According to Russian Orthodox tradition God is in everyone's soul, and in order to ask him for something, it is not necessary to go to church, since the text of the prayer reaches God through the word. The order of ministry in the church is only the earthly embodiment of faith. You can come here, repent and receive a blessing.
It is very important for many people not only to feel the support of God in their souls, but also to see his embodiment in the icons that are in the temple. Divine services are held in the church according to certain canons. The duration and start time differ depending on the church holiday.
Liturgies schedule
For church monasteries, no general rule conducting Divine Liturgies, Matins, especially on weekdays. The temple opens early in the morning. The timing is determined by the priest himself depending on the desires of the people who visit it.
For large Christian holidays evening and morning liturgy is held. In addition, a prayer service is held on Sunday. The beginning of services in the church on Sundays, as a rule, occurs at 7-8 o'clock in the morning. In some churches, Matins and Matins can be rescheduled an hour later or an hour earlier. That's why about matins, you need to check with the ministers of the temple it is they who decide how long the liturgy lasts in the morning. Vespers at 19-20 hours. There is also a night service, but only on major holidays: Epiphany, Easter. In addition, a procession of the cross is held to the glory of God.
How long the service in the church lasts depends on the significance of the holiday. On weekdays, it can be held for a maximum of 2 hours, and the Sunday service in the Orthodox Church reaches three hours.
What time does it start evening service in the church also depends on the scale of the holiday. The most early start may be at 16:00, at the latest at 18:00. Such a service takes place within 2-4 hours. If marked church holidays, then it is divided into daily, small and great. is carried out using the all-night vigil language.
Types of worship
Regardless of who conducts it and in what place, all services are divided into daily, annual and weekly. V in full services are held in monasteries, and it is the monks who follow all the canons of the church. Monks fully comply with the rules of church services, but in small churches they are held depending on the schedule created by the ministers.
Every day of the week is celebrated in the church and dedicated to certain moments:
- Sunday is Little Easter, on this day the resurrection of Christ is remembered.
- You can pray to the angels on Monday.
- John the Baptist hears prayers on Tuesday.
- On Wednesday, they remember the betrayal of Judas and the memory of the Cross.
- Thursday is considered an apostolic day and is dedicated to St. Nicholas.
- On Friday, services are held dedicated to prayer for the suffering of Christ.
- Saturday is dedicated to the Mother of God.
Therefore, if you do not have the opportunity to go to church regularly, then you can read prayers every day, depending on who they will be intended for.
Church services on weekdays
Believers visit the temple not only on Saturday or Sunday, but also on weekdays. You can go to church when it is convenient for the believer. At the same time, a Christian parish should always be open. The daily circle of worship is divided into 9 different parts, and it includes:
- The start of the circle starts from 18:00.
- Compline is the reading of prayers in the evening.
- From 12:00 at night, there is a midnight office.
- Matins are divided into the following: the first hour - from 7:00, the third hour - from 9:00, the sixth hour - from 12:00, the ninth hour from 15:00.
The Liturgy held from 6:00, 9:00 and until 12:00 is not included in the daily circle of the church service. Speaking of ideal worship, each temple should work at this time, and all of these services should be held.
The peculiarity of their conduct depends solely on the chief priest of the church. In villages, early and late readings of prayers take place only in large temples.
Service in the temple
As already mentioned, the service is held in each temple, the only thing that there is a difference in time and duration. During the day, the main service is the Divine Liturgy.
At the service, a prayer is read, Christ is remembered, and it ends with an invitation to all who wish to undergo the sacrament of the Sacrament. It takes place between 6 and 9 o'clock.
On Sunday, as a rule, one service is held, and it is called the Eucharist. The service on this day goes on one after another. Matins gives way to mass, and mass, in turn, gives way to evening service.
Not so long ago, there were changes in the Church Rite, and now the Compline is held only during the beginning of Great Lent. If we are talking about church holidays, then the service may not stop, and one replaces the other.
