You definitely need to be at the festive All-Night Vigil. During this service, in fact, Christ, born in Bethlehem, is glorified. Liturgy is a divine service that practically does not change in connection with the holidays, and the main liturgical texts, the main chants, which explain the event remembered on this day and set us up on how to properly celebrate the holiday, are sung and read in the church during Vespers and Matins.

It should also be said that the Christmas service begins earlier - on Christmas Eve. Christmas Eve services in 2019 will be held on Friday, since Christmas Eve coincides with Sunday.

On Christmas itself, you should come to Great Compline and Matins and, naturally, to the Divine Liturgy.

2. When preparing to go to the night Liturgy, worry in advance about not wanting to sleep so much.

In our churches, services are not daily; liturgies at night are generally rare. Therefore, in order to go out for night prayer, you can prepare in completely ordinary everyday ways.

For example, be sure to sleep the night before the service. While the Eucharistic fast allows, drink coffee. Since the Lord has given us fruits that invigorate us, we need to use them.

But if during the night service you begin to feel sleepy, it would be better to go out and make several circles around the temple with the Jesus Prayer. This short walk will definitely refresh you and give you strength to continue to pay attention.

3. Fast correctly. “Until the first star” means not to go hungry, but to attend the service.

Where did the custom of not eating food on Christmas Eve, January 6, “until the first star” come from? Previously, Christmas Vespers began in the afternoon and went into the Liturgy of St. Basil the Great, which ended when stars actually appeared in the sky. After the Liturgy, the rules permitted eating a meal. That is, “until the first star” meant, in fact, until the end of the Liturgy.

But over time, when the liturgical circle was isolated from the life of Christians, when people began to treat divine services rather superficially, this developed into a custom divorced from practice. People don’t go to the service or take communion on January 6, but at the same time they go hungry.

How to fast on Christmas Eve? If you were present in the morning at the Christmas Vespers and the Liturgy of St. Basil the Great, then you are blessed to eat food, as required by the rules, after the end of the Liturgy. That is, during the day. But if you decide to devote this day to cleaning the premises, preparing dishes, and so on, then, please, eat after the “first star”. Since you didn’t carry out the feat of prayer, at least carry out the feat of fasting.

Regarding how to fast before Communion, if it is at a night service, then according to existing practice, liturgical fasting (that is, complete abstinence from food and water) in this case is 6 hours. But this is not directly formulated anywhere, and there are no clear instructions in the charter how many hours before communion you cannot eat.

On an ordinary Sunday, when a person is preparing for Communion, it is customary not to eat food after midnight. But if you are going to receive communion at the night Christmas service, then it would be correct not to eat food somewhere after 21.00.

In any case, it is better to discuss this issue with your confessor.

4. Find out and agree on the date and time of confession in advance. So as not to spend the entire festive service in line.

The issue of confession at the Christmas service is purely individual, because each church has its own customs and traditions. It is easy to talk about confession in monasteries or those churches where there are a large number of serving priests. But it is better to confess on the eve of the Christmas service, so that during the service you think not about whether you will have time or not to confess, but about how to truly worthily meet the coming of Christ the Savior into the world.

5. Do not exchange worship and prayer for the “12 Lenten dishes” and in general for preparing the festive table. This tradition is neither evangelical nor liturgical.

People often ask how to link attendance at services on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with the tradition of a feast on Christmas Eve, when 12 Lenten dishes. Rozhdestvensky, like Epiphany Christmas Eve, is a fast day, and a day of strict fasting. According to the regulations, boiled food without oil and wine are allowed on this day. “12 Lenten dishes” is folk custom, which has nothing in common either with the Gospel, or with the liturgical charter, or with the liturgical tradition of the Orthodox Church. Unfortunately, in the media on the eve of Christmas large quantities materials appear in which attention is concentrated on some pre-Christmas and post-Christmas traditions, eating certain dishes, fortune-telling, festivities, caroling, and so on - things that are often very far from the true meaning of the great holiday of the coming of our Redeemer into the world.

One hears that such things as traditions are needed for people who are not yet particularly churchgoers, in order to somehow interest them. But it is better for a person to recognize Christianity immediately from the Gospel, from the traditional patristic Orthodox position.

6. Don't turn Christmas into a food holiday. This day is, first of all, spiritual joy. And it is not good for health to break fast with a rich feast.

It's all about priorities. If it is a priority for someone to sit at a rich table, then the whole day before the holiday, including when the festive vespers are already being celebrated, the person is busy preparing various dishes, Olivier salads and other sumptuous dishes.

If it is more important for a person to meet the born Christ, then, first of all, he goes to worship, and in his free time he prepares what he has time for.

In general, it is strange that it is considered obligatory on the day of the holiday to sit and consume a variety of abundant dishes. This is not useful from a medical point of view, nor from a spiritual point of view. It turns out that we fasted throughout Lent, missed Christmas Vespers and the Liturgy of St. Basil the Great - and all this in order to simply sit down and eat. This can be done at any other time...

7. Sing to God intelligently. Prepare for the service - read about it, find translations, texts of the psalms.

There is an expression: knowledge is power. And, indeed, knowledge gives strength not only morally, but also literally - physically. If a person has at one time taken the trouble to study Orthodox worship, to delve into its essence, if he knows that this moment happens in a temple, then for him there is no question of standing for a long time, fatigue. He lives in the spirit of worship, knows what follows what. For him, the service is not divided into two parts, as it happens: “What is in the service now?” - “Well, they’re singing.” - "And now?" - “Well, they’re reading.”

