The Presanctified Liturgy in the Byzantine rite: A comparative analysis of its origins, evolution, and structural components

The purpose of this dissertation is to trace the origins and the evolution of the Presanctified Liturgy (PRES) in the Byzantine liturgical tradition. The method of comparative liturgy and structural analysis of liturgical units is followed. Chapter one deals with the origins of PRES, looking at the practice of private reservation and communion in the early church, ‘heretical’ Eucharists, and the relationship between days of fast and the Eucharist. Chapter two addresses issues such as the authorship, title, and frequency of the PRES. Chapter three is dedicated to a brief examination of the occurrence of the PRES in the other Christian traditions for comparative reasons. Chapters four and five deal with the text of the PRES itself, drawing heavily upon the manuscript tradition. In chapter four the vesperal part of the PRES and in chapter five the communion part of the PRES are examined. The fact that the PRES is essentially a communion service attached to vespers has been the guiding principle in this effort. It is upon this vesperal structure that the communion part grew, imitating of course the communion part of the full liturgy. But I have argued that we are still able to see traces of the cathedral vesperal structure even within the communion part of the PRES. Three dynamics have been behind the evolution and growth of the PRES: imitation, conservatism, and differentiation.