Section 3. On various symbolic actions used during worship

Contents About various symbolic actions used during worship Conversation No. 1. About church rituals as a means to the grace-filled sanctification and salvation of a Christian Conversation No. 2. About liturgical and prayer rituals Conversation No. 3. About the priestly blessing Conversation No. 4. About the sign of the cross Conversation No. 5. About the Christian custom of wearing the holy cross on the chest Conversation No. 6. About bowing the head during divine services Conversation No. 7. About falling prostrate during prayer Conversation No. 8. About turning to the east in prayer and exposing the head Conversation No. 9. About raising and washing hands. Conversation No. 10. About standing during prayer. Conversation No. 11. About kneeling. Conversation No. 12. About bows. Appendix to conversation No. 12. About bowing at the liturgy. When and how to make these bows? Conversation No. 13. About the pious custom of kissing holy icons Conversation No. 14. About burning incense Appendix to conversation No. 14. Incense Conversation No. 15. About lighting wax candles in the church. Appendix to conversation No. 15. Material for church candles, according to the teachings of the holy and God-bearing fathers of the Church Conversation No. 16. About counterfeit candles brought to the church of God as a sacrifice displeasing to God Conversation No. 17. About the custom of lighting lamps in front of icons Conversation No. 18. About the incentives to perform religious processions Appendix to Conversation No. 18. About behavior during the religious procession Conversation No. 19. About the meaning of opening and closing the curtain on the royal doors Conversation No. 20. About the opening and closing of the royal doors On various symbolic actions used during worship Conversation No. 1. About church rituals as a means to the grace-filled sanctification and salvation of a Christian I. At the present time, among the Orthodox Russian people, both in its educated classes and among ordinary people, a false opinion, inspired to us from the West, is noticeably spreading that every Christian can receive grace-filled sanctification and salvation directly from God, without the mediation of sacred rites and church rites. Guided by such a perverse conviction, many of the indigenous Russian people, in the proud consciousness of their imaginary spirituality, either completely alienate themselves from their Mother - the Orthodox Church, forming their own unauthorized meetings for public prayer, as do the Khlysty, Skoptsy, Molokans, Stundists - or, outwardly belonging to the Church, treat the orders and orders established in it by God coldly and indifferently, without giving them strength and significance in the matter of grace-filled communication with God. II. What madness is it to reject the visible order of church improvement and imagine the Church, existing on earth and consisting of visible members, as some kind of invisible, mental, illusory institution? a) Think about how our Lord Jesus Christ accomplished our salvation? Is it in one spiritual and mental way? No, He, the One of the Holy Trinity, deigned for our salvation to accept our spiritual-physical nature, lived on earth as a man, communicated His grace through visible means, through the laying on of hands, through touching His clothes, and was gracious in expressing faith and love before Him through the material anointing of His body with myrrh. He showed us a model of prayer and during prayer He Himself used external rituals, such as kneeling, falling face down on the ground, raising one’s eyes to heaven. For the sake of our salvation, Jesus Christ really, and not illustriously, suffered, died, rose again and ascended to heaven. In a word, having opened the path of salvation for us, Christ walked this path in a bodily manner, for “in Him,” as the holy Apostle says, “dwells all the fullness of the Divinity bodily” (Col. 2:9). Can we, His followers, choose for ourselves a path of salvation different from that indicated by Christ, some kind of mental one, alienated from reality! This extravagant desire for spirituality will lead to nothing but unbridledness, disorder and immorality, as is clearly revealed in the crowds of heretics who reject the leadership of the Church. Having acquired for us the grace of salvation through His life and suffering, Jesus Christ established His Church on earth in a visible way. He Himself established in it the hierarchy and the Sacraments, in which the invisible grace of God is communicated through material means. Thus, the grace of our rebirth, according to the institution of Christ, is given through the immersion of the body of the baptized person in water, - the grace of the mysterious union with Christ is communicated through the partaking of His Body and Blood under the guise of bread and wine. And all other sacred ceremonies and ceremonies of the church, established by the holy apostles, originate from Christ Himself and serve as necessary, according to the nature of our spiritual-bodily nature, means for the acceptance of invisible grace-filled Gifts and for awakening the spirit of prayer in us. What do those who wisely reject all the well-established sacred rites of the Church do? They strip the Church, the Bride of Christ, of the external splendor with which Christ Himself adorned her. They tear apart the richly woven robe of Christ, from which for us, as once for the bleeding woman, comes the gracious power of sanctification and salvation. b) And that indeed in the Church of Christ the grace of God has always poured out abundantly through external means, this is evidenced by numerous examples of miraculous signs recorded on the pages of church history that occurred at different times, for example: from the Life-giving Cross, from the robe of the Savior, the Mother of God, from miraculous relics and, finally, from oil, water and other sacred objects consecrated according to the rites of the Church, revered by Orthodox Christians with faith and fervent prayer. c) We also know from church history that all the great saints of God, filled with the Gifts of the Holy Spirit, did not shy away from the divinely established order of the church and showed the grace given to them from above through the visible medium of sacred rites and church rites. Here is an example from the life of Saint Alexy, Metropolitan of Moscow. The Tatar Khan Amurat, hearing about the miracles of Saint Alexy performed by his prayer, sent to Moscow a demand that this saint of God come to the horde and heal his blind wife Taidula. Out of his humility, considering it beyond his strength, Saint Alexy refused to go - however, at the strong request of the prince, for the good of the Fatherland, he decided to fulfill the khan’s demand. What does the saint do? Before leaving, he performs a prayer service in the Assumption Cathedral before the relics of St. Peter, during which the candle lights itself and serves as a sign of God's favor. Having arrived in the Tatar capital with this candle, the saint again performs a prayer service over the sick woman with the blessing of water, at which he lights the candle, prays earnestly and sprinkles the sick woman with water. Miraculous help was not slow to appear: the queen suddenly received her sight and the saint, gifted by the khan, brings his favor to our entire Fatherland by asking him for relief from his difficult lot. III. Beware, brethren, that in judging the divinely established orders of the church no one leads you astray by empty deception according to human tradition, according to the elements of the world, and not according to Christ (Col. 2:8). (Compiled from the book “The Path of Faith and Piety” by Archpriest S. Modestov). Conversation No. 2. About liturgical and prayer rituals I. Of the church rites, some are performed by sacred persons to teach those praying the grace of the Holy Spirit or for their edification in the faith, others are performed by both sacred persons and laity - to express Christian thoughts and feelings. The first can be called rites of worship itself, the latter - prayerful. II. a) Liturgical rites include: 1) Blessing by hand, in which the fingers of the blessing hand are folded so as to form the main letters of the name of Jesus Christ: IS XC. The priest blesses with one right hand, and the bishop, in the image of Christ (Luke 24:50), with both. 2) The laying on of hands, taken from the examples of Jacob (Gen.48:13–19), Jesus Christ (Mk.10:16; 5:23) and the apostles (Acts 6:6; 13:3), is used in Baptism, Repentance and Priesthood; at the same time, the priest, in addition to his hand, puts on the epitrachelion, and the bishop puts on the omophorion. 3) Overshadowing with a cross, Gospel, candle or icon is also a type of blessing. The bishop's overshadowing with trikiriy and dikiriy depicts the appearance of the light of the Holy Trinity, or the light of Christ - the God-Man. 4) Breathing, taken from the example of Jesus Christ (John 20.22), is now used in the rite of catechumen, as a symbol of casting out an unclean spirit. 5) Washing of hands, taken from the Jewish Church, inspires to maintain the purity of the soul, reminiscent of Jesus Christ washing the feet of the apostles and the washing of hands by Pilate before condemning the Lord to death. 6) Anointing with sacred oil is a symbol of peace with God, spiritual joy and healing grace. 7) Hair cutting, taken from the Jewish Nazarenes (Judges 13:5; Acts 18:18), is a symbol of slavish service to Christ. 8) Ceremony is a symbol of grace that drives away demons (Tov.8:2-3), means both the Glory of God (1 Kings 8:10) and the lifting of our prayers to Heaven (Ps.141:2). 9) The opening of the Royal Doors and the removal of the veil signify both the clearest revelation of the Mysteries of God and the appearance of Jesus Christ to people. 10) Mutual kissing, which in ancient times was observed during the liturgy among all those praying, is now observed during the liturgy only between concelebrants, and among the laity only on Easter; it is a sign of mutual Christian love. b) Prayer rituals include: 1) Sign of the Cross, in which the first three fingers (fingers) folded together mean the Holy Trinity; the other two, bent to the palm, represent the Son of God in two natures, as well as His descent to earth; movement of the hand depicting the Cross of Christ: application of fingers to the forehead, chest and shoulders - sanctification of the mind, heart and actions. 2) Bows, if made by us in response to the overshadowing of the cross or the Gospel, mean gratitude; if connected with prayer, it means petition. Prostrations to the ground during Lent are called throwings, because they express feelings of repentance (μετανο ί α). 3) Kneeling is a symbol of repentance, humility and submission to God. 4) Falling on your face - comparing yourself to the dust of the earth. 5) By bowing the head when reading the Gospel, attention is expressed, when transferring the Holy Gifts - reverence, when reading the prayer of bowing - submission to the Hand of God. 6) Lighting candles signifies the fervor of prayers, purity of heart, spiritual light and joy, and if a candle is lit from our zeal, then it is a sacrifice to God. 7) Wearing a cross on the chest of every Christian from the day of Baptism until death, as a sign of his Christian title. 8) Processions of the cross, as solemn processions in the presentation of holy icons and banners of clergy and people either around the church, or to well-known, specific places for offering prayers to the Lord. (See “Liturgy” by Archpriest L. Petrov). III. These, brethren, are the liturgical and prayer rituals used in the Orthodox Church, the meaning of which we will explain in the following conversations. Conversation No. 3. About the priestly blessing “The blessing of the Lord is upon you! We bless you in the Name of the Lord" (Ps. 129:8)! I. It is known that during a service in a church, a priest often blesses those present and those praying; just as he gives his blessing outside the church to anyone who wishes, who comes to him, or leaves, or to whom he himself comes. Where do we get such a ritual of blessing, and what does this priestly blessing mean? II. It should be noted that some rites of Christian worship go back to the times of the Old Testament. Among these rites is the rite of priestly blessing. a) The Lord Himself, through Moses, commanded Aaron the high priest and his sons the priests to bless the people, and indicated special sayings for this: “So bless the children of Israel, saying to them: May the Lord bless you and keep you! May the Lord look upon you with His bright Face and have mercy on you! May the Lord turn His Face towards you and give you peace!” (Numbers 6:23–26) - this is God’s command. As can be seen from this and as the Holy Fathers and teachers of the Church affirm, the essence of the priestly blessing of the Old Testament consisted: 1) in the fact that the Most Holy Name of Jehovah (the Lord) was invoked three times, and 2) in the fact that the protecting favor of God, the merciful love of God and the heavenly peace from God were asked for the children of Israel. According to the understanding of the Holy Fathers and teachers of the Church, in the threefold invocation here of the Name “Jehovah” (Lord) one should see a hidden indication of the Mystery of the Holy Trinity, just as the Holy Trinity is confessed and invoked in the blessing of the New Testament priests, for example: “In the Name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.” And the very content of the Old Testament blessing resembles the blessing given by the Holy Apostle Paul to the Corinthians (2 Cor. 13:13) and taught to us by the shepherds of the Church: “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God and the Father, and the communion of the Holy Spirit, be with you all.” The most ancient scientists and the newest researchers of antiquity say that the Old Testament priests, calling on the Name of God three times, conveyed to this Name special shades of pronunciation and various accents in their voices; the very external rite was performed in this way: since, according to legend, this blessing was pronounced daily, at the end of the established divine service or sacrifice, then the bishop or priest who performed the sequence of services, standing on the steps of that part of the temple that led to the sanctuary and was called the vestibule, raised or raised his hands (Lev. 9:22) - the bishop with his shoulders equal, and the priest above his shoulders - and proclaimed sayings prescribed for blessing, while folding the fingers of the hands so that the thumb and forefinger were connected, and the two small ones were separated from the others or inclined to indicate the Name of Jehovah 1. However, in addition to blessings during worship, blessings were also given to private individuals (1 Samuel 2:20). As for the power of the priestly blessing, the Lord Himself indicated it and testified to it. Investing the priests with the authority to bless the people, He adds: “So let them call on My name on the children of Israel, and I will bless them” (Num. 6:27); Consequently, the priests, through their blessing, taught the blessing of God to the worthy. And in the book of Leviticus we read: “And Aaron lifted up his hands, turning to the people, and blessed them... Moses and Aaron... went out and blessed the people. And the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people: and fire came out from the Lord and burned the burnt offering and the fat on the altar” (Lev.9:22-24). It should be noted that the right to teach such a blessing to the whole people belonged only to the priesthood or priests - persons chosen by God and having special power granted by God for this; Only kings blessed the people on special, extraordinary occasions, but this was because they were God’s anointed. b) This Old Testament blessing for us, the sons of the New Testament Church, received power and meaning from the time when our Savior Himself, the Lord Jesus Christ, on the Mount of Olives, on the day of His Ascension into heaven, raised His hands and blessed the disciples (Luke 24:50). Imitating their Chief Shepherd, Christian shepherds began to raise their hands, teach blessings to people and consecrate things with blessings. And since the shepherds act with the authority and Name of Jesus Christ, they began to fold their fingers for blessing so that in their very folding the Name of Jesus Christ was depicted; began, in the likeness of the Old Testament priests, to place the Name of the Lord on the sons of the new Israel and to bless the people of the Lord in His Name (Sir. 45:19), namely: just as in the Old Testament blessing the Name of Jehovah (the Lord) was depicted by folding the priestly fingers, so the New Testament priests began to extend the index finger and bend the large middle one, so that the letter I is depicted first, and the second is the letter C, and thus the name Jesus is drawn under the title IC, the large finger began to be placed across the smaller middle one, so that the letter X is depicted, and the last small one is bent, which means the letter C, and so the name Christ is created under the title XC. We Orthodox Christians are reminded in everything of the holy and saving name of Jesus Christ. Catholic priests and Lutheran pastors continue to fold their fingers when blessing, following the example of the Old Testament. With his hand folded in a name, the Orthodox priest elevates grief, and it is worthy of note that he not only elevates grief in the likeness of the Old Testament priests, but with the outline of a cross. Why? It is clear why: all the power of blessing and sanctification is imparted to us by the cross, for through the Cross Jesus Christ accomplished our salvation, through the Cross and the death of the Lord Jesus on the Cross we became worthy of grace-filled blessings, and the love of God, crucified on the Cross, from the Cross gives them to us. Making the sign of the cross over the people, the priest sometimes wishes them peace, saying, following the example of Jesus Christ: “Peace to you” or: “Peace to all,” sometimes he calls upon the believers the blessing of God: “The blessing of the Lord be upon you, through His grace and love for mankind,” sometimes he wishes salvation and blessings from God: “Save, O God, Thy people and bless Thy inheritance,” sometimes the mercies of Christ: “And may there be the mercies of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ.” with all of you"; sometimes he calls upon the people the grace of God the Son, the love of God the Father and the Communion or Communion of the Holy Spirit: “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God and the Father, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all,” sometimes it signifies the power of the Holy Trinity: “In