Rare word #13: thyranoixia

Thyranoixia: (Greek "Θυρανοίξια" literally "opening of the doors") is the dedication of a church upon its completion. The bishop performs the hagiasmos (ἁγιασμός) ceremony and says prayers in reference to the new building. It is followed by the consecration of the church [also called the encainia (εγκαίνια)]. The consecration of a church is a complex service that is filled with profound symbolisms. Many biblical elements are taken from the Old Testament: the Consecration of the Tabernacle (Exodus 40) and of the Temple of Solomon (1 Kings 8; 2 Chronicles 5-7).

I've been following the construction of a church in London dedicated to Saint Panteleimon for some months now and last Saturday they held the Thyranoixia service. If you're interested in seeing a church built from the ground up I encourage you to visit the site here. Also, if you'd like more information on the service of consecration itself, the Greek Archdiocese has the text online here.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

EP calls different Paschal dates a "scandal"

( Orthodox Times ) - Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew extended in his homily his heartfelt wishes to all the non-Orthodox Christians who celebrated the Holy Easter on Sunday, March 31, after presiding over the Sunday Divine Liturgy at the Church of Saint Theodore of the Community of Vlanga. “On this day, the timeless message of the Resurrection resonates more profoundly than ever, as our non-Orthodox Christian brethren and sisters commemorate the resurrection of our Lord from the dead, celebrating Holy Easter. We have already sent our representatives to all the Christian Communities of the confessions here, to extend our heartfelt wishes of the Holy Great Church of Christ and our Patriarchal congratulations. But also from this position we extend a heartfelt greeting of love to all Christians around the world who celebrate Holy Easter today. We beseech the Lord of Glory that the forthcoming Easter celebration next year will not merely be a fortuitous occurrence, but rather the beginning...
Read more

Coptic Church SUSPENDS dialogue with Catholic Church

Image
( OCP ) - Cairo – Egypt: The plenary session of the Holy Synod of the Coptic Orthodox Church was held on March 07.2024, at the Logos Center at the Papal Residence in the Monastery of Saint Anba Bishoy in Wadi Natroun, headed by His Holiness Pope Tawadros II, and attended by 110 of its 133 members. His Holiness the Pope delivered a speech at the opening of the session, in which he spoke about the importance of fruit in the life and service of the shepherd through “the parable of the unfruitful fig tree” (Luke 13:6-9). The main committees of the Holy Synod held their annual meetings starting last Monday and for three days, at the papal headquarters in St. Mark’s Cathedral in Abbasiya, to discuss the reports submitted to them by their subcommittees.  It issued its recommendations, which were presented to the members of the Academy in today’s plenary session for approval. The Church announced its opinion on the issue of “homosexuality” through a statement issued by the Holy Synod (to b...
Read more

"Those people in the back" - a quandary

Image
"I am the door. By me if any man enter in he shall be saved, and shall go in and out and find pasture." - John 10:9 At every parish where I have had the pleasure of attending services, there is always a small group of people who find their way all the way up to the church building but don't actually attend services. At one parish it was a group of male gypsies who talked on cellphones or smoked cigarettes. At another it was a few Protestant husbands who, though they never attended services, opened the parish doors for people as they filed in. At yet another parish the men stood in the narthex and chatted until it was time to receive and then got in line. Latin or Greek Catholic, Eastern or Oriental Orthodox I see the same small throng of men standing next to the front door, but not standing, sitting, or kneeling amongst the people. If it were me (and I can only speak for myself here) this option would be an unsavory one. The boredom would be immediate. The anxiety of som...
Read more