The Holy Church confesses that in the Divine Liturgy the Holy Gifts truly become the Body and Blood of Christ, and that, in every consecrated temple, the Lord abides among His people in a manner at once mysterious and real. His presence is a living reality that summons the faithful to reverence of mind, word, and deed. Our Lord Himself assures us: “For where there are two or three gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them” (Matthew 18:20).
If His nearness is promised wherever the faithful assemble, how much more should we employ a sober and devout bearing in the holy temple, wherein the Church ascends mystically to the heavenly altar and where the Holy Mysteries are offered for the life of the world. The Apostle also directs attention to the ecclesial character of the temple as “the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth” (1 Timothy 3:15).
Within this house—nave, solea, and sanctuary—the faithful stand before the King of Glory; the building is not a hall for casual social gathering, but a consecrated space where heaven and earth meet in worship of the Holy One.
Because the temple is the house of God and the liturgy the very work of God among us, respect embraces both outward comportment and inward recollection. Our tradition speaks of hesychia—a quietness of heart that fosters prayer—and of nepsis—watchfulness that guards the mind. Such interior disciplines are not opposed to outward order; they require it. Hence the apostolic charge, “But let all things be done decently and according to order” (1 Corinthians 14:40), applies to the whole rhythm of our common worship—arriving promptly; making the Sign of the Cross with attention; venerating icons with a modest bow and a kiss without haste or ostentation; lighting candles as offerings of prayer; and standing with sobriety during the readings and the anaphora. Unnecessary movement, casual whispering, and the use of electronic devices disperse attention and obscure the common ascent of the Church to the Lord. The nave is not the forum of idle talk; it is the place of supplication, praise, and thanksgiving before the Holy Trinity. In such an atmosphere, silence is not emptiness, stillness is not indifference, and measured speech is not coldness; they are fitting responses to God’s presence.
This reverent bearing extends to practical matters that preserve the prayer of all. Conversations, even charitable ones, belong in the narthex or outdoors; in the nave we keep a merciful quiet so that those who are burdened may address God without distraction. Modest attire, restrained fragrance, and a posture that neither calls attention to oneself nor impedes others are acts of love as well as of piety. Parents rightly teach children the meaning of holy space by simple, consistent guidance—standing together during the Gospel, whispering the Jesus Prayer when attention wanders, making small bows at the Trisagion, and learning when to cross themselves—so that reverence is not enforced harshly, but cultivated as a family habit. Ushers and servers carry out their duties without officiousness; readers chant with intelligibility; chanters lead the people without performance; altar servers move deliberately, conscious that they bear lights and incense before the Lord. The holy sanctuary remains restricted to those who have a blessing to serve there; the ambon and solea are crossed with care; and the artophorion on the Holy Table is approached by clergy with awe, mindful that the Reserved Gifts are kept for the sick and the dying.
Orthodox piety regards the temple as a haven and an infirmary for souls. The psalm teaches, “The Lord tends me as a shepherd, and I shall want nothing. In a place of green grass, there he has made me dwell” (Psalm 22/23:1–2).
The Church, gathered under the care of the Good Shepherd, is precisely such pasture—a place where the fatigued find rest, the penitent find courage, and the grateful offer praise. Idle talk and gossip scatter the flock by diverting the heart from Christ and wounding charity; recollection gathers the mind, strengthens faith, and unites the brethren without noise. When we refrain from commentary about others, from light jesting in sacred space, and from the rehearsing of worldly concerns, we are not being severe; we are creating room for those next to us to breathe, to weep, to listen, and to meet the Lord.
Reverence also shapes the time before and after the Divine Liturgy. Before the service, we prepare by confession, fasting as appointed, and private prayer—the prayers before Communion or the Psalms—so that the Liturgy does not find us unready. During the service, we let the Church’s words carry us. We hear the apostolic reading and the Gospel as living speech; we answer the litanies; we commend ourselves and one another at the Great Entrance; and at the Anaphora we stand in attentive awe as the celebrant invokes the Holy Spirit upon us and upon the Gifts. Those not approaching the Chalice participate with thanksgiving, avoiding a consumer’s mentality; those who do approach come with compunction and faith. After the dismissal, the nave continues to be a place of prayer for those who remain; brotherly conversation and fellowship are rightly moved to the parish hall or outdoors, where they can flourish without diminishing the sacred stillness of the temple.
The aim of these counsels is not for formality alone. They are practices of love and truth. To keep the holy place recollected is to honour Christ, to care for one’s neighbour, and to confess the deep reality of what the Church is—the Body of Christ gathered at His altar and nourished by His life. When we govern our speech and soften our tread; when we choose silence over commentary, prayer over chatter, and blessing over complaint; when we carry the peace of the temple into the week—we are not adopting a style but embracing a way of being that accords with the Gospel. The Lord who stands among His people—“in the midst of them” (Matthew 18:20)—is the same Lord who sends them forth to bear His light. The discipline of reverence preserves the dignity of the temple, guards the unity of the flock, and gives due honour to Him who has promised to remain with His Church until the end.
May God bless you +
Fr. Charles
5 September 2025
Comments are closed.