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Monday, July 5, 2010

QUESTION  "I'm unfamiliar with the veneration of the Gospel by the people at the Lesser Entrance. Is this a local custom or is there a wider tradition of which I'm unaware?" (rm)


ANSWER: While the Liturgikon, only mentions the priest kissing the Gospel Book at the Little Entrance, the custom as practiced at St. Elias derives from popular piety in Western Ukraine.  When it was introduced I do not know.  Fr. Roman has limited this custom to children at the Sunday Divine Liturgy, however, on weekdays it is not uncommon at St. Elias for adults also to join the children.

Another custom that I have noticed is among the Melkite Greek-Catholics when the Gospel is read, people - especially children will stand around the deacon or priest and in some cases hold candles and at the conclusion of the reading kiss the Gospel Book.

I have also noticed that in some Ukrainian Catholic Churches, the Gospel Book is extended to the concelebrating priests and also to the altar servers to kiss.

I was recently at a Greek Orthodox monastery and at the Great Entrance, those closest to the priests [there was no deacon serving] kissed the phelonia of the priests.

1. kissing is a sign of respect and veneration.
2. the rubrics in the liturgical books do not fully account for all of the practices.
3. liturgical movements, especially processions tend to allow for a certain amount of "ad hoc" piety, but when people are put into fixed seating this declines if not stops.

4. notice that this "flexibility" is more prevalent when the clergy come from the bema [sanctuary/altar] into the naos/nave and are in the midst of the assembly.
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