Holy Week before Easter in 2017 lasts from April 10 to 16. In this period Special attention It’s worth paying attention to your spiritual state and devoting time to prayer.
True faith will help everyone’s soul to free itself from negativity and let the Lord into the heart.
Holy Monday Prayer
"Jesus Christ! Every sinner on this Earth is always with You in soul and heart. Let us pray to You, remembering Your sacrifice for the entire human race. By Your grace, may we find peace of mind and get rid of the demons that seduce us from the right path. Our sinful life, but controlled by You, will get rid of darkness and lack of enlightenment. Amen".
Holy Tuesday Prayer
“Source of our lives, Lord! Hear my prayers addressed to You. Cleanse me from sins, save me from unclean thoughts. I found the source of my life in prayers to You, Lord. I repentantly and humbly ask you to forgive me for my ungodly actions, I appeal to the Holy Trinity for protection and patronage over me. Amen".Prayer on Great Wednesday
“I realize my laziness, I rejoice in every day I live in the cross. Great is my repentance. Grant, Lord, who accepted suffering for us, save us. May Your mercy spread over everyone’s brow, enter into souls, and subdue confusion and the cry of the devil. Illuminated with light heavenly way in darkness, may he lead us on a sinless path. Amen".Prayer on Maundy Thursday
“Glory to You, Lord! Remember me, a sinner, in Your Kingdom. Do not allow the machinations of the unclean to reveal Your mysteries and secrets, lock my bold lips. Let us enjoy the light coming from Heaven, penetrate the wisdom of the centuries, and teach our sons and daughters to live in righteousness and sinlessness. Amen".Good Friday Prayer
“I pray to You with righteous prayer and Christian humility, Lord. Bless me for sinless deeds, give me strength to fight negative manifestations, not to blame my offenders and to subject their punishment to Your Will. With righteous prayers I resurrect You daily, I pray for the entire human race, grant us forgiveness. Amen".Prayer on Holy Saturday
“Glory to our Lord for the Cross, for the death of Christ, for the Holy Resurrection. There are no more barriers to the righteous soul, for death is only sleep and rest. Let us pray for our souls, for peace on the sinful Earth, against the wiles of the devil. May the Lord not leave us in our wanderings, may He show us with His hand the way through the darkness and to the light of God. Bless us, Lord. Amen".
Ends Holy Week Happy Easter, feast of the Resurrection of Christ. On this day, Orthodox Christians rejoice at this event, glorify the Lord and greet each other with the words: “Jesus is Risen! Truly He is Risen!”
Prayers and appeals to Heaven every day give us great power resist the negativity that surrounds us. With their help, we ask for forgiveness and blessings, protect ourselves from illness and timidity, and help our children.
Holy Week is also called Great Week, and not because it contains more days or hours, but because during this week we celebrate great events that have brought us incredible benefits: the war between man and God was ended, death and the power of the devil were abolished, the curse disappeared, peace between God and people.
The services of the Great Week are performed in the morning - these are daily matins. But in order for people to have the opportunity to visit them, the corresponding hymns are sung in the evening of the previous day: on the evening of Palm Sunday, Matins of Great Monday is sung, in the evening of Great Monday, Matins of Great Tuesday, etc. In the morning of one day the hours and vespers of the next day are served.
Palm Sunday
After the resurrection of Lazarus, Christ again withdrew to the Jordan River so that He would not be captured by the high priests plotting His murder.
Six days before the Jewish Passover, Christ returned to Bethany, where, at a meal in the home of Lazarus' family, his sister Mary anointed Jesus' feet with chrism. The next day, Palm Sunday, He, sitting astride a donkey, entered Jerusalem.
The people covered the ground with palm branches (this is how triumphants are greeted), because people considered Him an earthly King who would free them from Roman power. Meeting Him, everyone exclaimed: “Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord, the King of Israel.” During this meeting, Zion trembled with joy. Today, the new Zion, the new Israel - all of us - rejoice and celebrate, since the Lord is coming, the conqueror of death, foreshadowing His and our future Resurrection.
On this day, branches of palm, laurel or spruce are distributed to believers in Greek temples. And in Russia - willow branches.
The soft branches of date palms symbolized Christ's victory over the devil and death. “Hosanna” means “please save me.” The colt on which Jesus sat, according to the law of Moses, considered an unclean and wild animal, is a symbol of the former uncleanness and savagery of the peoples who will henceforth obey the Gospel law.
Maundy Monday (Palm Sunday evening)
On this day we remember two important events. The first is the memory of righteous Joseph (son of Jacob, great-grandson of Abraham), who is a prototype of Christ. Like Christ, Joseph was subjected to envy, was sold, plunged into a grave pit, tortured and glorified (Joseph - as a dignitary of Pharaoh, Christ - as the risen Lord), fed the people (Joseph - with wheat, Christ - with the Bread of Life, His Most Holy Body).
The second symbol of this day is the barren fig tree, cursed by the Lord not only as a sign of the end of the barren Jewish Synagogue, but also as an indication to all those who cannot bear spiritual fruit.
The chants of this day call us to fight for virtues. The first troparion sung on this day, “Behold the Bridegroom comes at midnight,” inspired by the parable of the ten virgins, is repeated on the next two days. The services of Holy Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday are called “Sequences of the Bridegroom.”
Maundy Tuesday
(Evening of the GreatPweekday)
On Holy Tuesday we remember the parable of the ten virgins, which calls us to meet Christ with the lamps of our virtues (especially mercy). The second event of this day is the recollection of the parable of the talents, which teaches us how to multiply our gifts.
The Church reminds us of all of the above through the chants of this day, emphasizing that Christ will come suddenly, both at the hour of our death and on the day of His Second Coming. He will ask us to imagine our spiritual achievements, however small. As we remember, in the parable of the talents, the master accused the third servant of not multiplying the only talent given to him, despite the fact that, as the holy fathers write, he kept the law of Moses.
In addition, we should never forget about the example of the five foolish virgins who were not worthy of heaven, despite their “piety.” This means that the simple fulfillment of duty, devoid of the deep living experience of one’s faith, or the “inclusion” of religiosity only in certain hours life will not be able to gain the mercy and grace of God.
