What happened on Holy Week by day can be read in detail in the four Gospels, plus, if a person goes to church these days, then at the sermons after the service you can learn a lot of interesting things about those events, as well as better understand their interpretation.

This strict week of fasting is dedicated to the memories of the last days of the Savior's earthly life, his suffering, crucifixion, death and then burial. Every day Holy Week considered majestic and important. These days are perceived in Christianity as a Divine holiday, which is illuminated by salvation through suffering and death. In these days, commemoration services are not performed, prayers are not sung, Good Friday there is no liturgy.

Since the time of the apostles, this week has been especially revered by Christians. At the very beginning, there was not yet a long seven-week fast on the eve of the holiday, but strict post on Holy Week was established and strictly observed even then. This time, if you approach each day correctly, is filled with experiences, contemplation and sorrow.

What Happened During Holy Week

Great Monday

On this day, the Old Testament story about Patriarch Joseph the Beautiful is remembered. His brothers were jealous of him and sold him into slavery in Egypt, but Joseph was still able to live decent life and help the Egyptian people. Also on this day, they remember the withering that Jesus Christ spent on a fig tree covered with rich greenery. This plant has many leaves, but does not bear fruit.

Similarly, the scribes, the Pharisees clearly positioned their piety, but in fact they did not believe in the Lord, they did not live according to the prescriptions of God. Similarly, the soul of a person who only externally believes will not bear spiritual fruit.

Maundy Tuesday

It is written in the Gospel how on this day the Lord God Jesus Christ, already in Jerusalem, denounced the scribes and Pharisees. In the Temple in Jerusalem, Jesus told parables and talked to ordinary people. He is the story of the future resurrection of the dead, oh the Last Judgment.

Also on this day, they remember Mary, who washed Jesus' feet with her tears and dried them with her hair. Judas on that day in the Jerusalem temple showed great concern for the poor, revealing his compassion and already in the evening of that day decided to sell Christ for thirty silver coins. At that time, that kind of money could only buy a small piece of land near Jerusalem.

Great Wednesday

On this day of Passion Week, the betrayal of Judas Iscariot is remembered. At the liturgy on this day, the prayer of St. Ephraim the Syrian is said for the last time. It is believed that it is this prayer that the laity should read daily during the entire Great Lent.

Maundy Thursday

The people know that this Thursday is also called, you can cook thursday salt. But exactly what gospel events are remembered on this day? The Last Supper took place - the last supper of Jesus with his disciples, where he told that it was a complete betrayal and that tomorrow he would be arrested.

Good Friday

The worst day is the trial of Jesus Christ, his crucifixion and death on Krset. In the morning, the 12th Gospel of the Holy Passion of Christ is read, in the evening the shroud is taken out to the center of the temple. From this day until the end Easter service according to a strict church charter, clergy must abstain from food.

Holy Saturday

Memories on this day are dedicated to the burial of Jesus Christ, his stay in the tomb. On this day, the soul of Jesus descended into hell to proclaim the victory of life over death and deliver sinful souls from suffering. Services begin early in the morning and continue throughout the day until Easter midnight.

These are the exact events that took place on Holy Week more than two thousand years ago, when the Savior lived and walked the earth, professed Christianity and gave people freedom from sins, hope for future life. On Holy Week, every believing Christian should try to lead a righteous life, give up entertainment, go to church or pray fervently at home. We hope that this period of fasting will be useful to you as a strong and correct spiritual preparation on the eve of the joyful feast of Easter.

Whatever you ask in prayer with faith, you will receive.
Matt. 21, 22

days great week from ancient times dedicated by the Church each to a special memory and each is called the Great.

In the Divine Liturgy of this day, the Holy Church invites the faithful to accompany Christ, to be crucified with Him, to die for Him for the pleasures of life, to live with Him. In mysterious contemplation, bringing together the events of the Old and New Testaments, she shows us the coming innocent sufferings of the Savior in the Old Testament prototype of the chaste Joseph, innocently sold and humiliated through the envy of his brothers, but after restored by God. “Joseph,” says the Synaxar, “is a prototype of Christ, because Christ also becomes the object of envy for His fellow Jews, is sold by a disciple for thirty pieces of silver, is enclosed in a gloomy and cramped ditch - a tomb, and, having risen from it by one's own strength, reigns over Egypt, that is, over all sin, and completely conquers it, rules over the whole world, philanthropicly redeems us with the gift of mysterious wheat and feeds us with heavenly bread - His life-giving flesh.

