Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Our Liturgical Glossary: "Anaphora"


Anaphora – the great prayer of thanksgiving at the heart of the Divine Liturgy; this prayer includes a remembrance of the saving command and acts of Christ and an invocation of the Holy Spirit.

[The Divine Liturgies of Our Holy Fathers John Chrysostom and Basil The Great (People's Book), The Byzantine Catholic Metropolitan Church Sui Juris of Pittsburgh, USA, 2006, pg. 462]


Anaphora (Gr: offering) – A liturgical term used in the Eastern Rites to designate that part of the Divine Liturgy which includes the prayer of great thanksgiving, consecration and communion. The Anaphora is of Apostolic origin. In the Eastern Rites there are several Anaphoras. The Byzantine Rite in particular uses two: namely, that of St. John Chrysostom and of St. Basil.

[Greek Catholic Dictionary, Rev. Basil Shereghy, S.T.D. and Rev. Vladimir Vancik, S.T.D., Pittsburgh Byzantine Diocesan Press, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 1951, pg. 9]

No comments:

Post a Comment