Food - thickened love of God
The life of a modern person is built according to numerous norms and orders. Undoubtedly, different customs and traditions have a great influence. Eating food is an essential part of everyone's life. During the development of the history of the Christian Church, its own special rules have developed that determine the relationship of a person to food. But here's the problem: there is so much information, and sometimes contradictory, that it's easy to get confused. There are rules drawn up in the bosom of the Church, proceeding from the accumulated experience of her holy representatives. And right next to it you can find near-church fables and fables, so rich and varied in fantasy that they can be used to compile an "encyclopedia of folk wisdom."
So, selected places in the Holy Scriptures on food
We have a great wealth of wisdom collected over several millennia by many generations of people. And we resort to this source whenever we wish. This treasure is called the Book of Books or the Bible. Here are some vivid examples from Scripture that can teach us the right attitude to food.
Examples from the Old Testament
- Adam
As soon as we open the Holy Bible, we will see from the opening pages that the very first commandment to Adam concerns eating food, when the Lord said to him: “ From every tree in the garden you will eat; but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, do not eat from it; for on the day you eat of it you will die the death» (Gen. 2, 16-17). That is, firstly, God determined for a person the infringement in food. At the same time, one should pay attention: how severe is the punishment for breaking the commandment, and, therefore, how important this abstinence is!
According to Orthodox teaching, sin is not just a violation of some rule that requires punishment; it also brings about a distortion of the life given to us by God. But why is the story of original sin deserving death depicted as an act related to eating. First, food is necessary for a living organism, because it maintains life in it. And what does it mean to be alive, what does life itself mean? At present, this word is considered, first of all, in its biological meaning: life is precisely that which largely depends on the intake of food and on some other physical parameters. In the light of Holy Scripture and Christian tradition, this life ending in death is itself identified with death, since the beginning of death is always present and active in it.
We know that God did not create death. He is the Giver of Life. How did life become mortal? Why is death, death alone, the absolute condition of everything that exists? The Church answers: because man rejected the life that God offered and gave him, and preferred a life that does not depend on God, but on "one bread". He not only disobeyed God, for which he was punished, but in addition changed the relationship between himself and the created world. Without a doubt, the world was given to man as "food", as a means of life; but, at the same time, life was also supposed to be communion with God; it was not only to have its consummation in Him, but also its perfect fullness. " In Him was life, and life was the light of men"(John 1, 4). The world and food were created so that through them a person could have communion with God, and only food taken for the sake of God could be life-giving.
By itself, food has no life in itself and cannot reproduce it. God alone has Life, for He Himself is Life. So in the food itself, God believes the beginning of life, and not nutritious calories. On this occasion, I recall the curious words of one Orthodox priest at a Christian festive meal: "Food is the thickened Love of God." And the immeasurable tragedy of Adam lies in the fact that he perceived food as "life in itself." Moreover, he tasted it, hiding from God, outside of Him, and only in order to become independent from his Creator. And he did this because he believed that food has life in itself and that, eating from this food, he himself can become like God, that is, have life in himself. It's easier to say: he believed in the power of food, while the only object of faith, trust, confidence is God and only God. The earthly world, perishable food became the gods of man. He became their slave. Adam in Hebrew means "man." This is our common name. And modern man is still Adam, still a slave to "food". He can assure that he believes in God, but his knowledge, his experience, his self-confidence are all built on the same principle: "by bread alone." We eat to live, but we do not live in God. Of all the sins, this is the greatest sin. And by this sin our life is sentenced to death.
Esau
Gen. 25, 29-30: And Jacob cooked food; but Esau came from the field weary. And Esau said to Jacob, Give me red to eat, this red, for I am weary. From this was given him a nickname: Edom.
Gen. 25, 32: Esau said, Behold, I am dying, what is this birthright to me?
Gen. 25, 34: And Jacob gave Esau bread and lentils; and he ate and drank, and got up and went; and Esau neglected the birthright.
Rome. 9, 13: As it is written: Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.
Heb. 12, 16: Lest there be [between you] any fornicator, or wicked one, who, like Esau, for one meal would give up his birthright.
What role did lentil stew play here! I ate one serving, think about who doesn’t happen when you want to eat. But the Lord sees hearts. Food is not important here. It is important to relate to her! Esau neglected the possibility that it was from his line that the Savior of the world would come. Moreover, he himself made such a choice. Jacob, on the contrary, valued such a great gift, which passed to him for his zeal, although he did not belong by right.
- Melchizedek
Gen. 14, 18: Melchizedek, the king of Salem (Salim - the city of the world), brought out bread and wine - he was a priest of the Most High God.
Melchizedek is a type of the King of the World, and the High Priest, Who sacrifices Himself to give life to the whole human race. Melchizedek is a type of Jesus Christ. The gifts that Melchizedek presented to the conqueror Abraham are a type of the Body and Blood of Christ. And we have a wonderful opportunity to unite with God Himself through eating them.
