Whenever a congregation really sees itself as a unit in the universal Church, in vital relation with the whole Body of Christ and participating in His mission to the world, a necessary foundation-stone of the ecumenical movement has been laid.

The introduction, " Let us pray for the whole state of Christ's Church militant here in earth " remained unaltered and only a thanksgiving for those " departed this life in thy faith and fear " was inserted to introduce the petition that the congregation might be " given grace so to follow their good examples that with them we may be partakers of thy heavenly kingdom ".

* a local ecclesia, or local congregation, or house church, as distinct from the church as a whole.

The Congregation for the Oriental Churches ( Congregatio pro Ecclesiis Orientalibus ) is the congregation of the Roman Curia responsible for contact with the Eastern Catholic Churches for the sake of assisting their development, protecting their rights and also maintaining whole and entire in the one Catholic Church, alongside the liturgical, disciplinary and spiritual patrimony of the Latin Rite, the heritage of the various Oriental Christian traditions.

He looked upon the consistories as ecclesiastical courts which therefore should be composed of spiritual and secular judges, for to him the official authority of the Church did not lie in a special class of priests, but rather in the whole congregation, to be represented therefore not only by ecclesiastics, but also by laymen.

Then the ministers and congregation all faced east during the whole celebration ; and in Western Europe altars began, in the Middle Ages, to be permanently placed against the east wall of the chancel.

It should be positioned so as to be the natural centre of attention of the whole congregation.

Also, they felt that they should not have excommunicated the Swiss ministers on the spot, but should have consulted with the whole congregation before proceeding.

On doctrinal grounds it was proper for the whole congregation to join in the singing, so that it became a triumphant winding up of the whole act of worship.

The Greek word ekklēsia, literally " assembly " or " congregation ", is the New Testament term referring to the Christian Church ( either a particular local group or the whole body of the faithful ).

In a practice not accepted in over 98 % percent of Orthodox congregations women receive these aliyot in single-gender tefillah groups ( prayer groups consisting only of women, who pray together, excluding those prayers that require a minyan ( quorum of men )), and only men are called to the Torah in front of the whole congregation.

' After the morning prayer the exilarch, who until now has been standing in a covered place, appears ; the whole congregation rises and remains standing until he has taken his place on the platform, and the two geonim, the one from Sura preceding, have taken seats to his right and left, each making an obeisance.

When the ' Kohen ' and ' Levi ' have finished reading, the leader in prayer carries the Torah roll to the exilarch, the whole congregation rising ; the exilarch takes the roll in his hands and reads from it while standing.

Further it is a prayer where the whole congregation prays to wash and cleanse them of their sins.

The sacrament table is prepared before the congregation enters by placing whole slices of bread on trays and filling individual water cups ( thimble size ) which are also held in trays.

The congregation remains seated while the priesthood representatives stand and break the whole or sliced bread into bite sized pieces while the congregation sings.

Laura M. Petre ), who was to the congregation in England what Mother St. Joseph was to the whole institute.

Most Christian music involves singing, whether by the whole congregation ( assembly ), or by a specialized subgroup — such as a soloist, duet, trio, quartet, madrigal, choir, or worship band —, or both.

This congregation became known as the " Central Church ", one of seven that were defined in London as forming a pattern of the whole Christian Church.

Traditionally, the congregation stands throughout the whole service, and an iconostasis separates the sanctuary from the rest of the church.

The " whole congregation of Israel assembled ... and set up the tabernacle of the congregation ..." ( Joshua 18: 1 ), built under Moses ' direction from God ( Exodus 26 ) to house the Ark of the Covenant, also built under Moses ' direction from God ( Exodus 25 ).

The entrance to a church has been walled up, so that the congregation, most of which is in the western sector, cannot worship God there anymore.

He has a powerful way of speaking, and he insists to the congregation that the plague is a scourge sent by God to those who have hardened their hearts against him.

