Contents
Introduction
The Orthodox Church
Antioch
Reading
Making up your mind
How to be received
How to develop a life of prayer (CD) The Icon Corner
Entering an Orthodox Temple / Attending a service
Understanding an Orthodox Temple
Making offerings 
Feasting and fasting
Different types of service.
Orthodox Organisations
 

Introduction:

These pages have a very limited brief: to give you a few hints about the Orthodox Church.  It does not pretend to be comprehensive (see John 21 v25), as several lorries could not hold the material that would need to be written just to give you a first taste! The Orthodox Church is a rich Tradition, which will repay a lifetime of discipleship and of conforming yourself and your whole life to her. The purpose of the Orthodox Church is, of course, to bring you ever nearer to The Saviour, to make you holy, to bring you to eternal life. Following the Tradition is, therefore, not an end in itself but the God given means, full of the Holy Spirit, of fulfilling the Gospel. Christianity is ”the death of religion” – we live by faith and love in Christ Jesus our Lord. This means that the Tradition is astonishingly rich, varied and elastic.

By Tradition we mean the same as did St. Paul when he told St. Timothy to guard it (2 Timothy 1 v14) and we also mean: The Holy Scriptures, the Sacraments (of which there are many), the services and prayer, feasting, fasting and almsgiving, the saints and martyrs, the calendar, the arrangement of the home, the arrangement of the Temple, confession and spiritual fathers … and so on!  Little by little you will come to know much of the Tradition and find your life conforming to it.

There are those who seek to change the Orthodox Church! These people will always be sadly disappointed. Not only will the Church not change but also those people will find themselves placed beyond it in a place of their own making. You must come before God as a disciple of the Gospel not as its judge. The Orthodox Church has a  “Table d’hote” not an “A la carte” menu – designed to fulfil its purpose.

Start quietly, humbly and receptively. Don’t try to do everything at once: that way leads to failure. The demons will try and get you to take on tasks too difficult for you at first – they will enjoy seeing you fail and becoming despondent (St. Anthony the Great). Follow the advice of a wise spiritual father who will lead you at the right speed, always clamouring for more, into the tradition!

Please feel free to copy and give away copies of this booklet and any of its contents to those who will make use of it.

Email the Parish Priest (FrPhilip@aol.com) and he will pray for you daily.

God bless you!
Father Philip.



The Orthodox Church

Brief history
Timeline
Brief introduction (Nearly 2000 yrs of history so lots to learn!)
 
 

Antioch

Antiochian Archdiocese of Western and Central Europe
Antiochian Deanery of the United Kingdom and Ireland



Reading

The Orthodox Study Bible:
The Orthodox Study Bible is the only edition of the Bible that offers Bible study aids written from the Orthodox perspective. It is well organized for Bible Study groups and church school use, effective for evangelism and outreach, and a great gift for graduates, new church members, etc. It is also the only version of the Bible that uses the Septuagint OT texts. Also contains a Lectionary and Morning and Evening Prayers.

You will find the Orthodox Study Bible - and lots of other books - here:
http://www.orthodoxbooks.co.uk/

A good starting point would be to look for books by Bishop Kallistos (Timothy Ware).
Also, Anthony Coniaris: Introducing the Orthodox Church.

 

Becoming Orthodox

Making up your mind: there's no hurry!
The first thing to realise is that there is no hurry. You shall not be hurried or coerced into becoming Orthodox. Neither shall any priest be hurried or coerced into receiving you. When and if the time is right you will be received. This can take any amount of time from immediately to many years. The Church has your interests at heart – no one will want to force you to become Orthodox and if you choose not to be we will hope that you have learned something useful on your Pilgrimage with us.

Making sense of the journey so far.
A very understandable worry that people often have is this: “Have I been travelling the wrong road up to now?” The answer is “No: that road has brought you here.”   If it is right for you to become a member of the Orthodox Church that does NOT mean that it was wrong for you to have belonged to something else before. You should always be thankful to those who brought you this far. Neither should you feel that you are betraying your past: St. Philip was following St. John the Baptist until The Lamb of God was pointed out to him. He then left St. John and followed Christ.