- David
1 Kings 21:3-6: So, give me what you have at hand, five loaves of bread, or whatever you find. And the priest answered David, saying, I have no common bread under my hand, but holy bread; if only [your] people abstained from women! And David answered the priest and said to him: There were no women with us yesterday, nor the third day, since I went out, and the vessels of the youths are clean, but if the road is unclean, then [the bread] will remain clean in the vessels. And the priest gave him the sacred bread; for he had no bread, except the showbread, which was taken from the presence of the Lord, to put warm loaves after they were taken away.
David ate the showbread, which could only be eaten by the high priests at certain times. And the punishment of the Lord did not overtake him, although he broke the law. For the Lord is wise: “Not man for food, but food for man!” And it cannot be otherwise - God created the visible world to serve man, to help him in his ascent to Heaven. Therefore, when David and those who were with him suffered severe hunger, they were given bread for food, which, according to church rules, was not supposed to be eaten. This manifested the mercy of the Creator and the law of Divine love for man.
- Or me
3 Kings 17, 4: From this stream you will drink, and I commanded the ravens to feed you there.
3 Kings 17, 6: And the ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning, and bread and meat in the evening, and he drank from the stream.
3 Kings 19, 6: And Elijah looked, and behold, at his head a baked cake and a pitcher of water. He ate and drank and fell asleep again.
The prophet Elijah walked with God. All my life I remembered the Divine omnipresence and therefore managed not to anger Him by violating the holy commandments. Elijah was pleasing to God, for which he was taken alive to heaven. He did not waste time worrying about earthly things, devoting his whole life to serving God and people. And the Lord Himself sent food for His chosen one. This is a vivid example for us: how we should live and what to strive for. If we live with a constant thought of God, then everything will be arranged in our lives according to the great mercy of God.
- John the Baptist
Matt. 3, 4: John himself had a garment of camel's hair and a leather belt around his loins, and his food was locusts and wild honey.
Matt. 11, 11: Truly, I say to you, of those born of women, no greater than John the Baptist has arisen; but the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than him.
Matt. 11, 18: For John came neither eating nor drinking; and they say: there is a demon in him.
John was the greatest of those born of women. His life should be an example for us. He was extremely abstinent, content with little (wild honey and locusts), fasting and prayer were the main companions of his life. And he received such a great honor that he became the Forerunner of our Lord Jesus Christ and His Baptist. Fasting combined with prayer is the strongest weapon in the fight against the invisible enemy. So we can often resort to it. Fasting, despite its ancient origin, has not lost its significance and effectiveness to this day. It is especially useful in our time, when the spirit of permissiveness and spiritual relaxation reigns in the world, and most people are enslaved by many grave sins.
- Eating the Passover Lamb
Ref. 12.5: You must have a lamb without blemish, male, one year old; take it from sheep, or from goats.
Number 7, 15: One calf, one ram, one year old lamb, for a burnt offering
Is. 53, 7: He was tormented, but suffered voluntarily and did not open His mouth; He was led like a sheep to the slaughter, and like a lamb silent before its shearers, so He did not open His mouth.
Jer. 11, 19: But I, like a meek lamb led to the slaughter, did not know that they were plotting against me, [saying]: “Let us put a [poisonous] tree for his food and we will cut him off from the land of the living, so that his name will no longer be mentioned” .
In. 1, 29: The next day, John sees Jesus coming towards him and says, Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.
Just as the Jews ate the Passover lamb in order to be saved for eternal life, so we have a great opportunity: to inherit the Kingdom of Heaven. To do this, you need to take up your cross and follow the Lord. After all, He, as the Lamb, silently endured many torments and even death, without guilt, because He took our sins upon Himself and gives Himself to us as food. Such is the power of God's inexpressible love for people.
Priest Sergiy Demin,
Our contemporary, an ascetic of piety, Father Seraphim Vyritsky (+ 1949) left the following instruction: “How often we get sick because we don’t pray at the meal, we don’t call on God’s blessing on food. Previously, everything was done with a prayer on our lips: plowed - prayed, sowed - prayed, harvested - prayed. Now we do not know what kind of people cooked what we eat. After all, often food is cooked with blasphemous words, swearing, curses. Therefore, it is imperative to sprinkle the meal with Jordanian (Epiphany) water - it sanctifies everything, and you can taste what is cooked without embarrassment.
Everything we eat is a sacrifice of God's love for us people; through food all nature and the angelic world serve man. Therefore, before the meal, you need to pray especially hard. First of all, we call on the blessing of the Heavenly Father, reading the prayer "Our Father ...". And where the Lord is, there is the Mother of God, there are the Angels, therefore we sing: "Our Lady of the Virgin, rejoice ..." and the troparion to the Angelic Forces: "The heavenly hosts of the Archistratisi ...". It is not for nothing that we say: "An angel at the meal" - and truly the Angels are with us at the meal, when we eat food with prayer and thanksgiving. And where the angels are, there are all the saints. Therefore, we sing the troparion to St. Nicholas, together with him inviting the blessing of all the saints to our meal.
