Sunday, April 26, 2015

One dimensionality

As you all know, we can easily access a multitude of Protestant church services on TV or on the internet.  They seem to be very popular.  But we don't see a weekly broadcast of the Divine Liturgy, anywhere. 
The reason for this struck me today during the Divine Liturgy.  As the priest was censing the icon of the Theotokos, one vast difference between a regular Protestant service and the Divine Liturgy is the dimensionality.  The Orthodox service consists of an interaction of the whole of a person with God, while the Protestant/Evangelical service, for the most part, consists of hearing.  You hear the songs (and maybe sing along), you hear the prayers, and you hear the sermon (by far, the bulk of the service). 
So really, in practice, a televised Protestant service, works.  A televised Divine Liturgy does not.  Hearing the singing, singing along, bowing to and kissing the icons, smelling the incense, responding verbally and physically to the words and actions of the priest, and the receiving of the Eucharist (the climax of the service).  All of these things make up the historic church service.
I don't think this leads to any final conclusions but it was thought provoking, at least for me.

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