From the events of the gospel, the Holy Church remembers. The withered fig tree, according to the Gospel, was for the Apostles a significant sermon on the power of faith and prayer, without which a person is spiritually dead before God. According to the mind of the Holy Church, the barren fig tree depicts the Jewish host, in which Jesus Christ did not find the true fruit, but only the hypocritical shadow of the law, which he denounced and cursed; but this fig tree also represents every soul that does not bear fruit of repentance. In addition to the story of the withering of the fig tree, the morning Gospel instructs us with the parable spoken by the Savior on this very day about unrighteous vinedressers who first killed their master’s servants sent for grapes, and then the son of their master himself. In this parable, it is impossible not to see a terrible condemnation of Christians who boldly violate the commandments of the apostles and patristics and thus continue to crucify the Son of God with their sins. AT Gospel reading at the Liturgy, the Holy Church recalls the fate of the apostate Jewish people and the end of the world, as they were foreshadowed by Jesus Christ. By depicting the great and varied calamities and signs of the destruction of Jerusalem and the end of the age, believers are encouraged in the midst of evils to generosity, impartiality, patience, prayer and spiritual vigilance and are comforted by the Savior's promise of spreading the Gospel throughout the world and ending the calamities "for the sake of the elect."

"Law of God", publishing house " A new book»

Chants from the service on the Monday of Great Lent

Troparion

Stichira

Svetilen

Gospel of Matthew

In the morning, returning to the city, he became hungry. And when he saw a fig tree on the way, he went up to her, and finding nothing on it, except only leaves, he said to her: let there be no further fruit from you forever. And immediately the fig tree dried up. Seeing this, the disciples were astonished, and said, How did the fig tree wither immediately? Jesus answered and said to them, If you have faith, do not hesitate; not only will you do what was done to the fig tree, but if you say to this mountain, Get up and throw yourself into the sea, it will happen; and whatever you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.

Matt. 21, 18-22

Holy Bible and its interpretation

• Archpriest Alexander Shargunov.

Sermons

• Hieromonk Irenaeus (Pikovsky). . Sermon on Maundy Monday

worship

Iconography

• . PHOTO GALLERY

Questions to the priest

• Hieromonk Job (Gumerov).

We are entering today hard days: on the days when we remember the Passion of Christ, on the days when it will not be easy for us to come to the temple to endure long services, to pray. Many will ask themselves the question: is it worth walking when the body is so tired, when thoughts fly apart, when there is no inner composure and real participation in what is happening? ..

Remember then what happened in the days of the Passion of Christ: how many people there were, both good and terrible people who would have given much to escape from the horror and exhaustion of these days. Those who were close to Christ - how their hearts were breaking, how their last strength, bodily and spiritual, was exhausted during these few terrible days ... And how hundreds of people, probably, would like to break out of this week, to be free from what happened: from anger, from fear, from horror ...

And life did not let go anywhere; the Most Pure Virgin Mother of God could not depart anywhere from the passions of the Lord; The disciples of Christ could not hide anywhere from their horror, even in those moments when fear was victorious and they tried to hide from the wrath of the people. They could not go anywhere, forget what was happening Nicodemus, Joseph of Arimathea, the secret disciples of Christ, faithful myrrh-bearing women, .. There was nowhere to go, because horror dwelt in their hearts, because horror seized them from without and from within. And there was also nowhere to escape from this for those who with hatred, stubbornly, viciously sought the murder of Christ.

And so, when you remember this, will you not find a place for yourself in the temple during these passionate days? And their thoughts interfered, their hearts grew cold, and their strength was exhausted; but they lived by this event. And what will happen these days is not a dead memory of the past; this is an event that is in the heart of our days, on which the life of our world and our life is based.

Therefore, no matter what you experience, no matter how little you - we - experience, we will go to these services, immerse ourselves in what they present to us. Let's not try to force some feelings out of ourselves: it's enough to look; enough to listen; and the events themselves - because these are events, and not memories - let them break us in body and soul. And then, when, not remembering ourselves, but thinking about Christ, about what is really happening these days, we will reach that great saturday when Christ rested in the tomb, and rest will be upon us. And when at night we hear the news of the Resurrection, then we, too, will be able to suddenly come to life from this terrible stupor, from this terrible death of Christ, the dying of Christ, which we will partake of at least to some extent during the Passionate Days. Amen.

Metropolitan Anthony of Surozh

Statutory symbolic integration

In mysterious contemplation, bringing together the events of the Old and New Testaments, the Church shows us the coming sufferings of the Savior in the Old Testament prototype of the chaste Joseph, through the envy of his brothers, innocently sold and humiliated, but after restored by God.