So they always prayed before meals at the priest, and he blessed his spiritual children to strictly observe this prayer rule" [Elder Hieroschemamonk Seraphim Vyritsky (Vasily Nikolaevich Muravyov) (1885-1949), M., 1996. - p. 43.45.] These thoughts are even more relevant today, when, on the one hand, we are beginning to increasingly realize the need to revive Orthodox traditions, and on the other hand, the action of demonic forces has increased in society.Therefore, the literature with recipes for Orthodox Christians still published important, but even more important is the culture of Christian cooking and reverent eating of it.For this purpose, a rare brochure by the priest V. Shumov is being republished.
Archimandrite Macarius (Veretennikov)
Prayer before eating
Our Father, Who art in heaven! Hallowed be Thy name, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, as in heaven and on earth. Give us our daily bread today; and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.
Or:
The eyes of all in Thee, O Lord, trust, and You give them food in good time, You open Your generous hand and fulfill every animal goodwill.
For the blessing of food and drink for the laity
Lord Jesus Christ, our God, bless our food and drink with the prayers of Your Most Pure Mother and all Your Saints, for you are blessed forever. Amen. (And cross food and drink).
Prayer after eating
We thank Thee, Christ our God, for Thou hast satisfied us with Thy earthly blessings; do not deprive us of Your Heavenly Kingdom, but as if in the midst of Your disciples, Thou hast come, Savior, give them peace, come to us and save us.
Prayer for the adoption of the prosphora and St. water
Lord my God, may Your holy gift and Your holy water be for the remission of my sins, for the enlightenment of my mind, for the strengthening of my spiritual and bodily strength, for the health of my soul and body, for the subjugation of my passions and infirmities through Your boundless mercy through the prayers of the Most Pure Your Mother and all Your Saints. Amen.
Secret prayer before eating food for those who are immoderate in nutrition
(prayer for weight loss)
I also pray to You, Lord, deliver me from satiety, voluptuousness and grant me in the peace of my soul to reverently accept Your generous gifts, so that by eating them, I will receive strengthening of my spiritual and bodily strength to serve You, Lord, in the little rest of my life on Earth.
After cross food and you can have dinner. If the circumstances are such that you are in the company of people who do not understand your actions, read the prayer mentally and cross your eyes.
Traditional thank you phrase:
"Angel to you for the meal!"
***
Confusion causes ignorance either by the guest or the host of the usual form of greeting for believers. The one entering the house says: “Through the prayers of our holy fathers, Lord Jesus Christ the Son of God, have mercy on us.” To which the owner replies, "Amen." Or the guest says: “Peace to your home,” and the host replies: “We accept in peace.”
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At the table in the parish refectory
If you come at a time when the majority of those gathered are already at the table, then you sit in an empty seat, without forcing everyone to move, or where the rector blesses. If the meal has already begun, then, having asked for forgiveness, they wish everyone: "An angel at the meal" and sit down in an empty seat.Usually in parishes there is no such clear division of tables as in monasteries: the first table, the second table, and so on. Nevertheless, at the head of the table (that is, at the end, if there is one row of tables) or at a table set perpendicularly, sits the rector or the senior of the priests. On the right side of him is the priest next in seniority, on the left is the priest in rank. Next to the priesthood sits the chairman of the parish council, members of the council, clergy (psalmist, reader, altar server), choristers. The rector usually blesses the guests of honor to eat closer to the head of the table. On the whole, they are guided by the words of the Savior about humility at dinner (see: Luke 14:7-11).
The order of the meal in the parish often copies the monastic one: if this is an everyday table, then the prepared reader, standing behind the lectern, after the blessing of the priest, for the edification of those gathered, reads the life or instruction aloud, which is listened to with attention. If this is a festive meal, where birthday people are congratulated, then spiritual wishes, toasts are sounded; Those who wish to pronounce them would do well to think in advance what to say. At the table, they observe the measure in everything: in eating and drinking, in conversations, jokes, and the duration of the feast. If gifts are presented to the birthday man, then these are most often icons, books, church utensils, sweets, flowers. The hero of the occasion at the end of the feast thanks all those gathered, who then sing to him "many years" *. Praising and thanking the organizers of the dinner, all those who have labored in the kitchen also observe the measure, for "the Kingdom of God is not food and drink, but joy in the Holy Spirit."
* "Many years" - words and music. see below
Hieromonk Aristarkh (Lokhanov)
Festive mealIN patronal feast congratulate the whole parish: the rector, mother, and all the servants of the temple, parishioners. In a warm atmosphere of people who have known each other for a long time, you can congratulate the rector and parishioners in a simple syllable, starting like this: “Dear father!” (or dear father rector) and all parishioners we congratulate on the patronal feast - the Intercession of Our Most Holy Lady Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary.
