Voronezh and Borisoglebsk Diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate). Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom. What is the liturgy in the church

Divine Liturgy- the most important church service. The word "liturgy" itself is Greek in origin. In ancient Greece, some common works, beyond the strength of one person, were called "liturgies". The first Christians called this word the main service to God.

The Liturgy commemorates the earthly life of Jesus Christ from birth to His ascension to Heaven, His teachings and the saving blessings He brought to earth. The order of the Liturgy is as follows: first, everything necessary for the Sacrament of Communion is prepared; then the faithful prepare for the Sacrament; and, finally, the Sacrament itself is performed, and the faithful receive communion.

The Liturgy is thus divided into three parts: Proskomedia; Liturgy of the catechumens; Liturgy of the Faithful.

PROSCOMIDE

"Proskomedia" is a Greek word and means "bringing". The name of the first part of the Liturgy is associated with the custom of ancient Christians to bring bread, wine, and everything needed to celebrate the Liturgy. Therefore, the bread used on it is called prosphora, which means "offering." We cannot live without food and drink. Therefore, our gifts mean that we offer our life as a gift to God.

During Proskomedia, the priest prepares our gifts (prosphora). For Proskomidia, five service prosphora are used (in remembrance of how Jesus Christ fed more than five thousand people with five loaves) as well as prosphora ordered by parishioners. For communion, one prosphora (Lamb) is used, which in its size should correspond to the number of communicants. From each prosphora, the priest takes out a particle and places them on a diskos (golden plate) in strict order:

First, a cubic part of the prosphora (called the "Lamb") is placed in the center;

A particle from the second prosphora, called "Theotokos" (in honor of the Mother of God), the priest puts on the right side of the "Lamb";

Particles from a nine-part prosphora (in honor of all saints) - on the left side of the "Lamb" (three particles in a row);

Particles for the living rely below the "Lamb";

Particles for the dead - even lower;

Particles from the prosphora served by believers are relied on together with particles taken out from the fourth and fifth prosphora.

The union of all the particles on the diskos in this order signifies the whole Church of God. The head of the Church is the Lord Jesus Christ Himself.

LITURGY OF THE CANUMITED

During the Liturgy of the catechumens (catechumens - preparing to receive Holy Baptism) we learn how to live according to the Commandments of God. It begins with a Great Litany, in which a priest or deacon reads short prayers for times of peace, for health, for our country, for our loved ones, for the Church, for the Patriarch, for travelers, for those in prison or in trouble. After each petition, the choir sings: "Lord have mercy."

After the Great Litany, the First Antiphon (Psalm 102) “Bless the Lord, my soul…” is sung. After the Lesser Litany, the Second Antiphon (Psalm 145) is sung: “Praise, my soul, the Lord…”. These psalms are called antiphons - they are supposed to be sung on two kliros alternately.

At the end of the Second Antiphon, "Only Begotten Son ..." is always sung. This chant expounds the Orthodox teaching about the Second Person of the Holy Trinity - the Son of God, Jesus Christ.

At the end of the Beatitudes, the priest solemnly takes the Gospel out of the Altar through the northern gate and just as solemnly brings it into the Altar through the Royal Doors.

(The procession of the clergyman with the Gospel is called the small entrance and reminds the believers of the first exit of Jesus Christ to preach). The singers sing the entrance: "Come, let's bow ...".

After that, troparia, kontakia and the "Trisagion" ("Holy God ...") are sung.

At the end of the Trisagion, a reader enters the middle of the temple and reads the Apostle (an excerpt from the letters of the apostles to the first Christians).

After reading the "Apostle", the deacon or the priest himself reads the Gospel.

At the end of the reading of the Gospel, a special (enhanced) litany for the living follows, and then a special litany for the dead.

After that, the catechumens are asked to leave the temple.

LITURGY OF THE FAITHFUL

The third part is called the Liturgy of the Faithful because only the faithful can attend it; baptized. After the invitation to the catechumens to leave the temple, the Cherubic Hymn is sung. This song invites believers to leave all thought about worldly things, to imagine that they, like the Cherubim, are near God, in Heaven, and, as if together with them, sing to Him the thrice-holy song. After the fulfillment of the words: “Now let us lay aside all worldly cares ...” the priest solemnly takes out the Holy Gifts - bread and wine - from the northern gates of the Altar. Stopping at the Royal Doors, he prays for all those whom we especially remember, and, returning through the Royal Doors to the Altar, he places the Holy Gifts on the Throne. (Transfer of gifts from the Altar to

The throne is called the Great Entrance and marks the solemn procession of Jesus Christ to free suffering and death on the cross). The choir continues to sing the “Cherubim” with the words: “Let us raise up the King of all…”.

After the "Cherubim" a petitionary litany sounds and one of the main prayers is sung - "The Symbol of Faith" - which, together with the chanters, is performed by all the parishioners.

The climax of the Liturgy is coming:

The Holy Mystery of the Eucharist is celebrated - the transformation of bread and wine into the true Body and true Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ.

At this time, the choir sings "Grace of the World."

Then the "Song of Praise to the Theotokos" and the petitionary litany are heard. The most important - "The Lord's Prayer" (Our Father ...) - is performed by all believers. After the "Lord's Prayer" the communion verse is sung. The Royal Doors open.

The priest takes out the Chalice with the Holy Gifts and says:

“Come with the fear of God and faith!” The communion of believers begins and the choir sings: “Receive the Body of Christ…”.

At the end of communion, the chanters sing a hymn of thanksgiving: "Let our lips be filled ..." and Psalm 33. Then the priest pronounces the dismissal (that is, the end of the Liturgy). Sounds "Many Years" and the parishioners kiss the Cross.

Preparing for the Holy Ascension holy rapture Preparation for Communion of the Holy Mysteries Communion of the Holy Mysteries Final actions Application. Word of the Holy Righteous John of Kronstadt on the Divine Liturgy

The book by the well-known scholar, preacher and teacher Bishop (1823-1905) simply and clearly explains the meaning and meaning of the most important Orthodox service - the Divine Liturgy.

Preliminary remarks

The Divine Liturgy is a church service at which, under the guise of bread and wine, consecrated into the Body and Blood of Christ, the Mysterious Sacrifice is offered to God and offered to the faithful to eat Mystery saving food and drink. In common parlance, this service is called Mass, due to the fact that the Body and Blood of Christ, offered on it for the believers to eat, are called by the Apostle Paul the Lord's meal and the Lord's supper ().

Liturgy takes precedence over all church services. The promise of Christ applies to all church services: where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst of them(), because it is common for every church service to attract a congregation of worshippers. Christ is invisibly present in every prayer meeting of believers, and not only in the church, but also in the home, listening to their prayers, offered up in His name, and enlightening them with His holy word. But if He is close to the faithful in all church services and prayer meetings, then He is even closer to them in the Divine Liturgy. There He is present by His grace alone, but here by His Most Pure Body and Blood, and not only is He present, but also feeds the believers with them, just as a mother feeds a baby with her milk. Is it possible to imagine the closeness of our Savior to us? Such a high closeness, which is shown to us, during the earthly life of the Savior until the establishment of the Last Supper, which followed on the eve of His death on the Cross, was not worthy of witnesses and His direct listeners. They had the happiness to see His Face, to hear from His lips the words of life and salvation; but His Most Pure Blood did not yet flow in their veins, and His Most Pure Body did not yet enter into their Flesh, did not revive and sanctify their souls, while these blessings are granted to all who from infancy receive Christ in His Body and Blood, celebrated in

liturgy. Those who listened to Christ with their ears heard His teaching about the Mystery of His Body and Blood, Christ said to them: He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him(). But it is another matter to hear the promise of Christ and another to see its fulfillment in oneself. How blessed are those to whom so close

But in order for each of us to assimilate the fruits of the atoning sacrifice on the cross, the Divine Redeemer deigns to appear daily among us, in sacred temples, as a bloodless sacrifice, which has the same power before God the Father as the sacrifice on the cross. Just as on the Cross He interceded for us forgiveness of sins, pardon and sanctification, so now, reclining on the holy thrones in His Most Pure Body and Blood, He, by virtue of His death on the Cross, continues to intercede for us before God the Father. That the Body and Blood of Christ celebrated in the liturgy really has the meaning of an intercessory sacrifice is clearly evident from the words of Jesus Christ Himself. At the establishment of the Eucharist, saying to His disciples: take, eat: this is my body He added: broken for you(and not broken for you); and saying, when offering the blessed Chalice: drink of it all, for this is My Blood of the New Testament, added: poured out for you and for many for the remission of sins(). The same can be seen from the words of the apostle Paul we have an altar from which the servants of the tabernacle have no right to eat(). Here is the word altar inevitably presupposes the existence of a victim, and the word eat makes it clear what kind of sacrifice the apostle is talking about. Therefore, in all liturgies, starting from the most ancient ones, he confesses before God that he brings Him a bloodless sacrifice. about everyone and everything. And this sacrifice is not only propitiatory, but at the same time thankful and laudatory, because the Establisher of the Sacrament preceded the teaching of His Body and Blood to the disciples under the forms of bread and wine with blessing and thanksgiving to God the Father (), which is why the Mystery itself is called the Eucharist (thanksgiving). The Eucharist is a sacrifice, and not only saving food and drink, the liturgy is celebrated not only when there are communicants in the church, but also when there are none, except for one priest.

