Vazheeparampil Prasanna - The Anaphoral Celebration in the Letter of Catholicos Isho'Yahb I.

7/25/2019 Vazheeparampil Prasanna - The Anaphoral Celebration in the Letter of Catholicos Isho'Yahb I.

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. ~

l ~ i i l Z i

308 NicholasArmitage

fully about the ideathat the Eucharis t is the sacrament of the Ch h

Whil h urc

par

exce

e ~ c e

e It IS t rue t atfor John, the Eucharist unites uswith Christ

and

w l ~ h

one another and makes those

whom

it has cleansed t o be t h b d

of Christ, he doesemphasize that this must be understood ithi he y

f . - . WI m t e

con-

t ~ x 0 lI

a

pnor prep:ratlO?-,

r e p e n t a n ~ e

a willing obedience to the tra

dit ion from before . ThIS reflectshis belief that it is the

Holy

Spirit that

~ o r k s every ~ r a c e of the Church, who is. given in baptism and who

works

m the

E u ~ h a n s t

by the touch ofthe

speCIes,

with those whose willsare

ma

de receptive by a ready acceptanceof the tradition of

the h

h

Above all, however, we find that

John

merits far more

u ~ ~ t i o n from

m h d e ~ n scholars that.he has hitherto received. t is much to be hoped that

t IS

WIll

be redressedm the near future.

The Anaphoral Celebration in the Letter of Catholicos

ISoc Yahb I (581-595)

A Historico-Liturgical Study

BySr. PrasannaVazheeparampil, CMC, Rome

Introduction

The birthplace of all Christian liturgies is Jerusalem, where Christ celebrat

his sacrifice

along

with

his disciples. In Edessa, where the first Christian

community included also Jewish converts, the liturgy developed in classical

Syriac

adialectof

the

Aramaic language.

That

city SAnaphora wasattribut

to

Mar

Addai and Mar Mari, traditionally believed to be the disciples of

St Thomas the Apostle. t has been called

Quddasa

of the Apostles ,

Quddasa of the Holy Apostles Mar Addai and Mar Mari, Doctors of the

East TheFirst

Quddasa

etc. Manuscript Vatican Syriac 22, wri tten by a

Deacon Scaria at Kodungallore (India) in the Church of St Cyriac in 1301,

asserts the existence of

the

l it urgy of the Church of the East in the Syro-

Malabar Church in India .

The Fathers of

the

hurchbear witness to the enlivening presence of the

t:adition handed over by

the

Apostles (DV 8) and give authentic interpreta

non

tothe liturgical traditions. Together with the early Synods they provi

the definitivea uthority in matters of faith praxis.

The

present study is an attempt to evaluate the teaching of Catholicos

Mar

ISo

c

Yahb I 581-595 of

the

hurchofthe East on the

Holy

Eucharise.

The

primary source of

the

studyis a letter written by the Catholicos to Mar

I

a ~ o b

the newly elected bishop

( episqopa gahya)

of the island of Darrai

3

~ h i s letter, found in

the

Synodicon Orientale isa reply to thirty-three ques

nons

ofMar Yaqob

4

which the Catholicos himself computed and answered

to intwenty

canons ,

We intend, in this study, to understand, contextualize and to evaluatethe

Customs or apostolic tradition regarding the Holy Qurbanato which Mar

Thismanuscript

with

94 leaves consists of

the

Pauline Readings of

the

~ o l y

Qur

bana

according to

th e

Cathedral Lectionary system.

t

isthe sole manuscript to ha-

2 veescaped

the

burning of the liturgicaltexts after the Synod of D i ~ p e r in 1599.

Todaythe

hurch

of

the

East is

known

by different names:

the

Persian Church, the

Churchof Mesopotamia,

the

Assyrian Church,

the

Nestorian Church, the Chalde

anChurch etc. Its

liturgy

is th e common patrimony of the Nestonans and the Ca-

3 tholicChaldeans and Syro-Malabarians.

Synodicon Orientale

165/424 (page numbering from

Synodicon Orientale

stands for

theSyriac

text

and

French

translati on respectively).

Synodicon Orientale 191/450

Synodicon Orientale 168/427;see also 191/450


5/19

h JJ

l l I l - ~ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ' - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ~

310

PrasannaVazheeparampilCMC

TheAnaphoral Celebration in theLetter ofCatholicosSOC Yahb

311

9

For details see: ASSEMANI, Maphriani seu primates Jacobitarum in

Bibliotheca

Orientalis, Clemente-Vaticana,

3 vols., Rome, 1719-1728, reprint, Hildesheim-New

York,1975 ASSEMANI, BO) II, 415; JesujabusArzunita in BO III/1, 108-110;

W. WRIGHT,

A Sho rt Hi st or y of Syriac Literature,

London, 1894, 129-130

WRIGHT,

Syriac Literature);

A. BAUMSTARK,

Geschichte der Syrischen Literatur

mit Ausschluss der cbristlicb-palsstinesischen Texte ,

Bonn, 1922, 126

-

BAUM

STARK,

Geschichte);

j.s.

CHABOT, Litterature syriaque,

Paris, 1934, 56

CHABOT, Litterature

syriaque);

R. DUVAL,

Anciennes litteratures

c ~ r t i e n n e s

LaLitteraturesyriaque,

Paris, 1907,349

-

DU,:,

Litterature];

A. VOOBUS,

s t ~ r y of the School

of

Nisibis,

CSCO 266/ Subsidia 26, Louvain, 1965, 223-230

-

VOOBUS, School of Nisibis).

Situatedin the north of Nisibis,

Tour

Abdin in present day Turkey.

Accordingto W. Wright he is not the same asAb[aham of Bet Rabban assuggested

by

Assemani.SeeASSEMANI, BO III/1, 631.ISo Yahb's

~ e a c h ~ r

wasprobably the

nephewof Mar Narsai (399-503) who fled from Edessawith

hIS

uncle. WRIGHT,

SyriacLiterature,

114, n.3.

Synodicon Orientale,

167/426; Cf. also L.SAKO,

Le role de la

h ~ e r a r c h ~ e

s y r ~ ~ q u e

orientaledans les rapports diplomatiques entre la.Perse et Byzance aux VeVIle siecles,

3

Paris, 1986,101

(

SAKO,

Le rOle de la hierarchie}. .

4

Situatedin the southeast of Maipherqat in northern MesopotamIa.

5 WRIGHT, Syriac Literature, 129.

6

SAKO,Le role de la hierarchie, 101-107.

Southof Se1euciaCtesiphon.

8

Synodicon Orientale, 165/424.

9

M.J.Birnie translates it as Talon. . h

Scholarsare still undecided regarding the

l ~ c ~ t i o n

of see Datal..

All.

agree .at

it is an island in the Persian Gulf. M.GUldl tends to Identify Darai WIthDeir in,

which is probably the biggest island of Bahrain.

r

GUIDI, ZDMG (1889),

389ff,

d.

also

Synodicon Orientale

671. Fiey rather h ~ l ~ s the,

sam.e

position.