Rector of the Iberian Church in the village of Rastunovo Archpriest Igor Shemonaev
Orthodox, in this article we will talk about the meal and about what is connected with it in a person’s life. Of course, the conversation will not be about tasty and healthy food, as it was understood in the days of Soviet catering, but about the culture of cooking and eating food from an Orthodox point of view. This culture is now practically completely lost among the people and it can be revived only with the revival of genuine Orthodox spirituality.
Since ancient times, Christians have treated eating not as a physiological act (which is now the case in various kinds of “diners” such as “bistros”), but as a kind of spiritual action, the center of which is prayer and spiritual conversation.
This attitude to the meal comes from Christ and the sacrament of Holy Communion established by Him. At the Last Supper, the Lord, breaking bread, said to the Apostles: “Take, eat…”. We see that eating is one of the most important ways of connecting with God. Therefore, it shocks to the core when some young people talk about eating ordinary food in words that I don’t want to repeat here today, there is something bestial, horned, satanic in these words.
In the Church there is such a concept - a refectory temple. Such a temple is, for example, in the Holy Trinity Sergius Lavra. In such churches, the Divine Liturgy was performed and a meal was served for the brethren in specially designated places of the temple. In our time, the meal after the liturgy is not served in the temple, but in another place, for example, in a church house.
The true culture of the meal is now preserved in monastic life. Meals begin with prayer - this is obligatory for both monks and laity. At the table there is a senior who, having made the sign of the cross over the dishes, initiates the meal.
Metropolitan Anthony of Surozh surprisingly said that food is the love of God that has become edible.
During the meal, a reader made from among the brothers reads aloud the life of one of God's saints or some kind of patristic teaching. Reads what is blessed. The Holy Fathers say that food should be chewed with prayer, so that it would be beneficial for both the body and the soul.
Eating food is a prayer, and therefore a greeting in the refectory is accepted, addressed to those who eat: “Angels at the meal!”. And the answer to the greeting: "Invisibly ahead."
But in the hands of the elder, a bell rings - a signal for the end of the meal. Everyone gets up and after the prayer and the received blessing, in prayerful silence, they disperse to fulfill the previously received obediences.
How the food is prepared also matters a lot. One of the great spiritual fathers of Optina Hermitage, Rev. Nikon Belyaev, on the pages of his diary, described an incident told to him by his spiritual father, Rev. Barsanuphius. This incident occurred in Kazan at a meal after a liturgy with the local bishop, Archbishop Athanasius, already an elderly man, distinguished by amazing hospitality. Bishop Athanasius was very fond of gathering his spiritual children for meals, during which spiritual conversations were held and various issues of spiritual life were explained. Vladyka's cook was excellent and distinguished by special skill in cooking fish.
And then one day a young novice put on the table in front of the bishop what everyone was already waiting for - a large tray, on which a cooked pike rested in a special way. What happened shortly afterwards left everyone present in bewilderment. Instead of the traditional words of blessing, accompanied by the sign of the cross, everyone heard how Vladyka, turning to the novice who brought the pike, said: “Take it away and throw it away, and then tell them to cook another one, and call the cook.”
This puzzled everyone, since Vladyka invited them to taste this specially cooked pike.
But then the cook entered the refectory, and everyone paid attention to the fact that one of the fingers of his left hand was bandaged, and scarlet blood appeared through the bandage.
“Dear,” Bishop Athanasius turned to the cook, “what’s wrong with your finger?” “Forgive me, Vladyka, I cleaned and cut the fish…” “I understand that,” Vladyka said, “but what did you say at that?” The cook cried: “Do not be angry, lord, but I said: “Be it you…” I said badly…” Everyone understood that the cook uttered the words of the curse over the fish.
What is revealed to the saints is not revealed to us sinners. St. Athanasius is unquestionably holy, and, being in the Holy Spirit, he, with some inexplicable feeling for the sinful mind, felt the absence of grace on this dish and could no longer eat it. And the fact that you don’t eat yourself, how will you offer it to someone ... Although no one would be poisoned by eating this dish.
Everyone who has ever eaten in a monastery or at a parish church at a meal knows that the most ordinary dishes seem somehow special. I remember how, at a meal in one monastery, I was surprised to see how my guys (I came to the monastery with children) enthusiastically ate black bread (for some reason, a little sweetened with boiled condensed milk) with sauerkraut.
The Monk Nikon writes about the monastery meal at Optina Hermitage in his diary: “In the world, in rich houses, in the most expensive dishes, there is no taste that we feel in our sour cabbage soup: everything is done there without prayer, with abuse and curses, and at us in the monastery with prayer and blessing.
Prayer and blessing is what makes a proper Christian meal. Already the holy apostles at the fraternal meal addressed the Mother of God in a special way. And in the room where the meal takes place, there must be an icon. The trouble is that our meals often resemble plentiful pagan libations. All of the above does not mean at all that monastic discipline should reign at the family table. Having a family meal together in casual conversation is what strengthens family foundations. A smart joke, a well-told story won't hurt anyone.
