In the Christian Orthodox tradition, the main service is the divine liturgy. During this service, one of the most important church sacraments takes place - the Eucharist. During the Liturgy, every Christian believer can partake of the holy Body and Blood of Christ.
In the statutory practice of the Orthodox Church, there are three types of liturgy. Two of them bear the names of the great saints of the Christian Church, John Chrysostom and Basil the Great, and the third type is called the Liturgy of Presanctified Gifts (LPD).
Liturgy of John Chrysostom
The title of this divine liturgy refers to the author of the service. He is considered to be St. John Chrysostom, Archbishop of Constantinople. This man lived in the 3rd - 4th centuries. It was he who gathered various prayers into a single corps of liturgy and created a separate rite of worship, which is served in Orthodox churches to this day. Saint John Chrysostom also wrote the priest's secret prayers, which are read even now during the liturgy.
The Liturgy of John Chrysostom is served practically on all days of the year, except for certain days of Great Lent and some holidays.
Liturgy of Basil the Great
Basil the Great lived in the years 330 - 379. He is known as a great teacher and saint of the Christian Church. He was the archbishop of Cessaria of Cappadocia. Among the numerous creations of the saint, the order of the divine liturgy stands out. The author wrote the secret prayers of the priests, read by the latter during the service of the liturgy, and combined other prayer petitions into a single rite of the liturgy.
The service of the liturgy of Basil the Great is very similar to the liturgy to St. John Chrysostom. The difference is that in the first type of liturgy there is no commemoration of the dead at the litany, the secret prayers of the priest are longer (this causes a longer service). Some of the foaming of the liturgy itself differs from the liturgy of the succession of John Chrysostom. For example, at the liturgy of Basil the Great, certain hymns to the Mother of God are sung, which are not used at the liturgy of John Chrysostom.
The Liturgy of Basil the Great is celebrated ten times a year - on the feast day of the saint on January 14 (new style), on the eve of the feasts of the Nativity of Christ and the Baptism of the Lord (or on the holiday itself, when it is determined by the charter), as well as on some days of Great Lent (in particular, on the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th Sunday of Holy Lent, on Maundy Thursday and Great Saturday).
Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts (LPD)
Church tradition attributes this liturgy to the authorship of St. Gregory the Great (Divinity) of the Pope, who lived in the years 540-604. However, the authorship can be disputed.
This liturgy differs from the others in that it uses the gifts already consecrated earlier at the liturgy of Basil the Great or John Chrysostom. The Liturgy is served only during Great Lent. In particular, on Wednesday and Friday of fasting, some holidays (if they do not fall on Saturday or Sunday of fasting), on Thursday of the 5th week of fasting, as well as on the first three days of Holy Week.
In fact, the LPD is an evening service, to which a certain rite is added before the communion of believers.
Another feature of the LPD is that during this service the sacrament of ordination can only take place to the rank of deacon, while at the liturgies of John and Basil, not only deacons, but also priests are ordained.
