About places of Christian worship

Contents From the editor Conversation No. 1. About the historical origin of the church Appendix to Conversation No. 1 A. Old Testament altars B. Tabernacle C. Jerusalem Temple from the time of Solomon D. About the Upper Room of Zion and the fact that it was the original model of the holy Christian church D. Catacombs E. Basilica G. Church of Hagia Sophia in Constantinople Conversation No. 2. About the external appearance of churches Conversation No. 3. About the main parts of the church Conversation No. 4. About the arrangement of the altar Appendix to conversation No. 4. About antimensions in the Orthodox Church Conversation No. 5. About the middle part of the church Conversation No. 6. About the porch and porch Conversation No. 7. About the symbolism of the architecture of the Orthodox church Appendix to conversations No. 3–7. Examples of obvious heavenly favor towards holy churches Conversation No. 8. About the meaning of the cemetery for us As part of the “Popular Orthodox Encyclopedia” series, the Prolog publishing house, together with the Kyiv Theological Academy, offers readers the first two sections from the voluminous work of the famous church writer, master of theology, archpriest Grigory Dyachenko 1 “Public conversations about the worship of the Orthodox Church.” This is the first book that opens the way to further publications of the conversations of Rev. Grigory Dyachenko about Orthodox worship. The conversations are compiled primarily from the best works in the field of church archeology, history, and liturgics, which were available to church theological science by the end of the 19th century. As necessary, the author adds to them various explanations from the field of dogmatic and moral theology, the works of the holy fathers and teachers of the Church, which makes them a kind of introduction to the riches and depths of Orthodox worship. The book “Orthodox Church” 2 is especially relevant in our days, when a significant number of baptized but unchurched people come to the Church from a secular environment completely alien to it. Entering the church, an unprepared person is faced with a completely new, incomprehensible and mysterious world. Priests' robes, icons, lamps, chants and prayers in an obscure language - all this creates in the newcomer a feeling of alienation in the church, leading to thoughts about whether all this is necessary for communication with God. Yes, it is necessary, and the one entering the church world must become familiar with all this, all this must become his own. This book will help the reader find answers to these kinds of questions. In simple, lively language, its author talks about what the church of God is, about the history of its origin, about the symbolism of the architecture of the Orthodox church, about its interior decoration, about worship and the language in which it is performed, about the ringing of bells, candles, vestments of clergy, icons and much more. The worship of the Orthodox Church is very rich in various symbolic actions; under their cover lies a deep spiritual meaning. As Rev. rightly notes. Grigory Dyachenko: “All these symbolic actions say nothing to either the mind or the heart of someone who does not comprehend their mysterious meaning; Thus, all the care of the Church and all its efforts to impart deep and comprehensive instructiveness to its worship are wasted.” Unfortunately, today we very often have to face the fact that Christians, even those who have been visiting the church for a long time, still do not understand what is happening in it. As a result, they feel like strangers, external people in the church. The purpose of this book, as well as a number of others planned for release by the Prolog publishing house, is to help modern people understand the meaning of the worship of the Orthodox Church. In Holy Scripture itself, in Psalm 46, there is a unique instruction on the study of worship: “Sing to our God, sing; sing to our King, sing, for God is the King of all the earth; sing wisely." And in order to sing to God intelligently, you need to consciously participate in worship. Conversation No. 1. About the historical origin of the church I. Faith in God is inherent in man in his very nature; created in the image of God, man was originally created pious, that is, religious. And therefore, no matter what low level of mental development a person was at, he was always religious. This holy feeling, like a grain, is deeply rooted in the very nature of the human soul, as created in the Image of God, so that “the soul of man,” in the words of the father and teacher of the Church, Blessed Augustine, “by its very nature is Christian,” and only a madman, as the psalmist David said, says in his heart: “there is no God.” II. But this religious feeling, brothers, did not always manifest itself in the same way in a person’s life: initially this feeling found its living manifestation in private - home and family - prayer and did not have the social form of its expression in which it was later clothed and contained. And this, in turn, depended on the original form in which human life and cohabitation were expressed; At first, family life was such a form; Initially, there was no social system into which human life developed in subsequent times. a) From the very beginning of human existence, each family, each tribe was one strictly closed, albeit small society, in which the head of the family - the patriarch, as the eldest in the clan, represented and concentrated in his person both the power of the king and the duties of the priest and, thus, was not only the sovereign administrator of the life and death of family members subordinate to him, but also the only mediator between God and people in the matter of their religious relations. This was the entire long period of patriarchal life. Naturally, in this initial (patriarchal) period there were no—and there could not have been—churches as special meeting places for public worship and sacrifice. During this period, places of prayer were places either indicated by God Himself, or marked by any special extraordinary events in the life of the patriarchs; such places were mountains, hills and valleys or shady groves and oak forests; in all such places, churches were not built, but an altar or altar was erected from stones right in the open air, family members gathered around it, and in their presence the head of the family or the eldest in the clan made a sacrifice to God; At the same time, there was no reading of any established specific prayers, no singing of sacred hymns (i.e., sacred chants), and everyone raised their thoughts of grief to God in their souls in the form they knew how. Such sacrifices, according to the book of Genesis, were made by Cain and Abel, righteous Noah - upon his exit from the ark, Abraham, the father of believers, on Mount Moriah, Jacob - on a stone in the desert, Moses - on Mount Sinai, and so on. b) Only under Moses was the first church of God built on earth as a special place of public prayer, namely the Tabernacle, which served as a model for subsequent churches not only of the Old Testament, but partly also for the New Testament - Christian ones. But this first church of God, due to the special conditions of the historical life of the Jewish people, at that time was far from similar to those churches that were erected by these people in subsequent times; since the Jewish people had a long journey ahead from Mount Sinai to the Promised Land and a long wandering through the Arabian desert, then, naturally, the tabernacle of Moses had to be built so that it could be moved from one place to another without much difficulty. And indeed, Moses, by the command and direction of God, builds this first church not from stone or wood, but in the form of a tent or tent, in which both the walls and the ceiling consisted of curtains of woolen material decorated with Cherubim. These curtains were attached to wooden crossbars fastened between the pillars; inside the tabernacle, like our Christian churches, was divided into two parts - the sanctuary and the Holy of Holies; around the tabernacle there was a courtyard surrounded by the same curtains; in this courtyard in front of the tabernacle there was an altar on which sacrifices were made and before which the people prayed; Only the priests entered the tabernacle itself. Along with the construction of this tabernacle, Moses, at the command of God, established a high priest, priests and lower servants - the Levites, to serve under it, a certain order and order of worship and sacrifices were established. But even after the Jews settled in the Promised Land, this tabernacle still remained a place of public prayer meetings for the Jewish people and was moved for a long time from one city to another during the entire period of the judges. c) Only under David, the second king of the Jewish people, was the first permanent church of God built in Jerusalem; having built and decorated the capital of his kingdom, Jerusalem, with magnificent buildings, this pious king of the Jewish people also created a permanent church for Jehovah; but this church was far from corresponding to the greatness of the God of Israel and differed from the tabernacle of Moses only in that it was built on a larger scale compared to the tabernacle. David himself was clearly aware of this, living in the magnificent royal palaces; and therefore he had the good intention of creating a magnificent church worthy of His name for the Lord; but the Lord did not deign for David to carry out this good intention of his; through His prophet God revealed to David that he would not build a church for Jehovah (i.e., the Lord), since he had shed a lot of human blood in wars, but his son Solomon would fulfill this. You see how jealous the Lord was about the holiness of His house: in order to be worthy of creating the house of God, it is not enough just to have the means and a sincere desire, but you must also have a pure heart and hands not stained with the blood of your neighbor... David humbly submitted to the will of God and began to prepare various precious materials for the church of God that was about to be built; and with what love, with what zeal he performed this good deed!... d) Having reigned after the death of his father, Solomon first of all tries to fulfill the will of God announced to his father to build the church of God; he erects a magnificent and extensive church to Jehovah on the very spot of Mount Moriah, on which once, by the direction of God, Abraham sacrificed his son Isaac to God and which was thus, as it were, predetermined by God Himself, as one on which sacrifices would have to be offered to Him forever. A lot of labor and effort was put into building this church; a lot of silver and gold and various other precious materials were used. And indeed, the temple of Solomon was majestic; and the Most High loved this village, apparently showing His favor on it in that fire came down from heaven on the first sacrifice made at the consecration of this church, and the Glory of God, which overshadowed this church, filled it so much that King Solomon himself and all those present in it fell to the ground... But the Lord did not long favor this church: for the sins of the Jewish people, the city of Jerusalem was devastated by Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, and with him the majestic Temple of Solomon was destroyed to the ground. See how strictly we must guard ourselves in the purity and holiness of our lives, so as not to anger God with our sins, and how great and terrible is the wrath of God on sinners, that even such a majestic church of His the Lord did not spare for the sins of the Jews... Great was the loss of this church for the Jewish people, but great was also the sorrow of this people over the deprivation of their church. Everyone knows the touching words of the sacred song; “By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat and wept when we remembered Zion... If I forget you, O Jerusalem, forget me, my right hand; stick my tongue to my throat, if I do not remember you...” (Ps. 137:1,5,6). In these touching words, the Jewish people, languishing in 70 years of captivity, poured out all their grief not so much for themselves, but for Jerusalem and especially for the destroyed temple in Zion... e) The merciful Lord heeded these repentant groans and cries of His people: after 70 years, the Jews were returned from Babylonian captivity to their homeland, and through the labors of Zerubbabel, first of all, they erected, together with Jerusalem, on the ruins of Solomon’s temple, a new church of God in the same size, although not with such splendor as Solomon’s temple. The Jews, who remembered the splendor and beauty of Solomon's temple, grieved greatly at the sight of this church; and only after a long time the second church was expanded and richly decorated by the king of Judea, Herod the Great, who through this wanted to gain the love and favor of the Jewish people. And indeed, this church, restored by Herod, was so beautiful and majestic that the Savior Himself repeatedly delighted His Divine gaze with it from the Mount of Olives; It is therefore quite understandable how modern Jews loved and valued this church. This love and respect for the church of God was sanctified by the example of Jesus Christ, who during His earthly life repeatedly visited this church and instilled in people reverence for it as the house of God - a house of prayer; everyone knows how He repeatedly expelled traders from this church, forbidding them to turn the house of God into a place of trade: “My house is a house of prayer, and you have made it a place of trade,” He said to sellers and buyers... Shouldn’t we treat the church of God with such reverence, and how we should be afraid of offending the holiness of the church of God by our irreverent behavior in it!... f) From the times of the Old Testament, let us transfer our mental gaze to the times of the New Testament - and we will see that in the Christian world the same religious feeling inherent in the human spirit caused its discovery to be found in the existence of the churches of God - Christian. Although our Lord and Savior Himself taught His followers to worship God in spirit and truth, although He Himself prayed to His heavenly Father in every place - on Mount Tabor, and in the desert, and in the Garden of Gethsemane, nevertheless He, by His example, sanctified this inherent need for the human spirit in the churches of God as deliberate places of prayer, choosing as such that Zion upper room, where He performed together with His disciples of the Last Supper, established the Sacrament of the Eucharist and taught them His Most Pure Body and Blood. Following the example of the Savior, in this same upper room of Zion, they repeatedly gathered for prayer and to celebrate the Sacrament of the Eucharist, and the apostles, to whom the risen Lord Himself repeatedly appeared during these meetings, talked and shared a meal with them; in the same upper room, during common prayer, the apostles were granted the visible descent of the Holy Spirit on them in the form of tongues of fire on the day of Pentecost. We see the same thing under the apostles and after them, and in other places; True, in the centuries of Christianity that followed, the history of the Christian Church does not say that temples of God were erected at this time; but this was an exceptional time, far from favorable for the construction of Christian churches of God: it was a time of almost continuous and most severe persecution of Christians both from the Jews and even more from the pagans. It is clear that in this difficult time for Christianity, Christian churches were not, and could not be, erected as deliberate places of public prayer, but Christians in this difficult time for them gathered for prayer in hidden places - in the catacombs on the tombs of martyrs, in private houses, in mountain caves, in empty ships, etc. But even in this difficult time, Christians also had open, vast and majestic churches of God; such, for example, was the magnificent church of Nicomedia, which was so large that more than 20 thousand Christians who had gathered for prayer on the night before the Nativity of Christ were burned in it at one time. g) Since the time of Constantine the Great, when the persecution of Christians stopped and Christianity