The Dismissal
According to St Nicholas Cabasilas, at the Dismissal the priest asks God to save us in His mercy, since we have nothing to show worthy of salvation on our own. We thus entrust God to save us in his loving kindness.
After the dismissal, the priest distributes to those who did not receive the Holy Communion the Antidoron, i.e. pieces of blessed bread. This reminds us of the love-feasts of the primitive Church. It is also given 'instead of the Gifts' (i.e. the Holy Communion). Of course in no case is the Antidoron a substitute for the 'Gift', it is rather a giving of 'spiritual comfort' to those who did not manage to participate in the Sacrament. The Antidoron is not only God's gift to the faithful but also a generous gift of our Most-Holy Mother of God. This is so because the Antidoron comes from the offered prosphora, which in reality symbolize our glorious Lady.
Finally the priest asks God to have mercy upon the faithful and save them 'through the prayers' of the Church Triumphant and the Church Militant.
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