Issues of external pious behavior often concern parishioners of many churches. How to address clergy correctly, how to distinguish them from each other, what to say when meeting? These seemingly little things can confuse an unprepared person and make him worry. Let's try to figure out whether there is a difference in the concepts of “priest”, “priest” and “priest”?
Priest - Mr. great actor any worship service
What do the names of church ministers mean?
In the church environment you can hear a variety of appeals to church servants. The main character of any worship service is the priest. This is the person who is in the altar and performs all the rites of the service.
Important! Only a man who has undergone special training and ordained by the ruling bishop can become a priest.
The word “priest” in the liturgical sense corresponds to the synonym “priest.” Only ordained priests have the right to perform the Sacraments of the church, according to a certain order. In official documents Orthodox Church the word “priest” is also used to designate this or that priest.
Among the laity and ordinary parishioners of churches, you can often hear the address “father” in relation to one or another priest. This is an everyday, simpler meaning; it indicates a relationship with parishioners as spiritual children.
If we open the Bible, namely the Acts or Epistles of the Apostles, we will see that very often they used the address “My children” to the people. Since Biblical times, the love of the apostles for their disciples and the believing people was comparable to fatherly love. Also now - parishioners of churches receive instructions from their priests in the spirit of fatherly love, which is why the word “father” has come into use.
Father is a popular address to a married priest
What is the difference between a priest and a priest?
As for the concept of “pop,” in modern church practice it has some disdainful and even offensive connotations. Nowadays it is not customary to call the priesthood priests, and if they do, it is more in a negative way.
Interesting! In the years Soviet power When there was strong oppression of the church, all clergymen in a row were called priests. It was then that this word acquired a special negative meaning, comparable to the enemy of the people.
But back in the middle of the 18th century, the term “pop” was in common use and did not have any bad meaning. Basically only lay priests were called priests, not monastics. This word is attributed to the modern Greek language, where there is the term “papas”. This is where the name of the Catholic priest “pope” comes from. The term “priest” is also derivative - this is the wife of a lay priest. Priests are especially often called priests among the Russian brethren on Mount Athos.
In order to avoid getting into an awkward position, it is worth remembering that now the term “pop” has practically disappeared from the vocabulary of believers. When addressing a priest, you can say “Father Vladimir”, or simply “Father”. It is customary to address the priest’s wife with the prefix “Mother.”
For a believer, it does not matter much what words he uses to address the clergyman. However, traditions and practices church life develop certain forms of communication that are desirable to know.
What should a real priest be like?
Most researchers believe that the word “pop” comes from the Greek πάπας - “father”, and initially did not have a negative connotation. But after the reform of Patriarch Nikon, the Russian white clergy began to be called in the Greek manner. Instead of priests and archpriests, priests and archpriests appeared.
How did they address priests before the 20th century?
Until the 18th century, white clergy were called priests in the Russian Empire (unlike the black priesthood - monastics, priests could get married). This name also extended to the priest’s family, for example, the priest’s wife was called the priest, the daughter was called the priest, and so on.
After Nikon’s reform, the word “pop” was widely used among the people, along with father, priest and priest. The laity usually called the pastor not by rank, but by his first name and patronymic.
The word “pop” acquired the most negative connotation since 1917, after the Bolsheviks came to power. Systematic anti-religious policy Soviet Russia is still affecting both believers and clergy.
Priests in Russian fairy tales
To say that the word “pop” has become negatively connoted only in Soviet time wrong. Priest characters often appear in Russian fairy tales, and in jokes from times Russian Empire the negative, completely non-Christian actions of the “priests” were ridiculed.
It was not the rank itself that had a derogatory connotation, but rather unscrupulous representatives of the clergy: greedy, stupid and cruel.
IN folk tales there were both positive and negative priests. But most often, the pop in Russian legends is a neutral character and is mentioned in passing, as for example, in the fairy tale “Lice Boots,” where the pop in an original way gives his daughter in marriage.
And if we talk about fairy tales, the first thing that comes to mind is the work of Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin about the priest and his worker Balda. WITH light hand the classic rank of “pop” acquired a disparaging connotation and became a household name in relation to a stingy and dishonest clergyman. After its publication in the 19th century and to this day, the fairy tale is perceived ambiguously by the Orthodox Church.