the Name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.” c) What is the difference between the sign of the cross, performed by the laity, and the priestly blessing? The ordinary sign of the cross is the duty of all Christians and expresses the prayerful invocation of the Lord crucified on the Cross; The priestly blessing is closely connected with the grace of the priesthood and shows a special power to teach sanctification to others. This is how the Ecumenical Councils and the Holy Fathers explain it (6th Ecumenical Council, rule 27; Basil the Great, rule 27). Therefore, in the visible image of the cross there is a difference for laity and priests: for the laity, the Church indicated one simple folding of the fingers into the sign of the Holy Trinity, and for the priests she assigned a special symbolic folding of the fingers with the letter image of the Name of Jesus Christ. d) What power does the blessing of the shepherd of the Church of Christ have? If the Father’s blessing establishes the homes of children (Sir. 3:9), then all the stronger is the blessing of the priest, the servant of Christ and the builder of the Mysteries of God, who has received the power to bring down blessings on the believers from the Greatest Bishop Himself, who has passed through the Heavens of our Lord Jesus Christ. If through the blessing of the Old Testament priest the blessing of God was taught, then isn’t the blessing of the New Testament priest all the more powerful? It brings down the grace and peace of God upon those who receive it with dignity and faith. Jesus Christ Himself, sending His disciples to preach, commands them with the words: “Peace to this house,” to greet the house into which they will enter to preach, and at the same time notes: “If the house is worthy, then your peace will come upon it” (Matthew 10:12–13). And we see that the holy apostles in their Epistles usually and, first of all, teach Christians their welcoming blessing, sometimes ending the Epistle with the same thing. Consequently, the blessing of the shepherds of the Church, who received from Jesus Christ Himself through the apostles and in the person of the apostles the grace and power of the priesthood, is not powerless. And if the greatest miracle - the transubstantiation of bread and wine - is performed through the cruciform blessing of the priest, then the latter, of course, is not powerless in matters of less importance. Therefore, from ancient times, the people longed to receive a blessing from the priest; kings and princes humbly bowed their heads and kissed the blessing hand of the servant of God. III. Thus, the blessing of the bishop and priest should, brethren, be accepted with faith that it, and as given from the God-given authority and grace of the priesthood, is the blessing of Jesus Christ Himself, through Whom and in Whom we receive grace, mercy and peace. (Compiled from “Sunday Reading” for 1889, No. 18). Conversation No. 4. About the sign of the cross I. The sign of the cross is a sign by which believers in Christ, God's chosen ones, are distinguished from unbelievers - from non-Christians. God showed various signs to people, and they all have important and deep meaning. In the Old Testament we find that God placed the sign of rejection on the fratricide Cain. And on the face of the wonderful Moses he placed a sign of His highest favor: the rays of heavenly light, as a sign of this favor, on the face of Moses were visible to everyone, although unbearable to the eye. And from the prophet we read: “And the Lord said to him: go through the middle of the city, in the middle of Jerusalem, and make a sign on the foreheads of the mourning people, who sigh over all the abominations that are being committed in its midst.” And he said: “Go... through the city and smite... the old man, the young man and the maiden, and the child and the women, beat them to death, but do not touch a single person who has a mark [sign], and begin at My sanctuary” (Ezek. 9:4-6). Likewise, the New Testament prophet says: “And I saw... An angel rising from the east of the sun and having the seal [sign, sign] of the Living God; and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels to whom it was given to harm the earth and the sea, saying: Do not harm the earth, nor the sea, nor the trees, until we put a seal [sign, sign] on the foreheads of the servants of our God” (Rev. 7:2-3). Thus we see here a sign of God and His servants; but Scripture also indicates that those who are deceived by the beast have their own sign, their own mark (Rev. 13:16). Further, God Himself chose a sign for His entire people as proof of His favor, His love. When He made a covenant with Abraham, He gave him circumcision as a sign of this. This, therefore, was an Old Testament sign - a sign of the grace of God, without which it was impossible to belong to the people of Israel, since by this sign the Jewish people differed from all other peoples and pagans. II. a) But just as circumcision was a sign of the Old Testament, so the cross is a sign of the New Testament. This sign is the sign of our redemption, without which we cannot receive salvation. Therefore, when a newborn child is brought into church, the priest “signifies his forehead, mouth and chest,” saying: “Let the cross of the Only Begotten Son of God be signified in his (or her) heart and thoughts.” From that time on, this sign is indelibly and in the most internal way associated with the newly enlightened Christian, inscribed on him, so to speak, with the flame of Divine love. The young Christian receives a sign that he is a servant of Christ; the cross on his forehead serves as a distinctive sign of his Christian title. Just as the Destroying Angel in Egypt passed by those doors of the Israelites on which the sign was made with the blood of the Passover lamb, so they remain pardoned by the Angel of God’s wrath, on whose foreheads there is the sign of the True Lamb of God, Who redeemed us with His Blood, and who never leave this sign of the cross. b) The sign of the cross is a sign of our salvation. According to the teachings of Saint Cyril of Jerusalem: “the sign of the cross is a great protection given to the poor as a gift and to the weak without labor; this is the grace of God, a sign for the faithful and fear for evil spirits.” “By marking ourselves with the cross, we commit ourselves to the guidance of our Lord and protect ourselves with a shield from the machinations hostile to us.” The sign of the cross, says St. John Chrysostom, both in ancient and modern times took away the power of harmful substances, invalidated poisons and healed the mortal remorse of animals. Let's turn to sacred history. The people of Israel once fought with the Amalekites. Moses, its leader, prayed during the battle and in prayerful outpouring of his heart before God stretched out his hands to heaven. As long as his hands remained outstretched, victory was on the side of the Israelites; when he gave up from fatigue, the advantage was on the side of the enemies. Therefore, two husbands came up to him and supported his hands. The solution to this apparent riddle is given to us by Saint Cyprian, who says that the Israelites were victorious because the outstretched hand served as an image of the cross. Thus, it means that the cross produced a saving effect long before the redemption of the world took place on it. Therefore, during prayer, we make the sign of the cross, hoping to receive what we ask for. The sign of the cross sanctifies all our actions, distinguishes them from the ordinary and indifferent and places them at the height of deeds pleasing to God. Therefore, it is necessary to use the sign of the cross as often and more carefully as possible in dangers, in temptations, in grief and joy, in work and prayer. The power and effectiveness of the sign of the cross is further evident from the fact that the Orthodox Church uses it with all its blessings and sacraments. By the sign of the cross, a Christian is introduced and received into the Church in the sacrament of Baptism; in the sacrament of Confirmation, he receives grace that increases and strengthens him in faith and spiritual life; receives remission of sins in the sacrament of Repentance; with the use of the sign of the cross, all other sacraments are taught to it. The sign of the cross sanctifies the water with which believers and their homes are sprinkled, through it all other things are removed from ordinary use, and with it, finally, in the hands of a Christian, the Christian is escorted to the grave. Everywhere we look, we meet in Christianity the sign of the Holy Cross. c) The sign of the cross is a sign of victory. History tells us about the following miraculous event. When Emperor Constantine was fighting with Maxentius, the son of Emperor Maximian, at about noon, walking at the head of his army, he noticed a brilliant cross in the clear sky, in the middle of which the words “with this you will win” were written in light letters. The whole army saw this miracle; but no one was so deeply struck by it as Constantine himself, and he spent the whole day thinking about the meaning of this sign. The next night, during his sleep, the Lord Jesus Christ Himself appeared to him with the same sign and commanded him to make himself a military banner according to this model and wear it in battles, as protection from enemies. The next morning, the emperor called the master and ordered him to make a banner according to a visible model. Encouraged by this vision, Constantine did not hesitate any longer, but gave the enemies a battle, in which Maxentius was defeated and, in flight, fell into the Tiber River and drowned. As here, so often in other cases, the cross contributed to victory, especially spiritual. By the cross the saints conquered their flesh and the world; They performed miracles with the cross. Here are some examples. The holy Bishop Julian made many enemies for himself in the person of the zealots of idolatry, who did not like the Christian life, piety and Christian zeal of the archpastor, and so they, planning to get rid of Julian, through a bribed slave, brought him a drink poisoned with poison in a cup. The saint knew about the conspiracy, and he knew the conspirators; placing the cup in front of him, he ordered to call to him all the citizens who participated in the evil intent. When they arrived, the righteous man said: “If you want to kill the humble Julian with poison, behold, I will drink this cup before you.” Then he crossed the cup three times and, saying: “In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,” drank the poison and remained unharmed. The horror-stricken villains fell at Julian’s feet and begged him to forgive them (Limonar, chapter 3). And here, brethren, is an example from the life of our Russian patriarch, St. Hermogenes. One of the Polish nobles, in the troubled time of impostors, attacked Hermogenes with a dagger; but as soon as the saint protected him with the sign of the cross with the words: “may the power of the cross be upon you,” the dagger fell from the villain’s hands, and he no longer dared to touch the man of God. III. Resort, brethren, more often to the sign of the cross - to this God-given means of saving yourself from great temptations. Where there is a cross, there can be no temptation, because there is no devil there: demons are afraid of the cross. Create the cross only on yourself with attention, reverence and faith in the saving power of Christ’s merits on the cross. How many carelessly cross themselves! Others cross themselves hastily, carelessly and incorrectly, without any reverence; This cannot be done, brethren: by this we humiliate the Cross of Christ, according to the word of the Apostle, and our destruction will not rest for this; such a sign will not bring us any benefit, but will only anger the Lord. Cross yourself, brothers, with reverence, slowly, placing your fingers on your forehead, on your chest, on your right and left shoulders, and then bowing. Then the sign of the cross will protect you from the devil’s bow (Ps. 59:6), keep you unharmed from his fiery arrows (Eph. 6:16) and bring you closer to the Lord Savior. “With boldness, brothers, let us depict with our hands the sign of the cross on our foreheads and on everything: on the bread that we eat, on the cups from which we drink; let us portray him at entrances, at exits, when we go to bed and get up, when we are on the road and when we rest” (Cyr. Jerus. Catechetical Teaching. 13, 36). (Compiled from “Sunday Reading” for 1889, No. 13). Conversation No. 5. About the Christian custom of wearing the holy cross on the chest I. In ancient times, during the time of crude paganism, the cross was an object of universal horror and disgust. It was an instrument of shameful execution: serious criminals and slaves were usually crucified on crosses, and this execution was considered the most cruel and shameful. “Cursed before God is everyone who is hanged on a tree” (Deut. 21:23), said the Old Testament law regarding those crucified on the cross. This was the case until the time when the Cross served as an instrument of suffering and death of the Savior of the world. The Only Begotten Son of God, who appeared into the world to bear the sins of all mankind, in His love for man reached the extreme degree of self-humiliation. The Eternal Word, the Radiance of the Father's Glory and the Image of His Hypostasis, He “made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a servant” (Phil. 2:7)... Moreover, He died the most shameful death: “He humbled Himself, becoming obedient even to death, even the death of the cross” (Phil. 2:8). And since then, the cross has changed its meaning in the eyes of the follower of the Lord crucified on it. By His death on the cross, the Divine Redeemer acquired for man peace and justification, Life-giving Gifts and the communion of the Holy Spirit. On the Cross, the salvation of man was accomplished, the Eternal Council was fulfilled, and the Glory of God shone throughout the Universe; and from then on, the grace of God shone from the Cross, streams of Divine Life-giving Power flowed onto humanity killed by sin. And so, the former instrument of shameful execution, an object of disgust and horror, has now become for a Christian an object of deep reverence and veneration, as an instrument of salvation for all mankind. That is why the holy Apostle Paul in the Cross of Christ sets the highest glory and praise for a Christian: “But I do not want to boast,” he says, “except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Gal. 6:14). II. This high meaning of the Cross of Christ lies at the basis of the pious Christian custom of wearing a holy cross on the chest. This cross must constantly remind us of the crucified Savior, who bore the sins of the whole world - to remind us of the One to whom we must belong body and spirit - to remind us of our duty to carry Christ in our hearts and, in accordance with His will, to direct all our lives and activities. The cross worn on the chest serves as a strong defense for the Christian against the attacks of the devil, who trembles at this terrible weapon for him, which has overthrown his dominion over the world. Even in infancy, during the sacrament of Baptism, a Christian receives this cross, which from then on becomes his inseparable companion, consolation in sorrows and protection in temptations. Finally, the terrible hour of death will come: the lamp of our life will go out, friends and relatives will leave us, but the holy cross will not leave us and, like a faithful companion, will follow us into the cold grave... a) The beginning of the Christian custom of wearing a holy cross on the chest dates back to the first centuries of Christianity. The life of the holy martyr Orestes tells the following: Saint Orestes served in military service; One day the military leader Lysias demanded that Orestes show his skill in throwing a spear at a target. Due to a strong movement of the hand, the cross worn on the chest of the holy martyr stuck out, and thus Orestes’s affiliation with Christianity was revealed. Seeing the cross, the pagan Lysias turned to Saint Orestes with the question: “are you food from those who are parts of the Crucified One?” The holy martyr answered with firmness: “I am the servant of my Crucified Master, and I wear this sign of His to drive away all the evils that come upon me,” and he endured torment for the name of Christ 2 . About the holy great martyr Procopius, who suffered in Caesarea in Palestine at the beginning of the 4th century, it is known that he wore on his chest a holy cross made of gold and silver, in the likeness of which appeared to him in heaven at night, on the way to Antioch in Syria 3 . St. Gregory of Nyssa, narrating the death of his sister, the Venerable Macrina (379), among other things, says that an iron cross and the same ring, on which was an image of the holy cross, were found on the deceased’s neck 4 . All this shows that the custom of wearing the holy cross on the chest was widespread even in the first centuries of Christianity. b) A cross worn on the chest was the most common external sign of famous people belonging to the society of followers of the crucified Lord. This is clearly evident from the above story from the life of the holy martyr Orestes. Seeing a cross on the chest of the holy martyr, Lysias directly determined by this sign that Orestes belonged to the Christian society. This sign was so significant and widespread that in the 9th century. Emperor Leo the Armenian (as told in the life of Saint Nikita the Confessor 5), wishing to convince the saints gathered to him of his Orthodoxy, found it necessary to point out to them precisely this sign: he took out the icon of the crucifixion of Christ worn on his chest and hypocritically bowed to it. Thus, the pious Christian custom of wearing a holy cross on the chest bears the character of deep antiquity. Even the leading Christians observed this custom, and looked at the holy cross worn on the chest as a saving weapon for “driving away all evils,” in the words of St. Martyr Orestes 6. III. And the Holy Orthodox Church, consecrating this saving sign to be worn on the chest, prays that “everyone who wears it on themselves will be protected and protected from all evil of the soul and body, and for the multiplication of spiritual gifts and Christian virtues in him,” - may it be filled with “strength and strength to drive away and destroy all the devil’s machinations, to protect the soul and body from the enemy of visible and invisible persons and from all evil.” Conversation No. 6. About bowing the head during divine services I. Today we will talk, my brothers, about our prayerful bowing of the head during divine services. II. A Christian is a modest, sedate, attentive to everything, reasonable, reverent person. Busy with important thoughts about his great destiny and