Orthodox Christianity Forum

The Triodion. We’re just past the Theophany and already our attention turns to the Great Lent and Pascha - the feast of feasts! As part of this preparatory season you’ll hear references made to the “Lenten Triodion,” or just the “Triodion;” so what is it, exactly? It actually refers to two distinct but overlapping things - a book and a period of time, both of which we’ll take a look at now. First it’s a service book that we use leading up to Lent, throughout it, and into Holy Week, with almost all (but not quite all) the books to observe services through the fast. As the name implies, there are three (tri) odes (well… odes) for Orthros/ Matins/ Morning Prayers during this time as appointed by the canons. We keep a copy or two in the kliros and they’re available to look at any time you like - please ask! 😀 Secondly, it’s a time period that begins ten weeks prior to Pascha and is itself broken into three preparatory periods all focused on leading us on a journey of repentance home to God by means of prayer and fasting - three pre-Lenten weeks, six weeks of Great Lent, then Holy Week. The three weeks prior to the Great Lent starting are the Sundays of the Publican and the Pharisee, of the Prodigal Son, of the Last Judgment (Meatfare), and of Forgiveness (Cheesefare). The week after the first Sunday is entirely fast-free, the next is normal fasting, and the last of two Sundays help to ease us into the fast which we’ll observe throughout the Great Lent, by bidding farewell to dairy and meat, respectively.

Theophany House Blessings. From the Theophany (January 19th, 2023) until Cheesefare Sunday (February 26th, 2023), Father will be blessing parishioners’ homes. This is something we do every year during this time with the newly-blessed holy water, and it’s an opportunity to renew the sanctification of our homes (the little church), and rededicate our lives away from the parish in a unique way. It should be noted that this can also be done anytime you’ve moved into a new home, or if the family is suffering any particular torment. So what should you expect, and what should you have on hand during this time? So first things first, please contact Father to schedule your home blessing sooner rather than later - he works two full-time secular jobs in addition to his work at the parish, so the earlier we can schedule, the better - if you’re available during weekdays, even better, but we’ll work something out regardless. Father has a lot of homes to visit and serves a huge geographical area, so it’s not always possible to stay for a meal, though if you’d like to invite him for one he won’t turn you down - just please plan in advance, and maybe have a rain check date in mind. It’s customary and appreciated though never required to offer a donation to cover fuel and expenses, especially if you live far from the parish. Whenever possible, if you’re able to coordinate with other parishioners who live near you, house blessings can be grouped to save a bit of time. If you have a home prayer corner or icon wall, wonderful - if not, your kitchen table will do just fine, with a small bowl on it in which to pour the holy water and from which to either consume it, or pour it on a houseplant or on ground you won’t be walking on. If you’ve got an icon of the Theophany, great - if not, either Father can bring one or you can use a small icon of Christ. A lit candle is traditional, but not requisite, symbolizing the light of Christ being carried throughout your home during the blessing. Lights should be on in each room, and the bathroom doors closed (they’re the only rooms that aren’t blessed). The service itself is relatively quick; the reader (if one is along) will read through the Trisagion and a few other prayers, Father will say a prayer, the Troparion will be sung during the actual blessing, walking from room to room, sprinkling the holy water. Finally another blessing is given to you and your family, and you are sprinkled with holy water.

The Book(s) of Needs - Great and Small. In Greek the term is euchologion “book of prayers;” in Slavonic we call it the trebnik - “book of needs.” Either title is appropriate, but the latter tends to make more sense to me personally because with a few exceptions, the services in the Book of Needs are mostly those not associated with any particular point in the Church calendar, but instead done as the need arises, e.g., funerals, baptisms, crownings, etc. Some of the services that occur at fixed times are also included, like the Great Blessing of the Waters, which, while it’s done on Theophany, can also be done at other times in the year if the need arises, i.e., we run out of holy water - which is a good problem to have! The Great Book of Needs is broken into four volumes, more or less in an order that makes sense for their frequency of use in the parish. Volume 1 has the services most associated with the Holy Mysteries, taking you through the liturgical life of the Church with the entry into the catechumenate, baptism, chrismation, the churching of women, etc. Volume 2 centers around the stuff in the parish, how to sanctify ecclesiastical items like icons, crosses, vestments, and so forth, as well as a few services from the liturgical year. Volume 3 is mostly connected with death, funerals, burial, commemorations for the departed, as well as a few general blessings and prayers for specific needs. Volume 4 is where we find the molebens, supplicatory services, and other blessings. The Small Book of Needs is about what you would expect, given the name - it’s a smaller, one-volume version of the trebnik that has the services most likely to be done away from the parish building, outside the temple, and so on. An upcoming example is the service for blessing homes following the Theophany - it’s in there, as well as a bunch of blessings of a number of agricultural things, from new bee hives to threshing floors! Importantly the small book also has the bedside services for the ill and the dying, prayers for those about to take a trip, blessings for vehicles (and airplanes, if you happen to get one). Both are neat and certainly not anything reserved just for the clergy - if you’re curious just ask and we’ll be happy to show them to you! :)