The worship of our Church encompasses all five human senses, because we believe that just as we know other human beings through all of our senses, we come to know God also through all of our senses. But this is primarily rooted in the confession of our Faith that Jesus Christ became flesh for us, becoming a human being who participated in life through his five senses and worshiped His Father through His own five sense, sanctifying the whole human body and soul. The words, music, and flow of the service is intended to touch the heart and bring a person to a true knowledge of God, not a fleeting emotional experience. Indeed, one of the most striking things to many modern Christians accustomed to contemporary music in worship is how resistant Orthodoxy is to “modern/contemporary” music in worship. The reason is that nearly all of that music is designed to create an emotional experience, tailored to the individual, and as such it can never truly transform a person. Music that is designed to give us this kind of experience does not challenge us as Christians. To have an emotional experience does not mean one knows God. Perhaps more importantly, to not have an emotional experience does not mean that one does not know God! Worship is about going deep into your heart, to what is real and genuine. Relationships must be genuine. Worship in our Church is about having a genuine relationship with God.
From the very earliest time, the Bible has been the foundation and content of this worship of the Church throughout.
Additional Resources:
The roots of Christian worship from an Orthodox perspective – Fr. Thomas Hopko