1.
Easter Saturday
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Easter Saturday, on the Christian calendar, is the Saturday following the festival of Easter, the Saturday of Easter or Bright Week. In the liturgy of Western Christianity it is the last day of Easter Week, in the liturgy of Eastern Christianity it is the last day of Bright Week, and called Bright Saturday. Easter Saturday is the day preceding the Octave Day of Easter, many people, especially religious authorities, regard this alternative meaning as inaccurate, but it remains in common usage. In Australia, the NSW State Government defines Easter Saturday as the day after Good Friday when gazetting public holidays for the Easter long weekend, the use of the term Bright Saturday avoids this confusion by clearly referring to the Saturday 6 days after Easter Sunday. In the Eastern Orthodox Church and those Eastern Catholic Churches which follow the Byzantine Rite, this day is known as Bright Saturday, all of the services for Pascha are repeated every day of Bright Week, except for the hymns from the Octoechos. On Bright Friday, the Resurrection hymns from the Octoechos are taken from Tone Eight, before the dismissal of Matins a crucession takes place, going three times around the outside of the temple, while chanting the Paschal Canon. On this day, the Paschal Artos, a loaf of leavened bread which was blessed at the end of the Paschal Vigil on Pascha, is broken. This may either be done at the end of the Divine Liturgy, and given out along with the antidoron, or it may be broken at trapeza before the festal meal. According to the Supplemental Book of Needs, the fracturing of the Artos is done in this way, After the Divine Liturgy, the Artos is carried, as is customary, to the Trapeza and Christ is risen. For Thou art our sanctification, and unto Thee do we send up glory, together with Thine Unoriginate Father, and Thine All-holy, Good and Life-creating Spirit, now and ever, the Vespers on Saturday night is chanted in the normal manner, rather than the Paschal manner. However, the Paschal troparion Christ is risen, is read three times at the beginning. That Vespers is the beginning of Thomas Sunday, because the date of Pascha is moveable, Bright Saturday is a part of the Paschal cycle, and changes from year to year. Eastern Christianity calculates the date of Easter differently from the West, Easter Monday Easter Tuesday Easter Friday Bright Saturday Orthodox icon and synaxarion Paschal Week by S. V. Bulgakov
2.
Church of the Holy Sepulchre
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The Church of the Holy Sepulchre is a church in the Christian Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem, a few steps away from the Muristan. The tomb is enclosed by the 18th-century shrine, called the Aedicule, within the church proper are the last four Stations of the Via Dolorosa, representing the final episodes of Jesus Passion. The main denominations sharing property over parts of the church are the Greek Orthodox, Armenian Orthodox and Roman Catholic, and to a lesser degree the Egyptian Copts, Syriacs and Ethiopians. According to Eusebius of Caesarea, the Roman emperor Hadrian in the 2nd century AD built a dedicated to the goddess Venus in order to bury the cave in which Jesus had been buried. The first Christian emperor, Constantine the Great, ordered in about 325/326 that the temple be replaced by a church, during the building of the Church, Constantines mother, Helena, is believed to have rediscovered the tomb. Socrates Scholasticus, in his Ecclesiastical History, gives a description of the discovery. The remains are enveloped by a marble sheath placed some 500 years before to protect the ledge from Ottoman attacks. However, there are several thick window wells extending through the marble sheath and they appear to reveal an underlying limestone rock, which may be part of the original living rock of the tomb. The church was starting in 325/326, and was consecrated on 13 September 335. From pilgrim reports it seems that the housing the tomb of Jesus was freestanding at first. Each year, the Eastern Orthodox Church celebrates the anniversary of the consecration of the Church of the Resurrection on 13 September and this building was damaged by fire in May of 614 when the Sassanid Empire, under Khosrau II, invaded Jerusalem and captured the True Cross. In 630, the Emperor Heraclius restored it and rebuilt the church after recapturing the city, after Jerusalem came under Arab rule, it remained a Christian church, with the early Muslim rulers protecting the citys Christian sites. A story reports that the Caliph Umar ibn al-Khattab visited the church and stopped to pray on the balcony and he feared that future generations would misinterpret this gesture, taking it as a pretext to turn the church into a mosque. Eutychius added that Umar wrote a decree prohibiting Muslims from praying at this location, the building suffered severe damage due to an earthquake in 746. Early in the century, another earthquake damaged the dome of the Anastasis. The damage was repaired in 810 by Patriarch Thomas, in the year 841, the church suffered a fire. In 935, the Orthodox Christians prevented the construction of a Muslim mosque adjacent the Church, in 938, a new fire damaged the inside of the basilica and came close to the rotunda. In 966, due to a defeat of Muslim armies in the region of Syria, the doors and roof were burnt, and the Patriarch John VII was murdered
3.
Monastery
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A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone. A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which may be a chapel, church or temple, a monastery complex typically comprises a number of buildings which include a church, dormitory, cloister, refectory, library, balneary and infirmary. These may include a hospice, a school and a range of agricultural and manufacturing such as a barn. In English usage, the monastery is generally used to denote the buildings of a community of monks. In modern usage, convent tends to be applied only to institutions of female monastics, historically, a convent denoted a house of friars, now more commonly called a friary. Various religions may apply these terms in specific ways. The earliest extant use of the term monastērion is by the 1st century AD Jewish philosopher Philo in On The Contemplative Life, in England the word monastery was also applied to the habitation of a bishop and the cathedral clergy who lived apart from the lay community. Most cathedrals were not monasteries, and were served by canons secular, however, some were run by monasteries orders, such as York Minster. Westminster Abbey was for a time a cathedral, and was a Benedictine monastery until the Reformation. They are also to be distinguished from collegiate churches, such as St Georges Chapel, in most of this article, the term monastery is used generically to refer to any of a number of types of religious community. In the Roman Catholic religion and to some extent in certain branches of Buddhism, there is a more specific definition of the term. Buddhist monasteries are generally called vihara, viharas may be occupied by males or females, and in keeping with common English usage, a vihara populated by females may often be called a nunnery or a convent. However, vihara can also refer to a temple, in Tibetan Buddhism, monasteries are often called gompa. In Thailand, Laos and Cambodia, a monastery is called a wat, in Burma, a monastery is called a kyaung. A Christian monastery may be an abbey, or a priory and it may be a community of men or of women. A charterhouse is any monastery belonging to the Carthusian order, in Eastern Christianity, a very small monastic community can be called a skete, and a very large or important monastery can be given the dignity of a lavra. The great communal life of a Christian monastery is called cenobitic, as opposed to the life of an anchorite. In Hinduism monasteries are called matha, mandir, koil, or most commonly an ashram, jains use the Buddhist term vihara
4.
Saint Joachim
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Joachim was the husband of Saint Anne and the father of Mary, the mother of Jesus, according to the Catholic, Orthodox, and Anglican traditions. The story of Joachim and Anne first appears in the apocryphal Gospel of James, Joachim and Anne are not mentioned in the Bible. His feast day is July 26, according to tradition, Saint Anne was born in Bethlehem, and married Joachim of Nazareth, both descendants of David. In the Protoevangelium of James, Joachim is described as a rich and pious man, tradition has it that the parents of the Blessed Virgin, who, apparently, first lived in Galilee, came later on to settle in Jerusalem. However, the high priest rejected Joachim and his sacrifice, as their childlessness was interpreted as a sign of divine displeasure, Joachim consequently withdrew to the desert where he fasted and did penance for forty days. Angels then appeared to both Joachim and Anne to promise them a child, Joachim later returned to Jerusalem and embraced Anne at the city gate. There was ancient belief that a child born of a mother who had given up hope of having offspring was destined for great things. Parallels occur in the Old Testament in the case of Hannah, Joachim and Anne Meeting at the Golden Gate was a popular subject in artistic renditions of the Life of the Virgin. The cycle of legends concerning Joachim and Anne were included in the Golden Legend, no liturgical celebration of Saint Joachim was included in the Tridentine Calendar. It was added to the General Roman Calendar in 1584, for celebration on March 20, in 1738, it was transferred to the Sunday after the Octave of the Assumption of Mary. It was then celebrated as a Double of the 2nd Class, in the 1969 revision of the General Roman Calendar it was joined to that of Anne, for celebration on July 26. The Eastern Orthodox Churches and Greek Catholics commemorate Joachim on September 9, the Synaxis of Joachim and Anne, in the Quran, Joachim is known as Imran, the father of Maryam. The name is mentioned in several locations and it is said that his family was one of those preferred over all of Gods creatures, St. Joachim is named as the patron of fathers, grandfathers, grandparents, married couples, cabinet makers and linen traders. Symbols associated with Saint Joachim include, a book or scroll representing linen makers, a staff for the Christian word. He is almost always clothed in green, the color of hope, the San Joaquin Valley, California was named after the San Joaquin river, which was given its name in the early 19th century by the Spanish explorer Lieutenant Gabriel Moraga. Saint of the Day, Lives, Lessons, and Feast, Franciscan Media ISBN 978-0-86716-887-7 St. Joachim, Father of the Virgin at the Christian Iconography web site
5.
Saint Anne
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Saint Anne of Davids house and line, was the mother of Mary and grandmother of Jesus according to apocryphal Christian and Islamic tradition. Marys mother is not named in the gospels, nor in the Quran. Annes name and that of her husband Joachim come only from New Testament apocrypha, the story bears a similarity to that of the birth of Samuel, whose mother Hannah had also been childless. Although Anne receives little attention in the Latin Church prior to the late 12th century, in the Eastern Orthodox Churches and Eastern Catholic Churches, she is revered as Hannah. The Dormition of Hannah is also a minor feast in Eastern Christianity, in Protestantism, it is held that Martin Luther chose to enter religious life as a Augustinian monk after crying out to St. Anne. Anne is also revered in Islam, recognised as a spiritual woman. The Quran describes her as the daughter of Faqud who remained childless until her old age, one day, Hannah saw a bird feeding its young while sitting in the shade of a tree, which awakened her desire to have children of her own. She prayed for a child and eventually conceived, her husband, Imran, expecting the child to be male, Hannah vowed to dedicate him to isolation and service in the Second Temple. However, Hannah bore a daughter instead, and named her Mary. Her words upon delivering Mary reflect her status as a mystic, realising that while she had wanted a son, this daughter was Gods gift to her, Then. Truly, I brought her forth, a female, and God is greater in knowledge of what she brought forth. And the male is not like the female, so her Lord received her with the very best acceptance. And her bringing forth caused the very best to develop in her, so her Lord received her with the very best acceptance. And her bringing forth caused the very best to develop in her, the oldest and most influential source for these is the apocryphal Gospel of James, first written in Greek around the middle of the second century. Ancient belief, attested to by a sermon of John of Damascus, was that Anne married once, the sister of Saint Anne was Sobe, who was the mother of Elizabeth. Adherents included the 16th century Lutheran mystic Valentin Weigel, who claimed Anne conceived Mary by the power of the Holy Spirit rather than conventional conjugal relations and this belief was condemned as an error by the Catholic Church in 1677. In the fifteenth century, the Catholic cleric Johann Eck related in a sermon that St Annes parents were named Stollanus, the Catholic Encyclopedia regards this genealogy as spurious. In the Eastern church, the cult of Anne herself may go back as far as c,550, when Justinian built a church in Constantinople in her honor
6.
Valladolid
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Valladolid is a city in Spain and the de facto capital of the autonomous community of Castile and León. It has a population of 309,714 people, making it Spains 13th most populous municipality and its metropolitan area ranks 20th in Spain with a population of 414,244 people in 23 municipalities. The city is situated at the confluence of the Pisuerga and Esgueva rivers, and located within five winegrowing regions, Ribera del Duero, Rueda, Toro, Tierra de León, Valladolid was originally settled in pre-Roman times by the Celtic Vaccaei people, and later the Romans themselves. It remained a settlement until being re-established by King Alfonso VI of Castile as a Lordship for the Count Pedro Ansúrez in 1072. The Catholic Monarchs, Isabel I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon, married in Valladolid in 1469 and established it as the capital of the Kingdom of Castile and later of united Spain. Christopher Columbus died in Valladolid in 1506, while authors Francisco de Quevedo, the city was briefly the capital of Habsburg Spain under Phillip III between 1601 and 1606, before returning indefinitely to Madrid. The city then declined until the arrival of the railway in the 19th century, among the events that are held each year in the city there is Holy Week, Valladolid International Film Week, and the Theatre Festival and street arts. There is no evidence for the origin of the modern name of Valladolid. Another theory suggests that the name derives from the Arabic expression Ballad Al-Walid بلد الوليد, yet a third claims that it derives from Vallis Olivetum, meaning valley of the olives. In texts from the ages the town is called Vallisoletum, meaning sunny valley. The city is popularly called Pucela, a nickname whose origin is not clear. Another theory is that Pucela comes from the fact that Pozzolana cement was sold there, the Vaccaei was a Celtic tribe, the first people with stable presence on the sector of the middle valley of the River Duero documented in historical times. Remains of Celtiberian and of a Roman camp have been excavated near the city, the nucleus of the city was originally located in the area of the current San Miguel y el Rosarillo square, and was surrounded by a palisade. Archaeological proofs of the existence of three ancient lines of walls have been found, the area was captured from the Moors in the 10th century, and Valladolid was a village until King Alfonso VI of León and Castile donated it to Count Pedro Ansúrez in 1072. He built a palace for himself and his wife, Countess Eylo, the Collegiate of St. Mary, in 1469 Queen Isabella I of Castile and King Ferdinand of Aragon were married in the city, by the 15th century Valladolid was the residence of the kings of Castile. In 1506 Christopher Columbus died in Valladolid still convinced that he had reached the Indies in a house that is now a Museum dedicated to him and it was made the capital of the kingdom again between 1601 and 1606 by Philip III. The city was damaged by a flood of the rivers Pisuerga. Despite the damage to the old city by the 1960s economic boom, the Science Museum is next to the river Pisuerga
7.
