Glossary

Short definitions for the nave, not a substitute for the dictionary they come from. Open the source when a word matters for your reception or for a fast.

These pages are for study. They paraphrase public teaching from the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America and the Orthodox Church in America, and they point to freely available sources. They are not a rule of prayer, a fasting discipline, or a decision about how you will be received. At Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church in St. Augustine, the parish priest is the authority for catechumens.

A

AërΑήρ: The largest of the three veils laid over the paten and the chalice. It is understood as the shroud of Christ. During the Creed the priest waves it over the gifts.; GOARCH dictionary, part 1
AkathistΑκάθιστος Ύμνος: A hymn of twenty-four stanzas in praise of the Theotokos, also called the Salutations. In Great Lent it is sung in parts on the Fridays, and in full on the fifth Friday.; GOARCH dictionary, part 1
AltarΙερό: In church architecture, the sanctuary beyond the iconostasis, and especially the Holy Table where the Eucharist is offered. The Book of Gospels rests on the Holy Table when the Liturgy is not being celebrated.; GOARCH dictionary, part 1; Fr. Fitzgerald, House of God
AnalogionΑναλόγιον: A wooden stand, usually with a slanted top, set on the solea. It holds the Gospel book or an icon.; GOARCH dictionary, part 1
Anaphora: The lifting up of the gifts in the Eucharist, the great prayer of thanksgiving in which the Church remembers what God has done and calls upon the Holy Spirit.; Fr. Thomas Hopko, The Orthodox Faith, worship volume
AntidoronΑντίδωρον: Blessed bread from the prosphora, cut from what is not consecrated as the Lamb, and given to the faithful after the Eucharist. It is not Holy Communion. The name means "instead of the gift." It was first given to those who did not receive the Mysteries, and later to everyone.; GOARCH dictionary, part 1
AntimensionΑντιμήνσιον: A consecrated cloth on the Holy Table, printed with the entombment of Christ and the four Evangelists. A bishop consecrates it. The Divine Liturgy is not celebrated without it.; GOARCH dictionary, part 1
ApolytikionΑπολυτίκιον: The dismissal hymn of the day, in honor of Christ, the Theotokos, or a saint. It is the short troparion most people learn first. At the Liturgy it is sung at the Small Entrance.; GOARCH dictionary, part 1
ApostolosΑπόστολος: The liturgical book of the Epistles and the Acts of the Apostles, from which the reader chants the apostolic reading at the Divine Liturgy.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2
ArtoklasiaΑρτοκλασία: The blessing of five loaves, with wheat, wine, and oil, at a festal Vespers. It is a prayer for the health and well-being of the people, not the Eucharist.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2
AutocephalousΑυτοκέφαλη: Self-governing. A local Orthodox Church that orders her own life and is still one in faith and worship with the other Churches. Fr. Fitzgerald describes the Orthodox Church as a family of patriarchal, autocephalous, and autonomous churches, not as one administrative empire.; Fr. Fitzgerald, An Introduction to the Orthodox Church

B

BaptismΒάπτισμα: The Holy Mystery of new birth by water and the Spirit. The person is immersed three times in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, dies with Christ, and rises with Him. Chrismation follows at once, and the newly baptized is brought to Holy Communion.; Fr. Fitzgerald, The Sacraments; Fr. Hopko on baptism
BishopΕπίσκοπος: The highest of the three major orders. A bishop is ordained by at least three bishops and is understood as a successor of the Apostles. Only a bishop ordains. He is the chief pastor of a diocese or metropolis.; GOARCH dictionary, part 1; Fr. Fitzgerald, The Sacraments
Bright WeekΔιακαινήσιμος: The week after Pascha. Fasting is set aside. The week is kept as a continuous celebration of the Resurrection.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2; Fr. Fitzgerald, Orthodox Worship

