The holy days after the Nativity of Christ became for the newly-churches the time of entry into the Church, an introduction to the mysterious life in the church meeting. For a year and a half, all of them underwent catechesis - oral, consistent and holistic instruction in the basics of the Christian faith, prayer and life, where they read the Holy Scriptures together, learned to pray, and attended services.

Churching, the entry of a person into the depths of church life, into communion with God and neighbors, in a sense, lasts a person's entire life, but has a beginning. For many people, such a beginning, a path for entering the Church, has become a consistent and holistic catechesis, which helps a person to find God, the Church and himself, to find his place in life and in the Church, and to find his neighbors through finding God. After all, through an encounter with God, a person gains the ability to see everything in its true light, to see everything correctly, and, accordingly, to live correctly and righteously. He gets the opportunity to correct his life, bring repentance before God and start living in a new way. But to live not an individual, closed life, as before, but responsibly and openly confessing your faith, as befits members of the people of God - the Church, in the words of the Apostle Paul: “You are no longer strangers and aliens, but fellow citizens of the Saints and His own God” (Eph . 2, 19).

For many of the newly-churched, the bright day of the Nativity of Christ became the day of their first conscious participation in the Liturgy of the faithful, the day of the first communion. After Christmas saints and bright days, during which the newly enlightened brothers and sisters prayed together at the Eucharist, learned church singing and reading, joint work for the glory of God, they will undergo sacraments (mystagogy) - an introduction to the liturgical sacraments of the Orthodox Church for the next eight weeks , dogma, asceticism and Christian anthropology.

We asked the catechists and their assistants from the Preobrazhensky Brotherhood to answer the question: "What is churching?"

Sergey Kordenko: From the point of view of a non-church person, churching is a process as a result of which a person begins to perform certain external actions: hangs icons at home, begins to go to church on holidays, observe fasts, etc. But every phenomenon has a deep, invisible component, which is only outwardly expressed by signs and attributes. After all, faith is the invisible, but real depth of life. One must plunge into this depth of Divine life, enter the space of the Spirit, the space of the Church. It is not territorial, not physically felt. This is the space of God's love, manifested in the unity of the spiritual life of people who believe in Him. It is very difficult to explain this to external people, but people who walk this path begin to open their hearts to God and people. And a rather long period of preparation of a person's spiritual heart is needed. When a person searches for God, he plunges into His life. This immersion is paradoxical - not down, but Up. This is churching

Olga Tskitishvili: The most difficult thing in churching is to enter into such a state in order to let the Holy Spirit into all areas of your life, to church all of it. Therefore, the process of churching is a whole life process. In the context of Bright Week, it seems to me that we need to show the new churches that such a life exists, even if not in fullness, but already exists here, in our time on our earth.

Vladimir L .: Churching is a transformation, a cleansing of a person. People shake off themselves not even the old, and sometimes not very human existence, turning into those people from whom the people of God are gathered. Churching is a new quality of life, a new responsibility for the Church, and an understanding of who and what the Church is. That they are the Church, that they are not just members of a parish, members of a religious organization, but that they are members of the people of God and participants in Sacred history.

Tatiana Privalova: Churching is entering the church. Here, on the Bright Week, as it were, a point was put, people made their choice, taking the path of life, abandoned the path of death, and the Lord introduced them into His Church. A churched person differs both externally and internally from a non-churched person, he changes his point of view on many things in life, he becomes attentive to his life, he already knows how to not act. He was taught the Christian faith and life, and this life is new, transformed, life by the grace of God. This is not an easy life, but a difficult one, but very joyful.

Churchedness and depression

Occasionally I meet people who have been badly influenced by church life - depression, self-doubt and other conditions that interfere with life have developed. Some people left the Church altogether because of this. I myself once experienced a meeting with God and His love, my experience of Christianity was very joyful. But after the conversion to Orthodoxy, it became much darker. Thanks to the blog of psychologist Gelena Savitskaya and the ideas of cognitive psychotherapy, I suddenly had a puzzle.

Gelena writes that the basis of depression, as well as neuroses, is the experience of three states - helplessness, worthlessness, hopelessness. Cognitive-behavioral psychotherapy, in turn, says that the emotional state of any person depends primarily on his thoughts, on how he assesses the situation and himself. And cognitive therapy treats cognitive distortions - inadequate beliefs that lead to depression, panic attacks, and other disorders. Now watch your hands - I will show how exactly the beliefs that a person acquires in the Russian Orthodox Church contribute to the formation of depression.

Any Orthodox Christian knows that "all that is good in us must be ascribed not to ourselves, but to God." If he reads the morning rule, this is reinforced by daily affirmations on the same topic: "as if I have done nothing good in You" - this is about that. Here is also the favorite theme of St. Ignatiy Bryanchaninov, that all our good deeds are not really good deeds, because they are infected with passions. Here is a typical quote from an article on the Pravoslavie.ru website: “in the human heart, there are so many bad things that you really need to understand that each of us is infinitely bad worthless, is not worthy to be called a Christian, and on this one must in some sense calm down internally. " As a result, a person who takes all this seriously develops a strong conviction that he cannot do anything good - that is, he is completely worthless. And if he thinks differently, then it is pride.

I had a sad episode in the early period of my church life. I got a job - handing out flyers - and at some point I thought that I was good at it. And this thought made me happy. And then I thought that I should attribute this not to myself, but to God, I myself cannot even hand out leaflets well - and immediately my mood dropped noticeably. By the way, at that time I had the blackest depression, joy in general was a rare guest in my life. And with the help of appropriate beliefs, I drove this guest with a filthy broom.

Describes a similar story. She donated blood for a girl with leukemia. The girl recovered. "I was happy. When Katina's mother thanked me with tears, I felt just in seventh heaven. We won! We made death retreat! And this is my merit! Yes, I myself, with my own hands, changed the fate of this family - at least I participated in this. A terrible misfortune fell on them - and now everything is over, the misfortune has passed, they are starting a new life, and I did it !!
So I rejoiced ... exactly until I realized that I was falling into the worst of sins - pride. For I am proud of my good deed, I accept gratitude and praise with pleasure, and I also ascribe to myself some merit in this matter, when it is well known that a person does not have any merit, and only God can heal, help and save. All this is terrible. In all this one must repent, repent, repent.

That was where my joy ended.

So, in modern Russian Orthodoxy, a person is instructed in every possible way to think of himself as worthless and incapable of anything good. If a person really begins to think about himself that way, he has a feeling of worthlessness. Which is the first step to depression.

Is it imperative for a Christian to think of himself as a worthless person? I would not say. For example, Abba Dorotheos advises to record daily your progress in the fight against passion. He interprets the parable of the publican and the Pharisee in the spirit that the Pharisee sinned not by listing his merits (surprise!), Because in this he did not lie, but by humiliating the publican. The parable of talents leaves no doubt that a lot depends on us and that the thought of our worthlessness can play rather a bad joke on us. And the theological idea of ​​synergy in the work of salvation is also about this. But the mainstream in Russian Orthodoxy is different.

"Keep your mind in hell and do not despair", "all will be saved - I alone will perish", "Anthony, you defeated us - not yet!" - it is these convictions that any Orthodox Christian is encouraged to adhere to. Beliefs that he personally will perish and burn in hell. And it is right and pious to think that way. No, one can simultaneously hope for the mercy of God, but it is suggested to concentrate on the fact that you will perish. (I draw your attention to an interesting point - here it suddenly turns out that things do matter. But again, only in a negative sense). Therefore, quite a few Orthodox Christians here and there argue that they will go to hell. The idea that you can go to heaven and that this is exactly what you should strive for is completely unpopular. However, a worthless person (see point one) still does not have the necessary qualities to strive for paradise. Separately, but in the same vein, there are vicious attacks on the Protestant "heresy" in the assurance of salvation. Meanwhile, “assurance of salvation” is, by and large, the cultivation of that very hope, which serves, in the end, as an incentive for the Christian life.