was declared the dominant religion in the Greco-Roman Empire, intensified activity began in the construction of Christian churches. Emperor Constantine the Great himself built new magnificent churches of God in some places, and in others he converted desolate pagan temples and even royal palaces or chambers (basilicas) into Christian churches. The mother of Emperor Constantine, the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Queen Helen, worked especially hard in this holy work; For this purpose, she deliberately traveled throughout the East and built many magnificent churches of God in Palestine in places consecrated by the most important events in the earthly life of Jesus Christ; Thus, majestic churches were built for her in Jerusalem on the Mount of Olives, in Bethlehem, Nazareth, on Mount Tabor, and so on. From this time on, not only the East, but also the Christian West was adorned with magnificent churches of God, for example, in Rome - the Church of St. Apostle Peter, in Byzantium - the Church of St. Sophia, in Milan and other cities. In the following centuries, the more Christianity spread and strengthened, the more the churches of God multiplied. Let us mentally transport ourselves from the distant eastern countries to our fatherland - Russia; and here we will see the same thing: as soon as the light of the Orthodox Faith of Christ, brought from Byzantium under Saint Vladimir, shone on the mountains of Kyiv, immediately across the face of the Russian land, along with the spread of the Holy Faith, holy churches of God began to appear and multiply. III. From this brief historical review of the emergence and construction of the churches of God, we see, brethren, that everywhere and at all times the innate sense of religion in man called into existence the churches of God to satisfy and express this feeling - both in the Old Testament and in the New Testament times, both in the east and in the west. This feeling is especially strong in our country, in Orthodox Russia, because nowhere is there such love and zeal for building churches as in Russia; but nowhere are there such a multitude of churches as in our Fatherland; Every smallest village tries first of all to build its own separate “church of God.” (See Teachings of Arseny, Archbishop of Riga). May the Lord help this pious desire of Christians to have the church of God. May He bless and shower with great gifts of His mercy all the builders of churches and all who sacrifice for the construction and beautification of the holy churches of God. The Church of God, through the mouth of the clergy, until the end of the century, will not cease to offer its prayers to the Throne of the Most High for all the creators and beautifiers of the churches of God. A. Old Testament altars These altars were built of earth and stone everywhere in the open air, but mainly in places where God appeared to man; for example, Jacob built an altar in Bethel, after he saw a ladder there, its top touching heaven; or where God showed some kind of benefit to man; for example, Noah, after the end of the flood and upon leaving the ark, built an altar near Ararat; or, finally, in places that could naturally dispose a person to think about God and pray, for example, on the mountains, in groves. So, Abraham built an altar in the oak grove of Mamre and on Mount Moriah. In fact, in such places a person seems to be separated from the world, from people, and therefore draws closer to heaven, to God. But since the time of Moses, the Jews have served God in the tabernacle, and since the time of Solomon, in the church. The Tabernacle of Moses and the Temple of Solomon served as a model for our churches, and therefore we need to have some concepts about the tabernacle. (See the book “Minutes of Pastoral Leisure”, Hermogenes, Bishop of Ladoga). The tabernacle was nothing more than a camp church, or a tent that could be moved from place to place. It consisted of three parts: the courtyard, the sanctuary and the Holy of Holies. The courtyard was surrounded by covers stretched along the pillars. The entrance to it was from the east and was covered with a curtain. Inside the courtyard there was an altar and a laver. The altar was made of acacia wood, overlaid with copper, had the shape of a quadrangle and stood opposite the entrance to the sanctuary. The laver, made of copper and decorated with mirrors, stood in front of the altar, almost in front of the curtain of the sanctuary. They usually made sacrifices on the altar, and from the laver the priests and the high priest washed their hands and feet when they had to enter the sanctuary. The court was appointed generally for the people. Inside the courtyard were the sanctuary and the Holy of Holies. There were three sacred objects in the sanctuary, namely: a lamp, a table or table, and an altar of incense. The lamp was made of gold like a tree consisting of seven branches, i.e. On both sides of the straight stem came three branches with cups or holes into which the burning oil was poured. He stood to the left of the entrance. The table was made of acacia or shittim wood and overlaid with pure gold. On it lay 12 showbread in two rows, which changed every Saturday. She stood to the right of the entrance. The altar or table for burning incense was also made of acacia wood and overlaid with gold. He stood before the curtain that separated the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies. Only priests could enter the sanctuary: they usually entered here in the morning and evening to burn incense and light the lamp, and on the Sabbath they took the showbread from the meal and put new ones in their place. In the Holy of Holies stood the ark of the Covenant. It was a small box made of acacia and lined inside and outside with gold. Its golden lid was called the purification. Attached to it were two Cherubim, cast in gold, with outstretched wings. The ark contained three sacred objects: the tablets, or stone tablets, on which the Ten Commandments were written by the Lord, a golden vessel with manna, and Aaron’s wonderful rod. Only the high priest could enter the Holy of Holies, and then only once a year, precisely on the Feast of Atonement, when he sprinkled sacrificial blood over the purification area. B. Jerusalem Temple from the time of Solomon This is what history tells us about him. This church was built for the first time by Solomon (1014 BC) according to the model of the tabernacle and destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar (in 586 BC). Over time, when Cyrus, the king of Persia, granted the captive Jews the right to return from Babylon to Jerusalem, this church was built again under the leadership of Zerubbabel. This was in 536–515. BC. The Temple of Zerubbabel stood until the time of Herod the Great, who, loving splendor, broke it down and in that place built a new magnificent building for the Jews (20 BC); it existed for less than 100 years and was destroyed along with the destruction of Jerusalem by Titus in the 73rd year A.D. The temple of Zerubbabel was built on the model of the temple of Solomon, while the temple of Herod was built in the spirit of classical architecture and adjoined the first two only in the structure of its most important accessories, determined by the requirements of Jewish worship; In view of this, we will pay attention only to the first temple of Solomon 3. The material for the construction of this building and the workers were obtained from various countries; the number of workers, according to the books of Holy Scripture, extended to 80,000 people and 3,600 overseers. In addition, in the forests of Lebanon, 70,000 people cut down cedars and cypress trees for him. The church was built on the northeastern side of the city on Mount Moriah. Two courtyards, separated by walls and designated for the priests (inner) and the people (outer), surrounded it. Over time, the number of these courtyards was increased by the addition of a courtyard for pagans and a special room for women. In the courtyard of the priests, the accessories of sacrifice were placed: an altar, a vessel with water for washing sacrificial animals and a copper sea, that is, a vessel for washing the priests after the sacrifice. The church itself had the shape of an elongated quadrangle, 60 cubits in length (without vestibule), 20 cubits in width and 30 cubits in height 4 . It was divided into three parts: the courtyard, the sanctuary and the Holy of Holies. All these compartments had the same width - 20 l., but their length was different: - the first - 10 l., the second - 40 l. and the third - 20 l.; the latter also had 20 liters. in height and thus represented the shape of a cube; the sanctuary was 30 l high; the height of the vestibule is unknown with accuracy. On three sides of the church (with the exception of the entrance side) there were extensions for storing the church treasures: they had three floors of 5 liters each. heights in each; their internal width was different: in the lower floor there were 5 cubits, on average 6 cubits and in the upper floor 7 cubits. The entrance to these premises was located in the sanctuary. The walls of the church were made of excellent large stone, and the walls of the courtyards were made of stone and wood together; namely, every three rows of stone, cedar beams were laid here, which thus made up the fourth row. Inside the church, the presence of stone was completely invisible: the walls were lined with cedar wood, the ceiling was made of cedar beams, the floor was made of cypress wood, and on the walls there were carved images of palm trees and Cherubim. Moreover, all the walls, floor and ceiling in the entire church were covered with gold. The doors of the church are made of cypress, carved and gilded. In the sanctuary there is a cedar altar with gilding for burning incense and a golden table for the showbread. The golden seven-branch lamps provided the church with abundant light, and the small windows in the sanctuary served not so much to illuminate the church, but rather to communicate with the air and let in incense smoke. The Holy of Holies was separated from the sanctuary by a wall of cedar wood and connected to it by a door of olive wood, decorated with costly hangings. Only the high priest had the right to enter here, and only once a year - on the day of purification. Here was the ark of the Covenant made of acacia, 2 ½ cubits long, 1 ½ liters. in width and the same height - gilded inside and outside with a massive gold lid. Near him stood two Cherubim made of olive wood, also with gilding - 10 cubits in height: their wings - 5 liters. each one touched the walls of the church. Here is a general internal view of the Temple of Jerusalem. Archeology has more scanty information regarding its appearance. Added to this scarcity is the fact that we do not have examples similar to it, which would make it possible to fill by analogy the lack of historical information. It is only known that the outer walls of the church, like the inner ones, were decorated with carved or stucco images of Cherubim, palm trees and flowers, and that the doors of the church were made of wood with gilding and decorations similar to the decorations of the walls (1 Kings 6 et seq.). The roof of the church, according to some archaeologists, was flat, and according to others, it was vertical. There were no columns here; only two cast copper columns “yakhin” (solid) and “boas” (strong) stood at the entrance to the courtyard; their body was 35 cubits long, the capital 5 l. (2 Chronicles 3:15), volume 14 l., diameter 4 l., the body had flutes (grooves) four fingers deep (Jer. 52:21), which makes these columns more similar to Egyptian than to Greek columns; the capitals had the shape of blossoming lilies, like the cup-shaped Egyptian capitals decorated with lotus; Moreover, they were slightly swollen and magnificently decorated with 7 festoons and 200 pomegranates, descending down in two rows. There are various assumptions regarding the meaning of these columns. Some believe that they had not only a decorative and symbolic meaning, but at the same time supported the roof of the vestibule and therefore were inserted into the walls. Others claim that these columns were not in internal connection with the building and stood separately in front of the entrance doors only for decoration. Currently, on the site where the Temple of Solomon once stood, there is the Mosque of Omar. The Mohammedans respect this place and call it “haram es sherif,” that is, a sacred enclosure. Since 1859 it has become available to Christians; Many archaeologists examined it carefully, but did not find any remains of an ancient church that could give an idea of ​​​​its architectural style. Only its location has been explored, from which the following results can be extracted. The top of the mountain on which the church stood represents a parallelogram of 17g/2 acres of land, or 35 English acres. Its sides have unequal length; the surface is also uneven. The ruins that have survived here so far have different origins and different characters: some of them, namely the remains of the wall on the eastern side of the square, are among the remains of the First Temple of Solomon; others, like the Western Wall, to the Temple of Herod; most of them are of later origin. The remains of some underground structures at the church, as well as other architectural monuments of Jerusalem, do not in the least help to clarify the architectural image of Solomon's temple. So, what architectural type should this church be classified as? Old archaeologists, influenced by the charm of classical architecture, completely arbitrarily attributed Solomon's temple to the Greco-Roman type; new ones attribute it to the Egyptian type. The Jews were in close relations with the Egyptians, lived for a long time in Egypt and were engaged in construction there under the leadership of the natives; it is also known that Solomon himself was married to the daughter of the Egyptian king, and therefore, apparently, the Jews could most easily adopt the Egyptian method of construction and apply it to the Jerusalem Temple. However, in reality, this was hardly the case. The Egyptians used almost exclusively one stone for their buildings: here we see stone walls, columns, beams and, finally, sculptural decorations. It’s not the same with the Jews: they use wooden beams, they build walls not only from stone, but also from wood, they are lined with wood outside and inside, and finally they allow for abundant gilding - all these are features unknown to the Egyptians. “Among the Egyptians,” says Shnaaze, “the predominant architectural flair, nobility and proportionality of forms, here (among the Jews) is the shine of gold, which acts on the imagination, excites it and, thus, dulls the sense of form” 5 . This suggests that the architectural traditions of Egypt were erased from the memory of the Jews during their wanderings in the desert and were replaced by others more consistent with their situation and taste. The starting point of these legends was Babylonian-Assyrian architecture, to which Jewish architecture adjoins, however, not directly, but through Phoenician architecture. From the books of Holy Scripture we learn that Hiram, king of Tire, sent his workers to Jerusalem to participate in the construction of the Jerusalem temple. This circumstance alone partially vouches for the fact that the architecture of this church was influenced by Phoenician architecture. (See the book “The Origin of the Ancient Christian Basilica”, N. Pokrovsky, pp. 45–50). G. About the Upper Room of Zion and that it was the original model of the holy Christian church The Holy Evangelist Luke, outlining the circumstances preceding the descent of the Holy Spirit on the apostles, says that after the Lord’s Ascension into Heaven, they returned from the Mount of Olives to Jerusalem, “and when they came, they went up to the upper room, where they remained”; that then “They all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with certain women and Mary, the Mother of Jesus, and with His brothers” (Acts 1:13–14); that, finally, “when the day of Pentecost had come, they were all with one accord” (Acts 2:1). What kind of upper room was this in which this original Church of Christ dwelt? And what does it mean for the apostles and others to be in this upper room? Was it a simple residential church in which people spent the day