Polina Bazhenova

On April 20, a regular meeting with Archimandrite Melchizedek (Artyukhin) “100 questions to the priest” took place at the Vdohnovenie cultural center. A lot of people were able to ask their questions to the priest both directly during the conversation and by e-mail through social networks. There were also video messages recorded during the Lenten Kitchen Festival. Below are some of the questions asked - especially relevant and burning.

The two most important days

I want to start with a short introduction. There are two most important days in a person's life: the first is the day of birth, because through birth a person gets the opportunity to eternal life. And in this regard, we, believers, are happy people, because we all have the prospect of eternity. The second most important day is when a person understood why he was born. This is especially true for a Russian person who asks himself more often than others why he lives.

Why is it so hard to ask for forgiveness?

I think pride gets in the way of saying the magic word "sorry". In life, we often have to deal with so-called "arrivals": with colleagues at work, with parents, neighbors ... I myself come across this and always use this word, it works like a fire extinguisher. In fact, this is very useful, because I manage to "extinguish" the wave of aggression.

What miracles are happening in our time?

The fact that we are here now is already a miracle.

Let me give you an example from my personal life. I was baptized in 1963 in the Church of the Transfiguration, in 1964 this temple was blown up and later rebuilt. Last year I was a participant in the consecration of this temple by His Holiness Patriarch Kirill ... In one life a person entered the temple, then the temple was gone, and then the person entered a second time - this is a miracle.

But, of course, the most important miracles are when people change. There was, it would seem, no hope of correction, when suddenly a person is transformed: from evil to good, from drunkard to teetotaler, from fornicator to chaste. You can build or draw anything, but when the human soul is transformed, this is the greatest miracle.

How should you spend your Angel's day?

Any prayer that comes from the heart reaches God, so there are no universal formulas. The most important thing is that it should be a heartfelt, trusting prayer.

How does the Church view alcohol and strong drinks?

First of all, there is the concept of measure. The Holy Fathers had the custom of drinking on major holidays no more than three cups of diluted dry wine. Everything that is without measure - everything is not good. One should not think that the Church is categorically against alcohol, but one should refrain from excessive, uncontrolled use.

How can we maintain a Christian spirit outside the Church?

In any situation, you need to remain human, have an inner core. Start your day with prayer, behave calmly and with dignity at work, and pay attention to your family. If a person tries to lead a spiritual life, to observe his thoughts, words and deeds, he will be worthy of God's help. There is such an expression: a dead fish swims with the stream, against the stream - a living one.

I am reminded of an example from the life of Soviet times, when Christians went to the army with a cross and lived according to the law of their inner Christian world, to which the army does not dispose at all ...

It all depends on the inner disposition of the person. This applies not only to faith - everyone should be able to defend their beliefs and views, moral principles.

How to help a person come to God?

Words edify, but deeds attract. The fact is, it is important for a person to see an example of the Christian life - this is much more effective than books and reasoning.

In fact, a person's coming to faith is a mystery. It happens that a child who grows up in a family of drunkards becomes a priest ...

This raises another question: if I myself am not living correctly, should I talk about it? I must, because in the end I myself will be ashamed and will take the right path.

If a person does not confess, but goes to church, what advice can be given to him?

If a person prepares a festive dinner, but does not eat with everyone, he deprives himself of both food and the holiday. So it is with faith. Going to church is one thing, but confessing and moving forward is another. Let these be the first steps, which will then develop into a full life with God.

I remember my life. I was 17 years old when I decided to start a spiritual life, but for half a year I could not confess - I still could not find a suitable priest. In the end, I went to the Trinity-Sergius Lavra and there, in confession, I met the abbot, who later became my confessor. If a person thirsts for spiritual life, then by his humility and prayers the Lord will certainly help him. It is very important to find a confessor - a person to whom you can open your soul. The confessor will help "heal" the shortcomings and show you how to atone for sins.

What if the confessor periodically covers God with himself? Get away from him? Where is the boundary between the spiritual and the spiritual in relation to the confessor?

A confessor is, first of all, a guide, he is very small in comparison with God and cannot close him.

What is the main thing in the Sacrament? How to approach it?

In Communion, the very fact of union with Christ is important: it is like the umbilical cord that connects us to God. Preparation for Communion is a topic for a separate discussion.

They say there is never a lot of love. But in the family, my husband and children say that they are tired of my love. Where is the middle?

They say that excessive love is selfishness, the desire to leave a person only for himself. When it comes to children, you need to learn how to let them go, because they have their own way.

How to relate to a mother who has been pushing her daughter around all her life, commands her, is very offended and angry when you do not obey her?

It's hard to say who is right and who is wrong. Of course, parenting and learning is the main task of parents, but you should not try to make your own copy of children. It's a terrible way to clone yourself. It is more important to teach the child the principles of moral life, and to provide reasonable freedom in secondary issues.
How not to accumulate resentment in your heart?

First, you need to understand that resentment is consonant with the word "trouble". You must try to understand the person's motivation and be able to explain yourself, otherwise the resentment will eat away at you from the inside. Pride and narcissism make a touchy person. There is a good saying: the weak takes revenge, the strong forgives, the happy forgets.

What should you do if the person next to you blasphemes?

You cannot let this pass by yourself - you need to stop a person and protect your principles.

There were many mistakes in life, but the most important one is abortion. What can I do so that the Lord forgives me this sin?

There are no unforgiven sins, except one - unrepentant. Repentance is not only regret, but also correction of the situation. The person must change. If a woman is of childbearing age, it is imperative to give birth, if there is no such opportunity, to spend energy, time and money on an existing child or to help a large family, a special fund ... It is important not to turn a blind eye to this problem, but to actively participate in it - this is and there will be real repentance. There is no sin that the Lord would not forgive.

What can you say about the meeting of His Holiness the Patriarch with the Pope and about the Council, which will take place in June 2016?

This topic is very broad. The patriarch said that the main purpose of the meeting is to unite efforts against the genocide of Christians in Syria, the Middle East, Africa, as well as to speak up in defense of the family, against same-sex marriage and euthanasia. Now Christian values \u200b\u200bare expelled from the life of society: in Catholic countries, the Law of God is removed from the curriculum, Crucifixes and icons are taken out of churches. But in Russia the opposite process is observed.

It is important, however, to understand that no Councils, no meetings affect our personal sins.

You are an incredibly active and busy person, your ministry requires a lot of effort and conscience. Can you name your inner motto that helps you to gather strength and cope with a huge number of tasks?

The kingdom of God is taken by effort. I often think: what if this is the last day? And the desire to waste it immediately disappears. There is also a magic word - "must". Our life is a place of heroism, not rest.

How do people come to Optina Pustyn for spiritual experience?

Differently. I personally knew people who came to Optina literally on foot - their impulse was so strong.

My eighteen-year-old son does not want to go to church. What must happen for the youth to come to the temple?

The fact is that you need to direct yourself, first of all. Children will be like their parents anyway. Of course, you need to do something, but the most important thing is personal example.

With all my heart I wish you a happy family life, hope, love
Let in everything that you do,
The light of spiritual purity will come
And the strength is not in your appearance,
but only in your humanity.

How is conviction different from condemnation?

Rebuke is when we express our grievances in the face in order to correct a person's behavior. Condemnation, on the contrary, always takes place behind the back and most often has the goal of showing oneself in a more favorable light against the background of “this sinner”. If everything seems more or less clear to us from condemnation, then it is worthwhile to deal with denunciation in more detail.

In real life, we have very few opportunities to denounce anyone. The point is that there are not so many such situations, and the very moral character of the accuser should be almost ideal. The people of Israel were denounced by God's prophets for their sins, but they were holy people and the Lord himself sent them to this. As for us sinners, we should not try on the mission of the prophets; something completely different is required of us. We must learn in a friendly way, with participation to talk with a person about what worries us in his behavior. Too often we do not have enough courage or wisdom for a simple human conversation, and then we endure, withdraw into ourselves and at one point break off any relationship with a person. This is wrong, you need to learn to go out to meet your neighbor.

Suppose your young niece often lies. Instead of whispering behind her back or proudly denouncing, speak to her from the position of a loving relative: "Maybe you don't know that deception is striking and looks very ugly?" Hug her and make it clear that you are not her enemy at all. Whether she understands or not is no longer your concern. The main thing is that you tried to help and did it humanly.

What is humility? Is it always necessary to be silent and endure?

Humility is a special quality opposite to pride, it gives us the strength to be with everyone in the world and be grateful to God for all the good that we have. In our daily life, humility is most similar to humility and benevolence. In a conflict situation, such a person will not shout about his righteousness, will not humiliate his offender, but he will not be silent, like a dumb animal. The Lord Himself, addressing the high priest's servant who struck Him, said: "If I said bad, show that it is bad, but if it is good, why are you hitting Me?" Of course, there are no rules for all occasions and each situation is special in its own way, it happens that even the most unexpected act is ultimately true. Therefore, pray, reason and may the Lord help you!

Tell me how to deal with the sin of envy?

The day of many of us begins with the fact that we go to work in the morning, simultaneously noticing the rays of the rising sun, the bright colors of autumn nature and listening to the chirping of birds. Through our vanity, we must see this beauty and perceive it as an invaluable gift from God. If a

we love our Creator and are truly grateful to Him, then it will be quite natural to include praise and thanksgiving psalms in our prayer rule, at the end of the rule to thank God in our own words for this world, for our relatives and friends, for all the good and good that we have. Gratitude is the beginning of spiritual nobility and the first cure for envy. Without filling the soul with gratitude, a person will never experience a sense of satisfaction, since any success of a neighbor will hurt his petty heart.

The second cure for envy is love for others. Christians are called by the Lord Jesus Christ Himself to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. Loving our neighbors means noticing those who live next to us, wishing everyone well and, if possible, doing deeds of mercy. If we did not talk heart to heart with anyone, did not support anyone, did not help anyone financially, then where was our love? Having lost love and sympathy, our neighbors become for us no longer neighbors, but rivals, we look at them without mercy, and begins to choke in our insane envy.

Thus, only gratitude to God and a merciful attitude towards our neighbors can save us from this insidious passion.

If you missed a day or two for any reason, it will be enough to prolong your reading for this day or two.

Should the deceased be remembered often, or is it better on parental days?

According to church tradition, special memorial days are established. It is also possible and necessary to commemorate your departed, if possible, at each liturgy. Do not forget to remember your departed relatives every day at the end of morning prayers, so you are always in close prayer communication with them. Do not forget about prayers for the living, prayer for every good deed and good human relation with others in everyday life.

An Orthodox man believes that a woman should be silent and humble, but he should not. Is it correct?
Answer of Archpriest Dimitri Smirnov:

Men identified in the question cannot be called not only Orthodox, but also men. A woman owes nothing to a man. This man must conquer the woman so that she agrees to be everything for him; so that loving him, she is ready to die - for him, and for his cause, and for his children, and so on. A man must conquer a woman. If a man argues that a woman owes him something, then such a man is not a man at all, but some other fruit.

“A voice crying in the wilderness” (Isa. 40. 3) - what do these words of the prophet Isaiah mean?

These words of the prophet Isaiah, John the Baptist refers to himself. To the question of the Sanhedrin: who is he? John answered: "I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness: prepare the way for the Lord, as the prophet Isaiah said" (John 1:23). The holy evangelists also attributed this prophecy to John the Baptist (see: Matt. 3.3; Mk. 1.3; Lk. 3. 4-6). By his preaching, John prepared people to receive the Messiah, who is coming to save people from sin and eternal destruction. In order to accept the given salvation, it was necessary to “equalize” the way for the Lord to our hearts, that is, to cleanse them of passions and all sin. John called the Jewish people to such a feat of cleansing with his sermon: "Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven has drawn near" (Matt. 3. 2).

Whom does the Savior mean when he speaks of the queen of the south, who “will rise up for judgment with this generation and will condemn it” (Matthew 12:42)?

We are talking about the Queen of the South or Sheba, who came to listen to King Solomon (see: 3. Kings 10). Sheba was a city located in Arabia, south of Judea. According to the Abyssinian tradition, the queen's name was Makeda, and it is assumed that she accepted the true faith after visiting Jerusalem. She "will condemn this generation" for she came from afar to listen to the wise Solomon, and the Jews did not want to listen to divine wisdom, that is, our Lord Jesus Christ himself, who is "greater than Solomon."

How to understand the following words of the Apostle Peter: “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy people, people taken as an inheritance in order to proclaim the perfections of Him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light” (1. Pet. 2. 9)?

Blessed Theophylact of Bulgaria, interprets these words as follows: Not approving the bad behavior of unbelievers, saying that they themselves became guilty of their unbelief, the apostle now proceeds to approve of those who did the right thing and says: “you,” who did the right thing, are “a chosen race, royal priesthood". He seems to say so: those in their cruelty and stubbornness

stumbled on the "cornerstone" and did not enter the building with it; you, through your humility, have become part of the "royal priesthood," as "the chosen race" and "holy people."

However, in order not to weaken them with unnecessary praise and so that they do not think that they have become a "holy nation" by inheritance, that they have received such an honor because they are descended from Abraham and have never stumbled, the apostle, in order to keep them from such (thoughts, adds and says: do not think too much about the race; you were not chosen to the royal priesthood for the sake of Abraham, for those who descended from him had a priesthood separate from the kingdom; you are a "holy people" and a "chosen race" and were appointed to the "royal priesthood" not for the sake of Abraham, but for Christ's sake, who is called both “a priest after the order of Melchizedek” (Psalm 109: 4), and “a meek, righteous and saving King” (Zech. 9.9).

So, from Him, who had both (both the priesthood and the kingdom), you, who have been reborn through holy baptism, are justly called both the "chosen generation" and the "royal priesthood." You have this by His grace, “who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light,” therefore, by the works of light, “proclaim His perfections” to other people. This, he says, you have according to His philanthropy. So, “proclaim perfections” by His virtue. How should they proclaim them? The Lord himself teaches this when he says: “so let your light shine before people, so that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in Heaven” (Matt. 5. 6).

"People taken as an inheritance," that is, a people taken into possession, or inheritance. For the creation of God is everything, and the lot of God is only those who have been rewarded for this for their virtue.

Explain, please, how an Orthodox Christian treats urine therapy.

The devil could not think of a greater mockery of a man than to make him smear and sprinkle with his own secretions, drink them. The lips of a person, purified in the sacrament of chrismation, are intended for the communion of the Holy Mysteries of Christ, the Holy Water, so that nothing bad may enter them. When a person drinks urine, he insults the Creator, who created him, madly despises His mercies in the form of grace-filled help. The Lord gave us Holy water and oil for consumption in case of illness, and not urine and feces. A Christian who had previously resorted to urinotherapy out of ignorance must confess this sin and a special prayer is further read over it from the missal, as over a person who "ate bad".
The use of urine therapy leads to: physical pollution associated with the ingestion of impurities; to moral defilement, for the Creator has laid down a feeling of disgust for impurities; to spiritual contamination, for instead of the Lord they sought urine.

Why is calamus (sycamore) consecrated in the temple? They say that demons are very afraid of him, so he needs to be brought into the house.

As for the fact that the calamus is afraid of demons, I hear, frankly, for the first time. Of course, these are fictions and superstitions. On the feast of the Holy Trinity, it is customary to decorate the temple and dwelling with greenery as a symbol of life and resurrection. There is absolutely no binding to calamus, you can bring any fragrant greens.

It is customary to bring fire from the Good Friday service in order to go around the house, sheds, and vegetable garden with it. I don't understand this; isn't it enough just to sprinkle holy water on your home?

How to know the will of God? How do we know if our choice is correct?

As a rule, we yearn to know the will of God at the moment when we stand at a crossroads - before a choice. Or when we prefer one scenario to another, less attractive to us. First, you need to try to adjust yourself equally in relation to any path or development of events, that is, internally prepare for any outcome, not stick to any of the options. Second, to sincerely and fervently pray that the Lord will arrange everything according to His good will and do everything in the way that will be beneficial for us in terms of our salvation in eternity. And then, as the holy fathers affirm, His Providence for us will be revealed.

Explain What Excessive Trust in God Means

Saint Ignatius Brianchaninov defines this sin as blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, citing as an example a person who consciously continues to sin heavily while not wanting to be corrected, since he hopes for the mercy of God. It is a sin when a person does not want to change anything in his life, pretending that everything is in the hands of God.

1 John ch. 5.16 “If anyone sees his brother sinning with sin not to death, then let him pray, and God will give him life, that is, to the one sinning not to death. There is a sin leading to death: I’m not talking about that, that he should pray. ” How to understand the words of the apostle?

We must pray for sinning brothers if they commit “a sin not to death,” that is, if they have not completely fallen away from faith and love, if they have not deliberately removed themselves from the influence of grace-filled means. But besides “sin not to death”, there is also “sin to death” - the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit mentioned in the Gospel (Matt 12 : 31-32), a decisive, conscious and deliberate falling away from faith - especially from faith in the incarnation of the Son of God (James 4 : 3), and from the love of one's neighbor (1 John. 3 : 10): the apostle directly calls hatred of his brother homicide (1 John. 3 :15); the apostle Paul also speaks of the gravity of the sin of denying the incarnate Son of God (Heb. 6 : 4-6, 10:26). Representing prayer for sinners as an immortal, indispensable duty of the believing Christian (cf. James 5 :16). The Apostle does not give such instruction about prayer for mortal sinners, although he does not explicitly forbid: the success of prayer in the latter case is opposed by unbelief, stubbornness, bitterness and stagnation in sins. But the sins of the first kind, immortal ones, require careful cleansing and must be avoided, since "every unrighteousness is a sin."

Matthew 12:32. “If anyone speaks a word against the Son of Man, he will be forgiven; if anyone speaks to the Holy Spirit, he will not be forgiven him either in this century or in the future. " Why?