Of course, there are also voices in contemporary Russian Orthodoxy against this mainstream. This is, for example, the book by Sergei Khudiev "On the assurance of salvation." In fact, if you read the Apostle Paul, it is easy to see that he thinks in a completely different way. For example, like this: “I have fought a good fight, I have completed the course, I have kept the faith; and now a crown of righteousness is being prepared for me, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on that day; and not only to me, but to all who loved His appearing (2 Tim. 4: 7-8). It is a pity that it is not very accepted to read the Apostle Paul in our country.

"Be patient." Pray. "Resign yourself." "Sorry". This is what a person is most likely to hear when talking about any difficult circumstances and relationships. Behind all these four verbs is the message: "Nothing can be done to change the situation." If you are trying to do something - you object, for example, to something - you are a bad, intransigent Christian.

“Be patient” = “nothing can be done, just be patient. This is the Christian way. " “Resign yourself” is the same thing, only with a hint that a person doesn't like something because he has pride in him. "Sorry" - no comment. It is said in response to any dissatisfaction with someone, thanks to which the one who is dissatisfied is made guilty. Pray - there is nothing you can do, only God.

As a result, from the situation of any conflict and inappropriate treatment, a person takes out that it is impossible to change the situation - you can only endure, pray. humble and forgive. And also - that the problem is in himself and in his wrong location - see the point "worthlessness".

Cutting off the will belongs here. If a person tries to “cut off the will,” most often this results in the fact that he begins to go with the flow and in everything or only in the words of the confessor see the “will of God”, which must be obeyed. He himself is helpless in the face of circumstances, cannot decide anything, cannot undertake anything.

Again, Christ in the Gospel (Matthew 18) offers a completely different model of behavior. And the Apostle Paul, with his message that he is a Roman citizen, when they were about to beat him with sticks, does not fit well into this picture.

Who is guilty?

When I published this text on Facebook, the commentators split almost entirely into two camps. Some said: “Thank you, yes, that's how it was with me, that's why I left the Church / was treated for a long time by a psychotherapist.” Others said: "The church is not to blame if someone is depressed, these are his personal problems - he misunderstood something, listened to the wrong ones, did not find a normal parish." I will not argue that there are people who are more likely to catch depression in the Church. As a rule, these are either people who were inspired by similar three attitudes in the family, or people who take faith very seriously. A person who sincerely tries to constantly “keep his mind in hell” has more chances of falling into depression than a person who only goes to services, and at other times lives his own life and does not really remember about spiritual life.

But let's not forget the responsibility of the other side too. Scripture says that "bad communities corrupt good morals." In general, for Scripture, in contrast to modern pop psychology, it is obvious that a person exists in a community and a community influences a person, just as a person influences a community. However, the idea that “we come to the Church not to people, but to God” is another unhealthy and false idea that constantly sounds in situations of conflict. I will write about this another time.

However, I have no purpose to talk about some bad people who drive others crazy. And even more so, I do not "accuse the holy Church." In the end, driving us insane is beneficial only to demons, let's agree to blame them. My goal is to draw attention to unhealthy and false ways of thinking, which, unfortunately, are implanted in the Church under the guise of Orthodoxy. I am sure that everyone who thinks in this vein and teaches others about it, sincerely thinks that this is exactly what the Orthodox should think. Perhaps he himself does not know how to think differently. But this way of thinking is harmful, leading to depression and neuroses. How to resist him and whether it is possible to think differently as a Christian, we will talk next time.

To understand what churching in Orthodoxy is, it is enough to imagine how a river flows into the sea, and a believer learns during his life the depth of communion with God, dissolving in church services and worship.

There is no end to this process, but there is a beginning - catechesis, which helps a new convert to join the bosom of the Orthodox Church.

What is the meaning of churching

The sound of the word "churching" itself speaks for itself, these are actions performed by people who have decided to accept Orthodox baptism and live a full Christian life.

The preceding act of introducing people into the church family is catechesis - the study of the foundations of Christian life, which is designed to awaken in a person a thirst for knowledge of the depths of Orthodoxy.

Orthodox church

Parishioners who attend church only on holidays and lead a secular life independent of the church are especially in need of churching. Indeed, as a result, a person is transformed in spirit, changes his morals and attitudes, trying to imitate the image of our Savior Jesus Christ.

For an Orthodox person, “becoming a church member” means:

• to join the body of Orthodoxy;
• to be filled with the spirit of church life;
• to be spiritually and morally connected with people from the church;
• measure your spirit, disposition, relationship with Christ's commandments.

Important! To church is to become a cell of the church community, the Orthodox Church, the most important properties of which are the properties:

• holiness;
• apostolicity;
• unity;
• collegiality.

Holiness is the main characteristic of a true Christian.

About Christian life:

Christian honor, moral purity, piety, fear of God are not just words for a church-going person, they are indicators of his life.

Christian life

Apostleship means with all your life to testify of the good news brought by Jesus into this world. Every true Orthodox is to some extent an apostle, if he carries the Christian faith to people who do not know the saving mission of Christ.

Unity is an unshakable faith in God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, the confession of the integrity of the Holy Trinity.

Conciliarity is manifested in the unanimity and like-mindedness of the community in the church.

To gain real faith in God - to know the real depth of Divine life, to feel the breath of the Holy Spirit.

It cannot be felt at the physical level. It is difficult for a non-church person to understand that churching is immersion in God's life in order to fly up spiritually. This process cannot be divided into components: physically living outside the church, mentally remaining in the world, and spiritually trying to understand God. Only complete immersion in God's presence guarantees churching.

True filling with Church traditions, laws, canons, fasts and prayers transforms and purifies a person. New Church people, knowing the depth and beauty of life in Christ, pour into the ocean of love, called the people of God.

Orthodox people are very proud when they realize with every cell of their mind that they are not only parishioners of a certain church, but partners with God, the great Church. This is churching, a difficult but very happy life filled with the presence of God.

What needs to be done to integrate into the life of the Church

In modern society, a non-church person may have the question "How to properly become a church?"

It is easier for an Orthodox believer to integrate into church life with the help of a spiritual mentor who will help him learn the secrets and methods of knowing life in God.

• To understand the foundations of the Orthodox faith, one should regularly read the Holy Scriptures, the Bible, the traditions and the epistles of the saints. Learning the exploits of faith of true Christians, living according to the laws of God, dying for the faith, Orthodox believers acquire a model for their growth in the knowledge of the Grace of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

Bible, Holy Scripture

• The acquisition of faith, Orthodoxy does not consist only in wearing a pectoral cross and attending church on Sundays and great holidays, but in the thirst for renewal of communion with the Holy Trinity, the Mother of God and all the saints.
• Only by knowing the Grace of the Holy Spirit, the Divine energy that fills people during the Divine Sacraments, a person acquires the power to fulfill the second commandment of Christ. (John 13:34).

Important! With the help of a spiritual mentor, a new church person learns the secrets of ministry, behavior in the church and the order of church life, which gradually becomes a part of his own destiny.

This is how a church-going person is born.