“You do not take communion while at the liturgy, but you are present at the performance of the salvific sacrifice; but you and all your loved ones, living and dead, are commemorated at this sacrifice, and you yourself approach the throne of grace with great boldness, knowing that the Blood of the Divine Lamb intercedes for you, celebrating in the altar.

The great importance of the Mystery of the Liturgy was the reason that, long before the establishment of this Mystery, he gave the promise of its establishment, just as long before the establishment of the Sacrament of Baptism (), He, in a conversation with Nicodemus, pointed out this Sacrament of rebirth. The occasion for the utterance of the promise of the Sacrament of the Eucharist was as follows. Once, at the Lake of Tiberias, the Lord performed a great miracle: He fed five thousand men with five loaves of bread and two fish, not counting wives and children. This miracle served as a sign that Christ had come to feed those who were hungry and thirsty for righteousness, i.e. justification before God, to grant them that justification. People, witness this miracle and miraculously saturated, did not understand this sign and relentlessly followed Jesus Christ, not in a sense of need for spiritual nourishment, but only wanting to see the miracle repeat and receive bodily nourishment. It was then that the Lord spoke the promise of Mystery food: of His Body and Blood. He said to His listeners: strive not for the food of perishability, but for the food that lasts for eternal life, which the Son of man will give you(), and added: but the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world(). The Jews began to argue among themselves and say: how can He give us His Flesh to eat?(). Jesus said in response to this: Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the Flesh of the Son of Man and drink His Blood, you will not have life in you... For My Flesh is truly food, and My Blood is truly drink.(). Hearing this, many, even among the disciples who constantly followed Jesus, said: what strange words! Who can listen to this?(). And many at the same time, not containing the teachings of Christ about eating His Flesh and Blood, left Him. But His constant companions, the twelve apostles, accepted His words with faith and confessed through the mouth of the Apostle Peter: God! who should we go to? You have the words of eternal life(). And each of us, hearing Christ's teaching about the Sacrament of His Body and Blood, following the apostles must subdue his mind in obedience to faith. “Let us not understand how bread and wine in the Sacrament of the Eucharist become the Body and Blood of Christ; but the miracle of God's love manifested in this Sacrament does not cease to be a miracle because it is incomprehensible. The very miracle of feeding a multitude of people with five loaves is also incomprehensible, like all miracles, and was it not created in order to predispose those who believe in this miracle to believe in the miraculous, supernatural presence of Jesus Christ in the Body and Blood under the forms of bread and wine in the Sacrament of the Eucharist? He once in Cana of Galilee turned water into wine, similar to blood; and is it not worthy of faith when wine is turned into blood?” (St. Cyril of Jerusalem). We do not see with our sensual eyes the Flesh and Blood in this Sacrament; our vision does not verify this. But let us marvel not only at the all-powerful power of our Savior and Lord, manifested in the transformation of bread and wine into His Body and Blood, but also at His boundless condescension towards us. knows human weakness, which turns away many things with discontent when it is not approved by ordinary use. So, God, according to His usual condescension, through the ordinary, by nature, accomplishes the above-natural. “Since people usually eat bread, drink water and wine, God united His Divinity with these substances, made them His Body and Blood, so that through the ordinary and natural we participate in the supernatural” (rev.).

The Lord fulfilled the promise of establishing the Mystery of the Body and Blood on the eve of His death on the Cross, the day before the feast of the Jewish Passover. This holiday, the greatest of all the Old Testament holidays, was established to commemorate the deliverance of the Jews from Egyptian slavery. It consisted in slaughtering and eating a one-year-old immaculate lamb with bitter herbs and unleavened bread. The blood of the slain lamb was supposed to remind the Jews of that last night, before the Exodus from Egypt, when, by the command of God, the doors of their dwellings outside were anointed with the blood of the lamb, and the destroying angel passed by Jewish dwellings marked with this sign, and struck down the firstborn only in neighboring Egyptian houses. And the unleavened bread and bitter herbs were supposed to remind the Jews of their hasty flight from Egypt and their bitter fate during their long stay in Egyptian slavery. Jesus Christ, in last days His earthly life, it was impossible to celebrate Easter on the same day with the Jews. He knew that he would not live to see that day, which then fell on a Saturday. But He wanted for the last time with His disciples to celebrate this celebration, and therefore He celebrated it the day before the Jewish Passover, on Maundy Thursday. This was not only His last celebration, but together showed that the end of the Old Testament Passover had come. The Paschal lamb represented Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, slain from the foundation of the world. The time has come for the slaughter of the Divine Lamb on the altar of the cross and, consequently, the time for the abolition of the rites of the Old Testament Pascha. They were actually abolished on the day of His death on the cross; but this circumstance was initiated on the previous day by the establishment of the Eucharist, in which He Himself Predzhre yourself, i.e. previously presented the image of His suffering on the Cross, and which He performed after the celebration of the Old Testament Easter Supper. And not only the Old Testament Easter was abolished, but in general the whole was abolished and came into force New Testament, a new order of God's relationship to man in Christ. Therefore, as Old Testament, after the promulgation of its conditions on Mount Sinai, was confirmed by the blood of bulls, of which it is said: this is the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you(), so the Savior called the Blood of the Eucharist the Blood of the New Testament.

The Evangelist Matthew narrates about the establishment of the Eucharist in the following way: eating them(to the apostles) Jesus received the bread, and having blessed it, broke it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat: this is my body. And he took the cup, and gave praise, giving them, saying: drink all of you from it: for this is My Blood of the New Testament, which is shed for many, for the remission of sins(; cf.). The apostle Paul writes about the same in his Epistle to the Corinthians: I have received from the Lord, hedgehog and betrayed you, as the Lord Jesus in the night, was betrayed to you, taking bread, and giving thanks, break, and speech: take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: do this in remembrance of me. So also the Cup after supper, saying: This Cup is in My Blood: do this, if you drink, in remembrance of Me.(; cf.). Thus, the composition of the sacrament established by the Savior included: a) the separation of bread and wine for the Sacrament; b) thanksgiving to God the Father for all His benefits to the human race, especially for the benefits of redemption, from which the Mystery itself is called the Eucharist, thanksgiving; c) blessing over bread and wine (). This blessing contains the idea of ​​praise to God, but at the same time mainly expresses the desire that the power of God work on the offered bread and wine; such a meaning is combined with this word and action in Holy Scripture (; ; ); d) pronouncing secret words: This is my body, which is broken for you. This is my blood, which is shed for many; e) breaking the Mystery bread and teaching it to the disciples as His true Body; f) giving them the Chalice of Blood, separate from the Mystical Bread. In addition, the sacrament of the Savior is concluded by His commandment - to do this in His remembrance; also a touching conversation with the students () and singing, in all likelihood, Easter psalms ().