Memory of the Fathers Betrayed
The Baptism of Rus' in 988 could not overnight destroy the pagan influence on the mentality of the people. Christian missionaries were not always and not everywhere welcomed with open arms.
Neo-pagans believe that because of the hostility towards the new shepherds, the common name for Christian preachers came about - priest, i.e. betrayed the memory of his fathers.
But this hypothesis has nothing to do with historical reality. Sources confirm that the pagan faith, although it was considered erroneous, everyone treated the customs of their ancestors in Rus' with respect. In “The Tale of Igor’s Campaign,” the Russians are called Dazhdboz’s grandchildren, despite the fact that the author was a Christian.
Anti-religious propaganda
The greatest blow to the word “priests” was dealt by the Soviet ideological campaign. Anti-religious propaganda was not only not prohibited, but was also encouraged. The Constitution of 1936 prohibited any missionary activity.
The image of the clergyman was ridiculed in newspapers, books, and on the radio. Almost everywhere the clergyman was portrayed as a greedy, immoral, repulsive character. And they called him exclusively “pop”. The Soviet leadership understood perfectly well who was target audience: workers and peasants were unlikely to call priests “priests.”
Many documentary evidence of the persecution of the Orthodox Church has been preserved: these are grotesque propaganda caricatures, caustic, cynical lampoons, speeches by the “Union of Godless” and so on. The consequences of militant atheism are still evident today.
Some modern followers of religionists cross the line of criticism of religion and are incapable of constructive discussion. They use the word "pop" as an insult.
Is it possible to call a priest a priest?
The original meaning of the word “pop” does not carry a negative meaning. However, before addressing a priest this way, it is worth finding out whether such treatment is acceptable for him or not. What may be an ordinary professional title for one person may be an indicator of your negative attitude towards it for another.
In church practice, it is not customary to greet a priest with the words: “Hello.”
The priest himself, when introducing himself, must say: “Priest (or priest) Vasily Ivanov,” “Archpriest Gennady Petrov,” “Hegumen Leonid”; but it would be a violation of church etiquette to say: “I am Father Mikhail Sidorov.”
In the third person, referring to a priest, they usually say: “Father the rector blessed”, “Father Michael believes...”. But it hurts the ear: “Priest Fyodor advised.” Although in a multi-clergy parish, where priests with same names, to distinguish them they say: “Archpriest Nikolai is on a business trip, and Priest Nikolai is giving communion.” Or in this case, the surname is added to the name: “Father Nikolai Maslov is now at a reception with the Bishop.”
The combination of “father” and the priest’s surname (“Father Kravchenko”) is used, but rarely and carries a connotation of formality and detachment. Knowledge of all this is necessary, but sometimes it turns out to be insufficient due to the multi-situational nature of parish life.
Let's consider some situations. What should a layman do if he finds himself in a society where there are several priests? There may be many variations and subtleties here, but general rule is this: they take the blessing first of all from the priests of senior rank, that is, first from the archpriests, then from the priests (The question is how to distinguish this, if not all of them are familiar to you. Some clue is given by the cross that the priest wears: a cross with decoration - necessarily an archpriest, gilded - either an archpriest, or a priest, silver - a priest).
Another situation: a group of believers in the courtyard of the temple comes under the blessing of the priest. In this case, you should do this: men approach first (if there are clergy among those gathered, then they approach first) - according to seniority, then - women (also according to seniority). If a family is eligible for blessing, then the husband, wife, and then the children (according to seniority) come up first. If they want to introduce someone to the priest, they say: “Father Peter, this is my wife. Please bless her.”
What to do if you meet a priest on the street, in transport, in a public place (in the mayor's reception room, store, etc.)? Even if he is in civilian clothes, you can approach him and take his blessing, seeing, of course, that this will not interfere with his work. If it is impossible to take the blessing, they limit themselves to a slight bow.
When saying goodbye, as well as when meeting, the layman again asks the priest for a blessing: “Forgive me, father, and bless me.”