Great Wednesday
(Maundy Tuesday evening)
Today we remember three events:
1. Anointing the feet (in the Gospel of Matthew chapter) of the Lord by a harlot with myrrh for three hundred denarii (then daily wage was one denarii).
2. Convening the Jewish Sanhedrin to condemn Christ.
3. The arrival of Judas to the high priests and the agreement of betrayal (in connection with this, in apostolic times, fasting was established on Wednesdays).
At the end of the service, the famous troparion of Cassia, a pious and educated Byzantine woman hymnographer, whom some imaginative authors call a harlot, is sung. Cassia was not a harlot, unlike the heroine of her work - the woman who anointed the Lord’s feet with myrrh.
On the evening of Great Wednesday (before the Bridegroom follows), the sacrament of anointing is performed in churches.
GreathThursday
(Great Wednesday Evening)
On Maundy Thursday the following events are remembered:
1. The Lord washing the feet of the apostles.
2. Last Supper.
3. The Lord’s wonderful prayer to His Father.
4. Betrayal of the Lord by His disciple Judas.
This evening the Last Supper took place, which Judas left to betray Christ while He washed the feet of His disciples. After this, they go to the Kidron Valley, where, after the bishop’s prayer, Judas comes with his companions and, having kissed Jesus, betrays Him. Jesus is then brought before the high priests Annas and Caiaphas. The disciples fled, except for John and Peter, who denied Jesus three times. At the Sanhedrin, Jesus confesses that He is the Christ, for which he is subjected to all sorts of ridicule and receives a death sentence.
On Maundy Thursday, the Divine Liturgy is celebrated as a sign of remembrance of the first liturgy given to us by the Lord on the evening of this day in the Jerusalem upper room. The Liturgy of Basil the Great is served, which is combined with Vespers and is celebrated on the morning of Maundy Thursday instead of the evening, since Matins of Good Friday will be served in the evening.
Good Friday
(Maundy Thursday Evening)
Today we remember the Passion of the Lord: spitting, slapping, mockery and, finally, the Crucifixion and terrible death. And also the thief who confesses on the cross that Christ is the King of Heaven, and asks Christ to remember him in His Kingdom.
This is a day of extreme humility and the greatest sacrifice, when the bound Christ is interrogated all night from Thursday to Friday like a criminal, and, in the end, is found guilty and at the sixth hour (about twelve o'clock in the afternoon) is crucified along with two thieves. At the ninth hour (at three o’clock in the afternoon), having said: “It is finished,” “The Lamb of God, who took away the sin of the world,” gave up the ghost. This is followed by removal from the Cross and burial “in a new tomb” before sunset.
Today we read twelve passages from the four Gospels related to the Passion of the Lord (the so-called twelve Gospels). Between the reading of the fifth and sixth passages, a litany is performed and the Crucified One is placed in the center of the temple for worship.
On Friday morning the Great Hours are read: the first, third, sixth and ninth. They are called Great not because of their duration, but because they relate to important events. Immediately after the hours follows Great Vespers, at which the Gospel is read. At this time, the Descent from the Cross takes place. After some time, a cloth is placed in the edicule, on which the image of the deceased Lord is embroidered. This fabric is called the shroud.
All these readings, singing and other activities are not ordinary reminiscences or theatrical performances. No, it's something more. They - living embodiment events of Holy Week, transferring the past into the present, and the present into the past. This sacrament revives all remembered events for each of us, forcing us to experience them as a personal experience.
Today on Divine Liturgy priests offer the Sacrifice, since it was already offered by the Great Bishop on the Cross at the moment of His Crucifixion. The Church revives this sacrifice of the Lord, as if reliving the day Good Friday at the Divine Liturgy.
Holy Saturday
(Good Friday evening)
On the day of Good Friday, the remembrance of the burial of the Body of Christ, from Which, however, His Divine essence was not separated, and of the descent into hell of His soul, also united with His omnipotent Divinity, is commemorated. He crushed hell and freed the souls languishing there (of course, those who believed).
Today, Saturday, the Lord rests, just as God rested on the seventh day after six days of creation. This Sabbath of the Law and creation becomes a parallel to the Sabbath of the Lord: his rest in the tomb. Therefore, every Saturday we commemorate the dead and serve a memorial service.
On the third day, His soul and body were united again and the Lord rose from the dead. The three-day burial is explained as follows: the first day is Friday from three o’clock in the afternoon until sunset, the second day is Saturday as a whole, the third day is from sunset on Saturday until midnight on Sunday.
Thus the Soul of the Lord crushed hell and the Body conquered death because they were united by His Divinity.
At the evening service, three sections of the so-called Praises are sung - small and very beloved troparions by an unknown author. They were probably created in the 15th century. After the doxology, one leaves the temple and wraps the shroud around the edicule.
On the morning of Holy Saturday, Easter Vespers is served along with the Liturgy of St. Basil the Great. It is imbued with an Easter mood, for which people call it “the first Resurrection.” And indeed, this is a very beautiful service of the world-saving holiday of Easter.
Holy Week has arrived - the last week before Easter. And it's dedicated to remembrance last days earthly life of the Savior: His sufferings, death on the cross and burial (in Church Slavonic the word “passion” means “suffering”). All days of Holy Week are called great.
Holy Week- this is no longer Pentecost and, in general, it’s not even Lent- this is a separate time. We can say this: Lent (the first 40 days) is the time when we move towards God. Holy Week is the time when the Lord comes to meet us. He goes through suffering, through arrest, the Last Supper, Golgotha, the descent into hell and, finally, to Easter. He overcomes the last barriers that separate us from God (Deacon Andrey Kuraev).
Passion services are distinguished by a number of significant services that are performed only during this week. The temple these days alternately represents either the Upper Room of Zion, Gethsemane, or Golgotha.
But the realities modern life They do not allow everyone to attend church services every day. Therefore, a Christian himself can do something for his spiritual growth and, accordingly, for proper preparation to celebrate Holy Easter.
The Holy Church calls us this week to leave everything vain and worldly - and follow the Savior.
The first - to the extent of faith and health (and if the work is not related to serious physical activity) to intensify fasting during these passionate days.
According to the Charter: in the first four days of Holy Week - dry eating (not boiled food without oil). In parish practice during Holy Week - food without fish, meat and dairy products. Many people try to eat food without vegetable oil.