and night? The very large crowd of those who seem to be in this upper room does not allow one to think so. To the twelve apostles, the Most Holy Mother of the Lord, the myrrh-bearing women and other pious women, other disciples of the Lord, all of whom the evangelist counts: “there was a meeting of about a hundred and twenty people” (Acts 1:16), was it decent, was it convenient, was it possible to live in one upper room? What kind of room was this? It reminds me of the “great upper room carpeted” (Luke 22:12), mentioned by the same evangelist, about which the Lord said to Peter and John: prepare Easter there, and in which He established and for the first time performed the sacrament of His Body and Blood. Either this is the same upper room in terms of location, or, at least, both are the same in purpose and dignity. Its purpose was not to spend the day and night, have lunch and dinner, sit and rest in it, but that those staying in it “all of them unanimously remained in prayer and supplication”; the Lord's Last Supper was celebrated in it; in it the election of Matthias to the sacred ministry and his rank as an apostle took place. It was an upper room that towered above all earthly and worldly things, and the pious spirit of those who abided in it touched the heavenly and divine, which is why it finally had the highest advantage that Heaven and the Divine appeared solemnly and miraculously in it. The Holy Spirit not only animated the apostles with His almighty breath and enlightened their minds with fiery tongues, inflamed their hearts, formed tongues for the worldwide preaching of salvation, but also filled the very place where they were with His holiness and grace: “he filled the whole house where they were” (Acts 2:2). I ask again: what kind of upper room is this? And what I have said so far, I hope, is enough to justify the final answer that I give to the proposed question: the upper room of Zion, the apostolic one, the upper room of the Descent of the Holy Spirit is nothing more than the original example of the holy Christian church; and mutually: the holy Christian church is a repeated, renewed, multiplied apostolic upper room of the Descent of the Holy Spirit. (See Words and speeches of Philaret, Metropolitan of Moscow. T. IV, p. 163). Catacomb 6 is a cave or dungeon where people gathered for prayer in the first centuries of Christianity. Some catacombs are still visible in Rome. We descended into the catacombs along the steps of the steepest staircase. They consisted of three parts: 1) galleries, 2) rooms and 3) churches. 1) Galleries are nothing more than narrow and long corridors carved into the rock. Their walls are filled from top to bottom with tombs in the form of recesses or niches; the bodies of the deceased were placed in these recesses; the hole was sealed with a marble board or wide tiles, which were covered with cement. Sometimes an epitaph or inscription was carved on the marble slabs in cement, indicating who was buried. In these same galleries, only under the floor, and not in the walls, Christians often buried their dead even until the 5th century, when persecution by Jews and pagans had already ceased. 2) The rooms were called cubiculi (bedroom) and were mostly quadrangular and square. This was entered from galleries or corridors through an opening. The wall opposite the entrance to the cubicula was mostly occupied by the tomb of the martyr. Small holes were made at the top of the cubicle, through which the cubicle communicated with the surface of the earth to conduct light and air into them. These holes had an inclined position, partly so that Christians could descend into the cubicles in case of an enemy attack or lower the dead there for burial, and partly so that rain, sand, stones, etc. could not fall directly on those in cubicles. The cubes were intended specifically for prayer, but at the same time they also served as family tombs. 3) The churches in the catacombs were nothing more than large cubes. Each church certainly had one or more tombs of the holy martyrs, which served instead of an altar and therefore rose above the floor. Each church was divided into two halves: one was the same as our altar, and was separated from the other by two columns embedded in the wall; in the other, people stood and prayed. This last half was divided into two parts; Men prayed in one, women prayed in the other. Here is the general structure of the catacombs. At the end of the 8th and beginning of the 9th centuries, the catacombs began to fall into ruin, because at that time the Lombards and Saracens devastated the outskirts of Rome; but now they are being cleared and renewed 7 . So this is where predominantly Christians prayed to God in the first centuries of Christianity! Light and joy in the tombs of the first Christians. The tombs of the first centuries of Christianity found their place mainly in “underground Rome” - in the catacombs. Gloomy underground passages, corridors and halls served as cemeteries for the first Christians. And this especially strikes us in its contrast with those thoughts and feelings that, so to speak, breathe in the frescoes, inscriptions and symbols of the catacombs. Everything here, apparently in a place of sorrow and crying, has a peaceful, loving, bright and even joyful character. Everything here - in the underground city of the dead - speaks of Christianity as a religion of life that conquers death, as a religion of light and joy, as a religion of peace, forgiveness and tenderness from the most tender feelings of love, with faith in immortality and resurrection. Of the frescoes, especially remarkable are those that depict either the comforting events of the Gospel story, or the transformative stories of the Old Testament, such as the explained symbol of the prophet Jonah. These are: the worship of the Magi, the healing of the paralytic, the resurrection of Lazarus, Moses pouring out water from a stone, the prophet Isaiah pointing to the star above the head of the Virgin, the youths in the cave of Babylon - in relation specifically to the martyrs burned in the gardens of Nero; young Daniel in a cave or dungeon, surrounded by lions - in relation to the martyrs of the Colosseum, torn to pieces by beasts. The Savior was symbolically represented as a good, or rather “beautiful Shepherd” (John 10:14), or surrounded by sheep - in the sense of the Lord’s parable about the Shepherd in the Gospel of John (John 10:1-18), or carrying a sheep on His shoulders - in the sense of saving a lost person, according to the Lord’s teaching about the lost sheep (Matthew 18:11-14), then in the sense of transferring the soul of the deceased to the monastery of saints (John 14:2) into communion with the inhabitants of heaven. For the Christians of the catacombs, without distinction of all ranks, conditions and ages - both masters and slaves, both rich and poor - the idea of ​​the Savior as a good Shepherd constituted, as it were, a prayer book and a creed of their moral teaching about unity and communication. The inscriptions in the catacombs are short and simple, in contrast to the funeral epitaphs of the pagans - long, boring, pompous. According to their content, in addition to faith in eternal life and resurrection, they all breathe peace, love and tenderness. For example: "Fructuoso, your soul is with the righteous." “Constance, ever faithful, went to God.” "Everlasting peace to you in Christ." "The resting place of Elpida." “Agapa, you will live forever.” “Pax tecum” – “peace be with you” is the most common. The inscription “in peace” is repeated constantly, with a touching, soul-pacifying monotony. We often encounter words of delight in faith, striking with inner strength; e.g. “Terentian Lives”! “Young Mark, you have entered the host of the innocent!” Often in the inscriptions there are words of reassurance for the heart devoted to the all-governing and all-loving Will of God, for example: “here by the Will of God Damala rests.” Nowhere is there even a hint of complaint or sorrow, which is what especially clearly distinguishes the inscriptions of Christians from the inscriptions of pagans, with a feeling of murmur and indignation filling the souls of readers. For example: “Farewell, farewell, dearest, farewell forever and ever.” “All hope was for our boy, now everything is ashes and crying.” “Once I was not; now I'm gone; I don’t know anything about it and it doesn’t concern me.” Or: “I, Procopea, raise my hands against the gods who took me from here, although I am innocent.” “Fortune makes many promises, but keeps none. Live for the present!” There are many Christian inscriptions, delighting the soul with the tenderness and warmth of love, in all the simplicity of their vitality. For example: “innocent little lamb”, “my little gentle dove”, “little innocent soul”. All martyrs are spoken of with a feeling of forgiveness for their persecutors and without reference to suffering. “Cornelius Bishop is a martyr,” that’s all. As for the actual symbols of the catacombs, they primarily express the essence of Christian life, as the apostles spoke about it; this is precisely the joy and simplicity of the heart (Acts 2:46). And how pathetic before them are the symbols of gloomy paganism: broken columns, torn rose buds, broken skulls, crying women, overturned torches, etc. For Christians: a multi-significant “fish”, a lamb (sometimes ordinary, sometimes figurative - with wings and a vessel surrounded by radiance - a symbol of communion), a deer thirsty for a source of water; dove, ship or ark, anchor, olive branch, evergreen leaf, vine, palm of victory, harp with a consoling melody, rooster - emblem of wakefulness, peacock and phoenix - emblem of resurrection. (See Christian Joy magazine). Since the time of Constantine the Great, who gave peace and triumph to the Church of Christ, majestic churches began to be built. The most common form of churches was the basilica form. Basilicas were special public buildings located near public squares and intended for legal proceedings, for carrying out trade transactions and for delivering speeches by young speakers. Constantine the Great gave many basilicas to Christians for worship. New churches began to be built according to their model. The structure of ancient Christian basilicas, despite their diversity in particulars, was generally as follows. Their plan was always an oblong quadrangle. The width of the basilica was no less than ⅓ and no more than ½ of its entire length. Inside, it consisted of three (and sometimes 5 or more) oblong halls, separated by columns. These halls were called naves, or ships (from navis - ship). The middle hall was higher and twice as wide as each of the side halls. Above the first row of columns, another row of relatively smaller ones rose, forming galleries that stretched over the side halls along their entire length. Women stood here, and therefore these very galleries were called gyneconites. The walls were supported on the columns, and on the walls were the beams that made up the ceiling and supported the roof. In these upper walls of the middle hall there were usually windows that illuminated the entire main part of the building from above. In addition to these longitudinal halls, there was also a transverse ship, or transept, crossing the longitudinal halls in their upper part, and sometimes in the middle. The height and width of the transept was equal to the middle hall, but its length was either equal to the width of the building, and sometimes it was slightly larger, so that the ends of the transept protruded outward from the general plan of the building and sometimes were rounded. The middle hall, the most extensive and highest, ended in a more elevated semicircle, which was called the apse and served as a room for the altar. On both sides of the main ledge (apse) there were two more side ones, which bore the general name of pastophoria, but in particular one of these compartments - the left one (if you look facing the altar) was called πρ ό θεσις (professis) and served for accepting offerings and for preparing for the Sacrament of Holy Bread and Wine, - the other compartment - the right one was called diacinicum (deacon keeper) and served for storing sacred books, vessels and other things. The entrance to the altar was formed by a huge arch, which was called triumphal, and the altar was separated from the middle part of the church by carved gratings, which were hung with carpets or curtains. Above the throne in the altar there was a canopy with a cross on top on columns. Behind the throne, near the wall, there were seats for the bishop and presbyters in a semicircle. In the transept and the front part of the middle hall there were pulpits for reading the Holy Scriptures and for delivering teachings. There was a chandelier hanging in the middle of the church. The Orthodox Church has preserved many features of the ancient arrangement and decoration of basilicas. The basilica differed from the forms of church architecture familiar to us by the absence of vaults and a dome. In addition to the closed part, or the church in the proper sense, the basilica also had an open part - the atrium, or courtyard. The first part, or atrium, compared to the closed part of the basilica, was smaller in size, but also had the shape of an oblong quadrangle, or square. The atrium adjoined one side to the closed building of the basilica and was surrounded on all sides by a wall. The entrance side of this wall was lined with a more or less extensive portico, called the propylaea. Inside, the courtyard was surrounded on all four sides by covered porticoes on pillars or columns. But the middle part of the courtyard remained open and there was a pool of water for washing the believers entering the church. The one of the porticoes that adjoined the basilica itself was called the narthex, or the outer porch. From here there was a passage to the closed basilica through three doors, of which the middle door was larger than the side ones and was called the red gate, in correspondence with the red gates of the Temple of Solomon, or the royal gate, because the kings, upon entering the church, laid down the signs of their royal dignity in them. Priests entered through the middle gate, and laymen through the side gates, men to the right, women to the left. Narfix and the courtyard were appointed for certain degrees of penitents and catechumens. (See “Liturgics”, E. Nesterovsky). G. Church of Hagia Sophia in Constantinople Who among the Orthodox Russian people has not heard about the Church of St. Sophia in Constantinople? Who has not aroused the most lively interest in getting to know this phenomenal structure closely? But at the same time, who has not experienced the most burning pain in the heart from the knowledge that this famous monument of the era of the highest prosperity of the sciences and arts of the glorious Byzantium, the great shrine, which once served as the center that united the religious and moral interests of all Eastern Orthodoxy, is now in the hands of infidels and so ignorantly barbarously desecrated and disfigured by the fanaticism of the followers of Mohammed? For a long time, even soon after the enlightenment of Russia with Christianity, the Church of St. Sophia served as a model for many famous Russian churches. So, for example, on the model of the St. Sophia Church, Yaroslav built the St. Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv, which exists to this day, as well as the Cathedral in the name of St. Sophia in Novgorod. Currently, there is an assumption to build in Moscow, in memory of the liberation of the peasants from serfdom, a church in the name of the Holy Blessed Grand Duke Alexander Nevsky according to Justinian's plan for the Church of St. Sophia in Constantinople, only with some reduction in its size. Therefore, now is a very good time to get to know the Church of St. Sophia as closely as possible. Under Emperor Justinian, the famous mathematician and architect Greek Anthimus, from the city of Tral, was famous for his building art, who decorated the capital with many beautiful buildings. Justinian instructed him to draw up a plan for the St. Sophia Church, showing him such grandiose dimensions of the proposed structure and such skillful and rich decorations in it, which had not been thought of until that time. The brilliant mind of Anthimus drew up a complex plan for a never-before-seen church with amazing speed; so that forty days after the fire that destroyed the church of Theodosius, precisely on February 23, 532, the opportunity already arose to carry out the ceremonial foundation of the new church. The emperor issued a command to “all rulers, satraps, judges, quaestors and prefects, so that they send to Constantinople from their regions columns, peristyles, bronzes, doors, marbles and in general all sorts of materials that could be useful in the construction of the church of St. Sophia.” The emperor's orders were, without a doubt, carried out to the utmost precision. And so the remains of churches, porticos and palaces from Greece, Italy, islands and Asia were brought to Constantinople. The ruler of Ephesus sent eight marble columns with a black slot, rare in beauty and strength, left over from the temple of the goddess Diana, famous in paganism. In addition, columns taken from the churches of Apollo of Delos, Minerva of Athens, Cybele of Cyzicus and many others were delivered. One pious widow, a Roman woman named Marcia, who came from a rich and noble family, sent for the Sophia Church eight porphyry columns that belonged to her, distinguished by their special beauty, once taken from the Church of the Sun in Belbek and brought by Aurelian to Rome. The exquisite decoration of the Justinian Church included rare examples of various marbles found in Troas, Sizicus, Athens and the Cyclades Islands, as well as white marble from Phrygia with pink veins, green marble from Laconia, blue Libya, red granite from Egypt, porphyry from Sais, and more. All these jewels were, as it were, a tribute from the entire then known world, brought to the Infinite Wisdom, Saint Sophia. But what did it cost to transport all these materials from everywhere to Constantinople? Due to the enormous size of the new church, which far exceeded the volume of the Church of Theodosius, and in order to give more appearance to such a majestic structure, Emperor Justinian ordered the preparation of a vast area for it, which was carefully leveled. The main supervision of the work, in addition to Anthimus of Tralles, the drafter of the plan, was entrusted to an equally skilled builder, Isidore of Miletus. Secondary management of the work was distributed among a hundred master masons, each of whom had a hundred workers at his disposal. Thus, of the ten thousand workers who built the church, five thousand were located on one side of the structure, and five thousand on the other. The strictest order was observed throughout the work; nothing slowed down the correctness of the construction. Such success of the matter depended mainly on the enthusiasm with which the sovereign himself was completely occupied with the thought of building the church. They said that the real architect was the emperor, who himself drew up the plan and detailed layout of the church, and that Anthimus and Isidore were only his assistants or executors of his plans. And indeed, one could often see the emperor, dressed in a simple linen tunic, with a bandage on his head and with a stick in his hands, walking around the work, personally observing them: he explained any perplexities that arose, he resolved doubts that arose regarding the method of executing the plan. It is hardly necessary to talk about how the personal presence of the emperor inspired the workers, of whom the diligent were generously rewarded, while the careless were admonished with strict penalties. After a vast area had been prepared, wide and deep ditches were dug in accordance with the enormous size of the church. Following this, the ceremonial laying of the church was carried out. The Patriarch, surrounded by a large clergy, performed a proper prayer service, and he said special prayers in which he asked the Lord God to send blessings on the upcoming work on the construction of a church for the Glory of His Holy Name. After this, the emperor, in front of a countless number of people gathered, took a shovel and threw the first lime mortar into the foundation of the church, which consisted of huge masses that filled ditches up to ten arshins wide. The foundation of the building was prepared in a special way and consisted of a mixture of lime with willow bark and sand moistened with barley decoction; forming a kind of hydraulic putty, such a mass soon acquired the hardness of iron. The walls of the church were made of bricks, but the columns that served to support its vaults and roof were built from huge blocks of limestone, carefully hewn into the shape of huge cubes or triangles, laid on cement with oil, filled with lead and fastened both on the outside and on the inside with iron staples. The internal walls of the church were lined with marble slabs, also firmly reinforced with iron ties. When the walls of the church were built up to the dome, then the difficulties in executing the plan increased. The bold project of reducing the main dome seemed impossible at that time. It should be noted that the ancients knew how to build wide semicircular vaults on rotunda buildings, as can be seen on the Pantheon of Agrippa in Rome. These models were also imitated by the architects of the times of Constantine the Great, as can be judged by the monument to Constance in Rome, located not far from the Basilica of the Angel. All these structures have supports firmly and, one might say, heavily placed on the ground. And such vaults were not always successful for builders. But the dome of the St. Sophia Church, supported at an enormous height by arches and canopies of the vaults, was truly news to the architects of the new Rome; its construction required a lot of scientific and technical knowledge and ingenious considerations. In order to reduce the weight of this vast dome, which surpassed in size all that had existed before it, Emperor Justinian decided to use special bricks for its construction, the main quality of which would be their lightness. On the island of Rhodes, clay of a special quality was found, distinguished both by its lightness and by its extraordinary strength, which made it possible to make them empty inside and, even more so, to reduce their weight. In this way, it was achieved that twelve Rhodian bricks were equal in weight to one ordinary brick. On each such original brick the following inscription was embossed: “May the Lord God, who founded His church, help in its creation.” Particular care was taken to ensure that these bricks were laid in every possible correct row. What importance was attached to the construction of the dome and how difficult this task was considered is evident from the fact that throughout the construction of the dome, intense and incessant prayers continued for the successful completion of the building and its lasting establishment. After the walls of the church were laid out and the dome was successfully approved, Emperor Justinian began the internal structure and decoration of the church. Regarding the interior decoration of the church and its decoration, it must be said that the splendor of the church was so amazingly majestic and so precious and elegant that no most accurate description of it can give even an approximately satisfactory idea of ​​it. Everything precious that was found at that time was used for the church; the most skilled artists sharpened their rare abilities on the design of various church utensils. To give the sacred images indestructible strength, they were made using mosaics with ornaments made of precious stones and metals; all the cornices, all the carvings and capitals were gilded. Huge mosaics covered the vaults of the dome and apse, as well as the walls of the church. On a gilded background, colossal-sized mosaic images of the Mother of God and St. apostles Numerous crosses with the inscription τοῦτω ν ί κα (hereby conquer) were displayed throughout the walls. In the middle, main dome there was an image of God the Father with four cherubs, while in the side, western semi-dome there was an image of the Mother of God with the apostles Peter and Paul; On the side walls of the church, above the choirs, prophets and martyrs were depicted. The altar of the church was decorated with special splendor, as naturally it should be. It was separated from the middle part of the church, the so-called refectory, by a majestic iconostasis, which was made of cedar wood and silver. Twelve columns, covered with silver and placed on pedestals decorated with chased arabesques, were located in the iconostasis in pairs, and in the middle, between the pairs of columns, the Royal Doors were built, and behind them were placed - on the one hand, as in our churches, the icon of Christ the Savior, and on the other - the icon of the Mother of God. These icons were followed by side - northern and southern - doors, behind which in the iconostasis were located icons: the apostles - on the side of the northern doors and the prophets - on the southern side. The iconostasis of the altar ended with a huge golden cross crowning it, placed in the middle of it, above the Royal Doors. Inside the altar, the Holy See, as its most sacred accessory, was built with unparalleled wealth and grandeur. It was established on four massive pillars made of pure gold; the top board that covered them was an invaluable jewel: in order to make it, a mass of gold was melted down, into which all kinds of precious stones were thrown in abundance - diamonds, rubies, amethysts, sapphires, onyxes, topazes and pearls. From this precious alloy the only board in the world was made, intended to be the throne of the King of Glory. Its elegant finish matched the value of the material. The highest art was applied to ensure that the upper part of the throne was a truly artistic work in terms of the beauty of the embossing and all kinds of carved decorations. The floor around the throne was covered with gold sheets. Above the throne rose a canopy in the form of a canopy, made of pure gold and supported by four massive silver columns and arches; a golden cross weighing 75 pounds, sprinkled with diamonds, crowned this overshadowing of the throne, which represented the vault of heaven. “Who will not marvel at the splendor of the Holy Table,” exclaims a modern chronicler in a fit of delight, “who can comprehend its execution, when it shines with various colors, playing with the brilliance of gold and silver, then sapphire, in a word, it emits valuable rays, depending on the type of expensive stones, pearls and all kinds of metals from which it is made!” Behind the throne, on its eastern side, was placed a golden seven-branched candlestick, and on both sides of the throne, northern and southern, stood huge candlesticks - made of the same precious metal. The high place was arranged in a semicircle; this is the so-called apse. Here, in the middle, in the depths of the semicircle, the patriarchal seat was placed, and on both sides of it there were seats for the clergy, made of silver and gilded, and the partitions separating them were made of pure gold. On the left side of the throne, an altar was built with great splendor, and on the right side there was a deaconikon, where the sacristy, which was in charge of the deacons, was kept, which amazed with its wealth. Suffice it to say that all the sacred vessels, such as chalices, paten, spoons, dishes, censers, various crosses used in the altar, the bindings of the Gospel and Apostolic books were made of pure gold, generously decorated with pearls and precious stones. The richness of these sacred objects used during worship was matched by the splendor of church vestments - the throne, the altar and the clergy, as well as various liturgical covers. The most skillful gold brocade fabric was used for these vestments and covers, moreover, richly embroidered with gold patterns and pearls. In general, the cost of one sacristy of the Church of St. Sophia is determined with our money up to ten million rubles in silver. After this, what was the value of this entire church, unparalleled in its wealth and splendor? According to the testimony of ancient historians and according to the calculations of later writers, the construction of this unique monument of high architecture and a miracle of art in the world and its final decoration cost about one hundred and thirty million silver rubles with our money. To illuminate the church, thousands of lamps were used, which hung on bronze chains attached to the vaults, and candelabra or multi-candlesticks, countlessly located in all parts of the building. When these lamps were burning and all the chandeliers were lit, the light reflected on the gold jewelry and precious inlays produced an unimaginable effect. According to one writer, these bright lamps floated in an ocean of fire. The construction of the St. Sophia Church lasted for six years; one must wonder how it was possible to complete such enormous and complex work in such a short time. Only the pious zeal and power of the ruler of the vast Empire and his vigilant care for the speedy execution of the great undertaking can explain to us such speed in the construction of the Church of St. Sophia. Emperor Justinian was eager to see the completion of the church as soon as possible. When the church was completed with construction and complete decoration and equipped with all the utensils necessary for worship, then the emperor began to consecrate it. In order to understand the solemnity and grandeur of the ceremony of this consecration, one must take into account the fact that the number of the entire clergy staff assigned to serve in the church reached up to 800 people who lived in numerous buildings located around the church. Special estates were allocated for their maintenance, which brought in significant income. The consecration ceremony was timed to coincide with the feast of the Nativity of Christ and lasted several days. This was in 538. Surrounded by high dignitaries, accompanied by Patriarch Eutyches, the emperor opened a solemn procession from the palace to the newly created church. Having approached the church and leaving all those accompanying him at the door, the emperor entered the church alone and, approaching the foot of the pulpit, stopped; here, overwhelmed with inexpressible delight, at the sight of the majestic building rising to heaven, he raised his hands to the sky and loudly exclaimed: “Praise be to You, Lord, who has made me worthy to accomplish such a deed! Solomon, I have defeated you! Then, upon the patriarch’s entry into the church, the ceremony of consecration began, performed with the participation of a large clergy. The mass of the celebrants, their shiny vestments, rich utensils, the solemnity of the ceremony, the wonderful singing heard throughout the marvelous church - all this made up an amazing picture of unearthly grandeur. Now Justinian's pious zeal received its full satisfaction. Involuntarily we are reminded of the irresistible impression that the Russian ambassadors of St. Vladimir at the sight of this church, when they, struck by its greatness during the divine service performed in it, were so delighted that, as they later said, they did not know where they were - on earth, in the church of God, or in heaven, at the Heavenly Throne of the Lord, surrounded by Angels who glorified Him. The Emperor wanted to give the celebration of the consecration of the St. Sophia Church not only church, but also national significance. Therefore, from the church and palace, he extended the celebration to the masses. The abundant royal generosity had no limits here either; monetary gifts were distributed by the handful. Historians say that to commemorate the celebration, the poorest residents of the capital were given: 1,000 bulls, 10,000 rams, 600 chamois, 1,000 pigs, 10,000 hens and chickens and up to 30,000 measures of grain bread. Consecrated with such unprecedented solemnity, the St. Sophia Church became the center of religious representation for the entire East. (Compiled from an article by Archpriest S. Markov, published in “Soulful Reading” for 1897). Conversation No. 2. About the external appearance of churches I. Before we begin to explain the worship of the Orthodox Church, it is necessary to convey some concept about the Orthodox Christian church, about its main parts and accessories, about church utensils, the most commonly used sacred vestments and other things related to worship. II. The first three centuries of Christianity tell us little information about the appearance