The Qurbana

The essence of Orthodox Christian worship is the Qurbana. It is derived from the Syriac word Qurbono and the Greek work Eucharist. It means ...

The essence of Orthodox Christian worship is the Qurbana. It is derived from the Syriac word Qurbono and the Greek work Eucharist. It means sacrifice and offering. We believe that our worship today signifies the offering by Jesus Christ of himself on the cross at Calvary more than 2000 years back. It is a continuation of the sacrifice that he made for the remission of sins of mankind.

The cornerstone of the Qurbana and the Orthodox Christian worship today had its beginnings in the Last Supper that Jesus had with his disciples on the eve that he was crucified. During that supper, he broke the bread and gave it to his disciples. He also took a glass of wine mixed with water and gave it to them and instructed them that they must do this in times to come in remembrance of Him. In the worship today, we believe that when the bread and wine is served and blessed, through a mystical transformation, it becomes the body and blood of Jesus Christ. We believe that this transformation of the bread and wine is through faith. It is then served to the congregation.

This is the essence of the Holy Communion of sharing of the bread and wine. The Qurbana and worship is both a sacrifice and also a thanksgiving offering. It is to give thanks for the sacrifice and love that Jesus Christ showed on the Cross. Fundamental to Christian living and the way of life is one that is touched by love and compassion. We believe that when we worship in our daily lives, we also live it in our daily lives. That the love and sacrifice of Christ symbolised in worship is also transferred to our practical lives.

In many ways, our worship is also symbolic. It is symbolic of the fact that it is a sacrament of nourishment. Just as bread and wine gives a person bodily nourishment, the body and blood of Christ also gives spiritual nourishment to those who partake of it.

The Qurbana and the sacrifice is also likened to Jesus who was a sacrificial lamb for the entire world. That is why the worship in today8217;s context is also seen as partaking of a supper.

The Indian Orthodox Church believes that worship today must be true to the shape and form in which it was conducted more than 2,000 years back. Over time, many revisions have come about in how this worship is conducted. But we believe that we still conduct our worship in the true and original way.

The writer is Metropolitan of Delhi Diocese, Indian Orthodox Church