What is the name of the part of the temple where in ancient times. What is a choir? Rules of behavior in the temple

Temple of God in its own way appearance different from other buildings. Very often the temple of God has the shape of a cross at its base, for by the Cross the Savior delivered us from the power of the devil. Often it is arranged in the form of a ship, symbolizing that the Church, like a ship, like Noah’s Ark, leads us across the sea of ​​life to a quiet harbor in the Kingdom of Heaven. Sometimes at the base there is a circle - a sign of eternity or an octagonal star, symbolizing that the Church, like a guiding star, shines in this world.

The temple building is usually topped with a dome representing the sky. The dome is crowned by a head on which a cross is placed - to the glory of the Head of the Church of Jesus Christ. Often, not one, but several chapters are placed on the temple: two chapters mean the two natures (Divine and human) in Jesus Christ, three chapters - the three Persons of the Holy Trinity, five chapters - Jesus Christ and the four evangelists, seven chapters - the seven sacraments and the seven Ecumenical Councils, nine chapters - nine ranks of angels, thirteen chapters - Jesus Christ and the twelve apostles, sometimes more chapters are built.

Above the entrance to the temple, and sometimes next to the temple, a bell tower or belfry is built, that is, a tower on which bells hang, used to call believers to prayer and to announce the most important parts of the service performed in the temple.

Orthodox Church According to its internal structure, it is divided into three parts: the altar, the middle temple and the vestibule. The altar symbolizes the Kingdom of Heaven. All the believers stand in the middle part. In the first centuries of Christianity, the catechumens stood in the narthex, who were just preparing for the sacrament of Baptism. Nowadays, people who have sinned grievously are sometimes sent to stand in the vestibule for correction. Also in the narthex you can buy candles, submit notes for remembrance, order a prayer service and memorial service, etc. In front of the entrance to the narthex there is an elevated area called the porch.

Christian churches are built with the altar facing east - towards the direction where the sun rises: the Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the invisible one shone to us Divine light, we call the “Sun of Truth”, which came “from the heights of the East”.

Each temple is dedicated to God, bearing a name in memory of one or another sacred event or saint of God. If there are several altars in it, then each of them is consecrated in memory of a special holiday or saint. Then all the altars, except the main one, are called chapels.

The most important part of the temple is the altar. The word “altar” itself means “exalted altar.” He usually settles on a hill. Here the clergy perform services and the main shrine is located - the throne on which the Lord Himself is mysteriously present and the sacrament of Communion of the Body and Blood of the Lord is performed. The throne is a specially consecrated table, dressed in two clothes: the lower one is made of white linen and the upper one is made of expensive colored fabric. There are sacred objects on the throne; only clergy can touch it.

The place behind the altar at the very eastern wall of the altar is called the mountain (elevated) place; it is usually made elevated.

To the left of the throne, in the northern part of the altar, there is another small table, also decorated on all sides with clothes. This is the altar on which gifts are prepared for the sacrament of Communion.

The altar is separated from the middle church by a special partition, which is lined with icons and is called an iconostasis. It has three gates. The medium ones, the largest ones, are called royal gates, because through them the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, the King of Glory, invisibly passes in the chalice with the Holy Gifts. No one is allowed to pass through these doors except clergy. The side doors - north and south - are also called deacon doors: most often deacons pass through them.

To the right of the royal doors is an icon of the Savior, to the left - the Mother of God, then - images of especially revered saints, and to the right of the Savior is usually a temple icon: it depicts a holiday or a saint in whose honor the temple was consecrated.

Icons are also placed along the walls of the temple in frames - icon cases, and lie on lecterns - special tables with an inclined lid.

The elevation in front of the iconostasis is called the solea, the middle of which - a semicircular protrusion in front of the royal doors - is called the pulpit. Here the deacon pronounces litanies and reads the Gospel, and the priest preaches from here. On the pulpit, Holy Communion is also given to believers.