Lord God Almighty, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who created all verbal and wordless nature by Thy word, brought everything from those who carry in a hedgehog, We pray to You, and we ask You, by Thy will you have saved Thy servant (name), cleanse from all sin and from all defilement that comes to Thy Holy Church, may it be uncondemned to partake of Thy Holy Mysteries.
And from her, bless the child born, grow, sanctify, give reason, be wise, make wise, as you brought you and showed him the sensual light, and the intelligent one will be worthy of light, during the hedgehog you determined: and will come in contact with your Holy flock ...

... Himself and now, preserve the babies, Lord, bless this child, together with his parents and recipients, and make him worthy in a time of need, and by the water and the Spirit of birth: bring Thy holy flock of verbal sheep, denominated in the name of Thy Christ ...

At the end of the churching ceremony, the baby is baptized, the mother is released.

Prayer for the baptism of a child

The servant of God (name) becomes churchly, in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, amen.
First, the gate. Baptism as entry into the Church and in it - into the new life of the Kingdom of God.
Also introduces her to the temple, the verb:
He will enter Thy house, worship Thy Holy Temple.
After entering: the very life of the Church appears as praise and worship, as the "joy, peace and righteousness" of the Kingdom.
And he enters in the middle of the temple, the verb:
Thy will sing in the middle of the Church.
And, finally: the Church itself as a procession and ascent to the heavenly Kingdom, the final fulfillment of all life in God.
Also introduces before the doors of the altar ...

What is the right way to start churching? Andrey Tkachev

From the point of view of the Orthodox Church, a child is born sinful. Only after going through the sacrament of baptism, the little man renounces sinfulness, being filled with God's grace and falling under the protection of his Guardian Angel. Despite the fact that almost everyone goes through the christening, not all parents, before a responsible event, can remember how the rite of baptism of a child in Orthodoxy takes place, the rules for its conduct and the customs associated with it. Collecting information bit by bit the day before, they are distracted from the most important thing - spiritual preparation. Let us raise all the burning questions about baptism in order to free up time for the parents of a future member of the Christian church to organize their thoughts and realize the changes that will occur in the life of the baby.

What is needed to baptize a child

When planning to christen a child, parents are puzzled, first of all, by the material side of the question: what to prepare and how not to lose sight of anything important. However, they, like the chosen recipients (godfathers), should prepare themselves spiritually first of all. The Church recommends fasting for at least three days, excluding meager foods (animal products, except seafood) from the diet, refraining from physical intimacy and entertainment, and then confessing and taking communion.

As for the preparation of material attributes for the ceremony, the following must be considered mandatory:

• pectoral cross;
• baptismal shirt;
• a hat or handkerchief if a girl is baptized;
• kryzhma - a new cloth, in which a child is wrapped after dipping into a baptismal font.

It is better to choose a pectoral cross for a baby with a simple, rounded, on a strong string. If it was not purchased in a church shop, it must be consecrated first.

How is the rite of baptism of a child carried out

The sacrament begins with the pronouncement of baptismal vows: the parents will have to repeat after the priest the words with which they, on behalf of the baby, renounce Satan and his unclean deeds and undertake to follow the Savior. If a child is baptized at the age when he is able to speak himself, he can repeat the vow on his own.

After that, the forehead, ears, chest, legs and arms of the baby are anointed with oil, which symbolizes union with Christ and gives strength for the future struggle with everything sinful. After this, the child is dipped three times in a font of holy water.

Interesting to know

Although the etymology of the word "baptism" is rooted in the Greek βάπτισμα - immersion in water, in the old days, some churches practiced original ways of conducting the ordinance, for example, baptism with rose petals or felting in the snow. However, such customs did not take root, and the Metropolitan of Kiev and All Russia Theognost in the XIV century called even those rituals that were carried out by sprinkling instead of immersion heresy.

After ablution, one of the godparents takes the child into the canyon, and then they dress him in baptismal clothes and put on a pectoral cross.

Traditionally, the godmother brings the boys to the baptismal font, and the godfather accepts, for girls everything happens the other way around. After the sacrament, the kryzhma is not washed, but simply dried. According to legend, it should be kept in the house where the baptized one lives, going with him on his last journey.

Next, the child will have to undergo the sacrament of chrismation, which is performed only once in a lifetime. Holy Myrrh is an incense consecrated by the Patriarch, created on the basis of olive oil using grape wine and aromatic additives: rose petals, frankincense, violet and galangal root, clove and lemon ether and other components. Miro is applied to the forehead, nose, lips, chest, arms and legs of the baby. Together with him, the power of the Holy Spirit is transmitted to the baby, designed to strengthen him in faith, after which the priest and the recipients with the baby go around the baptismal cup three times as a sign of the joy of reunification with the Savior.

After reading passages from the Holy Scriptures, the priest washes off myrrh from the skin of the newly baptized with a sponge and cuts off several strands of hair from the child's head - first on the back of the head, then above the forehead, then on the right and left. This is a symbol of the liberation of the soul from the shackles of innate sinfulness and, at the same time, the offering of the first small sacrifice to the Lord for the gift of spiritual life.

The final rite of baptism is churching, which gives permission to the person being baptized to enter the Temple and receive communion. Here are the main differences between the ordinance performed for boys and girls.

Churching a boy

Regardless of which life path a boy chooses as he grows up, in the eyes of the church he is always a potential clergyman. This is the basis of the main difference in the boy's baptism rite - during churching, the priest brings the child into the Altar, which is separated from the middle part of the church by the iconostasis, where he puts the baby to the Throne of God.

Churching a girl

The girl, after dipping into the baptismal font, is in the hands of her godmother. Both the recipient and the goddaughter herself are not allowed to enter the eastern part of the church. As a future servant of the hearth, but not of the temple, the girl is brought to church only to the iconostasis and applied to the icon on the door of the Altar.

Depending on whether the ceremony is performed individually for one baby, or the priest baptizes several children together, the sacrament can last from 30 minutes to an hour or more.

Receivers: ritual rules for godparents

Unlike adults, children need receivers. There is an opinion that for a boy you can limit yourself only to the godfather, and for girls - to the godmother, but in the church, the priest, as a rule, says: both spiritual parents are needed. However, given how difficult it is today to find people who are able to take the responsibility assigned to them seriously, one spiritually aware godfather is still better than two formal ones. In turn, a person can refuse the offer to become a recipient if he feels that he is not ready morally, and there is nothing shameful or sinful in this.

Choice of receivers

Unfortunately, godparents are sometimes chosen not on the basis of moral qualities, but simply by inviting close friends or pursuing the goal of becoming related in this way with promising people. This is fundamentally the wrong approach. Godparents are key persons in the sacrament, and they must not only bear faith in Christ in their souls, but also be ready to share it with the godson, help him grow spiritually.

Godfathers cannot act:

• mom and dad of a child or a couple united by marriage or planning to get married, which is interpreted by the church as spiritual incest;
• those who have not reached the age of majority, since they themselves are still on the path of spiritual development;
• non-Orthodox or atheists, no matter how wonderful these people have, because the main role of the recipients is to help strengthen the baby in the Orthodox faith.

Any relative, except for the parents, can be godfather and, contrary to popular belief, a pregnant or unmarried woman. Godparents cannot be changed after the sacrament.

Attributes and clothing

In addition to fasting and repentance as spiritual preparation, some material concerns also fall on the godparents. Traditionally, recipients acquire a cross and baptismal clothes for the baby for the sacrament, but today the parents themselves often prefer to make choices and purchases. The godparents should make sure that the icons of the Savior and the Most Holy Theotokos are in the godson's house in order to teach the child to internal dialogue with God. A good gift from the godparents will be the image of the saint, whose name the baby bears.

