Pentecost and an anointing

  • Thread starter Thread starter BusterMartin
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
B

BusterMartin

Guest
I went to my local Byzantine Catholic Church today for the Pentecost Divine Liturgy. At the conclusion of the DL, the priest came down to where he would for Communion, and then everyone proceeded to go up to get an anointing with what seemed to be some sort of oil. Is this a tradition for Pentecost in the Eastern Churches? If so, can anyone shed some light on its significance please? Unfortunately, no announcement was made about this at all and everyone just seemed to go up like it was something normal and no explanation was needed. I normally go to my Latin Rite Church and this was my first DL for Pentecost Sunday at my Byzantine Church (although I’ve been for many other Sundays). Thanks for any help (I did search the forums and Google but came up empty)!
 
s Prazdnikom!
👍
That is a festal anointing. We had it yesterday with our Pentecost Vespers and Artoklasia. The priest blesses the oil. It smells of roses, at least in the parishes I’ve been in. I’ve had it in our parish and with the Russian Orthodox. The priest anoints the forehead and both hands with a special brush.
 
Hhmmm… good point. I wonder why we didn’t have one today. We’ve always had one during a Great Feast.
 
5Loaves said:
s Prazdnikom!
👍
That is a festal anointing. We had it yesterday with our Pentecost Vespers and Artoklasia. The priest blesses the oil. It smells of roses, at least in the parishes I’ve been in. I’ve had it in our parish and with the Russian Orthodox. The priest anoints the forehead and both hands with a special brush.
Click to expand...
Same thing at the Church I attend. (See signature)
 
5Loaves said:
s Prazdnikom!
👍
That is a festal anointing. We had it yesterday with our Pentecost Vespers and Artoklasia. The priest blesses the oil. It smells of roses, at least in the parishes I’ve been in. I’ve had it in our parish and with the Russian Orthodox. The priest anoints the forehead and both hands with a special brush.
Click to expand...
Ok, well, there wasn’t a brush or anything - just used his thumb - but I’m sure that’s a trivial distinction. Thanks for the info! I was wondering if it might have been Holy Unction (since I’ve never been able to receive that). Since it appears that it wasn’t Holy Unction, then I have to ask if you, or anyone else, happen to know when Holy Unction is normally given (aside from Holy Wednesday or by request)?
 
This anointing is normally done as part of the Great Vespers Service the night before the feast. In some parishes (mostly Greek Catholic), where they do not serve Vespers the anointing is done at the conclusion of Divine Liturgy on the Feast day. I have been told that a lot of priests do this because it is fairly common to take up a collection (usually an altar boy holding a small basket after you are anointed) during the anointing and the collection goes to the priest. 😃
 
Oil Blessing

This is called in Russian and slavonic елеопомазание which means oiling with special oil - elea - Greek for oil. This done to continue tradition of Moses and Aaron to annoint people with oil. It is done in baptism before Миропомазание which is mystery or sacrament of annointing with holy myron Use a special stick стрючица или кисточка placed into small cup of oil. Here is one:

http://www.aurum-portal.ru/images/stories/38119.jpg
 
BusterMartin said:
I was wondering if it might have been Holy Unction (since I’ve never been able to receive that). Since it appears that it wasn’t Holy Unction, then I have to ask if you, or anyone else, happen to know when Holy Unction is normally given (aside from Holy Wednesday or by request)?
Click to expand...
Holy Unction is quite different. It’s a Holy Mystery, so like Eucharist one should be properly disposed to receive, including recent Confession. The priest would speak of that before beginning the anointing. My experience of the Festal Anointing is that we only receive on the forehead and hands. For Holy Unction the prayers and sign of the cross is anointed on the forehead, nostrils, cheeks, lips, the breast, palms, and the back of the hands.

I’m not sure apart from Matins on Wednesday evening for Holy Thursday when another typical time might be. I believe in my parish due to our scheduling problems we do it on Holy Thursday. I know I was at the Russian Orthodox parish where I go for some Vespers/Vigils on a night when they had the Holy Unction. Their calendar had said “anointing” so I assumed the festal anointing. Of course I didn’t go up for the sacrament. I wouldn’t have gone to the Vigil that night had I known this Mystery was included. The parishioners and the priest always make me feel very welcome, but something about Holy Unction feels very private. I’ve thought about it because what could be “more” than Holy Eucharist and I am sometimes present for that and don’t feel uncomfortable then.

Our Pentecost Vespers was in La Porziuncola Nuova, part of the National Shrine of Saint Francis of Assisi. It was a lovely East West sharing. 👍 Many of those at the Vespers were Latin Catholics. The Knights of St Francis had been inviting us back to the Porziuncola since we did a Panikhida for their All Souls feast a year and a half ago.
 
ciero said:
This anointing is normally done as part of the Great Vespers Service the night before the feast. In some parishes (mostly Greek Catholic), where they do not serve Vespers the anointing is done at the conclusion of Divine Liturgy on the Feast day. I have been told that a lot of priests do this because it is fairly common to take up a collection (usually an altar boy holding a small basket after you are anointed) during the anointing and the collection goes to the priest. 😃
Click to expand...
Wow. Maybe we should start taking up that collection. 😃
 
BVM_1221 said:
Same thing at the Church I attend. (See signature)__________________
Cat Daddy to Boris, Pumpkin, and Salome; who neither endorse nor oppose my opinions.