Along the edges of the solea, near the walls, choirs are arranged for readers and choirs. Near the choirs, banners or icons on silk cloth are placed, hung on gilded poles and looking like banners. As church banners, they are carried out by believers during religious processions. IN cathedrals, as well as on bishop's ministry In the middle of the church there is also a bishop's pulpit, on which the bishops vest and stand at the beginning of the liturgy, during prayers and during some other church services.

According to the teachings of the Church, the entire visible material world is a symbolic reflection of the invisible, spiritual world.

Temple -is an image of the presence of the Kingdom of Heaven on earth, and, accordingly, it is an image of the palace of the King of Heaven.

Temple -there is also an image Universal Church , its basic principles and structure.

Temple symbolism explains to believers the essence of the temple as the beginning of the future Kingdom of Heaven, puts it in front of them image of this kingdom, using visible architectural forms and by means of pictorial decoration in order to make accessible to our senses the image of the invisible, the heavenly, the divine.

Like any building, christian temple had to satisfy the purposes for which it was intended and have premises:

• for clergy who performed divine services,
• for the praying faithful, that is, already baptized Christians;
• for the catechumens (i.e., those just preparing to be baptized), and the repentant.

More detailed description internal structure of temples:

The altar is the most important part of the temple, intended for the clergy and the persons who serve them during worship. The altar represents the image of Paradise, spiritual world, the divine side in the Universe, denotes heaven, the dwelling of the Lord Himself.
“Heaven on Earth” is another name for the altar.

Due to the especially sacred significance of the altar, it always inspires mysterious reverence and upon entering it, believers must bow to the ground, and persons of military rank must remove their weapons.

The most important items in the altar: Holy See , altar And high place .

Iconostasis(, dotted line) - a partition or wall separating the central part of the temple from the altar, having several rows of icons on it.
In Greek and ancient Russian churches there were no high iconostases; the altars were separated from the middle part of the temple by a low lattice and curtain. However, over time, altar barriers have undergone significant development. The meaning of the process of gradual transformation of the altar grille into a modern iconostasis is that from about the V-VII centuries. altar barrier-lattice, which was symbol of the separation of God and the Divine from all created things, gradually turns into symbol-image of the Heavenly Church headed by its Founder - the Lord Jesus Christ.
The iconostases began to rise; several tiers or rows of icons appeared in them, each of which has its own meaning.
The middle doors of the iconostasis are called the Royal Doors, and the side doors are called the northern and southern ones. The iconostasis faces its front side, with the icons, to the west, towards the worshipers, towards the middle part of the temple, called the church. With the altar, churches are usually directed towards the east, in commemoration of the idea that the Church and the worshipers are directed towards the “East from above”, i.e. to Christ.

The holy images of the iconostasis cover the altar from the believers, and this means that a person cannot always communicate with God directly and directly. It pleased God to place between himself and the people a host of his chosen and illustrious intermediaries.

The iconostasis is arranged as follows. In its central part are the Royal Doors - double-leaf, especially decorated doors located opposite the throne. They are called so because through them the King of Glory, the Lord Jesus Christ, comes forth in the Holy Gifts to administer the sacrament to people during entrances with the Gospel and at the great entrance for the liturgy in the proposed, but not yet transubstantiated, Holy Gifts.

During the service in the iconostasis, the Royal (Main, central) gates open, giving believers the opportunity to contemplate the shrine of the altar - the throne and everything that happens in the altar.
On Easter week all altar doors are constantly open for seven days.
In addition, the Royal Doors, as a rule, are not made solid, but lattice or carved, so that when the curtain of these gates is pulled back, believers can partially see inside the altar even at such a sacred moment as the transubstantiation of the Holy Gifts.

Sacristy- storage of sacred vessels, liturgical clothes and liturgical books, incense, candles, wine and prosphora for the next service and other items necessary for worship. If the altar of the temple is small and there are no chapels, the sacristy is located in any other convenient place in the temple. At the same time, they still try to arrange storage facilities in the right, southern part of the church, and in the altar near south wall Usually a table is placed on which vestments prepared for the next service are placed.

Spiritually, the sacristy first of all symbolizes that mysterious heavenly treasury from which flow various grace-filled gifts of God necessary for the salvation and spiritual adornment of Christians.