« A person cannot remain only a man: he must either rise above himself or fall into the abyss, grow into God or into a beast"- said Prince E. N. Trubetskoy. And fasting, a school of abstinence and cultivation of willpower, helps a person to rise above himself... All animals live solely by instinct. A person can try to take control of his mind and heart (for the sake of achieving higher goods) and natural needs themselves. If a person, for the sake of achieving the supernatural (i.e., domination of the image of God in himself), by force of will does not conquer his natural needs, then the enemy of our salvation (the devil) will impose on such a weak-willed person a beast-like life that is unnatural for a person (Rev. 15:2). And sometimes not only unnatural, but also unnatural (Rom. 1:21-32).
Here are a few more useful tips from Archpriest Alexander Ryabkov: “ Our fast this week should become stricter - not only in terms of food, but also, of course, in spiritual terms.
The time of fasting is a time of teaching the truths of God. We learn them, first of all, through reading the Holy Scriptures - therefore, during Holy Week we need to read the Bible even more diligently.
It is advisable for us to completely stop watching TV and wandering aimlessly on the Internet - largely because such pastime leads to absent-mindedness - and we need to concentrate our minds on prayer. Let's eliminate from our lives everything that could prevent us from coming to Easter with a pure soul.
...And let us remember that when we turn fasting simply into a diet, this is definitely wrong. People often say: “Lent has come - now I will squeeze juices and eat carrots.” A post like this always ends in disaster. If it’s a physical collapse, well, the person will collapse, and then thank God! This, as surprising as it sounds, will be the best outcome. Because spiritual collapse - pride - is always more dangerous. After all, a person can fast in this way - in a purely physical way - for all forty days, but his fast will be like a corpse - a body not filled with spirit.”.
After all, fasting is not a goal, but a means. Means to achieve main goal Christian life is to become more like Christ in character.
And this can still help us unceasing prayer. For example, the Jesus Prayer: “ Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner" This prayer is short, but contains everything important in Christianity. 1) In it we confess Jesus as our Lord, and it says: ...Whoever calls on the Name of the Lord will be saved (Rom. 10:13). 2) In it, a person recognizes himself as a sinner, namely, such a person always has the prospect of becoming better. After all, only those who see their shortcomings can fight against them and, relying not on themselves, but on God’s help, win. 3) In this prayer we acknowledge that we believe in the merciful, i.e. loving and forgiving God.
“The Jesus Prayer, according to the teaching of the holy fathers, is appropriate when a person walks, or sits, or lies, drinks, eats, talks or does some kind of handicraft; whoever can say the Jesus Prayer with humility during all this should not abandon it... » (Reverend Ambrose Optinsky).
Also, knowing the will of God, His holy commandments from reading the Holy Scriptures (if possible, the entire New Testament, and at least the Gospel of John) will help us spend the time of Holy Week as usefully as possible. You can, for example, prayerfully read about 4 chapters of the Gospel of John in the morning and during the day, when it appears free time, spend it not in the smoking room with friends, not on the Internet or watching TV, but mentally return to what you read in the morning and, asking God for wisdom (James 1:5), reason: how can what I read change me personally?
The suffering of Christ is remembered by St. Orthodox Church the week before Easter. This week is called Passionate. Christians should spend this entire week in fasting and prayer.
Events before Holy Week: Lazarus Saturday
On Saturday in the 6th week At Matins and Liturgy, the resurrection of Lazarus by Jesus Christ is remembered. This Saturday is called Lazarus Saturday. At Matins on this day, the Sunday “troparions for the Immaculates” are sung: “Blessed art thou, Lord, teach me through Thy justification,” and at the Liturgy, instead of “Holy God,” “Those who were baptized into Christ, put on Christ. Alleluia” is sung.
Events before Holy Week: Palm Sunday
Sixth Sunday Great Lent is the great twelfth holiday, on which the solemn entry of the Lord into Jerusalem to free suffering. This holiday is called differently Palm Sunday, Week Vaiy and Tsvetonosnoy. At the All-Night Vigil, after reading the Gospel, “The Resurrection of Christ” is not sung..., but the 50th Psalm is read directly and consecrated with prayer and sprinkling of St. water, budding branches of willow (vaia) or other plants. Blessed branches are distributed to the worshipers, with whom, with lit candles, believers stand until the end of the service, signifying the victory of life over death (resurrection).
From Vespers to Palm Sunday the dismissal begins with the words: “The Lord is coming to our free passion for the sake of salvation, Christ true God ours"...etc.
All four evangelists narrate the entry of Christ into Jerusalem a few days before the sufferings on the cross (Matthew 21:1-11; Mark 11:1-11; Luke 19:29-44; John 12:12-19). When, after the miraculous resurrection of Lazarus, Christ went to Jerusalem to celebrate Easter, a multitude of people who had gathered from everywhere for the holiday, having heard about the miracles that Christ had performed, with jubilation and joy greeted the Lord entering the city on the donkey with the solemnity with which in ancient times times in the East accompanied the kings. The Jews had a custom: victorious kings rode into Jerusalem on horses or donkeys, and the people greeted them with solemn cries and palm branches in their hands. So in these days, the Jerusalemites took palm branches, came out to meet Christ and exclaimed: “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the Name of the Lord, the King of Israel!” Many laid their clothes under His feet, cut branches from palm trees and threw them along the road. Having believed in the powerful and good Teacher, the simple-hearted people were ready to recognize Him as the King who had come to free them. But just a few days later, those who chanted “Hosanna!” they will shout “Crucify Him!” His blood be on us and on our children!”
Events of Holy Week
Great Lent consists of Great Pentecost and Holy Week. Divine service in Holy Week is given special importance.
IN Holy Week fasting is especially strict.
Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of this week are dedicated to the recollection of the last conversations of the Lord Jesus Christ with the people and disciples.
Maundy Monday
Great Monday, Holy Monday - Monday of Holy Week. On this day, the Old Testament Patriarch Joseph, sold by his brothers to Egypt, is remembered as a prototype of the suffering Jesus Christ, as well as the Gospel story about Jesus’ curse of the barren fig tree, symbolizing a soul that does not bear spiritual fruit - true repentance, faith, prayer and good deeds.
