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Kontakion
A kontakion (Greek , ''kondákion'', plural κοντάκια, ''kondákia'') is a form of hymn in the Byzantine liturgical tradition. The kontakion form originated in Syriac hymnography and gained prominence in Byzantium during the 6th century, particularly through the work of St. Romanos the Melodist of Emesa. Kontakia have a number of strophes (''oikoi'' or ''ikoi'', stanzas; singular ''oikos'' or ''ikos'') and begin with a prologue (the ''prooimoion'' or ''koukoulion''). A kontakion sometimes has a biblical theme and may feature a dialogue between biblical characters. The only kontakion that is used in full length today is the Akathist to the Theotokos. Etymology The word ''kontakion'' derives from the Greek κόνταξ (''kóntax''), which means "rod" or "stick" and refers specifically to the rod around which a scroll is wound. While the genre dates to at least the 6th century, the word itself is attested only in the 9th century. The name is likely a reference to the fact ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Akathist
An Akathist, akaphist or Acathist Hymn (, "unseated hymn") is a type of hymn usually recited by Eastern Orthodox and Byzantine Catholic Christians, dedicated to a saint, holy event, or one of the persons of the Holy Trinity. The name derives from the fact that during the chanting of the hymn, or sometimes the whole service, the congregation is expected to remain standing in reverence, without sitting down (ἀ-, ''a-'', "without, not" and κάθισις, ''káthisis'', "sitting"), except for the aged or infirm. The Akathist is also known by the first three words of its ''prooimion'' (preamble), ''Têi hypermáchōi strategôi'' (Τῇ ὑπερμάχῳ στρατηγῷ, "To you, invincible champion") addressed to Holy Mary (Panagia Theotokos, "The all-holy birth-giver of God"). During Byzantine Catholic and Orthodox Christian religious services in general, sitting, standing, bowing and the making of prostrations are set by an intricate set of rules, as well as individual di ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Romanos The Melodist
Romanos the Melodist (; late 5th-century – after 555) was a Byzantine hymnographer and composer, who is a central early figure in the history of Byzantine music. Called "the Pindar of rhythmic poetry", he flourished during the sixth century, though the earliest manuscripts of his works are dated centuries after this. He was the foremost Kontakion composer of his time. Life The main biographical source for Romanos is the Menaion for October. Elsewhere, he is only mentioned by Germanus I of Constantinople in the 8th-century, and in the 10th-century Souda (where he is called "Romanos the melodist"). According to the sources, Romanos was born some time in the late 5th-century, in a site in Syria known as Emesa, to a Jewish family. He was baptized as a young boy (though whether or not his parents also converted is uncertain). He moved to Berytus (Beirut) where he was ordained as a deacon in the Church of the Resurrection. Later, he moved to Constantinople, where he died an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Koine Greek
Koine Greek (, ), also variously known as Hellenistic Greek, common Attic, the Alexandrian dialect, Biblical Greek, Septuagint Greek or New Testament Greek, was the koiné language, common supra-regional form of Greek language, Greek spoken and written during the Hellenistic period, the Roman Empire and the early Byzantine Empire. It evolved from the spread of Greek following the conquests of Alexander the Great in the fourth century BC, and served as the lingua franca of much of the Mediterranean region and the Middle East during the following centuries . It was based mainly on Attic Greek, Attic and related Ionic Greek, Ionic speech forms, with various admixtures brought about through dialect levelling with other varieties. Koine Greek included styles ranging from conservative literary forms to the spoken vernaculars of the time. As the dominant language of the Byzantine Empire, it developed further into Medieval Greek, which then turned into Modern Greek. Literary Koine was ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ephrem The Syrian
Ephrem the Syrian (; ), also known as Ephraem the Deacon, Ephrem of Edessa or Aprem of Nisibis, (Syriac: ܡܪܝ ܐܦܪܝܡ ܣܘܪܝܝܐ — ''Mâr Aphrêm Sûryâyâ)'' was a prominent Christian theology, Christian theologian and Christian literature, writer who is revered as one of the most notable hymnographers of Eastern Christianity. He was born in Nisibis, served as a deacon and later lived in Edessa. Ephrem is venerated as a Christian saint, saint by all traditional Churches. He is especially revered in Syriac Christianity, both in East Syriac Rite, East Syriac tradition and West Syriac Rite, West Syriac tradition, and also counted as a Holy and Venerable Father (i.e., a sainted monk) in the Eastern Orthodox Church, especially in the Slovak tradition. He was declared a Doctor of the Church in the Catholic Church in 1920. Ephrem is also credited as the founder of the School of Nisibis, which in later centuries was the center of learning for the Church of the East. Ephrem wrot ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Orthros
''Orthros'' (Greek: , meaning "early dawn" or "daybreak") or ''útrenya'' ( Slavonic ѹ́тренѧ) in the Byzantine Rite of the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Eastern Catholic Churches, is the last of the four night offices (church services), the other three being vespers, compline, and midnight office. Traditionally, in monasteries it is held daily so as to end immediately following sunrise, in contrast to parishes where it is held only on Sundays and feast days. It is often called matins after the office it most nearly corresponds to in Western Christian churches. Orthros is the longest and most complex of the daily cycle of services. It is normally held in the early morning, often — always in monasteries — preceded by the midnight office, and usually followed by the First Hour. On great feasts it is held as part of an all-night vigil commencing the evening before, combined with an augmented great vespers and the first hour. In the Russian tradition, an all-night vig ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Germanus I Of Constantinople