at the same time feeling his spiritual poverty, he never allows himself, as they say, to raise his proud brow. Like an ear of wheat full of grains, a Christian is most often seen with his head bowed; especially during his home and public prayers, a good Christian often loves to bow his head as a sign of his humble feelings and reverent attention to prayers, to sacred chants and readings. This is the beginning and basis of our prayerful worship and bowing of the head during divine services. a) During prayer, both at home and in church, we sign ourselves with the sign of the cross, and after that we bow our head; we do this as a sign of our humility and reverence for that highest Being to whom we pray. It goes without saying that our adorations and adorations, performed after making the sign of the cross during prayer, should be unhurried, unhurried, and reverent. With deep contrition for sins, especially during the days of Great Lent and fasting, our worship or prostrations during prayer should be, as they really are, great, earthly. b) Further, we bow and must bow our heads not only after making the sign of the cross during prayer, but also during liturgical actions, readings and exclamations. Thus, when a priest or deacon burns incense before those standing in the church and at the same time offers them fraternal worship, then those standing in the church are morally obligated to respond to his worship with worship. Go, when the clergyman blesses those present in the church, makes the sign of the cross to them, saying: “Peace to all!”, and at the same time bows to them all, or when the priest, at the end of the church service, on the so-called dismissals, turning his face to those present in the church, gives everyone blessings and good wishes, makes the sign of the cross to them and himself bows to everyone - then there is an indispensable moral duty to those present in the church. in the church, also respond to the clergyman by worshiping the head as a sign of gratitude to him. If outside of liturgical meetings in any good society it is considered indecent and reprehensible not to thank a well-wisher for his kind word, not to respond to someone’s bow with a bow, then all the more inattention to the clergy and indecency should not have a place in our church, highly moral society. c) There are other cases during church services when those standing in the church must bow their heads not only out of a sense of decency, but also out of reverence. Thus, while reading the Gospel, it is both timely and decent to bow the heads out of reverence for the holiness of the Gospel teaching. During the transfer of the Gifts from the altar to the throne, in the interval of singing the so-called Cherubic song, when the clergy pray to the Lord that He would remember everyone in His Kingdom, those standing in the church must also bow their heads. The appearance of the Gifts to the people, although not yet consecrated, and the prayer with them, addressed to the people and for the people, should very naturally evoke reverent bowing of the head among those present in the church. Moreover, reverent bowing of the heads, accompanied by the sign of the cross, should be obligatory in relation to the Gifts already consecrated, when They appear to those present in the church at the end of the liturgy, when pronouncing the words of the Savior’s promise to be with the believers “always, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages.” But do we all follow this sacred rule?! During church services, believers are repeatedly invited by the clergy to bow their heads. “Bow your heads to the Lord!” or: “Let us bow our heads to the Lord,” proclaims the deacon; The face continues his call - “To you, Lord!” And the priest at the same time prays to the Lord to mercifully look upon those who bow their heads as a sign of reverent and humble submission to Him. Meanwhile, how many people bow their heads at that time? III. Failure to comply with the calls or exclamations of the church among some church visitors, as well as the generally insufficiently diligent implementation by some of us of the rules of Christian behavior during divine services, occurs, of course, not from opposition to the Church, but simply from insufficient understanding and attention to our Christian duty. Therefore, having now reminded you of the deep meaning of our worship during prayers and services, I ask you - do not neglect the outward expressions of our church devotion. If people in secular societies so jealously value the rules of decency they have developed and do not tolerate violations of them in their midst, then all the more should we value the rules of our church decency - those holy rules that originate from the times of the apostles and have been inviolably preserved and must be preserved in Orthodox Christian societies of all places and times. (Compiled from the “Instructive Reading” by Archpriest Troitsky). Conversation No. 7. About falling on your face during prayer I. The highest degree of humility, repentance, reverence, and devotion to God is expressed, brethren, in falling on one’s face. II. a) It was used in the Old Testament. So Abraham, when he heard God’s promise to enter into a Covenant with him, then in a feeling of reverence and in a humble consciousness of his unworthiness “fell... on his face” (Gen. 17:3). Moses and Aaron “fell on their faces,” begging the Lord to have mercy and mercy on the sons of Israel who had angered Him (Numbers 16:22). b) Our Lord Jesus Christ Himself “fell on His face, praying” (Matthew 26:39) in the Garden of Gethsemane, as a sign of deepest humility and devotion to the Heavenly Father, according to Whose will He suffered for us. c) In ancient times, Christians had the custom of throwing themselves to the ground during repentance, and sometimes during disasters. Thus, during times of persecution, the so-called fallen, that is, those who renounced the faith out of fear of torment, when they repented of their fall and wanted to return to the Church, began their repentance by lying prostrate on the church porch, asking those entering the church to pray for them, and begging to be allowed into public repentance. This is exactly what is known about a certain Constantinople sophist Equivolius. During Julian's persecution, to please the persecutors, he seemed to be a zealous pagan. But after the death of Julian, he repented and, prostrating himself on the ground in front of the doors of one church, cried out to those passing by: “Trample on me like worthless salt!” A similar story is told about Emperor Theodosius the Great. For the unrighteous bloodshed in Thessalonica, he was excommunicated by Saint Ambrose of Milan for a time from participating in general church prayer and from communion of the Holy Mysteries and then solemnly repented: entering the church, he began to beg the Lord, not standing or on his knees, but prostrate on the ground, crying out in the words of David: “My soul is cast into the dust; quicken me according to Your word" (Ps. 119:25). During the days of fasting and repentance, and even now, the Holy Church commands believers to throw themselves to the ground during Great Compline while reading the prayer: “Master is Most Merciful...”, also during the reading of the prayer of permissiveness over the penitents and at the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts. An example of prostrating oneself on earth during disasters is represented by Alexander, Bishop of Constantinople. When like-minded people of Arius were preparing to solemnly introduce him into the Orthodox church, Alexander, in great grief over this, threw himself in the altar for many days in a row and begged the Lord to avert this calamity. His prayer was heard: Aria suddenly suffered a shameful death on the way to the church (See “Collection for lovers of spiritual and edifying reading” by Vissarion, Bishop of Kostroma). III. Thus, fellow Christians, prostration as a visible prayer sign is very pleasing to God and very beneficial for Christians during repentance, when reading the prayer of permission, during fervent prayer for the aversion of disasters and during the transfer of the Holy Gifts at the Presanctified Liturgy, for it best testifies to our contrition for sins, our humility before God and our reverence for the Great and Terrible Mysteries Christ's. Conversation No. 8. About praying to the east and uncovering the head I. Now let's briefly talk about two external prayer signs - about turning to the east in prayer and about exposing your head during prayer. II. a) It is known that in church Orthodox Christians stand and pray facing east, for which reason churches are arranged with the altar facing east. Likewise, outside the church, when there is neither the life-giving cross of the Lord nor any icon in front of us and the church of God is not visible even in the distance, it is proper when performing prayer to make the sign of the cross and bow down, facing the east. Saint Basil the Great refers to this custom as one of the apostles’ traditions. The 2nd century writer Tertullian testifies that in his time the pagans, who had repeatedly witnessed the worship of Christians to the east, had a suspicion that they were honoring the rising sun. Of the many assumptions that have been made to explain this ancient practice of Christians, the most likely seems to be the one according to which the east or the place of the rising sun is recognized as the image of Christ, the spiritual enlightener, “East from above” (Luke 1:78), “Sun of righteousness” (Mal.4:2), in contrast to the west, as the image of the dark kingdom of Satan. “Just as the natural image of the day,” says Clement of Alexandria (3rd century), “is the east, from where the light shines out of darkness, so for those wandering in ignorance the day of knowledge of the truth has risen, as the sun shines - for this reason, prayers are said to the east.” Thus, by turning to the east, worshipers express their union with Christ and His Kingdom and liberation from the dark dominion of sin and the devil. On this basis, those who are baptized, when the image of the denial of Satan and all his works is performed over them, stand facing the west, but when they pronounce the vow of union with Christ and faith in him, they turn to the east. (See “Collection for lovers of spiritual and edifying reading” by Vissarion, Bishop of Kostroma.) b) Another custom is to bare your head during prayer. Jews, Muslims and pagans, as a sign of humility and to express their unworthiness before God, pray with their heads covered. But Christians, as a sign of their reverence for God, even with one utterance In the name of God they bare their heads - as a sign of their dependence on God. The Holy Apostle Paul wrote that a man, standing in prayer, should not cover his head, because he is the image of God and the glory of God, and a woman, on the contrary, should have a veil on her head during prayer as a sign of her dependence on her husband and especially as a sign of modesty and chastity (1 Cor. 11:4-16). In the Orthodox Church, even those persons who, due to their rank or as a form of distinction, cover their heads during worship, bare it during the most important prayers, chants, readings and sacred rites (Typikon, chapter 29). (See “Liturgics” by Nesterovsky). III. This is the meaning, Christian brothers, of these symbolic actions. But this and that prayer custom will then have its power when we perform it with the consciousness of its inner strength and are imbued with the feelings that it inspires. Conversation No. 9. About raising and washing hands. I. The further movement of prayer is the raising of hands. An example of a person praying with raised hands is represented in the Old Testament by Moses. During the battle with the Amalekites, while he held his hands up, the Israelites prevailed; when they sank from fatigue, victory passed to the enemy’s side (Ex. 17:11). The psalmist prays to the Lord that the lifting of his hands may be pleasing to Him, just as the evening sacrifice is pleasing (Ps. 140:2). In the New Testament, the raising of hands in prayer is endorsed by the Apostle Paul. “I desire,” he says, “that men say prayers in every place, lifting up clean hands, without anger or doubting” (1 Tim. 2:8). II. a) The raising of hands should serve as a sign of lifting up minds and hearts to God who lives in Heaven. In addition, the raising of hands has since ancient times been associated with the thought of the Cross of the Savior. “To stretch out your hands to heaven,” says Asterius of Amasia (5th century), “means to depict the sight of Christ nailed to the Cross.” It is said about Saint Ambrose of Milan that “in his dying hours, until his last breath, he prayed with his hands raised in the image of the Cross.” The one praying with raised hands, representing the likeness of a cross, thereby depicts his participation in the sufferings and death of the Savior on the cross, and his love for Him, ready to die for Him. And it is still the custom of priests to raise their hands during the liturgy before the beginning of it, during the singing of the Cherubic Song and before the blessing of the Holy Gifts. It is not forbidden for other Christians to raise their hands, especially on Holy Pentecost. In the Church Charter the following instruction is read about the great bows used during the prayer of Ephraim the Syrian on Holy Pentecost: “When the time approaches for the saints to make great bows, then everyone will lift up his hand and raise his sensual and intelligent eyes to God, just as the divine Paul teaches to Timothy: “I want,” he said, “so that men may pray.” in every place, lifting up holy hands without anger or reflection" (1 Tim. 2:8)." b) In accordance with what the Apostle said about the raising of the venerable (pure, holy) HANDS, the ancient custom of washing hands when entering the church was formed, for which ponds were built in the entrance of the church. This external cleansing reminded everyone of the purity of heart with which one should approach prayer, and at the same time of the obligation to refrain from those sins that are committed with the hands and that can harm the success of prayer. The custom of washing hands during worship has been preserved in the Orthodox Church between clergy when they begin to celebrate the liturgy. (See “Collection for lovers of spiritual and edifying reading” by Archpriest V. Nechaev, now Vissarion, Bishop of Kostroma, published in 1884). III. So, raising our hands and washing them, let us, brethren, remember that through the first prayer sign we must remind ourselves of the need to direct our hearts to God, and in our prayers rely not on our own strengths, but on the strength of the Honorable and Life-giving Cross of the Lord, and may washing our hands teach us to take care of the purity of our hearts. Conversation No. 10. About standing during prayer. I. “Glorify God both in your body and in your soul, which are God’s” (1 Cor. 6:20), says the holy Apostle Paul. Among the liturgical actions that serve to glorify God in our bodies is, among other things, standing in prayer. II. a) The custom of standing during worship was observed in the Old Testament Church. Thus, Saint Anna, the mother of the prophet Samuel, when she was barren, standing before the Tabernacle of Testimony, she prayed to the Lord to give her a child (1 Samuel 1:26). About the service at the consecration of the Temple of Solomon it is said that the Levites and the singers shouted while standing in front of the altar (2 Chronicles 5:12; compare 1 Ezra 3:10). Not only did they stand during prayer, but also the reading and explanation of the Law, the Jews had the custom of listening while standing. Thus, under Ezra, “the Levites explained the law to the people, while the people stood in their place” (Neh. 8:7). b) The Old Testament custom of standing during worship was retained in the Christian Church not without the will of the Lord Jesus Christ, for in His instructions on prayer He Himself said: “when you stand in prayer” (Mark 11:25), and with these words, if not prescribed, then approved of standing in prayer. Saint John the Theologian saw that in the Heavenly Church itself “a great multitude of people, which no one could number, from all nations and tribes and peoples and languages, stood before the Throne and before the Lamb...” and that the very “Angels stood around the Throne” (Rev. 7:9,11). The prophets Isaiah, Micah, and Daniel saw the inhabitants of heaven in the same position (Is. 6:2; 1 Kings 22:19; Dan. 7:10). Tertullian (a writer of the 2nd century after the Nativity of Christ) condemns those who do not stand but sit during prayer as imitation of the pagans 7 . But during the reading of the Apostle, the Old Testament books, during pastoral teachings, and in Egyptian monasteries, according to the testimony of Cassian, and while singing psalms, it was permissible to sit still 8. However, there is no doubt that the custom of sitting down during readings and teachings was not universal in ancient times. Blessed Augustine (who lived in the 5th century) denounces those who unnecessarily sit in church during readings and teachings. Here are his words: “Moved by fatherly love, several days before this I advised those who either had sick legs or were burdened with some other ailment of the body, and seemed to ask them that during the longest readings, not having the strength to stand, they would listen to what was being read with attention, sitting silently. But now some of our daughters think that everyone should always do this, or at least many healthy ones. For when they begin to preach the Word of God, it is as if they want to lie down on couches; and let them just recline and silently, with a greedy heart, accept the Word of God, and not engage in vain conversations. But they themselves do not listen, and they prevent others from listening to the sermon. So, I ask you, venerable daughters, and with fatherly solicitude I urge that not one of you sit down while reading or teaching, unless severe bodily weakness forces someone to do so.”9 Standing during worship is a sign of our reverence for God. If a servant, as a sign of respect for his master, stands in front of him and does not sit, then all the more the duty of reverence for the Lord of heaven and earth requires us, as His servants, to stand while serving Him in prayer. If the Heavenly Powers stand before the Throne of God with fear and trembling, do we dare to act differently? c) However, the Holy Church does not consider it a sin if someone, due to weakness or illness, cannot stand during worship, but prays or listens to readings and teachings while sitting. In addition, bishops and presbyters, as a sign of their dignity, have the right to sit during divine services on certain occasions, for which purpose seats are arranged for them in the church. Moreover, for the sake of