Middle part of the temple, sometimes called the nave (ship), is intended for the prayer of the faithful or those who have already been baptized, who, upon receiving the divine Grace poured out in the Sacraments, become redeemed, sanctified, partakers of the Kingdom of God. In this part of the temple there is a solea, pulpit, choir and iconostasis.

It is the middle part that is called the temple itself. This part of the temple, since ancient times called the refectory, since the Eucharist is eaten here, also symbolizes the realm of earthly existence, the created, sensory world, the world of people, but already justified, sanctified, deified.

If the divine principle is placed in the altar, then in the middle part of the temple - the human principle entering into the closest communion with God. And if the altar received the meaning of the supreme sky, “Heaven of Heaven,” where only God dwells with the heavenly ranks, then the middle part of the temple means a particle of the future renewed world, a new heaven and new land in the proper sense, and both of these parts enter into interaction in which the first enlightens and guides the second. With this attitude, the order of the Universe, disrupted by sin, is restored.

With such a relationship between the meanings of the parts of the temple, the altar from the very beginning had to be separated from the middle part, for God is completely different and separated from His creation, and from the very first times of Christianity such separation was strictly observed. Moreover, it was established by the Savior Himself, who deigned to accomplish last supper not in the living rooms of the house, not together with the owners, but in a special, specially prepared room

The elevation of the altar from antiquity has been preserved to this day.

Solea- the elevated part of the temple in front of the iconostasis, like a continuation of the altar, extending beyond the iconostasis. The name comes from Greek language and means “seat” or elevation. Unlike our time, in ancient times the solea was very narrow.

Pulpit- a semicircular ledge in the middle of the solea, opposite the royal doors, facing the inside of the temple, to the west. On the throne inside the altar, the greatest sacrament of transforming bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ is performed, and on the pulpit or from the pulpit the sacrament of Communion with these Holy Gifts of believers is performed, and litanies, the Gospel are read, and sermons are delivered. The greatness of the sacrament of Communion also requires the elevation of the place from which the sacrament is given, and likens this place in some degree to the throne within the altar.

There is an amazing meaning hidden in such an elevation device.
In fact, the Altar does not end with a barrier - the iconostasis. He comes out from under him and from him to the people, giving everyone the opportunity to understand that everything that happens in the altar is done for the people standing in the temple.

This means that the altar is separated from those praying not because they are less than the clergy, who in themselves are just as earthly as everyone else, worthy of being in the altar, but in order to show people in external images truths about God, heavenly and earthly life and the order of their relationships. The internal throne (in the altar) seems to pass into the external throne (on the table), equalizing everyone before God.

The final side places are soles, intended for readers and singers.
Banners are attached to the choirs, i.e. icons on poles, called church banners.
The choirs symbolize the singing of angels praising the Glory of God.

The porch is the entrance to the temple. In the first centuries of Christianity, penitents and catechumens stood here, i.e. persons preparing for Holy Baptism.
In the narthex, as a rule, there is a church box - a place for selling candles, prosphora, crosses, icons and other church items, registering baptisms and weddings. In the narthex stand people who have received appropriate penance (punishment) from their confessor, as well as people who, for one reason or another, consider themselves unworthy of given time go to the middle part of the temple. Therefore, even today the porch retains not only its spiritual and symbolic, but also its spiritual and practical significance.

porch
The entrance to the narthex from the street is usually arranged in the form of a porch.

The porch called the area in front entrance doors temple, which is reached by several steps.
The porch is an image of the spiritual elevation on which the Church is located among the surrounding world.

The porch is the first elevation of the temple.
The Solea, where there are selected readers and singers from the laity, depicting the militant Church and the angelic faces, is the second elevation.
The throne on which the sacrament of the Bloodless Sacrifice is performed in communion with God is the third elevation.

All three elevations correspond to the three main stages of a person’s spiritual path to God:

• the first is the beginning of spiritual life, the very entrance into it;
• the second is the feat of warfare against sin for the salvation of the soul in God, which lasts the entire life of a Christian;
• the third is eternal life in the Kingdom of Heaven in constant communion with God.