In addition to large services, rituals and sacraments, reading of evening and morning prayers, reading akathists in the temple and much more. All divine services, regardless of the time, are conducted by a minister of the temple, and visitors become its participants.
Attending church, reading a prayer at night or during the day is exclusively everyone's business. Nobody can force a person to go to the temple and pray. Only the person himself decides for himself what to do, what to visit and how to convey his prayer to God.
The majority of Orthodox laypeople have formed the conviction that the feast of the Baptism of the Lord begins at midnight on January 19. Some Russians even go so late at night to plunge into the ice-hole.
This is a huge delusion, apparently, formed by analogy with the New Year, which conventionally comes exactly at midnight.
In fact, the holiday starts on the eve of January 18th, the so-called Christmas Eve. The eve of Epiphany received such a name for a reason. It comes from the old word “sychivo”. This is a lenten dish that is supposed to be eaten on the day before the holy sacrament of the Baptism of the Lord. Juice is made from boiled wheat grains, honey, dried fruits.
Before lunch on Christmas Eve, you can't eat anything at all. On this day, you must observe strict one day fast... In the first half of the day, you need to refrain from food. After the morning church worship you can eat juicy or other lean food.
Divine service
The holiday itself begins on January 18 with the morning service. This happens at about 8-9 am (in different temples it can be different). The festive service continues for a long time, almost until noon. Only after this does the priest perform the sacrament of blessing the water (this does not happen at midnight, as many Russians think).
The holy water is distributed little by little to all the Orthodox who were present at the service. Water is blessed in containers. It can be drunk, used for washing (but cannot be poured down the drain!). Holy water can be stored all year long literally until the next holiday and not deteriorate, not bloom. It is believed that it has special properties and can even heal ailments.
Swimming in an ice-hole and other bodies of water is not provided at all during the very rite of the festival. There is no need for this. But for an orthodox person it is important to be at the service in the temple, not to think about worldly things, but to open your heart to God.
Rite of consecration of water
During the services on January 18, passages from the Holy Scriptures called paremias, as well as the Liturgy of Basil the Great, are read in the church. In terms of content, all these texts are dedicated to the very Baptism of Jesus Christ and the Epiphany. Prayers and litanies are also read, which interpret the meaning of this great event.
During the consecration of the water, a liturgy is first served, after which a prayer after the ambo (or a supplicatory litany) is read. The rector of the temple and other priests in solemn vestments go out through the royal doors to the font. Burning candles, censers and a cross are always carried in front of them. At this stage, the troparia are sung and the incense is performed (fumigation with the help of a censer) of the altar, the table on which the bowl of water is located, and all those present in the temple.
Then the pairs from the book of Isaiah are read, the prokeimenon is sung, and the corresponding passages from the Gospel are again read. During the reading, the rector of the temple secretly recites the prayer "Lord Jesus Christ", asking for cleansing and blessing for holy sacrament... Then aloud he recites the prayer “Great art, Lord, and thy works are wonderful,” in which he asks God to come and bless the water. It is consecrated three times with the fingers, and then three times with the Honorable Cross.
The sacrament of blessing water for the entire holiday is performed twice: first on Christmas Eve, then on Epiphany itself, on January 19. So if for some reason you could not receive this blessing on the eve of the holiday, you can catch up the next day.
A bit of history and tradition of this celebration, we will talk about this in this article. V church year Is one of the most important and anticipated events. A very ancient holiday revered by all Orthodox believers, which follows the New Year holidays.
The Lord's Baptism is Christmas time, the people often call the Epiphany (the appearance of God on earth), every year it is celebrated on January 19. These Christmastide is not considered a non-working day in Russia, but this event is honored and celebrated at the official level.
This day is celebrated by Christians all over the world, but it is called differently everywhere. In Catholic countries, Christmastide of the kings is celebrated on January 19, in Greece - Theophany, and among fraternal peoples (Russia, Belarus, Ukraine) - this is the Baptism of the Lord.