Christ, with his coming, consecrated the wedding meal in Canna of Galilee, and moreover, when the wine ran out at this feast, at the request of His Mother, he turned water into wine. Of course, at this meal people had fun (naturally, reasonably), and sang songs, and Christ participated in the general fun, because He was sitting at a common table.
May we, Lord, have joy in our homes, but at the same time we will try to observe the measure of Christian piety - “An angel at the meal!”.
Nothing hinted at the religiosity of the queue that stretched throughout the hall. Rather, this long chain of people resembled a snake-tempter - of course, everyone present was a tempter, because everyone rushed with their desires to the long-awaited meal prepared from holy products with holy hands on holy land (here you can add other attributes of Lavra food) established donations to humble pilgrims. These humble ones, whose teeth had not been crushed until the Lord, just intended to use them, and the tail of the serpent grew and grew, became longer and sometimes wider - it eventually became so wide that the diners had to move their tables a little to the walls, so that the serpent could coil its coils in the middle of the hall. Obviously, in the November cold, which especially made its way into the mortal bones and weak flesh in the evening, the worshipers finally remembered that man lives not only by the Word of God, but also by bread. No matter how much one would like to feel like the holy desert fathers, finding themselves in the refectory, people immediately gave free rein to the womb under the pressure of seductive smells. Just as a line of sinners is depicted at the bottom of the fresco of the Last Judgment, so on the ground floor of the Lavra hotel, a serpent, an ancient dragon, writhed in hungry agony (and the first people seduced by him - Adam and his Eve - were also just alkali). Like lamb horns, multicolored scarves flaunted on the heads of the pilgrims, no less conceited than the hair itself (for many women it is even beneficial to hide their thin hair under a veil of piety).
Men held in their hands not only themselves, hungry, but also various spiritual acquisitions, for the sake of which, in fact, their soul was torn to Pochaev. Almost one in three had the good fortune to see that many people have the same book as his - a large, colorful, hardcover collection of Orthodox recipes for Lent. How stupid a person would look here who bought a prayer book or a psalter and failed to hide an inappropriate book in time. The gluttons condescendingly looked at those who had not yet bought (but they will definitely buy tomorrow - there are still a lot of them in the church shop!) This soul-saving bestseller ... his place in the host of feasters.
One of the especially pious pilgrims (although he has not yet acquired - just yet! - a collection of recipes, but shows great promise as a chorister in the church of St. George in his almost native city of L.) still could not wait for his turn, limply torso. A humble righteous man, he had already decided that he would order (a couple of pasties with cabbage, and a double lenten borscht, and two portions of stew, and tea, and what God would send), because his mind was busy with other things. Not considering himself worthy of thinking about the Heavenly, and even more so about the Church Hierarchy, the kind Singer pondered which refectory is still better - Pochaev, Kiev-Pechersk or Sergius. Thinking with peace of mind, remembering the crampedness of the Holy Trinity refectory, as if re-experiencing the poverty of the table of the Kiev righteous, the Singer thanked the Monk Job for the wonderful idea of \u200b\u200bsettle in the local caves: , and with God's help, rush straight down!
A sudden noise interrupted the touching dreams of Pevchiy, who had almost approached the longed-for chebureks. And not exactly noise, but rather an exclamation, a cry of despair, coming from a woman wrapped in blue polka dots in a scarf, which the serpent had almost vomited up. “So they are not lean, with an egg?”, She asked the saleswoman in confusion, pointing to pancakes carefully wrapped in a pink bag (with cottage cheese, according to the menu). The saleswoman who did not expect such a turn, standing on the other side of the counter, nodded, to which the pilgrim said: “Sorry, but I won’t take them, sorry.” “Woman, pay for the pancakes,” came the reply. And the roll call of the otherworldly and thisworldly worlds, sellers and buyers, the serpent and the winegrowers began - at first only two voices sounded, then the choir joined, which included even those who did not yet have a recipe book, after which its mystical, otherworldly antipode joined - as a result, the climax came and, under the final “sorry”, the meal paid for everything, except for the lonely cooling down pancakes, forgotten by both worlds on an endlessly deserted counter, where no one cares about them, martyrs for hypocrisy sweating in their ridiculous pink attire.
The chorister decided not to perform the roulad and modestly asked for everything his soul wished before the incident with the blue polka dot handkerchief and its owner, and also added from his heart that he really wanted bread with jam. Fitting everything on a huge tray (the broad-cheeked otherworldly mother grinned broadly when she saw his torment with this tray - so wide that two of her fingers, similar to sausages, could easily fit in her mouth), the Singer went to an empty table - but there it was . No matter how slow the serpent vomited up the parishioners, even more slowly they stuffed their wombs with the fruits of the blessed labor of local humble women. Confused, the Choirman began to look for the most free table possible (it is known that there is nothing contradictory in being both a Christian and a misanthrope), and the heavy tray made this search similar to the forty-year wanderings of the people of Israel. Finally, Moses died (one of the diners got up from the table), and the Chanter briskly entered, even ran into his Promised Land.