The commandment of the Savior to celebrate the Eucharist in His remembrance was sacredly fulfilled in apostolic times and will be fulfilled, according to the word of the holy Apostle Paul, until the Second Coming of Christ (). The Eucharist was constantly celebrated under the apostles (). The composition of her priesthood, - as far as is known from the testimonies of the New Testament Scriptures, compared with the testimonies of church writers closest to the apostolic age, - following the example of the Savior, included thanksgiving to God the Father, great in perfection and gifts of grace (), and the blessing of bread and wine (). This was followed by the fragmentation of the consecrated Gifts and their teaching (). This is the main thing. To this were also added: 1) reading the sacred books: the Gospels () and the apostolic letters (); 2) spiritual singing. In addition to hymns taken from the Holy Scriptures, the assembly of believers was resounded with hymns by direct inspiration from the Holy Spirit, so common in apostolic times, abundant in spiritual gifts (); 3) teachings that could be offered not only by one primate, but also by others who felt in themselves the ability and appeal of God for this (;). It was arranged from the remnants of the bread brought for the Sacrament of the Eucharist, and from other people's offerings, and united the rich and the poor, the noble and the ignoble.

The composition of the liturgy, which was under the apostles, served as a model and guide for the rites of the liturgies of subsequent times. Judging by the testimonies that have come down to us about the celebration of the liturgy in times close to the apostolic, preserved in the writings of Justin the Martyr, Tertullian and Cyprian, as well as the ancient liturgies known under the names of the Apostle James, the Evangelist Mark, Saints Basil the Great and John Chrysostom and others, the similarity of these liturgies, at least in the main and essential, with each other and with brief testimonies about the celebration of the liturgy in the apostolic writings and among church writers of the 2nd and 3rd centuries, is easily explained by the fact that they are based on the order transmitted from the apostles. True, this rite in the apostolic and in the times following them, in many particulars, depended on the will of the primates of the Church, on their discretion and often inspiration, so characteristic of those times; but in its general composition it has remained unchanged, due to reverence for the authority of the apostles, through constant use and oral tradition. St. Basil the Great directly testifies to this method of preserving the apostolic order of the liturgy: “Which of the saints left on the letter the words of invocation, with which the bread in the Eucharist and the Cup of blessing are consecrated? We are not content with what the Apostle and the Gospel remember; but both before and after we speak other words, which we accepted from the unwritten tradition, as being important for the Sacrament itself.

The written presentation of the liturgy devotional from the apostles did not begin until the third century. By this time, researchers of the history of Christianity include the following rites: the liturgy of the Apostle James, which was performed in the Jerusalem Church; the Syriac Liturgy under the name of Mark the Evangelist, which was celebrated in the Alexandrian Church; a liturgy similar to them, described in the Eighth Book of the Apostolic Constitutions.

From the 4th century, the rite of the liturgy, set forth by Saints Basil the Great and John Chrysostom, began to come into use, which later, from the 12th century, became dominant in the entire Orthodox East. The Liturgy of Basil the Great, according to Patriarch Proclus of Constantinople, is an abbreviation of the Jerusalem Liturgy of the Apostle James, which, in turn, according to the same writer, was further abbreviated by St. who visited or listened to her without diligence. However, both liturgies were subsequently supplemented by several sacred rites, hymns and prayers, which will be indicated below.

Heb. 9, 12 ; ), sometimes serving at the altar (), with sacrifices (), as it was in the Old Testament Church. In the liturgical sense, the word liturgy has long been known from church monuments. So in the Acts of the Ephesian Ecumenical Council, evening and morning services are called liturgies, i.e. the whole circle of daily worship (Epistle to the emperor about Cyril and Memnon). But in particular this is the Sacrament of the Eucharist, and in the course of time it was exclusively assimilated to it, just as the name of the Bible (book) became the exclusive name of the books of Holy Scripture.

Patriarch Balsamon of Antioch, an interpreter of church canons in the 12th century, to the question of Patriarch Mark of Alexandria regarding this question, “is it possible to receive in the Holy and Catholic Church the rites of the liturgy read in the regions of Alexandria and Jerusalem, according to tradition, written by the apostles James and Mark?” gave a negative answer and kept this Patriarch from celebrating the Liturgy of the Apostle James in Constantinople. (Collection of ancient liturgies translated into Russian. St. Petersburg, 1874, p. 145).

Services in the Russian Orthodox Church are celebrated according to the Jerusalem Rule adopted one and a half thousand years ago. The charter specifies the order or succession liturgies, vespers, matins and small services of the daily circle. In general, this is a complex system, the deep knowledge of which is available only to professionals. But the Church recommends that every Christian study the main stages of worship in order to discover the spiritual wealth accumulated over the centuries.

Word "liturgy" means a common service, a gathering of believers for the sake of meeting with God. This is the most important Christian service, when the transformation of bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ takes place. "We are involved in the supernatural”, - this is what St. John of Damascus says about this.

For the first time the Liturgy was served by Christ Himself on the eve of the sufferings. Having gathered in the upper room for a festive meal, His disciples prepared everything for the performance of the Passover rites, then accepted among the Jews. These rituals were symbolic, reminding the participants of the meal about the liberation from Egyptian slavery. But when the rite of the Easter meal was fulfilled by Christ, the symbols and prophecies turned into into fulfilled divine promises: man became free from sin and regained heavenly bliss.

Thus, originating from the ancient Jewish rite, the Christian liturgy in general terms resembles its following, and the entire daily circle of services, starting with Vespers, is a preparation for its celebration.

In modern church practice, the liturgy is a morning (by time of day) service. In the ancient church, it was performed at night, which still happens today on the days of the great holidays of Christmas and Easter.

Development of the liturgical rite

The order of the first Christian liturgies was simple and resembled a friendly meal, accompanied by prayer and remembrance of Christ. But it soon became necessary to distinguish the liturgy from ordinary dinner parties in order to inspire the faithful with reverence for the Sacrament being performed. Gradually, in addition to the psalms of David, it included hymns composed by Christian authors.

With the spread of Christianity to the east and west, worship services began to acquire national features of the people who adopted the new faith. The liturgies began to differ from each other so much that it took the decisions of the councils of bishops to establish a single succession.

Currently, there are 4 main liturgical rites compiled by the Holy Fathers and performed in the Orthodox Church:

• - is performed daily, excluding the statutory days of the Liturgy of Basil the Great, and during the Lenten Triodion - on Saturdays and Palm Sunday.
• Basil the Great- 10 times a year: on the day of the author's memory, both Christmas Eve, 5 times during Fortecost and 2 - on Holy Week.
• Gregory the Dialogist or the Presanctified Gifts- served during Great Lent on weekdays.
• Apostle James the Greek- takes place in some Russian parishes on the day of the memory of the Apostle.

In addition to the listed liturgies, there are special rites in the Ethiopian, Coptic (Egyptian), Armenian and Syrian churches. The rites of the Liturgies are found in the Catholic West, as well as among the Catholics of the Eastern Rite. In general terms, all liturgies are similar to each other.

The rite composed by St. John Chrysostom, has been used in the practice of the Church since the 5th century. In time, it is younger than the creation of Basil the Great. For the parishioner, the liturgies of both authors are similar and differ only in time. The Liturgy of Saint Basil is longer because of the length of the secret priestly prayers. Contemporaries of John Chrysostom argued that the shorter rank was composed by him out of love for the common people, who are weary of long services.

The abbreviated following of John Chrysostom quickly spread throughout Byzantium and eventually developed into the order of the most famous Divine Liturgy. The text with explanations given below will help the laity understand the meaning of the main points of the service, and the choir singers and readers - to avoid common mistakes.

Liturgy usually starts at 8-9 am, the hours three and six are read in front of her, reminiscent of the trial at Pilate and the crucifixion of Christ. When the hours are read on the kliros, a proskomedia is performed in the altar. The serving priest prepared from the evening, reading a long rule, in order to take over the throne the next day.

The divine service begins with the exclamation of the priest “Blessed is the Kingdom…”, and after the answer of the choir, the Great Litany immediately follows. Then antiphons begin - pictorial, festive or everyday.

Antiphons Figurative

Bless, my soul, the Lord.

Small Litany:

Praise, my soul, the Lord.

The first two hymns symbolize the prayer and hope of the Old Testament man, the third - the sermon of the appeared Christ. Before the Blessed Ones, the song “Only Begotten Son” sounds, the authorship of which is attributed to Emperor Justinian (VI century). This moment of the service is reminiscent of the Nativity of the Savior.

Antiphon III, 12 Beatitudes:

Remember us in Your Kingdom, O Lord...

