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Homiletics

What is homiletics?

Without question, the Greatest Preacher within our Holy Church is our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Not only did He fulfill ahead of time all the standards imposed by rhetoric, but He was, is and always will be the fountainhead of perfect rhetoric. Jesus showed us how to speak, but more important what to speak of, namely, the renewal of man in Christ Jesus, our risen Lord risen, on the third day.

From the writings of the Holy Apostles, who were the direct disciples of Jesus, to those belonging to the Apostolic Fathers, such as Saint Ignatius of Antioch (Theophorus), Saint Polycarp of Smyrna, Clement the Roman, or Saint Justin the Martyr and the Philosopher – (1st-2nd century), the Holy Church was nourished by the grace that God poured into these heroes of Christendom. Further on, we have the writings elaborated by the Holy Fathers of the early Church, such as Saint Athanasius the Great, Saint Basil the Great, Saint Gregory the Theologian, Saint John Chrysostom, Saint Gregory of Nyssa, Saint Ambrose of Mediolanus, and also blessed Jerome and Augustine – (3rd-4th century). 

These are followed by other Holy Fathers, who also stood out through their activity, having a major impact on the mission of our Holy Church. Here we find Saint Maximus the Confessor and Saint Gregory the Great – the Dialogue (6th-7th century), Saint John of Damascus – (7th-8th century) and Saint Simeon the New Theologian – (10th-11th century), St. Nicholas Cabasilas – (14th century) and Saint Nicholas of Zhicha (Velimirović) – (19th-20th century). All these Holy Fathers left us a multitude of rhetorical writings, which had as their main objective the preaching of the Gospel of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

The goal, of course, was for everyone to know Him and to flourish and excel for perfection in the fullness of God’s grace. They have given us their works as sacred heritage, as they were people filled with the Holy Spirit, who have truly lived life in Christ. For according to the teaching of Saint John Chrysostom, a priest should preach in three ways. First with his mouth, through the speeches he utters; then by hand, through the writings he elaborates; and in the third and most important way, by his virtuous life, which is in accordance with the teachings of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

The history of Christendom is full of both joy and sorrow. For as the ages have passed, our Holy Church has experienced times of cruel persecution, and also freedom and prosperity, in what concerns it’s pastoral and missionary work, thus developing and adopting in its liturgical heritage, several kinds of theological writings/discourses. These have served as a means of preaching the Holy Gospel, in season and out of season. Thus, in the liturgical treasury of our Holy Church, we can now speak of two distinct but complementary segments, i.e., Homiletics and Catechetics, in which all types of theological writings/discourses are found. In Homiletics we find the Homily, the Thematic Sermon, the Panegyric and the Paraenesis. As for Catechetics, within it we have what we still call the Catechesis.

In a quick presentation of the two, we find it appropriate to start with the Homily, which has the role of reaching into the hearts of the people, and push them to strive for better. The term homily comes from the Greek ὁμιλία (homilía) and is a type of discourse, which was originally held by a rabbi in the synagogue. It was an integral part of the service in the Jewish temple and bore the name derasha (or derashah), which means speech. It was based on the Scriptural text, i.e., the Torah (Pentateuch – The first five books of the Old Covenant, belonging to Holy Prophet Moses). Regarding the precursors of this type of religious discourse, in the pre-Christendom period, we can say that these are the Holy Prophets of the Old Convent. First, we meet Ezra, who speaks to the people from the Torah. And then we encounter with the other Holy Prophets, who also spoke to the people on the topic of the Scriptures.

Starting with Christianity, in the development of which many Jews were coming to Jesus Christ, this type of discourse (darasha) quickly evolved, under the name of homily, because the most popular and used language at that time was Greek. It goes without saying, that the Father of homily is our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, the One who spoke to people (often to those who contested Him) with reference to the Old Law. The Lord explained the Scriptures, seeking to move the hardened hearts of men to repentance and return to God.

