From time to time during our church services we hear the words "LET US ATTEND!" … In ordinary language we might say "let us pay attention", "let us be attentive.’ These are ‘minor words" which are often repeated during our services but which can easily escape our attention. Strange, is it not, that the very words which urge us to be attentive should escape our attention. These are minor words but words of great meaning and responsibility.
Attentiveness is one of the important qualities even in our everyday life. From childhood we have been taught to pay attention – by parents, by teachers, by superiors. Yet it is not always easy to pay attention. Our minds tend to wander, to be forgetful. It is difficult to force oneself to be attentive. Church recognizes this weakness and so tells us every now and again "LET US ATTEND", let us pay attention, be attentive.
This text is excerpted from "Minor Words in Orthodox Divine Services," by Archpriest G. Benginson. For more of this excellent and edifying article, see:
http://www.stjohndc.org/Russian/liturgy/e_minor_words.htm.