The Rule suggests interspersing the verses of the beatitudes with the troparia of the canons read at Matins. For each category of service, its own number of troparia is required:

• sixfold - from "Blessed are the peacemakers" to 6;
• polyeleos or vigil to the saint - by 8, with "Blessed are the merciful";
• Sunday - by 10, with "Blessed are the meeks."

In churches with daily liturgy on weekdays, you can hear the Daily Antiphons. The texts of these hymns are verses from psalms, interspersed with a refrain dedicated to the Lord and the Mother of God. There are also three daily antiphons, they are of more ancient origin. Over time, they are increasingly replaced by Fine.

On the days of the Lord's feasts, the Festive antiphons sound, similar in structure to everyday ones. These texts can be found in the Menaion and Triodion, at the end of the feast service.

small entrance

From this moment begins the Liturgy itself. Priests under the singing of the entrance verse "Come, let's bow..." enter the altar with the Gospel, that is, with Christ Himself. The saints march invisibly behind them, so immediately after the opening verse the choir sings the troparia and kontakia to the saints, laid down according to the Rule.

Trisagion

The singing of the Trisagion was introduced in the 6th century. According to legend, this song was first heard by a young resident of Constantinople performed by an angelic choir. At this time, the city suffered from a strong earthquake. The assembled people began to repeat the words heard by the youth, and the elements subsided. If the previous input verse "Come let us worship" referred only to Christ, then the Trisagion is sung to the Holy Trinity.

Prokeimenon and reading of the Apostle

The order of reading the Apostle at the Liturgy is regulated by the Charter and depends on the category, connection of services and festive periods. When preparing readings, it is more convenient to use the church calendar or the "liturgical instructions" for the current year. And also prokeimnes with alliluaries are given in appendix to the Apostle in several sections:

With a careful study of the composition of the book of the Apostle, the preparation of the readings will take a little time. There can be no more than two prokimns, and no more than three readings.

The sequence of proclamations at the reading of the Apostle:

• Deacon: Let's go.
• Priest: Peace to all.
• Reader of the Apostle: And your spirit. Prokimen voice ... (voice and text of the prokimen)
• Chorus: prokimen.
• Reader: verse.
• Chorus: prokimen.
• Reader: the first half of the prokimen.
• Chorus: the prokeimenon sings.
• Deacon: Wisdom.

The reader proclaims the name of the apostolic reading. It is important to pronounce the inscriptions correctly:

• Acts of the Saints Apostle reading.
• Cathedral Epistle of Petrov (Jacoblya) reading.
• To the Corinthians (Jews, Timothy, Titus) of the Epistle of the Holy Apostle Paul reading.

Deacon: listen (listen!)

It is recommended to read the text in a singsong voice, gradually increasing intonation in order to end the reading on a high note. If the charter prescribes two readings, then at the end of the first, the reader returns the last syllable to a low note. The text from the Acts begins with the words "In the days of Ona", the Epistles of the Council - "Brethren", messages to one person - "Child Tita" or "Child Timothy."

Priest: peace to the one who honors!

Reader: and your spirit.

Hallelujah and Gospel Reading

Despite the fact that after the Apostle the reader immediately pronounces Hallelujah, this exclamation does not complete the reading of the Apostle, but is a prokeimenon to the Gospel. Therefore, in the ancient liturgies, the Alleluia was said by the priest. Order:

• Deacon: Wisdom.
• Reader: Hallelujah (3 times).
• Chorus: hallelujah repeats.
• Reader: Alliluary verse.
• Choir: hallelujah (3 p.)

After the second verse of the Alliluary, he goes to the altar, holding the closed book of the Apostle over his head. At this time, the deacon, placing a lectern in front of the Royal Doors, sets up the liturgical Gospel vertically on it.

Statutory exclamations follow priest and deacon before reading the Gospel.

Deacon: Bless, master, the evangelizer of the holy apostle and evangelist Matthew (John, Luke, Mark).

The name of the Evangelist is pronounced in the genitive case, since the blessing is requested not for the author of the Gospel, but for the deacon.

The gospel is read like the Apostle, beginning with the words “At the time it is” or “The Lord spoke to His disciple,” depending on the plot. At the end of the reading, the priest blesses the deacon with the words " peace to you, who proclaims the gospel!"Unlike the words addressed to the reader of the Apostle -" reverent". After the final chant Glory to Thee, Lord, glory to Thee” the priest’s sermon may follow, explaining what he heard.

The word "double" means "double". This name comes from the double appeal to the mercy of God at the beginning of the litany, as well as the fervent prayer of the faithful. Usually two special litanies are pronounced - congratulatory and requiem. At this moment, in modern practice, there is a reading of notes with names filed "for mass". Special petitions can be inserted for travelers, sick people, etc.

With the exception of the first two petitions of the healthy litany, the choir responds to each petition with three “Lord, have mercy.”

Litany for the catechumens and the faithful

A series of brief petitions - a prayer for those preparing for baptism. According to ancient tradition, they could not attend the main part of the liturgy - the transubstantiation of the Holy Gifts. After listening to the introductory part - the Liturgy of the catechumens - all the unbaptized left the church.

In our time, announcement period is short or absent altogether. Therefore, the litany should be understood as a reminder of ancient piety and serious attitude to the sacraments of the Church.

After the litany of the catechumens and their exodus, two more litanies follow, the first of which resembles the Great Litany in text. She begins the Liturgy of the faithful. In the wake of Ap. James, in this place, the solemn prokeimenon is pronounced “The Lord reigned in beauty, clothed”, in Chrysostom it was transferred to the proskomedia.

Cherubic Hymn, Great Entrance

The text of the Cherubim Hymn, which begins the Liturgy of the Faithful, is usually painted according to the notes. It is performed in a sing-song voice because the priest and deacon should have enough time for incense, a special prayer, and the transfer of the prepared Holy Gifts (not yet combined Bread and Wine) from the altar to the throne. The path of the clergy passes through the pulpit, where they stop to pronounce commemorations.

Deacon: Let us love one another, but confess with unanimity.

Choir: the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, the Trinity Consubstantial and Indivisible.

In ancient times, with the exclamation of "Let us love ...", the parishioners kissed each other as a symbol of the unity of Christians in the image of the Holy Trinity. Men and women greeted each other separately, as they were in different parts of the temple to maintain decency. IN modern tradition kissing occurs only between the clergy at the altar.

Symbol of faith

The twelve verses of the Creed are sung by the entire congregation of Christians under the direction of a deacon. Thus, the faithful confirm their confession and agreement with the dogmas of the Church. At this time, the priest fans the Holy Gifts with a cover, which reminds of the imminent descent of the Holy Spirit and the coming miracle of their transformation into the Body and Blood of Christ.

Eucharistic canon

Deacon: Let's become good, let's become fearful...

Choir: The mercy of the world, The sacrifice of praise.

The texts of the Eucharistic canon for the choir are signed according to the notes for a drawn-out and touching singing. At this time, the main action of the liturgy takes place - the Transubstantiation of the Holy Gifts. Parishioners pray, standing motionless or on their knees. No walking or talking is allowed.

Worthy to eat and commemorate

The Eucharistic Canon is followed by a song dedicated to the Theotokos. In the order of John Chrysostom, this is “It is worthy to eat”, which on the days of the twelfth holidays is replaced by worthy. The texts of the meritors are given in the menaia on the day of the feast and represent the irmos of the ninth ode of the canon with a refrain.

During the performance of "It is worthy to eat" the priest commemorates the saints of the day and dead Christians.

Priest: First, Lord, remember...

Choir: And everyone and everything.

Preparing for Communion

After the Eucharistic Canon, a supplicatory litany is again heard, to which the nationwide singing of the Our Father joins. Christians pray with words commanded by the Lord Himself in order to soon begin Communion. The first to receive the Holy Gifts will be the clergy at the altar.

The exclamation “Holy to the Holy” follows, meaning that the Shrine is ready and is presented to the “saints”, in this case, to the parishioners preparing for communion. The choir responds on behalf of the people “One Holy Lord Jesus Christ…”, recognizing the unworthiness of even the most righteous person before God. This is followed by the chanting of the sacrament verse intended for the priests who receive the Gifts.

The texts of the communion verses are given in the menaia for each service, as well as in the appendix of the Apostle, after the prokeimons. There are only seven verses for each day of the week and special ones for the twelfth holidays.