the duration of the church service, the Church Charter allows everyone to sit down during the readings 10 and the teachings given at Matins after the versification of kathismas and after the third hymn of the canon 11, also during the verses placed before these readings, and therefore called sedals 12. III. It goes without saying that Christians can use the permission to sit down during worship in the cases shown only when the service is really long and strictly adheres to the regulations regarding the readings. But where the service is not as long as it should be according to the rules, there, obviously, one should not sit down at all (Compiled from: “Collection for lovers of spiritual and edifying reading” by Archpriest V. Nechaev, now Vissarion, Bishop of Kostroma, ed. 1884). Conversation No. 11. About kneeling. I. Old Testament believers had the custom of praying not only while standing, but also in a kneeling position. So, Solomon, during the consecration of the church he built, said a prayer for it and “rose from his knees from the altar of the Lord” (1 Kings 8:54). The holy prophet Daniel “knelt down three times a day and prayed to his God and praised Him” (Dan.6:10). The Old Testament custom was sanctified by the example of Jesus Christ and the apostles. In the Garden of Gethsemane, the Lord, before the onset of suffering, “knelt down and prayed” (Luke 22:41). The holy apostle and first martyr Archdeacon Stephen, “kneeling down,” prayed to the Lord for the forgiveness of his enemies who stoned him (Acts 7:60). The Holy Apostle Peter, before the resurrection of Tabitha, “knelt down and prayed” (Acts 9:40). The Holy Apostle Paul, when bidding farewell to the Ephesian shepherds on the island of Miletus, “knelt down and prayed with them all” (Acts 20:36). He and his companions, when parting with the inhabitants of Tire, prayed on the seashore, “kneeling” (Acts 21:5). Saint John the Theologian saw angels and elders kneeling before Him who sat on the throne of heaven (Rev. 4:10, 7:11). Regarding the kneeling of ancient Christians, the testimony of Eusebius is mainly important. According to his testimony, under Emperor Marcus Aurelius, during the campaign of the Germans and Sarmatians, when the entire army was melting from thirst, the Lord sent down rain through the prayer of Christian soldiers. They offered this prayer on their knees, “which is what we usually do during prayer,” notes Eusebius 13. It is said about the Apostle James, the Lord’s brother according to the flesh, the Bishop of Jerusalem, that his knees became stiff from incessant kneeling while praying for the salvation of the people 14 . II. According to the explanation of the ancient writer, “kneeling serves as a sign of our fall in sin” 15. Saint Basil the Great says something similar: “In every genuflection we show by our very deeds that we have been defeated by sin and have fallen to the ground” 16 . According to this significance of genuflections, they have been used since ancient times mainly on days of fasting and repentance - on Holy Pentecost, and are properly combined with prayers of repentance and propitiation; but we must not forget our sinfulness, our unworthiness before God even when we offer prayers of thanks; for, due to our sins, with which we continually offend God, we are unworthy of those benefits for which we should thank Him. That is why the Holy Church, through the mouth of the deacon, sometimes invites us to kneel in thanksgiving prayers, for example, in the prayer of thanksgiving for deliverance from the invasion of the Gauls, also on the days of the accession to the throne and the coronation of the most pious sovereigns. In general, those who wish can pray on their knees even when the Church does not invite us to do so with a special proclamation. She looks at them with love, without constraining the impulses of their pious feelings. The ancient writer says about the godly nature of genuflection: “Sinners, when they pray on their knees, strive more for God’s mercy than when they pray while standing.” According to the words of Saint Ambrose of Milan, “kneeling, more than other feats, has the power to satisfy the wrath of God and attract His mercy” (Book 6 on the sixth day, chapter 9). However, bodily genuflection can be pleasing to God only under the condition that the spiritual is connected with it. “True genuflection, says Blessed Jerome, in our opinion, lies in the spirit.” (Explanation on eating, Ephesians, chapter 3). That is why the deacon sometimes exclaims: “Let us bow the knee, our souls and bodies, to the Lord.” Those who kneel before God without heartfelt reverence, without a deep sense of their unworthiness and sinfulness, with absent-mindedness and hypocrisy, do no better than the crucifiers of Christ, about whom it is said: “kneeling before Him, they mocked Him, saying: Hail, King of the Jews” (Matthew 27:29)! III. In view of all that has been said, brother Christians, kneeling before the Lord, let us bow before Him in tenderness and heart. External kneeling alone is displeasing to God, just as any manifestation of external prayer without internal, heartfelt prayer is displeasing to Him. (See “Collection for lovers of spiritual and edifying reading” by Archpriest V. Nechaev, now Vissarion, Bishop of Kostroma). But there are exceptions for Sundays and days from Easter to Pentecost, when it is inappropriate to kneel. According to ancient custom and clear church law, kneeling should not be performed on these days. The 2nd century writer Tertullian testifies to this custom: “on the Lord’s Day (that is, Sunday), we consider it indecent to fast or kneel; we enjoy the same freedom from Easter to Pentecost") 17. In the 20th canon of the 1st Ecumenical Council we read: “since there are some who kneel on the Lord’s Day and on the days of Pentecost, so that in all dioceses everything will be equally observed, it is pleasing to the holy council, and standing up they offer prayers to God.” The 90th canon of the Trullo Council says the same. An ancient writer, pointing to the writings of Saint Irenaeus, Bishop of Lyons, which has not reached us, says that the custom of not bending the knee on Sundays and from Easter to Pentecost “received its beginning from the times of the apostles” 18 . The same ancient writer discusses the meaning of this custom as follows: “Not bending the knee on the Day of the Lord is a sign of the resurrection, by which we, by the grace of Christ, are freed from sins and death... on Pentecost we also do not kneel, since it is equivalent to the Day of the Lord” 19 . Saint Basil the Great offers a similar explanation, but adds other considerations to it. He says: “Not only as we are co-resurrected with Christ and must seek things above, by standing during prayer on the day of the Resurrection we remind ourselves of the grace given to us, but because we do this because this Day appears as a kind of image of the hoped-for age (that is, by standing we express hope for our future rise for eternal life)... and the whole of Pentecost is a reminder of the resurrection expected in the future age” (O Holy Spirit, chapter 27). I. Continuing your conversations about bodily actions during prayer and worship, we will now talk about bowing. II. Bows, called in the charter small (light) and simply bows, otherwise waist, and great bows, otherwise earthly, belong to the most common bodily movements to express feelings of reverence, humility and gratitude to God. a) How should one bow? For the answer to this question, let us turn to the church charter. According to the church charter, a small bow is performed by bowing the head in such a way that you can reach the ground with your hand (chapter 2), or “as long as a person can rightly (that is, straight) bow while standing, without falling on his knees, bow his head lower to the ground.” A prostration or great bow is performed “to bring the head to the ground with great might.” In order for the prostration to be correct and fully consistent with its name great, for this, according to the church charter, two conditions are required: on the one hand, before each prostration we must take a straight body position, straighten to our full height; on the other hand, we should not reduce the bow to the ground through “a certain addition, which some benchers imagine, and others also fertilize their laziness with this, and imagine being equal with those who have labored in the right way in holy great bows.” The church charter, following the apostle’s instruction that everything in the church should be in order and in order (1 Cor. 14:40), also condemns those who bow too hastily for deviating from this rule. He who makes bows hastily, when he finishes them, then, according to the charter, he becomes “like a fool, he knows not what he did.” The statute also denounces those who, when making bows, do not “look at the head of the church, but anticipate something else, they are restless, like reeds shaken by the wind, despite the best, they want to learn something lower: but as soon as someone has formed his character, this is how it is established to be.” There is no doubt that these accusatory remarks, although made by the statute specifically regarding Lenten bows, are valid in relation to bows at any other time. The dignity of bows lies, however, not in their external decency and decorum alone, but in the inner spiritual disposition of the bower. “In bowing and praying,” says the church charter, “let us imitate the one who says: The Spirit is God, who desires in spirit and truth those who bow.” What spirit should animate those who perform prostrations? Spirit of repentance. That is why bows are often called “throwings” in the charter; the Greek word μετανο ί α means repentance. When making bows, we must never forget that we are sinners in need of forgiveness and mercy from God, that all our prayers to Him, not only repentant and propitiatory, but also laudatory and grateful, can be pleasing to God only when they come from a contrite and humble heart. b) There are Christians who are burdened by bowing and are reluctant to perform them. In some cases this is a consequence of being unaccustomed to them. Out of habit, whatever you take, it can be difficult. But as in any matter, so in the matter of bowing, unaccustomedness is overcome by exercise. Constant exercise makes easy what at first seemed difficult and beyond strength. But others are not inclined to bow because they do not attach any importance to them. According to them, whoever has sincere piety, they are of no use to him; whoever does not have it, who does not have a spiritual prayerful mood, will not become better from them. aa) No matter how plausible such an opinion may be, it is unfair. First of all, it disagrees with the concept of true piety. He who is truly pious cannot help but feel the need to express the movement of pious feelings in external signs, which include bows. Moreover, true piety requires that we serve God with our whole being, not only with our soul, but also with our body. It would be incomplete if it were contained in the spirit alone and did not manifest itself in bodily exploits. Therefore, if hypocrites act badly, whose entire pilgrimage consists of bows and other external actions, without the participation of the spirit, then those who boast of only spiritual service to God and do not exercise their bodies in deeds of piety act no less badly. bb) It is also unfair that if there is a lack of spiritual disposition to pray, it cannot be aroused by bows. On the contrary, with the help of bows, it can easily be born in the soul, unless it is spoiled by hypocrisy. It is known that one of the main obstacles to a pious prayerful mood of the soul is the flesh. When the flesh disposes to sleep, peace and bliss, then the spirit, which is vigorous at other times for prayer, loses its disposition towards it and is burdened by it. Prostrations are one of the best means of bringing the spirit into a state of prayer. Through them the body is set in motion, receives vigor, lightness and liveliness, and thus becomes an obedient instrument of the spirit in its prayerful activities, and not only does not hinder, but facilitates them. Each of us can experience this from our own experience. How often, for example, are we reluctant to begin prayer upon awakening from sleep! Duty and conscience call for prayer, and limbs heavy from sleep take away or weaken the desire for it. But zeal and zeal for prayer will immediately appear if we immediately get up from our bed and begin to bow. (See “Collection for lovers of spiritual and edifying reading” by Archpriest V. Nechaev, now Vissarion, Bishop of Kostroma, published in 1884). III. So, brethren, let us perform bows from the waist and to the ground according to the statutes of the Church, with the consciousness of our guilt before God, do it with zeal, remembering that this exercise is very soul-saving, since it supports our prayerful disposition, causes spiritual prayer fervor and is the glorification of God with both soul and body. Appendix to conversation No. 12. About bowing at the liturgy. When and how to make these bows? To appreciate the full importance of this issue, one must bear in mind that, according to the established custom of our Church, during the liturgy proper, clergy are required to make three prostrations to the ground and no more than four, namely: one after the consecration of the Holy Gifts, another on the “Our Father,” the third when reading “Loosen, forsake,” before communion of the Holy Mysteries, and the fourth with the words: “I come to the Immortal.” To the Tsar”... On the contrary, there are a lot of priests who bow to the ground both at the proskomedia and at the liturgy completely indiscriminately, when necessary; and others read the prayers themselves no differently: “To the Heavenly King” and so on. at the beginning of the liturgy, or the Cherubic Hymn, as if on their knees, and even bow to the ground according to the liturgy, before the altar, starting to consume the Holy Gifts, etc. What can we say to this? We cannot indicate any better answer to this question other than the one set forth in the famous book compiled during the time of Patriarch Joachim regarding the question that arose then about the time of the transubstantiation of the Holy Gifts, entitled “Austen.” In his Article VIII “On the Worship of the Body and Blood of the Lord in the Liturgy,” in response to question five, Osten argues beautifully: “and bowing incessantly is not evil. In both cases, it is appropriate to preserve the deanery and ancient traditions of the holy fathers and the customs of the great church” 20. And due to these traditions and customs, as we said, it is customary for us to bow to the ground at the liturgy only after the consecration of the Holy Gifts and the “Our Father,” etc. In particular, with regard to bowing before the altar at the Proskomedia and at the Great Exit, then, according to the undoubted remark of the same “Austen,” “for the bread and wine that is not yet essential to the Body and Blood of Christ is mortally worshiped.” they sin, as the compiler of the word “about standing reverently in the church of God” speaks about the worship of which: like one who worships bread and wine at the great entrance (and, of course, at the proskomedia) ... such people are seduced and sin mortally, and who bow down to God’s bread, there are bread-worshippers” 21 . To this, of course, we will be told that when bowing to the ground in certain places of the liturgy, in addition to the bows accepted in practice, those who do this do not do this at all before the Holy Gifts, but simply for the sake of greater reverence and expression of their feelings before God and before His holy throne. This is the meaning that is usually given to their genuflections by those who use them in the Cherubic Song, etc. To this, for our part, we will answer with the words of “Austen”: “everything contains a divine order, not only on earth, but also in heaven; and where there is no order, especially in spiritual and ecclesiastical things, there is all lawlessness and prayer, there is lower God’s will, lower legal tradition is carried out, but every time the lawless will is done... There is also good that is not good, when it is not good, says the Theologian Saint Gregory... Do what is dedicated and determined to each one; do not want to innovate in non-preparation (because of) reverence... And the law (says): “whoever foresees (violates) the slightest thing in the Catholic Church is a heretic.” (Compare helmsman, sheet 641, on the reverse, ed. 7161) If you want to be reverent, in your cell, alone, pray, and fast, and bow to the ground, as much as you want and when you want; - in the church, not a single thing, except for a certain thing, do whatever you change, but follow the devotees of the ancient holy fathers" 22 ... etc. That is why, by the way, at the council that took place in Moscow under the chairmanship of His Holiness Patriarch Joachim in 1690, on the above-mentioned question about the time of the transubstantiation of the Holy Gifts, not only was an anathema imposed on those who taught, following the Western Church that bread and wine are supposedly transformed into the true Body and Blood of the Lord when the words of Christ are pronounced: take and eat and drink everything from it... but “threatened with excommunication” to everyone who in one way or another made prostrations at the liturgy before the consecration of the Holy Gifts, as inconsistent with the very nature of the liturgy, until bread and wine were transformed into the true and only venerable Body and Blood of Christ 23. “And just as at the great entrance those who worship,” says “Austen,” “sin mortally,” so also in the words: “Take and eat...” those who worship bread and wine sin mortally” 24, etc. And let the performers of various prostrations and genuflections say whatever they want during the liturgy in the indicated places, this way of their actions, in addition to violating the canonical decrees of the Church, makes an extremely difficult impression on anyone not only more or less familiar with the rites of the Church, but also on an ordinary person for the very fact that by falling to the ground anywhere and anyhow, our champions of prostrations and genuflections seem to want to stand out from the ranks of other priests, those who do not do this in the name of the rite and rules of the church, and by this, firstly, they humiliate the latter, and at the same time they try to, as it were, exalt themselves in the eyes of others, while if anywhere, then when performing such a most holy sacrament, as at the liturgy, all personal calculations, all exhibition should be left aside and only one thing should be on the mind and heart of the clergyman - to correctly perform the sacrament according to the Lord’s ordinance. Not to mention the temptation those who perform them can instill in the faithful with their inappropriate bows and genuflections, forcing them, as happens in reality, to involuntarily wonder why some bow in this way and others do not, and this gives many a natural reason to condemn innocent people who do not do this, etc. Moreover, one cannot help but condemn those priests and deacons who, having received the Holy Mysteries at the Liturgy, they dare to bow to the ground before the altar, beginning to consume the Holy Gifts. It is known that, according to accepted custom, a deacon should not kiss the hands of either a priest or even a bishop during the prayer “Fulfillment of the Law,” when he takes a blessing for the consumption of the Holy Gifts. And this has its undoubted basis in the fact that the lips, which have now only touched the Body and Blood of Christ, are considered as if they were sacred, and therefore it is really unsuitable to kiss others with them before the final consumption of the Holy Gifts or drinking. Moreover, under such conditions, neither the priest nor the deacon should bow to the ground before consuming the Holy Gifts, as they themselves have been sanctified by these gifts and, what is even more important, are now proceeding not to receive communion, but only to consume them in the name of the Lord (See “Guide for Rural Pastors,” Nos. 52 and 53, 1885, December). Conversation No. 13. About the pious custom of kissing holy icons I. Among many signs of respect paid to icons, there is a custom of kissing them. This custom is known to everyone. But is the antiquity and significance of this custom known to everyone, and are the necessary precautions observed when performing it? II. a) The following should be said about the antiquity of this custom. When Jesus Christ lived on earth, all the people sought to touch Him. There is no doubt that one of the types of this touch was kissing His hands and feet. This is clearly evident from the act of the repentant sinner, to whom the Savior pointed out with an approving expression to the Pharisee Simon: “Since I came, she has not ceased to kiss My feet” (Luke 7:45). We also read in the Gospel about the myrrh-bearing women that, as soon as they saw the risen Jesus, they “took hold of His feet” (Matthew 28:9) and, of course, kissed them. After the Ascension of the Savior, Christians honored everything that was arranged as a reminder of Him, and kissed not only the altar and sacred things, but also the very walls of the church. “Approaching the altar, we kiss it with fear and joy,” notes St. Athanasius the Great. (Bes. prot. over. per person). And Chrysostom, preaching in the church, pointed out to his listeners the same well-known custom: “Don’t you see how many kiss the vestibule and walls of this church”? (On 2 Cor., demon. 