Let Us Attend: A Journey Through the Orthodox Divine Liturgy

by Lawrence R. Farley

A guide to understanding the Divine Liturgy, and a vibrant reminder of the centrality of the Eucharist in living the Christian life. Every Sunday morning we are literally taken on a journey into the Kingdom of God. Fr. Lawrence guides everyday believers in a devotional and historical walk through the Orthodox liturgy. Examining the Liturgy section by section, he provides both historical explanations of how the liturgy evolved, and devotional insights aimed at helping us pray the liturgy in the way the Fathers intended. In better understanding the depth of the Liturgy's meaning and purpose, we can pray it properly. If you would like a deeper understanding of your Sunday morning experience so that you can draw closer to God, this book is for you.

144 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 18, 2012

About the author

Father Lawrence, born in 1954, completed his M. Div. at Wycliffe College, Toronto School of Theology in 1979. After 6 years in pastoral ministry with the Anglican Church of Canada, he entered the Orthodox Church and completed a Certificate program at St. Tikhon’s Seminary in Pennsylvania and was ordained to the priesthood in 1986. Since 1987 he has served as the pastor St. Herman of Alaska Church in Langley BC, a missionary parish of the OCA (Archdiocese of Canada) founded by local laity, which has since grown to attain regular parish status and purchased its own building. Several priests, deacons, and lay members of new missions have emerged from the membership of St. Herman’s. Fr. Lawrence is the author of the Orthodox Bible Study Companion Series from Conciliar Press, and of a number of other books and articles, and appears in regular weekday podcasts on Ancient Faith Radio. He lives in Surrey B.C. with his family.

Reviews

[Jeremy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quotes:

When St. Paul and the other apostles wrote their letters (or “epistles”) to the churches, these letters were read as part of the eucharistic gatherings. When, for example, the church in Corinth received a letter from Paul, they not only read it, reread it, and treasured it, but also passed around copies to churches in other cities so that they could share in its spiritual wealth too. Eventually, as these letters were passed from church to church in the first and second centuries, they became the common property of all. The New Testament was being born. The Church naturally read the writings of the apostles after the Old Testament, for the Church was built upon the foundation of their teaching (Eph. 2:20; Rev. 21:14)... The epistles are not just historical documents read for archeological interest. They are the living and abiding voice of the Church's first teachers. Though they have passed on, the apostles still speak (compare Heb. 11:4), and through the chanting of the epistle, we still sit at their feet and drink in their authoritative teaching.

In North America today, we can forget that the most dangerous thing the early Christians did was to celebrate the Liturgy. Every time they did so, they risked their lives. The Roman law made it quite clear: “Christians may not exist,” and what defined a Christian, in the eyes of the state as well as of the Church, was participation in the Eucharist. In those first three centuries after Christ, every Christian knew that he or she risked penal servitude, exile, and even death by standing with the clergy at the Christian Eucharist.

The Eucharist forms our private, corporate communion with our Lord, and the unbelieving world has no part in this communion. As Christ appeared behind the closed and locked doors to commune and meet privately with His own disciples after His Resurrection (John 20:19, 26), so He comes to commune with us in the Divine Liturgy.

The presence of the creed in the Liturgy forms the Church's bulwark against heresy, for by confessing the creed immediately before praying the eucharistic anaphora, the Church states unequivocally that it is not acceptable to believe just anything at all, and that belief is not just a private matter.

Before receiving Holy Communion, all the faithful say the creed together, thus showing that sharing the common faith is a prerequisite to sharing the common sacrament. In our day of pluralism and individualism, we might be tempted to think that any form of belief is adequate, as long as it is sincerely held and uses Christian terminology. As long as we say we believe in Jesus, what does it really matter what we mean by this? Surely individual sincerity is enough? It is not enough. St. Paul long ago warned us that to be saved, we must have a relationship with the real Jesus—the Jesus proclaimed by him and by the Twelve, the One witnessed to by the Law and the Prophets, the One who took flesh and was crucified, buried, and raised (1 Cor. 15:1–8). For a seeker could find other Jesuses on the market, even then… Some people in the first century proclaimed a Jesus who would not forgive anyone who was not a Jew; others proclaimed a Jesus who was not really made flesh, but was a kind of phantom, only seeming to be flesh. St. Paul warned us, once and for all, to accept no substitute. Indeed, many in his day preached another Jesus (2 Cor. 11:4) who proclaimed other gospels (Gal. 1:9). These Jesuses were not the true Jesus, and accepting these pseudogospels did not bring one into saving contact with the true Lord. These false versions of Jesus were in fact products of the spirit of antichrist (1 John 4:3) and must be rejected at all costs. Sincerely confessing a Jesus of some sort is not enough, for one can be sincerely wrong. Hitler was sincere. Sincerity alone cannot save us from disaster. Only truth can do that. Retaining the creed in the Liturgy witnesses to the indispensable primacy of the truth. We all want unity, but unity can only be maintained on the basis of the apostolic truth of God. Without this truth, unity is a solidarity of the deceived, a fellowship of the lost.

In Orthodoxy, theology is primarily doxology, a glorification of God and an offering of praise, not an academic subject; it comes from the heart, pouring from the lips, and a theologian therefore is one who prays and sings.

St. Irenaeus said, “What the virgin Eve tied up by unbelief, this the Virgin Mary loosened by faith” (Against Heresies, 3,22,4). If Adam therefore could say regarding Eve's disobedience, “The woman gave me, and I ate” (see Gen. 3:12), now we faithful can say of Mary's obedience, “The woman gave me, and I ate,” for Mary gave us Christ, whose Flesh and Blood we eat in the holy Eucharist.

[Kenneth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another Blessing Through Fr. Lawrence from God to Us

If you are the least bit seriously interested in the Orthodox Divine Liturgy, the. I HIGHLY recommend this book.

I’ve read some writings on the Divine Liturgy before, but this will likely be the book I recommend. Though it may no seem like much in the amount of words, it overflows with content to ponder again and again.

This is likely to be not only a recommendation, but a reference tool as well as required annual reading.

See for yourself.

[Tony Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

A window!

Understanding the how’s and why’s of all the different aspects of the Liturgy makes attending an entirely enlightening experience! “Aha!” After “Aha!” enter into my heart and soul when I now hear the words of the Father. Excellent read!

[Brandon Strain · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely phenomenal deep dive in to the origins of the many ancient traditions in the Divine Liturgy! Don’t be intimidated though, fr. Lawrence’s writing style is very easy to grasp for anyone regardless of reading level or understanding; this book is incredibly accessible!