Standards of conduct when talking with a priest
The attitude of a lay person to a priest as a bearer of grace received by him in the sacrament of the Priesthood, as a person appointed by the hierarchy to shepherd a flock of verbal sheep, must be filled with reverence and respect. When communicating with a clergyman, it is necessary to ensure that speech, gestures, facial expressions, posture, and gaze are decent. This means that speech should not contain expressive and especially rude words, jargon, with which speech in the world is full. Gestures and facial expressions should be kept to a minimum (it is known that stingy gestures are a sign of a well-mannered person). During a conversation, you must not touch the priest or become familiar. When communicating, maintain a certain distance. Violation of distance (being too close to the interlocutor) is a violation of the norms of even worldly etiquette. The pose should not be cheeky, much less provocative. It is not customary to sit if the priest is standing; sit down after being asked to sit down. The gaze, which is usually least subject to conscious control, should not be intent, studying, or ironic. Very often it is the look - meek, humble, downcast - that immediately speaks of a well-educated person, in our case - a churchgoer.
In general, you should always try to listen to the other person without boring the interlocutor with your long-windedness and loquaciousness. In a conversation with a priest, a believer must remember that through the priest, as a minister of the Mysteries of God, the Lord Himself can often speak. That is why parishioners are so attentive to the words of their spiritual mentor.
Needless to say, the laity in communicating with each other are guided by the same things; standards of behavior.
How can lay people communicate with each other correctly?
Because we are one in Christ, believers call each other "brother" or "sister." These appeals are used quite often (although perhaps not to the same extent as in the Western branch of Christianity) in church life. This is how believers address the entire congregation: “Brothers and sisters.” These beautiful words express the deep unity of believers, which is spoken of in the prayer: “Unite us all from the one Bread and Cup of Communion to each other in the One Holy Spirit of Communion.” In the broadest sense of the word, both a bishop and a priest for a layman are also brothers.
In the church environment, it is not customary to call even older people by their patronymics; they are called only by their first names (that is, the way we approach Communion, to Christ).
When laypeople meet, men usually kiss each other on the cheek at the same time as they shake hands; women do without a handshake. Ascetic rules impose restrictions on greeting a man and a woman through kissing: it is enough to greet each other with a word and a bow of the head (even on Easter, rationality and sobriety are recommended so as not to introduce passion into the Easter kissing).
Relations between believers should be filled with simplicity and sincerity, with a humble readiness to immediately ask for forgiveness when wrong. For church environment characteristic small dialogues: "Sorry, brother (sister)." - “God will forgive you, forgive me.” When parting, believers do not say to each other (as is customary in the world): “All the best!”, but: “Lord bless,” “I ask for prayers,” “With God,” “God’s help,” “Guardian Angel,” etc. .P.
If confusion often arises in the world: how to refuse something without offending the interlocutor, then in the Church this question is solved in the simplest and most simple way. in the best possible way: “Forgive me, I cannot agree to this, because it is a sin” or “Forgive me, but this does not have the blessing of my confessor.” And thus the tension is quickly relieved; in the world this would require a lot of effort.
How do they invite a priest to fulfill the requirements?
Sometimes it is necessary to invite a priest to fulfill the so-called requirements.
If you know the priest, you can invite him by phone. At telephone conversation, as at the meeting, direct communication, they don’t say to the priest: “Hello,” but they begin the conversation like this: “Hello, is this Father Nikolai? Bless, father,” and then briefly, laconically inform the purpose of the call. They end the conversation with thanksgiving and again: “Bless.” Either you need to find out from the priest, or from the person standing behind the candle box in the church, what needs to be prepared for the priest’s arrival. For example, if a priest is invited to give communion (admonition) to a sick person, it is necessary to prepare the patient, clean the room, take the dog out of the apartment, have candles, clean clothes, and water. For unction you need candles, pods with cotton wool, oil, and wine. During the funeral service, candles, a prayer of permission, a funeral cross, a veil, and an icon are required. Candles are prepared for the blessing of the house, vegetable oil, holy water. A priest invited to perform a service is usually left with a painful impression that the relatives do not know how to behave with the priest. It’s even worse if the TV is not turned off, music is playing, a dog is barking, half-naked young people are walking around.
At the end of the prayers, if the situation allows, you can offer the priest a cup of tea - this is a great opportunity for family members to talk about spiritual things and resolve some issues.
Hieromonk Aristarchus (Lokhanov)
Trifono-Pechengsky Monastery
Priesthood - people chosen to serve the Eucharist and shepherd - care, spiritual care of believers. first elected 12 apostles, and then 70 more, giving them the power to forgive sins and perform the most important sacred rites (which became known as the Sacraments). The priest in the Sacraments acts not by his own power, but by the grace of the Holy Spirit, given by the Lord after His Resurrection (John 20:22-23) to the apostles, transmitted from them to the bishops, and from the bishops to the priests in the Sacrament of Ordination (from the Greek. Heirotonia - consecration).