The Holy Monday service is permeated with memories of the Old Testament Joseph. In his suffering from the brothers who hated him, his chaste abstinence and undeserved imprisonment, the Church sees a prototype of the suffering of Christ. The final triumph of Joseph and his exaltation in Egypt foreshadows the resurrection of Christ and His victory over the world. Like Joseph, who forgave his brothers and fed them with earthly blessings, Christ reconciles fallen humanity to Himself and feeds the faithful with His Body and Blood. The story of Joseph and Potiphar's wife is symbolically contrasted with the fall of the first parents: Potiphar's wife, like Eve, became a vessel of the evil serpent, but Joseph, unlike Adam and like the coming Savior, was able to resist temptation and remain clean from sin; Adam, who sinned, was ashamed of his nakedness before God, and chaste Joseph chose to remain naked, just to preserve his moral purity. The tradition of seeing the story of Joseph as a type of gospel events can be traced back to apostolic times and can be found in Acts (Acts 7:9-16).
In the morning, returning to the city, he became hungry; and seeing a fig tree along the road, he approached it and, finding nothing on it except some leaves, said to it: Let there be no fruit from you henceforth forever.
(Matthew 21:18-19) Interpreters of the Gospel compare this barren fig tree with contemporary Christ Israel. When the Lord approached the tree, only it, unlike other fig trees, was covered with leaves. So among all nations ancient world only the Israelis had a revealed religion, the Law and prophets - that is, they knew what fruit the Lord expected from them. And if for the rest of the nations the time of fruiting had not yet come, the news of salvation through the God-man Jesus Christ had not yet spread throughout the world, then Israel had to bear fruit, had to recognize in Jesus its long-awaited Messiah.
Approaching the fig tree, Christ did not find any fruit on it - it was simply misleading, deceiving the traveler with its beauty, but was absolutely useless because it could not satisfy his hunger. So Christ “came to his own, and his own did not receive him” (Gospel of John, chapter 1, verse 11). Beautiful and magnificent services continued to be held in the Jerusalem Temple, and the blood of sacrificial animals flowed in streams. But after the coming to earth of the God-Man, after His sacrifice on the cross, these rituals became absolutely useless for those who thirsted to satisfy the hunger of God-forsakenness. Indeed, if Jesus is God, then no sacrificial rams are needed.
After this, Jesus came to the Jerusalem Temple where he told the parables of the two sons and the evil winegrowers.
The Parable of the Two Sons
Then, turning to them, he asked: “Will you answer Me another question? One man had two sons, and he sent them to his vineyard to work: one of them refused to go, but then he felt ashamed, he repented and went; the other said: “I’m going,” but did not go. Which of the two fulfilled the will of his father?
Not understanding what purpose Jesus pursued in speaking this parable, they answered: “Of course, the first (Matthew 21:31); can there be any doubt about this?
“You have answered correctly,” Jesus told them. - Listen to what this parable means. The Lord, through John, called you to repentance, necessary to enter the Kingdom of God, and demanded from you worthy fruits of repentance; in a word, he called you to work in His vineyard. He also called publicans and harlots. It seemed that you, proud of your knowledge of Scripture, would be more likely than obvious sinners to respond to His call; besides, with your outward piety you always tried to present yourself as exact executors of the will of God; you always said: “I’m coming, Lord!”, although you didn’t move. You didn’t follow John’s call either. And the publicans and harlots, who, indulging in sin, refused to do the will of God, heard John, came to their senses, repented and went to work in God’s vineyard. And you saw this, but still you did not repent, you did not believe John. So know that publicans and harlots are ahead of you on the way to the Kingdom of God; many of them will even enter it, but you will be rejected!”
The members of the Sanhedrin came to the temple as accusers, and now stood silently before Jesus and all the people as condemned.
Parable of the Evil Vinegrowers
“Listen to another parable,” Jesus told them. — One man planted a vineyard, surrounded it with a fence, set up a winery and built a watchtower; but since he needed to go to another place, he gave the vineyard to the management of winegrowers with the obligation to provide him with part of the fruit. When the time came to gather the fruit, he sent a servant to the vinedressers to receive the fruit from them; but the winegrowers beat him and gave him nothing. He sent another servant; but the winegrowers sent this one away empty-handed, breaking his head with stones. The owner of the vineyard sent a third servant, but the winegrowers killed him too. He sent many more servants, but all to no avail: the winegrowers did not produce fruit, and the servants he sent were either beaten or completely killed. It would seem that the time has come to take away the vineyard given to them for management from the evil winegrowers; but the owner was so kind that he decided to try one last resort: “I have,” he said, “a beloved son; I will send him; it cannot be that they will reject him too; they will probably be ashamed of him and give him his due.” The owner's son went to the winegrowers; but they, seeing him from afar, recognized him as their son and heir, and, fearing that he would take the vineyard away from them, they conspired to kill him. “Let’s kill him,” they said, “and then the vineyard will be ours forever.” Having decided so, they grabbed him, killed him and threw him out of the vineyard.”
This parable produced strong impression to the people; When Jesus said that the vinedressers killed their son and threw him out of the vineyard, the people, indignant at the evil vinedressers, shouted with one voice: “Let this not happen!” (Luke 20:16).
The chief priests, scribes, Pharisees and elders of the people looked at everyone angrily, like exposed criminals. The final words of Jesus regarding the first parable left them no doubt that the second would also expose their iniquities; the content of this second parable was so transparent that the leaders and corrupters of the Jewish people should have recognized themselves in the evil winegrowers; they should have guessed that Jesus also knew their decision to kill Him. Yes, they undoubtedly understood that by the vineyard of the parable we mean the Jewish people chosen by God, the care of which was entrusted by the Owner of the vineyard, God, to the high priests and rulers of the people (vinedressers); they understood that God sent His servants, the prophets, to them to demand the fruits of their management of the people, to admonish them that this management was entrusted to them not for their personal gain, but so that they would take care of the fruiting of the vineyard and give its fruits to the Owner, then there is to educate the people in the spirit of exact fulfillment of the will of God; At the same time, they had to remember that these prophets were persecuted and even killed, that the last Prophet and Baptist John was rejected by them, and that they had already decided to kill the one who called Himself the Son of God, Jesus, but had not yet had time. In a word, the meaning of the parable was clear to them, as it is now to us; but if they had given even the slightest hint to the people the opportunity to understand that they recognized themselves in the person of the evil winegrowers, then these people would probably have grabbed stones and beaten them all. It was this fear of the people that doubled their shamelessness and insolence, and they, in order to show everyone that the parable had nothing to do with them, answered Jesus’ question - so, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do with these tenants? - They answered: “There is no doubt that these evildoers will be put to death, and the vineyard will be given to other winegrowers who will give him the fruit in a timely manner.”