30). After the tree of the Cross was found, people from everywhere flocked to Jerusalem to kiss it, especially on the Feast of the Exaltation. Only in the age of iconoclasm was the custom of kissing sacred images persecuted. But when Theodora reigned and Patriarch Methodius came to ask her to restore icon veneration, she took the icon that she wore on her chest and kissed it with a feeling of deep reverence. Soon after, the “rite of Orthodoxy” was performed, and with this rite the ancient custom of honoring and kissing holy icons was forever established. b) What is the significance of this sacred custom? aa) First of all, by kissing the icons, we testify to our Orthodoxy. “We,” the defender of icon veneration, Saint Herman, once wrote, “we depict the Son of God as proof that He did not take on our nature in an imaginary way. With this thought we kiss His icon, remembering His incarnation” (Epistle to John Syn.). bb) Since the honor given to the icon is raised to the face depicted on it, then when we kiss it, we mentally touch that very face. Then the believing soul, imagining the greatness of the face recalled by the icon, is filled with joy and fear: “fear,” as this is explained in one church song, “for the sake of sin; joy - for the sake of salvation." (Verse, on Vozd.). Indeed, imagining how immeasurably far the heavenly is from the earthly and the holy from the sinful, we, with the help of this opposition, can easily move to a living consciousness of our unworthiness when we venerate the miraculous icon, and, kissing the shrine, do not abandon the hope that its gracious power will cleanse the thorns of our passions, just as a burning coal, touching the lips of Isaiah, destroyed the uncleanness that we felt and because of which the soul of the prophet was troubled. The cleansing and healing power of icons is attested to by miracles. How one touch to the Savior relieved misfortunes and suffering; just as the handkerchiefs and aprons that belonged to the Apostle Paul, when the sick touched them, stopped their illnesses (Acts 19:12), so from the miraculous icons many believers received wonderful help, and precisely at that moment when, after fervent prayer, they reverently kissed the shrine. c) But great caution is needed to kiss an icon marked by miracles without judgment. “Touch me not” (John 20:17), the Lord once said to Mary Magdalene. If this was said to one who was not unworthy to touch Him, and was repeatedly awarded this honor, then doesn’t this warning warn with greater severity those who do not have Magdalene’s fidelity and zeal, nor do they try to imitate her repentance and correction? What is the use of kissing a holy icon if someone, having done it out of outward mere piety, hurries to return to his bad deeds, which he abandoned only temporarily to go to church? “These people,” says the Savior, “approach Me with their lips, and honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me; but in vain they worship Me” (Matthew 15:8–9). Those who venerate the icon without sincere faith and without the kiss of the saints will not gain any sanctification for the soul. “What are saints?” asks Chrysostom, and answers: “not so flattering and feigned as Judas kissed Christ” (Interpretation on 2 Cor. 13:12). How is this possible? - those who hear will now think. It is very possible if, for example, another frivolous young man in church, out of decency, in front of his family and elders, on whom he depends, also kisses an icon, and somewhere in a familiar house exhausts all his imaginary wit, laughing and mocking the veneration of icons. d) Although good Christians have a clear conscience from such double-mindedness, everyone must choose a decent time when to venerate the icon. Who does not know that the liturgy is a reproduction of the most important events in the life of the Savior? Meanwhile, many, leaving behind the service to follow the service with attention and prayer, go as they please to venerate the icon during the Liturgy. This untimely approach to the icon and departure from it is contrary to the church invitation: “Let all human flesh be silent. And let him stand with fear and trembling"; It is also contrary to the civil law, which directly prohibits veneration of icons during liturgical actions. Take into account the dogmatic composition of the liturgy. The last event of the Savior’s earthly life - the ascension to heaven - is remembered at the end of the liturgy, when the Holy Gifts appear at the royal doors for the last time and the clergyman proclaims: “always, now, and ever, and unto ages of ages.” It would be completely appropriate if, in view of this last manifestation of the Gifts, or, what is the same, until the end of the liturgy, those present in the church “stood well,” without moving from place to place, and did not allow themselves such disorder, even for the pious purpose of touching the miraculous icon with their lips, remembering the warning of the one depicted on it, said to Magdalene: “do not touch Me" (John 20:17). III. Brothers! All of us who belong to the Apostolic Church are obliged, when performing our Orthodox rites, to observe this apostolic requirement: “everything must be decent and in order” (1 Cor. 14:40). Amen. (Compiled from “Words and Speeches,” Sergius, Archbishop of Kherson, and Odessa (now Metropolitan of Moscow), vol. 1, ed. 1893.). Conversation No. 14. About burning incense I. During the service of God, brethren, there is often incense burning. Listen to what this censing means. II. a) Ceremony in the Christian Church has very diverse meanings, depending on when and under what liturgical rites it is performed. So, for example, at proskomedia, during the liturgy, it is performed in remembrance of the events of the birth and burial of the Lord Jesus Christ. Performed at the liturgy during the apostolic reading, it signifies the gracious power of the apostolic preaching, according to the words of the apostle: “we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved” (2 Cor. 2:15). Celebrated at the beginning of the all-night vigil, it signifies the grace of God that gladdened the hearts of our forefathers, under the shadow of which they lived in paradise and were blissful. Performed at burial, it signifies the pious and Orthodox life of the deceased, who gave up his soul, like incense, to God, etc. In a word, the meaning of incense, as said, varies greatly in detail, depending on when it is performed. But all these particulars do not at all exclude the main, general meaning of incense: when the church of God or objects of sacred veneration of Christians (for example, holy icons, relics, throne, etc.) are censed, this generally marks the reverent, spiritual honoring by Christians of the Lord of Glory and His illustrious saints, as well as their acceptance of our fervent prayers (incense); and when there are Christians, then - to commemorate their sanctification by the grace of God and at the same time to arouse in them a special prayerful mood, to show that all their thoughts and feelings should be turned to the mountain, to heaven, to the throne of God. Due to all this, on the one hand, incense is performed in more or less solemn and most important moments of worship, requiring a special prayerful disposition of spirit, and on the other hand, Christians are obliged to humbly bow their heads before the clergyman who attends them, thereby expressing their humble readiness to accept the sanctifying grace of God and their obedience to the call on them to a special prayerful disposition. b) From all this it is clear that burning incense is used during worship as a symbol of the grace of God and the prayerful mood of a Christian promoted by it, burning with love for God, filled with spiritual joy and devotion to God; This is also evident from the prayer accompanying the offering of incense: “We offer the incense to You, O Christ our God, into the stench of the spiritual fragrance: as we are received into Your heavenly altar, bestow upon us the grace of Your Most Holy Spirit.” Therefore, frequent burning of incense occurs during the liturgy and other church meetings, especially on the days of great holidays, so that we, constantly smelling this sacred incense, would more vividly feel in our souls the sweetness and joy arising from the gracious actions of the Spirit of God, and being saturated with these immortal stench, we would create a fragrance for ourselves to God, through the zealous sacrifice of our souls to Him. prayers. c) In this case, the fragrant censer in the hand of the celebrant is the image of a true Christian. And a Christian, under the wise guidance of the experienced and gracious hand of his mother - the Church, makes himself a fragrance of Christ to the Lord (2 Cor. 2:15). Just as incense only then becomes incense, or a particularly pleasant aroma, only then does grief rise in a new, subtlest and noblest form, when under the influence of fire, in the hand of the celebrant, it burns, is destroyed and loses its properties of hardness, roughness - so a Christian then becomes pleasing to the Lord, only then is he accepted by heaven, only then does he reach the very Throne of the Lord of glory, when under the influence of the fire of the grace of God given in St. sacraments, he is cleansed from all sinful impurity when he burns and destroys his evil, stubborn will on the altar of love for the Lord. Then the Christian is renewed spiritually, and his soul and body, in a word, sacrifices his whole self to the Lord - a living, acceptable and pure sacrifice for a pure and holy life. It is then that the prayerful offering of the soul of a Christian becomes especially pleasing to God, is a true honoring of the name of God, and becomes truly pure and fragrant incense, but much more perfect and precious. III. In conclusion, let us quote the words of St. John Chrysostom on the highly instructive nature of incense. St. reveals this inimitably. John Chrysostom, when he explains the words of the psalmist to the Lord: “Let my prayer be corrected, as incense before You, the lifting of my hand is an evening sacrifice” (Ps. 141:2). St. John Chrysostom says: “The psalmist asks that his prayer be like the evening sacrifice, offered not for sins, but as a legalized sacred rite, that is, as a sacrifice that is always favorable, for it was not defiled by any uncleanness of the offerer, and like pure and holy incense. Just as incense in itself is good and fragrant, but it emits a particularly fragrant fragrance when it is placed on fire, so prayer is good in itself, but it is better and more fragrant when it is brought from the soul by flaming jealousy, when the soul becomes a censer and kindles a strong fire within itself. Incense is not prescribed before the fire has broken down or the coals have flared up; Do the same with your soul: first inflame it with zeal for God and then put prayer into it. The prophet asks that his prayer be like a censer, and the raising of his hands like the evening sacrifice, for both are pleasing to God. How? If both are pure, if both are immaculate - both the tongue and the hands; if these are clean from covetousness, theft and murder, and he is free from slander. Just as there should be nothing unclean in the censer, but only fire and incense, so the mouth should not utter a single foul word, but words filled with holiness and praise to the Lord, and the hands should also be a censer. Let your mouth be a censer, and be careful not to fill it with dung, as those who utter shameful and unclean words do. If the one who has a golden vessel does not dare to use it for low purposes because of the preciousness of the substance, then much less we, having lips more precious than gold and pearls, should not defile them with shameless, vile, defamatory and abusive words. You offer incense not on a copper or golden altar, but on something much more precious - in the spiritual church. There is a soulless substance, but God dwells in you, you are a member and the Body of Christ.” What kind of spiritual purity should there be in this spiritual church of the glory of the Lord?! What pure incense of a holy soul and holy life should be offered in this church of the Lord?! (Compiled with additional information from “Sunday Thursday”, 1889). Appendix to conversation No. 14. Incense Bruce, traveling through Abyssinia, discovered that the place of origin of incense was the Adel region on the shores of the Bab-El-Mandeb Strait. From there it is transported to Mocha and bought by the Arabs and British - Indian colonists, who then deliver it to Europe either through Egypt and Turkey, or through the Cape of Good Hope (in Africa). Incense is a dry, dense, brittle substance, pale yellow in color, translucent, mealy on the outside and transparent on the inside, with a somewhat pungent and bitter taste. When it is thrown into the fire, it immediately ignites, emits a fragrance and spreads a bright flame, which can hardly be extinguished. Incense rarely exists in its pure form - many fragrant resinous juices, melted from various pine trees, are sold under this name. The use of incense and especially incense has existed in the East since time immemorial. The country of the Saveans in this regard was valued by the Jews more than all the countries of the East. Among the people of God, the burning of incense belonged only to the priests. They entered the sanctuary daily, morning and evening, to burn incense therein. On the day of the solemn cleansing, they took a full handful of incense and threw it into the fire at the moment when they entered the sanctuary, so that the cloud of smoke rising from the censer would prevent them from examining with curiosity the ark of the covenant. For violating this custom, God threatened them with death. Uninitiated Levites had no right to touch even the censer. Korah, Dathan and Abiron were punished with a terrible death because they wanted to arrogate this right to themselves. Incense is often mentioned in Holy Scripture. The Queen of the Sabeans sent it as a gift to Solomon along with other rich gifts; the prophet Isaiah predicted that strangers from the land would come to worship God in His church and bring gold and incense there; The Magi offered incense to the born Savior as an expression of their respect for Him. Incense for believers is a fragrance and a symbol. If the burning of incense was done with the aim of purifying the air in the church, then in this case the incense would be placed in censers without any church ritual actions; but we see that it is not anyone else, but only the celebrant who censes the altar and the Holy Gifts and even says prayers related to such an action. This is the thought of the incense of the Fathers of the Church and all exponents of liturgical actions. And who among Christians does not think in moments of reverence that his prayers ascend to the throne of the Most High along with fragrant clouds of incense? Since the burning of incense is a sign of honor, in various countries from ancient times to the present day it has been and is being smoked before kings and nobles. But the vanity of people, unfortunately, permeates everywhere; the burning of incense in front of someone, considered a right of special respect, often became the claim of private individuals and the subject of litigation. However, such abuse does not say anything against the meaning and use of incense in worship: during the liturgy and other services, altar servers and those present in the church are often incense. The censers of the ancient Jews were different from ours. They were not attached to chains, but were a kind of brazier or, even simpler, they were like a golden dish. Conversation No. 15. About lighting wax candles in the church. I. What is a wax church candle? Where is she from? Church wax, together with oil, as a substance accepted in the church for its illumination during worship, is already mentioned in the Rules of the Holy Apostles (71 and 72). Since the Apostolic Rules prohibited, under pain of eruption, from bringing to the altar, in addition to oil for the lamp and wax for lighting, any animal meat and animal fat, it must be assumed that the Zion