Church reading and singing in the Old Believer church
The Old Believer worship service is special, unique, inherent only to the Old Believers, distinguishing it from all other churches: Latin, Protestant, Nikonian... If you enter an Old Believer church during a service, you will immediately, from its appearance alone, notice that everything here is special , different from other confessions. First of all, the iconography is of Old Russian or Byzantine writing in a consistent church style: not a single pictorial picture. Genuinely - iconography, not painting. Behind the altar, in the altar, as well as on banners, as well as on church domes and in all appropriate places, the Crosses are exclusively eight-pointed; you won’t notice four-pointed ones anywhere except on priestly vestments. Every Old Believer church has two choirs - right and left, where readers and singers stand. The worshipers are sharply divided into two categories - men and women; men stand on the choirs and behind the choirs, and women stand in the rear half of the temple. In some churches, men occupy the right half of the church, and women occupy the left. In the past (quite recently) all men - old and young - were dressed in kaftans (long dresses to the toes with numerous gathers at the back, at the waist, or only narrowed ones, without gathers), and women in sundresses (also long dresses to the toes , without any decorations) and always with a head covered with a scarf. All worshipers stand in rows, praying together: at the same time they cross themselves, at the same time bow, where this is required by church charter and order. Everyone must be attentive to the service being performed and know what to do and when. If it is proclaimed or read: “Come, let us bow,” everyone immediately makes the required bows. To the exclamation of the priest: “Peace to all!” - they answer: “And to your spirit,” and at the same time bow their heads. The same is done in response to the exclamation: “Bow your heads to the Lord.” There are three types of bows: waist bows, great earthly bows, and throwing bows: great bows are performed with the head to the ground (to the floor), and throwing bows only with the hands to the floor. For bowing to the ground, the church has special “rests” (from the word “under the arms”) so that one can place one’s hands on them (actually, palms folded in a row), and not directly on the floor, which may be dusty or dirty. They sign themselves with the sign of the cross earnestly, and not haphazardly, otherwise the neighbor will notice: “Why are you chattering [with your hand] like a Nikonian.” Praying in all directions, whenever one pleases, is not permitted. IN Lately and “Orthodox” theologians began to condemn such prayer, which is hallmark exclusively Nikonian worship, even sectarians do not have it. “Many people praying in the temple during the anaphora pray with their own independent, and not conciliar prayer,” says the collection of Parisian theologians “Living Tradition,” “thank God for their joys, bring their sorrows to Him and ask Him for help in their needs. A meeting of believers , unfortunately, does not recognize himself as unanimous and like-minded and united before the paten, at which the whole Church and the world surround the Head - Christ. In the attitude of the laity to the Eucharist and the liturgy, there is an element of conciliar, social decay, which is aggravated by the sin of rare communion. This is complicity in social sin - the sin of dislike for one's neighbor" ("Living Tradition - Orthodoxy in Perfection". Paris. P. 188). Moreover: it is a sin of destroying prayerful conciliarity, unanimity and like-mindedness. This is simply disorder, which cannot be tolerated in any business, in any meeting, in any organization, except in one former dominant church in Russia - and then only during worship. It is also impermissible to pray on your knees; this is a Latin custom accepted in sectarianism and “Orthodoxy.” It is considered disorderly to stand during the Divine Service carelessly, at random: with your legs apart, or with one stretched out or put aside, and leaning on the other, or shifting from one foot to the other. You need to stand straight and firmly, like a soldier at the front, only slightly bowing your head as a sign of humility and crossing your arms over your chest, pressing them. Each church service begins and ends with the so-called “seven-bowing beginning” (i.e., seven statutory bows). Therefore, every pilgrim who does not come to the beginning of the service necessarily “puts down” (i.e. prays) this “beginning” and thereby, so to speak, enters into the general service, “connects” with it, introduces his prayer “thread” into the general "fabric" of worship.
Old Believer worship is distinguished by the reading of different “poglasitsa”: one poglasitsa reads “kathisma”, “hours”, “glories”, another - “six psalms”, a third - “proverbs”, a fourth - the Apostle, the Gospel, a special poglasitsa - teachings, Prologue ( lives of saints), etc. Reading should be leisurely, attentive, and deliberate. The secular manner of reading, accepted, for example, in sectarianism (and, it seems, in no other religion), is completely unacceptable, as it profanes the Divine service, reducing it to ordinary newspaper entertainment. Some readings require sitting: mainly during the all-night vigil, the longest service. So, the worshipers sit down to read the proverbs, the Prologue, the teachings, the sedals; in some parishes they also sit during kathismas (that is, while reading them), which is not established in the church “Obikhod”. For seating, each church has benches stretching the entire length of the walls, and under them, “in reserve,” there are also small portable benches. But there are such moments in the divine service when it is not allowed not only to sit, nor even to move from place to place, much less to leave the church: this is during the reading of the Gospel, the Six Psalms, the introduction to any service (Heavenly King, Holy God, Most Holy Trinity, Our Father and Come, let us worship), as well as when singing the Cherubic, Creed, Lord's Prayer (“Our Father”). At these moments, even adjusting candles and lamps is not allowed.
Worship is prayer - a conversation between the soul and God; everything here should be reverent, orderly, concentrated, immersed in the “heavenly stream.” Nothing base, vain, or sinful is inappropriate in Divine services. Moreover, prayer should be common, not scattered, but merged into one church-wide channel, for the whole church prays, “with one mouth and one heart glorifying God,” as is proclaimed in the liturgy. Since apostolic times, singing in churches was common; everyone sang: men and women, old and young. The Holy Fathers testify that it was the same in subsequent centuries.
In the Old Believers, ancient Russian church singing has been preserved to this day, as it was in Rus' before the Nikon reform, in its spirit, in its tonality and in its entire structure, corresponding specifically to the Divine service. This is not secular singing with its all sorts of emotions, effects, polyphony and many other delights, but church singing, truly religious, prayerful. There should be no theatricality in the church, and worship is not a drama, not a game, but a heartfelt, inner fusion with the Divine, that is, in its content, the action of God, and it is expressed in the temple of God by reading and singing. “Nothing excites, inspires the spirit so much, nothing so detaches one from the earth,” says St. John Chrysostom, “like harmonious singing, like a sacred song according to the rules of rhythm.” “Having tuned in to the melody of words,” says another great holy father, “the soul forgets about passions, joyfully looks at the mind of Christ and thinks only about all the best” (Athanasius the Great).
But since Nikon’s times, new singing began to be introduced in Russia during divine services - secular, pretentious, “Fryazhsky”, against which the holy martyr Avvakum protested. Then it turned completely theatrical under the name of “Italian” style.