In the modern tradition the pause during the communion of the priests is filled with a "concert" - the author's musical work on the theme of the day, which is performed by the choir. It is also appropriate to read the prayers for Communion in order to prepare the laity to receive the Body and Blood of Christ. Reading continues until the opening of the royal gates.

The deacon is the first to leave the holy gates, holding the Chalice with the Gifts in front of him. Laymen preparing for communion are allowed closer to the salt. They stand with their arms crossed over their chests, palms to their shoulders. After the deacon's exclamation, "Come with the fear of God and with faith!" the priest, who followed the deacon, reads one of the prayers for communion “I believe, Lord, and I confess…”, approaching the Chalice, the laity mentally read the troparion of the Great Thursday “Thy secret Supper…”.

Babies are brought in first, children are brought in. The men go next, the women last. Immediately after receiving the Holy Mysteries, the parishioners go to the table, on which a teapot with a drink is prepared. Zapivka - sweetish water, tinted with wine or juice, is used to swallow all the smallest particles of the Body and Blood of Christ.

At this moment, one must especially watch over small children so that they do not spit out the Holy Secrets. Dropping a Particle is a terrible sin of negligence. If this happens, it is necessary to inform the priest, who will take the measures prescribed in such cases by church rules.

During communion, the Easter communion verse is sung "Take the body of Christ, taste the source of the immortal." When the Chalice is taken to the altar, the choir repeats Hallelujah.

Here the priest leaves the altar and stands in front of the pulpit, from where he reads the “prayer beyond the pulpit”, praying on behalf of the people. This prayer was introduced into the liturgy after the time of St. John Chrysostom, when the custom of secret priestly prayers appeared.

It can be seen that all the prayers related to the Eucharistic canon are said secretly in the altar, the parishioners hear only the singing of the choir. Often this is a temptation for the curious, who want to hear and see everything that happens behind the iconostasis. The prayer behind the ambo is composed of fragments of secret prayers so that the laity have an idea of ​​what words are spoken by the priests.

The concealment of the most important part of the Liturgy - the Transubstantiation of the Holy Gifts - is symbolic. Neither the content of the prayers nor the actions of the clergy are in the Church "a secret for the uninitiated", but are performed behind the fence to emphasize the importance and incomprehensibility of the Eucharist.

Any Christian who seeks to study the faith has the opportunity to attend special liturgies, where pauses are made in the service to explain what is happening.

• Ep. Vissarion Nechaev "Explanation of the Divine Liturgy".
• John Chrysostom "Commentaries on the Divine Liturgy".
• A. I. Georgievsky. The service of the Divine Liturgy.

Psalm 33 and Let go

Under the song of the righteous Job, "Be blessed be the Name of the Lord from now on and forever," the priest again goes to the altar. In many churches, after this, they begin to sing the 33rd psalm, which teaches the believers guidance for the coming day. At this, the parishioners dismantle the antidoron taken out of the altar - a part of the service prosphora used to make the Lamb. All these actions remind believers of the ancient custom of the "meal of love" that was arranged by Christians after the Eucharist.

At the end of Psalm 33, the priest pronounces dismissal - a short prayer, where through the prayers of the Virgin and the saints of the day, divine mercy is requested for all the faithful. The choir responds with many years of "Our Great Lord and Father Cyril ...".

After the liturgy in many churches it is customary to serve a prayer service.

Texts for kliros

Literature on the observance and interpretation of the Liturgy, as well as hymn sheet music, can be purchased at specialized stores. It is convenient for the director of the choir and the readers to use the printed text containing the unchanging hymns of the evening and morning services, the liturgy and the all-night vigil. The texts for the kliros can be downloaded from the Azbuka.Ru portal.

It is noteworthy that many of those who attend divine services may not at all understand the meaning and deep meaning of the Divine Liturgy. The words spoken in the chant also remain misunderstood. A gap in this kind of knowledge deprives prayer of meaningfulness, therefore, when talking with God - our Heavenly Father - we must consciously approach this issue. Christians must understand the meaning of the words they hear and speak.

For many, going to church becomes almost a feat in the spiritual sense, because you have to wait a long time for your turn to confess, and then listen to the incomprehensible speeches of the churchman. In fact, when we come to the Church, we, in fact, find ourselves in the Upper Room of Zion, where we are waiting for our hour of spiritual purification.

You need to be ready for Orthodox worship, so that together with everyone, with one heart and mouth, we can sing the glory of the Lord. This article will reveal the meaning and give an explanation of this church service, tell about its origin, about what varieties there are, how they are performed, what is the order.

Divine Liturgy with explanations - download, listen online

There is also a wonderful lecture by Protodeacon Andrei Kuraev on the Divine Liturgy, in which a detailed explanation of the Orthodox rite is given in intelligible language and easy style (understandable even for dummies in this matter).

Lectures by Protodeacon Andrei Kuraev, replete with explanations, can be found in video and audio format, watched and listened to online, and also downloaded. Such materials are recommended for familiarization both to people starting their Orthodox path and to churchgoers.

The divine liturgy should not be confused with the funeral service, which is called requiem. This service differs in that it commemorates the dead, is served on the day of the death of the deceased, also on the 3rd, 9th, 40th day, and on every anniversary after death, on birthdays, name days.

A memorial service can be served both in church by a priest and at home by a layman. During this service, trusting in the mercy of God, the Lord asks for forgiveness of sins for the deceased and eternal life.

What is the liturgy in the church

This is the main Christian service, it is also called mass - the basis and center of the entire church world.

The purpose of this sacred tradition is to prepare for the sacrament of the Eucharist or Communion, which takes place at the close of the service.

The first Eucharist was celebrated by Jesus Christ on Maundy Thursday.

This is interesting: Maundy Thursday (otherwise Maundy Thursday, Holy Thursday) is the fourth day of Great Week. On this day, followers of the Christian faith remember the Last Supper. It was then that Jesus Christ performed the washing of the feet of the apostles and established the sacrament of Communion. Surrounded by his disciples, Christ blessed the bread, which is His Body, and the wine, which is His Blood, and said: “Take, eat: this is My Body” (Matthew 26:26; Mark 14:22; Luke 22:19 ).

It is during this main church service that the dead are commemorated according to the notes “For the Repose” and about health according to the notes “On Health”, which are served by Christians. It is recommended to submit notes before the start of the service, and preferably in the evening - at the evening service.

Origin of the Orthodox Liturgy

As mentioned earlier, the Eucharist forms the basis of liturgical worship. In ancient Greece, there was such a thing as the Eucharist.

Translated from Greek into Russian, this word means "common cause." As history testifies, after the ascension of the Savior to heaven, the apostles, in remembrance of Him, broke bread.

In the future, the tradition was passed on to all followers of this religion. Christians, having accepted the teaching of the apostles, also began to perform this sacrament, and do so to this day.

The service itself has changed over time. If at first the liturgy was performed in the order that was established in the time of the Apostles (when communion was combined with meals, prayers and fellowship), then in modern realities the liturgy was separated from the meal and turned into an independent ritual. Sacred rites began to be held in churches and temples.

What are the liturgies

Liturgical rites vary depending on the venue. For example, in Israel, the rite of the Liturgy of the Apostle James was formed.

Essence and meaning various options of the sacred rite are absolutely united, and the difference lies in the prayer texts pronounced by the priests and priests.

I would like to note that in various churches two services are served at once - early and late. The first, as a rule, begins at about 7 o'clock in the morning, and the second - at 10 o'clock. Services are held in different aisles, different priests serve, confession takes place both at early and at late Mass.

This was done for the parishioners themselves - those who work can attend early services, as well as mothers and fathers of families can attend such services without children, and bring their household members to a late service. Thus, every believing Christian can enjoy prayerful communion with God.

Liturgy of the Apostle James

This rank refers to the Jerusalem type, compiled by the Apostle James. In the 1930s, the rank was also introduced in the Russian Orthodox Church, however, not in Russia, but abroad. After 40 years, this type of church service became widespread in the Moscow Patriarchate.

Today, divine services are performed in the Orthodox churches of our country several times a year.

The difference between this rite and others like it is the way the service is conducted for the laity. Communion of the Body and Blood of Christ takes place separately: first they partake of bread from the hands of a priest, and then from another minister they receive the Chalice of the Blood of Christ.