Jesus
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Jesus, also referred to as Jesus of Nazareth or Jesus Christ, was a Jewish preacher and religious leader who became the central figure of Christianity. Christians believe him to be the Son of God and the awaited Messiah prophesied in the Old Testament, Jesus was a Galilean Jew who was baptized by John the Baptist and subsequently began his own ministry, preaching his message orally and often being referred to as rabbi. He was arrested and tried by the Jewish authorities, and was crucified by the order of Pontius Pilate, Jesus debated fellow Jews on how to best follow God, performed healings, taught in parables and gathered followers. After his death, his followers believed he rose from the dead, and his birth is celebrated annually on December 25 as a holiday known as Christmas, his crucifixion is honored on Good Friday, and his resurrection is celebrated on Easter. The widely used calendar era AD, from the Latin anno Domini, most Christians believe Jesus enables humans to be reconciled to God. The Nicene Creed asserts that Jesus will judge the living and the dead either before or after their bodily resurrection, the great majority of Christians worship Jesus as the incarnation of God the Son, the second of three persons of a Divine Trinity. A minority of Christian denominations reject Trinitarianism, wholly or partly, in Islam, Jesus is considered one of Gods important prophets and the Messiah. Muslims believe Jesus was a bringer of scripture and was born of a virgin but was not the Son of God, the Quran states that Jesus himself never claimed divinity. To most Muslims, Jesus was not crucified but was raised into Heaven by God. Judaism rejects the belief that Jesus was the awaited Messiah, arguing that he did not fulfill Messianic prophecies, a typical Jew in Jesus time had only one name, sometimes supplemented with the fathers name or the individuals hometown. Thus, in the New Testament, Jesus is commonly referred to as Jesus of Nazareth, Jesus neighbors in Nazareth refer to him as the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon, the carpenters son, or Josephs son. In John, the disciple Philip refers to him as Jesus son of Joseph from Nazareth, the name Jesus is derived from the Latin Iesus, a transliteration of the Greek Ἰησοῦς. The Greek form is a rendering of the Hebrew ישוע, a variant of the earlier name יהושע, the name Yeshua appears to have been in use in Judea at the time of the birth of Jesus. The 1st century works of historian Flavius Josephus, who wrote in Koine Greek, the etymology of Jesus name in the context of the New Testament is generally given as Yahweh is salvation. Since early Christianity, Christians have commonly referred to Jesus as Jesus Christ, the word Christ is derived from the Greek Χριστός, which is a translation of the Hebrew משיח, meaning the anointed and usually transliterated into English as Messiah. Christians designate Jesus as Christ because they believe he is the Messiah, whose arrival is prophesied in the Hebrew Bible, in postbiblical usage, Christ became viewed as a name—one part of Jesus Christ—but originally it was a title. The term Christian has been in use since the 1st century, the four canonical gospels are the only substantial sources for the life and message of Jesus. Acts of the Apostles refers to the ministry of Jesus
8.
Harrowing of Hell
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After his death, the soul of Jesus was supposed to have descended into the realm of the dead, which the Apostles Creed calls hell in the old English usage. The realm into which Jesus descended is called Sheol or Limbo by some Christian theologians to distinguish it from the hell of the damned, the Harrowing of Hell is referred to in the Apostles Creed and the Athanasian Creed which state that Jesus Christ descended into Hell. Christ having descended to the underworld is alluded to in the New Testament in 1 Peter 3, 19–20 and this near-absence in Scripture has given rise to controversy and differing interpretations. The descent into hell had been related in Old English poems connected with the names of Cædmon and it is subsequently repeated in Aelfrics homilies c.1000 AD, which is the first known inclusion of the word harrowing. Middle English dramatic literature contains the fullest and most dramatic development of the subject, as an image in Christian art, the harrowing is also known as the Anastasis, considered a creation of Byzantine culture and first appearing in the West in the early 8th century. The Greek wording in the Apostles Creed is κατελθόντα εἰς τὰ κατώτατα, the Greek τὰ κατώτατα and the Latin inferos may also be translated as underworld, netherworld, or abode of the dead. The word harrow comes from the Old English hergian meaning to harry or despoil and is seen in the homilies of Aelfric, in Classical mythology Hades is the underworld inhabited by departed souls and the god Pluto is its ruler. The New Testament uses the term Hades to refer to the abode or state of the dead, in some places it seems to represent a neutral place where the dead awaited the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. Several passages from the New Testament have been taken by some to imply that Christ descended into this realm of the dead to bring the righteous ones to Heaven. Other New Testament passages imply it is a place of torment for the unrighteous, matthew 16,18, And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. Luke 10,15, And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, luke 16,23, And being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. Acts 2,27, For You will not leave my soul in Hades, Acts 2,31. he, foreseeing this, spoke concerning the resurrection of the Christ, that His soul was not left in Hades, nor did His flesh see corruption. 1 Corinthians 15,55, “O Death, where is your sting, O Hades, where is your victory. ”Revelation 1,18, I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. And I have the keys of Hades and of Death, revelation 6,8, So I looked, and behold, a pale horse. And the name of him who sat on it was Death, and power was given to them over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword, with hunger, with death, and by the beasts of the earth. Revelation 20,13, The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and they were judged, each one according to his works. Revelation 20,14, Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire, in it only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water. In the original Greek, εἰς τοῦτο γὰρ καὶ νεκροῖς εὐηγγελίσθη…) Ephesians 4, 7-10 NIV and this is why it says, When he ascended on high, he took many captives and gave gifts to his people
9.
Easter
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It is the culmination of the Passion of Jesus, preceded by Lent, a forty-day period of fasting, prayer, and penance. In Western Christianity, Eastertide, or the Easter Season, begins on Easter Sunday and lasts seven weeks, ending with the coming of the fiftieth day, Pentecost Sunday. In Eastern Christianity, the season of Pascha begins on Pascha and ends with the coming of the fortieth day, the Feast of the Ascension. The First Council of Nicaea established two rules, independence of the Jewish calendar and worldwide uniformity, which were the rules for Easter explicitly laid down by the council. No details for the computation were specified, these were worked out in practice and it has come to be the first Sunday after the ecclesiastical full moon that occurs on or soonest after 21 March, but calculations vary. Easter is linked to the Jewish Passover by much of its symbolism, in many languages, the words for Easter and Passover are identical or very similar. Easter customs vary across the Christian world, and include services, exclaiming the Paschal greeting, clipping the church. The Easter lily, a symbol of the resurrection, traditionally decorates the area of churches on this day. Additional customs that have associated with Easter and are observed by both Christians and some non-Christians include egg hunting, the Easter Bunny, and Easter parades. There are also various traditional Easter foods that vary regionally, however, it is possible that Bede was only speculating about the origin of the term since there is no firm evidence that such a goddess actually existed. In Greek and Latin, the Christian celebration was, and still is, called Πάσχα, Pascha, the word originally denoted the Jewish festival known in English as Passover, commemorating the Jewish Exodus from slavery in Egypt. In most of the non-English speaking world, the feast is known by names derived from Greek, Pascha is also a name by which Jesus himself is remembered in the Orthodox Church, especially in connection with his resurrection and with the season of its celebration. The New Testament states that the resurrection of Jesus, which Easter celebrates, is a foundation of the Christian faith, the resurrection established Jesus as the powerful Son of God and is cited as proof that God will judge the world in righteousness. For those who trust in Jesus death and resurrection, death is swallowed up in victory, any person who chooses to follow Jesus receives a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. Through faith in the working of God those who follow Jesus are spiritually resurrected with him so that they may walk in a new way of life and receive eternal salvation. Easter is linked to the Passover and Exodus from Egypt recorded in the Old Testament through the Last Supper, sufferings and crucifixion of Jesus that preceded the resurrection. According to the New Testament, Jesus gave the Passover meal a new meaning, as in the room during the Last Supper he prepared himself. He identified the matzah and cup of wine as his soon to be sacrificed
10.
Latin language
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Latin is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. The Latin alphabet is derived from the Etruscan and Greek alphabets, Latin was originally spoken in Latium, in the Italian Peninsula. Through the power of the Roman Republic, it became the dominant language, Vulgar Latin developed into the Romance languages, such as Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, French, and Romanian. Latin, Italian and French have contributed many words to the English language, Latin and Ancient Greek roots are used in theology, biology, and medicine. By the late Roman Republic, Old Latin had been standardised into Classical Latin, Vulgar Latin was the colloquial form spoken during the same time and attested in inscriptions and the works of comic playwrights like Plautus and Terence. Late Latin is the language from the 3rd century. Later, Early Modern Latin and Modern Latin evolved, Latin was used as the language of international communication, scholarship, and science until well into the 18th century, when it began to be supplanted by vernaculars. Ecclesiastical Latin remains the language of the Holy See and the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church. Today, many students, scholars and members of the Catholic clergy speak Latin fluently and it is taught in primary, secondary and postsecondary educational institutions around the world. The language has been passed down through various forms, some inscriptions have been published in an internationally agreed, monumental, multivolume series, the Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum. Authors and publishers vary, but the format is about the same, volumes detailing inscriptions with a critical apparatus stating the provenance, the reading and interpretation of these inscriptions is the subject matter of the field of epigraphy. The works of several hundred ancient authors who wrote in Latin have survived in whole or in part and they are in part the subject matter of the field of classics. The Cat in the Hat, and a book of fairy tales, additional resources include phrasebooks and resources for rendering everyday phrases and concepts into Latin, such as Meissners Latin Phrasebook. The Latin influence in English has been significant at all stages of its insular development. From the 16th to the 18th centuries, English writers cobbled together huge numbers of new words from Latin and Greek words, dubbed inkhorn terms, as if they had spilled from a pot of ink. Many of these words were used once by the author and then forgotten, many of the most common polysyllabic English words are of Latin origin through the medium of Old French. Romance words make respectively 59%, 20% and 14% of English, German and those figures can rise dramatically when only non-compound and non-derived words are included. Accordingly, Romance words make roughly 35% of the vocabulary of Dutch, Roman engineering had the same effect on scientific terminology as a whole
11.
Holy Week
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Holy Week in Christianity is the week just before Easter. In the West, it is also the last week of Lent, and includes Palm Sunday, Holy Wednesday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday. It does not include Easter Sunday, although traditions observing the Easter Triduum may overlap or displace part of Holy Week or Easter itself within that additional liturgical period, Holy Week in the Christian year is the week immediately before Easter. In this text, abstinence from flesh is commanded for all the days, dionysius Alexandrinus in his canonical epistle, refers to the 91 fasting days implying that the observance of them had already become an established usage in his time. The Codex Theodosianus, however, is explicit in ordering that all actions at law should cease, of the particular days of the great week the earliest to emerge into special prominence was naturally Good Friday. Next came the Sabbatum Magnum with its vigil, which in the church was associated with an expectation that the second advent would occur on an Easter Sunday. Other writings that refer to related traditions of the early Church include, most notably, The Pilgrimage of Etheria, today, in the Western Christian Church, among Lutherans, Anglicans, Methodists, Presbyterians and Roman Catholics, the liturgies used for Holy Week are nearly identical. Holy Week begins with Palm Sunday, which may also be known as Passion Sunday in some denominations, traditionally, Palm Sunday commemorates the Triumphal entry into Jerusalem, one of the few events described in all four canonical gospels. As described in the accounts, Jesuss entry into Jerusalem was noted by the present who shouted praises. In the Roman Rite, before 1955 it was simply as Palm Sunday. From 1955 to 1971 it was called Second Sunday in Passiontide or Palm Sunday, among Lutherans and Anglicans, the day is known as the Sunday of the Passion, Palm Sunday. In many liturgical denominations, to commemorate the Messiahs entry into Jerusalem to accomplish his paschal mystery, immediately following this great time of celebration over the entrance of Jesus into Jerusalem, he begins his journey to the cross. The blessing is followed by a procession or solemn entrance into the church. The Mass or service of worship includes a reading of the Passion. The palms were then blessed with five prayers, and a procession went out of the church and on its return included a ceremony for the reopening of the doors, after this the normal Mass was celebrated. The days between Palm Sunday and Holy Thursday are known as Holy Monday, Holy Tuesday, and Holy Wednesday. Among them On Monday, some observe the anointing of Jesus at Bethany, other events which the Gospels tell of which may have occurred on this day include cursing the fig tree and the Cleansing of the Temple. On Tuesday, some observe Jesus predictions of his own death, as described in, on Wednesday, some observe the story of Judas arranging his betrayal of Jesus with the high priests
12.
Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria
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The Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria is the largest Christian Church in Egypt, Northeast Africa and the Middle East. According to tradition, the Church was established by Saint Mark, the head of the Church and the See of Alexandria is the Patriarch of Alexandria on the Holy See of Saint Mark, who also carries the title of Coptic Pope. The See of Alexandria is titular, and today the Coptic Pope presides from Saint Marks Coptic Orthodox Cathedral in the Abbassia District in Cairo. The precise Christological differences that caused the split with the Coptic Christians are still disputed, highly technical, the foundational roots of the Coptic Church are based in Egypt, but it has a worldwide following. Isaiah the prophet, in Chapter 19, Verse 19 says In that day there will be an altar to the LORD in the midst of the land of Egypt, the first Christians in Egypt were common people who spoke Egyptian Coptic. There were also Alexandrian Jews such as Theophilus, whom Saint Luke the Evangelist addresses in the chapter of his gospel. When the church was founded by Saint Mark during the reign of the Roman emperor Nero, in the 2nd century, Christianity began to spread to the rural areas, and scriptures were translated into the local languages, namely Coptic. The Catechetical School of Alexandria is the oldest catechetical school in the world, St. Jerome records that the Christian School of Alexandria was founded by Saint Mark himself. Origen wrote over 6,000 commentaries of the Bible in addition to his famous Hexapla, many scholars such as Jerome visited the school of Alexandria to exchange ideas and to communicate directly with its scholars. The scope of this school was not limited to subjects, science, mathematics. The question-and-answer method of commentary began there, and 15 centuries before Braille, wood-carving techniques were in use there by blind scholars to read, the Theological college of the catechetical school was re-established in 1893. Many Egyptian Christians went to the desert during the 3rd century, by the end of the 5th century, there were hundreds of monasteries, and thousands of cells and caves scattered throughout the Egyptian desert. A great number of these monasteries are still flourishing and have new vocations to this day, countless pilgrims have visited the Desert Fathers to emulate their spiritual, disciplined lives. In the 4th century, an Alexandrian presbyter named Arius began a dispute about the nature of Christ that spread throughout the Christian world and is now known as Arianism. We confess one Baptism for the remission of sins and we look for the resurrection of the dead, as a consequence of this, he denied the title Mother of God to the Virgin Mary, declaring her instead to be Mother of Christ Christotokos. When reports of this reached the Apostolic Throne of Saint Mark, Pope Saint Cyril I of Alexandria acted quickly to correct this breach with orthodoxy, when he would not, the Synod of Alexandria met in an emergency session and a unanimous agreement was reached. Pope Cyril I of Alexandria, supported by the entire See and this epistle drew heavily on the established Patristic Constitutions and contained the most famous article of Alexandrian Orthodoxy, The Twelve Anathemas of Saint Cyril. In these anathemas, Cyril excommunicated anyone who followed the teachings of Nestorius, for example, Anyone who dares to deny the Holy Virgin the title Theotokos is Anathema
13.