FIEY, Dioceses syriens orientaux du Golfe persique

in

M ; m o r ~ l

Mgr,Gabrie

Khouri-Sarkis,

Louvain, 1969, 177-219, pp. 213-215.(-

FIE.Y,. l ~ c e s e s

synens

on

entaux ).The only information regarding Taiwan that IS an Island

the Per

sianGulf mentioned together with Darai. Cf.

Synodlcon Orientale, 684.

Popularly known as ISo

c

Yahb of Arzon

9

,

ISo

c

Yahb I was a nat ive of Bet

Arbay lO.

He attended

th e school of Nisibis under Abraham

He

himself

was

a teacher

and later

the

director

of the school in Nisibis where he

wrote

a treatise on li turgy . He was made Bishop of Arzon

or

Arzoun in 571

13

,

and

became

Catholicos in

581/582.

He

was a good friend of

the

Persian

k i n ~ s Hormizd IV (579-590), Khosrau and the Byzantine emperor Mau

rice

\ having served at

one time

as an ambassador

or

liaison between these

two rulers' . Mar ISo

c

Yahb died in the convent of Hind at Hirah

16

in

595/596.

We have

no

information about Bishop Yaqob except from the present

letter

which is addressed to Yaqob, bishop of the island of Darai

17

The pre

amble

of the letter specifies that he is the shepherd of the island of Darai in

the

vicinity

of

T alwan

18

near Raha

ltba.

9

The

Church of the East was con-

The historical section sets the frame-work ofthe present study. introduces

us to the persons and their ecclesiastical background and gives some useful

information regarding the style, purpose and c on te nt o f t he letter under

study.

6

For Syriac ~ e x t see pp. 165-192; French translation 424.451; for a provisional

English t r a n ~ l a ~ l O n see BIRNIE, )n e Eastern Synods, A draft copy, Translated

7 Aramaicinto English, California, 1991,121-140. (_ BIRNIE,

Eastern

Synods .,

. INGANA, ed. t rans . Comme tary of

Theodore Mopsuestia on the Lords

Prayer on theSacraments of Baptism and the Eucharist,Woodbrooke StudIes 6,

Cambndge,

1933

..-

~ H O O R

OF MOPSUESTIA, Commentary); R.H. CON

NOLLY,trans..

L ~ t u r g ~ c a l

Homilies

of

Narsai, Text and Studies 8, Cambridge, 1909.

8

NARSAI,

L t t u r g ~ c a l Homilies).

~ r ~ e r

for the solemn Raza

of

the Syro-Malabar Church Printed at San Jose Process,

nvandrum 14,KeraIa,India, 1986

- Order for the S;lemn Raza _

OR).

ISo

C

Yahb I bears witness, limiting our discussion

to th e

Anaphoral

celebra

.tion including the Pre-Anaphora and Post-Anaphora. The letter of the Ca

tholicos testifies that his teaching represents

th e

tradition

of

the Church of

the East. Therefore, we shall make an enquiry into

th e

liturgical commen

taries of Mar Theodore and Narsai on

the

Eucharist which are prior to the

t ime of ISo

c

Yahb. Finally we shall investigate

the

impact

of

these

sources

on the chaldean

Anaphora

par

excellence,

namely,

that

of

Addai and Mari

(=

AM

The method adopted is a structural analysis which is historical in nature.

We approach the structure of the Anaphora as presented in the letter ofMar

ISo

c

Yahb in comparison with the above mentioned liturgical commentaries

and the liturgical text of Mar Addai andMar Mari. This naturally leads usto

a comparative structural analysis of the Anaphoral celebration that will help

us to understand the liturgical history and theology of the Church of the

East in the sixth century.

We make use of primary sources. The letter of ISo

c

Yahb I is takenfrom

the Synodicon Orientale, edited and translated by J-B. Chabot

6

We follow

the edi tions of A. Mingana and R.H . Connolly for the liturgical commen

taries of Mar Theodore and Narsai respectively . The liturgical text is from

the

Orderfor the

Solemn

Raza

of

the

Syro-Malabar Church

1986 8.

The present study has three sections. The first section is a historical stu

dy of the document. The second section, a

structural

analysis of the Ana

~ h o r a l

Celebration as found in the sources, is

presented

in

three

different

figures. The last section is a liturgical-theological synthesis ofthe study.

istorical Background ofthe

Letter


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313

heAnaphoral Celebration in theLetterof Catholicos SOC Yahb

_

Prasanna Vazheeparampil CMC

312

fronted with problems.

The

spread of Monophysitism was very acute.

The

~ h u r c h

itself was divided and

~ ~ i s .

division was aggravated through the

o p p o s m ~ stands of.

the

school of Nisibis and tha t o f

Persilo.

Hence we find

an.alluslOn to vanous currants already existing in the Church. ISo

c

Yahb

Writes:

we repr?ve othertraditions, those which, however,

by

whomever, have

entered

into

and have been received in various places and have been

retained by the unwary who.took f ~ o . m those who teach even though

u ~ l e a r n e d , those whose foolish tradition became a vehicle with which to

mislead many who areeasily carried of f

1

This purely pastoral letter answers.

to the

quest ions of a good bishop

who, o.utof his love.tow.ard22God and his flock, wanted some clarification in

a ~ r e s s l J : g pastoral sltu:t10n ..~ e n c e

the

Catholicos lends his helping hand.

It m a m l ~ , meant f?r. the mmisters of the Mysteries or, as he writes

else

where, for Christian shepherds of the rational

flock,l23.

letter instructs, reproves and admonishes. It is an ins truc tion to do

what 1S nec:ssary; it.is a ~ ~ u r of rebuke and exhortation against

negli

gence and d1sorde:; mally it

1S

an admonition against those

who

transgress

and t r a m p ~ e the divine laws and canons of

the

Fathers. The let te r is a dis

course

w h 1 c ~

retains the customs of paternal

and

magisterial teaching, in

terwoven with examples from nature and from

Scripture'


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315

Deacons carry eucharistic bread on

paten andwine in thecup, and set

them

on

the

altar p.3

Mar

Narsai

TheAnaphoral elebrationin theLetterof atholicosSo Yahb

Mar Theodore

2 1

Deacons bring

ou t

th e oblation

or symbols of

th e

oblation in

the sacred vessels,

the

paten

and chalice, which

they

place

onthe altar p . 86

2 Pre-Anaphora

Prasanna

Vazheeparampil CMC

Anaphoral Celebration

i n Ma r T h eo d or e

an d

Narsai

As we learn f rom ISo

c

Yahb himself, he is a witness of the apostolic tradi

t ion which was handed

down

through

the

Fathers and teachers. Moreover,

his letter intends to suppress the misleading practices which were rather

deviations from the authentic tradition. In

short

he exhor ts the newly

elected Bishop of Darrai to adhere to

the

authentic tradition.