Such a service is performed on the day of remembrance of St. James - October 23, and is also served in the East and in some Russian churches.

Liturgy of the Apostle Mark

This rank belongs to the classical Alexandrian type. The features of worship in this case include conciseness, expressiveness, clarity.

Thanks to these qualities, the ceremony began to enjoy great popularity in several countries at once - at first it was performed in Alexandria, then in Egypt, and then in Italy, Armenia and Syria.

The conduct of the liturgy consists in the fact that first a procession of clergy is carried out (small entrance), then there are exclamatory prayers.

Liturgy of Saint John Chrysostom

This is one of the three services performed in the Russian Orthodox Church, which include the liturgy of St. Basil the Great, on the basis of which the rite of John Chrysostom was compiled, and the liturgy of St. Gregory Dvoeslav.

Worship is carried out practically all year round, except for some special days.

Liturgy of Saint Basil the Great

Divine services are held 10 times a year, including Christmas and Epiphany.

The order of the service and the content of the service, with some exceptions, coincide with the previous rank.

Liturgy of Saint Gregory the Dialogist

This service is also called the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts. This is explained by the fact that the Body and Blood are consecrated during this service, and then the parishioners and clergy take communion with them.

The Orthodox rite is performed on Wednesday and Friday of Great Lent.

The order of celebration of the full liturgy and its explanation

Before performing the main church service, the clergy must prepare themselves. Still not putting on any vestments, standing in the temple in front of the royal urats, the priests pray, reading the so-called "Entrance Prayers".

Then the ministers bow and kiss the icons of the Savior and the Mother of God and recite the troparia.

After that, the priests secretly pray in front of the gates so that the Lord would strengthen them for the upcoming service. Then they bow to each other, to the holy icons and to the people, and enter the altar.

The service lasts about two hours and takes place mainly in the morning. The duration, however, can be completely different, and in addition, services can be held even at night or in the evening.

As a rule, the ceremony is held on Sundays, as well as on holidays, on the days of the memory of the Saints and the celebration of icons. The whole ceremony of worship is a sequential series of actions, divided into several stages, having their own names and performed in accordance with certain rules.

The church service consists of three parts:

• proskomedia;
• the liturgy of the catechumens;
• liturgy of the faithful.

The Liturgy of St. Gregory the Dialogist does not belong to the full rites. The procedure and scheme for performing a full church service is as follows.

First, the clergy prepare the substance for the celebration of the sacrament of the Eucharist from bread and wine. Secondly, there is preparation for the Sacrament. And, thirdly, the Eucharist is celebrated, during which the Holy Gifts are consecrated, and Holy Communion of the participants in the service takes place.

Proskomedia

This is the first stage. The process consists in preparing and bringing the necessary attributes of worship - bread and wine. Proskomidia is performed on the altar during the reading of the hours (prayer blessings that sanctify a certain time of the day).

At the very beginning of the proskomedia, the ministers of the church put on a sacred robe and read the entrance prayers. Further, on the first prosphora, an image of a cross is made three times, a prayer is said. The middle is cut out of the prosphora in the form of a cube - the Lamb. It is placed on one of the liturgical vessels - paten.

Next, the priest pours wine into the chalice. Particles of five prosphora are placed on three sides. At the end, the clergyman covers the vessels with the Gifts with covers and "air" and asks God to bless the Gifts.

Liturgy of the catechumens

In ancient times, participation in church rites required serious long-term preparation. People had to study religious dogmas, attend church, but they had the right to read prayers during the church service only before bringing the Gifts from the altar to the throne.

First, prayer petitions are pronounced, psalms and troparia are sung. Further, the catechumens must leave the place of the Orthodox rite, since the main stage of the Divine Liturgy begins.

Liturgy of the Faithful

As soon as the call to the catechumens to leave the temple sounds, the third part of the service begins. Prayers are spoken, chants are sung. At the same time, the transfer of the Gifts to the throne takes place. This process was called the great move, which symbolizes the procession of the Savior to suffering and death.

Before the consecration of the Holy Gifts, a petitionary litany is pronounced. A litany is also pronounced, which prepares those present for communion, then the prayer "Our Father" is sung. Then comes the communion of the Holy Mysteries of Christ to all those who prepared for this and received the blessing of the clergyman.

It is important to know: in order to become a participant in the great sacrament of Communion, believers must go through a liturgical fast and clear their conscience - do not eat or drink after 00 hours the day before and come to confession.

After the Chalice is brought to the altar, a short litany is said. At the end of the church service, the priest calls for a blessing on the worshipers, the parishioners kiss the cross, and prayers of thanksgiving are read.

Conclusion

Such is the essence and order of the Divine service. Everyone who considers himself a member of the Christian faith must know everything about the liturgy and understand the meaning of all actions in order to conduct a dialogue with God and make his faith truly meaningful.

“Liturgy” is a Greek word, translated as “common cause”.

The Divine Liturgy is the most important Christian service, the focus of all other church services of the daily cycle, in relation to which they all serve as a kind of preparation. In this service, not only prayers and hymns are lifted up to God, but also a mysterious bloodless Sacrifice is offered for the salvation of people and, under the guise of bread and wine, the true Body and true Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ is given to believers. Therefore, it is, above all other services, called the "Divine Service" or "Divine Liturgy".

As a thankful commemoration of the Lord's divine love for the fallen human race, expressed in particular in sacrificing Himself for the sins of people, the liturgy is also called the "Eucharist", which means "thanksgiving" in Greek. In ordinary colloquial language, the liturgy is often called "mass", since it is usually performed in the pre-dinner time.

The Divine Liturgy, at which the Sacrament of Communion of the Body and Blood of Christ is celebrated, originates from the last Last Supper of the Lord Jesus Christ with His disciples, on the eve of His suffering on the Cross for the salvation of the world. The Sacrament of Communion was established by Jesus Christ Himself. The Lord commanded: "Do this in remembrance of me"(Luke 22:19). It can be seen from the book of the Acts of the Apostles that the Apostles, after the descent of the Holy Spirit upon them, gathered daily with the Jerusalem believers to perform the sacrament of St. The communion they called "breaking bread"(Acts 26:42-46).

The most ancient order of the liturgy that has come down to us dates back to the first bishop of Jerusalem, St. Apostle James, brother of the Lord. In the 4th century, when Christianity in the Roman Empire triumphed over paganism, the rite of the Apostolic Liturgy, which had hitherto been preserved in oral tradition, was put into writing. This was done in order to streamline the worship and for the uniformity of the celebration of the liturgy. This was done first by St. Basil the Great, Archbishop of Caesarea in Cappadocia, who somewhat simplified and shortened the liturgy of the Apostle James, and then a little later reworked the rite of the liturgy of St. John Chrysostom, when he was Archbishop of Constantinople.

Liturgy can be performed on all days of the year, except for Wednesday and Friday of cheese week (Shrovetide), weekdays of St. Lent (Lent) and Good Friday. During one day on one throne and one clergyman, the liturgy can be performed only once. Following the example of the Last Supper, in apostolic times, the liturgy usually began in the evening and sometimes continued past midnight (Acts 20:7), but from the time of the emperor Trajan's decree, which forbade night gatherings of any kind, Christians began to gather for the liturgy before dawn. From the 4th century it was established to celebrate the liturgy in the afternoon, and, with the exception of some days of the year, no later than noon.

The Liturgy must be performed without fail in a consecrated church, where a permanent throne has been built and where the antimension, consecrated by the bishop, is located. Only in the most extreme cases, when there is no consecrated church, and then only with the special permission of the bishop, can the liturgy be performed in some other room, but without fail on the antimension consecrated by the bishop. Without an antimension, the celebration of the liturgy is unacceptable.

Only a properly ordained clergyman (that is, has a canonical ordination, has a regular apostolic succession) - a bishop or presbyter - can only celebrate the liturgy. A deacon or other cleric, and even more so a lay person, has no right to celebrate the liturgy. To celebrate the liturgy, both the bishop and the presbyter must be dressed in full vestments corresponding to his rank.

