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Liturgy & Rites
Services, rites and the order of worship.
01Abuna TaklaAbuna Takla was a nineteenth-century Coptic deacon, teacher, chant collector, and composer who compiled The Services of the Deacon, published in 1859, and transmitted his musical knowledge to seven students.02Annual tuneThe annual tune, al-sanawī, is the daily melody type of Coptic chant, associated with Adam and Batos and distinguished from melodies for particular seasons and occasions. [^1]03Anointing of the Ethiopian EmperorThe anointing of the Ethiopian emperor was a solemn rite performed by the metropolitan to legitimize enthronement, within an investiture comprising a prelude, anointment, and sequel.[^1]04ArchdeaconAn archdeacon heads the deacons and has responsibilities for church services, sacred furnishings, charitable assistance, and liaison with the bishop.[^1][^2]05BaptismIn Coptic Orthodox teaching, baptism is spiritual rebirth through triple immersion in the name of the Trinity, uniting the recipient with Christ and the Church.[^1]06Bohairic CopticBohairic is a dialect of Coptic attested in Gospel manuscripts, saints’ lives, and liturgical texts, including the Anaphora of Saint Cyril.[^1][^2][^3]07Bohairic pronunciationBohairic pronunciation is studied through manuscript spellings, transcriptions, and recorded liturgical traditions; historical reconstruction must distinguish these sources from modern reformed usage.[^1][^2]08CenserThe censer serves Coptic incense rites and the Eucharistic Liturgy, carries Marian and biblical symbolism, and appears in patristic discussions, decorated metalwork, pottery, and church paintings.09Christ's Descent into HadesIn Coptic Orthodox teaching, Christ descended into Hades after His death, freeing the righteous and bringing them to paradise; the doctrine is recalled in Easter worship.[^1][^4]10Communion veilsCommunion veils are small cloths used by Coptic communicants to cover their mouths after receiving the Body of Christ; they are laid aside before receiving the Blood.[^1]11Coptic CalendarThe Coptic calendar preserves the Alexandrian year, with twelve thirty-day months and five or six additional days, and remains in use in Coptic liturgy and Nile Valley agriculture.[^1][^2]12Coptic chantCoptic chant is the vocal liturgical tradition of the Coptic Orthodox Church, transmitted chiefly through oral teaching and distinguished by melodic formulae, extended vocal ornamentation, and melodies associated with particular seasons and occasions.[^1][^2][^3]13Coptic Doctrine of the Holy SpiritCoptic doctrine affirms the Holy Spirit as the third Person of the Trinity, consubstantial and coeternal with the Father and the Son, whose sanctifying activity is expressed in sacramental and spiritual life.[^1][^6]14Coptic Orthodox LaityCoptic Orthodox laypeople have contributed to martyrdom, scholarship, worship, charity, education, and community administration, with their relationship to clerical authority taking different forms over time.[^1][^2][^3]15Coptic SynaxarionThe Coptic Synaxarion collects saints’ lives and commemorations for the liturgical year, preserving traditions of the Coptic Church in distinct regional recensions. [^1][^2]16EpiclesisEpiclesis is the invocation of God upon a person or thing; in Coptic eucharistic worship, it includes prayer for the transformation of the offerings and the sanctification of the faithful.[^1]17EucharistThe Eucharist is one of the seven sacraments of the Coptic Church, in which bread and wine become the true Body and Blood of Jesus Christ, uniting communicants with Him.[^1]18Eucharistic PrefaceThe opening Eucharistic thanksgiving follows the dialogue between priest and people, praises God for creation, and concludes with the Sanctus, the hymn of the heavenly hosts.[^1][^2]19Fasting tuneThe fasting tune, called al-ṣiyāmī, is one of six main melody types identified in Coptic music and is associated with fasting periods.[^1]20Festal tuneThe festal tune, al-faraiḥī, is a Coptic melody type for feasts, weddings, and baptisms, transmitted orally and shaped by traditional musical formulae that permit variation.21HegumenHegumen, also called hegumenos or qummus, denotes the highest rank of the priesthood and can also designate the abbot or head of a monastery.