Joseph is a direct type of Christ. The brothers sold him into slavery for money, and Christ is being sold these days for money. Joseph reached the very bottom, he had to die, lay in prison and was sentenced, but after that he was elevated to the very height of the hierarchical ladder of Egyptian power: he becomes the closest adviser to the pharaoh, the first minister. It is a type of the death and resurrection of Christ. Joseph, after becoming a minister, saved his family from certain death. At that time there was a seven-year famine, and his brothers came to Egypt to ask for help. The Lord after His Resurrection saves all believers, His Church.

“Joseph,” says the Synaxar, “is a prototype of Christ, because Christ also becomes the object of envy for His fellow tribesmen - the Jews, is sold by a disciple for thirty pieces of silver, is enclosed in a dark and cramped ditch - a tomb, and, having risen from it with his own strength, reigns over Egypt, that is, over all sin, and finally conquers it, rules over the whole world, philanthropicly redeems us with the gift of mysterious wheat and feeds us with heavenly bread - His life-giving flesh.

Gospel Readings of Holy Week

On Holy Week, the Gospel is read at almost every service of the daily circle, for last days the earthly life of the Savior are described in much more detail than other periods of His life. According to the text of the four Evangelists, one can trace literally every step of the Savior: everything he said, did, where he went, with whom he communicated on the days before the Cross. The service of Holy Week gives us the opportunity to spend these days walking in His footsteps, listening to His words.

So, on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday Christ preached in the Jerusalem temple. Toward evening, when the sun began to go down, He left the city together with the disciples for rest and farewell conversations only with them. In the morning, the son of God was returning back to Jerusalem. This sequence of events continued for four days.

Holy Monday Gospel Readings

morning gospel

On Holy Monday morning, the Gospel of the barren fig tree is read: “In the morning, returning to the city, he was hungry. And when he saw a fig tree on the way, he went up to her, and finding nothing on it, except only leaves, he said to her: let there be no further fruit from you forever. And immediately the fig tree dried up. Seeing this, the disciples were astonished, and said, How did the fig tree wither immediately? Jesus answered and said to them, If you have faith, do not hesitate; not only will you do what was done to the fig tree, but if you say to this mountain, Get up and throw yourself into the sea, it will happen; and whatever you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive” (Matthew 21:18-43).

Lenten edification

After the solemn entry into Jerusalem, Christ spent the night with His disciples in Bethany. In the morning, going to the temple, He became hungry on the way. A fig tree appeared in the distance, covered with many green leaves. Coming closer, the Lord found that there were absolutely no fruits on it, and then He cursed the barren tree. On their way back, the apostles saw that the fig tree had dried up: “Lord, look, the fig tree that You cursed has dried up (Mark 11:21). To this Jesus said: Have the faith of God; whoever does not doubt in his heart and says to the mountain: “Plunge into the sea,” it will come true according to his words (Mark 11:23). This "moving of the mountain" is an example that nothing is impossible for a faith free from doubt. The drying up of the fig tree by Christ was a symbolic act, a sign of His Divine power. According to the interpretation of the Lenten Triodion, the entire Jewish people became like this barren fig tree, in which the Lord did not find the fruits that he expected to find.

Why did the fig tree become the tree of damnation?

By Old Testament, attributed to figs healing power, in particular, it was believed that the "layer of figs" heals abscesses (Is. 38.21). The fig tree was one of the seven plants and products symbolizing the wealth of the promised land (Deut. 8.8). Fig trees were planted in vineyards (Luke 13:6) to vine wrapped around a tree trunk. The expression "to live under the vineyard and the fig tree" allegorically meant peace and prosperity.

But in addition to natural properties, the fig tree also had symbolic meaning. For the teachers of Israel, the rabbis, she became a symbol of wisdom. In one of the treatises of the Talmud, the following statement of Rabbi Johanan was recorded: “Like a fig tree, whenever a person touches it, there is a fruit on it; so are the words of the Torah - at any time when a person pronounces them, there is a meaning in them ”(Eruvin 54). The Jewish sage promises the fruits of the law of Moses - "at all times." This is seen as religious maximalism, because in winter the fig tree does not bear fruit. When Christ came in April to a certain budding fig tree to look for fruit, He found nothing. Symbolically - He did not find that good fruit that the rabbis promised "at all times." And in opposition to their pretensions to maximum wisdom, the Lord declared: “Let there be no further fruit from you forever” (Matt. 21:19). So, the curse of the fig tree became a symbol of the rejection of those people who have only appearance doers of the law, but in reality do not bear good fruit.

