Icon for the feast of the Ascension of the Lord. Iconography of the Ascension of the Lord in the Art of Byzantium and Ancient Russia

3. Is it possible to enter the temple with bags?
If there is a need, you can.

Only when a believer approaches Communion should the bag be put aside, since during Communion the hands are folded crosswise on the chest.

4. How many prostrations should be made before entering the temple and how to behave in the temple?
Before entering the temple, having previously crossed yourself, bow three times, looking at the image of the Savior, and pray for the first bow:
God, be merciful to me, a sinner.
To the second bow:
God, cleanse my sins and have mercy on me.
To the third:
I have sinned without number, Lord, forgive me.
Then do the same, entering the doors of the temple, bow on both sides, saying to yourself:
Forgive me brothers and sisters, stand reverently in one place, without pushing anyone, and listen to the words of the prayer.

5. How long do you need to be on duty?
Service must be upheld from beginning to end. Service is not a duty, but a sacrifice to God. Will it be pleasant for the owner of the house, to whom guests have come, if they leave before the end of the holiday?

6. M Is it possible to sit in the service if there is no strength to stand?
To this question St. Philaret of Moscow answered: "It is better to think about God while sitting than about standing feet." However, while reading the Gospel it is necessary to stand.

7. What is important in bowing and prayer?
Remember that the matter is not in words and bows, but in the raising of the mind and heart to God. You can say all the prayers and put down all the aforementioned bows, but not remember God at all. And, therefore, without praying - to fulfill prayer rule. Such prayer is a sin before God.

8. How to kiss icons correctly?
Lobyzaya St. the icon of the Savior, you should kiss the feet, the Mother of God and the saints - the hand, and the Image Not Made by Hands of the Savior and the head of John the Baptist - in the sacks.

9. What does the candle placed in front of the image symbolize?
A candle, like prosphora, is a bloodless sacrifice. Candle fire symbolizes eternity. In ancient times, in the Old Testament Church, a person who came to God sacrificed to him the inner fat and wool of a slain (killed) animal, which were placed on the altar of burnt offering. Now, when we come to the temple, we sacrifice not an animal, but a candle symbolically replacing it (preferably a wax one).

10. Does it matter what size candle you put in front of the image?
Everything depends not on the size of the candle, but on the sincerity of your heart and your capabilities. Even if a person is poor, and his heart burns with love for God and compassion for his neighbor, then his reverent standing and fervent prayer pleasing to God than the most expensive candle delivered with a cold heart.

11. What do the words "Amen" and "Hallelujah" mean in prayers?
"Amen" means "so be it". In Hebrew, the word "amen" is etymologically related to the words "firm", "reliable", "constant". The word "hallelujah" is translated from Hebrew as "praise the Lord." These words have passed almost unchanged into all translations of the Bible.

12. What moment is considered the end of the morning service?
The end, or completion, of the morning service is the exit of the priest with the Cross. This moment is called a break.

During the holidays, believers approach the Cross, kiss it and the priestly hand holding the Cross as its footstool. Moving away, you need to bow to the priest.

Pray to the Cross:

I believe, Lord, and I worship Your Honorable and Life-Giving Cross, as if on Him I made salvation in the midst of the Earth.

13. How to order a prayer service for memorial and thanksgiving?
A prayer service is ordered by submitting a note, drawn up accordingly. The rules for designing a custom prayer service are posted at the candle counter.

V different churches there are certain days when prayers are performed, including those blessed with water. At the prayer service for water, you can consecrate a cross, an icon, candles. At the end of the prayer service for water, believers with reverence and prayer take holy water and take it daily on an empty stomach.

14. How many times a year should you take communion?
The Monk Seraphim of Sarov commanded the Diveyevo sisters: “It is inadmissible to confess and commune during all fasts and, in addition, the twelfth and great holidays: the more often, the better - without tormenting yourself with the thought that you are unworthy, and you should not miss the opportunity to use grace as often as possible, bestowed by the communion of the Holy Mysteries of Christ.

The grace bestowed by communion is so great that no matter how unworthy and no matter how sinful a person is, but only in a humble consciousness of his great sinfulness will he come to the Lord, who redeems all of us, even from head to toe covered with ulcers of sins, then he will be cleansed by the grace of Christ, become more and more bright, completely enlightened and saved.

It is very good to receive communion both on the days of your name day and on birthdays, and for spouses on the day of their marriage.

15. What is unction?
No matter how carefully we try to remember and write down our sins, it may happen that a significant part of them will not be said at confession, some will be forgotten, and some are simply not realized and not noticed, due to our spiritual blindness.

In this case, the Church comes to the aid of the penitent with the sacrament of Unction, or, as it is often called, "unction." This sacrament is based on the instructions of the Apostle James, the head of the first Jerusalem Church: “Is any of you sick, let him call for the elders of the Church and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will heal the sick, and the Lord will raise him up; and if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven" (James 5:14-15).

Thus, in the sacrament of the Unction of the Unction, sins are forgiven us that are not said at confession due to ignorance or forgetfulness. And since sickness is a consequence of our sinful state, liberation from sin often leads to healing of the body.

16. How often should you visit the temple?
The duties of a Christian include attending the temple on Saturdays and Sundays, and always on holidays.