Old Believer singing is unison, i.e. monophonic: it is strictly required that the overall, united sound, regardless of the number of singers, be of a completely homogeneous nature, not disturbed by attempts by any of the singers to highlight their own voice: The ideal of such singing is unanimity, smoothness, so that the “singing” singers so harmonize their voices with one another that, with all their organic diversity (bass, tenor, treble with their timbres), their singing gives the impression of one inseparable whole. In such singing, not only polyphony (partes) or three-voices are not allowed, but even the so-called second. All melodies in Old Believer singing are subject to the octagon: divided into eight voices, i.e. frets - from the first to the eighth; on one Sunday stichera, vozvahi, irmos are sung in the first tone, on the next - in the second, etc., alternating throughout the year. Some stichera are also sung in “podobny” - the same voice, but the melody is more intricate, special, having its own tonal ladder. In addition, in Old Believer singing there is also a demestine melody. Old Russian "Stage" books call demestvenny singing the most beautiful, and Chronicles - graceful. The demestvo is not subject to the rules of the octagon. Its melody is freer and sounds solemn, then immediately rising to greater height, then dropping to the lowest notes. For chants there are special books - chanters, written in very intricate signs, which received the name "kryukov" by their appearance, which is why the chanter books themselves are called "kryukovy", and singing according to them - znamenny, or stolpovy (from the word "pillar", which is called in the Slavic language every sign). Banners, or signs (hooks) are very different and mean not only the pitch of the tone, but also its duration and strength (stress, underlining, softness and hardness, etc.), and also mean punctuation marks, i.e. pauses, slowdowns, stops. Hook signs correspond to the meaning of the chant and therefore have (p. 290 ***) dynamic shades: some are sung quietly, others are “greyhound”, some mean “rolling” with the voice, others mean “shaking”, “breaking”, others mean “cutting off” , “throwbacks” and other names in tone; they bear appropriate names and require appropriate application to the text of the chant.
The art of hooking is quite difficult, and not everyone can comprehend it. During two and a half centuries of persecution of the Old Believers, it was lost and forgotten in many parishes, in others it was distorted beyond recognition: they sang as best they could and as best they could. When there was the opportunity to study the high art of church singing, when I had to hide in the woods and basements singing. There was also a shortage of choir books: they were written by hand and were expensive. As a result of this situation, church singing fell into decline. Different melodies were created in different places: Belivsky, Mystsevo, [...], Kiev, Morozov, etc. The melodies received layers, [,..], additions and decreases. They sang magnificently only in historically famous monasteries and in rich parishes. But even here the singing was not perfect. It was preserved in all its grandeur only in Moscow at the Rogozhskoye Cemetery, where it was cared for and maintained by a large paid staff of singers. In all other parishes, the parishioners themselves always sang, having learned to sing either from random “masters” or self-taught: from such singers it was impossible to demand any kind of perfection in singing; there was loudness and loudness, but there was no “art”. The most perfect was Morozov's singing. It received this name on behalf of the largest Old Believer figure of recent times (before the “golden” period) Arseny Ivanovich Morozov, a famous manufacturer of the Bogorodsko-Glukhovskaya manufactory (near Moscow). He had the opportunity to maintain a huge choir of singers and singers (up to 150 people [...]) at the Old Believer church in his factory, made up of employees and factory workers, and [...] the "Imperial Society of Lovers of Ancient Writing" published with funds from A .AND. (by means of light printing) the entire “Circle of the ancient church hook of the true river singing of the Znamenny chant”; it included Oktay, Obikhod (with Liturgies), Irmos, Holidays and Trezvony. They were printed from the manuscript of the director of the Morozov choir I.A. Fortova. What was especially important was that in this “Circle” the “Singing ABC” was published, in which explanations were given for all hooks (banners): not only how many tones each hook contains and which ones (ut, re, mi, etc.) d), but also what is their consistency: speed, duration, transitions up and down, and where, above what text, according to its meaning, they are written. This "ABC" established the completeness and perfection of the art of church singing.
When freedom of religion was declared (1905), the Old Believers everywhere began to restore church singing according to the “rules of rhythm,” as St. John Chrysostom. Singing schools were opened in many parishes, and courses for training singing teachers were organized in dioceses; The Saratov Diocesan Congress decided to open schools for church singing and reading in all parishes of the diocese. Similar care was shown in other dioceses. Numerous articles on singing techniques appeared in Old Believer magazines. In the Bogorodsko-Glukhonsk community, training of singing teachers was organized on a very broad program. Here are some of its points: 1) correct voice production (theory and practice); 2) correct study of hooks, faces, fits, coolisms and teaching methods; 3) correct study of demestven singing and methods of teaching; 4) elementary theory; 5) hearing development: solfeggio, dictation; 6) brief information about forms of vocal singing; 7) history of church singing in Russia, etc. The head of this preparation was Fortov’s deputy for managing the Morozov Choir, P.V. Tsvetkov is a bright rising luminary on the singing horizon.
Singing courses were organized with almost the same program at the Moscow Brotherhood of the Holy Cross under the leadership of L.V. K[...], also an excellent expert in church singing. (There is his own compilation and publication of “The ABC” of singing, very valuable in content). Under the Brotherhood, a demonstration choir was also organized under the direction of Y.A. Bogatenko, a teacher of church singing at the Old Believer Institute, a rich scholar [...] and a soulful methodologist and researcher on singing, mainly church, Old Russian. Women's choirs were organized in many parishes - not only in cities, but also in villages and villages. However, the appearance of women's choirs in churches during divine services confused some Old Believers, and the issue of women's singing in churches came up for consideration at the Consecrated Councils. The Consecrated Council, held in 1911, considered this issue on the basis of church liturgical books, patristic works and church history, and decided: “The permission for women to sing in church should be submitted to the discretion of the diocesan bishop, taking into account the circumstances and public opinion.” Locally, in all dioceses, women's choirs were allowed by bishops. During the war years (1914-1918), many parishes were served only by women and girls; even girls sang in Moscow churches. Their singing was allowed in the churches of the Rogozhsky Cemetery itself, because even here the composition of male singers had become scarce.
Long before the just-named war, Old Believer singing, under the leadership of its experienced leaders, had become so leveled up and strengthened, taking on its real, undistorted form, that its inspirers, such as the above-mentioned Tsvetkov and Bogatenko, decided to bring it to the assessment of the general public: they began to organize In Moscow and Petrograd, as well as in other cities, public concerts of Old Believer singing. Tsvetkov's first concert with the Morozov Choir (130 people) was given already in 1908 in the Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatory and in the same year in Petrograd, at the local conservatory. The concerts were a brilliant success. If earlier “Orthodox” connoisseurs, with rare exceptions, had a negative attitude towards Old Believer singing, recognizing it as boring, drawn-out, even “nasal”, now they were very delighted with it. The halls of the conservatories were crowded with listeners, among them the appreciative audience prevailed, worthy connoisseurs of singing: professors of higher educational institutions- universities, institutes, regents and teachers of singing choirs, representatives of the dominant clergy and, most importantly, professors and teachers in conservatories, as well as teachers of the Philharmonic School, Synodal Singing School. All of them spoke laudably of Old Believer singing, recognizing it as truly churchly, truly religious, creating a real prayerful mood.
The press of both capitals also appreciated the Old Believer singing. Even palace circles became interested in him, and the Morozov choir was invited to the court singing chapel in Petrograd, where they sang interspersed with the palace chapel. “Ancient, like Christianity itself, a church melody flowed animatedly and powerfully, felt and reworked by the believing Russian soul,” the capital’s press responded to Old Believer concerts, “it’s not for nothing that our learned composers saw in our old church music a closeness with folk song. The broadness of the singing was felt.” the expanse of the fields of the Russian homeland, elegiac but powerful." Some press organs have an old review by Melnikov-Pechersky in his classic “Forests” about Old Believer singing in the Irgiz: “There is truly angelic singing there. We used to stand at the service, all earthly sadness is taken away, no worldly vanity comes to mind. .. Yes, church singing is a great thing: it lifts the soul to God, cleanses the heart from evil thoughts...” Concerts of the Morozov Choir were repeated in subsequent years, causing the same delight and praise.