Chanters are very humble and pious people, but they also have their weaknesses. When during many divine services the kliros, following the example of the raven of the Prophet Elijah, is brought to the kliros with delicious, never-ending prosphora resembling mushrooms cut in half, you gradually get used to feeling like a special person who is not destined for starvation. Needless to say - only after sitting down, the Singer furiously attacked the meal, as if it embodied the sins of the world, which should be destroyed. First one, then the second cheburek disappeared into oblivion, and floated in lean borscht among pieces of fragrant stew. Finally, the man who was eating regained the ability to hear and see. The contemptible food, humiliated and ground to pieces, lost its power over him; lazily reaching for the bread and then for the jam, the Singer noticed his table neighbors for the first time. A curly-haired, black-haired and black-eyed guy was drinking tea, staring at the middle of the table and laughing unnaturally; a girl in a green scarf next to him was eating pancakes (do not their brothers, outcasts, still lie on a cold counter?), Washing them down with green tea. The singer, as a righteous person, did not want to listen to someone else's conversation, but as a musical person, he had no choice, and therefore he concentrated and turned his ears to the quiet voices of those sitting nearby.
But what a disgrace! - as soon as he turned to the people, they also realized his presence, and the girl, interrupting the conversation and turning her green head to the Singer, said: “An angel at the meal!”.
She said it easily, like "Bless you" or "Hi." But does intonation explain the meaning of an absurd phrase?
"What-what?" - Singer was surprised.
“You see, Lyudmila, no one knows your pseudo-Orthodox expressions,” Kudryavy laughed with his fake laugh.
Paying no attention to him (perhaps in vain?), Lyudmila explained:
- "Angel at the meal" - in a worldly way - "Bon appetit."
She looked at them both with a satisfied look.
And how should one answer?, - asked the Singer, surprised by such unexpected exoticism.
With even greater ease, even with surprise in her voice - they say, how can one not know such elementary and at the same time important things for a Christian, Lyudmila answered:
- "Unseen to come."
I have never heard such a thing in my life, honestly, - answered the Singer, embarrassed.
I'm telling you, you yourself invented all this, this heresy and blasphemy, - Curly laughed again.
Lyudmila flared up: “I’m already tired of you, Anton, save your soul as you wish!” - she left the table (of course, because the pancakes had already been eaten) and hastily left the refectory. "Lord, well, strange people," - flashed through the head of the Singer.
Curly remarked: "She is simply holy and righteous, therefore she runs from the wicked - like me, a sinner."
The chorister, more out of politeness than desire to keep up the conversation, replied: "We are all sinners, but only God is holy."
Curly brushed it off: “Sinners like me still need to be looked for. Look what phone I bought for a monk. At least somehow sins must be atoned for, although it is useless - there are too many of them.
An expensive smartphone emerged from his jacket pocket.
Your name is Anton ?, - asked the Pevchy, thinking to himself: “Lord, where did I get to?”.
Yes, Anton, but it doesn’t matter - my name will not be written in the Book of Life like straw, I will be burned in a fiery furnace, - Anton quickly answered, as if out of habit, turning the smartphone in his hands.
Tell me, Anton, why does a monk need a smartphone?
It’s just that I don’t need him either, but the monk needs him more, after all, a saint is a person, after all.
Realizing that nothing was clear, and at the same time beginning to become interested in his interlocutor, Pevchy tried to approach from the other side (his hand at that time was already spreading the third piece of bread with jam, while the first two had already found their short rest in the company of chebureks).
Why did you buy it?
Hmm, - Curly narrowed his eyes. "Actually, why don't you tell me?" I have already confessed to this.
The chanter prepared to listen and, as his mouth was not needed for listening, he proceeded to another piece of bread with sweet cherries.
In general, everything was like this: one lady from another city comes to me, but it’s not just like that - I promised to buy her a smartphone. In general, I gave it to her, and, of course, I didn’t know anything from her was refused for three whole days, until I got tired of her. Well, after that - he kicked her out, that's the story.
I'm sorry, what? What is the smartphone here?
Well, he took it, of course. The church needs such goodness more than this harlot of Babylon. We will burn with her, fornicators, in the flames of hell, and the smartphone will come in handy for the monk - after all, I need to thank him for trying to let go of my grave sins.
The chorister almost shouted to the whole refectory: “Stop, so you confessed this to him, and then he agreed to accept such a smartphone?”
Well, don’t make noise, friend, don’t make noise, of course not, ”curly reassured him. - I'm not such a fool: I told him about everything except the history of the smartphone, and that I deceived the monk - what to do, went to confession at the Holy Spirit Skete, gave the local monk a phone, but simpler. So he did a good deed for God, and eased his sins.
