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The Orthodox kissing guide

12 June 2010

On kisses in the Orthodox Church | OrthoCuban:

Father Orthoduck so appreciates Pithless Thoughts. One of the challenges facing converts to Orthodoxy is that we have this way of going around kissing everyone. You kiss when you first see someone. You kiss when you say goodbye. You kiss during the Kiss of Peace. And, sometimes, for no known reason, you kiss some more. And, as Pithless points out, it is not just one kiss. You kiss a minimum of two times, and quite often three. Everyone kisses everyone. Men kiss women. Women kiss men. Women kiss women. Men kiss men. Everyone kisses icons. For a change of pace, we kiss the hand of the clergy. It is a veritable riot of kissing. The Orthodox Church certainly takes seriously the idea of greeting your brother or sister with a holy kiss.

And so, thanks to Pithless Thoughts for this:

Yes indeed, if anyone kisseth once, let him be anathema, anathema, anathema! Let’s not have any namby-pamby monoanathemite anathemitising of heretical monokissites!

2 Comments leave one →
  1. Rebecca permalink
    12 June 2010 8:20 pm

    Unfortunately, if they are American Orthodox, they don’t kiss at all! Heresy.

  2. 13 June 2010 9:31 pm

    Delightful. Thanks. Made my day!

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