Vocation
The Saviour calls everyone to Himself and to follow Him in The Way. The manner of that call is different for each person. Your priest will see you frequently and you will join him for catechism over a period of time. You will come to various services and become involved in the life of the local Orthodox Church and the community that surrounds her. It may be that your sense of vocation to become a member of the Orthodox Church is very clear – it may be you are tentatively searching for the Truth.

Mission
The mission of The Church has not changed. The Church exists to fulfil the Divine command: “…make disciples of all nations…” People often ask “What will I do after I am received? What form shall my discipleship take?”  We cannot tell you! The Holy Spirit points the way forward … local missioners … catechists … treasures … servers and singers … clergy … teachers … leaders … evangelists … monastics … iconographers … carpenters …charity workers … parents of all sorts …  plasterers etc.  One thing is for certain: there is plenty to do for members of the Orthodox Church! - “Pew fodder” is not an option. The main thing is to be salt and light where you live.

How to be received
Eventually you need to make up your mind what you think God is calling you to do. This may mean taking the bull by the horns, finding your priest one day and saying “Father please receive me into the Orthodox Church.”  At All saints this will be at least three months after you first started coming to Church regularly.  The time between this and being received varies a lot. For some it may be immediate (as with the Ethiopian eunuch of Acts) or it may be many years (as with St. Constantine). 

During this time you will be taught a number of practical matters (like how to receive Holy Communion) and the priest will continue to catechise and prepare you. 

Godparents
Each person received needs a Godparent. This must be a person of the same sex and older and already Orthodox who can lead you into the faith.

Choosing a patron saint
This is no small matter. Many people already have a Christian name but not everyone does. If you do you should think very carefully before changing! If you don’t you will need to choose a patron saint. Your priest will advise you about this. When you have a patron you will be asking his/her prayers each day, celebrating her/his feast day, others will celebrate your feast day (name day) also and pray for you particularly on that day also. Many people find themselves becoming very like their patron and developing an interest in their concerns (e.g. someone called Stylian, Nicholas or Basil will become interested in helping orphaned children, John (after St. John the Merciful) will become involved in charity work, St. John’s Ambulance etc.)

Baptism or Chrismation?
This depends of whether you have been validly baptised before. Unbaptised children and adults will be baptised and then chrismated (anointed with Holy Oil for the reception of the Holy Spirit). Those who have been baptised are normally chrismated.

 

How to develop a life of prayer 

It is absurd to suggest that a few words will give anything other than the most basic idea here. You will need to consult with your spiritual father. So to start you off:

The Scriptures It is important to maintain a continual cycle of Scriptural reading. Currently the only truly Orthodox Bible available in English is the “Orthodox Study Bible”. This contains the Septuagint Old Testament as used by Jesus Christ. This has the advantage of copious notes, articles and a scheme of Bible reading, the readings for each day of the year, the Psalms and the usual “Icon Prayers” for morning and evening personal devotions. You should try to get to a proper Bible Study based on the teachings of the Fathers each week.

Icons You will want to collect the following icons: The Saviour (Jesus Christ), The Mother of God (St. Mary, usually with the “Adult Child” Christ enthroned and pointed to by her), The Forerunner (St. John the Baptist) and the icon of your patron. Some people have a further patron for the household. When you pray develop a habit of standing before the icons, with your eyes and heart open. Orthodox do not normally dot icons about the house.

