Menu

Marriage is the sacrament of love, emerging from God's love of human beings. It is a symbol of the relationship between Christ and the Church. Love is getting rid of selfishness and individualism towards unity, which does not dissolve people but rather affirms them.

Merriage2Engagement ring in the right finger: the right hand is a symbol of strength. The circular ring symbolizes the eternal bond. The circle has no beginning and end, eternal. And so should be the marriage

Initially the priest censes around the table, the icons, the couple and the people. During the censing the choir sings: "Blessed are all who fear the Lord, who walk in His ways". (Psalm 128: 1).

The declaration and the great litany: the crowning service (the wedding service) starts with the declaration: "Blessed is the kingdom of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, both now and ever, and to the ages of ages." Blessing according to the biblical concept means that you make the kingdom the target. The goal of marriage is the life of holiness. Followed is the great litany in which we ask God to bless this wedding similar to the wedding of Cana.

Prayers: the priest then says three prayers to bless the crowns: the first prayer for glorification, the second asking God to bless the couple and save them, and the third asking God to send his right hand and unify the couple. It is by God that man and woman become one. During the third prayer the priest joins the couple's hands together as an expression of unity between them.

Crowning: the priest then picks up the crowns, makes the sign of the cross on them, crowns the groom and the bride, announcing three times: "The servant of God (name) is crowned unto the hand maiden of God (name) in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Amen." Then he exchanges the crowns on the heads of the couple saying: "O Lord, our God, crown them in glory and in honour". The couple is rewarded with the crowns for their internal victory on their physically and spiritually desires, flaws and deficiencies. Crowning symbolizes their victory with purity before marriage, and on their carrying of the cross in their common life together.

MerriageThe Common Cup – Wine Drinking: After more prayers, a common cup of sweet wine is blessed and shared by the couple as a sign of their common life together. They share joys and sorrows, successes and failures, hopes and fears together: "I shall partake in the Cup of Salvation, and I shall invoke the name of the Lord".

Dance of Isaiah: the priest leads the couple, with their sponsors, in a triple procession counter clockwise around the centre table in celebratory "dance". The couple process in a circular motion to signify the perfection and eternity that they are intending to live in their future common life. This dance indicates the first steps undertaken by the couple, accompanied by the priest, in the way of the Lord.

Each of the three turns is accompanied by one of the three hymns: the first blesses the Virgin Mother of God, the second asks the intercession of the martyr saints, and the third glorifies our Lord Jesus Christ.

At the end of the service, the crowns are removed. The priest prays that God will receive these crowns into His Kingdom. Then he prays to the Holy Trinity to bless and give the couple a long life, good generation, and success in life and faith.

Ordination to priestly ranks is always done during the Divine Liturgy. It should always be individual; no more than one ordination to each order should be done per liturgy.

The authority of ordination is for the bishop and higher ranks only. An ordination of a new bishop should be done by at least two bishops. Deacon, priest and bishop ordinations are done by "Laying on of Hands" (Greek: Cheirotonia) - Apostolic Succession.
Despite the fact that ordination can only be done with bishop(s) laying on of hands, it must also be approved by those present. So the whole congregation expresses its consent with shouts of "Axios!" (Worthy!) at certain times during the ordination service.

The Orthodox Church has taken clergy vestments from the Kingship ones that were present in the time of the Byzantine Empire and its spirituality. However, the Church has given them a Christian meaning transforming them into holy vestments that suit the clergy while doing the services.

The Church does not impose a special vestment color but prefers it to be white/bright on feasts, while black/dark color of funerals and days of fasting.

  • Antimens (Antiminsion): from the Greek: "instead of the table", is among the most important furnishings of the altar. It is a rectangular piece of cloth, of either linen or silk. Typically it is decorated with the Icon of the entombment of Christ, the four Evangelists, and scriptural passages related to the Eucharist. A small relic of a martyr is sewn into it. The Eucharist cannot be celebrated without an antimension. The antimension must be consecrated and signed by a bishop.

liturgikonLiturgical Books:

  • Gospel Book: (Greek: Evangelion, meaning the joyful news), is placed on the altar.
  • Apostolos - Book of Epistles.
  • The Hieratikon (also spelled Ieratikon, also known as the Hierotelestikon and the Liturgikon; the "book of the priest," is the Book of Rites of the Church that contains the priest's prayers for Vespers, Orthros, and Divine Liturgies of St. John Chrysostom, St. Basil the Great, and the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts.
  • The Typikon: is the "book of directions and rubrics, which regulate the order of the divine services for each day of the year."