Ya.A. Bogatenko began performing on the public concert stage with his choir at the Moscow Brotherhood later - from 1911, and at his first performances he demonstrated only spiritual poems, psalms and his own Old Believer creativity. This creativity reflects either prayerful and religious feelings, or poetic retellings of biblical and evangelical events, or, finally, contains historical facts from the era of persecution of the Old Believers. The singing of these poems was not church, but at home: they were sung during holidays and during work, at family celebrations and festivities (during, for example, weddings), replacing secular songs. Bogatenko accompanied his performances with explanations: these were concerts-lectures that introduced the public not only to the nature of singing poetry, but also to their historical meaning and origin. Yakov Alekseevich's performances with the fraternal choir were greeted and appreciated by the public and experts, as well as by the press, no less enthusiastically than the concert demonstrations of the Morozov choir. Then Mr. Bogatenko introduced purely church Old Believer singing into his concerts. He performed with the fraternal choir not only in Moscow, but also in Petrograd, Yegoryevsk, Rzhev and other cities, everywhere having constant success.
In Petrograd, he organized “evenings of hymns” and his local choir - the Gromovsky Old Believer Cemetery, under the direction of Deacon Kharlampiy Markov, and also with great success. Such evenings of singing began to be organized in other cities by local Old Believer choirs.
Encouraged and inspired by their successes in public performances, Messrs. Bogatenko and Tsvetkov dared to demonstrate Old Believer singing even at exclusively “Orthodox” meetings and congresses and in specially scientific institutions, however, by deliberate invitations. Thus, at the All-Russian Congress of Choral Figures held in Moscow in 1910, a special evening was dedicated to a concert of the Morozov Choir. Before starting it N.A. Bogatenko read the report “Forgotten Art”, and P.V. Before performing each chant, Tsvetkov gave an explanation of it. characteristic features. This demonstration of Old Believer singing in front of the regents and directors of Orthodox choirs who had come from all over Russia, as well as representatives of various departments and institutions, was of enormous importance. Already at the Congress itself, one of its members read a report on church singing, in which he decisively stated: “It is necessary to return to the ancient church melody.” There is no doubt that many other members of the congress took the same impression with them to their backwoods. In 1912, at the next All-Russian Congress of Regents and Choral Leaders, also held in Moscow, a representative of the dominant church, Archpriest V.M., gave a report “On hook singing.” Metallov is a singing teacher at the Moscow Conservatory, at the Synodal School and the Archaeological Institute. He argued for the need to return to ancient Russian church singing: “Ancient Russian melodies, imprinted in hook znamenny singing, have undoubted merits and often surpass modern church musical plays in their expressiveness (quite accessible to the understanding of those praying”).
In 1913 Y.A. Bogatenko performed with a fraternal choir at the anniversary Archaeological Congress in Moscow; they also read a report: “Russian spiritual singing of past centuries (church, liturgical and home),” which was published in the “Notes” of the Congress. Even such a completely secular institution as the musical and ethnographic commission in Moscow devoted one of its meetings to listening to Mr. Bogatenko’s report on Old Believer singing with a demonstration of the latter by a fraternal choir. The chairman of the said commission, N.A. Yanchuk even expressed the wish that special scientific expeditions be sent to such Old Believer places as the Volga region, Starodubye, Vetka, the Caucasus, and Siberia in order to “examine and collect oral material stored in folk tradition, since this material disappears every year year after year, and the younger generation of Old Believers, infected with innovations, forgets the old days." And Mr. Yanchuk wished the Old Believers: “Let them not forget their native antiquity, their native chants.” There were, however, also in the Old Believers some “new voices” who tried to introduce some kind of harmonization into church singing, doubling and tripling vocal harmonies. But here they received severe rebuff from the hierarchy and the church people themselves and had no success.
Simultaneously with the development and strengthening of the Znamenny tradition everywhere in the Old Believer parishes, Old Believer publishing houses of singing books also arose. Thus, the publishing house L.F. was founded in Kyiv. Kalashnikov under the company "Znamennye Penie". It produced lithographed books. The publishing house M.D. was organized in Moscow. Ozornova, it began to print singing books using the typographic method. The Kalashnikov Publishing House later merged with him. Books became cheap and affordable to even the poorest parish. The publishing house "Znamenny Penie" undertook, by virtue of the cathedral decree, to submit manuscripts of books intended for printing for preliminary consideration and permission to the Moscow Archbishop. Only such publications were blessed by the Council to be introduced into parish use. In this way, uniform singing was achieved in all parishes. Two special magazines began to be published on singing issues: “Church Singing” in Kyiv and “Church Old Believer Singing Messenger” in Beliv (near Guslitsa). The Old Believers, as we see, paid extremely much attention to church singing during the period being described.
The service in honor of the 100th anniversary of the congress of fellow believers - Old Believers who are part of the Russian Orthodox Church - was held in the main church of the country with great spiritual uplift and solemnity. How was it performed and what are the differences between the old rite of the bishop's Liturgy and the new one?
The service was led by Metropolitan Juvenaly of Krutitsky and Kolomna, who has been serving according to the Old Russian rite in Edinoverie parishes for many years. Concelebrating with him was Bishop Stefan of Gomel and Zhlobin and fellow religious priests of the Moscow, St. Petersburg, Nizhny Novgorod and Yekaterinburg dioceses.
For those who are interested in the ancient Russian liturgical tradition, and simply love the beauty of the service, the Liturgy according to the bishop’s pre-Nikon rite, and even in the Assumption Cathedral, and even on the day of remembrance of St. Macarius, during which Russian worship was systematized, is a real holiday celebration.
In the message His Holiness Patriarch Kirill, read after the service, it is emphasized that differences in rituals do not interfere with unity. “The current service in this cathedral is deeply symbolic,” the message says. “It was Saint Macarius who once served the cause of collecting information about Russian saints, leaving us a high example of life in Christ, in the image of the ascetics of ancient Russia. May our church unity continue to strengthen ", being in that diversity that is capable of strengthening the Orthodox faith and the Church, and with them the common national-historical heritage."
You don’t feel distracted at work. On the contrary, you notice the nuances.
It turns out that “Look down from heaven, O God” is pronounced not at the Trisagion, but much later, during the Eucharistic canon. Then you notice that the dikirium and trikirium are bent so that their ends touch. Do you remember that this is how ordinary people served? Orthodox churches in Moscow, until the Greek fashion for candles tied in the middle spread in the early 2000s.
You see that the priests are belted with belts with metal plaques.
They remembered at the funeral litany Metropolitan Platon (Levshin), who came up with the idea of common faith, Metropolitan Anthony (Khrapovitsky), who headed the historical congress (at that time he was still Archbishop of Volyn), Metropolitan Nikodim (Rotov), who advocated the removal of “oaths” (curses) from the old rituals, which happened at the Local Council in 1971.