The Evangelist says the following here: every other sin has at least a small justification, for example, fornication, theft. For in such cases we are referring to human weakness and are deserving of an apology. But when someone sees miracles performed by the Spirit and slanders them as being the power of a demon, what justification can he have? Clearly, he knows they are from the Holy Spirit, but he is deliberately doing wrong. How can such an excuse be obtained? So, when the Jews saw that the Lord eats, drinks, treats publicans and harlots and does everything else as the Son of Man, and then reproached Him as a poisoner and a wine drinker, then in this they are worthy of excuse, and they will not be required to repent of this because they thought they were seduced for a sufficient reason. But if they, seeing that He performs miracles, nevertheless slandered and reviled the Holy Spirit, saying that this is a demonic deed, then how can they be allowed that this sin will be forgiven them if they do not repent? So, know that whoever reviles the Son of Man, seeing that He lives like a man, and calling Him a friend of fornicators, a poisoner and a wine drinker because Christ did so, such a person, if he does not repent, will not give an answer: he deserves an apology because he did not think that God was hidden in Jesus Christ. But whoever blasphemes the Holy Spirit or the spiritual deeds of Christ and calls them demonic, if he does not repent, he will not be forgiven, for he did not have sufficient reason for slander, like the one who slandered Christ, seeing Him among fornicators and publicans. So, he will not be forgiven either here or there, but he will be punished here and there. For many are punished here, but there absolutely not, like poor Lazarus; others here and there, like the Sodomites and those who blaspheme the Holy Spirit; the third is neither here nor there, like the apostles and the Forerunner. They, apparently, bore punishment when they were persecuted, nevertheless, this was not a punishment for sins, but trials and crowns (Blessed Theophylact of Bulgaria)

In short, the definition of the sin of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit can be said as follows - conscious opposition to the truth.

Is it possible to go to the temple in uncleanness, drink holy water?

During the time of female impurity, you can visit the temple. Previously, this ban was in force in connection with certain hygienic female problems. One should not touch the shrine and accept it unless there is an urgent need for it.

What if the feeling of absolution after confession does not come?

This means either the confession was incomplete, and you unknowingly hid some kind of sin, or there is no firm determination to leave the named sins, there is only sorrow for what you have done, but there is no firm decision to leave the sin, therefore the soul suffers.

Our whole family is Orthodox, but our grandmother is a Baptist. She still wants to persuade us to her faith. Asks: “How can you Orthodox Christians worship saints? These are the people who died. How can you pray to a person who has died? Anyway, icons. The Bible says: Don't make yourself an idol. " What should I answer her?

Orthodox Christians do not worship icons, but revere them, how you can respect the photographs of your ancestors, but you can spit on them. If I kiss a photo of my mother in her absence, am I showing my love for her or not? Do you think that, upon learning about this, she will be upset or her heart will burn with joyful tenderness, knowing that I love her so much? Orthodox Christians do not worship the icons themselves (wood and paint), but worship the One who is depicted in the icon. Also, praying before the icon of the saint, we ask for his intercession before God, the giver of all blessings. In response, you can hear - why ask God through someone, if you can directly ... Of course, it is possible and necessary, only your request, supported by the intercession of a person who has already been awarded the Kingdom of Heaven, has more opportunity to be fulfilled. And about the fact that they died, the Holy Scripture says: “God is not the God of the dead, but the God of the living, for with Him all are alive” (Luke 20:38).

I heard that after anointing with oil you shouldn't wash yourself at the all-night vigil. Is it possible or not? Many of us have a bath day on Saturday.

There are no instructions in the charter of the Holy Orthodox Church that one cannot wash after receiving any Sacrament (you cannot wash off grace). There is a spiritual and practical meaning here. Many priests advise against going to the bathhouse or washing in the bathroom on the eve of communion, for the reason that the sight of even your own naked body can lead to unnecessary temptation.

Is it true that a candle is pleasing to God if we put it down, lighting it with our own hands, and do not put it down or just put it down without lighting it?

The candle is your feasible sacrifice, a symbol of burning to the Lord. If you put it on yourself, without disturbing anyone or pushing other candles, please. If, during a big holiday, the candlestick in the church is filled with candles, and you, in order to light your candle, remove others or put, unknowingly, so that after you another person will have to move your candle, and you will immediately rush into him with angry cries : "Do not touch my grace!" ... I do not think that such a sacrifice will please God. The best sacrifice to God is that the spirit is broken, the heart is broken for its sins, and God will not despise the humble. Place your candle nearby, grandmother-candlestick will light it at the right time and your humble sacrifice will be accepted.

What to do with the remains of consecrated foods?
There is a fairly stable tradition among church people to torment over the problem of what to do with the "holy" shells from easter eggs and "holy" apple stubs after the feast of the Transfiguration. People carefully collect garbage after a meal and bring it to the temple for burning, or, even worse, throw everything into the river, littering the already unclean reservoirs. Have you been to the blessing of Easter cakes and eggs? The priest reads a prayer for the blessing of not only eggs and "thickened milk", but also "brushed meat" (and for the Transfiguration - not apples specifically, but fruits and vegetables in general), and sprinkles water in general on everything that comes his way. If we assume that everything that has got holy water is “sanctified”, then you will have to worry not only about the shells, but also about candy wrappers, bottles of wine, etc. Moreover, holy water gets on baskets, on clothes, shoes, hair, face ... Following the "pious" logic, it will be necessary not only to bury or burn all the remnants of food, but also to bury your own clothes, and washing yourself is generally prohibited. In fact, everything is much simpler. The priest does not "sanctify" the products, does not make them "holy", he reads a prayer for blessing. The priest invokes God's grace for eating this food, so that it (the eating) will benefit the soul and body. And every day we bless “food and drink by Your servant” when we pray before breakfast, lunch, dinner, cross the food, but in this case we do not worry about waste.

Tell about the Angels of the Week. What is the Angel of Monday, Angel of Tuesday, etc. Do they need to pray and how?

There is no such thing as the Angel of the Week in Orthodoxy. This is an invention of the neo-gnostics and other new heretics. I advise you to read spiritual literature with the obligatory stamp "The book was published with the blessing - then the bishop who gave the blessing for the publication of this book is indicated." If you use the Internet, I advise you to visit the sites that were created with the blessing of the bishop of the Russian Orthodox Church. If there is no indication, pay attention to the creator of the site, for example: "Portal" Pravoslavie.Ru "Sretensky Monastery PO Box No. 87" , go away and don't fill your head with informational rubbish. Every day there are more and more such "interpreters" and their phantasmagoric ideas are getting cooler.

Tell us about the image of the Mother of God "Three Joys"

During the time of Peter I, one painter was sent to study in Italy. Returning to Russia, he brought with him a copy of the Italian icon "The Holy Family" by Raphael and left it with his relative, the rector of the Holy Trinity Church on Gryazekh. After the artist's death, the priest placed the icon on the porch of the Temple.

About forty years have passed. One pious woman's husband was slandered and sent into exile. As a result, the estate was taken away to the treasury. To top it all off, her only son was captured by the enemy.

For a long time, the poor woman appealed to the Most Holy Theotokos for help in these troubles. And then one day, while praying, she heard a voice: “Find the icon“ The Holy Family ”and pray before her! ..” The martyr found the icon on the porch of the Holy Trinity Church on Gryazekh and prayed in front of her. And very soon she received three good news: her husband was acquitted, the property was returned, and her beloved son returned from enemy captivity. It was after this that the icon got its name “Three Joys”.

The icon fell in love with the Russian people, especially in the Don and Kuban. It was believed that prayer in front of her helps the return home of the Cossacks on a spree.

Over time, lists of this image appeared, made in the Russian icon-painting tradition. At the same time, John the Baptist and the righteous Joseph the Betrothed were depicted, as a rule, on opposite sides of Holy Mother of God.

When the church was rebuilt in 1861, the central chapel was consecrated in honor of this icon.

The fate of the icon after the closure of the Temple is unknown.

How to understand the words: “Jesus, the sacrament of pre-educated silence, make me above all feeling and thought”?

According to St. Maximus the Confessor, God the Father is surrounded by a kind of silence and an unknown mystery of his economy. The only begotten Son of God reveals this economy to us through his incarnation and redemption. We read about this in the Bible (see: Dan. 2 27-28; Col. 2. 9). Accordingly, the request: “make me above all feeling and thought” - shows us the desire of the person praying to die for everything earthly and unite his life with Christ in God (see: Col. 3. 3). By contrasting the “sacrament of silence” with our “thoughts and feelings”, the author shows us a huge distance between the Creator and the creature. He also reveals to us that great thirst with which every believing soul must be fulfilled. The very words of this wonderful prayer are taken from the book of Met. Hierothea (Vlachos) - "One night in the desert of the Holy Mountain." We will recommend it to our God-loving readers.
I heard that King Solomon was not canonized by the Church. However, we read his books in the Old Testament, and his image is often seen with a halo. Tell me, is he a saint or not?

The Church determines the holiness of a person, but it did not always happen the way we are used to it. The first martyrs were venerated immediately after their death, for their life and confession took place in front of so many. Evangelists and apostles testified to their holiness not only with their lives, but also with their labors, included in the canon of the New Testament. We most often honor the righteous of the Old Testament as the forefathers of God's chosen people and our Lord Jesus Christ himself. As we know, the Bible is holy only because the Holy Spirit himself spoke through its authors. Therefore, the inclusion of the works of biblical writers in the Holy Scriptures is the main confirmation of their holiness. In our time, the writing of prayers used today in the Church can speak in favor of holiness. These include the akathist of St. Tryphon - "Glory to God for everything" or the prayer of repentance of Seraphim (Chichagov). Some difficult episodes in the life of the Old Testament righteous or modern saints only confirms the proverb that every saint had his own past and every sinner has a future.

New Year's Liturgy - why and for whom?There are two New Years holidays: church and civil. In the Orthodox Church new Year begins on September 1 (14 in a new style), and civil, starting in 1700 - on January 1 in a new style. The Civil New Year is celebrated by the whole of Russia, including the majority of people who refer to themselves as Orthodox believers, and this holiday falls on Christmas fast in order to direct this holiday in the right direction, meeting the New Year not with a glass of vodka, but in prayer, the Patriarch and bishops introduce this pious custom to serve liturgy on New Year's Eve.

Is it possible for a woman without a headdress to approach a priest on the street for a blessing?

Orthodox etiquette prescribes to greet a priest by taking a blessing, even if the priest is in civilian attire. I believe that a woman, even if she found herself without a headdress when she met a priest, should still come under the blessing.

Can I thank God for what I don't have? Isn't it pride?God can and should be thanked always and everywhere and at any time. What do I have that God would not give me? Thought tells me that if I believe that I have something that I do not receive from God, it is from selfhood, the source of which is pride. May God give us the mortal memory that you are the earth and you have sent back to the earth, that is, I have nothing of my own, but everything is from You, Lord, except for the sin that I have done. Help you, Lord.

How do Christians benefit from remembering death?

There are two concepts of death: spiritual death and bodily death. Spiritual death is the separation of the soul from God, the Source of eternal joyful existence. This death is the most terrible consequence of the fall of man. A person gets rid of spiritual death in baptism. Although bodily death after baptism remains in a person, it acquires a different meaning. From a punishment, it becomes a door to heaven (for those who lived in baptism in a godly manner, in the fear of God), and it is already called "dormition." From this it follows that remembering death, on the one hand, we are filled with gratitude to the Lord, on the other hand, we fearfully fear losing faith because of our sins and carelessness in spiritual life. For bodily death is terrible only with spiritual death.

I heard that if a priest reads a confession from a note, then he must break it. Is it so, does it matter?

The Sacrament of Repentance (confession) is performed with the indispensable repentance of a person and the intention not to commit a more confessed sin. The Sacrament itself is considered to be performed when the priest reads the prayer of permission over the head of a repentant sinner. If the priest did not tear your note, this does not mean that your sin has not been forgiven and the Sacrament has not been performed. If this bothers you, then ask him to tear your note.

What is the most important thing to ask of God?

I think that first of all ask for patience and humility and that not your will, but God's will be done.

Can I be affected by another person's curse?

A curse hurts first of all the one who curses. Although the holy fathers teach that if by your bad deed you forced your opponent, who initially did not want to harm you, to curse you, then, of course, the justice of God will not leave you unpunished.

Tell me, is fear in illness a sign of weak faith? How to deal with it?

“The sufferer only stops sinning, so that the rest of the time in the flesh will live no longer according to human lusts, but according to the will of God” (1 Pet. 4: 1-2). Sickness is a visit from God, sometimes to atone for sins, to realize a vicious way of life, and in special cases for exercise in faith (in cases of illness among the saints of God). Of course, fear in illness most often arises from a misunderstanding of the reasons and, possibly, a weak faith. But it is precisely fear that is driven out by faith. Ask God and it will be given to you! To heal from an illness, you need to confess, take communion, order prayers for health and magpie, you can help and go to a medical institution for a course of treatment. May God grant you health!

On the 12th day of November, the life of John the Merciful, Patriarch of Alexandria, is remembered, where we read that he often performed the Divine Liturgy for the dead, saying that they bring great benefit to the departed. Do such liturgies serve in our time?

The afterlife depends on how a short earthly life was lived. But much also depends on the prayer for the deceased, especially the offering of a bloodless sacrifice for him - the liturgy. The lives of the saints testify to how, through the prayer of the righteous, the posthumous lot of sinners was alleviated, up to their complete justification. Therefore, liturgy, requiem, mass and magpie are served for the departed. In the Holy Vladimir Church there is also the practice of performing funeral liturgies at the request of believers, for this you need to go to the candle shop and explain that you want to serve a separate funeral liturgy for your deceased relative.

How to wear a belt consecrated with prayers - over clothing or under clothing?

A consecrated belt with prayers is worn under clothes, hidden from prying eyes: "Render your prayers to the Lord in secret and He will reward you openly."

Where did the expression "The road to hell are paved with good intentions" came from? And what does it mean? I cannot understand why, by doing good deeds, a person can go to hell instead of heaven.

This expression is now a proverb. Its closest source is James Boswell's two-volume memoir and biographical book, The Life of Samuel Johnson, published in 1791. The author claims that S. Johnson said in 1775: "Hell is paved with good intentions" - "Hell is paved with good intentions." The only difference is that the proverb says about the road to hell, and S. Johnson about hell itself. Apparently, the author of the aphorism relied on a saying made earlier by the Anglican priest and metaphysical poet George Herbert in the book "Wits of the Sages": "Hell is full of good meanings and wishings" - "Hell is full of good intentions and wishes."

All three statements are united by the common idea that desires and intentions alone are not enough for salvation. This is quite consistent with patristic teaching. First of all, one must have faith: “Without faith it is impossible to please God” (Heb. 11: 6). According to the Monk Ephraim the Syrian, “without oil the lamp will not burn; and without faith no one acquires a good thought. " There were so many utopias, radical movements, revolutionary programs and so on in the world, the leaders and participants of which without God and against God, relying on their fallen reason, wanted to bring "happiness" to humanity. History keeps a sad and tragic memory of this. So an individual person who is in the blindness of unbelief, wanting to fulfill his intentions, which seem to him good, often causes evil and pain to others.

Question: Why is it impossible to eat after prayers for sleep for the future?

Answer:

There is no strict prohibition, it is possible out of need, if circumstances oblige it. In other cases, the holy fathers do not recommend eating after prayer. From the name of the prayers we see that they are not read in the evening, but just before going to bed. "Prayers for sleep coming", I.e. exactly when you decide to go to sleep. If, at such a late time after prayers, you still decide to eat, then it will only harm your bodily health and even more spiritual health, there is a high probability of desecration in a dream, and so on. The Holy Fathers give advice based on the past life experience.

Question: Explain the phrase from the Gospel (Matt. XVI: 18): "You are Peter, and on this stone I will build My church, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it."

Answer:

The name Peter is the nickname for the Apostle Simon given to him by the Savior. It means "precious stone." Why is the Lord pointing to this particular gem? Although, as we know from the Gospel, Peter denied Christ three times. After all, there were other apostles who did not betray him. There was also a beloved disciple, John the Theologian. But the Lord is not pointing to them.
The basis of the Church of Christ is repentance, the awareness of his weakness and sinfulness, since the brightest angel, who did not have a single blemish in himself, could become proud and become Satan, the enemy of God. At the same time, Peter, who had once renounced Christ out of cowardice, later repented, was faithful to him until death, which he also accepted on the cross.

The word "Church" means all the multitude of true believers on earth. Under the name of the gates of hell, the Savior meant, first, Satan, who fell from heaven, with all his aggels; secondly, the followers of Satan - people-idolaters, heretics and all those apostates who fight against the Holy Church wanting to depose, overcome and completely destroy, but as we see for all centuries of persecution they cannot do this.

Question: Why, of all the apostles, only Peter and Paul are called the first ones?

Answer:

Endowed with equal power from above and the same power to resolve sins, all the apostles will sit on twelve thrones near the Son of Man (Matthew 19: 28). But since the Acts of the Apostles mainly narrates about the works of the apostles Peter and Paul, the Church and the holy fathers, reverent at the name of each of the apostles, call these two supreme. The Church glorifies the Apostle Peter as predestinating from the face of the apostles to confess Jesus Christ as the Son of the living God; Paul, as if more than others who worked and was numbered among the highest of the apostles by the Holy Spirit (2 Cor. II, 5); one - for firmness, the other - for bright wisdom.

Question: Why does a person need to accept Orthodoxy?

Answer: Orthodoxy, with its teaching on the immortality of the human person, answers one of the most exciting questions: “ A vain gift, an accidental gift, Life, why are you given to me? "and reveals the reasonable meaning of life and all human activities. It says that life without faith in immortality not only cannot be a value for a person, but often turns out to be the most difficult tragedy leading to suicide. Belief in the eternal death of a person completely makes this life meaningless. The tragedy of death is especially terrible for those who live with such faith, when they part forever with their loved ones, with wealth, fame, and power. But earthly life becomes a value and acquires a really real meaning when it is considered as that crucial stage of a person's existence, during which he can determine his future, his eternity, since here a person makes a free choice between good and evil, determines his attitude to conscience, to holiness, to truth. And this determines the nature of all human activity. Fyodor Dostoevsky said it very well: “... only with faith in his immortality does a person comprehend his entire rational goal on earth». "Without faith in one's soul and in its immortality, human existence is unnatural, inconceivable and unbearable."But why exactly Orthodoxy is the right path to God and a healing balm for man is a separate big question. Now we can only say one thing: a tree is recognized by its fruits, and in every religion such fruits are its saints, since it is they who show the ideal to which it calls a person. Therefore, the words are true: as the saints are, so is religion. And one has only to look at our saints: Kiev-Pechersk, Radonezh, Sarov, Optina, etc., to see what beauty of the human soul, not to mention their countless wonders and signs, Orthodoxy reveals! Isn't that enough? Do you really need to look for someone else somewhere ?!

Question:

Gospel of Matthew 28, 16-17: "The eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus commanded them, and when they saw Him, they worshiped Him, but some doubted." Who doubted, or what does this word mean here?

Answer: The second appearance of the Lord in Galilee was to a large host of believers, headed by eleven apostles, while until that time the Risen One was seen only by the myrrh-bearing women and His closest disciples. The place of this solemn apparition was the mountain chosen by the Lord Himself (Mt 28.16); here by the time indicated by Him more than five hundred brethren had gathered (1 Cor. 15.6), and there is no doubt that most of them consisted of the Galileans who followed the Lord during His preaching in their homeland, listened to His teachings, witnessed His miracles and, - there is nothing incredible, - those who have experienced the goodness of the merciful Healer. When the Lord appeared, some of those gathered on the mountain “bowed down to Him, but others doubted” (Mt 28.17); Of course, among the latter there were no apostles who had already been established in the faith by the previous manifestations of the Lord: doubt could arise only in those followers of Christ who for the first time were worthy to see the Risen One. But this doubt was temporary and gave way to firm faith, so that later the holy Apostle Paul, listing the witnesses of the apparitions of the Risen Lord, also mentions “more than five hundred brethren,” many of whom were still alive.

Question: Apocalypse, ch. 2-3: "Of the 7 Churches, only the Church of Smyrna turned out to be flawless in the eyes of the Savior." Why didn't the Lord say a single accusatory word to the Angel of the Church of Smyrna?

Answer: “I know your deeds, - says Christ to the angel of the Church of Smyrna, - and sorrow and poverty, - however you are rich”. The church in Smyrna was the church of the poor. Not one of the wealthy merchants of the city of Smyrna was a member. But Christ saw her as rich because she was rich in her Lord. She was a beggar, but she enriched many; she had nothing, but she had everything (2 Cor. 6: 10). Over the church in Smyrna, the words of James 2, 5 came true: "Did not God choose the poor of the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the Kingdom, which He promised to those who love Him." Christ foretells the path of great suffering for the Church of Smyrna. He says to the angel of the Church of Smyrna: “Do not be afraid of anything that you have to endure. The devil will cast some of you into prison to test you, and you will have tribulation for ten days. Be faithful to death and I will give you the crown of life. " Note that all these great trials must fall on the lot of the church, in which Christ does not mark anything negative. What is the meaning of these great tests? Christ Himself gives the answer to this question: “To tempt you,” that is, to test you.
Suffering for Christ is not a punishment, but a test of our loyalty and faithfulness to Christ. Christ says that he who remains faithful and loyal to Him through trials to the end, to death, will receive the "crown of life." The crown of life is eternal life with Christ. Can you imagine a higher reward than the crown of life than eternal life with Christ?

Question:

I ask you to tell us about Saint Prince Roman of Ryazan, whose image is depicted on the wall of our church.

Answer: The holy noble prince Roman Olegovich Ryazansky was from a clan of princes who, during the Tatar yoke, became famous as defenders of the Christian faith and the Fatherland. Both of his grandfathers died for the Fatherland in the battle with Batu. Raised in love for the holy faith (the prince lived in tears and prayers) and his homeland, the prince took care of the ruined and oppressed subjects with all his might, protected them from violence and robbery of the Khan's Baskaks (tax collectors). The Baskaks hated the saint and slandered him before the Tatar Khan Mengu-Timur. Roman Olegovich was summoned to the Horde, where Khan Mengu-Timur announced that he must choose one of two: either martyrdom or the Tatar faith. The faithful prince replied that a Christian cannot change a true faith to a false one. For his firmness in the confession of faith, he was subjected to cruel tortures: they cut off his tongue, gouged out his eyes, cut off his ears and lips, cut off his arms and legs, tore off his skin and, having chopped off his head, planted it on a spear. This happened in 1270.

In the Apocalypse 7 ch. v. 10 we read: "And they cried with a loud voice, saying: Salvation to our God who sits on the throne, and to the lamb!" In Matthew 21.9 and Mark 11.9, the people exclaimed: "Hosanna (salvation) to the Son of David!" How are these exclamations to be understood?

The pilgrims who came to Jerusalem greeted Jesus Christ with an exclamation: "Hosanna." Translated from Hebrew, it means "Save us!" This is how the kings were welcomed in those days. "Coming" is not just a word, but one of the messianic titles. Together, the greeting expressed faith in Christ as king and mission. In Revelation, the word “salvation” means victory, good, and blessing. The translation was made from Greek, and the greeting expresses the joy of the host of martyrs who received heavenly glory: “They are now before the throne of God and serve Him day and night” (Rev. 7:15).

In the evening prayer of St. John Damascene has the words: "And as you like, arrange a thing about me." Like this?

In Russian, this phrase can be rendered as follows: "Guide, Lord, the deeds and events of my life at your will." To read prayers meaningfully, you need to read them at least several times in an explanatory translation.

• The Epistle of Peter ch. 3, v. 5: "Be always ready to anyone who requires you to account for your hope, to give an answer with meekness and reverence." Whom does the apostle mean by the word to everyone?

The sentence is found in the part of the epistle where the apostle instructs Christians about proper conduct in times of persecution. As you can see, even in this situation, believers are encouraged to testify about their Christianity. The believer of our time should also be able to competently and reverently testify of his faith. By any questioner, we must understand people who are sincerely interested in Orthodoxy and not enter into empty debates with sectarians if we do not have sufficient preparation for this.

• How to understand the words: "Jesus, the sacrament of pre-educated silence, make me above all feeling and thought."

These are words from the wonderful book of Met. Hierothea (Vlachos) - "One night in the desert of the Holy Mountain." Here is a small excerpt from this book: “It's long past midnight. Soon the voices of the monks sounded from the cells, full of tears of repentance and illumination:
- Jesus, life-giving and sweetest warmth, warm me cold!
- Jesus, my beginning, middle and end, cleanse my heart, so that I appear before You!
- Jesus, in You is the mystery of ineffable silence, help me rise above thoughts and feelings!
- Jesus, Son of God, have mercy on me!
The holy mountain is on fire at these hours, the devil roars. Monks really unite with God. "
The prayers quoted by the author are very similar to the words from the akathist "To Jesus the sweetest." If you read them in Russian, then a lot becomes clear. The main theme prayer is the desire to be cleansed from sin, to be warmed by grace and in a spiritual impulse to unite with your Creator.

• Explain the words of kathisma 8 psalm 63: “The arrows of the child were their ulcers, and faint on them their tongues. Confused by all seeing them. "

The psalm tells of the rebellion of Absalom and his supporters against King David. " The baby's arrows were wounded by their ulcers, And exhausted on nya tongues and ", -using many tricks, they did not achieve their goal. Just as arrows shot by small children do no harm to those they hit, so tongues did no harm to those who were struck, and the harm turned to those who struck. "Confused by all who see them," - and those who saw that the rebels were deceived in their undertakings, were filled with confusion and fear and marveled at God's providence.

• The Holy Fathers teach us to help and care for our neighbors. How to help them if they are not familiar with their teachings, take everything for granted from you and “sit on your neck”?

Our deeds of mercy should not push others to more idleness or disrespect for us personally. Nobody forbids you to teach lazy people a little or to think about how to motivate them to fulfill the commandment about labor.

How to bear the weakness of your neighbor, if he is your husband or son and abuses alcohol?

It is necessary to “bear infirmity” without a murmur when it comes to old people, disabled people or small children. A husband or son must be encouraged in all possible ways to "take up the mind", and only secondarily to help them.

What is the right way to greet the priest outside the church, when meeting on the street?

Just like in the temple: you need to come up and take the blessing. Even if the priest is without vestments, the grace of the priesthood is not on the priestly garments, but on the priest himself. Of course, you need to observe prudence, for example, if you saw a priest at a distance, it is enough to wish him health as well as a layman.

We know that the Most Holy Trinity is inseparable. And in the Gospel of Matthew 27, 46 we read the words of Jesus: “My God, My God! Why did you leave me? " Or is it only about the human nature of the Savior?

Being one by divine nature with the Father and the Holy Spirit, God the Word, otherwise called Jesus Christ, could in no way be “forsaken by God”. Some Christians will say: “But there are two natures in Jesus: divine and human! Probably, Divine grace left His human nature on the cross, and therefore the Lord spoke of His “God-forsakenness”. " This opinion is erroneous, because from the very moment of the Incarnation, two natures, divine and human, are combined in Christ "non-fusion, unchanging, inseparable and inseparable", therefore Divine grace could in no way leave Him either according to Divinity or according to humanity. How, then, can we explain the words of the Savior? Very simple. Exclaiming: “My God! Oh my God! Why did you forsake Me? ", Christ on our behalf - that is, on behalf of mankind fallen in sin - quotes the words of the prayer from the twenty-first psalm:" My God! Oh my God! why did you leave me? " (Psalm 21: 2). This psalm begins with the cry of a suffering person, and ends with the triumph of God's help. Which in general symbolizes fallen humanity, which, in the end, was saved by the God Trinity who loves him. In Orthodoxy, such utterances of the Savior, uttered by Him on behalf of all people, are considered examples of "relative assimilation." As St. John of Damascus writes: “But the words: My God, my God, you forsaken me (Matthew 27: 46), - Christ spoke as having assimilated our face for Himself. For the Father could not be called His God, and Christ was never and forsaken by his own Godhead, but we were abandoned and neglected. Therefore, He prayed in such a way as He who assimilated our faces to Himself. " An example of such "relative assimilation" can be the statement of a mother who comes with a sick child to the doctor and says: "Doctor, we are sick." Those. in fact, the baby's mother is not sick, but only supplies herself along with her child. So Christ, exclaiming on the cross, was not abandoned by either the Father or His Deity, but quoted the twenty-first psalm, quoted as placing Himself along with us, what He can do by right, since by its human nature is similar to us in everything except sin

What if you are working in a sinful job?

If the work is truly sin-based, it must be abandoned. I understand that these are difficult times, and to find new job very difficult, but this is already a matter of your inner faith - how much you trust God. The Lord said: “Can a woman forget her sucking child, so that she does not have compassion on the son of her womb? But if she also forgot, then I will not forget you. " (Is.49: 15) And again: “Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow, nor reap, nor collect in barns; and your Heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much better than them? " Of course, first of all, you need to consult with a clergyman, reasonably consider the problem and ways to solve it. Perhaps things will not be so categorical.

How should you deal with temptations?

There is a wonderful proverb: "I saw someone else's sin - correct yours!" Any temptation can become a reason for us to think about our own imperfection. On the other hand, our own conversion to God must have been the result of other people's prayers. Therefore, it will be wiser to sympathize, pray and not condemn.

How to Avoid Temptation Before Communion?

“If you begin to serve the Lord God, then prepare your soul for temptation” (Sire. 2: 1). It may be worth avoiding situations in which conflicts and fussiness arise. It is necessary to stock up on patience and goodwill towards everyone at home. Let us be wise, for we ourselves are not always a blessing to our neighbors. May the Lord strengthen!
They say that you have to be able to endure yourself. How can this be achieved?

Patience of oneself is the belief that we are all children of God! We need to try to see the world as the loving God sees it. At the same time, you need to admit your own human weaknesses and shortcomings. Confess and humbly accept ourselves as we are. We are all moving towards the finish line in broken cars! And although God can strengthen us and partially correct us, we still do not become angels until we die. Realizing this will protect us from despair and make us wiser. We can serve with the talents we have and do more if we remain in grace. Therefore, more faith in God's love and indulgence towards ourselves and our neighbors.
How to understand the words of the Gospel: “O unfaithful and perverse generation! How long will I be with you? How long will I tolerate you? " (Matthew 17.17).

These words show us Jesus Christ as a true Human! As a true Son of God, Jesus as a man could get tired, resentful, and experience ordinary human emotions. Further in the text, the Lord reproaches His disciples for lack of faith, but an honest portrait of Jesus Christ is important for us and the evangelist gives it to us. Read the Bible regularly!
Is it acceptable for a Christian, the father of a family, to shift all the responsibilities of raising children to a working wife?

The father of the family must always be the father! Let's look at righteous Abraham: no family, no herd, no servants - nothing escaped his attention. Tell your husband that he is also the patriarch of his family and therefore he is responsible for everything. And you be a loving wife and a good mother. God help you!

Explain how often you need to order mass for the repose, for health every month or not?

You can make such "orders" at your own expense and as needed. The main thing is that you yourself continue to pray for yourself and your loved ones.

I often attend evening services and see how people approach the anointing with holy oil. Some folded their arms crosswise on their chest, others not. Tell me how to approach it correctly.

To answer your question, we need to refer to the history of our worship. In the first centuries of Christianity, people received communion in the following way: they received the Body of Christ in the palm of their hand, the right hand lay on top of the left, and they drank the Holy Blood from the Chalice. The communion of the clergy and laity proceeded in a similar manner. Over time, the form of receiving the Holy Mysteries changed. The "liar" came into use and ordinary laymen were no longer given the Sacrament under the guise of bread in their hands. But the very gesture of the folded palms remained. And then they began to recommend pressing the palms folded crosswise to the chest. This was the easiest way to transform this liturgical gesture. Answering your question, we can say that the gesture of crossed arms is appropriate only during Holy Communion, in all other cases it is optional.

And, of course, everyone would like to wish a more attentive attitude to the history and meaning of our Orthodox divine service!

From the life of the holy Apostle John the Theologian “Having lived to the age of 100, ap. John the Theologian, together with his disciples, left the city of Ephesus and commanded them to dig a cruciform grave for him and buried himself alive in it. " Why was he buried alive?
If I want to, but that one remains, until I come, that to you, you are coming along me. John ch.21,22: These highly significant words of the Lord about the supernatural immortality of John the Theologian, spoken to the Apostle Peter, were the answer to his question regarding the Apostle and Evangelist John the Theologian: This is what? That is, if I am crucified and die on the cross according to Your prediction for preaching and testifying about You before the Gentiles and Jews, then what kind of death will John die? And the Lord answers him as a righteous Judge who has the power of life and death: “If I want him to remain alive (until my second terrible coming to earth), what do you care about that? You come after Me, that is, you die for My sake on the cross, just as I died for you and for the human race, and John will live until the general resurrection and judgment ”(Holy Right John of Kronstadt). Having such God's design for himself, John the Theologian gives the command to his disciples to bury him alive, knowing that the Lord will take him away. Not wanting it to be visible, like the God-seer Moses, who departed before his death, so that his burial place would not become a place of worship, St. John did not want his disciples, seeing this, to idolize and worship him. So, John the Theologian departed, but did not die, but "he is still alive and does not depart from the earth, and waits for the second terrible coming of the Vladyka to earth, although in heaven he is facing the throne of God and always intercedes about the Church of Christ."

Can you walk without a cross? I am baptized, but I do not wear a cross. Does it really matter?

We must wear the cross so as not to deviate from the most ancient Christian tradition. When the sacrament of baptism is performed over a person, the hand of the priest puts on the cross, and the worldly unconsecrated hand does not dare to remove it. The cross accompanies us all our lives. We can only replace it if necessary. You can put on a consecrated wooden cross for an operation or in a bathhouse. The cross is material evidence of a person's belonging to the Church of Christ. At the same time, he is a sharp weapon in the spiritual struggle. A person who takes off his pectoral cross or does not wear it at all after baptism suffers from lack of faith and a lack of real church consciousness. They said about an immoral person in Russia: "There is no cross on him", "Only the devil is poor, there is no cross on him."

Can a dog be kept at home?

Can. There are no prohibitions on keeping any animals at home in the Holy Scriptures.

- Is it possible for a pregnant woman to baptize a child, to be a godfather of a child?

Of course you can! A good recipient should be a believer and, if possible, a friend of the family in which the baby is baptized. Your readiness for motherhood speaks of your mature attitude in life and is by no means a disadvantage.

- First Epistle to the Corinthians ch. 6.3. “Do you not know that we will judge the angels ...” Which angels refer to the words of Apostle. Paul who will be judged by the saints?

St. John Chrysostom explains the words of the Apostle as follows: “The Apostle speaks here about evil spirits, about those angels about whom Christ speaks:“ Go from Me, cursed, into eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels ”(Matthew 25:41) ... When these disembodied forces turn out to be worse than us, clothed with flesh, they will be subjected to the heaviest punishment. "

"Glory to Jesus Christ!" - this is how Catholics greet each other, but how should the Orthodox speak? Is there a dogmatic point in this tradition?

On Easter days we all greet each other with the words: "Christ is Risen"! On Christmas day we say: "Christ is born"! But there is also a church greeting for ordinary times. We must say: "Christ is in our midst"! Answer: "And it is, and it will be!" At present, everyday greetings are used only by clergymen performing Divine Liturgy. Having lost these words in everyday etiquette, we replace them with whatever we can. This and: "Bless", and "Lord save", and anything else. It would be right to return to their Orthodox practice, then there would be no need to watch how Catholics do it.

In the Gospel we read the words of Jesus Christ: “I have revealed Your Name to them, and I will reveal” (John 17.6). What is this Name? Jesus or love, or maybe Father, Son and Holy Spirit?

"Revealing the name", Jesus speaks about the intimate connection between God the Father and Himself, teaches about His own saving mission.
To reveal the salvation plan of God, His love for people is, in this sense, “the name is revealed”. Through Jesus Christ, the love of God the Father was revealed to us and the grace of the Holy Spirit is given. Now we have learned that “God is love” (1. John 4:16).

Is it possible to wipe the face on the icons with a cloth, or do you just need to carefully blow off the dust from it? I was told that the face should not be touched. It's true?

You can wipe the icons, do not touch (and do not kiss) the face, so as not to damage it, and not from sacramental motives.

I recently came across this video testimony (...), and as a believer, it shocked me. I know you can't trust this, but I still want to know if this testimony is true?

What confuses you? In Catholicism, for a long time, the delirium of a sick imagination, the delusion of demonic and direct demonic content has been elevated to the rank of revelation. The content of such "revelations" is not a reflection of objective reality, but reflects only what was shown by demons. The girl filmed on the video speaks the truth, that she saw, that she heard, then she speaks. Only the source is confused. And she has no means to distinguish the demon from the angel. In Orthodoxy, this phenomenon has been known for a long time and has its own name - charm. I advise you, for your personal spiritual safety, never under any circumstances to look, listen or discuss anything related to supernatural phenomena and mystical experiences. After the fall, the Lord gave a man with leather robes to protect him from the direct influence of demons exiled to earth, in the same space as man. But we are curious…. So we strive to dig a hole in these protective vestments. But it is not the knowledge of the truth that enters into the hole, but the knowledge of demons. The goal of these subjects is death.

