Eastern Rite Catholic Church Liturgy - Differences and Similarities

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Ciaran_Butler

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Could someone tell me what are the differences and similarities of the liturgy of the Eastern Rite Catholic Church compared to that of that of the liturgy celebrated within the Latin Rite Catholic Church?
 
General things:
  • Generally, the custom is to stand the whole time (depends on the parish)
  • The priest faces east, toward the altar and God
  • Incense is used much more
  • The sign of the cross is made “backwards” (right to left). Put the first two fingers and thumb together in a point, and bend the last two fingers towards your palm. See this image
  • Communion is leavened bread mixed with wine, dropped into the communicant’s mouth with a golden spoon.
  • Everything is sung/chanted
You might also want to read this page: 12 Things I Wish I’d Known Before My First Visit to an Orthodox Church. Orthodoxy and Byzantine Catholicism share the same worship and practices so it still applies.

Edit: More info:

youtube.com/results?search_query=divine+liturgy
liturgies.net/Liturgies/Eastern/ChrysostumsLiturgy.htm
 
wynd said:
General things:
  • Generally, the custom is to stand the whole time (depends on the parish)
  • The priest faces east, toward the altar and God
  • Incense is used much more
  • The sign of the cross is made “backwards” (right to left). Put the first two fingers and thumb together in a point, and bend the last two fingers towards your palm. See this image
  • Communion is leavened bread mixed with wine, dropped into the communicant’s mouth with a golden spoon.
  • Everything is sung/chanted
You might also want to read this page: 12 Things I Wish I’d Known Before My First Visit to an Orthodox Church. Orthodoxy and Byzantine Catholicism share the same worship and practices so it still applies.
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Thanks for the reply and for the website link!
It is really interesting to compare and contrast the two rites!
After all the Eastern and Latin Rite are the two lungs of the Catholic Church!
 
Ciaran_Butler said:
Thanks for the reply and for the website link!
It is really interesting to compare and contrast the two rites!
After all the Eastern and Latin Rite are the two lungs of the Catholic Church!
Click to expand...
Just a small correction – there is the Latin Rite and the Eastern Rites (plural). There are many Eastern Rites (I tend to think in terms of FIVE Eastern Rites – Armenian, Byzantine, Chaldean, Coptic and Syriac).

We also refer to the Eastern Catholic Churches since there are 22 of 'em!

Deacon Ed
 
a major difference I thought was that the Innvocation of the Holy Spirit is after the Narrative (words of consecration). This is true in at least the Chaldean and Maronite Church.
 
Thanks for the correction Deacon Ed! I forgot that their are several different Rites within the Eastern Catholic Church.

Is it true that Priests of the Eastern Catholic Churches are allowed to be married? I often read numerous biographies of Eastern Catholic Church Saints many of whom were sons/daughters of men who were priests within the Eastern Catholic Church.
 
Thanks to everyone who responded to my questions! I have learned a lot about the Eastern Catholic Churches in just one day!

I myself am of the Latin Rite Catholic Church. I figure that its good to know about the Eastern Catholic Churches as they too are in full communion with the Pope. The more we know about our own Faith the more we will be able to inform others of our Faith!
 
Ciaran_Butler said:
Thanks for the correction Deacon Ed! I forgot that their are several different Rites within the Eastern Catholic Church.

Is it true that Priests of the Eastern Catholic Churches are allowed to be married? I often read numerous biographies of Eastern Catholic Church Saints many of whom were sons/daughters of men who were priests within the Eastern Catholic Church.
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Chaldean_Rite said:
In the Chaldean Church, yes. I think about 5% of our priests are married.
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Let’s clarify this once more!😃

Priests in the Eastern Churches (Catholic and Orthodox) are never allowed to marry.

However, married men can be ordained to the priesthood in the East, i.e., they are allowed to marry before ordination. While being such married priest, he cannot remarry if widowed.

(I presume that we all know that Bishops both in the West and in the East are always celibate. That’s why Bishops in the East come always from their monastics, who are celibate like the priests and monks in the West, with exceptions provided by the Pastoral Provisions.)
 
Amadeus said:
Priests in the Eastern Churches (Catholic and Orthodox) are never allowed to marry.

However, married men can be ordained to the priesthood in the East, i.e., they are allowed to marry before ordination. While being such married priest, he cannot remarry if widowed.
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thanks for that!
 
Yes I get it now!

Priests in the Eastern Churches are only allowed to marry before ordination.

Thanks for the information! 🙂
 
Ciaran_Butler said:
Yes I get it now!

Priests in the Eastern Churches are only allowed to marry before ordination.

Thanks for the information! 🙂
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I think this statement still remains equivocal.

Men, married or unmarried, before ordination are not called “priests!” Otherwise, the disciplinary rules become skewed.