Before the Chalice, Metropolitan Yuvenaly pronounces not only “Thy Mysterious Supper,” but all the prayers at the end of the Follow-up to Holy Communion...
The secretary of the Commission for the Affairs of Old Believer Parishes and for Interaction with the Old Believers at the DECR MP spoke about the choir that sang during the service. Priest John Mirolyubov, participating in the service of the Liturgy. “In the Assumption Cathedral, the choir of the Church of the Archangel Michael in the village of Mikhailovskaya Sloboda sings,” explains the priest. “It is reinforced by singers from other temples.” We practice two ways of singing, naon and adverb. At first we thought that the two choirs would sing differently, but then we decided that we would read in the style in which the St. Michael’s community was accustomed to singing and reading. In other churches there may be faster reading and a different style of singing, but the Assumption Cathedral is not a place for experimentation."
In naon singing, semivowel, reduced sounds (eras) of the Church Slavonic language, denoted by the letters ъ and ь, are sung as the sounds o and e. Adverbial singing is more understandable, similar to ordinary speech, without pronunciation of the reduced ones.
There are a lot of people at the service - the cathedral is filled, not only with fellow believers, but also with Old Believers. Many are dressed in kosovorotki, some in ozyams (special robes worn by community members during worship).
Academician Alexander Panchenko once wrote about “emigration to Ancient Rus'" - interest in ancient Russian art, antiquity as a reaction to the rejection of Soviet reality in particular and modern unified society in general. Indeed, Edinoverie today attracts both part of the conservative intelligentsia and bohemians.
It would be incorrect to talk about co-religionists as some kind of internal emigrants or aesthetes who have shut themselves up, if not in an ivory tower, then in a mansion with patterned carvings. Edinoverstvo is a strict adherence to traditions, and therefore attention to oneself and asceticism, and the internal logic of rituals, and deep symbolism.
During the service, you understand that they are quite modern, natural, they are simply following tradition. You can feel it when you exchange a few words with those standing next to you. And the fact that a common occurrence is that the ladder is put on a hand that is clutching a smartphone...
A lot of people passed by with smartphones and cameras, because they, of course, wanted to immortalize it special event. The atmosphere is festive, there is no trace of any kind of severity and detachment that is suspected of Old Believers. People prayed with great concentration, with one mouth and one heart. At the same time, there was no hint of ill will towards those nearby who crossed themselves with three fingers.
The previous time a service according to the old rite in the Assumption Cathedral of the Kremlin took place twelve years ago, in the fall of 2000. But there is an important difference: it was not the Divine Liturgy, but a prayer service. It was celebrated in memory of the 200th anniversary of the decree of Emperor Paul I on the establishment of common faith. The late Patriarch Alexy II advocated that ancient church rites be preserved and studied, calling them “part of the common spiritual and historical heritage, which should be preserved as an absolute treasure in the liturgical treasury of the Church.” Several hierarchs of the Russian Church prayed at that memorable service in the Kremlin, among them Metropolitan Kirill of Smolensk and Kaliningrad, now His Holiness the Patriarch.
Recently, Edinoverie services in cathedrals have become regular. About once a year, prayer services are held in the Cathedral of Christ the Savior. In November 2012, with the blessing of Metropolitan Panteleimon of Yaroslavl and Rostov, divine services were performed in the ancient rite in the Assumption Cathedral of Yaroslavl and in the Resurrection Cathedral of Tutaev. In Yaroslavl, almost all students of the local theological seminary received communion at the Liturgy of the Holy Mysteries of Christ, and in Tutaev the service was led by Bishop Veniamin of Rybinsk and Uglich.
The first All-Russian Congress of Orthodox Old Believers (co-religionists) was held in St. Petersburg from January 22 to 30, 1912. It was presided over by Archbishop Anthony (Khrapovitsky) of Volyn. The congress revised the rules of Edinoverie, discussed issues of worship in Edinoverie churches, and touched upon topics related to the organization of Edinoverie communities and the general management of Edinoverie in Russia. We also talked about the oaths of the Moscow Councils of the 17th century. on the Old Believers. The problem of attracting into the fold was discussed Orthodox Church on the basis of the common faith of the Beglopopov Old Believers and representatives of other agreements. On January 31, 1912, a delegation of congress deputies was received by Emperor Nicholas II. At this meeting, Metropolitan Anthony raised the question of officially naming fellow believers “Orthodox Old Believers.” By the beginning of the twentieth century. There were about 600 Edinoverie parishes and several monasteries on the territory of Russia.
At the congress of fellow believers, Archbishop Anthony (Khrapovitsky) said: “Let in the one Church of Christ lovers of the old rites and old books form a single Brotherhood of Orthodox Old Believers... Then everything would merge in one common glorification of the Lord according to the old Book of Joseph, and Russians gathered from the ends of the earth The Old Believers would have erected a new Assumption Cathedral in the heart of Russia, similar in everything to the ancient one, but twice as tall and more extensive.” The service in honor of the centenary of the congress was held in the old Assumption - with great enthusiasm and solemnity.
As usual, we start with the verb:
Z
The psalmist speaks in a meek and equal voice, with quietness, and with all attention and with the fear of God, in the hearing of all: A min.
C O heavenly ar, Comforter, True Soul, Who is everywhere and fulfills everything, the treasure of good things, and the Giver of life, come and dwell in us, and cleanse us from all filth, and save us, O Blessed One, our soul.
WITH Holy God, Holy and Mighty, Holy and Immortal, have mercy on us (three times, and three bows).
WITH Lava to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages, amen.
P Most Holy Trinity, have mercy on us. Lord, cleanse our sins. Master, forgive our iniquities. Saints, visit and heal our infirmities, for Thy name's sake.
G Lord have mercy (three times).
WITH Lava to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages, amen.
ABOUT Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, as in heaven and on earth, give us our daily bread this day, and forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors, and do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.
G Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on us. A min.
G Lord have mercy, 12. Glory, even now.
P come, let us worship our God the King (bow).
P Come, let us worship Christ, the King and our God (bow).
P Come, let us bow and fall before the Lord Jesus Christ himself, the King and our God (bow).
Also, Psalm 103.
