Ambon (liturgy)
Encyclopedia
The Ambon or Ambo is a projection coming out from the soleas
(the walkway in front of the iconostasis
) in an Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox and Eastern Catholic church. The ambon stands directly in front of the Holy Doors. It may be either rounded or square and has one, two, or three steps leading up to it.
. It was an elevated platform where the scriptures were read during the Divine Liturgy
and is still so arranged for celebrations of the Liturgy of St James
. It is a development from the bimah
in the Jewish synagogue
.
In the Russian Orthodox Church
, during Hierarchical services, the bishop
will stand upon a raised platform (kafedra
) in the center of the nave like the bimah of old.
Originally used in both the East and West, the structure has almost disappeared in the Western Rite
s. In early Western churches it was known also as the Gradus, lectorium, or lectricium, and from it has developed the lectern
or pulpit
, and took the form of a singing-desk, approached by steps. In the West, there were often two ambons, one on the north (for the reading or chanting of the Gospel) and one on the south (for the Epistle) side of the choir or presbytery
. Remnants of the ambo may be found at the Basilica of St Clement
in Rome
and St Mark's Basilica
in Venice
.
reads the Gospel
and says the litanies
, and the priest
gives the dismissal
during the Divine Services.
The ambon is considered to be a part of the altar
(i.e., the sanctuary), so normally only the clergy will go up onto the ambon. The exception is that the faithful will step up onto the ambon when they come forward to receive Holy Communion. During the Rite of the Churching of Women
, the newborn infant is taken by the priest
up onto the ambon (provided the child has been baptized by this time--otherwise, this ceremony will wait until after the baptism). If the child is female, the priest lays her in front of the icon
of the Theotokos
; if it is a male, the priest takes the child around the Holy Table (altar).
The last public prayer of the Divine Liturgy
is the "Prayer Before the Ambon" (Greek: euche opisthambonos), originally a prayer of thanksgiving said as the clergy descended the ambon at the end of the service. In ancient times, there was a large collection of Prayers Before the Ambon, written for the different Feast Days of the church year and for those occasional services (Weddings, Funeral
s, etc.) which called for a celebration of the Divine Liturgy. In some Orthodox Churches this more extensive collection of prayers are used.
Soleas
The soleas is an extension of the sanctuary platform in an Eastern Orthodox temple . The soleas projects beyond the iconostasis, forming a narrow walkway running the full length of the iconostasis....
(the walkway in front of the iconostasis
Iconostasis
In Eastern Christianity an iconostasis is a wall of icons and religious paintings, separating the nave from the sanctuary in a church. Iconostasis also refers to a portable icon stand that can be placed anywhere within a church...
) in an Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox and Eastern Catholic church. The ambon stands directly in front of the Holy Doors. It may be either rounded or square and has one, two, or three steps leading up to it.
History
Originally, the Ambon was positioned in the center of the naveNave
In Romanesque and Gothic Christian abbey, cathedral basilica and church architecture, the nave is the central approach to the high altar, the main body of the church. "Nave" was probably suggested by the keel shape of its vaulting...
. It was an elevated platform where the scriptures were read during the Divine Liturgy
Divine Liturgy
Divine Liturgy is the common term for the Eucharistic service of the Byzantine tradition of Christian liturgy. As such, it is used in the Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Churches. Armenian Christians, both of the Armenian Apostolic Church and of the Armenian Catholic Church, use the same term...
and is still so arranged for celebrations of the Liturgy of St James
Liturgy of St James
The Liturgy of Saint James is the oldest complete form of the Eastern varieties of the Divine Liturgy still in use among certain Christian churches....
. It is a development from the bimah
Bimah
A bimah A bimah A bimah (among Ashkenazim, derived from Hebrew בּמה , almemar (from Arabic al-minbar) or tebah (among Sephardim) is the elevated area or platform in a Jewish synagogue which is intended to serve the place where the person reading aloud from the Torah stands during the Torah reading...
in the Jewish synagogue
Synagogue
A synagogue is a Jewish house of prayer. This use of the Greek term synagogue originates in the Septuagint where it sometimes translates the Hebrew word for assembly, kahal...
.
In the Russian Orthodox Church
Russian Orthodox Church
The Russian Orthodox Church or, alternatively, the Moscow Patriarchate The ROC is often said to be the largest of the Eastern Orthodox churches in the world; including all the autocephalous churches under its umbrella, its adherents number over 150 million worldwide—about half of the 300 million...
, during Hierarchical services, the bishop
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
will stand upon a raised platform (kafedra
Cathedra
A cathedra or bishop's throne is the chair or throne of a bishop. It is a symbol of the bishop's teaching authority in the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church, and has in some sense remained such in the Anglican Communion and in Lutheran churches...
) in the center of the nave like the bimah of old.