These villains themselves pronounced a sentence on themselves, which was soon fulfilled: control of the Jewish people was taken away from them; The right to be conductors of the will of God among the Jews and pagans who came to the Jerusalem Temple was also taken away, since the temple was destroyed, and the people scattered throughout the earth ceased to exist as a people.
Maundy Tuesday
On Tuesday morning Jesus came from Bethany to Jerusalem and taught the people. On this day they told the disciples about the second coming (Matthew 24),
When it will be? (Matt. 24:3) - the disciples asked. But the Lord answered them that no one knows about that day and hour, not even the heavenly angels, but only My Father alone (Matthew 24:36). Thus Holy Bible keeps it in deep secret and does not definitely reveal to us the time of the Second Coming so that we always keep ourselves pure and immaculate and are ready to meet the Lord at all times.
That is why the Lord warns the disciples: Watch therefore, because you do not know at what hour your Lord will come. But as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be in the days of the Son of Man: they ate, they drank, they married, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. So it will be on the day when the Son of Man appears. So, stay awake (Matt. 24:42; cf. Luke 17:26 and 27:30; Matt. 25:13).
the parable of the ten virgins (Matt. 25:1-13), the parable of the talents (Matt. 25:14-30). The chief priests and elders tempted him with questions (Mark 11:27-33), wanted to arrest him, but were afraid to do it openly because of the people who revered Jesus as a prophet (Matthew 21:46), admired his teaching (Mark 11 :18) and listened to him attentively (Mark 12:37).
From the Gospel instructions delivered by Jesus Christ on Tuesday, the Church chose for the edification of believers on this day mainly the parable of the ten virgins, as especially appropriate for the time of Great Week, during which we should most watch and pray. With the parable of the ten virgins, the Church instills constant readiness to meet the Heavenly Bridegroom through chastity, almsgiving and the immediate performance of other good deeds, depicted under the name of oil prepared by the wise virgins.
Archpriest G.S. Debolsky,
"Days of worship of the Orthodox Church", vol. 2
parable of the talents (Matthew 25:14-30)
For He will act like a man who, going to a foreign country, called his servants and entrusted them with his property: and to one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his strength; and immediately set off. He who received five talents went and put them to work and acquired another five talents; in the same way, the one who received two talents acquired the other two; He who received one talent went and buried it in the ground and hid his master’s money.
After a long time, the master of those slaves comes and demands an account from them. And the one who had received five talents came and brought another five talents and said: Master! you gave me five talents; Behold, I acquired another five talents with them. His master said to him: Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful in small things, I will put you over many things; enter into the joy of your master.
The one who had received two talents also came up and said: Master! you have two talents
gave me; behold, I acquired the other two talents with them. His master said to him: Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful in small things, I will put you over many things; enter into the joy of your master.
The one who had received one talent came up and said: Master! I knew you that you were a cruel man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter, and, being afraid, I went and hid your talent in the ground; here's yours. His master answered him: “You wicked and lazy servant!” You knew that I reap where I did not sow, and gather where I did not scatter; Therefore, you should have given my silver to the merchants, and when I came, I would have received mine with profit; So, take the talent from him and give it to the one who has ten talents, for to everyone who has it will be given and he will have an abundance, but from the one who does not have, even what he has will be taken away; and throw the worthless slave into outer darkness: there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Having said this, he exclaimed: whoever has ears to hear, let him hear!
Great Wednesday
On Great Wednesday of Holy Week, the betrayal of Jesus Christ by Judas Iscariot is remembered.
Night from Tuesday to Wednesday Jesus Christ in last time before his death he spent in Bethany. Here, in the house of Simon the leper, a supper was prepared for the Savior. The sinful wife, having learned that He was reclining in the house of the Pharisees, approached Him with an alabaster (alabaster) vessel of whole precious ointment and poured it on His head, as a sign of her love and reverence for Him (Luke 7:36-50). His disciples regretted the waste of the world: if it were possible, they said, it would be sold for more than three hundred pennies and given to the poor. But Jesus Christ forbade embarrassing his wife and praised her: “For she has done good deeds for Me,” He said. Always take the poor with you, and whenever you want, you can do good to them: but you don’t always take me. Having poured this ointment on My body, create it for My burial. Amen, I say to you: Wherever this Gospel is preached, throughout the whole world, it is said, and do this, in memory of it. Thus, according to the word of Christ, a good deed should be considered not only to do good to others in need, but also to express within one’s ability the love for God and one’s neighbors; not only charity to our neighbors whom we see, but also an offering to God Himself, Whom we do not see, who is graciously present in churches!
While Jesus Christ was reclining in the house of Simon, the high priests, scribes and elders of the Jews, constantly watching the Lord, gathered with the high priest Caiaphas, and consulted on how to take Jesus Christ by cunning and kill him. But they said: just not on a holiday, so that there is no indignation among the people. Then Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve disciples of Jesus Christ, comes to the lawless gathering and offers: what do you want to give me, and I will hand him over to you? The unrighteous judges joyfully accepted the insidious intent of Judas, infected with greed, and awarded him thirty pieces of silver. From then on, the ungrateful disciple, seeking a convenient time, would betray the Savior of the world (Matthew 26:3-16. Mark 14:1-11). Fulfilling the words of the Lord about the wife who, two days before His death, anointed Him with myrrh: throughout the world it is said and do this, in her memory, the Orthodox Church on Great Wednesday remembers mainly about the sinner wife who poured ointment on the head of the Savior, preaching to the world that do this in memory of her, and together denounces the betrayal of Judas. The Synaxarion for Great Wednesday begins with the following verses:
The woman who put the body of Christ in the myrrh of Nicodemus will undertake the myrrh.
