Spiritual conversation with parishioners. Methodological guide for catechists for conducting public talks before accepting the sacrament of baptism

Conversation 1

1.Introduction.

Greetings. An explanation of what these meetings are for. Clarification of the structure of the conversation.

God created man in his own image and likeness: three components of the image of God in man: immortal soul, mind, free will.

What is Baptism for?- it enables a person to become a “Human with a capital letter”, that is, to find his own meaning of life, different from the meaning of animal life (search for food, self-preservation, reproduction).

Freedom of man: Does the Church Limit Human Freedom? Yes, if we mean permissiveness by freedom. But such permissiveness is also limited by the laws of states, the upbringing of children is also a kind of restriction of freedom. The desires of some people often interfere with the desires of others, which leads to conflict and frustration. Permissiveness has a destructive effect on the soul of a person, which is shown by many examples from History. Striving for your own little "truth" leads to all wars and conflicts, since if any conflict between people is analyzed in detail, it turns out that each of the parties is right in its own way. For this, the Church exists, the main role of which is to preach the Divine Laws - that Absolute Morality, the Absolute Truth, which should become common for all people. That is, the Church does not actually restrict human freedom, but on the contrary, helps to realize it, gives us freedom from their passions, which enslave us, even limiting ourselves in some desires, but with the help of Divine Laws we achieve the true meaning of life - the acquisition of the Kingdom Heavenly.

2. "The essence of religion."

The basis of the teaching of any religion is God. Different religions have different views on the fundamental principles of their teachings.

How can we know about the existence of God, since we cannot see him? How do we know about the existence of air without seeing it with our own eyes - according to its manifestations, air gives life to our body, although we may not pay attention to it. Likewise, we can learn about God by his action on each person individually and on the whole world.

How can we know God? Knowledge of God can be realized in three ways: first - through the world around, the greatness of the Universe created by God. The study of the laws of nature by many scientists led to the idea of ​​the existence of a Single Creator. Second way: Through knowing yourself. Since man is the image of God, then, studying his own soul, we see this very image. According to the Monk Anthony the Great, "whoever knows himself, he knows God." And the third way of knowing God is through the analysis of human history, in which there are many examples of how Divine Providence influenced the fate of both individuals and the entire human civilization.

In Orthodoxy there is a clear understanding that it is completely impossible to know God, although we can know something about him. John Damascene expressed this well, saying the following words: So that God is, it is clear. And what He is in essence and nature is completely incomprehensible and unknown "- and" Anyone who wants to talk or listen about God, of course, should clearly know that from what is related to the doctrine of God and the incarnation, as not everything is inexpressible, so not everything can be expressed by speech; not everything is inaccessible to knowledge, and not everything is available to him "

The source of our specific knowledge about God is the Revelation of God. It consists of Sacred Tradition - knowledge transmitted by people from generation to generation, and Sacred Scripture - the Bible - books written by holy people - prophets and apostles, by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Revelation of God is not so much Knowledge itself as a guide to human life, its goal is the salvation of the soul, therefore there is little information about the structure of the material world, the study of which is the task of science.

First of all, the Orthodox Church teaches that God is a Person, which means that you can come into contact with Him, you can turn to Him and receive an answer.

What is religion? - from lat. Religere- "Restoring the lost connection with God" Before his fall, man lived in paradise and was in constant communion with God, being His perfect creation, but after he committed a sin, his nature was damaged, and this connection was destroyed.

Since ancient times, man communicated with God (the first traces of worship can be found already in the Stone Age, about 50 - 100 thousand years ago, according to some sources, monotheism was the pro-religion). But over time, because of the "universal catastrophe", his fall, man began to distort his ideas about God, he began to move away from communication with Him, losing a clear idea of ​​the "Interlocutor". This is what led to the emergence of many religions, a multiple view of God.

But the truth has survived…. And in order to clearly speak about it, so that certain people would not distort it, in the course of human history, it was meaningful that this knowledge about God needs to be preserved - expressed in clear, unambiguous formulations - dogmas.

Dogma - from the Greek. Δόγμα “Thinking, Believing” is the foundation of the Christian faith. All Christian dogmas are God-revealed. As the path along which we are going must be clear before us, so the worldview must be specific.

3. Symbol of Faith.

The main dogmas are expressed in the Creed - the text adopted by the 1st, 2nd Ecumenical Councils (the world meeting of the clergy christian church). One can disagree with the dogmas set forth in this expression of faith, but, disagreeing with them, a person ceases to be an Orthodox Christian, because loses his Christian worldview.

1 member of the Creed. I believe in foodandGod the Father, Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, visible to all and invisible.

(I believe in one God, the Father, Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, of everything visible and invisible).

From the very first lines, the person reading this confession proclaims that he believes in one God! If you know a little about the Christian doctrine, you will notice an apparent contradiction. How can you say that God is one, if Christianity preaches the trinity of the Godhead (God is the Father, God is the Son, God is the Holy Spirit)? There is no contradiction here, Orthodox Christians believe that God is one, but in three persons. This dogma is incomprehensible to the human mind, although there are some analogies that, although far from fully, try to explain the concept of the Trinity. One of the natural analogies is the sun and the rays and light emanating from it, just as the Son and the Spirit eternally and inseparably originate from the Father. Another similar example is fire, which gives light and warmth, which have unity and difference between themselves. These analogies are very far from expressing the essence of the Trinity dogma, since they are borrowed from a field far from spiritual and personal being.

This one God is the Creator of the material world (people, nature) and the spiritual (angels, demons).