Recipients come to the sacrament wearing crosses. For a woman, a skirt or dress with a length below the knee is desirable, clothes should be without a neckline and cover the shoulders. For men, shorts or T-shirts will be inappropriate. It is better to choose shoes that are comfortable, because you will have to stand a lot, and it is quite risky to wear a baby on “stilettos”.

What should you prepare yourself for as a godfather?

Further duties of godparents last throughout life. They must be ready:

• pray for the godson and take care of him;
• do not forget about the day of baptism, as about the spiritual birthday of the baby and be sure to attend church with the godson on this day;
• teach a child to respect religious holidays;
• provide psychological support in difficult moments of life;
• be an example of piety and spirituality for a child.

Rituals after the baptism of children

Baptism is considered incomplete without the Eucharist, or Holy Communion. Children can be given Communion during the next service after the christening. Until the age of 7, a child is considered by the church to be a baby who is not aware of his actions, therefore fasting and confession do not precede his communion. After this age, they become mandatory.

The Eucharist is union with the Lord, because the bread and wine that the child and his parents are offered to taste symbolize the flesh and blood of Christ. If repentance is designed to cleanse the soul from filth, then the sacrament fills it with God's grace, preventing the return of the evil spirit.
Despite the many symbolic procedures, christenings should not be viewed as a magical ritual, where any retreat will nullify the result. Much more important in this sacrament is not the exact reproduction of the necessary actions and words, but inner spiritual concentration and the desire to constantly improve in one's faith, laying its solid foundation in the soul of a little pupil.

Curious fact
Since 1993, every hockey player of the winning team of the National Hockey League has the right to spend one day with the main prize - the Stanley Cup. Taking this opportunity, the athletes twice used the Cup as a baptismal bowl: in 1996, Colorado hockey player Sylvain Lefebvre baptized his child in it, and in 2007 Detroit player Thomas Holstrom used it at his niece's christening.

Baptism of a child in Orthodoxy - sacrament video

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Announcement (catechumentat, from the Greek. Katechoumenos, "catechumens", "received oral instruction") - widespread in the ancient Church, oral instruction in the faith that preceded baptism.

A part of the ordinance of the Sacrament of Baptism is also called the proclamation. The announcement, as the final act of preparation for Baptism, which was previously a separate rite, now immediately precedes Baptism. All the symbolic rites of this rite have a profound and effective meaning. The most significant of them: the incantation of Satan, the renunciation of him, the subsequent vow to unite with Christ, and, finally, the confession of the Orthodox faith.

The catechumenate or catechumenate in the ancient Church meant the edification in the faith of Christians who wish to be baptized and participate in the Eucharist. The life of the ancient Church in the midst of persecution demanded a special responsibility for accepting new members. That is why the sacrament of baptism was preceded by “the announcement of the word of truth,” which often serves not only as a preparation for baptism and participation in the Eucharist, but also as a preparation for the feat of martyrdom and confession among the pagan world. Participation in the catechumenation (“admission to the catechumenate”) made a person a Christian.

Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeyev) The Sacrament of Baptism

THE MYSTERY OF BAPTISM

“The elites were baptized into Christ Jesus; they were baptized into His death.

Let us be buried for Him by baptism into death;

from the dead with the glory of the Father, so we also walk in the renewal of life and begin. "

(The apostle following the baptism - Rom.

credits 91st). We were baptized "into the death of the Lord."

Dogmatic and moral significance of the sacraments of Baptism and Confirmation.

By His good Providence for man, the Lord arranged so that we become involved in the salvation that He accomplished not by literal repetition of His Cross, His death on the Cross, but in a different way, by baptism into His death, without disturbing the natural course of our life on earth, but at the same time laying the foundations of a new life in Christ ("put on Christ"), a new being ("pakibie").

How is this done? Each of us, according to the law of nature, is faced with death at a certain time, and, whether we want it or not, it always and certainly overtakes people. But dying a natural death does not mean to become a partaker of the saving death and resurrection of the Lord Savior. Divine goodness and wisdom, by condescension to “the poverty of our nature,” in the sacrament of Baptism, we have been given a certain way of imitating the Father of our salvation, the Lord Jesus Christ, “putting into effect what He had done before” (St. Gregory of Nyssa), i.e. saving death and resurrection. Being instilled in Christ by faith, we with Him, “who voluntarily died for us, die in a different way, namely: being buried in the mysterious water through baptism, for“ we were buried in Him, ”says the Scripture,“ by baptism into death ”(Rom. 6: 4), so that after the likening of death, the likening of resurrection also follows ”(St. Gregory of Nyssa).

All the dead have their place - the land in which they are buried. The earth, on the other hand, has water as its closest element. And since the death of the Savior was accompanied by burial in the earth, then our imitation of the death of Christ is depicted in the element closest to the earth - water. We, being by the nature of the body in unity with our Leader, the Lord Jesus Christ, meaning through the death of the Lord to be cleansed from sin, to achieve rebellion to life, what are we doing? We pour water instead of earth and, plunging three times in this element (in the name of the Holy Trinity), “imitate the grace of the resurrection” (St. Gregory of Nyssa).

The prayer for the consecration of water at baptism says that in this sacrament a person puts aside the old person, clothe himself in a new one, “renewed in the image of the One who created him: yes, having been baptized in the likeness of death (Christ's), he will be a fellowship of the resurrection and, preserving the gift of the Holy ... The Spirit, and having increased the pledge of grace, will receive the honor of the exalted title and will be associated with the first-born, written in heaven in Boz and our Lord Jesus Christ. "

Thus, our assimilation of the death and resurrection of Christ in baptism has mainly an effect in the ontological sense (that is, it changes the whole being of a person, his whole nature), and not only moral and symbolic (as Protestants, sectarians teach): in a person there is a change accomplished by the grace of God in his entire being and being. In the prayer of the 1st and 2nd on the 8th day after baptism, it is said that the baptized "water and the Spirit" was given the life of the second birth and the forgiveness of sins ("the deliverance of sins by holy baptism was given to Thy servant, and life was given to him by birth", "Packy giving birth to your servant, newly enlightened by water and the Spirit"); now he is in such close unity with Christ that it is called "clothed in Christ and our God."

Why, then, is baptism followed by chrismation (for Catholics separately - confirmation)?

“In the image of mortification,” says Gregory of Nyssa, “represented by means of water, the destruction of the mixed vice is carried out, it is true, not perfect destruction, but some suppression of the continuity of evil, with the confluence of two benefits to the destruction of the evil: the repentance of the sinner and the imitation of death (the Lord), - by which a person is somewhat renounced from the union with evil, by repentance being brought into hatred of vice and alienation from it, and by death, producing the destruction of evil. "

The vice now seems to nest on the periphery. The fight with him will be all my life. And in the second sacrament, the sacrament of Confirmation, - the "life-giving anointing" - the baptized receives "Divine sanctification", the gifts of the Holy Spirit, which revive and strengthen in spiritual life: by the grace of the Holy Spirit, the baptized is given "confirmation in faith", deliverance from the wiles of the "evil one. "(The devil), keeping the soul" in purity and righteousness "and pleasing God in order to be" a son and heir of the Kingdom of Heaven. " In prayer for amazement on the 8th day, the Church prays for the newly enlightened, so that the Lord through grace

The sacraments of chrismation made him an invincible ascetic in the struggle against sin and the enemy, the devil, showed him and us to the end victors in heroism, and crowned him with His incorruptible crown.

