The Eucharist, which is made present through the ritual of the Divine Liturgy, is truly the sacrament of the Kingdom. As one author has stated, the Mystery of the Eucharist is the Church’s ascent to the “table of the Lord, in his Kingdom.” By using ritual actions and words that try to emulate the actions and words that Jesus Himself performed on the night before He died, we are not only brought into His presence but we are joined with Him. In pedestrian terms, “we become what we eat and drink”.
What I believe is important, however, is that we see the transformation of the bread and wine within the context of the entire Divine Liturgy. Too frequently the only thing that people do is focus on the changing of the bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ. This, in my humble opinion, depreciates the power of the Divine Liturgy as a ritual action that can bring us into the presence of God.
Think about it. We begin the Divine Liturgy by the celebrant declaring: Blessed is the Kingdom of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit now and ever and forever. To this all respond AMEN. The word AMEN is a Hebrew word which means “truly” or “it is true.” It always expresses acceptance of what has just been said. Jesus Himself is called “the AMEN,” the one who is faithful to His word. Its use by Jesus Himself in the Gospels is frequent and has no real parallel elsewhere. It is used to introduce solemn affirmations and adds a note not only of asseveration but also of authority. So, we declare as a group of believing people that we have gathered as a people to make God’s Kingdom real and present to us when we celebrate the Divine Liturgy. It expresses our desire to truly enter into the Kingdom of God.
We are reminded of this by the fact that ICONS always stand between us and the TABLE of THRONE OF GOD. The Nave or main body of the worship area, is the Kingdom of God in time and space – in the present moment. The icons clearly remind us that in order to truly enter into the full Kingdom of God, that is the Kingdom which also exists within the spiritual dimension, we must go through a personal transformation process (This is why icons are stylized. We know that the persons they represent are human but they look different. The difference is that they have undergone personal change and transformation).
What is wonderful about the Divine Liturgy, however, is that it also clearly demonstrates that God has shown us how to undergo this personal transformation. It also clearly depicts the fact that if we are open to God’s Kingdom in the present moment, He is constantly coming from the spiritual dimension into our world to LEAD US INTO THE KINGDOM. The celebrant, who depicts God’s movements, comes from before the Throne, enters into the worship space – Nave – and processes back to the space beyond the icons which represents the spiritual dimension of the Kingdom.