Flower girls during Holy Saturday Matins

[Jean-Serge]

Christ is risen!

I have seen a strane photo on facebook in a world orthodox parish. It was taken during the matins of Holy Saturday when the priest reads the Lamentations in front of the epitaphion. At each side of the epitaphios, was a young unveiled girl of some 6 y-o, dressed in white and holding a candle. I asked and was told by some it has been like this for 15 years in different jurisdictions... I guess it is the classical "everyone should participate" (as if standing in prayer was not paticipating) and "let us involve ladies too" stuff, but how extended is such practice in the US?

[Jean-Serge]

Could someone explain me what is going on? Where and when does this come from?

[Maria]

Could someone explain me what is going on? Where and when does this come from?

There is an innovation in quite a few OCA parishes here in the States.
In the past, the OCA even had altar girls, but that was stopped by the hierarchy.

Currently, during the Divine Liturgy, there is a group of girls from age 4 to 18 called "Handmaidens." A couple of these young girls accompanied by an older teenager accept the extra loaves of bread from the priest during the offertory, exit the church in procession, and then proceed to enter the sacristy through the back door to cut this bread blessed by the priest. Note: This cutting of the Antidoron is normally done by the altar boys. The original lamb is cut by the Priest before the Divine Liturgy.

These same girls carry flower baskets on Palm Sunday filled with bay leaves and flower pedals which they scatter on the ground ahead of the priest in procession. However, the militant women in charge of these Handmaidens keep approaching their priest for more and more duties to be given these girls to keep them in church. Needless to say, even with these novel activities, many girls no longer darken the church steps once they turn "sweet" 16.

[Jean-Serge]

OK, I see, well it looks like the feminist stuff. However, the picture I used is not from an OCA parish but from a GOC-Kallinikos parish in Canada. See here. So the feminist plague seems to be everywhere.

[Maria]

OK, I see, well it looks like the feminist stuff. However, the picture I used is not from an OCA parish but from a GOC-Kallinikos parish in Canada. See here. So the feminist plague seems to be everywhere.

Is the presence of young modestly dressed flower girls on Palm Sunday or Holy Friday a recent innovation? There are variations in Russian and in Greek practices.

[Maria]

Mod Note: Since this topic pertains to a GOC-Kallinikos parish, I am moving this thread into Intra-TOC Polemics.

[Jean-Serge]

Is the presence of young modestly dressed flower girls on Palm Sunday or Holy Friday a recent innovation? There are variations in Russian and in Greek practices.

That's exactly my question... Since when, why etc. According to what I remember in some places, the priest puts petals on the eiptaphion but that girls put them around or on it, is unknown to me. Other question: why do they all wear white? Well since the parish has a website, I'll ask directly and let you know.