Our son decided to marry a second time. Registration and wedding falls on post - April 23rd. They have been living together for three years, they decided to formalize the relationship. When they were going to get married, they did not ask for our blessing, but at the wedding they want us to bless them with icons. Tell me, can they be blessed and when - before registration or after?
If your son is in a prodigal cohabitation, let him formalize the relationship at any time. And if you are not against this marriage, you can bless them with icons. Before painting. Although, I must say frankly: the week before Holy Week is not the right time for a wedding. In general, an absurd situation: people who, it seems, do not care about church rules, for some reason ask for blessings ...

When I pray, I am “ashamed” to look at the icons. I feel very guilty, but they seem to be alive. Is it okay?
This is unusual, but not abnormal. The grace of God sharpens spiritual vision, makes it possible to see more clearly your weaknesses, your imperfection. And you are ashamed of him before the face of God, before the face of the saints.
For some time now I am very worried about coldness, petrified insensibility in confession. I repent, but formally I list the sins. And the father does not ask leading questions. Will the Lord accept such a confession?
Will accept. Leading questions in confession are a good thing, but not the only one to cope with spiritual coldness. No one is free from it or from what the holy fathers called petrified insensibility. And they had to overcome it as an inevitable temptation. Not at the beginning of the path to God, as a rule, when the Lord revealed Himself with a certain pledge, but along the way, according to the strength and faith of everyone. And in such a way that sometimes patience was the only thing that was required for this. And repentance itself, its authenticity is determined not by the details in confession, and not even by feelings, but by determination and a real change in life. In which and God confirm.
Lately, gloom, sadness, feelings of uselessness, hopelessness and loneliness have come over me. Tell me what to do?
One must live, realizing that despondency, because of whatever it may be, is a sinful state. Derivative of laziness, as a rule. And not so much the body as the soul. The soul is obliged to work. Turning to God - the Source of meaning, joy, all good, with which it is possible to fill human life. But it also happens in her that happens against the will and choice: the loss of loved ones, illness, loneliness. This is the dignity of a Christian, to take them like a cross, and to bear them without murmurings. Strengthen the Lord.
I work in a working environment where an adequate response to rudeness from the standpoint of common sense is the same rudeness, that is, swearing and insult. No matter how hard you try to avoid such an answer, any other answer in this environment seems weak, and mate, it seems, is a sin. In our real life, we often have to choose not between greater and lesser good, but the lesser of two evils? That is, an Orthodox person feels himself defenseless against rudeness, he cannot do much, but they can do anything. How to be?
A harsh answer can be without rudeness, and without swearing, which, by the way, is not only a curse, but also a blasphemy - against the mother, against the Mother of God. If you wish, you can not only yourself not to participate in collective bestiality, but also not to allow others in your presence if you are afraid to seem soft. And Christ at one time did not hesitate to expel merchants from the Jerusalem temple. We will not invent a new gospel. Try to follow it to the best of your ability and ability. God help.

Question # 1: Explain, father, is it possible to read thanksgiving prayers for Holy Communion in the morning before going to church? Or should they be read strictly after communion?
In thanksgiving prayers for Holy Communion, we thank God for His Gift, given to us in the sacrament of the Eucharist, therefore it is advisable to perform them after receiving the Holy Mysteries of Christ.

Question # 2: When can a prayer rule be shortened?
Prayer is necessary for the soul as breath for the body. “Through prayer, the soul is spiritualized by the Holy Spirit. There is a prayer - the Spirit lives; no prayer - no life in the spirit ”(St. Theophan the Recluse). Therefore, you should not shorten the prayer rule without good reason. It is necessary to observe that for "good reasons" the reduction does not become the norm for you. God help you!

Question No. 3: Epistle to Ephesians 4:26: “When you are angry, do not sin ...” How can you not sin if anger is already a sin?
Anger and irritability are one of the most dangerous passions, but they can also be mastered and made to “work” for oneself, ie. turn this ability of our soul to the very passion of anger. St. The Fathers call this "righteous anger." "It is not only permissible, but indeed salutary, to be angry at your own sins and shortcomings." (St. Demetrius of Rostov) "Whoever is angry with demons is not vindictive against people" (St. Nil of Sinai) "When you feel a strong influx of anger within yourself, try to be silent ..." (Metropolitan Philaret of Moscow). One must even argue without bitterness and without anger, since irritation is immediately transmitted to another, infecting him, but not convincing him of the righteousness. Give us, Lord, the virtue of humility!

No. 4 question: What kind of prayer is there for evil thoughts?
Prayers are supplicatory, thanksgiving, praise. Your question is about supplicatory prayers. To answer the question, you need to know what kind of bad thought torments you. In complete prayer books, such as "Prayer Shield of an Orthodox Christian" or "Prayer Book for Every Need and Every Day", etc. there are many prayers "With impure thoughts", "In little faith", "In demonic misfortunes and temptations", "In prodigal battle", etc. The shortest supplicatory prayer "Lord have mercy". God save you!
Question No. 5: In the 3rd antiphon there are the words: "Blessed are the poor in spirit ...", and in the festive troparions they sing: "... rich in poverty ...". Is it about those who gave everything to the Lord, or should we somehow understand it differently?
"Blessed are the poor in spirit", those who consider themselves worse than any sinner, see their sins, the weakness of their minds, feel their helplessness, therefore they resort always and everywhere to God, therefore they feel graceful peace and joy in their hearts, therefore they rich…". A beggar in spirit can be rich or poor. The rich serve the poor with their wealth, and the poor do not lose heart in their poverty, but both are in the grace of God and are always happy with everything. I wish all of us to have such poverty of spirit.

I often hear that you can't come to church with your candles. What is the difference? Can you explain please!

We find the answer to your question already in the first pages of the Bible. When we read how God accepted Abel's sacrifice and rejected Cain's sacrifice, we should think about the fact that not every sacrifice is pleasing to God. Abel was a herder and brought God the very best of his flocks. Cain was a farmer and brought a sheaf of wheat to the altar. According to the interpretation of the Church Fathers, Cain brought already threshed ears, and therefore God rejected his sacrifice. So a greedy and ungrateful heart was deprived of God's blessing. When we put even cheap candles in the church, this is already our feasible sacrifice. And if we light candles purchased elsewhere, then this is only an imitation of a donation and our prayer becomes dishonest. Of course, there are days when it seems that we have absolutely nothing to bring to God. But even then we ourselves can stand like candles and burn with love and fervent prayer for ourselves and our loved ones.
Should confessed sins be remembered? If you follow the words of the prayer: "Deliver me from many and fierce memories and enterprises," then it seems like there is no need to remember, but what if they come to mind anyway?

In the sacrament of repentance, absolutely all sins are forgiven. Coming to confession, we need to confess the sins that we committed after the last confession. The words of the prayer that you quote do not just warn us against remembering the past, they warn against compassion for the sin that has remained far behind us. A person is weak, and sometimes remembering past sins, we imperceptibly incline to the idea of \u200b\u200bthe possibility of repeating them. It happens that we are tormented by something from our past, and we want to tell our confessor about it. To do this, you can use not only confession, but also a private conversation with the priest. In general, we all often lack optimism, patience and a desire to thank God for everything we have.
God help you!
How to understand the words of the Gospel: “Pray that your flight will not happen in winter or on Saturday (Matthew 24:20)?
The entire chapter that you cite prophesies about the last times and at the same time about the imminent disasters that were to befall the city of Jerusalem. Remembering the words of the Lord, many Christians left the city, hearing about the approach of the Roman troops led by Titus (70th year).
The call of Jesus Christ for such a prayer warned of the possible dangers of the impending flight. In winter, it is not easy to get away quickly to a safe distance, and on Saturday, faithfulness to the Old Testament could have thwarted such an attempt. Thus, careful and thoughtful reading of the Gospel saved the lives of many Christians who lived in first-century Judea.

Priest Alexander Kazakov answers

What kind of participation should the godparents take in the upbringing of the godson?
Godparents are responsible before God for the spiritual education and piety of their godchildren, and therefore must instruct them in the Orthodox faith and a pious Christian life.
During the liturgy of the catechumens, with the exclamation of the priest: “Proclaimed ones, bow your heads to the Lord,” all those present in the church bow their heads. But this only applies to the unbaptized. What should you do?
You yourself answered your own question. The head bow applies only to those preparing for baptism.
Is it true that when you go up to the cross after communion, you shouldn't kiss the priest's hand?
After communion before drinking, one should refrain from kissing the icons and the priest's hand, but there is no such rule that the one who received the communion should not kiss the icons and the priest's hand on this day. It is important to keep your tongue, thoughts and heart from all evil.
At what age should a child fast before the sacrament?
There is no specific rule for children, everything is decided individually with the priest. In a Christian family: parents fast - children also fast, if they are healthy.
According to tradition, in the temple during the service, men and women stand on opposite sides. Should the husband and wife stand side by side or also apart?
If you intend to observe traditions and they are observed in your temple, then stand apart.
First Epistle to the Corinthians by St. ap. Paul ch.12.3 "Therefore I tell you that no one who speaks by the Spirit of God will utter anathema against Jesus, and no one can call Jesus Lord except by the Holy Spirit." Question: Why can no one call Jesus Lord except by the Holy Spirit?
“When the Comforter comes, whom I will send you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, which proceeds from the Father, He will testify about Me.” (John 15:26)
Therefore, he who has the Holy Spirit confesses Jesus Christ as Lord, and he who does not have - no. Give us all, Lord, Your Holy Spirit! Amen.

Priest Igor Volikov answers

How to understand the words of the Gospel of Matthew ch. 24, 40-41: “Then there will be two in the field: one is taken, and the other is left; two grinding in millstones: one is taken and the other is left "?

- By those who are in the field are meant the rich, and by those who grind in the millstones - the poor, and he learns that from both the rich and the poor some are saved, and some perish. The rich are spoken of in the masculine gender, indicating their arrogance and strength, and the poor - in the feminine, denoting their humiliation and impotence. All who honestly acquired wealth and generously endured poverty are taken to meet the Lord, as His friends, and all those who behaved in a completely opposite way, like unworthy ones, are left below to wait for the Judge. Luke (17, 34) says differently about this: "... there will be two on the bed as one: one will be eaten, and the other will be left: you will be two together grinding: one will be eaten, and the other will be left", - denoting those on the bed who spend a restful life but those who grind - those who live in the midst of suffering. It is clear that this was expressed in different ways, first at one time, then at another: first what was said in Luke, and then what was said in Matthew. The world is called the field. The one who is saved is taken, and the one who is condemned is left. Let us know that both the poor and the rich, and the servants and gentlemen, are taken and left behind. Christ showed that not all the rich perish, and not all the poor are saved. That is why now he says: “Be careful, for you don’t know at what hour your Lord will come,” without specifying the day, but wishing that we were always ready for an answer.

How to pray to forget a loved one, so that the heart obeys the mind?

- Here it is necessary to clarify for what reason a person wants to forget a loved one and whether it needs to be done. If he left for another or for some other reason, you broke up, in this case, if you really really love, then you should wish your loved one happiness, even if not with you, have a desire to keep him in all possible ways - upward selfishness , so pray for your beloved, arrange your life yourself, over time the pain will subside. If we are talking about a destroyed family, then in such cases, unfortunately, or, more correctly, for edification, happiness is rarely found in a new family, as they say, you cannot build your happiness on someone else's misfortune. But even in this case, it is unworthy of a Christian to rejoice in their failures and quarrels, one must pray to the Lord for the enlightenment and softening of their hearts. If the question is about the death of a loved one, then why forget? Carry on the memory of him until the end of your days, pray for him, souls unite in prayer. Carrying love for him for the rest of your earthly life in your heart, and after death you will be with him. The pain of the loss will pass over time, one must firmly remember that this is temporary separation.

What is the difference between a regular memorial service and a 40-day memorial service?

- The funeral service for the fortieth day in the composition of the service is no different from the usual funeral service, but it is necessary, since according to church tradition we know that on the 40th day the fate of a person is decided before the last judgment, where he will stay - in hell or in paradise, therefore on this day it is necessary to pray as diligently as possible for the deceased, in order to incline the judgment of God to mercy.

Answer by Priest Alexander Dombrovsky

Recently I learned that before the Liturgy you should abstain from food, even if you yourself do not receive communion. It's true?

We then participate fully in the liturgy when we partake. To prepare for communion, there are special prayers and the so-called Eucharistic fast. According to the decision of the American Orthodox Church, it is 6 hours, it is customary for us not to eat food from midnight. According to the decision of the synod of our Church, it is quite possible to wash down the medicine with water before communion, if necessary. The eucharistic fast is not imposed on persons who do not approach the Sacrament of Holy Communion, but in the Orthodox Church there is a tradition to come to the service on an empty stomach, since after the end of the liturgy, all the faithful accept the shrine - antidor (gr.) - “instead of the gift” that is taught to those who are who could not receive the Holy Communion that day.
Is every world pleasing to God?

“If possible, be with everyone in the world,” says the apostle Paul. But sometimes in political life war comes as an allowance, test, or punishment. God alone knows its true reasons. We need, according to the word of Scripture, to seek peace with all our neighbors!
Is it only for sins to repent?

Strictly speaking, one must repent of sins that violate the specific commandments of God. You also need to repent of your passions, asking your confessor for advice in a particular life situation. Excessive "digging" in oneself leads to suspiciousness, complexes and fears. Everything needs a middle ground! Answering your question, I would advise not only to repent, but also to thank the Lord for everything, and also strive for spiritual vigor. The Bible teaches us the need for spiritual growth - "from a baby to a perfect husband." This means that we need to be able to repent, rejoice, and live a fulfilling life. Help God!
Now the songs of Hieromonk Roman (Matyushin) are often sung, they say he is from Trubchevsk. Tell us what you can.

Hieromonk Roman, in the world Alexander Ivanovich Matyushin. Born on November 16, 1954. in the village of Ryabchevsk, Trubchevsky district, Bryansk region.
He graduated from the Faculty of Philology at the University of Elista, taught at school. Alexander began to write poetry in his youth, already his early poems are distinguished by poetic literacy. In 1983 he took monastic vows at the Pskov-Pechersk Monastery, then served in the parishes of the Pskov region, in the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra after its opening. In 1985 he was ordained a hieromonk. His mother, Zoya Nikolaevna, also took monastic vows. In October 2003, Hieromonk Roman secluded himself from the world in the Vetrovo skete, which can only be reached by water. Despite the shutter, he continues to write poetry. Songs to the verses of Hieromonk Roman are performed by Zhanna Bichevskaya, Oleg Pogudin, Sergei Bezrukov, Maxim Troshin, Elena Vaenga, the Kuban Cossack Choir and other performers.
This is what Valentin Rasputin writes about Hieromonk Roman: “His songs, which sounded so unexpectedly and so necessary in the mournful time of our Golgotha, they contain an answer to the spiritual needs of our people. To say that this is a prayerful and ascetic voice means to point to only one color of a wounded heart. In them there is sorrow, and pain, and remorseless repentance to oneself, and the first movements of the awakening soul, and the happy tears of its acquisition. "

From the life of St. Paisius the Great, we learn that at a mature age he accepted monasticism in the Egyptian skete, where he lived in perfect solitude. For 3 years he did not see a human face, studied the Holy Scriptures, fasted, prayed and prospered in all virtue.
How can you succeed in all virtue without associating with people?
Only in the experience of silence and complete solitude is a true meeting with oneself and with God possible. Therefore, we find similar examples in the lives of many saints. In our personal spiritual work, minutes of contemplation and complete solitude are also needed.
Priest Igor Volikov answers

“And the lord commended the unfaithful steward, that he had acted wisely; for the sons of this world are more discerning than the sons of light in their own kind. " Why did the master praise his steward? Ch.16, verse 8 Gospel according to Luke. And what is the meaning of the words of verse 9 of the same chapter: "Make friends for yourself by the riches of the unrighteous"

Let us turn to the explanation that Archpriest Timofey Butkevich gives to this "praise", and together with the deed of the steward. According to his interpretation, the housekeeper discarded from the accounts of the debtors only what he himself had, since he had previously written in receipts both the amount for which he rented out the land to the tenants in agreement with his master, and that which he intended to appropriate personally for himself. Since now he no longer had the opportunity to receive the amount he had negotiated for himself - he was leaving the service - he changed the receipts, without this decisively
no damage to his master, because he still had to receive his. Thus, indeed, the owner, as a decent person, was not motivated to insist that the debtors contribute in his favor everything that was spoken from them by the steward: he considered them owed a much smaller amount. The steward did not hurt him - why should the owner not praise him? To such approval of the expediency of the housekeeper's act, there is an instruction "Make friends for yourself with unrighteous wealth" - the housekeeper, having thrown off part of the borrowers' debt, thereby acquired in their person friends who, in the event of the housekeeper's dismissal, could take him into their homes, although part of the written off duty and was unrighteous,
because she profited from the funds borrowed from him
lord. All of the above can be expressed like this: Lord
calls on people who have acquired their wealth in an unrighteous way, to spend it on acquiring friends who can bring them into the House of God, that is, in other words, to spend it on good deeds and helping others, then, despite the fact that wealth, once acquired unrighteously can serve salvation.

How to visit the temple so that walking will be salutary?

The apostolic canons say that a Christian should not miss more than two Sunday services without good reason, otherwise he will be excommunicated from the Church. If we talk about the spiritual component, then participation in all the Sacraments of the Church is mandatory, especially in confession and communion. Regularity should be discussed with the spiritual father, if he is not there, then with the parish priest. It is also very important to remember that you come to the temple to pray together. According to the teachings of the holy fathers, once said in church: “Lord, have mercy!” Is the same as repeating this prayer a thousand times at home. Only in the church does a Christian receive spiritual support, assistance, which he cannot find outside the church, no matter how hard and much he prays. Wandering eyes, looking
praying, mental condemnation of the behavior or clothing of parishioners is unacceptable, all thoughts and gaze should be directed to God. If it is not possible to observe the course of the Divine service, lower your gaze down. The elders have such a concept - keeping the gaze. The state of salvation is when you leave the temple at the end of the service with a feeling of spiritual lightness and peace. If this does not happen, try to look for the reason, consulting with a priest.

