Teaching Children Orthodox Hymnography Through Iconography

Introducing children to hymnography through iconography

Christ is risen!

The liturgical life of the Orthodox Christian Faith is meant to be vibrant, engaging, and a reflection of Christ’s command to his apostles: “Go and baptize all nations….” This directive is not passive but active, a calling we are each meant to embrace. To support this effort, the church offers the liturgical arts: icons, which decorate our churches and visually instruct us about the life and teachings of Jesus Christ, and the hymns we sing, which elaborate on the same events portrayed in the icons.

As windows into the Kingdom, iconography and hymnography display the glory and majesty of God. Used together or separately, icons and hymns deepen our relationship with God, making the feasts and saints present in our lives today. They allow us to profess our faith in and draw closer to the Holy Trinity. Though they use different mediums and may not always mirror each other exactly, icons and music help us praise God and understand the salvation made possible through Jesus Christ.

This saving message of Christ, found in the life of the church, is for everyone to accept and make their own. Orthodox Christian parents, who bear the responsibility of raising their children in the Faith, must build a strong foundation for their children to develop their own relationship with God the Father.

Children today are constantly exposed to visual and auditory messages from society—many of which contradict church teachings. They need a firm foundation rooted in God’s love to distinguish right from wrong and to discern what benefits their relationship with Christ and His holy church. It is essential that the hymns and icons of the church have a place in children’s lives as guides for growth and development.

To help children grasp the importance and usefulness of the liturgical arts—especially singing—a series of workshops has been created by the liturgical music commission for the Orthodox Church in America’s Diocese of New York & New Jersey. With the blessing of His Grace, Bishop Michael of New York, these workshops offer children a chance to discover liturgical music and inspire kids of all ages to take a more active role in church life through liturgical music, glorifying God.

These day-long workshops are structured to be fun, emphasizing the beauty and importance of singing both in church and at home. A general introduction to music theory basics is also given. A selection of hymns shared with the children and their parents provides an opportunity to discover our liturgical hymns and bring them into the home. We may have icons in our homes, but do we also sing the hymns of the church year at home?

Parents can encourage children by having families pray together in the morning and evening, or by singing the Lord’s Prayer or the festal apolytikia (troparion) before meals. Even if the result isn’t the most harmonious, it can be an expression of a family’s love and relationship with God.

The importance of making these moments both enjoyable and educational for children cannot be overstated. The “fun” possible when sharing the joy of Christianity brings to mind the evening hymn “Gladsome Light” (Φῶς Ἱλαρόν)—or, as translated by others, O joyous Light! Christ is the Light of the world, and we want children to experience the joy of encountering Christ through liturgical music, so they will continue to develop and raise their voices to God throughout their lives.

Since the arrival of Orthodox Christianity in Alaska in 1794, the founding fathers and mothers of parishes across North America have understood the importance of liturgical music and iconography in their parishes. Choirs were formed to ensure a beautiful and spiritually uplifting experience, and icons were painted to adorn the walls of newly built churches. Together, they played an integral role in the liturgical experience of parishes, which until about the 1950s, was almost exclusively in languages other than English. Thanks to the universal language of music, the choir often served as the face of the parish to the outside world through concerts and local television appearances. This led to non-Orthodox visiting our parishes. Once inside, the richness of iconography revealed a form of Christianity most Americans had never before encountered. In this way, liturgical music and iconography have contributed to the spiritual growth, outreach, and longevity of many American parishes.

Today, the liturgical arts tradition in American Orthodox Churches stands at a crossroads. As the church in North America has matured, more trained iconographers are readily available to paint icons. Ironically, the reverse is often true for choirs and singers, where secular schedules and lifestyles have encroached on parish life, affecting membership and participation in the choir. Formally trained directors are becoming the exception rather than the rule, and many learn the liturgical order while serving as directors. Except for rare occasions, most directors do not receive full benefits and often hold full-time secular jobs, which affects their ability to attend every divine service.