The very principle of the New Testament structure is hierarchical: both Christ is the head of the Church, and the priest is the head of the Christian community. The priest for the flock is the image of Christ. Christ is the shepherd; He commanded the Apostle Peter: “...feed My sheep” (John 21:17). Shepherding sheep means continuing the work of Christ on earth and leading people to salvation. The Orthodox Church teaches that there is no salvation outside the Church, but salvation can be achieved by loving and fulfilling the commandments of God and participating in the Sacraments of the Church, in which the Lord Himself is present, giving His help. And the helper and mediator of God in all the Sacraments of the Church, according to the commandment of God, is the priest. And therefore his service is sacred.
Priest - symbol of Christ
The most important Sacrament of the Church is the Eucharist. The priest celebrating the Eucharist symbolizes Christ. Therefore, without a priest, there is no liturgy. Archpriest Sergiy Pravdolyubov, rector of the Church of the Life-Giving in Trinity-Golenischev (Moscow), master of theology, explains: “The priest, standing before the Throne, repeats the words of the Lord Himself at the Last Supper: “Take, eat, this is My Body...” And in the Cherubic Song he pronounces the following words: “You are the One who offers and the One who is offered, and the One who accepts this Sacrifice, and the One Who is distributed to all believers - Christ our God...” The priest performs a sacred act with his own hands, repeating everything that Christ Himself did. And he does not repeat these actions and does not reproduce, that is, he does not “imitate”, but, figuratively speaking, “pierces time” and is completely inexplicable for the usual picture of space-time connections - his actions coincide with the actions of the Lord Himself, and his words - with the words of the Lord! That is why the liturgy is called Divine. She has been served once by the Lord Himself in the time and space of the Zion Upper Room, but outside time and space, in the abiding Divine Eternity. This is the paradox of the doctrine of the Priesthood and the Eucharist. They insist on this Orthodox theologians, and so the Church believes.
A priest cannot be replaced by a layman, not only “due to human ignorance,” as it is written in the ancient Slavic books, let the layman be an academician, but no one gave him the power to do something that one cannot dare to do without receiving the gift of the grace of the Holy Spirit through ordination, coming from the apostles themselves and the apostolic men.”
The Orthodox Church attaches exceptional importance to the priesthood. He wrote about the high dignity of the priesthood Reverend Silouan Athos: “The priests carry within themselves such great grace that if people could see the glory of this grace, the whole world would be surprised at it, but the Lord hid it so that His servants would not become proud, but would be saved in humility... A great person is a priest, a minister at the Throne of God. Whoever insults him insults the Holy Spirit living in him..."
The priest is a witness in the Sacrament of Confession
Without a priest, the Sacrament of Confession is impossible. The priest is endowed by God with the right to announce the forgiveness of sins in the name of God. The Lord Jesus Christ said to the apostles: “Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven” (Matthew 18:18). This power to “knit and loosen” passed, as the Church believes, from the apostles to their successors - bishops and priests. However, confession itself is not brought to the priest, but to Christ, and the priest here is only a “witness,” as stated in the rite of the Sacrament. Why do you need a witness when you can confess to God Himself? The Church, when establishing confession before a priest, took into account the subjective factor: many are not ashamed of God, since they do not see Him, but to confess before a person ashamed, but this is a saving shame that helps to overcome sin. In addition, as it explains, “the priest is a spiritual mentor who helps to find the right path to overcome sin. He is called not only to become a witness of repentance, but also to help a person with spiritual advice and support him (many come with great sorrows). No one demands submission from the laity - this is free communication based on trust in the priest, a mutual creative process. Our task is to help you choose correct solution. I always encourage my parishioners to feel free to tell me that they were unable to follow some of my advice. Perhaps I was mistaken, I did not appreciate the strength of this man.”
Another ministry of a priest is preaching. Preaching, carrying the Good News of salvation is also Christ, a direct continuation of his work, therefore this ministry is sacred.