The Icon Corner
You will want to make a place in your home for prayer. Obviously you can and should pray everywhere but Orthodox have found an icon corner sanctifies the whole home. Usually it faces east. In it you will have the icons mentioned above set out, as they would be in a church or with the Saviour elevated above the others and the Mother of God below Him. They should be low enough to be easily venerated. Here you will have the following equipment on a shelf below the icons: the Holy Bible, hand censer with charcoal and incense, candle or oil lamp, service books, perhaps some flowers. The whole lot needs to be kept clean and well polished. You may also keep wedding crowns, baptismal candles and so on in the Icon Corner. Another name is “Beautiful Corner” and it should live up to its name. Being in a corner is helpful as when you enter it you are immediately surrounded by the icons and can pray without being distracted. Some houses have several such Corners but there should always be a main one for family prayers. In the dining room there is a need for at least one icon  (of the Saviour or perhaps of the Last Supper or the Hospitality of Abraham or of Bethany etc.) to face when blessing meals. You will slowly acquire what you need.

Calendar
There is an excellent calendar produced by the Fellowship of St. John the Baptist (address elsewhere) This tells you the date, the saints for the day, the feast and fast days (and exceptions), the readings for the day and the tone of the week. (Tone= the tunes and songs sung at the services.) At the time of writing, it costs £3.50

Hours of prayer
These are: Vespers (6pm), Compline (9pm) Midnight, Matins (3am) First (6am), Third (9am), Sixth (midday), Ninth (3pm).  In the Antiochian tradition, these are usually served as follows: 6pm: 9th and Vespers, (or Compline when served in Lent), Before the Liturgy: Matins and the 1st, 3rd and 6th hours. Be prepared for huge variation! 

Method of daily prayer
see MPEG

Spiritual father/guide
It is pretty important to find a priest who can lead you in the Christian life. It may be that after a while you will find you need a different person to take you further. This will upset no sensible priest. We all hope that our spiritual Children will outgrow us and be led higher by God.
 

Entering an Orthodox Temple / Attending a service
What to wear
Dress simply, modestly and respectfully. Men should wear long trousers and sleeves at least to the elbow, head uncovered. Women should wear skirts or trousers to the knee or below and arms covered to the elbow. The custom of women wearing headscarves is still practised in Slav Churches though not in Antiochian/Greek ones (unless you want to!) Clothing is best loose fitting and, in winter, warm as this gives plenty of movement and churches can be perilously drafty!

What questions you need to ask when making contact
What sort of service?
Orthodox often ask what time the Liturgy will end! They then turn up to as much as they feel they (and young children can cope with). This is much better than arriving for the first half hour.

People can be maddeningly literal when answering your questions too. In some places nothing is given away! So:
“Your blessing Father! Will there be a Liturgy for the feast of St. X?”
“God bless you! Yes.”
“What time will it start Father?”
“After Orthros (=Matins)”
“Thank you Father, What time does the Liturgy end please?”
“Approximately 12.30 in the afternoon.”
“Thank you Father – will it be in St. Y’s Church?”
“No: we will have it at St. X’s Well Chapel.”
“Thank you Father, my name is George Bloggs and I would like to receive Holy Communion if I may.”
“If you have your Spiritual Father’s blessing you may.”
“Father, will there be Vespers the night before in St. Y’s?”
“We will have Espirinos (= Vespers) at 6pm”
“Thank you Father I shall look forward to being there.” 

Services you might take part in (i.e. Services that should happen anyway - but might not!)

• Divine Liturgy on Sundays and Feast days (St. John Chrysostom, St. Basil, Presanctified)
• Vespers: Great on Saturday evening and on evenings before Great Feasts.
• Matins: on the morning (as for Vespers)
• The Hours (First, Third, Sixth, Ninth) usually only in a monastery or before the Liturgy or Vespers or after Matins.
• Getting up and going to bed prayers.
• Pre and post Communion prayers.

 

Asking for prayers to be said
These you can demand once you are Orthodox:

• Confession (at ANY time!)
• Baptism of Children (if canonical demands are met).
• Anointing when ill or dying
• Services of prayer when ill
• Marriage (if canonical demands are met).
• Funeral and the services when dying.
• Churching, naming of children.

These you should request if in need:
Holy Communion at home if you are incapable of coming to Church.