2. Anaphoral Celebration: A

Structural

Analysis

314

.. . .

Everyone remains silent

p.87

Mar ISo

c

Yahb presents himself as representing

the

apostolic tradition

re

ceivedfrom the Fathers and teachers, to whom alone he makes appeal. Hen

cei t i sopportune to ask what his own teachers have

taught

about the Ana

phoral celebration. Mar Theodore of Mopsuestia, though

not

a member of

the hierarchy of the church of the East, held a prominent position among

her theologians and exegetes. He is the interpreter pa r excellence. Mar Nar

sai t

502

isthe most ancient Mesopotamian

commentator

of the liturgy of

his Church. We will therefore synthesize into parallel columns the elements

- devotional as well as structural - evidenced in

the

commentaries of Mar

Theodore and Mar Narsai.

Figure

No.1: Anaphoral

Celebration in T h eo d or e a n d

Narsai

2 2 Deacons spread linen cloths on

the altar;

they stand

up and fan

allsides of

th e h o ly

body p. 86

2 3

2 4

Veiling of the mysteries by the

deacons p.

3

Access to

th e

Sanctuary: Priests

come in procession to the midst of

the sanctuary p. 4

Proclamation of

the

faith ofthe

fathers p.

4

2 9

Deacon introduces th e subse

quent priestly prayer p. 88

Priest asks prayer of the deacons pp.

7-8

Priest prays with contrite heart p.

8

Access

t o t h e A l ta r

p.

7

Diaconal Karozuta p.

6

2 8

2 7

2 6

2 5

2.10 Priestly prayer summarizing

the theology of the

G hanta

outside th e anaphoral cycle in

AM pp.

88-89

Priestly Blessing p.

2

Dismissal

Proper

three forms

p.

2

Proclamation concerning the hearers

p.3

Rite of Dismissal p.

2

Diaconal Proclamation for the

bles

sing p.

2

Ma r

Narsai

ar Theodore

1.4

1.3

1.2

1.1

5 No


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_ _

318

Prasanna VazheeparampilCMC

TheA

naphoral

Celebration

in theLetterof

Catholicos Soc Yahb

319

Mar Theodore

Mar Narsai

Mar

Theodore

Mar Narsai

3.15

Priestly supplication Reference to

8

Priestly blessing:Peace be with you

present Kusappa pp. 18-20

p.23)

3.16

G

hanta

Reference only to the

last

9

Priest breaks the bodylittle by lit-,

tle p.23)

part) p. 20)

4.10

Diaconal Karozutha Proclamation

3.17

Epiclesis double) p. 104

Epiclesis double) pp. 20-21

and Litany pp.

24-25

4.11

Priestly Prayer p. 25)

3.18

Diaconal dmonition p. 22)

4.12

All: Lord s Prayer pp. 25-26

3.19

Last Signing over

the

Mysteries

p.23)

4.13

Priestly blessing: Peace be

Priestly blessing:Peace be

with you

unto you p. 108)

p.26)

4 Preparationfor Communion

Rite of Fraction and Communion

Rite

of Fraction and Consig-

4.14

All: nd unto yourspirit

All: ndwith thee 0 priest and

nation

p. 108)

with thy spirit p. 26)

4.1 Elevation of the

Holy

Body Elevation of

the Holy

Body

p.

23 4.15

Diaconal Proclamation: Let

p.

105

usbe attentive p. 108)

4.2

Priest offers a prayer of Fraction in the name of the Trinity

4.16

Priest: Theholy things to

P ri es t: T o t h e h o l y o n e i s t h e h o l y

thanksgiving and breaksthe

p.23)

holy people p. 108)

things fitting p. 26)

bread p. 105

4.17 All: One holy Father, one

All:

One

isthe Father, one isthe

4.3

While breaking the bread he

h ol y S on , o n e

holy

Spirit.

Son, one isthe Spirit. Glory beto

- : - ~ ;

prays forthe people:May the

G lo r y b e t o the Father, and

t o t h e F a th er , an d t o t he S on an d t o

:\\

graceof

our

Lord Jesus Christ

the Holy Spirit, for ever and ever.

t o t he S on and to

the

holy

,-

b e w it h al l o f y ou p . 105

Spirit, for ever and ever.

Amen p.27).

4.4

All: And with

thy

Spirit p. 105)

A men p . 1 10 )

5

Rite

of Communion

4.5

Consignation p. 105

Consignation in the name ofthe

Trinity p. 23)

5.1

Communion

by

the

celebrant

Communion

by the celebrant fol-

4.6

Diaconal Acclamation to pray

and others who wait at the altar

lowed by bishops, priests and dea-

cons p. 111)by degrees p. 27)

for those who brought the holy

Offering p.l08) 5.2

Priestly blessing:The grace of our

4.7

Priestly Prayer p.

108

LordJesus be

withyou

p. 27)


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320

Prasanna Vazheeparampil M

The naphoral elebrationin theLetter atholicosSocYahb

321

Mar Theodore

Mar Narsai

Figure No.2: Anaphoral Celebration in Mar ISo

c

YahbI

Mar Iso

c

Yahb I

Mar Theodore

Mar Narsai

5.3

Communion ofthe body and

Communion by all pp, 28-29)

The

pre Anaphora

ofthe chalice by all

p. 112)

1

The bishops and

5.4 Priest while givingcommunion: Priest while giving communion: The prieststake peace

The body of Christ

p. 113) body of

our Lord p.

28)

fromthe altar and

fromone another:

5.5 Response:Amen

p. 113)

Public proclamationwhile body

and

the archdeacon

blood is being distributed: Lo, the

chooses

the

cele-

Medicine of Life ... p. 29)

brant (can. 2)

The priest who

2

Thepriest draws

In great reverential

6

Rite of Thanksgiving

near fearfully and

fear the priest be-

celebrates stands

purely. Fear for him-

gins the anaphora.

in awe (p. 4), in

6.1

Thanksgiving of the Assembly

Thanksgiving of the Assembly:Our

selfand for all people

He offers sacrifice

fear and trembling

(p.114)

LordJesus ... (p. 29)

restupon

the priest

for the community

(p.7)

can. 1)

and reverential fear

6.2

Diaconal Thanksgiving: Let us all

embraces both him-

who have been made worthy ... selfand us (p. 99)

(p.30)

Like Jacob {Gen

3

He draws near and

6.3

All:

To hi m

be glory ... (p. 30)

kneels(can. 1)

33,3)he worships

three times and

6.4

Priestly Prayer of thanks and sup-

three (p. 7)

plication (p. 30)

He draws near to

4

He stands and salu-

6.5

All: Lord s Prayer (p. 30)

testhe altar (can. 1)

kissthe tomb of

our

Lord, the altar

6.6

Final Blessingat the

door of the al-

(p.7)

tar (p. 30)

Priestly blessing:

5

He salutes and blesses

Priestly blessing:

naphoral Celebration

i n M a r ISo

c

Yahb

the people saying:

Peace be unto

Peace bewith you

The s c h e ~ t i c presentation leads us to an analysis of the Anaphoral

Peace be with you

(p.89) (p.8)

can. 1)

celebration aswitnessed by Mar ISo

c

Yahb himself. He can be better under-

s t o o ~

and evaluated in the light of his own sources. Moreover, such a

com-

1.6

All: With

you

and with

All: And unto thy

All:Withthee

paratrve presentation will highlight the particular contribution of the

Ca-

your spirit (can. 1)

spirit (p. 90)

priest, and withthat

t ~ o p c o s himself. Henc: we present a table of the Anaphoral structures in

priestly spirit of thi-

Is? compared

WIth

those mentioned by Mar Theodore and Mar Nar-

ne (p. 8)

Sal his sources.

