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Orthodox Terminology


OIKOS PDF Print E-mail
OIKOS- (Ikos) - A specially constructed stanza, in honor of a particular feast, which is sung, together with the kontakion, after the 6th ode of the kanon. The oikos develops the ideas expressed in the kontakion and, as a rule, concludes with the same words as the kontakion. Like the Kontakion, it is a condensed form of a hymn.  The Greek word means `house’, signifying that the Oikos contained all the essentials of a household.  Similarly, the Oikos of the church service was a brief summary of the saint or feast day being celebrated.
 

The Sayings of the Fathers


Abba Anthony the Great of Egypt: 'Just as fish die if they stay out of water too long, so monks who loiter outside their cells or pass time with men of the world lose the fervor of inner peace. So, like a fish going toward the sea, we must hurry to reach our cell, for fear that if we tarry outside we will lose our interior watchfulness.'

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