Orarion

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Orarion

The Orarion (Greek: ; Slavonic: ?????, orar') is the distinguishing vestment of the deacon

Deacon

Deacon is a role in the Christianity that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions....
in the Eastern Orthodox Church

Eastern Orthodox Church

The Eastern Orthodox Church is the second largest single Christian communion in the world with an estimated 225 million members worldwide. It is considered by its adherents to be the Four Marks of the Church established by Jesus Christ and his Apostles nearly 2000 years ago....
and Eastern Catholic Churches. It is a narrow stole

Stole

The stole is a liturgy vestment of various Christianity religious denomination. It consists of a band of colored cloth, formerly usually of silk, about seven and a half to nine feet long and three to four inches wide, whose ends may be straight or may broaden out....
, usually four to five inches (127 mm) wide and about ten feet long, made of brocade with seven crosses

Christian cross

The Christian cross is the best-known religious symbol of Christianity. It is a representation of the instrument of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ....
embroidered

Embroidery

File:Kazakh rug chain stitch embroidery.jpgEmbroidery is the art or handicraft of decorating Textile or other materials with sewing needle and yarn....
or appliqué

Applique

In its broadest sense, an applique or appliqu? is a smaller ornament or device applied to another surface. In the context of ceramics, for example, an appliqu? is a separate piece of clay added to the primary work, generally for the purpose of decoration....
d along its length.

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The Orarion (Greek: ; Slavonic: ?????, orar') is the distinguishing vestment of the deacon

Deacon

Deacon is a role in the Christianity that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions....
in the Eastern Orthodox Church

Eastern Orthodox Church

Stole

Christian cross

The Christian cross is the best-known religious symbol of Christianity. It is a representation of the instrument of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ....
embroidered

Embroidery

File:Kazakh rug chain stitch embroidery.jpgEmbroidery is the art or handicraft of decorating Textile or other materials with sewing needle and yarn....
or appliqué

Applique

Nomina sacra

Nomina sacra means "sacred names" in Latin language, and can be used to refer to traditions of abbreviated writing of several frequently occurring divine names or titles in early Greek language Holy Scripture....
where customary.

The deacon wears the orarion over his left shoulder with the front portion draped over his left forearm. He will take this portion in his right hand when leading litanies

Ektenia

Ektenia , often called simply Litany, is a prayerful petition in the Eastern Orthodox/Eastern Catholic liturgy. The prevalent ecclesiastical word for this kind of litany in Greek is S??apt? Synapt?, Ektenia being the Greek word preferred in Church Slavonic language ....
or drawing attention to a particular liturgical action. This single orarion is the oldest form, as illustrated in traditional and older iconography.

Deacons may be awarded the double orarion, which is worn over the left shoulder, wrapped around the chest and back, and brought back over the left shoulder to the front. In Greek practice, all deacons wear the double orarion.

When preparing for Communion

Eucharist

The Eucharist, also called Holy Communion or Lord's Supper and other names, is a Christianity sacrament commemorating, by consecrating bread and wine, the Last Supper, the final meal that Jesus Christ shared with his disciples before his arrest, and eventual crucifixion, when he gave them bread saying, "This is my body", and wine...
, the deacon will tie the orarion around his waist, bringing the ends up over his shoulders (forming a cross in back) and then down in front, tucking them under the section around the waist.

The subdeacon

Subdeacon

Subdeacon is a title used in various branches of Christianity....
also wears the orarion, but always wrapped around his body in the manner described above. In the Greek tradition, tonsure

Tonsure

Tonsure is the practice of some Christianity churches, mystics, Buddhist novices and Bhikkhus, and some Hindu temples of cutting the hair from the scalp of clerics, devotees or holy people as a symbol of their renunciation of worldly fashion and esteem....
d taper-bearers wear the orarion similarly crossed in back, but with the ends hanging parallel in front. In the same Greek tradition, altar-servers will sometimes be given a blessing to wear the orarion with the ends hanging parallel in front. In the Slavic use, servers also wear oraria.

Armenian usage is identical to the Byzantine, except that their deacons always wear the single orarion, which they call urar.

Eastern Catholics follow the same tradition as do their Orthodox counterparts. Sometimes in Greek Catholic practice, the double orarion is worn only over the left shoulder (folded to make up for length) over a cassock if the deacon in question is preaching but not participating otherwise. This use of the orarion on top of a cassock is most often seen among Greek-Catholics of the Ukrainian and Ruthenian tradition, which is a marked departure from general Byzantine practice, in which there is no tradition of wearing the orarion without sticharion

Sticharion

The sticharion is a Divine Liturgy vestment of the Eastern Orthodox Church and Eastern Catholic Churches, roughly analogous in function to the alb of the Western Church....
.