Fraternity (Greek: ἀδελφοποιΐα) is an ancient church rite by which two unrelated
people entered into a spiritual brotherly union. The rank is known from Byzantine manuscripts and was included in
Slavic tradition: it is found in the Glagolitic Euchology of the 11th century, in manuscript
Trebniks of the XIV–XV centuries and in printed Trebniks of 1625, 1633, 1636 and 1651.
How the ceremony was performed. Those wishing to join the union stood in front of the lectern on which they lay
Cross and Gospel; they were given candles. The priest joined their hands, prayers were read and
the prescribed readings from the Apostle and the Gospel, after which he circled them around the lectern at
singing church hymns; in the most ancient rite the union was completed by the communion of the Presanctified
Darov. Upon completion, the brothers exchanged crosses as a sign of moral union.
Church fate of the rank. In the Helmsman's Book there is already a prohibition to do this
rite, and the rite was not included in the later practice of the Russian Church; civilian
it was also not recognized by law and did not entail legal consequences. In people's memory he
a trace has been preserved in the “twinning” that Russian epics talk about.
Where is the text of the rank. The oldest known text is published in the Euchology of Jacob Gohar
(Paris, 1647), p. 898–902. Slavic text from the 16th century Potrebnik (Sofia Library)
published by Professor M.I. Gorchakov in an appendix to his book “On the Mystery of Marriage” (1880).
Note Orthodox House. We provide here historical background on sources
public domain and do NOT present the liturgical text itself: it is in the public domain
We have not yet encountered it, and we will not speculate on the sacred texts. As soon as found
verified public domain edition, text will be added here indicating
source.
Sources of reference: Encyclopedic Dictionary of Brockhaus and Efron, article “Brotherhood”;
Orthodox Theological Encyclopedia, ed. A. P. Lopukhina, vol. II, article
"Brotherhood".