B bless the Lord my soul. Lord my God, you are greatly exalted. In confession and in the commanded party, clothe yourself. Dress yourself in light like a robe, piercing the sky like skin. Covering and exceeding His waters, placing the clouds for His ascent. Walking on the wing of the wind. The angels create their spirits, and the servants scorch their fire. Having founded the earth on His firmament, He will not bow forever. The abyss is like its robe. There will be water on the mountains. They will flee from Your rebuke, and they will be afraid of the voice of Your thunder. The mountains rise and the fields descend, into a place you have founded for them. Set a limit, they will not pass it, they will turn lower to cover the earth. Sending springs into the wilds, waters will flow through the mountains. All the animals in the village are soldered. The onagers are waiting for their thirst. The birds of the sky will take root in you, and from the midst of the stones they will give a voice. Having watered the mountains from Your highest ones, the earth will be satisfied with the fruit of Your works. Vegetating pasture for cattle, and grass for the service of man. Lime bread from the ground, and wine gladdens a man's heart; anoint his face with oil. And bread will strengthen a person’s heart. The trees of Poland will be satisfied; you have planted the cedars of Lebanon. That's where the birds will nest; Erodian's dwelling possesses them. The mountains are high with trees, the stone is a refuge for the hare. You created the moon in time, the sun knew its west. Put down the darkness and there will be night, and all the animals of the oak forest will pass through it. Skimney roaringly delight, and ask God for food for yourself. The sun rises, and they gather together and lie down in their beds. A man will go out to his work, and to his work until the evening. Because Your works, Lord, have been magnified, You have done all things with wisdom. The earth is filled with Your creation. This sea is great and spacious, there are reptiles, they are innumerable, the small animals are with the great. The ships sail there, this serpent, who created it, swears at him. Everyone is looking to You, to give them food at a good time. If I give it to you, they will collect it. I will open Your hand, and all things will be filled with goodness. I will turn Your face away; they will rebel. Take away their spirits, and they will disappear and return to their dust. Send forth Your spirit and they will be created, and you will renew the face of the earth. Be the glory of the Lord forever; the Lord will rejoice in His deeds. Looking at the earth and making it shake. Touching the mountains and they will rise. I will sing to the Lord in my belly, I will sing to my God until I am. May he enjoy my conversation, and I rejoice in the Lord. Sinners will die from the earth, and wicked women, as if they would not exist. Bless the Lord my soul.
At the end of the psalm the chanting died down: I Because Your works are magnified, O Lord, You have done all things with wisdom.
The same, Slava, and now. A (three and bows three).
G Lord have mercy (12), Glory, even now. Kathisma ordinary.
Whenever there is little vespers, and according to the psalm we say: Glory, even now. A Lleluia, Alleluia, glory to You, O God (three times). G Lord have mercy (three times). Glory, even now.
Also Psalm 140.
G Lord, I cry to You, hear me. Hear the voice of my prayer when I cry to You. Let my prayer be corrected, like incense before You, the lifting of my hand: the evening sacrifice. Lord, place a guard over my mouth, and a guard over my mouth. Do not turn my heart into words of wickedness, and do not bear the guilt of sins. With men who commit iniquity, I have no regard for their chosen ones. The righteous will show me with mercy and reprove me. Let not the oil of the sinner anoint my head. For my prayer is also in their favor. The victims were at the stone of their judge. My words will be heard, as if it were possible, as if the thickness of the earth had sagged on the earth, their bones crumbled in hell. For my eyes are in You, Lord, Lord, I trust in You, do not take away my soul. Save me from the snares that they have made, and from the temptation of those who practice iniquity. Sinners will fall into their darkness; I am the only one who will go beyond.
Psalm 141. G I cried out to the Lord with my voice, I prayed with my voice to the Lord. I will pour out my prayer before Him, and I will declare my sorrow before Him. My spirit always disappears, and You know my paths. On this path, I walked along it, hiding the net for me. Looking at the right hand and glances, and the sky knowing me. Fleeing from me perished, and no one sought my soul. I cry to You, Lord, saying: You are my hope, You are my part in the land of the living. Hear my prayer, as if I have greatly humbled myself. Deliver me from those who persecute me, for you have become stronger than me. Bring my soul out of prison, to confess to Your name. The righteous are waiting for me, until now reward me.
Psalm 129. AND From the depths I cry to You, Lord, Lord, hear my voice. You will be Your ears, listening to the voice of my prayer. If you see iniquity, Lord, Lord, whoever will stand, for from You there is cleansing. For Your name, Lord, I have endured You; my soul has endured in Your word; my soul has trusted in the Lord. From the watch of the morning until the night, from the watch of the morning, let Israel trust in the Lord. For there is mercy from the Lord, and great deliverance from Him: and He will deliver Israel from all their iniquities.
Psalm 116. X Blame the Lord, all nations, praise Him, all people. For His mercy is established upon us, and the truth of the Lord endures forever.
Also, stichera of the present day according to the charter. Therefore, this verse is the creation of the holy martyr Anfinogenes.
WITH the quiet breath of the holy glory, the immortal Father in heaven, the holy blessed Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who came to the west of the sun, having seen the light at vespers, we sing of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, God. Thou art worthy at all times, never to be the voice of the reverend, the Son of God, giving life to the whole world: for his sake the whole world glorifies Thee.
Also, daytime prokinnas. On Saturday evening the prokeimenon: G The Lord reigns, clothed in grace.
Verse one. ABOUT The Lord was full of strength, and girded himself.
Verse in the mountains. AND for establish the universe, even if it does not move.
Verse three. D It is Thy due, holy things, O Lord, unto the length of the days.
Weekly evening : WITH Now bless the Lord, all servants of the Lord.
Poem. WITH standing in the temple of the Lord, in the courts of the house of our God.
Monday evening: G The Lord will hear me when I call on Him.
Poem. IN I cried out somewhere, and the God of my righteousness heard me.
Tuesday evening: M Thy mercy, O Lord, will marry me all the days of my life.
Poem. G The Lord feeds me, and nothing will deprive me.
Wednesday evening: B O O God, in Thy name save me, and in Thy power judge me.
Poem . B O God, hear my prayer, inspire the words of my mouth.
On Thursday evening:P My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.
Poem. IN My eyes have looked to the mountains, but from here my help will come.
On Friday evening: B God, You are my protector, and Your mercy will precede me.
Poem. AND Take me away from my enemies, O God, and deliver me from those who rise up against me.
Whenever there is no troparion for the saint, then we sing Alleluia in tone 6. And these verses are spoken:
Monday evening: G Lord, do not rebuke me with Your wrath, nor show me with Your anger.
Tuesday and Thursday evening: IN exalt the Lord our God, and bow down at His foot, for He is holy.
Wednesday evening: IN Their messages went out to the whole earth, and their words to the ends of the world.
If Saturday is for the repose, we sing: A lleluia, alleluia, alleluia, on voice 8.
Poem. B I am chosen and accepted by the Lord.
Poem. P their memory from generation to generation.
Poem . D their ears will be in good places.
And another verse. A Hallelujah, Alleluia, Alleluia.
According to the prokeme, or the litany, or the alleluia, the psalm says: WITH Like Lord, this evening we will be preserved without sin (bow). Blessed are you, Lord God, our father (bow), and praised and glorified is Your name forever, Amen (bow). Lord, Thy mercy be upon us, as we trust in Thee. Blessed art thou, Lord, teach us by thy justification; Blessed art thou, O Lord, enlighten us with Thy justification; Blessed are you, Saints, enlighten us with Your justification. Lord, Your mercy endures forever, and do not despise the work of Your hand. Praise is due to you, singing is due to you. Glory befits you, Father and Son and Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages, amen.
Also litany. And on the poem there are stichera, according to the regulations.
Also, the prayer of Saint Simeon the God-Receiver: N Now do You let Your servant go, Master, according to Your word in peace, for my eyes have seen Your salvation, which You have prepared before the face of all people, a light revealed by the tongue, and the glory of Your people Israel.
Is the same. Trisagion, and ABOUT Our dear. Jesus' prayer.A min.
Troparion according to the charter. Let us say the litany. And let go.