Priests who intend to celebrate the liturgy must participate and pray on the eve of all divine services of the daily circle. In addition, the clergy who celebrate the liturgy must certainly take communion after it with St. the Mysteries of Christ, and therefore they must first fulfill the "Rule for Holy Communion." The clergyman must begin the Divine service in purity of soul and body, removing from himself all moral obstacles to the performance of such a great and terrible sacrament, such as reproaches of conscience, enmity, despondency and be reconciled with everyone; from the evening it is necessary to refrain from excessive consumption of food and drink, and from midnight absolutely nothing to eat or drink.

Liturgy of St. Basil the Great and St. John Chrysostom is divided into three parts:

1) Proskomedia(from Greek - offering), on which the substance for the Sacrament is prepared from the gifts of bread and wine brought by believers;

2) Liturgy of the catechumens, which consists of prayers, readings and chants that prepare for the celebration of the Sacrament, and which is so called because the presence of “catechumens” is allowed on it, that is, not yet baptized, but only preparing to receive Baptism;

3) Liturgy of the Faithful, at which the Sacrament of Communion itself is performed and only the “faithful”, that is, those who are already baptized and have the right to take Communion, are allowed to attend.

* * *

Word " proskomedia " means "bringing". This is the name of the first part of the Liturgy because at that time the ancient Christians brought to the temple everything needed to celebrate the Liturgy.

The proskomidia, symbolizing the Nativity of Jesus Christ, is celebrated in the altar, with the doors closed, with the veil drawn, invisibly from the people, just as the birth of the Savior took place secretly, unknown to the world. On it, through special sacred rites, the substance for the Sacrament of Communion is prepared from the brought bread and wine, while the commemoration of both living and deceased members of the Church is performed.

For proskomidia, five special prosphora are used in remembrance miraculous satiety Jesus Christ with five loaves of five thousand people. From the first prosphora after special prayers the priest cuts out the middle in the shape of a cube - this part of the prosphora is given the name Lamb . The lamb relies on a paten, a round dish on a stand, symbolizing the manger in which the Savior was born. From the second prosphora, "Mother of God", the priest takes out a particle in honor of the Mother of God. Nine particles are taken out of the third prosphora, “nine-fold”, in honor of the saints: John the Baptist, prophets, apostles, saints, martyrs and saints, unmercenaries, the parents of the Virgin, Joachim and Anna, and the saint, according to whose order the liturgy is celebrated. After that, the clergyman proceeds to the fourth prosphora, from which he takes out particles about the living - about the Patriarch, bishops, presbyters and deacons. From the fifth prosphora, particles are taken out about the deceased - the patriarchs, the creators of temples, bishops, priests. All these particles are stacked in a special order on the diskos.

Then the priest removes the particles from the prosphora given by the faithful. At this time, commemorations are read - notes that we submitted to the candle box for proskomedia. When reading each name indicated in the note, the priest takes out a piece of prosphora, saying: “Remember, Lord, (the name we wrote is indicated).” These particles are also placed on the diskos. Why are they brought? – At the end of the Liturgy, after all communicants have partake of the Holy Mysteries, the priest puts into the chalice (chalice) with the Blood of Christ the particles of the saints and of the living and the dead lying on the paten. This is done so that the saints, in the closest union with God, rejoice in heaven, and the living and the dead, whose names were indicated in the notes, receive the forgiveness of sins and eternal life, having been washed by the Most Pure Blood of the Son of God. This is also evidenced by the words that the priest will secretly pronounce at the same time: “Wash away, Lord, the sins of those who are remembered here, by Your Honorable Blood.” That is why it is so important to commemorate the living and the dead at the liturgy.

During the proskomedia for those who pray, they read watch - a collection of psalms and prayers that remind the most important hours of the day for a Christian: hour three, when the Holy Spirit descended hour six when the Savior of the world was crucified on the Cross.

At the end of the proskomedia, the deacon opens the veil of the royal doors and performs a full incense of the temple, i.e. first, the altar, the throne, the altar, the high place, the icons are incense, and then the iconostasis, the choir, the people and the whole temple. Incense is a symbol of prayer and at the same time a symbol of the grace-filled presence of God. In this way, the entire church is consecrated before the actual celebration of the Divine Liturgy.

The second part of the Liturgy is called Liturgy of the catechumens , because the catechumens are also allowed to hear it - those people who are preparing for holy Baptism through catechumens, that is, the verbal study of the Christian faith.

The liturgy of the catechumens begins with the exclamation: Blessed is the kingdom Father and Son and Holy Spirit, now and forever and forever and ever". After this, the deacon or priest pronounces the great litany. This litany is followed by the singing of the 102nd psalm "Bless the Lord, my soul", a small litany and the singing of the 145th psalm "Praise, my soul, the Lord." These psalms are called pictorial , for they depict the blessings of God to the human race: the heart of a Christian must glorify the Lord, who cleanses and heals our spiritual and bodily infirmities, delivers our life from decay, and not forget all His blessings. The Lord is generous, merciful and long-suffering; He keeps the truth forever, executes judgment on the offended, gives food to the hungry, frees the prisoners, loves the righteous, accepts orphans and widows, and punishes sinners...

At the end of the psalms, the song is sung: Only Begotten Son and the Word of God, immortal, destined for our salvation to be incarnated from the Holy Mother of God and Ever-Virgin Mary, immutably incarnated, crucified, O Christ God, righting death by death, one of the Holy Trinity, glorified by the Father and the Holy Spirit, save us". In this song, remembering the incarnation of the Son of God, His crucifixion and death, we ask Him to save us.

After that, the second small litany is pronounced, and at the end of it, beatitudes . They teach what we must be like to be rewarded by God. During the singing of these commandments for the first time at the Liturgy, the royal doors are opened and the small entrance : the priest and the deacon with the Gospel in their hands exit the altar through the north door to the pulpit. This means the appearance of Jesus Christ to preach to the world after His Baptism on the Jordan River.

small entrance

After singing "Come, let's bow..." and the exclamation of the priest: "Thou art holy, our God...", the deacon, standing on the pulpit in front of the icon of the Savior, proclaims: "Lord, save the pious and hear us". Then the Trisagion is sung : "Holy God, holy Mighty, holy Immortal, have mercy on us".

The Apostle and the Gospel are read . The first contains the teaching of the Apostles, and the second contains the teaching of Jesus Christ Himself.

Reading the Apostle

The deacon reads the gospel

When Christ was among the people, many turned to Him with requests and needs, therefore, after reading the Gospel, special (strengthened) litany : “Rzem all with all my heart, and from all our thoughts with our hearts ...”. Here we pray for the Patriarch and the local bishop, for our fatherland, for the living and for the departed relatives and friends, for the benefactors of the temple, the singers and workers in the temple. Then follows litany of the catechumens . In it, believers pray for the catechumens, so that the Lord would announce them with the word of truth, that is, instruct them in the truth, reveal to them the Gospel of truth and unite them to His holy Church, so that they, together with the believers, would be worthy to glorify His holy name ...

Liturgy of the Faithful makes up the third part of the Liturgy and is called so because only the faithful are allowed to attend when it is celebrated, that is, those who are baptized and not excommunicated from the Church or from St. Communion. It symbolically depicts the Last Supper of the Lord, His suffering and death, the resurrection from the dead, the ascension to heaven and the second coming to earth.

The royal doors open and the choir sings Cherubic Hymn: “Even the Cherubim, secretly forming and the Life-Giving Trinity the thrice-sacred song humming, now let us lay aside all worldly care; as if we would raise the King of all, Invisibly dorinosima chinmi by angels, hallelujah ". In Russian: “We, mysteriously portraying the Cherubim and singing the thrice-holy song to the Life-Giving Trinity, will now lay aside all worldly cares so that we can receive the King of all, invisibly accompanied by angelic powers. Alleluia."

Priests pray at the altar during the Cherubic Hymn

In the middle of the Cherubic Hymn, grand entrance , during which St. The gifts are transferred from the altar to the altar: the deacon and the priest go through the northern doors of the altar to the pulpit. The Great Entrance symbolizes the procession of Jesus Christ to voluntary suffering, as well as His crucifixion and death on the cross. Remembering how the prudent robber, who realized that the Son of God was being crucified next to him, asked Him: “Remember me, Lord, in Your Kingdom,” so the clergy, holding vessels with gifts for the bloodless Sacrifice in their hands, ask the Lord to remember in the Kingdom of Heaven patriarch, priesthood and all Orthodox Christians. Closing the royal doors and closing them with a curtain means closing the Holy Sepulcher with a large stone, sealing and placing guards on the Sepulcher.