Germanus I of Constantinople (, Greek: Γερμανός; 634 – 742) was the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople from 715 to 730. He is regarded as a saint by both the Orthodox and Catholic Churches, with a feast day of 12 May. He had been ecumenically preceded by Patriarch John VI of Constantinople, and was succeeded in Orthodox Rite by Patriarch Anastasius of Constantinople. Life According to Theophanes the Confessor, Germanus I was a son of a patrician named Justinian, who was executed in 668. Justinian was reportedly involved in the murder of Constans II and usurpation of the throne by Mizizios. Emperor Constantine IV, son of Constans II, defeated his rival and punished the supporters of Mizizios. Germanus I survived the persecutions but was made a eunuch by the victors. Germanus I was sent to a monastery but resurfaced as the Bishop of Cyzicus. He took part in the Council of Constantinople in 712, a gathering which issued decisions favoring Monothelitism, ther ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Church Of St
Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a place/building for Christian religious activities and praying * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * Christian denomination, a Christian organization with distinct doctrine and practice * Christian Church, either the collective body of all Christian believers, or early Christianity Places United Kingdom * Church, a former electoral ward of Kensington and Chelsea London Borough Council that existed from 1964 to 2002 * Church (Liverpool ward), a Liverpool City Council ward * Church (Reading ward), a Reading Borough Council ward * Church (Sefton ward), a Metropolitan Borough of Sefton ward * Church, Lancashire, England United States * Church, Iowa, an unincorporated community * Church Lake, a lake in Minnesota * Church, Michigan, ghost town Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Church magazine'', a pastoral theology magazine pu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Recitative
Recitative (, also known by its Italian name recitativo () is a style of delivery (much used in operas, oratorios, and cantatas) in which a singer is allowed to adopt the rhythms and delivery of ordinary speech. Recitative does not repeat lines as formally composed songs do. It resembles sung ordinary speech more than a formal musical composition. Recitative can be distinguished on a continuum from more speech-like to more musically sung, with more sustained melodic lines. The mostly syllabic ''recitativo secco'' ("dry", accompanied only by Basso continuo, continuo, typically cello and harpsichord) is at one end of the spectrum, through ''recitativo accompagnato'' (using orchestra), the more melismatic arioso, and finally the full-blown aria or ensemble, where the pulse is entirely governed by the music. Secco recitatives can be more improvisatory and free for the singer, since the accompaniment is so sparse; in contrast, when recitative is accompanied by orchestra, the singer m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Choir
A choir ( ), also known as a chorale or chorus (from Latin ''chorus'', meaning 'a dance in a circle') is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform or in other words is the music performed by the ensemble. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which spans from the Medieval music, medieval era to the present, or popular music repertoire. Most choirs are led by a conducting, conductor, who leads the performances with arm, hand, and facial gestures. The term ''choir'' is very often applied to groups affiliated with a church (whether or not they actually occupy the Choir (architecture), quire), whereas a ''chorus'' performs in theatres or concert halls, but this distinction is not rigid. Choirs may sing without instruments, or accompanied by a piano, accordion, pipe organ, a small ensemble, or an orchestra. A choir can be a subset of an ensemble; thus one speaks of the "woodwind c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gospel
Gospel originally meant the Christianity, Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the second century Anno domino, AD the term (, from which the English word originated as a calque) came to be used also for the books in which the message was reported. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words and deeds of Jesus, culminating in trial of Jesus, his trial and crucifixion of Jesus, death, and concluding with various reports of his Post-resurrection appearances of Jesus, post-resurrection appearances. The Gospels are commonly seen as literature that is based on oral traditions, Christian preaching, and Old Testament exegesis with the consensus being that they are a variation of Greco-Roman biography; similar to other ancient works such as Xenophon's Memorabilia (Xenophon), ''Memoirs of Socrates''. They are meant to convince people that Jesus was a charismatic miracle-working holy man, providing examples for readers to emulate. As such ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Reader (liturgy)
In some Christian denominations, a reader or lector is the person responsible for reading aloud excerpts of scripture at a liturgy. In early Christian times the reader was of particular value due to the rarity of literacy. Catholic Church In the Latin liturgical rites of the Catholic Church, the term '' lector'' or ''reader'' means someone who in a particular liturgy is assigned to read a Biblical text other than the Gospel (reading the Gospel at Mass is reserved specifically to the deacon or, in his absence, to the priest). But it also has the more specific meaning of a person who has been "instituted" as a lector or reader, and is such even when not assigned to read in a specific liturgy. The Second Vatican Council's '' Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy'' confirmed that lectors featured among those who "exercise a genuine liturgical function" within services such as the Mass. The office was formerly classed as one of the four minor orders in the Latin Church. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