These you may ask for:

• Trisagion: shortly after the death of someone.
• Mnemosimon/ Pannikhida / Memorial Prayers: after the six-month anniversary.
• Litia / Litiya / Artoklasia / Bread breaking: usually with Vespers: bring a Prosphora, Mavrodaphne or Commandaria wine (or specialist Communion wine) and light olive oil (NOT extra Virgin!).
• Many Years! These are prayers said on your birthday or on your name days (yiorti)
• Molieben (prayer services) - these are services offered as intercessions for a particular cause.
• House blessing
• Prayers for travellers
• Te Deum for various things for which you wish to give thanks.
• Harvest thanksgivings for the individual fruits/ vegetables etc (which then become the priest’s property). These are brought to Church as they become ripe.
• Blessing of herbs (Aug 15th)
• Paraklesis (service of prayer to the Mother of God)
• Akathist Prayers to various saints with special Canons.
• Many types and kinds of blessing from blessing a herd, bees, cars etc.
• Blessing of Icons.
• Blessing of Kolliva for saints days
• Blessing of cakes for saints days (e.g. Panouripitta)
• Blessing of Easter foods
• Many other blessings and special services for all types of needs.

These you can do yourself: All marked * and the “Jesus Prayer”. (leave out the priest’s sections)

Jesus prayer: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy upon me the sinner.”

Sign of the Cross:
Place the thumb, first and second fingers together. The fourth and little finger fold into the palm of your hand. Touch the head, just below the rib cage, top of the right shoulder, the bottom of the left shoulder with the thumb and first two fingers. In Antiochian Churches this is preceded by a bow (metania = repentance).  The Cross bar drop from left to right to remind us that the one thief went to Paradise… about the other we know nothing. You too have come to a moment of judgement – which way are you going?

Venerating the icons
Make the sign of the Cross twice. Kiss the icon (feet if available, hand or hair if only the face is visible.) Then make the sign of the Cross again.

Lighting a candle
When you enter the Temple make the sign of the Cross three times (and also when leaving) approach the candle stands take a candle, make an offering, light the candle and place it in the stand. At All Saints there is no fixed price for candles. In most places there is. Give what you can and light the candles you want to. Having done so venerate the icons (or the other way round).

Talking in the Temple
Don’t, unless you must. People are there to pray not to chat. If you need to talk make sure it is important or leave the Temple (assuming the services have not started or have now ended) and talk in the Hall. Small children will make a noise; they have a right to be there but will be trained to behave properly very quickly by their parents.

Standing, sitting and kneeling: where to stand
In many temples men stand on the right hand side of the church and women on the left. At All Saints you may stand wherever you feel most comfortable but please come right into the Temple so others can get in too. Orthodox stand to pray but if someone needs to sit that is not your concern. You should not keep to the walls – the seats round the edge are for those who must sit because of age or infirmity. Move out of the way when processions are coming by, face the senior priest at all times and close behind the procession after it passes.

Moving about: coming in and going out
Come in quietly, move about quietly, venerate icons etc. and find a place to stand. Stand there. It is not good practice to leave the Temple until dismissed and anyone leaving the Temple during services to smoke, chat, conduct business or any other reason unless you are taken ill or are caring for someone else.

Arriving on time
For most people there is no reason why they cannot get to Church on time.  Those with children may choose to come later. It is better to arrive late than not to come at all. In this case come in, venerate the icons, light candles as usual and go to your place.

Length of service
Why should anyone care how long the services are? In heaven you will find that they last for an eternity. Get your practice in now! As you learn the services they begin to flash past and any service seems to disappear alarmingly fast.

• Vespers: 40 minutes to an hour
• Divine Liturgy: 1 ½ – 2 hours

Eating and drinking in the Temple (including chewing gum)
You may eat anything given to you IN the Temple in the Temple. E.g.: Antidoron (the bless bread at the end of the Liturgy), various cakes and seeds that have been blessed etc. Nothing else.