But it should be noted right away that God did not create demons - demons. Creating angels, people, God put free will in them, these creatures can decide for themselves to follow God or not. So, demons are angels who have fallen away, opposed to the Divine.

From the very fact of the creation of all that exists, one thought follows, well expressed in church chants: "For you have the source of life." Indeed, God not only created the world and forgot about it, he contains the world with his energies, that is why it is scary to fall away from God, falling away from Him, man falls away from the source of being.

2 member of the Creed. And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the UnicornOdnago, who was born of the Father before all ages; Light from Light, God true from God true, bornenna, uncreatedenna, consubstantial with the Father,NSsha;

(I believe) and in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the only begotten, born of the Father before all ages; Light from Light, true God from true God, born, not created, one being with the Father, through whom everything was created);

What is said in the second part of the Creed is the cornerstone of the Christian worldview, we are called Christians that we believe in the Deity of Jesus Christ. It is not for nothing that the anathema of the 1st Ecumenical Council reads: "Those who say: There was a time when He [Jesus Christ] was not" ... the apostolic Church excommunicates the faithful. " In fact, the Orthodox Church teaches that the second hypostasis of the Holy Trinity, Jesus Christ, is no different from God the Father, God the Spirit, except that “only the Father is unborn, ... and only the Son is born .... And the Holy Spirit alone is one that proceeds, not begotten, but proceeds from the being of the Father. " Based on this, we affirm that Jesus Christ is also the Creator of the world, also the Source of Life, etc.

3 member of the Creed. For us for the sake of man and for ours for the salvation of the USAecoming from heaven, and incarnate from the Holy SpiritI amthe one of the Virgin Mary, and the vochelovechashaya;

(For us people and for our salvation, he came down from heaven, took flesh from the Holy Spirit and Mary the Virgin, and became a man);

The Orthodox Church teaches that the Lord became incarnate, i.e. took on human flesh, remaining a true God and a true person... Why did this event happen? John Damascene answers this question: "The Incarnation of God - the Word was so that the sinful and fallen and corrupted nature would defeat the deceiving tyrant." This phrase raises a number of questions before the human mind…. Why is nature called fallen, sinning?

At the very dawn of human history, a "universal catastrophe" took place, a person created not participating in evil, morally good, free from worries, but gifted with free will, chooses the path of violating the commandments of God. Adam - the first man breaks the only commandment of God about not eating certain fruits, and by breaking this commandment, a person falls away from the source of life - God, damaging his inner spiritual world... Man became susceptible to disease, he became more prone to evil than to good, but the most unpleasant, terrible person became mortal. And the further humanity developed, the further it deviated from God, the greater the gap between the source of life - God and humanity became.

Over time, people began to understand that their worldview, which is actually distant from God, is distant from the Truth, and accordingly there is a delusion…. It is with this terrible awareness that the emergence of philosophy is connected, which tried to give some impulse to life, to understand the causes of the world, its ultimate goals .... And it is at this time, the time of general disappointment in polytheism, that the Savior comes into the world to sanctify human life, so that a person can become a Human again, which is possible only together with God….

According to St. Athanasius of Alexandria, “God became Man so that man could become God,” that is, Christ gives people the path to perfection, reopens the lost paradise for them.

This is how Jesus Christ is called the new Adam, the founder of a new chapter in the history of mankind.

4 member of the Creed. RaspI amthe same for us under Pontius Pilate, and suffered, and was buried;

(Crucified for us under Pontius Pilate, suffering and buried);

But the Lord does not just come to earth, He suffers and dies according to human nature, sanctifying and destroying even death…. This fact causes bewilderment for many people. It seems incredible that God is the Creator of the world, the Almighty endures mockery from his own creation. But "God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, so that everyone who believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life." That is, by his suffering and death, Christ atone for human sins.

5th member of the Creed. And resurrectioneon the third day, according to the Scriptures;

(And resurrected on the third day, according to the Scriptures (prophetic).

The Lord destroys death by his death, He is resurrected and thus death is no longer terrible for us. This is very strongly expressed by the words of the Passover troparion: "Christ is risen from the dead, trampling death on death, and giving life to those in the grave." Now death is the third birth, birth into eternity, but, here, into what kind of eternity…. Eternity with God or eternity without God depends only on us…. In other words, God took a step towards fallen mankind, now man is given a choice: to take a step towards God or stay aside, on the sidelines of life ....

6 member of the Creed. And wake upego to heaven, and grayI amconductive odesnatyu Father;

(And he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand (on the right hand of) the Father);

After his resurrection, Christ ascends to heaven, thereby showing that in the very flesh of man there is no sin, it, as a creation of God, is holy and perfect. And we are called to keep the holiness of our body, keeping it from sins. It is remarkably said in the Holy Scriptures about this: "Or you do not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit living in you, whom you have from God ...".

7th member of the Creed. And naki ridgeatwith glory judgmentandalive and dead, YehOthere will be no end to the Kingdom.

(And who will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and whose kingdom will have no end.)

What is said in this member of the Creed is the subject of many modern gossip…. Only the lazy one did not discuss the topic of the end of the world now…. We, as Orthodox Christians, firmly know that the end of the world will be, but "no one knows about that day and hour." Unfortunately, there are many cases in history when some leaders tried to profit from the gullibility of their fellow citizens, predicting the end of the world.