Born by church canons it is a holiday at the moment of Baptism in the waters of the Jordan River, of Jesus Christ himself. As tells church scripture, from above, people heard a voice that said that the Son of God had come into the world, he must do the will of his Father.
Together with the voice, a dove appeared in the sky, which became the personification of the Holy Spirit, and he confirmed the words of God. It is this event, the appearance on earth of the Father (God), the Son of God and the Holy Spirit, Christians called the Manifestation or the Baptism of the Lord.
Catholics interpret this event a little differently. According to their belief, that evening a couple of pagan kings appeared from heaven to Jesus Christ and made offerings to him. They saw in Jesus God, the supreme King and Man himself. It is for this reason that the Catholics refer to these Christmastide as the feast of the kings.
The main traditions of celebrating the Baptism of the Lord in Russia are:
- Swimming in the ice-hole.
- Collection, storage and use of Holy Water.
- Christmas divination.
And the tradition is as follows. Christian believers on January 19 right in the winter cold, in the frost (it should be noted that these calendar days often frosty weather in the yard), they go to plunge into the ice hole (font). It is believed that thanks to this, a person is cleansed, washes away all impure and bad things, is cleansed from the outside, and spiritually.
In addition, church officials believe that simply bathing in the font will not get rid of sins, in order to cleanse and put the spiritual world in order before plunging into ice water a person is obliged to visit church, repent, pray.
According to the instructions of the church, they plunge into the ice-hole as soon as the service on Christmas Eve ends, and this happens on the evening of January 18.
Nowadays, everyone can plunge into the hole, the clergy are loyal to everyone, even to those who were not in church at the service. But remember, in fact, to be cleansed of sins by plunging into the baptismal font, maybe the person who had previously cleansed himself in the church - was in the church at the service, prayed, took communion, asked for God's blessing.
There are several simple rules for swimming in the font (in the ice hole) for Epiphany.
- People who are intoxicated do not need to enter icy water.
- Believers with diseases of the nervous, cardiac or vascular systems, as well as children and pregnant women, do not need to plunge into the ice-hole.
- Before plunging into the font, you need to have a hearty meal, and after bathing, drink a glass of warm tea.
- It is not necessary, say the clergy, to climb into the hole naked or in open swimsuits (one underwear), it is best if the woman puts on a nightgown before bathing.
- If you decide to carry out the ablution ritual with your child, it is best not just to hold his hand while immersion, but to take him in your arms and plunge with him.
- It is believed that at Epiphany all the water is holy, and therefore, if your child is not yet 3 years old, but you want to accustom him to the ablution procedure, you can dip the child at home by typing cold water into the bathtub from the tap.
If, this year, at Epiphany 2018, you follow these simple rules, bathing in the font will surely cleanse the body and soul, will have a good effect on the body, your well-being and further destiny.
You can collect Holy water for Epiphany in the church from the moment the evening service ends on Christmas Eve and the whole next day, that is, from the evening of January 18 to the evening of January 19.
The Orthodox keep the Epiphany water in the house until the next holiday, that is, for a whole year. It remains clean and fresh all this time, and throughout the year, live water is used:
- cleaning the house, yard, buildings on the site;
- like drinking for illnesses, loss of strength, minor ailments;
- for sprinkling barns and livestock;
- to pacify and calm the kids (you just need to wash the continuously crying child with Holy water so that he calms down).
It is forbidden to use holy water collected at Epiphany for cleaning the house - washing windows, floors, etc., as well as for washing and divination. Holy water is directed to the benefit of man, to help, to purify, it must be honored and used exclusively for good purposes and with good intentions.
According to tradition, Orthodox believers in Russia are prepared for Baptism in advance - they observe strict fasting, pray, attend church, during the period from January 7 to January 19, do not do any difficult homework... The holiday itself begins on the evening of January 18th. At this time, a festive service takes place in the church, which ends with the consecration of water and bathing in an ice hole (in a font).