And that phone, the second one?
Well, I honestly got it - I took it from one sectarian. After all, why do they need phones? Help for an unclean spirit. And so he gave the monk a good thing. Is it bad?
I don't even know what to say to that...
Oh, sorry, friend, my bus leaves in two hours, I still need to bring my smartphone.
Anton jumped up and ran out, like Lyudmila before him.
The chorister could not get up from the table for a long time: an accidental shabby revelation embarrassed him so much that he had no strength to do anything except dunk slices of bread in sweet syrup and, biting off of them, drink almost finished tea.
When it came to the bottom of the cup, on which a damp round bag of tea leaves lay alone, the Choirman nevertheless stood up. Glancing at the line, which towards night was no longer as huge as immediately after the liturgy, he again joined the dragon's wriggling tail, and in less than a minute, two more appeared behind him, holding collections of recipes, so popular in the local monastery. Could St. Job know that his undertaking would be so successful, and that thousands of faithful Christians would flock to Pochaiv for the salvation of their souls? Who knows. However, it is known that the Singer had not yet been vomited by a serpent for the second time, when the unsuspecting (in words, at least) Pochaev monk was already talking with his friend, Father Sergius from Kiev, about how pious pilgrims are now, how God-fearing They. To his ear, the worthy husband pressed the gift of his curly-haired guest, who had already gone away with an almost clear conscience, which was sharpened by the worm of despondency because he did not get an equally expensive gift for the second monk, having been satisfied with little, and counting the needs of the Church as nothing.
☦ Enter the holy temple with spiritual joy. When you enter the temple and see the holy icons, think that the Lord Himself and all the saints are looking at you; be especially reverent at this time.
☦ The sanctity of the temple requires a particularly reverent attitude. You should come to the temple in decent, clean clothes, not in sports (not modest) or defiantly bright. Women are supposed to wear a scarf or headdress on their heads. Keeping Christian modesty, one's own and one's neighbors, one should not come to the temple in immodest clothes or trousers. If possible, you should come to the temple without bags and packages, so as not to create unnecessary fuss.
☦ Always come to the temple in advance in order to have time to light candles before the start of the service, order a commemoration, and venerate the icons. Until the end of the service, unless absolutely necessary, do not leave the temple.
☦ Before entering the temple, one should make a bow with a prayer and the sign of the cross. Entering the temple, one must also make three bows towards the altar with the prayer of the publican.
☦ Putting candles, kissing icons and shrines is necessary before the start of the service, and during the service, one should not break the common prayer by walking around the church and passing candles.
☦ You can not kiss the shrines of the temple and participate in the Sacrament of Holy Communion with painted lips.
☦ Passing opposite, it is supposed to cross and bow towards the throne. It is impossible to pass between the pulpit and the central lectern when the clergy are praying in front of it in the middle of the temple. In the temple it is not supposed to talk, let alone laugh and joke. It is customary to greet each other with a bow.
☦ It is customary to stand during worship in an Orthodox church. Sit down and rest is allowed in cases of ill health. However, the bodily hierarch Philaret of Moscow said well about the infirmity of the body: “It is better to sit and think about God than standing about your feet.” In case of bodily weakness, you can sit on a chair or bench.
☦ According to tradition, men are supposed to stand on the right side of the temple, and women on the left.
☦ There is a tradition to approach the Chalice during communion, first to babies, then to men, and then to women. The same sequence must be observed at the anointing with oil. At confession, going to the cross at the end of the liturgy, and also in many other cases, one should not try to get ahead of others, but one must observe the order.
☦ Entering the temple during especially solemn moments - reading the Gospel, the Cherubim, the Eucharistic canon - you should stop at the entrance, wait for the end, and only then stand in the place of prayer. It is impossible to consider any place in the temple as “one’s own”, all the more so to ask those who occupied it to go. During the service, one must stand and pray in one place, without looking around. During the censing of the temple, one must move away from the wall, giving passage to the clergyman, and, turning towards him, bow to the censing.
☦ In the Orthodox Church, it is customary to pray standing up, quietly and reverently, therefore it is not good to show one's special prayer feelings in any way: to bow to the ground during the service (outside the time when it is supposed to), kneel with your head to the floor, etc. If the church is crowded, then it is better not to bow to the ground even at the prescribed moments of the liturgy (with the exclamation of “Holy to the saints” and with the removal of the Holy Gifts), so as not to push those around you. You can not pull up and teach if one of the parishioners unknowingly does something wrong. If his actions interfere with common prayer, then he should be prompted with humility.
☦ During the service, when the priest blesses the coming ones with his hand or burns those praying from the pulpit, one should bow without the sign of the cross, and when the blessing is done with the cross or the Chalice, it is supposed to cross and then bow. Until the end of the service, one should not leave their temple, unless for a really important reason.