The altar part of the temple. Photo: www.nesterov-cerkov.ru

Altar. The third, eastern part of the church is called the altar. This part of the temple symbolizes heaven, spiritual sky and symbolizes the place where the Lord is. This is the main part in the church and the place where all the clergy and subdeacons and readers can enter. Men who have received the blessing of the rector of the temple or bishop can also enter the altar.

Altar. Photo:www.hram-feodosy.kiev.ua

Women are strictly prohibited from entering the altar. In ancient times this may have included female deaconesses. These are women who trained women catechumens. In the altar, clergy perform divine services and services. The Orthodox church is covered with church frescoes depicting scenes from the life of Jesus Christ, the Virgin Mary and saints. In addition, frescoes can depict images of God the Father, the Son of God, Holy Trinity, Mother of God, saints, etc.

Holy See. Photo:www.hram-feodosy.kiev.ua

Holy See. In the center of the altar is the Holy See. This is the main shrine of every church, this is a special place, a place where God resides. The Holy See is a table covered with beautiful brocade fabric. Under each church altar there is a piece of the relics of a saint. The placement of a particle of the saint’s relics dates back to the times when Christians were persecuted in the first three centuries; they performed divine services in the catacombs on the tombs of their dead brothers in faith. The placement of a particle of the saint’s relics in the altar is mandatory, and without it not a single divine service can be performed in the church.

Holy See. Photo:www.azbyka.ru

There are also mobile Holy Altars, the so-called traveling altars. They are used, for example, where it is not possible to build a church, in missionary activities, when the church has not yet been built, but it is necessary to perform the Holy Mysteries, during military operations, long expeditions...

At the Holy See, priests usually perform the Liturgy. Holy Communion is being prepared on the altar.

Liturgical objects located on the Holy See. Photo:www.hram-feodosy.kiev.ua

The following liturgical objects are located on the Holy See: cross with which the priest blesses the faithful, St. Gospel, antimens– illuminated fabric depicting the burial of Jesus Christ. Inside the antimins there is another fabric called oriton. In addition to oriton there is also anti-mise sponge. With it, randomly falling particles of sacramental bread are collected on the iliton after the preparation of the Holy Gifts. In the iliton there is a particle from the relics of a saint, a martyr saint.

Tabernacle. Photo:www.yapokrov.ru

Tabernacle. Here, too, there is a lamp, two candlesticks with one candle each, which are located on the right and left sides of the throne, and a tabernacle. The tabernacle is shaped like a small church or tomb.

Alavaster or myrrh. St. Miro is kept in alavastra and is located near the tabernacle.

Mirnitsa.Photo:www.yapokrov.ru

Monstrance. The tabernacle is designed to preserve the Holy Gifts for sick Orthodox Christians and the monstrance. The priest brings it home and gives communion to seriously ill, difficult to move and immobile parishioners who are physically unable to come to the temple themselves and receive the Holy Gifts.

Monstrance.Photo:www.yapokrov.ru

Seven-branched candlestick. Behind the throne is the seven-branched candlestick - a candlestick on a high stand with seven candles. In ancient Orthodox Church there was no seven-branched candlestick in the church altar. In ancient times, only two candles were lit on the throne. They symbolize the two natures of the Son of God - divine and human. He later appeared in Orthodox houses of worship. Today it is a mandatory liturgical item in the altar in the church. The roots of the seven-branched candlestick in the Orthodox church go back to the Old Testament Jewish temple.

Seven-branched candlestick. Photo:www.yapokrov.ru

The seven-branched candlestick has more than one symbol. We learn about its symbols from last book New Testament - Revelation, written by St. John the Evangelists. From this holy book we learn that the simis candlestick symbolizes the seven spirits of God, seven Orthodox church sacraments, seven churches, seven bowls of the wrath of God, seven thunders, seven seals of the mysterious book, seven angelic trumpets.