The steady stream of children joining the choir at a young age has slowed significantly or stopped altogether. Generations of youth and families have drifted away from church, and for those who remain, sports, dance, and school activities now fill their schedules. With both parents typically working, there is little time or energy for anything more, especially choir rehearsals. Few parishes have well-established junior choirs, and most communities have only a handful of children at best—certainly not enough to sustain a four-part choir for future generations. Regardless of musical ability, singers in North American parish choirs are volunteers and are not paid.

All is not lost, no matter how dire the situation may appear. We must remember that Christ is with us, and we only need to reflect on how we can do His will. While no magic pill can change this reality, examples of efforts are being made at all levels of the church in America to preserve and raise awareness of the importance of proper liturgical music in parish life. Educational workshops and conferences are being held where parishioners from multiple parishes can gather together to nurture the received tradition of singing in church.

One example of these efforts to increase participation in singing during divine services is the diocesan workshops on liturgical music for children. The workshops are conducted prayerfully and for the glory of God, hoping to increase the number of singers, readers, directors, poets, composers, and educators to lead the next generation of faithful in singing praises to God. Participation is open to children ages five to fifteen, regardless of musical background or ability. The workshop format is designed so that those with no previous musical training can learn about music in a welcoming and engaging environment, not only from the instructor but also from their peers.

Since the children may come from different parishes within a particular deanery or across the diocese, the workshops also provide a chance to get to know each other and possibly establish friendships with other Orthodox children, hopefully extending beyond the day’s events.

Much like family portraits or photos on the walls of their homes, icons remind children that they are always surrounded by saints, guardian angels, and the Theotokos. For this reason, the workshops are held in the church, usually in front of the iconostasis, creating a setting where children are surrounded by Christ and His saints. The icons also play a prominent role in the topics presented during the workshop, providing real examples of making Christ present in our lives and introducing the liturgical arts to the children.

The workshops begin by discovering what types of songs the children already know. They have invariably learned any number of songs—from nursery rhymes at home or daycare, to songs they hear on the radio or learn at school. The goal is to help children realize that music is all around them and that many already sing!

Because apolytikia (troparia) are liturgical “theme songs,” they serve as excellent starting points for introducing children to church music. They encapsulate core theological topics, are musically suitable for children to learn, and are relatively short and memorable. Depending on the time of year, the festal apolytikia (troparia) and kontakia of upcoming feasts are used during the workshop. For instance, if the workshop is held before or during the Nativity fast, the apolytikia for St. Nicholas, the Nativity of our Lord, and Theophany are presented. For workshops before Great Lent, “Before Thy Cross,” and the apolytikia for Lazarus Saturday and Pascha are used. During the summer, the apolytikia for Pentecost, Transfiguration, and the Dormition are introduced.

These hymns represent the most important feasts and celebrations of the church, and time is set aside during the workshop to outline and explain the meaning and message of each hymn. To do this, the workshop makes use of the festal icons adorning the walls of the church.

Once the text has been read, the corresponding festal icon is introduced. Keeping the atmosphere informal and engaging, a scavenger hunt begins: everyone is sent to find the icon that best represents the hymn’s text. This activity has a twofold purpose: it allows children to look more closely at the icons on the church walls and helps them become more comfortable in God’s house. Like the hymns we sing, the icons that surround us are not static or passive but are meant to be engaging and bring us closer to God.

The search results can vary and are often interesting. Some children immediately find the correct icon, while others suggest icons with similar themes or elements—a mandorla around Christ, the right saints, a familiar look—that actually belong to other feast days. Each child is asked to compare their chosen icon with the hymn text to see if they can determine the right answer on their own. Do the icon and hymn match? Are they related? Those with the wrong guess will usually realize they need to continue searching, while those who found the correct feast will be able to confirm how and why it is the right icon.

When the majority of children have found the correct icon, we gather around it and discuss what they see in the image, what is being portrayed, and how this relates to us as Orthodox Christians. We then collectively refer back to the hymn text and compare it with the icon before us, checking if they match and how they relate to each other.

Some icons and hymns match words with images—like the icon of our Lord’s Nativity and its festal kontakion. Through this, children discover that these words and images hold meaning for us: there is a reason we celebrate these feasts, and Christ becomes real in our lives. His actions make salvation possible for us.

