Storing vegetables
All about worship. Types of services in the service in the Orthodox Church Morning church service among the Orthodox

All about worship. Types of services in the service in the Orthodox Church Morning church service among the Orthodox

All church services are divided into three circles: daily, weekly and annual.
DAILY CIRCLE OF SERVICES
1. Daily cycle of services are those Divine services that are performed by St. Orthodox Church throughout the day. There should be nine daily services: Vespers, Compline, Midnight Office, Matins, the first hour, the third hour, the sixth hour, the ninth hour and the Divine Liturgy.

Following the example of Moses, who, describing God’s creation of the world, begins the “day” in the evening, so in the Orthodox Church the day begins in the evening - vespers.

Vespers- a service performed at the end of the day, in the evening. With this service we thank God for the passing day.

Midnight Office The service is intended to take place at midnight, in remembrance of the Savior’s night prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane. This service calls on believers to always be prepared for the Day of Judgment, which will come suddenly, like the “bridegroom at midnight” according to the parable of the ten virgins.

Matins- a service performed in the morning, before sunrise. With this service we thank God for the past night and ask Him for mercy for the coming day.

First hour, corresponding to our seventh hour of the morning, sanctifies the day that has already come with prayer.
On three o'clock, corresponding to our ninth hour in the morning, we remember the descent of the Holy Spirit on the apostles.
On six o'clock, corresponding to our twelfth hour of the day, the crucifixion of our Lord Jesus Christ is remembered.
On nine o'clock, corresponding to our third in the afternoon, we remember the death on the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Divine Liturgy there is the most important service. On it the entire earthly life of the Savior is remembered and sacrament of St. Communions, established by the Savior Himself at the Last Supper. Liturgy is served in the morning, before lunch.

All these services in ancient times in monasteries and hermits were performed separately, at the appointed time for each of them. But then, for the convenience of believers, they were combined into three services: evening, morning and afternoon.

The evening service consists of the ninth hour, vespers and compline.

Morning- from Midnight Office, Matins and the first hour.

Daytime- from the third and sixth hours and the Liturgy.

On the eve of major holidays and Sundays, an evening service is performed, which combines: Vespers, Matins and the first hour. This kind of worship is called all-night vigil(all-night vigil), because among the ancient Christians it lasted all night. The word "vigil" means: being awake.

Visual diagram of the daily cycle of worship

Evening.
1. Ninth hour. - (3 p.m)
2. Vespers.
3. Compline.
Morning.
1. Midnight Office. – (12 o’clock at night)
2. Matins.
3. First hour. – (7 a.m.)
Day.
1. Third hour. – (9 a.m.)
2. Sixth hour. – (12 noon)
3. Liturgy.

WEEKLY CIRCLE OF SERVICES

2. Weekly, or seven-day, circle of services This is the order of services for seven days of the week. Each day of the week is dedicated to some important event or a particularly revered saint.

On Sunday– The Church remembers and glorifies Resurrection of Christ;

IN Monday(the first day after Sunday) ethereal forces are glorified - Angels, created before man, the closest servants of God;

In Tuesday- glorified Saint John the Baptist, as the greatest of all prophets and righteous ones;

IN Wednesday the betrayal of the Lord by Judas is remembered and, in connection with this, a service is performed in memory of Holy Cross(fast day).

IN Thursday glorified St. Apostles and St. Nicholas the Wonderworker;

IN Friday the sufferings on the cross and the death of the Savior are remembered and a service is performed in honor of Holy Cross(fast day).

IN Saturday is a day of rest,- glorify the Mother of God, who is blessed daily, forefathers, prophets, apostles, martyrs, saints, righteous and all saints, attained rest in the Lord. All those who have died in true faith and hope for resurrection and eternal life are also remembered.

ANNUAL CIRCLE OF SERVICES

3. Annual circle of services called the order of services throughout the year.

Every day of the year is dedicated to the memory of certain saints, as well as special sacred events - holidays and fasts.

Of all the holidays in the year is the biggest Feast of the Holy Resurrection of Christ (Easter). This is a holiday, a holiday and a triumph of celebrations. Easter occurs no earlier than March 22 (April 4, New Art.) and no later than April 25 (May 8, New Art.), on the first Sunday after the spring full moon.

Then there are twelve great holidays in the year established in honor of our Lord Jesus Christ and the Mother of God, which are called twelfths.

There are holidays in honor great saints and in honor of the ethereal Heavenly Forces - angels.

Therefore, all the holidays of the year, according to their content, are divided into: Lord's, Mother of God and saints.

According to the time of celebration, holidays are divided into: motionless, which occur every year on the same dates of the month, and movable, which, although they occur on the same days of the week, fall on different days of the month in accordance with the time of Easter celebration.

According to the solemnity of the church service, holidays are divided into great, medium and small.

Great holidays always have all-night vigil; Average holidays are not always the case.

The liturgical church year begins on September 1 of the old style, and the entire annual circle of services is built in relation to the Easter holiday.

Archpriest Seraphim Slobodskoy. God's law

Through worship, Orthodox Christians enter into mysterious communion with God, through the performance of the sacraments, and precisely the most important of them, the sacrament of the union of man with God, and receive from God grace-filled strength for a righteous life.

The purpose of the service is also to edify believers in the teachings of Christ and to dispose them to prayer, repentance and thanksgiving to God.

Orthodox worship is very symbolic, not a single action takes place “for beauty”, everything contains a deep meaning that is incomprehensible to casual visitors. As we study the composition and structure of the service, an understanding of the depth, meaning and greatness contained in the liturgical actions comes.

All church services are divided into: daily, weekly and annual.

The liturgical church year begins on September 1, according to the old style, and the entire annual cycle of worship is built in relation to the holiday.

About Orthodox worship

Worship is the external side of religion, or, in other words, worship is an external activity in which the relationship of God to man and man to God is revealed and realized. Consequently, worship has two sides: the mystical, supernatural, expressing the relationship of the Divine to man, and the moral-aesthetic, expressing the relationship of man to the Divine. Christian worship is a set of sacred actions and rituals, or generally external activity, in which and through which the salvation of man is achieved and carried out on the part of God - the sanctification of man and the assimilation by him of the feat of Redemption accomplished by the Son of God and its gracious fruits, and on the part of man, already redeemed , blessed, faith in the Atonement and true worship of God based on it.

So, in the liturgical actions of any religion and rituals, its entire content is expressed and visually presented. But is it possible to speak of some kind of “service” in relation to that transcendental Beginning, which with its mysterious power embraces the entire universe? Will this not be an illusion of self-delusion of the human mind, which is so often inclined to exaggerate its place in the Universe? Why is worship necessary, what are its religious and psychological roots?

Due to the close, almost inextricable connection between spirit and body, a person cannot help but express his thoughts and feelings through one or another external action. Just as the body acts on the soul, communicating to it through the senses impressions of the external world, so the soul influences the state of the body and its organs. The religious area of the soul, or the human spirit, also requires an external manifestation of the phenomena occurring in this area. The inevitability of the external detection of religious feeling is caused by its intensity and intensity, surpassing all other feelings. No less a guarantee of the external manifestation of religious feeling also lies in its constancy, which strongly presupposes constant, regular forms of its manifestation. Therefore, worship is an obligatory component of religion: in it it is manifested and expressed in the same way as the soul reveals its life through the body. Worship determines the existence of religion, its being. Without it, religion would freeze in man and could never develop into a complex and living process. Without expression in the language of cult, it could not be recognized by a person as the highest manifestation of his soul, and would not exist for him as a real communication with God. And since religion has always and everywhere been perceived as a person’s desire for reconciliation and unity with God, then worship, its external side, is a manifestation of the same need. A similar feature is characteristic of worship of all times and peoples.

In the religion of the most ancient stage, worship, as a rule, was understood in the image and likeness of human relationships. There was self-interest, claims, references to one’s merits, and flattery. But one should not think that the entire ancient liturgical cult was reduced to this. Even the religion of primitive people contained some spiritual core. Man was vaguely instinctively aware that he was cut off from the Divine life, that he had violated the commands of God. The meaning of ancient sacrifices was that a person confessed his devotion, repentance, love for God and willingness to follow His path. However, around this pure base an ugly bark of magic grew. They began to look at the sacrifice as a mechanical way to earn the favor of mysterious forces, to force them to serve oneself; it was believed that certain rituals naturally entailed the fulfillment of what was desired. “I gave to You, You give to me” - this is the general formula of the pagan cult. Homer argued that sacrifices and the aroma of incense are pleasing to the gods and they are favorable to diligent donors. This was a universal belief, common to all peoples.

The first major shift in this area occurred many centuries before the birth of Christ. During this era, in all countries of the then civilized world, prophets, philosophers and sages appeared who proclaimed the meaninglessness of the magical approach to worship. They taught that serving God should consist, first of all, not in a sacrifice brought to the altar, but in purifying the heart and following the Will of God. Visible worship in churches should be an expression of spiritual worship. The best expression of this particular meaning of pre-Christian sacrifice are the words from the book of Leviticus: “The life of the body is in the blood; and I have appointed it (the blood) for you on the altar to atone for your souls, for this blood makes atonement for the soul” (17:11). Thus, already in the patriarchal period, in accordance with the promise, which was later expressed in the Law of Moses, a reconciliatory sacrifice was established by God Himself. As a result of this, God's chosen people formed a religious community, the Old Testament, to which worship was given, and at its center was sacrifice. The peculiarity of the Old Testament sacrifice, in its difference from the primitive sacrifice, is that in the first the place of sinful and destroyed human life is taken by the life of an innocent being, who, however, must suffer punishment for human sins. This life of an innocent creature (animal), ordained from above to cover the guilt of man, was supposed to serve as an external means of communication between God and man and showed that this communication is an act of God’s ineffable mercy. Making such a sacrifice reminded a person of his own sinfulness, supporting the consciousness that the death of the victim was in fact a well-deserved punishment for himself. But based only on the promise of redemption and precisely defined in the Law, which only prepared for the coming of the Redeemer, and not on the Redemption itself, the Old Testament sacrifice could not and did not have redemptive significance.

By the time of the coming of the Savior, a dual worship service had formed in the Old Testament Church: temple and synagogue. The first was performed in the Jerusalem Temple and consisted of the reading of the Decalogue and some other selected verses of Scripture, several specific prayers, the blessing of the people by the priests, offerings and sacrifices, and finally hymns. Since the time of Ezra, in addition to the temple, synagogues have appeared, which arose during the Babylonian captivity, where the Jews, who did not have the opportunity to participate in temple worship, received religious edification, listened to the Word of God and its interpretation in a language accessible to those born in captivity and who did not know the sacred language. Initially, synagogues spread among the Jews of the Diaspora, and at the time of the Savior they appeared in Palestine. This was caused by the decline in religious culture that occurred as a result of the cessation of prophecy, the subsequent formation of the canon of Holy Scripture, the emergence, along with the priesthood, of a strong corporation of scribes and, finally, the replacement of the Hebrew language among the people by Aramaic and, as a result, the need to translate and interpret Scripture to the people. In synagogues, sacrifices could not be made, and therefore there was no need for a priesthood, and all worship was performed by special people - rabbis.

According to the definition of the priest Pavel Florensky, worship, cult is “the totality of shrines, Sacra, that is, sacred things, such actions and words - including relics, rituals, sacraments, and so on - in general, everything that serves to establish our connection with other worlds – with the spiritual worlds.”

The syncretism of the spiritual and natural, historical and typological, biblically revealed and universally religious appears in the cult, and, in particular, in the liturgical annual circle: every moment of this circle not only in itself and for the sake of man, but also extends into the cosmic region, perceiving it in himself, and, having received, sanctifies. Already in the main division of the church year into four large fasts, pauses in life associated with four typical great holidays, or, more precisely, groups of holidays, the cosmic significance of the annual circle is clearly reflected: both fasts and the corresponding holidays are in clear correspondence with the four times of the astronomical year and the four corresponding to these last elements of cosmology. “Before, out of laziness, we constantly fast and do not want to be freed from the evil ones, since the apostles and divine fathers gave this harvest to the souls... and we must preserve it most dangerously. But then there are three others: the holy apostle, the Mother of God and the Nativity of Christ; at four o’clock in the summer, the Divine Apostles published the Pentecost” – in these words the synaxar of Cheese Week notes the connection between the four main fasts and the four seasons.

So, the Gospel teaching finally established that external worship in churches should be only a symbol of spiritual worship. Christ proclaims that the only worthy service to God is service “in spirit and truth.” He repeats the words of the prophet: “I want mercy, not sacrifice.” He denounces the Jewish clergy and lawyers for raising rituals and ceremonies to the level of the highest religious duty. Denouncing the superstitious and legalistic attitude towards the Sabbath, Christ says: “The Sabbath is for man, and not man for the Sabbath.” His harshest words were directed against the Pharisaic adherence to traditional ritual forms.

Although the first Christians observed the prescriptions of the Old Testament Law for some time, the Apostle Paul already turned his preaching against the useless burden of old rituals that had lost their inner meaning. His victory in the fight against the defenders of the Law marked the victory of the Church over the spirit of magical, ritual religiosity. However, Christianity did not completely abandon the ritual. It only opposed its undivided dominance in religious life and its misunderstanding: after all, the prophets did not reject temple worship, but protested only against the ugly exaggeration of a ritual that supposedly has self-sufficient value.

It may be objected: Christianity is the religion of the “spirit of truth.” Does it need external forms? And in general, with the Christian understanding of God, is some kind of “service” to Him possible? Could God really “need” him? And yet the Christian cult exists. First of all, we must agree that the All-Perfect and Almighty cannot “need” anything. But is the emergence of created being in general connected with “need”, with necessity? Did need, and not Love, create the Universe? – From the darkness of non-existence, the highest primordial Love and the highest primordial Reason brought the diverse created world into existence. But he was created on the basis of freedom, in the image and likeness of eternal Divine Freedom: he was not created complete; and only from the highest transcendental dimension can one see him as “very good,” as it is said in the 1st chapter of the book of Genesis. The realization and real completion of this world is only the finale: the Universe is in continuous development. The world, driven by free spiritual beings, must develop and improve freely. And freedom presupposes the possibility of choosing between good and evil. This is how imperfections, deviations and falls appear in the world process.

Therefore, the implementation of the Divine Economy requires the efforts of intelligent beings, in particular man, as a complex being standing at the border of the spiritual and psychophysical world. “The Kingdom of Heaven,” says Jesus Christ, “is taken by force, and those who use force take it away” (). From here it is obvious that our every deviation from the divine destiny slows down the development of the world and, on the contrary, our efforts to follow the Heavenly Will are “necessary” for history leading to the Kingdom of God. By serving this Kingdom, creating it, we serve God, for we are implementing His Eternal Plan. Every fight against evil, every service to good and the cause of enlightenment of humanity is worship. In it we realize our love for Divine Eternity, our thirst for heavenly perfection.

Why do Christians need external forms of worship, why do they need a cult? Isn’t it enough to carry God in your heart and strive for Him with all your deeds and your whole life? – This would really be enough if modern man were at a higher stage of development. We know that the great ascetics of Christianity who lived in the deserts often did not attend church services for decades. But who has the courage to compare modern man with them in terms of the level of spiritual perfection? Those who oppose external forms of worship of God forget that man is not only a spiritual being, that he tends to clothe all his feelings, experiences and thoughts in certain external forms. Our whole life in its most diverse manifestations is clothed in rituals. The word “rite” comes from “to rite”, “to clothe”. Joy and sorrow, everyday greetings, approval, admiration, and indignation - all this takes external forms in human life. And even though in those moments when human feelings become especially acute, this form becomes, as it were, superfluous in ordinary life, it still invariably accompanies a person. Moreover, we cannot deprive our feelings towards God of this form. The words of prayers, hymns of thanksgiving and repentance, which poured out from the depths of the hearts of the great seers of God, great spiritual poets and hymns, elevate our soul, directing it to the Heavenly Father. Deepening into them, co-dissolving in their spiritual impulse is a school of the soul of an Orthodox Christian, educating him for true service to the Lord. B. leads to enlightenment, elevation of a person, it enlightens and ennobles his soul. Therefore, the Orthodox Church, serving God in spirit and truth, carefully preserves rituals and cult.

In Christian worship, of course, it is necessary to distinguish form from content. Its essence lies in the self-disclosure of a person before the Heavenly Father, who, although he knows the need of every soul, awaits filial trust, love and readiness to serve. The thirst for God, which has tormented humanity since ancient times, has never remained in vain. But she achieved true satisfaction only when the Incomprehensible One was revealed in the face of the God-Man Jesus Christ. Incarnate, Crucified and Resurrected, He was not only the Light of the world during His earthly life. He continues to shine for all who seek His light. He accepts a person through Baptism, sanctifies his soul and body, his entire life in the Sacrament of Confirmation, blesses conjugal love and the continuation of the human race in the Sacrament of Marriage, leads His Church through those chosen by Him, through the Sacrament of the Priesthood, cleanses and heals the soul of His faithful children in the Sacraments Repentance and Blessing of Unction and, finally, leads into ineffable Divine communion through the Eucharist. In prayers and the Sacraments is the essence of B. Its form was constantly changing: one thing disappeared, and in accordance with the needs of a particular time, another appeared, but the main thing always remained unchanged.