Altar cross and altar cross. Photo:www.yapokrov.ru

Altar cross. Near the seven-branched candlestick there is also an altar cross with the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ. It's big wooden cross with the image of the Savior crucified on the cross.

Altar. In addition to the altar, there is an altar in the Holy of Holies in the Orthodox prayer house. It is located on the left, northern side of the throne. The altar is also called a proposal or protisot. In size, it is almost identical to the throne and has the same height as the throne. In the first centuries of the construction of Orthodox churches, the altar was not located in the altar. It was later moved to the altar.

Altar. Photo:www.azbyka.ru

The altar contains the following sacred objects: Holy Chalice or St. Chalice. This is the Sacred Cup into which water and wine are poured. The Holy Chalice is a symbol of the Blood of Jesus Christ. Paten- This is a flat, round, disc-shaped metal vessel. Bread for Holy Communion is placed on it. The communion bread symbolizes the Body of the Son of God. Copy- This is a metal stick, similar to a small knife, with the help of which particles are removed from the sacramental bread during Proskomedia. The symbol of the spear is the spear with which the crucified Savior was pierced. Zvezditsa- these are two arcs connected at the top by a cross. It serves when the paten with the removed particles of the sacramental bread is covered with coverings. Therefore, a star is placed between the paten and the covers so that the particles do not touch the covers. A metal cup for warm water called heat. Liar for Communion. This spoon is used for the laity in the temple. Air- this is a quadrangular fabric measuring seventy by seventy centimeters, Pokrovtsy- fabrics that have a cross shape, sponge and so on. Proskomedia, the first part of the Liturgy, is celebrated on the altar.

The altar contains other liturgical objects, such as censer or censer, dikiriy, trikirium And two ripids.

Dikiriy is a candlestick with two candles that symbolize the two natures of Our Lord Jesus Christ - human and divine. Respectively, trikirium is a candlestick with three candles, symbolizing the three Persons of the Holy Trinity. They are used by metropolitans and the patriarch when they serve in a church with a local priest and bless parishioners with them.

Dikiriy, triky and ripida. Photo:www.azbyka.ru

Ripida- a metal circle on a long pole. In the early centuries of Christianity, they were made from peacock feathers and served to drive away insects from the Holy Communion. Currently they have spiritual symbolism. They symbolize the presence of angelic powers over the Body and Blood of Christ.

Censer.Photo by Ilya Svinkovsky, www.foma.rukadilo.html

Sacristy. There is also a sacristy in the altar. It is located on the right side of the throne. This is the place where clergy dress and the liturgical clothes of priests, deacons and subdeacons are preserved. Also, here will be saved church utensils And liturgical books. In Bulgarian churches, especially in ancient churches, the sacristy is most often an ordinary wardrobe. In small and rural houses of God in Bulgaria, the sacristy “serves” as a table on which liturgical vestments lie.

A high place with a bishop's throne. Photo:www.simvol-veri.ru

Mountain place. The place between the altar and the eastern wall of the altar is called the High Place. It has “entered” the altar since ancient times. This is an elevated place behind the throne, where in ancient times the archbishop’s chair was located - the bishop’s throne. Today this throne in Bulgarian Orthodox churches is located in the naos.

Materials used

3.“Establishment of an Orthodox Church.”- http://berezniki.cerkov.ru/ustrojstvo-pravoslavnogo-xrama/

4. Makariopolski bishop dr Nicholas and the Archimandrite Dr. Seraphim, "Temple"- http://www.pravmladeji.org/node/36

5. "Altar and church utensils", Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Balkanabat (Turkmenistan) - http://www.balkanabat.prihod.ru/

6. From a book "Temple. Rituals. Divine services", website of Holy Trinity Orthodox school- http://www.holytrinitymission.org/index.php

Master of Divinity

P An Orthodox church is divided into three parts: the vestibule, the church itself (the middle part) and the altar.

IN narthex Previously, there were those who were preparing for baptism and those who repented, temporarily excommunicated from communion. The vestibules in monastery churches were often also used as refectories.

Myself temple intended directly for believers.