of Christian churches. a) We find the first evidence of the external appearance of the church in the “Apostolic Constitutions” 8, which says that “let churches be oblong like a ship.” By giving this view of the church, Christians express the idea that just as a ship under the control of a good helmsman guides a person through a stormy sea to a quiet harbor, so the Church, led by Christ, saves a person from drowning in the depths of sins and brings him to the Kingdom of Heaven, where there is no sorrow and sighing. The figure of the oblong appearance of churches is more often found in ancient monuments 9. Since the 4th century, the forms of Christian churches have diversified regardless of Christian concepts, since most of them originated from pagan temples and public porticos, which had a variety of shapes. b) According to Christian concepts, from that time on, Christian churches mostly took the form of an octagon 10 and a circle 11, as a reminder to believers that the Church of Christ, like a guiding star, shines in this world and will exist until the end of time, since the circle means a symbol of eternity. c) It was also common to give the church the shape of a cross, reminding Christians that they were saved by the suffering of the Son of God on the cross. These were the churches: Simeon the Stylite in Antioch of Syria († 459) and Constantinople in honor of the apostles, built by Constantine the Great. Churches are mostly built according to these forms to this day. d) Nevertheless, the building ended and ends with a dome, which, rising above the heads of the believers, reminded them of heaven, where all their thoughts and desires should strive. Even before Christianity, domes were a favorite decoration of magnificent pagan buildings, especially among the Romans. In Christian churches it has become known since the 4th century. At the top of the dome there is a cross as a sign that the Christian church is dedicated to Jesus Christ. Sometimes instead of domes, churches were built with domes, from one to five with a certain sign, so that one dome was built in the name of the One Head of the Church - Jesus Christ, two - to signify the two natures in Jesus Christ, three - to the glory of the Holy Trinity, five - to remind Jesus Christ with the four evangelists. e) But whatever the appearance of Christian churches, all of them, according to the Apostolic Tradition, should face the east with the altar. This is because in the east there was the first Church, that there was an earthly paradise there, and that just as the visible light comes from the east, so the gracious Light, the true Light that illuminates our path to the Kingdom of Heaven, shone for us from the east, for there Christ was born, the Savior of the world, who is called in the church liturgical books the East, the Sun of Truth, the Light and similar Names. f) Further, churches are usually built on elevated places, and they, as one pious writer says, “should be elevated so that the palaces, as well as the huts, lay as if at their feet.” This is because churches are the visible dwellings of the Heavenly King and with their sublime, splendid appearance they should arouse in us high, heavenly feelings, making us forget about earthly things. III. The external appearance of churches gives, brothers, very edifying lessons for us. The shape of the ship indicates that in the Church of Christ there is an experienced and infallible Pilot - our Lord Jesus Christ. Let us remember that outside the Church there is no salvation; that she, like a guiding star, shows us the path of salvation; Let us follow this path with love and trust. The shape of the dome at the top of the church reminds Christians that their eternal home is not on earth, but in Heaven, where their thoughts and feelings should always strive. Amen. Conversation No. 3. About the main parts of the church I. Since the most ancient times of Christianity, Orthodox churches have been divided into three parts: the altar, the church and the vestibule (Simeon of Thessalonica), in the image of the Tabernacle of Moses and the Temple of Solomon. II. a) The altar is the most sacred place of the church, set aside specifically for sacred rites, and therefore, according to the rules of the Holy Fathers, laymen are forbidden to enter there; The Church made an exception to this rule only for the royal person, whose entrance to the altar is not prohibited out of respect for the power and dignity of the royal and sacred Anointing, so that the Orthodox Tsar can partake of the Body and Blood of Christ at the throne together with the clergy (Rule 69 of the Trullo Council). b) The second part of the church - the church - was intended specifically for the faithful, that is, for the baptized. Here places for both sexes of believers were in ancient times separated. The purpose of this church institution was naturally to distance people who are not established in piety and are easily carried away by images and sensory impressions, if possible, from those objects that could involuntarily upset their prayerful spirit. God grant to all of you, Orthodox Christians, to keep yourselves in the church of God so that such a measure of ancient church decorum may seem unnecessary! c) The third section of the church - the vestibule - was designated for the catechumens, that is, for those who were still preparing for Holy Baptism, as well as for the penitents, that is, for those of the faithful who, for grave sins, were subject to church prohibition and were thus temporarily separated from the community of the faithful. The time of such a difficult prohibition for Christians was more or less long, depending on the importance of the sin and the sincerity of repentance. At the same time, think, Christians, do you always enter church with boldness, without reproach of your own conscience; Are you always worthy to stand with other believers before the face of God in His holy house, without offending the holiness of the place with your presence? May at least each of you enter the church of God with a feeling of your unworthiness, like the publican of the Gospel, with a contrite and humble heart, which God does not despise. (See “Brief conversations on the Divine Liturgy”, Archpriest Razumovsky). III. These were and are, in general terms, the constituent parts of every Orthodox church. Conversation No. 4. About the structure of the altar I. The first main part of the church is, as we said above, the altar. a) The first, most important accessory of the altar is the Holy See. It is called so because the Lord Himself and the Ruler of the Church is mysteriously present on it, and the quadrangular shape is given to the throne in order to better express that it, with the Divine Brush presented on it, is open to all four corners of the world. The throne is also called a meal, because it offers true, Divine food for all believers. Sometimes it also commemorates the Holy Sepulcher, for example, after the Great Entrance at the Liturgy, in accordance with the circumstances of the Lord’s death then remembered. The lower linen vestment of the throne, called srachitsa, symbolizes the shroud with which the Body of the Savior was entwined in the tomb. And since the throne, in addition to marking the Holy Sepulcher, also marks the place of the Glory of the Lord, then to signify this, a light robe is put on over the throne; it is called indium, which means clothing in Greek. In the first centuries of Christianity, thrones were made of wood; but from the 4th century, from the time of Constantine the Great, thrones of silver and gold and of various stones began to be built in some churches. They say that Emperor Justinian established a seat of inimitable art in Constantinople. It was made of wood, gold, silver and various precious stones. This extraordinary monument of piety was stolen by the French at the beginning of the thirteenth century. But when they were transporting him on a ship across the Sea of ​​Marmara, a storm arose and broke the ship, and the throne, along with the kidnappers, sank. This happened against the city of Iraklia. Soon after this storm, at the place where this precious throne sank, they noticed a tree floating on top of the water. Nowadays, thrones are mostly made of wood. aa) On the top board of the throne, on top of the indium, is placed a silk cloth called iliton (which means wrapping); it marks the sar, or the cloth with which the head of the Savior was tied in the tomb, and the antimension, consecrated by the bishop, or another silk cloth with the image of the burial of the Lord on it is inserted into the iliton; translated into Russian, antimins means “instead of the throne.” This name came about for the following reason: when during the time of persecution of Christians it was very difficult for the bishop to arrive at the place himself to consecrate the church, he performed over the antimension all the consecration that befits the throne as the most important part of the church - and this antimension replaced the very episcopal consecration for the throne; the consecration of the church on the spot was entrusted to one of the trusted clergy, as is the case today. It is also remarkable that part of the holy relics is enclosed in the antimension. This is done in memory of that ancient custom according to which Christians of the first centuries built churches over the relics of martyrs, and together as a testimony to the truth that the saints, having been buried with Christ, are glorified with Him (Rom. 6:4-5). In addition to the antimension, the Holy See is supplied with a tabernacle, otherwise called the ark, a cross and a Gospel. bb) Tabernacle - a vessel in which the Holy Gifts are kept for the communion of the sick, usually built in the form of a church. In the old days they were called “Jerusalems” or “Zions”. In some Eastern churches, these Holy Gifts were kept in a metal dove that hung above the altar and symbolized the Holy Spirit. In this case, the so-called ciborium 12 was arranged above the throne. This is a canopy like a tent or canopy, meaning the sky covering the throne of God. Yes, St. Constantine the Great built a canopy in the Jerusalem Temple over the throne with 12 pillars. Similar canopies began to be made in Greece and Rome from wood, stone, copper, silver and gold. From the top of the canopy arch a metal dove descended over the throne. From the life of St. Basil the Great, it is known that this dove was shaken three times by the Power of God when the saint offered up the Holy Gifts during the Liturgy. Following the example of the Eastern Orthodox Churches, hanging metal doves began to appear in Russian churches, either to store the Holy Gifts in them 13, or only for significant decoration of the canopy. That is why the place where this image hung was called the dove 14. The vessel in which the priest carries the spare Gifts when he goes to the house of a sick person is called a monstrance. cv) We said that on every throne there is a cross and a Gospel. Yes, brothers, the cross and the Gospel are two necessary accessories of the throne. The Gospel, every time we look at it, reminds us of what is contained in it, reminds us of our salvation and our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, of His descent to earth, of His teaching, which enlightened the world, of His birth, suffering, death and resurrection, by which He accomplished our redemption. In the Gospel, every enlightened Christian sees, as it were, the Lord Himself. d) The cross is another shrine of Christianity; it is also one of the most essential accessories of the throne. It is placed on the throne to remind believers that on the Cross the Lord accomplished our redemption. The cross is the guarantee of our Savior’s love for us. How appropriate, after this, is this depiction of Divine love for us at the Holy Table, around which we should be united with each other by bonds of love, as children of one Heavenly Father! dd) When the church is consecrated by the bishop, the altar is anointed with holy myrrh, and part of the holy relics is placed under the altar in a special box, in remembrance of the fact that Christians of the first centuries, due to persecution, often celebrated the Divine Liturgy at the tombs of the holy martyrs. The basis for the custom of placing the relics of holy martyrs under the altar was the Revelation of St. John the Theologian, who saw under the altar the souls of those killed for the Word of God and for the testimony that they had (Rev. 6:9). The throne reminds us of the place where Jesus Christ celebrated the Last Supper with His disciples. In a spiritual sense it means the heavenly Throne of the King of Glory. b) In addition to the throne, there is an altar in the altar. It is located on the left side of the throne and for the most part is of the same appearance as it. The altar is designated for the preparation of the Holy Gifts and reminds us, in some cases during divine services, of the cave in which Jesus Christ was born, and in others of Mount Golgotha, on which He was crucified. In ancient churches, altars were located in a separate compartment from the altar, which was located on the left side of the altar and was called the offering. Bread, wine and oil were brought here, used after the Liturgy, at the Evening of Love. c) Now let's talk about a mountain (elevated) place. In churches designated for hierarchal service, on the eastern side of the altar, behind the altar, a special elevated place is set up for the bishop to sit while reading the Apostle, and for him to stand while reading the Gospel. This place is called the mountain place. Near it, on both sides, chairs are placed for priests serving with the bishop. The bishop, while sitting or standing on a high place, depicts Jesus Christ Himself, and the priests serving with him depict the holy apostles. The mountainous place reminds us of the Mount of Beatitudes, on which Jesus Christ, surrounded by the apostles, delivered His sermon on the beatitudes, and the Mount of Olives, from which He, in the presence of His disciples, ascended to Heaven. In the earliest centuries of Christianity, the high place in churches enjoyed special respect. The apostles ascended to him in no other way than with fear and trembling. The Hieromartyr Peter, who became a bishop in Alexandria after the Evangelist Mark, throughout his entire life did not even dare to ascend the steps of a high place, seeing on it every time a shining light and some kind of Divine power. d) Here, on the eastern side of the altar, opposite the throne, in almost all churches, the seven-branched candle is placed. In a spiritual sense, this seven-branched lamp reminds us of the seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit. e) In ancient churches, at the altar, on its right side, there was also a special department, which was called the deacon. Church books, sacred vessels and clothes were kept there. This department was called diakonik because it was under the control of deacons. Many of our churches do not have this department; and special cabinets are built to store sacred things, vessels, books and clothes. II. This, my brothers, is the structure and accessories of the holy altar. Let us approach this holy place with reverence and fear, as the most sacred place in the entire church, which is the entire House of God, a house of prayer. Appendix to conversation No. 4. On antimensions in the Orthodox Church The origin of antimensions is connected with the law according to which each church must first be consecrated in order to perform divine services in it. This consecration, according to ancient church tradition, was performed by the bishops themselves. “But as a bishop (as stated in the “Book of the Ministry and Ordination of the Orthodox Church,” 3rd ed., M., 1844, p. 158), being held by other positions, especially due to the remoteness of places, he cannot consecrate all churches, for these circumstances such a provision has been made that he, taking the veil on which the Holy Gifts should be delivered, and which is usually depicted as the Entombment of Jesus Christ, performed the same consecration on it as above the throne, and therefore an antimension is placed 15, that is, instead of a throne, and is sent to the created church, where the priests, having served the meal according to the order, place the antimension on it.” The famous interpreter of church rules, Patriarch of Antioch Theodore