Reflections on the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts

Philip…asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?” And he said, “How can I, unless someone guides me?”
-- Acts 8:30-31

“Nowhere is the true meaning of fasting and Lent revealed better or fuller than on the days of the evening Communion—the meaning not only of Lent but of the Church and of Christian life in their totality.”
-- Alexander Schmemann, Great Lent. p. 54.

In contemporary parish usage, the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts can be a rich source of pedagogy for deepening our Orthodox faith and acquiring an Orthodox phronema. Yet unless we know what we are doing in worship, the deeper mystagogy may escape notice. I would like to highlight a few ways that a deeper understanding of the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts can reveal truths of our faith.

Because of redactions that occurred over the centuries, the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts we celebrate today contains elements from several historical layers. As a result, there are several doublings or pairs of elements that occur in the course of the service. Something that is repeated in scriptures or prayers should be given extra attention. Repetition is one way the writers of a text focus our attention on something. With that in mind, I would like to examine these doublings more closely and see what they can teach us. In order of when the first of the pair in a doubling occurs, I will examine a)Psalm 129, b)Psalm 140 (Lord I call), and c)Thanksgiving for the Evening Light.

Psalm 129

The eighteenth kathisma (Ps. 119-133) is appointed for Weekdays during Great Lent. This kathisma is normally chanted on Friday evening as the Church moves into the festal days of Saturday and Sunday (the Sabbath and the Day of Resurrection). These psalms are often called the Odes of Ascent because they were sung as worshipers ascended the steps to the Temple in Jerusalem.(Schmemann, 56) Like the Israel of old, we are ascending toward communion in the Presanctified Liturgy, and toward Pascha in the wider context of Great Lent.

Psalm 129 is chanted again between the Lord I Call verses. In this psalm, we cry out to God, acknowledge His forgiveness, and vow to rely on Him. It is a recognition that hope comes from God and He will provide us with salvation in spite of our sinful condition. It is an encapsulation of the entire attitude of Great Lent and the Life in Christ. The first time this psalm is chanted, the priest carries the Lamb on the diskos to the table of oblation while the deacon continually censes the gifts. Since the Lamb was already consecrated at the previous Sunday Divine Liturgy, it is no longer the gift of the people to God, rather it is the gift of God to the people. It has been kept in the ark, on the altar; God is enthroned in the Mercy Seat in the tabernacle, just as in the Old Testament. Because it is the very body of Christ, all actions around it take on greater significance and solemnity. While the Psalms of Ascent carry us up toward the temple of God, in the Holy of Holies the ark is opened. The Gifts must be prepared for communion, but the bread is already the Body of Christ so it is treated with respect and worship due to God. The actions of preparation are carried out in silence. As the Prophet Zephaniah says “Be silent in the presence of the Lord God; For the day of the Lord is at hand, For the Lord has prepared a sacrifice; He has invited His guests.” (Zeph 1:7). The Gifts are also veiled—like the presence of God in the wilderness—by a cloud of smoke from the censing. This is the very presence of God, come to dwell with us.

When we repeat Psalm 129, it will be during the Great Censing, interwoven, as it were, with the next doubling.

Psalm 140

Like Psalm 129, this doubling involves a great deal of censing. It occurs first occurs during the Great Censing. We sing the usual Psalms beginning with 140 "Lord I call." Selections from Psalm 140 are chanted again as the priest first censes the Holy Table, then the priest and deacon stand before the Table of Oblation while the priest continuously censes the Holy Gifts. Finally, the priest returns to the Holy Table and the deacon continues censing the Holy Gifts. This should remind us of the heavenly worship described in scripture (Rev 8:3) which is parallel to the pattern given to Moses on Mt. Sinai.

These combinations of liturgical pairs and censing should cause us to reflect on incense and its use in Orthodox worship. Various reflections are given for the use of incense: heavenly worship as revealed in the scriptures, symbolic of our prayers rising to God, as a burnt offering. It should also be noted what we incense: the temple, the Gifts, the Altar, the icons, and the people. Scriptures tell us that incense is offered to God. By censing the temple, we recognize that we are in His presence. The people are censed because we ourselves are the “temple of the Holy Spirit” and comprise the body of Christ, The Church. These considerations deserve a deeper examination, but for now, it is enough to recognize that as we draw near to God, we cense the places he dwells.