The Liturgical Prayers Books are:

  • Octoechos ("book of the eight tones") refers to two books - The Great Octoechos (Parakletike, "book of supplication") which has all the hymns of the eight tones for every day of the week.
    -The Little Octoechos, a smaller version which contains only the materials for Sundays.
  • The Lenten Triodion ('book of the three odes') contains the hymns and prayers from the beginning of the pre-Lenten season (the Sunday of the Publican and Pharisee, the 10th Sunday before Pascha) until Holy Saturday.
  • The Pentecostarion contains the hymns and prayers for the services of the Paschal season, i.e., from the Day of Pascha until the First Sunday after Pentecost, the Sunday of All Saints.
  • The Menaia ("books of the months") is the collection of twelve books (each a Menaion), one for each month of the calendar year, containing the hymns and prayers for the immovable feasts and the saints' days falling in that month.
  • Synaxariun: biographical lists of the saints arranged in the order of their feast days.
  • The Larger Great Horologion is the "Book of Hours," containing the fixed texts of the services of the Daily Cycle.
  • Great Euchologion contains the prayers of the priest, deacon, and reader for Vespers, Orthros, and the Divine Liturgy in addition to the six remaining sacraments, and other services of blessings.

The Orthodox Church building contains:

  • church arch enNarthex: it is the connection between the Church and the outside world, and is divided into two sections:
    - An external entrance as a courtyard.
    - Internal entrance consisting of a large room where the baptismal font.

  • Nave: The biggest part of the nave is the main body of the church where the people stand during the services. The Nave of an Orthodox Church can vary in shape/size & layout according to the various traditions within the Church. The other part is reserved for the clergy. In front of the iconostas, in the southern section, is the bishop's throne, and other seats for the chanters.

  • Above the nave is the dome. In the dome of the church is usually the icon of Christ the Almighty "Ruler of All". Directly hanging below the dome is a circular chandelier with icons of the saints and apostles, called the horos.

  • Sanctuary (Altar) - the holy of holies: The area behind the iconostasis reached through the Beautiful Gates or Angel Doors. Within this area is the altar table, which is more often called the holy table or throne. Furthermore, the apse containing the high place at the centre back with a throne for the bishop and the synthronos, or seats for the priests, on either side. The Chapel of Prothesis on the north side where the offerings are prepared in the Proskomedia before being brought to the altar table and the holy vessels are stored. In addition, the Diaconicon on the south side where the vestments are stored.
    The Holy Table is in the shape of a square or rectangular, composed of a marble plaque to symbolize Christ. This table is installed on four columns symbolizing the four Evangelists and covered with a piece of white cloth, the Antimens, and the Bible. A small dome is constructed on top of the table.

The walls are normally covered from floor to ceiling with icons of saints, their lives, in addition to stories from the Bible.

Icons:
They are graphic expression of spiritual themes. It reminds us of the events of salvation or historical events from the life of the Church. God the Father cannot be expressed in icons because no one has ever seen the Father. God the Holy Spirit appears either as a dove or tongues of fire, and God the Son became a man, and can be illustrated in His human shape.

Icons are always flat (two dimensional) in order for us, who live in the materialistic world, to understand that the spiritual world of Christ, His mother, angels, and saints live in a mysterious world, which we cannot perceive with our five senses.

Icons are venerated and kissed. The veneration is for the person or persons it representatives. The icons are not idols worshiped by believers, since the worship is for God alone.

There are various symbols in the Byzantine icon including the: colors, geometry, lines and scenes' distribution, as well as the position of the bodies. The icon takes our imagination from the reality of the event in history and place, into the spiritual reality. They are windows to heaven.

