Kiss of Peace
28 June 2008 - 26 סיון 5768 by Huw
We continue with the postings from Rick Fabian’s Worship at St Gregory’s, with the permission of the author and the publisher.
When the Procession hymn finishes, the Presider announces the Kiss of Peace: the clergy kiss the table, and all embrace each other throughout the church, saying “Peace be with you!”
In this ritual, anciently included in every service, Christians give Christ to one another: “Peace be with you” and “the Lord be with you” have the same meaning, because “He is our Peace.” (Ephesians 2:14) Hence the Byzantine rite’s distinctive greeting at this point, “Christ is among us…He is and he will be.” Public kissing was a Christian innovation, originally baptismal: the bishop kissed the newly baptized to symbolize the gift of the Holy Spirit, just as God breathed life into Adam’s mouth (Genesis 2) and the risen Christ breathed on the disciples (John 20). (*)
Anciently, therefore, Christians exchanged the Peace by kissing on the mouth, and men and women exchanged this kiss only with members of their own sex, to avoid scandal. (How times have changed!) Later it became a kiss on the cheek, or on both cheeks, or three kisses on two cheeks: in these forms eastern Christians have continued the practice inside and outside the liturgy. Western clergy continued it vestigially; but their laypeople did not, and have been slow to resume kissing in church, preferring a handshake or a hug. What matters is expressing the gesture’s intention: to give one another the peace of Christ himself.
Californians are a huggy bunch, and the Peace goes on awhile - there is time for the deacon to join in and lay out the table too. The deacon straightens up the altar table, veiling the Gifts against insects, while the Peace continues.
It is fun, but superfluous, to exchange the Peace with everyone in sight; those nearby will serve. On the other hand, following Matthew 5:23, the Kiss of Peace provides an urgent opportunity to bridge grudges and mend fences where we know these want doing, even if we must cross the room for the job.
