The Divine Liturgy

There are several liturgies in use by the Orthodox Church. These include the Liturgy of St James, which is celebrated daily in Jerusalem, the Liturgy of St Mark, celebrated by the Church of Alexandria in Egypt, and the Liturgy of St Gregory, which is celebrated by Orthodox Churches of the western rite. Other well known liturgies are the Liturgy of St Basil, and the Liturgy of Presanctified Gifts, which are both celebrated during Great Lent, and the Liturgy of St John Chrysostom, which is used by most Orthodox Churches throughout the year. This last one is used far more often than any of the others, and is normally the one people are talking about when they refer to the Divine Liturgy.

The guys at Our Life in Christ have a radio teaching ministry that is absolutely bursting with fascinating information about Orthodox theology, practice, history, worship, music, iconography, and many other subjects relevant to Orthodox Christianity. I have been listening to them since I first became interested in Orthodoxy and have learned a ton from them. I strongly recommend them to anyone with the least interest in the Orthodox Church; they will answer many if not all of your burning questions. Back in 2006, they recorded a nine-part series about the Divine Liturgy. I listened to it recently and have gained a new appreciation for the extraordinary beauty and complexity of the Divine Liturgy.

Among the thing I learned are that the Divine Liturgy:

1) Includes nearly three hundred quotes from the Bible,

2) Contains a hymn written by an emperor,

3) Actually transcends time and space.


How many other church services that you know of can claim all this?

Here are links to the mp3 files. For best results, right-click on the links and choose the "Save Target As..." option. Save the file to your computer and then open it using itunes or another audio application.

Part 1: Introduction

Part 2: The Proskomide - Preparing the Eucharist

Part 3: The Liturgy of The Word

Part 4: The Liturgy of The Faithful

Part 5: The Liturgy of The Faithful, cont'd

Part 6: The Epiclesis

Part 7: Pre-Communion Prayers

Part 8: Receiving the Body of Christ

Part 9: Post Communion Prayers