The third part of the liturgy is called the liturgy of the faithful, because during its celebration only the faithful can be present, that is, those who have been baptized and not excommunicated from the Church.
The Liturgy of the Faithful begins with two small litanies, one of which begins with the words:
Let us pray again and again and again in peace to the Lord.
That is, “Only the faithful, in peace of spirit, let us pray to the Lord again and again.
During the litanies, the priest reveals the antimension and secretly prays that the Lord will make him worthy to offer prayers and a bloodless sacrifice “for all people.” After this, the royal doors are opened, and the choir, and with it those who are coming, sing the song of the transference of the Gifts, which is called the Cherubim:
Even as the cherubim secretly form, and the life-giving Trinity sings the thrice-holy hymn, let us now put aside all worldly cares: for we will raise up the King of all, invisibly dorinosima chinmi with the angels. Alleluia. We, mysteriously presenting the cherubim and singing the thrice-holy hymn to the life-giving Trinity, will now leave all everyday worries in order to accept the King of all, Whom the angelic ranks invisibly carry with triumph.
When the choir pronounces the first half of the Cherubic song, the clergy approach the altar, take the Holy Gifts and, preceded by the lamp, carry them through the northern, and then through the royal doors to the throne. During this procession, the clergy pray aloud to the entire church for the Emperor, for the Holy Synod and the local bishop, for those present in the church and for all Orthodox Christians, “may the Lord God remember them in His kingdom.”
This procession from the altar to the throne is called the great entrance and reminds believers of the solemn entry of Jesus Christ, the King of all, into Jerusalem for free suffering.
After the Cherubic Litany, a petitionary litany is pronounced, which, in addition to the usual petitions, includes a petition “for the honest Gifts offered,” so that the Lord would sanctify them at the appropriate time by the power of the Holy Spirit.
After the litany, the faithful are reminded of what is necessarily required of each of them, that is, that the sacrifice must be made in spiritual peace and mutual love, which is expressed by the exclamations of the priest:
Peace to everyone!
Let us love one another and be of one mind.
The choir, on behalf of those present, answers whom they will confess:
Father and Son and Holy Spirit, Trinity consubstantial and indivisible.
And then he sings the confession itself, or the Creed:
I believe in one God... (See above).
The singing of the Creed is preceded by the exclamation of the clergyman:
Doors, doors! Let us sing of wisdom.
In ancient times, Christians did not reveal the sacraments of their faith to pagans and Jews, they did not even allow the catechumens to be present with the believers during the celebration of the most holy sacrament of communion, and therefore, before the beginning of the singing of the confession of faith (the Symbol of Faith), the deacon said to the doorkeepers: “Doors, doors!”, ordering them to carefully watch that any of the unbaptized did not enter the church, and then addressed the upcoming faithful with the words: “Let us listen to wisdom,” which means: “Let us be attentive to the wisdom set forth in the Creed.” Nowadays, when the doors of the church are no longer so strictly observed, these exclamations are pronounced by the clergy as a reminder to those present in the church to look behind the doors of their souls and not allow thoughts, desires and feelings in it that are unworthy of the sanctity of the great sacrament at which they will be present.
When the worshipers have finished confessing their faith, the priest invites them to reverent attention in order to worthily offer a sacrifice to the Lord:
Let us become kind, let us become fearful, let us bring holy offerings to the world.
To this invitation the choir and the worshipers, indicating what their sacrifice will consist of, respond:
Mercy of the world, sacrifice of praise.
That is: “Let us offer up in the spiritual world the gifts of friendship, mutual love, and the sacrifice of praise.”
The priest blesses such a desire with their apostolic greeting:
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God and the Father, and the communion of the Holy Spirit, be with you all.
Those present, having received this blessing with a bow of their heads, as a sign of reverence, answer:
And with your spirit.
That is: “May this grace be with your soul.”
Then the priest once again encourages those present to renounce in mind and heart everything earthly and soar, ascend in thought to the heavenly, exclaiming:
Woe are our hearts!
That is: “Let us have our hearts directed upward (mountain), towards God.”
Following the example of the Savior, who thanked God the Father before breaking bread at the Last Supper, the priest begins the celebration of the sacrament with the exclamation:
We thank the Lord!
The choir responds to this invitation:
It is worthy and righteous to worship the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, the Trinity, consubstantial and inseparable.
During this chant, the priest secretly reads the following prayer:
It is worthy and righteous to sing to Thee, to bless Thee, to praise Thee, to thank Thee, to worship Thee in every place of Thy dominion: For Thou art God, ineffable, incomprehensible, invisible, incomprehensible, everlasting, likewise, Thou, and Thy only begotten Son, and Thy Holy Spirit: Thou hast brought us from non-existence into being. Thou art, and Thou hast restored those who had fallen away, and Thou hast not retreated from all creation, until Thou hast brought us up to heaven, and Thou hast bestowed Thy kingdom, the future. For all of these we thank Thee, and Thy only begotten Son, and Thy Holy Spirit, for all the known and unknown, manifest and unmanifested blessings that have been upon us. We thank Thee also for this service, which Thou hast deigned to receive at our hands, even though thousands of archangels and darkness of angels, cherubim and seraphim, six-crested, many-eyed, towering feathers stand before Thee.
It is worthy and just to glorify You, to bless You, to praise You, to thank You, to worship You in every place of Your dominion: for You are God ineffable, unsearchable by the mind, invisible, incomprehensible, ever existing, unchangeable, You, and Your only begotten Son, and Your Holy Spirit; You brought us from non-existence into existence, after our fall you raised us again and relentlessly did everything for us until you raised us to heaven and gave us Your future kingdom (heavenly). For all these good deeds of Yours to us, we thank You and Your only begotten Son and Your Holy Spirit - we thank you for all Your good deeds, known and unknown to us, revealed and unmanifested. We also thank You for our present service, which You have deigned to accept from our hands, although thousands of archangels and tens of thousands of angels, cherubim and seraphim, six-winged, many-eyed, like feathered creatures soaring in the heavenly heights, stand before You -
Singing a victory song, crying out, calling out and saying:
The priest pronounces these last words aloud to the whole church; the choir ends them by exclaiming, following the example of the angels:
Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts: fill heaven and earth with Your glory. Hosanna in the highest, blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord: Hosanna in the highest.
During this chant, the priest secretly continues the same prayer of praise and thanksgiving to God: