What not to do in the church (omens, superstitions and truth). Can I sit during the service? In the early Christian church, everyone prayed standing up.
According to various polls, in Russia from 60 to 80 percent of the population consider themselves Orthodox. Of these, only 6-7 percent are churched. Many Russians, unfortunately, do not even know how to behave in an Orthodox church.
1. Men are not allowed to enter the church in a headdress.
“Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered shames his head.”
2. A woman, on the contrary, should not enter the temple with uncovered head, and the scarf should completely and completely cover the hair and cover the ears.
Apostle Paul 1 Corinthians 11:4-5:
« And every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered puts her head to shame, for it is the same as if she were shaved.”
3. A woman should not come to the temple with bright makeup. It is better not to use cosmetics at all before visiting the temple. In the church, attention must be paid to service and prayer.
Saint Ignatius Brianchaninov wrote: “Just as a body without a soul is dead, so prayer without attention is dead. Without attention, a prayer that is uttered turns into idle talk, and the one who prays is thus counted among those who take the name of God in vain..
4. Do not enter the temple in shorts and short skirts. For a woman, it is enough to cover her knees and put on any clothes that will cover her arms, shoulders and chest. The man must wear long trousers. It is not appropriate for women to come in men's clothing and vice versa.
Deuteronomy 22:5: "A woman should not wear men's clothes, and a man should not dress in a woman's dress, for everyone who does this is abominable before the Lord God."
5. Most priests let a woman into the temple during critical days, but she is not eligible to participate in the ordinances. In rare cases, a woman may be admitted to the sacrament, they will not be allowed to venerate holy relics.
6. In Orthodox churches You can't cross from left to right.
In the book "Psalter" it is said in a "short statement": " ... I believe: the first is on our forehead (on our forehead), the upper horn of the cross touches it, the second is on our stomach (on our stomach), the lower horn of the cross reaches it, the third on our right frame (shoulder), the fourth on left, they also signify the cross-stretching ends of the cross, on it our Lord Jesus Christ crucified for us with a simple hand, all tongues bored at the ends in one gathering«.
In Catholicism, people are baptized from left to right. The norm of the Catholic cross blessing was approved in 1570 by Pope Pius V "He who blesses himself ... makes a cross from his forehead to his chest and from his left shoulder to his right."
7. Shut down in church Cell phones or the sound of a call. The temple is a place for solitude, and nothing should interfere with communication with God. If the phone rings during the service, you will be ashamed, and others will be unpleasant. And even more so, an Orthodox church is not a place for mobile games like Pokemon Go.
8. It is forbidden to make noise, laugh and talk loudly in the church. Temples have strong acoustics and this can seriously interfere with worship.
9. Children often do not yet know how to behave properly in the temple. If children are hyperactive, it is better to refrain from taking them with you to work. Screaming or crying children in church distract from prayer. If your child is crying, calmly leave the temple with him.
10. Women in the temple cannot perform the functions of a clergyman. This is deeply enshrined in the Orthodox tradition.
Deacon Andrei Kuraev: “The priest at the liturgy is the liturgical icon of Christ, and the altar is the room of the Last Supper. At this supper, it was Christ who took the cup and said, Drink, this is My Blood. ... We partake of the Blood of Christ, which He Himself gave, which is why the priest must be a liturgical icon of Christ. ... Therefore, the priestly archetype (prototype) is masculine, not feminine”.
Isaac Sirin wrote: “Any prayer, in which the body does not become weary, and the heart does not come into contrition, is recognized as an unripe fruit, because such a prayer is without a soul.”
12. If you need to move to another part of the temple - do not pass between the priest and the altar.
13. During worship, it is not recommended to idly walk around the temple and greet acquaintances, this prevents parishioners from concentrating on prayers. To greet familiar people is silently with a slight nod of the head. Holding hands in the temple is also not accepted.
Reverend Lawrence: “If you need to leave the Liturgy, then leave after “Our Father ... And if you have already left with the Communion of the Body and Blood, then stand with fear and pray on the spot, because the Lord himself is present here with the Archangels and Angels. And if you can, shed at least a small tear for your unworthiness.”
14. You can not defiantly turn your back to the altar during the service and prayer.
15. Do not enter the altar, even if you are very interested. Only the servants of the temple can be there. Occasionally, representatives of the authorities are allowed there.
Sixth Ecumenical Council decided: “None of all those belonging to the class of the laity, let it be allowed to enter the inside of the sacred altar, but, according to some ancient tradition, this is by no means forbidden to the power and dignity of the king, when he desires to bring gifts to the Creator.
16. If someone next to you behaves inappropriately for the situation, it is better to remain silent or say it quietly and delicately. However the best choice- focus on prayer and not make any remarks in the temple.
John Chrysostom: "He who strictly investigates the misdeeds of others will not receive any indulgence for his own."
17. It is forbidden to eat or drink anything in the temple, and even more so to enter the temple in a state of intoxication. According to the charter, it is not customary to come to the morning service on a full stomach. Deviations are possible due to weakness, with self-reproach.
18. If you are in a hurry somewhere, it is better not to go to church. Going to the temple does not tolerate fuss, so constantly looking at the clock or asking someone else for the time is considered disrespectful.
Isaac Sirin: “Forbid yourself distraction of thoughts during prayer, hate daydreaming, reject worries with the power of faith, strike your heart with the fear of God - and you will conveniently accustom yourself to attention. The praying mind must be in a completely true state. Dreaming, no matter how tempting and plausible, being one’s own, arbitrary creation of the mind, leads the mind out of the state of divine truth, leads it into a state of self-delusion and deceit, and therefore it is rejected in prayer.”
19. In church, do not cross your arms behind your back. No one remembers where this ban came from, but it’s better not to provoke others. Crossing the arms, as well as the “fig behind the back”, are the oldest symbols of protection and rejection of something. In communion with God, one should be completely open and sincere.
20. In notes on health and for the repose, you do not need to write last names and patronymics, as well as non-church names. It is also not customary to list the unbaptized, non-Christians and suicides.
21. Do not take out burnt out candles and put your own in their place. This can only be done by temple employees after the completion of the rites.
22. It is forbidden to go to the temple with animals, especially with dogs. In the Bible, a dog is considered an unclean animal, among the Jews it was considered the embodiment of all that is despicable.
23. The opinion of the ministers of the church varies greatly regarding not wearing pectoral cross in the church. Some believe that this is a great sin, others call to be more tolerant of a person. Without a cross, you can be allowed into the church, but you will not be allowed to the sacraments.
24. When kissing the icon, do not kiss the faces of Christ, the Mother of God and the saints. You can not kiss the frame of the icon, as this custom is an echo of the heretical tradition. Kissing the frame unwittingly support the heresy of iconoclasm.
25. It is forbidden to smoke in the church and in the courtyard of the church.
WHEN CAN I SIT DURING ORTHODOX SERVICES?
Prayer is work. And the work is hard, recalls Priest Andrei Chizhenko.
Let us remember the prayer of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane, which entered the Sacred History under the title “Prayer for the Chalice”: “And being in an agony, he prayed more earnestly, and His sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground” (Lk. 22:44). The Savior taught us the lesson of sincere fiery prayer, which includes all layers of the human being: body, psyche, emotions, will, nerves, mind, soul.
Proceeding from this, of course, it is quite difficult to imagine the spiritual prayerful right mood of the whole human being if you are sitting. In addition, when we go, for example, to the boss’s office, do we immediately sit down on a chair and cross our legs? No. Quietly we stand and ask or wait for instructions.
How much greater is God immeasurably greater than a ruler or an earthly king? How many times more should we tremble and revere before him, experiencing the fear of God's holy, love and gratitude?
Therefore, of course, in the physical sense, it is customary to pray standing up in Orthodox worship, in a struggle with oneself, so to speak.
But there are moments when, in principle, you can sit in the service. This is especially true of the long all-night vigil, which lasts from three to four hours.
The Greeks in this sense came up with a very good thing. It's called stasidia. It's so special wooden chair but without a seat. It is impossible to sit on it, but you can lean your hands on the armrests and relax your body for a while.
In our churches, there are benches along the walls. It must be remembered that the one praying in the temple can sit on the clock (when reading the prayers of the third, sixth, ninth and first hours). The third and sixth hours begin the Liturgy until the priestly exclamation "Blessed is the kingdom...", the ninth hour Vespers, and the first ends Matins.
Almost all of Vespers (if it is a regular Sunday all-night vigil or a vigil for the twelfth feast) it will not be possible to sit. It is served very solemnly, censing is often performed, there is an entrance with a censer, paroemias are read. In no case should you sit at Matins while reading the Six Psalms. These are very important psalms and a very important part of the worship service, in which we thank God for creating a new day for us. You can’t sit during the polyeleos: taking out the icon of the holiday, magnification, prokimen, reading the Gospel, anointing with holy oil. But before the polyeleos, while reading the kathisma of the Psalter, you can sit. The word "kathisma" Greek It translates to "sitting". After the polyeleos, during the reading of ordinary canons until the Great Doxology, you can also sit.
At the Divine Liturgy (except for the third and sixth hours) it is better not to sit down. The only time you can sit is after the cry “Wonmem. Holy to the Holies, when the Epistle to Holy Communion is read and the priest goes to confession. Then you can sit and relax for a while. But the main thing is not to talk at this moment. Because very often at this time people relax too much, they seem to turn off the service and start talking to each other about everyday things. In conditions of good acoustics of Orthodox churches, it resembles a buzzing beehive. Let us remember, dear brothers and sisters, that the Monk Amphilochius of Pochaev said: "Sorrows are sent to him who speaks in the temple." If you do not confess and do not take communion at this Liturgy, then still sit on a bench and listen, ponder over the holy verses of the prayers for Holy Communion, live them. And don't steal divine services from each other with worldly talk. After all, why else is talking in the temple a big sin? Because there is something blasphemous in it, disrespect for the sanctuary of the Body and Blood of Christ, besides, a person who conducts idle conversations in the temple, robs not only himself, but also other worshipers, stealing the service from them with his conversations. If you have not seen someone for a long time and want to talk to him, please do it after the holidays, when you kiss the cross and the Royal Doors close after the service. Then no one bothers to speak.
Especially it is impossible to sit with the Royal Doors open. Because these are the climaxes of the service. It is believed that the Lord is among His faithful.
But, of course, cases in life are different. If a person cannot stand for a long time due to a serious illness or because of senile infirmity, then he is allowed to sit for the entire service, as long as he rejoices at the fact that he is at the service.
Let us remember, dear brothers and sisters, that Orthodox worship is an earthly image of paradise. It brings us closer to the Kingdom of Heaven and teaches His laws of life. Let us love the temple, let us love the service: the hours, Vespers, Matins, the Liturgy. Then the sky opens up. The earthly Church is united with the Heavenly Church by the good will of God the Father in Christ the Redeemer through the Holy Spirit. And we become shoulder to shoulder with the saints and the angels of heaven. And we become citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven: earthly angels and heavenly people.
Priest Andrei Chizhenko. Orthodox Life
Enter the holy temple with spiritual joy. Remember that the Savior Himself promised to comfort you in sorrow: “Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest” (Gospel of Matthew, chapter 11, verse 28).
Always enter here with humility and meekness, so that you can leave the temple justified, as the humble gospel publican came out.
When you enter a temple and see the holy icons, think that the Lord Himself and all the saints are looking at you; be especially reverent at this time and have the fear of God.
Entering the holy temple, create three waist, and in fasting three bow to the ground, praying: "Creating me, Lord, have mercy", "God, be merciful to me a sinner", "I have sinned without a number, Lord, have mercy on me."
Then, bowing to the right and left of those who came before you, stand still and carefully listen to the psalms and prayers read in the temple, but do not say otherwise to yourself, do not read them from books separately from church singing, for such are condemned by the Apostle Paul as moving away from the church assembly. It is good if there is a place in the temple where you are used to standing. Pass to him quietly and modestly, and passing by the royal doors, stop and reverently cross yourself and bow. If there is no such place yet, do not be embarrassed. Without disturbing others, stand in a free place so that singing and reading can be heard.
Always come to the holy temple in advance in order to have time to light candles before the start of the service, order a commemoration, and venerate the icons. If you are still late, be careful not to interfere with the prayer of others. Entering the temple during the reading of the Six Psalms, the Gospel, or after the Cherubic Liturgy (when the transubstantiation of the Holy Gifts is performed), stay at entrance doors until the end of these critical parts of the service.
Be reverent towards church candle: this is a symbol of our prayer burning before the Lord, His Holy Mother, holy saints of God. Candles are lit one from the other, burning, and, having melted the bottom of it, they put it in the nest of the candlestick. The candle should stand strictly straight. If a day big holiday the servant will extinguish your candle in order to light the candle of another, do not be indignant in spirit: your sacrifice has already been accepted by the All-Seeing and All-Knowing Lord.
During the service, try not to walk around the temple even to light candles. One should also venerate icons before and after the service, or at set time- for example, at the vigil for the anointing with oil. Some moments of the service, as already mentioned, require special concentration: the reading of the Gospel, the song of the Virgin and the great doxology at the Vespers; the prayer "Only Begotten Son..." and the entire liturgy, beginning with "Who the Cherubim...".
In the temple, with a silent bow, greet your acquaintances, even with especially close ones, do not shake hands and do not ask about anything - be truly modest. Do not be curious and do not peer at those around you, but pray with sincere feeling, delving into the order and content of the services.
In an Orthodox church, it is customary to stand during worship. You can sit only during the reading of kathismos (Psalms) and proverbs (readings from the Old and New Testaments at the great vespers on great holidays and days of memory of especially revered saints). The rest of the time it is allowed to sit down and rest only in cases of ill health. However, Saint Philaret of Moscow spoke well of the infirmity of the body: “It is better to think about God while sitting than standing about your feet.”
In the temple, pray as a participant in worship, and not just present, so that the prayers and hymns that are read and sung come from your heart; follow the service carefully so that you pray for exactly what the whole Church prays for.
If you come with children, make sure that they behave modestly and do not make noise, accustom them to prayer. If the children need to leave, tell them to cross themselves and leave quietly, or take them out yourself.
Never allow a child to eat in a holy temple, except when the priests distribute the blessed bread.
If a small child bursts into tears in the temple, immediately take him out or carry him out.
Do not condemn the involuntary mistakes of employees or those present in the temple - it is more useful to delve into own shortcomings and ask the Lord for the forgiveness of your sins. It happens that during a divine service, someone in front of you prevents the parishioners from praying with concentration. Do not get annoyed, do not pull anyone up (unless, of course, obvious hooliganism and blasphemy are committed). Try not to pay attention, and if, due to weakness, you cannot cope with the temptation, it is better to move quietly to another place.
When you go to the temple of God, still at home prepare money for candles, prosphora and church fees: it is inconvenient to change them when buying candles, because this interferes both with worship and those who pray. Also prepare money for alms.
Until the end of the divine service, never leave the temple unless absolutely necessary, for this is a sin before God. If this happens, repent at confession.
According to our old customs, men should stand on the right side of the temple, and women on the left. Communion and anointing also take place separately - first men, and then women. No one should occupy the passage from the main doors to the royal doors.
Women should enter the temple modestly dressed, in a dress or skirt, with their heads covered and preferably without makeup at all. In any case, it is unacceptable to partake of the Holy Mysteries and venerate holy things with painted lips.