However, if we want to attribute a patristic affiliation to homily, starting from the apostolic period (33-100 AD), we find that this term was used by Saint Ignatius of Antioch – Theophorus (35-108 AD). We see this in his letters to Saint Polycarp of Smyrna, to whom he gave advice on elaborating a homily. Further on, in the Nicene period (325-451 AD), the homily was brought to its heights by Saint John Chrysostom, the astonishing and incomparable interpreter of the Holy Scriptures. Father Mihail Bulacu also speaks based on the paternity of homily, naming Saint John Chrysostom the spiritual father of homily. Thus, the homily has developed over the course of years, and in today’s day and age it is branched into three categories:

  • Exegetical Homily – Offers a detailed explanation of the verses belonging to the evangelical pericope in question.
  • Thematic Homily – Speaks on a subject within the evangelical or apostolic pericope in question.
  • Catechetical Homily – Speaks on one of the dogmatic teachings, well rooted in our Symbol of Faith (Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed), that can also be found within the evangelical or apostolic pericope in question.

We now move to the Thematic Sermon, which is also a kind of homiletic writing/discourse, with the particularity that we are required to expound a single teaching. The term sermon was generally spread around by Lactantius (250-325 AD), a great Christian apologist, who was strongly influenced by Stoicism. He was referred to as the Christian Cicero (Cicero Christianus) for his great rhetorical skills. By order of Emperor Diocletian, Lactantius arrives in Nicomedia in 301. Here he works as a professor of Latin rhetoric. He later on converted to Christianity, becoming one of the advisers of Holy Emperor Constantine the Great. In the year 317, he moved to Trier (Gaul), following Crispus (Flavius ​​Julius Crispus), the first son of Holy Emperor Constantine the Great, to whom he was teacher, and then preceptor. The term sermon has gained a certain primacy among Christians in Romania, given that our language is of Latin origin. As in the case of the homily, the sermon developed gradually. Now we can classify it by content:

  • Biblical Thematic Sermon – Offers Scripture Teachings;
  • Dogmatic Thematic Sermon – Speaks of a doctrinal truth, according to the teachings of our Holy Orthodox Church;
  • Moral Thematic Sermon – Encourages the practice of Christian Virtues;
  • Liturgical Thematic Sermon – Explains the Divine Open Service;
  • Apologetic Thematic Sermon – Fights the attacks on our faith, while also carrying out actions to prevent these attacks from the beginning. It has an affirmative and defensive structure;
  • Historical Thematic Sermon – Focuses on important moments in the life of our Holy Church, such as the Sunday of Orthodoxy, Sunday of the Fathers of the First Ecumenical Council, etc.

The third type of rhetoric discourse is the Panegyric. This genre is to be uttered within the Royal Feasts, which are pivotal points in the economy (oikonomia) of our salvation, within the feasts in which we honor the Holy Mother of God (Theotokos), as well as on the feast days of Saints with greater significance. With the help of the Panegyric, a fundamental truth of faith is proclaimed – The Doctrine (Dogma) of the Holy Trinity, The Perpetual Virginity of Mary the God-Bearer (Theotokos), etc. Furthermore, we can also bring a eulogy to a certain Saint. By doing so, we highlight his life and work during the time spent on earth, as well as the miracles he performs upon his entry into the Kingdom of God.

The fourth type of theological discourse, which sums up the genres that Homiletics cover is the Parenesis. It is usually of brief content, as it is being uttered on days of great liturgical significance. The reason why this genre is built as having shorter length, is given by the fact that the specific services are longer, given the liturgical nature of the celebrated day.  Otherwise, the audience may feel tired, which causes difficulties in fully receiving a speech of large proportions. The parenesis branches into three categories: 

  • Elementary Parenesis, which is used on the Great Feasts (The Circumcision of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, The Baptism of the Lord – Theophany, The Descent of the Holy Spirit, etc.), where religious services are bulky, therefore it is no time for a homily or a thematic sermon to be uttered;
  • Parenesis at services that express joy (Holy Mystery of Baptism, Holy Mystery of Marriage, The Consecration of a Church, etc.);
  • Parenesis at services that express sadness (Funerals, Commemoration of the departed, Natural disasters, etc.).