Balsamon (XII century), believes that antimensions came into use as a result of the determination of the Trullo Council, so that priests, without the permission of the bishop, would not perform the Liturgy in prayer books located in private homes. “Antimins (he says in the explanation of the 31st Rule of the Trullo Council) are prepared by local bishops at the time when they consecrate the church, in order to place them on the holy meals of prayer churches and so that they completely replace the accessories of the holy altar and the boards of the holy meal, i.e., the commission of consecration, and together in order to testify that with episcopal permission in the house of prayer a sacred rite is being performed.” Thus, the antimension serves as evidence of the consecration and blessing given by the bishop for the celebration of the Liturgy in the church. But some archaeologists explain the appearance of antimenses somewhat differently. “Since Eastern Christians (writes Bingham) were often subjected to sudden attacks by heretics and barbarians, they could not supply solid thrones in their churches made of marble or any other stone, of silver and gold and other heavy substances; for better observance of the sacred from violence and desecration of heretical and barbaric hands, instead of hard and heavy thrones, it was established to have consecrated obruses for the celebration of the Liturgy, which are called antimensions, or instead of altars” 16. In essence, these two explanations do not contradict one another. It may very well be that during times of persecution, when Christian churches were being destroyed and performing divine services in them was a dangerous undertaking, the bishops supplied the elders with consecrated antimensions on which they could celebrate the Eucharist in private homes, in caves or even in the open air, wherever possible to hide from the malice of enemies 17 . Subsequently, when the persecution ceased, the bishops retained the custom of distributing and sending out antimensions, although for a different reason, namely, because of the impossibility of personally consecrating each new church and to prevent unauthorized liturgical meetings, which, in the absence of an external sign or certificate from the bishop, could be falsely presented as legal, permitted by the bishop, even though in reality they were organized without his will, without his blessing. Initially, antimensions were not placed on all altars, but only on those that were not consecrated by the bishop himself; they were placed not in the orithon, as is now the case, but under the indium, and were sewn to the four corners of the srachitsa; The Holy Gifts were consecrated at the Iliton. In the Russian Church, the antimension became a necessary accessory to every altar, probably since 1675, when at the Moscow Council it was decided to place antimensions on altars consecrated by the bishop. It must be assumed that from that time on it became a custom to consecrate the Gifts on the antimension, and not on the iliton. It is customary to place holy relics in antimensions in memory of the fact that ancient Christians built churches and performed divine services on the tombs of martyrs. In this case, the Church is guided by the Revelation of John the Theologian, who saw under the throne the souls of those killed for the Word of God, and this also confesses that after the foundation laid for the Church by the Blood of Christ, the blood of the martyrs, according to the power and action of the Savior, is laid as support and confirmation for us. Without the position of relics, it is prohibited to consecrate churches or the antimensions that replace them: “If a certain bishop is found who consecrates churches (or antimensions) without holy relics, let him be deposed, as if he has transgressed Church Tradition,” says the 7th rule of the VII Ecumenical Council. Since the antimension completely replaces the altar consecrated by the bishop, in case of emergency (for example, in the event of a fire in the church during the Liturgy), the Liturgy can be performed on the antimension or completed outside the church. According to Simeon of Thessaloniki, antimensions were given, at the discretion of the bishop, even where there was no church, also “to faithful people who were going on a long and long journey, or to the kings themselves, so that on them (antimensions) the Great Sacrifice and the Sacrament could be performed (Talk about the Holy Sacrament, and the Sacraments, Church 76 and 95). John, Bishop of Crete, in his 13th canon says: “Whoever celebrates the Liturgy with an antimension in a special place, decorated with Divine icons, in certain houses or on ships, will not be condemned, because the clergy who follow the king during the journey also perform the liturgy with an antimension in empty fields in one canvas tent designated for this purpose.” (“New Tablet”, St. Petersburg, 1859, pp. 374–375). In ancient times, the Cross was depicted on the antimension, and now the Entombment of the Savior (with four evangelists in the corners), since the throne itself marks the Sepulcher of Christ. At the top of the antimension there is an inscription: “This antimension, this is the sacred meal for the offering of the Bloodless Sacrifice in the Divine Liturgy, sanctified by the grace of the Most Holy Spirit, for this reason the power to perform sacred acts on it in the church is taught”... Below: “By the command of the Most Pious, the Most Autocratic, the Great Sovereign of our Emperor... of all Russia, with the blessing of His Holiness Governing Synod, officiated by the Right Reverend... in the God-saved city... summer... month... day.” In former times, mainly linen fabric served as the material for antimensions. “Antimins,” says Simeon of Thessaloniki (chap. 95), “are made especially from flax, because the remembrance of Christ’s suffering is made on them, and they are like funeral covers taken from the earth, and flax is from the earth, like the tomb of the Savior.” Currently, antimensions are predominantly made of silk. The antimension should not be dilapidated, not torn anywhere, not blackened to the point that it is impossible to make out the inscriptions on it, and should not be on plain writing paper. “Antimens,” says the Teaching News, “even if it is torn, torn, or blackened, as if the writings on it cannot be recognized, as well as on writing paper, it is in no way worthy of serving on such: dare to serve in calico, as a derogator of the Divine Mysteries, sins mortally and is subject to episcopal execution, sit down, prohibition or excommunication.” Deans and local priests are obliged to monitor this, who, if the antimension is damaged, must ask the Eminence to issue a new antimension. Old antimensions should be taken to bishops’ and cathedral sacristies for storage” (Instructions of the Holy Synod of October 24, 1735, October 8, 1742). When the antimensions are consecrated, the same sacred rites take place over them as over the throne, when its consecration is performed by the bishop: the same prayers are read, the same chants are sung and the same rituals are performed. The bishop waters the antimensions with rhodostamna (rodostamna - red wine mixed with rose water), anoints them with holy myrrh and places holy relics in them, for which purpose special vaginas are sewn into the antimensions, in the middle of the upper edge. In these vaginas, the bishop first puts wax mastiha (the wax mastih is made from melted wax with fragrant substances, crushed mastikha, incense, aloe, or white sulfur) (Rite of consecrated antimension), “I will also accept particles of the holy relics and put them in the wax mastiha and pour holy myrrh on them, and strengthen the good with wax mastic” (Rite of consecration antimins.). Conversation No. 5. About the middle part of the church I. The church itself is the middle and largest part of the church, which is designated for Christian true believers. In ancient times, Christians had high respect for this part of the church: emperors, upon entering it, took off their crown and weapons, as signs of earthly greatness, thereby expressing their humility before the greatness of God. II. a) When you enter this part of the church, you will immediately notice that majestic partition that separates the church from the altar. This partition is called an iconostasis because it is furnished from top to bottom with icons (images). Until the 4th century, these partitions did not exist. But in the 4th century, Emperor Constantine the Great found it necessary to separate the altar from the church with a lattice. The reason for this was that some of the Christians began to approach the altar carelessly and so close that they embarrassed the clergy. Subsequently, these grilles began to be decorated with icons. Looking at these icons, you will certainly notice on them images of our Lord Jesus Christ, His Most Pure Mother and His saints. All this seems to tell us that here, that is, in the church, the Lord Himself dwells, with His Most Pure Mother and with His saints, and therefore we must stand here only with reverence. Since the altar depicts Heaven itself, the iconostasis, with its sacred images, teaches us who we should imagine in heaven and to whom we should turn with our prayers. Therefore, the design of the iconostasis should not be governed by chance or arbitrariness of the builders, but by God-wise, all-wise thought, faithful to church antiquity. So, in the iconostasis, on both sides of the Royal Doors, icons of the Savior and the Mother of God are usually placed, and then in the same row follow (on the right side) an icon of the saint or holiday in whose honor the church was built, and icons of other saints of God, locally most revered. Above the images of the Savior and the Mother of God are placed images of the twelfth holidays; behind them, above, is the image of the holy apostles, and even higher - the holy prophets, and even higher - the holy Old Testament patriarchs or forefathers. In the middle, at the very top of the iconostasis, for the most part, the Crucifixion of the Lord Jesus is placed with the Mother of God and St. John the Theologian standing in front, and above the Royal Doors itself, the Last Supper is most often depicted as the closest indication that the mysterious remembrance of the Lord’s death and the Supper of His Body and Blood Himself is forever gracefully celebrated for us in the altar during the Liturgy. In the row where the apostles are depicted, among them Jesus Christ Himself is depicted in the form of a king as the main subject of their evangelism, and in the row of prophets, among them, the Mother of God with the Eternal Child as the subject of their prophecies; among the saints, the forefather, on ancient church iconostases, is depicted in the form of the Ancient of Days, God Himself - the Father with the Son in His bosom, on whom rests the Holy Spirit emanating from the Father, depicted in the form of a dove. Thus, the iconostasis can serve for us as if it were an open book, where anyone, even the most illiterate, can read the most important sacred events and truths. And in particular, the church iconostasis, so wisely arranged, clearly expresses the fact that the Church, both the Old Testament, patriarchal, and the New Testament, is the One Church of God and Christ. b) There are three doors in the iconostasis. The main ones, the middle ones, are called Royal. They are called royal because they open the entrance for the clergy, and the view for the laity to the Throne of the Heavenly King, and because through them the Heavenly King Himself enters mysteriously in the Holy Gifts. The Annunciation of the Most Holy Theotokos depicted on the Royal Doors, as the main principle of our salvation, recalls that through the Incarnation of God the Word, Heaven was opened for the first time for our salvation, and the image of the four evangelists indicates that they, like Archangel Gabriel, served for the heavenly Annunciation to the world. Closing the Royal Doors with a veil and taking it away also has its own meaning, namely, it serves to signify the lesser or greater importance of the worship being performed; so, for example, the veil is not taken away during Compline, Midnight Office and the first, third, sixth and ninth hours: this means that these services are of less importance compared to others, which is why they were previously performed in the vestibule, especially in monasteries, on days of repentance. Those side doors that are on the right side of the Royal Doors are called southern, from the southern side of the church in which they are located. Since they previously led to the “deaconry”, which was in charge of deacons, they mostly depict holy deacons, for example, Archdeacons Stephen and Lawrence, or Angels, of whom the Order of Deacon represents. And the other, opposite doors are called northern, as they are located on the north side of the church. c) In front of the iconostasis there is also a somewhat elevated place, two, three, and sometimes more steps - the so-called soleya 18, which in Russian means throne place, and is so called because the Holy Gifts are given to believers on it. This solea must be fenced with railings so that those present cannot come close to the iconostasis and do not prevent the clergy from freely passing from the altar to the church and from the church to the altar. d) In the middle of the church, just in front of the Royal Doors, there is a small elevation called the pulpit, which in Russian means “ascension.” “It marks the stone from which the Angel preached the resurrection of the Savior to the myrrh-bearing women. It is arranged among the church so that the litanies proclaimed on the ambo and especially the Gospel read on it can be heard and understood more clearly by the people, since the Lord Himself preached mostly among the people and from elevated places.” (See “Teachings”, priest K. Stratelatov). e) On the solea on the right and left sides of the pulpit, in almost every church, you will see special places for the lower members of the clergy and singers. These places are called choirs 19. Here you can also notice the so-called banners 20; these are sacred images attached to the shaft, made on canvas or on metal, in the form of a banner, with a cross at the top. Banners represent the victorious banners of the Church of Christ over the enemies of salvation and are specifically designated for use in religious processions. Their use was introduced in the 4th century. It is known that the first banner in the church was erected under the Equal-to-the-Apostles Tsar Constantine the Great. This is how this banner is described: “The long, gold-covered spear had a cross section at the top, forming the image of a cross with the spear. At the very top of the spear, a wreath of precious stones and gold lay motionless, and in the wreath were the initial letters of the name of Christ. On the cross's diameter hung a thin cloth, royal fabric covered with precious stones... This cloth was embroidered in gold, had the same latitude and longitude and, shining with rays of light, seemed inexpressibly beautiful to the audience. The lower end of the spear was very long. At the very top of the fabric, under the sign of the cross, hung a chest image of Tsar Constantine and his children. This image was made of gold." (“Soulful Reading,” 1878, December). III. You see now, brothers, how instructive the iconostasis with its accessories is and how holy the church of God is, where we go to pray to God. Conversation No. 6. About the porch and porch I. Now let's talk about the porch and the vestibule. II. a) The first part of the church is called the narthex, from the word to cover, attach, attach. It is usually located on the western side of the church 21 and is separated from its middle part by a solid wall, which in ancient times had three doors. Some of them, namely the middle ones, were called red and royal - red 1) because that was the name of the gates in Solomon’s temple that led into the sanctuary, 2) because they had more decorations (beauty) than the side ones, and royal because with them the kings of the earth, upon entering the church, laid aside their crown and other distinctions of royal majesty and prayed in the church like simple believers. As for the side doors, some of them were designated for the entrance of men into the church, and others for the entrance of women. Since