A priest cannot exist without the people
In the Old Testament Church, the participation of the people in worship was reduced to passive presence. In the Christian Church, the priesthood is inextricably linked with the people of God and one cannot exist without the other: just as a community cannot be a Church without a priest, so a priest cannot be one without a community. The priest is not the sole performer of the Sacraments: all the Sacraments are performed by him with the participation of the people, together with the people. It happens that the priest is forced to perform the service alone, without parishioners. And, although the rite of the liturgy does not provide for such situations and it is assumed that a meeting of people participates in the service, yet in this case the priest is not alone, because the deceased, as well as the deceased, make a bloodless sacrifice with him.
Who can become a priest?
In Ancient Israel, only persons belonging to the tribe of Levi by birth could become priests: the priesthood was inaccessible to everyone else. The Levites were initiates, chosen to serve God - they alone had the right to make sacrifices and offer prayers. The priesthood of the times of the New Testament has a new meaning: the Old Testament sacrifices, as the Apostle Paul says, could not deliver humanity from slavery to sin: “It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins...” (Heb. 10: 4-11). Therefore, Christ sacrificed Himself, becoming both Priest and Victim. Not belonging by birth to the tribe of Levi, He became the one true “High Priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek” (Ps. 109:4). Melchizedek, who once met Abraham, brought bread and wine and blessed him (Heb. 7:3), was an Old Testament prototype of Christ. Having given His Body to death and shed His Blood for people, having taught this Body and this Blood to the faithful in the Sacrament of the Eucharist under the guise of bread and wine, having created His Church, which became the New Israel, Christ abolished the Old Testament Church with its sacrifices and the Levitical priesthood, removed the veil, which separated the Holy of Holies from the people, destroyed the insurmountable wall between sacred Leviticism and the profane people.
A priest of the Orthodox Church, explains Archpriest Sergiy Pravdolyubov, “any pious, virtuous person can become, fulfilling all the commandments and rules of the church, having sufficient training, married first and only to a girl of the Orthodox faith, not disabled with a physical obstacle to using his hands and feet (otherwise he will not be able to perform the liturgy, carry out the Chalice with the Saints Gifts) and mentally sound.”
Until recently it was believed that performances ordinary people anti-church propaganda about priests had an irreparable impact. But now it is obvious: the image of the clergy in the eyes of the first post-Soviet generation is as far from reality as it was in their parents.
And the main reason is that it is good if every tenth Russian had the opportunity to communicate with a clergyman in informal setting. But almost everyone watched Western films about good-natured, overweight and slow Catholic monks.
In fact, the priest and the terminator are two equally familiar action movie characters to our people.
Non-church people always expect some special feats from a clergyman, and if he performs them, they take what happened as a matter of course. For any atheist or agnostic, a priest is not just a citizen in a cassock, but some kind of being of a different kind. They sometimes invest much more into his rank than the Orthodox themselves.
This makes you look at the clergyman with special passion, and not forgive him for the smallest mistakes, which are not even noticed in an ordinary person.
And, of course, secular films and books explained in detail to the people what a priest can do and what he is categorically forbidden to do. It is these instructions that critics often resort to, surprised by the behavior of a particular clergyman...
Well, priests are different. There are good ones and there are bad ones. Some are educated, and some are not. There are highbrow intellectuals, and there are simpletons who are embarrassed to dine in the presence of a bishop, knowing that they lack any manners.
Simply, the priesthood is a cross-section of our society, and not a squad of special forces supermen. And in their difficult career, they encounter more temptations and mistakes than the average person.
One of my friends stopped going to church because she didn’t have enough strictness there.
“Everything is too lax, but I wanted army discipline and self-sacrifice in the name of great goal, - she said.
In ordinary life, Orthodox Christians, like all people on earth, lack all these qualities, but Orthodoxy also offers another alternative path - monasticism. It is the monks who are the “spiritual special forces” that have been the backbone of the Church since ancient times.
Why aren't all priests monks? It seems to me that this makes no sense, and this approach can only do harm. An ordinary priest, whose flock consists of ordinary laymen, is simply obliged to be somewhat similar to them. Otherwise how will he search? mutual language with people? Can a monk fully understand the daily problems of a family man?
For a church-going Christian, communication with the parish priest is not a moment of the highest spiritual revelation in a conversation with a great guru, but just another episode of the daily and difficult work to save one’s own soul.
Alas, some people are not very comfortable with the “humane” priest. After all, you need to go to him with your everyday problems and sins.
On the contrary, for rare exotic ceremonies, such as weddings or christenings, a mysterious bearded man who speaks in a stilted style and preferably in an old Russian manner is much more suitable than a recently ordained young man who prefers hitchhiking to traveling by train.