Dooming the Jews to desolation, the Lord predicted that the Kingdom of God would be taken away from them and given to a people who would bear its fruits (Matt. 21:43). This "new nation" is now us Christians. We have been given the promises of the kingdom of God, and fruit is now expected of us. The gospel story is not only the events of the historical past, but also a symbol, a prototype of what may happen in the future. Every, every, every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. God does not need only the leaves of virtue - external empty piety. God needs real fruits of repentance (Matthew 3:8).

Evening Gospel

Evening in Holy Monday an excerpt is read about an event that took place outside the city, on the slope of the Mount of Olives - eschatological conversation of the Lord with the disciples: “When He was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him in private and asked: Tell us, when will this be? and what is the sign of your coming and the end of the age? Jesus answered and said to them, Beware that no one deceives you, for many will come under my name and say, "I am the Christ," and they will deceive many. Also hear about wars and war rumors. Look, do not be horrified, for all this must be, but this is not the end yet: for nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; and there will be famines, plagues and earthquakes in places; yet it is the beginning of diseases. Then they will hand you over to torture and kill you; and you will be hated by all nations because of my name; and then many will be offended, and will betray one another, and will hate one another; and many false prophets will rise up and deceive many; and because of the increase of iniquity, the love of many will grow cold; but he who endures to the end shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached throughout the whole world, as a testimony to all nations; and then the end will come. So, when you see the abomination of desolation, spoken of through the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place - let the reader understand - then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains; and whoever is on the roof, let him not come down to take anything from his house; and whoever is in the field, let him not turn back to take his clothes. Woe to pregnant women and breastfeeding women in those days! Pray that your flight does not happen in the winter or on the Sabbath, for then there will be a great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, and will not be. And if those days had not been shortened, no flesh would have been saved; but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened. Then if anyone says to you, Behold, Christ is here, or there, believe it not. For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. Behold, I told you beforehand. So if they say to you, "Behold, he is in the wilderness," do not go out; "behold, He is in the secret rooms," - do not believe; for as lightning comes from the east and is visible even to the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man; for where there is a corpse, there the eagles will gather.

And suddenly, after the sorrow of those days, the sun will grow dark, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of heaven will be shaken; then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven; and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn and see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory; and he will send his angels with a loud trumpet, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. From the fig tree take a likeness: when its branches are already soft and let out leaves, then you know that summer is near; so when you see all this, know that it is near, at the door. Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place; heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away” (Matthew 24:3-35).

Lenten edification

As you know, the Mount of Olives is located opposite the ancient Jerusalem and from it an amazing view of the Jerusalem Temple opened. They were sitting on the slope, looking at the city, and the Lord, pointing them to the Temple, said that very soon there would be no stone left on stone from this building. Then it was very difficult to imagine, because the Temple was only recently rebuilt by King Herod. The Lord had a long conversation with the disciples about the end of the world. This eschatological theme is extremely important for Holy Week. It runs through all the days of Holy Week. Why? Because before His departure, the Lord wanted the disciples to remember well what will happen when He comes the second time. He repeatedly warns these days about the events of His Second Glorious Coming, therefore, throughout Holy Week, hymns related to the Second Coming of the Lord are sung. The troparion "Behold the Bridegroom comes at midnight" is sung for the first three days.

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Orthodox calendar

Rev. Basil isp. (750). Shmch. Arsenia, Metropolitan Rostovsky (1772). Rev. Cassian the Roman (435) (the memory is transferred from February 29).

Blzh. Nicholas, Christ for the Holy Fool, Pskov (1576). Shmch. Proterius, Patriarch of Alexandria (457). Shmch. Nestor, Ep. Magiddian (250). Prpp. wives Marina and Kira (c. 450). Rev. John, named Barsanuphius, ep. Damascus (V); mch. Feoktirista (VIII) (memories are transferred from February 29).

Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts.

At the 6th hour: Isa. II, 3–11. Forever: Gen. I, 24 - II, 3. Proverbs. II, 1–22.

We congratulate birthday people on Angel Day!

Icon of the day

Hieromartyr Arseny of Rostov (Matseevich), Metropolitan

Hieromartyr Arseny, Metropolitan of Rostov (Alexander Matseevich in the world) was the last opponent of the church reform of Peter I. He was born in 1697 (according to other sources, in 1696) in Vladimir-Volynsky in the family of an Orthodox priest who came from the Polish gentry.

