West Syrian Liturgical Theology (Liturgy, Worship, and Society Series) (Liturgy, Worship, and Society Series) (Liturgy, Worship, and Society Series)

What Is The Role Of Liturgy In The Life And Witness Of The Church? What Does The Church Aim To Accomplish In And Through The Liturgy? How Is The Celebration Related To The Fundamental Principles Of The Christian Faith? These Are Some Of The Questions That This Book Attempts To Answer. An Historical Sketch Of West Syrian Liturgy And Summary Of The Structure Of The Celebrations, Namely The Daily Office, Anaphora And Other Sacraments, Sets The Context For The Deeper Explorations Into The West Syrian Liturgy. Explaining The Meaning Of The Arrangement Of The Liturgy In Various Liturgical Units, Fr Varghese Draws On The West Syrian Liturgical Commentaries And Homilies On Liturgical Celebrations. Other Oriental Orthodox Liturgical Traditions And East Syrian Sources Are Also Examined, And Key Theological Principles And Ecclesiological And Eschatological Dimensions Are Explored. A Bibliography Of The West Syrian Liturgy And A Glossary Of Syriac Terms Is Provided.--book Jacket. Liturgical Theology : Scope And Method -- Leitourgia In The West Syrian Mystagogical Tradition -- Liturgical Vocabulary -- Liturgy As The Expression Of Doctrine -- Liturgy As The Expression Of Christology -- Pneumatology Of The Liturgy -- The Festal Gathering : The Church And The Communion Of Saints -- Witness To The Last Things -- Mystery Of The Time -- The Meaning Of The Ordo. Baby Varghese. Includes Bibliographical References (p. [173]-184) And Indexes. For the past three centuries, studies on the West Syrian liturgy have been mainly concerned with the texts or tracing the history of the rites. West Syrian liturgical theology has received little attention. This is the first book to explain the important orientations of the West Syrian liturgical tradition. What is the role of liturgy in the life and witness of the Church? What does the Church aim to accomplish in and through the liturgy? How is the celebration related to the fundamental principles of the Christian faith? These are some of the questions that this book attempts to answer. An historical sketch of West Syrian liturgy and summary of the structure of the celebrations, namely the Daily Office, Anaphora and other sacraments, sets the context for the deeper explorations into the West Syrian liturgy. Explaining the meaning of the arrangement of the liturgy in various liturgical units, Fr Varghese draws on the West Syrian liturgical commentaries and homilies on liturgical celebrations. Other oriental orthodox liturgical traditions and East Syrian sources are also examined, and key theological principles and ecclesiological and eschatological dimensions are explored. A bibliography of the West Syrian liturgy and a glossary of Syriac terms is provided. Title 2 Contents 4 Preface 7 Abbreviations 9 Introduction 10 1. Liturgical Theology: Scope and Method 19 2. Leitourgia in the West Syrian Mystagogical Tradition 25 3. Liturgical Vocabulary 44 4. Liturgy as the Expression of Doctrine 56 5. Liturgy as the Expression of Christology 67 6. Pneumatology of the Liturgy 83 7. The Festal Gathering: The Church and the Communion of Saints 101 8. Witness to the Last Things 116 9. Mystery of the Time 131 10. The Meaning of the Ordo 153 Conclusion 178 Bibliography 182 Glossary 194 Indices 196 West Syrian liturgy belongs to the Antiochene family of liturgies, of which the East Syrian ('Nestorian'), Byzantine, Armenian and the Maronite liturgies are the other members.