Knowledge of the service gives an understanding that certain moment During worship, you can sit down and sit and listen to what is sung and read. The liturgical regulations in some cases allow, and in some even require, sitting. This is, in particular, the time of reading psalms, hours, kathismas, stichera on “Lord, I have cried.” That is, there are many moments during the service when you can sit. And, as one saint put it, it is better to think about God while sitting than to think about your feet while standing.

Many believers act very practically by taking lightweight folding benches with them. Indeed, in order not to be distracted by searching for a place to sit at the right time, it would be better to take such a bench with you. There is no need to be embarrassed about sitting during the service. The Sabbath is for man, not man for the Sabbath. At some moments it is better to sit down, especially if your legs hurt, and while sitting attentively listen to the service, than to suffer, suffer and look at the clock, when will all this end.

In addition to taking care of your feet, take care of food for your mind in advance. You can buy special books or find and print materials about the holiday service on the Internet - interpretation and texts with translations.

Many people believe that you cannot follow the Liturgy in church from a book - you need to pray together with everyone. But one does not exclude the other: following a book and praying, in my opinion, are one and the same thing. Therefore, do not be embarrassed to take literature with you to the service. You can take a blessing from the priest for this in advance in order to cut off unnecessary questions and comments.

8. On holidays, churches are crowded. Have pity on your neighbor - light candles or venerate the icon another time.

Many people, when they come to church, believe that lighting a candle is the duty of every Christian, a sacrifice to God that must be made. But since the Christmas service is much more crowded than a regular service, some difficulty arises with the placement of candles, including because the candlesticks are overcrowded.

The tradition of bringing candles to the temple has ancient roots. Previously, as you know, Christians took everything they needed for the Liturgy from home with them: bread, wine, candles for lighting the church. And this, indeed, was their feasible sacrifice.

Now the situation has changed and setting candles has lost its original meaning. For us, this is more a reminder of the first centuries of Christianity. A candle is our visible sacrifice to God. She has symbolic meaning: We must before God, like this candle, burn with an even, bright, smokeless flame. This is also our sacrifice for the temple, because we know - from Old Testament, that people in ancient times were required to pay tithes for the maintenance of the Temple and the priests serving under it. And in the New Testament Church this tradition was continued. We know the words of the apostle that those who serve the altar are fed from the altar. And the money that we leave when purchasing a candle is our sacrifice.

But in such cases, when churches are overcrowded, when whole torches of candles are burning on candlesticks, and they are being passed around and passed on, perhaps it would be more correct to put the amount that you wanted to spend on candles in a donation box, rather than embarrass brothers and sisters with the transfer of candles. sisters praying nearby.

9. When bringing children to the night service, be sure to ask them if they want to be in church now.

If you have small children or elderly relatives, then go with them to the Liturgy in the morning. If you decide to bring your children to church at night, then the main criterion for attending such long services should be the desire of the children themselves to come to this service. No violence or coercion is acceptable!

There are things of status for a child, which are criteria for adulthood for him. Such, for example, as the first confession, the first visit to the night service. If he really asks adults to take him with them, then in this case this needs to be done.

It is clear that a child will not be able to stand attentively for the entire service. To do this, you can take some kind of soft bedding for him, so that when he gets tired, you can put him in a corner to sleep and wake him up before communion. But so that the child is not deprived of the joy of the night service.

It’s touching when children come to the service with their parents, they stand joyful, with sparkling eyes, because the night service for them is very significant and unusual. Then gradually they subside... As long as the child can stand it, he can stand it. But you shouldn’t deprive him of such joy. However, getting into this service should be the desire of the child himself. So that Christmas would be associated for him only with love, only with the joy of the born baby Christ.

10. Be sure to take communion!

When we come to church, we often worry that we didn’t have time to light the candles or didn’t venerate some icon. But that's not what you need to think about. We need to worry about whether we often unite with Christ.

Our duty in worship is to pray carefully and receive Holy Communion as often as possible. Mysteries of Christ. The temple, first of all, is the place where we partake of the Body and Blood of Christ. This is what we must do.

And, indeed, attending the Liturgy without communion is meaningless. Christ calls: “Take, eat,” and we turn away and leave. The Lord says: “Drink from the Cup of Life, all of you,” and we don’t want to. Does the word “everything” have a different meaning? The Lord does not say: drink 10% from me - those who were preparing. He says: drink from Me, all of you!

The Christmas service in 2019 will traditionally be held from January 6 to 7 in all Orthodox churches with a solemn divine liturgy. It is carried out according to the services of the daily circle and consists of several parts: morning, evening, compline, midnight, hours and the Christmas Liturgy itself.

Christmas service and television

The 2019 Christmas service will combine morning and evening services into an all-night vigil prayer. That is, a prayer that lasts all night. Such prayer occurs only 2 times a year, on Christmas and the Feast of Holidays - Easter.

Since the Renaissance Orthodox faith Over the past 20 years, a tradition has developed in Russia of the congratulatory television address of the Patriarch of All Rus' before the start of the Christmas service, and the same will happen in 2019.

The Patriarchal service, with an all-night vigil, held in the Cathedral of Christ the Savior in Moscow is broadcast on Channel One, Russia 1, as well as on Orthodox channels"Spas" and "Soyuz". The time of the Christmas service in 2019 is 23:00, January 6.

It is best, of course, to celebrate Christmas directly at the service, and not in front of the TV screen. This broadcast, in to a greater extent, organized for believers who do not have the physical opportunity to attend the festive Liturgy. But the circumstances of life are such that the Word of God heard even by chance, by a non-believer, sometimes surprisingly begins to change his life.

Pilgrimage at Christmas

If possible, the Christmas service in 2019 can be held in the Pskov-Pechersky Monastery, a famous spiritual monastery that has given birth to many pious elders. Including the famous spiritual elder John Krestyankin. Every year on Christmas, pilgrimage tours are organized from Moscow and St. Petersburg (St. Petersburg) to attend the festive Liturgy.

It is important that believers feel divine grace in church

But it is not so important to celebrate the bright holiday of the Nativity of Christ in a large spiritual monastery or a small church. It is important that believers feel divine grace in the temple. An example of such a temple is the Church of Sergius of Radonezh in the village of Oktyabrsky, Perm Region. The village itself has an 80-year history, but there was no church of its own.

By God's grace, the residents of the village landscaped the territory on which a small temple complex arose and on Christmas Eve 2006, the rector, Fr. Andrey (Vorobiev) conducted the first Christmas service. The place is famous for its holy spring, to which an increasing number of believers come from year to year.

The exact schedule of the Christmas service in 2019 is drawn up and determined in advance by the rector of the church in accordance with the main instructions of the Patriarchal service.

On January 7, Orthodox Christians celebrate Christmas, Catholics celebrate Christmas on December 25, and for them, in the Christmas service of 2019, the address of Queen Elizabeth 2 of England is significant.

For royal family The Queen's Christmas message is a traditional gesture aimed largely at organizing external attributes holiday than for spiritual farewell.

Where did the expression “not eat until the first star” come from, and to whom does this rule not apply? How many hours before Communion can you eat? If all the days before Christmas are fasting, then when should you devote time to preparing dishes for festive table?

Read the material for answers to these and many other questions.

Part I.

Why do people pray for so long? or Where did the tradition of night services come from?

And the first question in connectionWithSo why do we need such long services?

The history of long services dates back to apostolic times. The Apostle Paul wrote: “Rejoice always, incessantly pray, give thanks in everything.” The book of Acts of the Apostles says that all the believers were together, day after day they gathered in the temple and praised God ( Acts 2.44). From here, in particular, we learn that long services were commonplace in the life of the first Christians.

The Christian community of apostolic times lived in readiness for martyrdom for Christ, in anticipation of His imminent second coming. The apostles lived in accordance with this expectation and behaved accordingly - burning with faith. And this fiery faith, love for Christ was expressed in very long prayers.

In fact, they prayed all night long. After all, we know that the early Christian communities were persecuted by the then pagan authorities and were forced to pray at night in order to go about their normal affairs during the day without attracting attention to themselves.

In memory of this, the Church has always maintained the tradition of long, including night services. By the way, once upon a time services in monastery and parish churches were performed according to the same rite - there was virtually no difference between the parish and monastic typikon (except that special additional teachings were inserted into the monastery service, which are now omitted almost everywhere in monasteries).

During the atheistic twentieth century, the traditions of long services in countries in the post-Soviet space were practically lost. And seeing the example of Athos, we are perplexed: why serve for so long a service that can be completed three times faster?

Regarding the Svyatogorsk tradition, I would like to note that, firstly, such long services are not performed constantly, but on special holidays. And secondly, this is one of the wonderful opportunities for us to bring our “fruit of the lips” to God. After all, which of us can say that he has such virtues that he is ready to lay them before the Throne of God right now? He who is critical of himself and confesses consciously knows that his deeds, strictly speaking, are deplorable, and he cannot bring anything to the feet of Christ. And at least each of us is fully capable of bringing “the fruit of the lips” glorifying the name of the Lord. At least somehow we can praise the Lord.

And these long services, especially on holidays, are precisely dedicated to serving our Lord in some way.

If we talk about the Christmas service, then this, if you like, is one of those gifts that we can bring to the manger of the born Savior. Yes, the most main gift To God is the fulfillment of His commandments of love for Him and love for one’s neighbor. But still, various gifts are prepared for the birthday, and one of these can be a long prayer at the service.

The question, probably, is also how to make this gift correctly, so that it is pleasing to God and useful for us...

Do you feel tired during long night services?

What you have to struggle with at such services is sleep.

Not long ago I prayed on Mount Athos in the Dokhiar monastery during a service on the Feast of the Archangels. The service with short breaks lasts 21 hours, or 18 hours of pure time: it begins at 16.00 the day before, in the evening there is a 1-hour break, and then continues all night until 5 am. Then 2 hours for rest, and by 7 am the Liturgy begins, which ends at 1 pm.

Last year, on the patronal feast day in Dochiara, Vespers and Matins passed for me more or less, and during the Liturgy, sleep overcame me with terrible force. As soon as I closed my eyes, I immediately fell asleep standing up, and so soundly that I even began to dream. I think many people are familiar with this state of extreme need for rest... But after the Cherubim, the Lord gave strength, and then the service went normally.

This year, thank God, it was easier.

What was especially impressive this time was that I didn’t feel any physical fatigue at all, by the grace of God. If I didn’t want to sleep, I could have been at this service for 24 hours. Why? Because all those praying were inspired by a common impulse towards the Lord - both monks and lay pilgrims.

And this is the main feeling that you experience at such services: we have come to glorify God and His Archangels, we are determined to pray and praise the Lord for a long time. We are not in a hurry and therefore we will not rush.

This general state of those present in the church was very clearly visible during the entire service. Everything was very leisurely, everything was very carefully, very detailed, very solemn and, most importantly, very prayerful. That is, people knew what they came for.

Why is such unanimity in prayer not felt during parish services? Because of those present in the church, there are very few who really understand why he is, in fact, in the church. Such people who would ponder the words of liturgical texts and seriously understand the course of the service are, unfortunately, a minority. And the bulk are those who came either because of tradition, or because it is so supposed, or they want to celebrate the holiday in church, but do not yet know the words of the psalm: sing to God wisely. And these people, as soon as the service began, are already shifting from foot to foot, thinking that it would be over soon, why they are singing something incomprehensible, and what will happen next, and so on. That is, the person is completely unaware of the course of the service and does not understand the meaning of the actions being performed.

And those who come to Athos have an idea of ​​what awaits them there. And at such long services, they actually pray very enthusiastically. So, according to tradition, during the holiday, the brethren of the monastery sing on the left choir, and guests sing on the right. Usually these are monks from other monasteries and laymen who know Byzantine chants. And you should have seen how enthusiastically they sang! So sublime and solemn that... if you see it once, then all questions about the need or unnecessaryness of long services will disappear. It is such a joy to glorify God!

In ordinary worldly life, if people love each other, then they want to be close to each other for as long as possible: they cannot stop talking or communicate. And just like that, when a person is inspired by the love of God, even 21 hours of prayer is not enough for him. He wants and craves communication with God all 24 hours...

Part II.

- So, How to prepare yourself for long service and spend time in the temple with dignity?

1. If possible, attend all statutory holiday services.

I want to emphasize that you must be present at the festive all-night vigil. During this service, in fact, Christ, who was born in Bethlehem, is glorified. Liturgy is a divine service that remains virtually unchanged due to holidays. The main liturgical texts, the main chants, which explain the event remembered on this day and set us up on how to properly celebrate the holiday, are sung and read in the church precisely during Vespers and Matins.

It should also be said that the Christmas service begins a day earlier - on Christmas Eve. On the morning of January 6, Christmas Vespers are celebrated in churches. It sounds strange: vespers in the morning, but this is a necessary deviation from the rules of the Church. Previously, Vespers began in the afternoon and continued with the Liturgy of Basil the Great, at which people received communion. The whole day of January 6 before this service was especially strict fast, people did not eat food at all, preparing to take communion. After lunch, Vespers began, and communion was received at dusk. And soon after this came the solemn Christmas Matins, which began to be served on the night of January 7th.

But now, since we have become more frail and weak, solemn Vespers is celebrated on the 6th in the morning and ends with the Liturgy of Basil the Great.

Therefore, those who want to celebrate the Nativity of Christ correctly, according to the charter, following the example of our ancestors - ancient Christians, saints, should be, if work allows, on the eve of Christmas, January 6, at the morning service. On Christmas itself, you should come to Great Compline and Matins and, naturally, to the Divine Liturgy.

2. When preparing to go to the night Liturgy, worry in advance about not wanting to sleep so much.

In the Athonite monasteries, in particular in Dokhiar, the abbot of the Dokhiar monastery, Archimandrite Gregory, always says that it is better to close your eyes for a while in the temple, if you are completely sleepy, than to retire to your cell to rest, thus leaving the divine service.

You know that in the churches on the Holy Mountain there are special wooden chairs with armrests - stasidia, on which you can sit or stand, reclining the seat and leaning on special arms. It must also be said that on Mount Athos, in all the monasteries, the brethren in full force must be present at all daily services. Absence from service is a fairly serious deviation from the rules. Therefore, you can leave the temple during the service only as a last resort.

In our realities, you can’t sleep in a temple, but there’s no need for that. On Mount Athos, all services begin at night - at 2, 3 or 4 o'clock. And in our churches services are not daily, liturgies at night are generally rare. Therefore, in order to go out for night prayer, you can prepare in completely ordinary everyday ways.

For example, be sure to sleep the night before the service. While the Eucharistic fast allows, drink coffee. Since the Lord has given us fruits that invigorate us, we need to use them.

But if sleep begins to overcome you during the night service, I think it would be better to go out and make a few circles around the temple with the Jesus Prayer. This short walk will definitely refresh you and give you strength to continue to pay attention.

3. Fast correctly. “Until the first star” means not to go hungry, but to attend the service.

Where did the custom of not eating food on Christmas Eve, January 6, “until the first star” come from? As I already said, before Christmas Vespers began in the afternoon, it went into the Liturgy of St. Basil the Great, which ended when stars actually appeared in the sky. After the Liturgy, the rules permitted eating a meal. That is, “until the first star” meant, in fact, until the end of the Liturgy.

But over time, when the liturgical circle was isolated from the life of Christians, when people began to treat divine services rather superficially, this developed into some kind of custom completely divorced from practice and reality. People don’t go to the service or take communion on January 6, but at the same time they go hungry.

When people ask me how to fast on Christmas Eve, I usually say this: if you attended Christmas Vespers and the Liturgy of St. Basil the Great in the morning, then you are blessed to eat food, as required by the rules, after the end of the Liturgy. That is, during the day.

But if you decide to devote this day to cleaning the premises, preparing 12 dishes, and so on, then, please, eat after the “first star”. Since you didn’t carry out the feat of prayer, at least carry out the feat of fasting.

Regarding how to fast before Communion, if it is at a night service, then according to existing practice, liturgical fasting (that is, complete abstinence from food and water) in this case is 6 hours. But this is not directly formulated anywhere, and there are no clear instructions in the charter how many hours before communion you cannot eat.

On an ordinary Sunday, when a person is preparing for Communion, it is customary not to eat food after midnight. But if you are going to receive communion at the night Christmas service, then it would be correct not to eat food somewhere after 21.00.

In any case, it is better to discuss this issue with your confessor.

4. Find out and agree on the date and time of confession in advance. So as not to spend the entire festive service in line.

The issue of confession at the Christmas service is purely individual, because each church has its own customs and traditions. It is easy to talk about confession in monasteries or those churches where there are a large number of serving priests. But if there is only one priest serving in the church, and there are a majority of them, then it is best, of course, to agree with the priest in advance, when it will be convenient for him to confess you. It is better to confess on the eve of the Christmas service, so that during the service you think not about whether you will or will not have time to confess, but about how to truly worthily meet the coming of Christ the Savior into the world.

5. Do not exchange worship and prayer for 12 Lenten dishes. This tradition is neither evangelical nor liturgical.

I am often asked how to reconcile attendance at services on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with the tradition of the Christmas Eve feast, when 12 Lenten dishes are specially prepared. I’ll say right away that the “12 Strava” tradition is somewhat mysterious to me. Christmas Eve, like Epiphany Eve, is a fast day, and a day of strict fasting. According to the regulations, boiled food without oil and wine are allowed on this day. How you can cook 12 different meatless dishes without using oil is a mystery to me.

In my opinion, the “12 Stravas” is a folk custom that has nothing in common either with the Gospel, or with the liturgical charter, or with the liturgical tradition of the Orthodox Church. Unfortunately, on the eve of Christmas, a large number of materials appear in the media in which attention is concentrated on some dubious pre-Christmas and post-Christmas traditions, eating certain dishes, fortune telling, festivities, caroling, and so on - all that husk that is often very distant from the true meaning of the great holiday of the coming of our Redeemer into the world.

I am always very hurt by the profanation of holidays, when their meaning and significance are reduced to certain rituals that have developed in one area or another. One hears that such things as traditions are needed for people who are not yet particularly churchgoers, in order to somehow interest them. But you know, in Christianity still better for people give immediately good quality food, not fast food. Still, it is better for a person to recognize Christianity immediately from the Gospel, from the traditional patristic Orthodox position, than from some “comics”, even those sanctified by folk customs.

In my opinion, many folk rituals, associated with this or that holiday, these are comics on the theme of Orthodoxy. They have practically nothing to do with the meaning of the holiday or the gospel event.

6. Don't turn Christmas into a food holiday. This day is, first of all, spiritual joy. And it is not good for your health to break your fast with a large feast.

Again, it's all about priorities. If it is a priority for someone to sit at a rich table, then the entire day before the holiday, including when the festive vespers are already being celebrated, the person is busy preparing various meats, Olivier salads and other sumptuous dishes.

If it is a priority for a person to meet the born Christ, then he, first of all, goes to worship, and in his free time prepares what he has time for.

In general, it is strange that it is considered obligatory on the day of the holiday to sit and consume a variety of abundant dishes. This is neither medically nor spiritually beneficial. It turns out that we fasted throughout Lent, missed Christmas Vespers and the Liturgy of St. Basil the Great - and all this in order to simply sit down and eat. This can be done at any other time...

I’ll tell you how the festive meal is prepared in our monastery. Usually, at the end of night services (Easter and Christmas), the brethren are offered a short break of fast. As a rule, this is cheese, cottage cheese, hot milk. That is, something that does not require much effort when preparing. And already in the afternoon a more festive meal is prepared.

7. Sing to God intelligently. Prepare for the service - read about it, find translations, texts of the psalms.

There is an expression: knowledge is power. And, indeed, knowledge gives strength not only morally, but also literally - physically. If a person has at one time taken the trouble to study Orthodox worship and understand its essence, if he knows what is currently happening in the church, then for him there is no question of standing for a long time or getting tired. He lives in the spirit of worship, knows what follows what. For him, the service is not divided into two parts, as it happens: “What is in the service now?” - “Well, they’re singing.” - "And now?" - “Well, they’re reading.” For most people, unfortunately, the service is divided into two parts: when they sing and when they read.

Knowledge of the service makes it clear that at a certain moment in the service you can sit down and listen to what is being sung and read. The liturgical regulations in some cases allow, and in some even require, sitting. This is, in particular, the time of reading psalms, hours, kathismas, stichera on “Lord, I have cried.” That is, there are many moments during the service when you can sit. And, as one saint put it, it is better to think about God while sitting than to think about your feet while standing.

Many believers act very practically by taking light folding benches with them. Indeed, in order not to rush to the benches at the right time to take seats, or not to “occupy” the seats by standing next to them throughout the service, it would be better to take a special bench with you and sit down on it at the right moment.

There is no need to be embarrassed about sitting during the service. The Sabbath is for man, not man for the Sabbath. Still, at some moments it is better to sit down, especially if your legs hurt, and sit and listen attentively to the service, rather than suffer, suffer and look at the clock to see when all this will end.

In addition to taking care of your feet, take care of food for your mind in advance. You can buy special books or find and print materials about the holiday service on the Internet - interpretation and texts with translations.

I definitely recommend also finding the Psalter translated into yours native language. Reading the Psalms is integral part any Orthodox service, and the psalms are very beautiful both melodically and stylistically. In the temple they are read on Church Slavonic language, but even for a church-going person it is difficult to perceive all their beauty by ear. Therefore, in order to understand what is being sung at the moment, you can find out in advance, before the service, which psalms will be read during this service. This really needs to be done in order to “sing to God intelligently” in order to feel all the beauty of psalmody.

Many people believe that you cannot follow the Liturgy in church from a book - you need to pray together with everyone. But one does not exclude the other: following a book and praying, in my opinion, are one and the same thing. Therefore, do not be embarrassed to take literature with you to the service. You can take a blessing from the priest for this in advance in order to cut off unnecessary questions and comments.

8. On holidays, churches are crowded. Have pity on your neighbor - light candles or venerate the icon another time.

Many people, when they come to church, believe that lighting a candle is the duty of every Christian, a sacrifice to God that must be made. But since the Christmas service is much more crowded than a regular service, some difficulty arises with the placement of candles, including because the candlesticks are overcrowded.

The tradition of bringing candles to the temple has ancient roots. Previously, as we know, Christians took everything they needed for the Liturgy from home with them: bread, wine, candles for lighting the church. And this, indeed, was their feasible sacrifice.

Now the situation has changed and setting candles has lost its original meaning. For us, this is more a reminder of the first centuries of Christianity.

A candle is our visible sacrifice to God. It has a symbolic meaning: before God, we must, like this candle, burn with an even, bright, smokeless flame.

This is also our sacrifice for the temple, because we know from the Old Testament that people in ancient times were required to tithe for the maintenance of the Temple and the priests serving at it. And in the New Testament Church this tradition was continued. We know the words of the apostle that those who serve the altar are fed from the altar. And the money that we leave when purchasing a candle is our sacrifice.

But in such cases, when churches are overcrowded, when whole torches of candles are burning on candlesticks, and they are being passed around and passed on, perhaps it would be more correct to put the amount that you wanted to spend on candles in a donation box than to embarrass your brothers by manipulating candles and sisters praying nearby.

9. When bringing children to the night service, be sure to ask them if they want to be in church now.

If you have small children or elderly relatives, then go with them to the Liturgy in the morning.

This practice has developed in our monastery. At night at 23:00 Great Compline begins, followed by Matins, which turns into the Liturgy. The liturgy ends around half past five in the morning - thus, the service lasts about five and a half hours. This is not so much - the usual all-night vigil every Saturday lasts 4 hours - from 16.00 to 20.00.

And our parishioners who have small children or elderly relatives pray at night at Compline and Matins, after Matins they go home, rest, sleep, and in the morning they come to Liturgy at 9.00 with small children or with those people who, for health reasons, could not attend the night service.

If you decide to bring your children to church at night, then, it seems to me, the main criterion for attending such long services should be the desire of the children themselves to come to this service. No violence or coercion is acceptable!

You know, there are things of status for a child, which are criteria for adulthood for him. Such, for example, as the first confession, the first visit to the night service. If he really asks that adults take him with them, then in this case this needs to be done.

It is clear that a child will not be able to stand attentively for the entire service. To do this, take some kind of soft bedding for him, so that when he gets tired, you can put him in a corner to sleep and wake him up before communion. But so that the child is not deprived of this joy of the night service.

It is very touching to see when children come to the service with their parents, they stand joyful, with sparkling eyes, because the night service for them is very significant and unusual. Then gradually they subside and turn sour. And now, as you pass through the side aisle, you see children lying side by side, immersed in the so-called “liturgical” sleep.

As long as the child can bear it, he can endure it. But you shouldn’t deprive him of such joy. However, I repeat once again, getting into this service should be the desire of the child himself. So that Christmas would be associated for him only with love, only with the joy of the born baby Christ.

10. Be sure to take communion!

When we come to church, we often worry that we didn’t have time to light the candles or didn’t venerate some icon. But that's not what you need to think about. We need to worry about whether we often unite with Christ.

Our duty during worship is to pray attentively and, as often as possible, to partake of the Holy Mysteries of Christ. The temple, first of all, is the place where we partake of the Body and Blood of Christ. This is what we must do.

And, indeed, attending the Liturgy without communion is meaningless. Christ calls: “Take, eat,” and we turn away and leave. The Lord says: “Drink from the Cup of Life, all of you,” and we don’t want to. Does the word “everything” have a different meaning? The Lord does not say: drink 10% from me - those who were preparing. He says: drink from me, everyone! If we come to the Liturgy and do not receive communion, then this is a liturgical violation.

INSTEAD OF AN AFTERWORD. What basic condition is necessary to experience the joy of a long all-night service?

It is necessary to realize WHAT happened on this day many years ago. That “the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth.” That “no one has ever seen God; The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has revealed.” What kind of event happened cosmic scale, which did not exist before and will not exist after.

God, the Creator of the universe, the Creator of the infinite cosmos, the Creator of our earth, the Creator of man as a perfect creation, the Almighty, who commands the movement of the planets, the entire cosmic system, the existence of life on earth, Whom no one has ever seen, and only a few in the entire history of mankind have been privileged to behold part of the manifestation of His some kind of power... And this God became a man, a baby, completely defenseless, small, subject to everything, including the possibility of murder. And this is all for us, for each of us.

There is a wonderful expression: God became man so that we could become gods. If we understand this - that each of us has received the opportunity to become God by grace - then the meaning of this holiday will be revealed to us. If we are aware of the scale of the event we are celebrating, what happened on this day, then everything culinary delights, caroling, round dances, dressing up and fortune-telling will seem to us trivial and fluff, completely unworthy of our attention. We will be absorbed in the contemplation of God, the Creator of the universe, lying in a manger next to the animals in a simple stable. This will exceed everything.

The All-Night Vigil for the Feast of the Nativity of Christ consists of Great Compline with lithium, matins And 1st hour. Before it begins, there is a blast and a ringing of the bell.

Great Compline consists of 3 parts. Each part begins with a reading Come, let's worship and ends with a special prayer.

Great Compline is performed as follows. The priest and the deacon, having put on their vestments, begin the process, as on all the Lord's feasts. The royal doors open, and the deacon, having given the priest a censer, with a candle in his hand goes out onto the solea. After the priest’s exclamation: “Blessed is our God...” the reader reads the usual beginning and other sequence of Great Compline. At this time, the priest, together with the deacon, performs the full incense of the temple, as at the beginning of the all-night vigil. At the end of the censing, the royal doors are closed.

First part of Great Compline similar to that part of Matins in which the Six Psalms are read first, then sung God Lord with troparions and kathismas with sedals and litanies. This similarity indicates that Great Compline arose on the basis of the Six Psalms and subsequently expanded to a tripartite composition.