Having received his education at the Kiev Theological Academy, in 1733 he was already a hieromonk. Soon he traveled to Ustyug, Kholmogory and the Solovetsky Monastery, where he argued with the Old Believers imprisoned there; about this controversy, he wrote "Exhortation to the schismatic"

In 1734-37 Father Arseniy participated in the Kamchatka expedition. In 1737, he was seconded to a member of the Synod, Ambrose (Yushkevich), who at that time occupied a leading position in the church hierarchy. This appointment led to the rapprochement of the two hierarchs and determined the further fate of Father Arseny. Consecrated in 1741 to the rank of Metropolitan of Tobolsk and All Siberia, Vladyka Arseniy defended the rights of newly baptized foreigners in Siberia from the harassment of the governors, and the clergy from the interference of a secular court.

The harsh Siberian climate adversely affected the health of the bishop, and soon after the accession of Elisaveta Petrovna, he was transferred in 1742 to the department in Rostov with the appointment of a member of the Synod.

Strict to subordinates, the lord becomes in sharp opposition to secular power. He insists before Empress Catherine II on the removal of secular officials from the composition of the Synod, argues that the Synod has no canonical basis at all, and concludes that it is necessary to restore the patriarchate. Vladyka's note "On the Deanery of the Church" was the first protest of the Russian hierarchy against the synodal system.

Relations between the lord and secular authorities became even more aggravated when, at the end of the reign of Elizabeth Petrovna, then under Peter III and Catherine II, orders aimed at limiting monasteries in managing their property caused strong indignation in the higher clergy.

On February 9, 1763, Vladyka in Rostov performs the "Order of Excommunication" with some additions directed against "violent and offending God's holy churches and monasteries", "accepting these topics from the ancient God-lovers of the estate."

In March, Vladyka submitted two reports to the Synod, which reported to the Empress that Saint Arsenios was "an offender to Her Majesty." Catherine brought him to the trial of the Synod, which lasted seven days; Vladyka was convicted, reduced to the rank of a simple monk and imprisoned in the Nikolo-Korelsky Monastery.

But even in exile, the saint did not cease to denounce the actions of the churchless authorities in relation to church property, expressed doubt about the rights of Catherine II to the throne, and sympathy for Grand Duke Pavel Petrovich. The Vladyka's work was given a political character, and at the end of 1767 he was deprived of his monasticism and sentenced to "eternal imprisonment." Under the name "Andrey Vral" he was kept in the Revel casemate, where he died on February 28, 1772.

For the humble bearing of sorrows and non-possessiveness, as well as for the martyr's death for the Church, the saint is revered by the Russian people.

Ranked among the saints of the Russian Orthodox Church for general church veneration at the Jubilee Bishops' Council in August 2000.

Prayer to Hieromartyr Arseny (Matseevich), Metropolitan of Rostov

Oh, great saint of Christ, long-suffering Saint Arseny! Have mercy on me, a sinner, hear my tearful prayer. Do not disdain my filthy sores of sin. Accept my unworthy praise from the whole heart offered to you. And be merciful to my petitions to you, my powerful intercessor before the Lord. Begged the All-good my God to grant the spirit of contrition for my sins, the spirit of humility, meekness and gentleness, and also fulfill all His commandments without laziness, show love and mercy to the neighbor. Most of all, His sweetest name in the heart and mind should be kept and fearlessly confessed with the lips. May Christ our God grant with your prayers to all who call on His holy name all that is necessary for salvation, so that at all times and in all places with love the name of the All-Holy Trinity of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, forever and ever, be glorified. Amen.

Reading the Gospel Together with the Church

Hello dear brothers and sisters.

In the last broadcast, it was about the gospel of Zechariah in the Jerusalem temple about the birth of John the Baptist.

Today we will consider the text of the same Evangelist Luke, which tells of the Annunciation to the Virgin Mary.

1.26. In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to the city of Galilee, called Nazareth,

1.27. to the Virgin, betrothed to a husband named Joseph, from the house of David; the name of the Virgin: Mary.

1.28. The angel, having entered to Her, said: Rejoice, Blessed One! The Lord is with you; blessed are you among women.

1.29. She, seeing him, was embarrassed by his words and wondered what kind of greeting it would be.

1.30. And the angel said to her: Fear not, Mary, for you have found grace with God;

1.31. and behold, thou shalt conceive in the womb, and thou shalt bear a Son, and thou shalt call his name: Jesus.

