www.byzcath.org Forums Faith & Christian Life Faith & Theology The Passion Week Services and Current Reforms

Wooden bells

(i.e.) "in place of bells"...

I was at an ACROD parish in the Pittsburgh area about 5 or 6 years ago for Paschal matins, I arrived during the Nocturnes or right at the start of matins. They went in procession with the empty tomb and made quite a huge amount of noise and they used hand-held wooden clackers. Not the monastic type that one strikes with a wooden hammer but something like the ones we use at new year's celebrations.

They had a paper mache type cave tomb. Not that common among BCs here any more it seems.

It seemed the noise was to commemorate the earthquake at the opening of the tomb. It seemed a bit out of place at the time, and still does no reflection. If you contact me offline I can tell you which parish.

While I too would love to think that Rusyns are using mini-semandrons/talanto, I think that the clackers are a borrowing from their Roman Rite neighbors. I have seen them for sale in an RC church supply store, and I think that I saw them used on a video of an RC Polish Good Friday service.

It looks like they use them in Presov, at least in 2004:

http://www.grkatpo.sk/fotoalbumy/grafika/67_10.jpg

If anyone is looking to buy a mini-semandron, maybe even to use instead of a clacker, let me know. The Pilgrim\'s Inn [holytrinitypoconos.org] has one from Mt. Athos in stock.

Dave

I love how dramatic our people can be.

Someone once told me of an ACROD parish that had a stone that would be rolled in front of the tomb after everyone venerated the Shroud. Talk about being accurate! :p

Dave

We never had the little hand-held ratchet but somthing big as a drum. here's a page from a site that I found on Ukrainian folk instruments.
http://home.att.net/~bandura.ca/VMfolkBook/percussive.html

Whaddayu know?

We used a klepach, I think, in the procession.

We used those at St. Josephs in Toronto Oh.

Here are some pics of St. Georges, that I have shared before of Holy Week services.
http://www.melkite.org/HolyWeek/Hweek.html

Wooden clackers were at one time used at St Josaphat UGCC in Parma, OH. These, along with black vestments and the Passion Gospels 'fashion show', disappeared soon after the arrival of Kyr Robert.

Σώσον, Κύριε, καί διαφύλαξον η�άς από τών Βασιλιάνικων τάξεων!

Ya learn somethin' new every day!

Dave

I Googled "Good Friday clacker" and came up with:

To purchase:
http://www.jvtally.com/cgoods/cg1a-lent.htm
http://www.toomorrow.com/catalog_i884896.html?catId=99408

A thread on some sort of forum:
http://britius.stblogs.org/archives/014480.html

Putting "Good Friday clapper" into Google, I found this page, that mentions its use at the consecration of the Holy Thursday Mass (since the bells are silent after the Gloria):
http://www.adoremus.org/0304MonasteryMusic.html

This site: http://friarsminor.org/xix6-2.html
claims that the wooden clapper is a temporary return to an "ancient practice" of the Roman Church. Baumstark's law, anyone?

Now we just need to figure out when they began to be used among Ruthenian Greek Catholics.

Dave

To answer the question posed earlier by someone (djs?), the "clapper" is indeed (or was, decades ago, in my time) used in the Latin Church during the period from Maundy Thursday through the lighting of the fire on Great Saturday.

From my fount of useless information, squirreled away for decades , the little-known, formal Latin liturgical name for the instrument is crotalus, or rattle (common parlance was "clapper" or "clacker", used interchangeably).

Many years,

Neil, who always wondered if he'd ever get an opportunity to pass on that useless bit of info

Dear Friends,

I have a small (what looks very much like) wooden semantron with wooden mallet.

I use this as a call to prayer, striking both sides with the mallet three times.

My wife actually thinks it's "cool."

Knock on wood . . .

Alex

Tony,

That was, at one time, a not uncommon practice in some Latin parishes and also among High Church Anglicans and Lutherans. It was generally effected by slamming the largest and loudest door and was indeed intended to symbolize the earthquake. The Latin term for it was strepitus, which as I recollect translates as "loud noise".

Many years,

Neil

Ahhh, the fashion show. And now, after the third Gospel, on the runway is a fine green with Gold Greek brocade...following that a fine blue silk with velvet trim...

The semandron has a completely different use than the kalatala (as they are colloquially referred to in Ukrainian, undoubtedly showing a historic linguistic link to crotalus). The kalatala is undoubtedly a direct borrowing from the Latin use of the crotalus and also the banging on the pews during Tenebrae.

The Union of Brest clearly states we should not be forbidden to ring bells, as Kobzar also mentioned. That indicates what the received tradition was in Rus' at the time.

Bells were historically never dispensed of before the councils of Zamosc and L'viv. In fact there are special bell-rubrics for Passion Week services.

At Passion Matins, as Kobzar has commented, one ring per Gospel is often done on the blagovest (primary or largest bell). Bells are also rung at the Royal Hours for the number of the Hour (1,3,6,9) on a smaller bell.

At Vespers a short perezvon is rung (largest to smallest bell in sequence, ringing each bell a couple of times before progressing to the next) during the taking out, the procession, and finally the placing of the Plaschanytsia.

I also thank Deacon Lance for the link to Fr. Calivas' article and also recommend the reading of Part I:
http://www.goarch.org/en/ourfaith/articles/article8504.asp

Father Schmemann, as usual, does indeed give us much to consider for the services of Holy Week. "Baumstark's Law" and the maxim of dom Lambert of blessed memory are indeed also wise.

There is a true balancing act with pastoral sensitivity and the rather convulted state of the liturgical/historic nature and order of the services themselves. For a smaller parish out in the hinderlands, where the travel distance may be great, the circumstances are quite different than the "parish in the hood" where everyone is closer.

Some combinations are definitely possible both pastorally and liturgically. What we have done the last few years is to have Vespers for Great and Holy Friday later in the afternoon, follow it with Compline and the Canon from the Triodion at the tomb (a beautiful piece of hymnography which is often overlooked) while people venerate the Plashchanytsia, and then follow immediately with Jerusalem Matins by anticipation.

It makes for a long but incredibly moving service at guard before the tomb. In reality is is often very difficult to get people to come three times on Holy Saturday (Orthros, Vesperal Liturgy, and Matins).

Bulgalkov also made a very interesting allowance in his Typikon for Vespers alone in the evening of Great and Holy Saturday (vigil of Pascha) in order that the service be celebrated with the reading of the prophecies even if done as a Reader's service if necessary, in order to allow the faithful to at least hear the Scriptural basis of prophecies of the glorious Pascha.

It seems rather senseless to have the Paschal Matins after sunrise. Liturgically, and hymnographically, the Paschal Matins and especially the Canon of St. John of Damascus are really the heart of Pascha. "The women before the dawn with Mary" is a bit of a non-sequitor when it is full daylight and 10 a.m., or to be singing the Nahdrobnoe or the service of haste to the dark tomb when it is already full morning.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Diak:
[QB] Ahhh, the fashion show. And now, after the third Gospel, on the runway is a fine green with Gold Greek brocade...following that a fine blue silk with velvet trim...


I enjoy satire! grea job, all I have to say is
work it girl!
sashay
shantay
RuPaul will be furious with me. whatever.
oh, Tallulah Bankhead was at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine when the altar party came down the aisle.seeing the thurifer, she leaned over and said to him "honey, I love your dress, but your purse is on fire".
Hey, if we can't lighten up once in a while with an attack of great mirth...........
Much Love,
Jonn