“Behold, the evil council,” the Church mournfully sings on Great Wednesday, “has truly gathered together frantically: as a condemned judge, judge the mountain that sits, and God, the Judge of all. Flatterer Judas, zealous for the love of money, betray Thee, Lord, Treasure of the belly, flows to the Jews.” “The sinner brought her head to the feet of Christ,” as St. Chrysostom says, “Judas stretched out his hands to the lawless; she sought forgiveness of sins, and this one took silver. The sinner brought myrrh to anoint the Lord: the disciple agreed with the lawless, she rejoiced, spending a valuable myrrh: this one cared to sell the Inestimable; she knew the Lord, and this one moved away from the Lord; she was freed from sin, and this one became his captive.”
The Church has remembered the sinner wife and the betrayal by Judas on Great Wednesday since ancient times. In the 4th century, Amphilochius, Bishop of Iconium, and John Chrysostom spoke on Great Wednesday about the sinner wife who anointed Jesus Christ with chrism. Equally, Isidore Pelusiot mentions her in his writings and attributes her significant expression of faith and love for the Savior to the Great Wednesday. In the 8th century, Cosmas of Maium, in the 9th century, the Monk Cassia composed many stichera for worship on Great Wednesday, now performed on this day. Saint Chrysostom, in his 80th discourse on the Gospel of Matthew, speaks of a sinner wife: this wife, apparently, is the same for all the Evangelists: but no. The three evangelists, it seems to me, are talking about the same thing; but John is talking about another, some wonderful wife - the sister of Lazarus. The Evangelist did not just mention Simon’s leprosy, but in order to show the reason why the wife boldly approached Jesus. Since leprosy seemed to her an unclean and vile disease, and yet she saw that Jesus had healed the man and cleansed the leprosy - otherwise she would not have wanted to stay with the leper: then she had hope that Jesus would easily cleanse her spiritual uncleanness.
What Christ predicted about the sinner wife was fulfilled. Wherever you go in the universe, everywhere you hear what is said about this woman; although she is not famous and did not have many witnesses. Who announced and preached this? The power of the One who foretold this. So much time has passed, but the memory of this incident has not been destroyed; and the Persians, and the Indians, and the Scythians, and the Thracians, and the Sarmatians, and the generation of the Moors, and the inhabitants of the British Isles tell what the sinful wife did secretly in the house.
Judas was also indignant, seeing how expensive myrrh was poured onto the head of the Savior. This time, his behavior does not in any way stand out to the Evangelist Matthew compared to other disciples, but earlier, in a similar situation, he was the first to begin to be indignant at what was, from his point of view, unreasonable spending (John 12:4-5). Evangelist John explains that this happened not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief. He had a cash box with him and wore what was put there (John 12:6). Money became an idol, the focus of Judas’s life, and his selfish heart could not stand it: it simply physically hurt him to see such a generous, selfless waste of what he considered the main thing in his existence. Out of burning, all-consuming envy and resentment, the traitor immediately rushed to do his job. Selfishness, as both the Gospel testifies and church service this day was the main one driving force betrayal of Judas, but the deep motives of this monstrous act, if you look closely at them, were even more complex and terrible. The story itself cannot but cause surprise.
He was chosen by the Savior to be one of the twelve apostles, his closest disciples. And this election was not accidental or undeserved. Like all the apostles, Judas left everything he had: hometown, house, property, family - and followed Christ. He truly was one of the most the best people in Israel, ready to accept the gospel preaching. Judas then had undoubted faith and determination to serve the Lord with his whole life. Judas was not deprived of anything compared to the other apostles. Together with other disciples, he was sent to preach the word of God throughout the cities and villages of Judea, while he also performed miracles: he healed the sick and cast out demons. Judas heard the same words of the Savior as the other disciples; even before the Last Supper, Christ, along with the other apostles, washed the feet of Judas, who had already agreed to betray him.
Hear, all money lovers who suffer from the disease of Judas, hear and beware of the passion of the love of money. If the one who was with Christ, performed miracles, used such teaching, fell into such an abyss because he was not free from this disease: then how much more you, who have not even heard the Scriptures and are always attached to the present, can conveniently be caught by this passion, if you do not apply constant care.
How did Judas become a traitor, you ask, when he was called by Christ? God, calling people to Himself, does not impose necessity and does not force the will of those who do not want to choose virtues, but exhorts, gives advice, does everything, tries in every possible way to encourage them to become good: if some do not want to be good, He does not force!. The Lord chose Judas as an apostle because he was initially worthy of this election.
At Matins on Great Wednesday, the Orthodox Church preaches the prophetic words of the Lord about His prolific death; about His glorification by the voice of God the Father: a voice came from heaven: I will glorify and glorify again, and that he is the light of the world (John 12:17-50).
On the day of the Lord’s surrender to suffering and death for our sins, when He forgave the sins of his sinner wife, the Church, after completing the Hours, ends, according to ancient custom, reading the prayer: “Much-merciful Master, Lord Jesus Christ God,” with which she daily during Lent , at the service of Compline, with those present bowing their heads and knees, he intercedes with God to grant us forgiveness of our sins. For the last time, on Great Wednesday, the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts is celebrated, at which the Church preaches the gospel of the woman who anointed the Lord with chrism, and of Judas’s determination to betray the Lord (Matthew 26:6-16). On Great Wednesday, the great bows performed during the prayer of St. Ephraim the Syrian: “Lord and Master of my life” and so on. After Wednesday, it was decided to perform this prayer until Great Friday only for monks in their cells. Thus, the prayer of St. Ephraim the Syrian begins on Wednesday of Cheese Week, and ends on Holy Wednesday. The custom of ending the rite of Lenten worship on Great Wednesday is ancient. Ambrose of Milan mentioned it in the 4th century.
Archpriest G. S. Debolsky
Maundy Thursday
On Maundy Thursday evening, during the all-night vigil (which is the Matins of Good Friday), twelve parts of the gospel about the suffering of Jesus Christ are read.
IN Good Friday during Vespers (which is served at 2 or 3 o’clock in the afternoon), the shroud, that is, the sacred image of the Savior lying in the tomb, is taken out of the altar and placed in the middle of the temple; this is done in remembrance of the taking down of the body of Christ from the cross and His burial.
