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Pascha and Pandemic
First Things ^ | 5/1/20 | John P. Burgess

Posted on 05/09/2020 6:31:37 PM PDT by marshmallow

This year’s Easter celebrations have revealed deep tensions in church-state relations throughout the world. On what Christians regard as the most holy of days, when worship momentarily lifts us above the cares of this world, earthly power struggles were also taking place. In Russia, Orthodox believers insisted on their right to attend church and receive the sacrament.

While 1-2 percent of the population attends church on a regular Sunday, the Pascha celebrations typically bring out ten times this number. The people’s central concern is to receive the Eucharist, the bread and wine that they regard as the very body and blood of Christ. For them, the sacrament is essential to their spiritual well-being and they commune as often as possible—especially during Lent. John Zizioulas is a prominent Orthodox theologian in Greece. When asked what churches should do during the COVID-19 pandemic, he said, “The Church without the holy Eucharist is no longer the Church.” He added that in Orthodoxy there is no such thing as a “private” liturgy; a community must gather in person.

In many parts of Europe and North America, Protestant, Catholic, and Orthodox churches nevertheless cancelled Easter services. In early March, Russian Orthodox leaders debated what to do about the Church’s upcoming Pascha celebrations. A working group of the Patriarchate negotiated with state officials. The government was prepared to allow priests to livestream or record services from their churches, but only if parishioners were not present. Patriarch Kirill succeeded in getting a better deal. On March 17, he announced that churches would remain open, but with strict hygienic measures in place. He instructed priests to continuously disinfect icons and the spoon used for serving the Eucharist.

Reactions on conservative Orthodox social media sites were overwhelmingly negative, with many claiming Kirill had capitulated to the government. On March.......

(Excerpt) Read more at firstthings.com ...


TOPICS: Current Events; Orthodox Christian; Religion & Culture; Religion & Politics
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1 posted on 05/09/2020 6:31:37 PM PDT by marshmallow
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