And yet, the “myth of priests” is gradually melting away. There are more priests themselves, and they are increasingly spoken about differently. I would like to believe that some time will pass and the old stereotypes will disappear. Then everyone will be able to express their attitude towards the clergy, based on their own knowledge, and not according to the principle of that music lover from the joke to whom friends sang “The Beatles” on the phone.
Personally, I can say about myself that debunking the image of a priest as a holy and incorruptible servant of the Church only helped me strengthen in my faith. Near an ordinary person I, a sinner, feel more comfortable than next to a sinless robot.
And the fact that the priest is not ideal... So what? If you are on the road to God, is it really impossible to tolerate some minor shortcomings of the only driver who can give you a lift?
Alexey Sokolov
About priests
Priest, priest or “holy father”?
Before the revolution, priests in Rus' were usually called “priests” (apparently from the Greek “pappas” - “daddy”, “father”). However, over the decades of persecution of the Church, this word has acquired a negative connotation and is now not used in relation to clergy. In modern Orthodox tradition the most acceptable and common address is “father”, or “father of such and such (name)*.
Even a very young priest is “Father,” because we call him that not because of some personal qualities, but because through church sacraments the priest gives birth to people eternal life, for life with God, performs the ministry of spiritual direction.
The expression “holy father” most often sounds respectful in the mouth of a non-church person, but, alas, it has nothing to do with an Orthodox priest. This kind of treatment is typical for the Western, Catholic Church. Holiness in Orthodoxy is recognized by the Church only after the death of a person, and the priests of the Orthodox Church, by virtue of their ministry, are not distinguished from the people in any way in a special way. They confess their sins along with everyone else, realizing that no one except God can be sinless. Not a single minister of the Orthodox Church, being in his right mind, would consider the “holy father” addressed to him to be adequate!
How is a priest different from other people?
Impeccable reputation. He can marry only once and only before taking holy orders. He must not take up arms or shed blood.
Must be a truly religious person (a candidate for priesthood is tested on his knowledge of religious doctrine and church life before being ordained). A priest must be able and love to pray, and place service to God above all else in his life.
But the main (fundamental!!!) difference is that the priest in the sacrament of ordination is given from God a special power - the grace of God - to perform divine services, teach people the Christian faith and good life (piety) and manage church affairs. A priest is a priest for life, but for gross violation of the commandments he can be deposed, and there will be no further return to the spiritual field.
About the profession, or rather about the vocation
The ministry of a priest is special, it is sacred because it is dedicated to God. The first and most obvious task of a priest is to perform divine services, the sacraments of the Church, and pray for his flock - the people entrusted to him by God.
But in order for these same people to come to church, the priest must be able to adequately talk about faith, about Christ, about the Kingdom of God. That is, to be a missionary, apostle, preacher and teacher in spiritual life. Nowadays, the priest is also the “face of the Church,” expressing its position in relation to this or that phenomenon public life. With all this, a clergyman is simply obliged to be an organizer, a business manager, and a leader of the parish. And as soon as the priests manage to do everything?!
"Black and white"
Priests Catholic Church have no right to marry. But in Orthodoxy there is a “white” - married clergy, and a “black” - clergy-monks, and even a celibate priesthood - unmarried priests who have not taken monastic vows (admittedly, there are very few of them). “Black” clergy rule the church, married priests serve in parishes, “inspiring” parishioners as examples of their own Christian family. Nowadays, both celibate and monastic priests can also serve in parishes. By the way, the names of monastics (that is, the “black clergy”) are always written in brackets, and the names of the “white clergy” are written without brackets.
Arch-proto- and simply priests
| Degrees of the priesthood | Secular clergy | Black clergy | Unofficial correspondence to military rank |
| bishops | patriarchmetropolitan archbishop |
||
| priests (priests) | mitred archpriestarchpriest | archimandritegumen hieromonk |
Colonel
captain |
| deacons | ProtodeaconDeacon | archdeaconierodeacon |
About appearance
A distinctive feature of the Russian clergy is that priests wear mustaches, beards and long hair, as an imitation of the founder of the Church - the Lord Jesus Christ. The priest is distinguished from other people by his special clothing - a cassock and cassock. These unusual robes emphasize that their wearer performs a special service - a service not of this world. Seeing a priest in such clothes, those around him can approach him with their spiritual questions, asking him to pray, to take a blessing.