Christian worship in a broad sense is called Liturgy, that is, “common work,” common, congregational prayer. Christ taught about the superiority of turning to God in silence, but at the same time He said: “Where two or three are gathered in My Name, there I am in the midst of them” (). The spirit of unity, the spirit of empathy is the spirit of true churchliness. The evil of the world is division and enmity. The stone of the Church is faith, which cannot exist without love. When many people are inspired by common prayer, a mysterious spiritual atmosphere is created around them, which captures and softens the hardest hearts.

Human life is poisoned by vanity and constant worries. It is no coincidence that Christ pointed out this as the main obstacle to achieving the Kingdom of God. That is why the temple, in which a person can at least briefly detach himself from everyday life, from the hustle and bustle of life, is the place where our spiritual growth takes place, our meeting with the Father. We are talking specifically about a temple, since, for example, a Baptist meeting house is not a temple, but only a room for a community meeting. Here almost everything is addressed to human reason; Here, mainly, the service of the “word”, the sermon, is carried out. And it is not surprising that the most serious and profound people among the Protestant sectarians, after a difficult struggle, introduced music and other elements of external ritual into their meetings.

The priest called the service a “synthesis of arts.” And, indeed, not just one side of the human personality should be ennobled and sanctified in the temple, but his entire being, all his five senses should be included in communion with God. Therefore, everything in the temple is important and significant: the grandeur of the architecture, and the aroma of incense, which covers the sense of smell of all those praying and ascends to the Throne of God, and the beauty of the icons, and the singing of the choir, and the sermon, and the sacred rites that make up the temple mystery, in which the entire created cosmos is involved. . Everything here serves to reveal the proclaimed Truth, everything testifies to It, everything encourages a person to rise above the everyday world of vanity and languor of the spirit.

The divine services of the Orthodox Church are performed according to the Charter (Typikon). This means according to certain rules, according to some order or order established once and for all. Our Church does not know non-statutory divine services; Moreover, the concept of the Rule applies equally to liturgical life as a whole, and to each of its individual cycles, and, finally, to every service. Even with a superficial acquaintance with the Charter, it is not difficult to be convinced that it is based on a combination of two main elements: the Eucharist (with which all other Sacraments are in one way or another connected) and that divine service, which is associated, first of all, with three circles of time: daily, weekly, annual, which in turn breaks down into Easter and fixed; these liturgical cycles are otherwise called the liturgical services of time.

Both of these elements constitute two integral and obligatory parts of the modern Charter. The centrality of the Eucharist in the liturgical life of the Church is self-evident. The weekly and annual cycles are also beyond doubt. And finally, with regard to the daily cycle, which has practically fallen out of use in parish life, neglecting it obviously does not correspond to the letter and spirit of the Charter, according to which it is the irrevocable and obligatory framework of the entire liturgical life of the Church. According to the Rule, there are days when the Liturgy is not supposed to be served, or when one “memory” or “holiday” replaces others, but there is no day when Vespers and Matins are not supposed to be served. And all holidays and memories are always combined with constant, unchangeable liturgical texts of the daily cycle. But it is equally obvious that the Eucharist and the worship of time are different from each other, being two elements of liturgical tradition.

The time of worship is distributed by hours, days, weeks and months. It is based on a daily circle, consisting of the following services: Vespers, Compline, Midnight Office, Matins, 1st hour, 3rd hour, 6th hour, 9th hour (with the so-called inter-hours). The charter of these services is set out in the Typikon: Ch. 1 (rite of Little Vespers); Ch. 2 (Great Vespers combined with Matins, that is, the so-called all-night vigil); Ch. 7 (Great Vespers, Midnight Office and Sunday Matins); Ch. 9 (everyday Vespers and Matins) and in the Book of Hours. The constant, that is, repeated every day, prayers of these services are found in the Followed Psalter or in its abbreviation - the Book of Hours. These texts are taken almost exclusively from Holy Scripture; these are psalms, biblical songs and individual verses from the Old and New Testament books (for example, prokeimnas, etc.). It should also be noted that, according to the Rules, the church day begins in the evening, and the first service of the daily cycle is Vespers.

The daily circle, replenishing it, is followed by the seven-day circle. It does not have its own separate services, but its liturgical texts are inserted at certain places in the daily services depending on the day of the week. These are troparia, kontakia, stichera and canons of the day of the week, which are read (or sung) at Vespers of this day, that is, according to the civil reckoning of the day, the evening before. These troparia and kontakia are read at the end of evening prayers only on weekdays, that is, not on Sunday, when Sunday troparia in the appropriate voice are supposed to be sung, and not on holidays, which have their own special troparia and kontakia. Monday is dedicated to the Incorporeal Heavenly Powers, Tuesday to the Baptist and Forerunner John, Wednesday and Friday to the Holy Life-Giving Cross of the Lord, Thursday to the holy apostles and St. Nicholas of Myra, Saturday to all saints and the memory of deceased members of the Church. All these chants are divided into eight main melodies, or voices, and are printed in the book of Octoechos. Each week has its own voice, and thus the entire Octoechos is divided into eight parts - according to voices, and each voice - into seven days. The weekly service is a cycle of eight weeks, repeated throughout the year, starting with the first Sunday after Pentecost.

Finally, the third circle of worship is the annual circle, the most complex in its structure. It includes:

B. Months of the Word, that is, motionless ones associated with a certain date of holidays, fasts, and commemorations of saints. The corresponding liturgical texts are found in the twelve books of Menaion of Menstruation and are distributed by date, starting from September 1.
The Lenten cycle embraces three preparatory weeks for fasting, six weeks of fasting and Holy Week. His liturgical materials are found in the book of the Lenten Triodion.
B. the Easter cycle, consisting of the services of Easter, Easter Week and the entire period between Easter and Pentecost. The liturgical book of this cycle is the Colored Triodion (or Penticostarion).

The divine service of the annual circle includes both biblical and hymnographic material, and this material also does not have independent services, but is included in the structure of the daily circle. Divine services are also divided into public and private, which, generally speaking, contradicts the understanding of any divine service in the Ancient Church as a conciliar act in which the entire community of the faithful participates. In modern times, such meaning is acquired only by the Liturgy and worship of the time. The sacraments (with the exception of the Eucharist), prayer chants, and funeral services are classified as private services, or the services of the Trebnik.

The Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Prince Vladimir heard the following description of Orthodox worship from the lips of his ambassadors: “When we stood in the temple, we forgot where we were, for nowhere else on earth is there such a place - truly God lives there among people; and we will never forget the beauty we saw there. No one who has tasted sweetness will want to taste bitterness anymore; and we can no longer remain in paganism.”

Church services or, in popular words, church services are the main events for which churches are intended. According to Orthodox tradition, daytime, morning and evening rituals are performed there daily. And each of these services consists of 3 types of services, which are collectively combined into a daily circle:

vespers - from Vespers, Compline and the ninth hour;
morning - from Matins, the first hour and midnight;
daytime - from the Divine Liturgy and the third and sixth hours.

Thus, the daily circle includes nine services.

Service Features

In Orthodox services, much is borrowed from Old Testament times. For example, the beginning of a new day is considered to be not midnight, but 6 pm, which is the reason for holding vespers - the first service of the daily cycle. It recalls the main events of the Sacred History of the Old Testament; we are talking about the creation of the world, the fall of our first parents, the ministry of the prophets and the Mosaic legislation, and Christians give thanks to the Lord for a new day lived.

After this, according to the Church Charter, it is necessary to serve Compline - public prayers for the coming sleep, which speak of the descent of Christ into hell and the liberation of the righteous from it.

At midnight, the 3rd service is supposed to be performed - the midnight service. This service is held with the purpose of reminding of the Last Judgment and the Second Coming of the Savior.

The morning service in the Orthodox Church (Matins) is one of the longest services. It is dedicated to the events and circumstances of the Savior’s earthly life and consists of many prayers of repentance and gratitude.

The first hour is performed around 7 o'clock in the morning. This is a short service about Jesus' presence at the trial of the high priest Caiaphas.

The third hour takes place at 9 am. At this time, the events that took place in the Upper Room of Zion are remembered, when the Holy Spirit descended on the apostles, and in Pilate’s praetorium the Savior received a death sentence.

The sixth hour is held at noon. This service is about the time of the Lord's crucifixion. The ninth hour should not be confused with it - the service of His death on the cross, which takes place at three o'clock in the afternoon.

The main divine service and the peculiar center of this daily circle is considered to be the Divine Liturgy or mass, the distinctive feature of which from other services is the opportunity, in addition to memories of God and the earthly life of our Savior, to unite with Him in reality, participating in the sacrament of Communion. The time of this liturgy is from 6 to 9 o’clock until noon before lunch, which is why it was given its second name.

Changes in the conduct of services

Modern practice of worship has brought some changes to the instructions of the Charter. And today Compline is held only during Lent, and Midnight - once a year, on the eve of Easter. Even less frequently, the ninth hour passes, and the remaining 6 services of the daily circle are combined into 2 groups of 3 services.

The evening service in the church takes place in a special sequence: Christians serve Vespers, Matins and the first hour. Before holidays and Sundays, these services are combined into one, which is called the all-night vigil, that is, it involves long night prayers until dawn, carried out in ancient times. This service lasts 2-4 hours in parishes and from 3 to 6 hours in monasteries.

Morning worship in the church differs from past times with successive services of the third, sixth hours and mass.

It is also important to note the holding of early and late liturgies in churches where there is a larger congregation of Christians. Such services are usually performed on holidays and on Sundays. Both liturgies are preceded by the reading of the hours.

There are days when there is no morning church service or liturgy. For example, on Friday of Holy Week. In the morning of this day, a short sequence of visual arts is performed. This service consists of several chants and seems to depict the liturgy; However, this service has not received the status of independent service.

Divine services also include various sacraments, rituals, reading akathists in churches, community readings of evening and morning prayers and rules for Holy Communion.

In addition, services are held in churches according to the needs of parishioners - demands. For example: Wedding, Baptism, funeral services, prayer services and others.

In each church, cathedral or temple, service hours are set differently, therefore, to obtain information about the conduct of any service, clergymen recommend finding out the schedule compiled by a specific religious institution.

And to those who doesn't know him, you can adhere to the following time periods:

from 6 to 8 and from 9 to 11 am - early and late morning services;
from 16 to 18 hours - evening and all-night services;
During the day there is a festive service, but it is better to check the time of its holding.

All services are usually performed in a church and only by clergy, and believing parishioners participate in them by singing and praying.

Christian holidays

Christian holidays are divided into two types: transferable and non-transitionable; They are also called the twelve holidays. To avoid missing services regarding them, it is important to know the dates.

Not transferable

Rolling, for 2018

April 1 - Palm Sunday.
April 8 - Easter.
May 17 - Ascension of the Lord.
May 27 - Pentecost or Holy Trinity.

The duration of church services on holidays differs from each other. This mainly depends on the holiday itself, the performance of the service, the duration of the sermon and the number of communicants and confessors.

If for some reason you are late or do not come to the service, no one will judge you, because it is not so important what time it will start and how long it will last, it is much more important that your arrival and participation are sincere.

Preparation for Sunday ritual

If you decide to come to church on Sunday, you should prepare for it. The morning service on Sunday is the strongest, it is held for the purpose of communion. It happens like this: the priest gives you the body of Christ and his blood in a piece of bread and a sip of wine. Prepare for this The event needs at least 2 days in advance.

You should fast on Friday and Saturday: remove fatty foods and alcohol from your diet, exclude marital intimacy, do not swear, do not offend anyone and do not be offended yourself.
The day before communion, read 3 canons, namely: the repentant prayer to Jesus Christ, the prayer service to the Most Holy Theotokos and the Guardian Angel, as well as the 35th Follow-up to Holy Communion. This will take about an hour.
Read a prayer for the coming sleep.
Do not eat, do not smoke, do not drink after midnight.

How to behave during communion

In order not to miss the start of the church service on Sunday, you need to come to the church early, around 7.30. Until this time, you should not eat or smoke. There is a specific procedure for visiting.

After communion, under no circumstances rush to get what you want. e, that is, get high and so on, don’t desecrate the sacrament. It is recommended to know moderation in everything and read grace-filled prayers for several days so as not to desecrate this service.

The need to visit the temple

Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, who came to earth for our sake, founded the Church, where everything necessary for eternal life is present to this day and invisibly. Where “the invisible Heavenly Powers serve for us,” they say in Orthodox chants, “Where two or three are gathered in My name, there I am among them,” is written in the Gospel (chapter 18, verse 20, Gospel of Matthew), - this is what the Lord said to the apostles and everyone who believes in Him, therefore invisible presence of Christ During services in the temple, people lose if they do not come there.

An even greater sin is committed by parents who do not care about their children serving the Lord. Let us remember the words of our Savior from Scripture: “Let your children go and do not hinder them from coming to Me, for for them is the Kingdom of Heaven.” The Lord also tells us: “Man shall not live by bread, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God” (chapter 4, verse 4 and chapter 19, verse 14, the same Gospel of Matthew).

Spiritual food is also necessary for the human soul, just like bodily food to maintain strength. And where will a person hear God’s word if not in the temple? After all, there, among those who believe in him, the Lord himself dwells. After all, it is there that the teachings of the apostles and prophets are preached, who spoke and predicted by inspiration of the Holy Spirit, there is the teaching of Christ Himself, who is the true Life, Wisdom, Way and Light, which enlightens every parishioner coming into the world. The temple is heaven on our earth.

The services that take place there, according to the Lord, are the works of angels. By undergoing teaching in a church, temple or cathedral, Christians receive God's blessing, which contributes to success in good deeds and endeavors.

“You will hear the church bell ringing, calling for prayer, and your conscience will tell you that you need to go to the house of the Lord. Go and, if you can, put all your affairs aside and hurry to God’s Church,” advises Theophan the Recluse, a saint of Orthodoxy, “Know that your Guardian Angel is calling you under the roof of the House of the Lord; it is he, your celestial being, who reminds you of earthly Heaven so that you can sanctify your soul there by your grace of Christ and delight your heart with heavenly consolation; and - who knows what will happen? “Perhaps he is also calling you there in order to ward off temptation from you, which cannot be avoided in any way, because if you stay at home, there will be no shelter for you under the canopy of the Lord’s house from the great danger...”

A Christian in church learns the Heavenly wisdom that the Son of God brings to earth. He learns the details of the life of his Savior, and becomes acquainted with the teachings and lives of the saints of God, and takes part in church prayer. And congregational prayer is great power! And there are examples of this in history. When the apostles were awaiting the coming of the Holy Spirit, they were in unanimous prayer. Therefore, in the church, in the depths of our souls, we expect that the Holy Spirit will come to us. This happens, but only if we do not create obstacles for this. For example, insufficient openness of heart can prevent parishioners from uniting believers when reading prayers.

In our time, unfortunately, this happens quite often, since believers behave incorrectly, including in church, and the reason for this is ignorance of the truth of the Lord. The Lord knows our thoughts and feelings. He will not leave those who sincerely believe in him, as well as a person in need of communion and repentance, so the doors of God’s house are always open to parishioners.

Orthodox worship- this is a set of rites performed primarily in church and under the leadership and primacy of a priest (bishop or priest).

Worship is divided into two main types: general and private.

General services are performed regularly, in accordance with the requirements of the Charter, while private services are intended to satisfy the urgent needs of believers and are performed when necessary.

Some worship services(for example, services, prayers, etc.) can be performed outside the church, as well as (in rare cases) by the laity without a priest. Temple worship is mainly determined by the liturgical circles: daily, weekly (sedemic), eight-week osmoshnaya, annual fixed, annual moving circles. Outside these circles there are services, prayer services, etc.

Initially Divine services were performed freely in open places. There were no holy temples or sacred persons. People prayed with such words (prayers) as their own feelings and mood told them. By the command of God, during the time of the prophet Moses, a tabernacle was built (the first Old Testament temple to the One, True God), sacred persons were elected (high priest, priests and Levites), sacrifices were determined for various occasions and holidays were established (Easter, Pentecost, New Year, Day of Atonement and others.).

The Lord Jesus Christ, who came to earth, taught to worship the heavenly Father in every place, nevertheless often visited the Old Testament temple in Jerusalem, as a place of special, gracious, presence of God, took care of the order in the temple and preached in it. His holy apostles did the same until the open persecution of Christians by the Jews began. In the time of the apostles, as can be seen from the book of the Acts of the Apostles, there were special places for meetings of believers and for the celebration of the Sacrament of Communion, called churches, where worship was performed by bishops, presbyters (priests) and deacons appointed through Ordination (in the sacrament of the priesthood).

The final arrangement of the Christian Divine services was accomplished by the successors of the apostles, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit and according to the commandment given to them by the apostles: “everything must be decent and orderly”(1 Cor. 14:40). This established order Divine services strictly preserved in our holy Orthodox Church of Christ. Orthodox Church Divine service is called service or service to God, consisting of reading and singing prayers, reading the Word of God and sacred rites (rites), performed according to a certain order, that is, order, led by a clergyman (bishop or priest).