The establishment and observance of holidays is necessary for our salvation, they teach us the true Christian faith, excite and nourish in us, in our hearts, love, reverence and obedience to God.

But they also go to church to perform rites, rituals, in order to simply pray, when time and opportunities allow. Every visit to the temple for a Christian is a holiday, if the person is truly a believer. According to the teachings of the Church, when visiting the temple of God, there is a special blessing and success in all the good undertakings of a Christian. Therefore, it should be done so that at this moment there is peace in the soul and order in clothes. We don't just go to church. Having humbled ourselves, our soul and heart, we come to Christ. Precisely to Christ, who gives us the good in relation to us, which we must earn by our behavior and inner disposition.

17. What is a spiritual leader for?
In order to walk unerringly with his help and reach the Kingdom of Heaven, and for this it is necessary, mainly, in practice to fulfill the instructions, advice and instructions of the confessor, to spend one's life piously.

There were examples of how some people, having the opportunity to often visit the elder, constantly heard his instructions and instructions, lived with him and remained barren, and some, rarely having the opportunity to be with the elder and briefly hear the instructions, succeeded.

So, the strength lies not in visiting the spiritual father often, but in fulfilling his instructions and not being fruitless. When they teach their children to read and write, why do they send them to a school and hire teachers who would explain what is written in the books? They would give them only books and textbooks, and let them study on their own without teachers. And they do it to teach the sciences, for a few years, although the sciences are useful only in this short-term life. How is it that they so neglect the immortal soul, saying that a guide is not needed for spiritual life?

18. How should grief be handled?
Sorrows should be endured in secret, like any feat. Then we will not lose our reward in heaven. Only with a spiritual father can we talk about sorrows, asking for his advice, and pray to God to patiently endure any temptation.

19. How to overcome shame in confession?
To be ashamed in confession to reveal sins is from pride. Having reproved themselves before God in the presence of a confessor as a witness, people receive peace and forgiveness.

Remember that unrepentant heavy sins after death will bring great and eternal punishment. First of all, you should confess that which most disturbs your conscience. Many talk about the insignificant, but keep silent about the important and, thus, leave unhealed from sinful ulcers and unresolved.

20. What is the mortal sin?
A mortal sin is such a sin, because of which, if you do not repent of it before death, then you go to hell; but if you repent of this sin, it will immediately forgive you. It is called mortal because the soul dies from it and can come to life only from repentance.

21. How to deal with illness?
God sent sickness. Give thanks to the Lord, for everything that comes from the Lord is for good.

If you feel and see that you yourself are to blame, then start with repentance and pity before God that you did not save the gift of health given to you by Him. And then, nevertheless, reduce it to the fact that the disease is from the Lord, for every combination of circumstances is from the Lord and nothing happens by chance. E There are such illnesses, the healing of which the Lord sometimes imposes a ban, when He sees that illness is more necessary for salvation than health. And after this, thank the Lord again!

Illness humbles, softens the soul and relieves its usual heaviness from many worries.

22. How to overcome pride, anger, condemnation?
Anger and condemnation from pride. Seek humility - anger and condemnation will lag behind by themselves. Against anger - gritting your teeth to be silent. This is the first start.

The second - when it takes away - to retire a little, so as not to see the one that provokes anger. When the anger does not subside from this and you have to say nonsense and malfunctions, take a thicker rope and whip yourself, but only so that it is sensitive. Do this after every outburst of anger. This technique is also good against pride.

Against condemnation - rather remember your sins and keep them in front of your consciousness - and condemnation will depart. Fight in every way against these and other passions, driving away their very beginnings with prayer to the Lord.

23. If any questions arise
If you want to ask a priest something, first turn to him with the words: “Batiushka, bless!”, And then ask a question. When accepting the blessing, fold your palms crosswise (palms up, right to left) and kiss the right, blessing you, hand of the clergyman.

If the priest is not in the temple at the moment when you need to talk to him, then you can clarify when the priest will be there - go to the candle box and ask the question to the one who will stand behind him. If you have a question regarding a wedding, baptism or funeral service, then you can ask about it there.

Candle box (church box) - a place, usually at the entrance to the temple, where candles, icons, books, crosses and other items of external expression of faith are offered to believers. Behind the candle box, you can order prayers, panikhidas, christenings, funerals, weddings, commemorations of health and repose, and other rites.

24. How to deal with beggars who meet in front of the temple?
When you see the poor, remember first of all that Christ our Lord and the Holy Fathers teach and, one might say, ask us to give to the poor.

Doing good to others, everyone should remember that the Lord will not leave him. "Do you think that he who feeds Christ (that is, the poor)," says St. Augustine, "will not himself be fed by Christ?". After all, in the eyes of the Lord Himself, we should look, according to our sins, much more terrible and worthless than these unfortunate people living on alms.

We should not tempt (embarrass) ourselves with the idea that the beggars "earn" no less than we do, and sometimes they are dressed no worse. Everyone will be asked, first of all, for his deeds.

your business in this case- to show mercy, regardless of faces, with ease of heart. If you see that there are beggars in front of you, using all the means for drinking, lend them not with money, but with food: give an apple, cookies, sweets, bread, etc. When Saint Ambrose they asked why he gives to drunkards, he answered: to save them from another sin - theft.