" Venerable / Heroic in Virtue " When enough information has been gathered, the congregation will recommend to the pope that he make a proclamation of the Servant of God's heroic virtue ( that is, that the servant exhibited the theological virtues of faith, hope and charity, and the cardinal virtues of prudence, justice, fortitude and temperance, to a heroic degree ).

Following this sentiment, congregationalism has evolved over time to include even more participation of the congregation, more kinds of lay committees to whom various tasks are apportioned, and more decisions subject to the vote of the entire membership.

While the presence of a long-term professional minister has sometimes created " significant de facto ministerial authority " and led to conflict between the minister and the elders, the eldership has remained the " ultimate locus of authority in the congregation ".

The General Minister and President ( GMP ) is the designated leader for the General Church, but does not have the administrative authority to direct any of the general church agencies other than “ The Office of General Minister and President .” The GMP has influence that derives from the respect of the church much as the pastor of a local church leads a local congregation.

The congregation lighting their candles from the new flame, just as the priest has retrieved it from the altar — note that the picture is Flash ( photography ) | flash-illuminated ; all electric lighting is off, and only the oil lamp s in front of the Iconostasis remain lit.

The questioning will begin when the funeral is over and the last person of the funeral congregation has stepped 40 steps away from the grave.

Only the presbytery ( not a congregation, session, synod, or General Assembly ) has the responsibility and authority to ordain church members to the Ministry of Word and Sacrament, to install Ministers of Word and Sacrament to ( and / or remove them from ) congregations, and to remove a minister from the Ministry of Word and Sacrament.

The session of the local congregation has a great deal of freedom in the style and ordering of worship within the guidelines set forth in the Directory for Worship section of the Book of Order.

Historically, some cultures and religions accommodated, institutionalized, or revered, same-sex love and sexuality ; Several congregations have undertaken a series of organizational, procedural and practical steps to become acknowledged as a " Welcoming Congregation ": a congregation which has taken specific steps to welcome and integrate gay, lesbian, bisexual & transgender ( GLBT ) members.

Several congregations have undertaken a series of organizational, procedural and practical steps to become acknowledged as a " Welcoming Congregation ": a congregation which has taken specific steps to welcome and integrate gay, lesbian, bisexual & transgender ( GLBT ) members.

Almost every service has an opportunity for those gathered to give of their " tithes and offerings " to support the ministry of that particular congregation.

In the early 20th century, the congregation has two houses in the United States: a missionary house and apostolic school at Swanton, Vermont, for the training of young men who wish to study for the priesthood and the religious life ; and a college at Colchester, Vermont, with 12 fathers, 8 scholastics, and 100 pupils.

Priests or ministers & choirs wear red vestments, and in modern times, the custom has extended to the lay people of the congregation wearing red clothing in celebration as well.

*: The Adoration of the Cross, has a crucifix, not necessarily the one that is normally on or near the altar at other times, solemnly displayed to the congregation and then venerated by them, individually if possible and usually by kissing the wood of the cross, while hymns and the Improperia (" Reproaches ") with the Trisagion hymn are chanted.

In its early days the Turkish state promoted a rival Turkish Orthodox Patriarchate, whose congregation, however, has remained limited.

Lovejoy has been known to exploit his congregation for money, brawl with a Roman Catholic priest, encourage his dog to foul Ned Flanders's lawn, and implied that he once burned down his church for insurance money.

The Salvation Army has meeting rooms in the town, whilst the local Methodists, who previously worshipped in their own Chapel in Paul Street ( built in 1810 ; it is now a community centre ), have an agreement to share the parish church with the Anglican congregation.

The congregation has started its own institution of tertiary education, Livets Ord Theological Seminary.

After the Reformation the college has been dissolved and the church is currently owned and used by a congregation of the Evangelical Lutheran State Church of Brunswick.

The congregation has some members descended from worshipers organized by Samuel Davies, a theologian and future Princeton University president, at Tucker Woodson's farm in 1748.