1.32. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father;

1.33. and shall reign over the house of Jacob forever, and his kingdom shall have no end.

1.34. Mary said to the Angel: How will it be when I do not know my husband?

1.35. The angel answered her: The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore, the holy being born will be called the Son of God.

1.36. Here is Elizabeth, your relative, called barren, and she conceived a son in her old age, and she is already six months old,

1.37. for with God no word will remain powerless.

1.38. Then Mary said: behold, the Servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word. And an angel departed from her.

(Luke 1:26-38)

Both stories about the appearance of the Archangel Gabriel are built according to the same scheme: the appearance of an angel, his prediction of the miraculous birth of a child, a story about the coming greatness, the name that he should be called; doubt of the interlocutor of the angel and the gift of a sign confirming the words of the messenger of Heaven. But still, there are many differences in these narratives.

If Zechariah meets the messenger of God at the most majestic moment of his life and this happens in the house of God, in Jerusalem, during the service, then the scene of the appearance of the same angel to a young girl is emphatically simple and devoid of any outward solemnity. It takes place in Nazareth, a seedy provincial town in the Galilee.

And if the righteousness of Zechariah and Elizabeth is emphasized from the very beginning and the news of the birth of a son is given in response to fervent prayers, then practically nothing is said about the young Mary: neither about her moral qualities, nor about any kind of religious zeal.

However, all human stereotypes are turned upside down, because the one whose birth was announced in the clubs of censer incense will turn out to be just a forerunner, a herald of the coming of the One about whom it was told so modestly.

Evangelist Luke points out that Elizabeth was six months pregnant when an angel appeared in Nazareth with the good news to the Virgin Mary. In the case of Elizabeth, the obstacles to birth were her barrenness and advanced age; for Mary, her virginity.

We know that Mary was betrothed to Joseph. According to Jewish marriage law, girls were betrothed to future husbands very early, usually at the age of twelve or thirteen. The betrothal lasted about a year, but the bride and groom were considered husband and wife from the moment they got engaged. This year the bride stayed in the house of her parents or guardians. In fact, a girl became a wife when her husband took her to his house.

Joseph, as we remember, came from the family of King David, which was extremely important, because through Joseph and Jesus he became a legal descendant of David. Indeed, in ancient times, legal kinship was considered more important than blood.

Greetings: rejoice, Blessed One! Lord is with you(Luke 1, 28), - the angel addresses the Virgin Mary. The author writes in Greek. Quite possible, Greek word“Khaire” (“rejoice”) in Hebrew could sound like “shalom”, that is, a wish for peace.

Like Zechariah, Mary is confused and full of confusion caused by both the appearance of the angel and his words. The messenger tries to explain to Mary and reassure her with the words: do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found grace with God(Luke 1:30). Then he explains what is about to happen. And he does this through three main verbs: you will conceive, you will give birth, you will name.

Usually the name of the child was given by the father as a sign that he recognizes him as his own, but here this honor belongs to the mother. Jesus is a Hellenized form of the Hebrew name Yeshua, which is most likely translated as "Yahweh is salvation."

Listening to the angel how great her Son will be, Mary asks a natural question: what will it be like when I don't know my husband?(Luke 1:34).

This question, dear brothers and sisters, is both simple and difficult to understand. Maria cannot understand the words of the angel, since she is not yet married (in the actual sense, although in the legal sense she already had a husband). But Mary will soon enter into conjugal communion, why is she so surprised?

There are several attempts to explain this issue, and they are built on the words "I don't know my husband." So, some believe that the verb "know" should be understood in the past tense, that is, "I have not yet known my husband." From which it follows that Mary understood the words of the angel as an announcement to her of her actual state of pregnancy.

According to another point of view, the verb "to know" comes from the word "to know", that is, to enter into marital communication. The patristic tradition tells us that the Virgin Mary made a vow of eternal virginity and her words should be understood only as "I will not know a husband." But some scholars argue that this was impossible, since in the Jewish tradition of that time, marriage and childbearing were not only honorable, but also obligatory. And if there were communities where people led a virgin life, then they were mostly men. And such statements seem logical. But let's not forget that God does not act according to human logic - He is above everything and can put a virtuous thought on the heart of a pure person and strengthen even a young girl in her charitable desire to preserve her integrity.