25. Will the consecration of the apartment save from thieves, and the consecration of the car from the accident?
The consecration of an apartment, a car, an icon, a prayer is not pagan amulet, not a spell for trouble. This must be the change inner peace, in particular, the relationship to the thing that was consecrated, to God, to whom they turned with prayer.

The man sanctified the car and stopped smoking, swearing, and acting out on the road in it, he remembers that the Guardian Angel is with him from now on.

He consecrated his house - that means he made it his small church.

And if, after consecration, a person does not keep the shrine, then how will God keep it and him?

Or does he make God dependent on his whims: since I turned to You, are You obliged to keep me?

The Lord always wishes good to a person, and that is why sometimes, like a strict Father, he admonishes us, forcing us to think about life, the world, and Divine Providence.

26. How many times a day should you pray?
Mandatory for Orthodox Christians are morning and evening prayers, as well as prayers before and after the meal. On the eve of the day of communion, you need to read the Following to Holy Communion and three canons: the Penitent One (or Jesus the Sweetest), the Most Holy Theotokos and the Guardian Angel.

Beyond this, the prayer rule for each day must be individualized. It is necessary that it correspond to the forces of man and his life circumstances. It is unreasonable to take the rule beyond one's strength and capabilities. Then temptations may arise. The end result of this is despondency and relaxation.

27. How to apply to icons correctly?
It is customary to kiss the icons, that is, to kiss, applying to the images of hands, feet and clothes.

Thus, a Christian is called to exercise in humility and reverent attitude towards those depicted. It is impossible to kiss the faces on the icons.

28. How to choose a spiritual father?
There is no need to specifically look for or choose a spiritual father.

One day you will meet a priest with whom you will feel a spiritual connection. You will go to him for confession, ask him for advice in difficult times. life situations and one day ask to be your confessor.

If, however, such a connection did not arise with any of the priests, then there is no need to lose heart or undertake special searches. You just need to pray that the Lord would give a confessor and wait patiently.

29. How does Orthodoxy relate to various amulets and talismans, to folk signs?
All this Christianity regards as superstition, and nothing more.

Such superstitions sometimes so enslave a person that he can even fall ill. The great scholar Blaise Pascal wrote: "The unbelievers are the most gullible." And this gullibility prevents them from living calmly and with peace in their souls.

If the feeling is cold, and the thought runs away, then pronounce it with such a loudness that the ear, as it were, listens to the words. This is how attention is gathered “in hearing” and helps the integrity of prayer.

31. If faith is not enough - how to increase it?
Faith does not need to be "multiplyed" - try to live as the Gospel commands us, and this experience will help you treat God with greater trust, which is the essence of faith.

32. What is the correct way to address the temple staff?

It is difficult for a person who has crossed the church threshold for the first time to find a suitable appeal to his neighbor. Indeed, how to call a candlestick - "woman", "lady", "citizen"? How to address a priest - "sir", "sir", "comrade"? But there are no difficulties. Christians are one family where everyone is related to each other. Relatives do not need conventions. "Brother", "sister" - the best appeal to the laity. We are all children of the One God and descendants of Adam and Eve.

"Father" or "father" - this is how the priests are called as performers of the sacraments, through which people are born into spiritual life. Usually, after the words "father" a name is added, for example, "father Peter".

You can address a deacon as "father deacon", to the rector of a temple (monastery) "father rector".

In conversations Orthodox people the word "father" is often heard. It must be remembered that this word is used only when direct circulation to a person. It is impossible, for example, to say "Father Vladimir blessed me", this is illiterate.

It is not worth addressing the clergy as "holy father", as is customary in Catholic countries. The holiness of a person is known by his death.

The wives of the altar servers, as well as older women, we call the affectionate word "mother".

Hierarchs—bishops, metropolitans, Patriarchs—should be addressed as "Vladyka" as invested with ecclesiastical authority.

33. What about the children in the temple? Should they be brought to the temple?
Some people think so: he will grow up, then he will figure it out, he will understand. But this is not true: he will grow up and will not understand if you do not teach him! Bring your kids to church!

How should they behave there? Unfortunately, children often interfere with the service, prevent parishioners from praying. Parents should try to keep their children with them. Mothers should know how to take the baby so that he does not act up, but this must be done quietly, without embarrassing anyone. Everyone understands that a child is a child who finds it difficult to stand motionless for an hour and a half. But this must be taught.

To instill the skill to be in the service, to stand without being distracted, is the business of parents.

34. Arriving at the temple, who should put a candle in the first place and what should one pray for? Who and how many candles should be placed? Is it possible to light a candle for the health of oneself?
First of all, it’s good to put a candle about the health of your loved ones in the center of the temple, where on a lectern (a special table with an inclined surface) lies an icon of a holiday or a temple icon, as well as to the image of the Savior, the Mother of God.

For the repose of the dead, they put a candle to the cross on a rectangular candlestick (this is the eve). You can put a candle to any saint or saints. It is necessary to pray for the forgiveness of sins, to thank the Lord for His good deeds, to ask for help in existing needs.

There are no binding rules on where and how much to put candles. Their purchase is a small sacrifice to God, voluntary and not burdensome. A large and expensive candle is not at all more beneficial than a small one. It’s good to put a candle to the “holiday” (central lectern) or a revered temple icon, then to the relics of the saint (if they are in the temple), and only then - about health (to any icon) or repose (on the eve - square or rectangular crucifix table).