Before the start of the service, parishioners visit the church, confess, receive communion. After that it starts divine liturgy, people rejoice at the appearance of God on earth. At the end of the festive service, the clergy bless the water and undergo a procession of the cross, who want to plunge into the baptismal font, collect Holy Water and go home to celebrate the holiday with relatives and loved ones.
Lenten dishes should be on the table on this day and, according to tradition, at least 12 varieties. Usually, Christian believers treat guests to kutya, pancakes, jelly on oatmeal and other similar dishes.
With the celebration of the Epiphany, in addition to dipping in an ice hole and bringing Holy water into the house, there are many more rituals and all kinds of signs among the people.
So, if on the night of January 18-19, you put a silver bowl filled with water on the table, then exactly at midnight you can see how, out of the blue, without wind and draft, the water in the dishes will sway. At this moment, you need to say out loud as loud as possible your most cherished desire and it will definitely come true.
Many believers on Epiphany try to baptize their babies, there is a belief that then the children will be happy and healthy. Folk wisdom says that “to be baptized for Baptism is to live a happy life”.
Another important popular sign, promising good luck and luck, is considered the resolution of some big conflicts on a holiday. If you are able to get things done, this means that the Lord is so pleased and he extended a helping hand to you for this, you received a blessing from above.
The young women wiped their faces with Epiphany snow that day. The girls believed, if you do this, then the face of the Russian beauty will always have a blush, and the skin of the face will be incredibly beautiful, silky.
Young beauties who were still unmarried, from January 18 to January 19, wondered about their betrothed, about the future, about their fate. The people believed that it was fortune-telling on this day that were the most reliable, and the rituals for their fulfillment, usually, were the same as for Christmas fortune-telling.
Believers have their own signs about the celebration of the Epiphany.
- Counts bad sign dilute the collected sacred water with other water or something else. This can lead to grief.
- It is forbidden to swear and quarrel, shout, pronounce bad words, wish someone evil, holding holy water in your hands.
- In no case, from the moment of Christmas Eve until January 20, you do not need to give away money, as well as take something out of the house and give it to other people for use. There is a belief that in this case you can become poorer or start to lack money.
- It is forbidden on Christmas Eve to clean the house, wash, sew up and iron something, these days should be perceived as a great holiday, then there will be more fun and happiness in your life, more pleasant days, and more strength and health in your body.
- It is favorable to solve some serious matters and conclude contracts on this day. It is believed that any agreement is often crowned with success on this day.
- A good action would be a marriage proposal on the day of Epiphany 2018, such an offer in any case will end with a wedding and a joyful family life.
- It was considered an auspicious sign in Russia to draw a cross on the door on a holiday. This makes it possible, believers are sure, to save the house and family hearth from all evil spirits.
There are also natural signs for Baptism:
- If there are dark clouds and snow on the night of January 18-19, there will be a good harvest.
- On Epiphany night, loud barking of dogs is heard - this suggests that you need to wait for good news.
- If there is a full moon in the sky during Christmas Eve, you need to wait for heavy floods in the spring.
Well, in conclusion, I would like to say, believe in God, honor church holidays and canons, try to observe the established traditions of your people, your ancestors, be polite with loved ones, live in peace and harmony and you will definitely be a happy person!
Congratulations to everyone on the holiday - Epiphany 2018! Happiness and all the best!
January 18 in Russian Orthodox Church the day of the Eve of the Baptism of the Lord is celebrated, or, Epiphany eve.
The word eve means the eve of a church celebration, and the second name - Christmas Eve (or nomad) is associated with the tradition on this day to cook wheat broth with honey and raisins - soothing.
In view of the importance of the event that took place on the coming day in the life of Jesus Christ, the Church established fasting. It is from here that the tradition of brewing sochivo came, which is not mandatory, but is so convenient that it has become a tradition everywhere.
