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| Icon from St. Silouan Orthodox Church in Toronto-Feeding of the 5000 |
The Institution
Narrative of the liturgy proclaims that Christ gave up his life for the world. The
liturgy is the expression of the Christian for the life of the world. By seeing
Christ present and partaking of Christ within Liturgy, this allows the entire
the community to see Christ in the world becoming witnesses of Christ through
our very actions. By allowing liturgy to become the means to our life, liturgy
will become a means of mission for the entire world. The liturgy is not an
archaic form of worship; the liturgy is instead the offering of the Bread of Life
on behalf of all believers for the life of the world. The priest recites,
during the Anaphora of St. John Chrysostom's liturgy, "Your own of your
own we offer unto you on behalf of all and for all". This bread, the bread
of life, is offered on behalf of all and for all. This Bread of Life is the
same bread that became the sacrifice for the life of the world. Within the
Byzantine tradition of Lent the third week is dedicated to the veneration of
the cross. The cross is brought out and venerated as we are reminded during the
half way point of Lent that the cross will become a stumbling block to those who
do not believe, but to those who accept the cross, it will become the source of
life. Through Christ’s own mystical death we have been received into the
everlasting life. The cross has become the source of all power for the
Christian who embraces it but shamefulness to those who have not accepted the
calling of the cross. The weakness of the cross has become the strength to
those who believe.
St. Paul reminds us of this when he said that “my strength
is made perfect in weakness”. The Cross, having become the source of power,
became the power that enabled the liturgy to grow through the offering of the
Bread of Life. Christ having become the sacrifice on the cross became our
mediator between us and God. We are then constantly reminded of Christ because
the climax of the liturgy is the unity of the one body in Christ. As we receive
the Eucharist we are reminded that the liturgy is not a show that has a
beginning and an end, but rather, the liturgy is constantly in motion for the
life of the world through the living Eucharist. As Christ gave his life up for
the world we to must learn to give up our life for the world. We have been made
dead in Christ through our baptismal renewal and made alive in Christ through
our Chrism and participation of the Eucharist. As the priest tosses the water
at the end of the liturgy (Coptic Rite) it reminds the gathered community of our baptismal
renewal that we are made alive through our own death in Christ. The living
liturgy becomes that which, is lived out in His image and likeness.
The joy of
the resurrection is the expression that all Christians need to express in order
for others to see Christ in us and for us to see Christ in others. If we make
Christ our starting point then the living liturgy will become the expression
for all Christians for the life of the world. This life made perfect in Christ
is not categorized by egotistic, individualistic and capitalistic ambitions.
Christ, being our starting point, lies within the community of love living in
the joy of the resurrection serving as a constant reminder that liturgy is not
just a mere three hour service on a Sunday morning but the liturgy is the expression
of what it means to be united in Christ's body. Liturgy is the life for the world
as Christ gave up his life for the world we to be called to give up the world
for the life in Christ in order that all might see Christ.
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