The best preparation for the "last times" is the arrangement of one's life according to the commandments of God, in general, for any, concretely taken person, the end can come at any moment, this end will be his death. A Christian must always be ready to meet Christ. One church chant very well expresses these thoughts: "Behold, the Bridegroom comes in midnight, and blessed is His servant who will find vigil ..."

8th member of the Creed. And in the Holy Spirit, Lord Life-GiverI amshchago, who is from the Father who proceeds, who are from the Father and the Son are spoklanI amema and sslaVima, the verb of the prophets.

(I believe) in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, giving life, coming from the Father, worshiped and glorified equally with the Father and the Son, who spoke through the prophets).

With these words, the Orthodox Church confesses the deity of the third hypostasis of the Holy Trinity, which differs from the rest of the Persons only in that it eternally comes from God the Father. As a result, in churches equal worship is given to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit without belittling or exalting any hypostasis.

9th member of the Creed. In foodandwell holyatyu, Catholic and Apostolic Church.

(I believe) and in the One, Holy, Catholic (Ecumenical) and Apostolic Church).

The very beginning of the ninth term makes it clear to anyone reading it that true church one. And this is the Orthodox Church, which preserves the true knowledge of God. The knowledge of the Truth, the knowledge of Christ is a very important component of the life of a Christian, for even in the Holy Scripture it is said: "The Lord is near to all who call on Him, to all who call on Him in the truth." It is very important to know the truth about the Personality to which a person is addressing, otherwise he may fail, having false ideas, choosing the wrong words, doing the wrong actions.

But another point can be confusing in the first lines. How can the Church be united if there are 15 independent Orthodox churches in government? In fact, these Churches are essentially one, united in doctrine, and it is this line that gives the right to speak of a single Church.

Moreover, the Church is called Holy and Catholic, because it is headed by Christ - God, while the patriarch cannot fully govern the Church, for example, change dogmas, abolish the canons, a local council - a collection of clergy and laity of the Church of this given territory.

The holiness of the Church does not mean that anyone who enters it immediately becomes a saint. It only means that it gives us a path to holiness.

10th member of the Creed. Ispoveblowing foodandbut left Baptismesins.

(I confess one baptism for the remission of sins).

In fact, Orthodoxy teaches that through the sacrament of Baptism a person enters the Church, he is, as it were, born for spiritual life, changes, all in himself a seed of grace, which he must grow, living in a Christian way.

To help a person in his Christian life, there are a number of sacraments that must be partaken of. There are two ordinances that every Christian needs to practice on a regular basis. This is the sacrament of Communion, in which we partake of the Lord Himself under the guise of bread and wine. And the sacrament of repentance, in which we repent of our sins. It is worth remembering, starting this sacrament, that repentance "is a decisive change for the better, a breaking of the will, aversion from sin and turning to God."

11th member of the Creed. Tea is riseneof the dead.

(I look forward to the resurrection of the dead).

All people will be resurrected after Christ. But, here, for what, in order to be in God or outside of God, we decide here on earth, right now.

12th member of the Creed. And life batof the spirit of the century. Amen.

(And the life of the century to come. Truly so).

After the resurrection, there will be eternal life, again with or without God.

Conclusion.

Thus, the article considers the dogmas of the Christian church - the basis of our faith, which we must profess both internally - by our deep conviction in them and following the Divine Laws, and externally - by the confession of faith. The sign of the Cross is an example of an external confession of faith, three fingers folded together symbolize the trinity of the Divine, two bent fingers - the dogma of the Incarnation. The cross applied to the body reminds us of Christ's suffering for our sins.

Conversation 2

About spiritual life... According to the teachings of the 12 apostles, there are two ways in a person's life: a way with God and a way without God. It is impossible to go along two paths at once, therefore a person must choose one. The path without God is a sinful life, submission to your passions, your egoism. And the path with God is spiritual life. It is impossible to start it without leaving a sinful life.

Spiritual life is not religious fanaticism. This is a sincere striving for perfection, for the state in which the first man was, before his fall. The essence of spiritual life is to struggle with your sins, to subordinate your passions to your will with the help of the grace of God. It is impossible for a person to live completely without sin, but, as it is written in the Bible, “the righteous one will fall seven times and rise; but the wicked will fall into destruction, ”that is, the difference between the righteous and the sinner is not even in the amount of his sins, but in the spiritual struggle with them, true repentance and striving for God. A spiritual person always looks into his soul and sees the reasons for the troubles occurring with him only in himself, and not in the people around him or in the coincidences of circumstances. Hence the struggle lies with the cause itself - that is, with its inner imperfection.

There is an opinion that even without faith one can be a decent person. What is the difference between the holiness to which Christ calls us and ordinary human decency? Decency implies only control over one's actions, that is, external manifestations. A decent person must be polite, condescending, and help others. However, his inner attitude to this is not so important. Holiness implies, first of all, control over one's thoughts, since thought generates action. A holy person monitors his inner state and does not allow even sinful thoughts into his soul. And good deeds and outward manifestations are already a consequence of spiritual work on oneself.

According to the teachings of the church, there are three components in a person: spirit, soul and body. In a perfect man, the spirit dominates the soul and body, subordinates them to itself. When a person puts the desires of his body in the first place, then this destroys his spiritual life, and turns a person simply into a rational animal. And although in this case a person satisfies all his whims, he still remains unhappy, since that integrity of his nature, called by the church Chastity, is destroyed in him.

