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Service Book of the Holy Orthodox-Catholic Apostolic Church
tr. Hapgood, 1906
The Reception of Jews, Muslims and Heathens
Differeth from that for persons who have already received holy Baptism.
After the Choir hath sung Psalm xxxiv.:
I will alway give thanks unto the Lord; his praise shall ever be in my mouth. My soul shall make her boast in the Lord; the humble shall hear thereof, and be glad. O praise the Lord with me, and let us magnify his Name together. I sought the Lord, and he heard me; yea, he delivered me out of all my fear. They had an eye unto him, and were lightened; and their faces were not ashamed. Lo, the poor crieth, and the Lord heareth him; yea, and saveth him out of all his troubles. The angel of the Lord tarrieth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them. O taste, and see, how gracious the Lord is: blessed is the man that trusteth in him. O fear the Lord, ye that are his saints; for they that fear him lack nothing. The lions do lack, and suffer hunger; but they who seek the Lord shall want no manner of thing that is good. Come, ye children, and hearken unto me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord. What man is he that lusteth to live, and would fain see good days? Keep thy tongue from evil, and thy lips, that they speak no guile. Eschew evil, and do good; seek peace, and ensue it. The eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers. The countenance of the Lord is against them that do evil, to root out the remembrance of them from the earth. The righteous cry, and the Lord heareth them, and delivereth them out of all their troubles. The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a contrite heart, and will save such as be of an humble spirit. Great are the troubles of the righteous; but the Lord delivereth him out of all. He keepeth all his bones, so that not one of them is broken. But misfortune shall slay the ungodly; and they that hate the righteous shall be desolate. The Lord delivereth the souls of his servants; and all they that put their trust in him shall not be destitute.
The Bishop, or Priest, inquireth, at the door of the Church:
Who art thou?
Answer. I am one who desireth to know the true God, and seeketh salvation.
Priest. Why art thou come to the Holy Church?
Answer. That I may learn from her the true faith, and unite myself unto her.
Priest. What profit dost thou hope to receive from the true faith?
Answer. Life eternal and blessed.
The Catechumen is then asked to renounce his errors and confess his belief.
The Jew renounceth: The blasphemies of the Jews against Jesus Christ our Saviour, his most holy Mother and his Saints; circumcision; the observation of Saturday, and all Jewish festivals and ceremonies; the Rabbinical interpretation of the Scriptures contained in the Talmud and ancient and modern writings; the doctrine that the Messiah is not yet come; and the vain expectation of his coming.
(The Jew accepteth the belief: That the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are one God, divided in three Persons, but in Essence undivided; that Jesus Christ, the Only-begotten Son of God, was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the Virgin Mary for the sake of our salvation, and became very man, yet remaining very God, one in Essence, but in two Persons, divine and human; that our Lord Jesus Christ, of his own free will, in very truth, and not in appearance only, suffered for us in the flesh, but not in his divinity, and, having died and been buried as man, rose again by virtue of his divinity, and ascended into heaven in the flesh; that the Virgin Mary was and remained truly Virgin, and therefore is worthy of reverence as the chief intercessor for us with God; and that the Cross of Christ was the instrument and emblem of our salvation.)
The Mahometan renounceth: The Mahometan faith, and its Sophistries; Mahomet, as being a false prophet; the Koran and all false legends, laws and traditions therein contained; the pilgrimage to Mecca for worship, as salutary to the soul; the inculcation of polygamy in this life, and the teaching as to sensual pleasures in Paradise; and the blasphemies which Mahometans utter touching Christ our Saviour, his most holy Mother, and Christians.
(He accepteth all the points set forth for the Jew, and in addition the belief that the Holy Scriptures contained in the Old and New Testaments, as accepted by the Church, are the Word of God, given for our salvation, and were written by the holy men of God who were illumined by the Holy Spirit; that the traditions, regulations and prayers which have come down from the Apostles and the holy Fathers of the Church are salutary for the soul; and that the Apostles, Martyrs, and all the Saints revered by the Holy Church are, in very truth, Saints of God, abide with Christ in the kingdom of heaven, and pray for us sinners. He also professeth belief touching the holy images (see page 459) required from all converts.)
The Heathen renounceth: Heathen superstitions; the adoration of created things; the worship of material statues, and bowing down to idols; the offering and eating of sacrifices unto idols; idolatrous priests and magicians, and their superstitious deeds and soothsaying.
(He accepteth the same as the Mahometan.)
The Convert then maketh oath of allegiance.
I, N., who am come from Judaism (Mahometanism, Heathenism) to the Christian faith, to-day take my oath before omniscient God, that I renounce the false doctrine of the Jews (Mahometans, Heathens), and all the heresies and calumnies therein contained, and enter the saving faith of Christ, not because of any compulsion or fear, nor because of the oppression of my fellow-believers, and not for the sake of gain, neither by reason of any hidden guilt on my part, but solely for the salvation of my soul. Being convinced of the very truth of this faith, and drawn by the love of my heart unto Christ the Saviour, I desire to become a Christian, and that holy Baptism may be vouchsafed unto me. And if I now assert these things through hypocrisy, and come not unto Christ my God through the desire of my heart; and if I shall hereafter dare to renounce the Christian faith, and return unto Judaism (Mahometanism, Heathenism), may the wrath of God and everlasting damnation befall me.
And after this, he receiveth Baptism, Chrismation and the Holy Communion.