From home prayer to church Divine service differs in that it is performed by clergy, legally appointed for this purpose through the sacrament of the priesthood by the Holy Orthodox Church, and is performed primarily in the temple. Church Orthodox-public Divine service has the goal, for the edification of believers, in reading and hymns, to set forth the true teaching of Christ and to dispose them to prayer and repentance, and in persons and actions to depict the most important events from sacred history that took place for our salvation, both before the Nativity of Christ and after the Nativity of Christ. In this case, it is meant to arouse in those praying gratitude to God for all the blessings received, to strengthen the prayer for further mercies from Him to us, and to receive peace of mind for our souls. And most importantly, through Divine service Orthodox Christians enter into mysterious communion with God through the celebration of the sacraments Divine service, and especially the sacraments of Holy Communion, and receive from God grace-filled strength for a righteous life.

A church service is the combination, according to a special plan, into one composition of prayers, sections from the Holy Scriptures, chants and sacred actions to clarify a specific idea or thought. Thanks to the fact that in every Orthodox service Divine services a certain thought is consistently developed, each church service represents a harmonious, complete, artistic sacred work, designed to, through verbal, song (vocal) and contemplative impressions, create a pious mood in the souls of those praying, strengthen a living faith in God and prepare an Orthodox Christian to the perception of Divine grace. Finding the guiding thought (idea) of each service and establishing a connection with its component parts is one of the points of study Divine services.

The order in which this or that service is presented is called in liturgical books the “order” or “addition” of the service. Every day is a day of the week and at the same time a day of the year, so for every day there are three kinds of memories:

1) memories of “daytime” or hourly memories, connected to a known hour of the day;

2) “weekly” or weekly memories, connected to individual days of the week;

3) “annual” or numerical memories, connected to certain numbers of the year.

Thanks to the threefold kind of sacred memories that occur every day, all church services are divided into three circles: daily, weekly and annual, and the main “circle” is the “everyday circle”, and the other two are additional.

Daily cycle of worship

Daily circle Divine services are called those Divine services which are performed by the Holy Orthodox Church throughout the day. The names of the daily services indicate at what hour of the day each of them should be performed. For example, Vespers indicates the evening hour, Compline - the hour following the “supper” (that is, the evening meal), Midnight Office - at midnight, Matins - at the morning hour, Mass - at lunch, that is, midday, the first hour - at ours means the 7th hour of the morning, the third hour is our 9th hour of the morning, the sixth hour is our 12th hour, the ninth is our third hour of the afternoon.

The custom of prayerful consecration of these particular hours in the Christian Church is of very ancient origin and was established under the influence of the Old Testament rule of praying in the temple three times during the day to make sacrifices - morning, afternoon and evening, as well as the words of the Psalmist about glorifying God “in the evening, morning and noon " The discrepancy in the count (the difference is about 6 hours) is explained by the fact that the eastern count is adopted, and in the East, sunrise and sunset differ by 6 hours compared to our countries. Therefore, the 1st o'clock in the morning of the East corresponds to our 7 o'clock and so on.

Vespers, performed at the end of the day in the evening, is therefore placed first among the daily services, because according to the image of the Church, the day begins in the evening, since the first day of the world and the beginning of human existence was preceded by darkness, evening, twilight. With this service we thank God for the passing day.

Compline- a service consisting of reading a series of prayers in which we ask the Lord God for forgiveness of sins and that He would give us, as we go to sleep, peace of body and soul and save us from the wiles of the devil during sleep. Sleep also reminds us of death. Therefore, in the Orthodox service at Compline, those praying are reminded of their awakening from eternal sleep, that is, of the resurrection.

Midnight Office- the service is intended to be performed at midnight, in remembrance of the Savior’s night prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane. The “midnight” hour is also memorable because “at the midnight hour” in the parable of the ten virgins the Lord timed His second coming.This service calls on believers to always be prepared for the Day of Judgment.

Matins- a service performed in the morning, before sunrise. The morning hour, bringing with it light, vigor and life, always arouses a feeling of gratitude towards God, the Giver of life. With this service we thank God for the past night and ask Him for mercy for the coming day. In the Orthodox morning service, the coming of the Savior into the world is glorified, bringing with Him new life to people.

First hour, corresponding to our seventh hour of the morning, sanctifies the day that has already come with prayer. At the first hour, we remember the trial of Jesus Christ by the high priests, which actually took place around this time.

At three o'clock e, corresponding to our ninth hour in the morning, we remember the descent of the Holy Spirit on the apostles, which took place at approximately the same time.

At the sixth hour, corresponding to our twelfth hour of the day, we remember the crucifixion of our Lord Jesus Christ, which happened from the 12th to the 2nd hour of the day.

At the ninth hour, corresponding to our third pm, we remember the death on the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, which occurred around 3 pm.

Mass or Divine Liturgy there is the most important worship service. It commemorates the entire earthly life of the Savior and celebrates the Sacrament of Communion, established by the Savior Himself at the Last Supper. Liturgy is served in the morning, before lunch.

Evening 1. Ninth hour (3 pm). 2. Vespers. 3. Compline.

Morning 1. Midnight Office (12 o'clock at night). 2. Matins. 3. First hour (7 a.m.).

Day 1. Third hour (9 a.m.). 2. Sixth hour (12 noon). 3. Liturgy.

On the eve of major holidays and Sundays, an evening service is performed, which combines: Vespers, Matins and the first hour. This Divine service called the all-night vigil (all-night vigil), because among the ancient Christians it lasted all night. The word "vigil" means: being awake.

Weekly circle of worship th

Wanting to make my children as pure, pious and focused as possible. The Holy Church gradually attached prayerful remembrance not only to every hour of the day, but also to every day of the week. Thus, from the very beginning of the existence of the Church of Christ, the “first day of the week” was dedicated to the memory of the resurrection of Jesus Christ and became a solemn joyful day, i.e. holiday.

IN Monday(the first day after Sunday) ethereal forces are glorified - Angels, created before man, the closest servants of God;

In Tuesday- Saint John the Baptist is glorified as the greatest of all prophets and righteous;

IN Wednesday the betrayal of the Lord by Judas is remembered and, in connection with this, a service is performed in memory of the Cross of the Lord (fast day).

IN Thursday glorified St. Apostles and St. Nicholas the Wonderworker.

IN Friday the sufferings on the cross and the death of the Savior are remembered and a service is performed in honor of the cross of the Lord (fast day).

IN Saturday- a day of rest, - the Mother of God, who is blessed every day, is glorified, the forefathers, prophets, apostles, martyrs, saints, the righteous and all the saints who have achieved rest in the Lord. All those who have died in true faith and hope for resurrection and eternal life are also remembered.

Annual circle of services

As the faith of Christ spread, the number of Holy Persons increased: martyrs and saints. The greatness of their exploits provided an inexhaustible source for pious Christian songwriters and artists to compose various prayers and hymns, as well as artistic images, in memory of them. The Holy Church included these emerging spiritual works as part of church services, timing the reading and singing of the latter to coincide with the days of remembrance of the saints designated in them. The range of these prayers and chants is extensive and varied; it unfolds for the whole year, and every day there is not one, but several glorified saints.

A manifestation of God's mercy to a well-known people, locality or city, for example, deliverance from a flood, an earthquake, from an attack by enemies, etc. gave an indelible reason to prayerfully commemorate these incidents.

Thus, every day of the year is dedicated to the memory of certain saints, important events, as well as special sacred events - holidays and fasts.

Of all the holidays in the year, the largest is the holiday of the Holy Resurrection of Christ (Easter). This is a holiday, a holiday and a triumph of celebrations. Easter occurs no earlier than March 22 (April 4, New Art.) and no later than April 25 (May 8, New Art.), on the first Sunday after the spring full moon. Then there are twelve great holidays in the year established in honor of our Lord Jesus Christ and the Mother of God, which are called the twelve. There are holidays both in honor of great saints and in honor of the ethereal Heavenly Forces - angels.

Therefore, all the holidays of the year, according to their content, are divided into: the Lord's, the Mother of God and the saints. According to the time of celebration, holidays are divided into fixed ones, which occur every year on the same dates of the month, and moving ones, which, although they occur on the same days of the week, fall on different dates of the month in accordance with the time of Easter celebration.

According to the solemnity of the church service, holidays are divided into great, medium and small. Great holidays always have an all-night vigil; Average holidays are not always the case.

The liturgical church year begins on the 1st, September of the old style, and the entire annual cycle Divine services is being built for the Easter holiday.

Composition of the church service

In order to understand the order and meaning of church services, it is more convenient to first understand the meaning of the prayers. The alternating prayer books of the daily, weekly and annual circles are called “changing” prayer books. The prayers found at each service are called “unchanging.” Each church service consists of a combination of unchanging and changing prayers.