upper room was illuminated with nothing other than oil and beeswax during the celebration of the Last Supper, connected with the celebration of the Old Testament Passover, during which many candles were lit. Without a doubt, wax candles illuminated the churches in which the holy apostles performed their all-night vigils with the faithful (Acts 20:8). A wax candle shone for the leading Christians as they celebrated the Eucharist in the dark catacombs. The wax candle, next only to pure olive oil, lit up in Christian churches, when the Christian faith, like the radiant sun after the lapse of the night, rose from the dark dungeons in which it was hidden during persecution, to the heavenly heights, openly, solemnly above the face of the whole earth. Next to the olive oil, the wax candle retains from the holy apostles the exclusive right devoted to it to illuminate the holy churches of the Orthodox Church with its pure, gentle light to this day. She, a pure wax candle, to this day retains the inalienable right received from the apostles to be the most important sacrifice of pious souls for the church of the Lord, for the Church of God. II. a) Should we talk about how beautiful, beneficial, and beneficial this sacrifice is in general? Needless to say, it reminds us of Christ and His nightly Last Supper, which was illuminated by wax candles; reminds us of the apostles and their truly all-night vigils in prayer and preaching the word of God by the light of wax candles; reminiscent of memorial services and all-night prayers of the leading Christians, when they burned wax candles in large numbers, either as a sign of intense prayer and spiritual wakefulness (as with us on the night of Christ’s passion), then as a sign of remembrance of souls departing to God, in the form of light rising to heaven (as with us at funerals and memorial services), then as a symbol of spiritual triumph and joy (as with us on Holy Easter, in Week of Vai and at all festive all-night vigils)? Should we say that this sacrifice reminds us of the unceasing prayer of hermits in caves and earthly abysses, and the never-ceasing prayer in the universe of all pious monks in solitary cells, and of all righteous souls in their hidden cells, where for each of them a humble and pure wax candle shines before the icon? Should we say that a wax candle reminds us of our own baptism, when we were born into the light of God, when, instead of our weak infant hand, the candle lit before God was held by the mature hand of our successor, whose lips pronounced a vow for us to burn for God with the light of pure faith and undying love for Christ throughout our lives, throughout eternity? What does a burning candle remind us of our hour of death, when the strong hands of those around us will give us a lit passionate or other church candle into our cold hands, as a symbol of the soaring of our soul, our faith and hope to the throne of the all-covering, all-forgiving mercy of God? Should we say that a wax candle burning before God serves as the best sign of our faith, hope and love burning before God, the best symbol of the prayer of praise, petition, and thanksgiving raised to heaven? b) Look, think how beneficial it is, how beneficial it is for our Christ-loving people. Here he is, a simple Russian man, whether in his dark hut, on a labor field, or somewhere at hard work, he is sweating from work, suffering poverty, rejoicing in success, enduring sorrows and illnesses, bending under the burden of life. On the feast of the Lord he goes to the church of God to rest his soul. He knows almost no faith, no prayers either. He firmly knows only the prayer of the Gospel publican: God! Be merciful to me, a sinner, Lord, have mercy - and other similar, short, but meaningful prayers. And so in church he buys a wax candle made of pure wax with his contribution and lights it himself, and places it himself, and puts his prostration before the image of God, saying his publican’s prayer: Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner. And burn, his candle, before God, illuminating his dim but warm faith with its light. Supplement, candle, with your flame before God his warm but simple prayer. Burn, candle, and burn his sins with your fire before the eyes of the merciful God. Burn, candle, into the stench of the fragrance of his humble sacrifice, the sacrifice of his deep, but tacit thanksgiving to God for God’s gifts, his heartfelt prayer for the continuation of God’s mercies, for the aversion of God’s coming punishment. And for all this, a favorable and suitable sacrifice for all this is one, this burning wax candle, this meager contribution of the poor widow of the Gospel. True, this sacrifice is poor, meager, small, like a drop in the sea. But from these small drops great rains are made, streams and streams flow, large rivers and lakes are fed. In recent times, almost entirely the entire welfare of the Church in Holy Rus' has been made up of these drip-off public sacrifices. The candle placed in front of the icon will immediately burn out halfway, delighting the humble soul of the sacrificer with its pure, gentle light. The second half of it will illuminate the church of the Lord tomorrow on a weekday, when prayer for the whole world will be offered in the absence of the people who have gone to their everyday work. Large candles are made from cinders, burning behind the altar, in front of the main local icons of the iconostasis or in chandeliers, pleasing the eyes, delighting the hearts of the praying people on holidays and celebrations. From the mites for which penny candles were purchased, these majestic walls with their expensive shiny decorations grow, precious utensils and vestments are arranged, bell towers propping up the sky rise with their thunderous kampanas, harmonious singing choirs, decent clergy, euphonious deacons, enlightened ministers - shepherds, learned archpastors gather around the throne of the Lord. From these same mites, from these same penny candles, not only thick candles for large lamps and lamps are accumulated, but also the abundant light of spiritual enlightenment, the light of broad and deep knowledge of our Christian faith. After all, from them, from these penny candles lit in the churches of God, from the people’s mites, the capital is made up of which our theological academies, seminaries and other hotbeds of spiritual enlightenment are built and supported. And through this it turns out that the Russian simpleton, lighting a candle on a candlestick near the image of God, thereby kindles spiritual light in the heads of his shepherd teachers, illuminating the image of God in their souls, and through them in his own soul. c) It is regrettable that many, and mostly the so-called educated people, completely stop donating to the church and even forget to warm it before St. like a wax candle. They do the Lord God a favor by the very fact that they deign to occasionally entertain themselves and visit the church of the Lord for a short time. They are deeply indifferent to the question of where, from what means, these church walls, these icon paintings, these chandeliers, these vestments arise; where does this lighting come from, this incense, this choral singing. We must also thank them if they honor this entire liturgical rite and praise the formation: “how elegant and decent it all is”! They forgot not only that they are members of the ancient Apostolic Church, which obliges its children to remember their mother and support her the more carefully the older she is. But our supposedly educated young people also forget that in the freest countries and religious communities their members necessarily pay the more expensive the more prosperous they are - what are they paying for? For places in churches, for the right to be present in them, for participation in the divine service performed for them, they pay for the maintenance of the church and its decoration, for the benefit of those who work (for example, even guards and bell ringers), who sing, perform sacred acts and preach the word of God. After all, who is obliged to give you their work for free, without reciprocity on your part? After all, church watchmen, like other clergy, want to eat and must earn their own bread through their labor. After all, church vestments with their holes scream about repair or retirement. But many here believe that all this is the task and concern of only the common people, our black people. And if he, the common people, also began to believe that then?! Then... let's not continue. III. Don’t forget, enlightened person, to buy and light a candle before God. This is your duty to the Church, this is a duty of justice. This is your duty to yourself if you want not only to be known as, but also to be and die a Christian. Everything is yours from God. Bring God something, too. You pay for entertainment: give something to the Church, which amuses, teaches, and strengthens the soul. After all, your faith is weak, gloomy, wavering. You have forgotten about Christian hope. You have extinguished the Christian love in yourself, earthing, burdening your soul with sensuality and sins. Prayer, especially warm, reverent, concentrated prayer, is alien to you, unfamiliar to you. Don’t be ashamed to light a candle for God, as simple-hearted people do. Let the candle burn for you before God, enlightening your faith in Him, raising your hope for His mercy to Him, kindling in you, if not pure love for God, then at least a repentant feeling and contrition for your stiffness, lifting from the image of God to the Prototype existing in heaven your cold, but conscious prayer of repentance (Comp. according to “Taught., Conversation., Speech., Proclamation. and sent." Nikanora, Archbishop. Kherson, and Odessk., vol. 5, ed. 1891). Appendix to conversation No. 15. Material for church candles, according to the teachings of the holy and God-bearing Fathers of the Church A church candle is not intended for lighting alone. If it were intended only for the illumination of churches, then it would be used only during evening and all-night services; Meanwhile, we see that it is used in greater quantities, the more solemn the service. From this it is clear that, in addition to its purpose of illuminating, it has another purpose, namely, to express our religious mood and feelings; it is, therefore, a kind of sacrifice to God. And if she is a victim, then her material in no case can be determined by the same views on profit and convenience that usually determine objects of illumination. It can exclusively be determined only by the character and purpose of the victim itself. Therefore, first of all, there should not be anything in it that would contain any impurity. If in the Old Testament all objects burned before the Lord God were required to be clean: that the oil be pure, beaten from olive trees (Exodus 27:20), that the substance for incense be fragrant, clean (Exodus 30:34–35), that the animal sacrificed be without blemish (Lev.22:20–22); then all the more must this be said about the material that is now kindled before the purest and most perfect sacrifice. Everything in it should be directed so that it can serve as much as possible as an expression of the inner state in which we must sacrifice ourselves to God. That wax is an object primarily corresponding to the indicated purposes, one of the church writers of the first half of the 15th century, namely Simeon, Bishop of Thessaloniki, puts forward the following reasons: “Wax,” he says, “as the purest substance, means our purity and the sincerity of the offering; wax, as a substance on which objects can be imprinted, means the seal or sign of the Cross, which is placed on us at baptism and confirmation; wax, as a soft and flexible substance, means our obedience and willingness to repent of our sinful life; wax collected from flowers means the grace of the Holy Spirit; wax, composed of many flowers, signifies the offering made by all Christians; wax, as a substance burned, means our deification (i.e., our nature, purified by divine fire), and, finally, wax in which fire burns, or this very light, constantly burning, means the union and strength of our mutual love and peace” 25. This view, belonging to a writer of the 15th century, could in no way be only his personal view: in this case it was an expression of the Universal Tradition. Church practice serves as clear proof of this. The Apostolic Rules, as is known, served and serve as an expression of the Apostolic Tradition, on the one hand, and the practice of the first three centuries, on the other, and here in the 71st and 72nd rules it is said that wax, along with oil, was among the permanent accessories of the Church and that its theft was recognized as a crime that was punishable by excommunication from the Church. Comparing this instruction with the fact that the Carthaginian Bishop Mensurius, going to Rome for martyrdom, gives the elders, along with various church objects, two candlesticks, we can undoubtedly admit that in the 3rd century wax candles were in full use. As for the use of these candles in the 4th century, it is already confirmed by direct witnesses. Blessed Jerome speaks of it as a pious custom of his time, and St. Gregory the Theologian already gives it a mysterious meaning. Explaining to someone preparing for baptism the meaning of the candle held in the hands of the person being baptized, he speaks about it like this: “The lamps that you light will mysteriously form the local light-guide, with which we, pure and virgin souls, will go out to meet the Bridegroom, having the clear lamps of faith” 26 . In the 6th century, the use of wax candles in churches was protected by government regulations. According to the law of Emperor Justinian, no one could begin to build a monastery, a church, or a house of prayer until the builder had provided such a part of the estate as would be sufficient for oil “and for wax, and for all church lights,” and for sacred services, and for various observances of the holy church, and for food, and for clothing for those working for him 27 . The Seventh Ecumenical Council, commanding that we honor the Life-Giving Cross and St. icons by kissing, worshiping, incense and lighting candles, adding that this pious custom was also among the ancients 28. In the answers of John, Bishop of Kitros, to Bishop Kovalis of Drach, the lighting of lamps and candles over the tombs of the deceased is considered a sacrifice pleasing to God 29 . The same view of candles that was established in the Greek Church has long prevailed in the Russian Church. True to universal tradition, she did not use any other materials for church lighting than oil, or wax candles, or both together 30 . So, if, according to the teachings of the Church, wax serves as the best material for our sacrificial offering to God, if, apart from wax and oil, the Church has never used anything else anywhere, then no admixture with wax should take place. Whatever the property of this impurity, it will always produce a change in its composition, and with a change in composition, wax can no longer serve as an expression of those spiritual qualities that should be expressed by it. How could it serve as an expression of our humility, our submission, our softness of soul, when the candle made from it would be hard, rough and fragile? How could it serve as an expression of the gracious action of the Spirit of God on us, when a candle made from it would emit a suffocating, unpleasant smell? Meanwhile, it is precisely these properties that give wax the impurities that have begun to be used recently. Comparing everything that has been said about the material of church candles into one whole, we come to the conclusion that the material for these candles must be natural beeswax, that allowing impurities into it is a matter inconsistent with either the teaching of the Church or the universal tradition, that candles made from such spoiled wax must certainly be removed from use in churches. (See “Vlad. Bishop Vedas.” 1895, No. 8). Conversation No. 16. About counterfeit candles brought to the church of God as a sacrifice displeasing to God I. Pious hearers! Since ancient times, we Orthodox Christians have had a pious custom of bringing candles, oil and incense to the church of God. This offering, according to the teaching of the Holy Church, is nothing more than a sacrifice from our labors or a gift to God. By making these sacrifices, we either propitiate God for our sins, or thank Him for the blessings sent down to us, or ask for His help in all our affairs and undertakings. It should be noted that sacrifices are only pleasing to God when they are made not out of vanity, but out of sincere love for God, from a pure heart, from honest work, and if their quality satisfies the requirements of the Holy Church. From the very creation of the universe, man has always felt the need for sacrifices and has always offered them according to God’s decree. Abel, the son of Adam, was the first to sacrifice to God the best, the firstborn, the immaculate of his flocks, and his sacrifice was accepted by God. Righteous Noah, immediately upon leaving the ark after the flood, also offered a grateful sacrifice to God for saving himself and his family from the global flood, and this sacrifice was so pleasing to God that Noah received assurance from Him as a sign that there would no longer be a global flood. The wise King Solomon, after the death of his father David, wishing to erect a church to the Most High, did not begin to build it until he had first made a thousand sacrifices. But all these Old Testament sacrifices, as consisting in the slaughter of animals and sprinkling their blood around the altar, prefigured the universal Sacrifice of Calvary. When the immaculate Lamb, the Only Begotten Son of God, offered Himself as a sacrifice to God the Father for the sins of the whole world, and redeemed us from sin, curse and death with His Most Pure Blood, then the Old Testament sacrifices lost their meaning: the need to slaughter lambs, oxen and goats disappeared. Instead of the Old Testament sacrifices, now, in remembrance of the Lord God and our Savior Jesus Christ, during the Divine Liturgy we offer at the proskomedia, according to the establishment of the Lord Himself, the purest wheat bread, called prosphora, and the best red grape wine. These gifts, upon the invocation of the Holy Spirit and their blessing by the celebrant, are transformed into the true Body and true Blood of Christ and serve as the Bloodless Sacrifice, which cleanses the sins of both living and dead Christians. In addition to offerings for the celebration of the Eucharist, we Christians bring wax candles, oil and incense to the church of God. We also have an indication of this in the New Testament. From the Gospel history we know that the Magi, the Eastern sages, were the first to bring their sacrifices or gifts to the born God-Infant Jesus to