User:Jpeashoes/Orans

Orans, a loanword from Medieval Latin orans ( Latin: [ˈoː.raːns]) translated as "one who is praying or pleading", also orant or orante, as well as lifting up holy hands, is a posture or bodily attitude of prayer, usually standing, with the elbows close to the sides of the body and with the hands outstretched sideways, palms up. The orans posture of prayer has a Scriptural basis in 1 Timothy 2:8: "I desire, then, that in every place the men should pray, lifting up holy hands without anger or argument" (NRSV). It was common in early Christianity and can frequently be seen in early Christian art, being advised by several early Church Fathers, who saw it as "the outline of the cross". In modern times, the orans position is still preserved in Oriental Orthodoxy, as when Coptic Christian believers pray the seven canonical hours of the Agpeya at fixed prayer times; the orans also occurs within parts of the Catholic, Oriental Orthodox, Eastern Orthodox, Lutheran, and Anglican liturgies, Pentecostal and charismatic worship, and the ascetical practices of some religious groups. Idea surrounding the feminine manifestation of the orans has also been used to argue the possible leadership roles of women in the church.

History
The biblical ordinance of lifting hands up in prayer was advised by many early Christian apologists, including Marcus Minucius Felix, Clement of Rome, Clement of Alexandria and Tertullian. Christians saw the position as representing the posture of Christ on the Cross; therefore, it was the favorite of early Christians. Some scholars also assert that the deference this pose exhibits—with the outstretched hands showing a sort of submission to a religious power—is intertwined with Roman ideas of pietas; this encapsulates notions of family values, civic honor and charitable behavior. Until the ninth century, the posture was sometimes adopted by entire congregations while celebrating the Eucharist. In Oriental Orthodoxy, Coptic Christian believers pray the seven canonical hours of the Agpeya at fixed prayer times in the orans position while standing. In Western Christianity, by the twelfth century, however, the joining of hands began to replace the orans posture as the preferred position for prayer.

Depictions in art
One piece of evidence toward the idea that orans was regarded as a symbol of the soul is an ancient lead medal in the Vatican Museum showing the martyr St. Lawrence, under torture, while his soul, in the form of a female orans, is just leaving the body. An arcosolium in the Ostrianum cemetery represents an orans with a petition for her intercession: Victoriæ Virgini … Pete … The Acts of St. Cecilia speaks of souls leaving the body like virgins: Vidit egredientes animas eorum de corporibus, quasi virgines de thalamo ("He saw their souls coming out of their bodies, like virgins from the chamber"), and so also the Acts of Sts. Peter and Marcellinus.

Other academic opinions, however, disagree with the metaphorical nature of the above theories; citing the large amount of female orans figures and their common characteristics, they argue that the prevalence of non-male figures indicates unacknowledged female leadership in the early church. While writings focusing female leaders is rare in early Christianity, scholars look to art to provide a more holistic picture; in particular, the large amount of women in the orans position in catacomb iconography leads some to propose the role of women in supervising the eucharist, implying the existence of female leadership in the church. This represents a less metaphorical lens than that of the feminine orans representing the soul as seen above.