the porch was intended specifically for catechumens and penitents, a baptismal font or pond was sometimes located in it. But in addition, here it is supposed to celebrate the so-called Litia at the All-Night Vigil, although for us it is celebrated for the most part in the church itself, only in the west, of course, because the catechumens and penitents are rarely in the narthex 22 , for whom, by the way, they went out to the narthex for the Litia; Here on Easter, Easter cakes, cheese and eggs brought by Orthodox Christians are blessed. In Little Russian churches, mothers with small children usually come here. And in Catholic churches in the vestibule there is a stone crypt, that is, a vessel with St. water, into which each Catholic, upon entering the church, dips his hand and makes the sign of the cross on himself. b) In some of our churches, a covered porch is adjacent to the vestibule, and is called a porch, and before it was called an external vestibule; the porch itself was called the inner porch. There were beggars and some penitents standing in the porch 23. In the ancient churches of Little Russia, the porch has long been called babinets, because women stand here - old, so as not to be crowded into the church, and poor, in order to receive alms. III. Thus, the very entrance to the church gives us so many edifying lessons! Note: in order to enter the church to talk with God, to ask for His mercy, we first need to go through the porch, where the poor stand, receiving alms from us in the name of Christ, therefore, if you go to the church for mercy to Christ, then first of all, show mercy to the needy who meet you at the church threshold. Then we need to go through the vestibule, where the penitents and catechumens stand, studying the dogmas of the faith. Again a new lesson: it means that in order to worthily enter the church for prayer, we need to have repentance for sins and firm, pure faith, we need to leave our sins, so to speak, in the vestibule, and bring faith with us into the church. (Compiled from the book “Minutes of Pastoral Leisure”, Hermogenes, Bishop of Pskov). Conversation No. 7. On the symbolism of the architecture of an Orthodox church I. The Holy Orthodox Church, like a wise and loving mother, teaches us with all its actions and even with the construction of holy churches. II. Ancient church architecture, like icon painting, had a symbolic, i.e., teaching character, which was strictly observed, at least in the main and mainly internal parts. If the Old Testament tabernacle and the Temple of Solomon had a transformative character and a certain division of their parts, mentioned in the New Testament revelation (for example, Heb. 9:6), then after the canopy was replaced by the lawful grace that came, what was transformed in ancient times was expressed even more precisely in the revealed relationship of the prototypes with the great object of them that appeared to the universe. a) Such, for example, is the division of the church into three parts: the vestibule, the middle part of the church and the altar, symbolically representing the three hitherto revealed parts of God’s economy about people, such as: the time in which humanity was under the natural law - the vestibule, then the era of the law of the Mosaic commandments - the middle church, and the coming grace - the altar, depicting heaven with its very invisibility. At the same time, the church, with its tripartite structure, also points to the person himself, who, according to the teaching of Holy Scripture (Luke 1:46–47; Heb.4:12; 1 Thess. 5:23) and St. fathers and ascetics of piety - from three parts, namely: body, soul and spirit. In the most ancient churches, the altar was divided into three parts: the northern one for performing proskomedia secretly, the southern one for the vestments of the celebrants, and the central one (eastern in relation to the church), in the middle of which in the Orthodox Church the Holy Throne is placed, always occupying the center of the altar, and not leaning against the wall. b) From the throne there is a continuous path to the middle of the church (ambo), which indicates the path of the coming of the Lord, as the “High East” to us, to our nature, the dark west. This truth is especially expressed by the symbolic action of leaving the altar to the extreme west of the church, which occurs on the twelfth holidays, commemorating the main events of God's vision for the salvation of the human race; and then the light of the church illuminates the west, and from there the praise of the event and majesty rises. c) Wall images in ancient churches were carefully made in all parts of the church, but they were depicted: in the vestibule - events of the Old Testament, mainly from the period of the natural law, for example, the post-flood sacrifice of Noah, Jacob's dream of the ladder, Abraham's sacrifice, etc. In the middle part of the church the events of the era of the Law of Commandments were depicted, such as: a burning and unburnt bush, a guiding cloud over the camp of Israel, the passage through the Red Sea, the flow of water from a stone, the sending down of manna, the copper serpent, the fall of the walls of Jericho, as well as images of objects of the tabernacle and church, such as: the ark of the Covenant, the altar of incense, the showbread and the seventh candlestick, and sometimes three youths in the cave of Babylon and Ezekiel’s mysterious vision of the chariot of God. New Testament events were depicted exclusively on the iconostasis. d) Directly in front of the Holy Throne, the “Royal Doors” through which the King of Glory emerges always bear the image of the Most Holy Theotokos, namely Her Annunciation, that is, the very mystery of the Incarnation, the image and evangelists of this mystery - the four evangelists. Where else could the “doors of mercy” open, if not between the Savior and the Mother of God? e) There is a curtain between the Royal Doors and the throne of the King of Glory located behind them. The Church itself indicates its high symbolic meaning by placing the curtain between the altar and the Royal doors (so whoever thinks about the meaning of these two accessories of the altar will understand the relationship of the curtain to them). The Holy Scripture provides the basis for the same symbolic understanding of the veil, speaking about entering “into the interior behind the veil” and about renewing for us a new and living path through the veil, that is, the Flesh of Christ (Heb. 6 and 10:19,20), and this relationship was also shown by the fact that when the Most Pure Body of our Redeemer was tormented in His suffering, then the church veil was torn ( Matthew 27:51). The various moments of the opening of the veil before the Holy See will be discussed below. About the veil, it should also be noted that a cross is depicted on it, and the cross always represents the symbolism of Jesus Christ Himself. f) Often the altar had almost no images, except for the icons placed in it: the Savior Not Made by Hands and the Most Holy Theotokos, as well as the Crucifixion of the Lord. And the small number of images in the altar was absolutely correct, since in it, instead of an image, what is essentially represented is performed. Even instead of an altarpiece, in ancient times there was only a window to the east, illuminating the church with the first light of dawn, with the words: “Glory to Thee, Who showed us the light.” g) Iconostases, although of later origin (from the 4th century), still bore to some extent the stamp of symbolism, being divided into tiers with different types of images and decorated with ornaments mainly from the plant kingdom, which could depict paradise. However, incomparably more important than all this is the image of the grapevine, which the Savior Himself deigned to point out as a symbol of His unity with the Church. We see an iconostasis made entirely of vines, for example, in the Assumption Cathedral of the Holy Trinity Sergius Lavra. h) On the outside, the oldest churches were single-domed, thus depicting the unity of the Savior; later they were built with five domes, thereby forming Christ surrounded by four evangelists, sometimes the large chapter - the middle one - was surrounded by twelve chapters, according to the number of the holy apostles (this is one of the churches of the Rostov Kremlin). i) Churches were sometimes built with two tiers, then depicting the Church, both the heavenly one - triumphant, and the earthly one - militant. j) Bell towers - not so ancient buildings (since the ringing of bells only in later times replaced the ancient “beats”), were sometimes supplied separately from churches, but in such a way that it was necessary to pass through these bell towers to enter the church; This allegorically depicted St. John the Baptist as the great leader of the Church of Christ. j) The center of all liturgical actions is the cross of Christ. He always reclines on the throne, like the scepter of Him to whom was given all power in heaven and on earth. One can, it seems, notice about the shape of the altar cross of the church that each of its four ends has a triple rounding, as a result of which the number twelve is formed by the figure of the cross, symbolizing the spread of the Christian faith by the preaching of the twelve apostles of the Lord in four countries of the world. And this preaching, like rays from the sun, comes from the center, which is the Redeemer, nailed to the Cross by will and stretching out His most pure hands, gathering all nations, until what was predicted is fulfilled: “All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord, and all the tribes of the heathen will bow before You” (Ps. 21:28). III. This, my brothers, is the highly edifying character of the architecture of the interior and exterior of the holy churches of God. (Compiled from an article by honorary guardian V. Arsenyev, published in “Soulful Reading”, 1890, April). Appendix to conversations No. 3–7. Examples of manifest heavenly favor towards holy churches I. When the Monks Anthony and Theodosius of Pechersk (the first commemorated on July 10, and the second on May 3), caring about the construction of the Pechersk Church, diligently prayed to the Lord, asking for heavenly help, He heard their prayer, miraculously sent them the means to build a new church and even showed them the type and size of the Great Lavra Church and deigned to reveal to whom it should be dedicated. It was like that. Far from Kyiv, precisely in the former Greek kingdom, in Constantinople itself, during the time of Anthony and Theodosius, 800 years ago, there lived four master masons, who were mostly engaged in the construction of churches. Once early in the morning, when they were still sleeping each in their own house, some messengers appeared to them at the same time and said that the Queen was calling them to Blacherna (that was the name then in Constantinople, where there was a church in the name of the Mother of God - the Church of Blachernae). They came to the Blachernae Church and really saw the Queen surrounded by troops. It was the Mother of God Herself. The Masters reverently bowed to Her. “I want,” the Queen told them, “to build myself a church in Russia in Kiev: take gold for three years and go there.” – To whom are You sending us, Madam Queen? - the masters asked her, - that country is completely unknown to us. “I will send Anthony and Theodosius, who are present here, before you,” the Queen told them. “Go there, I Myself will reward you in a way that you cannot even imagine, I Myself will come to that church and live in it.” – What type of church should this church be and what size? – the workers asked again. - “Come out of here and see, I have already sent the measure for her.” They looked up and really saw a majestic church in the air. - Madam, we also dare to ask You: in whose name will this church be? - “In My name – “Theotokos” she will be. Here’s an icon for you: let it be local,” and with these words the Queen gave the masters a small image of the Dormition of the Mother of God, the same one that is now located above the Royal Doors in the Great Lavra Church. Having received an icon from the Mother of God, as well as particles of the relics of some saints for the position at the founding of the church, and gold from the Monks Anthony and Theodosius, the craftsmen went to their homes. The vision ended. In deep amazement, with the relics and the icon, the church builders went to Kyiv, where they arrived ten days later. Here they are, with the blessing of Rev. Anthony and Theodosius began the construction of the majestic Kiev-Pechersk Cathedral Church on the site indicated to the reverend fathers from above, which they completed three years later 24. II. In the life of Rev. Euphrosyne is told (her memory is May 23): one day the saint, seeing that the sisters in her monastery were multiplying day by day, decided to create a larger stone church in the name of the Savior. Construction has begun. The foreman during the work was the pious husband John. Several times while resting before sunrise, he heard a voice: “John, get up and go build a church to the Almighty.” Once he asked the saint: “Are you, holy mother, sending me to force me to work?” The venerable woman, realizing that this voice was from above, said: “Even if it is not I who compel you, do as you are told, for this is God’s work.” Then, after some time, it happened that there were not enough bricks to finish the church. The monk earnestly prayed to the Lord for help, and in the morning there was a full oven of burnt bricks, already cooled down and very strong. Everyone glorified the Lord with surprise for His wondrous help 25 . III. And this is how God rewards benefactors of holy churches. Rev. Erasmus of Pechersk (his memory is February 24), possessing great wealth, so loved the splendor of the Church of God that he spent everything he had on decorating the Pechersk Church. When he became poor, a temptation happened to him: they began to neglect him, and the spirit of malice began to instill in him such thoughts: there is no benefit to you from the fact that you spent all your property on the church; It would be better if you used it on the poor. Erasmus fell into despondency and began to live ungodly. But the merciful Lord, for his previous virtues, sent him salvation: He brought upon him a serious illness. Approaching death, the monk lay dumb and blind with barely noticeable breathing for seven whole days. On the eighth day the brothers came to him and said: “Woe to the soul of this brother, for he lived in sins and laziness and now cannot be separated from his body.” But suddenly the monk stood up as if healthy, sat down and said: “Fathers and brothers, you are telling the truth, I am a sinner and have not repented. But now our monks Anthony and Theodosius appeared to me and said: “We prayed for you, and the Lord granted you time to repent.” Then I saw the Most Pure Mother of God and with Her many saints. She said to me: "Erasmus! Because you have adorned My church, I will adorn you and magnify you with glory in the Kingdom of My Son. Arise, repent and take the form of an angel, and on the third day I will take you clean to Me, since you have loved the splendor of My house." Having told all this to the brethren, blessed Erasmus began, without shame, to confess his sins to everyone. Then, getting up, he went to church and was clothed in the schema, and on the third day, according to the revelation of the Mother of God, he peacefully departed to the Lord 26. IV. The Lord not only helps in the construction and beautification of churches and rewards benefactors for their diligence, but also protects the property of churches. So, one dark night the robbers agreed among themselves to rob the Pechersk Church; but when they approached the church, they heard singing in it. They thought that the monks were singing and, having hesitated in the forest, again approached the church, but they saw a wondrous light in it and again heard singing. The angels sang it. Finally it was time for Matins; the bell rang for service; The monks gathered in church. The robbers planned to attack the church and destroy the monks who were already praying, but suddenly they were amazed by an extraordinary phenomenon: the church with all those praying miraculously rose from the ground into the air, so that arrows could not even reach it. The robbers were horrified