The main part of the temple is altar, the place is holy, so the uninitiated are not allowed to enter it. The altar means the sky where God dwells, and the temple means the earth. The most important place at the altar - throne- a specially consecrated quadrangular table, decorated with two materials: the lower one - white linen and the upper one - brocade. It is believed that Christ himself is invisibly present on the throne and therefore only priests can touch it. On the throne there is always an antimension, the altar Gospel, a cross, a tabernacle, and a monstrance. rising in the middle of it.

Antimens- the main sacred object of the temple. This is a silk cloth consecrated by the bishop with the image of the position of Christ in the tomb and with a sewn-in particle of the relics of a saint. In the first centuries of Christianity, the service (liturgy) was always performed at the tombs of martyrs over their relics. The service cannot be performed without an antimension. It is not for nothing that the word antimins itself is translated from Greek as “in place of the throne.” Usually the antimension is wrapped in another cloth - iliton, reminiscent of the bandage on the head of Christ in the tomb.

Tabernacle- This is a box in the shape of a small church. The holy gifts for the communion of the sick are kept here. And the priest goes to their house for communion with the monstrance.

The place behind the throne near the eastern wall is specially made a little elevated, called “ mountainous place” and is considered the holiest place even on the altar. A large seven-branched candlestick and a large altar cross are traditionally located here.

On the altar, behind the altar barrier (iconostasis) near the northern wall, there is a special table called altar. This is where the bread and wine for communion are prepared. For their ceremonial preparation during the rite of proskomedia, the following are located on the altar: chalice- a holy cup into which wine and water are poured (symbol of the blood of Christ); paten- a dish on a stand for the sacramental bread (symbol of the body of Christ); star- two arcs connected by a cross so that they can be placed on the paten and the cover does not touch the particles of the prosphora (the star is a symbol of the star of Bethlehem); copy- a sharp stick for removing particles from prosphora (symbol of the spear that pierced Christ on the cross); liar- spoon for communion of believers; sponge for wiping blood vessels. The prepared communion bread is covered with a cover. Small covers are called integuments, and the largest ones are called air.

In addition, behind the altar barrier are stored: censer, dikiriy(double candlestick) and trikirium(three-branched candlestick) and ripids(metal circles-fans on the handles, which deacons blow over the gifts when consecrating them).

Separates the altar from the rest of the temple iconostasis. True, some part of the altar is located in front of the iconostasis. They call her salty(Greek “elevation in the middle of the temple”), and its middle solea - pulpit(Greek: “I rise”). From the pulpit, the priest pronounces the most significant words during the service. The pulpit is symbolically very significant. This is also the mountain from which Christ preached; and the Bethlehem cave where he was born; and the stone from which the angel announced to the women about the ascension of Christ. Along the edges of the salts near the walls of the temple they arrange choirs- places for singers and readers. The very name of the kliros comes from the name of the singer-priests “kliroshans”, that is, singers from the clergy, clergy (Greek: “lot, allotment”). At the very choirs they usually place banners- icons on fabric, attached to long poles in the form of banners. They are worn during religious processions.

Consists of porch, middle part And altar.

Narthex- This is the western part of the temple. To enter it, you need to climb the steps to an elevated platform - porch. In ancient times, the catechumens stood in the vestibule (this is the name given to those preparing to receive baptism). In more late times the vestibule became the place where, according to the charter, betrothals, lithiums during all-night vigil, the rite of announcement, the prayer of the mothers in labor is read on the fortieth day. The narthex is also called the meal, since in ancient times love suppers were held in this part, and later meals after the liturgy.

From the vestibule a passage leads to middle part, where worshipers are located during worship.