Unchanging Prayers which are read and sung at every service are as follows:

1) Beginners prayers, that is, prayers with which all services begin and which are therefore called in liturgical practice "Regular start";

2) Litany

3) Exclamations

4) Vacations or vacations.

Normal start

Each service begins with the priest's call to glorify and give praise to God.

There are three such inviting invitations or exclamations:

1. “Blessed be our God always, now and ever, and unto ages of ages.”(before the start of most services);

2. “Glory to the Holy, and Consubstantial, and Life-Giving, and Indivisible Trinity always, now and ever, and unto ages of ages”, (before the start of the all-night vigil);

3. “Blessed is the Kingdom of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages.”(before the start of the liturgy).

After the exclamation, the reader, on behalf of all those present, expresses in words "Amen"(truly) consent to this praise and immediately begins to glorify God: “Glory to Thee, our God, glory to Thee”.

Then, to prepare ourselves for worthy prayer, we, following the reader, turn with prayer to the Holy Spirit ( "King of Heaven"), Who alone can give us the gift of true prayer, so that He may dwell in us, cleanse us from all filth and save us. (Rom. VIII, 26).

With a prayer for cleansing we turn to all three Persons of the Holy Trinity, reading:

A) "Holy God";

B) "Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit";

IN) "Most Holy Trinity, have mercy on us";

G) "Lord have mercy";

D) "Glory... even now".

Finally, we read the Lord’s Prayer, i.e. "Our Father". In conclusion, we read three times: “Come, let us worship and fall before Christ” and move on to reading other prayers that are part of the service.

The normal starting order is:

1. The exclamation of the priest.

2. Reading "Glory to Thee, our God".

3. "King of Heaven".

4. "Holy God"(three times).

5. "Glory to the Father and the Son"(small doxology).

6. "Holy Trinity".

7. "Lord have mercy"(Three times)

"Glory even now".

8. "Our Father";

9. "Come, let's worship".

Litany

During Divine services we often hear a series of prayer requests, pronounced protractedly, slowly, proclaimed by a deacon or priest on behalf of all those praying. After each petition the choir sings: "Lord have mercy!" or "Give it, Lord". These are the so-called litanies, from the Greek adverb ektenos - “diligently.”

Litanys are divided into several types:

1) Great Litany

2) Special Litany

3) Petitionary Litany

4 ) Small Litany

5) Litany for the dead or Funeral.

Great Litany

The Great Litany consists of 10 petitions or sections:

1. “Let us pray to the Lord in peace” .  

This means: let us call upon our prayer meeting the peace of God, or the blessing of God, and under the shadow of the face of God, addressed to us with peace and love, we will begin to pray for our needs. In the same way, let us pray in peace, having forgiven mutual offenses (Matthew V, 23-24).

2. “Let us pray to the Lord for peace from above and the salvation of our souls”.  

“Peace from above” is the peace of earth with heaven, the reconciliation of man with God, or receiving forgiveness of sins from God through our Lord Jesus Christ. The fruit of forgiveness of sins or reconciliation with God is the salvation of our souls, which we also pray for in the second petition of the Great Litany.

3. “For the peace of the whole world, the welfare of God’s holy churches and the unity of all, let us pray to the Lord”.  

In the third petition we pray not only for a harmonious and friendly life between people on earth, not only for peace in the entire universe, but also for a wider and deeper peace, this is: peace and harmony (harmony) in the whole world, in the fullness of all God's creations (heaven and earth, seas and “everything in them,” angels and people, living and dead). Second subject of the petition; welfare, i.e. peace and well-being of God's holy churches or individual Orthodox societies. The fruit and consequence of the prosperity and well-being of Orthodox societies on earth will be extensive moral unity: agreement, unanimous proclamation of the glory of God from all the elements of the world, from all animate beings, there will be such a penetration of “everything” with the highest religious content, when God is “perfectly in everything”

(1 Cor. XV, 28).

4. “For this holy temple, and for those who enter it with faith, reverence and fear of God, let us pray to the Lord.”

Reverence and fear of God are expressed in a prayerful mood, in putting aside worldly cares, in cleansing the heart from enmity and envy. On the outer side, reverence is expressed in bodily cleanliness, in decent clothing and in abstaining from talking and looking around. To pray for the Holy Temple means to ask God so that He never departs from the temple with His grace; but he preserved it from desecration by enemies of the faith, from fires, earthquakes, and robbers, so that the temple did not lack funds to maintain it in a flourishing state. The temple is called holy by the holiness of the sacred actions performed in it and by the gracious presence of God in it, from the time of consecration. But the grace that abides in the temple is not available to everyone, but only to those who enter it with faith, reverence and fear of God.

5. “For this city, (or for this whole) every city, country, and those who live in them by faith, let us pray to the Lord.” .  

We pray not only for our city, but for every other city and country, and for their inhabitants (because according to Christian brotherly love, we must pray not only for ourselves, but also for all people).

6. “For the goodness of the air, for the abundance of earthly fruits and times of peace, let us pray to the Lord.”

In this petition, we ask the Lord to give us our daily bread, that is, everything necessary for our earthly life. We ask for favorable weather for the growth of grain, as well as peacetime.

7. “For those who are sailing, traveling, the sick, the suffering, the captives, and for their salvation, let us pray to the Lord.”  

In this petition, the Holy Church invites us to pray not only for those present, but also for those absent: those on the road (swimming, traveling), the sick, the ailing (that is, the sick and weak in body in general) and the suffering (that is, chained to the bed of a dangerous illness) and about those in captivity.

8. “Let us pray to the Lord that we may be delivered from all sorrow, anger and need.”  

In this petition we ask the Lord to deliver us from all sorrow, anger and need, that is, from grief, disaster and unbearable oppression.

9. “Intercede, save, have mercy, and preserve us, O God, with Your grace.”  

In this petition, we pray to the Lord to protect us, preserve us and have mercy through His mercy and grace.

10. “Let us commemorate ourselves, and each other, and our whole life to Christ our God.”.  

We constantly call upon the Mother of God in litanies because She serves as our Intercessor and Intercessor before the Lord. After turning to the Mother of God for help, the Holy Church advises us to entrust ourselves, each other and our whole life to the Lord. The Great Litany is otherwise called “peaceful” (because in it peace is often asked for people). In ancient times, litanies were continuous prayers in form and common prayers of all those present in the church, evidence of which is, by the way, the words “Lord have mercy” following the deacon’s exclamations.

The Great Litany

The second litany is called "pure", that is, strengthened, because for every petition pronounced by the deacon, the singers respond with triple "Lord have mercy".

Extraordinary The litany consists of the following petitions:

1. “We rejoice with all our hearts, and with all our thoughts we rejoice.   Let us say to the Lord with all our souls and with all our thoughts:..."

2. (further we explain what exactly we will say).

3“Lord Almighty, God of our father, we pray to You, hear and have mercy.  

4.Lord Almighty, God of our fathers, we pray to You, hear and have mercy.”

5. “Have mercy on us, O God, according to Your great mercy, we pray to You, hear and have mercy.  

6Have mercy on us, O Lord, according to Your great goodness. We pray to You, hear and have mercy.”

“We also pray for all the Christ-loving army.   We also pray for all the soldiers, as defenders of the Faith and the Fatherland.”

8. “We also pray for our brothers, priests, priests, and all our brotherhood in Christ.   We also pray for our brothers in service and in Christ.” . “We also pray for the blessed and ever-memorable saints of the Orthodox Patriarchs, and the pious kings, and the pious queens, and the creators of this holy temple, and for all the Orthodox fathers and brothers who have reposed before them, who lie here and everywhere.  (i.e., those who make decorations in the temple or donate to maintain the splendor of the temple, as well as those who do some work in the temple, for example, reading, singing, and about all the people who are in the temple in anticipation of great and rich mercy.

Litany of Petition

Petitionary The litany consists of a series of petitions ending with the words “we ask the Lord”, to which the singers respond with the words: "God grant".

The litany of petition is read as follows:

1.“Let us fulfill our (evening or morning) prayer to the Lord.  

2Let us complete (or supplement) our prayer to the Lord.”

3.. “Intercede, save, have mercy and preserve us, O God, by Your grace.  

4.Protect, save, have mercy and preserve us, O God, by Your grace.”

5.“Day (or evening) perfection of everything, holy, peaceful and sinless, we ask the Lord.  

6Let us ask the Lord to help us spend this day (or evening) expediently, holy, peacefully and sinlessly.”

7“We ask the Lord for a peaceful, faithful mentor, guardian of our souls and bodies.  

8.Let us ask the Lord for the Holy Angel, who is the faithful mentor and guardian of our soul and body.”

