For as long as I can remember, Ive always had a fascination with religions rich in

history, full of tradition and passed on for generations. Growing up in a society where
everything is shiny and new, turn of the century and as modern as possible, sometimes
its nice to see some things havent changed; important things. When I started looking
into the traditional religious practices of the Greek Orthodox Christian Church, I was
overwhelmed with information and terminology that was literally a different language to
me. One thing that caught my attention though, was the symbolism and ceremonial
tradition behind every little action, especially that involved in Communion.

Communion has several different names in the Greek Orthodox faith, including The
Holy Eucharist, Holy Mysteries, The Mystic Supper and the Holy Offering, but its very
specific in who can partake (www.goarch.org/ourfaith/ourfaith7077). According to the
website www.OrthodoxChristian.info, baptism is the first of the seven major Sacraments
in the Orthodox Christian faith (also including chrismation, marriage, confession, holy
orders, and anointing of the sick). Once baptized, its believed that this person is now a
part of the Body of Christ, meaning the Church. Only those who are baptized and not in
a state of sin can partake of Communion, or the Eucharist. This was something I got to
see first hand when I attended a Sunday service at the Greek Orthodox Mission Parish of
Utah.

My friend Marys husband, Jim has been on the board for the Holy Trinity Cathedral
of Salt Lake until a recent split in the congregation resulting in the forming of the
Mission Parish. The annual Greek Festival in downtown Salt Lake, which Jim played a

big part in coordinating, has been part of my end-of-summer activities for a few years
now and I thought Id learned a lot by simply attending, eating the amazing food and
taking a tour through the cathedral. Then, I thought Id learned even more by watching
My Big Fat Greek Wedding and by looking into a few things for this paper. However,
when I attended the Sunday service, I felt like everything I had seen, watched and read all
came together with added information.

Marys easy going attitude about her religious beliefs definitely helped ease some of
my nervousness about attending a service for a church Id found I was a little more
ignorant to than I thought. When I told Mary all that was involved in my assignment, she
instantly had Father Michael in mind for an interview and helped me set up the specifics.
This made the whole process so much easier. A majority of my research came from the
website www.goarch.org, which Fr. Michael and Mary both said was a good choice and
reliable. Id read through majority of the website before calling Fr. Michael and felt like
his and the websites information prepared me a little more for the service the next day.

The morning of the service I woke up early to make sure Id be able to find the
location in time and not be that person who walks in late and distracts everyone. The
services are temporarily being held at a reception center in Murray called Woods on
Ninth until a permanent location is found. I met Mary in the parking lot and we walked in
together. As soon as we walked in, someone held the door for us and greeted Mary with a
familiar hug and me with a smile and handshake. We lit a couple thin yellow candles and
put them in a box of sand holding many other candles. Mary told me this was to

remember dead loved ones; the smoke from each candle is said to carry prayers to
Heaven for them. We got programs and sat up by Jim whod arrived a little earlier.

The first thing I noticed was that the priest had recited the same phrase (Let us be
attentive) several times in a song-like tone and the congregation or small choir took
turns responding in a similar tone. This continued off and on with various verses and
phrases throughout the whole service, only broken up by a short sermon and when the
congregation partook of Communion, which Ill get to in a moment.

The next thing that stood out to me was how much we would stand and sit, and stand
again. I got to talk to a young man after the service who is currently finishing his last year
in the Masters program to become a priest at the Hellenic College Holy Cross in
Massachusetts. He told me that in traditional cathedrals they dont even have chairs or
pews, everyone just stands for the whole service with the exception of chairs along the
walls reserved for the elderly and disabled. He explained how the painting on the ceiling
is of Jesus, held by his angels, then branching into four pillars representing Matthew,
Mark, Luke and John. These pillars go down the walls and stop just above the chairs
lining the walls. This is a symbolic way of saying that the members of the church are the
modern day patriarchs and playing an important role in holding up the church and
Jesus teachings.

There was a wooden wall (known as the Iconostasis) with paintings of Jesus, The
Virgin Mary (typically referred to as Theotokos) and other saints that the priest went
behind several times ( http://www.goarch.org/ourfaith/ourfaith7113 & Fisher, p. 345). A
few times he would do this to put on or take off a black square hat with a black veil
hanging from the back. I found out later that he wore this because he wasnt married.
Each priest is given the choice to marry or not, but whatever their marital status at the
time of becoming a priest is how it must remain. Meaning, if the anyone isnt married at
the time of becoming a priest he is taking a vow to remain celibate and unmarried. If he
ever decides to get married, he must renounce his position as a priest to do so. This struck
me as a huge commitment, but one youd have to be absolutely sure about in either
situation, which made perfect sense considering what was at stake.

At one particularly point, the priest went behind the Iconostasis to bless the bread
and wine being used for Communion. He and two stewards walked in a circle around the
front of the church while swinging a censer with incense and holding the chalice of wine,
which was covered by a red cloth. The priest said several prayers over the bread and wine
and then invited those in the congregation that were worthy to partake in Communion. I
thought it was interesting to see the various ages of people who went up to partake and
also that some approached with their arms to their side and some had their arms crossed
across their chest. I noticed that Mary and Jim didnt go up, which they later told me was
because they hadnt prepared, meaning traditional fasting and prayer. Afterwards the
congregation partook of the Communion, the rest attending were invited up to partake of
the bread. Mary explained the bread eaten for Communion is called Phosphora and the

bread I partook of was a separate loaf called the Antidoron, meaning instead of the
gifts, which is intended as a blessing in place of the Holy Communion
(www.holyascensionnorman.org/customs_and_traditions.html).

The new president of the Mission Parrish got up at the end of the service to make
announcements and mentioned that I was visiting for a school assignment. This took me
by surprise and it actually took me a moment before I realized he meant me. He told the
congregation to welcome me and help with any questions I might have, which they
definitely did. After the service they had coffee and snacks which gave everyone a chance
to socialize.

During this, I had several people come up and introduce themselves to me, volunteering
information, asking questions and even pointing me in the right direction for others that
could answer my questions. Something that I really appreciated was the sincerity of
everyone I met; they all seemed glad to meet me and their smiles and jovial attitude never
faded after talking to me. Even the priest, who was visiting from Price, Utah, took a
moment to answer some of my questions and explain the meaning behind the pictures, or
icons on the iconostasis.

Though there were parts of the service I was prepared for and some parts I wasnt, I
feel like this experience has most certainly satisfied a lot of my curiosity regarding what
really goes on during a service like this. Im not sure its something I would be able to
keep up with myself, but I greatly admired the history and tradition even the young were

aware of and how culturally rich the experience was. While I just thought this consisted
of a bunch of random movement combinations, it was really interesting to find out the
real meaning behind little details and Im grateful to have had this opportunity.