The apolytikion for Lazarus Saturday, “By Raising Lazarus…,” connects Christ’s messianic work for His friend Lazarus to His promise for all of us—through the universal Resurrection, where death has no power over us. Christ destroys that despair and emptiness, filling it with victory and life. Unlike most apolytikia (troparia), which are sung frequently during the octave of the feast, the hymn for Lazarus Saturday is only sung for two days, making it important for children to understand that this hymn foreshadows Christ’s own resurrection on Pascha.

Throughout the workshop, children are encouraged to get involved—by answering questions, helping others sing, or volunteering to read the texts. This gives them a chance to share what they know and become comfortable speaking in church. For each hymn, one child is picked to read the text aloud for everyone to hear. This way, they experience reading in church, which can build confidence and identify potential readers for services.

Children who attend the workshops receive copies of the hymns to sing at home, making the feasts more present in their lives. What is often misunderstood as “only done in church” can now extend beyond the church doors into believers’ homes, making the feasts real in daily life. For example, these hymns can be sung before meals, at bedtime, or after waking up in the morning.

The texts of the apolytikia (troparia) are relatively short, making them easy for both children and adults to learn, and the melodies are recognizable and simple to memorize. It is even possible that children will adopt the hymns as their own and sing them for years to come.

I personally realized this about two years ago when our younger daughter was three. She “discovered” her love for the Paschal troparion during Paschal vespers that year. Every day after, she could be heard singing it while playing, before meals, in the car—everywhere we went. After coming home from the vigil for Ascension, we had the difficult task of explaining that she wouldn’t be singing “Christ is risen” anymore. Well—you would have thought we said her favorite toy was lost or her fish had died. Tears and screams filled the house. After she finally calmed down, she firmly declared, “But Papa, Christ is risen!”

Even at three years old, she understood what she was singing. For the last two years, around the middle of Great Lent, she starts asking when we can begin singing her favorite song again: “Christ is risen!” Since her initial discovery of the annual cycle, she and our older daughter now look forward to singing all the different settings of the Paschal troparion they know and love. They might want to sing the Byzantine setting one night, the Serbian melody the next morning, or the Georgian setting they learned this year. The fact that we sing these settings before meals and at bedtime helps these young children adopt them as their own, and they enjoy singing them as often as they can during the Paschal season.

This experience helped me understand the importance of making these hymns “our own,” so the children at the workshops are encouraged to feel that same desire and excitement. We look at the Resurrection icon, both before and after singing the Paschal troparion, to discover what can be found in the image.

It is amazing to see how the children’s perception of the icon changes after singing. The hymn they have sung repeatedly takes on new meaning, and the icon they have seen many times now has a more practical significance. The children recognize the relationship between the hymn and the icon. They identify Christ in the icon, seeing how He is literally raising Adam and Eve from their tombs. Since most children won’t be able to name each Old Testament figure in the icon, this becomes a talking point to explain how the prophets foretold a Messiah who would save His people. It also provides an opportunity to explain that Christ’s resurrection is a victory for us and makes our own salvation possible.

The workshop also includes a basic overview of music theory and Western notation. Using an oversized poster board, a copy of the music just sung, large foam notes, rests, and key signatures, they construct the first two measures of the hymn, beginning to see the relationship between each element: “This A relates to that B-flat, and it’s a quarter note, so we sing it like this, because….” Like the lines and colors used to create an icon, musical notation becomes the method through which the message of the liturgical texts is proclaimed. Form follows function, guiding our efforts to immerse children in music. They discover the underlying reason we use it in church—to help proclaim our beliefs and glorify God.

This practical exercise of placing notes on the board and assigning them to words is a tangible learning moment to explain how those who sing take the notes and text together, creating the language we use to proclaim our beliefs and glorify God—just as the board, brushes, and paint are used to create icons that visually represent what we believe. This relationship between music and text mirrors our role as participants in the liturgy. The priest can proclaim at the beginning of the liturgy, “Blessed is the Kingdom…,” but he needs our active participation and our voices to respond with “Amen.”

