The Church in Jesus Christ

Now the holy gifts are transformed into the Holy Body and Blood of Christ, and the Church is not only around the altar, where the Sacrifice is present, but she is also His Body.

Nobody sees himself alone, but regards himself as a member of the one Body in Christ.

The Eucharist is the Mystery of Christ, i.e. the mystery of the unity with everybody in Christ. It is the Mystery of Love, which does not know any barriers or walls of separation.

The Church is united together in Christ. For this reason the present members pray for each other, for the absent as well as for the departed members, and at the same time they ask for the prayers of those who are rested in the Lord.

The Church prays:

1- The Small Intercessions: Prayers for all men.
2- The Commemoration of Saints: Asking prayers from the departed ones.
3- The Dipytuchs of Dead: Prayers for the departed ones.

1- the Small Intercessions

The Church lifts up her heart to her Bridegroom, who is the Lover of mankind, asking Him for the whole world, praying for:

A. The Peace of the Church.
B. The Fathers of the Church.
C. The Presbyter of the Church.
D. The Place where we live.
The reason why I say that the presbyter prays for a city, village, or for the whole world is that he must ask the Lord to forgive all those who pray.

St. Chrysostom

It is wonderful that God asks us to pray not only for our country, to which we are indebted by love, but also for every place where we live. He says to the prophet Jeremiah, who was in exile, "But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare 2."

E. The waters, the plants or the weather.

F. The Oblations.

According to the Liturgy of St. Gregory, the presbyter also prays other litanies for:

1- The Emperor (President).
2- The Ministers.
3- The Captives.

He also prays for the Shepherds and the Congregation; for the Presbyters, the Monks, the Nuns, the Virgins and the Married persons; for the Rich and the Poor; for the Elders and the Young; for the Believers and the Heretics...

According to the Liturgy of St. Cyril (St. Mark), these litanies are said before the prayers of the sanctification and the invocation. There are other litanies prayed also like those for the sick, the Travelers, the Departed, the Meetings etc.

In the Coptic rite the presbyter prays for the people in general

and does not mention names except the Emperor (the President), the Pope of Alexandria and the local bishop; and in the diptychs he mentions the names of the dead 1.

The deacon admonishes the people to participate with the presbyter in praying these litanies. They ask for the individuals whom they know secretly in front of God.

See Dix, p. 510.

2- the Commemoration of the Saints

The Eucharist is the mystery of the whole ecclesia. It is the coming of the whole redeemed Catholic ecclesia to the Father in Jesus Christ, as His Holy Body, by the power of the Holy Spirit. This is a divine action done on behalf of the whole ecclesia, not only on behalf of those present at the moment of the celebration, but of all the members. It is a divine mystery of the one ecclesia, i.e. of the triumphant and militant members. For the triumphant ones, who departed from earth, did not leave the Church. Their love to their brethren, who are militant, did not cease by their departure and dwelling in Paradise. The death of bodies never separates the faithful from the Church, nor does it sever the bond of mutual love.

"The community, which as Christians, we belong to, is not limited only to the world we see around us. It extends across time as well as space, embracing the departed ones along with the living. In God and in His Church there can be no division between the living and the dead, for both are one in the love of the Father. Christians, whether they are alive or not, as members of God's Church still belong to one and the same family; they are still members belonging to each other and are called to bear each other's burdens.

The Church, a reality, both visible and invisible, encompasses within herself earth and heaven, the living, the departed and saints, men and angels, joining them all in one body."

Origen held a strong doctrine of the Communion of saints. He says:

Now according to the divine word one of the cheifest virtues is to love one's neighbor. And we must hold that the saints who have fallen asleep before us exercise, toward those who still struggle in this life, much more than do they who are compassed about with human weakness and are struggling in company with feebler folk.
Regarding to the power of the Lord being present with the Church, Paul says, "When you are gathered together, and my spirit, with the

See Philippou: The Orthodox Ethos, vol, p 141.

On prayer 6: 2 - 4, 31: 5. Horn on Num 26: 6. Mat 5: 43, Luke 6: 35.

power of the Lord Jesus," being associated not only with the Ephesians but also with the Corinthians. And if Paul, while still clothed in the body considered himself to be united in his spirit at Corinth, we must not give up hope that the blessed also who have departed are present in spirit at the gatherings of the Church, and perhaps more than those present in the body. Therefore we must not despise their prayers, for they bestow a singular grace on anyone who in sincerity comes to the assembly.

Origen

The Rite of the Commemoration

We ask for nothing on behalf of the saints, instead we ask that their prayers may assist us. According to the Liturgy of St. Cyril (St. Mark) the presbyter concludes the commemoration with this prayer: "O Lord, we are not worthy to intercede for their blessedness, but that they, standing before the judgment seat of Your Only-Begotten Son, may in their turn intercede for our weakness and our wretchedness. Forgive our sins for the sake of their holy petitions, and for the sake of Your blessed Name."

Not that we are worthy to mention their blessedness, but that they who are standing before Your fearful and dreadful judgment seat may in their turn mention our wretchedness, and we may find grace and mercy before You, O Lord for succor in our time of need .

Liturgy of St. James

3- the Dipytuch (Diptichon, Touptikon)

Abbot Macarius the Great says, "There is no other way to be saved except through our neighbor." We can't practice our salvation outside the other members of the church. We cannot cease from praying for others, for we love them, and are one with them.

"We pray for others while they are alive, why should we not continue to pray for them after their death? Is it because that they cease to exist, that we should cease to pray for them?!

Perhaps we do not know precisely how much these prayers are useful for the dead, but we still go praying for the loving mercy of God " to be upon them.

When you pray for the repose of the soul of the departed, force yourself to pray with your whole heart remembering that to do so is your essential duty, and not only that of a priest or ecclesiastic person... Our prayer of faith and love for the departed means much in the Lord's sight.
Pray to the Lord for the repose of the souls of your departed forefathers, fathers and brothers, daily in the morning and in the evening, in order that the remembrance of death may live in you, and the hope in the future life, after death, may not be extinguished in you, and that your spirit may be daily humbled by the thought of the transience of your life.

St. John of Kronstadt