Good Friday
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Good Friday is a Christian holiday commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus Christ and his death at Calvary. It is observed during Holy Week as part of the Paschal Triduum on the Friday preceding Easter Sunday and it is also known as Holy Friday, Great Friday, Black Friday, or Easter Friday, though the last term properly refers to the Friday in Easter week. The date of the holiday on the Gregorian calendar varies from one year to the next and it is a widely instituted legal holiday in many national governments around the world, including in most Western countries as well as in 12 U. S. states. Some countries, such as Germany, have laws prohibiting certain acts, such as dancing and horse racing, the etymology of the term good in the context of Good Friday is contested. Some sources claim good to mean pious or holy, while others contend that it is a corruption of God Friday. In German-speaking countries, Good Friday is generally referred to as Karfreitag, the Kar prefix is an ancestor of the English word care in the sense of cares and woes, it meant mourning. The day is known as Stiller Freitag and Hoher Freitag. According to the accounts in the Gospels, the Temple Guards, guided by Jesus disciple Judas Iscariot, Judas received money for betraying Jesus and told the guards that whomever he kisses is the one they are to arrest. Following his arrest, Jesus was taken to the house of Annas, there he was interrogated with little result and sent bound to Caiaphas the high priest where the Sanhedrin had assembled. Conflicting testimony against Jesus was brought forth by many witnesses, to which Jesus answered nothing. Finally the high priest adjured Jesus to respond under solemn oath, saying I adjure you, by the Living God, to us, are you the Anointed One. Jesus testified ambiguously, You have said it, and in time you see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of the Almighty. The high priest condemned Jesus for blasphemy, and the Sanhedrin concurred with a sentence of death, Peter, waiting in the courtyard, also denied Jesus three times to bystanders while the interrogations were proceeding just as Jesus had predicted. In the morning, the assembly brought Jesus to the Roman governor Pontius Pilate under charges of subverting the nation, opposing taxes to Caesar. Pilate questioned Jesus and told the assembly there was no basis for sentencing. Upon learning that Jesus was from Galilee, Pilate referred the case to the ruler of Galilee, King Herod, Herod questioned Jesus but received no answer, Herod sent Jesus back to Pilate. Pilate told the assembly that neither he nor Herod found guilt in Jesus, under the guidance of the chief priests, the crowd asked for Barabbas, who had been imprisoned for committing murder during an insurrection. Pilate asked what they would have him do with Jesus, and they demanded, pilates wife had seen Jesus in a dream earlier that day, and she forewarned Pilate to have nothing to do with this righteous man
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Holy Sepulchre
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The Church of the Holy Sepulchre is a church in the Christian Quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem, a few steps away from the Muristan. The tomb is enclosed by the 18th-century shrine, called the Aedicule, within the church proper are the last four Stations of the Via Dolorosa, representing the final episodes of Jesus Passion. The main denominations sharing property over parts of the church are the Greek Orthodox, Armenian Orthodox and Roman Catholic, and to a lesser degree the Egyptian Copts, Syriacs and Ethiopians. According to Eusebius of Caesarea, the Roman emperor Hadrian in the 2nd century AD built a dedicated to the goddess Venus in order to bury the cave in which Jesus had been buried. The first Christian emperor, Constantine the Great, ordered in about 325/326 that the temple be replaced by a church, during the building of the Church, Constantines mother, Helena, is believed to have rediscovered the tomb. Socrates Scholasticus, in his Ecclesiastical History, gives a description of the discovery. The remains are enveloped by a marble sheath placed some 500 years before to protect the ledge from Ottoman attacks. However, there are several thick window wells extending through the marble sheath and they appear to reveal an underlying limestone rock, which may be part of the original living rock of the tomb. The church was starting in 325/326, and was consecrated on 13 September 335. From pilgrim reports it seems that the housing the tomb of Jesus was freestanding at first. Each year, the Eastern Orthodox Church celebrates the anniversary of the consecration of the Church of the Resurrection on 13 September and this building was damaged by fire in May of 614 when the Sassanid Empire, under Khosrau II, invaded Jerusalem and captured the True Cross. In 630, the Emperor Heraclius restored it and rebuilt the church after recapturing the city, after Jerusalem came under Arab rule, it remained a Christian church, with the early Muslim rulers protecting the citys Christian sites. A story reports that the Caliph Umar ibn al-Khattab visited the church and stopped to pray on the balcony and he feared that future generations would misinterpret this gesture, taking it as a pretext to turn the church into a mosque. Eutychius added that Umar wrote a decree prohibiting Muslims from praying at this location, the building suffered severe damage due to an earthquake in 746. Early in the century, another earthquake damaged the dome of the Anastasis. The damage was repaired in 810 by Patriarch Thomas, in the year 841, the church suffered a fire. In 935, the Orthodox Christians prevented the construction of a Muslim mosque adjacent the Church, in 938, a new fire damaged the inside of the basilica and came close to the rotunda. In 966, due to a defeat of Muslim armies in the region of Syria, the doors and roof were burnt, and the Patriarch John VII was murdered
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Eastern Orthodoxy
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The Eastern Orthodox Church teaches that it is the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church established by Jesus Christ in his Great Commission to the apostles. It practices what it understands to be the original Christian faith, the Eastern Orthodox Church is a communion of autocephalous churches, each typically governed by a Holy Synod. It teaches that all bishops are equal by virtue of their ordination, prior to the Council of Chalcedon in AD451, the Eastern Orthodox had also shared communion with the Oriental Orthodox churches, separating primarily over differences in Christology. Eastern Orthodoxy spread throughout the Roman and later Eastern Roman Empires and beyond, playing a prominent role in European, Near Eastern, Slavic, and some African cultures. As a result, the term Greek Orthodox has sometimes used to describe all of Eastern Orthodoxy in general. However, the appellation Greek was never in use and was gradually abandoned by the non-Greek-speaking Eastern Orthodox churches. Its most prominent episcopal see is Constantinople, there are also many in other parts of the world, formed through immigration, conversion and missionary activity. The official name of the Eastern Orthodox Church is the Orthodox Catholic Church and it is the name by which the church refers to itself in its liturgical or canonical texts, in official publications, and in official contexts or administrative documents. Orthodox teachers refer to the Church as Catholic and this name and longer variants containing Catholic are also recognized and referenced in other books and publications by secular or non-Orthodox writers. The common name of the Church, Eastern Orthodox Church, is a shortened practicality that helps to avoid confusions in casual use, for this reason, the eastern churches were sometimes identified as Greek, even before the great schism. After 1054, Greek Orthodox or Greek Catholic marked a church as being in communion with Constantinople and this identification with Greek, however, became increasingly confusing with time. Missionaries brought Orthodoxy to many regions without ethnic Greeks, where the Greek language was not spoken. Today, many of those same Roman churches remain, while a large number of Orthodox are not of Greek national origin. Eastern, then, indicates the element in the Churchs origin and development, while Orthodox indicates the faith. While the Church continues officially to call itself Catholic, for reasons of universality, the first known use of the phrase the catholic church occurred in a letter written about 110 AD from one Greek church to another. Quote of St Ignatius to the Smyrnaeans, Wheresoever the bishop shall appear, there let the people be, even as where Jesus may be, thus, almost from the very beginning, Christians referred to the Church as the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church. The Orthodox Church claims that it is today the continuation and preservation of that same Church, a number of other Christian churches also make a similar claim, the Roman Catholic Church, the Anglican Communion, the Assyrian Church and the Oriental Orthodox Churches. The Church of England separated from the Roman Catholic Church, not directly from the Orthodox Church, the depth of this meaning in the Orthodox Church is registered first in its use of the word Orthodox itself, a union of Greek orthos and doxa
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Biblical Sabbath
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Biblical Sabbath is a weekly day of rest or time of worship given in the Bible as the seventh day. It is observed differently in Judaism and Christianity and informs a similar occasion in other faiths. Though many viewpoints and definitions have arisen over the millennia, most originate in the textual tradition of Remember the sabbath day. Observation and remembrance of Sabbath is one of the Ten Commandments, the Anglicized term Sabbath is in Hebrew Shabbath, meaning day of rest. It derives from the verb shavath of same Hebrew spelling but different pointing, defined as repose, Shabbath is the intensified form and is used only for a weekly cessation,107 times in the Tanakh. The name form is Shabbethai, a name appearing three times in the Tanakh, the Talmud also contains a pun on shebeth, where it secondarily means dill, a spice. Another related word is modern Hebrew shevita, a labor strike, and in over thirty languages other than English, the common name for Saturday is a cognate of Sabbath. A cognate Babylonian Sapattum or Sabattum is reconstructed from the lost fifth Enûma Eliš creation account and it is regarded as a form of Sumerian sa-bat, rendered in Akkadian as um nuh libbi. The dependent Greek cognate is Sabbaton, used in the New Testament 68 times, two inflections, Hebrew Shabbathown and Greek σαββατισμός, are both translated sabbatism in Strongs. The Hebrew form refers to High Sabbaths, the Greek form is cognate to the Septuagint verb sabbatizo. In English, the concept of Sabbatical is cognate to two forms. The King James Bible uses the English form sabbath 172 times, in the Old Testament, sabbath translates Shabbath all 107 times, plus shebeth three times, shabath once, and the related mishbath once. In the New Testament, sabbath translates Sabbaton 59 times and prosabbaton once, Sabbaton is also translated as week nine times, during Shmita, the land is left to lie fallow and all agricultural activity—including plowing, planting, pruning and harvesting—is forbidden by Torah and Jewish law. A variety of laws also apply to the sale, consumption, when the year ended, all debts, except those of foreigners, were to be remitted, in similar fashion, Torah requires a slave who had worked for six years to go free in the seventh year. Leviticus 25 promises bountiful harvests to those who observe Shmita, the term Shmita is translated release five times in the Book of Deuteronomy. Book of Genesis, In 1, 1-2,4, God creates the heavens and earth in six days and rests on the seventh day, which he thus confers with special status. So God blessed the day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in Creation. —Gen.2,3 This passage uses root form shabath, rather than intensified form Shabbath, in 8,4, Noahs ark comes to rest in the seventh month, here the word for rest is not shabath but its synonym nuwach, the root of Noahs name
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Harrowing of Hades
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After his death, the soul of Jesus was supposed to have descended into the realm of the dead, which the Apostles Creed calls hell in the old English usage. The realm into which Jesus descended is called Sheol or Limbo by some Christian theologians to distinguish it from the hell of the damned, the Harrowing of Hell is referred to in the Apostles Creed and the Athanasian Creed which state that Jesus Christ descended into Hell. Christ having descended to the underworld is alluded to in the New Testament in 1 Peter 3, 19–20 and this near-absence in Scripture has given rise to controversy and differing interpretations. The descent into hell had been related in Old English poems connected with the names of Cædmon and it is subsequently repeated in Aelfrics homilies c.1000 AD, which is the first known inclusion of the word harrowing. Middle English dramatic literature contains the fullest and most dramatic development of the subject, as an image in Christian art, the harrowing is also known as the Anastasis, considered a creation of Byzantine culture and first appearing in the West in the early 8th century. The Greek wording in the Apostles Creed is κατελθόντα εἰς τὰ κατώτατα, the Greek τὰ κατώτατα and the Latin inferos may also be translated as underworld, netherworld, or abode of the dead. The word harrow comes from the Old English hergian meaning to harry or despoil and is seen in the homilies of Aelfric, in Classical mythology Hades is the underworld inhabited by departed souls and the god Pluto is its ruler. The New Testament uses the term Hades to refer to the abode or state of the dead, in some places it seems to represent a neutral place where the dead awaited the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. Several passages from the New Testament have been taken by some to imply that Christ descended into this realm of the dead to bring the righteous ones to Heaven. Other New Testament passages imply it is a place of torment for the unrighteous, matthew 16,18, And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. Luke 10,15, And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, luke 16,23, And being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. Acts 2,27, For You will not leave my soul in Hades, Acts 2,31. he, foreseeing this, spoke concerning the resurrection of the Christ, that His soul was not left in Hades, nor did His flesh see corruption. 1 Corinthians 15,55, “O Death, where is your sting, O Hades, where is your victory. ”Revelation 1,18, I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. And I have the keys of Hades and of Death, revelation 6,8, So I looked, and behold, a pale horse. And the name of him who sat on it was Death, and power was given to them over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword, with hunger, with death, and by the beasts of the earth. Revelation 20,13, The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and they were judged, each one according to his works. Revelation 20,14, Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire, in it only a few people, eight in all, were saved through water. In the original Greek, εἰς τοῦτο γὰρ καὶ νεκροῖς εὐηγγελίσθη…) Ephesians 4, 7-10 NIV and this is why it says, When he ascended on high, he took many captives and gave gifts to his people
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Paradise
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Paradise is the term for a place of timeless harmony. Paradise is a place of contentment, a land of luxury, Paradise is often described as a higher place, the holiest place, in contrast to this world, or underworlds such as Hell. In eschatological contexts, paradise is imagined as an abode of the virtuous dead, in Christian and Islamic understanding, Heaven is a paradisaical relief. In old Egyptian beliefs, the otherworld is Aaru, the reed-fields of ideal hunting and fishing grounds where the dead lived after judgment, for the Celts, it was the Fortunate Isle of Mag Mell. For the classical Greeks, the Elysian fields was a land of plenty where the heroic. The Vedic Indians held that the body was destroyed by fire. In the Zoroastrian Avesta, the Best Existence and the House of Song are places of the righteous dead, on the other hand, in cosmological contexts paradise describes the world before it was tainted by evil. The concept is a theme in art and literature, particularly of the pre-Enlightenment era, the word paradise entered English from the French paradis, inherited from the Latin paradisus, from Greek parádeisos, from an Old Iranian *paridayda- walled enclosure. By the 6th/5th century BCE, the Old Iranian word had been adopted as Assyrian pardesu domain and it subsequently came to indicate the expansive walled gardens of the First Persian Empire. The term eventually appeared in Greek as parádeisos park for animals in the Anabasis of the early 4th century BCE Athenian Xenophon, aramaic pardaysa similarly reflects royal park. Hebrew פרדס appears thrice in the Tanakh, in the Song of Solomon 4,13, Ecclesiastes 2,5, in those contexts it could be interpreted as an orchard or a fruit garden. In the Septuagint, Greek παράδεισος parádeisos was used to translate both Hebrew pardes and Hebrew gan, garden, it is from this usage that the use of paradise to refer to the Garden of Eden derives. The same usage appears in Arabic and in the Quran as firdaws فردوس. The words etymology is derived from a PIE root *dheigʷ to stick. It is reflected in Avestan as pairi-daêza-, the literal meaning of this Eastern Old Iranian language word is walled, from pairi- around and -diz to make, form, build. The word is not attested in other Old Iranian languages, the idea of a walled enclosure was not preserved in most Iranian usage, and generally came to refer to a plantation or other cultivated area, not necessarily walled. For example, the Old Iranian word survives as Pardis in New Persian as well as its derivative pālīz, later in Second Temple era Judaism paradise came to be associated with the Garden of Eden and prophesies of restoration of Eden, and transferred to heaven. The Septuagint uses the word around 30 times, both of Eden, and of Eden restored, in the Apocalypse of Moses, Adam and Eve are expelled from paradise after having been tricked by the serpent