The liturgical side of the sacrament of Baptism. Definition of the sacrament. Baptism is a sacrament in which the baptized person, after preliminary instruction in the truths of the Christian faith and confessing them, with three times immersion in water with the uttering of the words: “The servant of God (or the servant of God) is baptized in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen ”- is cleansed from sins and is reborn for a spiritual, grace-filled life.

The history of the ordinance of the sacrament. The Sacrament of Baptism, like all other sacraments, was established by Jesus Christ, shortly before His ascension to heaven. The Lord gave the commandment to the apostles to first teach people the faith, and then baptize them in the name of the Holy Trinity (Matthew 18:19). On the basis of the instructions given by Jesus Christ, the apostles determined the rite and order of baptism and passed it on to their successors. In the Apostolic Age and the Apostolic Men (I-II century), baptism was distinguished by its simplicity and simplicity and consisted of:

from instruction in the faith of Christ, or announcement, repentance, or renunciation of previous delusions and sins and open confession of faith in Christ and baptism itself through immersion in water with the utterance of the words "in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit."

At the end of the 2nd century and in the 3rd century, a number of new actions were introduced into the rite of baptism. The preparation for baptism and the test (announcement) were carried out for a longer period of time (from several days to several years), due to persecution and caution in accepting new members, so as not to accept the weak in faith, who, during the persecution, could deny Christ or betray Christians to pagans. In the III century, incantations were introduced before baptism, the denial of Satan, the combination to Christ, after which the anointing of the whole body with oil; before the immersion of the baptized person in water, there was the consecration of the water. After the baptism, the newly enlightened was dressed in white clothes and put on a crown (in the West) and a cross.

The replenishment of the rite of baptism, which began in the 2nd century, and significantly increased in the 3rd century, continued in the 4th and 5th centuries, although not to the same extent as before. At this time, the liturgical side reached its fullest development and design. In the IV-VIII centuries. many prayers have been compiled, which now exist in the order of catechism, consecration of water and baptism.

Baptism was performed mainly on certain days, especially on the holidays of Easter, Pentecost, Epiphany, as well as on the days of remembrance of the apostles, martyrs and temple holidays. This custom existed already in the 3rd century, but in the 4th century it became especially widespread.

The ancient written monuments testify to the antiquity of all rites and actions of catechism and baptism: the Apostolic decrees, the Rules of the Holy Apostles (49 and 50 ave.) And councils (the Second Ecumenical Council, 7 ave .; Trullsky, 95 ave.), The writings of the fathers and teachers of the Church (Tertullian, Cyril of Jerusalem - 2 occult words; Gregory the Theologian - the Word of Baptism, Basil the Great, John Chrysostom - Announcement Word and others), ancient Greek Trebniki, starting from the 7th-8th centuries. and so on.

NAME NAME

Before baptism, on the very first birthday of the baby, the priest reads "Prayers on the first day for always giving birth to the child's wife." Then, as a rule, one reads in a row "Prayer in the hedgehog to name (the sign of the cross) a child who accepts a name on his eighth birthday." According to the Charter, the naming of the name is supposed to be performed on the eighth day after the birth of the baby before the gates of the temple, in the vestibule. The naming of the name on the 8th day is supposed to be done following the example of the Old Testament church, sanctified by Jesus Christ (Luke 2:21).

The "designation", by the name of which is meant the sign of the cross and the adoption of a Christian name, is the bringing of the infant to the announcement in order to give him the grace of Baptism for some time.

Thus, with the appointment of the sign of the cross and the naming of a name, the announcement begins, as one of the rituals preceding the performance of the sacrament of Baptism.

Before the beginning of the prayer, when giving a name to the baby, the priest marks the baby's forehead, mouth, percy (chest) with the sign of the cross and says the prayer: "Let us pray to the Lord." “Lord, our God,” etc. Usually, when pronouncing the words: “and let the light of Thy face be signified ... and the Cross of Thy only begotten Son in his heart and in his thoughts”, the priest marks the baby (makes the sign of the cross). After this, there is a dismissal, on which the name of the saint is commemorated, in whose honor the baby was given a name.

On the fortieth day after the birth of the baby, the priest in the narthex (usually at the entrance to the church) reads "prayers to his wife in childbirth" and, if the baby has already been baptized, then immediately after this he performs the "Rite of churching." If the baby was born dead, the mother's prayers are read shorter (indicated on the row in the Book of Books).

For a mother, whose baby is alive and has already been baptized, in the penultimate prayer (deny) "Lord our God" the words are issued: "Yes, having been honored with holy Baptism" and further to the exclamation: "All glory befits you ..."; in the last prayer, "God the Father Almighty," the words are released: "and vouchsafed in a time of need, and by water and the Spirit of rebirth ..." to an exclamation.

Christian wives who have become mothers are forbidden by the Church to enter the church until the 40th day and begin to receive communion of the Holy Mysteries, bearing in mind the example of the Mother of God, who fulfilled the law of purification (Luke 2:22). In the event of a serious illness, the mother is granted the communion of the Holy Mysteries, regardless of this prescription.

DISCLAIMER

Adult announcement. Adults (and youths from the age of 7) who wish to be baptized are allowed before Holy Baptism:

after testing their sincere desire to abandon their previous delusions and sinful life and accept the Orthodox Christian faith and after the announcement, that is, teaching the faith of Christ.

Announcement of children. The announcement is also made at the Baptism of the infant. Then the recipients are responsible for him, who are vouched for the faith of the baptized person.

The rite of announcement performed in the temple over adults is more extensive in comparison with the rite of announcement of infants.

When baptizing adults, the following is observed: the person who wants to be baptized first by prayers and sacred acts is separated from the community of unbelievers, while giving him a Christian name. Then three readings are performed (in the narthex, at the church doors).

In the first announcement, the one who wants to be baptized in detail counts his previous errors regarding the true faith of Christ, renounces them and expresses a desire to be united with Christ.

In the second reading, he separately confesses the dogmas of the Orthodox Church and reads the oath promise that he rejects all previous errors, accepts the dogmas of the Orthodox Church, not out of any misfortune, need, not out of fear, or poverty, or profit, but for the salvation of the soul. loving Christ the Savior with all my heart. Sometimes both of these announcements are made together, for example, when persons from the Jewish faith and from Mohammedanism are accepted into Christianity (Big Trebnik, chap. 103-104).

The first and second announcements are only for adults. The third announcement is made over both adults and infants. In him is the denial of the devil and the union with Christ.

This announcement (common for an adult and a baby) begins with sacred rites and prayers, which, mainly, drive away the devil.

The priest blows three times on the face of the catechuchman, marks his brow and percy three times, puts his hand on his head and reads first one conciliatory prayer, and then four incantatory prayers. At the end of the invocatory prayers, the priest again blows on the baby three times in a cruciform manner, pronouncing the words: "Remove from him every evil and unclean spirit that is hidden and nesting in his heart."

All these rites are very ancient. With a threefold breath, a threefold blessing and the reading of a preparatory prayer in the deepest antiquity, a pagan or a Jew who wished to accept Christianity prepared for the announcement, that is, listening to the Christian teaching. Just as during the creation of man, God “breathed into his face the breath of life” (Gen. 2: 7), so during his re-creation, at the very beginning of Baptism, the priest blows three times on the face of the person being baptized. The priestly blessing separates the baptized from the unbelievers, and the laying on of hands on him serves as a symbol of the fact that the priest teaches him the grace of God, renewing and restoring. Then, after reading incantatory prayers, there is a denial of the devil himself by the baptized person.