~ _ _ _ I I i J f I I . _ _ ~


11/19

2

.

:

322

Prasanna

Vazheeparampil CMC

The naphoral Celebration in theLetter

Catholicos

So Yahb

323

Mar ISo

c

Yahb I

Mar Theodore

Mar

Narsai

Mar Iso

c

Yahb I

Mar

Theodore

Mar Narsai

2

naphora

upon heaven saying:

kesconfession of

2.1

Pauline blessing Pauline blessing

Pauline blessing

Glory to you 0 living

Lord p.23)

and life-giving bread, who

can. 1) p.98)

p. 11)

descended from heaven

2.2 With the apostolic

that those

who

eat

you

phrase he bows,

may not die can. 1)

praying that these

3.2

Rite Fraction:

nd

Rite

Fraction: He

Rite Fraction: He

things may happen

he begins

to

break and

offers a prayer of

breaks the bread in

for eachone who is

while breaking says, I

thanksgiving for

the name of the Fa-

baptized can. 1)

thank

you

0 Lord God,

these great gifts and

ther and Son and Spi-

Lord of heaven and

breaks the bread.

rit and unites the

Then hesays the

earth Father, Son and

While breaking it he

Blood with the Bo-

other things

according

Holy Spirit though I am

prays for the people

dy, and the Body

tothe

sequence

the

wretched and unworthy

that

the grace of

withthe Blood)

ecclesiastical arrange

you have accounted me

God

may be

upon

p.23)

ment

can.

worthy in

your

grace to

them, and saysthus:

offer the fearful, holy

May the grace of

2.3

At the end ofeach

The

priest

gives

and divine Mysteries of

our

Lord Jesus

sequential section

thanks before God

the bovdy and blood of

Christ bewith all of

with his tongue duly

andwith his hand

our Christ,

that

I may

you p. 105).All:

glorifying, he signs

he signs the

Myste-

minister to

your

people

Andwith

thy

spi-

with his hand canoni-

ries

that

are set on

and the flock of

your

rit p. 105)

cally over the divineMy

the

altar p.

18 .

The

pasture pardon, forgive-

steries,the sign of the

priest signsoverthe

ness of their sins, salva-

cross ofthe Lord

Mysteries the last

tion of their souls, recon-

sign p. 22).There

ciliationof all the

people,

are three signsover

and

the

tranquillity and pea-

the

Mysteries

p.

22

ceof all creatures in the na-

meof the Father, and the

3

Preparation for

Son and

the Holy

Spirit

Communion

3.3

Consignation He

signs

Consignation

With

Consignation: He

3.1

Elevation: When he fin-

Elevation The priest

Elevation

The

above

the body with a

the Bread he makes

signsthe Blood with

ishesthe three sections

takes the holy Bread

priest takes in his

broken piece saying:

the signof the cross

the Body and makes

near to sign

with ishands and

hands the living

The

holy

Bodyis sign-

over the Blood, and

mention of the Trini-

lifting up upon his hands

looks towards hea-

Bread and liftsup

ed

withthe

absolving

with the Blood over

ty; and he signsthe

the upper host and fix-

ven and directs his

his gaze towards

Blood in

the

name of

the Bread, and he

Body with the same

ing his mind and his eyes

eyesupwards p. 105)

the

heights, and

rna-

the Father, and the Son

unites and joins

utterance p. 23)


12/19

_

I

The

priest blesses the

people

and

says:

The grace of

ou r

Lord Jesus be with

you (p.

27

Mar Narsai

Reception

of

commu-

Communion of the

nion by

all (of

the

sa- faithful (pp. 28-29)

crament and of the cha-

lice).

The

faithful par-

take of i t from a distan-

ce,

from

a

communi-

on table (pp. 112-113)

Mar Theodore

TheAnaphoral Celebration in theLetter Catholicos Soc Yahb 3 5

4.3

The priests

distribute

the

sacrament, andthe cele

brantreturns to venerate

and salute th e altar and

stands on th e

right

hand

facing

south

if he does

not distribute. it is

necessary th e

bishop

also

distributes,

while

a dea-

con or

priest

bears befo-

re himthe paten ofthe

sacrament. he does

not distribute, he enters

and sits

in the

sacristy

that the

people

may visit

him andtake peace from

him (can. 2)

Anaphoral Celebrationin Addai

and

Mari

The above comparison of the sources

can.

be

better

p p r e c i ~ e ~ in the

l i g h ~

of their impact on the Anaphora of Addai

and

Marl which

use at pre

sent. t will naturally help us to

understand

the importanc.e of these sources

for the study ofthe

Anaphorae

of the Church of the general the

Anaphora of Addai and Mari in p r t i c ~ l r Moreover, It reveals the ~ n f l u -

ence of these sources i n t he final redaction of the Anaphora of Addai

Mari. We therefore

present this

Anaphora with the common elements

4.2 The priest blesses

the

peo

ple

uponthe

steps of

th e

porch after

they

bring

down

th e

Mysteries-

and says: The grace

of

ou r

Lord Jesus

Christ be with us all

for ever, amen (can. 2)

Mar ISo

c

Yahb

I

done also concerning

the

cup of

the Lord

(can. 2 .