Attends St. Andrew’s Russian Greek Catholic Church, in El Segundo; an Eastern Catholic church
Click to expand...
Did you have a forest in your temple? We had a good amount, not as much as some places. I love it!
(Photos attached not our temple. I didn’t take pictures. 😦 )
 
BusterMartin said:
I went to my local Byzantine Catholic Church today for the Pentecost Divine Liturgy. At the conclusion of the DL, the priest came down to where he would for Communion, and then everyone proceeded to go up to get an anointing with what seemed to be some sort of oil. Is this a tradition for Pentecost in the Eastern Churches? If so, can anyone shed some light on its significance please? Unfortunately, no announcement was made about this at all and everyone just seemed to go up like it was something normal and no explanation was needed. I normally go to my Latin Rite Church and this was my first DL for Pentecost Sunday at my Byzantine Church (although I’ve been for many other Sundays). Thanks for any help (I did search the forums and Google but came up empty)!
Click to expand...
I don’t know about Byzantines, but in the Maronite church where I worship, oil is used extensively.
 
ciero said:
This anointing is normally done as part of the Great Vespers Service the night before the feast. In some parishes (mostly Greek Catholic), where they do not serve Vespers the anointing is done at the conclusion of Divine Liturgy on the Feast day. I have been told that a lot of priests do this because it is fairly common to take up a collection (usually an altar boy holding a small basket after you are anointed) during the anointing and the collection goes to the priest. 😃
Click to expand...
Most of the priests that I know put this money on the side and use it at the “end of the year” to do something special for the altar servers; i.e. picnic, baseball game outing, pizza and bowling, to reward them for their service at the altar during the year.👍
 
ciero said:
This anointing is normally done as part of the Great Vespers Service the night before the feast. In some parishes (mostly Greek Catholic), where they do not serve Vespers the anointing is done at the conclusion of Divine Liturgy on the Feast day. I have been told that a lot of priests do this because it is fairly common to take up a collection (usually an altar boy holding a small basket after you are anointed) during the anointing and the collection goes to the priest. 😃
Click to expand...
My experience is that while the litiya is part of the Great Vespers, the anointing and distribution of the bread occurs in the All-night Vigil during Matin,s after the reading of the Gospel. Does this practice vary?

I recall Fr Petras quipping that the transfer of this anointing to the Sunday after the feast was done to increase the collection, but I don’t think that he was serious. Are you quipping too, or do you have more information on the history of our mirovanije?
 
dvdjs said:
My experience is that while the litiya is part of the Great Vespers, the anointing and distribution of the bread occurs in the All-night Vigil during Matin,s after the reading of the Gospel. Does this practice vary?
Click to expand...
Yes, it varies. Some do not have the all night vigils, and in some places, matins have become non-communal prayers. (like the Ruthenian - several priests advise saying matins at home before coming to chuch, and the communal hour is 3rd hour.)

Mirovanie in the Ruthenian parishes I’ve seen it at is always following liturgy, with the anointing and the consumption of the antidorion, along with the collection for the priest. Sometimes also with veneration of the festal icons, as well.

Center outwards: Annointing, festal icons (if used), antidorion, collection of change.
 
dvdjs said:
My experience is that while the litiya is part of the Great Vespers, the anointing and distribution of the bread occurs in the All-night Vigil during Matin,s after the reading of the Gospel. Does this practice vary?

I recall Fr Petras quipping that the transfer of this anointing to the Sunday after the feast was done to increase the collection, but I don’t think that he was serious. Are you quipping too, or do you have more information on the history of our mirovanije?
Click to expand...
If an All night vigil is not done, then the anointing is done at the end of Vespers…after the dismissal.

I believe that Fr Petras was VERY serious…there have almost been fistfights at priest retreats over which priests keep the $$ and who adds it to the collection for the parish…from what I’m told in the old days among the Ruthenians mirovanije was a way for the priest to make a couple of extra bucks. 🙂
 
ciero said:
I believe that Fr Petras was VERY serious…there have almost been fistfights at priest retreats over which priests keep the $$ and who adds it to the collection for the parish…from what I’m told in the old days among the Ruthenians mirovanije was a way for the priest to make a couple of extra bucks. 🙂
Click to expand...
Hmmm. Does anyone here know how much we pay our priests?
 
dvdjs said:
Hmmm. Does anyone here know how much we pay our priests?
Click to expand...
I don’t recall exact figures to hand, but it’s more than my wife & I typically bring home jointly since my knee injury. (IIRC, it’s around $1800/mo for a pastor, plus housing, in Eparchy of Phoenix.) Local romans make a few hundred more.

Deacons, typically, are paid a token salary ($25 per month) in the Roman Archdiocese of Anchorage, plus honoraria for baptisms and weddings; this makes them employees, for purposes of insurance and liability. Those who work full time in a parish often get full time pay similar to a priest’s.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top