Ektenia (from ; literally, "diligence"), often called simply Litany, is a prayerful petition in the Eastern Orthodox/Eastern Catholic liturgy. The prevalent ecclesiastical word for this kind of litany in Greek is Συναπτή Synaptê, Ektenia being the Greek word preferred in Church Slavonic (ектенїѧ ekteniya). » For the use of litanies in the Western Churches, see Litany. A Litany is normally intoned by a deacon, with… (More on Ektenia)