4

PrasannaVazheeparampilCMC

Mar ISo

c

Yahb

I

Mar Theodore Mar Narsai

and the

Holy

Spirit for

them

together (p. 105)

ever, amen (can. 1)

igning thech lice

isnot given

>

3.4

And when he places the

broken pieces in the type

of the cross, he says:

these divine Mysteries

are signed, sanctified,

united and fulfilled, in

the

name of the glorious

Trinity

the Father, and

the Son and the Holy Spi-

rit

for ever, amen

(can. 1)

3.5

4

Rite of Communion

4.1

The celebrant receives

The priest

wh o

is

Th e

priest himself

the communion

first

offering the sacri-

first receives the

(can. 2). there is no

fice draws nigh un-

sacrament; he pre-

priest to give it him

to the altar first and

cedes the bishopin

It

necessary to take

partakes ofthe divi-

reception of the

rnys

a deacon

who

is pre- ne food (pp. 110-111) teries; in due order

sent (can. 3). Then the

the

priests and dea-

bishop/the

head of the

cons receive the mys

bench,

the

eldest of the

teries. (p. 27)

presbyters, other priests

and deacons (who are

in the chancel) receive

communion from the ce-

lebrant. These things are

r


13/19

326

rasanna

Vazheeparampil

CMC

The

Anaphoral

elebration

in theLetter

fatbolicos

/Soc

Yahb

327

the chaldean sources: Mar Theodore, Mar Narsai and Mar ISo

c

Yahb. The

Addai

andMari

Theodore

Narsai

ISoYahb

general division of the Anaphora is in accordance with the scheme of Prof.

p.3

P. Yousif

Pontificio Istituto Orientale,

Rome). The given subdivisions ren

2 5

Deposition of the Mysteries-

p.86

der easierthe present comparative study.

OR, p. 36

Figure No.3: Anaphoral Celebration in Addai and Mari

2 6

Veiling of the Mysteries-OR,

p.86

p. 3

p.37

Sl.No. Addai

and Mari

(1986 Mar Theo-

Mar

Narsai

Mar

ISo

c

edition)

dore

(4th.c) 5th. c)

YabbI

2 7

Entryinto the sanctuary-

p. 4

(sth.c.) OR,P.37

1 Rite of Dismissal-OR, p. 30

p. 2

2 8

Symbol of

Faith-OR,

p. 5

Diaconal Proclamation for

the

pp.38-39

1.1

imposition of hands-OR, p.31

2 9

Diaconal

Karozuta-OR,

p.88

p. 6

1.2

Priestly blessing-OR, p. 31

p.39

p.2

2 10

Celebrant s access

to

the

p. 95 (Af-

p. 7

can. 1

1.3

Dismissal proper:

p. 2

altar (making

three

te r

the

rite

three formulae-OR, p. 32

profound

bows),

OR,

p. 40 of peace)

1.4

Diaconal Proclamation

p. 3

2 11

Priestly prayer during

concerning the hearers-OR,

the

first bow-OR, p. 40

p.32

can. 1

2 12

Kissing the altar-OR, p. 40

p. 7

2

The Pre-Anaphora

2 13

Kusappa-OR,

p. 41

p. 8

2.1

Rite of Prostration-OR,

pp.33-35

2 14 Priest: Pray, brethren-

pp.7-8

2.2

nit

d-Raze

OR, p. 41

(Anthemof the Mysteries)-

2 15

G bantaoutside the

pp.88-89

p. 8

OR,p.35

Anaphoral

Cycle-

2.3

Celebrant s washing of

OR,p.42

p. 94 (du-

hands atthe

bema-OR,

p 35

ring the ri-

2 16 Qanona and

signing over

p.89

p.8

te of peace)

himself-OR, p. 42

2.4

Transfer of the Mysteries-

p.86

p. 3

2 17

Priestly blessing: Peace be

p.89

p. 8

can. 1

OR, p.36

with you -OR, p. 42

_ _ .

(


14/19

~ l S f t l l i i ~

328

Prasanna

Vazheeparampil CMC

TheAnaphoralCelebration in theLetterof

Catholic

os

fso

e

Yahb

329

Addai and Mari Theodore

Narsai

ISo Yahb

C

Addai and Mari

Theodore

Narsai

ISoYahb

c

2.18

All: With

you

and with

p.90

p.8

can. 1

clesiastical

your

spirit -OR, p. 42

arrange-

ment

2.19 Diaconal acclamation to

p.92

p.9 can.S

can.

exchange peace-OR, p. 42

3.4

Priest: The

Qurbana

is

p.99

p. 12

2.20

Exchange of peace-OR,

p.92

p.9-10 can.S

offered

to

God-OR, p. 44

p.42

3 5

All:

It

isright and just -

p.99

p. 12

2.21

Diptychs- (during the

pp.94-95

p.l0

OR p.44

exchangeof peace)-

OR

pp.

42 43 3.6

Priest:

Kusappa-OR

p. 44

p. 12

2.22

Diaconal admonition-OR,

p.95

p. 10

3.7

Priest: G

banta

(T

rinitarian)-

pp.99-100

pp.12-13

p.43

OR p. 45

2.23

Kusappa-OR p. 43

3 8

Priest: Kissing the altar and

2.24

Unveiling of the Mysteries-

Qanona-OR

p. 45

p.11

OR p.44

3 9

All: Sanctus-OR, p. 45

p. 100

p.13

2.25

Incensing of the Mysteries

3.10

Priest:

Holy

are you,

p. 102

and altar-OR, p. 44

Father . .. -OR,p. 46

3

The

Anaphora

proper

3 11

Priest: Kusappa-OR p. 46

Priest

says

these and si-

3.1

Pauline blessing and signing

milar

things

p.98

p.11

can. 1

over the Mysteries-OR,

p.103

p.44

3.2

Priest: Let

your

minds be

p.99

p.11

3.12

Priest: Pray, brethren ,

on high -OR, p. 44

OR p.46

3.3

All: Towards you,

God

... -

p.99

p. 12

Tbenbe

3.13

All: May Christ ... -OR,

OR p.44

says the

i

p.46

other

I

pp.

13 14

things

a

i

3.14

Priest:

G hanta

(Christolo-

I

cording to

I

gical including IN)-OR, pp.

the sequen-

t

46-47

ce

o/the

e

I

I

I

I


15/19

-


16/19

l

I

I

33

34 Synodicon Orientale 165/424.


Synodicon Orientale 168/428.

Anaphoral Celebration asDrawingNear and Offering

TheA naphoral Celebration in theLetter

of

Catholicos Soc Yahb

33

3

Catholicos Iso

C

Yahb I, answering to the questions of Mar Yaqob, imparts

true teaching which is necessarily required of those who are baptized into

the truth, especially of priests and high priests, the ministers of the Myste

ries ofthe baptized

33

According to him, the priest celebrates mystically the

mystery of the death, burial, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus when he

approaches the holy altar at the offering ofthe oblation; he

offers

mystically

the sacrifice of the living Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the

world ,

The priest of the New Testament labours in the sanctuary of the

Lord, and he isthe propitiator of God and the absolver of the community

through his mediatorship. He iscommanded to stand watchfully and purely

sothat there may not be a blot on his ministry for his own condemnation

and that there may

not

be a stumbling-block to those who

believe .

In his

brief exposition of the liturgical canons, Iso

c

Yahb clearly presents the

ministerial priesthood during the Eucharistic liturgy asthe priest s own ap

proach toward God, drawing unto

Him

at the same time the sheep of his

As far as his tory reveals, Mar Iso

c

Yahb I is the first Catholicos of the

Church of the East to have a considerable influence on the theology aswell

the s tructure of the Anaphorae ofthe Church ofthe East. His own eru

dition and pastoral experience helped him greatly to meet the need of the

time. His influence in the development of the theology of the Church of

theEastand

the

structural growth ofthe Anaphora of Addai and Mari attest

tothe fact.

