Bell Ringing.

Every church has bells. They are placed either on the roof, in the turrets of the cupolas, or at the entrance above the porch, in the so-called “bell-chamber,” or else next to the church in specially erected structures called “belfries.” If the bell-chamber is made in the shape of a tall turret above the porch, it is also usually called a belfry.

The bells are used to call the faithful to divine service, to express the triumph of the Church, and to announce the principal acts of the service to those Christians who are not present at it, in order that they may join mentally in the common prayers of the worshippers. There are three ways of ringing the bells, according to the object for which they are rung:

1)      One bell is struck several times at short intervals. This is done before the beginning of the service, to announce that it is about to begin, and is called the toll. In the same way is announced the moment of the Liturgy when the Great Mystery is accomplished, and sometimes the reading of the Gospel in other services. Where there are many bells, different ones are used on different days, and then they have different names — such as the “feast bell,” the “Sunday bell,” the “weekday bell,” the “small bell.”

2)      Several bells are struck together three different times, in a “peal” (Russian, trezvón).This is usually done at the beginning of solemn services (the Liturgy, Vespers and Matins), after the single-stroke toll. On high feast-days the bells are rung in this way all day.

3)      Every bell is struck once in turn, and after having gone over all the bells in this way two or three times, they are struck all together. This is called a carillon, and is reserved for special occasions, such as the bringing out of the Cross and the Sepulcher on Holy Fridays and during processions.