288 East 10th Street, New York, NY 10009
P: (212)254-6685 E: info@stnicholaschurchnyc.org
Rev. Fr. William Bennett
Divine Liturgy: Sunday 10am
P: (212)254-6685 E: info@stnicholaschurchnyc.org
Rev. Fr. William Bennett
Divine Liturgy: Sunday 10am
But the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.
(John 14:26)
(John 14:26)
Sacraments OverviewWe believe that while unseen, God is truly near to us. As Orthodox Christians, we strive to grow closer to God and receive His Divine Grace. The process to achieve this union, where God discloses Himself to us and we are receptive to
God, is through Sacraments, or more commonly called in the Orthodox faith as Holy Mysteries. Origin of the Holy Mysteries To many, the words Holy (Sacred) Mysteries and Sacraments are often used interchangeably. In the original translation of the Bible, the Greek word, Mysterion, or mystery/mystical was used. St. John Chrysostom wrote “it is called a Holy Mystery because what we believe is not the same as what we see, but we see one thing and believe another”. A non believer sees wine and bread; we see the Body and Blood of Christ. When the Catholic Church translated the Bible into Latin, there was not a direct translation for the Greek word, mysterion. In its place, they used the word Sacramentum, meaning "a consecrated thing or act”. The word “sacrament” is derived from this word. For this reason, there are many that believe that Holy Mysteries better defines the divine services that unite us to God’s Grace over the word sacrament. Overview of Holy Mysteries The Holy Mysteries date back to the time of the Apostles. Sacramental services involve both visible and unseen elements. A Sacrament allows believers to draw closer to God using physical senses such as listening to prayers and hymns and visibly through the use of blessed water, oil, bread, wine so the sacrament can be seen, heard, tasted and touched. The transformation of the physical object to a blessed object remains unseen. But how this process works involves a belief in the power and Grace of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit leads us to Christ who unites us with the Father. In John 14, as Jesus was destined to depart this earth, he promised that there would be another Comforter that would be with believers when he was no longer with them, and would abide in them forever, but would remain unseen. "I will pray to the Father, and He will give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you forever, even the Spirit of Truth when the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him, but you know Him for He dwells with you, and will be in you." (John 14:16-17) The Holy Spirit, the Comforter, the Spirit of Truth is the fulfillment of that promise. It is our belief the Holy Spirit is present in our lives and works through the Holy Mysteries, the Sacraments of the Church to teach and guide us to the way of truth. For instance, it is the unseen, yet unquestioned grace of the Holy Spirit that transforms Eucharistic bread and wine to the Body and Blood of Christ during Divine Liturgy. |
Holy Mysteries of ChristThe Orthodox Church recognizes that just as the Grace and work of God is without number, so are the number of sacraments. There are, however, several Holy Mysteries that are central to the lives of Orthodox Christians. They include:
1. Baptism - cleansing of all of sins and the unification to Christ through the waters of baptism 2. Holy anointing or Chrismation (Confirmation) - granting the gift of the Holy Spirit to a baptized person for growth in the image and likeness of God. The priest anoints the various parts of the body of the newly baptized with Holy Oil saying: "The seal of the gifts of the Holy Spirit." 3. Eucharist or Communion - uniting the communicant with the very Body and Blood of the Lord. Transforming the bread and wine to the Body and Blood of Christ is achieved through the grace of the Holy Spirit and through the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Our Lord, Jesus Christ. O Lord, I also believe and profess that this, which I am about to receive is truly Your most precious Body and Your life-giving Blood, which I pray, make me worthy to receive for the remission of all my sins and for life everlasting. Amen. 4. Penance or Confession – receiving divine forgiveness of Christ for any sins that are confessed through the use of prayers 5. Unction- providing both physical and spiritual healing with holy oil blessed by the Holy Spirit. 6. Marriage - uniting a man and a woman, incorporating the natural union into the life of the Kingdom of Christ and His Gospel and raising up a faithful, holy family through their holy union. 7. Ordination –“laying on of hand” that sets aside a small number of the believers for special service to the altar, whether it be Bishop, Priest or Deacon. |