Well, you can, of course, put a candle on the health of yourself. Whoever does not pray for himself, the righteous will not help him either.

35. Is it necessary to kneel in the temple?
If the priest and all the worshipers kneel, then you must also get up.

In exceptional cases, when a person is sick (for example, he has sciatica or sore legs) or when it is very crowded in the temple, you can not kneel.

36. Why do they go around the temple with trays and collect money?
As you know, the Church in our country is separated from the state, so it must support itself.

Donations are used to support liturgical activities and various economic needs: payment of utility bills (electricity, gas, heating, water supply, etc.), for the restoration, restoration and maintenance of the church and adjacent premises, for the salary of clergy and church employees ( singers, candle-makers, cleaners, janitors, watchmen).

Funds received for christenings, weddings, funerals and notes also go to the numerous needs of the church community.

37. What do bows mean and what are they?
Realizing their sinfulness and unworthiness before God, as a sign of humility, prayer is accompanied by bows.

Bows are waist, when they bend to the waist, and earthly, when, bowing and kneeling, they touch the ground (floor) with their heads.

38. What does censing symbolize and how should one behave when censing a temple?
Liturgical censing is complete when it covers the entire church, and small when the altar, the iconostasis and the people from the pulpit are censed. When censing is done sacred objects- icons, a temple - it refers to God, giving Him due honor and glory. When the censer turns to people, this testifies that the Holy Spirit descends on all the faithful as bearing in themselves the image of God.

When a clergyman burns the temple, one must step aside so as not to interfere with him, and when burning the people, slightly bow his head. At the same time, one should not turn one's back to the altar - this is the mistake of many parishioners. You just need to turn around a little. You should not be baptized at this time.

39. What is a prayer service, memorial service, litany?
After the Liturgy, a moleben is usually served - a special service, during which they ask the Lord, the Mother of God and the saints to send down mercy or give thanks for receiving blessings. A prayer service can be a thanksgiving, for the sick, for travelers, and you can order it to the Savior, the Mother of God (to Her various icons) or saints. Can be ordered prayer service for water- in this case, a small consecration of water is performed, which is then distributed to believers.

Panikhida is a special divine service, consisting of prayers for the forgiveness of sins and repose in the Kingdom Heavenly shower deceased Orthodox Christians. A memorial service is served before the eve. Near the eve, on a special table, you can leave an offering in memory of deceased loved ones. Usually on the eve they put bread, cookies, sugar - everything that does not contradict fasting (as there may be a fast day). You can donate lamp oil, Cahors on the eve.

Litany is a Greek word and means "diligent prayer." Litany - a petition to the Lord, which is proclaimed by a priest or deacon during worship. During the Divine Liturgy, after the reading of the Gospel, litanies are celebrated, on which custom-made notes about health and repose are read. Each litany ends with a cry from the priest, glorifying the Most Holy Trinity.

40. How can you honor a person?
In addition to notes on one-day commemorations, churches and monasteries also accept notes on the daily commemoration of the living and deceased Christians for long periods: for a month, for 40 days (magpie), for six months, for a year, for several years.

A long commemoration can be “with a particle” (when every day during the entire period a particle is removed from the prosphora on the proskomedia) or “without a particle” (in this case, the names are recorded in the memorial synodic and the brethren of the temple or monastery during the specified period pray for each divine service these people).

Eternal commemoration lasts as long as the monastery exists.

41. What icons are placed in the center of the temple and how to apply to them correctly? Is it necessary to kiss the icon? Can you just touch your forehead for fear of infection?
In the center of the temple, on a lectern, an icon of the holiday is placed (if there is any religious holiday) or an icon depicting a saint whose memory is celebrated on this day. On other days, a temple icon lies on the analogion, that is, the icon of that holiday or saint, in whose honor the main altar of the temple is consecrated.

You should approach the icons slowly, without crowding, mentally saying a prayer (before the image of the Savior, you can say the Jesus prayer to yourself: “Lord, Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner.” Or briefly: “Lord, have mercy.” Before the icon Holy Mother of God can be pronounced a short prayer: "Most Holy Theotokos, save us." Before the icon of the saint: "Holy servant of God (name), pray to God for me (for us))".

You should cross yourself twice with a waist bow, then kiss the icon as a sign of love and veneration depicted on it. After that, cross yourself for the third time, bow and move away. The Savior depicted on the icon should kiss the feet, blessing the right hand (right hand), the edge of the clothes. The Mother of God and the saints have a hand or a hem of clothing, and the miraculous image of the Savior and the head of John the Baptist are in sackcloths.

If the icon depicts several saints, it is enough to venerate it once.

Kissing the holy icons and worshiping them testifies to love for those depicted on them - for God, the Mother of God and the saints. Through the veneration of holy icons, the blessing of God and the love of the holy saints of God are attracted to a person. No one ever gets infected through the shrine, on the contrary, numerous cases of healing from various ailments are known.

42. Is it possible to pray and light candles for animals?
Since God is the Creator of every creature, it is possible to pray for animals, but it is better to do this in home prayer. The prayer books have special prayers, which are read in case of illness and loss of livestock.

Animals have a soul that dies with the body. The human soul is immortal, since it was created in the image and likeness of God and received a gift from Him. eternal life. church candle has many deep spiritual meanings, one of which is evidence of a person's involvement in Divine light. Therefore, it is necessary to put candles for people, and not for animals.