Practical advice in the context of historical and modern liturgical perception is given by the head of the Information Department of the Mukachevo diocese of the UOC, Archpriest Alexander Monich.
– The purpose of the worship of the Christian Church is, first of all, communion with God. And in what format it will take place, the Gospel is not written. There is only an indication of how to pray to the Lord and communicate with Him. Communication should be tete-a-tete, "secretly", without hypocrisy and not for show.
In the early Christian church, everyone prayed standing up.
In apostolic times, primarily in the Catacomb Church, services were quite different from what they are now. Gradually, the service was filled with texts, formed and transformed. After a while, it acquired its current content due to the influence of various factors: the introduction of the texts of the Psalter and liturgical texts written by St. John of Damascus, Ephraim the Syrian, St. Basil the Great, St. John Chrysostom, Gregory the Theologian, Gregory of Nyssa, and others.
In the memoirs of the pilgrim Etheria (Sylvia of Aquitaine) (4th century) there are descriptions of the first Christian services in Jerusalem, where, in particular, it is indicated that they were of a hymnographic nature: antiphons and passages from the Psalter were sung.
The Psalter was read in the form of kathismas and so-called. teachings. During the daily cycle of worship there were five teachings. These divine services with teachings in his writings are very well described by Professor Skabalanovich.
The pilgrim Eteria notes that during the divine services people sang, and read, and sat.
And although the ancient Christian services lasted a very long time, few people sat in the Church, because there was a completely different worldview of Christianity.
“It is important that a person comes to the temple at all”
In general, during worship in the temple, you can sit only during kathismas. The word "kathisma" in Greek means "I sit." Now you can sit while reading the Psalter, and for those who are seriously ill, and while reading the canons. It is also permitted to sit at the Divine Liturgy while the Apostle is being read. Who among those present at the service can stand, let him stand.
Worship today has a modified character compared to the times of the first Church of Christ. This refers primarily to the quality of our stay at the services. And the reason is us humans. The most important factor is the decline of our faith, which gives rise to a completely different liturgical perception. We now sit, rather, because of our weakness, and sometimes because of laziness.
Another factor is our body. As St. John Chrysostom writes, each different health: one is like iron, the other is like grass. And the Lord first of all looks at the heart of the one who prays.
So who has good health, can stand throughout the daily liturgical circle. And whoever is weak is allowed to sit during kathismas, canons and the reading of the Apostle. Whoever does not allow health can sit most of the service. It is important that a person comes to the temple at all. Because sometimes they say: “I will watch the service on the Internet, on the website online.” But this will be our virtual, artificial meeting with the Lord. Divine service not only needs to be seen, it needs to be experienced, lived through, and one must open one's heart to God. Therefore, it is imperative to go to services: whoever can, let him go and stand. Whoever is not strong, let him come and sit to confess and take part in the Eucharist.
Unfortunately, in the third millennium it becomes a great joy that a person comes to worship in a temple. Much to our regret...
Posted by Marina Bogdanova
Rarely, or almost never, do Eastern Christians sit during divine services, in accordance with the opinion of Tertullian, who in the Book of Prayer says: “It is generally obscene to sit in the presence and before the presence of one whom you fear and revere, and even more impious to sit before the face of God. living, to whom even the angels stand with fear and trembling.”
“Is it obligatory to stand during worship? Why can't you sit?
Archbishop Vincent:
– In our Orthodox Church, it is customary to stand at the service. Since at this moment we are standing before God, and this is also a kind of feat. We also have a tradition of respecting and honoring elders. Therefore, when we see a person who is older than us, we treat him with respect and stand up. This has been written about in Old Testament: "Rise before the face of the old man, and honor his face." Moreover, we should honor God, since He is our Creator, Provider and Guardian. We came to church to talk with God, to ask forgiveness for our sins. As a sign that we are aware of our sinfulness, we bring this small feat - we stand in the service. It can be hard, my legs hurt, but we endure, so that the Lord forgives us our sins. So that the Lord sees our sacrifice, hears our prayers and grants us His mercy. That is why in our Russian Orthodox Church we stand in the service, and do not sit.