The altar is usually separated from the middle part of the temple iconostasis. The iconostasis consists of many icons. To the right of the royal gates is an icon Savior, left - Mother of God. To the right of the image of the Savior is usually temple icon, that is, an icon of a holiday or saint to whom the temple is dedicated. On the side doors of the iconostasis are depicted the Archangels, or the first deacons Stephen and Philip, or the high priest Aaron and Moses. An icon is placed above the royal doors Last Supper. The complete iconostasis has five rows. The first is called local: in addition to the icons of the Savior and the Mother of God, it usually contains a temple icon and locally revered images. Located above local festive row of icons: here are the icons of the main church holidays. The next row is called deisis, which means “prayer.” In its center is the icon of the Savior Almighty, to the right of it is the image of the Mother of God, to the left is the Prophet, Forerunner and Baptist John. They are depicted facing the Savior, standing before Him in prayer (hence the name of the series). The images of the Mother of God and the Forerunner are followed by icons of the holy apostles (therefore, another name for this series is apostolic). Saints and Archangels are sometimes depicted in the deisis. In the fourth row are icons of saints prophets, in the fifth - saints forefathers, that is, the ancestors of the Savior according to the flesh. The iconostasis is crowned with a cross.

The iconostasis is an image of the fullness of the Kingdom of Heaven, at the Throne of God Mother of God, Heavenly Powers and all the saints.

Altar- a special, holy, important place. The altar is the holy of holies of an Orthodox church. There is a throne on which the Sacrament of Holy Communion is performed.

Altar- this is an image of the Kingdom of Heaven, a mountainous, exalted place. There are usually three doors leading to the altar. The central ones are called royal gates. They are opened in special, most important and solemn places of service: for example, when the priest carries through the royal doors the cup with the Holy Gifts, in which the King of Glory, the Lord Himself, is present. There are side doors on the left and right of the altar barrier. They are called deacons, since clergymen, called deacons.

Altar translates as high altar. And indeed the altar is located higher than the middle part of the temple. The main part of the altar is on which during Divine Liturgy A bloodless sacrifice is performed. This sacred action also called the Eucharist, or the Sacrament of Communion. We'll talk about it later.

Inside the throne are the relics of saints, for in ancient times, in the first centuries, Christians celebrated the Eucharist at the tombs of holy martyrs. On the throne is antimens- a silk board depicting the position of the Savior in the tomb. Antimens translated from Greek means instead of the throne, since it also contains a piece of holy relics and the Eucharist is celebrated on it. At the antimension, in some exceptional cases (for example, during a military campaign), the Sacrament of Communion can be performed when there is no throne. Stands on the throne tabernacle, usually made in the form of a temple. It contains spare Holy Gifts for giving communion to the sick at home and in the hospital. Also on the throne - monstrance, in it the priests carry the Holy Gifts when they go to give communion to the sick. On the throne is located Gospel(it is read during worship) and cross. Immediately behind the throne stands seven-branched candlestick- a large candlestick with seven lamps. The seven-branched candlestick was still in the Old Testament temple.

Behind the throne with east side located high place, which symbolically marks the heavenly throne or chair of the eternal High Priest - Jesus Christ. Therefore, an icon of the Savior is placed on the wall above the high place. They usually stand in the highest place altarpiece of the Virgin Mary And grand cross. They are used to wear during religious processions.

In those churches where the bishop serves, there are stands on stands behind the throne. dikiriy And trikirium- candlesticks with two and three candles, with which the bishop blesses the people.

In the northern part of the altar (if you look directly at the iconostasis), to the left of the throne, - altar. It resembles a throne, but smaller. The Gifts are prepared on the altar - bread and wine for the Divine Liturgy. There are sacred vessels and objects on it: Bowl(or chalice), paten(round metal dish on a stand), star(two metal arcs connected to each other crosswise), copy(spear-shaped knife), liar(communion spoon) Pokrovtsy for covering the Holy Gifts (there are three of them; one of them, large and rectangular in shape, is called air). Also on the altar there is a ladle for pouring wine and warm water (heat) into the cup and metal plates for particles taken from the prosphora.

The purpose of sacred vessels will be discussed in detail later.

Another altar item - censer. This is a metal cup on chains with a lid topped with a cross. Coal and incense or incense(fragrant resin). The censer is used to burn incense during the service. The incense smoke symbolizes the grace of the Holy Spirit. Also, the incense smoke rising upward reminds us that our prayers should ascend upward to God, like the smoke of a censer.