Whenever there is fasting, or whenever we sing Alleluia, we say this troparion, tone 4.
B O little Virgin Mary, rejoice, joyful Mary, the Lord is with you, blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb, for you gave birth to Christ the Savior, the Redeemer of our souls ( bow to earth ).
Glory. TO Lord of Christ, we pray to you: remember us all, that we may get rid of our iniquities. Grace has been given to you, pray for us (bow to the ground).
And now. M Pray for us, holy apostles, prophets, and martyrs, and all the saints, that we may be delivered from troubles and sorrows, for you are warm representatives of all the riches to the Savior (bow to the ground).
Also, 6 gardened.P We take refuge in Your mercy, Virgin Mary, do not despise our prayers in sorrow. But deliver us from troubles, one Pure and Blessed One (no bow).
G Lord have mercy (40), in a meek and quiet voice. G God bless.
Jesus' prayer. A min.
N Heavenly King, strengthen our power, establish our faith, tame the tongues, pacify the world, and preserve this holy temple well, and make our fathers and brothers who have gone before, in shelters with the righteous. And in the Orthodox faith and in repentance, Lord, accept and have mercy on us, for we are Good and Lover of Mankind.
Is the same, G Lord have mercy ,three times.Glory, even now.
H the most natural cherub, and the most glorious truly seraphim, who without corruption gave birth to God the Word, the real Mother of God we magnify Thee (bow to the ground).
AND God bless me, father.
Z and the prayers of our holy fathers, Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on us. A min.
And we say the prayer of St. Ephraim the Syrian, making prostrations to the ground.
G Lord and Master of my belly, the spirit of despondency, neglect, love of money and idle talk, drive away from me (great bow).
D wow, chastity, humility, patience and love, grant me to Your servant (great bow).
E oh, Lord the King, grant me to see my sins, and not to condemn my brother, for blessed art thou forever, amen (great bow).
And other bows (12), saying in thisbe: G Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner (bow twice); B O God, be merciful to me, a sinner (bow). B O God, cleanse my sins and have mercy on me (bow). WITH Bless me, Lord, have mercy (bow). B Beyond the number of sinners, Lord, forgive me (bow). And again, having finished bowing, we say the entire prayer written above: G Lord and Master of my belly (one great bow).
And according to this, Trisagion, and ABOUT Our dear. G Lord have mercy (12). Glory, even now. G Lord have mercy (twice) G God bless. And a seven-day vacation.
G Lord have mercy (three times).And the originalbows.
ABOUT THE ANCIENT SERVICE I
Let us imagine the Patriarchal service, the Bishop's service, as it is performed now, and as it was performed in ancient times.
In the modern rite, one immediately notices the great pomp and protrusion of the figure of the Bishop, which even led to the fact that some shunned the Orthodox service as some kind of theatricality, like a service where the personality of the Bishop, attention to him, seemed to obscure the purpose of the service - prayer. Father Georgy Florovsky wrote in “Paths of Russian Theology” that it seems that one of the main motives for the reform of Patriarch Nikon was that there should be greater pomp and festivity in the service, in contrast to greater simplicity and asceticism, as was the case in ancient times. But pomp is a manifestation of sincerity, and asceticism and simplicity are a manifestation of spirituality.
Here is the bishop's service. Now how is it done?
Before the Bishop arrives, the hours are calculated in advance so as not to burden the Bishop with the workload. This usually happens at 9 or 10 o’clock, because there is a practice of celebrating early and late Liturgies, which also did not exist in ancient times. The Liturgy was one, it began very early, and perhaps now the celebration of two Liturgies is explained by the fact that there are a lot of people, but not so many churches, and therefore it is very difficult for everyone to attend one Liturgy. Although there is another explanation: even before the revolution, a commoner came to the early one, and a gentleman to the late one, who got up later. Accordingly, the earlier one was more modest, and the later one was more pompous.
According to the old order, this is the picture.
Let’s say the Metropolitan is performing a service. Procession from the house next to the church: Cross, priests in surplices walk to the church to the sound of bells at half past six in the morning. At half past seven the Bishop entered the church and began reading the entrance prayers. Now at 9-10 o'clock they meet the Bishop at the church. Immediately they vest and the Liturgy begins immediately. Hours are deducted in advance.
Here, the Bishop entered the church, read the entrance prayers, entered the altar and the Midnight Office began, which has already been completely forgotten in our parish churches - only in monasteries, and then except for Sundays and holidays, the midnight office is preserved. Naturally, there can be no talk of any midnight office at the Bishop’s service now. She has long been forgotten. By the way, the reading style was slower, it was not so much a drawl, but simply so loud and drawn-out, sing-song. It is interesting that the acoustics in the old churches were so excellent that every word in the huge cathedral could be heard at every point. In churches of the 19th century, their enormity led to the fact that, due to ill-conceived acoustics, you could only hear what was being read in a certain area. And, if it still hides on the wing, in the corner and mutters patter, then it is natural that it is all in vain.
The Midnight Office was read, at the end there is the rite of forgiveness, as you know, and after the Midnight Office the Bishop came out of the altar to the pulpit and his vestments began.
Regarding the vestments. This is how it happens now. Two deacons stand on the pulpit, one says: “Let us pray to the Lord, Lord, have mercy,” the other reads a special prayer for each element of the vestment. The choir sings only one song: “Let your soul rejoice in the Lord, for I have put on the robe of salvation...” etc.
According to the ancient rite, this is not so. What the deacon is singing now is covered by the singing and is therefore hard to hear by the people. The choir sang these prayers according to the old rite. The texts of these prayers for the vestments of the Bishop are deeply meaningful; they were heard by all those praying in the church. And here the deacon is reading, and no matter how loudly he reads, the choir still fills with their singing. There is, in my opinion, a loss. Then, the current service - it is like that - mosaic. When the priests, each as he can and wants, make exclamations, when the choir sings one chant with the Znamenny chant, another with the Kiev chant, a third with the chant of Optina Pustyn, etc. As a result, the integrity is broken, and the service becomes mosaic. Some chants are quiet, others are thunderous - these are the changes that relax the spirit. But in the old rank, everything was intact, everything was clear and loud. This made it possible to keep those praying in the temple in the same tone.
And more features that I noted recently at the ancient service. The vested bishop stands at the pulpit and the hours are read: 3, 6 and 9 o'clock. We finished hours, then fine arts. The fine arts are over, the dismissal is done and then the senior deacon proclaims, all this, of course, in a chant. Each reading has its own style: the Six Psalms are read in one style, the parimies in another, the teachings in a third, the Apostle also, i.e. everything was not leveled, but all these facets were preserved, and when you hear the reading of the Apostles in this style, then somehow the problem of translation immediately disappears with such a high-quality performance.
So, we have finished the visual arts and need to start the Liturgy. The senior deacon proclaims: “Bishops, priests and deacons, come out.” This is done three times, at the second invitation - the royal doors are opened, at the third - this entire mass of concelebrating clergy comes out of the Altar and stands near the senior bishop in the pulpit. It is interesting that the small entrance at the Liturgy, when “Blessedness” is sung, reminding us of Christ’s appearance in public preaching, is performed through the entire church.