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Coptic Orthodox Church
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The Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria is the largest Christian Church in Egypt, Northeast Africa and the Middle East. According to tradition, the Church was established by Saint Mark, the head of the Church and the See of Alexandria is the Patriarch of Alexandria on the Holy See of Saint Mark, who also carries the title of Coptic Pope. The See of Alexandria is titular, and today the Coptic Pope presides from Saint Marks Coptic Orthodox Cathedral in the Abbassia District in Cairo. The precise Christological differences that caused the split with the Coptic Christians are still disputed, highly technical, the foundational roots of the Coptic Church are based in Egypt, but it has a worldwide following. Isaiah the prophet, in Chapter 19, Verse 19 says In that day there will be an altar to the LORD in the midst of the land of Egypt, the first Christians in Egypt were common people who spoke Egyptian Coptic. There were also Alexandrian Jews such as Theophilus, whom Saint Luke the Evangelist addresses in the chapter of his gospel. When the church was founded by Saint Mark during the reign of the Roman emperor Nero, in the 2nd century, Christianity began to spread to the rural areas, and scriptures were translated into the local languages, namely Coptic. The Catechetical School of Alexandria is the oldest catechetical school in the world, St. Jerome records that the Christian School of Alexandria was founded by Saint Mark himself. Origen wrote over 6,000 commentaries of the Bible in addition to his famous Hexapla, many scholars such as Jerome visited the school of Alexandria to exchange ideas and to communicate directly with its scholars. The scope of this school was not limited to subjects, science, mathematics. The question-and-answer method of commentary began there, and 15 centuries before Braille, wood-carving techniques were in use there by blind scholars to read, the Theological college of the catechetical school was re-established in 1893. Many Egyptian Christians went to the desert during the 3rd century, by the end of the 5th century, there were hundreds of monasteries, and thousands of cells and caves scattered throughout the Egyptian desert. A great number of these monasteries are still flourishing and have new vocations to this day, countless pilgrims have visited the Desert Fathers to emulate their spiritual, disciplined lives. In the 4th century, an Alexandrian presbyter named Arius began a dispute about the nature of Christ that spread throughout the Christian world and is now known as Arianism. We confess one Baptism for the remission of sins and we look for the resurrection of the dead, as a consequence of this, he denied the title Mother of God to the Virgin Mary, declaring her instead to be Mother of Christ Christotokos. When reports of this reached the Apostolic Throne of Saint Mark, Pope Saint Cyril I of Alexandria acted quickly to correct this breach with orthodoxy, when he would not, the Synod of Alexandria met in an emergency session and a unanimous agreement was reached. Pope Cyril I of Alexandria, supported by the entire See and this epistle drew heavily on the established Patristic Constitutions and contained the most famous article of Alexandrian Orthodoxy, The Twelve Anathemas of Saint Cyril. In these anathemas, Cyril excommunicated anyone who followed the teachings of Nestorius, for example, Anyone who dares to deny the Holy Virgin the title Theotokos is Anathema
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Ethiopian Orthodox Church
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The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church is the largest of the Oriental Orthodox Christian Churches. Ethiopia is the country only after Armenia to have officially proclaimed Christianity as state religion though some argue it may even be the first. The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church is a member of the World Council of Churches. Tewahedo is a Geez word meaning being made one and this word refers to the Oriental Orthodox belief in the one perfectly unified Nature of Christ, i. e. The Oriental Orthodox Churches adhere to a Miaphysitic Christological view followed by Cyril of Alexandria, according to these, both natures in Christ are perfectly preserved after the union in mia physis - One Nature, yet, not resulting in a distinct third Nature. Many traditions claim that Christian teachings were introduced to the immediately after Pentecost. John Chrysostom speaks of the Ethiopians present in Jerusalem as being able to understand the preaching of Saint Peter in Acts,2,38, possible missions of some of the Apostles in the lands now called Ethiopia is also reported as early as the 4th century. Ethiopian Church tradition tells that Bartholomew accompanied Matthew in a mission which lasted for at least 3 months, paintings depicting these missions are available in the Church of St. Matthew found in the Province of Pisa, in northern Italy portrayed by Francesco Trevisan and Marco Benefial. The earliest account of an Ethiopian converted to the faith in the New Testament books is a royal official baptized by Philip the Evangelist, then the angel of the Lord said to Philip, Start out and go south to the road that leads down from Jerusalem to Gaza. So he set out and was on his way when he caught sight of an Ethiopian and this man was a eunuch, a high official of the Kandake Queen of Ethiopia in charge of all her treasure. The passage continues by describing how Philip helped the Ethiopian treasurer understand a passage from Isaiah that the Ethiopian was reading, after Philip interpreted the passage as prophecy referring to Jesus Christ, the Ethiopian requested that Philip baptize him, and Philip did so. The Ethiopic version of this verse reads Hendeke, Queen Gersamot Hendeke VII was the Queen of Ethiopia from c.42 to 52, the same kind of witness is shared by 3rd and 4th century writers such as Eusebius of Caesarea and Origen of Alexandria. As a youth, Frumentius had been shipwrecked with his brother Aedesius on the Eritrean coast, the brothers managed to be brought to the royal court, where they rose to positions of influence and baptized Emperor Ezana. Ezana sent Frumentius to Alexandria to ask the Patriarch, St. Athanasius, Athanasius appointed Frumentius, who returned to Ethiopia as Bishop with the name of Abune Selama. From then on, until 1959, the Pope of Alexandria, as Patriarch of All Africa, union with the Coptic Orthodox Church continued after the Arab conquest of Egypt. Abu Saleh records in the 12th century that the patriarch sent letters twice a year to the kings of Abyssinia and Nubia. Cyril, 67th patriarch, sent Severus as bishop, with orders to put down polygamy and these examples show the close relations of the two churches throughout the Middle Ages. In 1439, in the reign of Zara Yaqob, a discussion between Abba Giyorgis and a French visitor led to the dispatch of an embassy from Ethiopia to the Vatican
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Eritrean Orthodox Church
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The Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church is an Oriental Orthodox church with its headquarters in Asmara, Eritrea. Its autocephaly was recognised by Pope Shenouda III of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria after Eritrea gained its independence in 1993, tewaḥido is a Geez word meaning being made one, cognate to Arabic tawhid. This separate Christian communion came to be known as Oriental Orthodoxy and these Churches themselves describe their Christology as miaphysite, but outsiders often incorrectly describe them as monophysite. Tewahedo Orthodoxy is an ethnoreligious group in Eritrea and the largest Christian group there. Christianity has been the majority religion since the 4th century and remains still the largest population, historically, they spoke Geez, which belongs to the Semitic branch of the Afroasiatic family. However, the language is now almost extinct, and has been limited to liturgical use since the 10th century. Most also adhere to the Tewahdo Orthodox Church, Tewahdo is an identity and a religion as well for the adherent of Eritrean Tewahdos. The Eritrean Orthodox Church claims its origins from Philip the Evangelist and it became the state church of the Kingdom of Aksum under Ezana in the 4th century through the efforts of a Syrian Greek named Frumentius, known in the church as Abba Selama, Kesate Birhan. As a boy, Frumentius had been shipwrecked with his brother Aedesius on the Eritrean coast, the brothers managed to be brought to the royal court, where they rose to positions of influence and converted Emperor Ezana to Christianity, causing him to be baptised. Ezana sent Frumentius to Alexandria to ask the Patriarch, Athanasius of Alexandria, Athanasius appointed Frumentius himself, who returned to Axum as Bishop with the name of Abune Selama. For fifteen centuries afterward, the pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria always named a Copt to be Abuna metropolitan bishop of the Ethiopian Church, little else is known of church history down to the period of Jesuit influence, which broke the connection with Egypt. Union with the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria continued even after Arab conquests in Egypt, abu Saleh records in the 12th century that the patriarch sent letters twice a year to the kings of Abyssinia and Nubia, until Al Hakim stopped the practice. Coptic patriarch Cyril II sent Severus as bishop, with orders to suppress the practice of polygamy and these examples show the close relations of the two churches concurrent with the Middle Ages. Early in the 16th century the church was brought under the influence of a Portuguese mission, in 1507 Matthew, an Armenian, had been sent as Ethiopian envoy to Portugal to ask aid against the Adal Sultanate. In 1520 an embassy under Rodrigo de Lima landed in Ethiopia, an account of the Portuguese mission, which remained for several years, was written by the chaplain, Francisco Álvares. Later, Ignatius of Loyola wished to essay the task of conversion, instead, the pope sent out João Nunes Barreto as Patriarch of the East Indies, with Andrés de Oviedo as bishop, and from Goa envoys went to Ethiopia. After repeated failures, some measure of success was achieved under Susenyos I and he then expelled the Society of Jesus in 1633, and in 1665 Fasilides ordered all Jesuit books be burned. In the 1920s the Italian colonial power in Eritrea started the first attempts to found a separate Eritrean Orthodox Church
22.
Anglican Communion
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The Anglican Communion is an international association of autonomous churches consisting of the Church of England and national and regional Anglican churches in full communion with it. Full participation in the life of each church is available to all communicant Anglicans. The Archbishop of Canterbury, Primate of All England, has a place of honour among the bishops of the Anglican churches and he is recognised as primus inter pares. The archbishop does not exercise authority in the provinces outside England, the churches of the Anglican Communion considers themselves to be part of the nicos one, holy, catholic and apostolic church and to be both Catholic and Reformed. For some adherents, Anglicanism represents a non-papal Catholicism, for others a form of Protestantism though without a dominant guiding figure such as Luther, Knox, Calvin, for others, their self-identity represents some combination of the two. The communion encompasses a spectrum of belief and practice including evangelical, liberal. With a membership estimated at around 85 million members, the Anglican Communion is the third largest Christian communion in the world, after the Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church. Some of these churches are known as Anglican, such as the Anglican Church of Canada, some, for example the Church of Ireland, the Scottish and American Episcopal churches, and some other associated churches have a separate name. The Anglican Communion has no legal existence nor any governing structure which might exercise authority over the member churches. There is an Anglican Communion Office in London, under the aegis of the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Communion is held together by a shared history, expressed in its ecclesiology, polity and ethos and also by participation in international consultative bodies. Early in its development, Anglicanism developed a vernacular prayer book, unlike other traditions, Anglicanism has never been governed by a magisterium nor by appeal to one founding theologian, nor by an extra-credal summary of doctrine. Instead, Anglicans have typically appealed to the Book of Common Prayer and its offshoots as a guide to Anglican theology and this had the effect of inculcating the principle of Lex orandi, lex credendi as the foundation of Anglican identity and confession. These parameters were most clearly articulated in the rubrics of the successive prayer books. With the expansion of the British Empire, and hence the growth of Anglicanism outside Great Britain and Ireland, the first major expression of this were the Lambeth Conferences of the communions bishops, first convened by Archbishop of Canterbury Charles Longley in 1869. One of the influential early resolutions of the conference was the so-called Chicago-Lambeth Quadrilateral of 1888. Its intent was to provide the basis for discussions of reunion with the Roman Catholic and Orthodox Churches, the Apostles Creed, as the Baptismal Symbol, and the Nicene Creed, as the sufficient statement of the Christian faith. The two Sacraments ordained by Christ Himself - Baptism and the Supper of the Lord - ministered with unfailing use of Christs Words of Institution, and of the elements ordained by Him. The Historic Episcopate, locally adapted in the methods of its administration to the needs of the nations
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Book of Common Prayer
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The original book, published in 1549, in the reign of Edward VI, was a product of the English Reformation following the break with Rome. Prayer books, unlike books of prayers, contain the words of structured services of worship, the work of 1549 was the first prayer book to include the complete forms of service for daily and Sunday worship in English. It also set out in full the propers, the collects, the 1549 book was soon succeeded by a more reformed revision in 1552 under the same editorial hand, that of Thomas Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury. It was used only for a few months, as after Edward VIs death in 1553, in 1604, James I ordered some further changes, the most significant of these being the addition to the Catechism of a section on the Sacraments. Following the tumultuous events leading to and including the English Civil War, a Book of Common Prayer with local variations is used in churches inside and outside the Anglican Communion in over 50 different countries and in over 150 different languages. In many parts of the world, other books have replaced it in weekly worship. Like the King James Version of the Bible and the works of Shakespeare, many words, the forms of parish worship in the late medieval church in England, which followed the Latin Roman Rite, varied according to local practice. By far the most common form, or use, found in Southern England was that of Sarum. There was no book, the services that would be provided by the Book of Common Prayer were to be found in the Missal, the Breviary, Manual. The chant for worship was contained in the Roman Gradual for the Mass, in his early days Cranmer was somewhat conservative, an admirer, if a critical one, of John Fisher. It may have been his visit to Germany in 1532 which began the change in his outlook, then in 1538, as Henry began diplomatic negotiations with Lutheran princes, Cranmer came face to face with a Lutheran embassy. The Exhortation and Litany, the earliest English-language service of the Church of England, was the first overt manifestation of his changing views. It was no mere translation from the Latin, its Protestant character is made clear by the reduction of the place of saints. It was only on Henrys death in 1547 and the accession of Edward VI that revision could proceed faster. Cranmer finished his work on an English Communion rite in 1548, the ordinary Roman Rite of the Mass had made no provision for any congregation present to receive communion in both species. So, Cranmer composed in English an additional rite of congregational preparation and communion, to be undertaken immediately following the communion, although the work is commonly attributed to Cranmer, its detailed origins are obscure. A group of bishops and divines met first at Chertsey and then at Windsor in 1548, Cranmer collected the material from many sources, even the opening of Preface was borrowed. He borrowed much from German sources, particularly from work commissioned by Hermann von Wied, Archbishop of Cologne, the Church Order of Brandenberg and Nuremberg was partly the work of the latter
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Easter week
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Easter Week is the period of seven days from Easter Sunday through the Saturday following. In the Latin Rite of Catholicism, Anglican and other Western churches, Easter Week is the beginning with the Christian feast of Easter. The Te Deum is sung at the conclusion of Matins/Office of Readings, owing to modern working patterns, many Easter celebrations now occur only on Easter Sunday and Easter Monday. Easter Tuesday is a holiday in Tasmania observed by some awards/agreements. Easter Monday is also a holiday in the Scandinavian countries which have Lutheran state churches. In the Eastern Orthodox Church and in Eastern Catholic Churches, the days of Bright Week are named, Bright Monday, Bright Tuesday, etc. Each day repeats the joyful hymns of Pascha, with only a few variations, taken from the Octoechos, the Divine Services are completely different during this time than any other time of the year. Everything during the service is sung joyfully, rather than read, there is no reading from the Psalter, and the services are much shorter than usual. There is no fasting during Bright Week, Bright Friday is the annual feast day of the Theotokos, as the Life-giving Spring, and there are optional hymns which may be chanted in honor of the feast in addition to the paschal hymns. If any other feasts on the fixed cycle occur during Bright Week, as well as certain other paschal hymns, continue to be chanted until Ascension
25.