Who’s who

• Wearing black robes: one of the clergy.
• Wearing a Crown: The Bishop.
• Dressed in a long flowing coloured cloak: a priest.
• Dressed in a vestment like a big T-shirt with a strip of material hanging from one shoulder: a deacon.
• Dressed like a deacon but without the strip of cloth: a server.

Taking part in the services
You may receive a blessing to sing in the choir or men and boys to serve. Most people will stand in the Temple and concentrate with their entire mind on the words and actions going on about them. Making the sign of the Cross when others do, bowing when others do, smelling the incense, moving in processions, venerating icons etc. It will soon become obvious what to do. You will hear many prayers being offered. Take these prayers and add your own like this:

Priest: “Help us, save us, have mercy on us and keep us O God by Your Grace!” To which you add in your heart our Bishop, your own name and all those about you, your family, friends, your work/school/college colleagues and neighbours, the clergy of your church those for who you have been asked to pray and those you have heard of on the news etc.  This is terribly hard and exhausting work.

Do not make more elaborate signs of the Cross, bows, prostrations etc. than the Bishop or priest is making! You should avoid “showing-off” at all costs.

Receiving Holy Communion
If you are not Orthodox you may not receive Holy Communion. 

If you are Orthodox you may receive Holy Communion if you have the EXPLICIT permission of your spiritual father to do so. The Parish Priest will not communicate you if he does not know who you are.

Receiving a blessing - greeting a Bishop or priest:
Bow before the cleric extending your right hand down towards the floor. Say “Your blessing!” loudly enough to be heard by him. Cup your hands together, right slightly over left. The cleric will say “God bless you!” and bless you with his hand and place his hand in yours. You kiss the back of his hand. Then you converse normally. Antiochian Bishops are called “Sa’eed-na” and priests “Father.”

Some clergy whip their hand away before you have the chance to kiss it. Try not to go after the hand as if to bite it!
 

Understanding an Orthodox Temple

• Outside: everything that is.
• The narthex: (the area just as you come into the building – the lobby etc.) the material Cosmos
• The nave: (the area in front of the screen) the Church (i.e. the whole Christian Family)
• The screen: the presence of God with us all. This joins the nave to the altar.
• The altar: (the whole area behind the screen) Heaven.

You will soon discover that every tiny detail of the Orthodox temple complex has its own symbolic meaning. Nothing is there by accident. At All Saints the Church of St. Matthias was not built as an Orthodox Temple and therefore sadly lacks much of this symbolism.

Symbolism means “drawing together”.

Diabolism means “spreading apart.” You can see that we regard these as being literally opposites – the first to do with God, the second …
 


Making offerings

You should offer to God whatever you can: time, Prosphora, wine, money, Artoklasia, Panouripitta, Icons, flowers, incense, charcoal, vessels, vestments, books, etc.
 

Fasting
Don’t overdo it! It takes several years to learn to fast properly. Do as you spiritual father instructs. At the very least – eat less!

When: Wednesdays and Fridays, Nativity Fast, Great Lent, Holy Week, Peter and Paul Fast, Dormition Fast, Holy Cross.  

How to fast: No products of any animal with a backbone, no alcohol, no olive oil. (Holy Cross and Great Friday – no food or drink at all.)

When broken: Saturdays and Sundays in Nativity Fast when fish, wine and oil are allowed. Some other Saturdays and Sundays.

Feasting
Sundays, Pascha, 12 Feasts, Name days (Yiorti),

Rules: Eat and drink whatever you want but in moderation. Never become bloated or drunk.

When broken: On occasion a great feat lands during a fast day. If this happens usually the “Fish, wine and oil” rule applies.

If you are ill, elderly, very young and travelling for a whole day you are exempt from fasting. If you are living with non-Orthodox you must not embarrass them by fasting. Eat what is put before you.
 

Different types of service
The Divine Liturgy of: St. John Chrysostom, St. Basil, St. James, the Presanctified.

