Some of the old chrism is put into the new. This is supposed to perpetuate the original holy oil blessed by our Lord himself, and brought to Armenia by the Apostles.[1] Armenians make holy water by dipping a cross or relic into water. They have a blessing of waters at the Epiphany, and many special ceremonies throughout the year. They are great at processions. They make the sign of the cross (alone among Easterns) in the Latin manner.
Their music is of the usual Eastern type, strange to us. They accompany their singing with little bells around the fans ((
Greek characters), kshotz), no longer used for their original purpose, but held in church by servers, who shake them like a sistrum. They also clash cymbals (dzndzgha), and blow horns and wind instruments.[2]
An ancient Armenian abuse is the sacrifice of beasts (madagh). This was a constant reproach against them during the Middle Ages. A bull, cow, sheep, or fowl is brought to church in procession; a chapter of the Bible is read, salt is put in its mouth and it is killed, then divided as a feast. The bishops try to put down this piece of paganism, or to turn it into a mere feast.[3]
5. The Holy Liturgy
The Eucharistic service gives an exact picture of the history of the Armenian Church; for in all essential points it is simply the Byzantine rite in Armenian;[4] it has some traces of Syrian influence and many notable Latin additions. It is not, of course, derived from Constantinople, but from Cæsarea in Cappadocia, where the Byzantine rite was first formed.[5] The Armenians have three very remarkable peculiarities. First, alone among Eastern Churches, they have only one Liturgy and only one Anaphora.
- ↑ Ormanian says: "If the fact is not proved historically, people will agree nevertheless that it does not fail to be significant" (op. cit. 105), which is exactly right and very well expressed.
- ↑ The melodies are written out (made chromatic), by P. Bianchini: Les chants liturgiques de l'Église arménienne (Venice: S. Lazzaro, 1877).
- ↑ For the madagh see Tournebize: op. cit. 588-593.
- ↑ So that Brightman classes it simply as a variant of the Byzantine rite (Eastern Liturgies, p. xcvi).
- ↑ See The Mass (Longmans, 1912), pp. 87-91. It is the older Byzantine Liturgy (St. Basil) to which we must look for the parallel.