3.Catholicos ISo

c

Yahb I andthe Anaphorae of the Church of the East

Addai and Mari

Theodore

Narsai

ISo

Yahb

6.6

Lord s Prayer-OR, p. 68

p 3 0

6.7

Final Blessing

Huttama -

p 3 0

OR, pp. 68-70

6.8

Veneration of the altar-

OR pp. 70-71.

332

Prasanna Vazheeparampil

Addai andMari

Theodore

Narsai o

Yahb

c

5

Rite of

Communion

5.1

Diaconal Acclamation-OR

p 60

5.2

All: Unaya d-bem- OR

p 60

5.3

Communion ofthe cele-

p 111

brant-OR, p. 61

p 27

can.2

5.4

Communion of otherpriests

p 111

and deacons-OR, pp. 61 62

p 2 7

can.2

5.5

Priestly blessing-OR, p. 62

p 27

can.2

5.6

Diaconal Proclamation-OR

p 62

5.7

All: Always and for ever

Amen -OR, p. 62

5.8

Communion ofthe faith-

p 112

ful-OR, p. 62

pp.28-29

can.2

6

Rite of Thanksgiving

6.1

Thanksgiving of the

p 114

Faithful-OR, p. 65 66

p 29

6.2

Diaconal acclamation of

thanksgiving-OR, p. 66

p 30

6.3 All: Praisebeto him ... -

OR p 66

p 30

6.4

Thanksgiving of the

celebrant-OR, pp. 66 68

p 30

6.5 Priestly prayer-OR,p. 68


17/19

335

heA naphoral Celebrationin theLetter

Catholicos Soc Yahb

45 NARSAI, Liturgical Homilies, 27, THEODORE OF MOPSUESTIA, Commentary,

46

111

47 Synodicon Orientale, 169/429.

48 NARSAI, Liturgical Homilies, 22.


Cf. Figure

2,

S1. no.

3.1;


169/428.

50 C' Figure

2,

S1.no.

3.2;


169/428429;

ET from BIRNIE,

Eastern Synods

123.

For the present use of the prayer, I thank you, 0 Lord God,

Lord of h e a v e ~ and earth, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, thatthough.1 amwretched

and unworthy ... and the tranquillity and peace of all the creatures, 10 the name of

the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit for ever, amen . Orderfor the Solemn Raza, 40.

By way of explaining

why

the celebrant receives the sacrament first,

Theodore and

Narsai

give bu t one reason, t ha t t he celebrant himself is

equal ly in need of partaking of i t

4s.

It i sISo

c

Yahb I

who

brings forward an

additional biblical explanation: It is

proper

for

the

ploughman

who

labours

tobe fed first from his fruits,,46.

According to Narsai: Three signs

the

priest signs over

the

oblation and

by

them

he mystically perfects

and

completes it

4

7

Unfortunately we do

no t

findin Narsai

where

the first signing would take place in

the

Anaphora. ISo

c

YahbI in his

turn

clearly explains that

the

celebrant says

the

other things

which are well

known and

said in all

the

churches of God according to

the

sequence of the ecclesiastical arrangement; at the end of each of the three

sequential sections,

with

his tongue duly glorifying, he signs the divine Mys

terieswith

the

sign of the Cross of the

Lord

4

8

So also ISo

c

Yahb

I provides for

the

first time

the

priestly prayer at

the

time of the elevation of the holy body.

He

explains:

He

takes

upon

his hands

the upper host,

he kisses

it),

heputsi t

upon

his eyes

and

fixing his

mind and

his eyes upon heaven he says: Glory

to

you 0

Living

and

life-giving bread, who descended from heaven

that those who eat

you

will

not

die 49.

Neither in

Mar Theodore

nor

in

Mar

Narsai,

but only

in Mar Iso

c

Yahb I

do we f in d the priestly prayer at the breaking of the Body, which is the

prayerfor celebrant's approach to the altar in the Syro-Malabar Liturgy:

I

thank

you 0 Lord

God

Lord of heaven and earth, Father, Son, and

Holy

Spirit, that

though

I am wretched and

unworthy

you

~ ~ d e

me

worthyin your

grace to approach

to the f e a ~ l

holy, and

d i v ~ n ~

Mysteries of the body and blood of your Christ, that I may munster to

your

people andthe flock of

your

pasture

a b s o l u t i ~ ~

forgiveness

of their sins th e salvation of their souls, the reconciliation of all the

people,

andthe

tranquillity and peace of all creatures, in the name of

the

Father,

and

the Son,

and

theHoly Spirit for ever, amen

s

o

Prasanna Vazheeparampil

CMC

34

36 S di

37 yno icon Orientale, 169/429.

38

S y n o ~ i c o n

Orientale,

168/428.

39 Cf. FIgure2,

S1.

no.

10;

Synodicon Orientale 168/428

40 T H E O D O ~ MOPSUESTIA , C o m t 1 1 e ~ t a r y 80

41 NARSAI, LiturgicalHomilies, 4.

42 N R ~ I

L i t ~ r g i c a l

Homilies, 8.

43


167/420.


Synodicon Orientale, 170/430.

fold. The priest i s set apart for the awesome ministry of offering th

di

. blati

36

h h up e

vme ation . W en e draws near to consecrate, fear for himself,

t hen, and for all the people rests upon the priest . This access to the altar

p a v ~ s the way for

~ o t h e r

great entrance

3

7

This is b rought home in the

prayer for the breaking of the bread.

The

entrance of the celebrating priest

mto sanctuary leads to the access to

the

altar, which in its turn leads to a

drawing near to

the

mysteries .

. In understanding of liturgical celebration, Iso

c

Yahb shares a similar

v ~ e w

w ~ t h

T h e o ~ o r ~

of

~ o p s u ~ s t i a

According

to Theodore

the work of

a

high

pnest

c o n s ~ s t s

in

hIS

drawmg

n i ~ h unto God

first, then in drawing

also

the

?thers Him

through himself

9

Since Christ

our Lord

offered

Him-

self m sacrifice for us and

thus

become

ou r

high priest in reality, the

priest

who

draws

n e ~ r

unto

the a l t a ~

bears

in

himself the image of Christ,

as

he

performs fIgure of

the

service

of the

ineffable sacrifice of Christ.

According to Narsai,

the

priest who is selected

to

celebrate the sacrifice

in himself

the

image of

our Lord

who was a

mediator

between

us n

Father; :md in like fashion the priest performs a mediation

,,40.

The

p r ~ e s t s

come

p r ~ e s s i o n into

the midst of the sanctuary.