C

CanonΚανών: A hymn of nine odes, sung at Orthros. The word also means a rule or standard, as in the canons of the councils. The two uses should not be confused.; GOARCH dictionary, parts 1 and 2
CatechumenΚατηχούμενος: A person under instruction who is not yet baptized, or not yet received, into the Church. The Liturgy still has prayers for the catechumens. In the early church the narthex was the place of those not yet baptized. Today the length of instruction is set with the parish priest.; Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom; GOARCH dictionary; Fr. Fitzgerald, The Church
ChaliceΆγιον Ποτήριον: The cup of the Eucharist. Wine mixed with water is poured into it at the Proskomide, the Holy Spirit is invoked over the gifts, and the faithful receive from it together with the consecrated Lamb.; GOARCH dictionary, part 1; Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom
Cherubic HymnΧερουβικόν: The hymn of the Great Entrance. The people are asked to lay aside worldly care so that they may receive the King of all, borne invisibly by the angelic hosts.; Introduction to the Divine Liturgy, GOARCH
ChrismΆγιον Μύρον: Sanctified oil, fragrant with many ingredients, used for Chrismation. In the Greek Orthodox tradition it is prepared and blessed at the Ecumenical Patriarchate, customarily on Holy Thursday.; GOARCH dictionary, part 1
Chrismation: The Holy Mystery that follows Baptism at once and is not delayed to a later age. The priest anoints the newly baptized with Holy Chrism, saying, "The seal of the gifts of the Holy Spirit." It is often called one's personal Pentecost. Those already baptized may, when the bishop so directs, be received by Chrismation.; Fr. Fitzgerald, The Sacraments
ChurchΕκκλησία: The assembly God calls. The Creed confesses one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church. Catholic here means full and universal, not Roman. Fr. Fitzgerald writes that one cannot know Christ or share the life of the Trinity apart from the Church.; Fr. Fitzgerald, Teachings; An Introduction to the Orthodox Church
CommunionΘεία Κοινωνία: Receiving the Body and Blood of Christ in the Eucharist, after the preparation the Church asks: prayer, fasting, and, when it is needed, confession. The Archdiocese dictionary encourages the faithful to receive often.; GOARCH dictionary, part 1
ConfessionΕξομολόγηση: The Holy Mystery in which a person confesses sins to God in the presence of a priest, who is a witness, physician, and guide, not a judge. Christ forgives. The priest may give counsel. Serious sin, a habit of sin, or a stalled spiritual life are especially the times to come.; GOARCH dictionary, part 1; Fr. Fitzgerald, The Sacraments
CreedΠιστεύω: The Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed as the Archdiocese uses it in the Divine Liturgy and in personal prayer. It confesses one God, the Father; one Lord, Jesus Christ, of one essence with the Father; and the Holy Spirit, who proceeds from the Father. It does not add the later Western phrase "and the Son."; GOARCH, The Nicene Creed

D

DeaconΔιάκονος: The first of the three major orders, a server of the bishop and the priest. A deacon does not celebrate the Holy Mysteries. At the Liturgy he leads the litanies.; GOARCH dictionary, part 1
DiskosΔίσκος: The paten, a small plate of precious metal, on which the priest places the Lamb and the particles commemorating the Theotokos, the saints, the living, and the departed.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2
DormitionΚοίμησις: The falling asleep of the Theotokos, celebrated on August 15. It is one of the twelve great feasts. The fast of the Dormition is August 1 through 14.; Fr. Fitzgerald, Orthodox Worship