Purpose of life man is the acquisition of the Holy Spirit - that is, approaching the ideal that the Gospel gives us and to which the Lord calls. Often people commit many sins and do not even consider it necessary to repent of them, because everyone around them is doing the same. However, Christ calls us to take an example not from “everyone,” but from himself and from holy people. In order to make it easier for us to lead a spiritual life, the Lord gives us a list of commandments - that is, recommendations on how we should act in our Everyday life... Spiritual progress is ultimately and best certified by only one thing: our ability to love. To love - in the sense of pure respect, service, selfless affection that does not require return payment;

The concept of the commandments. During the Exodus of Israel from Egypt, God gave Moses the ten commandments of the moral law, on which all the diversity of interhuman and social relations is based. It was a certain minimum of personal and social morality, without which the stability of human life and social relations is lost.

Ten Commandments of the Old Testament

1. I am the Lord thy God, and there are no other gods besides Me.
2. Do not make yourself an idol and no image; do not worship or serve them.
3. Do not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.
4. Work six days and do all your own works, and the seventh - Saturday - is a day of rest, which you dedicate to the Lord your God.
5. Honor your father and mother, that you be blessed on earth and long.
6. Thou shalt not kill.
7. Don't commit adultery.
8. Don't steal
9. Do not testify perjury.
10. Do not covet anything else.

These commandments speak first of all about Love. To God (the first 4 commandments) and to our neighbors (the remaining 6).

The Lord Jesus Christ did not come into the world to abolish this law: “Do not think that I came to violate the law or the prophets: I did not come to destroy, but to fulfill”.

The Savior's fulfillment of this law was required because since the time of Moses, the understanding of the law had been largely lost. Over the past centuries, the clear and concise imperatives of the Sinai Commandments have been buried under the layers of a huge number of various everyday and ritual prescriptions, the scrupulous execution of which has come to be of primary importance. And behind this purely external, ritual and decorative side, the essence and meaning of the great moral revelation were lost. Therefore, it was necessary to appear to the Lord in order to renew the content of the law in the eyes of people and to re-insert its eternal verbs into their hearts. And moreover, to give a person the means to use this law to save his soul.
Christian commandments, by fulfilling which a person can find happiness and fullness of life, are called the Beatitudes. Bliss is synonymous with happiness.
On a hill near Capernaum in Galilee, the Lord delivered a sermon, which became known as the Sermon on the Mount. And He began it by setting out the nine Beatitudes:

1 Beatitude Commandment: "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for those are the Kingdom of Heaven"

A mutation has now occurred life values, changing all landmarks. Instead of ascending to God, serving Him and being in salvific communion with Him, man directed all his energies towards satisfying the needs of his own selfishness. This state, when a person lives for himself and has his own “I” as the center of his inner universe, is called pride. If vanity appears in a person's life, then it "crosses out" the entire spiritual life of a person. The state opposite to pride, when a person pushes his “I” to the side, and puts God in the center of life, is called humility, or spiritual poverty. To be poor in spirit means to have a spiritual conviction that we have nothing of our own, but have only that grants God, and that we can not do anything good without God's help and grace. Humility is the foundation of the Christian life: when we attribute all our achievements to God, and sins to ourselves. Briefly, according to the explanation of St. John Chrysostom, spiritual poverty is humility. Humility is born of the great inner strength, and anyone who doubts this, let him try to slightly move his own self to the periphery of his concerns and interests. And put God or another person in the main place in your life.

When a person is born into the world, he has nothing "of his own", there is only his nature, created by the Lord. And when he dies, he also cannot take anything with him. So a person is not the owner of his property, but only a temporary manager. A person's talents and gifts are a gift from God, and only to him a humble person should attribute his achievements. Many talented people died spiritually (got drunk, became drug addicts) when they began to ascribe the gift of God to themselves.

Why does the Lord not create every person talented in everything, but only in something of his own? It is for the sake of a person, in need of the help of other people, to become more aware of the imperfection of his nature.

2 Beatitude commandment: "Beatitudes that weep, for they will be comforted"

In the second commandment, the name of mourning should be understood as grief and contrition of the heart for one's sins. Godly sorrow produces unchanging repentance for salvation; but the sorrow of the world produces death. In this commandment, the Lord promises consolation to the repentant, by which should be understood gracious consolation, which consists in the forgiveness of sins and a peaceful conscience. The promise of comfort is necessary so that sorrow for your sins does not reach a state of despair.

However, true repentance is not just a statement of one's sin, with the intention to continue to commit it in the future, but a sincere desire to change one's nature, to get rid of sin.

3 Beatitude commandment: "Blessed beloved ones, for they will inherit the earth"

Meekness is a State of the soul in which anger, hatred, memory malice and condemnation are removed from it. Christian meekness lies in the fact that we should not grumble not only against God, but also against people, and when something happens against our desires, not indulge in anger, not be exalted.

4 Beatitude commandment: "Beatitudes hungry and thirst for righteousness, as they will be satisfied"

Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness are those who do good but do not consider themselves righteous; not relying on their good deeds, they recognize themselves as sinners and guilty before God. Those who, by the desire and prayer of faith, as genuine food and drink, hunger and thirst for the grace-filled justification through Jesus Christ.

Lying - This is a position in which our words do not match our thoughts, knowledge, or actions. The untruth is always associated with double-mindedness or hypocrisy, it expresses a fundamental discrepancy between the external and internal aspects of our life. Man sinned at the instigation of the devil, committed sin under the influence of a lie. Scripture definitely testifies to the nature of the devil: "When he speaks a lie, he speaks of his own, for he is a liar and the father of lies." A person who does deeds of unrighteousness and sows lies around him is divided in himself, like a doomed kingdom, and loses the unity of his nature.