I don't go to church because in a huge crowd of people it is very difficult for me to concentrate on prayer. It is especially difficult before confession. There is almost no free time at home, and when I come to the temple, I hope to once again stop and think about my life, tune in the right way. But in our church it is arranged in such a way that benches for the elderly and infirm people stand just along the “path” to confession. And very often grandmothers discuss their illnesses, disorder, news, etc. quite loudly. All this is very annoying. I can’t hide from it (the Lord gave us ears just for this purpose – to hear). What to do, tell me?
Priest Mikhail Nemnonov:
– During the earthly life of Christ, crowds of several thousand people followed Him, and, listening to Him, they did not eat or drink until the evening. I think that we are in more comfortable conditions.
Is it easy for you to concentrate on prayer where there are no large crowds of people? For example at home, in the morning and in the evening? So it is the Lord's fault that we cannot pray - He sent us grandmothers and cramped churches, and also gave us ears?
Spiritual life is work, not rest. Her beauty is revealed to those who wish, as they say, "hit a finger on a finger." And consolation in it is received by those who are not looking for consolation.
Let's instead look for what we can get in the Church, let's think about what we can do while in the Church. Then tightness, and ears, and grandmothers will not interfere with us.
In temples there are benches along the walls, but it is awkward for me, a generally healthy person, to sit on them. When you decide to sit down, it usually turns out that the benches are already occupied. Sometimes, as a sinful deed, I envy Catholics with their benches. And they, they say, appreciate the fact that we in the temple are not tied to one place, we can move around without disturbing the others (unless, of course, the temple is packed to capacity). They say that once in Orthodox churches they sat during the service. Is it so? And if so, why isn't it now?
Priest Oleg Davydenkov, Doctor of Theology:
–
Indeed, believers before the 6th century could pray while sitting. If there were no special seats in the temple, they sat directly on the floor. But, as you know, it is human nature to settle down with maximum comfort. There is even such a story about one bishop, the abbot of the monastery. Vladyka never sat down even for a minute during the service. When asked why, he replied: "If I sit down, the rest will generally lie down." This is indeed so. It's comfortable to sit, of course. But lying down is even more comfortable. So you can go very far. And after all Orthodox Church refused benches not overnight. She arrived at this based on practical experience. When you pray standing up, you don’t relax, but as soon as you sit down, you are already drawn to sleep. As practice shows, when the body is in good shape, then the soul is in prayer.
When, we are talking about sick people, as the Metropolitan of Moscow Filaret (Drozdov) said: “It is better to sit and think about God than standing about your feet.” But even the sick, if they can, it is better to stand while reading the Gospel.
Hieromonk Alexy:
“As for whether it is possible to pray sitting or lying down, I will say that it is better to pray sitting or lying down than not to pray at all!” But remember also that laziness —
that is no reason not to force yourself to pray standing up.
HOW TO OVERCOME FATIGUE
Ask the Lord in your own words to strengthen your weakness and you will be convinced of His mercy.
And there is also the easiest way - to look at the Crucifix hanging on the Cross of Christ. And be ashamed of your weakness.
If you are at a divine service for the first time and do not regularly participate in the Sacraments of Confession and Communion, then severe fatigue, lack of air and the smell of incense that is hard to bear when you burn it are more related to the spiritual than to the physical sphere. It's not from the body, it's from sins. After sincere Confession and Communion, as a rule, oppressive feelings disappear.
There is also a purely psychological side of fatigue among the newcomers: without knowing the composition and duration of the service, without having the skill to understand the Church Slavonic language, it is much more difficult to pray. In general, fatigue is inversely proportional to the activity of your liturgical life. The more often you pray in the temple, the more naturally the service will last.
And remember: a person grows spiritually only when it is difficult for him.