Now there are no special instructions (canons) of the church regarding the wearing of secular clothing by clergy. And in some cases, the father - the father of the family - can afford to walk with small children, go to the store or do household work in secular clothes, because the cassock and cassock are very easily soiled due to their style and color (imagine what it’s like for the mother later) it's washable!).
How to say hello to your father
A priest, despite the importance of his service, is still a person, and according to the norms of decency, when meeting him, it is customary to greet him. People who constantly go to church know that along with “hello” and “goodbye” they say to the priest: “Bless, father (name)!” By blessing, the priest invokes God's grace on a person. In Orthodoxy, there is a custom of kissing the priest’s hand after a blessing; by this, Christians show their belief that God himself acts through the priest. You can also take a blessing from a priest dressed in secular clothes. His sacred rank is not diminished due to the lack of a cassock.
* If you, a secular person of advanced age, find it difficult to address a young priest as “father” or “father,” then it would be appropriate to call the priest by his first name and patronymic.
Archpriest Artemy and Anna Emke
About spiritual doctors
“Why do you need a confessor? Really, can’t I just, having realized my sins, ask God for forgiveness? Why do I need a “mediator”, and who gave him the right to control my destiny? - these questions can be heard quite often. Let's try, at least briefly, to answer them.
The confessor is not a “mediator”, but a witness of our repentance. He will testify Last Judgment that we were aware of our sins and sought to improve. The right to forgive human sins was given to priests by God Himself (John 20, 22...23).
“Yes, I’m ashamed to admit my passions in confession. I am ashamed to bare my soul to a “stranger.”
But we are not ashamed to be naked in front of a doctor. We willingly show him even the hidden parts of our body in the hope of receiving healing. And for spiritual healing it is necessary to bare your soul. In the matter of health, “outsiders” can be your family and friends. But the doctor and confessor are not “outsiders”!
It is much easier for us to tell our neighbors or friends about our troubles than to our confessor! What's the point? Well, they will complain and sympathize. And they give advice “to the extent of their own depravity”! If you are sick, go to the doctor!
I can’t help but remember one person who told everyone he knew about hemorrhoids that tormented him. Until one of my friends began publicly making tactless jokes about the topic of “sick ass”...
The secret of confession is much more sacred than medical secrets. The chatty doctor is only waiting for “organizational conclusions.” A priest who violates a secret is deposed from his priesthood.
Well, what hurts you? - the doctor asks the visiting patient.
“Nothing,” he replies.
Why did you come to me? - the doctor was surprised.
This sometimes happens in confession. It seems that a person has come to confession, but is not aware of his sins, considering himself almost sinless. This only testifies to spiritual blindness, darkness of the soul. After all, the closer you stand to the light, the smaller specks of dust you see on your clothes. Only the one standing in the darkness does not notice that his clothes are dirty. That is why holy men considered themselves the most sinful of people, for standing in the light of the Divine, they noticed the smallest specks of sins on the “garment of their souls.”
You shouldn’t rely on the foresight of the priests, who will see “like an x-ray” all our tricks. No seer will correct us until we ourselves realize the depth of our falls.
Doctor! You prescribed me pills, but something doesn’t help...
Do you accept them? Regularly?
What do you want from me? So that I accept them for you?
No advice or blessings received from a confessor will help us if we do not follow them.
The penance imposed by the confessor is not a punishment, but just a bitter pill necessary for our speedy recovery.
Finally, it would probably not be amiss to recall in the Russian translation the exhortation with which the priest addresses the penitents:
“Behold, child, Christ stands invisibly, accepting your confession. Don’t be ashamed and don’t be afraid, so you won’t hide anything from me. But without being embarrassed, say what you did, so that you may receive remission of sins from our Lord Jesus Christ. Here is His icon before us, but I am just a witness, and I testify before Him about everything that you tell me. If you hide anything from me, you will have a double sin. Realize that you have come to the hospital - may you not leave here unhealed.”
P.S. If you already have a confessor, then you have every right not to pay any attention to the above advice. Better ask him about this and do as he blessed you.
Hegumen Valerian (Golovchenko) // Otrok.ua
Father Mitrofan
One woman came to church for the second time in her life, accidentally ended up with Father Mitrofan* for confession and said: “I am a sinner in everything.” Abba, wanting to bring the woman out of dangerous blindness, asked: “What, have you cheated on your husband?” “I don’t remember,” answered the surprised woman. “Was she drunk?” asked Abba.