What does Sunday school do?

Sunday school is one of the Church's activities that provides her with a strong connection with the worldly life. After all, it is the organization of a Sunday school in a parish that is an invaluable opportunity to introduce not only children, but also their parents to church life. Classes in the Sunday school at the Church of the Holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Prince Vladimir Kletnya are similar to any other developmental activities for schoolchildren: for an hour and a half, children are busy reading, drawing, singing, and dancing. Only if the reading is from the Holy Scripture, if the crafts - then to the Orthodox holiday, if the singing and choreographic performance are also of a Christian orientation. The lesson begins and ends with a prayer, as well as a joint sweet meal. The beneficial benefits of such activities can hardly be overestimated. Children are surrounded by believers. They learn to perceive prayer, the Sacraments, immersion in their own spiritual world not as some kind of exotic local history, but as a normal full-fledged life, perhaps even more complete than that of their peers deprived of this source of joy.

Priest Alexander Kazakov answers

Can parishioners use the passage between the analogion, on which the festive icon lies, and the Royal Doors?

- During the service, movement around the temple should be limited, all the more you should not pass between the festive analogion and the pulpit. This passage is used when they come to Communion and kiss the Cross. You also need to remember the rule: you cannot pass between the priest and the See during the service.

The patron saint and the Guardian Angel are the same spiritual person or are they different?

Different. The guardian angel is given by God at baptism and each has his own, and the heavenly patron is the one whose name you bear.

Why is it customary to consecrate Easter cakes and Easter in the church? Do they really lose their significance without this rite?

In the church we rejoice and partake of the Heavenly Bread - the Body and Blood of Christ, we receive Christ into our heart and into our body. And on Easter, we are not interested in the abundance of various delicacies on the table. Whether there are such, whether not - it does not matter. The question is different. Bread is a symbol of life. But we receive bread from God. And Easter cake is not just bread for our food, but bread of the joy of the holiday, which we eat at home, during agapa, a festive home meal. Why is it still necessary to consecrate Easter foods? So that the blessing of God dwells on our food and on us.

If a person received Holy Communion on Easter night, how should he behave at the festive meal? Is it possible to break fast with everyone, eat meat and wine?

Those who have received the Holy Communion on Easter night can partake of everything that will be offered at the festive meal.

Is it true that in the first seven days after Easter one should constantly partake of the Holy Mysteries of Christ? Can you tell us more about this?

Venerable Nicodemus Svyatogorets says: "Those who, although fast before Easter, do not receive Communion on Easter, such people do not celebrate Easter ...". According to Canon 66 of the Trulla Cathedral, the faithful should enjoy the Holy Mysteries throughout the entire Bright Week. On these days, the faithful do not fast, but the Followings to Holy Communion are read.

Please tell us about the icons on the iconostasis and their naming.

- The modern iconostasis was finally formed in the 16th century.

In the first row there are two-winged Royal Doors, as well as one-winged deacons: northern and southern. The image of the Annunciation and four evangelists are placed on the Royal Doors. To the right of them is the image of the Savior, and then the temple icon. To the left of the Royal Doors is the image of the Mother of God, and then the locally revered icon of a holiday or saint. They are placed on both sides depending on the size of the iconostasis. Archangels Michael and Gabriel or archdeacons Stephen and Lawrence are usually depicted on the deacon's gates. The image of the Last Supper is placed above the Royal Doors, which opens the second row of the iconostasis. On the right and left sides there are icons of the Twelve Great Feasts.

The third row of icons has as its center the image of Christ the Almighty, seated on a throne in royal vestments. To the right of Him is the Mother of God, and to the left is John the Baptist. These three icons are called deisis (prayer). Next, the apostles are depicted. Their faces are depicted turned to Christ. In the center of the 4th row the Mother of God with the Infant God is depicted, and on both sides the Old Testament prophets. In the 5th row, the forefathers are depicted on one side, the saints on the other. The iconostasis is crowned with the Cross.

Answer by Priest Alexander Dombrovsky

Father, explain: here I am saying that someone did wrong, said wrong, and so on. I am told that this is condemnation. But I just say so, not condemn. Is there any borderline between "just said" and "condemned."
We all love to talk about other people. At the same time, if the conversation touches the merits of our neighbors, we become silent or even grieve. But it is worth talking about other people's mistakes, as the interlocutors seem to be transformed. A light appears in the eyes and even people who are indifferent to each other become closer. What to say? We are all brought together by gossip, just as teenagers are brought together by the sin of smoking. It is useful to distinguish between habitual but nevertheless sinful idle talk (“just said”) from condemnation, but where can we find this line? Let's see the final result. When we heard the news about the misbehavior of our acquaintances, what did we respond to? “Help them, Lord!” Or “We are all sinners,” or maybe they just smiled meaningfully? Did we have sorrow for the sins of others, or at least a little sympathy for those people? If not, then we condemned. Of course, it is very difficult to be one hundred percent vigilant in communication. But let us remember that everyone speaks from "the abundance of his heart" and "For the pure, everything is pure." You need to constantly learn to look at the world with kind eyes, have sympathy for all people and even in inveterate sinners to see the image of God!
TOwhat treats can you bless for Easter?
After the Easter service, the priest reads prayers for the blessing of eggs, cakes and meat. Also, according to the Orthodox tradition, Easter cottage cheese is consecrated.
Why is the egg a symbol of Easter?
The egg looks very much like a stone, but we know that new life is hidden inside it. When the disciples buried the body of Jesus Christ, the situation was tragic, but outwardly it seemed quite natural. No one in those minutes thought about the coming Resurrection of the Teacher. But as a chicken emerges from an egg, so the True Life shone from the grave. Therefore, the egg is a very accurate symbol. There is also a legend about Mary Magdalene's gift to Emperor Tiberius of an egg, which miraculously changed its color to red. This was a proof of the Resurrection of the Savior preached by Mary.
In different Local Churches and among different peoples, the traditions associated with Easter may differ, but the main thing in all of them is invariable - our faith and joy in the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Why don't they visit the cemetery on Easter?
The day of Holy Easter and the whole next week are considered especially joyful and festive, therefore, according to the Charter of the Holy Church, funeral services are not performed on these days. The first day when you can commemorate the dead is Tuesday of the next week. On this day, all the accumulated notes about the dead were collected and funeral services were performed in the cemeteries.
Confirmation and Blessing of Oil: What's the Difference?
The Sacrament of Confirmation is performed immediately after Baptism and imparts to the baptized the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Confirmation, like Baptism itself, is performed once in a lifetime and strengthens us in spiritual life.
Blessing of the Holy Oil or Unction is a sacrament in which, when the body is anointed with oil, the healing grace of God is called upon the sick person. The sacrament is performed by one or more clergymen. Throughout his life, a believer can resort to this sacrament more than once.

"Anti-Easter" - what is it, the opposite of Easter?
Translated from Greek "Antipascha" means "instead of Easter." This is the name of the week following Bright Week.
On it, the Church recalls a person for whom, in a sense, Easter came a week later than the other apostles: this is the Apostle Thomas. He could not fully believe the news that the Teacher was alive: “If I don’t see His wounds from nails on my hands, and I don’t put my finger in the wounds from the nails, and I don’t put my hand in His ribs, I will not believe (John 20: 25) ". And I saw - a week later, on that very Sunday, which we call Fomin today.

Priest Igor Volikov answers

- Is it possible to order a panikhida for the saints in our church or only at the shrine of the saints? If so, when to order - on Memorial Day or when your heart demands it?
- In the Orthodox Church, memorial services for the saints are not served, since in the prayers for the dead, forgiveness of the sins of the deceased and the settling of his soul into the Kingdom of Heaven is requested. A person recognized as a saint by the church is already in the Kingdom of God, therefore the funeral service for a saint is wrong, it shows that you doubt his holiness or that a person is in the Kingdom of God. In some literature you could read that people ordered funeral services for the holy blessed Xenia of Petersburg or the blessed Matrona of Moscow, which could confuse you. This was done when they had not yet been glorified as saints. The saints should order prayer services; this can be done in any church on any day.
—When is the curtain of the Royal Doors open during divine services, when closed?
- The opening of the veil during the divine service marks the opening to the world of the mystery of Salvation, which has been hidden from time immemorial (Col. 1:26) and appeared to people during the incarnation of the Son of God, who opened the entrance to the Kingdom of Heaven. St. John Chrysostom says: "When you see the detachable curtains hanging in the gates of the altar, then think that the heavenly heavens open and the angels descend."
According to its significance, the veil is opened at those services in which the economy of the salvation of the human race is most revealed and in which the greatest hope is given to receive the Kingdom of Heaven, precisely at solemn, joyful services. These are the services: Vespers, Matins, Liturgy, the hours at which the Gospel is read, Compline, when the all-night vigil begins, prayer chants, since they are similar in composition to Matins and the Gospel is read on them, etc. But at services depicting our sinful state and God's wrath for our sins, at the services of the repentant, sad, the veil is not opened. So, it does not open at those services that the statute prescribes to be performed in the vestibule, namely: on the clock (if the Gospel is not read on it), at small vespers, at Compline and Midnight Office.
- How to understand the words of the Gospel: “And the Lord said: Simon! Simon! Behold, Satan asked to sow you like wheat "(Luke 22:31)? - not tares
As the wheat in the sieve of a sifting person beats and thrown incessantly turns over in him, so the prince of deceit with earthly affairs occupies all people, hesitates, leads to confusion and anxiety, makes him try to vain thoughts, vile desires, earthly and worldly connections, ceaselessly captivating, embarrassing, catching the whole sinful race of Adam. And the Lord foretold to the Apostles the future uprising of the evil one on them: “Satan asks you to sow like wheat: I prayed” to My Father, “May your faith not fail”. For this word and definition, uttered by the Creator to Cain clearly: “groaning and shaking”, in alarm “be on the earth” (Genesis 4, 12), secretly serves as an image and likeness for all sinners; because the race of Adam, having transgressed the commandment and become a sinner, secretly took on this likeness. People are swayed by fickle thoughts of fear, fear, all embarrassment, desires, all kinds of pleasures. The prince of this world excites every soul that is not born of God, and, like wheat, constantly rotating in a sieve, excites human thoughts in various ways, shaking everyone, and catching them with worldly seductions, carnal pleasures, fear, embarrassment.

Priest Alexander Kazakov answers

Question: It happens that for some reason I cannot sleep. I begin to read prayers and do not notice how I fall asleep. Or I wake up reading a prayer aloud. I want to remember how I know her and immediately forget what I read. Will it not be imputed to me as a sin? Or is it a temptation?
answer: "With all prayer and petition, pray at all times in the Spirit, and strive for this very thing with all constancy and prayer for all the saints ..." Eph. 6 Article 18. And the fact that your spirit prays in a dream is neither sin nor temptation.
Question: On holidays, on Sunday during the Liturgy, I pray on my knees. The parishioners make the remark: "It is not supposed to kneel on the feast", Explain why? And what is the general attitude to the remarks made in the temple?
Answer: Bowing is a symbolic act that expresses a sense of reverence for God. Kneeling symbolizes the fall of man through sin, and rebellion is salvation according to the love of God. It must be remembered that the matter is not in words and bows, but in raising the mind and heart to God. On holidays and Sundays, kneeling is really canceled, because on these days we praise and thank God, and on ordinary days we perform prayers of a repentant nature. But there are moments in the divine service when bows are imposed according to the statute, for example, during the exercise of the Holy Gifts. The bowing rule should be studied in the Appendix to the Book of Hours or in some complete prayer books. And the comments in the temple should be treated with humility.
question: On Christmas Eve and on the Baptism of the Lord, water is consecrated with the same solemn, great rite. But why twice? and January 18 and 19?
Answer: Church days according to the charter begin in the evening. And on Epiphany Eve, the Great Blessing of Water begins after Vespers, which already belongs to the Feast itself, although it is celebrated on the 18th.
Question: We rarely go to our church, but when we go to holy places, we say: "What grace!" Maybe we perceive our enthusiasm for the moment as grace? Then what is real grace?
Answer: Grace is the acquisition of the Holy Spirit, which is given to a believing person by God according to His mercy. There are moments in a person's life when he feels the presence of the Holy Spirit in his heart, such a quiet joy and serenity, a feeling of forgiveness and all-embracing love. Usually, this happens after the communion of the Holy Mysteries of Christ. But these moments do not happen as often as we would like. Enthusiasm is a spiritual feeling, and grace is spiritual. It is not forbidden to travel to holy places, but this should not be the goal of the Christian life. The goal is to become like Christ and you need to learn this in your church.
question: What to say and what to do if friends ask you to pray for them?
Answer: One should always pray. If the one for whom they are asking is baptized in the Orthodox Church, then it is necessary to commemorate him at church services (mass, prayer services, requiems, etc.); if not baptized, then at home prayer.
Question: When is it better to read the Akathist to the saints: in the morning or in the evening?
Answer: Read at any time convenient for you.
question: Whom should we collect? How long does butter remain usable from unction?
Answer: Any baptized Orthodox Christian arriving in physical or mental illness can take the unction. If you use this oil with reverence and faith, then like any other consecrated substance (Holy water, prosphora), it does not lose its properties over time. Any use of "congregational" oil serves us as a blessing of God.
question: Instead of a cross, I wear a pendant with the image of the Mother of God with the Baby in her arms. Is it correct?
Answer: It is imperative to wear a pectoral cross, and with it the icon of the Mother of God and (or) your patron saint.

Answer by Priest Alexander Dombrovsky

- How should you greet people you don't like, when a person is younger than you or, perhaps, spoke badly about you. What is the best way to proceed?

Of course, not all people are sympathetic to us and not all are positive. We know about ourselves that we are not perfect. Therefore, not every meeting is capable of making us happy, just as we ourselves are not always in the joy of others. But let's see how the Lord teaches us! Sending His disciples to preach, He orders them to greet everyone with the wish of the world: "Peace be with you!" Preventing possible bewilderment, the Savior says that if someone is not worthy of this wish, the world will return again to the apostles. That is, the good that we sincerely desire, it does not disappear! In the epistles of St. the apostles are often greeted with a wish of health, which is similar to our modern practice. Therefore, if we show good manners and benevolence, then we will not lose anything, and there will be a little more good around us. In the end, the Lord Himself, Jesus Christ, teaches love not only for neighbors, but also for enemies. And there either the person we don't like will thaw out over time, or our world will return to us.

In most of the icons, the Most Holy Theotokos tenderly looks at the Divine Infant. But on one of the icons of the Nativity of Christ, She is facing the other direction. Why?

A huge number of venerated icons of the Mother of God are known in the Church. Among them there are miraculous ones, there are those that are considered canonical and generally accepted. But there is also a huge number of works belonging to folk artists. Each icon carries its own theology, its main idea, those feelings, the meaning that the master has endowed it with. Consider the image of Our Lady "Passionate". We see on it the Divine Infant, looking at the angels. In the hands of the angels, a cross, nails and a spear are signs of the impending atoning sacrifice. The Mother of God looks at us from the image and as if asks: "How do we accept Her motherly love and the sacrifice of Her Son?" In general, the look is the direction of our attention. If on the icon of the Nativity we see the Mother of God looking at the shepherds or wise men, then this means that both the Lord and the Mother of God are attentively addressed to all who come to them with faith and love on these holy days. May we be worthy of this holy attention!
How to understand the words of the Gospel: “And having finished all temptations, the devil departed from Him for a time” (Luke 4.13)?
We all know that the devil is the enemy of our salvation from the very beginning. He did not miss the opportunity to tempt the Son of Man, since the secret of the incarnation of God was hidden from him. So close and so obviously the devil came to the Savior only at the end of the forty-day fast preceding the public sermon. We read about the second case at the very end of the Gospel, when the Lord testifies that the enemy coming to him finds nothing in him. Throughout the rest of the Savior's life, we see how the enemy attacked and in every possible way interfered with the divine mission through sinful and erring people. But these were only external attacks, the devil dared to approach only twice. Therefore, it is said - "until the time." Each person must be ready to fight temptation. This is especially true for the beginners. “If you begin to serve the Lord God, then prepare your soul for temptation” (Sir 2.1).

Priest Igor Volikov answers

How to Prepare for the Sacrament if I Have Sugar
diabetes?
All issues related to illness and relaxation of fasting must be resolved individually with the parish priest. If the difficulty lies in the fact that you need to eat a little in the morning after the injection of insulin, then this should not bother you, but, again, this is decided strictly individually in a personal conversation with the priest.

Is it possible to read at home sacred books, do the morning and the evening rule is to pray without a headscarf on head while sitting?
The sacred books are read at least while sitting. Prayers are read while standing, if you have a leg disease or other reason that does not allow you to read prayers while standing, then in this case you need to receive the priest's blessing to read the prayer rule while sitting. A woman needs to pray in a headscarf (no matter where - in the temple or in any other place), thereby she shows her humility before the Lord.

Is it possible to attach photographs to holy relics?
There is no such tradition in the Orthodox Church. It is better to consecrate a handkerchief, a cross or an icon on the relics, and then donate to a loved one.

What to do with the candle after the prayer service?
There is no sacramental meaning here except for the symbol of your prayer, your burning to God, so act at your discretion, you can leave it in the temple, putting it on a candlestick for health, you can take it home and there it will burn out at home prayer.

What are the most important moments during the liturgy?
Reading the Gospel, the Cherubic song and the entire Eucharistic canon, to make it clearer, from the words "The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all" - until the end of the sacrament. In general, according to the charter of the Orthodox Church, it is forbidden to leave the temple after the Cherubic song, even for very important reasons. In the Teaching News, instructions for priests, it is indicated that if a dying person is to be given communion, then before the Cherubic song the priest can and must stop the service and go to commune the dying person; if this happened according to the Cherubim song, then he must rely on the will of God about the dying , and only at the end of the Liturgy to perform the sacrament.

“Why do I yawn when reading morning and evening prayers, and sometimes even tears flow from my eyes, especially when reading evening prayers.
-This happens among people who are new to the church, but it soon disappears as soon as a person begins to lead an Orthodox way of life. If you are a church-going person, observe all fasts, attend every Sunday service, regularly confess and partake of the Body and Blood of Christ, then you need to urgently turn to the priest and tell about what is happening in confession, since something is clearly going on in your spiritual life. ...