5 Beatitude commandment: "Beatitudes of mercy, for they will be merciful."

Mercy, or mercy, is, first of all, a person's ability to effectively respond to someone else's misfortune. This commandment should be fulfilled through bodily and spiritual deeds of mercy. The bodily works of mercy are to feed the hungry; give drink to the thirsty; dress naked (lacking necessary and decent clothing); visit the one in the dungeon; visit the sick, serve him and help his recovery or Christian preparation for death; take the wanderer into the house and provide rest; to bury the dead in poverty and misery.

Spiritual works of mercy: an admonition to turn the sinner from his wrong way (James 5:20); to teach those who do not know the truth and goodness; to give good and timely advice to a neighbor in difficulty or in case of danger he does not notice; to pray for our neighbor God; comfort the sad; not to repay for the evil done to us by others; with all my heart to forgive insults.

He who does not fulfill the law of mercy will receive his punishment on the Day of Judgment.

6 Beatitude commandment: "Blessed are pure in heart, for they will see God"

Genuine purity of the heart is achieved by constant and unremitting feat of vigilance over oneself, expelling from the heart any unlawful desire and thought, addiction to earthly objects, with faith and love unceasingly keeping in it the memory of the Lord God Jesus Christ.

The Word of God allegorically endows the human heart with sight and calls Christians to make the eyes of the heart see. As a healthy eye can see light, so a pure heart can contemplate God. Since seeing God is the source of eternal bliss, the promise to see Him is the promise of a high degree of eternal bliss. God does not reveal himself to an unclean heart. The moral state of a person is an indispensable condition for the knowledge of God.

Wisdom is not included in the evil soul. She does not dwell in a body that is guilty of sin.

A person's personal relationship with God goes through three successive stages - a slave, a mercenary and a son. A slave is the first stage when a person fulfills the commandments of God out of fear of punishment, a mercenary - pleasing God for the sake of a reward in heaven. And the son is sincere love for the heavenly Father, for the sake of which a person strives for Him. That is, this is the true purity of the heart.

7 Beatitude commandment: "Blessed are the peacemakers, as the sons of God will be called"

Being a peacemaker means acting in a friendly manner and not giving cause for disagreement; to stop the disagreement that has arisen by all means, even by compromising one's own interests, unless this contradicts the duty and does not harm anyone; try to reconcile those at war with each other, and if this is not possible, then pray to God for their reconciliation. the promise of being called the sons of God signifies the height of the podvig of the peacekeepers and the reward prepared for them. Since by their feat they imitate the only begotten Son of God, who came to earth to reconcile a sinned man with the justice of God, they are promised the blessed name of the sons of God and, no doubt, a degree of bliss worthy of this name.

peace is not a negative concept, that is, characterized by a simple absence of signs of confrontation, but a deeply positive state: a kind of fertile reality that supplants the idea of ​​enmity and fills the space of the human heart or social relations. According to the Monk Seraphim of Sarov, "Acquire the spirit of peace - and thousands will be saved around you." That is, we must create the world first of all in our own soul. So that there is no imbalance or contradiction within us.

8 Beatitude commandment: "Be blessed to cast out righteousness, for those are the Kingdom of Heaven"

Living in truth is a work and a challenge, fraught with risk, because there are too many lies in the world we live in.... Those who desire bliss must be ready to endure persecution for the truth, without betraying it. In order to steadfastly endure persecution for truth, one needs truthfulness, constancy and firmness in virtue, as well as courage and patience in standing in truth and virtue in the event of disaster or danger.

9 Beatitude commandment: "Be blessed, when they reproach you, and wait, and rekut every evil verb against you lying, for Me's sake: Rejoice and be merry, for your reward is much in heaven." disaster and death itself for the name of Christ and for the true Orthodox faith. The deed corresponding to this commandment is called martyrdom. According to Tertullian: "The blood of the martyrs is the seed of Christianity"

The concept of prayer. Appointment of prayer.

Prayer is turning the mind and heart to God.

During prayer, we talk with God. Prayer is needed to unite a person with God. But not every prayer can be answered: we will be heard if we prove ourselves worthy to receive what we ask for; if we pray in accordance with the laws of God about prayer; if we pray incessantly, if we don't ask for anything unworthy; if we ask for something useful; if we do what we deserve on our part. True prayer must first of all come from the heart and must not be disingenuous or formal.

Every day must begin and end with prayer. First, it is better to take a small prayer rule for yourself, the main thing is that prayer should be from the heart, and not just a formal pronunciation of words. You can pray in your own words, but it's better when prayers written by holy people become close to our hearts.

Fasting concept. The appointment of the post.

Fasting is the oldest church tradition.

The fasting time is especially important for the spiritual life. By fasting one must understand not only abstinence in food, but the totality of all ascetic means in the struggle with passions. It is necessary to observe both bodily and spiritual fasting. Physical fasting is our sacrifice to God, we limit ourselves in our desires and do not eat what we want most. But bodily fasting is only an auxiliary means for spiritual fasting - that is, the purification of one's soul, intensive work on oneself. The gastronomic component of fasting is not a goal, but only a means for a correct spiritual life based on prayer and the sacraments of repentance and Communion. The main purpose of fasting is spiritual development. Fasting also serves to prepare a person for certain church holidays.