A vivid confirmation that God does not operate within the framework of the physical laws of nature is the answer of the angel Mary: The Holy Spirit will come upon You, and the power of the Most High will overshadow You; Therefore, the Holy One to be born will be called the Son of God(Luke 1:35). It is not uncommon to hear a distorted understanding of this moment in the gospel story. People try to explain the virgin birth of the Son of God by the Virgin Mary as a literary device taken from Greek myths, where the gods descended from Mount Olympus and entered into relationships with women, from whom the so-called "sons of God" were born. But in this text we see nothing of the kind. And in the Holy Spirit there is no masculine, which is emphasized even by the grammatical gender: the Hebrew "ruach" ("spirit") is feminine, and the Greek "pneuma" is neuter.

The Jewish Talmud also tries to challenge the purity of the Savior's conception, arguing that Jesus was the illegitimate son of a fugitive soldier named Panther, hence the name of Christ in the Talmud - Ben-Panther. But some scholars believe that “panther” is a distorted Greek word “parthenos”, which translates as “virgin”, which means that the Talmudic expression should be understood as “Son of the Virgin”.

The scene of the Annunciation ends with Mary's response to Gabriel's message: behold, the Servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word(Luke 1:38).

These words contain the great humility of a young girl, ready to fulfill any will of God. There is no slavish fear here, but only sincere readiness to serve the Lord. No one has ever succeeded, and it is unlikely that they will be able to express their faith the way the Virgin Mary did. But this is what we, dear brothers and sisters, need to strive for.

Help us in this Lord.

Hieromonk Pimen (Shevchenko),
monk of the Holy Trinity Alexander Nevsky Lavra

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Orthodox educational courses

OLD BUT NOT ALONE WITH CHRIST: Sermon on the Meeting of the Lord

FROM Imeon and Anna - two old people - did not see themselves as lonely, because they lived by God and for God. We do not know what life sorrows and senile ailments they had, but for a person who loves God, is grateful to God, such trials and temptations will never replace the most important thing - the joy of the Meeting of Christ....

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Hieromonk Nikon (Parimanchuk)

Preparation for the Sacrament of Holy Baptism

AT section " Preparation for Baptism" site "Sunday school: online courses " Archpriest Andrey Fedosov, head of the department of education and catechesis of the Kinel Diocese, information has been collected that will be useful to those who are going to be baptized themselves, or who want to baptize their child or become a godparent.

R section consists of five public speaking, which reveals the content of the Orthodox dogma within the framework of the Creed, explains the sequence and meaning of the rites performed at Baptism and provides answers to common questions related to this Sacrament. Each conversation is accompanied additional materials, links to sources, recommended literature and Internet resources.

O The lectures of the course are presented in the form of texts, audio files and videos.

Course Topics:

• Conversation #1 Preliminary Concepts
• Conversation #2 Sacred Bible Story
• Conversation No. 3 Church of Christ
• Conversation #4 Christian Morality
• Conversation No. 5 The Sacrament of Holy Baptism

Applications:

• Frequently asked Questions
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Reading the lives of the saints of Dmitry Rostov for every day

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Radio "Vera"

Radio "VERA" is a new radio station that talks about eternal truths Orthodox faith.

TV channel Tsargrad: Orthodoxy

Pravoslavnaya Gazeta, Yekaterinburg

Pravoslavie.Ru - Encounter with Orthodoxy

• "Give me these crackers, I'll eat them for tea"

  Help of God from fellowship with Fr. Tikhon was always tangible, because. answers were supported by spiritual almsgiving, prayer.

Holy Week is the main week of the year in the life of every Christian. These days, it is necessary to put aside all affairs, if possible, to forget about yourself, about your worries and problems, petty and vulgar compared to what happened in Palestine more than two thousand years ago.

Then, in the words of Metropolitan Anthony of Surozh, “thinking about Christ, about what is actually happening these days, we will reach that great Saturday when Christ rested in the tomb, and peace will find upon us. And when at night we hear the news of the Resurrection, then we, too, will be able to suddenly come to life from this terrible stupor, from this terrible death of Christ, the dying of Christ, to which we will at least partly partake during the passionate days. Every day of this week is important in its own way.

On Maundy Monday, the Church recalls several events from the New Testament: the curse of the barren fig tree and the parable of the two sons and the evil vinedressers, symbolizing the people of Israel who denied Christ and every person who does not bring good fruits of his life; and also the Savior's prophecies about His coming sufferings. To this is added the remembrance of the Old Testament Joseph, as a type of Christ in His sufferings and further victory.

