Reading the Gospels on the sixth and first three days of Holy Week

About the reading of the Gospels in the first three days of Holy Week in the current Typikon on fol. 384 (ed. Kiev. 1824) we find the clearest and most definite instructions. “And the abiye (that is, after reading the Mother of God of the third hour: “To the Mother of God you are the true vine”), the analogy is decorated, we read in the current Rule, the holy tetra-gospel is placed on top of it, and the lamps are lit, and the priest burns incense around the lectern, and the altar, and the whole Church, and the brethren according to their rank.” It will be known, he adds. The statute, as the Gospel of Matthew is read, likewise from Mark and Luke, from John is also read before the beginning of the holy passion, truly as before “Now is the Son of Man glorified." It is read like this for three days, that is, on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and ends on Wednesday at the ninth hour. There are also three readings from Luke, but the others are two. Together, all the readings are nine and nothing more. This is also a prescription The Charter is also set forth in the Greek original (Τυπικ. edit. Tenet. 1643 l. 79 vol.). But no matter how clearly and accurately expressed the prescription of the Charter, which undoubtedly depicts the ideal of church liturgical orders, church practice, the thought of a frail and weak person, under many different kinds of external purely physical conditions, seeks in such strict and categorically expressed prescriptions of the Charter for leniency and justification of his bodily weakness. This is how it was before, and how it continues to this day. A small change in practice regarding the time of reading the Gospel during Holy Week is undoubtedly a condescension towards modern Orthodox people, and this change is not anyone’s personal business, but a fact of history, which suggests that the difficulty of fulfilling the above prescription of the Charter has long been recognized and not only by parish pastors, but even by our famous monasteries. In fact, if we take into account the duration of the service during Holy Week in general, bypassing the readings of the Gospels for now, if we do not lose sight of the fact that this service is celebrated in most of our Russian villages in cold churches, lined only with boards, in quite severe frosts, especially in the north, since it is not uncommon for us to still have frosts in the last week of Lent (this must be expected this year, on the occasion of early Easter), then no matter what there is a great ardent desire and deeply religious inspiration, there is no physical opportunity for the priest to read, and for the worshipers to listen “with attention,” as the Charter requires, for three days, almost four evangelists. For the former, this work is hard and exhausting, but for the latter it is positively overwhelming. Therefore, it is not surprising that in practice we see many deviations and violations of this instruction on the part of priests so that the service of these days of Holy Week would not be difficult and unbearable for fasting parishioners. Priests, for example, who want to literally fulfill the instructions of the Charter come two and three hours before the bell rings in the church and, after reading the beginning of the third hour, stand to read the Gospel, in the complete absence of worshipers, with the exception of the church watchman. Even the reader, after reading the psalms and kathismas, goes home to fulfill his household needs, knowing that the reading of the gospels will continue until the bell rings the gospel. These priests, when the worshipers gather in the church, at the sixth and ninth hours already read only a few chapters from the gospel, thereby significantly shortening the services. To avoid the cold that prevails in churches, the priest sometimes reads the Gospel before the bell rings in the church gatehouse. Priests who deviate from the letter of the instructions of the Church Charter, but who want to read all the evangelists and certainly in the first three days of Holy Week, read several chapters from the gospel at morning and even evening services. Finally, there are priests who are well aware of the difficulty of fulfilling this instruction only during one Holy Week, but without deviating one iota from it, they allow themselves to read one or even two evangelists in the sixth week, when the service is shorter (See Nikolsk. A guide to studying. Establishment of Church Law. St. Petersburg, 1874, p. 592). We are personally aware of examples of such practice in two dioceses, and what is especially remarkable is that in one of the dioceses we heard such a reading of the evangelists even in the Church of the Cross of the bishop’s house, in the presence of the bishop himself. Sometimes there are completely arbitrary and groundless deviations from the Charter. For example, in some churches they read only one gospel from John or some other evangelist, or, using the well-known “Sacred History” of the late Protopresbyter of Theology, they read, based on samples from the evangelists, the entire history of the earthly life of Jesus Christ. Where the priests literally, in the full sense of the word, fulfill the Church Charter and begin reading the Gospels with the ringing of the bell on Monday of Holy Week, we see that the church is empty for a very long time after the ringing and the priest reads the Gospel for himself, except for a few chosen ones - old men and women. Most of the worshipers come to the church much later and thus make their work easier... Thus, from this description and the options regarding the reading of the Evangelists during Holy Week, the conclusion that actual practice has allowed several forms or types of changes in relation to this custom, clearly and precisely described in the Charter, in order to alleviate the severity of this prescription for the priest and the laity. But in every change, with the exception of the above-mentioned cases of direct violation of the Charter, there is or can be seen to one degree