E

Ecumenical Patriarch: The Archbishop of Constantinople, New Rome, accorded a place of honor among Orthodox bishops and regarded as first among equals. The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America is under the care of the Patriarchate of Constantinople.; Fr. Fitzgerald, An Introduction to the Orthodox Church
EkphonesisΕκφώνησις: The closing words of a prayer that the priest says aloud, usually a doxology to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The Digital Chant Stand prints the direction ἐκφώνως, "aloud," before those words. The body of the prayer is often said quietly.; GOARCH Digital Chant Stand, Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom
EpiclesisΕπίκλησις: The invocation of the Holy Spirit in the Eucharist. In the Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom the priest prays, "Send down Your Holy Spirit upon us and upon the gifts here presented," and then, "Changing them by Your Holy Spirit."; Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom, GOARCH
EpitrachelionΕπιτραχήλιον: The priest's stole, worn around the neck and hanging in front. An Orthodox priest wears it to celebrate a Holy Mystery.; GOARCH dictionary, part 1
EucharistΕυχαριστία: The Holy Mystery of thanksgiving, celebrated as the Divine Liturgy. Bread and wine become the Body and Blood of Christ. Fr. Fitzgerald calls it the Sacrament of Sacraments: every other Mystery leads toward it and flows from it.; Fr. Fitzgerald, The Sacraments
ExaposteilarionΕξαποστειλάριον: A short hymn at the end of the canon at Orthros. It speaks of what Christ did after the Resurrection, including the sending of the disciples.; GOARCH dictionary, part 1

F

FastingΝηστεία: Voluntary abstinence, joined to prayer. The Church keeps Wednesday and Friday through the year, with seasons when the fast is lifted, and longer fasts before Pascha, the Apostles Peter and Paul, the Dormition, and the Nativity. The published rule is a guide. A catechumen's rule comes from the priest.; Fr. Fitzgerald, Orthodox Worship
Filioque: A Latin word, "and the Son." It was added in the West to the Creed's sentence about the Holy Spirit. The Creed published by the Archdiocese, and the text of the Liturgy, says the Spirit proceeds from the Father, and does not add that phrase.; GOARCH, The Nicene Creed; Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom

G

GodparentΝονός: The sponsor who receives a person from the font, speaks the faith with or for the newly baptized, and takes a lasting care for that person's life in the Church. The sponsor is Orthodox. Marriage between godparent and godchild is forbidden.; GOARCH dictionary, part 1
Great Entrance: The procession in which the prepared bread and wine are carried from the table of oblation to the Holy Table while the Cherubic Hymn is sung. The gifts are not yet consecrated.; Introduction to the Divine Liturgy, GOARCH

H

Holy OrdersΧειροτονία: The Holy Mystery in which a man is set apart for service as bishop, priest, or deacon, by the bishop's prayer and the laying on of hands. The bishop acts for the whole Church. A man may marry before ordination. Since the sixth century, bishops have been chosen from the celibate clergy.; Fr. Fitzgerald, The Sacraments
Holy UnctionΕυχέλαιον: The anointing of the sick. Oil is a sign of God's presence, strength, and forgiveness. It is offered to those who are sick in body, mind, or spirit, not only to the dying. The Church anoints her members on Holy Wednesday.; Fr. Fitzgerald, The Sacraments
HorologionΩρολόγιον: The book of the hours, one of the service books, containing the ordinary texts of the daily services.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2

I

IconΕικόνα: A holy image of Christ, the Theotokos, the saints, or a feast, painted, mosaic, or fresco. Honor passes to the person shown, not to the wood or paint. Fr. Fitzgerald calls the icon a window linking heaven and earth. It is venerated. It is not worshipped as God.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2; Fr. Fitzgerald, House of God
IconoclasmΕικονομαχία: The controversy, from 727 to 843, over whether icons may be used. The Seventh Ecumenical Council defended their use, drawing on St. John of Damascus. The first Sunday of Great Lent remembers the restoration of the icons.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2
IconostasisΕικονοστάσι: The screen of icons between the nave and the sanctuary. The central doors are the Royal Doors. Deacon doors stand on either side. Facing the screen, the Theotokos is to the left of the Royal Doors and Christ is to the right, with the patron saint and the Forerunner beside them.; Fr. Fitzgerald, House of God
IncarnationΕνανθρώπηση: The Son of God became man from the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary, without ceasing to be God and without dissolving His humanity. The Church's short way of saying it, as Fr. Fitzgerald reports the Fathers, is that God became what we are so that we may become what He is.; Fr. Fitzgerald, Teachings of the Orthodox Church