New South Wales
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New South Wales is a state on the east coast of Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria to the south and it has a coast line with the Tasman Sea on its east side. The Australian Capital Territory is an enclave within the state, New South Wales state capital is Sydney, which is also Australias most populous city. In March 2014, the population of New South Wales was 7.5 million. Just under two-thirds of the population,4.67 million. Inhabitants of New South Wales are referred to as New South Welshmen, the Colony of New South Wales was founded as a penal colony in 1788. It originally comprised a more than half of the Australian mainland with its western boundary set at 129th meridian east in 1825, in addition, the colony also included the island territories of New Zealand, Van Diemens Land, Lord Howe Island, and Norfolk Island. During the 19th century, most of the area was detached to form separate British colonies that eventually became New Zealand. However, the Swan River Colony has never administered as part of New South Wales. Lord Howe Island remains part of New South Wales, while Norfolk Island has become a federal Territory, as have the now known as the Australian Capital Territory. The prior inhabitants of New South Wales were the Aboriginal tribes who arrived in Australia about 40,000 to 60,000 years ago, before European settlement there were an estimated 250,000 Aboriginal people in the region. The Wodi Wodi people are the custodians of the Illawarra region of South Sydney. The Bundjalung people are the custodians of parts of the northern coastal areas. The European discovery of New South Wales was made by Captain James Cook during his 1770 survey along the eastern coast of the Dutch-named continent of New Holland. In his original journal covering the survey, in triplicate to satisfy Admiralty Orders, Cook first named the land New Wales, however, in the copy held by the Admiralty, he revised the wording to New South Wales. After years of chaos and anarchy after the overthrow of Governor William Bligh, macquaries legacy is still evident today. During the 19th century, large areas were separated to form the British colonies of Tasmania, South Australia, Victoria. Responsible government was granted to the New South Wales colony in 1855, following the Treaty of Waitangi, William Hobson declared British sovereignty over New Zealand in 1840
26.
Queensland
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Queensland is the second-largest and third-most-populous state in the Commonwealth of Australia. Situated in the north-east of the country, it is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west, to the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean. Queensland has a population of 4,750,500, concentrated along the coast, the state is the worlds sixth largest sub-national entity, with an area of 1,852,642 km2. The capital and largest city in the state is Brisbane, Australias third largest city, often referred to as the Sunshine State, Queensland is home to 10 of Australias 30 largest cities and is the nations third largest economy. Tourism in the state, fuelled largely by its tropical climate, is a major industry. Queensland was first inhabited by Aboriginal Australians and Torres Strait Islanders, the first European to land in Queensland was Dutch navigator Willem Janszoon in 1606, who explored the west coast of the Cape York Peninsula near present-day Weipa. In 1770, Lieutenant James Cook claimed the east coast of Australia for the Kingdom of Great Britain. The colony of New South Wales was founded in 1788 by Governor Arthur Phillip at Sydney, New South Wales at that time included all of what is now Queensland, Queensland was explored in subsequent decades until the establishment of a penal colony at Brisbane in 1824 by John Oxley. Penal transportation ceased in 1839 and free settlement was allowed from 1842, the state was named in honour of Queen Victoria, who on 6 June 1859 signed Letters Patent separating the colony from New South Wales. The 6th of June is now celebrated statewide as Queensland Day. Queensland achieved statehood with the Federation of Australia on 1 January 1901, the history of Queensland spans thousands of years, encompassing both a lengthy indigenous presence, as well as the eventful times of post-European settlement. The north-eastern Australian region was explored by Dutch, Spanish and French navigators before being encountered by Lieutenant James Cook in 1770, the Australian Labor Party has its origin as a formal organisation in Queensland and the town of Barcaldine is the symbolic birthplace of the party. June 2009 marked the 150th anniversary of its creation as a colony from New South Wales. The Aboriginal occupation of Queensland is thought to predate 50,000 BC, likely via boat or land bridge across Torres Strait, during the last ice age Queenslands landscape became more arid and largely desolate, making food and other supplies scarce. This led to the worlds first seed-grinding technology, warming again made the land hospitable, which brought high rainfall along the eastern coast, stimulating the growth of the states tropical rainforests. In February 1606, Dutch navigator Willem Janszoon landed near the site of what is now Weipa and this was the first recorded landing of a European in Australia, and it also marked the first reported contact between European and Aboriginal Australian people. The region was explored by French and Spanish explorers prior to the arrival of Lieutenant James Cook in 1770. Cook claimed the east coast under instruction from King George III of the United Kingdom on 22 August 1770 at Possession Island, naming Eastern Australia, including Queensland, the Aboriginal population declined significantly after a smallpox epidemic during the late 18th century
27.
Blessed Virgin Mary
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Mary, also known by various titles, styles and honorifics, was a 1st-century Galilean Jewish woman of Nazareth and the mother of Jesus, according to the New Testament and the Quran. The gospels of Matthew and Luke in the New Testament and the Quran describe Mary as a virgin, the miraculous birth took place when she was already betrothed to Joseph and was awaiting the concluding rite of marriage, the formal home-taking ceremony. She married Joseph and accompanied him to Bethlehem, where Jesus was born, the Gospel of Luke begins its account of Marys life with the Annunciation, when the angel Gabriel appeared to her and announced her divine selection to be the mother of Jesus. According to canonical gospel accounts, Mary was present at the crucifixion and is depicted as a member of the early Christian community in Jerusalem. According to the Catholic and Orthodox teaching, at the end of her life her body was assumed directly into Heaven. Mary has been venerated since Early Christianity, and is considered by millions to be the most meritorious saint of the religion and she is claimed to have miraculously appeared to believers many times over the centuries. The Eastern and Oriental Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Anglican, and Lutheran churches believe that Mary, there is significant diversity in the Marian beliefs and devotional practices of major Christian traditions. The Roman Catholic Church holds distinctive Marian dogmas, namely her status as the Mother of God, her Immaculate Conception, her perpetual virginity, many Protestants minimize Marys role within Christianity, based on the argued brevity of biblical references. Mary also has a position in Islam, where one of the longer chapters of the Quran is devoted to her. Marys name in the manuscripts of the New Testament was based on her original Aramaic name ܡܪܝܡ. The English name Mary comes from the Greek Μαρία, which is a form of Μαριάμ. Both Μαρία and Μαριάμ appear in the New Testament, in Christianity, Mary is commonly referred to as the Virgin Mary, in accordance with the belief that she conceived Jesus miraculously through the Holy Spirit without her husbands involvement. The three main titles for Mary used by the Orthodox are Theotokos, Aeiparthenos as confirmed in the Second Council of Constantinople in 553, Catholics use a wide variety of titles for Mary, and these titles have in turn given rise to many artistic depictions. For example, the title Our Lady of Sorrows has inspired such masterpieces as Michelangelos Pietà, the title Theotokos was recognized at the Council of Ephesus in 431. However, this phrase in Greek, in the abbreviated form ΜΡ ΘΥ, is an indication commonly attached to her image in Byzantine icons. The Council stated that the Church Fathers did not hesitate to speak of the holy Virgin as the Mother of God, some Marian titles have a direct scriptural basis. For instance, the title Queen Mother has been given to Mary since she was the mother of Jesus, the scriptural basis for the term Queen can be seen in Luke 1,32 and the Isaiah 9,6. Queen Mother can be found in 1 Kings 2, 19-20 and Jeremiah 13, other titles have arisen from reported miracles, special appeals or occasions for calling on Mary
28.
Our Lady of Sorrows
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As Mater Dolorosa, it is also a key subject for Marian art in the Catholic Church. The Seven Sorrows of Mary are a popular Roman Catholic devotion, in common religious Catholic imagery, the Blessed Virgin Mary is portrayed in a sorrowful and lacrimating affect, with seven daggers piercing her heart, often bleeding. Devotional prayers that consist of meditation began to elaborate on her Seven Sorrows based on the prophecy of Simeon. Common examples of piety under this title are Servite rosary, or the Chaplet of the Seven Sorrows of Our Lady, the feast of Our Lady of Sorrows is liturgically celebrated every 15 of September, while a feast of Friday of Sorrows is observed in some Catholic countries. The Seven Sorrows are events in the life of the Blessed Virgin Mary that are a popular devotion and are depicted in art. These Seven Sorrows should not be confused with the five Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary, the escape and Flight into Egypt. The Loss of the Child Jesus in the Temple of Jerusalem, the Meeting of Mary and Jesus on the Via Dolorosa. The Crucifixion of Jesus on Mount Calvary, the Piercing of the Side of Jesus, and His Descent from the Cross. The Burial of Jesus by Joseph of Arimathea and it is a common practice for Catholics to say daily one Our Father and seven Hail Marys for each. Earlier, in 1233, seven youths in Tuscany founded the Servite Order, five years later, they took up the sorrows of Mary, standing under the Cross, as the principal devotion of their order. Over the centuries several devotions, and even orders, arose around meditation on Marys Sorrows in particular, the Servites developed the two most common devotions to Our Ladys Sorrows, namely the Rosary of the Seven Sorrows and the Black Scapular of the Seven Dolours of Mary. The Black Scapular is a symbol of the Confraternity of Our Lady of Sorrows, most devotional scapulars have requirements regarding ornamentation or design. The devotion of the Black Scapular requires only that it be made of woollen cloth. It depicts the Virgin Mary at the moment that Simeon the Righteous says, Yea and she stands with her hands upraised in prayer, and seven swords pierce her heart, indicative of the seven sorrows. This is one of the few Orthodox icons of the Theotokos which do not depict the infant Jesus, the refrain Rejoice, much-sorrowing Mother of God, turn our sorrows into joy and soften the hearts of evil men. The Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows grew in popularity in the 12th century, some writings would place its roots in the eleventh century, especially among the Benedictine monks. The first altar to the Mater Dolorosa was set up in 1221 at the Cistercian monastery of Schönau, the formal feast of the Our Lady of Sorrows was originated by a provincial synod of Cologne in 1423. It was designated for the Friday after the third Sunday after Easter and had the title and its object was the sorrow of Mary during the Crucifixion and Death of Christ
29.
Icon
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An icon is a religious work of art, most commonly a painting, from Eastern Christianity and certain Eastern Catholic churches. The most common subjects include Christ, Mary, saints and/or angels, icons may also be cast in metal, carved in stone, embroidered on cloth, painted on wood, done in mosaic or fresco work, printed on paper or metal, etc. Comparable images from Western Christianity are generally not described as icons, Eastern Orthodox tradition holds that the creation of Christian images dates back to the very early days of Christianity, and there is has been a continuous tradition since then. The icons of later centuries can be linked, often closely, to images from the 5th century onwards, there was enormous destruction of images during the Byzantine Iconoclasm of 726-842, although this did settle for good the question of the appropriateness of images. Since then icons have had a continuity of style and subject. At the same time there has been change and development, Christian tradition dating from the 8th century identifies Luke the Evangelist as the first icon painter. Aside from the legend that Pilate had made an image of Christ and he relates that King Abgar of Edessa sent a letter to Jesus at Jerusalem, asking Jesus to come and heal him of an illness. In this version there is no image, further legends relate that the cloth remained in Edessa until the 10th century, when it was taken to Constantinople. It went missing in 1204 when Crusaders sacked Constantinople, but by then numerous copies had firmly established its iconic type. They crown these images, and set them up along with the images of the philosophers of the world that is to say, with the images of Pythagoras, and Plato, and Aristotle, and the rest. They have also other modes of honouring these images, after the manner of the Gentiles. And he called him and said, Lycomedes, what do you mean by this matter of the portrait, can it be one of thy gods that is painted here. For I see that you are living in heathen fashion. Later in the passage John says, But this that you have now done is childish and imperfect, at least some of the hierarchy of the Christian churches still strictly opposed icons in the early 4th century. At the Spanish non-ecumenical Synod of Elvira bishops concluded, Pictures are not to be placed in churches, so that they do not become objects of worship and adoration. to our religion. After the emperor Constantine I extended official toleration of Christianity within the Roman Empire in 313 and this period of Christianization probably saw the use of Christian images became very widespread among the faithful, though with great differences from pagan habits. Robin Lane Fox states By the early century, we know of the ownership of private icons of saints. 480-500, we can be sure that the inside of a saints shrine would be adorned with images and votive portraits, when Constantine himself apparently converted to Christianity, the majority of his subjects remained pagans
30.
Funeral
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A funeral is a ceremony connected with the burial, cremation, etc. of the body of a dead person, or the burial with the attendant observances. Customs vary widely both between cultures and between groups and denominations within cultures. Common secular motivations for funerals include mourning the deceased, celebrating their life, additionally, funerals often have religious aspects which are intended to help the soul of the deceased reach the afterlife, resurrection or reincarnation. The funeral usually includes a ritual through which the corpse of the deceased is given up, depending on culture and religion, these can involve either the destruction of the body or its preservation. Differing beliefs about cleanliness and the relationship between body and soul are reflected in funerary practices, when a funerary ceremony is performed but the body of the deceased is not available, it is usually called a memorial service. The word funeral comes from the Latin funus, which had a variety of meanings, including the corpse, Funerary art is art produced in connection with burials, including many kinds of tombs, and objects specially made for burial with a corpse. Funeral rites are as old as human culture itself, pre-dating modern Homo sapiens, substantial cross-cultural and historical research document funeral customs as a highly predictable, stable force in communities. Funeral customs tend to be characterized by five anchors, significant symbols, gathered community, ritual action, cultural heritage, and transition of the dead body. The Baháí funeral service also contains the only prayer thats permitted to be read as a group - congregational prayer, the Baháí decedent often controls some aspects of the Baháí funeral service, since leaving a will and testament is a requirement for Baháís. Since there is no Baháí clergy, services are conducted under the guise, or with the assistance of. A Buddhist funeral marks the transition from one life to the next for the deceased and it also reminds the living of their own mortality. Christian burials typically occur on consecrated ground, burial, rather than a destructive process such as cremation, was the traditional practice amongst Christians, because of the belief in the resurrection of the body. Cremations later came into use, although some denominations forbid them. Congregations of varied denominations perform different ceremonies, but most involve offering prayers, scripture reading from the Bible, a sermon, homily, or eulogy, and music. One issue of concern as the 21st century began was with the use of music at Christian funerals. Antyesti, literally last rites or last sacrifice, refers to the rituals associated with a funeral in Hinduism. It is sometimes referred to as Antima Samskaram, Antya-kriya, Anvarohanyya, a dead adult Hindu is cremated, while a dead child is typically buried. The rite of passage is said to be performed in harmony with the premise that the microcosm of all living beings is a reflection of a macrocosm of the universe
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Epitaphios (liturgical)
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The Epitaphios is a Christian religious icon, typically consisting of a large, embroidered and often richly adorned cloth. It is used during the services of Good Friday and Holy Saturday in the Eastern Orthodox Churches, as well as those Eastern Catholic Churches. It also exists in painted or mosaic form, on wall or panel, armenian Orthodox have also the tradition of the epitaphios. Their celebration on this day is called Taghman Kark, the word Epitáphios is composite, from the Greek ἐπί, epí, on or upon, and τάφος, táphos, grave or tomb. In Greek the word has, inter alia, the meaning of both the English epitaph and the one presented here, the latter having been acquired during the Christian period. The icon depicts Christ after he has removed from the cross, lying supine. The scene is taken from the Gospel of St. John, shown around him, and mourning his death, may be his mother, John the beloved disciple, Joseph of Arimathea, and Mary Magdalene, as well as angels. Nicodemus and others may also be depicted, often the Four Evangelists will be shown in the corners. Sometimes, the body of Christ appears alone, except for angels, the oldest surviving embroidered icon, of about 1200 is in this form. The equivalent subjects in the West are called the Anointing of Christs body, or Lamentation of Christ, or the Pietà, the image may be embroidered or painted on fabric or some other substrate, which is then mounted in a wide cloth border often edged in gold fringe. The Epitaphios is used on the last two days of Holy Week in the Byzantine rite, as part of the marking the death. It is then placed on the Holy Table, where it remains throughout the Paschal season, prior to the Apokathelosis, Vespers on the afternoon of Great Friday, the priest and deacon will place the Epitaphios on the Holy Table. The priest may also anoint the Epitaphios with perfumed oil, a chalice veil and the Gospel Book is placed on top of the Epitaphios. This may be either the large Gospel Book used at the Divine Liturgy, the soma is wrapped in a white cloth and taken into the sanctuary. The Gospel Book is laid on top of the epitaphios, in some Greek churches, an elaborately carved canopy, called a kouvouklion, stands over the Epitaphios. This bier or catafalque represents the Tomb of Christ, and is made of wood, on Good Friday morning, the bier is decorated with spring flowers, mostly white, red, and purple, until it is covered by the flowers in its entirety. The Tomb is often sprinkled with flower petals and rosewater, decorated with candles, the bells of the church are tolled, and in traditionally Orthodox countries, flags are lowered to half-mast. Then the priest and faithful venerate the Epitaphios as the choir chants hymns, in Slavic churches, the service of Compline will be served next, during which a special Canon will be chanted which recalls the lamentations of the Theotokos
32.
