The Chorus

The establishment of the Chorus and the Cantors

We have evidence about the use of interchangeable and dialectic choruses since the 4th C BC. We also learn from Philo (30 BC), that this form had been adopted by the Jewish Synagogue.
The council of Laodicea (~364 AD) was summoned to address various matters of church discipline, organization, and doctrine within the early Christian Church. The council aimed to establish guidelines and regulations for the conduct of clergy and the administration of sacraments, as well as to address issues related to liturgical practices.

Canon XV of the Council of Laodicea determined that, "NO others shall sing in the Church, save only the canonical singers, who go up into the ambo and sing from a book (parchments)." (Canon XV, Council of Laodicea)
«Περὶ τοῦ μὴ δεῖν πλὴν τῶν κανονικῶν ψαλτῶν, τῶν ἐπὶ τὸν ἄμβωνα ἀναβαινόντων καὶ ἀπὸ. διφθέρας ψαλλόντων, ἑτέρους τινὰς ψάλλειν ἐν ἐκκλησίᾳ» (Κανών ιε').Ultimately, the Church did not want believers to arbitrarily take it upon themselves to stand in the Church without the blessing of the local bishop to read or chant, in any self-styled manner, especially unsanctioned hymns that may promote the views of condemned heresies.

Back