Visiting an Orthodox Church

Orthodox Church

Visiting an Orthodox Church

ARE NON-ORTHODOX VIS­I­TORS WELCOME?

Yes, absolutely. Welcome to our community! We are a diverse group of cradle-born Orthodox Christians and those who have embraced the faith through conversion. Whether you are a newcomer inquirer, or visitor, we invite you to explore the rich traditions of ancient Coptic Orthodox Christianity. Join us on this journey of discovery and fellowship!

IS THERE A DRESS CODE?

The gen­eral rule for men and women is to dress appro­pri­ately, mod­estly and respect­fully, as before the liv­ing God. We ask that you not wear shorts, mini-skirts, tank tops, low-cut or strap­less dresses (unless cov­ered by a sweater, etc.).

HOW LONG ARE THE SERVICES?

On Sat­ur­day evenings, the Evening Rais­ing of Incense ser­vice (Ves­pers) is gen­er­ally 30–45 min­utes in length and may include a short homily in Ara­bic or Eng­lish. On Sun­day morn­ings, a sim­i­lar ser­vice is cel­e­brated before the Divine Liturgy. After­wards, the Divine Liturgy is approx­i­mately 3 hours in length with an Eng­lish homily after the Gospel is chanted. We under­stand this may seem like a very long ser­vice, but we know that when you par­tic­i­pate in an Ortho­dox ser­vice you will feel like you have truly wor­shipped the liv­ing God.

CAN NON-ORTHODOX RECEIVE THE HOLY EUCHARIST?

Ortho­dox priests may only serve the Holy Eucharist to bap­tized mem­bers in good stand­ing of the canon­i­cal Ortho­dox Church, who have recently con­fessed, and fasted before par­tak­ing of the Holy Eucharist. This is the ancient tra­di­tion of the Holy Church for the 2,000 years of its his­tory. The Ortho­dox Church under­stands the Holy Eucharist as a mys­tery of the real pres­ence of Christ in the Eucharist, not sim­ply as a memo­r­ial, or merely in a spir­i­tual sense, as many other non-Orthodox Chris­tians do. Rather than try­ing to accom­mo­date to often vary­ing “inter­pre­ta­tions” or revi­sions of this and other doc­trines of the ancient faith, we sim­ply ask that you respect the ancient, apos­tolic tra­di­tion and join us in receiv­ing the Eulo­gia (blessed bread), at the end of the Divine Liturgy.

WHAT ARE ORTHO­DOX WOR­SHIP HYMNS LIKE?

Between 65–75% of the tra­di­tional Cop­tic Liturgy involves chanting. Cop­tic Chris­tians do not use musi­cal instru­ments with the excep­tion of the cym­bals and tri­an­gle, which are used sim­ply to keep musi­cal rhythm. A choir of dea­cons leads the con­gre­ga­tion in har­mo­nious chants, usu­ally in Cop­tic, Eng­lish, and Arabic. Our hymns are solemn, prayer­ful and intended to lead the faith­ful to wor­ship God. New vis­i­tors will find there are many new things to expe­ri­ence in a Cop­tic Ortho­dox Church ser­vice. Feel free to go at your own pace, ask any ques­tions you want, and know you are most wel­come to “come and see.”

GREETING THE CLERGY

The Orthodox Christian respects and loves the clergy. Knowing that the clergy are servants of God and man, devoting their life for the salvation of their flock, the Orthodox Christian expresses his/her gratitude and respect to them on every occasion. When speaking with the Clergy the following terms are proper: To the Pope: “Your Holiness”; To all other Patriarchs: “Your Beatitude”;
1) To the Metropolitan: “Your Eminence”;
2) To the Bishop: “Your Grace”;
3) To a Priest: “Father”;
4) To a Deacon: “Deacon”.