A very beautiful chant “Holy God” in Greek and the Bishop, as you know, comes out with the trikyrius and dikiriy to the pulpit and says: “Look from Heaven, O God, and see and visit these grapes...”, and overshadows with the trikyriy and dikiriy people.
According to the old order, this happens three times: in the center, on the right and on the left with the same words.
So I noticed that the apostle was read not by a deacon, but by a visiting priest, i.e. The old rank, despite its apparent regimentation and organization, still has a number of such nuances. Let’s say, it would be unusual for us to see that suddenly one of the 20 priests serving the bishop would suddenly begin to read the Apostle when there are five deacons at the service. But then a priest came out, apparently that he reads very well, a newcomer, they gave him the opportunity to read the Apostle. Or, let’s say, many years for a priest to shout to the Bishop, when there are five deacons standing here, we are used to only deacons shouting. Many years were proclaimed by one of the serving priests. Moreover, they sing “many years” three times. The rhythm in the old rite is so harmonious, i.e. there is not a single such arbitrary, subjective, sloppy, imprecise movement. Let’s say they sing “many years” when they make the sign of the Cross. They sang “many years” once, twice, and on the third the priest made the sign of the Cross. Not arbitrarily, when I wanted to, but for the third time, and in the end such harmony is built, such a rhythm, a kind of complete picture. Just as there is no extra stroke in the picture, so here too, there is such rhythm and harmony in everything.
Each day. Two swings, the third crosswise with a bow. There is no confusion, when one bows deeply, the other only bows his head - the result is disharmony. This weakens attention and distracts the person praying, while the rhythm, on the contrary, mobilizes attention.
After the great entrance, the royal doors remain open, only the curtain is drawn. When the Bishop says “Peace to all,” or at the Eucharistic canon “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,” the curtain is drawn, right up to the removal of the Chalice for Communion. It is interesting that according to the usual rite, all serving priests receive communion. Deacons are freer. If a deacon has prepared, then he receives communion, alone for sure; the rest can participate in the service without receiving communion.
According to the ancient rite, it was allowed that priests who had not specially prepared, who had not read a special rule, could participate in the Liturgy without receiving communion, but the first deacon, the serving priest who performed the proskomedia, and the bishop received communion. These are the features.
After the Liturgy there was a prayer service to the All-Merciful Savior. Again, usually the prayer service is crumpled, they think that the Liturgy was so extensive. According to the ancient rite, a complete prayer service is performed just as slowly and rhythmically. The chants at the prayer service “Deliver Thy servants from troubles...” were sung by the clergy in the altar, after each song of the canon. The canon itself is read by the reader in the middle. The clergy goes to the middle of the temple after the sixth song, when the blessing of water takes place.
At the blessing of water, when the troparion “Save, O Lord, Thy people” is sung, when the Cross is immersed, the banners bend down, then rise when the choir is already singing, and so on three times
Here are just some of the features.
I repeat once again: there is a rhythm to the church service, there should be no random moments that violate the integrity, everything should be integral, starting from the architecture, the painting of the temple, icons, singing, the clothes of those present, the clothes of the clergy. The ancient service did not know bright vestments; everything was somehow subdued.
Reading should be without your emotions, subjective creativity, and precisely in this canonical direction and style. The worshipers cross themselves at the same time. All these nuances ultimately add up to such a unique picture, which allows one to attend the divine service with a greater degree of attention and, accordingly, the fruit of prayer is more abundant.
At the end of the service, it usually happens with us: the Bishop served, delivered a sermon and then leaves, and the clergy gives the Cross to the people. At the ancient service, everyone remains until the end, no one leaves until everyone venerates the Cross. After this, the initial bows are performed, and this is where the service ends.
* This is the text of my story to parishioners after attending the Bishop’s service at the Intercession Cathedral at the Rogozhskoye cemetery
APPENDIX 5
From the series Ancient Liturgical Traditions.
Conversation with Abbot Kirill in the Orthodox cafe "Yamskoye Pole"
about the celebration of the Liturgy according to the old rite.
Today we have a very important and responsible conversation about the main Divine service in the Orthodox Church - about Divine Liturgy, mass, as the common people say.
Public service - this is how the word “Liturgy” is translated. My task is not easy, I don’t know what kind of audience is present here, whether everyone came specifically to the meeting on this topic. I would like to focus on comparing the text of the rite of the Liturgy, officially accepted and celebrated everywhere, with the ancient Russian, as we say, rite of the Liturgy, i.e. with what happened in Rus' from Baptism under Prince Vladimir to the reforms of Patriarch Nikon in the middle of the seventeenth century. This is the Old Russian, pre-Nikon rite of the Liturgy, which has been practiced in our Church of St. Nicholas on Bersenevka since the first day of the opening of the temple at the end of 1991.
Of course, this topic is to some extent special, to be sure, because we will talk largely about what is not visible to the eye of the person praying in the temple. I would like to show you all the significance and beauty of our ancient liturgical liturgical heritage, to encourage you to think about what a precious heritage we have and to remove any confusion about this. The general attitude towards our ancient Russian heritage, the pre-reform liturgical structure, officially sounds like “equally salutary and equal.” Both the current common usage and what we had before the reform of Patriarch Nikon in the middle of the seventeenth century are recognized as equally honest and equally salutary. But we know that in history there was a different attitude; at one time all this was defamed and rejected. Gradually, there was a process of revising this critical, radically negative attitude. Today we have what we have, namely: the oaths at the Council of 1971 were lifted. We can also mention the decision of the Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church in 1999, which stated that the Church values our ancient heritage, calls for us to treat it with understanding, welcomes the use of individual ancient rites in our liturgical practice. Of course, the force of inertia is very great and for many who encounter this for the first time, some kind of barrier arises, misunderstanding, bewilderment. As a rule, people who have crossed the threshold of our church, not all of them, of course, having encountered something unusual, think that this is an “Old Believer” church; people immediately associate it with a schism. In my own way legal status our church belongs to the Moscow Patriarchate, but the liturgical structure is ancient. Let me remind you that the Council is the highest body of the Orthodox Church. You can refer as much as you like to some authoritative statements, even canonized saints, but the Council is the highest body that draws the line. And so the Council decided: to remove the oaths, to recognize both as equally salutary and equally honorable, and to impute, “as if they had not happened,” all derogatory expressions in relation to our church antiquity. These are the notes that need to be made before we move on to the main topic.
Just like the last time we talked about rank all-night vigil, and even earlier about the church community, I think it would be interesting and advisable to involve members of our community, who are present here today in the number of about ten people, so that they complement my story with their observations, share their experience of participating in Divine services according to the ancient rite, primarily at the Divine Liturgy.
The celebration of the Liturgy is preceded by a long all-night vigil. The church rules say that a priest who celebrates the Liturgy without first celebrating the evening service on the eve of the evening service sins mortally. It is clear that for an ordinary layman, for one who receives communion, it is obligatory to attend the evening service on the eve of the Liturgy. So, the long all-night vigil that we talked about last time is over. What next? And then comes the preparation. I will talk about how everything is done in our temple.