Bethlehem: gold, frankincense and myrrh, and the book of the Acts of the Apostles tells that the disciples of Christ, gathering for prayer and breaking bread for the celebration of the Eucharist (i.e., the sacrament of Communion) in their houses, lit candles. “On the very first day of the week, when the disciples gathered together to break bread... In the upper room where we had gathered there were plenty of lamps,” says the writer (Acts 20:7–8). II. What should be the qualities of the sacrifices offered to God? a) The Old Testament legislator, on behalf of God Himself, makes the most stringent demands on the animals intended for sacrifice: “offer (as a sacrifice to God) what is pleasing to you - unblemished from herds of oxen, or from sheep, or from goats,” he says in the book of Leviticus: “what is blind, damaged, or deformed, or sick, or lousy, or scabby, do not offer to the Lord, and do not offer as a sacrifice on the altar of the Lord” ( Lev.22:19–22). The Old Testament Jews fulfilled this commandment of God to the fullest extent of the law. This is not how we, New Testament Christians, act in relation to the most common sacrifice - church candles. Pure beeswax candles are a rarity these days. The candles usually brought to church are those made from some kind of Arabian resin called cesarean, mixed with kerosene. Is this sacrifice pleasing to God? Look how this fake candle, when burned, separates the disgusting stench and soot, from which the iconostasis darkens, the paintings and walls deteriorate, and which have a harmful effect on those praying. Can such a candle, even unpleasant for us, be pleasing to God, the Most Perfect and Highest Being?! Usually you buy these candles, which so little correspond to the splendor of the church, not in the church, but from some small street merchant who, along with church candles, sells other various unclean items like tar, soap, kerosene, and other items of everyday life. And you don’t consider it a sin to bring such an obscene sacrifice to St. the altar, this Holy of Holies, and the altar of God? Perhaps you have previously brought these obscene candles out of ignorance or because of the low price at which they are sold by merchants; but it has now become clear to you that such a sacrifice does not correspond to the holiness and purity of the church and is contrary to the command of God; Therefore, I ask you, do not be deceived by its cheapness, do not bring it to church anymore, do not insult the shrine. b) Listen to how God Himself sometimes admonishes and even punishes those who are careless about the shrine of God. On Mount Athos, in the Dokhiara Monastery, there is a miraculous icon of the Mother of God, called the Quick to Hear. The description of this icon says, among other things, the following: in front of the miraculous icon of the Quick to Hear, there was an entrance through which the fathers usually went to the meal, and the refector, due to his position, walked there more often than others, not only during the day, but also at night; at night he sometimes walked past this icon with a lit torch. So, one day a table-keeper named Nil, usually passing by this icon with a flaming torch, heard the following words from it: “for the future, do not come here with a lighted torch and do not smoke My image.” Nile was frightened by a human voice at an unusual time, when there was no one at the meal except him alone, but did not pay due attention to these words and continued to walk past the icon with the same lit torch. After a short time, Neil heard the following words for the second time: “monk, unworthy of this name! How long will it take you to smoke My image so carelessly and shamelessly?” At these words, the unfortunate eater became blind. The monastery brethren found out about this, and all its members, frightened, fell reverently and with trepidation before the miraculous icon and lit an unquenchable lamp in front of it, and ordered the new refector to burn incense every evening before the saint. icon and burn incense in front of it. Blinded Neil, with repentance, did not stop praying for forgiveness. One day, when he was praying earnestly, he suddenly heard the following words: “Nile! Your prayer is heard: you are forgiven, and sight is restored to your eyes. When you receive this mercy from Me, tell the brethren that I am the cover and protection of their monastery. And whoever comes to Me with reverence, I will fulfill his prayer; and from now on this icon of mine will be called the Quick to Hear, because I will show quick help to those who come to it.” Then Neil regained his sight. Here, you see how the Mother of God Herself punishes the disobedient offenders of Her image. It’s scary, brethren, to fall into the hand of God alive! Be careful lest you anger the Lord God and His Most Pure Mother with an unworthy sacrifice. In order to avoid being deceived by a merchant in the purchase of candles in the future and not to offend shrines, always buy candles, as far as your means allow, in your church. Here the church patron, who is entrusted with the management of the church household, tries as much as possible to avoid buying low-quality candles and has candles of good quality and sells them, adjusting to their actual value. Then you will suddenly do two good deeds: you will bring a pleasant sacrifice to God, without offending the shrine, and you will support your parish church. You are a poor person, let’s say, and you cannot take expensive candles, but God does not require this from you; take a small but clean wax candle that is pleasing to Him - and such a small sacrifice of yours, with your diligence, will serve you to great benefit. Thus, from your feasible offerings, over time, such funds will be collected with which it will gradually be possible to decorate the church of the Lord. (See “Tamb. Ep. Ved.”). III. So, fellow Christians, I ask you: when going to the church of God, do not take with you candles previously purchased from private dealers, but purchase them, according to your zeal and condition, in the church from pure beeswax. Such a candle will serve as a pleasant sacrifice to God: like Abel’s sacrifice, it, together with your fervent prayers, will ascend like pure, fragrant incense to the heavenly throne of the Heavenly King, will bring down God’s blessing upon you, and all your petitions and good intentions will be crowned with complete, desired success. Amen. Conversation No. 17. About the custom of lighting lamps in front of icons I. Orthodox Christians have the custom of lighting lamps in front of icons. There is almost not a single family, no matter how poor it may be, that does not have a light glowing in the front corner of the house in front of the holy icons, especially on holidays. Many people usually have several lamps burning where only icons are placed, and in general the majority of Orthodox Christians try to keep this fire unquenchable... How should such a custom be judged? What is its meaning and what does it oblige Christians to?.. Nowadays we sometimes hear condemnation of this pious custom. “Why,” they say, “waste the oil, an expensive substance; it would be better to use the amount spent for charity. God does not need our outward actions and material donations. He demands from us love, selflessness and heartfelt spiritual prayer.” On the other hand, we see that many Orthodox Christians really limit themselves to lighting lamps on certain days, but do not succeed in prayer, and even the larger the holiday, the less time they find not only to go to church, but also to pray at home, overly preoccupied with everyday holiday preparations... All this, however, does not give us the right to reject this pious custom, as if useless, only because many do not use it properly and do not benefit from him of the spiritual benefit with which St. The Orthodox Church has allowed and since ancient times preserved its custom as godly and soul-saving. II. That the lighting of lamps before icons is indeed a godly action, we find confirmation of this in the life of St. John the Hermit, whose memory is celebrated on June 19. The Monk John lived in the 6th century after Christ in Palestine, not far from Jerusalem. He spent his godly life in one cave, did not have any property except the icon of the Mother of God with the Eternal Child. Before this icon of St. The ascetic always kept the lamp lit, practicing prayer with fiery zeal, through which he acquired special grace before God. Having the need, out of zeal for the saints who were far from Jerusalem, to be absent from his cave for a long time, the monk each time with holy boldness prayed before the icon of the Mother of God, that She might direct his path, and asked the Mother of God that She herself would deign to keep the lamp unquenchable in his absence. And he received what he asked: every time, returning from his pilgrimage after two or three months, St. the hermit found the lamp full of oil and not extinguished. Thus, the Queen of Heaven Herself was pleased to accept from the humble ascetic the sacrifice of his zeal! Apparently, such a sacrifice was pleasing and pleasing to Her, that She showed him such a miraculous sign of Her favor! Without a doubt, St. The ascetic was awarded such favor by the Mother of God not for his outward veneration of Her by lighting a lamp, but, mainly, for the fiery prayer that he always offered to the Mother of God, and for the exploits of his holy life. And we must be sure that through the pious custom of lighting lamps in front of icons, we can achieve the benefit and salvation of our souls only when this is combined with non-laziness and heartfelt prayer and the determination to direct our life from the darkness of passions to the unevening light of the Kingdom of Christ. a) When lighting a lamp in front of the image, we should most of all think about making sure that our heart burns with love for God and that our prayer is fiery. In the same way, when an Orthodox Christian puts a candle in front of an icon, he should know that this sacrifice of his zeal can be accepted favorably by God, if only this expresses his reverence and ardent zeal for prayer. The burning of a lamp or candle in front of an icon in itself does not mean anything and will not bring any benefit to a person if at the same time he remains cold in prayer and his heart does not glow and ascend to God, like the flame of a burning candle. And how often and very often it happens among us that when we light a candle or light a lamp in front of the icons of saints, we only do it outwardly, but our soul does not participate in the veneration of God! Thus, in general, all the pious exercises established by the Church, when we perform them only outwardly, lose their meaning and do not bring the benefit that they should bring according to the intention of the Church. For example, prayer with the greatest bows, without raising our mind and heart to God, is not only not pleasing to God, but can even anger the Lord; physical fasting, with all the strict pickiness in food, but without spiritual fasting, consisting of abstinence from passions, will also not bring us justification before God; Therefore, our concern for the external decoration of icons becomes useless if at the same time we do not take care to decorate ourselves with virtues. The same should be said about the lighting of candles and lamps in front of icons. b) It will do us no good when we only light lamps externally in front of St. icons, and in our soul at the same time no reverent disposition and determination are aroused to direct our life from the darkness of passions and the vanity of this temporary life to the unevening light of the Kingdom of Christ. God and His saints, whom we want to honor by burning material light before their icons, of course, do not need this, because they always abide in ever-present light and heavenly bliss. But for us, earthly beings, this kindling of light should be an awakening to our spiritual enlightenment, to holy and ardent zeal for faith and, in general, to a life such that it shines with good deeds. This is how we can achieve the favor of God, and God will accept every sacrifice of our zeal, even the smallest one, as a fragrant censer before Him and as a great burnt offering, in His holy heavenly altar and will bestow upon us the gift of the grace of His Most Holy Spirit (see “Resurrection Day,” No. 23, 1893). III. So, fellow Christians, as in the lighting of lamps before St. with icons, and in all the rites of our Orthodox Church, we will serve God not only in an external way, but also in an internal way - with our mind and heart; By lighting oil in the lamps, we will at the same time kindle in our hearts the flame of holy prayer to God and zeal for a godly life. Conversation No. 18. About the motivation to perform religious processions I. In certain deliberate times, according to the will of the Orthodox Church of Christ, we hold public prayers, combined with sacred processions: with processions of the cross. Servants of the Altar of the Lord with the Honorable Cross, St. With the gospel, icons, banners, accompanied by a host of believers, they proceed with sacred singing from the churches of God, go around towns, villages, fields, or march to a church, to a monastery, to water sources and, having performed a prayer service there, a blessing of water, or a general divine service, they return gracefully to where they began their procession. Processions of the cross are accompanied by some sacred rites, which have their own spiritual significance and are primarily aimed at expressing the triumph of the holy faith of Christ or at arousing in our hearts the liveliest gratitude, humility and other holy feelings. Church processions of the cross are carried out with the solemn ringing of bells, which, calling everyone, near and far, to take part in the sacred procession or to meet it with dignity, together expresses the triumph of the Cross of Christ, once persecuted and persecuted, and now majestically carried, surrounded by a host of the faithful who follow him, like warriors behind their banner. The Holy Gospel, together with the holy icons, is presented in the procession as a sign that it is “the lamp of the feet... and the light of our paths” (Ps. 119:105) wherever they are directed, and that the Church of Christ honors the holy saints of God as the best conductor of its prayers to the Lord. Before St. With the signs of Christianity, incense is burned, mysteriously reminding that this “Christian fragrance should spread... in every place” (2 Cor. 2:14-15). II. When the entire shrine is carried out of the church for the religious procession, then, obviously, it sanctifies everything in the church of God not made by hands - the church of nature. a) The sanctification of all the elements of nature is the first impulse to perform religious processions. First of all, in the procession of the cross, the land on which we walk, on which we live is sanctified - it is sanctified, as it were, by the feet of our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, the Mother of God and the saints of God walking along it in their faces. Then, in connection with the divine service that accompanies and for which the procession of the cross is performed, all the main elements are consecrated: air, fire, water, without which we cannot do in our earthly life. The air, for example, is purified by the fragrance coming to it from the church censer, sometimes from miraculous icons, by the vibration of sacred banners in it, by sprinkling it with holy water and overshadowing it on all four sides with the altar cross in the places where the procession stops, and finally, by sacred singing during the procession. The fiery element receives consecration from the fire carried in front of the entire religious procession - from the fire burning in front of the holy icons. The water element is sanctified in rivers, springs or wells by immersing the Life-giving Cross of the Lord into it. And when all these elements become extremely furious against earthly beings for their fall into sin, when they begin to severely punish us sinners, according to God’s command and permission, then the Orthodox Church of Christ carries out special processions of the cross to quench the elements. How beneficial, then, for our very health, for our external well-being, are sacred processions of the cross!.. b) The natural demands of our heart also encourage us to perform processions of the cross. “If any of you suffers,” the word of God teaches, “let him pray. If anyone is happy, let him sing psalms” (James 5:13): “for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks” (Matthew 12:34). Hence, during a time of special excess in the human heart of feelings, sad or joyful, the need for a special prayerful appeal to the Almighty, combined with a special external expression, opens up for a person. Therefore, when great sorrow weighs on the hearts of many, or when a blessing sent from above, or the remembrance of God’s special mercy fills many with a particularly joyful feeling of gratitude and a desire to especially glorify the Lord, the Author of joy, then naturally prayer becomes more universal and popular than usual, then the Christian soul seeks service to God, which is primarily open and accessible to all. And such is the service during our religious processions, usually performed openly and publicly, for the most part either in times of public disasters and sorrows, or on the occasion of joyful public events. That is why walks of the cross or generally sacred cathedral processions outside the churches of God on various occasions have been in constant use in the Church of Christ since ancient times: ancient Christians performed such walks to bring thanks to the Lord for the blessings sent down from Him - for example, for gaining victory over enemies, for deliverance from pestilence, on the occasion of the transfer of holy relics, on occasion consecration of churches - then to ask for the mercy of the Almighty in times of public disasters, such as earthquakes, droughts, floods, invasions of enemies, intensification of heresies and schisms. And if the teaching of Christ and human nature command us to rejoice with those who rejoice and weep with those who weep (Rom. 12:15), then how better can we fulfill this commandment if not by participating in the solemn meetings of the Church of God militant? And what, on the contrary, does a Christian do when he views the sacred processions of the cross with prejudice and avoids them? Generally speaking, he is not disposed either to be a member of the Church Militant, or to rejoice with those who rejoice, or to weep with those who weep; he is a dead member of a living body, a dry branch on a green tree... c) Further, the Christian is encouraged to perform the processions of the cross by their great benefits: the spirit of faith and piety is supported and developed in us