The officiating

pnest

draws near w th

f ~ a r

.and trembling,

and

prays

with

a contrite heart

before God,

confessing hIS

sms

and that

of

the

ecclesiastical

body .

Influence of

ISoc

Yahb

I

on

the Anaphoral Celebration

While. in h e o ~ o r e we

~ a v e

a catechetical homily on th e Eucharist, and in

Narsai

a

liturgical

homily, we have

in

Iso

c

Yahb

I

the

first extant official

.

d o : u m e ~ l t

on priestly ordinances and ecclesiastical canons of the ministry .

wntten

an academic style

43

In

hIS

answerto Yaqob, Iso

c

Yahb I specifies the time when a priest isset

to consecrate and

why

he

r ~ c e i v e s

sacrament first. He

says:

He

o IS commanded to consecrate IS not designated for this beforehand, but

at the moment when the bishops and priests take the 'peace' from the altar

and from one another the archdeacon makes known

him

who consecra-

res? .

/

_

. . .

on

m

----. ., ,


18/19

51

52

Cf. Figure2, S1. No 3.3;

Synodicon Orientale 168/428.

53 S y n o ~ i c o n Orientale 169/428-429; d. also Order

for

the Solemn Raza 55.

Cf. Figure2,

S1.

No 3.5; Synodicon Orientale 169/429;

d.

also Order for theol mn

54

Raza

55.

55 Synodicon Orientale

169/429.

56 Cf. Figure2,

S1.

No 4.2; Synodicon Orientale 169/429.

Cf. Figure2, S1. No 4.3; Synodicon Orientale 170/429.

The official document for the prayer for consignation seems to be

none

other than this letter under discussion: The holy body is signedwith the

absolving blood in the name of the Father, and the Son and the Holy Spirit

for ever, amen,,51.

He clearly explains the order of the sealing of the mysteries and that,at

t he close of it, the b roken pieces are to be placed in the form of a cross,

saying: These divine Mysteries are signed, sanctified, united, and complet-

ed, in the name of the glorious Trinity, the Father, the Son, and the Holy

Spirit for ever, amen,,52. With regard

to

the sign of the cross atthis timehe

particularly clarifies that it is upon the forehead of the celebrant that he

makes the signof the cross .

ISo

c

Yahb I alludes to the practice of communion under two species s

found also in Theodore of Mopsuestia.

He

speaks of the Pauline apostolic)

blessing before the communion of faithful: The grace of our Lord

Jesus

Christ be with us all for ever,

amen,,55.

He mentions for the first timethe

distribution of the sacrament to the faithful by the concelebrants whileit is

the main celebrant who gives the sacrament

to

the bishop, priests and dea-

cons who are in the chancel.

One

thing to be noted is that while the

other

priests distribute the sacrament, the main celebrant returns to venerate and

salute the altar , and stands on the right hand, facing south, if he does not

also go down to distribute.

He

also notes

that

if necessary becauseof a

lack

of priests , the bishop also goes down to distribute the sacrament while a

deacon or priest bears before

him

the paten of the sacrament. However, if

he does not distribute the sacrament, he enters and sits in the sacristyso that

the people may visit him and take peace f rom him . The ri te of

peace from the altar, from the bishop and from one another attracts special

attentionin the letter ofHoC Yahb

I.

The concept of receiving communion is worth mentioning. Even the

main celebrant is given communion

or

rathe r, he is receiving it f r o ~

another priest. Eucharist is seen here as a gratuitous gift. HoC Yahb I says:

f

there is no other priest to give (the sacrament) to the celebrant, it is neces-

sary to take a deacon who is present. But since a deacon is not

allowed

to

givethe sacrament to a priest, the celebrant takes a portion from the altar

and places it upon the hands of the deacon from where he receives. So

also

337

heAnaphoral Celebrationin theLetterofCatholicosSO Yahb

57


For a detailed description of

c o n c e l e b r a t l O ~

m

E ~ s t

Synan nte, d. W.F. MA

COMBER Concelebration

in

the East Synan

Rite, m

Malabar Church ed.

J.

Vel

lian, OCA'186, (Rome, 1970), 17-22;Cf. also R.

TAFT,

Beyond Eastn West Pro-

59

blems in Liturgical Understanding Washington,

D.C.,

1984, 81-99.

60 Synodicon Orientale 171-174/431-433.

61 Synodicon Orientale

176/435-436.

62 Synodicon Oriental e 179-180/430-439.

Synodicon Orientale 170/430. .

63

W. van Unnik

thinks that

Mar

Aprem

of Nisibis (c.306-373) could be one

coined t he wor d. A ft er studying other East Syrian sources van l nmk

explains

treasury as

the synonym

of Quddasa (Sacrament), Raze (Mystenes) and

a ~ r a

(Body) and it means

' the Holy

Eucharist .

For

details, see: van

UNNIK,

Nestorian

Questions

206-213.

In this study we have discussed the Anaphoral celebration as presented by

Mar HoC Yahb I in his letter to Mar Jacob of Darrai. The testimony of the

Catholicos of the Church of the East isthe most important account of the

sixth century eucharistic celebration of this ancient

~ ~ u r c h

ISo

c

YahbI plays a key role in shaping the liturgy by prescnbmg the ntes and

Conclusion

hevenerates and takes the cup of the Lord and givingit to the deacon, he

. f . 57

receives rom It .

With regard to the private celebration of the Holy Qurbana the letter

provides very valuable information. there isno deacon present, the priest

takesthe sacrament from the altar in the same orderin which he takes from

the hand of t he deacon in cases of necessity. This is where there is a

reasury of the sacrament . But ifthere isnone, the priest is not permitted

of himself and for himself to consecrate without a deacon or without

another priest, for, without one who holds the cords and stirs up the people

with his words and calls them to prayer, the priest is not able to consecrate.

But he clearly distinguishes between the

priest

who consecrates and the

other priests

that

take part in the ceremony ,

Alluding

to

the Body and Blood of Chr is t HoC Yahb

I

uses terms like

he Mysteries of Christ , l i f e - g i v i n ~ Mystery of the propitiatory sacrifice ,

ood of grace , 'Holy Mysteries 0 and the Mysteries I which are very

important in the history of development of Eucharistic theology.

Finally we have the first reference to the treasury of the sacrament in

Boc Yahb

1

62

However, according to W. van

Unnik,

since he usesthe term

without any further explanation, it seems that it was not a term coined by

BoC

Yahb I himselr

3

PrasannaVazheeparampil CMC

36

l i

3ft


19/19

64


Order

for

the Solemn Raza, 66.

The

italics are ours.

prayers of the Pre-Anaphora and Pos t-Anaphora , thus contributing

organically to the Anaphoral Celebration of the Church ofthe Easthanded

over by the fathers and teachers ofhis Church.

Asthe supreme head of the Church of the East, ISo

c

Yahb I was concern-

ed about keeping his flock in the authentic apostolic tradition.