The Gospels tell us that after the solemn entry into Jerusalem, on the same day, Jesus withdrew from the city to Bethany and spent the night there. Returning to Jerusalem in the morning, Christ wanted to eat. He went to a fig tree (i.e. a fig tree), but found no fruit on it. Evangelist Mark explains this by the fact that it was not yet the time for the gathering of figs (Mark 11:13). And then the Savior said to the fig tree: let there be no further fruit from you forever. And immediately the fig tree dried up (Matt. 21:19). Some readers may be surprised at the seeming injustice of the Lord: how is it that He punished an innocent tree, although, according to all the laws of nature, it simply could not bear fruit at that time. This bewilderment is at least strange: after all, we are talking only about a wild tree, and applying the categories of justice to soulless objects is absurd. The curse of the fig tree is nothing more than a symbol by which Christ wanted to tell people something essential. St. John Chrysostom explains the Savior’s act in this way: “Christ always did good and did not punish anyone, meanwhile it was necessary for Him to show the experience of His justice, so that both the disciples and the Jews would know that although He could dry up His crucifiers, like a fig tree, nevertheless voluntarily gives himself up to be crucified, and does not wither them. He did not want to show this over people, but he showed the experience of His justice over the plant. Even earlier, the apostles wanted to ask their Master to give them the authority to bring down fire on the Samaritan village, in which they were not received. The Lord forbade them to do this, saying: You do not know what kind of spirit you are; for the Son of Man came not to destroy the souls of men, but to save (John 19:55-56). The Son of God, the Judge of the universe, showed Himself only once in this capacity, and even then in relation not to a person, but to a soulless tree, which, moreover, according to legend, had already been undermined by worms.

This miracle also has an important moral significance for every person. At every moment a person must be ready to meet God, so as not to be spiritually empty and fruitless. “Fearing the punishment of the fig tree that has dried up for barrenness, brothers, let us bring worthy fruits of repentance to Christ, who gives us great mercy,” the Church prays on this day.

Having performed a miracle with a fig tree, the Savior came to the Temple in Jerusalem and taught the people there. Immediately the chief priests and elders of the people came up to Him and tried to catch Him in words. In response, Christ told them a parable about the evil vinedressers who beat or even killed all the servants sent by the owner, and then killed the son of the owner of the vineyard in order to seize the inheritance. So, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do with these tenants? Jesus asked the elders and high priests. Then they were forced, in fact, to pronounce judgment on themselves: he will put these evildoers to an evil death, and give the vineyard to other vinedressers, who will give him the fruits in their seasons (Matt. 21:41). According to the patristic interpretation, the vineyard in this parable means the people of Israel, whom the Lord called to keep the true faith in the One God in the midst of the darkness of paganism and from whom he expected spiritual fruits. The Jews, however, constantly departed from God and killed His messengers, the righteous and the prophets. The majority of Jews contemporary to Christ became the heirs of these murderers. Therefore, the vineyard of God, the Church, became the property of all peoples who turned to Christ. At the same time, like any gospel parable, the story of the evil vinedressers is also addressed to every person. How often do we ourselves try to kill God in ourselves and in the world around us, to arrange life without Him. About the monstrous emptiness (Behold, your house is left to you empty (Matt. 23:38), the Savior will say) and destruction (no stone will be left on stone here), which will remain in the soul after this “deicide”, this parable warns. With every sin we crucify Christ again - one of the main motives of today's church service. This, too, must be thought about and always remembered.

On the same day, the Church also remembers the Old Testament righteous Joseph the Beautiful. For his purity of life, he endured many sufferings: he was sold by his brothers, slandered by the wife of an Egyptian courtier, and was imprisoned. The Lord, however, in all disasters saved His saint. In the end, already Joseph, having become an adviser to the pharaoh, himself saved the brothers and father he had forgiven from starvation. In this, he became a type of Christ, who suffered a lot from people and was crucified by them, but who conquered death with his resurrection and, thereby, granted salvation to the human race.

Troparion for Holy Monday, tone 8

FROM e, the Bridegroom is coming at midnight, / and blessed is the servant, whom the vigilante will find, / he is not worthy of the packs, he will find the despondent. / Watch over, my soul, / do not be weighed down with sleep, / lest you be given over to death, / and shut up the Kingdom outside, / but rise up, crying: / Holy, Holy, Holy art Thou, O God, / Have mercy on us with the Theotokos.

Kontakion for Holy Monday, tone 8

And such is the weeping of Joseph's deprivation, / and the good one sitting on the chariot, like a king to honor: / the Egyptians did not work with sweets then, / glorified from the Leading human heart, / and Sending the imperishable crown.