or another an approximation to the ideal that the Charter outlines. Each form of evasion, having in mind to ease the burdensomeness of the service of these days for those who pray and perform it, at the same time tries not to diverge from the mandatory requirement of the Charter for every Orthodox Christian and son of the Church, but on the contrary, with accuracy, we do not say literal, because the ideal, as an ideal, in life will never be realized, with approximate accuracy, to implement this prescription in practice, to fulfill it, as far as the strength and understanding of the people who should know this allow. We have, therefore, the task of indicating which of the above forms of deviation is closest to this ideal and at the same time corresponds to the needs of the given time and does not contradict history. At first glance, the closest thing to fulfilling the requirements of the Charter is the practice that allows for the reading of the Gospels at all services of Holy Week in its first three days. This practice is rooted in the fact that if you read the Gospels for hours at a time, it is tiring and difficult for those praying, but if you diversify this reading with services and read with rest, then those praying will not notice such fatigue. But in this case, the fact that even without Gospel readings the service of these days is very long is overlooked; and it is not without labor and effort that one can maintain good spirits and attention until the end. But suppose that after the night's rest, those praying cheerfully stand at Matins and listen with attention to the Gospel readings in the first hour, since they are usually included here, it is unlikely that they will retain the same receptivity and freshness of attention during the hours of the liturgy, and even more so at Great Compline. This practice only divides the work at certain intervals, but does not shorten or make it easier for those praying, to whom our Church Charter prescribes unrelenting “attention” during all the Gospel readings. It can be positively said that, with such a distribution of readings from the Gospel and with the duration of the service in general, physical vigor and freshness of attention and receptivity are unlikely to remain among those praying until the end of their fasting, and the pastors will thus be able to stop their parishioners from avoiding listening to the Gospel word from beginning to end and being late for the hours and other services. In this case, human weakness can find another outcome, so as not to bear the entire burden of church service... In addition to all this, the present, apparently the weakest form of deviation has the disadvantage that it requires special adaptations and adaptations, not provided for and not approved by the Church Charter, for reading the Gospel, especially during Great Compline or evening worship. That is why we cannot agree and recommend this form of deviation from the Church Charter, as a form that does not satisfy either the Church Charter, or the pastor, and especially the flock, who must “attentively” listen to the Gospel reading. In our opinion, it is closer to the realization of the ideal and fully satisfies the purpose for which St. The Church established the reading of the Gospels during Holy Week, a form of deviation that divides the Gospel readings into two weeks, that is, into the sixth and seventh. In this case, without deviating from the letter of the prescription, except that the Gospels will be read, so to speak, in two parts, one can be sure that the purpose of the present institution will be fully achieved. The shepherd and his flock will willingly and lovingly fulfill the strict instructions of the Church Charter and from such a reading, which, given the short duration of the service in the sixth week and the reduction in the seventh, will no doubt be listened to “with attention” and with benefit for the worshipers. The service itself of the sixth week, when mostly family people are fasting, who in the seventh week will have troubles and bustle in preparation for the upcoming holiday, will become more solemn by adding readings from the gospel to it and will acquire greater interest and significance in their eyes. Be that as it may, in any case, we place this form of evasion from the Rule much higher than the literal fulfillment of its instructions, when the priest comes to the church or church gatehouse several hours before the start of the ringing of the clock and, alone, in the complete absence of those praying, begins reading the Gospel, just to fulfill the letter of the Rule and to facilitate the work of his fasters. In this case, the pastors, chasing the letter of the charter, lose attention to its spirit, or the purpose of Christian worship and its rituals in general, and commit a crime in this regard. In fact, it is not for the priest that the above injunction of the Charter exists, who (i.e., the priest) knows the entire Gospel and very often reads it; it is not to him or his church watchman, an involuntary ever-present pilgrim, that this remark recommending “attention” is addressed; “Make us worthy of hearing,” etc. before the very beginning of the Gospel readings, etc.? Obviously, this whole remark is mainly directed to the worshipers, who are now not in the church and for the sake of whose relief all this is being done without witnesses. Strange and unworthy of either a shepherd or the church of God... The form we approved of “deviating from the prescriptions of the currently in force charter” was recognized as closest to its ideal and satisfying the purpose for which the Church established the custom of listening “with attention” to the entire Gospel on the three days of Holy Week, and in ancient Russian liturgical practice. The Rules or “Obikhodnik” of the 16th century, famous in Russia, of the monastery of St. Anthony of Siysk prescribed that reading the gospels should begin on Monday of the sixth week. At the same time, remaining faithful to the Charter of St. that was dominant at that time and continues to operate to this day. Savva the