J

Jesus PrayerΚύριε Ιησού Χριστέ, ελέησόν με: A short prayer repeated so that the name of Jesus stays in the heart. The Archdiocese dictionary gives the form, "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me." Many also add "a sinner," as Fr. Hopko records.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2

K

KolymbethraΚολυμβήθρα: The baptismal font, often a large basin, holding the water of the three immersions. It is understood as the Jordan, and as a tomb and a womb.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2
KontakionΚοντάκιον: A short hymn that sums up the feast or the saint of the day. It is appointed after the sixth ode of the canon. St. Romanos the Melodist is remembered as the great writer of kontakia.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2
KoumbarosΚουμπάρος: The sponsor at a baptism, or the best man at a wedding. The same word is used as the family's form of address for that person. The spiritual bond is treated with great care, and marriage within that bond is forbidden.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2

L

LaityΛαϊκοί: The baptized people of the Church who are not ordained. In the Liturgy they are not an audience. They answer the litanies, confess the Creed, and, when prepared, receive Holy Communion.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2
LambΑμνός: The first square cut from the prosphora, sealed with the letters IC XC NIKA, "Jesus Christ conquers." This piece is consecrated in the Eucharist. The lance used to cut it recalls the spear at the Cross.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2
Leavened breadΈνζυμος άρτος: Bread made with yeast, which the Orthodox Church offers in the Eucharist. The dictionary contrasts it with the unleavened bread of the Latin West.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2
LitanyΕκτενής: A series of petitions chanted by the deacon or priest. The people's answer is usually "Lord, have mercy," or, for some petitions, "Grant this, O Lord."; GOARCH dictionary, part 1; Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom
LiturgyΛειτουργία: The common work of the people of God, and the name of the service in which the Eucharist is celebrated. The usual Liturgy is that of St. John Chrysostom. St. Basil's is used on certain Sundays and feasts. The Presanctified Liturgy is served on weekdays of Great Lent.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2
LogosΛόγος: Word. A name of Christ, the Word who was with God and who became flesh. The hymn "Only-begotten Son" calls Him the only-begotten Son and Logos of God.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2; Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom

M

MarriageΓάμος: The Holy Mystery in which a man and a woman are crowned and joined before God. The Orthodox service has no vows of the Western kind. The couple drinks from a common cup. It is a vocation in the Kingdom, not only a civil contract.; Fr. Fitzgerald, The Sacraments
MemorialΜνημόσυνο: A service for the repose of the departed, commonly on the third, ninth, and fortieth days, and again at six months and at one or three years. Boiled wheat is brought as a sign of the resurrection.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2
MenaionΜηναίον: The twelve volumes, one for each month, of the fixed feasts and the saints of the calendar. The dictionary spells the book Meneon.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2
MetropolitanΜητροπολίτης: The bishop of a chief city, a metropolis. Holy Trinity belongs to the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Atlanta, within the Archdiocese.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2
MysteryΜυστήριον: The Orthodox name for a sacrament. In these actions of the Church, God discloses Himself and makes His people able to receive Him. Fr. Fitzgerald writes that the Church has never formally fixed one number of Mysteries. The Eucharist stands at the center, with Baptism, Chrismation, Confession, Marriage, Holy Orders, and Holy Unction around it.; Fr. Fitzgerald, The Sacraments

N

Name dayΟνομαστική εορτή: The feast of the saint whose name a person received at Baptism. In Orthodox custom it is kept at least as carefully as a birthday, because the saint is a companion and intercessor.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2
NarthexΝάρθηκας: The entrance of the church, before the nave. The faithful light a candle and pray there before joining the congregation. In the early Church it was the place of penitents and of catechumens.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2; Fr. Fitzgerald, House of God
Nave: The main body of the church, where the faithful gather for the Liturgy. The bishop's chair, the pulpit, and often the baptismal font stand in this space. Some churches keep an open floor; many in this country have pews.; Fr. Fitzgerald, House of God