Hence

his

teaching is authentic and it represents the official stand of his Church. This

is crysta l clear from the fact that it is included in the Synodicon of the

Church.

A thorough study of the liturgical sources of the Church ofthe Eastlike

the Catechetical Homilies of Theodore of Mopsuestia and the Liturgical

Homilies of Narsaiin comparison with the letter and the Synodal Canons

of ISo

C

Yahb I brings to light the fact that

the

latter was greatly

influenced

by the former two. He develops

both

the structure and theology ofthe

Anaphoral celebration of the Church of the East . He also underlines the

principle that the administration of the sacraments should be in

accordance

with the establ ished norms of the Church. The Catholicos instructs Mar

Yaqob emphatically saying: When the priest finishes the three

sections

he

draws near to sign not asyou said but aswe say 64. The letter of Mar

ISo

c

Yahb I witnesses to a well developed theology of priesthood and

offering

in

the Church of the East . The celebrant as ident if ied with Christ

bears

in

himself the image of the one who offers and the gift that is offered.

The

~ h e o l o g i c a l

understanding of the

Holy Qurbana

as

I

drawing near and

offer-

mg: s ~ e m s to.have an authentic patriarchal presentation in Mar ISo

c

Yahb I

This is beautifully summarized in the final diaconal acclamation of thanks-

giving in the Syro-MalabarQurbana:

.Therefore, let usall, who, by the giftof the grace ofthe Holy Spirit,

have

ppro ched

to theholyaltarand have been accountedworthy

to

p rticip te in these glorious holy life-giving and divine mysteries give

thanks together and glorify

God

who gave

them

65

- - ,

uch esprechungen

Socihe Vladimir Solouieu Hg. ,

Oecumenisme et Eschatologie selon Soloviev.

Sagesse

Chretienne) F.-X. de Guibert, Paris

1994, 181

S.; ISBN

2-86839-332-2.

ImJahre 1991

wurde

in Moskau von Vertretern der Universitaten Moskau, Genf und

Paris die Societe Vladimir Soloviev gegriindet, die sich nebst kulturellem Austausch

als

Zie1

setzte, das Studium der Werke Solov evs neu zu be1eben. Sicher war es eine

gliicklicheIdee, sich gerade heute, da sich ein neues Verhaltnis zwischen Ruilland und

dem Westen anbahnt, diesem bedeutenden christlichen Philosophen

un d

Theologen,

Mystiker

und Dichter

zuzuwenden, der um Ausgleich zwischen RuGland und dem

Abendland bemiiht war, und in dessen weitgespanntem Werk das Ringen um Einheit,

nicht nur der Kirchen, sondern letztlich der ganzen Menschheit ein bestimmenderFak

tor war. 1mWesten sicher zu wenig bekannt, war er in Ruflland,

se1bst

unter dem So

wjetregime nie ganz untergegangen: Seine Werke waren teils im Samizdat zuganglich

und inspirierten die christliche Erneuerungsbewegung. Fiir diese konnte er auch heute

noch oder wieder richtungweisend sein, da sie durch die chaotischen Verhaltnisse und

kirchliche Streitigkeiten gefahrdet erscheint. - Die neue Gesellschaft

lief

ihrer Griin

dung im

Jahr

1992 zwei Kolloquien folgen, und zwar jeweils im Mai und im September

in Genf, resp. in Moskau, deren Themen l oecumenisme (Genf) und l eschatologie

(Moskau) selon Soloviev waren.

Der

vorliegende Band enthalt Referate, die bei diesen

Treffen gehalten wurden. - Wie umfassend Solov evs Idee der Einheit war, stellt Igor

Sokologorsky

dar in L E-gliseuniverselle selon Vladimir Soloviev (S.

38-49).

Es handelt

sich hier um eine iiber die Vereinigung

der

christlichen Kirchen hinausgehende univer

selleEinheit, eine Kirche , die

unter

Beibehaltung von Pluralitat und mit

Einschluf

von Gegensatzlichem eine organische Einheit bilden sell ein G e d a n k e ~ er ~ i d e r

spruchliches in s ich entha lt - aber I uni te du genre humam est une rea lne qu

faut

vivre.Et la vie ... surmonte les contradictions de la pensee (S. 48/49). - In Lesensdu

monde selon VI. S. (S.

168-181)

von dem gleichen

v

geht esum den

z w ~ s c h e n

den Kraften der Zwietracht, des Auseinanderstrebens, und der Kraft der Einheit, der

nachSolov ev das Werden der We1tund den Gang der Weltgeschichte bestimmt. Es ist

ein Kampf zwischen egoistischem Streben

und e i ~ i g e n d e r

L ~ e b e

deren

M ~ t t e l f u n k t

Christus ist sie muG schlieGlich die Natur durchdnngen und m der so verwirklichten

All-Einheit den Sinn der Schopfung erfiillen. - Solov evs Bemiihen um die Vereini

gung der Kirchen umreiGen Francois Rouleau in

L oecumenisme

chez Xl

S. (S.

6-16)

und Maryse Dennes in L intuition oecumenique chez VI. S. (S.

17-37). A u s g e h e n ~

von Solo vevs slavophilen Anfangen fiihren sie iiber seine ~ n e r k e n n u n g . v o ~ katholi

scher Kirche

und

Papsttum

und

seinen utopischen

T ~ e o k r a t 1 e - E n t w u ~ f

bis h in zu der

anscheinenden Zuriicknahme der friiheren Konzepte

der eschatologlschen Wendung

der Drei Gesprache

mit

der kurzen Erzahlung vom Antichrist ,

di.e

V e r e ~ n i g u n g

der Kirchen an das Ende der Zeiten verlegt. F. Rouleau verfolgt dabel.die

~ n t w l c k l u n g

der Anschauungen Solov evs anhand der Krisen und Umschwiinge m

seme.m

Leben,

wahrend M. Dennes vom Erleben des Dichters ausgeht, und als Grundlage

seiner ~ d e e n

jeweils eine mystische Schau sieht. - Mit E i n z e l ~ s p . e k t e n Solov ev.s

O k u m e ~ l 1 s m u s

befassen sich]acqueline de Proyart in VI. S.et l Eglise catholique

romaine.

La

n a l ~ s a n c e

d une conviction (S. 50-71), wo sie Solov evs zur. A n n a ~ m e der kathohschen

Kirche als Schwesterkirche innerhalb seines geschlchtsphilosophlschen Forschens auf

zeigt, sodann Bernard de Marchadier in VI. S.et le Raskol (S.

8 2 - ~ 7

GeorgesRivat

in Soloviev et le protestantisme (S. 88-94): In der Haltung Solovevsbelden Glaubens-

Ostkirchliche Studien Wiirzburg 44 (1995) Heft 4

Prasanna Vazheeparampil CMC

38

;

Vazheeparampil Prasanna - The Anaphoral Celebration in the Letter of Catholicos Isho'Yahb I.

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