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Clergy, festivals and dancing: what the sacred Canons really saytranslated

August 20, 2026 · 1 min read

His Eminence Metropolitan Hong Kong Mr. Nektarios writes

The discussion about the participation of clergy in festivals, especially during the summer months, when saints or the Blessed Virgin Mary are honored, needs seriousness, a correct interpretation of the sacred Canons and pastoral discernment. The opinion is often put forward that "the holy Canons generally forbid the clergy to dance at every festival". Sometimes the Apostolic Canons, the Canons of the Council of Laodicea and the Canons of Carthage are invoked in a general way, without examining their exact content.

The issue, however, is not resolved with aphoristic slogans. The Canons of the Church are not simple prohibitive provisions detached from the church ethos. They are pastoral rules for treatment, order and protection of the ecclesiastical body. That is why they must be read mainly according to the spirit of the Fathers who established them.

The Normal frame The main Canons related to the subject are mainly the 53rd, 54th and 55th of the Council of Laodicea, as well as the related provisions of the Fifteenth Ecumenical Council.

The 53rd Canon of Laodicea says:

"He doesn't see Christians in broken marriages...

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Πέτρος Λαμπρόπουλος

Mr. Nektarius, thank you for bringing up the specific canons 53, 54 and 55 of the Laodicea. Last year at the feast of Our Lady in our neighborhood our priest did not dance, but sat with the elderly, ate with them and blessed them. This felt more right to me than following the drums. What do you say, does this fit the spirit of the Fathers?

Samuel Anderson

Thanks for sharing the article, Metropolitan Nectarios. The way you break down Laodicea canons 53-55 without just slapping blanket bans on everything makes sense. Last summer our priest at the St. Nicholas festival here in Pittsburgh sat with the older folks at the tables, ate souvlaki with them and gave blessings instead of joining the line dance — felt right, like you said, more about pastoral care than rules pulled out of context.