9.“We ask the Lord for forgiveness and forgiveness of our sins and transgressions.  

Let us ask the Lord for forgiveness and forgiveness of our sins (heavy) and sins (light).

1Let us ask the Lord that we may live the remaining time of our lives in peace and a calm conscience.”

3.“The Christian death of our belly, painless, shameless, peaceful, and a good answer at the terrible judgment of Christ, we ask.  

Sometimes these petitions of great, special, small and petitionary litanies are joined by others, compiled for a special occasion, for example, on the occasion of burial or commemoration of the dead, on the occasion of the consecration of water, the beginning of teaching, the onset of the New Year.

These litanies with additional "changing petitions"are contained in a special book for prayer chants.

Funeral Litany

Great:

1.“Let us pray to the Lord in peace.”

2. “Let us pray to the Lord for peace from above and for the salvation of our souls.”

3. “For the remission of sins, in the blessed memory of those who have passed away, let us pray to the Lord.”

4.“For the ever-memorable servants of God (name of the rivers), peace, silence, blessed memory of them, let us pray to the Lord.”

5. “Let us pray to the Lord to forgive them every sin, voluntary or involuntary.”

6.“For those who are not condemned to appear before the terrible throne of the Lord of glory, let us pray to the Lord.”

“We also pray for all the Christ-loving army.   Let us pray to the Lord for those who cry and are sick, and who long for Christ’s consolation.”

8.“Let us pray to the Lord to free them from all illness and sorrow and sighing, and to let them dwell where the light of the face of God shines.”

9.“Oh, that the Lord our God will restore their souls to a place of light, to a place of greenness, to a place of peace, where all the righteous abide, let us pray to the Lord.”

10.“Let us pray to the Lord for their number in the bosom of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob.”

11.“Let us pray to the Lord that we may be delivered from all sorrow, anger and need.”

12.“Intercede, save, have mercy and preserve us, O God, by Your grace.”

13. “Having asked for the mercy of God, the kingdom of heaven, and the remission of sins for ourselves, we will hand over each other and our whole life to Christ our God.”

. “We ask the Lord for kindness and benefit to our souls and for peace. Let us ask the Lord for everything that is useful and good for our souls, for peace for all people and the whole world.” And Triple the funeral litany consists of three petitions in which thoughts are repeated Great Litany. Exclamations while the deacon on the solea pronounces litanies, the priest in the altar reads prayers to himself (secretly) (there are especially many secret prayers in the liturgy), and pronounces them loudly at the end. These ends of the prayers, spoken by the priest, are called "whoops." They usually express the reason why we, when praying to the Lord, can hope for the fulfillment of our prayers, and why we have the boldness to turn to the Lord with petitions and thanksgivings.

According to immediate impression, all exclamations of the priest are divided into initial, liturgical and litany.

In order to clearly distinguish between the two, you need to carefully understand the exclamations of the litanies. The most common exclamations are:

1. After the great litany: “ Yako(i.e. because) All glory, honor and worship is due to You, Father and Son and Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages.».

2. After the special litany: “For God is merciful and a lover of mankind, and to You we send up glory, to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages.”.

3. After the litany of petition: “As God is good and a lover of mankind, we ascribe glory to You, to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages.”

4. After the small litany: “For Thine is the dominion, and Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, of the Father and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, always, now and ever, and unto ages of ages.”

5. “For You are the God of mercy and generosity and love for mankind, and to You we send up glory, to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and to the ages of ages.”

6. “For blessed be Thy Name, and glorified Thy kingdom, of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto ages of ages.”

7. “For You are our God, and to You we send up glory, to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto ages of ages.”

8. “For You are the King of the world and the Savior of our souls, and to You we send up glory, to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and to the ages of ages.”

However, in addition to the above, there are several more exclamations that contain the same thoughts as the eight exclamations noted. For example, during the all-night vigil and prayer service the following exclamations are also uttered:

A) “Hear us, O God our Savior, the hope of all the ends of the earth and those who are in the sea far away: and be merciful, merciful, O Master, for our sins and have mercy on us. For You are merciful and lover of mankind, and we send up glory to You, Father and Son and Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages. Hear us, God our Savior, You, in Whom they hope in all the ends of the earth and in the distant sea, and being merciful, be merciful to our sins and have mercy on us, because You are a merciful God who loves mankind and we send up Glory to You...”

b) “By the mercy, and generosity, and love for mankind of Thy only begotten Son, with whom art thou blessed, with Thy most holy, and good, and life-giving spirit, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages. According to the mercy, generosity and love for mankind of Your Only Begotten Son, with whom You are blessed (God the Father) with Your Most Holy, Good and Life-giving Spirit.”

V) “For you are holy, our God, and you rest among the saints, and we send up glory to you, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages. Because You are Holy, our God, and you dwell in the saints (by Your grace) and we send up glory to You. Funeral exclamation: For You are the resurrection and the life and rest of your departed servants (name of the rivers), Christ our God, and to You we send up glory, with Your beginningless Father, and Your most holy and good and life-giving Spirit, now and ever and unto the ages of ages.”

Vacations

Each church service ends with special prayer chants, which together make up vacation or vacation.

Order release next.

The priest says: "Wisdom", i.e. we will be careful. Then, turning to the Mother of God, he says: .

The singers respond with the words: “The most honorable Cherub and the most glorious without comparison Seraphim”... Thanking the Lord further for the perfect service, the priest says out loud: “Glory to Thee, Christ God, Our Hope, Glory to Thee”, after which the singers sing: "Glory even now", “Lord have mercy” (three times), "Bless".

The priest, turning his face to the people, lists all the Saints through whose prayers we turned to God for help, namely:

1. Mother of God

2. Holy Week

3. Holy day

4. Holy Temple

5. Holy local region

6. Godfather of Joachim and Anna.

Then the priest says that through the prayers of these saints the Lord will have mercy and save us. Let go believers receive permission to leave the temple.

Changing Prayers

As already mentioned, in the Church selected passages from the Holy Scriptures and prayers written by pious Christian poets are read and sung. Both are included in church services to depict and glorify the sacred event of the three circles of worship: daily, weekly and annual. Readings and chants from holy books are named after the book from which they are taken. For example, psalms from the book of Psalms, prophecies from books written by prophets, the Gospel from the Gospel. The changing prayers that make up sacred Christian poetry are found in church liturgical books and bear different names.

The most important of them are the following:

1)Troparion- a song that briefly depicts the life of a Saint or the history of a holiday, for example, well-known troparia: “Your Nativity, O Christ our God”, “Thou art transfigured on the mountain, O Christ our God...”, “The rule of faith and the image of meekness.”

The origin and meaning of the name “troparion” are explained differently:

a) some derive this word from the Greek “tropos” - disposition, image, because the troparion depicts the lifestyle of a saint or contains a description of a holiday;

b) others from “trepeon” - a trophy or a sign of victory, which indicates that the troparion is a song proclaiming the victory of a saint or the triumph of a holiday;

c) others derive from the word “tropos” - trope, that is, the use of a word not in its own meaning, but in the meaning of another object due to the similarity between them; this kind of word use is indeed often found in troparia; saints, for example, are likened to the sun, moon, stars, etc.;

d) finally, the word troparion is also derived from “tropome” - they changed, since the troparia are sung alternately in one or the other choir, and “trepo” - I turn it, since “they turn to other prayers and relate to them.”

2) Kontakion(from the word “kontos” - short) - a short song depicting some individual feature of the celebrated event or Saint. All kontakia differ from troparia not so much in content as in the time at which they are sung during the service. An example of a kontakion would be - "Virgo today...", “To the elected Voivode...”

Kontakion- derived from the Greek word “kontos” - small, short, which means a short prayer in which the life of a saint is briefly glorified or a memory of some event in brief main features. Others - the name kontakion is derived from the word that names the material on which they were previously written. Indeed, originally “kontakia” was the name given to bundles of parchments written on both sides.

3) Greatness- a song containing the glorification of a Saint or a holiday. The Greatness is sung during the all-night vigil before the holiday icon, first by the clergy in the middle of the temple, and then repeated several times in the choir by the singers.

4) Stichera(from the Greek “stichera” - multi-verse) - a chant consisting of many verses written in the same meter of versification, most of them preceded by verses of the Holy Scriptures. Each stichera contains the main idea, which is revealed in various ways in all stichera. For example, the glorification of the Resurrection of Christ, the Entry into the Temple of the Blessed Virgin Mary, St. Apostle. Peter and Paul, John the Evangelist, etc. There are many stichera, but they all have different names, depending on the time of their performance during the service.