O

OctoechosΟκτώηχος: The book of the eight tones. Hymns rotate through the eight modes, a week at a time. It is also called the Paraklitiki. The cycle is associated with St. John of Damascus.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2
OmophorionΩμοφόριον: The bishop's vestment, a broad band worn about the shoulders, a sign of the Good Shepherd and of his office.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2
OrarionΟράριον: The deacon's long band, worn over the left shoulder. It is understood as a sign of the angels' wings.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2
OrthodoxΟρθόδοξος: Right belief, and, more deeply, right glory. Fr. Fitzgerald says the preferred sense is true praise: the Church exists to glorify the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The name has been used since the fifth century.; Fr. Fitzgerald, An Introduction to the Orthodox Church
OrthrosΌρθρος: The morning service, called Matins in English. It is usually joined to the Divine Liturgy on Sunday. It includes the six psalms, the Gospel, the canon, and the Great Doxology.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2

P

PanagiaΠαναγία: "All-holy," a name of the Mother of God. It also names an icon of her with the Christ Child, and the bishop's medallion bearing that icon.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2
PantocratorΠαντοκράτωρ: "Almighty," the icon of Christ enthroned in the dome, Lord of heaven and earth, looking upon the church and drawing the eye upward.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2; Fr. Fitzgerald, House of God
PaschaΠάσχα: The feast of the Resurrection, the Feast of Feasts. The word is the Church's name for Passover: Christ's passing from death to life, and ours with Him. Its date moves, and the movable feasts are counted from it.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2; Fr. Hopko on Holy Pascha
PentecostΠεντηκοστή: The fiftieth day after Pascha, the descent of the Holy Spirit on the disciples. The dictionary calls it the birthday of the Church. The Pentecostarion is the book of the services from Pascha to Pentecost.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2
PresbyterΠρεσβύτερος: A priest, an elder who serves a parish in the bishop's name. He baptizes, chrismates, hears confession, crowns marriages, anoints the sick, and celebrates the Eucharist. He does not ordain.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2
PresvyteraΠρεσβυτέρα: The customary title for the priest's wife. The Slavonic title is Matushka.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2
ProkeimenonΠροκείμενον: A psalm verse sung before the Epistle, introducing the theme of the reading.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2
ProskomideΠροσκομιδή: The service of preparation before the Liturgy, at the table of oblation on the north side of the sanctuary. The priest prepares the bread and the wine that will be brought to the Holy Table at the Great Entrance.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2
ProsphoraΠρόσφορον: The leavened loaf offered for the Eucharist, stamped with a seal. It is sometimes baked in two layers, for the two natures of Christ. The sealed portion becomes the Lamb. The rest is cut up as antidoron. The dictionary also uses the form prosphoro.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2

R

ReaderΑναγνώστης: A lay person blessed by the bishop to read and to lead the people's responses. The reader chants the Epistle at the Liturgy.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2
Reception: The service by which a person becomes a member of the Orthodox Church after instruction. Fr. Fitzgerald writes that someone coming from outside the Christian faith is baptized and chrismated, and that someone already baptized in a way the Church recognizes may be received by anointing with Chrism. Holy Communion completes the union. The priest, under his bishop, discerns which path is right.; Fr. Fitzgerald, The Church
RelicsΛείψανα: The bodily remains of a saint, or, more broadly, what a saint wore or used. They are honored, not worshipped. At the consecration of a church, relics are placed in the Holy Table, continuing the ancient practice of the Eucharist at the tombs of the martyrs.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2
Royal DoorsΩραία Πύλη: The central doors of the iconostasis, used for the Gospel entrance and the entrance of the gifts. A curtain or inner door hides the Holy Table when services are not being celebrated.; Fr. Fitzgerald, House of God