by the obvious power of God protecting the holy church and its property, as well as the worshipers and servants of God, and they vowed not to rob again. The leader of their gang himself with his comrades came to the Monk Theodosius and with tears repented of his evil intention. That same night, one of the boyars was driving through a field and suddenly from a distance he saw a church standing under the clouds. He galloped off in horror with his youths, wanting to find out what kind of church it was. Having reached the monastery of the monk, the boyar saw that the church had descended and taken its place in the monastery 27. V. One day, thieves entered the monastery of St. Savva of Zvenigorod (his memory is December 3), robbed the church and was about to leave through the window, but suddenly they saw a huge mountain that prevented them from getting out of the church; They immediately returned the stolen goods with fear and repentance and remained to live here for repentance 28 . VI. There are many examples of how the Lord calls people to prayer in the holy church. Thus, once righteous Juliana (her memory is January 2), during a harsh winter, having neither clothes nor shoes, did not go to church for some time. Priest of the Church of St. Lazarus, having come to the church one day for Matins, suddenly heard a voice from the icon of the Mother of God: “Go, tell the merciful widow Juliana that it is in vain that she does not go to church; home prayer is pleasing to God, but not as much as church prayer; and you respect her, the Spirit of God rests on her.” The priest, frightened, ran to Juliana and told everyone out loud what he had heard in the church from the icon of the Mother of God. From that time on, no matter the weather, righteous Juliana went to church whenever there was a service. In the house, no matter what she did, ate or drank, sewed or spun, she constantly said the Jesus Prayer 29 . VII. When the Monk Theodore Sikeot was ten years old, St. appeared to him at night. Great Martyr George woke him up, saying: “Get up, Theodore, it’s already dawn and it’s time for morning prayer, let’s go to the church of St. George." The youth immediately got up and with zeal and joy went to church for the morning service 30. VIII. God rewards those who diligently go to the holy church. Thus, among the monks of Athanasius of Athos there was a certain Matthew. Once, during Matins, the eyes of his soul suddenly opened, and he saw that a certain Woman, clothed with heavenly Glory and Honor, entered the church with two young men in clothes as white as snow, one of whom held a burning candle and illuminated Her path, walking in front of Her like a slave, and the other followed Her, and both treated Her with great reverence. When these extraordinary visitors began to examine everyone present in the church, that wonderful Woman distributed gifts to all the brethren in the form of gold and silver coins, depending on the zeal and reverence of those praying: to whom she gave 12 gold pieces, to others 6, and to some only 2 31 . The Monk Abba Dorotheos talks about the vision of one perspicacious elder. Standing in the church, he saw how, at the beginning of the morning service, someone luminous came out of the altar, holding, as it were, an ark of peace, and walked around all the brethren, placing a sign on each of them. Before the end of the service, the elder again saw how the luminous man came out of the altar and did the same. One day the elder stopped him and, throwing himself at his feet, begged him to explain to him what he was doing and who he was. The Lightbringer answered: “I am an angel of God, and I have been commanded to imprint this sign on those who come to the church at the beginning of the service and remain until the end of it” 32. Conversation No. 8. About the meaning of the cemetery for us I. At holy churches, cemeteries were usually built (and are now being built). For an Orthodox Christian, a cemetery is a holy place where the ashes of our departed fathers and brothers rest until the time determined by God. Isn’t this ashes dear to every Christian? Aren't the graves of parents, spouses, children, friends and relatives dear to us? Walk through the cemetery - and many grave crosses and monuments, often very valuable, will testify to us of the love of those who remained to continue their earthly career for those who have gone to the grave. Walk through the cemetery at any time of the year, and especially in the summer, and a considerable number of cemetery visitors will show you how an Orthodox Christian loves to visit the graves of his relatives and indulge in memories of the deceased here. II. a) And, of course, one cannot help but admit that this resting place for the departed is the best place for the most vivid and touching memories of the life we ​​lived. How vividly the image of our deceased parents, who raised us with love, cared for us with all their zeal and sometimes untimely left us here as bitter orphans, is depicted on the grave. With what sadness do parents here remember their deceased children - this is the pride and hope of a parent’s heart, deeply wounded by the death of children, who often died in all the glory of their youth. With what bitter tears the wife sometimes mourns her beloved deceased husband, or the husband his wife, the sisters of his dear brothers, or the brothers of his sisters. For some of us, the grave contains everything that was dear in this life - everything that made this life red and bright - everything without which it became dull, lonely and sad. And the images of the departed dear to our hearts rise up before us as if alive - and the entire life we ​​lived together with the deceased flashes before our mind's eye - and a hot tear of sincere love and unfeigned sadness involuntarily rolls from our eyes to the grave of the dear deceased. Remember, Orthodox Christian, that a cemetery is a place of weeping and sorrow, and not of feasting and joy. Never forget that it is completely inappropriate and indecent to sing songs in a cemetery, indulge in drunkenness and commit other similar outrages. b) The cemetery is the place of future rest and our mortal body from the troubles and worries of this life, and therefore it is the best place for thinking about death, future life and the resurrection of the dead. The cemetery tells us more clearly than any words or reasoning that death will come to each of us, just as it came to our departed fathers and brothers, and that the hour of death is not known to any of us and comes at a time known only to God. Walk, Christian, through the cemetery between the graves and think that you do not have centuries left to live on earth, but only years and, perhaps, even days. And therefore, take away from here the desire and desire to live in such a way that at all times you will be ready to appear in judgment before the Lord. Learn here firmly and constantly to keep in mind that we will not live here on earth forever - that we are here, so to speak, as guests for a short time, and we will come home when we are settled in a small and cramped monastery in the cemetery. Those who think this way often, during their lifetime, choose their own burial place in the cemetery and make all the arrangements in the event of their death. And it is good for them that the thought of death does not frighten them. And why should we, Christians, be afraid of it? Don’t we believe that the death of our body is not complete destruction, but only transformation into something more useful and sweet? Don’t we believe that when our body dies, our spirit returns to God, Who gave it - that we lower a person into the grave not in his entire composition, but only one shell of his immortal spirit - that death therefore is only a transition from one life to another and, moreover, for those who believe in God and our Savior and those who love Him - from the worst to the best, from the world of sorrows and sorrows to the world of eternal bliss. If a person were taken from a cramped, uncomfortable hut and moved to luxurious chambers with all amenities, what would he lament and fear? - Don’t we still believe that the grave does not hide our mortal body forever, - that the hour will come when the dead “will hear the voice of the Son of God; and “those who have done good will come forth” from their graves into the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil into the resurrection of condemnation” (John 5:28–29); - that our body goes down into the grave in corruption and rises in incorruption, is sown in weakness and rises in strength, sown in dishonor and rises in glory (1 Cor. 15:43). So, this field full of dead human bones, the like of which one of the holy prophets saw in a vision, according to the almighty voice of God, at the time determined by God, will come to life, and the bodies of pious and righteous people will be glorified and shine like lights in heaven. Go, Christian, to the cemetery in the middle of the shadow of death and get used to the idea that it is the place of the future dwelling for your body, perhaps for a long time, but at the same time be consoled by the faith that death will not embrace your body forever and the hour of its resurrection will come, and your immortal spirit will live beyond the grave. c) The cemetery, finally, is the best place to pray for our departed fathers, brothers and children. An Orthodox Christian, believing in the power of prayer for the dead, considers it his indispensable duty to pray for them both at home and in the church of God, especially during the Liturgy; but nowhere is his prayer for the departed so alive and sincere, so zealous and ardent, as at the graves of the departed. The grave, awakening all the best memories, revives our heartfelt union with the deceased and arouses in us a prayerful mood. The grave clearly tells us that our deceased relatives and friends do not need anything from us except one prayer for them. And a tear of prayer rolls from our eyes to the grave of the dear departed, and our heart rushes to the throne of the Almighty with a fervent prayer for the repose of the deceased in the villages of the righteous and for the forgiveness of all their sins, voluntary and involuntary. And the spirit of our departed brothers rejoices, receiving the weakening of the sinful bonds that bind them, through the prayers of the brothers who continue to live on earth, and the souls of the righteous who have fallen asleep, if they have boldness towards God, and themselves cry out to Him for help to us. III. Remember, Christian, that a cemetery is a place of prayer - that it is a vast church in which the bones of not one, but perhaps many righteous and holy people rest. Therefore, walk through the cemetery with prayer in your heart and on your lips; Let one incense smoke rise here to God, as a sign of our sincere prayer offered to Him; Let one song be heard here more often to God from the lips of the clergy: “With the saints, rest, O Christ, the souls of Thy servant,” and let the faithful weep at the graves of their fathers, brothers and children, not ashamed to water these dear graves with tears. (Compiled from “Words of Teaching and Speech”, master E. Megorsky). Dyachenko Grigory Mikhailovich, prot. (1850–1903). Born in the Vitebsk province in the family of a deacon. He received his education at the Moscow Theological Academy, which he graduated in 1877. In 1885 he became a priest, and in 1899 - an archpriest. Pastoral service took place in the Moscow Church of St. Martyr Tryphon, where he gained fame as a gifted preacher. He defended his master's thesis on the topic “On the preparation of the human race to receive the Savior.” In this work, Dyachenko showed how the religious history of ancient peoples was a “schoolmaster” for the New Testament Revelation. The main works of Rev. Grigory Dyachenko are homiletical in nature. He composed many sermons on the topics of Holy Scripture (based on church readings), which served as a valuable guide for several generations of pastors. The first two sections of Archpriest Grigory Dyachenko’s work, “Public Conversations on the Worship of the Orthodox Church,” are published by the Prolog publishing house as a separate book entitled “Orthodox Church.” The source of information about this church is the books of Holy Scripture: 3rd book of Kings, chapters 6–7; 2 Chronicles, chapters 2–4. Chapters 40–43 can serve as a supplement here. books of the prophet Ezekiel, where the form of the vision hides an indirect reference to the Temple of Solomon. Some comments from the prophet. Jeremiah in chapter 52. and in 25 ch. 2nd book of Kings. A cubit is about 14 vershoks (1 Kings 6:2). According to the testimony of the 2nd book. Par., the height of the church was 120 liters. (see 2 Chronicles 3:4). The name catacomb comes from the Greek. words: κατά – under and κύμβη – pit, vessel, then from the Latin “cumbo” – lying or “сumba” – boat See details in “Christian Reading” 1864 March, book, art. "Roman Catacombs". This was the form of the Church of St. Sophia in Constantinople. Eusebius of Caesarea testifies that Constantine the Great built an octagonal church in Antioch, Prince. 3, ch. 5. St. Helena built a round church on Golgotha. Eusebius, Prince. 3. Ch. 38. Ciborium (from the word κιβ ώ ριον cibotium - plant cup, cup) was sometimes placed on the altar floor, and sometimes on the corners of the altar. The tops of the pillars were decorated with bowls, and the top of the ciborium in the form of a tent was decorated with flowers. When there were no high iconostases yet, then curtains were hung on rods on 4 sides between the pillars and replaced our curtain for St. gates. (See the book “Minutes of Pastoral Leisure”, Hermogenes, Bishop of Ladoga). Ancient Russian Library, XI, p. 81. Monuments of Christian Antiquity, II, p. 153. The word "antimins" is composed of the Greek ἀντ ί - instead and the Latin mensa - table. "Monuments of the Ancient Christian Church." Per. Vetrinsky, part III, ch. IV, pp. 158–159. In any case, news of the use of antimensions occurs much earlier than the Trullo Council (which took place in 692). They are already mentioned by Isidore Pelusiot, a writer of the 5th century. Some people call the word solea Hebrew, which means mound, mound, elevation, while others call it Latin, which means thrones. Kliros - from the word clergy; this word is Greek, in Russian it means: lot, part, share. In the Jewish church, a special tribe of Levi was chosen and separated to serve God, which constituted the lot, or part of God. In the Christian Church, special persons are also elected to serve God, who constitute the lot, or part of God: these are bishops, presbyters and deacons. These include singers and readers, who we call either psalm-readers or clerics. All these persons together constitute the so-called clergy. In our choirs, for the most part, the lower members of the clergy stand, i.e. psalm-readers and clerics; and the singers can stand with them, since they help them in fulfilling the duties assigned to them. Banner is a Greek word, in Russian it means a marching sign. And sometimes it settled on three sides, except the eastern one. You should note that in the ancient Church the penitents were divided into 4 classes: 1) crying: they stood on the porch and with tears asked those entering the church to pray to God for them, 2) listening: they stood in the vestibule and listened to the Liturgy until the deacon cried out: the catechumens, come forth; 3) kneeling: they knelt at the doors of the church itself; 4) standing with the faithful: they prayed in the church during the entire Liturgy, but could not partake of the Holy Mysteries. Of the catechumens, those most prepared for Baptism, the so-called enlightened ones, stood in the church itself. Porch - among the Greeks πρὀναος (pre-church) or νάρθης: The word νάρθης means reed bush; tube-shaped boxes were made from its trunks for storing incense and medicines; and then thin-long objects and narrow-long spaces were also called the same. The Greeks called the porch ὲζω v άρθης, and in the Slavic language paprat, parpt, paprt - similar to the word fern "Kievo-Pechersk Patericon", ed. 1814, p. 77. “Paterik of Pechersk”, page 182. “Cheti-Minei”, December 3. Russian saints - January, arch. Chernigovsky Filaret. “Cheti-Minei”, April 22. “Athonite Patericon”, part I, July 5. Sl. XI, in Russian translation, p. 153, according to the 1886 edition.