Sanctified, the 16th century “Obikhodnik” we mentioned, notes that this reading should continue in the first three days of the sixth week and only the first two evangelists should be read. “And this week, we read in this charter, on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday two evangelists will read (i.e. Matthew and Mark), and on Holy Week (also) two – Luke and John” (RKPP. XV I century: Solov, bib. (Kazan, spiritual acad.) No. 1117 l. 200 vol., 201; M. Synod, bib. No. 814 l. 286 vol. - 288; The rituals or actions that preceded and accompanied the reading of the Gospel are no different from the actions now laid down in the statutes for Holy Week. This eloquent fact of ancient Russian liturgical practice says as clearly as possible that the difficulty of implementing in practice the requirements of the charter was always recognized, not only in parish practice, but even in the practice of our ancient Russian famous monasteries, for which our current church charter was actually drawn up and where the most strict and punctual implementation of it in practice should have been expected. The same fact, on the other hand, shows us to what heights of approach to one’s ideal a real form of evasion from the rules could reach. Here we see not only identity in the services at which the Gospels are read, in the rituals preceding and following the present reading, but even in the days indicated by the Charter for Holy Week. The present form of evasion did not go further than this in its approach to the ideal; neither history nor our contemporary liturgical practice presents us with anything like this. Although this is the last circumstance, indicating the identity and imitation of one practice, not provided for by the Charter, of another, nevertheless, we cannot help but make a small reservation about it. In fact, we cannot understand all this attachment to the letter of the charter and the instruction that even in the sixth week the Gospel should be read only on the first three days. It seems to us much more expedient to read the Gospel throughout the week or on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, when only short hours are celebrated, and not to read on Wednesday and Friday, when the service of the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts is significantly lengthened, and without reading the Gospels. But in any case, even if the reading of the Gospels goes on on the clock on all days of the sixth week and the first two evangelists are read, then you can be sure that the priest and the worshipers will perform all the services of this week with eagerness and full diligence, and the priest and the worshipers in the seventh week will not need to come up with various kinds of inadmissible and contrary to the Charter and purpose of Christian worship for the sake of bodily weakness... According to the current Charter, the gospel is read by a priest on all three days of Holy Week. “This is how the priest honors the Tetroevangel, notes our Charter, and is wrapped in a phelonion,” (fol. 381). This remark is not in the Greek Typikon. But the practice of the Old Russian Church, and at that the monastic practice, allowed in this regard a deviation from the prevailing Rule. The already mentioned “Obikhodnik” of the 15th century of the monastery of St. Anthony of Siya, the Gospel at the ninth hour directs the deacon to read it (RKP. Solov, bib. no. 1117 l. 201 vol.; rkp. M. Synod, bib. no. 814 l. 237 vol.; rkp. Volokol. bib. no. 338 l. 227 vol.). We can call such deviation not inconsistent with general church practice. In fact, if a deacon can and does read the Gospel during the Liturgy on ordinary days, then there is no reason to deprive him of this right for these three days of Holy Week and the sixth week and to put the entire burden of reading on one priest without sharing it with the deacon as his assistant. It can be difficult to listen when priests, especially elders, tired of the length of the service, but unwilling to deviate from the letter of the Rule, continue the Gospel readings inaudibly and in a fallen voice. Allowing deacons, especially those with a good voice and expressive diction, to read the gospels, in addition to facilitating the priests, can have both a refreshing and encouraging effect on the worshipers. We must not forget that the variety of voices of the readers is very important during worship and involuntarily attracts the attention of the worshipers... From what we have said regarding the issue we are considering, the following conclusions can be drawn: 1) The prescription of the church charter regarding the reading of the gospels in the first three days of Holy Week, as history shows and as evidenced by facts from modern liturgical practice, was recognized by pastors and even abbots of the monasteries of the Russian Church always and to this day as difficult to implement in practice, and therefore, both before and now, deviations from it have been made and are being made. 2) There are several forms of evasion of the current charter on this issue, but closest to the implementation of the ideal of church practice outlined in the Typikon is the practice that allows the reading of the Gospels not only in the seventh week, but also in the sixth. 3) The reading of the Gospels in the sixth week should be done throughout the week, at the clock, or only on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, when only the clock is set and, therefore, the service is shorter than on Wednesday and Friday of the same week. 4) The actions preceding and following the Gospel readings must be entirely borrowed from the current Charter, from the service on Monday of Holy Week. 5) Finally, the priest can share the work of reading the Gospels with the deacon, where churches have deacons with a good voice and expressive diction. According to ancient Russian liturgical practice, the deacon can be instructed to read the Gospels during the ninth hour, when the attention of the worshipers has already begun to weaken and it is necessary to introduce a new voice, a new reader, to maintain it.