If the stichera is sung after the prayer "Lord I cried", then it is called “I cried out in verse to the Lord”; if the stichera is sung after verses that glorify the Lord (for example, “Let every breath praise the Lord”), then the stichera is called stichera "on praise". There are also stichera "on the poem", and the stichera of the Theotokos are stichera in honor of the Mother of God. The number of stichera of each category and the verses preceding them varies - depending on the solemnity of the holiday - then 10, 8, 6 and 4. Therefore, the liturgical books say - “stichera for 10, for 8, for 6”, etc. These numbers indicate the number of verses of the psalm that should be sung with stichera. Moreover, the stichera themselves, if they are missing, can be repeated several times.

5) Dogmatist. Dogmatists are special stichera that contain the teaching (dogma) about the incarnation of Jesus Christ from the Mother of God. And prayers that primarily speak about the Most Holy Theotokos are called by the general name “Theotokos.”

6) Akathist- “nesedalen”, a prayer service, especially singing of praise in honor of the Lord, the Mother of God or the Saint.

7) Antiphons- (alternate singing, countervoice) prayers that are supposed to be sung alternately on two choirs.

8) Prokeimenon- (lying in front) - there is a verse that precedes the reading of the Apostle, Gospel and proverbs. The prokeimenon serves as a preface to the reading and expresses the essence of the person being remembered. There are many prokeimenes: they are daytime, holiday, etc.

9) The verse involved, which is sung during the communion of the clergy.

10) Canon- this is a series of sacred chants in honor of a Saint or a holiday, which are read or sung during the All-Night Vigil at the time when those praying kiss (attach) the Holy Gospel or the icon of the holiday. The word “canon” is Greek, in Russian it means rule. The canon consists of nine and sometimes fewer parts called "cantos". Each song in turn is divided into several sections (or stanzas), of which the first is called “irmos”. The Irmos are sung and serve as a connection for all the following sections, which are read and called the troparia of the canon. Every canon has a specific subject. For example, in one canon the Resurrection of Christ is glorified, and in another - the Cross of the Lord, the Mother of God or some Saint. Therefore, the canons have special names, for example, "resurrection canon", canon "To the Life-Giving Cross", "Canon of the Mother of God", "canon to the Saint". In accordance with the main subject of the canon, special refrains are read before each verse. For example, during the Sunday canon the chorus: “Glory to Thee, Our God, glory to Thee...”, at the canon of the Theotokos, chorus: "Most Holy Mother of God, save us".

Liturgical books

First place in number Liturgical books occupy: Gospel, Apostle, Psalter and prophetic books. These books are taken from Holy Scripture – Bible, that's why they're called sacred and liturgical.

Then follow the books: Service Book, Book of Hours, Breviary, book of prayer chants, Octoechos, Menaion of the month, Menaion of the general, Menaion of the holidays. Lenten Triodion, Colored Triodion, Typikon or Charter, Irmologium and Canon.

These books were compiled on the basis of Holy Scripture and Holy Tradition, by the fathers and teachers of the Church. And they are called church and liturgical.

Gospel- This The Word of God. It consists of the first four books of the New Testament, written by the evangelists Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. The Gospel contains a description of the earthly life of our Lord Jesus Christ: His teaching, miracles, suffering on the cross, death, glorious resurrection and His ascension to heaven.

Liturgical Gospel has the peculiarity that, in addition to the usual division into chapters and verses, it is also divided into special sections called “conceptions”. At the end of the book there is an index: when to read this or that.

Apostle is called in church language a book containing the subsequent books of the New Testament: the Acts of the Holy Apostles, the conciliar epistles and the epistles of the Apostle Paul (except for the book of the Apocalypse). The book of the Apostle, like the Gospel, is divided, in addition to chapters and verses, into “conceptions,” with an indication at the end of the book of when and which “conception” to read. Psalter- book of the prophet and king David. It is so called because most of the psalms in it were written by St. prophet David. In these psalms, St. the prophet opens his soul to God, all his joys, sorrows, repents of his sins, glorifies God’s endless perfections, thanks Him for all His mercies and good deeds, asks for help in all his undertakings... That is why the Psalter is used during Divine services more often than all others liturgical books. The book of Psalms for use in Divine services is divided into twenty sections called “kathismas,” and each “kathisma” is divided into three parts, called “glories.”

Book of Prayer Songs contains rites of prayers (prayer chants) for different occasions.

Octoechos or Osmiglasnik contains chants (troparia, kontakion, canons, etc.), divided into eight tunes or “voices.” Each voice, in turn, contains hymns for the entire week, so that the services of the Octoechos are repeated once every eight weeks. The division of church singing into voices was accomplished by the famous hymnist of the Greek Church, St. John of Damascus (VIII century). The Octoechos is attributed to him and compiled, although it should be noted that St. took part in the composition of the Octoechos. Mitrofan, Bishop of Smyrna, St. Joseph the hymnist and others.

Menaea Menstrual contains prayers in honor of saints for every day of the year and solemn services for the feasts of the Lord and the Mother of God, falling on a specific day of the month. According to the number of 12 months, it is divided into 12 separate books.

Menaea General contains hymns common to a whole group of saints, for example, in honor of prophets, apostles, martyrs, saints, etc. It is used during Divine services in the event that a separate service has not been compiled for any saint in the Menaion of the Month.

Menaea Festive contains the services of the Great Holidays, extracted from the Menaion of the Month.

Triodion Lenten contains prayers for the days of Great Lent and for the preparatory weeks for it, starting from the week of the Publican and the Pharisee and until Easter. The word "triode" is Greek and means three songs. This book and the following Triodion Tsvetnaya received this name because they contain incomplete canons, consisting of only three songs, instead of the usual nine songs of the canon.

Triodion Colored contains hymns from the day of Holy Easter to the week of All Saints (i.e., until the 9th Resurrection, counting from the day of Easter).

Irmology contains chants selected from various canons, called irmos (irmos is the initial chant of each song of the canon).

The Orthodox service is a complex and strictly structured action, which is the center of a believer. The worship of the Orthodox Church has a clear sequence, and for the most part is performed in the temple under the direction of a bishop or priest. Lay people can take part in the Orthodox service, praying in church, and beginning various rites and sacraments of worship: communion, anointing. The service is divided into circles: daily, seven-week (weekly), eight-week, annual moving and annual stationary. In addition to these circles, the priest can perform individual sacraments and services, which are also divine services: baptism, wedding, consecration of oil, consecration of real estate, cars, etc.

The service in the Orthodox Church has liturgical and theological significance: during it, the most important church sacrament takes place: the offering of bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ, and, in addition, many dogmatic issues are clarified with the help of reading the Gospel and the Acts of the Apostles.

Orthodox service: daily circle

Closest and most understandable to the average citizen daily service cycle of the Orthodox Church. In monasteries it is performed daily, in parish churches it is obligatory on Sundays and major holidays, as well as on special days for the church: on the days of a patronal feast day, a particularly revered temple saint, an icon.

If there are many priests serving in a parish Christian church, then Orthodox services are held there daily, as in monasteries. So, the daily cycle of services includes:

Midnight Office - as the name suggests, this service used to take place at midnight, but today it is read either late in the evening or early in the morning. True, in some monasteries with strict regulations (for example, on Mount Athos) it is read exactly when it is supposed to;
Matins is an inherently joyful Orthodox service dedicated to the new day that has come. Served in honor of a holiday or saint;
1st hour - according to the current measurement, it begins at 7 o’clock in the morning, and it is at this time, as a rule, that the 1st hour service is held in monasteries and churches. Usually comes immediately after Matins;
3rd hour - according to modern time - 9 o'clock in the morning. Dedicated to the Holy Trinity;
The 6th hour is a service of the Orthodox Church, during which thanks are given to God for allowing us to live comfortably for half the day. In addition, the service of the 6th hour is dedicated to the Savior - according to legend, it was at this time that he was brought to Golgotha and crucified;
The 9th hour is an Orthodox service commemorating the death on the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ: it is believed that it was at this time (3 o’clock in the afternoon in our opinion) that He gave up His soul to the Heavenly Father;
Vespers - from Vespers the daily circle of services is counted, since it was from the evening, according to Scripture, that the world began to exist: and there was evening, and there was morning: the first day (Genesis). This service is of a penitential nature;
Compline is a service of the Orthodox Church, read after dinner, before going to bed. During it, believers ask God to bless the coming night, to let it pass without misfortunes and troubles;
Divine Liturgy is the most important, beautiful, musical and solemn Orthodox service, which is the center of daily worship. During it, the Eucharist (Sacrament of Communion) is celebrated.

What services of the Orthodox Church does a believer need to attend?

Of course, an Orthodox Christian does not have the opportunity to pray at each of these Orthodox services, and there is no such need. It is not without reason that there is such a thing as home prayer and church prayer.