The woman was initially tempted, but over time she turned to true repentance and began to constantly go to church. True, not to Father Mitrofan.
If a wife complained about her husband, or her mother-in-law, or her neighbor, the priest gave her the same advice: “Kill him.”
- How to kill? – the woman was amazed.
- Smother with a pillow or add arsenic to your tea.
Sometimes he added: “Or you can send it to a meat processing plant and cut it into sausages.”
After that, they stopped complaining about his loved ones.
To those who were planning to have an abortion, Abba said: “Give birth, and then leave it in the stroller in the cold, as if by accident, it will squeak and freeze, and everything will be fine. This is a sin less than abortion.”
“Why smaller?” the expectant mother wondered.
- Check it, you'll see.
But no one ever checked.
Maya Kucherskaya “Modern Patericon”
* prototype of Fr. Mitrofana - famous Moscow priest - Archpriest Dmitry Smirnov
The good shepherd: what should a priest be like?
Lidiya Yanbaeva, salesperson
Firstly, it is not for us to judge the personality of the priest. What qualities would I like to see in a clergyman? Self-sacrifice, love of God and personal example everywhere and in everything, kindness and love for people. But love for God is, after all, the most important thing.
Olga Tokarnitskaya, head of the ENT department of the military clinic:
The main feature that should distinguish a priest from other people is sincere faith.
It’s a shame that people, as a rule, do not make allowances for the fact that a priest is also a person, with his own character traits, he can be sick and tired. We can afford some human weaknesses, but the priest, it turns out, cannot: he is in sight all the time - during worship, in life outside the church: in the family, in relationships with other people. We have the right to stay in bad mood, and all this can be reflected on our face and in our words, but for a priest this is unacceptable. Even the priest's family - his mother and children - are also visible all the time. I think it's very difficult. With all this, the priest during confession hears all our confessions and knows how imperfect we all are.
Evgeny Shchulepov, Fondservisbank, programmer:
One of the most important qualities priest is sincere faith. His attitude towards parishioners is also very important: to listen carefully during confession, to quickly respond to demands, which, by the way, may not happen at the most opportune time.
The priest should probably just be a good man. Although for me personally it is more important that he takes care of the fulfillment of his priestly duties and the beauty of the temple.
A priest should be a model for us in all aspects of his life: serving God, family life. He must show Christ to people. And we, seeing the example of the priest, would be an example for other people.
Maxim Drozd, altar boy of the church:
A priest differs from other people in that he is in the priesthood and must adhere to certain canons and set an example to follow with his life: how he lives according to the commandments, how he communicates with people.
First, the priest must be kind. No matter how difficult his ministry may be, the priest must treat each parishioner with warmth and greet everyone with joy.
In family life he should also be an example. Quarrels are the worst side family relations, scandals often occur due to the pride of one of the spouses. And priests are distinguished by the fact that they give in and find wise solutions in resolving conflicts in all areas of life.
Vladimir Myakin, military pensioner:
As the holy fathers say: “a priest is an angel of God.”
In my opinion, a priest should have the best human qualities. As Chekhov said: “everything in a person should be beautiful.” Those who come to church (as often happens) begin to look not at their own shortcomings, but at those of others. Therefore, the priest is under the close attention of everyone who goes to church, and the priests’ shortcomings sometimes take on exaggerated forms. But if you approach this issue with humility, then why should you care about the shortcomings of a clergyman - look at your own soul. If you come, for example, to a traumatologist, and he has a crooked leg, you don’t shout: “How can I be treated by a doctor with a crooked leg?!”
We come to church to correct our shortcomings, our own human imperfection. You need to take from the priest the best he has. All his apparent shortcomings can make you understand: who are you, exactly?
If we come to church with humility, then the personality of the priest will suit us very much.
Oleg Grechkin, serviceman:
The priest is a shepherd, he must lead and instruct. He must be an example, fulfilling those commandments that we all strive to fulfill. I understand that the priest is the same person and everything human is not alien to him, but still, I want to see that he is somehow superior to other people.
What qualities would I most like to see in a priest? Honesty, decency, virtue, lack of love of money, love of neighbor. But the most important thing is the sincerity of his faith in God, and everything else is secondary.
recorded by Anna Emke