In our church, such a semi-monastic way of life has developed, not only in the liturgical plan, but in general in our everyday life, even in the appearance of the parishioners. We have eighteen novices who would subsequently like to take monastic vows and serve God in the monastic rank. Some of them live in the parish. In total, about twenty people live with us, incl. several students from Ukraine who study at St. Tikhon's Theological University. We are making general preparations for communion for those who live in the church and parishioners who have the opportunity to spend the night here. So, at 22-30 we gather in order to read the rule laid down for those receiving communion. These are the usual canons that you know about, this is the Akathist Mother of God. There is such a feature of the ancient rite - the so-called sacramental hours. The sacrament hours are the ordinary hours that are read before the Liturgy. The 3rd and 6th hours are as usual, and according to the ancient rite the 9th hour is also read in the morning.
The sacramental clock has the same content as the ordinary clock; it is one of the elements of the daily liturgical circle. In ancient times they were read separately. For example, the 3rd hour in the east corresponded to our 9th hour in the morning, the 6th hour - 12 o'clock, and the 9th hour - approximately 15 o'clock. In Georgia, Patriarch Ilia introduced such an institution several years ago - all believers in Georgia at certain hours, at the sound of a bell, take out special manuals and read several prayers, several psalms, and so on 7 times a day. Seven is a number often found in Scripture; it is a symbol of fullness, completeness. The psalmist David says that seven times a day I praise the Lord, seven times a day. So, in ancient times, the first Christians actually gathered for prayer several times a day. Then, over time, due to obvious difficulties, all these sequences of the daily circle were divided into two parts: morning and evening. You come to any church and see the schedule: morning service and evening service. In Rus', which was a large monastery, the daily cycle of divine services was performed not only in monasteries, but also in ordinary parish churches. Foreigners coming to Rus' were amazed at the piety of the Russian people. So, for example, Archdeacon Pavel of Alepsky, son of Patriarch Macarius of Antioch, exclaimed: “These Russians must have cast iron legs!” They were surprised at the prolonged standing of Russians, including children, at the Divine service. Very interesting about Fr. Paul's description of a trip to Muscovy in the middle of the 17th century. His father, Patriarch Macarius, to whom he turned with his impressions and emotions, told him that they too had once been like this, before the Turkish conquest. Then, due to difficult circumstances, all this was lost. When, at the end of the 19th century, Old Believer bishops visited the east, they were received by the Patriarch of Jerusalem and asked very kindly: “How do you find our Divine Services?” They answered diplomatically: “We were impressed, we paid attention...” The Patriarch continued: “You probably noticed some omissions, shortcomings?” The Old Believers carefully responded to this by saying that there is some difference between us. The Patriarch said: “Well, whatever you want, we are striving to at least preserve the main thing, having been under Turkish domination for a century now.” Much can be said about what Christians experienced while under the Turkish yoke: it was forbidden to ring bells, build temples higher than mosques, etc. By the way, there is a prediction that the Church of Hagia Sophia in Constantinople will again be owned by the Orthodox. Recently, a priest I know said that they were going to take measures to ensure that Hagia Sophia again became an Orthodox functioning church. I remember talking with the priest in Karlovy Vary. I amazed him when I briefly told him about what happened among the Orthodox in former times. “What we saw with you,” I said, “This is, approximately, what we call the Eucharistic canon - the core of the Liturgy, when the consecration of the Gifts - bread and wine - is actually performed.” Miraculously By the Holy Spirit they are transformed, transformed into the True Body and True Blood of Christ. Yes, Catholic masses on holidays are more extensive on Sundays. For example, the Creed “I Believe” is read only on Sundays. The usual ordinary Mass, everyday, is truncated to the limit. So, about the sacramental hours. We know their usual contents. Let's say, at the third hour, Psalm 50, “God have mercy on me,” is read, at the sixth hour, Psalm 90, “Alive in Help,” is read... But the troparia and kontakia have a different content, namely, they are devoted to the theme of communion. What is their meaning? The fathers may correct me, I feel somewhat constrained in their presence, since they have extensive experience in celebrating the Liturgy, they are Old Believer priests. Somewhere my story may not be complete or accurate, and I will ask them to correct and supplement me later. So, the sacrament clock. Why, it would seem, a repetition, because in the morning the same thing is read? This is because, as I realized for myself, the priest in the morning, performing the Liturgy, at the time when the hours are being read, being busy performing sacred acts in the altar, which we will talk about a little later, may not be entirely attentive.
Http://portal-credo.ru/site/index.php?act=lib&id=2149
The modern church Old Believer Charter (Christian Old Believers who recognize the priesthood, which does not apply to non-priests) is built mainly on the regulations of the pre-schism Russian Church, which in turn go back to the Charter of the Jerusalem Monastery, known in Rus' in the form of the collection “Church Eye”, compiled by the Rev. Afanasy Vysotsky . In fact, the entire Russian liturgical charter is based on different variations of this monastic charter.
The monastic charter prevails in both church and home prayer. This primarily concerns the daily liturgical circle. All the rites of the day's worship are seven: Vespers, Vespers, Midnight Office, Matins and the first hour, third, sixth and ninth hours. The Liturgy, this divine and holiest of services, is not one of the seven services of the day, but it is a special service. In ancient times, all these seven services of the day were served at a specific time for each. However, over time, for the sake of the convenience of worshipers, they were combined into sequences, performed, as a rule, in the morning and evening.
Of course, it is possible to fully perform the daily cycle of Divine services only in a monastery. In parish churches, the daily cycle of Divine services is performed only on certain days: Sundays, holidays and memorable dates, separate days of fasting. The same applies to home prayer. Rarely does anyone have the opportunity to perform daily Divine services, fully following the monastic rules. In this case, it is preferable to perform as complete a church service as possible, as close to church services as possible, on the days when such services are performed in parish churches. On other days, a shorter prayer rule is acceptable.
Features of the abbreviated prayer rule
If it is impossible to store all the specialized liturgical books at home, it is possible to perform the liturgical circle in a different way.
In this case, the Divine service is performed by reading the Psalter or one Jesus prayer with bows. Modern editions of Old Believer prayer books indicate that one or two kathismas are read for Vespers (kathisma is a chapter of the Psalter, consisting of several psalms), for Lenten Pavechernitsa (Nephimon) - one or two kathismas, for Midnight Office - one or two kathismas, for Matins - from three to five kathismas, for the first hour - one kathisma, for the Hours - two or three kathismas.
It is also proposed to perform the Divine Service with the Jesus Prayer (as well as other short prayers to the Mother of God and the saints) with bows to the ground and waist, depending on zeal:
for Vespers - 100-200 bows,
for Paverenitsa - 50-100 bows,
for Matins - 200-400 bows,
for the first hour - 50-100 bows,
for the Watch - 200-300 bows.
In the collection of Rev. Kirill Belozersky, to replace the daily Liturgical circle, it is proposed to read half of the Psalter per day (10 kathismas). If there is no Psalter or the person is illiterate, the monk recommends praying 3,000 prayers for half of the Psalter or 6,000 prayers for the entire Psalter. Kathisma is equivalent to 300 Jesus prayers.
However, we should not forget that all these instructions relate to monastic life. In order not to overdo it or, conversely, to abandon prayer, but to adequately adapt the home prayer rule to your work and family schedule, you need the advice of your spiritual father.