Psalm 119
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Psalm 119 is the longest psalm as well as the longest chapter in the Bible. It is referred to in Hebrew by its words, Ashrei temimei derech. It is the prayer of one who delights in and lives by the Torah, with its 176 verses, it is the longest chapter of the entire bible. Unlike most other psalms the author didnt include his name in the text, most scholars suspect it to be written by king David. This psalm is one of about a dozen alphabetic acrostic poems in the Bible and its 176 verses are divided into twenty-two stanzas, one stanza for each letter of the Hebrew alphabet, within each stanza, each of the eight verses begins with that letter. The name of God appears twenty-four times, employed in almost every verse of the psalm is a synonym for the Torah, such as dabar, mishpatim, etc. The acrostic form and the use of the Torah words constitute the framework for an elaborate prayer. The grounds for the prayer are established in the first two stanzas, the Torah is held up as a source of blessing and right conduct, the prayer proper begins in the third stanza. Like many other psalms, this prayer includes dramatic lament, joyous praise and prayers for life, deliverance, what makes Psalm 119 unique is the way that these requests are continually and explicitly grounded in the gift of the Torah and the psalmists loyalty to it. Several dozen prayers are incorporated into the Psalm, e. g. Open my eyes that I may behold wondrous things out of your law. The Psalmist at times seems to appeal to Gods sovereignty, inclining his heart to the law in contrast to the Psalmist saying I incline my heart. Thus, God as sovereign is invoked in v.36 Incline my heart to your testimonies, while the Psalmist also takes responsibility in v.112. It ends with an appeal to God to seek his servant who strayed, verse 66 is recited prior to the Shofar blowing on Rosh Hashanah. Verse 72 is found in Pirkei Avot Chapter 6, no.9, verses 89–91 are recited during the blessings before the Shema on the second day of Rosh Hashanah. Verse 99 is found in Pirkei Avot Chapter 4, no.1, verse 108 is recited prior to the Shofar blowing on Rosh Hashanah. Verse 122 is recited prior to the Shofar blowing on Rosh Hashanah, verse 142 is part of Uva Letzion and Tzidkatcha. Parts of verses 153–154 comprise the blessing Reeh of the weekday Amidah, verse 160 is recited prior to the Shofar blowing on Rosh Hashanah. Verse 162 is recited prior to the Shofar blowing on Rosh Hashanah, verse 165 is part of Talmud Berachos 64a
33.
Great Doxology
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Gloria in excelsis Deo is a Christian hymn known also as the Greater Doxology and the Angelic Hymn. The name is abbreviated to Gloria in Excelsis or simply Gloria. The hymn begins with the words that the angels sang when the birth of Christ was announced to shepherds in Luke 2,14, other verses were added very early, forming a doxology. It is an example of the psalmi idiotici that were popular in the 2nd, other surviving examples of this lyric poetry are the Te Deum and the Phos Hilaron. In the 4th century it became part of morning prayers, and is recited in the Byzantine Rite Orthros service. The Vulgate Latin translation of the Bible was commissioned only in 382, the Latin hymn thus uses the word excelsis to translate the Greek word ὑψίστοις in Luke 2,14, not the word altissimis, which Saint Jerome preferred for his translation. Glória in excélsis Deo et in terra pax homínibus bonæ voluntátis, laudámus te, benedícimus te, adorámus te, glorificámus te, grátias ágimus tibi propter magnam glóriam tuam, Dómine Deus, Rex cæléstis, Deus Pater omnípotens. Dómine Fili unigénite, Jesu Christe, Dómine Deus, Agnus Dei, Fílius Patris, qui tollis peccáta mundi, miserére nobis, qui tollis peccáta mundi, qui sedes ad déxteram Patris, miserére nobis. Quóniam tu solus Sanctus, tu solus Dóminus, tu solus Altíssimus, Jesu Christe, cum Sancto Spíritu, in the Byzantine Rite, the Gloria is referred to as the Doxology, and there are two forms, the Greater Doxology and the Lesser Doxology. The Greater Doxology is always sung, whereas the Lesser Doxology is read, there are certain textual differences between the two, and the order is somewhat altered in the two forms. The Greater Doxology is used in the Orthros on Sundays and feast days, the Lesser Doxology is used at Matins on simple weekdays and at the Apodeipnon, but not in the Divine Liturgy. Revisions to the Prayer Book occurred in 1552 and 1662, the recently published Common Worship provides two Orders one of which places the hymn in the earlier position. The 1928 United States Episcopal Prayer Book also placed the Gloria at the end of the Eucharist service. This edition, still the standard in the breakaway Continuing Anglican churches, allowed the hymn to be used in place of the Gloria Patri after the psalms, the Episcopal Churchs 1979 Book moved it to the beginning, after or in place of the Kyrie in Rite One. In a Rite Two service of Holy Eucharist, the Gloria and it may also be used at other times as desired excepting Lent and Advent. The hymn is used in the Divine Service of the Lutheran Church. After the 12th century Advent began to be considered a period in imitation of Lent. Gloria in excelsis Deo et in terra pax hominibus bonae voluntatis, laudamus te, benedicimus te, adoramus te, glorificamus te, gratias agimus tibi propter magnam gloriam tuam, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men of good will
34.
Procession
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A procession is an organized body of people walking in a formal or ceremonial manner. Processions have in all peoples and at all times been a form of public celebration, as forming an orderly. Connected with the triumph was the pompa circensis, or solemn procession that preceded the games in the circus and it first came into use at the Ludi Romani, when the games were preceded by a great procession from the Capitol to the Circus. The praetor or consul who appeared in the ponipa circensis wore the robes of a triumphing general, there were other local processions connected with the primitive worship of the country people, which remained unchanged, but they were eventually overshadowed by the popular piety of the Church. In this sense it appears to be used by Pope Leo I, as to public processions, these seem to have come into rapid vogue after the recognition of Christianity as the religion of the empire. Those at Jerusalem would seem to have long established when described by the author of the Peregrinatio Sylviae towards the end of the 4th century. Very early were the processions accompanied by hymns and prayers, known as litaniae and it is to such a procession that reference appears to be made in a letter of St Basil, which would thus be the first recorded mention of a public Christian procession. The first mention for the Western Church occurs in St Ambrose, in both these cases the litanies are stated to have been long in use. There is also mention of a procession accompanied by hymns, organized at Constantinople by St John Chrysostom in opposition to a procession of Arians, in Sozomen. In times of calamity litanies were held, in which the people walked in robes of penitence, fasting, barefooted, the cross was carried at the head of the procession and often the gospel and the relics of the saint were carried. So, too, Gregory the Great writes to the Sicilian bishops to hold processions to prevent an invasion of Sicily. A famous instance of these penitential litanies is the litania septiformis ordered by Gregory the Great in the year 590, when Rome had been inundated and pestilence had followed. In this litany seven processions, of clergy, laymen, monks, nuns, matrons, the poor and this litany has often been confused with the litania major, introduced at Rome in 598, but is quite distinct from it. From the time of the emperor Constantine I these processions were of great magnificence, Festivals involving processions were adopted by the Christian Church from the pagan calendar of Rome. The litaniae majores et minores, which are stated by Hermann Usener to have been first instituted by Pope Liberius and it is generally acknowledged that they are the equivalent of the Christian Church of the Roman lustrations of the crops in spring, the Ambarvalia, &c. The litania major, or great procession on St Marks day is shown to both in date and ritual with the Roman Robigalia, which took place ad. The litania major followed the route as far as the Milvian bridge, when it turned off and returned to St Peters. This was already established as a festival by 598, as is shown by a document of Gregory the Great that inculcates the duty of celebrating litaniam
35.
Trisagion
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The Trisagion, sometimes called by its opening line Agios O Theos, is a standard hymn of the Divine Liturgy in most of the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox and Eastern Catholic churches. In churches which use the Byzantine Rite, the Trisagion is chanted immediately before the Prokeimenon and it is also included in a set of prayers named for it, called the Trisagion Prayers, which forms part of numerous services. It is popular also in the Latin Church, where it is a part of the supplication, the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, for other languages, please see the section below The Trisagion prayer is an ancient prayer in Christianity. It may be that the prayer was originally an expansion of the angelic cry recorded in Isaiah ch 6, v 3 or the one at Revelation 4,8 In Greek, Ἅγιος ὁ Θεός, Ἅγιος ἰσχυρός, Ἅγιος ἀθάνατος, ἐλέησον ἡμᾶς. Agios o Theos, Agios ischyros, Agios athanatos, eleison imas, in English, Holy God, Holy Strong, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us. Or more commonly, Holy God, Holy Mighty One, Holy Immortal One, have mercy on us, in Latin, Sanctus Deus, Sanctus Fortis, Sanctus Immortális, miserére nobis. The Greek phrase Trisagion translates as Thrice Holy - as in this hymn God is described as holy in three different qualities, Agios o Theos means Holy God. The hymn is of great antiquity, and perhaps much older than the event assigned by the Greek Menology as connected to its origin. The child was seen to descend again to the earth. After giving this exhortation, the child died, some believe it is extremely ancient perhaps of apostolic-era origin. However this goes against the Tradition in regards to the hymn, the Coptic Orthodox Church believes that the Trisagion originated from Nicodemus. While taking the body of Christ off the cross with Joseph of Arimathea, Nicodemus saw Jesus Christs eyes open and then shouted Holy God, Holy Mighty, traditionally, it is also considered proof that his Divinity did not part from his humanity. Benedict XIV thought that the Greek formula was joined with the Latin in allusion to the voice heard at Constantinople. But the explanation seems hardly necessary, in view of the retention of Kyrie eleison in the Roman Liturgy, as well as such Hebrew words as Amen, Alleluia, Hosanna, Sabaoth. Various additions or modifications made to the Trisagion at certain points in history have been the subject of considerable controversy. According to Pseudo-Zacharias Rhetor, the phrase who wast crucified for us was added to it by Eustathius of Antioch to combat the Arians and it was more likely written during the time of Peter the Fuller who enforced its use as a sort of test of orthodoxy against Nestorianism. Those who understood the hymn as being addressed to the trinity, emperor Anastasius Is attempt to adopt the addition in 512 at Constantinople resulted in a riot. But in light of widespread adoption of the hymn with the addition, Calandion, Bishop of Antioch, sought to allay the controversy surrounding it by prefixing the words Christ
36.