The Hours: Vespers (Espirinos), Compline, Midnight Office, Matins (Orthros), 1st, 3rd, 6th, 9th hours, morning and Evening Icon Corner Prayers, Grace before and after meals.

Moleiben, Artoklasia (Litia), Memorials (Pannikhida / Mnemosimon) with or without Kolliva, Name days

Thanksgivings, Blessings, Marriage, Funerals, Confession


 
Orthodox Organisations

The Orthodox Fellowship of Saint John the Baptist

• Through prayer, discussion and mutual friendship, members of the Fellowship attempt to deepen their understanding of the one Orthodox faith, which they all share.
• The Fellowship organizes a residential weekend conference each summer. Recent subjects have included Called to be One: Our Unity in the Eucharist, Confession and Healing, Repentance and Forgiveness, Death and Resurrection, and Veneration of the Mother of God.
• There is a study weekend early in the year, devoted either to the Bible or to the Church Fathers. On past occasions we have studied, for example, The Epistle of St Paul to the Romans, Theosis, Prophecy, and St Symeon the New Theologian.
• Day conferences have been held in different places, including a series on Women: an Orthodox Perspective. At a Liturgical Weekend members gained experience of how to read and sing at church services. We have made pilgrimages to Walsingham, Patmos, and Russia.
• The Fellowship issues a journal, Forerunner, which appears twice a year, as well as an annual Calendar and Lectionary, which lists the daily Scripture readings and a wide range of saints, including many British. A Directory is published annually, giving details of all Orthodox places of worship in Britain and Ireland. A series of Bible Study Notes for Orthodox use is in preparation.
• Membership is open to all Orthodox; while our meetings are open to non-members, we hope that as many as possible will want to support our work on a more permanent basis by taking out membership.
• Although our work is limited to the British Isles, Orthodox from abroad are welcome to become members and to attend our gatherings.

Contact details:
Archimandrite Kyril,
The Orthodox Fellowship of Saint John the Baptist,
Mynachdy Sant Elias,
New Mills,
Newtown,
Powys
SY16 3NQ.  

Registered Charity No:1063713

e-mail: kyril@felin-newydd.fsnet.co.uk
 
GOYOGB
This is the Youth Organisation for all the Orthodox youth of Great Britain (11-24yrs). Amongst its activities it runs two annual camps each year.
 

Syndesmos
SYNDESMOS, the World Fellowship of Orthodox Youth, is a federation of Orthodox youth movements and theological schools around the world, working under the blessing of all the local canonical Churches, to serve the Church, Her unity, witness and renewal. 
 
The aim of SYNDESMOS is to develop cooperation and communication among Orthodox youth movements and theological schools around the world, and to promote within them a deeper understanding and vision of their common faith. 
 
Founded in 1953, the history of SYNDESMOS has been one of dynamic initiative in the life of the Church. Since the beginning, youth and Orthodox unity has been central to its activities. 
 
SYNDESMOS' original aims remain its present challenges, as it seeks to respond to the needs of young people in the Church, and revives its commitment to witness to the Gospel in the 21st century.
 

Fasting

Don’t overdo it! It takes several years to learn to fast properly. Do as you spiritual father instructs. At the very least – eat less!

When: Wednesdays and Fridays, Nativity Fast, Great Lent, Holy Week, Peter and Paul Fast, Dormition Fast, Holy Cross.  

How to fast: No products of any animal with a backbone, no alcohol, no olive oil. (Holy Cross and Great Friday – no food or drink at all.)

When broken: Saturdays and Sundays in Nativity Fast when fish, wine and oil are allowed. Some other Saturdays and Sundays.

Feasting

Sundays, Pascha, 12 Feasts, Name days (Yiorti),

Rules: Eat and drink whatever you want but in moderation. Never become bloated or drunk.

When broken: On occasion a great feat lands during a fast day. If this happens usually the “Fish, wine and oil” rule applies.