43. What should (or can be) the position of the hands during prayer - in the temple, at home, etc.? Sometimes people hold their hands in front of them bent at the elbows and clasping their palms in prayer. Sometimes they fold their arms crosswise on their chest, putting the right on the left. Sometimes - in front of you, closing them "in the lock" just below chest level. Most people just keep their hands down.
The position of the hands during prayer is not important. The main thing in prayer is attention to the spoken words. The closure of the palms is more of a Western tradition, catholic church. In Orthodox churches, it is customary to keep your hands lowered, which is called "at the seams", raising your right hand to overshadow yourself sign of the cross.

In the practice of ancient ascetics, there is even a method of beating oneself in the chest with a hand, for, as it were, a purely exaltation of words, but this is a private practice. In a word: "Where it is simple, there are a hundred angels"!

44. How can an Orthodox Christian spend the weekend correctly?
It is the duty of every Christian to try to attend the Sunday Divine Liturgy.

After it, it is advisable to put idle affairs aside and give your soul time for spiritual nourishment, because Monday will come, and these pressing matters will pile up with great force. What is the best thing to do with yourself? Everything depends on the person himself. A person who is predisposed to solitude can light a lamp and engage in prayer or spiritual reading. One who is close to fellowship might be advised to spend the evening with good friends who are able to talk on spiritual topics. A workaholic can do physical labor. To a family man- to tidy up at home, of course, illuminating all your work with inner prayer, and a lonely person can find some kind of obedience in the temple, guided by a reasonable initiative.

In general, rest Orthodox Christian should not be idleness, because idleness is a sin. A Christian's rest should be useful, and by choosing such a rest, one can be sure that on a weekend spent in this way, a person will receive a spiritual charge for the entire upcoming work week.

45. What does the folded fingers of the hand of priestly blessing mean?
The priest blesses in the name of Christ, or rather Christ blesses through the priest or bishop.

Two fingers fold into the letter “X” and mean Christ, one finger (little finger) stands alone and means the Slavic letter “I” and means Jesus, the other two fingers fold crosswise and mean the Cross of the Lord. Therefore, the priestly blessing contains the name of Jesus Christ and the Cross of the Lord.

46. How do you deal with grief at the death of a loved one?
You don't have to burn. It is necessary to pray intensely for the deceased, and it will become easier - you will feel a connection with him. After all close person did not die, but moved to another, eternal world, for the immortal soul of man - from God, to God and leaves. This life is temporary and filled with various sorrows, and no one can avoid them. And a loved one has now got rid of all these earthly sorrows, and will live forever in another world, where "there is neither sickness nor sorrow, but endless life." The whole human race goes there - no one can stay here.

47. What icons to buy for the home? Can any icon be hung in the house?
Be sure to have at home the icons of the Savior and the Mother of God. In addition, there are many icons of God's saints. It is good to have at home an icon of a heavenly patron, that is, a saint whose name a person bears. It is better to buy icons in Orthodox church or in special church stores where they are already consecrated.

48. What is the use of taking prosphora and holy water?
If a person uses prosphora and holy water, then an unclean spirit does not approach him, the soul and body are sanctified, thoughts are illuminated to please God, and the person is more disposed to fasting, prayer and all virtue.

Not only Church Tradition, but also the personal experience of believers convinces of the miraculous effect of holy water. Descending into the water at the prayers of the priest God's grace grants her the power to heal sickness (whether headache or insomnia, irritation, or what is called a “stressful state”), quench passions and weaken emerging sinful inclinations, free from all evil, cleanse from filth. Any thing from the everyday life of an Orthodox Christian is consecrated with holy water.

But, of course, all this must be done with faith.

49. What if there is nowhere to put a candle?
You can and should put a candle on a candlestick if there is nowhere to put it. Those who put two candles in one cell or take off someone else's candle to put their own do it wrong.

50. Why doesn't God make all people good?
God gave people free will. If this freedom were devoid of real choice, then it would not be needed. People would never know what good is if they didn't know what evil is. This is the real value and beauty that a person chooses the Kingdom of God and His love voluntarily, although there are many temptations around him. After all, everything that is done by force is devoid of true joy and happiness.

51. Why do you need to confess?
And why do you need to wash off the bodily dirt? However, a person takes care of the body, which lives temporarily, but even more, he must take care of the soul, which will live forever.

The dirt of the soul is the sins that can be cleansed only at Confession. The accumulated sins and transgressions that have not been removed from the conscience (not only large, but also many small ones) burden it so that a person begins to feel inner unrest or emptiness. He can suddenly fall into irritation, into some kind of nervous breakdown, he does not have internal hardness. A person often does not understand the reason for everything that happens, but it lies in the fact that unconfessed sins lie on his conscience. Through Confession, the purity that was lost due to sins returns.

Confession is great God's grace to a weak and fall-prone humanity. This is a means available to all, which leads to the salvation of the soul, constantly falling into transgressions. Sincere confession brings a Christian not only forgiveness of sins, but also fullness spiritual health: restores peace of conscience and peace of mind, weakens bad inclinations and passions, keeps from new sins.

This Sacrament restores the state received in Baptism.

52. What is sin? How to destroy it? Are all people sinners?
Everything is a sin that offends the conscience and delights the flesh.

