Liturgy after the Liturgy’.A code phrase exhorting to missionary outreach introduced by Archbishop Anastasios of Albania

 

 ‘Liturgy after the Liturgy’.

A code phrase exhorting to missionary outreach

Introduced by Archbishop Anastasios of Albania*

 

Nikolaos Tsirevelos,

Adjunct Lecturer at the University of Thessaly,

Adjunct Lecturer at Logos University, Tirana

 

Abstract

‘Liturgy after the Liturgy’ refers to the Eucharistic experience that moves Christians, when they leave the church at the conclusion of the Divine Liturgy, to share the gift they received so that this world may be transformed into the Kingdom of God. First used by Anastasios Yannoulatos, then Bishop of Androussa and now Archbishop of Tirana, Durres and All Albania, at Etchmiadzin (Armenia) in 1975. The expression ‘liturgy after the Liturgy’ has since been adopted by many theologians to signify the Church’s multifaceted mission and witness of service in the world. With this succinct and felicitous phrase, its originator called the faithful to a perpetually Eucharistic attitude in their daily life, which expresses the passion and struggle for the transformation of the world into the Church of Christ. Our study presents the theological roots distilled into this now familiar phrase, as found in the writings of Anastasios Yannoulatos in the 1960s and afterwards. ‘Liturgy after the Liturgy’ is an  exhortation to missionary outreach which originated with Archbishop Anastasios and which, coupled with Christ’s resurrectional command to teach all nations, shaped his missionary witness and ecclesiastical diaconate.

 Introduction

 

A catchphrase frequently employed in recent decades in theological literature, oral discussions and on other occasions is the missionary exhortation to ‘liturgy after the Liturgy’. This code phrase began to spread through the ecumenical movement in the middle of the 1970s, especially in World Mission circles. First used by the present Archbishop of Albania Anastasios, it was adopted by other Orthodox theologians to emphasise the immediacy of the relationship between liturgical life and Christian mission and the carrying of the Gospel to the nations. Its meaning was also associated with the diaconal ministry of the Church in the community as an extension and continuation of the participation of the faithful in the sacrament of Holy Communion.

First and foremost, the phrase ‘liturgy after the Liturgy’ is a clear and simple declaration that the Holy Eucharist lies at the heart of Christian life. Christians draw strength and inspiration from sharing in the mystery of Holy Communion, so that they may afterwards selflessly bear witness to the presence of Christ in the world and at the same time face up to evil in any form.

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