The denial of the devil is the conversion of the baptized person (an adult - “having grief in his hands”) and the recipient to the west, renunciation, whiff and spitting (against the enemy, the devil).

The baptized person turns to the west, to the country from which darkness appears, because the devil, from whom one must renounce, is darkness and his kingdom is the kingdom of darkness.

The abdication itself is expressed by a threefold answer - "I deny" the priest's questions repeated three times:

"Do you deny Satan, and all his works, and all his aggression, and all his ministry, and all his pride?"

Then the threefold question: "Have you denied Satan?" - the baptized one answers: "Renounced."

This threefold denial ends in the fact that the baptized or (if a baby) recipient of it blows as a sign that he drives out the devil from the depths of his heart and spits on him as a sign of contempt.

Combination to Christ. These include: turning to the east (an adult - "having a share in the hand"), expressing one's combination to Christ, reading the Creed and worshiping God.

Combining with Christ is the same as entering into a covenant or spiritual union with Christ and promising to be faithful and obedient to Him. Combining with Christ, the baptized person turns to the east, as a source of light, because paradise was in the east, and God is called the East: "The East is His name."

The very combination is expressed in the following: to the three questions of the priest: "Is it combined with Christ?" - the baptized one answers three times: "I am combined." Then, to three questions from the priest: “Have you combined with Christ and believe Him?”, He answers three times: “Combined and believe Him, like the King and God,” and reads the Symbol of Faith. Finally, he answers three more times: “Combined,” - to the same threefold question from the priest and, at his invitation, bows to the ground, saying: “I worship the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, the Trinity Consubstantial and Indivisible”. The priest reads a prayer for the baptized.

Note.

Until now, everything related to the catechism is performed by the priest in the epitrachelium. After worshiping the Holy Trinity and praying for the baptized, the priest, according to the Rule, enters the church with the baptized, puts on a felonne (white) and puts on arms ("sleeves") for the convenience of the sacred rite.

After the end of the announcement, the priest proceeds to perform the sacrament of Baptism itself. "To all the lights that are being set on fire, the priest, take a censer, go to the font and censes around." Usually three candles are delivered at the font itself and candles are given to the recipients.

Both the white robe of the priest and the lighting of lamps expresses spiritual joy about the enlightenment of a person in the sacrament of Baptism. Baptism is called enlightenment according to its gracious gifts.

A note about receivers.

Receivers must be both for Baptism of adults and infants. According to the Charter, one recipient of the same sex as the one being baptized is supposed to be baptized. It is customary to have two receivers (male and female).

The receivers should be persons of the Orthodox confession. Persons of non-Orthodox confession (Catholics, Anglicans, etc.) may be admitted to be receivers only as an exception; at Baptism, they must recite the Orthodox Symbol of Faith.

The receivers can be persons who have reached 15 years of age.

Parents of their children, monks, cannot be receivers.

In the event of an extreme, it is allowed to perform Baptism without recipients; in this case, the performer of the sacrament himself is the recipient.

BAPTISM

The priest begins the celebration of the sacrament of Baptism with the exclamation: "Blessed is the Kingdom ...".

And then follows the great litany for the consecration of water. The deacon pronounces the litany, and the priest secretly reads a prayer for himself, may the Lord strengthen him to perform this great sacrament.

The consecration of water is accomplished through the great litany and special prayer, in which the Holy Spirit is invoked to sanctify the water and make it impregnable to the forces of resistance. When reading from this prayer three times the words: "May all resistance forces be crushed under the sign of the image of Your Cross," the priest "marks the water three times (depicting the sign of the cross), immersing his fingers in water and blowing on nu".

Consecration of oil. After the blessing of the water, oil is blessed. The priest blows on the oil three times and marks it three times (with a cross) and reads a prayer over it.

The anointing of the water and the baptized one with blessed oil. Having dipped the brush into the consecrated oil, the priest draws a cross with it in the water three times, saying: “Let us hear it” (if the deacon serves, he utters this exclamation), the psalmist sings “Alleluia” three times (three times three times).

As to those in Noah's ark, the Lord sent an olive branch with a dove, a sign of reconciliation and salvation from the flood (see the prayer for the consecration of oil), so the cross is created over the water of Baptism with oil as a sign that the waters of Baptism serve to reconcile with God and that the mercy of God is shown in them.

After this, the priest proclaims:

"Blessed be God, enlighten and sanctify every person who comes into the world ..."

And he who is baptized is anointed with oil. The priest depicts the sign of the cross on the forehead, chest, back ("interdrama"), ears, arms and legs of the baptized person, pronouncing the words -

- with the anointing of the brow: "The servant of God (name) will be anointed with the oil of joy, in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, amen";

- when anointing the chest and back: "For the healing of the soul and body";

- when anointing the ears: “To the hearing of faith”;

- at the anointing of the hands: "Thy hand create me and create me";

- with the anointing of the feet: "In the hedgehog walk in the footsteps of your commandments."

This anointing with oil, according to its purpose and inner meaning, is the grafting of a wild olive - the one being baptized - into a fruitful olive tree - Christ, and indicates that in Baptism a person is born into a new spiritual life, where he will have to fight the enemy of salvation - the devil; this symbol is taken from antiquity, where fighters were usually rubbed with oil for success in the fight.

Immersion of the baptized person in water. Immediately after the anointing with oil, the priest performs the most essential thing in the sacrament - baptism itself (the Greek name for baptism is baptisma - meaning “immersion”) through three-fold immersion of the baptized person in water with the uttering of the words: “THE SLAVE OF GOD (name) IS BAPTIZED IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER, AMEN, AND THE SON, AMEN, AND THE HOLY SPIRIT, AMEN ".

The three-fold "amen" is also pronounced by the recipients. Immersion in water should be complete, not partial or douche. The latter is permissible only for seriously ill patients.

When immersed, the baptized person looks to the east.

After a three-time immersion, it is necessary to sing (three times) the 31st Psalm (at this time, the priest washes his hands after Baptism). Immediately after Baptism, the priest dresses the baptized person in white clothes.

Vestment of the baptized person in white clothes and the laying on of the cross. At the same time, the priest utters the words: "The servant of God (name) is clothed in the robe of righteousness, in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, amen."

At this time, the troparion is sung: "Give me a robe of light, dress like a robe with light, Christ our God is much-merciful."

White clothes are a symbol of the purity of the soul, acquired in the sacrament of Baptism, and at the same time the purity of life, to which a person commits himself after Baptism. The laying on of the cross is an everlasting reminder of the new service to Jesus Christ and the bearing of one's life cross at the word of the Lord.

When laying on the pectoral cross, the priest overshadows the baby with it, saying: "In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit," after which, according to the existing practice, he says the following words from the Gospel: to himself, and lift up his cross, and come according to Me. "

After putting on clothes, the baptized person (if an adult) is given a lighted lamp, which signifies the glory of the future life and the light of faith with which believers, as pure and virginal souls, must meet the Heavenly Bridegroom.

At the end of these actions, the priest reads the prayer "Blessed are you, Lord God Almighty," which serves as a transition to the sacrament of Anointing, since it expresses, on the one hand, thanksgiving for the grace-filled revival of the newly baptized, on the other hand, the prayer for the granting of the seal of the "gift of the Holy both the Omnipotent and the worshiped Spirit ”and its confirmation in a spiritually gracious life.

