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major cycle which involves the entire life of an Orthodox Christian is
the daily cycle of prayers and praises offered by the Church, once every
twenty-four hours. These services express our remembrance of events which
happened at certain hours and contain petitions relevant to these memories.
In antiquity the day was considered to begin at sunset and thus was divided
according to the following order. Night began at 6:00 p.m. (according
to our reckoning) and was divined into four parts (called watches - the
time of changing guards): Evening (6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.); Midnight (9:00
p.m. to 12:00 midnight); Cock-crow (12:00 midnight to 3:00 a.m.); and
Morning (3:00 a.m. to 6:00 a.m.). Day began at 6:00 a.m. (our reckoning)
and it, too, was divided into four watches (or hours). First Hour (6:00
a.m. to 9:00 a.m.); Third Hour (9:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon); Sixth Hour (12:00
noon to 3:00 p.m.); and Ninth Hour (3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.).
Following this ancient pattern. Orthodox Christians begin each portion
of the day with common prayer, which has resulted in the following eight
Services, customarily divided into three groups: Ninth Hour, Vespers,
and Compline; Nocturns (Midnight Service), Matins, and First Hour; Third
and Sixth Hours. In addition to this daily pattern, in certain monasteries
during certain periods of fasting, each of the Hours is followed by an
intermediate Office called the Interhour. Also included in the daily cycle
are the Offices for the Blessing of the Table and the Morning and Evening
Prayers.
The Divine Liturgy is often included in this daily cycle, normally being
served after the Sixth Hour (although, during Fast Periods it is celebrated
after Vespers). Often treated as part of the daily cycle, the Divine Liturgy
is not prescribed to be celebrated every day (as it is in many cathedrals
and monasteries) and in a theological and mystical sense actually stands
outside of chronological time since it also serves as a point of contact
with the eternal, where its participants (by virtue of their partaking
of the Holy Eucharist) are transported to a point outside of time "where
there is no past, present or future, but only the eternal Now" [The
Festal Menaion, trans. Mother Mary and Archimandrite Kallistos Ware, p.
40]. On days when the Divine Liturgy is not celebrated, the Service of
the Typical Psalms is celebrated in its place after the Sixth Hour (it
also sometimes precedes the Liturgy), thus forming part of the third group
of Daily Services with the Third and Sixth Hours.
In addition to these two cycles, there are also three others: The Weekly
Cycle of the Eight Tones (Octoechos), the Annual Cycle of Movable Feasts
(dependent upon Pascha), and the Annual Cycle of Fixed Feasts, beginning
on the first day of the Church Year - September 1. These three cycles
are combined and superimposed on each other, giving the Liturgical Year
a constant and unfailing variety.
In addition to these two cycles, there are also three others: The Weekly
Cycle of the Eight Tones (Octoechos), the Annual Cycle of Movable Feasts
(dependent upon Pascha), and the Annual Cycle of Fixed Feasts, beginning
on the first day of the Church Year - September 1. These three cycles
are combined and superimposed on each other, giving the Liturgical Year
a constant and unfailing variety. |
