Upon attending the Divine Liturgy for the first time, visitors are struck by the deep reverence and devotion displayed before the holy altar, the holy gospel book, the holy icons, and the holy chalice. The common theme in this unique experience is holiness. What makes these items holy is their connection to the Divine Presence. This notable deference is paralleled in the ancient holy tabernacle at Jerusalem consisting of the holy anointing oil (Exodus 37:29), the holy priest garments (Exodus 39:1), the holy crown for the priest (Exodus 39:30), the holy utensils and holy tabernacle (Exodus 40:9), and the holy altar (Exodus 40:10). Furthermore, the Ark of the Covenant, the Menorah, the Altar of Incense, and the Table of the Bread of the Presence were all holy, each of them associated with God’s Presence in the Temple and with His people. The place behind the curtain where only the high priest could enter on the Day of Atonement was called the Holy of Holies. Israelites themselves, just as the New Testament Church, were commanded to be holy: “Speak to all the congregation of the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘You shall be holy, for I the LORD your God am holy” (Leviticus 19:2). Likewise, the Apostle Paul exhorts the Church: “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service” (Romans 12:1).

The Orthodox faithful express their devotion through bowing, prostrating, standing, and kissing that which is holy. This custom is similar to Jewish practices of kissing the mezuzah (small case affixed to the doorframe of the house containing a small scroll with the schema from Deuteronomy 6:4: “Hear, O Israel, the LORD our God, the LORD is One”).  The Jews also kiss their prayer books, the Torah scroll, the curtain of the ark of the scrolls, and the prayer shawl as a sign of respect for special objects used in their devotion to God. The Apostle Paul writes to the churches in Rome, Corinth, and Thessalonica to greet one another with a holy kiss because they are holy (Romans 16:16, 1 Corinthians 16:20, 1 Thessalonians 5:16). He emphasizes that those in the Church are temples of God since the Holy Spirit dwells in them (1 Corinthians 3:16-17). Those who are unfamiliar with the Church’s ancient custom of reverence or veneration for the holy things in the church may confuse it with worship. However, the Church has always reserved worship for God alone, unlike the pagans, who “exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator” (Romans 1:25). Veneration can be applied to the created order, but worship is reserved only for God.

Veneration (Greek: doulia) is honor for those sanctified by God, whereas worship (Greek: latreia) is adoration of God Himself. In many countries, it is customary to venerate or honor veterans of war as heroes. People may kiss the photographs of fallen servicemen, drape a flag over their coffin, publicly eulogize their lives, and place flowers at their tombs. No one associates any of these respectful practices as a form of worship. In the Church we also honor our heroes of the faith, who gave their lives for the Lord, and are alive in Him. Honoring one’s country by pledging allegiance to the nation’s flag while holding one’s right hand over their heart is not typically confused with worship either. In the Asian cultures it is customary to bow as a form of greeting someone, rather than shaking hands. Refusing to exchange bows would be seen as dishonoring or disrespecting the other person. In the 17th and 18th centuries the custom arose in Europe that a hand-kiss was considered a respectful way for a gentleman to greet a lady. No one considered these forms of honor and respect to be acts of worship. Therefore, there is a qualitative difference between veneration and worship.

By contrast, worship of God in the Church, as in the Holy Temple of Jerusalem, involves sacrifice. The forms of sacrifice to God in worship are: incense, prayer, the Eucharist, and our whole lives. The word sacrifice (Latin: sacrificare) means to make a holy offering or to give an offering. In Judaism, incense was sacrificed only to God. It was an abomination to Jews and Christians to offer incense to idols or to the Roman emperor. At Jesus’ birth, the Magi brought Him frankincense in addition to gold and myrrh (Matthew 2:11). The frankincense represented His Deity. In Church, the deacon censes the altar, the people, and the icons as a sign of holy devotion to God, and acknowledging God’s holy presence in our midst. The pleasant fragrance from the incense heightens our delight in the worship of God. Scripture describes the prayers of the righteous as incense and the lifting of their hands as the evening sacrifice (Psalm 141:2). The Prophet Jonah proclaimed: “But I will sacrifice to You with the voice of thanksgiving” (Jonah 2:9).

Our Christian response to God, and to Him alone, is to love Him with all of our heart, mind, soul and strength which is the first commandment (Mark 12:30). We pray to God with our minds and our heart, acknowledging Him as our breath, our life, and our gladness, the entire word’s salvation. In Proverbs we see the association of prayer with sacrifice: “The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord, but the prayer of the upright is His delight” (Proverbs 15:8). In the revelation of the Apostle John, the golden bowls full of incense held in heaven by the twenty-four elders are the prayers of the saints (Revelations 5:8).

The Eucharist, or Holy Communion, is a sacrifice, as we are offering bread and wine to be transformed intrinsically by the Holy Spirit into the Body and Blood of our Lord, Who is the Lamb of God. Christ’s death on the Cross, which brought reconciliation between mankind and God, had been symbolized in the Temple by the sacrifice of animals on the altar. Most people do not realize that the sacrificial animal was cut into pieces, with the choicest piece for God as the Guest of Honor, another piece for the priest to eat, and the largest part of the animal for the people to eat. In other words, the animal sacrifice was an invitation for man to bring an offering to God so they can commune together. It is what happens when one invites someone over for dinner, and the meal becomes the centerpiece for fellowship and relationship. In Zephaniah 1:7 we read: “Be silent in the presence of the Lord God; for the day of the Lord is at hand, For the Lord has prepared a sacrifice; He has invited His guests.” During Holy Communion, the people, through the priest, offer to God the elements of bread and wine, but God transforms it into His Body and Blood - the food of eternal life for us to partake of Him. In this way, we are One with Him, and He is in us. Jesus told His disciples, “For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed,” at which some disciples left Him because they could not accept this teaching (John 6:55-68). He continued: “He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him” (verse 56). He plainly stated that: “Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day” (verse 54). The Eucharist is the ultimate expression of unity with God and worship (i.e. adoration) to God.

God poured out Himself for us. He gives us earthly life, eternal life, His Son and Holy Spirit, His Church, His Truth, His Kingdom, and many spiritual gifts and graces. As St. Nicodemus the Hagiorite wrote, there is nothing that God has withheld from us. This reality should leave us speechless and humbled. In response, we give our entire lives back to God as a living sacrifice. The Apostle Paul encourages us: “Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name” (Hebrews 13:15). From the moment we awake until we go to sleep, our contemplation is on God. In this way, we follow the Apostle’s admonition to “present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.” (Romans 12:1). This is what true worship is all about – worshipping God in spirit and in truth. To Him is due all worship, honor and praise: to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. Amen.