Sin is not a fact in a biography that can be lightly forgotten. Sin is a “black seal” that remains on the conscience until the end of days and is not washed away by anything except the Sacrament of Confession. Sin has a corrupting power that can cause a chain of subsequent, more serious sins.

These are the steps by which sin enters us: image, attention, interest, attraction, passion.

It's good not to be indebted to anyone. It is good to pay debts more often, otherwise they, having accumulated, become too large, burdensome, unpayable. So it is good to pay for sins - our debts to the Lord - as often as possible, repenting, confessing to the priest, and inwardly daily, hourly, constantly repenting before the Lord. The roots of sin are destroyed by the struggle with sinful thoughts and the repetition of confession even when thoughts begin to overcome.

Yes, all people sin a lot before God. Is not condemnation, vanity, idle talk, hostility, ridicule, obstinacy, laziness, irritability, anger - not constant companions human life? More serious crimes are also on the conscience of many: infanticide (abortion), adultery, turning to sorcerers and psychics, envy, theft, enmity, revenge and much more, making people sinners who are obliged to atone for their sins by repentance and good deeds.

53. Where to put last year's consecrated willow?
The consecrated willows are kept for a year as a sign of the all-pervading grace of God. Then the branches are burned (the ashes are not thrown into the trash, but buried in a place that is not trampled under foot or lowered into running water), replacing them with new ones, or they stuff a pillow with them, which they then put in a coffin under the head of the deceased Christian.

54. Are Repentance and Confession the Same?
Repentance is a sincere desire to change life according to the commandments of God, it is the most strict and captious self-criticism and self-assessment of all one's delusions, vices, passions - not only obvious, but also secret. Repentance requires that a person become a good example for others.

Confession is accusing oneself of sins before God with the testimony of a priest. True repentance consists not only in frankly confessing sins to the spiritual father, but also in not returning to them, in order to regret with a contrite heart about past sins, and not only regret, but also make amends for them with good deeds, the labors of repentance.

55. What days are weddings not held in the church?
According to the church charter, the Sacrament of the Wedding is not performed in the continuation multi-day posts(Great, Christmas, Petrov and Assumption), in the continuation of Christmas time - from January 7 to 20, at Shrovetide (the week before the start of Great Lent, starting from the Meat Week, and on the Cheese Week), on Bright Week (the week after the Easter holiday), on the days (and the day before) of the Beheading of John the Baptist (September 11) and the Exaltation of the Holy Cross (September 27), on the eve of the Twelfth, Great and Temple Feasts, as well as on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday of each week.

56. What does the words "Take up your cross and follow me" mean?
To take up one's cross means, with humility and humility, to submit to those temporary sorrows and calamities that the Lord is pleased to allow us to purify our sins. Taking up one's cross means voluntarily and with zeal to submit to hardships and exploits that curb the wordless aspirations of our flesh.

What lies on the surface and, it would seem, what can be lifted, like a dry autumn leaf from a lake surface, in fact turns out to be the tip of a multi-ton iceberg, going into the depths - into the depths of history, centuries-old traditions, social foundations and, of course, into the depths human souls and hearts.

After all, the fire of iconoclasm that blazed in the Orthodox East for almost a century during the VIII - early IX centuries. and which claimed thousands of lives, it also seems to have started with a trifle - they raised the icons a little higher so that the people would not get it, otherwise they cut off the paint and eat it instead of medicine.

You see dear brothers and sisters, with all my heart I do not want to Orthodox worship turned into a kind of ritual dance: he went in, crossed himself three times here, then three times here, then put three candles, then this, then that. And that's all. And a frightened trembling, so that God forbid not to break anything, not to cut off the invisible cobwebs stretched across the temple: go there - don’t go here, stop here, so turn around. And after all, there will be harsh inspectors, they will show everything to the smallest detail.

The result is a geometrically formal cage of some kind instead of a service, where the soul is driven into such a corner from which it is very difficult for it to get out, and it trembles frightened there, and you are afraid to take an extra step around the temple, because the stern inspectors are on the alert. You turn around and feel their hard gazes. Where is the love here? There is a Charter, there is etiquette, there are norms of behavior. But there is no love, only some kind of fear, and that's all.

As a result, a person is simply afraid to go to the temple, because he feels severity and incomprehensibility, but not love and mercy.

I will quote from a sermon by Metropolitan Anthony of Sourozh, which he said at a deacon's consecration in 1966: “The first deacons were appointed in order to be an expression of the merciful love of the Church. The Church is mercy; The Church is love and nothing else; if it becomes something else, it ceases to be the Church in its entirety. This love must be penetrating, it must be deep, it must be personal, concrete.”

Therefore, neither a bishop, nor a priest, nor a candlestick, nor a sexton has the right to obscure God from a person. After all, the Church and Orthodox worship are the communion of the soul with the living God. And nothing should stop it. Everything in the temple is obliged to contribute to this: holy icons, and bows, and incense, and incense, and singing, and reading prayers. Even the Sacraments of the Church themselves are means of grace, which are the perches of the ladder along which a person, with God's help, climbs to heaven. This should never be forgotten. And you can never make church charter or from the locally revered parish traditions of the finished idol. This is the deepest mistake, which, unfortunately, is very common ... All this is not an end in itself. This means is a boat for traveling through the heavenly spiritual water to the Almighty.