On Holy Saturday at Matins, with the funeral bells ringing and with the singing of the song “Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us,” the shroud is carried around the temple in memory of the descent of Jesus Christ into hell, when His body was in the tomb, and victory Him above hell and death.
We are preparing ourselves for Holy Week and Easter fasting. This fast lasts forty days and is called the Holy Pentecost or Great Lent.
In addition, the Holy Orthodox Church establishes fasting on Wednesdays and Fridays of every week (except for some, very few, weeks of the year), on Wednesdays in remembrance of the betrayal of Jesus Christ by Judas, and on Fridays in remembrance of the suffering of Jesus Christ.
We express our faith in the power of Jesus Christ’s suffering on the cross for us sign of the cross during our prayers.
Washing the feet- the washing of the feet of the apostles described in the Gospel, which Jesus Christ performed before the Last Supper, in the Zion Upper Room in Jerusalem. This ritual entered into the liturgical practice of a number of Christian churches.
The washing of the disciples' feet is described only in the Gospel of John. According to his story, at the beginning of the Last Supper:
Jesus, knowing that the Father had given everything into His hands, and that He had come from God and was going to God, stood up from the supper, took off His outer garment, and, taking a towel, girded Himself. Then he poured water into the washbasin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and dry them with the towel with which he was girded. He approaches Simon Peter, and he says to Him: Lord! Should you wash my feet? Jesus answered and said to him, “What I do you do not know now, but you will understand later.” Peter says to Him: You will never wash my feet. Jesus answered him: If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me. Simon Peter says to Him: Lord! not only my feet, but also my hands and head. Jesus says to him: he who has been washed only needs to wash his feet, because he is all clean; and you are clean, but not all. For He knew His betrayer, and that is why He said: You are not all pure. When he had washed their feet and put on his clothes, he lay down again and said to them: Do you know what I have done to you? You call Me Teacher and Lord, and you speak correctly, for I am exactly that. So, if I, the Lord and Teacher, washed your feet, then you should wash each other’s feet. For I have given you an example, that you also should do the same as I have done to you. Truly, truly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master, and a messenger is not greater than the one who sent him. If you know this, blessed are you when you do
On Thursday of Holy Week the Church remembers the most important gospel event: last supper, on which Christ established the New Testament sacrament of Holy Communion (Eucharist).
This was the last Easter supper that the Lord could celebrate with His disciples in His earthly life: instead of this Old Testament Passover, celebrated in memory of the miraculous deliverance of Jewish babies from death during the days of the Egyptian plagues, He now intended to establish the true Passover - the sacrament of the Eucharist (Eucharist - means Thanksgiving).
According to the Gospel narrative, Jesus came for his prayers before his arrest in Garden of Gethsemane, located at the bottom of the Mount of Olives near the Kidron stream, east of the center of Jerusalem. For this reason, in Christianity, the Garden of Gethsemane is revered as one of the places associated with the Passion of Christ and is a place of Christian pilgrimage.
The place where Jesus Christ prayed is currently located inside Catholic Church of all nations, built between 1919 and 1924. In front of her altar there is a stone on which, according to legend, Christ prayed on the night of his arrest.
Kiss of Judas(The Kiss of Judas) - plot from gospel history, when Judas Iscariot, one of the disciples of Jesus Christ, betrayed him, pointing him out to the guards, kissing him at night in the Garden of Gethsemane after praying for the cup. The Kiss of Judas is one of the Passion of Christ in Christianity and immediately follows the Gethsemane prayer of Jesus.
Good Friday
The Good Friday service is dedicated to the remembrance of the Savior's suffering on the cross, His death and burial.
At Matins (which is served in the evening on Maundy Thursday) in the middle of the temple, twelve Gospel readings are read, selected from all four Evangelists, telling about the sufferings of the Savior, beginning with His last conversation with the disciples at the Last Supper and ending with His burial in the garden of Joseph of Arimathea and the deployment of military guards to His tomb. While reading the Gospel, believers stand with lit candles, showing on the one hand that glory and greatness did not leave the Lord even during His suffering, and on the other hand, ardent love for their Savior.
There is no Liturgy on Good Friday, because on this day the Lord Himself sacrificed Himself, and the Royal Hours are celebrated.
Vespers is celebrated at the third hour of the day, at the hour of the death of Jesus Christ on the cross, in remembrance of the taking down of the body of Christ from the cross and His burial.
At Vespers, while singing the troparion:
The noble Joseph took down Your Most Pure Body from the tree, wrapped it in a clean shroud and covered it with fragrant fragrances, and laid it in a new tomb.
Glory: When you descended to death, Immortal Life, then you killed hell with the brilliance of the Divine: when you also raised those who died from the underworld, all the powers of heaven cried out: O Life-Giver Christ our God, glory to Thee.
And now: To the myrrh-bearing women, appearing at the tomb, an angel cried out: peace to the dead the essence is decent, but Christ of corruption appears alien
The priests lift the Shroud (i.e., the image of Christ lying in the tomb) from the Throne, as if from Golgotha, and carry it out of the altar to the middle of the temple in the presentation of lamps and with incense. The Shroud is placed on a specially prepared table (tomb). Then the clergy and all those praying bow before the Shroud and kiss the sores of the Lord depicted on it - His pierced ribs, arms and legs.
1) The Shroud is the linen with which the body of Jesus Christ was wrapped during burial.
2) A quadrangular board, usually made of velvet, with a painted or embroidered image of the body of Christ the Savior taken from the Cross. At the end of Vespers on Good Friday, the shroud is taken to the middle of the church for the worship of believers and remains there until the Easter Midnight Office, at which it is again taken to the altar.
The shroud is in the middle of the temple for three (incomplete) days, reminiscent of the three-day stay of Jesus Christ in the tomb.
Holy Saturday
Having taken it down from the cross and wrapped it in swaddling clothes with incense, according to the custom of the Jews, Joseph and Nicodemus laid the most pure Body of the Lord in a new stone tomb in Joseph’s garden, located not far from Golgotha. A large stone was rolled to the door of the coffin. Mary Magdalene, mother of James and Joseph, was present at the burial of Jesus Christ.
The high priests and Pharisees knew that Jesus Christ had predicted His resurrection, but not believing this prediction and fearing that the Apostles would steal the Body of Jesus Christ and tell the people: He has risen from the dead, on Saturday they asked Pilate for military guards, assigned them to the tomb and they sealed the tomb itself (Matthew 27:57-66; John 19:39-42) and thereby delivered new confirmation to the truth.