About the temple... The church is a hospital for the healing of human souls. Therefore, every Christian should regularly attend church services. First of all, the temple is a place of common prayer for Christians. Also, the Church offers us seven sacraments - that is, the sacraments revealed in Orthodox church rites, through which the invisible Divine grace or the saving power of God is communicated to believers, strengthening them in spiritual life and helping in deliverance from sins. In Orthodoxy it is accepted seven sacraments: baptism, chrismation, the Eucharist (communion), repentance, the sacrament of the priesthood, the sacrament of marriage and the blessing of the uncle.

The two main sacraments that every Christian must constantly approach are the sacraments of Repentance and Communion.

Repentance(Confession) serves to cleanse the soul of a Christian from sins. Any confession should become, on the one hand, a look at the past, and on the other hand, a program for future exploits, for struggle, for victory over oneself in the name of God and in the name of one's neighbor.

Communion(Eucharist) - Communion is a Sacrament in which the believer, under the guise of bread and wine, receives the very Body and Blood of Christ for eternal life... In this sacrament, the Christian spiritually unites with the Lord Jesus Christ Himself and becomes a partaker of eternal life. The sacrament is the main part of all Christian worship. Before accepting this sacrament, every Christian must clear his conscience by repenting for his sins, which is facilitated by fasting and prayer.

Thus, going to the temple is not a harsh duty, but a necessity. Just as we eat food not because we like it and not because someone forces us to do it, but simply because we feel the need for it, so attending the service should be a constant need of our soul.

Reading spiritual literature. A Christian must constantly correlate his life with Divine Laws and with the experience of the Church. For this, it is necessary to constantly read the Holy Scriptures and spiritual literature. When we read an ordinary book, we are imbued with the spirit of the author who wrote it, just as when reading the Holy Scripture, the Grace of the Holy Spirit acts on us. Scripture contains the foundations of our faith. The historical pages of the Bible are still dear to us because they not only truthfully recount the events of the past, but place them in the correct religious perspective. In this respect, no other secular ancient or modern book can compare with the Bible. And this is because the assessment of the events described in the Bible was given not by man, but by God.

The Holy Gospel describes the earthly life of Jesus Christ - the ideal to which Christians should strive.

It is necessary to constantly, throughout life, read one chapter from the Gospel and the Epistles of the Apostles every day. It is better to read the Holy Scripture with interpretations on it - in them its content is revealed more deeply.

Responsibilities godparents:

The “godparents” have 3 main responsibilities in relation to the godchildren:

1. "Prayer". The godfather is obliged to pray for his godson, and also, as he grows, teach prayer so that the godson himself can communicate with God and ask Him for help in all his life circumstances.

2. "Doctrine". Teach the godson in the basics of the Christian faith, and if you yourself are not knowledgeable enough, then first fill in the blanks yourself.

3. "Moral". By your own example, you must show the baby the human virtues - love, kindness, mercy, etc., so that the baby grows up as a real good Christian.

On April 10, at the Optina Compound in St. Petersburg, another Sunday spiritual talk was held under the leadership of Abbot Abbot Arseny (Mosalev).

According to the established tradition, the first part of the conversation was devoted to reading the chapters from the Gospel and the Apostle by heart. Then, Abbot Arseny and Abbot Ephraim talked with the parishioners on spiritual topics, questions were asked by the parishioners of our church, who had gathered after the service in the refectory. We bring to your attention some of the Sunday talks and advice from the monastery brethren.

At the beginning of the conversation, the conversation turned to the reading of patristic writings, in particular, about the "Ladder" of St. John of Sinai (6-7 centuries), whose memory is celebrated Orthodox Church in the 4th Week of Lent.

Abbot ARSENIUS: We are used to paying attention to the sins of other people, to apply the Gospel to others. "What did you see the bitch in your brother's eye, bervna, the hedgehog is in your brother's eye, don't you smell it?"() Why is it so? For many reasons. It is much easier to fight, for example, for the purity of Orthodoxy, because it seems to be clear: you cannot pray together with Catholics and so on. It is much easier to fight against disorder in church life, to monitor the behavior of the bishops of the church, and the like. It is much easier to relate strictly to external things and demand, for example, from others to read the rule before the sacrament of the Holy Mysteries ... And moreover, everything is someone else, and we strive for them, apply the Gospel to others. But all the Holy Fathers say that the Gospel must be applied, first of all, to oneself. The gospel is addressed to everyone personally. Lord says that "And the hair of your head has been read the essence"(). On we talked about fulfilling the commandments of God, and that the commandments are not just moral laws, what is good and what is bad. But, as Christ said: "I am the Way, the Truth and the Belly"(), that is, this is our path to Christ, to the peace of Christ. And the Lord says: "The spirit of truth, His world cannot accept, as if it does not see Him, below it knows Him: you know Him, as it dwells in you and will be in you"(). But modern world, we, today's Christians, do not know the world of Christ. We must clearly understand this and be horrified by this, because we are among those chosen ones, as the Apostle says, "You are the chosen race, the royal priesthood, the holy people"(). But, in fact, we are not like that, because we know everything by the letter of the law: we always offer someone else to repent, we fight for the purity of Orthodoxy, and so on. And in order to cleanse our heart, and Christ entered into it, how to do this - we do not know, we do not know at all! So, what is next? This is the worst thing ... We forget about keeping our hearts pure. We don't know how to clean it up. And it is said "Nothing badly enters the kingdom of heaven"(prayer to St. Prophet John the Baptist). We show our ignorance. Let me remind you that the three giants who prevent us from cleansing our hearts and coming to Christ are 1) ignorance, 2) oblivion, and 3) corruption, or despondency, you can also call it that. But so that we do not constantly abide in these three sins, so that these three giants do not frighten us, the Holy Fathers left us a lot of creations to guide us, not about what is good and what is bad, but how to cleanse our heart and come to Christ .. One person knows from experience what to do. The other follows an experienced person, and it is easier for him in spiritual life. The third one is guided by the creations of the Holy Fathers. The saddest thing is that, in spite of all the wealth left to us by the Fathers, we leave it in oblivion, remain ignorant, and treat the words of Scripture with laziness. In oblivion - because once read and forgotten. In ignorance - we read it, but we do not participate (we are not guided) ... And we get such a vicious circle. Of course, it is very important here to know and clearly understand the essence of this struggle (against passions), gradual, correct. Now Week of the Monk John Climacus, just as he described in his book "Ladder" 30 steps, according to the number of the Savior's life before going out with a sermon. Saint John clearly described, ascending to each step, how gradually a person begins to grow spiritually, and what kind of struggle he meets at each step, how for us to walk the path of Christian life correctly in order to purify our heart. There is a short, ascetic path that we cannot afford today; an example of such a path is shown in the 5th chapter of "Ladders" in the section about "Dungeon"(located in the monastery itself), when it is spoken of a young man, a young monk who, through obedience, decided to live among the "condemned" and soon, with tears of repentance, achieved purification of his heart and reposed in the Lord. Most go the middle way, it is also called the "royal" way, quietly overcoming one struggle after another, gaining victory over passion or falling; but when we fall, we also gain experience, because, as the apostle Paul says: "Sorrow makes patience, patience is art, art is hope, but hope does not shame"(). That is, we know that if we act again, for example, badly, then we will "fall" again.

