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Melkite Greek Catholic Church Information Center

Divine Liturgy - Customs

The three explanations below were written by Rev. Fr. James Graham, Pastor of Saint Elias the Prophet Melkite Greek Catholic Mission, San Jose, CA, Sunday Bulletin Oct. 27, 2002

Everyone is Invited to Stand Under the Gospel Book

Standing Under the Gospel Book During the Reading of the Gospel is a wonderful custom for children and for adults. Jesus said, "Let the little children come to Me." And He said, "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life." Jesus is the Word of God who became a man for our salvation. His Word is in the Gospel, and standing under the Gospel Book (the Evangelion or Vangile), or holding it for the priest, is a sign that we want to make the Word of God the center of our lives. All the children, and all the people in the church, are invited to come forward to stand under the Gospel Book when the priest comes out from the altar and announces, "Wisdom! Let us stand to hear the reading of the Holy Gospel!"

Touching Heads With the Gifts Includes You in the Offering

During the Great Entrance with the Holy Gifts of Bread and Wine, the priest touches the heads of the people with the diskos or the chalice. Since the diskos and the chalice contain the gifts of the community offered to God to be changed into His Body and Blood and given to us for salvation and for eternal life, having them touched to our heads shows in a special way that we are offering our lives and our prayers and intentions to God to be transformed along with the Bread and Wine. This is another beautiful custom, and everyone is invited to stand near the aisle and bow your heads so that the Holy Gifts may be touched to you. You do not have to do this-your prayers and intentions are offered in the Eucharist already-but it is a way of physically sharing in the offering.

Children Belong In the Divine Liturgy

... It is not proper to take children out of the Divine Liturgy for religious education. They belong in the Divine Liturgy with their families, where they will learn to sing and to stand and to pray and to cross themselves by watching their parents and the other parishioners. The Liturgy should not be disrupted by parading children in and out, and children should not be deprived of the grace of participation in the Liturgy. If parents want religious education for their children -- and are willing to participate in their children's education in the faith -- a time separate from the Divine Liturgy will be arranged.

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Melkite Greek Catholic Church Information Center is dedicated to my cousins: Bucky (Richard C. Liles), Shirley (Shirley Jean Liles Buck), and Donna (Donna Bertha Liles Campbell). Bucky fell asleep in the Lord on Dec. 12, 2000, Shirley fell asleep in the Lord on Nov. 8, 2001, and Donna fell asleep in the Lord on March 9, 2020.
O God of all spirits and of all flesh, who have destroyed death, overcome the devil, and given life to the world: grant, O Lord, to the souls of your servants Bucky and Shirley, who has departed from this life, that it may rest in a place of light, in a place of happiness, in a place of peace, where there is no pain, no grief, no sighing. And since You are a gracious God and the Lover of Mankind, forgive him/her every sin he/she has committed by thought, or word, or deed, for there is not a man who lives and does not sin : You alone are without sin, your righteousness is everlasting, and your word is true. You are the Resurrection and the Life, and the repose of your departed servants Bucky and Shirley. O Christ our God, and we send up glory to You, together with your eternal Father and your all-holy, good and life-giving Spirit, now and always and for ages upon ages. Amen.

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