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Unmercenary Sacred MusicRussian and Kievan ChantDivine Liturgy of Saint John Chrysostom |
This setting of the divine liturgy is offered for the glory of God Father, Son, and Holy Spirit by all members of his holy church. As it was in the church's beginning, all believers are called upon to give worship. The experience of communal worship as documented in scripture teaches us the centrality and bold power of such worship.
After their release they went back to their own people and reported what the chief priests and elders had told them. And when they heard it, they raised their voices to God with one accord and said, "Sovereign Lord, maker of heaven and earth and the sea and all that is in them, you said by the holy Spirit through the mouth of our father David, your servant: 'Why did the Gentiles rage and the peoples entertain folly? The kings of the earth took their stand and the princes gathered together against the Lord and against his anointed.' Indeed they gathered in this city against your holy servant Jesus whom you anointed, Herod and Pontius Pilate, together with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, to do what your hand and (your) will had long ago planned to take place. And now, Lord, take note of their threats, and enable your servants to speak your word with all boldness, as you stretch forth (your) hand to heal, and signs and wonders are done through the name of your holy servant Jesus." As they prayed, the place where they were gathered shook, and they were all filled with the holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.1
"The Church first of all is a worshipping community."2 While choirs have become the norm in most parishes, we can look to the Divine Liturgy itself for proof that the words sung by these choirs are our words. Liturgy, by design, is a "we" experience; for example: "Let us who mystically represent the Cherubim sing the thrice-holy hymn," "We have seen the true light," "Let us give thanks to the Lord." Consider the priest’s prayer before the Holy, Holy, Holy: "It is fitting and right to sing to You, to bless You, to praise You, to give thanks to You, and to worship You in every place of Your dominion…." The liturgy call us forth to actively give praise in song. Collette Jonopulos says it best:
The sacred music offered to us through the church combines the truth of the gospel, the chants of tradition, and most importantly, the Spirit of the Lord. Within our churches music reaches it zenith; we worship God with our voices lifted in prayer. I have heard many priests call for congregational singing. Listening to the choir is wonderful, but being a participant creates a heavenly choir of all believers. 3
May this Divine Liturgy help us give fitting praise and thanksgiving to the most Holy Trinity as we sing in chorus with the heavenly host, the saints, and the church here and in all the world.
1Acts 4:23-31
2George Florovsky, "The Elements of Liturgy in the Orthodox Catholic Church," One Church 8 (1959), 24.
3The One Thing Needful: Meditations for the Busy Orthodox Woman, (Light & Life Publishing, Minneapolis 1996) 155.
The divine liturgy is available for download in both Pew Booklet form and Choral form. The Pew booklet setting has single line music for use as a pew book. the full choral edition is also available(4 part, 3 line music) along with the Companion Book with the Resurrectional tones and weekday antiphons. All books are in Acrobat PDF format.
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