The service of Holy Saturday is dedicated to the remembrance of the sojourn of Jesus Christ “in the tomb carnally, in hell with the soul like God, in paradise with the thief and on the throne with the Father and the Spirit, fulfilling all the indescribable things” and, finally, the resurrection of the Savior from the tomb.
At Matins of Great Saturday, after the Great Doxology, the Shroud, while singing: “Holy God”... is carried out by the clergy from the temple on the head, with the participation of the people, and carried around the temple in memory of the descent of Jesus Christ into hell and His victory over hell and death. Then, after the Shroud is brought into the temple, it is brought to the open royal doors, as a sign that the Savior is inseparably with God the Father and that He, through His suffering and death, again opened the doors of heaven to us. The singers at this time sing: “Noble Joseph”...
When the Shroud is placed in its place in the middle of the temple, then the litany is pronounced and the following is read: a proverb from the book of the prophet. Ezekiel o resurrection of the dead; An apostle who teaches believers that Jesus Christ is the true Passover for us all...; The Gospel tells how the high priests, with the permission of Pilate, placed a guard at the Holy Sepulcher and attached a seal to the stone. At the end of Matins, believers are invited to praise Joseph of Arimathea with a church song: “Come, let us bless Joseph of ever-memorable”...
The Divine Liturgy on this day occurs later than on all other days of the year and is combined with Vespers.
After the small entrance and the singing of “Quiet Light...” begins the reading of 15 proverbs, which contain the most important Old Testament prototypes and prophecies about the salvation of people through the Passion and Resurrection of Jesus Christ.
After the proverbs and the Apostle, the feast of the Resurrection of Christ begins. On the choir they begin to sing drawn outly: “Rise up, O God, judge the earth, for You have inherited among all nations...”, and in the altar at this time the black vestments of the throne and the clergy are replaced by light ones, and in the same way in the temple itself, the black vestments are replaced by light ones. This is a depiction of the event that early in the morning, the myrrh-bearing women, “still in darkness,” saw an Angel in bright vestments at the tomb of Christ and heard from him the joyful news of the resurrection of Christ.
After this singing, the deacon in bright vestments, like an angel, goes to the middle of the church and in front of the Shroud, reading the Gospel, announces to the people about the Resurrection of Christ.
Then the Liturgy of Basil the Great continues in the usual manner. Instead of the Cherubic song, the song is sung: “Let all human flesh be silent”... Instead of “It is worthy to eat” it is sung: “Do not weep for Me, Mother, see in the tomb”... The sacramental verse: “Arise, as the Lord sleeps, and is risen to save us.”
At the end of the Liturgy, there is a blessing of bread and wine to strengthen the strength of those praying. After this, the reading of the book of the Acts of the Apostles begins and continues until the beginning of the Midnight Office.
At twelve o'clock at night, the Midnight Office is celebrated, at which the canon of Great Saturday is sung. At the end of the Midnight Office, the clergy silently carry the Shroud from the middle of the temple to the altar through the Royal Doors and place it on the throne, where it remains until the Feast of the Ascension of the Lord, in memory of the forty-day stay of Jesus Christ on earth after His resurrection from the dead.
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Holy Week is the last week of Lent before the onset of Easter. During this period, every person has the opportunity to cleanse the soul of sins and enlist the support of Higher powers.
Holy Week before Easter in 2017 lasts from April 10 to 16. During this period, you should pay special attention to your spiritual state and devote time to prayer. True faith will help everyone’s soul to free itself from negativity and let the Lord into the heart.
Holy Monday Prayer
"Jesus Christ! Every sinner on this Earth is always with You in soul and heart. Let us pray to You, remembering Your sacrifice for the entire human race. By Your grace, may we find peace of mind and get rid of the demons that seduce us from the right path. Our sinful life, but controlled by You, will get rid of darkness and lack of enlightenment. Amen".
Holy Tuesday Prayer
“Source of our lives, Lord! Hear my prayers addressed to You. Cleanse me from sins, save me from unclean thoughts. I found the source of my life in prayers to You, Lord. I repentantly and humbly ask you to forgive me for my ungodly actions, I appeal to the Holy Trinity for protection and patronage over me. Amen".
Prayer on Great Wednesday
“I realize my laziness, I rejoice in every day I live in the cross. Great is my repentance. Grant, Lord, who accepted suffering for us, save us. May Your mercy spread over everyone’s brow, enter into souls, and subdue confusion and the cry of the devil. He will illuminate the path in the darkness with heavenly light, and lead us along a sinless path. Amen".
Prayer on Maundy Thursday
“Glory to You, Lord! Remember me, a sinner, in Your Kingdom. Do not allow the machinations of the unclean to reveal Your mysteries and secrets, lock my bold lips. Let us enjoy the light coming from Heaven, penetrate the wisdom of the centuries, and teach our sons and daughters to live in righteousness and sinlessness. Amen".
Good Friday Prayer
“I pray to You with righteous prayer and Christian humility, Lord. Bless me for sinless deeds, give me strength to fight negative manifestations, not to blame my offenders and to subject their punishment to Your Will. With righteous prayers I resurrect You daily, I pray for the entire human race, grant us forgiveness. Amen".
Prayer on Holy Saturday
“Glory to our Lord for the Cross, for the death of Christ, for the Holy Resurrection. There are no more barriers to the righteous soul, for death is only sleep and rest. Let us pray for our souls, for peace on the sinful Earth, against the wiles of the devil. May the Lord not leave us in our wanderings, may He show us with His hand the way through the darkness and to the light of God. Bless us, Lord. Amen".
Holy Week ends with Easter, the holiday of the Resurrection of Christ. On this day, Orthodox Christians rejoice at this event, glorify the Lord and greet each other with the words: “Jesus is Risen! Truly He is Risen!”
Praying and turning to Heaven every day gives us great strength to resist the negativity that surrounds us. With their help, we ask for forgiveness and blessings, protect ourselves from illness and timidity, and help our children. We wish you happiness, and do not forget to press the buttons and
11.04.2017 03:01
Orthodox holidays- it's the right time to improve your life. On Easter week...