Part 3 of 4
By: Protodeacon David Kennedy
The reading of the gospel is the high point of the Liturgy of the Word in the Divine Liturgy. It is preceded by a censing done by the deacon of the Gospel Book on the Holy Table, the icons in the altar, the iconostasis, the bishop or priest, and the assembly. At the Divine Liturgy, the deacon sings the gospel as well as at the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts. However, the bishop or priest reads the gospel at all other services. Among the Orthodox Russians and Ukrainians when more than one deacon serves at Divine Liturgy, the apostle reading (usually a New Testament letter or a reading from the Act of the Apostles) is sung by the second deacon. The deacon receives a solemn blessing from the bishop or priest before reading the gospel. He is given the Gospel Book by the priest. (This book contains only the four canonical gospels and is bound in metal and decorated with icons. It is usually quite large in size and visually impressive.) The deacon is the herald of the good news, the angel that brings the glad tidings of salvation. The gospel is sung according to a prescribed intonation.
Once the gospel is read, the deacon presents the Gospel Book to the presiding bishop or priest for veneration and it is returned to the Holy Table. At this point the homily is given. While a deacon may act as the homilist, this is not a usual practice. Typically, the presiding bishop or priest gives the homily. This action appears to be liturgically a presidential function and therefore more suited to the one who presides. In practice, many deacons simply have not received the theological education and homiletic training to enable them to preach well.
While the Typikon usually prescribes that the cantor/reader sings the prokeimenon (a scriptural verse and response, similar to the gradual in the Roman Rite), in practice at Vespers and Matins the deacon usually sings it.
(Photo: M.L. Turi)
One of the most characteristic functions of the deacon is to be the minister of incensing. In current practice the deacon censes at Divine Liturgy, Vespers, Matins, Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts, Baptism & Christmation, the Betrothal & Crowning, the Anointing with Holy Oil, the Blessing of Waters, the Funeral Offices and Molebens. If the deacon does not cense, he accompanies the bishop or priest who does by preceding him while holding a large candle (about a meter in length) in his hand.
The use of incense in Christian worship usually serves one of three purposes: the domestic use which is chiefly fumigatory in nature, i.e. to create a pleasant odour; the honorific which is used to ‘honour’ either a person or a thing; and the sacrificial which is used as an oblation or offering to God. Besides these three common uses a fourth also takes place. This is as a ‘demonifuge’ which is used to purify the place of evil spirits. [Gregory Dix, The Shape of the Liturgy,2nd Edition, A&C Black, 1979, p429. Robert F. Taft, The Great Entrance, OCA 200, 1975, p151.] These censings are done in a prescribed hierarchical order: first the holy table, then icons, then clergy according to order, and then the laity. Usually nothing is said during the censings, however, at the incensing following the Rite the Proskomeidia at the beginning of the Divine Liturgy, and at the Transfer of the Gifts, the deacon recites Psalm 50 (51), Have mercy on me O God… which clearly gives these censings a penitential tone. In the Rite of Ordination for a Deacon, after t he newly ordained is vested by the bishop with the orarion (stole) and epimanikia (cuffs), the bishop presents him with a censer, and a ripidion (which is used by the deacon to fan the Holy Gifts). (Unlike the Latin Rite, the Book of the Gospels is not presented.) [ АРХІЄРАТІКОН, Rome 1974, p242.]
The deacon also functions as the master of ceremonies of the liturgical services. Throughout the liturgical services the deacon prompts the principal bishop or celebrant with imperatives, e.g. “Master, give the blessing.” “Master, command.” “Master, proceed.” “Master, cut.” “Master, pierce.” During the Anaphora (Eucharistic Prayer) the deacon prompts the celebrant at the epiclesis: “Bless, Master, the holy bread.” “Bless, Master, the holy cup.” “Bless, both Master.” He commands the attention of the assembly and the reader/cantor with phrases such as “Let us be attentive” and “Wisdom.” He reminds the assembly of the proper postures for prayer by commanding them to stand, bow their heads, or bend their knees. In this role of master of ceremonies the deacon has a responsibility for the assembly, for its good order and its piety. A deacon needs to know the order of service so well that he knows not only his functions, but that of everyone else.
A good deacon can anticipate what will come next, and he can anticipate the needs of the celebrant even before the celebrant can anticipate them himself. This function of master of ceremonies is probably the most challenging and difficult of all the diaconal liturgical roles to master. It requires an excellent memory not only of the structure and content of the liturgical texts but also of the way in which the liturgical actions are best carried out. The deacon needs to be able to visualize in his mind not only what is to be said and done but how it is to be said and done, not only for him, but for all others ministers including the assembly. This can be a very daunting task especially for a newly ordained deacon. This is only compounded when a deacon serves with an impatient, intolerant or arrogant bishop or priest, especially one who has very little understanding of the deacon’s liturgical role. Unfortunately, this is a serious pastoral liturgical problem for many deacons in the Eastern Catholic Churches. Bishop Basil (Osborne) of the Exarchate of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Western Europe comments on this, “…in fact there are very few good deacons. It is much easier to be a priest than to be a deacon. This is because to be a deacon you not only have to know what is going on but you have to be ahead of the game. While the priest is doing one thing, you have to be aware of what he should do next. Thus you have constantly to be a bit ahead. This is a very difficult thing to do well. There are a few good deacons liturgically speaking.” [“The Deacon in the Orthodox Tradition”, Distinctive Diaconate Study 13, no date, p2.]
What makes all of this an even greater challenge is that the deacon is a minister of the assembly’s prayer. He must pray with the assembly as we have seen in his role in the synaptes. During the Divine Liturgy, the deacon does five to six times aloud the amount of text that is allotted to the presiding bishop or priest. (Some celebrants and concelebrants resent the deacon’s role and would rather serve without a deacon for this would give the priests more to say and do. Of course this is reflective of a dysfunctional understanding of liturgy and church.) The deacon must be able to execute his functions well and this includes being able to sing his parts in such a way to lead the assembly in prayer. He must be a man of prayer for he, himself, must be praying while he serves. He must also be able to direct the service and attend to the celebrant, the assembly, and the other liturgical ministers while he prays.
It is of essential importance to keep in mind at all times that the deacon’s liturgical functions always take place in conjunction with the rest of the assembly’s liturgical life. The liturgical assembly should consist of a bishop (or his representative a priest) who presides, deacons who serve and assist, subdeacons (or altar servers) who serve and assist, readers/cantors and the gathering of the baptized communicants who act through and with Christ, in the power of the Holy Spirit to the glory of God the Father. The deacon’s liturgical functions are not to be analyzed outside of the liturgical assembly, which is the Church, the Body of Christ and the temple of the Holy Spirit.