PARISH WOMAN: That is, spiritual sight appears?

IGUMEN ARSENIY: Not spiritual sight, but experience. Spiritual sight is a littleother. Spiritual vision is the second stage of spiritual reasoning, it is an intelligent feeling that makes it possible to recognize and distinguish bad from good, what is disgusting to good, and what is natural to a person. And a person from a long experience in spiritual life already sees this struggle, he can prompt and give advice.

PARISH WOMAN: May I have a question? Is it possible to have spiritual vision at a young age, or is this inherent only in elders? It just seems to me that I have met people who have a sense of spiritual sight at an early age.

IGUMEN ARSENIUS: Saint Isaac the Syrian writes that such a state comes after a long time and through a multitude of sorrows.

PARISH WOMAN: That is, at a young age - no.

IGUMEN ARSENIUS: All the fathers speak about the duration of the test, and we know that the Lord does not lead everyone to the old age. I would like to draw your attention once again so that we do not abandon the patristic reading, and especially The Ladder, which was considered in Russia the most beloved book and the most read, it was read by both monks and laity. If we lead a lukewarm life, focus on our pseudo-Christianity, so we will remain a burden to ourselves and to others.

IGUMEN EFREM: When was the last time you read The Ladder?

PARISH WOMAN: I haven't read it yet. Now I am reading Saint Ignatius (Brianchaninov). But "Ladder" is the same high work, you are simply amazed at the greatness of the thought, but at the same time you understand that it is very difficult to perform ... this feat is needed ...

IGUMAN ARSENIY: The Ladder is re-read every year during Great Lent. As usual, you read it for the first time and say to yourself: "Now I will do everything along the Ladder." And during this year they realized that they did not do everything that they wanted to do along the Ladder, they could not. And they decided that next year you will definitely do, as it is said in "The Ladder". And the next year it turned out twice as bad as last year. And also in the third year ... And in the fourth year, you understand your weakness, that without God we cannot do anything.

ATTENDANT: In the first chapter of The Ladder, the first step is "Renunciation of the world"... Tell me, please, what does renunciation of the world mean for a layman?

IGUMEN EFREM: The Ladder is, in fact, written more for monks, and everything that is written in it is about monastic society. And how to apply it to you, if even for monks today it is impossible to say what renunciation of the world means, since peacefulness (here and below the word is used in the meaning of “ world love ”) so amazed everyone that we do not even know what is renunciation of the world? The apostle spoke "Do not love the world, do not like the world" (), "The world lies in evil"() and so on, so on. Of course, if a person gives preference to the material rather than the spiritual, this will be peacefulness ... They said that they read Saint Ignatius (Brianchaninov), he wrote a lot about peacefulness, that modern society is permeated with peacefulness, that it is not useful for a monk to communicate with worldly people because they bring peace to monastic life. And you yourself must somehow limit yourself, and your conscience tells you how far you have deviated into attachment to the world. For example, you are walking along the road and some kind of beautiful advertisement: and you can pass by and not look at it. And so in every moment. You can abstain from food and everything else. You can behave meekly in society, with people. Suppose that Saint Ambrose of Mediolana had his own spiritual school, and he could already determine the inner world of a person by his gait. And some he did not take to his spiritual school, because the gait betrayed a person.

PARKHOZHANIN: Can you ask a question. For example, when a person chooses the monastic path, he turns out to set a very high bar for himself that he must overcome, and he renounces the world, makes vows, and they are specific, the person will have to fulfill them, but if he does not fulfill them?