Properly, such men before ordination are either called transitional deacons (as distinguished from permanent deacons, who are ineligible for priestly ordination) in the Latin Church or deacons (who are adrressed as Fr. Deacon _____) in the Eastern Churches. As a group, they may be referred to as “ordinands” but not as “priests!”
 
Amadeus said:
I think this statement still remains equivocal.

Men, married or unmarried, before ordination are not called “priests!” Otherwise, the disciplinary rules become skewed.

Properly, such men before ordination are either called transitional deacons (as distinguished from permanent deacons, who are ineligible for priestly ordination) in the Latin Church or deacons (who are adrressed as Fr. Deacon _____) in the Eastern Churches. As a group, they may be referred to as “ordinands” but not as “priests!”
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Sorry! My Mistake!

Of course men are not known as “priests” before they are even ordained priests! Even I should have known that!

I should have said that men in the Eastern Churches are only allowed to marry before ordination!

Thanks for setting me straight!
 
Ciaran_Butler said:
Sorry! My Mistake!

Of course men are not known as “priests” before they are even ordained priests! Even I should have known that!

I should have said that men in the Eastern Churches are only allowed to marry before ordination!

Thanks for setting me straight!
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Or I should have really said that “ordinands” in the Eastern Churches are only allowed to marry before ordination!

Sorry! I need to get my words right in future!
 
No need to apologize!

As a Latin Rite Catholic like you, it took me also a while before I got it!😃

Fr. Dcn. Randy (Diak) of the UGCC and Fr. Dcn. Ed of the Melkites (also a Latin Rite Deacon) have been very patient in explaining the disciplinary rules on married priests in the Eastern Churches.
 
Deacon_Ed said:
Just a small correction – there is the Latin Rite and the Eastern Rites (plural). There are many Eastern Rites (I tend to think in terms of FIVE Eastern Rites – Armenian, Byzantine, Chaldean, Coptic and Syriac).
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Chaldean is part of the Syriac. The two syriac sub-rites are, however, quite distinctive, and are arguably two separate rites. Each has two Catholic Churches. The Chaldean, Maronite, Syro-Malabar and Syro-Malankar churches are all syriac rite.
 
Aramis said:
Chaldean is part of the Syriac. The two syriac sub-rites are, however, quite distinctive, and are arguably two separate rites. Each has two Catholic Churches. The Chaldean, Maronite, Syro-Malabar and Syro-Malankar churches are all syriac rite.
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Yes, the Western and Eastern Syriac usages are quite distinct, but the listing is not quite complete.

The West Syriac “sub rite” includes the Maronite Church, the Syro-Malankara Church, as well the Syriac Church.

The East Syriac “sub-rite” is the Chaldean Church and the Syro-Malabar Church.
 
The Eastern Catholic Church has a lot of rites which is very interesting compared to having just one rite within the Roman Catholic Church.

Why does the Eastern Catholic Church have so many rites?
 
Ciaran_Butler said:
The Eastern Catholic Church has a lot of rites which is very interesting compared to having just one rite within the Roman Catholic Church.
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The Roman Church Sui Iuris comprises two Traditions (Roman and Gallican), with some dozen different Ritual Usages: Latin (In two forms), Mozarabic, Ambrosian, Bragan, Carmelite, Carthusian, Dominican, Anglican, Celtic*, Sarum*, Gallican*. (* no longer in Catholic use).

But, in the west, all the Ritual Usages are under a single unified hierarchy.
Ciaran_Butler said:
Why does the Eastern Catholic Church have so many rites?
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You’ll find that the Byzantine is the most diverse, and yet the least. Each group that came back to union was permitted to remain separate from the Latin Hierarchy and from other Byzantine Hierarchies, much like the autonomous and autocephalous Orthodox churches.

Each of the 4 rites (Armenian, Syriac, Byzantine, Coptic) grows from different regions; in each region, a patriarch guided the churches; branching due to loss of communication, schism, and different times of reunion.

The Syriac Rite is divided into two sub-rites, which are quite distinct; it is argued whether they really constitute two separate rites.

The Byzantine Rite has 3 major Traditions: Greek, Slavonic, and Arabic/Aramaic; these are not different enough to be sub-rites, but they are different enough to be noticed by dedicated observers. The Slavonic Tradition is the parent of the Ukrainian, Ruthenian, Russian, and several other Byzantine churches. The Melkites are the Arabic/Aramaic Tradition; originally Syriac, the Melkites of Antioch got Byzantified at some point well before reunification with the Catholic Church.

Local non-church Politics, wars, church schisms, heresies later recanted and perceived heresies have fragmented the church, and lead to branching.
 
Thanks Aramis for the information!

The things which I have learned about the Eastern Catholic Church from starting this forum thread has been amazing!

I Thank God for the Catholic Answers Forums! and I thank you all for the information you have submitted! 🙂
 
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