by processions of the cross. And how better can we attract the joyful and merciful gaze of our Heavenly Father to ourselves, if not through the conciliar prayer of the city or village during religious processions? So many reverend hands are raised to heaven, so many tender voices are raised to the One who lives in Heaven, so many hearts long for the blessing and grace of God! Will the Lord not hear the prayers of His chosen ones who cry out to Him? Truly, if ever, then especially during religious processions, we gather - in the words of one ancient Christian writer - together in order to, like some kind of military detachment, make an attack on God with prayers from all sides (Tert.). That is why religious processions, no matter what occasion they are held, are always beneficial for believers. Are these moves, for example, made in the case of important social undertakings? The prayer sent out during them confirms the beginners in good expectations and brings down upon them blessings and help from above, in which the difficult becomes easy, and the apparently impossible becomes possible... Do processions of the cross take place during any public disasters and sorrows, when the powerlessness of sinners is fully revealed and the abuse of the powers given to them by the Lord is exposed? At this time, the Church of Christ, through processions of the cross, allows sinners to feel the power of God’s wrath, the severity of their sins and the need for speedy true repentance, and thus awakens its children to a contrite prayer for mercy, and through this it appeases the angry Just God and moves Him to deliver the penitent from troubles and sorrows. Are solemn processions of the cross held in grateful remembrance of ancient deliverances and special mercies of God? These moves strengthen in the heart of a Christian feelings of gratitude to the common Benefactor of all - God: with the sacred processions of the cross of St. The Church encourages descendants to kiss with faith and love that All-Generous Hand, which, having done good to the people or the city for many years, does not cease to do good to them in the following time, and by encouraging descendants to gratefully remember the blessings of God shown to their ancestors, it encourages the Lord to extend His mercies to the grateful children living on earth, and thus strengthens the prosperity of the latter. Oh, what powerful means these are for instilling in us feelings of faith, piety, and fear of God - sacred processions of the cross! (See prop., appendix to the “Manual for village pastors” for 1893, July). III. From here, brethren, flows our sacred duty both to diligently attend processions of the cross, and to attend them with all piety, reverence, and in a prayerful mood, so that through this our prayer in the church of nature may be more powerful and more pleasing to God, so that the unfaithful and other faiths, looking at our processions of the cross, can, as St. the apostle, falling on his face to worship the Lord our God and say: “Truly God is with you” (1 Cor. 14:25). Amen. Appendix to conversation No. 18. About behavior during the religious procession The clergy should remind themselves and others in good time that in order for this good undertaking (i.e., performing a religious procession) to bear good fruit, for this it is necessary that the work of God be accomplished with deep and continuous reverent attention. When you enter a procession of the cross, think that you are walking under the leadership of the saints, whose icons are marching in it, and that you are approaching the Lord Himself as far as is possible for our weakness. The earthly shrine signifies and calls upon the heavenly shrine. The presence of the Cross of the Lord and holy icons and the sprinkling of blessed water cleanses the air and earth from our sinful impurities, removes dark forces and brings light ones closer. Use this help for your faith and prayer and do not make it useless for you through your negligence. When you hear church singing in a procession of the cross, connect your prayer with it, and if you cannot hear it from a distance, call upon the Lord, the Mother of God and His saints in the manner of prayer known to you. Do not enter into conversations with those accompanying you, but respond to those who begin the conversation with a silent bow or a short, only necessary word. The clergy should be an example of order and reverence, and the laity should not crowd among the clergy and upset order. It doesn’t matter if you lag behind in body: do not lag behind the shrine in spirit. (From the words of Philar. M. Moskovsk. See “Soul Reading,” September 1892) Conversation No. 19. About the meaning of opening and closing the curtain on the royal doors I. You, brethren, have noticed that there is a curtain on the royal doors. There is a veil, or katapetasma, behind the royal doors for two reasons: 1) and in the temple of Jerusalem, you know, the veil separated the Holy of Holies from the sanctuary; 2) since the royal doors are predominantly through, those approaching can always look into the altar; but during some of the most important sacred rites their gaze should not penetrate there; for this purpose the curtain serves, which is drawn that time. However, in the ancient Christian Church it sometimes did not move from one side to the other, as is the case with us, but descended from top to bottom, and that is why it was called the upper door, and the gate itself in this case was called the lower, or lower. Now this curtain is made of red or blue silk; but in the old days, both in Greece and here in Russia, curtains were sometimes skillfully embroidered and richly decorated. Such, for example, a curtain was donated by Tsar John IV to the Mount Athos Hilandar monastery in 1556. It depicts the Savior in bishop's clothing, blessing with both hands. On His right side is the Mother of God in the clothes of the Queen, on the left is St. John the Baptist. On both sides, two archangels are depicted flying from above to the Savior: Michael with a cross in his hands and Gabriel with a spear and a cane, and on three sides, along the edges of the curtain, the faces of saints are depicted, numbering 31. The rich embroidery of the curtain was decorated with pearls and precious stones. II. Have you noticed, brethren, that the curtain, which marks the heavenly tabernacle, where the faces of angels and saints are located, sometimes hides from those standing in the church, and sometimes reveals to their eyes the altar, which represents the Heavenly Kingdom, the dwelling of God and paradise. The opening of the curtain during the service marks the revelation to the world of the mystery of salvation, which has been hidden for centuries (Col. 1:26) and appeared to people during the incarnation of the Son of God, who opened the entrance to the Kingdom of Heaven for us. St. John Chrysostom says: “When you see the detachable curtains hanging at the gates of the altar, then think that the heavens are opening and angels are descending.” According to its meaning, the curtain is opened at those services in which the economy of the salvation of the human race is most revealed and in which the greatest hope is given to receive the Kingdom of Heaven, namely at solemn and joyful services. These are the services: Vespers, Matins, Liturgy, the hours at which the Gospel is read, Compline, when the All-Night Vigil begins, prayer singing, and they are similar in composition to Matins and the Gospel is read at them, etc. But at the services depicting our sinful state and the wrath of God for our sins, at the services of repentance, sadness, the curtain does not open. Thus, it is not revealed at those services that the charter prescribes to be performed in the vestibule, namely at the hours (if the Gospel is not read at them), at Little Vespers, at Compline and the Midnight Office. a) In particular, at great and daily vespers (but not small) and at matins, the curtain is open from the beginning of the service until dismissal (Typikon, ch. 23). b) At the (full) liturgy, the veil is opened at the beginning of the liturgy, after censing at the proskomedia and saying the words: “Glory to God in the highest” and “Lord, open my lips”... and it is opened before the great entrance, and after the great entrance the veil is closed. The Great Entrance marks the Lord’s procession to free suffering and death on the cross, and therefore the closing of the curtain at the Great Entrance signifies that the mystery of the salvation of the human race, accomplished by the Lord’s death on the cross, is incomprehensible to people, hidden from centuries and generations. When the deacon shouts: “doors, doors”... the curtain opens again, because then in the Creed the sacraments of Christ, previously hidden, are revealed to us. The veil remains open until the cry: “Holy to holies,” and then it closes again, because after this the breaking and slaughter of the Lamb takes place in the altar as food for the faithful, and this is such a sacrament that is incomprehensible not only to people, but also to the angels themselves. The peculiarity of closing the curtain at the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts at the Great Entrance is that then not the whole curtain is closed, as at the full liturgy, but only half of the curtain, and after the exclamation: “let us hear” before the singing of the sacrament, the other half of it is also closed. Half of the veil opens to signify that we have already seen the Consecrated Gifts and God has revealed to us the performance of the sacraments of the service, and the other half at this time closes to signify that the mystery of the Lord’s Bloodless Sacrifice is incomprehensible to us. After the communion of the clergy in the altar, before the manifestation of the Holy Gifts to the people, the curtain opens, in commemoration of the fact that the stone was rolled away from the tomb of the Savior at His Resurrection. The curtain is open until the dismissal, and after the dismissal both the royal doors and the curtain are completely closed. This reminds us that after the end of the world, no offering, no sacrifice will help our souls. (See Liturgics of Nesterovsky). III. This, brethren, is the deep meaning of opening and closing the curtain on the royal doors. Let us never lose sight of this meaning when the veil is opened and closed, so that we consciously relate to what we see in the Church of God and derive spiritual benefit for ourselves from it. Conversation No. 20. On the opening and closing of the royal doors I. The altar, as a particularly sacred place compared to other parts of the church, accessible only to clergy, is separated from the rest of the church by a barrier called the iconostasis. In this barrier there are three doors: some of them are called middle, others - southern, and others - northern. The middle gate, directly from the throne leading into the church, called the royal gate, or holy door, is especially important. They are called royal because the King of Glory and Lord of lords passes through them in the Holy Gifts; They are called saints because the Holy Gifts are carried through them and only sanctified persons are allowed to enter through them. Behind the royal doors in the altar there is a curtain that moves by means of cords from one side to the other. The opening and closing of the royal doors has the same meaning as the opening and closing of the curtain. The Royal Doors are opened during divine services for the entrance and exit of clergy with a censer, with the Gospel, the Holy Cross and the Holy Cross. With gifts, as well as without them, during the ceremonial exits of clergy to perform church services and some prayers. II. The entrances and exits of clergy during worship have special signs, and the opening of the royal doors during them sometimes means the path of Christ, sometimes the opening of the doors of heaven, sometimes the entrance to the Kingdom of Heaven. a) The Royal Doors open at the beginning of the All-Night Vigil, and the priest, having come out through them, censes the entire church while singing the psalm: “Bless the Lord, my soul.” The opening of the royal doors at this time marks the blissful state of the ancestors in paradise before the Fall. After the incense and at the end of the singing of the psalm, the royal doors are closed, depicting that through the crime of Adam the doors of heaven were closed for sinful man. At Vespers, the royal doors are opened for the entrance of clergy with a censer (and sometimes with the Gospel, when the Gospel is read). The priest entering the altar represents the Savior who came to earth “from heavenly circles” for our salvation and who again ascended to heaven and brought us with Him. The deacon preceding the priest at the entrance depicts the Forerunner of Christ. The royal doors are opened at the All-Night Vigil for the litany and blessing of the loaves, and after that they are closed. b) At Vespers, the high priest says dismissal with the royal doors open. c) At Matins the royal doors open: 1) Before singing the poly oil and reading the Gospel. On Sundays, the Gospel is brought to the middle of the church after it is read at the altar, and after the Gospel is brought to the altar, the royal doors are closed. On holidays, when there is a celebration after the polyeleos, the priests go through the royal doors into the middle of the church to the lectern with the icon of the holiday. The Gospel is read in the middle of the church and, after reading, is taken to the altar. After kissing the image, the priests go to the altar, and the royal doors are closed. The Royal Doors are open on Good Friday at Matins during the reading of the 12 Gospels and on Holy Saturday during the singing of “The Immaculates” with praise. 2) At the festive matins, at which the Great Doxology is sung (and not read), the royal doors open during the Great Doxology and are closed after the dismissal of Matins. 3) On the clock, the royal doors open when the Gospel is read on them, and after all the Gospels are read, the royal doors are closed. Usually the dismissal of the royal hours occurs with the royal doors open. d) At the liturgy of St. Basil the Great and St. John Chrysostom opens the royal gates for entrances, small and great. 1) For the small entrance with the Gospel, which marks the appearance of the Lord to preach the Gospel, the royal doors are opened after the small litany and the exclamation: “for it is good” and stand open during the reading of the Apostle and the Gospel, and after reading the Gospel they are closed. The opening of the royal gates to enter with the Gospel signifies that the Gospel of the Kingdom of God opens the way for us to the throne of heavenly Glory, into the holy place not made with hands, where Christ has entered, so that he may appear to the face of God for us (Heb. 9:24). 2) The Royal Doors open for the great entrance, at which the Holy Gifts are transferred from the altar to the throne. After the transfer of the Holy Gifts, the royal doors and the curtain are closed. Closing the royal gates at this time means the descent of Jesus Christ into hell to preach to the spirits imprisoned in it, and closing the curtain means placing a guard at the tomb of the Savior. 3) The Royal Doors open when the Holy Gifts are given for the communion of the people and remain open until the end of the Divine Liturgy. The opening of the royal doors at this time depicts the appearance of the Lord to His disciples after the Resurrection, His victory over hell and death, His ascension to heaven and the opening of the Kingdom of Heaven, lost by our ancestors. At the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts, the royal doors are opened, except for the time of entry, even after the first paremia, when the priest says: “the light of Christ enlightens everyone,” which shows that the light that enlightens everyone is the light of Heaven. (See Liturgics of Nesterovsky). III. Knowing when the royal doors open and close, let us, fellow Christians, be attuned to those feelings that are appropriate to have at a given time, so that we can serve God wisely, with a clear understanding of the meaning of those rituals of our worship, in which our reasonable service to God is expressed. See Riga Diocesan Gazette, No. 4, 1889, cf. Bingham "Church Antiquities", vol. 5, p. 120. Chetyi Menaion, December, 13th day. Chetyi Menaion, July, 18th day. Chetyi Menaia, April. Book 1, sheet 22. Additional Required, ed. 1871, l. 88–89. Institute Lib. 2, cap. 5. Comparison Constitutiones Apost. Lib. 8, cap. 5. The readings consist of interpretations of the Apostle, the Gospel, legends about the origin of the holiday and the life of the saint. In Chapter 9 The Charter, in the sequence of Matins it is said: “After the end of the 2nd kathisma, we sing the 2nd sedalene in the Octoechos, private. Reading the same, and standing up we say: Lord have mercy.” So, when reading, they sit, because after reading they stand up. The Charter commands standing during readings rather than sitting in exceptional cases. For example, in the observance of Easter, the Charter says: “The Catechetical Word of Chrysostom is read... We do not sit at the reading, but listen to everything while standing.” That while reading or singing sedalni one is allowed to sit down, this is evident from the fact that it is noted in the Charter about some sedalni that one should not sit with them. For example, the 8th voice of the Theotokos of the Octoechos: “He rejoices in you,” “not sitting down, it is said, we sing, but standing, and with fear and reverence”; and in the observance on Great Friday it is said: “We do not sit on calico saddles, for the priest to cense the altar, but we sing to those standing.” Church Ist., book. 5, ch. 5. Evs. Church Ist., book. 2, ch. 23. Quaestions ad orthodoxos. Inter opera S. Justini. Responses 115. “About the crown”, ch. 3. They say the same thing: St. Peter of Alexandria (III century. See his 15th rule in the Book of Rules), St. Basil the Great (on the Holy Spirit, ch. 27), also the apostolic decrees (book 2, ch. 59). Questions ad orthodoxos. Inter opp. Justini. Resp. 115. "Austen". Kazan 1865, p. 156. "Joachim, Patriarch of Moscow." Smirnova. Moscow. 1881 With. 144 Book about the Church, ch. 134. See "The New Tablet", page 40. Word on St. baptism. See Creation. holy Fathers, ed. at Moscow Spirit. Ak., vol. III, p. 321. This usage is very characteristically expressed in the following ancient riddle: a bird flies through God’s house and says to itself: “My snare is burning.” This is the reason for the reverent attention with which the Russian people treat the bee and its care. He finds that both killing a bee - this “God's insect”, and entering it uncleanly is an unworthy, sinful thing; he uses wax taken from a church candle as a medicinal remedy for his own illnesses and for the illnesses of domestic animals.