Is the Presanctified Liturgy another version of the Divine Liturgy?
No. An essential element of a proper Divine Liturgy is the sacrifice of Jesus’ life; this sacrifice only occurs during the Eucharistic prayer. The Presanctified Liturgy was used on fast-days, when the Eucharistic Liturgy was considered too festive to celebrate. This service is basically a Liturgy of the Word (its first half is a Vespers), at which pre-consecrated Eucharist is distributed. Today our Church celebrates the Presanctified Liturgy in Lent; in the Latin Church it is celebrated only on Good Friday.