Christian burial
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A Christian burial is the burial of a deceased person with specifically Christian ecclesiastical rites, typically, in consecrated ground. Until recent times Christians generally objected to cremation, and practiced inhumation almost exclusively, but this opposition has weakened, catholics are now able to be cremated also, and this is rapidly becoming more common, but the Eastern Orthodox Churches still mostly forbid it. Among the Greeks and Romans, both cremation and burial were practiced, however, the Jews buried their dead. Even God himself is depicted in the Torah as performing burial, And buried him in the depression in the land of Moab, no man knows the place that he was buried, even to this day. It is surrounded at all times with some measure of religious ceremony, little is known with regard to the burial of the dead in the early Christian centuries. Early Christians did practice the use of an Ossuary to store the remains of those saints at rest in Christ. This practice likely came from the use of the same among Second Temple Jews, other early Christians likely followed the national customs of the people among whom they lived, as long as they were not directly idolatrous. Several historical writings indicate that in the fourth and fifth centuries, probably the earliest detailed account of funeral ceremonial which has been preserved to us is to be found in the Spanish Ordinals of the latter part of the seventh century. Recorded in the writing is a description of the Order of what the clerics of any city ought to do when their bishop falls into a mortal sickness and it details the steps of ringing church bells, reciting psalms, and cleaning and dressing the body. Traditionally, the Christian Church opposed the practice of cremation by its members, while involving no necessary contradiction of any article of faith, it is opposed alike to ancient canon law and to the usages of antiquity. Burial was always preferred as the method of disposition inherited from Judaism, during times of persecution, pagan authorities erroneously thought they could destroy the martyrs hope of resurrection by cremating their remains. In reaction against the Christian opposition to some have deliberately instructed that their remains be cremated as a public profession of irreligion. He further decreed that bodies which had been so treated were to be denied Christian burial, the custom of watching by the dead is an ancient practice probably derived from the similar Jewish custom of a pious vigil over the remains. Its origins are not entirely known and it may have been a Christian observance, attended with the chanting of psalms, or it may have been adopted from paganism, with the singing of psalms introduced to Christianize it. In the Middle Ages, among the orders, the custom was practiced in a desire to perform religious duties and was seen as beneficial. By appointing relays of monks to succeed one another, orderly provision was made that the corpse would never be left without prayer, among secular persons, these nocturnal meetings were sometimes an occasion of grave abuses, especially in the matter of eating and drinking. The following is found in the Anglo-Saxon canons of Ælfric, addressed to the clergy, but it is also clear that there was originally something of the nature of a wake consisting in the chanting of the whole Psalter beside the dead man at his home. The Absolution became common in the half of the eleventh century
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Vespers
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Vespers is the sunset evening prayer service in the Orthodox, Western and Eastern Catholic, Anglican, and Lutheran liturgies of the canonical hours. The word comes from the Greek ἑσπέρα and the Latin vesper and it is also referred to in the Anglican tradition as evening prayer or evensong. The term is used in some Protestant denominations to describe evening services. Vespers, also called Evening Prayer, takes place as dusk begins to fall, Evening Prayer gives thanks for the day just past and makes an evening sacrifice of praise to God. The general structure of the Roman Rite Catholic service of vespers is as follows, Vespers opens with the singing or chanting of the words Deus, Gloria Patri, et Filio, et Spiritui Sancto. Sicut erat in principio, et nunc et semper, et in saecula saeculorum, each psalm concludes with a doxology and is preceded and followed by an antiphon. After the psalms, there is a reading from the Bible, following the reading, there is a short responsory consisting of a verse, a response, the first half only of the Gloria Patri, and then the verse again. Then the participants sing the Magnificat — the canticle of the Blessed Virgin Mary from the Gospel of Luke 1, the Magnificat is always preceded by an antiphon, and followed by the Gloria and an antiphon. The preces are then said, followed by the Our Father, the office is frequently followed by Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament. In the Eastern Orthodox Church and those Eastern Catholic Churches which follow the Byzantine Rite, Daily Vespers is the form served on other days when Great Vespers is not served. Small Vespers is an abbreviated form of the service which is celebrated only on the afternoon before an All-Night Vigil. Since the liturgical day begins at sunset, Vespers is the first service of the day, the general structure of the service is as follows, Vespers opens with a blessing by the priest and then Come, let us worship. When part of an All-Night Vigil, the blessing that normally begins matins is used, when part of the Divine Liturgy, proemial Psalm, Bless the Lord, O my soul, O Lord my God, Thou hast been magnified exceedingly. The Great Litany A selection of psalms, called a kathisma is sung, on Saturday evening, it is the First Kathisma. Lord I have Cried is chanted in the tone of the week, starting with the last two verses of Psalm 141, stichera about the feast day are chanted alternately with the verses. The Entrance is made with the censer The hymn Phos Hilaron is sung, on feast days, there are three or more readings from the Old Testament, called Paroemia. The prayer Vouchsafe, O Lord, is read, the Litany of Fervent Supplication On major feast days, a Litiy will be served at this point. The clergy and the cantors will process to the back of the church in front of an icon of the feast or saint being commemorated
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Divine Liturgy
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Divine Liturgy is the Eucharistic service of the Byzantine Rite which is the Rite of the The Great Church of Christ and was developed from the Antiochene Rite of Christian liturgy. As such, it is used in the Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Churches, Armenian Christians, both of the Armenian Apostolic Church and of the Armenian Catholic Church, use the same term. Some Oriental Orthodox employ the term holy offering for their Eucharistic liturgies instead, the term is sometimes applied also to Roman Rite Eucharistic liturgies, though the term Mass is more commonly used there. In Eastern traditions, those of the Eastern Catholic and Orthodox Churches, the Divine Liturgy is seen as transcending time, all believers are believed to be united in worship in the Kingdom of God along with departed Saints and the celestial Angels. To this end, everything in the Liturgy is seen as symbolic, yet also not just merely symbolic, according to Eastern tradition and belief, the Liturgys roots go back to Jewish worship and the adaptation of Jewish worship by Early Christians. This can be seen in the first parts of the Liturgy termed the Liturgy of the Catechumens that includes reading of scriptures and, the latter half was added based on the Last Supper and the first Eucharistic celebrations by Early Christians. Each Liturgy has its differences from others, but most are similar to each other with adaptations based on tradition, purpose, culture. The Divine Liturgy of St. Basil the Great, used on the 5 Sundays of Great Lent, on the eves of the Nativity and Theophany, and on Holy Thursday and Holy Saturday, it is celebrated as a vesperal liturgy. In some traditions, Saint Basils Liturgy is also celebrated on the Exaltation of the Life-giving Cross on September 14, all together, St. Basils liturgy is celebrated 10 times out of the liturgical year. The Divine Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts, is used during Great Lent on Wednesdays, Fridays, and a handful of other occasions, and also on the first three days of Holy Week. Nowadays it is celebrated as a vesperal liturgy, the Liturgy of the Faithful has no Anaphora. It is traditionally attributed to St. Gregory the Dialogist, although some believe it originated with Patriarch Severus of Antioch. The Liturgy of Saint Mark was also observed in the Orthodox Patriarchate of Alexandria on at least that Saints day until recent times. As numbers in a diocese increased dramatically the bishop as presiding over the Eucharistic assembly appointed presbyters as celebrant in the local community, still, the Church is understood in Eastern Orthodoxy not in terms of the presbyter, but the diocesan bishop. When the latter is present, he is chief celebrant, phrases and hymns are also added. The hierarch commemorates his hierarch demonstrating unity with the greater Orthodox community, note, Psalms are numbered according to the Greek Septuagint. For the Hebrew Masoretic numbering that is familiar in the West. The format of Divine Liturgy is fixed, although the specific readings and hymns vary with season, in modern times, this restriction applies only to Holy Communion — reception of the sacrament of holy communion
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Basil the Great
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Basil of Caesarea, also called Saint Basil the Great, was the Greek bishop of Caesarea Mazaca in Cappadocia, Asia Minor. He was a theologian who supported the Nicene Creed and opposed the heresies of the early Christian church. His ability to balance his theological convictions with his connections made Basil a powerful advocate for the Nicene position. In addition to his work as a theologian, Basil was known for his care of the poor, Basil established guidelines for monastic life which focus on community life, liturgical prayer, and manual labour. Together with Pachomius, he is remembered as a father of communal monasticism in Eastern Christianity and he is considered a saint by the traditions of both Eastern and Western Christianity. Basil, Gregory of Nazianzus, and Gregory of Nyssa are collectively referred to as the Cappadocian Fathers, the Eastern Orthodox Church and Eastern Catholic Churches have given him, together with Gregory of Nazianzus and John Chrysostom, the title of Great Hierarch. He is recognised as a Doctor of the Church in the Roman Catholic Church and he is sometimes referred to by the epithet Ouranophantor, revealer of heavenly mysteries. Basil was born into the family of Basil the Elder. His parents were known for their piety and his maternal grandfather was a Christian martyr, executed in the years prior to Constantine Is conversion. His pious widow, Macrina, herself a follower of Gregory Thaumaturgus, raised Basil and his four siblings, Macrina the Younger, Naucratius, Peter of Sebaste, Basil received more formal education in Caesarea Mazaca in Cappadocia around 350-51. There he met Gregory of Nazianzus, who would become a lifetime friend, together, Basil and Gregory went to Constantinople for further studies, including the lectures of Libanius. The two also spent almost six years in Athens starting around 349, where met a fellow student who would become the emperor Julian the Apostate. Basil left Athens in 356, and after travels in Egypt and Syria, he returned to Caesarea, Basils life changed radically after he encountered Eustathius of Sebaste, a charismatic bishop and ascetic. Abandoning his legal and teaching career, Basil devoted his life to God, a letter described his spiritual awakening, After his baptism, Basil traveled in 357 to Palestine, Egypt, Syria and Mesopotamia to study ascetics and monasticism. He distributed his fortunes among the poor, then went briefly into solitude near Neocaesarea of Pontus on the Iris, Basil eventually realized that while he respected the ascetics piety and prayerfulness, the solitary life did not call him. Eustathius of Sebaste, a prominent anchorite near Pontus, had mentored Basil, however, they also eventually differed over dogma. Basil instead felt drawn toward communal religious life, and by 358 he was gathering around him a group of like-minded disciples, together they founded a monastic settlement on his familys estate near Annesi. His widowed mother Emmelia, sister Macrina and several women, joined Basil and devoted themselves to pious lives of prayer
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St John Damascene
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Saint John of Damascus, Arabic, يوحنا الدمشقي, ALA-LC, Yūḥannā ad-Dimashqī), also known as John Damascene and as Χρυσορρόας / Chrysorrhoas was a Syrian monk and priest. Born and raised in Damascus, he died at his monastery, Mar Saba and he is one of the Fathers of the Eastern Orthodox church and is best known for his strong defense of icons. The Catholic Church regards him as a Doctor of the Church, the most common source of information for the life of John of Damascus is a work attributed to one John of Jerusalem, identified therein as the Patriarch of Jerusalem. This is a translation into Greek of an earlier Arabic text. The Arabic original contains a prologue not found in most other translations, Michael explained that he decided to write his biography in 1084 because none was available in his day. However, the main Arabic text seems to have been written by an earlier author sometime between the early 9th and late 10th centuries AD, the hagiographic novel Barlaam and Josaphat, traditionally attributed to John, is in fact a work of the 10th century. John was born in Damascus in the quarter of the 7th century AD. The family was named after Johns grandfather, Mansur ibn Sarjun, Mansur seems to have played a role in the capitulation of Damascus to the troops of Khalid ibn al-Walid in 635 after securing favorable conditions of surrender. Eutychius, a 10th-century Melkite patriarch, mentions him as one high-ranking official involved in the surrender of the city to the Muslims. Moreover, the name was common among Syrian Christians of Arab origins, and Eutychius noted that the governor of Damascus. However, Sahas also asserts that the name not necessarily imply an Arab background and could have been used by non-Arab. John was raised in Damascus, and Arab Christian folklore holds that during his adolescence, John associated with the future Umayyad caliph Yazid I and the Taghlibi Christian court poet al-Akhtal. When Syria was conquered by the Muslim Arabs in the 630s, Johns father, Sarjun, went on to serve the Umayyad caliphs. According to John of Jerusalem and some versions of his life, after his fathers death. In addition, Johns own writings never refer to any experience in a Muslim court and it is believed that John became a monk at Mar Saba, and that he was ordained as a priest in 735. One of the vitae describes his fathers desire for him to not only the books of the Muslims. From this it has suggested that John may have grown up bilingual. John does indeed show some knowledge of the Quran, which he criticizes harshly, other sources describes his education in Damascus as having been conducted in accordance with the principles of Hellenic education, termed secular by one source and Classical Christian by another
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Little Entrance
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In Eastern Orthodox and Byzantine Catholic churches, an entrance is a procession during which the clergy enter into the sanctuary through the Holy Doors. Over the centuries, these processions have grown more elaborate, and nowadays are accompanied by incense, candles and liturgical fans. In the liturgical theology of the Orthodox Church, the angels are believed to enter with the clergy into the sanctuary, as evidenced by the prayers which accompany the various entrances. The bishop has the right to enter and leave the altar through the Holy Doors at any time, during the course of the Divine Liturgy, there are two entrances. The Little Entrance occurs during the portion of the known as the Liturgy of the Catechumens. For unto Thee are due all glory, honour and worship, to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. The deacon presents the Gospel Book for the priest to kiss The deacon then points to the Holy Doors with his orarion, and bowing says to the priest, Bless, Master, the holy entrance. The priest blesses with his hand and says, Blessed is the entrance of Thy holy ones, always, now and ever, when the choir finishes singing the Third Antiphon, the deacon lifts up the Gospel Book and says, Wisdom. The choir then sings the Entrance Hymn, Come let us worship, O Son of God, save us who sing to Thee, Alleluia. and the Troparia and Kontakia of the day. Meanwhile, the deacon and priest go in through the Holy Doors, the deacon replaces the Gospel Book on the Holy Table, the priest silently says the Prayer of the Trisagion. Until that point he has been standing upon the episcopal kathedra in the center of the church, also, when a bishop is to be consecrated, the rite takes place at the Little Entrance. This is also the point in the Liturgy when the bishop will bestow ecclesiastical awards, after the troparia and kontakia, the choir begins the Trisagion, Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal One, have mercy on us. The chanting of the Trisagion at the Little Entrance is said to have been revealed to St. Proclus. On certain Great Feasts of the year, the Trisagion is replaced by another hymn. On Feasts of the Cross, the Trisagion is replaced by the hymn, Before Thy Cross, we bow down in worship, O Master, and Thy holy Resurrection we glorify. During the Trisagion, or its alternate hymn, the priest and deacon go to the High Place to prepare for the reading of the Epistle and Gospel. The Little Entrance symbolizes the Incarnation of Christ and his baptism in the Jordan River, the deacon representing John the Baptist, because the first coming of Christ was in humility, the priest is instructed in the rubrics to make the entrance with his hands at his side. They then kiss the Holy Table, and bow to each other, the deacon goes behind the Holy Table to the Table of Oblation and the priest comes out of the Holy Doors to bow to the people, asking their forgiveness
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Old Testament
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Its counterpart is the New Testament, the second part of the Christian Bible. The books that comprise the Old Testament canon differ between Christian Churches as well as their order and names. The most common Protestant canon comprises 39 books, the Catholic canon comprises 46 books, the 39 books in common to all the Christian canons corresponds to 24 books of the Tanakh, with some differences of order, and there are some differences in text. The additional number reflects the split of texts in the Christian Bibles into separate books, for example, Kings, Samuel and Chronicles, Ezra–Nehemiah, the books which are part of a Christian Old Testament but which are not part of the Hebrew canon are sometimes described as deuterocanonical. In general, Protestant bibles do not include books in its canon. The Old Testament consists of translations of many books by various authors produced over a period of centuries. The canon formed in stages, first the Pentateuch by around 400 BC, then the Prophets during the Hasmonean dynasty, and finally the remaining books. The Old Testament contains 39 or 46 or more books, divided, very broadly, into the Pentateuch, the books, the wisdom books. For the Orthodox canon, Septuagint titles are provided in parentheses when these differ from those editions, for the Catholic canon, the Douaic titles are provided in parentheses when these differ from those editions. Likewise, the King James Version references some of these books by the spelling when referring to them in the New Testament. The Talmud in Bava Batra 14b gives a different order for the books in Neviim and Ketuvim and this order is also cited in Mishneh Torah Hilchot Sefer Torah 7,15. The order of the books of the Torah is universal through all denominations of Judaism and they are present in a few historic Protestant versions, the German Luther Bible included such books, as did the English 1611 King James Version. Empty table cells indicate that a book is absent from that canon, several of the books in the Eastern Orthodox canon are also found in the appendix to the Latin Vulgate, formerly the official Bible of the Roman Catholic Church. The books of Joshua, Judges, Samuel and Kings follow, there is a broad consensus among scholars that these originated as a single work during the Babylonian exile of the 6th century BC. The two Books of Chronicles cover much the material as the Pentateuch and Deuteronomistic history and probably date from the 4th century BC. Chronicles, and Ezra–Nehemiah, were finished during the 3rd century BC. Catholic and Orthodox Old Testaments contain two to four Books of Maccabees, written in the 2nd and 1st centuries BC and these history books make up around half the total content of the Old Testament. God is consistently depicted as the one who created or put into order the world, the Old Testament stresses the special relationship between God and his chosen people, Israel, but includes instructions for proselytes as well