And from these positions it is necessary to approach the church service. The holy fathers also tell us about this. Let us recall the fourth act of the VII Ecumenical Council on the veneration of holy icons: "... so that with the help of picturesque images of them one could come to remembrance and remembrance of the archetype and become partakers of some kind of sanctification." This dogma says almost directly that holy icons are grace-filled means that visually, emotionally, artistically and, finally, spiritually help, through the impression of the eyes, to ascend to the prototype, i.e. to God, in order to be sanctified from Him, to become a partaker His light.

On this issue, I would like to say just that. Not to give a dry instruction, but rather a live feeling fluttering in the chest. It is necessary to find life in God, and not to get entangled in the web of external passages and signs.

Of course, there are certain rules that must be followed. So, for example, we should be baptized three times at the entrance to the temple in honor of the Holy Trinity. But this should not be a dry form, but our living confession of faith in the Holy Trinity - the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. It is with these thoughts, feelings and aspirations that we are baptized three times before entering the temple. Our next obligatory step is a temple image or an icon of the holiday on the central lectern of the church. Usually we are also baptized here three times with small or waist bows. According to tradition, twice before kissing the image, once after. V great post usually before the icon or the Crucifixion of Christ, bows to the ground are placed. But this, too, should not be a purely mechanical action. We need to clearly understand why we are doing this. The icon of a holiday is a symbol of the event that the Church lives on a given day or for a longer period of time. Usually a holiday, especially the twelfth, is an event that is the basis of the Divine plan for the salvation of mankind. Therefore, logically, mentally and spiritually, we should experience joy that through the kissing of the icon and the divine service we became partakers of the feast, partakers of our own salvation, accomplished by God. The temple icon of the saint on the central lectern is a symbol of the fact that this saint of God is in the church and is her heavenly patron. Therefore, kissing the temple image, we seem to greet our good friend, who lives in this house of God, and ask him prayer help and intercession before the Creator.

Where to put candles further, which icons to kiss or in front of which images to put earthly ones (we are baptized, then we touch the ground with our forehead, kneeling), or waist ones (we are baptized, then we take out with our fingers right hand floor), or small bows (we cross ourselves and slightly tilt our head and torso) is your own business. Usually candles are also placed behind the repose of the dead on a special metal table with many small candlesticks and the Crucifixion - eve (eve).

Of course, there are some restrictions if there is a service in the temple. It is advisable to come before the start of the service and put candles, kiss the icons, so that later you do not fuss, but concentrate as much as possible on the service, which is performed especially for us and should become a journey to God for the soul. Then our heart will become like a hollow vessel, into which the word of God is poured - all-cleansing and saving.

But the cases are different. I, for example, not yet being a priest, ran into the temple before work, where I was already walking Divine Liturgy, put candles, listened to the service for five to ten minutes, asking the Lord for blessings for the day. This church ruled daily.

If there is a service in the temple, and you came to put a candle out of your own need, try to be as inconspicuous as possible so as not to interfere with those praying.

I would also like to say a few words about situations when shrines, such as relics, are brought to the temple. Then there is a large gathering of people. If you see that there is a long queue, do not make unnecessary movements, for example, triple prostrations: they crossed themselves, kissed the holy relics and departed. After all, there are hundreds of people behind you who also want to venerate the shrine. Make a bow to the earth mentally, inside your heart, and you can pray to the saint, ask him for help in some of your business while standing in line or moving away from the reliquary with relics.

In a word, dear brothers and sisters, let us remember that our main task in the temple is to learn how to talk with the living God, and everything else should not hinder this, but help. And we must treat everything that happens in the temple correctly: not as an end in itself, but as a grace-filled necessary means that help to cultivate love for God and neighbor in our hearts.

As His Beatitude Metropolitan Vladimir (Sabodan) of Kiev and All Ukraine said: “The main thing in fasting is not to eat each other.” It is the same way in the church at worship, and in our everyday life, the main thing is not to eat each other, but to help each other: with God's help, ascend from degree to degree, uniting with the Lord and with our neighbor in the conciliar unity of brotherly love.

HOW TO CORRECTLY APPLY TO ICONS AND RELIGICS OF SAINTS

The word "icon" is translated from Greek as "image, image". Since the ancient Christians did not yet have canons of the image of the Savior, the Mother of God and the holy fathers, any image of Jesus Christ or Christian symbols in miniatures on stone, bone, wall paintings of the catacombs was considered an icon.

Kissing icons is a greeting and an expression of love to the one depicted on it. Believing in the omnipresent God, with which He also rewards the saints, we kiss the icon, not doubting that they immediately accept our love. The same thing happens with relics.

Going deep into the church, you should first venerate the main one, holiday icon(as a rule, she stands in the middle, decorated with fresh flowers), then to the most revered shrines of the temple and the Cross. Before that, you can purchase candles to put them on health and repose.

It is necessary to venerate icons, the Cross, the Holy Gospel, the relics as follows: When you approach the shrine, it is better to leave bags and packages under someone's supervision. You can't rush and push. Whoever approaches the shrine impatiently, he simply passes, and whoever with reverence and patience receives God's grace.