—In our morning prayers we pray for our spiritual father (Save, Lord, and have mercy on my spiritual father .. name ..) Can an acting priest be considered our spiritual father without his notification and consent? If not, then what to do when, within less than 3 years after the departure of Hegumen Sergius, who served for almost 30 years in our church, 3 priests were replaced. Who to pray for?
A spiritual father can only be considered a priest who has been leading your spiritual life for several years, to whom you trust your spiritual sighs, fulfilling his advice and blessings. Even if the priest has left the place of service, but is your confessor, you can keep in touch with him by phone or letter, asking for advice in perplexed questions and asking for prayers. If you did not have such a close relationship with your parish priest, he was not your spiritual father, then in this case I would advise you to choose from the current parish priests the one that is closer to you in spirit, to whom you could entrust your spiritual life. In the event that the parish clergy do not meet your spiritual needs, you can apply for care in the nearby monasteries. You can confess with any priest, they trust (trust) their spiritual life only to the confessor. If you do not yet have a spiritual father, it is appropriate to pray for the parish priest in your morning prayers.

-In what great holidays to wear headscarves of different colors on your head, does it matter a lot?
-In the charter of the Orthodox Church for each of the great or twelve-year holidays there are liturgical colors of the priest's vestments. This has nothing to do with the handkerchiefs of the parishioners. Of course, nothing bad will happen if you put on a blue scarf or handkerchief for the feast of the Most Holy Theotokos, but you should not get carried away with this. It will be enough if you put on a dark kerchief during fasting, and a light one on any holiday. Be simpler and more humble.

Is it possible to ask God for mercy on a daily basis in health, or about any other matter, or simply rely on God's Will?
-Prayer is a conversation with God, where we speak to him in words, and he answers with deeds. It's okay if in this conversation you are concerned about your health or the health of your loved ones, but you must always remember the words of the Lord "Seek the Kingdom of God first, and everything else will be added to you."

-Is it possible to read akathists on the same day and ask for help from different saints?
-It is possible, good and useful, as when going to a high leader it is reasonable to enlist the support of several people close to him, it is just as good to ask for help from several saints who will be your intercessors before God.
-Does a mother answer for the sins of grown-up children?
-In a direct relation, no, indirectly, yes, if she did not instill the proper spiritual and moral values. If the mother (parents) did everything in their power to make the child, becoming an adult, fully aware of the harmfulness of certain actions, then in this case, when the adult child is inclined to sin, the parents do not bear any indirect responsibility. The Lord created man free, and he makes a choice consciously, knowing the consequences of this choice.
-When does the Lord especially bow to mercy?
-The Lord said: "I want mercy, not sacrifice." You can pray a lot, give alms, observe fasting, etc., but if there is no mercy, compassion and forgiveness in your heart, all this will be in vain. Only by gaining the strength to forgiveness and compassion can you be confident in God's mercy towards yourself.
—John the Baptist is killed, an innocent death. why do we Christians celebrate this day?
-The day of the beheading of John the Baptist is the day of remembrance of his martyrdom, the day on which he appeared before the Lord. It is celebrated in Orthodoxy by strict fasting, but not by songs and dances. If the question of why this day is generally called a holiday, then for a Christian there is no longer that joy as the joy of meeting God. That is why - the Holiday.

Can you pray for people of other faiths?

• You can pray for everyone, only Orthodox Christians are commemorated at the Divine Liturgy. Although everything needs reason - I would not advise praying for outspoken Satanists or sorcerers, it may end badly.

Can you drink alcoholic tinctures during fasting?

• I think that there is nothing wrong with that. This is the same medicine. The main thing is to benefit.

Is it possible to drink water from the prayer service if you have not ordered it?

• Moleben is a small service that is usually performed after the liturgy. There is a prayer service for water, when water is blessed, and the believers after the service disassemble it for their own needs. Depending on the needs of the believers, a prayer service is served: about health, about a safe resolution from the burden (childbirth), about a safe journey, and others. If a person does not have the material opportunity to order the blessing of water himself, of course, he can take consecrated water, drink it and use it for his own needs, without doubting anything.

What does the Six Psalms (the word itself) mean? When to read it, when to bow?

• The Six Psalms (six psalms) is one of the most important parts of the evening divine service of the Orthodox Church, consisting of six penitential psalms of the Prophet David: 3, 37, 62, 87, 102 and 142. The importance of this part of the morning divine service is evidenced by the fact that the Six Psalms at almost all times of the year is read without urgency at every morning divine service, everyday, Saturday and Sunday (with the exception of Bright Easter Week).So that the attention of the listeners is not entertained by anything while reading the Six Psalms, so that they can more conveniently delve into the meaning of what is being read, for this the charter of the Church, before the beginning of the reading, supposes to extinguish almost all especially bright lamps and leave the worshipers in the twilight. The priest leaves the altar and stands in front of the royal doors to read secret prayers. He represents Adam, expelled from paradise, who weeps before the doors of the lost paradise. Therefore, even the reader is not ordered by the charter to bow to "Alleluia" so as not to be distracted from the words of repentance. After all, it is known that the Six Psalms symbolizes the Last Judgment. And the sign of the cross, even performed without bowing, still causes some slight noise in the church ...

• In prayer books there are special prayers for despair and despondency, but I would advise, based on my own practice, to read the grateful akathist "Glory to God for everything", as well as read one kathisma from the Psalter every day.

Is fasting bodily useful without spiritual?

• Fasting is not an end, but a means. Refusal of modest food is the outward side of the matter. And we must remember that we fast not for the sake of abstaining from food, but in order to reach heights on our spiritual path. The Monk Anatoly (Zertsalov) wrote: “Not eating bread and not drinking water or anything else is not fasting yet. For even demons do not eat or drink absolutely nothing, but nevertheless they are evil ... "And Elder Nikon aptly and briefly remarked:" True fasting is alienation of evil deeds "(so it is said in one stichera of the Great Lent)." simple diet.

How can you avoid temptation before the sacrament?

• If before communion you have tempting thoughts, you should be guided by three rules:

a) firstly, impure thoughts must be separated from your own consciousness, for they are not a product of your soul, but the seeds of demonic malice, introduced from the outside into your mind;
b) secondly, resist blasphemy by prayer to God, not letting thoughts take over your mind. In no case do not indulge in reasoning with yourself about the thoughts that have arisen in your mind: the demons just need this - in a dispute they will certainly defeat you, since they have centuries-old practice of conducting such discussions;
c) third, fully open your soul to your confessor in confession, tell him about the blasphemous thoughts that worry you. Frank confession destroys all demonic intrigues.
I often condemn what to do?

• To correct and learn to love, you need to pray like this: "Lord, bless all whom I have condemned (names), and their holy prayers, and have mercy on me, the accursed one." - With this prayer, 12 bows in the bow. When you cannot wean yourself from condemnation, you need to read 150 times "Theotokos, Virgin, rejoice," and the Mother of God will help you not to condemn anyone. It is also useful if thoughts of condemnation do not lag behind, remember your sins, condemning yourself and reproaching more than that person.

Why can't you sit cross-legged in the temple?

• In the church, a person should be humble and listen to what is happening there, and when a person crosses his legs, he demonstrates his arrogance. It turns out that before the Lord he does not tremble, does not respect, does not love Him. In general, it is not customary to sit in the Orthodox Church; only sick people can afford it. It's hard for me to imagine that a person with a sore back or sore legs can sit cross-legged.

How to deal with proud, arrogant, irritable people?

• Pride is a terrible mental illness that is very difficult to cure. There is no more vile sin before God than pride. But do not forget that evil is always conquered by good, and that for a proud, irritable person you need to pray like a sick person, while reading the akathist to the Most Holy Theotokos in front of the icon "Softening Evil Hearts" is good. If a person does not understand, it is better to stop communicating with him, preferably without quarreling.

What is better to order for health: mass or prayer?

• The main prayer for the health of the living and the repose of the departed Orthodox Christians is performed by the Church at the Divine Liturgy, bringing a bloodless sacrifice to God for them. To do this, before the start of the Liturgy (or the night before), notes with their names should be submitted to the church (only baptized, Orthodox Christians can be entered). At the proskomedia, particles will be removed from the prosphora for their health or for repose, and at the end of the liturgy they will be lowered into the holy bowl and washed in the Blood of the Son of God as a sign of the washing away of human sins by Christ. Let us remember that commemoration at the Divine Liturgy is the greatest blessing for those who are dear to us. At the prayer service, you can turn to the holy saints, our intercessors and intercessors before God, asking for help in all your needs.

You wrote here that your mother "cannot believe as the Orthodox Church demands." And I tell you that the Orthodox Church does not demand anything from anyone, she simply warns - do not jump from the fifth floor, it will hurt. You have reached the first floor so far, and you already think that you will have to jump, and try to shudder in pain in advance, forgetting that you may not have to jump, maybe you will stop.
Why do you go to Church? Because you are afraid? Looking at yourself and measuring everyone by your yardstick? And we go to church because we believe God, Who said: "He who comes to Me I will not cast out" (John 6.37) And where is your faith?
I began to notice that many people now think for everyone, and not just think, but try to live for others. And it turns out as in the old saying - there is still no horse, no cart, but they have already harnessed and drove off. Here you are, you are driving so dashingly that you fly past life, and what you are afraid of, you will get it in the end. But you can avoid this.

I don't know if you will see yourself in this, but it is written about this too:
Some kind of cook, literate,
I ran from the cook
In a tavern (he was a devout ruler
And on this day, according to the godmother, he ruled),
And at home guard food from mice
I left the cat.
But what does he see when he returns? On the floor
Pie scraps; and Vaska-Cat is in the corner,
Dropped behind a vinegar barrel,
Purring and grumbling, working on a chicken.
"Oh, you glutton! Ah, villain! -
Here Cook reproaches Vaska: -
Aren't you ashamed of the walls, not just people?
(And Vaska still removes the chicken.)
How! being an honest Cat until now,
It used to be that they seem to be an example of you humility, -
And you ... what a shame!
Now all the neighbors will say:
"Cat Vaska is a rogue! Cat Vaska is a thief!
And Vaska-de not only to the cook,
It is not necessary to let it into the yard,
Like a greedy wolf to the sheepfold:
He is a corruption, he is a plague, he is an ulcer of these places! "
And Vaska listens and eats.)
Here is my rhetorician, giving free rein to the flow,
I did not find an end to moralizing.
But what then? While he sang it,
Vaska the cat ate all the roast.
And I would tell a different cook to hack to death on the wall:
So as not to waste speeches there,
Where you need to use power.

How it looks like! Smoking another cigarette with menthol, sit and think, now, now all the demons will tell you not to let her into the Kingdom of Heaven ... Here you suffer, and there is still ...

Now we have a Week about the relaxed, that is, about the one who cannot do anything himself, because he has no strength. Twice, the Lord in the Gospels heals the paralyzed, one was brought by four, the other at the Sheep's font. And both heals with the simple forgiveness of sins. The relaxed immediately develop strength. Here we have too. After the Confession, it would be better to exercise power over oneself and not allow oneself to do such things. Believe us, we have the strength to do it! But, instead, we again indulge in persuading ourselves, or even again, doing the same. But even if you did not see these powers, go to Communion and ask the Lord for strength, take power over yourself and no longer sin by relaxing your mind. You just have to live!

It often happens to us
Both labor and wisdom to see there,
Where you can only guess
It's easy to get down to business.
They brought a Casket from the master to someone.
The decoration, the cleanliness of the Casket threw himself into the eyes;
Well, every Casket admired the beautiful.
Here comes the sage into the mechanics room.
Glancing at the Casket, he said: "A casket with a secret,
So; he is without a lock;
And I undertake to open; yes, yes, I am sure of that;
Don't laugh so surreptitiously!
I will find the secret and I will tell you the Casket:
In mechanics, and I'm worth something. "
Here he began to work on the Casket:
Turns it around from all sides
And breaks his head;
Now a carnation, then another, then a bracket shakes.
Here, looking at him, another
Shakes his head;
Those whisper, and they laugh among themselves.
In the ears, it just gives off:
"Not here, not so, not there!"
The mechanic is more torn.
Sweated, sweated; but finally tired
I lagged behind Casket
And I didn't know how to open it;
And the Casket just opened.

Our body was formed in the womb, with which we will go through life. Here, living on earth, we ourselves are already forming the soul. That is, we dress her in clothes, or in: “adultery, fornication, uncleanness, indecency, idolatry, magic, enmity, quarrels, envy, anger, strife, disagreements, [temptations,] heresy, hatred, murder, drunkenness, outrage, and so on. like ”(Gal.5.19-21), or in:“ love, joy, peace, longsuffering, goodness, mercy, faith, meekness, abstinence ”(Gal.5.22-23) Or in other words, in order to live in relaxation and leave from life, because the first clothes are easily acquired, just do not resist anything, and you will be like that. But such a person cannot see the Kingdom of Heaven. Or, having made every effort on oneself, put on a second garment, and then there will be something to cover up the shame on the same ordeals, I'm not talking about the Kingdom of Heaven. Everything is very simple and you don't have to invent anything!

04.05.15 Mon 15:11 - Anonymous

Polina Appolinaria

Oh, in vain, father, you think that I live in a relaxed mind. On the contrary, she is focused, she has changed a lot, a lot. I will never again enter into a relationship with a man, no matter how much I would like (Thank God, I don’t need this because of a painful state that is not relaxation of the body and mind, it’s just my once precious health “planted”), I will not cultivate envy and love of money, despite poverty, I will not feel sorry for myself (as Elena writes, she saw self-pity, but this is something else, really), I always pray when I see temptations (the closest prayer is "May God rise ...", i.e. prayer to the Cross, the Lord's prayer itself, I sincerely repent not just of some individual sins, but in my whole life, for which I really want to cry, not out of self-pity, as Elena writes, but out of repentance, simply because that it really hurts to turn back time and change everything, but from the fact that this cannot be done it hurts). Father Vladimir from the village of Glebychevo near Primorsk says that there is no need to think or say that, because the invaluable experience that you now have is not acquired in any other way, the way of the righteous and without mistakes. I feel that he is right, you need to let go of the past sins of life, which I will never consciously repeat, because I repented sincerely, very sincerely, for example: of adultery, blasphemy, condemnation, abortion (I listened to my mother, she’s a fool, but responsibility with I don’t take pictures of myself and I hope that during these damned ordeals they will not show me killed children, because then I did not perceive abortion as murder, because for me then a person was precisely "from birth", but not in a cellular state); now everything is different: I refused by an effort of will from antidepressants, sleeping pills, but I continue to take painkillers, which are akin to sleeping pills, simply because the dream is very strange and terrible, my back hurts; I cannot yet overcome the fear of hell, it is true, it seems to me everywhere, for example, in the book of Yulia Voznesenskaya "My Posthumous Adventures" everything is so colorfully described that I go to work, do something, and think of practically nothing else can. Forgive me for my frankness, I put everything on display on a common site, but somehow I can't do it any other way. Tell me all the same: will the good deeds of a person be reckoned there, in another world, despite the fact that he did not have time to receive communion? How to overcome fear, despair, reading literature about ordeals, if even prayer helps for a short time, but does not completely banish fear? Why is smoking considered a sin (this is not about me, there are generally different opinions on this), because even Andrei Kuraev "is not a sin, but rather a sinful habit"? Can the Lord have mercy if passions, negative emotions are still not defeated, it is not possible to eradicate them completely, because sometimes negative emotions and passion of anger arise precisely as a reaction to injustice, for me it is a reaction to obvious indifference? What if a divorce is necessary (I feel it more than I even know), but we have a child whom I will not raise either financially or in any way, because there is no health, elementary human strength, or you can simply rely on God and go take the divorce papers without fear? Thank you for the comparison with the cook in your parable and for the balcony "from which you may not have to jump ..."

04.05.15 Mon 22:00 - Priest Sergius

This parable is not mine, but Krylov's grandfathers "The Cat and the Cook"

I love to read Krylov, not only his fables, but also his early works, how subtly and accurately he conveys the likeness of our actions.
The main tactic of demons is divide and conquer. Therefore, when you act to destroy relationships with people, then, most likely, you were persuaded to do so by demons. So you are already starting to put walls between you and the people around you. I beg you not to do this, the farther from people, the farther from God, say almost all Holy Fathers. Remember that even such a weak person is needed, first of all, by your child, who will no longer have another father. God needs you, why then did He go to the Cross, so that you slowly drag yourself to suicide? I ask again: where is your faith? There is not a word about her, but it turns out that you read all sorts of books of dubious origin, some Orthodox fantasy and deduce your conclusions from these works, and not from the Gospel. Anything can dream here, not only the fear of ordeals. Julia Ascension Saint? glorified by the Church? that you take all her words on faith? Either there will be something like that, or not, it is written on the water with a pitchfork, and you are already waving like a flag: "A. It says there ..." I do not advise you to read such works, especially about ordeals. Teach yourself not to dwell on these thoughts. Start reading the Gospel better, Apostle, and every day, at least one chapter, but constantly. I think it won't be long before you finally master yourself.

About smoking. Once at the St. John of Kronstadt was asked: "Father, is it a sin to smoke?" - he replied: "Sin or not, I don't know, but they smell like a goat." There are many mansions in hell, there is a fiery hell, there is a student of decay, there is a gloom of eternal darkness, there are also smoky barracks ... Do you want to sit in the smoking room for eternity? After all, they are accustomed to "soothe" themselves with a cigarette or two. So you will "calm down" yourself forever. Smoke, this is the same sinful captivity, like the others, each cigarette takes by the collar and drags, let's go, and the person goes, because in captivity and does not even want to escape. You should not comfort yourself with the fact that this is not a sin, but a sinful habit. A habit, but a sinful one.

And one more property of sin - sin loves darkness, loves so that others do not see it, because it loses its power when it is seen, when it is in the light. He cannot, in this case, act freely. Therefore, I refused to correspond in personal mail, but remained on the site, forgive me if I caused any inconvenience. Continue to Confess, Communion. Once, when I had just come to faith, I went to an excuse. I realized that every disease is demons, so, I think, I will drive him out and I will live normally. I have ankylosing spondylitis, they say it is incurable. There are many people, and during the reading of the Gospel, usually everyone kneels. I'm on my knees on the second day, and in my head Someone asks: "What are you doing here?" I was already dumbfounded, wow, it's me about myself, so what am I thinking? and the Voice continues: "Do you go to Church? Do you confess? Do you take Communion? So what else do you want?" Then I realized that I would not have any healing, I had to humble myself. And indeed, a little later, he read from the Apostle Paul: “And so that I would not be exalted by the extreme revelations, I was given a thorn in the flesh, the angel of Satan, to oppress me so that I would not be exalted. Three times I prayed to the Lord to remove him from me. But The Lord said to me: “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” And therefore, I will much more willingly boast of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore, I am complacent in weaknesses, in offenses, in needs, in persecution , in oppression for Christ, for when I am weak, then I am strong "(2 Cor. 12.7-10) And after I became a priest, we got into an accident in a car, and now for the seventeenth year I have been walking bent. And, you know, nothing! It doesn't even bother me!

