Dear Friends,

One of the most impressive features of the Divine Liturgy is the exchange of the “Kiss of Peace.” Since the practice is of such great significance, I share with you a few excerpts from Archbishop Tiran Nersoyan’s (of blessed memory) Commentary on the Divine Liturgy.

On the Kiss of Peace or the Greeting (Vochchoyn)
The kiss of peace, which is a sign of reconciliation, is the symbol of fellowship of the faithful in the Holy Spirit, and of the unity of the Church in love of God. When the gifts (bread and wine) are laid upon the altar, and thus the one Body of Christ, i.e., the Church with its members, is mystically laid upon the heavenly altar, God is thereby reconciled with his creatures.

When the faithful receive and give the greeting, they should endeavor to realize their inward reconciliation with God and with each other, one of their fellow Christians. They should try to purge themselves of pride, of hatred, of envy, of malice and such other vices as create discord and disturb the harmony in the body of Christ, the Church.

The kissing of the cheeks was a form of salutation in the time of our Lord (Luke 7:45), as it still is in the Near East among close friends. The Apostle Paul bids the faithful “to salute one another with an holy kiss (Romans 16:16, I Corinthians 12:12). The kiss is the greeting of the Lord to His own (John 20:19). Personal disputes born of hatred would “defile your sacrifice” and thus the unity of the Body of Christ would be violated (Matthew 4:23). That is why it has been the prime obligation of the believer to be reconciled with everybody in order to be worthy to receive communion, according to an early canon of the Church of the second century.

May the kiss of peace be an occasion for us to recognize the things which divide us (brothers and sisters) from one another and may the Holy Spirit empower us as we strive to be reconciled with each other, which is the chief means by which we are made worthy to partake of communion of the precious and all-saving Body and Blood of Christ our God.

+ + + + +

With prayers.
Hayr Simeon
September 2, 2007