It is unacceptable to apply to the shrine with painted lips. Before applying, it is necessary to make two bows from the waist, while being baptized, and after - baptizing, one bow from the waist. If the saint has a priest who will anoint the believers, then the third bow (with the sign of the cross) should be performed not after kissing the shrine, but after accepting the anointing. When kissing the relics and icons, one cannot kiss the saints on the face.

The Church has its own, in secular language, etiquette. Rendering worship to God and the saints glorified by Him before holy icons, it is customary to kiss the icons, kissing the images of hands, feet and clothes. Thus, a Christian is called to realize his sinfulness and unworthiness to act otherwise, to practice humility and reverence for the depicted saints.

In the Patriarchal official of the middle of the 17th century, it was indicated that, when kissing the icons of the Savior, one should kiss on the leg (in the half-length image - on the handle); Mother of God and saints - in a pen; The miraculous image of the Savior and the icon of the Beheading of St. John the Baptist - in the hair.

The icon may depict several saints, but with in large numbers believers need to kiss the icon once, so as not to detain others and thereby violate piety in the temple.

Before the image of the Savior, you can say the Jesus Prayer to yourself: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner (sinner)”, or: “I have sinned without a number, Lord, have mercy on me.”

Before the icon of the Most Holy Theotokos, you can say next prayer: "Most Holy Theotokos, save us." Before the Honest Life-Giving Cross They read the prayer to Christ “We worship Your Cross, Vladyka, and Holy Sunday We praise yours, ” followed by a bow.

V Lately a new “tradition” arose to apply only to the frame of the icon, explaining this by its unworthiness. but this practice cannot be recognized as Orthodox, because it contradicts the church understanding of the essence of icon veneration. By doctrine Orthodox Church, the icon represents the Kingdom of Heaven - a world of light, joy and forgiveness. Focusing our attention on the dignity and greatness of the human vocation, it reminds us that a person can become a god by grace. That is why a Christian who kisses only the frame of an icon involuntarily repels the Forgiving Lord Himself..

It must be recalled that the heretic iconoclasts raised the icons so high that it was impossible to venerate the field. Christians who kiss the frame of an icon unwittingly support the heresy of iconoclasm.

It should also be said that one should not pay attention to the near-church prejudices about the possibility of infection when kissing shrines, the centuries-old history of the Church did not allow even militant atheists to use this “argument”. In the house of God, no one becomes infected by touching the holy things, taking Holy Communion on the contrary, it is cured of ailments. It has also been proven by science: there are no microbes on the icons.

Disgust is one of the manifestations of pride and is cured by time, especially since kissing icons is only a pious custom, an expression of quivering love, and not a duty.

Laudatory honoring is erected to the depicted face. Touching the shrine, we are able to move on to a living awareness of our own unworthiness and hope that its grace-filled power will cleanse from painful passions and give healing power. Through such actions, people testify to the majestic Orthodoxy.

No sanctification for the soul will be acquired by those who attach themselves to the icon without sincere faith: “These people draw near to Me with their lips, and honor Me with their tongue, but their heart is far from Me; but in vain do they worship Me, teaching doctrines, the commandments of men.” (Matthew 15:8-9).

Orthodox teaching has always perceived the image-icon as a shrine through which people can enter into mysterious communion with the saint depicted on it. The VII Ecumenical Council substantiated the veneration of icons: "The honor given to the image is elevated to the primitive, and the worshiper of the icon worships the essence depicted on it." By this dogma it is established to give icons "reverent worship" and only to the One God - Divine. Rev. Joseph Volotsky said: “Therefore, it is fitting for us to honor and worship the image of God on the icon, as He Himself, and not another.”

Worldly people often confuse an icon - an image indicating the connection of a person with God, with a portrait - an ordinary image of a human image. The Fathers of the 7th Ecumenical Council draw a clear line between these concepts: “An icon differs from a portrait in its content, and this content determines the language of the icon, its special forms of expression, which distinguish it from any other kind of images. Therefore, the flesh is drawn essentially different than the usual, perishable flesh of a person. Holiness is not implied or supplemented by our thought or imagination, it is obvious to bodily vision.

The icon, in its ideal, is sober, based on spiritual experience transmission of some spiritual reality. For example, the absence of directional lighting and shadows is characteristic, light creates all forms; a special, immaterial volume of figures and the whole composition; increased attention to the complex, diverse internal rhythm, linear and color.

Only grace is the reason for the holiness of the depicted face, it is also the opportunity to communicate with the saint. The icon directly participates in its holiness, through which we partake in prayerful communion.

The value of the icon in the temple is great. It organically merged with Divine Liturgy and Sacraments. At times Ecumenical Councils, The Church was clearly aware that the dogma of the Incarnation is affirmed in the sacred images.

An icon is a book about faith. Through the so-called "theology in colors" the experience of fathers and teachers is revealed Universal Church who have reached grace-free dispassion and communion with God. According to the church establishment, icon painters should be deeply pious people and have a special attitude towards the acquisition of Christian virtues.

The purer and higher the life of a believer, the more accessible to his soul the language of the icon. In our world, where there is a lot of sin and temptation all around, a glance at the image of saints can keep a person from evil.

About the veneration of the relics: “And after death, the saints act as if they were alive: they heal the sick, cast out demons and, by the power of the Lord, reflect all the evil influence of their tormenting dominion. For the miraculous grace of the Holy Spirit is always inherent in holy relics.

Rev. Ephraim Sirin