On this day, as on Christmas Eve, they do not eat until the candle is taken out after the Liturgy in the morning and the first communion of Epiphany water.
On Christmas Eve, after the Liturgy, the great consecration of water is performed in churches. Consecration of water is called great because of the special solemnity of the rite, imbued with the memory of the gospel event, which became not only the prototype of the mysterious washing of sins, but also the actual sanctification of the very nature of water through the immersion of God in the flesh into it. This water is called Agiasma, or simply baptismal water.
Under the influence of the Jerusalem charter, from the 11-12th century, the blessing of water occurs twice - on Epiphany Eve, and directly on the feast of the Epiphany. Consecration on both days takes place in the same order, so the water consecrated on these days is no different.
Until the 5th century, it was customary to remember the birth and baptism of the Son of God on the same day - January 6 and this holiday was called Theophany - Theophany, which spoke of the incarnation of Christ into the world and the appearance of the Trinity in the waters of Jordan. The feast of the Nativity of Christ has been postponed to December 25 (by Julian calendar, or the old style) was already later, in the 5th century. This was the beginning of a new ecclesiastical phenomenon - Christmas Eve, ending with an evening party, or the Christmas Eve of the feast of Epiphany.
Bible about Baptism and Epiphany
At the time when John the Baptist preached on the banks of the Jordan and baptized people, Jesus Christ was thirty years old. He also came from Nazareth to the Jordan River to John to receive baptism from him. John considered himself unworthy to baptize Jesus Christ and began to restrain Him, saying: "I need to be baptized by You, and do You come to me?" But Jesus answered him: “leave now,” that is, do not hold me back now, “because this is how we need to fulfill all righteousness” - to fulfill everything in the Law of God and set an example for people. Then John obeyed and baptized Jesus Christ. Upon the completion of baptism, when Jesus Christ came out of the water, the heavens suddenly opened up (opened up) over Him; and John saw the Spirit of God, which descended on Jesus in the form of a dove, and the voice of God the Father was heard from heaven: “ This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased».
How to spend Epiphany Christmas Eve
There is a pious tradition to sprinkle Epiphany water on your dwelling on this day with the singing of the troparion of the Epiphany. Epiphany water all year long they consume on an empty stomach in small quantities, usually together with a piece of prosphora "so that we might receive from God the strength that strengthens health, heals diseases, drives away demons and repels all hostility."
At the same time, the prayer is read: “Lord my God, may there be Thy holy gift and Thy holy water for the remission of my sins, for the enlightenment of my mind, for the strengthening of the soul and bodily strength mine, for the health of my soul and body, for the conquest of my passions and infirmities, through Thy infinite mercy through the prayers of Thy Most Pure Mother and all Thy saints. Amen". In case of ailments or attacks of evil forces, you can and should drink water without hesitation, at any time.
A special property of holy water is that, added even in small amounts to ordinary water, it imparts beneficial properties to it, therefore, in case of a shortage of holy water, it can be diluted with plain water.
We must not forget that consecrated water- this is a church shrine, which has come in contact with the grace of God, and which requires a reverent attitude towards itself. With a reverent attitude, holy water does not deteriorate for many years. It should be stored in separate place, better near with a home iconostasis.
Press Service of the Vyatka Diocese
The first Epiphany service (Epiphany Christmas Eve) is performed on the morning of January 18th. In different temples, it starts at 8 or 9 am. In the Church of the Holy Martyr Elizabeth in Pokrovsky-Streshnevo, the beginning of the service is at 8.30. This is a large service, during which the Royal Hours are read, Vespers is performed with the reading of the Paremias (texts of the Old and New Testaments) and the liturgy. After that, an icon of the holiday - the Baptism of the Lord and a candle for worshiping believers are taken out of the altar into the temple, the Troparion and Kontakion of the holiday are sung.
