The Parish of St. Sarah the Egyptian, Boston, Apostolic Johannite Church

Church for Beginners

Many people, on their first visit to a church, are a little worried about how to behave. This page is a short guide to some of our common customs intended to reduce anxiety in new visitors.

Standing, Sitting and Kneeling

Because the chapel lacks kneelers, we don't kneel as a general rule. For most of the service the celebrant will invite you to stand or sit at the appropriate time. Before the start of the service, you should sit (or if you prefer kneel) to meditate or pray quietly. At the beginning of the service as the celebrant enters, the people stand to mark the beginning of the service. At the end of the service, as the celebrant moves to the front of the altar to depart, the people stand to mark the end of the service.

Talking

In some services, there is a section in which the celebrant may invite discussion on a particular topic. Take care in this case to be respectful of the other participants, take your cue about when to stop from a the celebrant and try to stay aware while speaking. In general, though, a service is not a time to chat. Because an important part of the benefit of a service is an atmosphere that supports prayer and meditation, it's appropriate to remain silent unless participating in the words of the service. At the same time, a big part of being a church is about being a community. If you'd like some time to catch up with people before or after the service, linger outside the chapel room and talk there, then prepare yourself to enter silently into the prayerful environment of the chapel.

The Sign of the Cross

A common custom in all Christian communities is to make the sign of the cross at particular times. If you're not comfortable doing so, don't worry. If you'd like to adopt the custom (in one of its various forms), it is typically done:

Taking Communion

Many churches restrict who is able to share in the bread and wine at a Communion or Eucharist service. The AJC welcomes anyone who wishes to join us in communion to share. Common practice is to kneel to receive communion. Because our chapel has no communion rail or kneelers, this is a challenge, so the people usually receive communion standing. The priest will bring the consecrated host and the cup (or chalice) to you where you are standing. If you have no fear of hard floors and you'd prefer to kneel, feel perfectly free to. First, the priest will offer you the consecrated host. Standing in front of you, she or he will hold it before you and say, "Be what you see, receive what you are." You should respond, "Amen" and then open your mouth or hold out your hands. The priest will place the bread on your tongue or in your hands, the consume the host. After you receive the bread, proceed to the cleric holding the cup. Just as before she or he will hold it before you with the words, "Be what you see, receive what you are." You should respond, "Amen". The cleric will then hold the cup to your lips. If you are kneeling, allow the cleric to tilt the cup until you can take a small sip of the consecrated wine. If you are standing, it is very difficult for the cleric to tell when you have received the consecrated wine, so gently hold the base of the cup and assist with tilting it until you take a sip. Once you have received communion in both kinds, feel free to either kneel or sit and pray or meditate on the gifts of the Eucharist.

Forms of Address

Priests and other clergy are ordinary human beings with normal human strengths and weaknesses. When the community of the church chooses individuals to serve in the Major Orders, they take up an ancient office with heavy responsibilities on behalf of their community. We honour our tradition and the dignity of the offices of the Church by using particular terms when addressing ordained people either in conversation or in writing.