Breaks are taken during the workshop because children need a chance to run around. So, a deal is struck: “Please pay attention for another five minutes, and then we can have a break.” This provides an opportunity for oral instruction. The koinonikon for the Mother of God (“I will receive the cup of salvation and call on the name of the Lord.”) is then introduced in four steps: first half, second half, alleluia, and then all together. The children first hear the music and then echo what they have heard sung. In that short time, they learn that it is possible to pick up music simply by listening, and they can add their voices to the liturgy by paying attention to what is sung in church.

Then, the children get a break. It is very important to be honest with them, as they pay attention to what we say and what we promise. They learn better in an honest and loving environment. Twice more during the workshop, we revisit the koinonikon to reinforce the melody and words. At the end of the workshop, sheet music for this setting is included with the rest of the music sent home. Both children and parents briefly learn about and experience the oral transmission of music, which may help them transition to singing with the choir on a regular basis.

The support given by His Grace, Bishop Michael of New York, is visible in his attendance at least a portion of each workshop held in his diocese. He offers words of encouragement to the children, making his commitment to educating our youth very apparent. It is inspiring to see the reaction of the children when His Grace talks with each of them one-on-one; they reciprocate and want to sing for him to demonstrate what they have learned.

The venerable American archpriest and composer, Father Sergei Glagolev (born 1927, Gary, Indiana), once said, “If you want to know what the church teaches, come to church and listen to what we sing!” The stichera, the troparia, and all the liturgical music form the instruction of the church. Through the workshops, early exposure to this musical body of faith helps develop a foundation in children for them to grow into active participants in the liturgical life of the church.

More than ever, it is necessary for families to commit to teaching their children about the meaning of hymns they learn, to use the icons in the home that depict the saints being praised in song, and to emphasize that liturgical singing is the most beautiful offering of praise any Orthodox Christian—young or old—can make to God. With proper guidance and education and through the grace of the Holy Spirit, the church can raise up a new generation of worshipers both joyful and intent on serving God through music, continuing sacred liturgical traditions for many years to come.

The troparia and irmoi we sing or hear in church reinforce this idea by bringing the events of Christ’s earthly ministry and teachings vividly to life for us. The lives of the Theotokos and the saints are likewise woven into the sacred hymns, offering examples and inspiration that guide us to follow the church’s teachings.

In my view, it is essential for children to experience the divine services as active rather than passive encounters, and the hymns and icons help make this possible. This is equally important for parents to grasp: the liturgical services of the church are meant to assist each of us in drawing nearer to God. Whether by singing responses in church or reciting the texts at home, the feasts become integrated into our own lives and into the shared experience of the church community.

Children face many competing activities that pull them away from the peace found in a relationship with God. It is crucial that the hymns and icons of the church find a place in their lives, serving as a guide for growth and development. The ideas, format, and resources developed for the workshop used in the Diocese of New York and New Jersey can be adapted for other communities and parishes, helping more children discover the beauty of liturgy through singing and iconography. By making the hymns and icons familiar and relevant to their everyday lives, God may become present for these children and lead them toward salvation through the church.

We live in a world that emphasizes communication, with new technologies enabling constant connection. If we as Orthodox Christians want to raise our children in the Faith, we must also tap into the church’s timeless resources—icons and hymns, prayer and fasting—to support our efforts in strengthening our children’s bond with the church. The icons we venerate in church and at home allow God to become part of our families, and the hymns we sing express our love for Christ and His holy church.

We need to pray to God, asking Him to send the Holy Spirit to guide our work, especially in the lives of our children. And if we have faith in God, He may bless our collective efforts, inspire others to join us, and perhaps even usher in a new period of glory days for our parish choirs, all for the glory of His Name.

I want to close with a short video clip of the children—and their parents—singing Balakirev’s “The Angel Cried,” which we learned and practiced during the workshop held in March 2013. At the end of the workshop, the children asked to sing it one more time, this time with their parents. Before I begin the video, I want to note that this demonstrates what I believe is possible. None of these children sing in the choir regularly, nor do their parents. Apart from two ‘ringers’ who joined us to sing soprano in this clip, everyone else singing is a child or parent who attended the workshop. This is the result of their hard work to learn and perform this Paschal hymn.