After the usual beginning, six psalms are read: the 4th, 6th, 12th, and then the 24th, 30th and 90th psalms.

The choir sings God is with us.

The reader reads other verses (up to verse 20: Father of the next century).

The chorus choruses for each verse: Like God is with us and after the final verse he concludes by singing: God is with us.

Reader: The day has passed, I believe. Then - Holy Lady Mother of God, pray for us sinners, Pray all the heavenly powers of the holy Angels and Archangels etc.

Instead of troparia: Enlighten my eyes, O Christ God and the choir sings others (the royal doors are opened during the singing of the troparion).

Reader: Lord have mercy (40), The most honest and the final prayer of St. Basil the Great: Lord, Lord.

The first part is accompanied by a short The second part Compline, which in its content is repentant.

Reader: Come, let's worship, psalms: 50th, 101st and prayer to Manasseh, Trisagion according to Our Father. Instead of troparia: Have mercy on us, Lord, have mercy on us and others are sung by the choir (the royal doors are opened during the singing of the kontakion).

Reader: Lord have mercy (40), The most honest and final prayer: Sovereign God, Father Almighty.

The third part consists of glorifications and praise to God and the holy saints of God. It is similar to that part of Matins during which the canon is sung.

Reader: Come, let's worship, Psalms 69 and 142, and the daily doxology is read. Then there is an exit to the Litiya while singing (the usual ending of Great Compline is omitted here). After the litiya - holiday. By Now you let go- (three times), blessing of the loaves and Psalm 33.

Matins.

After the Six Psalms, on God Lord- (three times), then - kathismas and.

According to polyeleos - magnification: We magnify You, Life-Giving Christ, for our sake now born in the flesh from the Blessed and Most Pure Virgin Mary.

Degree -1 antiphon 4 voices.

Prokeimenon, ch. 4: And from the womb before the morning star I gave birth to Thee, the Lord swears and will not repent. Poem: R eche the Lord is my Lord: sit at my right hand; until I will make your enemies your footstool.

According to Psalm 50 instead Prayers sings: Glory: Every day of joy is fulfilled: Christ was born of the Virgin. And now- the same, but the end: Christ was born in Bethlehem. Have mercy on me, God and stichera: Glory to God in the highest, and peace on earth! Today Bethlehem will receive Him who sits ever with the Father.

The Great Doxology is sung, according to the Trisagion.

At the end of Matins there is a festive holiday Who was born in the den and reclined in the manger, for our salvation, Christ, our True God, through the prayers of His Most Pure Mother and all the saints, will have mercy and save us, for He is Good and Lover of Mankind.

Liturgy St. Basil the Great.

Entrance verse for the holiday: From the womb before the Lucifer gave birth to You, the Lord swears and will not repent: You are a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek.

Instead of the Trisagion it is sung “ Elitsy was baptized into Christ»

Forefest of Christmas

January 2the beginning of the pre-celebration of the Nativity of Christ, which lasts until January 6.
In theselast days of fasting - with2 to 6In January, the fast is intensified: fish is prohibited on all days, food with oil is allowed only on Saturday and Sunday.

On Christmas Eve (Christmas Eve), January 6,custom requires not to eat until the appearance of the first evening star, after which it is customary to eat kolivo or sochivo - wheat grains boiled in honey or boiled rice with raisins; in some areas sochivo is called boiled dry fruits with sugar. The name of this day comes from the word “sochivo” - Christmas Eve.

Christmas Eve
Christmas Carols

January 6 – Forever Nativity of Christ , or Christmas Eve, - last dayNativity Fast , eve Nativity of Christ.

On this day, Orthodox Christians especially prepare for the upcoming holiday; the whole day is filled with a special festive mood.

In the morning on Christmas Eve, at the end of the Liturgy and the following Vespers, a candle is brought into the center of the church and the priests sing a troparion before itChristmas.

On the very same day Christmas Eve fasting is no longer as strict as in the previous days of the strictest week Nativity Fast.

The service of Vespers is connected with the Liturgy and is served in the morning, which is whyWe fast until the moment when a candle is brought into the center of the church and before the candle the troparion to the Nativity of Christ is sung.

Many on this daytake communion. It would be good if those who cannot attend church services and who work honor this day with a stricter fast. We remember that, according to the Russian proverb, “A full belly is deaf to prayer.” Therefore, a more strict fast prepares us for the coming joy of the holiday.

Those who receive communion at the night Liturgy, according to church tradition, eat food at last time no less than six hours before the time of Communion, or from approximately 6 p.m. And here the point is not in a specific number of hours, that you need to fast for 6 or 8 hours and not a minute less, but in the fact that a certain limit is established, a measure of abstinence,helping us to keep it in moderation.

Sick people, of course, must fast to the extent that this is consistent with taking medications and with doctor’s orders. It's about It’s not about putting a weak person in a hospital, but about strengthening a person spiritually. The disease is already hard post and feat . And here a person should try to determine the measure of fasting according to his own strength.

As a rule, believers try to meet Nativity at the night holiday liturgy. But in many churches there is also an all-night vigil and Liturgy in usual time- 5 pm and in the morning.

To attend a night service or a morning service - you need to watch it within your strength. Celebrating a holiday at night is, of course, a special joy: both spiritual and emotional. T ceremonial night services contribute to a deeper prayerful experience and perception of the Holiday.

The Apostle Paul commanded us« Always rejoice. Continuously pray. In everything give thanks to the Lord” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).If we celebrate the holiday with joy, prayer and gratitude to God, then we are fulfilling the apostolic covenant.

In the Orthodox Church, in the evening hours are celebrated, calledRoyal, because for a long time kings were present at this service, worshiping the newbornTo the King of Kings.