So I ask you, do not despair, but believe God, He knows how to protect us!

05/08/15 Fri 14:08 - Anonymous

Appolinaria

1. I also love Krylov, although I forgot this fable "The Cat and the Cook" from school, but when I said "Your parable" I did not mean, of course, "Your personal". It is clear that this is a very instructive fable, although, I must confess, it is very offensive for me.
2. You say: what Voznesenskaya writes about the ordeals - "with pitchforks on the water ..." But your phrase "there are many mansions in hell, there is fiery hell, there is a student of corruption, there is the darkness of eternal darkness, there are also smoky barracks .. . "- from St. Scriptures? I just can't remember the phrase about smoky barracks. It does not fit into my head that a smoking person, albeit with a kind heart (again, I do not mean myself, almost all of my relatives smoke, and I do not have a "nicotine" addiction, Thank God) can easily be thrown into hell ... Is this a revelation of the church? And why Voznesenskaya writes "with a pitchfork on the water," and blzh. Theodora, A. Optinsky, the book "On the Exodus of the Soul ..." and other sources - not "with a pitchfork on the water", because many describe ordeals ... Is it only because Voznesenskaya is "Christian fantasy"? After all, it actually repeats what the respected people of Orthodoxy write, only, I would say, in a softer form. When you listen to St. Oleg Stenyaev, for example, becomes not just bad, but very bad, because 20 ordeals are not a joke, this is torture for the soul. And no one, There, in another world, will ask: why did you do this (for example, stole when you did not have a way out at the moment, because of hunger, etc., or borrowed and did not pay in time - also stealing ?!), just acted badly - there is no excuse for this, whatever the reason. Here, of course, I already mean myself: I took money without asking my husband, because I knew that she would not give it, no matter how I asked, because he does not know what an attack is (I would not want to talk about an attack, but believe me, this is a very terrible thing), and a doctor cannot write a prescription for a prescription, and, unfortunately, the medicine is not, unfortunately, vital according to the legislation of the Russian Federation (as for diabetics).
3. Also, for the same reason, I took away the money from my grandfather, realizing that I could not fully repay the debt, only in parts. All this is not because I don’t want to work, but simply because I don’t have enough salary, I’m working for the time being, and I don’t master another job, highly paid. Tell me: what to do? Maybe there is a fund for help for people like me, who seem to be not disabled, because they will not give disability anyway, but not quite full-fledged people, whose ailments and pain do not allow them to work normally, and is familiar only to a tiny percentage of people so as not to fall into the sins of theft or the like, because, I'm afraid, I won't be able to pay off the debts or I won't give the whole amount, although I willingly forgive myself, it's easier for me, this is not a merit, or rather not my merit, but from God.
4. Tell me why divorce is necessarily "from demons"? For many years, I have not found a common language with my husband. After all, it is obvious that it is easier and easier for him in all respects to condemn me, to say: "you are pretending to justify your laziness", but in fact, it is simply a pity for me for money, and this greed in relation to me does not allow me to completely reconcile with his position, I'm not saying that he can easily humiliate me with a child, but I "stupidly" don't know how to prevent this? Isn't this kind of life with a man who, of course, does not love, although he is a wonderful, wonderful father to my child, or rather children, does not respect and regret (a synonym for love) - not a path to a heart attack, not destruction? I realize that during a divorce it will be financially difficult, probably unbearable, and I will not be able to support the children myself, but I really hope that they will not starve and the Lord will help, no ...? Hope for peace where it does not exist, and will no longer exist, can you only endure and not provoke your husband for either good or bad?

05/08/15 Fri 15:49 - Priest Sergius

"Everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin" (John 8:34)

So, if you cannot calm yourself down and go to bed without 1-2 menthol cigarettes (your words), and even without pills, then you are just the slave of those menthol cigarettes. Imagine, you got into the Kingdom of Heaven, and there are no smokers there, but you are already accustomed to these menthol cigarettes, you cannot live without them, you will have to look for a smoking room. And they are only in hell. You will enter there yourself, but you will not be able to leave, because you are a slave. Indeed, the Holy Scriptures do not mention smoky barracks, but a woman spoke about them who had an accident and died ... and then resurrected, and after a while, remembering everything, began to tell. This can be believed, because God is Love, and He does not take away the free will of a person, if a person really likes to smoke, then he will be given such an opportunity.
Blessed Theodora wrote about her experiences, St. Ambrose Optinsky spoke about what was revealed to him, and almost all Orthodox sources confirm their thoughts with the words of other authors. This is done in order to explain that they are not the only ones who say that, that is, they speak in a new way, but do not say anything new. Yulia Voznesenskaya, on the other hand, writes without referring to anyone, ordinary stories, seasoned abundantly with fantasies and all kinds of horror stories. In any case, when reading these books, I got the impression that I, in no case, will refer to her fantasies.

You see how cunning you are? You allow yourself to forgive the debts of other people to you, but you do not allow other people such an opportunity, to forgive you your debts. And carefully trying to hide this sin of yours, you are ruining yourself. Interestingly, have you even repented of this? You seem to know the Scripture.

I already wrote to you that the tactics of demons are all kinds of division. And this division comes from you, because you do not say that your husband wants to divorce you.

Now I will have questions for you: 1. How often do you go to church? 2. Do you go to the same temple? 3. How often do you confess and take communion? 4. Aren't you afraid of Confession? 5. What prayers do you read at home? 6. Do you confess to one priest?

09.05.15 Sat 14:27 - Anonymous

Appolinaria

Now I can't find your questions, in general your letter, so, from memory, I am writing inconsistently and not logically, sorry (the virus is in the computer, the lines "run away" from me):
1. I try to go to church every Sunday, but it doesn't always work out. If I don't go to church, I try to get “to the church on the screen,” on TV, on the Soyuz channel, and I repeat some prayers with the priest. Throughout my life I go to different churches, there are a lot of them in St. Petersburg, but I go to receive communion only in one (a wooden Orthodox church in the village of Glebychevo, Leningrad region) since relatively recently, because I trust Father Vladimir, he had my most complete confession, many hours long. I consider it to be the main thing in life, and it remains only to wonder how he endured me then and still endures. True, I am infinitely sorry that there is no material opportunity to visit him often.
2. You called me cunning, so my husband says so, he also says that I am lazy and impudent (it’s clear with him, it’s easier for him to think so as not to give money for treatment, this is obvious), well, God bless him, apparently so it is, but reading this in your letter, I honestly admit, it becomes very offensive, because I try, as best I can (since I came to faith) not to lie at all, not to be cunning and not to twist. In vain, apparently, I try. And with my grandfather, the situation is this (for me it is difficult and incomprehensible in the sense of what to do?): He is very old, I have been looking for an approach to him for a long time, all my life, but I tried badly, he is too difficult a person, he allowed himself, as it seems to me, unacceptable insults, hatred addressed to me and such statements that, honestly, the desire to go to him and help him even in memory of my father (grandfather is the father of my deceased dad) disappears completely. And now it’s useless to tell him that I’m taking money for medicines, for anything else, his money. He, how to put it, is not entirely adequate. It seems to him that I steal money from an apartment, from a portfolio, a mattress, my husband is stealing, my sister is stealing, everything is stealing, in a word. Sister, home helper, me - they all stole some large sums, his savings. I can't imagine how I would come to him to repent that I took money for medicines? He will not forgive, not because he does not know how to forgive, but simply the reaction may follow inadequate. Yeah, so, after all, you took money from the portfolio, etc.! Thief and so on! I, frankly, am not yet ready for such a turn. Yes, faint-hearted, yes, weak, but I can’t help myself. Not to learn, even with God's help (after all, it was He who gave me such a grandfather, other, beloved relatives, died) to forgive and endure grievances. They say that to be offended is a reflexive verb with a reflexive suffix, i.e. it is impossible to be offended if you do not want it. But I still think that you can be offended, and very much, then, when you were offended, it was deliberately offended or not even deliberately. And if a person is alive, reactive, made of nerves, flesh and blood, moreover, with a rather weak, frankly speaking, psyche, like Ivan Gromov in Chekhov's "Ward No. 6" - you can react with indignation, indignation. Although, Thank you, Lord, it is GIVEN to be indignant to me, yes it is given, not for long, not for long, it is easier and more organic for me to forgive and let go of the offense than to keep in myself, although there are things that I remember for a long time. This does not mean that I hold a grudge, I just remember that with this person you cannot do this and that, you can only use certain methods. Get away hunting. It’s easier for me now (I’m going to see him) to allocate a certain amount from my salary and give it to food, and so I don’t pay back at least 30,000 (this is very approximate). If all of the above is a trick, how then to live, not to be cunning, never to lie? This is practically impossible in the world. It's also a shame that with you I am just sincere, and not cunning. Well, okay, you know better. It is easier for my mother and me to lie, for example, praising a tasteless salad (which is extremely rare) than to say directly: I can't eat, I can't. Will be offended, and so much that I, I myself will be worn out all then, for what, they say, offended?
3. Yulia Voznesenskaya writes stories, but I mean a book that, although called "fantasy", is not at all like a fiction. The book-parable "My Posthumous Adventures" is about how the heroine (Voznesenskaya herself) fell into the deepest coma, that is, died, and the body was supported in Munich with wires and apparatus. This is a kind of instructive posthumous experience, so I don’t understand how it differs from BLZH. Theodora, and is it possible to believe that woman who had an accident that this is not a "pitchfork on the water"? By the way, I listened to her story.
4. It is necessary to quit smoking, drugs should not be used, drinking is harmful, you should not overeat, there is no excuse for this, but why will these people certainly die? If they have a kind soul, I cannot understand. They do not force other people to smoke or drink. I do not mean alcoholics and drug addicts who do not care where to get the hellish potion, they will not spare their mother, I mean people who do not abuse all this (except drugs, of course). All of us, except for monks, are made up of passions and habits, is it all going to follow us and "there"? I have a stupid habit of waving a piece of paper when I write and say something or twist a flag. This may even annoy many, but is it really necessary to get rid of it? Sometimes it happens involuntarily.
5. Yes, my husband does not want to get divorced, but seeing what I am, why and actually by what right does he mold an ideal out of me? In addition, he sees that I do not correspond to him, and ... a conflict arises. What outrages him? If, due to back pain, however, I cannot clean the apartment as I used to (I scrubbed the floors 5 times a day), I cannot do general cleaning, I cannot get up at 6 in the morning, I often have colds and have a diagnosis, is it is this a reason to "spread rot" like that, to say that I am lazy, etc.?
6. Despotism is not a reason for divorce, is it a demonic principle? Vladimir told me that Christian marriage is a free marriage, unlike Islam, but where is freedom? Despot-husband, moreover an atheist, won't this lead to trouble? I myself do not have such faith that I am ready to endure everything and lead him, the unfortunate one, to Orthodoxy ...

09.05.15 Sat 19:59 - Priest Sergius

Speak, my questions have not been found, nothing, I will repeat:

1. How often do you go to the temple? 2. Do you go to the same temple? 3. How often do you confess and take communion? 4. Aren't you afraid of Confession? 5. What prayers do you read at home? 6. Do you confess to one priest?
I would very much like to receive not vague answers, but precise ones. And yet, I didn’t say that you are cheating with me, forgive me, you have already thought of this.

Nevertheless, having not yet received answers, I will try once again to remind you: "everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin" (John 8:34)
"sin being done gives birth to death" (James 1.15)
"Everyone who commits sin also practices lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness" (1 John 3.4)
"Whoever commits sin is of the devil, because the devil sinned first" (1. John 3.8)
"We know ... he who is born of God keeps himself, and the wicked one does not touch him" (1 John 5.18).

But your points 4 and 5, to be honest, completely discouraged me. I'm starting to doubt whether you are Orthodox? In the morning I thought, what is the seventh question I should ask, an important one. Only now he appeared: what, in fact, do you want to hear from me? This is my last question.

05/10/15 Sun 14:10 - Anonymous

Appolinaria

1. I go to Churches in different ways, there are many of them in St. Petersburg: approximately, on average, once every 2 weeks, sometimes more often, sometimes less often, this is an average figure. I try to stop by at every opportunity. On Sundays I read the Akathist to the Theotokos, but it doesn’t work every Sunday, more often it’s for health reasons, and not because I don’t like the Orthodox Church. I wrote about this earlier (maybe more succinctly), and I don't understand why the answers are "vague"?
2. Unfortunately, I do not take Communion often, but once a year it is obligatory, and only with Father Vladimir. Earlier it was with different priests. True, very soon I am going to go to Glebychevo again as soon as the material opportunity arises. Excuse me, now I don't understand, but what does it matter at all? Is it necessary to take communion and confess with different priests? After all, I already wrote that Fr. Vladimir is the only one whom I trust, who knows me, and to whom I can ask any question and tell what I am ashamed to tell a loved one and I don’t want to tell another priest. Yes, I understand, this is a false shame, I can only write, it’s easier for me, but I can’t say it out loud in detail, and I’m not able to remember everything ... This mainly concerns my past.
3. Am I afraid of confession? Good question! Yes and no. On the one hand, fear, on the other hand, relief. I used to be very afraid, now I'm less afraid. But now I do not fall into those sins of which I repented several times in different churches, when I did not yet know Father Vladimir. Fornication, abortion, disbelief, blasphemy against God, harm, envy, in a word, NOT A CHRISTIAN LIFE. Now I have a question: is it necessary to repeat this at every confession, and remembering something else in detail, for example, various fornication in youth, tell it in detail too, or is it enough to describe it in one word, for example - adultery? Or: there is often anger at children when they are mischievous and disobey. Is it possible to say in confession: "anger", and not go into details: at whom is the anger, in connection with what it is, anger at the cat that pisses in bed, etc.? I ask all this in order to know how to quickly and clearly confess with any priest, given the flow of people, if Father Vladimir, who usually asks leading questions himself and makes confession easier for me in this sense, cannot confess and give me communion due to distance distance?
4. At home I read "Our Father", prayer to the Cross, "Theotokos, Virgin, rejoice (I sing)", "Lord, forgive and have mercy on me, a sinner," just "Lord, have mercy." The "Symbol of Faith" prayer does not fit in any way. Again, I don’t understand: is it so important? Andrey Tkachev generally said that the prayer "Our Father" is from the Lord Himself, it is necessary for everyone and always, but in principle there can be only one prayer, the main thing is that it should lie on the heart and be from the heart, extremely sincere, not "on a piece of paper" , but from the heart. This is not an accurate quote. I do not remember exactly. He is not right? If not right - who, excuse me, believe? We are earthly people, worldly, we know nothing.
5. What discouraged you and why do doubts arise in the Orthodox faith? I did not understand at all, sorry for the stupidity. Point 4: Apparently I want to justify people's habits. No, I am not making excuses; Who am I to judge and justify ?, I just ask: we all consist of habits, does this mean hell after death, if a person's heart is good? The person did not have time to get rid of smoking, does this mean that he will go to the very smoking room and barrack that you wrote about, or is it generally not for us to judge? I myself think that it is not for us to judge, but I still ask you to answer, I need to hear your opinion. Or do you think that a person's heart cannot be kind if he smokes? It is clear that smoking, alcohol and drugs are more than a habit, although Kuraev writes about smoking precisely as a habit, but I meant such habits (clause 4, apparently, the letter disappeared again) as: waving a piece of paper, a bookmark, a pen during a conversation; the habit of talking to itself, etc .: it seems nothing bad, but the interlocutor can be annoying. Forgive me if the questions seem idiotic to you, you can not answer. In point 5, I also did not understand what actually discouraged you? Can divorce be considered a sin if ... And then I have already written about how my husband treats me, why should I live with a despot if I do not have the faith that will save my husband? Rather, there is no faith, but rather there is no hope that he will come to faith and will treat his own wife a little better. "With a believing wife, the husband is saved" (inaccurate quote). This is what I meant. Is it worth it to put up with everything just because you are Orthodox, even unacceptable, such as beatings? After all, we are treated the way we allow. What if I don’t feel the strength to endure and save, and I don’t know how not to allow myself to be treated badly? Does this mean that I am not an Orthodox person? Therefore, do you doubt that I am a believer? Once again I apologize for the stupidity and misunderstanding.
6. From you, I only want to hear answers to questions, even if they are stupid. If I ask, then I need it.
7. Can it be considered a confession that I wrote to you and put on public display for several days, starting from May 2? Or is it just a conversation?
8. If you do not answer this letter, I will understand that gaining at least some understanding is a senseless waste of time, which is so little, and I will not bother you with my stupid questions.
Apolinaria, Polina in the world.

Question number 18314
Father, hello, my name is Tatiana, I am 20 years old (in June - 21). Two years ago I began to think about monastic life. And every time a thought appeared blindly in the mind. And after reading the book Red Easter, for some reason I began to draw more and more into that monastic atmosphere. Constant stay in prayer, life takes on meaning, a constant struggle with passions. And more and more often in the world, no matter what I undertake, the thought arises that all this is perishable, that the Lord does not need it, there is only vanity and there is no logic in achieving earthly goals. And this struggle of artificial and real spiritual values \u200b\u200bconstantly abides in me. I really don't know what to do, maybe I'm wrong, but the further, the more I am drawn to solitude with the Lord and to struggle with passions. (Tatiana (Kharkiv), 04/25/2019 02:17)

Question number 18313
Hello Father Alexander, Happy Easter, explain me, in hours Easter in the first week, what prayers to read, and when the chorus and irmos of the 9th canon of the Easter canon are read in the morning or in the evening, after Christ rose from the dead? Thank you (Tatiana (luhansk), 04.24.2019 19:28)

Question number 18310
Bless Father. Are Easter Hours read from Monday to Saturday instead of morning and evening prayers? Or from Easter (Sunday) and the last time on Antipascha? (Vladimir, 04.24.2019 14:24)

Question number 18302
Hello, father. I have a question about humility. I worry for too long that I have committed some kind of sin (immortal), these experiences interfere with me, as they take energy and lead to paralysis of the will, interfere with prayer. I read from various ascetics (for example, St. Ignatius Brianchaninov, Theophan the Recluse, the Optina Fathers) that worrying too much about your sins is a sign of pride, that since we are all damaged by sin, you should not be too embarrassed if you fell into sin - you need to accept before God, repent and strive further. I roughly understand what it means to humble ourselves before a person. What is humility before God? How can you teach yourself this humility? (what exactly do I need to do for grace to do the rest). Thank. (Ksenia (Kiev), 04/23/2019 19:43)

Amount of records: 16441

Good day! Some time ago, I dreamed of my mother's death several times, after the last such dream my mother died (a month ago). Now I dream that my husband is dying (I dreamed this already 2 times). It is also often a dream that my mother seemed to come to life. I don't understand anything. Help me understand what all this is about. What should I do??? I am very worried about my husband.