[^1]22Holy SaturdayHoly Saturday, also called Great Saturday or the Saturday of Joy, commemorates Christ’s body resting in the tomb and heralds his Resurrection.[^1]23Institution NarrativeThe Institution Narrative recounts Christ’s institution of the Eucharist and begins the prayers for blessing the elements in the Coptic liturgy.[^1]24Kiahk TuneThe Kiahk tune is a Coptic melody type associated with Advent, distinguished by an orally transmitted structure in which musical formulae occupy consistent positions.[^1][^2]25LahnLahn (plural alhan) is an Arabic term used in Coptic worship for a recognized melody or melody type assigned to a liturgical text.[^1]26Laity in the Coptic Orthodox ChurchThe Coptic laity participate in worship, community administration, and patriarchal elections, with a history encompassing lay martyrs, public service, and religious education.[^1][^2][^3][^4]27Life-giving Flesh of ChristChrist’s flesh is life-giving through its union with Him who is Life by nature; Eucharistic communion communicates participation in His risen life.[^1][^3]28Liturgy of Saint MarkThe Liturgy of Saint Mark is a Greek Eucharistic liturgy formerly used in Alexandria, whose anaphoric tradition is preserved in the Coptic Anaphora of Saint Cyril.[^1]29Melisma in Coptic ChantMelismatic Coptic chant extends a syllable over multiple notes. Its elaborate vocal passages follow traditional musical structures, although sources differ in their terminology and descriptions of duration.[^1][^2]30Ordination of an ArchdeaconAn archdeacon is ordained by a bishop on the recommendation of the clergy and congregation, with prayer for the Holy Spirit, laying-on of hands, and participation in the Divine Liturgy.[^1][^5]31Palm Sunday tuneThe Palm Sunday tune, called al-sha‘anīnī, is a Coptic melody type used on Palm Sunday and feasts of the Cross.[^1]32Papyrus M 636Papyrus M 636 is a Coptic liturgical manuscript in the Pierpont Morgan collection, dated to the ninth or eighth–ninth century, and a principal witness to dialect H, or Hermopolitan.[^1][^4]33Pope Cyril IVPope Cyril IV, the 110th patriarch of the See of Saint Mark, became known as the “Father of Reform” for his concern for learning, church institutions, and the laity.[^1]34Preparation for Holy CommunionPreparation for Holy Communion includes repentance, confession and absolution, bodily cleanliness, fasting, and prayer for worthy participation in Christ’s Body and Blood.[^1][^2][^4][^7]35Psalm 151Psalm 151 is read in Coptic during the psalmody of the Holy Saturday service and is also attested in Arabic Psalter manuscripts.[^1][^3][^4]36Resurrection enactmentThe Resurrection enactment is a rite in the Easter night service involving proclamations of Christ’s Resurrection, a dialogue at the closed sanctuary doors, and their opening amid restored light.[^1][^3][^4]37Sacrament of ConfessionThe Sacrament of Confession involves acknowledging sins before a priest with genuine contrition in order to receive absolution.[^1]38Saint Mark the EvangelistSaint Mark the Evangelist is honored as the founder and first patriarch of the Coptic Church, a Gospel writer, and a martyr whose commemoration falls on 30 Baramudah.[^1][^2]39Sorrowful tuneThe sorrowful tune is a named melody type in Coptic liturgical music, associated with the week before Easter; Idribi is a sorrowful Good Friday chant expressing the tragedy of the Crucifixion.40TheotokionA Theotokion is a hymn praising the Virgin Mary and celebrating Christ’s incarnation and nativity, used in the Coptic canonical hours and Psalmodia.[^1]41TrisagionThe Trisagion, meaning “thrice-holy,” is a hymn used in Coptic worship, understood as addressed to Christ and sung or recited in forms that vary with the service and feast.[^1][^3]42Wednesday and Friday FastsThe Coptic Church observes Wednesday and Friday as weekly fast days, with specified festal exceptions; the supplied sources describe their commemorative meaning, discipline, and canonical basis.[^1][^2]