Great Entrance

After the great entrance, the preparation of the faithful for a worthy presence at the consecration of the prepared Gifts follows. For this purpose, first, a litany about the offered Gifts is pronounced, and then a pleading litany about those coming in the temple: so that the Lord cleanses their sins, helps them to spend the present day and their whole lives in peace and without sin, under the protection of the Guardian Angel, and vouchsafe them a Christian death and a good answer at the Last Judgment.

Then the deacon calls on all believers to unite in brotherly love: “Let us love one another, but confess with one mind”, i.e., so that we, being imbued with the same thoughts about God, could confess Him, or express our faith in Him. Those who sing complement who exactly we need to confess: "Father and Son and Holy Spirit, the Trinity consubstantial and indivisible". Symbol of faith is sung at this time by all those who pray, so that all together could testify before God and the Church of the purity and unity of their faith, since without true faith no one can either approach the Sacrament or be present at its celebration.

After singing the Creed, believers are called to a worthy stand in the temple during the Sacrament of Communion. To this end, the deacon proclaims: "Let's become good, let's stand with fear, let's pay attention, bring holy exaltation in the world"(i.e., we will stand decently, with fear, we will listen, in order to bring a holy offering in the world, that is, a holy sacrifice). Those who sing on behalf of all believers answer: "The grace of the world, the sacrifice of praise", i.e. we offer God a bloodless holy Sacrifice, in relation to our neighbors - mercy, as the fruit of peace or harmony with them.

The priest says: "Gore e we have hearts, that is, let us direct our hearts upward to God. Those who sing on behalf of the believers answer: "Imams to the Lord" i.e. we have hearts aspiring to the Lord.

The priest then says: "Thank the Lord!" . With these words begins the most important stage of the Liturgy - eucharistic canon, or anaphora (“ascension”), during which the Sacrament of the Eucharist is directly performed. On the kliros they sing: “It is worthy and righteous to worship the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, the Trinity consubstantial and inseparable”. At this time, we must thank the Lord for all His blessings, especially for the fact that He brought us out of insignificance into existence, and when we fell away from Him, He again instructed us and leads us to His Heavenly Kingdom.

The priest, secretly reciting the prayer and remembering in it the blessings of God, at the same time represents the continuous doxology of the Angels surrounding the Throne of God, and proclaims: “The victory song is singing, crying, calling and speaking”. On the kliros they sing the very song of the angels: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts(lord of forces, or heavenly armies), fulfill(performed) heaven and earth of thy glory! And to this they add the song of praise of the Jewish youths who greeted Jesus Christ at His solemn entry into Jerusalem: “Hosanna in the highest! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!".

After the singing of this song, the most important action takes place at the Liturgy of the faithful - consecration of the Gifts . Remembering the Last Supper and the establishment of the Sacrament of St. Communion, the priest at this time pronounces the words of Jesus Christ Himself: “Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you for the remission of sins”, and than - “Drink from her, all of you: this is My Blood of the New Testament, which is shed for you and for many for the remission of sins.”. At this time, all believers should also remember the Last Supper of Christ and mentally be imbued with faith in the most pure Body and precious Blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. The priest proclaims: (Your gifts, O Lord, given to us by You, we offer You in gratitude and propitiation for everything in fulfillment of Your commandment and because of Your saving sufferings for all of us). On the kliros they sing long: "You(i.e. you) we sing, we bless you, we thank you, O Lord, and we pray, our God!". During the singing of this sacred song, the invocation of the Holy Spirit takes place on the offered Gifts and their very consecration. By the power and action of the Holy Spirit, the bread becomes the true Body of Christ, and the wine the true Blood of Christ.

“Yours is from Yours, offering to You about everyone and for everything”

After consecration Gifts are offered to God as a sacrifice with a prayer for the entire Church of Christ. Just as Jesus Christ Himself ended the Last Supper with a prayer to God the Father for all who believe in Him, so the Church, after the consecration of the Gifts, performs a prayerful remembrance of all its members, both living and dead. The priest says aloud: "Considerably(mostly thank the Lord) of the Most Holy, Most Pure, Most Blessed, Glorious Our Lady Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary". The Holy Church encourages the faithful to give special thanks to the Lord for the Most Holy Mother of God, because She has received special glorification from God, much higher than all other saints, and her intercession before God has greater power than the prayers of other saints. On the kliros, on behalf of all those who pray, they sing a song of praise in honor of the Mother of God: “It is worthy to eat, as if truly blessed by Thee, the Mother of God ...”. During this singing, the priest secretly prays both for the dead with faith in Christ and for the living Christians. The first he asks God for eternal rest, and the last - all the blessings for the Christian life. When remembering the Church, an earthly priest first of all prays for the highest spiritual authorities - for the Patriarch and the local bishop. The singers answer: "And everyone, and everything", that is, remember, Lord, and all believers - both men and women.

To prepare believers for St. Communion priest first calls on them "the grace of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ"; then the deacon pronounces the litany that the Lord send down to all believers Divine grace and the gift of the All-Holy Spirit, and joins this with a petitionary litany. Then everyone present sings Lord's Prayer "Our Father" .

The priest proclaims: "Holy to the holy!" , that is, the holy Gifts - the Body and Blood of Christ - can only be given to the saints and those who have cleansed themselves of sins through repentance. But since none of the people can recognize themselves as completely clean from sin, the singers answer the exclamation of the priest: “One is holy, one is the Lord Jesus Christ, to the glory of God the Father. Amen". Communion of the clergy is performed in the altar.

After this, the royal doors are opened, which until now have been closed, resembling a closed chamber at the Last Supper, and the deacon, having received from the priest a chalice with St. Gifts, calls to communion of the laity : "Come with the fear of God and faith". On the kliros they sing: “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! God the Lord and appear to us". All this depicts the resurrection of Jesus Christ. The priest says prayers, which all communicants must repeat after him: “I believe, Lord, and I confess…”, "Your Secret Supper...". Then the faithful approach the Chalice for Communion. At this time, the choir sings: “Take the Body of Christ, Taste the Source of the Immortal”.

Prayer before communion

After the communion of the laity, the priest, turning to those present in the temple, asks them for God's blessing: “Save, O God, Thy people and bless Thy inheritance!”. Those who sing on behalf of the believers give thanks to the Lord, briefly counting the benefits they received: “I have seen the true light, I have received(accepted) Spirit of Heaven, we have found the true faith, we worship the inseparable Trinity: She saved us there ”.

Finally, addressing St. With gifts for the last time to the faithful, the priest says: "Always, now and ever, and forever and ever", indicating by this the ascension of the Lord and His eternal presence with believers on earth. Meanwhile, those who sing on behalf of all Christians express their prayerful desire to always praise the Lord: “May our lips be filled with Thy praise, Lord, as if we sing Thy glory, as if Thou hast vouchsafed us to partake of Thy holy, Divine, immortal and life-giving Mysteries: keep us in Thy holiness, learn Thy truth all day long. Alleluia". After that, a short thanksgiving litany for the communion of the Holy Mysteries is said, and the priest says aloud the prayer: "Bless those who bless Thee, O Lord...". After reading it, believers betray themselves to the will God's prayer righteous Job: "Be the name of the Lord blessed from now on and forever".

Finally, the priest, blessing the faithful for the last time, says: “The blessing of the Lord is upon you, by His grace and love of mankind, always, now and forever, and forever and ever” and give thanks to God: "Glory to Thee, Christ God, our hope, glory to Thee". Turning to the people and holding in his hands the altarpiece of St. The cross, the priest pronounces vacation and gives the Holy Cross to the faithful for kissing. Each one praying, slowly and without embarrassing others, kisses the Holy Cross in a well-known order, in order to thereby testify to his fidelity to the Savior, in whose remembrance the Divine Liturgy was performed. The singers at this time sing a prayer for the preservation for many years of His Holiness the Patriarch, the ruling bishop, the God-protected country of Russia, the rector and brethren of the temple and all Orthodox Christians.

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Literature:

1. Bishop Averky (Taushev). Liturgy.
2. Bishop Alexander (Mileant). Explanation of the Divine Liturgy.

Photo by V. Knyazev and St. Andrew's Church in Ufa