☦ Do not condemn the involuntary mistakes of employees or those present in the temple - it is more useful to delve into your own shortcomings and ask the Lord to forgive your sins. It happens that during a divine service, someone in front of you prevents the parishioners from praying with concentration. Do not get annoyed, do not pull anyone up (unless, of course, obvious hooliganism and blasphemy are committed). Try not to pay attention, and if, due to weakness, you cannot cope with the temptation (i.e., the test), it is better to move quietly to another place.
☦ Do not be upset when listening to the teachings of grandmothers. Humbly accepting their reproaches, do not try to "enlighten" them yourself. The Church has priests and missionaries for this.
☦ Do not be afraid to get into an awkward position by doing something wrong. People come to church not to evaluate their neighbors, but for public prayer and participation in the Sacraments.
☦ The main thing is the mutual love of parishioners and understanding of the content of the service.
☦ Before leaving the temple, you need to make three bows with the sign of the cross and prayer, thanking God and asking for His blessings. Going out into the street, you should turn around to the temple and bow again. Always, passing by the temple, you should stop and bow in its direction with the sign of the cross.
Rules of church relations.
☦ When meeting with a priest, you should take his blessing and then start a conversation. At subsequent meetings with him on this day, you do not need to take a blessing. Also, when parting with a priest after a long conversation with him or a common deed, it is customary to take a blessing.
☦ When addressing a priest by phone, you need to start a conversation by asking for a blessing with the words: “Father, bless” or “Father (name), bless.”
☦ At the meeting of the laity, it is customary to kiss three times a Christian or bow to each other. The usual church greeting on holidays: "Happy Holidays!" Entering the house: "Peace be to this house." Answer: We accept in peace. Wishes on the way, on the road: “Guardian Angel!”, “God bless you!”, “Mother of God bless you!”. The accepted wish for those who eat food: "An angel at the meal!" Answer: "Invisibly ahead." For a service, attention, help, as well as for a treat, it is customary to thank with the words: “Save, Lord!”, To which they usually answer: “To the glory of God!”
On the way to church, it is customary to read a prayer:
I will enter Your house, I will bow to Your holy temple in Your fear. Lord, instruct me in Thy righteousness, for the sake of my enemy, correct my path before Thee: as if there is no truth in their mouths, their heart is vain, their throat is open to the grave, their tongues are lying. Judge them, O God, that they fall away from their thoughts; according to the multitude of their wickedness, forgive me, as if I had grieved Thee, Lord. And may all who trust in Thee rejoice, rejoice forever, and dwell in them, and those who love Thy Name glory in Thee. Like you bless the righteous, Lord, like a weapon of good will you crowned us.
☦ One must enter the church quietly and reverently, as into the house of God, into the mysterious dwelling of the King of Heaven. Noise, conversations, and even more laughter, when entering the church and staying in it, offend the holiness of the temple of God and the greatness of God dwelling in it.
☦ Upon entering the temple, one should stop near the door and make three bows (earthly on simple days, and on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays - waist) with prayers:
God, be merciful to me, a sinner. - Bow.
God, cleanse me, a sinner, and have mercy on me. - Bow.
Who created me, Lord, forgive me!- Bow.
On the following prayers, bows are usually relied on by the waist:
We bow to Your Cross, Master, and we glorify Your Holy Resurrection.
It is worthy to eat, as if truly blessed by Thee, the Mother of God ...
Glory, and now ...
Lord have mercy!(Three times) bless.
Through the prayers of our holy fathers, Lord Jesus Christ our God, have mercy on us.
☦ After that, as usual, bowing on both sides to the people who entered earlier and making three waist bows with the Jesus Prayer: - Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner– Attend to the Divine Service that has begun with reverence and the fear of God.
☦ The church service is performed with many great and small bows. The Holy Church demands to make prostrations with inner reverence and outward goodness, slowly, and, if possible, at the same time with other worshipers in the temple. Before making a bow, you need to overshadow yourself with the sign of the cross and then make a bow - if it is small, then you need to tilt your head so that you can reach the ground with your hand, but with a great one, you need to bend both knees together and reach the ground with your head. The sign of the cross should be depicted on oneself correctly, reverently, slowly, joining together the first three fingers of the right hand as a sign that God is the One and Equal Trinity, and folding the remaining two fingers and bending them to the palm to signify that Jesus Christ is God and Man, who descended to our earth for the sake of salvation. The right hand (right hand) folded in this way should be put first on the forehead, so that the Lord enlightens our mind, then on the womb, in order to tame the flesh that fights against the spirit, and then on the right and left shoulders - to sanctify our activity. The Church Charter strictly requires that we make prostrations in the temple of God not only earnestly, decorously, and all at the same time, but also leisurely (“not wrestling”), and in a timely manner, that is, exactly when it is indicated. Bows and kneeling should be performed at the end of each short petition or prayer, and not during its execution. The Church Charter pronounces a strict judgment on those who do obeisance (Tipikon, Monday of the first week of Holy Great Lent).
Missionary Leaflet No. 16