The iconostasis of the Church of the Holy Martyr Elizabeth
The service ends at approximately 11 o'clock in the afternoon and immediately begins the first Great Blessing of Water (or Great Blessing of Water). Then the paremias, the Apostle, and a special prayer for the blessing of water with the invocation of the Holy Spirit are read again. Moreover, believers pray for the consecration not only of the water that is directly in the temple, but also of all the waters on earth, the entire world ocean, therefore this prayer is called the Great Water Consecration.
Second Epiphany Service - all-night vigil- takes place in the evening of January 18: beginning at 17 - 18:00, ending at 19 - 20:00; in the Church of St. Elizabeth, the service will take place at 17:00. In some churches and monasteries, this service is held at night in the likeness of Christmas, which returns to the beginning of the history of the holiday, when Christmas and Epiphany were celebrated together.
Around midnight, it is customary to leave the temple to open sources. Epiphany fonts - ice-holes in the shape of a cross - are organized on ponds and rivers. The priests perform the Great Water Consecration Prayer for the second time.
Finally, the third Great Blessing of Water takes place after the morning liturgy on January 19, on the day of Epiphany (Epiphany). In the Church of the Holy Martyr Elizabeth in Pokrovsky-Streshnevo, the service will begin at 8:30.
There is a popular belief among the people that the water consecrated on Epiphany and Epiphany possesses different properties, however, the clergy assure that this is a delusion: it is absolutely equal.
St. John Chrysostom wrote in the 4th century that water, if taken with faith, retains its properties for a whole year - until the next Great Blessing of Water.
2. Epiphany eve, or hungry day
There is no long Epiphany fast like Christmas or Great Lent. Before Epiphany, it is customary to fast only one day - on Epiphany Christmas Eve. It is also popularly called the "hungry day".
This is due to the fact that after the morning liturgies on January 18 and 19, believers usually receive communion. Therefore, until the morning service on January 18, they do not eat anything, and after its end they satisfy their hunger with soothing - lean dishes from cooked grains of wheat, which is sometimes replaced with rice or lentils. And after the morning liturgy on January 19, you can already set the festive family table.
3. Immersion in an ice hole and sprinkling the house with Epiphany water
For many parishioners main tradition associated with Baptism is a plunge into an ice-hole on the night of January 18-19, which takes place after the Great Blessing of Water at open sources.
In Moscow, for example, there are many reservoirs on which Epiphany fonts are created. This year, a special mobile font will be brought even to the center of the capital - to Revolution Square.
It has long been customary on January 18 and 19, after the services at which the Great Water Blessing takes place, to bring baptismal water home and sprinkle it on the entire dwelling, including the utility rooms.
This water has extraordinary power - it heals, cleanses and drives away evil. Its miraculous properties have been proven even by scientists - in the light and with room temperature she long time does not change taste, color or smell. The most important thing is to take Epiphany water with faith - this is the secret of its healing effect on the soul and body.
Epiphany history
From Christmas to Epiphany, only 12 days pass, and these two holidays are inextricably linked by tradition. The fact is that for almost four centuries, starting from the 3rd century, they were celebrated on the same day - January 7, and this holiday was called the Epiphany.
On the day of the Epiphany, two main events related to the coming of Christ into the world were recalled: Christmas is the beginning of his earthly life, Baptism is the Savior's entry into public service. Having been baptized in the waters of the Jordan, Christ retired for 40 days into the wilderness, and then returned to the people and began to preach.
It is interesting that the texts of the Gospels almost do not describe the thirty-year period of the Savior's life, which followed from Christmas to Baptism. Only one episode is mentioned when, at the age of 12, he preached in the temple.
In the 6th century, the holidays were divided: Christmas began to be celebrated on December 25, and Epiphany on January 7. Currently, they are celebrated by Orthodox Christians in a new style - on January 7 and 19.
Church services Christmas and Epiphany, due to the fact that it was once a single holiday, are very similar. Only Epiphany is now called the Feast of the Epiphany - January 19. Now these are synonyms.