Memory Eternal

Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Church exclamation at funerals

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.
Find sources: "Memory Eternal" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (June 2019) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

|

Part of a series on the

Eastern Orthodox Church

Mosaic of Christ Pantocrator, Hagia Sophia

Overview

* Structure
* Theology (History of theology)
* Liturgy
* Church history
* Holy Mysteries
* View of Salvation
* View of Mary
* View of icons

Background

* Crucifixion / Resurrection / Ascension
of Jesus

* Christianity
* Christian Church
* Apostolic succession
* Four Marks of the Church
* Orthodoxy

Organization

* Autonomy
* Autocephaly
* Patriarchate
* Ecumenical Patriarch
* Episcopal polity
* Canon law
* Clergy
* Bishops
* Priests
* Deacons
* Monasticism
* Degrees
* Bratstvo

Autocephalous jurisdictions

Autocephalous Churches who are officially part of the communion:

* Constantinople
* Alexandria
* Antioch
* Jerusalem
* Russia
* Serbia
* Romania
* Bulgaria
* Georgia
* Cyprus
* Greece
* Poland
* Albania
* Czech Lands and Slovakia

Autocephaly recognized by some autocephalous Churches de jure:

* America
* North Macedonia

Autocephaly and canonicity recognized by Constantinople and 3 other autocephalous Churches:

* Ukraine (OCU)

Spiritual independence recognized by Georgian Orthodox Church:

* Ukraine (UOC)

Autonomous jurisdictions

* Sinai (JP)
* Finland (EP)
* Estonia (EP)
* Japan (MP)
* China (MP)
* Americas (RP)
* Bessarabia (RP)
* Moldova (MP)

Semi-Autonomous:

* Crete (EP)
* Estonia (MP)
* ROCOR (MP)

Episcopal assemblies

* Australia, New Zealand, and Oceania
* Austria
* Belgium, Holland, and Luxembourg
* Canada
* France
* Germany
* Great Britain and Ireland
* Italy and Malta
* Latin America
* Scandinavia
* Spain and Portugal
* Switzerland and Liechtenstein
* United States of America

Noncanonical jurisdictions

* Old Believers
* Spiritual Christianity
* True Orthodoxy
* Catacomb Church
* Old Calendarists
* American Orthodox Catholic Church
* American World Patriarchs

* National churches:

*     * Abkhazia
* Belarus
* Italy
* Latvia
* Montenegro
* Turkey
* UOC–KP

* Evangelical Orthodox

Ecumenical councils

* First Seven Ecumenical Councils:

* Nicaea I
* Constantinople I
* Ephesus
* Chalcedon
* Constantinople II
* Constantinople III
* Nicaea II

* Other possible ecumenical councils:

* Constantinople IV
* Constantinople V

* Other important councils:

* Quinisext Council
* Jassy
* Moscow
* Jerusalem
* Constantinople (1872)

History

* Church Fathers
* Pentarchy
* Byzantine Empire
* Christianization of Georgia
* Christianization of Bulgaria
* Christianization of Kievan Rus'
* Great Schism
* Russia
* Ottoman Empire
* North America
* Moscow–Constantinople schism
* 15th–16th c.
* 1996
* 2018

Theology

* History of Eastern Orthodox theology
* (20th century (Neo-Palamism))

* Apophaticism
* Chrismation
* Contemplative prayer
* Essence vs. Energies
* Hesychasm
* Holy Trinity
* Hypostatic union
* Icons
* Metousiosis
* Mystical theology
* Nicene Creed
* Nepsis
* Oikonomia vs Akribeia
* Ousia
* Palamism
* Philokalia
* Phronema
* Sin
* Theosis
* Theotokos

* Differences from the Catholic Church
* Opposition to the Filioque
* Opposition to papal supremacy

Liturgy and worship

* Divine Liturgy
* Divine Services

* Akathist
* Apolytikion
* Artos
* Ectenia
* Euchologion
* Holy Water
* Iconostasis
* Jesus Prayer
* Aprakos
* Kontakion
* Liturgical entrances
* Liturgical fans
* Lity
* Memorial service
* Memory Eternal
* Omophorion
* Eastern Orthodox bowing
* Eastern Orthodox marriage
* Praxis
* Paraklesis
* Paschal greeting
* Paschal Homily
* Paschal troparion
* Prayer rope
* Prosphora
* Russian bell ringing
* Semantron
* Sign of the cross
* Sticheron
* Troparion
* Vestments
* Use of incense

Liturgical calendar

* Paschal cycle
* 12 Great Feasts
* Other feasts:

* Feast of Orthodoxy
* Intercession of the Theotokos

* The four fasting periods:

* Nativity Fast
* Great Lent
* Apostles' Fast
* Dormition Fast

Major figures

Saints (Russian (until 15th century), Russian (post-15th century), Serbian, American)

* Justin Martyr
* Athanasius of Alexandria
* Ephraim the Syrian
* Basil of Caesarea
* Cyril of Jerusalem
* Gregory of Nazianzus
* Gregory of Nyssa
* John Chrysostom
* Cyril of Alexandria
* John Climacus
* Maximus the Confessor
* John of Damascus
* Theodore the Studite
* Kassia
* Cyril and Methodius
* Photius I of Constantinople
* Vladimir the Great
* Sava I of Serbia
* Gregory Palamas
* Innocent of Alaska

Other topics

* Architecture
* Folk
* Encyclical of the Eastern Patriarchs
* Cross
* Saint titles
* Statistics by country

* v
* t
* e

Memory eternal[a] is an exclamation, an encomium like the polychronion, used at the end of a Byzantine Rite funeral or memorial service, as followed by the Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Churches. It is the liturgical counterpart to the Western Rite prayer "Eternal Rest."

## Memorial service

[edit]

The "memory eternal" mentioned in the prayer mainly refers to remembrance by God, rather than by the living, and is another way of praying that the soul has entered heaven and enjoys eternal life. It has been connected to the thief on the cross who asks Jesus to remember him when the kingdom is established, where Jesus responds that the thief would be in paradise (Luke 23:42–43). Hence to be remembered by God, in eternal memory, is to be in eternal existence in paradise.[1]

This chant is parallel to "Many years" which is chanted for living members of the Church (and occasionally for national or local authorities, even though they may not be Orthodox).[citation needed] "Memory eternal" is not chanted for those who have been officially glorified (canonized) as saints. As part of the glorification process for new saints, on the eve of the day before their glorification, "memory eternal" will be chanted for them at the end of a solemn service known as the "Last Requiem."[citation needed]

The chanting of "memory eternal" is introduced by a deacon, as follows:

Deacon: In a blessed falling asleep, grant, O Lord, eternal rest unto Thy departed servant (Name) and make his/her memory to be eternal!
Choir: Memory eternal! Memory eternal! Memory eternal!

It concludes with the line "with the saints, grant her/him rest o Lord, memory eternal!"[2]

## Other occasions

[edit]

"Memory Eternal" is chanted at the end of services on Saturdays of the Dead, though not for an individual, but for all of the faithful departed.

"Memory Eternal" is intoned by the deacon and then chanted by all in response three times during the liturgy on the Sunday of Orthodoxy to commemorate church hierarchs, Orthodox monarchs, Orthodox patriarchs and clergy, and all deceased Orthodox Christians.[3]

In the Russian Orthodox Church, "memory Eternal" is chanted on the Sunday of Orthodoxy for all of the departed rulers of Russia.[citation needed]

## Notes

[edit]

1. ^ Greek: Αἰωνία ἡ μνήμη, Aionía i mními; Arabic: ذِكرُهُ مؤَبَّداً, "Thikruhu muabbadan"; Georgian: საუკუნო ხსენება, "Sauk'uno Khseneba"; Church Slavonic: Вечная память, Vechnaya pamyat’, Ukrainian: Вічная пам'ять (vichnaya pamyat'), Russian: Вечная память (vechnaya pamyat'), Belarusian: Вечная памяць (viečnaja pamiać), Bulgarian: Вечна памет (vechna pamet), Romanian: Veșnica pomenire

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Florensky, Pavel (2018). The Pillar and Ground of the Truth: An Essay in Orthodox Theodicy in Twelve Letters. Princeton University Press. p. 144\. ISBN 978-0-691-18799-0.
2. ^ "Memorial Service - Liturgical Texts of the Orthodox Church - Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America". www.goarch.org. Retrieved 2019-06-08.
3. ^ "Service of the Triumph of Orthodoxy". monachos.net. Retrieved 6 March 2015.

## External links

[edit]

* "Eternal Memory" from Pavel Chesnokov's Requiem No. 2, Op.39 (in Church Slavonic)
* Vechnaya Pamyat (Eternal Memory) intoned by a deacon and then chanted by the Choir (YouTube)
* Vichnaya Pamyat' (Eternal Memory) recorded by the Ukrainian Bandurist Chorus (SoundCloud)
* Vjecnaja Pamjat (Memory Eternal) recorded by the Serbian Orthodox Choral Association in Toronto, Canada (MP3)

*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template