Originally used in both the East and West, the structure has almost disappeared in the Western Rite
Western Rite
Western Rite can refer to:*Latin liturgical rites, rites used by the Roman Catholic Church and other Western Christians deriving from Catholicism...
s. In early Western churches it was known also as the Gradus, lectorium, or lectricium, and from it has developed the lectern
Lectern
A lectern is a reading desk with a slanted top, usually placed on a stand or affixed to some other form of support, on which documents or books are placed as support for reading aloud, as in a scripture reading, lecture, or sermon...
or pulpit
Pulpit
Pulpit is a speakers' stand in a church. In many Christian churches, there are two speakers' stands at the front of the church. Typically, the one on the left is called the pulpit...
, and took the form of a singing-desk, approached by steps. In the West, there were often two ambons, one on the north (for the reading or chanting of the Gospel) and one on the south (for the Epistle) side of the choir or presbytery
Presbytery (architecture)
The presbytery is the name for an area in a church building which is reserved for the clergy.In the oldest church it is separated by short walls, by small columns and pilasters in the Renaissance ones; it can also be raised, being reachable by a few steps, usually with railings....
. Remnants of the ambo may be found at the Basilica of St Clement
Basilica di San Clemente
The Basilica of Saint Clement is a Roman Catholic minor basilica dedicated to Pope Clement I located in Rome, Italy. Archaeologically speaking, the structure is a three-tiered complex of buildings: the present basilica built just before the year 1100 during the height of the Middle Ages; beneath...
in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
and St Mark's Basilica
St Mark's Basilica
The Patriarchal Cathedral Basilica of Saint Mark is the cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Venice, northern Italy. It is the most famous of the city's churches and one of the best known examples of Byzantine architecture...
in Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
.
Usage
The ambo is the platform from which the deaconDeacon
Deacon is a ministry in the Christian Church that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions...
reads the Gospel
Gospel (liturgy)
The Gospel in Christian liturgy refers to a reading from the Gospels used during various religious services, including Mass or Divine Liturgy . In many Christian churches, all present stand when a passage from one of the Gospels is read publicly, and sit when a passage from a different part of the...
and says the litanies
Ektenia
Ektenia , often called simply Litany, is a prayerful petition in the Eastern Orthodox/Eastern Catholic liturgy...
, and the priest
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
gives the dismissal
Dismissal (liturgy)
The Dismissal is the final blessing said by a Christian priest or minister at the end of a religious service. In liturgical churches the dismissal will often take the form of ritualized words and gestures, such as raising the minister's hands over the congregation, or blessing with the sign of the...
during the Divine Services.
The ambon is considered to be a part of the altar
Altar
An altar is any structure upon which offerings such as sacrifices are made for religious purposes. Altars are usually found at shrines, and they can be located in temples, churches and other places of worship...
(i.e., the sanctuary), so normally only the clergy will go up onto the ambon. The exception is that the faithful will step up onto the ambon when they come forward to receive Holy Communion. During the Rite of the Churching of Women
Churching of women
In Christian tradition the Churching of Women is the ceremony wherein a blessing is given to mothers after recovery from childbirth. The ceremony includes thanksgiving for the woman's survival of childbirth, and is performed even when the child is stillborn, or has died unbaptized.Although the...
, the newborn infant is taken by the priest
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
up onto the ambon (provided the child has been baptized by this time--otherwise, this ceremony will wait until after the baptism). If the child is female, the priest lays her in front of the icon
Icon
An icon is a religious work of art, most commonly a painting, from Eastern Christianity and in certain Eastern Catholic churches...
of the Theotokos
Theotokos
Theotokos is the Greek title of Mary, the mother of Jesus used especially in the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and Eastern Catholic Churches. Its literal English translations include God-bearer and the one who gives birth to God. Less literal translations include Mother of God...
; if it is a male, the priest takes the child around the Holy Table (altar).
The last public prayer of the Divine Liturgy
Divine Liturgy
Divine Liturgy is the common term for the Eucharistic service of the Byzantine tradition of Christian liturgy. As such, it is used in the Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Churches. Armenian Christians, both of the Armenian Apostolic Church and of the Armenian Catholic Church, use the same term...
is the "Prayer Before the Ambon" (Greek: euche opisthambonos), originally a prayer of thanksgiving said as the clergy descended the ambon at the end of the service. In ancient times, there was a large collection of Prayers Before the Ambon, written for the different Feast Days of the church year and for those occasional services (Weddings, Funeral
Funeral
A funeral is a ceremony for celebrating, sanctifying, or remembering the life of a person who has died. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember the dead, from interment itself, to various monuments, prayers, and rituals undertaken in their honor...
s, etc.) which called for a celebration of the Divine Liturgy. In some Orthodox Churches this more extensive collection of prayers are used.
External links
- Ambo (in the Russian and Greek Church), article from Catholic Encyclopedia.
- Early Christian ambo from Hagia SophiaHagia SophiaHagia Sophia is a former Orthodox patriarchal basilica, later a mosque, and now a museum in Istanbul, Turkey...
in ConstantinopleConstantinopleConstantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...