Icon of Jesus Christ Pantokrator by Theophanes the Greek (14th century). His right hand is raised in benediction.

A benediction (Latin: bene, well + dicere, to speak) is a short invocation for divine help, blessing and guidance, usually at the end of worship service. Look up benediction in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Mount Pantokrator (sometimes Pantocrator, Παντωκράτορ in Greek) is a mountain located in north-eastern Corfu. ... Theophanes (died 817 or 818) was a Byzantine monk and chronicler. ... For other uses, see Latin (disambiguation). ... An invocation (from the Latin verb invocare to call on, invoke) is: A supplication. ... Look up blessing in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

Judaism

Judaism developed ritualised benedictions (Berachot) for use at the Temple of Jerusalem, in the synagogue, and in the home. These Berachot often took the form of a blessing upon the fulfillment of a mitzvah (divine commandment). The most important benediction was the Priestly Blessing pronounced by the kohenim (priests descended from Aaron), as found in Numbers 6:23-27. This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... In Judaism, a berakhah or bracha (Hebrew: ברכה; plural ברכות, berakhot; related to the word Baruch) is a blessing, usually recited at a specific moment during a ceremony or other activity. ... The Jerusalem Temple (Hebrew: beit ha-mikdash) was the center of Israelite and Jewish worship, primarily for the offering of sacrifices known as the korbanot. ... A synagogue (from , transliterated synagogÄ“, assembly; beit knesset, house of assembly; or beit tefila, house of prayer, shul; , esnoga) is a Jewish house of worship. ... This article is about commandments in Judaism. ... The Priestly Blessing, (in Hebrew: Birkat Kohanim, ברכת כהנים) is a Jewish ceremony and prayer recited during certain specific Jewish services. ... Cohen (disambiguation) Position of the kohens hands and fingers during the Priestly Blessing A kohen (or cohen, Hebrew כּהן, priest, pl. ... The Adoration of the Golden Calf by Nicolas Poussin Aaron (Hebrew: , Standard  Tiberian ), or Aaron the Levite (flourished about 1200 B.C.), was, according to biblical accounts, one of two brothers who play a unique part in the history of the Hebrew people. ...

Christianity

From the earliest church, Christians adopted ceremonial benedictions into their liturgical worship, particularly at the end of a service. Such benedictions have been regularly practiced both in the Christian East and West. At the time of the Reformation, Protestants abandoned many of the benedictions of the Roman Catholic Church, including the Apostolic Benediction made by the Pope and his delegates, and the "last blessing" of the dying. The Early Christians is a term used to refer to the early followers of Jesus of Nazareth, before the emergence of established Christian orthodoxy. ... For other uses, see Christian (disambiguation). ... Eastern Christianity refers collectively to the Christian traditions and churches which developed in Greece, Russia, Armenia, the Balkans, Eastern Europe, Asia Minor, the Middle East, northeastern Africa and southern India over several centuries of religious antiquity. ... Topics in Christianity Movements · Denominations · Other religions Ecumenism · Preaching · Prayer Music · Liturgy · Calendar Symbols · Art · Criticism Important figures Apostle Paul · Church Fathers Constantine · Athanasius · Augustine Anselm · Aquinas · Palamas · Luther Calvin · Wesley Arius · Marcion of Sinope Archbishop of Canterbury · Catholic Pope Coptic Pope · Ecumenical Patriarch Christianity Portal This box:      Western Christianity... The Protestant Reformation was a movement which began in the 16th century as a series of attempts to reform the Roman Catholic Church, but ended in division and the establishment of new institutions, most importantly Lutheranism, Reformed churches, and Anabaptists. ... Protestantism encompasses the forms of Christian faith and practice that originated with the doctrines of the Reformation. ... Catholic Church redirects here. ... Topics in Christianity Movements · Denominations Ecumenism · Preaching · Prayer Music · Liturgy · Calendar Symbols · Art · Criticism Important figures Apostle Paul · Church Fathers Constantine · Athanasius · Augustine Anselm · Aquinas · Palamas · Wycliffe Tyndale · Luther · Calvin · Wesley Arius · Marcion of Sinope Pope · Archbishop of Canterbury Patriarch of Constantinople Christianity Portal This box:      The Pope (from Latin...

A common form of benediction in Roman Catholic, and liturgical Protestant churches is for the worship leader to raise his hands and recite the words of the biblical Priestly Blessing (Numbers 6:23-27).

Some Protestant churches have recently started to reincorporate the use of benedictions in the closing of their church services. Such benedictions may be taken from Scripture, written by a church member, or a combination of the two.

In the Orthodox Church, benedictions will occur at both the beginning and the end of each service, and there may be other benedictions during the course of the service. The final benediction (the dismissal) is the most important, and will often entail mention of the feast or saint being commemorated that day. The priest will bless with his right hand, and the bishop will bless with both hands. In both cases, the hand is held so that the fingers form the initials IC XC (the abbreviation for "Jesus Christ" in Greek), and he traces the Sign of the Cross in the air with his hand. If a bishop or abbot is holding his crozier while making the benediction, he will raise his right hand and trace the Sign of the Cross with both his crozier and right hand, crossing the one in front of the other. More solemn benedictions, such as that which comes at the end of the Divine Liturgy, will be made with a blessing cross rather than the hand. It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Eastern Christianity. ... // Great Feasts of the Orthodox Church Easter/Pascha The feast of the Resurrection of Jesus, called Easter or Pascha, is the greatest of the feasts of the Eastern Orthodox Church. ... For other uses, see Saint (disambiguation). ... This article is about religious workers. ... Topics in Christianity Movements · Denominations · Other religions Ecumenism · Preaching · Prayer Music · Liturgy · Calendar Symbols · Art · Criticism Important figures Apostle Paul · Church Fathers Constantine · Athanasius · Augustine Anselm · Aquinas · Palamas · Luther Calvin · Wesley Arius · Marcion of Sinope Archbishop of Canterbury · Catholic Pope Coptic Pope · Ecumenical Patriarch Christianity Portal This box:      This article... For other uses, see Sign of the cross (disambiguation). ... Abbots coat of arms The word abbot, meaning father, has been used as a Christian clerical title in various, mainly monastic, meanings. ... A crosier (crozier, pastoral staff) is the stylized staff of office carried by high-ranking Catholic prelates. ... The Divine Liturgy is the common term for the Eucharistic service of the Byzantine tradition of Christian liturgy. ...

Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament

Main article: Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament

In the Roman Catholic and Anglican Churches, "Benediction" (with a capital "B") usually refers to the Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament. In Roman Catholic and Anglo-Catholic churches, Benediction usually refers to the Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament. ... The term Anglican describes those people and churches following the religious traditions of the Church of England, especially following the Reformation. ... The Blessed Sacrament is displayed in a procession at the 2005 Southeastern Eucharistic Congress. ...

Censing of the Blessed Sacrament during Solemn Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament and IV Advent Vespers.

This involves the display of the Blessed Sacrament in a monstrance set upon the altar. A significant portion of this liturgy includes singing, prayer (particularly the chanting of the Divine Praises), and the silent worship of Christ's real presence in the consecrated Host. At the end of this liturgy, the celebrant holds the monstrance using a humeral veil worn over the shoulders and covering the hands, this is to demonstrate that the benediction does not come from the priest but from the Divine Presence in the monstrance. The celebrant has the congregation blessed with the displayed Host by tracing the sign of the cross with the monstrance held steadily upright before him. This liturgy can be a rite unto itself but is most often celebrated at the close of other liturgies. Incense is often used at the beginning and at the end of the Benediction. Image File history File links AdventIncense. ... Image File history File links AdventIncense. ... A solar monstrance Monstrance is the vessel used in the Roman Catholic, Old Catholic, and Anglican Churches to display the consecrated Eucharistic Host, during Eucharistic adoration or Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament. ... Look up Altar in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... A liturgy is the customary public worship of a religious group, according to their particular traditions. ... Harry Belafonte singing, photograph by C. van Vechten Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, which is often contrasted with speech. ... For other uses, see Prayer (disambiguation). ... The Divine Praises is a Roman Catholic prayer and an integral part of the liturgy of Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament. ... Taken during a Hindu prayer ceremony on the eve of Diwali. ... This page is about the title, office or what is known in Christian theology as the Divine Person. ... The Real Presence is the term various Christian traditions use to express their belief that, in the Eucharist, Jesus the Christ is really (and not merely symbolically, figuratively or by his power) present in what was previously just bread and wine. ... The humeral veil is one of the liturgical vestments of the Roman Catholic and Anglican churches. ... A solar monstrance Monstrance is the vessel used in the Roman Catholic, Old Catholic, and Anglican Churches to display the consecrated Eucharistic Host, during Eucharistic adoration or Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament. ... For other uses, see Sign of the cross (disambiguation). ... Incense is composed of aromatic organic materials. ...

References in Popular Culture

• In the MMORPG World of Warcraft, Benediction is the name given to the holy form of a Priest's epic staff.
• Similarly, in Final Fantasy XI, White Mages have an ability called Benediction, which restores life to all allies, but can only be called upon once every two hours.
• In the MMORPG Guild Wars Nightfall, there is also a spell called Zealous Benediction, which is a powerful healing spell.
• In the RPG Dragon Quest VIII Benendiction is used by priests to lift curses from party characters.
• In the MMORPG Dark Age of Camelot healer classes gain access to a constitution stat buff that is for a short time called "Benediction of Health."

An image from World of Warcraft, one of the largest commercial MMORPGs as of 2004, based on active subscriptions. ... World of Warcraft (commonly abbreviated as WoW) is a massive multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) developed by Blizzard Entertainment and is the fourth game in the Warcraft series, excluding expansion packs and the cancelled Warcraft Adventures: Lord of the Clans. ... An Undead Forsaken Female Priest Undead Priest in shadowform. ... Final Fantasy XI ), also known as Final Fantasy XI: Online, is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game developed and published by Square (now Square Enix) as a part of the Final Fantasy video game series. ... The White Mage , or しろまどうし in earlier games without kanji support) is a character class (or job) in Square Enixs Final Fantasy series of computer role playing games. ... Guild Wars Nightfall is a fantasy Competitive/Co-operative Online RolePlaying Game (CORPG) and the third stand-alone campaign in the Guild Wars computer game series developed by ArenaNet. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Dark Age of Camelot is a 3D medieval fantasy MMORPG that revolves around the war between three realms at the end of King Arthurs rule: Arthurian-inspired Albion, Norse mythology inspired Midgard and Celtic Hibernia. ...

References

• Thurston, Herbert. Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament, The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume II. (New York: Robert Appleton, 1907)
• Benediction, Columbia Encyclopedia (Sixth edition, 2005)

See also

• Benedict
• Interdict
• Benedictus

Look up Benedict in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Interdict can refer to several things: Look up interdict in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Sanctus is the Latin word for holy, and is the name of an important hymn of Christian liturgy. ...

External links

• Examples of Modern Benedictions
• a church in Kent that offers the service of Benediction weekly