Note.

If, in the event of mortal danger, a seriously ill infant is baptized by a layman, then the priest complements Baptism with prayers and rituals that relate to Baptism and are shown in the Book of Hebrews after the infant is immersed in water three times. There is no point in repeating the prayers and rituals preceding immersion in water after the Baptism itself is performed; Baptism itself is not repeated.

Baptism performed by a layman is replenished according to the following order: "Blessed is the Kingdom", the great litany, which was laid at the beginning of the order of Baptism, but without petitions for the consecration of water. After the exclamation “Yako

Befits You ", - the 31st psalm is sung" Blessed, their iniquity remains, "and other follow-up with Confirmation to the end. The image of the circle is performed near the analogue with the cross and the Gospel.

In the case when there is a doubt whether the baby was baptized and whether it was baptized correctly, according to the explanation given in the Book of Peter the Mohyla, Baptism should be performed on him, while adding the words to the perfect formula of Baptism: "if he is not baptized," that is. in full form: "The servant of God (name) is baptized, if he is not baptized, in the name of the Father ..." and so on.

BRIEF REGION OF BAPTISM "Fear for the sake of the mortal"

Fearing that the baby will not live long, the Rule commands to baptize him immediately at birth, and, moreover, in order to have time to perform Baptism while he is alive, Baptism is performed by the priest over him briefly, without announcing, according to the order entitled in the Small Trebnik: “ The prayer of holy Baptisms in brief, how to baptize a baby, fear for the sake of death. "

Baptism is briefly performed as follows. The priest says, "Blessed is the kingdom." Reader: "Holy God", "Holy Trinity". According to Our Father - the exclamation of the priest, and an abbreviated prayer for the consecration of the water is recited to them. After reading it, the priest puts oil in the water, then baptizes the baby, saying: "The servant of God is baptized," etc.

After Baptism, the priest dresses the baby and anoints with Mir. Then he goes around with him by the order of the font, singing: "The elites are baptized into Christ." And there is a release.

Prayer before chrismation.

Archbishop Benjamin. "New Tablet". Part IV, ch. 2, §1.

The ceremony is supposed to be performed before the gates of the temple in the vestibule. The choice of a name for the baby is left to the parents. (Simeon Thessaloniki, ch. 59). Adults choose their own name before Baptism.

If the baby is very sick, then the Charter indicates to perform the naming of the name and the Baptism itself immediately after the birth of the baby. In the Small Trebnik, a brief rite of Baptism is given; it is entitled: "The Prayer of Holy Baptisms in Brief, How to Baptize a Baby, Fear for the Sake of Death". See below for more details.

The rite of announcing babies is in the Small and Large Trebniks. The rite of announcing adults from non-believers (Mohammedans, Jews, etc.) is found in the book: "The Order of Those Who Are United from the Gentiles to the Orthodox Catholic and Eastern Church" and in the Big Book.

The chapters are listed according to the edition: Trebnik. SPb., 1995 Reprint reproduction ed. 1884 g.

Above adults, the third reading of the Rite in antiquity began with the "resolution" of the belt and the "removal of clothing", which served as a symbol of the removal of the old man from his deeds (Col. 3: 9) and the abandonment of sinful life.

The baptismal font is usually placed in the middle of the temple. On the left side of the font is a table on which the priest, before Baptism, puts: a cross, the Gospel and a baptismal box (myrrh chamber). The recipients stand with the baby behind the priest: the recipient on the right, the recipient on the left.

It usually happens that the same oil is used at Baptism, having once been consecrated according to the indicated order. According to accepted practice, it is contained in a vessel with a corresponding inscription in the same ark with Mir. The same ark contains a brush for oil.

Baptism of infants, especially by novice priests, requires attention and some training in the part of the immersion itself, so that the infant does not take water with his mouth and does not choke during the immersion. Experienced priests do this in the following way. When immersed, the palm of the right hand is used to cover the baby's mouth and nose, and the ears are covered with the extreme fingers. With the left hand, the baby is supported by the chest under the arms. The baby plunges into the water with his feet down. When the child's head is raised from the water, the palm of the mouth drops, and at this time the child instinctively breathes in. And then again a dive with a closed palm mouth. After some practice, all this is done quickly and smoothly.

The Sacrament of Anointing

Confirmation is a sacrament in which believers,

when anointing parts of the body with holy Mir

in the name of the Holy Spirit, receive the gifts of the Holy Spirit that return and

strengthening to spiritual life

(Orthodox catechism).

The message of the grace-filled gifts of the Holy Spirit to the newly baptized, which is now given in Confirmation, was originally performed in the apostolic time through prayer and the laying on of hands. But with the multiplication of believers and those who were baptized, this external initial form of the sacrament (the laying on of leadership) was replaced already during the time of the apostles and their successors with the anointing of Mir (1 John 3:20, 27; 1 Cor. 1:27).

In the 3rd and 4th centuries the rite of Confirmation reached its full development and was already composed of those elements that are included in it at the present time: the anointing with Holy Mir - with the uttering of well-known words, the laying on of hands, - mainly in the Western Church, - combined with prayer and the sign of the cross; the sign of the cross was called a seal in relation to the Anointing.

In the 4th century, the sacrament was performed through the anointing of Mir immediately after Baptism (Laodicean Council, 48 Ave.). This anointing imprinted various members and parts of the human body: the forehead, eyes, nostrils, lips, ears and Persians, with the uttering of the words: "the seal of the gift of the Holy Spirit" (Second Ecumenical Council; Trull Cathedral, 7 Ave .; Cyril of Jerusalem, 95 Ave. ). The anointing itself was performed in a cruciform manner, as can be concluded from the testimonies of the Church Fathers Dionysius the Areopagite, bl. Augustine, St. Ambrose and others.

The ritual side of the sacrament of Confirmation consists of two parts: the consecration of the World and the anointing itself.

CONSOLIDATION OF THE WORLD

The right to consecrate Miro belongs exclusively to the bishop. During the Synodal period of the Russian Church, Miro was consecrated once a year in Moscow or Kiev. Currently, Miro is consecrated a year later in Moscow by the patriarch.

In addition to water, oil and wine, the World contains in certain doses up to 30, and sometimes more, various fragrant substances: fragrant oils (bergamot, clove, orange, etc.), various incense (dewy, simple white and black and etc.) and roots (violet, ginger, cardamom, etc.), fragrant flowers (pink, etc.) and herbs and much more. The variety of fragrant substances symbolically indicates the abundance and variety of the blessed gifts of the Holy Spirit communicated in Chrismation.

The preliminary preparation of all fragrant substances and other components begins with the Week of the Cross and ends by Holy Week. An open and solemn world-making takes place on Holy Week, beginning on Great Monday. In the morning of this day, the prepared substance of the world, as well as all the accessories of the world making, the bishop (in Moscow, the patriarch) sprinkles holy water (for this, the consecration of water is performed on the spot) and he himself kindles a fire under the cauldrons, which is then maintained during the making of the world by priests and deacons. During the whole period of the world making, the clergy read the Gospel continuously.

