In 2014, 1% of the adult population identified as Orthodox Christians. If you’re interested in the traditions of the Orthodox faith but are unsure where to begin, read on!
Table of Contents
Chrismation
A Chrismation service is a Christian ceremony that commemorates the birth of Christ. The service includes prayers and the reading of Psalm 143. At the conclusion of the service, the bishop leads a procession with a covered ‘diskos’ containing holy relics. The relics are then placed on a table at the front of the church. The bishop then reads from the Holy Scriptures.
The rite of chrismation is administered to Christians who have converted to the Orthodox faith. This ceremony is commonly followed by the Holy Eucharist. It is administered to converts to Orthodoxy from other Christian confessions. The process is different in each country, and the person who converts must first have received baptism using the Trinitarian formula. This rite must be followed by Holy Eucharist.
Holy Communion
On the first Sunday of Orthodoxy, His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios, the Greek Orthodox Archbishop of America and Exarch of the Ecumenical Patriarch, welcomed a congregation of two dozen clergy and hundreds of faithful to receive Holy Communion. He was accompanied by His Eminence Metropolitan Evangelos of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of New Jersey, His Eminence Archbishop Daniel of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the USA, His Grace Bishop Irynej of the Serbian Orthodox Christian Diocese of Eastern America, and His Grace Bishop John of the Russian Orthodox Church.
Before receiving Holy Communion, Orthodox Christians are expected to perform Confession. They should also say a pre-communion prayer. They should also fast from midnight the night before to prepare. For those who do not know the priest, they should speak to him before the service or ask a parishioner to send word to him. When receiving Holy Communion, Orthodox Christians should receive it with great joy and reverence.
Divine Liturgy
On December 19, Metropolitan Tikhon of the Russian Orthodox Church presided over a Divine Liturgy at Saint Nicholas Patriarchal Cathedral in New York City. He was accompanied by a delegation including Deacon Peter Ilchuk, Executive Secretary of the Metropolitan. The clergy and laypeople of the Cathedral were warmly welcomed. The service was accompanied by the heavenly choir. The choir sang the responses to the Divine Liturgy and the Procession with the Right of Orthodoxy.
The Divine Liturgy is a common action of the People of God, which is primarily performed during the Sunday Liturgy in an Orthodox Christian church. Each member of the Church must be present at one point in time, and all ages are included. The rite is performed with the participation of small children and infants, who participate in the communion of the liturgy from the day they are chrismated.
Tiffany stained glass windows
Louis Comfort Tiffany’s earliest stained glass window is in St. James Catholic Church in Manhattan. It is an eight-hour fire that destroyed many of the church’s stained glass windows but two enormous panels of the Virgin Mary and Baby Jesus survived. Those windows are part of the New-Yorny Historical Society. They were designed by Tiffany between 1902 and 1915. This window is one of the most famous Tiffany stained glass windows and has a rich and historic past.
The window in Christ Church in New York was originally made in 1850 and was restored in 1902. Since then, there have been numerous restorations of Tiffany windows. Cummings Studios have restored many windows throughout the world. In New York, they have restored two Tiffany windows. Cummings Studios has also restored windows in other places including Christ Church Cranbrook, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, and the First Unitarian Church.