Royal watchbegin and take place with the open royal doors, in the middle of the temple, in front of the Gospel, placed on a lectern, as if as a sign that nowSaviorno longer lurks, as it once did in the darkness of the den, but shines for all nations. Before the Gospel, incense is burned in remembrance of the incense and myrrh brought by the Magi to the newborn Christ.

The day itself Nativity of Christ in the flesh, as the most important and solemn, in the liturgical books of the Orthodox Churchcalled Easter, a three-day holiday.

On this day, according to the voice of the Church,“All kinds of joy are filled. The angels rejoice in heaven, and men rejoice: all creation plays for the sake of the Savior of the Lord born in Bethlehem: as all flattery of idols ends and Christ reigns forever.”

Christmas Eve - evening meal on the eve of Christmas, accompanied by many traditions and rituals.

Kutya was cooked from wheat, peas, rice, and peeled barley. Seasoned with honey, poppy seed, hemp, sunflower or other vegetable oil. Grain was a symbol of resurrection life, and honey or sweet seasoning meant the sweetness of the blessings of a future blessed life.

The order of meals was regulated strict rules: appetizers (herring, fish, salads) were served first, then red (slightly warmed) borscht, mushroom or fish soup. To the borscht, mushroom soup ears or pies with mushrooms were served, and among the Orthodox sochni - flour cakes fried in hemp oil.

At the end of the meal, sweet dishes were served on the table: roll with poppy seeds, gingerbread, honey cakes, cranberry jelly, dried fruit compote (uzvar), apples, nuts.

The meal was non-alcoholic. All dishes were lean, fried and seasoned vegetable oil, without meat base, without milk and sour cream. Didn't servedishes so that the hostess is always at the table.

Traditional ritual and ceremonial dishes
KUTIA

KUTIA. Recipes Kutya. Preparation Kutya. TRADITIONAL RUSSIAN...

preparing a big family dinner. The whole family sets the table.

There should be straw on the table (or hay, in memory of the den and manger),

and on the straw there is a snow-white tablecloth.

It is clear that you cannot bring hay into modern apartments, and it is not so easy to get it in cities.

But in Lately beautiful Christmas tablecloths with patterns of spruce paws and bells appeared in stores.

They will also greatly decorate your table.

Kutya is placed in the center.

Then other dishes: pancakes, fish, aspic, jelly, suckling pig, pork head with horseradish, homemade sausage, roast, honey gingerbread, lomantsi with poppy seeds and honey, uzvar.

This set also included drinks, which depended purely on the taste and capabilities of the owner.

Culinary recipes for Christmas, dishes, menu. Kulinar.ru - more than 95...

At the table, kutya should be eaten first, i.e. to start their dinner, each of those present at the table must eat at least one spoon of kutya. According to legends, then this person will live in health and prosperity throughout the coming year.

Christmas Holidays

The holidays began with Christmas- holidays that lasted until Epiphany (January 19).All this time, Christmas rituals, fortune telling, entertainment, and mummers walking through the courtyards and streets took place. On Christmas Day, early in the morning, before dawn, the ritual of seeding the huts was carried out. The shepherd walked with a bag of oats and, entering the house, threw a handful of grain in all directions with the sentence: “For the living, for the fertile, and for health.”

Girls didn't tell fortunes at Christmas. There was a sign: if a stranger’s woman enters the house first, the women in that family will be ill all day. To avoid any troubles, the peasants observed fairly strict prohibitions. On Christmas Day it was forbidden to do household chores. It was impossible to sew, otherwise someone in the family would go blind. You can’t weave bast shoes, otherwise you’ll end up crooked. But you cannot hunt in the forest until Epiphany, because then a misfortune will happen to the hunter.

At noon the whole family went to watch the sun play. If the sun is playing - dark forces They hide from him in the cracks. And if the evil spirits do get into the house, then on this day there is a short order with them - scald the corners with boiling water and sweep them with a nettle broom.

The father took his son to the barn to the barn with grain. Before that, the heir was solemnly dressed by the whole family. A sheepskin sheepskin coat was girded with an embroidered belt, a fur hat was put on the head, and felt boots were put on the feet. The father raised his son above the sap with grain, wanting him to grow up faster and become an assistant on the farm.

Second day of Christmas, which is called the Cathedral of the Virgin Mary,dedicated to the glorification of the Mother of Christ, the Blessed Virgin Mary. Glorifying the Mother of God, the Church remembers the flight of the Holy Family to Egypt. It was caused by the fact that King Herod, having learned about the Birth of Christ and the worship of the Magi, became angry and ordered all the babies in Bethlehem to be beaten, hoping to destroy the Savior as well. But an angel appeared to Joseph and ordered him to hide in Egypt. After the death of Herod, Joseph and his Family returned and settled in Nazareth.

From that day on, girls' fortune-telling and mummers' rituals continued until Epiphany. Costumers in fur coats turned inside out, wearing masks or with faces stained with soot walked from house to house, singing songs and acting out various performances and scenes for an appropriate reward. Sometimes they took a horse or a bull with them.

And the girls were guessing. They guessed differently every day, and whoever knew what methods guessed that way.

Third day of Christmas called Stepan's day.According to custom, on Stepanov’s day they cut stakes, placed them in the corners of the yard, sticking them into the snow so that evil spirits scare away. Stepan is seasoned in danger, therefore he is not afraid of any evil spirits and on this day he uses stakes to fence himself off from them. Stepan is associated with the image of a peasant farmer, and therefore a boy born on this day will be a kind, caring, zealous and strict owner. Even on this day, the whole village chose a shepherd, concluded an agreement with him, and arranged a treat.