On Great Wednesday, aromas are added to the prepared myrrh. Then myrrh is poured into 12 vessels. On Maundy Thursday, before the reading of the hours, the priests carry these vessels to the altar and put them on the prepared places near the altar. On the altar, however, a vessel (alavastr) is supplied with the World consecrated before. During the Great Entry, the priests, co-serving the Patriarch, present before the Gifts vessels with Mir (sanctified and not yet sanctified) and set them around the throne. Alavastr with the Presanctified Peace is delivered to the throne. After the consecration of the Holy Gifts, after the words: "And may there be mercies ..." - the patriarch sanctifies Miro, blessing each vessel three times with the sign of the Cross, reading a special prayer in which he asks the Lord for the inspiration of the Holy Spirit on Miro so that the Lord would create him by anointing spiritual, storehouse of life, sanctification of souls and bodies, oil of joy.

In the next prayer, the patriarch brings thanksgiving to God for the sanctification of the World. Then he blesses each vessel three times again and closes them. Miro consecrated in this way after the Liturgy is transferred to a special store during the singing of the 44th psalm. Here, in each vessel of the consecrated World, a few drops of the previously consecrated World are poured from the alavastre, and the alavastre itself is supplemented by the newly consecrated World. From the Moscow Patriarchate, the consecrated Miro is sent to the diocesan bishops.

In parish churches, what was received from Bishop Miró is kept in an altar on the throne in a special box, called a myrrh chamber, in which a vessel with Holy Mir is placed, as well as a vessel with consecrated oil (with the corresponding inscription: “Holy Mir” and “Holy Oil”), scissors , a sponge and two brushes for anointing - one with Mir, the other with oil.

WORLDOINTING

The anointing with Myr is performed by the priest immediately after Baptism. In the ritual aspect of this sacred act, the idea of ​​its close internal connection with Baptism is everywhere expressed.

After the prayer: "Blessed art thou, Lord God Almighty," which serves as a transition from the sacrament of Baptism to the completion of the sacrament of Anointing, the priest will anoint the newly baptized with Mir cross-like on the forehead, eyes (eyelids), nostrils, lips, ears, feathers, hands and feet, pronouncing at each anointing of the word of the perfect prayer of the sacrament:

"SEAL OF THE GIFT OF THE HOLY SPIRIT, AMEN".

With this visible action, the thoughts, feelings and all actions of a person's life are sanctified invisibly by the Holy Spirit.

After the anointing with Mir, the priest with the recipients and the baptized perform

three times walking around the font with candles while singing: "The elites are baptized into Christ, put on Christ, Alleluia."

The circle is a symbol of eternity, therefore a circular circumambulation with candles expresses the entry of the newly enlightened into an eternal union with Christ, the Light of the world (John 8:12), as well as the joy of the newly enlightened and the whole Church about the ongoing sacrament of the spiritual birth of a new son of the Church. (The detour starts from the right side - as around the temple).

Reading of the Apostle and the Gospel. After walking around the font and singing the prokimna, the Apostle and the Gospel are read, which equally relate to baptism and chrismation, indicating the inner connection between them.

The apostle explains the purpose and fruits of baptism as an image of the burial and resurrection of the Lord and begins with the words: “Brothers, trees were baptized into Christ Jesus, they were baptized into His death” (Rom. 6: 3-11). The Gospel tells about the appearance of the risen Jesus Christ to the disciples on the Mount of Galilee and his command to learn “all languages ​​that baptize them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit” (Mark 28: 16-20). This is the first of the Sunday morning gospels.

After the reading of the Gospel, there is a litany: "Have mercy on us, O God," in which petitions for the recipient and the newly enlightened are attached, after which, according to the Rule, it is necessary to discharge.

In the very rite of the sacraments of Baptism and Confirmation, their connection with the Liturgy is indicated by: the initial exclamation of baptism "Blessed Kingdom", the great (peaceful) litany, the singing of the prokimna, the reading of the Apostle and the Gospel.

Ablution. At the present time, according to the ordinance of the Orthodox Church, after the litany "Have mercy on us, God" there is no release, and the priest performs two more actions in a row: ablution and tonsure of the Vlasov.

In the ancient Church, these two actions were performed on the eighth day after baptism and chrismation. During the preceding seven days, the newly baptized carefully preserved the oil and Holy Miro received in the two sacraments, and therefore did not wash themselves, nor did they take off the white clothes received in baptism. All this time they spent in fasting and prayer, removed from worldly pleasures and entertainment. The memory of such a practice in the ancient Church is preserved in our book of ablutions, which refers to ablution on the eighth day.

The ablution is performed according to the following rite: the priest reads prayers in which he asks the Lord to keep on the newly enlightened the spiritual seal that is not defiled, to make him an invincible ascetic and to grant him eternal life.

Then “he permits,” it says in the Book of Rebate, “and, having joined their edges, he will dip them into clean water and sprinkle the newly baptized one, saying:“ You were justified, you were enlightened, you were sanctified, you were washed in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by the Spirit of our God. "

Then he performs a sponge, drunk with clean (warm) water, the very washing of the parts of the body, anointed with oil and Peace, saying the words:

“You were baptized, you were enlightened, you were anointed, you were sanctified, you were washed; in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, amen. "

Both in the previous and in the following words, it is indicated the successive performance of the sacraments that the newly baptized was awarded, namely, the words:

Thou art justified - indicates the forgiveness of sins;

you were baptized - for the sanctification of soul and body in the waters of baptism;

enlightened - at the same time to enlighten the soul by faith in this sacrament;

chrismation - the sacrament of chrismation;

sanctified - refers to the sacrament of the Eucharist, which the newly baptized in the ancient Church were honored for seven days;

washed - refers to the real ritual of ablution.

Vlasov is tonsured after ablution. It is preceded by a prayer, in which the priest asks for God's blessing on the newly baptized one and on his head, but having succeeded in age, "with gray old age, he will lift up the glory of God" and see the good Jerusalem.

Then he cuts the hair on the head of the newly baptized in a cruciform manner, saying:

"The servant of God (name) is tonsured in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit" (singers - "Amen").

Trimming the hair on the head means submission to the newly baptized Jesus Christ and dedication to the service of God.

The hair on the head is usually cut in the order in which the head is blessed: first the back of the head is cut, then the front of the head, then the right and left sides of it.

Cutting hair is followed by a short litany: "Have mercy on us, O God," about the recipient and the newly baptized. And then there is a release with a cross, where the saint is usually commemorated, in whose honor the name of the baptized was given. After the release, a cross is given for kissing, first to the newly baptized, then to the recipients.

Churching

Churching is the introduction of a newly baptized person into church society and reckoning with it. By its origin, churching also has the meaning of permission to enter the temple.

The rite of churching a baby is performed on the 40th day after birth over an already baptized baby.

This rite usually follows immediately after the reading of "Prayers to the wife of the mother in childbirth on the 40th day" ("fortieth prayer"). After reading the last (4th) prayer, the priest, taking the baby in his arms, creates for them the image of the cross, - first before the gates of the temple (in the vestibule), - pronouncing the words:

"The servant of God (or the servant of God) (name) is churched in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, amen."

Entering the temple, he says:

"He will enter Thy house, worship Thy holy temple."

In the middle of the church, he again creates the image of the cross with the words:

"The servant of God is churched ..." and after them he says:

"Thou will sing in the middle of the church."

Finally, in front of the royal gates for the third time, the priest, creating the image of the cross as an infant, pronounces the same words: "The servant of God is churched." And if the baby is male, then he brings it into the altar, carrying it around the throne through a high place, and after presenting it (attaching it) to the local icons, gives it into the hands of those who brought it. If the baby is female, then it is not brought into the altar, but only before the royal doors. The priest concludes the churching with the prayer of Simeon the God-receiver: "Now let go ..." and with a dismissal with the cross.

Liturgy: Sacraments and Rites.