S

SaintΆγιος: A holy one: a man, woman, or angel whom the Church honors for a life in God or for martyrdom. The saints in glory are the Church triumphant, still one body with the faithful on earth. We ask their prayers. We do not worship them.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2
Sign of the Cross: Made with the right hand: forehead, chest, right shoulder, then left. The thumb and the first two fingers are joined for the Holy Trinity, and the other two fingers rest in the palm for the two natures of Christ.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2
Small Entrance: The procession with the Gospel book early in the Liturgy. The deacon or priest lifts the Gospel, and the people sing "Come, let us worship and bow down before Christ." It leads into the readings.; Introduction to the Divine Liturgy, GOARCH
SoleaΣολέας: The raised floor in front of the iconostasis, where blessings, readings, and other rites take place. The pulpit often stands at its north side.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2
Symbol of FaithΣύμβολον της Πίστεως: The Orthodox name for the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed. It is not a complete system. It points beyond itself to the faith of the Church. It is said at Baptism and at every Divine Liturgy, in the first person: "I believe."; Fr. Fitzgerald, Teachings of the Orthodox Church
SynaxarionΣυναξάριον: A short life of a saint, read on the feast, and also the book that gathers those lives.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2

T

TheophanyΘεοφάνεια: January 6, the baptism of Christ in the Jordan and the manifestation of the Holy Trinity. The Church blesses water. Fr. Fitzgerald lists it among the twelve great feasts, after Pascha and Pentecost in age.; Fr. Fitzgerald, Orthodox Worship
TheosisΘέωσις: Deification: the calling of each person to share the life of God. It begins at Baptism and continues in this life and the next. It is union with God's energies, not with His unknowable essence, and it is not a dissolving of the person. It happens in the Church, through the Mysteries, prayer, and fasting, with the Holy Spirit.; Fr. Fitzgerald, Spirituality
TheotokionΘεοτοκίον: A hymn addressed to the Theotokos, or ending in her praise. Many sequences of hymns close with one.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2
TheotokosΘεοτόκος: God-bearer, the Church's name for the Virgin Mary. It safeguards who her Son is: the one born of her is God incarnate. She is the first among the saints and the closest human being to God, and she is not a goddess.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2; Fr. Fitzgerald, House of God
TraditionΠαράδοσις: What is handed on. For the Orthodox Church, Scripture is inside Tradition, together with the Eucharist, the Fathers, the saints, prayer, icons, the seven Ecumenical Councils, and the Creed. Tradition is not a set of customs added after the Bible.; Fr. Fitzgerald, Teachings of the Orthodox Church
TriodionΤριώδιον: The book of the services from the Sunday of the Publican and the Pharisee through Holy Week, and the name of that pre-Paschal season. Many of its canons have three odes.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2; Fr. Fitzgerald, Orthodox Worship
TrisagionΤρισάγιον: The thrice-holy hymn: "Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy upon us." It is used throughout the services. The same name is given to a short memorial for the departed.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2
TroparionΤροπάριον: A short hymn. The dismissal hymn, or apolytikion, is the troparion of the day. At Pascha the Church sings, "Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death, and upon those in the tombs bestowing life."; Fr. Hopko on Holy Pascha; GOARCH dictionary on the apolytikion
TypikonΤυπικόν: The book of directions for how the services are appointed, day by day: which hymns, readings, and rites are joined when feasts coincide. The word means "according to the order."; GOARCH dictionary, part 2

V

VespersΕσπερινός: The evening service. It gives thanks for the day that is ending and welcomes the day that begins at sunset. On the eve of a feast it may include the blessing of five loaves.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2

Z

ZeonΖέον: Hot water poured into the chalice before Communion, a remembrance of the blood and water from the side of Christ and of the warmth of the Holy Spirit.; GOARCH dictionary, part 2