A Doxastikon (

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

: Δοξαστικόν "Glory sticheron")—plural: ''doxastika''— is a type of hymn found in the

Divine Services In the practice of Christianity, canonical hours mark the divisions of the day in terms of fixed times of prayer at regular intervals. A book of hours, chiefly a breviary, normally contains a version of, or selection from, such prayers. In t ...

of the

Eastern Orthodox Church The Eastern Orthodox Church, officially the Orthodox Catholic Church, and also called the Greek Orthodox Church or simply the Orthodox Church, is List of Christian denominations by number of members, one of the three major doctrinal and ...

and those

Eastern Catholic Churches The Eastern Catholic Churches or Oriental Catholic Churches, also known as the Eastern-Rite Catholic Churches, Eastern Rite Catholicism, or simply the Eastern Churches, are 23 Eastern Christian autonomous (''sui iuris'') particular churches of ...

which follow the

Byzantine Rite The Byzantine Rite, also known as the Greek Rite or the Rite of Constantinople, is a liturgical rite that is identified with the wide range of cultural, devotional, and canonical practices that developed in the Eastern Christianity, Eastern Chri ...

. Specifically, a doxastikon is a

sticheron A sticheron (Greek: "set in verses"; plural: stichera; Greek: ) is a hymn of a particular genre sung during the daily evening (Hesperinos/Vespers) and morning ( Orthros) offices, and some other services, of the Eastern Orthodox and Byzantine Ca ...

which is chanted after or between: * Δόξα

"Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit."

and * Καὶ νῦν

"Both now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen."

Position in services

Doxastika are normally found near the end of a series of stichera. Doxastika may be found at

Vespers Vespers /ˈvɛspərz/ () is a Christian liturgy, liturgy of evening prayer, one of the canonical hours in Catholic (both Latin liturgical rites, Latin and Eastern Catholic liturgy, Eastern Catholic liturgical rites), Eastern Orthodox, Oriental O ...

Κύριε, ἐκέκραξα πρὸς σέ ("Lord, I Have Cried", Ps. 140.1 and the

Aposticha The Aposticha (; Slavonic: стїхи̑ры на стихо́внѣ ''stikhíry na stikhóvne'') are a set of hymns (''stichera'') accompanied by psalm verses ('' stichos'') that are chanted towards the end of Vespers and Matins in the Eastern Or ...

), at

Matins Matins (also Mattins) is a canonical hour in Christian liturgy, originally sung during the darkness of early morning (between midnight and dawn). The earliest use of the term was in reference to the canonical hour, also called the vigil, which w ...

(

Kathisma A kathisma (Greek: κάθισμα; Slavonic: каѳисма, ''kai-isma''), literally, "seat", is a division of the Psalter, used in the Eastern Orthodox and Byzantine Rite Catholic churches. The word may also describe a hymn sung at Matins, a ...

hymns, Aposticha,

Lauds Lauds is a canonical hour of the Divine office. In the Roman Rite Liturgy of the Hours it is one of the major hours, usually held after Matins, in the early morning hours (between 3:00:00 and 5:59:59). Name The name is derived from the three la ...

), and at the

Divine Liturgy Divine Liturgy () or Holy Liturgy is the usual name used in most Eastern Christian rites for the Eucharistic service. The Eastern Catholic Churches, Eastern Lutheranism, Eastern Lutheran Churches and the Eastern Orthodox Church believe the Divi ...

(the

Beatitudes The Beatitudes () are blessings recounted by Jesus in Matthew 5:3–10 within the Sermon on the Mount in the Gospel of Matthew, and four in the Sermon on the Plain in the Gospel of Luke, followed by four woes which mirror the blessings. In ...

). There are other instances when a hymn is found between "Glory..." and "Both now..." (i.e.,

Apolytikion The Apolytikion () or Dismissal Hymn is a troparion (a short hymn of one stanza) said or sung at Orthodox Christian worship services. The apolytikion summarizes the feast being celebrated that day. It is chanted at Vespers, Matins and the Div ...

, the

Canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the material accepted as officially written by an author or an ascribed author * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western canon, th ...

); however, these hymns are

troparia A troparion (Greek , plural: , ; Georgian: , ; Church Slavonic: , ) in Byzantine music and in the religious music of Eastern Orthodox Christianity is a short hymn of one stanza, or organised in more complex forms as series of stanzas. The wid ...

rather than

stichera A sticheron (Greek language, Greek: "set in verses"; plural: stichera; Greek language, Greek: ) is a hymn of a particular genre sung during the daily evening (Hesperinos/Vespers) and morning (Orthros) offices, and some other services, of the Ea ...

, and so are not referred to as doxasticha.

Subject matter

The subject matter of the doxastikon can be either the glorification of the

Trinity The Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the Christian doctrine concerning the nature of God, which defines one God existing in three, , consubstantial divine persons: God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ) and God the Holy Spirit, thr ...

(in which case it is known as a '' Triadikon''), or honouring the saint of the day. Feasts of the

Theotokos ''Theotokos'' ( Greek: ) is a title of Mary, mother of Jesus, used especially in Eastern Christianity. The usual Latin translations are or (approximately "parent (fem.) of God"). Familiar English translations are "Mother of God" or "God-beare ...

(Virgin Mary) often do not have doxastika, since she is honoured during the

Theotokion A Theotokion (; pl. ) is a hymn to Mary the Theotokos (), which is read or chanted (troparion or sticheron) during the canonical hours and Divine Liturgy of the Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic churches, as well as in the praises of the Ori ...

, which is the sticheron which follows "Both now and ever...". Feasts of the Lord will often have neither a Doxastikon nor a Theotokion, the latter being replaced by a verse in honor of the feast. Lower-ranking feasts of saints do not usually have doxastika, though some do. Doxastika are always intended to be chanted in one of the eight liturgical modes, or a variation on the modes, known as an ''automelon''.

References

Genres of Byzantine music Eastern Christian hymns Liturgy of the Hours {{EasternCatholic-stub

Position in services

Subject matter

See also

References