menaion means the annual fixed liturgical cycle of services used in the Eastern Orthodox and Greek-Catholic Churches, containing a list of the services and large collection of liturgical texts for an entire month. Twelve volumes are usually offered for the year, as a set known as the menaia. Lexicurio rates it Sui generis — a strength score of 88 out of 100.
Why “menaion” is a great word
The annual fixed liturgical cycle of services in the Eastern Orthodox and Greek-Catholic Churches, comprising the hymns, prayers, and readings for each day of a specific month. From New Latin mēnaion, from Ancient Greek μηναῖος (mēnaîos, "monthly"), from μήν (mēn, "month"). Unlike a menologion (a calendar of saints' feasts) or the Triodion (governing the movable penitential cycle), the Menaion is the comprehensive, immovable architecture of the liturgical year. It is the specific hymn for a martyr in March, the prescribed reading for a Tuesday in November, and the exact vespers for an autumn feast—a measured, lunar wheel of prayer, turning one patient page at a time.
Etymology
From New Latin mēnaion, from Ancient Greek μηναῖος (mēnaîos, “lunar”).
noun
- The annual fixed liturgical cycle of services used in the Eastern Orthodox and Greek-Catholic Churches, containing a list of the services and large collection of liturgical texts for an entire month. Twelve volumes are usually offered for the year, as a set known as the menaia.
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