Metropolitan John (Zizioulas) of Pergamon reflects on the significance of the names εκκλησία (Church) and εκκλησία του θεού (Church of God) that were applied to the early eucharistic community:
Since God had entered into a covenant with the people of Israel, the Church as the New Israel would inherit this unique relationship not as numerous individuals, but collectively as a people. Clearly, the Church understood that gathering together was the means by which she manifested something essential about her nature. This was true even in the time of persecution when assembling in one place posed great risk of arrest, torture and martyrdom. While historians grapple with many details of the life of early Christians, one of the most important things we know is that the worship of the early Church was conducted by Christians as a group, by coming together. At the same time, whatever decisions are made about the liturgical life, although they may be only temporary, they must be consistent with what we know about the inner, essential life of the Church. But we understand that the circumstances that we face are severe and require a creative and perhaps, unique approach. We refer the reader to that writing and temporarily set that issue aside for the purposes of this essay. We have suggested elsewhere that the live-streaming of the liturgy does great damage to the liturgical experience of the participant.
DEADLY NIGHTMARE WORD FULL
We are directed now by hierarchs in several jurisdictions that the laity are to remain at home viewing the services via live-streaming, while the clergy are to serve a full cycle of services in near-empty churches, accompanied by a skeleton staff of altar servers and readers or singers. While that is true, the way that many within the Church are responding and, in particular, the guidance that we have received from many bishops, is disconcerting.
We have all seen by now the disruptive reports describing in detail just how deadly and serious the coronavirus is.
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