Beautiful churches, vestments, sacred music and liturgies

[The Liturgist]

Our beloved Metropolitan Kallistos Ware, Metropolitan of Diokleia and hierarch of the Ecumenical Throne, has fallen asleep in the Lord on August 24th (1934-2022).

There is a memorial thread to him in the Eastern Orthodox forum, and I plan on posting some videos of my favorite lectures with Metropolitan Kallistos.

 

[Andrewn]

This is a beautiful example of a liturgy at a parish of the Orthodox Church in America,

I have beautiful memories in the OCA. The question I have is why does the pastor wear a hat when So Paul commanded men not to wear hats in church?

 

[The Liturgist]

I have beautiful memories in the OCA. The question I have is why does the pastor wear a hat when So Paul commanded men not to wear hats in church?

Because the instruction of St. Paul was specific to laity; the clergy wear headgear and vestments that are actually directly based on those of the Jewish kohanim, but furthermore these are removed during certain moments of maximum reverence. In Orthodox Churches, the men in the congregation do not wear head coverings, whereas the women do, exactly as per St. Paul’s instructions. Additionally a priest cannot be remarried, because that would violate St. Paul’s instruction to St. Timothy that the pastor should be “the husband of one wife” (or celibate; the acceptability of celibacy for clergy is demonstrated by St. Paul himself who was celibate).