churches. In Greek usage, the Creed is normally recited by the cantors in the Divine Liturgy, but on the Sunday of Orthodoxy especially it is often recited by a lay member of the congregation who is a secular official; it is a prerogative offered to the head of State, if present, in continuation of the same privilege held by the Emperors. The service as it had used in the Russian Empire differed by the Emperor and his family were acclaimed, and "Eternal Memory!" was proclaimed for each member of the Romanov Dynasty; all who deny the divine right of kings and all who "dare to stir up insurrection and rebellion against it" had been anathematized. In the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia anathemas have been added against modernism and ecumenism. Liturgical texts The liturgical texts for the Canon, Synodicon etc., and the rubrics are found in either euchologion, Orthodox or Greek-Catholic. The theme of the day is the victory of the True Faith over heresy. "This is the victory that overcomes the world, our faith" (). Also, the icons of the saints bear witness that man, "created in the image and likeness of God" (), becomes holy and godlike through the purification of himself as God's living image. The First Sunday of Great Lent originally commemorated the Prophets such as Moses, Aaron, and Samuel. The Liturgy's Prokeimenon and alleluia verses as well as the Epistle and Gospel readings appointed for the day continue to reflect this older usage. Theological significance The name of this Sunday reflects the great significance which icons possess for the Orthodox Church. They are not optional devotional extras, but an integral part of Orthodox faith and devotion. The debate involved important issues: the character of Christ's human nature, the Christian attitude towards matter, and the true meaning of Christian redemption. Icons are held by the Orthodox to be a necessary consequence of Christian faith in the Incarnation of the Word (), Jesus Christ. Icons are considered by Orthodox Christians to have a sacramental character, making present to the believer the person or event depicted on them. However, the Orthodox always make a clear doctrinal distinction between the veneration (proskynesis) paid to icons and the worship (latria) which is due to God alone. References External links Sunday of Orthodoxy article from Orthodox Wiki Homily on the Triumph of Orthodoxy by St. Tikhon, Patriarch of Moscow Eastern