The Iconostasis:
IconostasisThe iconostasis, also called the τεμπλον/templon. It is a screen or wall between the nave and the sanctuary, which is covered with icons. The Iconostasis has three doors, one in the middle and one on either side. The central one is traditionally called the Royal door and is only used by the clergy. There are times when this gate is closed during the service and the curtain is drawn. The doors on either side are called the Deacons' Doors or Angels' Doors as they often have depicted on them the Archangels Michael and Gabriel. These doors are used by deacons and servers to enter the sanctuary.

Typically, to the right of the Royal door (as viewed from the nave) is the icon of Christ, then the icon of St John the Baptist; to the left the icon of the Theotokos, always shown holding Christ; and then the icon of the saint(s) to whom the church is dedicated (i.e., the patron).

Church Twelve Great Feasts (according to the Julian calendar)

  1. September 8, the Nativity of the Theotokos.
  2. September 14, the Exaltation of the Cross.
  3. November 21, the Presentation of the Theotokos.
  4. December 25, the Nativity of Christ/Christmas.
  5. January 6, the Baptism of Christ - Theophany, also called Epiphany.
  6. February 2, the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple.
  7. March 25, the Annunciation.
  8. The Sunday before Pascha (Easter)- the Entry into Jerusalem or Palm Sunday.
  9. Forty Days after Pascha (Easter) - the Ascension of Christ.
  10. Fifty Days after Pascha (Easter) - Pentecost.
  11. August 6, the Transfiguration.
  12. August 15, the Dormition (Falling Asleep) of the Theotokos.
  13. This is beside the Greater feast of Pascha (Easter).

Major periods of fasting during the year:

  1. The Lenten Fast: begins seven weeks before and until Pascha.
  2. Apostles' Fast: begins on Monday eight days after the Pentecost, and ends on June the 28th, the eve of St. Peter and Paul Feast. Hence, could last between one and six weeks.
  3. Dormition Fast: The two-week from the 1st to the 14th of August.
  4. Nativity Fast: 40 days, from November 15 to December 24.

In addition to the above periods of fasting, every Wednesday and Friday are days of fasting (except for the periods: between Christmas and Epiphany, the week following Pascha directly, and during the week following Pentecost). The Exaltation of the Cross day, Beheading of St. John the Baptist day, and on the eve of Epiphany are also days of fasting.

“All the ways of the Lord are mercy and truth to those who keep His covenant and His testimonies.” (Psalms 25:10)

Construction 16 March 2024

“The Lord will keep you from all harm. He will keep your soul. The Lord will guard your going out and your coming in from now on and for ever” (Psalms 121:7, 8)

Church of Saint John of Damascus 16 March 2024

The Arab Orthodox Club Scout Group held a ceremony to welcome the new Parish Council in Beit Sahur on Tuesday 18/7/2023 in the presence of the church's fathers, the mayor of Beit Sahur and the Orthodox institutions in the city at the Orthodox Church Hall, also the old Parish Council were honoured and thanked for their work.

News 16 March 2024

"And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that you may always have sufficiency in all things and abound in every good work"

Construction 04 March 2024

Icons of the Church iconostasis has been set back after being removed, cleaned, renovated and glenced.

Construction 25 December 2018

The main and sub-icons on the Church iconostasis has been taken out for rehabilitation and cleaning, to be set back. Those icons were drawn in the 19th century on the Jerusalemite Byzantine way.

Construction 04 July 2018

On Friday, September 1, 2023, we were honored by the visit of Orthodox youth group from the city of Taybeh near Ramallah on their visit to the holy places in the cities of Beit Sahour, Bethlehem, and Beit Jala, where they were welcomed by some of the church’s parish council and some of the youth group in our church and we accompanied them with a visit to the Monastery of the Shepherds field, then the Church of the Virgin Mary’s Well.

Activities 19 March 2024

The Church Teenagers Groups organized a day trip to Jericho city on the 13th of January 2019, with the participation of 40 boys and girls, lead by Fr. George Bannoura and some leaders. The day started with a visit and guided tour inside St. Gerasimos Monastry in Jericho, followed by a visit and water prayer at the Baptism Site of Jordan River. Lunch and fun time was later in the day at the Banana funland.

Activities 13 January 2019

A Christmas party was organized by the Church' Sunday school, on Saturday the 22nd of December 2018, at their center. It included the Nativity story, Christmas hymns and shows, Palestinian folklore dance show. 

Activities 22 December 2018