Maria

Dear Mary, do not be afraid of dreams, but trust all your fears to the Lord God in prayer. Since you began to worry about your husband, pray especially for him, read the holy Gospel well. God bless you!

priest Sergiy Osipov

Hello, priests, I want to thank you, and in your person, the entire Orthodox priesthood, for invaluable help and blessed labor! Praise the Lord for his care for people with your hands and words! A question. In my prayer book there is a follow-up on the departure of the soul from the body, consisting of one canon. It is signed that it is read by the laity if there is no priest. It's just that I can't quite figure out whether this is a canon about a single deceased or another canon that should be read immediately after a person's death? I would like to read it for the peace of my father's soul. Is it possible? And further. Is it possible to wipe the face on the icons with a cloth, or do you just need to carefully blow off the dust from it? I was told that the face should not be touched. It's true? Save me, God!

Tatyana

Hello Tatiana. The canon of the one-dead man and the follow-up to the exodus of the soul are different successions. You can read it. You can wipe the icons, do not touch (and do not kiss) the face, so as not to damage it, and not from sacramental motives. God help you!

priest Sergiy Osipov

Hello. I am interested in this question: Is it possible to pray for the health and well-being of unbaptized children and grandchildren? (the son-in-law does not give consent to the baptism of the child) And will the Lord hear such prayers?

Natalia

Hello, Natalia. Of course, it is possible and necessary to pray, both at home and in the church. Only in the church remember them yourself while reading the hours (then a proskomedia is performed before the liturgy), only baptized people can be written in notes. God bless you.

priest Sergiy Osipov

Hello priests. Is it possible to listen to the audiobook of Hegumen N Sacred Athos I liked it when I listened to it once and Hegumen N is Hegumen Efrem Vinogradov he also wrote a book why they want to save us I liked both books Can I read and listen to these books?

Catherine

Yes, Ekaterina, you can. God help.

priest Sergiy Osipov

Hello! Thank you very much to Priest Sergiy Osipov for answering my question about "... is it possible to change the name given to me at baptism if no one remembers or knows it ..." But the fact is that when my wife goes in church, to the temple and writes notes with names, then my name is crossed out by the grandmothers who accept these notes, arguing that my name is not in the lists of Orthodox (my name is Edward) and this has already happened in no church or in a single temple. Believe me, I am not for you. I’m complaining, I just want to know what to do in such situations? Is it possible to take your answer on the phone and show it in churches and temples, if my name is crossed out again? Or change the name of your heavenly patron? Excuse me if you are annoying and illiterate in church matters. Thank you very much in advance.

Edward

Hello Edward. This question will be resolved with the blessing of the priest of the temple where the candle-makers so zealously check the notes. The wife can approach him, but it is better, of course, for you to defend your saint yourself :) God bless you.

priest Sergiy Osipov

Hello. To my child 1.9. Baptized with Love. That was the name of her father's mother. He left me about 5 months ago and I want to change the name and surname of the child. Name to Vitaly. There are no patron saints with such a name among the holy women, as I understood from the Internet. Which even seems significant to me: let her be love in baptism, I loved her father, although we lived in fornication, he was the first to leave the family and even divorced. Had I called her Vitaly right away, she would have been baptized with a different name anyway, do I understand correctly, since there are no female saints with that name? Will I sin a lot if I make such a change, or do I have the right to slightly ease my grief of my loss of support and hope for family happiness by such a step? After all, that's all I can do. I will make a reservation right away that I do not believe in God's mercy and I cannot wait for relief by prayers and cultivating faith in myself, it’s too hard to be left alone. I need more effective and real support.

maria

Mary, the name given in baptism does not change. If you decide to change the "worldly" name for a child, think if it will not be difficult for her to live with a somewhat unexpected, unusual name for a girl, Vitaly. God bless you.

priest Sergiy Osipov

Good day! Father, I have three godchildren - Alexander (born January 5), Sergius (January 12) and Pavel (July 29). Which saints should be considered their heavenly patrons and when is it right to congratulate on Angel Day?

Tatyana

Dear Tatyana, in order not to guess and not to be mistaken, it is better to ask the parents which saint is recorded in the baptismal certificate. By the name of the saint, it will be possible to determine the day of the angel, referring, for example, to the site days.pravoslavie.ru. You can congratulate with any words that will fall on your heart, and on the day of the Angel it is good to bring (if the godchildren are still babies, of course) to the church for communion. God bless you.

priest Sergiy Osipov

Good afternoon, a question to Sergei Osipov. I have a small child, her father is my roommate for two years, left me this summer. The feeling of affection and admiration for the child disappeared. I live only with a sense of duty, that I don’t read life and burdens her very much. Father does not mind taking her from the words. I myself feel that in his family where he came from and got divorced, his daughter will be calmer in every sense. What's more sinful is to give it to him (I myself am ready to go to a monastery, I have nothing to do with a coma of duty to the child, I am already 40, we have several monasteries in the city, I have already written to the abbess, to seek humility and faith) or keep it to myself as a matter of principle (the principle, i.e. what is considered to be better for children with mothers), tormenting her with his inescapable despondency (I cannot fight with him, I'm tired). Thank you.

maria

Dear Maria, do not choose the lesser of two evils. "Perpetual discouragement" is called depression. The doctor will help you heal her. Then you won't have to choose from unacceptable options. God help you!

priest Sergiy Osipov

Hello, Father Alexander. If I took Matushka Fotinia's books to the church, and then let them do whatever they want with them, did I do the right thing? It happens in our country that people bring icons and books to the temple, while others take them.

Catherine

Hello Ekaterina. When something useful, but no longer needed, is brought to the temple so that others who want or need use this thing, then this is good. But sectarian literature must be immediately destroyed so that no one will catch the infection. Imagine that someone will take the book you left and read it with confidence, because he took it in the church, which means that it is permissible for reading. This man, if he turns out to be ignorant of the Orthodox doctrine, will be damaged, and the sin will be on you. Correct what you have done, if it is not too late, and be sure to confess.

priest Alexander Beloslyudov

Hello fathers! Help me figure out this issue. I believe that God is not subject to change. I also believe that Jesus Christ, our Savior, ascended into heaven together with human nature (because in Jesus Christ both natures were united inseparably and forever), and thus human nature through Jesus Christ became part of the Holy Trinity. It seems to my unenlightened mind that there was a change in God after all at the moment when Jesus ascended to heaven. Help me find a mistake in this reasoning. Save me, God!

Pavel

Hello Pavel. The image of the union of natures, the Divine and the human, in Christ, the Chalcedonian Oros, is defined by four negations (apophatically): non-merged, immutable, inseparable, inseparable. You have paid attention only to the last two, "inseparable and inseparable." Now notice that this is the third and fourth definition, while the first and second indicate the "non-fusion and immutability" of natures in Christ. Neither human nature has acquired anything unusual for it, nor the Divine nature has undergone changes. Humanity was "hypostatized" - perceived by the Son as the second Person of the Holy Trinity, and not perceived into the single nature (essence) of the Divine, the One and indivisible Holy Trinity. Otherwise, both God and man would have changed, but this did not happen. And even in the Hypostasis of the Son, His Personality, there was no transformation into something in between the Divine and humanity. Oros describes the properties of the compound apophatically, because nothing cataphatic can be said about it without distorting the truth. We do not even see our own created nature, we see only the skin, how can we judge the nature of the Divine? Therefore, the Holy Council simply cuts off everything that distorts the truth, but does not formulate the truth itself, for lack of the possibility of a logical understanding of this issue. The mystery of Godhood cannot be comprehended by the mind, but can be cognized by experience. As the fathers put it, God is known by the power of living. The mystery of the inner divine being is known in the Kingdom of God, about which Christ said that it is within us. The entrance to it is narrow, and not many find it. But those who entered saw the truth there, which cannot be expressed in human language. Experience cannot be conveyed in words. The experience can only be repeated. So that those seeking the knowledge of God in their experience did not get lost, the fathers set guidelines for them. These guidelines are dogmatic definitions and ascetic teachings. They are in our system of coordinates, but using them and forcing ourselves to an appropriate way of thinking, a way of life, we can gain experience that corresponds to our dispensation, about God, about Providence, about Love. In the preeminent Church, only those who knew God in the cell of their hearts were called theologians, and not those who speak well about God. I think that you are quite within your power and it will be useful to read the works of St. Isaac the Syrian: both "Ascetic Words" and "On Divine Mysteries".

priest Alexander Beloslyudov

Hello, Father. I recently came across this video evidence (...), and as a believer, an Orthodox person, it shocked me. I know that this testimony cannot be trusted, but I still wanted to know if this testimony is true? God bless you!

Dmitry

Hello Dmitry. Most likely, this girl speaks sincerely. But what confuses you? In Catholicism, for a long time, the delirium of a sick imagination, the delusion of demonic and direct demonic content has been elevated to the rank of revelation. The content of such "revelations" is not a reflection of objective reality, but reflects only what was shown to the unfortunate demons. She speaks the truth, that she saw what she heard, then she speaks. Only the source is confused. And she has no means to distinguish the demon from the angel. In Orthodoxy, this phenomenon has been known for a long time and has its own name - charm. I advise you, for your personal spiritual safety, never under any circumstances to look, listen or discuss anything related to supernatural phenomena and mystical experiences. After the fall, the Lord gave a man with leather robes to protect him from the direct influence of demons exiled to earth, in the same space as man. But we are curious .... So we strive to dig a hole in these protective vestments. But it is not the knowledge of the truth that enters into the hole, but the knowledge of demons. The goal of these subjects is death.

priest Alexander Beloslyudov

A question to Priest Alexander Beloslyudov. Father! Please tell me. I am married, my husband is not a church member. I lack communication. And it has been developing this way from the very beginning of our relationship. Few common topics of conversation. I have few friends, and I am always very happy when I find people who are close in spirit. This happens to all my friends, regardless of gender. In this regard, the question is: what to do if a close-minded person with whom a warm relationship develops is male? Need to stop talking just because he's a man? Or is it still possible to be friends? And if so, how to understand where the acceptable limits of this friendship are? God save you!

Olga

Hello Olga. In communication, it is difficult to draw a clear line. In actions, yes, you can. While we are drinking tea, this is normal, but when we are already embracing, then this is fornication. But pay attention to yourself, whether a voluptuous thought creeps in even in the conversation itself. It seems to me that one should pay attention to the words that the Apostle Paul addressed to wives who have unbelieving husbands: "How do you know a wife, will you save your husband?" Probably, you should not run away from your husband in search of communication, but look for points of contact from which you can drop by drop lay the prerequisites for spiritual interest. I cannot tell you exactly what to do, you yourself have to find it. Millet think in this direction. And friends are a good thing, until you begin to value them more than your husband. God help you.

priest Alexander Beloslyudov

I ask you to resolve my perplexities. What is the degree of obedience of a parishioner to a spiritual father? 7 years ago I asked for a blessing to buy a car, but I never received it. Father said: "You will perish." I learned and got my license. But since there is no car, she did not drive. Now I understand that a car is necessary for trips to the country, to take, to bring building materials, things, crops, to go to order something, to transport pets. Until now, I went by train (it's really hard to carry 20 kg) or with my parents in a car. But the parents will soon grow old. I'm not married. I was afraid to buy a car, but I understand that it is difficult to manage a dacha without a car. Sorry for asking this.

Evgeniya

Hello Evgenia. The priest has no moral right to give orders. Obedience in the proper sense is possible only in the relationship between the disciple and the elder. This is a phenomenon of monastic life. This word also refers to the relationship between the subordinate and the boss. In a broad sense - following Christ, as obedience to God. In the relationship between a layman and a parish priest, this form is inadmissible in principle. In matters of clergy, the priest, if he has sufficient experience and common sense, can give useful advice, and you can follow them or not, according to your own reasoning. If you see that the advice is useful and does not contradict the teachings of the fathers, follow it. If you see that the advice contains passion (authority, vanity, pride), or it contradicts the teachings of the fathers, then you do not need to fulfill it. And everything that concerns private life, relationships with people, work, everyday life, does not concern the priest in any way. If he climbs into these topics, then this is an alarming sign. Perhaps, in all other respects, the priest is wonderful. Then do not tempt him any more, do not ask questions concerning your life. And take the blessing only for the spiritual. For prayer, fasting, any good undertaking. But you make the decision. You, and only you, are responsible to God for your decisions, actions and intentions. If you need a car, take it. Anyone can be killed. Everything is in the hands of God. However, since you do not have practice, be sure to take special courses on safe driving. Get useful skills that are worth the time and money spent. God help you.

priest Alexander Beloslyudov

Hello, Father Alexander. Did the apostle Paul lose his freedom when the Lord appeared to him and asked why he was persecuting Him? And if sometimes I want the Lord to appear to me Himself and show demons, or put them in hell for at least 5 minutes to know what it is like to be in hell, can I ask Him about it? Reverend Seraphim Sarovsky also saw demons.

Catherine

Hello again, Ekaterina. Saul has always been a sincere believer in the One God. He unknowingly persecuted Christians. When the light shone on him on the way, and the Divine voice addressed him, he immediately fell to the ground, bowing to God. Learning that it was Christ, he immediately threw away his former conviction and freely surrendered himself to the Lord: what do you command me to do? Remember how the Virgin answered the Angel: behold the servant of the Lord, be it to me according to your word. Like the apostles, having thrown their nets, they followed Christ at His call. There is no loss of freedom, there is a choice. And the choice is obvious. The Jewish leaders, after all, also did not doubt the divinity of Christ after the resurrection of Lazarus, but did not recognize Him, but became hardened. They made a different choice. And Judas made a different choice. Asking God to show demons and hell is foolish. The Lord shielded us from the perception of spiritual beings for our own safety. If a child asks you to let him run barefoot in the snow or eat an icicle, will you allow? Isaac the Syrian said that in order to see Heaven and the Lord, you must force yourself to enter your heart. The kingdom of God is within you. And Angels, and demons, and hell in the same place. Be sure to read "The Word on the Sensual and Spiritual Vision of Spirits", St. Ignatiy Bryanchaninov. Get comprehensive and robust information on this matter.

priest Alexander Beloslyudov

Hello, Father Alexander. In the letters of Hegumen Nikon Vorobyov about suicide, it is written that whoever, even on purpose, in order to frighten other people, climbs into a noose, the demons will strangle him against his will. And how can they do this if they are spirits, and without God's permission they cannot do anything with a person? And if I had thoughts that it is better to die than to live with sorrows, is it from demons? Is there an audiobook "Great Russian Elders" by Abbot Aristarkh Lokhanov on the Internet, and is it possible to listen to the soulful teachings of Abba Dorotheus in audio format?

Catherine

The answer to the first question, Catherine, you will find in the same "Word" of St. Ignatius. The suicide submits himself to the demons, so they get power over him. But even in this case, they remain instruments of God's providence. The books you are looking for are here: http://predanie.ru/audio/izdanija-predanie-ru/velikie-russkie-starcy/ - this is "Elders", and this is Abba Dorofey: http://predanie.ru/audio/jitija_i_tvorenija_svjatih / prepodobnii-avva-dorofei /.

priest Alexander Beloslyudov

Can a priest serve two liturgies in one astronomical day? One in the morning, as usual, and the second in the evening, after Vespers and Matins, on the next church day?

Helena

Hello, Elena. The day is counted from midnight to midnight. This is indicated in the "Teaching Testimony" placed in the Service Book. And every priest uses the Service Book. Only one celebration of the Liturgy is possible during the day. Once a day on one throne, one priest. Here is an excerpt from the Priest's Handbook: “The ancient rule determines the time for the celebration of the Divine Liturgy at the third hour, according to our reckoning, the ninth. It can be performed earlier and later, as required by circumstances, but not after noon and not earlier than dawn. only a few days when the liturgy is celebrated "poranu" or is combined with the evening service. These are the day of Holy Easter, the days of the Holy Forty for the liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts, the days of the eve of the Nativity of Christ and the Epiphany, as well as the days of Great Saturday and Pentecost. a day of more than one liturgy. The participation of a priest who has already served on the same day in the conciliar celebration of another liturgy is unacceptable. Only one liturgy can be performed on one altar on one day due to the unity of the sacrifice of the cross made by the Lord Jesus Christ. " Although the Liturgy is celebrated several times a year in conjunction with Vespers, it is not celebrated at the usual Vespers time, not in the evening, but in the morning, so that the Liturgy is performed during daylight hours. The Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts does not contain the Eucharist, but is simply Communion, therefore it can be celebrated in the evening as well. Let me remind you that in Great Lent the Eucharist (the full liturgy of Basil the Great and John Chrysostom with the consecration of the Holy Gifts) is celebrated only on Saturday, Sunday, the Annunciation and the Great Four.

priest Alexander Beloslyudov

Father, tell me, how does the church feel about circumcision among Orthodox Christians? Medicine speaks of the hygienic benefits of this procedure, but from the point of view of religion, if a person abstains, won't this be a kind of help to him in this? Or is it self-harm? Sorry for the pun.

Dmitry

Hello Dmitry. Circumcision has no effect on lust, and therefore abstinence is of no help. Hygiene must be maintained with water and soap, both circumcised and uncircumcised. So this is not an argument either. The only medical indication for circumcision is the inability to have sexual intercourse due to the peculiarities of the anatomy of the penis.

priest Alexander Beloslyudov