From the beginning of Israel, the evening offering of incense has been a central part of worship. Other primary elements of the Tabernacle/temple worship were transformed in the Christian context, but the evening offering of incense was carried over directly. (Uspensky, 15) It is sometimes easy to think that Christianity was break from the religion of Israel. We see the Judaism around us and assume it is essentially the same as it was in antiquity. However, the truth is that the Orthodox Faith, including worship, is the faith and worship of Israel transfigured by the Incarnation and Passion of Jesus Christ.

Thanksgiving for the Evening Light

Giving thanks for the evening light is one of the most ancient parts of Vespers.(Uspensky, 18–19) This ancient tradition was practiced in the Temple and synagogues and continued into Talmudic Judaism. Christians continued the custom and gave it additional meaning: the lighting of the lamps was understood as Christ Himself coming to dwell among them. (Uspensky, 134–5) In Vespers, this is done in the hymn “Gladsome Light.” In the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts this is doubled by the rite of illumination, which seems to preserve an alternate form of the thanksgiving.(Uspensky, 135)

For all the Old Testament character of Lent, this double thanksgiving for the evening light emphasizes that it is Jesus Christ we are worshiping. Lent may be a time for an increased emphasis on the Old Testament(Schmemann, 38), but we should not forget that we already live in the eschaton. [Note: While some recent commentaries reflect on Vespers as having an Old Testament character, Uspenky challenges that.(Uspensky, 108)]

In addition to the thanksgiving for the evening light, the rite of illumination is part of the ancient connection of Lent to the preparation of the Catechumens. They were blessed by the priest making the sign of the cross over them with the candle.(Sokolof, 102) According to the oldest extant texts, the lighting of the lamps and the accompanying Rite of Illumination was performed by the deacon, but was taken up by the priest over time.(Uspensky, 136–8) Coming in the midst of the readings with the words “The light of Christ illumines all,” we should ask what is being illumined? On one hand, the readings are illumined by the light of Christ. The true meaning of all scripture is revealed in the light of Christ. (Luke 24:27, 44-45) On the other hand, we ourselves are illumined by the light of Christ, in His opening the scriptures.

Summary

The doublings I have discussed transform the first half of the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts. It still carries the pattern and meaning of Vespers, but by the doublings, another meaning is added. We give thanks for the evening light and then are blessed by it. We read two scripture lessons, and there are two periods of censing. Taken together this sequence prepares us to receive the Body and Blood of Christ. Strictly speaking, the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts isn’t a Divine Liturgy, as there is no consecration of the eucharist. (Mother Mary and Ware, 49). However, we still need to prepare to receive Christ. The censing ritually prepares the worshipers and the temple. The scriptures prepare our minds. Singing of hymns and psalms prepares our hearts.

After this preparation and the dismissal of the catechumens and litanies for the faithful, Christ himself comes into our midst in the Great Entrance. The priest carries the diskos with the Lamb and the chalice. Unlike in Divine Liturgy, the deacon only censes, walking backward in order that he does not turn his back to God. This procession is done in silence to emphasize that there is nothing else to be done; the Gifts are already sanctified. It also recalls the quote from Zephaniah, above. As Christ is in our midst, we fall down in awestruck, silent worship.

Mother Mary, and Kallistos Ware. (1977) 1996. The Lenten Triodion. London: Faber & Faber; St. Tikhon’s Seminary Press.

Schmemann, Alexander. 1969. Great Lent. Crestwood: St. Vladimir’s Seminary Press.

Sokolof, D. 2001. A Manual of the Orthodox Church’s Divine Services. Jordanville: Printshop of St. Job of Pochaev.

Uspensky, Nicholas. 1985. Evening Worship in the Orthodox Church. Crestwood: St. Vladimir’s Seminary Press.