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Antependium
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When the front of an altar is elaborately carved or painted, the additional cloth altar frontal normally reaches down only a few inches from the top of the altar table, this is called a frontlet. In other cases it may reach to the floor, in both situations, it will usually cover the entire width of the altar. A Jacobean frontal will cover the altar, reaching down to the floor on all four sides. The Anglican Canons of 1603 order that the Lords Table should be covered, in time of Divine Service, with a carpet of silk or other decent stuff, thought meet by the Ordinary of the place. Covers for lecterns and pulpits are generally similar to a frontlet, normally covering the desk of the lectern or pulpit, in the Orthodox Church, the Holy Table may be covered with one or two coverings. There is always an outer frontal, covering the top of the Holy Table and this kind is used alone if the front of the Holy Table is elaborately carved or decorateed. For a fully vested Holy Table a second, inner hanging is used and this covers the Holy Table fully on the top and hangs down to the floor on all four sides. The analogia are covered with a known as a proskynitarion. Similar to the used on the Holy Table there may, again, be only one outer covering or a second. A cloth antependium is normally of the colour and fabric as the vestments worn by the clergy. The fabric may vary from very simple such as cotton or wool, to exquisitely wrought damasks, fine watermarked silk, velvet. Embellishment is commonly by means of bands of material called orphreys, embroidery or appliqués, fringes and tassels. The most frequently used symbol on both vestments and hangings is the cross, the antependium is normally lined in satin, using a matching hue. The colours used tend to be fixed by the tradition of each denomination. Most Western Christian churches that observe a developed liturgical tradition use white, gold, red, green, violet and black, a rose colour may be employed for the fourth Sunday in Lent and the third Sunday in Advent. In Anglican circles, blue is sometimes prescribed for feasts of the Blessed Virgin Mary although it is used, unofficially. Among Eastern Christians, there tend to be two types of vestments, somber ones and festal ones, beyond that, no specific colours are officially required. Among groups such as the Russian Orthodox Church, a pattern of fixed colours has developed, somewhat similar to that used in the West, although they are not, strictly speaking, required
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Altar cloth
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An altar cloth is used by various religious groups to cover an altar. It may be used as a sign of respect towards the holiness of the altar, because many altars are made of wood and are often ornate and unique, cloth may then be used to protect the altar surface. In other cases, the cloth serves to beautify a rather mundane construction underneath, special cloths cover the altar in many Christian churches during services and celebrations, and are often left on the altar when it is not in use. The Anglican Communion had similar rules in that period, at that time, the Roman Rite required the use of three altar cloths, to which a cere cloth, not classified as an altar cloth, was generally added. This was a piece of heavy linen treated with wax to protect the altar linens from the dampness of a stone altar and it was exactly the same size as the mensa. Above this were placed two linen cloths, like the cere cloth, they were made of heavy linen exactly the same size as the mensa of the altar. They acted as a cushion and, with the cere cloth, instead of two cloths, a single long cloth folded so that each half covered the whole mensa was acceptable. The topmost cloth was the linen, a long white linen cloth laid over the two linen cloths. On an altar without antependium and consisting of the mensa resting on columns or made after the fashion of a tomb the topmost linen did not have to overhang the edges at the sides. It could be trimmed with lace on the ends and could be ornamented with figures of chalices, hosts, five small crosses might be embroidered on the fair linen - one to fall at each corner of the mensa, and one in the middle of the front edge. These symbolised the five wounds of Jesus, the fair linen should be left on the altar at all times. When removed for replacement, it should be rolled, not folded and it symbolized the shroud in which Jesus was wrapped for burial. A coverlet of the same heavy linen as the cloth and the linen cloths. It simply protects the altar from dust and debris, there are also special linens which pertain to the Eucharist, The purificator is a white linen cloth which is used to wipe the chalice after each communicant partakes. It is also used to wipe the chalice and paten after the ablutions which follow Communion, the pall is a stiffened square card covered with white linen, usually embroidered with a cross, or some other appropriate symbol. The purpose of the pall is to keep dust and insects from falling into the Eucharistic elements, the corporal is a square white cloth upon which the chalice and paten are placed when the Eucharist is celebrated. It may be edged with lace, and a cross may be embroidered on it near the front edge. Embroidery in the centre was not used, lest the chalice become unstable, the manuterge is used by the priest to dry his or her hands after washing them
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Vestment
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Vestments are liturgical garments and articles associated primarily with the Christian religion, especially among the Eastern Orthodox, Catholics, Anglicans, and Lutherans. For other garments worn by clergy, see also clerical clothing, the rubrics for the type of vestments to be worn vary between the various communions and denominations. In some, clergy are directed to wear clerical clothing in public at all, most. This generally consists of a collar, clergy shirt. In the case of members of orders, non-liturgical wear includes a religious habit. This ordinary wear does not constitute liturgical vestment, but simply acts as a means of identifying the wearer as a member of the clergy or a religious order. A distinction is made between the type of vestment worn for Holy Eucharist or Holy Communion and that worn for other services. In other traditions, there is no name for this attire, although it often takes the form of a Geneva gown worn with or without preaching bands. In the more ancient traditions, each vestment—or at least the stole—will have a cross on it, a number of churches also have special vesting prayers which are recited before putting each vestment on, especially the Eucharistic vestments. For the Eucharist, each vestment symbolizes a spiritual dimension of the priesthood, in some measure these vestments harken to the Roman roots of the Western Church. Use of the following vestments varies, some are used by all Western Christians in liturgical traditions. Many are used only in the Roman Catholic and Anglican churches, cassock an item of clerical clothing, a long, close-fitting, ankle-length robe worn by clerics of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Anglican, Lutheran and some Reformed churches. Stole The long, narrow strip of cloth draped around the neck, a vestment of distinction, deacons wear it draped across the left shoulder diagonally across the body to the right hip while priests and bishops wear it draped around the back of the neck. It may be crossed in the front and secured with the cincture, traditionally, this was done by priests when wearing Eucharistic vestments, whereas bishops always wore it uncrossed. Modern usage is for both bishops and priests to wear the stole uncrossed, corresponds to the Orthodox orarion and epitrachelion. Alb The common garment of any ministers at the eucharist, worn over a cassock, most closely corresponds to the Orthodox sticharion. Cassock-alb or cassalb is a modern garment and is a combination of the traditional cassock. It developed as a convenient undergarment worn by clergy and as an alternative to the alb for deacons, a white or off-white cassock-alb has replaced the traditional cassock and alb in some Anglican and Lutheran churches since the 1970s
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Dark
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Darkness, the polar opposite to brightness, is understood to be the condition of a very small amount or even an absence of visible light. There is no such thing as darkness, its just the absence of light, humans are unable to distinguish color in conditions of either high brightness or darkness. In conditions of insufficient light, perception is achromatic and ultimately, the emotional response to darkness has generated metaphorical usages of the term in many cultures. Complete darkness is when the sun is more than 18 degrees below the horizon, the perception of darkness differs from the mere absence of light due to the effects of after images on perception. In perceiving, the eye is active, and the part of the retina that is unstimulated produces a complementary afterimage, in terms of physics, an object is said to be dark when it absorbs photons, causing it to appear dim compared to other objects. For example, matte black paint does not reflect much visible light and appears dark, whereas white paint reflects lots of light, an object may appear dark, but it may be bright at a frequency that humans cannot perceive. A dark area has limited light sources, making hard to see. Exposure to alternating light and darkness has caused several evolutionary adaptations to darkness, when a vertebrate, like a human, enters a dark area, its pupils dilate, allowing more light to enter the eye and improving night vision. Also, the light detecting cells in the eye will regenerate more unbleached rhodopsin when adapting to darkness. The color of a point, on a standard 24-bit computer display, is defined by three RGB values, each ranging from 0-255. When the red, green, and blue components of a pixel are fully illuminated, the pixel appears white, artists use darkness to emphasize and contrast the presence of light. Darkness can be used as a counterpoint to areas of lightness to create leading lines, such shapes draw the eye around areas of the painting. Shadows add depth and perspective to a painting, see chiaroscuro for a discussion of the uses of such contrasts in visual media. Color paints are mixed together to create darkness, because each color absorbs certain frequencies of light, theoretically, mixing together the three primary colors, or the three secondary colors, will absorb all visible light and create black. In practice it is difficult to prevent the mixture from taking on a brown tint, as a poetic term in the Western world, darkness is used to connote the presence of shadows, evil, and foreboding. The 1820 short story A Visit to the Lunar Sphere tells of a machine where prisms reflect light into bottles where it is captured. The first creation narrative in Christianity begins with darkness, into which is introduced the creation of light, the Quran has been interpreted to say that those who transgress the bounds of what is right are doomed to burning despair and ice-cold darkness. In Chinese philosophy Yin is the feminine part of the Taijitu and is represented by a dark lobe
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Brightness
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Brightness is an attribute of visual perception in which a source appears to be radiating or reflecting light. In other words, brightness is the perception elicited by the luminance of a visual target and it is not necessarily proportional to luminance. This is a subjective attribute/property of an object being observed and one of the color appearance parameters of color appearance models, brightness refers to an absolute term and should not be confused with Lightness. The adjective bright derives from an Old English beorht with the same meaning via metathesis giving Middle English briht, the word is from a Common Germanic *berhtaz, ultimately from a PIE root with a closely related meaning, *bhereg- white, bright. Brightness was formerly used as a synonym for the term luminance. As defined by the US Federal Glossary of Telecommunication Terms, brightness should now be used only for non-quantitative references to physiological sensations and perceptions of light, a given target luminance can elicit different perceptions of brightness in different contexts, see, for example, Whites illusion. With regard to stars, brightness is quantified as apparent magnitude, brightness is, at least in some respects, the antonym of darkness. The United States Federal Trade Commission has assigned a meaning to brightness when applied to lamps. When appearing on light bulb packages, brightness means Luminous flux, Luminous flux is the total amount of light coming from a source, such as a lighting device. Luminance, the meaning of brightness, is the amount of light per solid angle coming from an area. The table below shows the ways of indicating the amount of light. The term brightness is used in discussions of sound timbres. Luma Luminance Luminosity Media related to brightness at Wikimedia Commons Poyntons Color FAQ
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Thurible
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A thurible is a metal censer suspended from chains, in which incense is burned during worship services. In Roman Catholic, Lutheran, and Anglican churches, the altar server who carries the thurible is called the thurifer, the practice is rooted in the earlier traditions of Judaism in the time of the Second Jewish Temple. Beyond its ecclesiastical use, the thurible is also employed in other spiritual or ceremonial traditions, including some Gnostic Churches, Freemasonry. Thuribles are sometimes employed in the practice of ceremonial magic, the workings of a thurible are quite simple. Each thurible consists of a section, chains, a metal ring around the chains. Many thuribles are supplied with a stand, allowing the thurible to be hung safely when still hot and this may be done several times during the service as the incense burns quite quickly. Once the incense has been placed on the charcoal the thurible is then closed and used for censing. A famous thurible is the huge Botafumeiro in Santiago de Compostela Cathedral, Spain The word thurible comes from the Old French thurible, the Latin thuribulum is further formed from the root thus, meaning incense. Thus is an alteration of the Greek word θύος, which is derived from θύειν to sacrifice, due to the ceremonial use of incense, its cultural importance in western catholicism can be seen e. g. in the introduction of a incense smelling fragrance Avignon in 2002. Avignon was created for Comme des Garçons as a part of their incense series by Bertrand Duchaufour, two double swings, relics and images of the Saints exposed for public veneration. A series of swings, the altar. Presenting the thurible to the priest or deacon when they need to use it Incensing the priest after the priest has incensed the offering at Mass. Another server, previously called a boy and now more commonly a boat bearer. These rules, except for the manner of incensing the offerings at Mass and they also direct that incensing of the altar be done with single swings at 29 designated points of an altar attached to the rear wall of the sanctuary, and at 22 points of a freestanding altar. Pre-1969 editions of the Roman Missal did not allow the use of incense at Low Mass, in accordance with the conditions laid down in the document Summorum Pontificum of 2007, use of the 1962 edition as an extraordinary form of the Roman Rite is permitted. In the Ambrosian Rite the thurible has no top cover, and is swung clockwise before the censing of a person or object, in the Anglican Communion, the use of incense is a fairly reliable guide to how high or how low a church is. Anglo-Catholic churches may use generous quantities of incense, in recent years, some middle-of-the-road Anglican churches have taken to using incense a few times a year for special occasions. Two sets of double swings, When censing a Deacon, one set of double swings, When censing a Sub-Deacon
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Clergy
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Clergy are some of the main and important formal leaders within certain religions. The roles and functions of clergy vary in different religious traditions but these usually involve presiding over specific rituals, some of the terms used for individual clergy are cleric, clergyman, clergywoman, clergyperson and churchman. In Islam, a leader is often known formally or informally as an imam, mufti. In Jewish tradition, a leader is often a rabbi or hazzan. Cleric comes from the ecclesiastical Latin clericus, for belonging to the priestly class. This is from the Ecclesiastical Greek clericus, meaning appertaining to an inheritance, Clergy is from two Old French words, clergié and clergie, which refer to those with learning and derive from Medieval Latin clericatus, from Late Latin clericus. Clerk, which used to mean one ordained to the ministry, in the Middle Ages, reading and writing were almost exclusively the domain of the priestly class, and this is the reason for the close relationship of these words. Now, the state is tied to reception of the diaconate. Minor Orders are still given in the Eastern Catholic Churches, and it is in this sense that the word entered the Arabic language, most commonly in Lebanon from the French, as kleriki meaning seminarian. This is all in keeping with Eastern Orthodox concepts of clergy, which include those who have not yet received, or do not plan to receive. A priesthood is a body of priests, shamans, or oracles who have religious authority or function. Buddhist clergy are often referred to as the Sangha. This diversity of monastic orders and styles was originally one community founded by Gautama Buddha during the 5th century BC living under a set of rules. The interaction between Buddhism and Tibetan Bon led to a uniquely Tibetan Buddhism, within which various sects, similarly, the interaction between Indian Buddhist monks and Chinese Confucian and Taoist monks from c200-c900AD produced the distinctive Chan Buddhism. In these ways, manual labour was introduced to a practice where monks originally survived on alms, layers of garments were added where originally a single thin robe sufficed and this adaptation of form and roles of Buddhist monastic practice continued after the transmission to Japan. For example, monks took on administrative functions for the Emperor in particular secular communities, again, in response to various historic attempts to suppress Buddhism, the practice of celibacy was relaxed and Japanese monks allowed to marry. This form was then transmitted to Korea, during later Japanese occupation, as these varied styles of Buddhist monasticism are transmitted to Western cultures, still more new forms are being created. This broad difference in approach led to a schism among Buddhist monastics in about the 4th century BCE
