Ecclesiastical award

In the Eastern Orthodox Church certain official awards and honours may be bestowed upon members of the clergy and laity.

When a bishop wishes to confer an ecclesiastical award or honor on a deacon or priest under his jurisdiction, this will normally be accomplished at the Little Entrance of the Divine Liturgy.

At the end of the Third Antiphon (normally the Beatitudes), the procession with the Gospel Book will halt at the bishop's cathedra (episcopal throne).

Awards differ according to the rank of the individual honored, and will vary among the ecclesiastical jurisdictions.

During the reign of Catherine the Great these awards came to be tied to the stipend which was paid to clergymen.

A Russian Orthodox priest who has been awarded the dignity of wearing a mitre .
Dmitry Medvedev receives the Order of St. Sava from the Serbian Orthodox Church .