IGUMEN EFREM: We just talked about the Ladder. And the Ladder clearly says why you need to go to the monastery. Read The Ladder, find this place yourself, everything is written there. And we are not talking about some kind of plan, if a person has sinned ... The harlot crawled to Christ and washed His feet with tears, and the Lord said: "Go, your faith saved you"(). This is how we all crawled into Optina Hermitage, there was no talk of any plan, we didn’t even read The Ladder. And what is sung at the tonsure, do you know which troparion is sung at the tonsure? "The embrace of the Father stretched out with holes, prodigally living my life ...", and we crawl to the abbot in white shirts, like a prodigal son. There was no question of a high bar, there was no such thing that once they read "The Ladder" and came. That's right, Father Arseny explained now that every year we read The Ladder and understand that we are farther and farther from God. Remember what the prodigal son said when he came to his father, simple words: "Those who sinned into heaven and before you"(). And the whole monastic life consists in the consciousness of one's own weakness and repentance. And the more you live in the monastery, the more you understand this.

PARISH MAN: Bless, father. The Holy Fathers have such an idea that learn to pray, and prayer will teach you everything. What meaning do they put into these words?

Igoumen Ephraim: The main thing is that Christ should always be in the heart, this is the most important thing, it makes sense. If we pray incessantly, then, naturally, we will be in sobriety, and we will evaluate every word, every thought we have, whether God pleases or not. But speaking in context, now there are no such people who could pray incessantly and be incessantly in sobriety. If, perhaps, there are examples on Athos, then in Russian monasticism, I do not know of such examples. You asked about peacefulness, then our very misfortune is peacefulness and inconstancy, inconsistency in prayer.

PARISH WOMAN: What about the fact that I come to confession every time with the same sins ..., something “disappears”, something is repeated again?

IGUMAN ARSENIUS: The Lord Himself said how many times to forgive, when the apostles asked him: "I do not speak to you up to seventy times, but up to seventy times in seven dimensions"(), that is, infinite. But a person must constantly notice his sins and mistakes. Therefore, Saint Isaac the Syrian says that there is a cleansing from the sins from which you speak, over a long time, a very long time, and through many sorrows. And we are impatient and cowardly, we repeat the sin - and we begin to get irritated, and we apply sin to sin, instead of reproaching ourselves and moving on.

PARISH WOMAN: Or maybe this is because you insincerely repent, because if you sincerely repent, in fact, you will not repeat this sin.

Igoumen Ephraim: As the Apostle John the Theologian says that there is a sin to death, but there is not to death(on ). If sin leads to death, this is a special issue. And if we commit a sin not to death, that which we constantly confess, and in which we cannot but sin: by thoughts, and feelings, and smell, and taste, and touch. We must understand that our fallen nature will manifest itself in any case.

PARISH WOMAN: But in confession I promise not to sin. It turns out a contradiction that I promise not to sin, but I understand that I will come to confession next time with the same sins - so, on a subconscious level, I already make an insincere promise?

IGUMEN ARSENY: Father Ambrose said, "where it is simple - there are about a hundred angels, and where it is tricky - there is not a single one." Be simpler, without any subconsciousness: you sinned through human weakness and weakness, then you repented. And most importantly - be patient and patient, first of all, yourself.

PARKHOJOZHAN: And what does it mean to endure yourself?

Hegumen ARSENY: This means to endure ourselves when we promise, we try to correct ourselves, and again we do the same. This is one piece of patience for yourself.

PARISH MAN: Father, probably this refers to what is written in prayer to the Mother of God in the evening canon, that we promise and sin again: “I find myself lying before God ...

IGUMEN ARSENY: ... and I repent trembling, so that the Lord will not strike me in any way, and I create little packs every hour ”.

PARISH WOMAN: And in the Follow-up to the Communion of the Holy Mysteries, the same is written about this, that I stand before the temple and before the Chalice, but still a sinner.

IGUMEN ARSENIY: Of course.

Parishioner: Father, should unceasing prayer be performed, even if you are working, for example?

Igoumen Ephraim: Of course, if there is no one around and the work is simple, for example, you transfer nails from place to place, then you can constantly repeat the Jesus Prayer: "Lord Jesus Christ Son of God, have mercy on me."

PARISH MAN: And it happens, father, that prayer itself "flows" ... My grandmother taught me prayer as a child, when I did not even understand what prayer is, and when it was difficult life span, for years, and the prayer was "Lord have mercy. Lord have mercy…", automatic. Can this be called the Jesus Prayer?

IGUMEN EFREM: You can. The Lord, perhaps, gives us such special circumstances so that we learn the Jesus Prayer through the circumstances. Remember how Elder Silouan told when a warrior came to his bookstore and they started talking about prayer, and he told how he prayed on the battlefield when bullets whistled. And what then did Elder Silouan say? That he saw real prayer, like a man prays. Although he was a worldly man and learned to pray during the war. Here you are. It happens that people find such sorrows that it remains to call only the name of God: "Lord have mercy". And the Lord puts us in circumstances so that we constantly learn to pray. And in sorrow there remains the only hope - God, and no one else and nothing else, and to whom will we go, no matter how God, whom we turn to, no matter how God, who else can hear us? The Monk Ephraim the Syrian says specifically that God Himself knows that apart from Him no one will help us. Christ Himself knows that there is no other helper for us besides Him. And you are all right when you say that you need to pray, only you need to try to do it, and do it incessantly, but we do not do it.

PARISH MAN: And my prayer itself comes, "pours" ...

IGUMEN EFREM: If what you say is true, then it is better not to tell anyone about it, only to discuss it with your confessor.

PARISH MAN (other): So you can't even share with a friend?

IGUMEN EFREM: If there is a friend who could understand you, then you can. But there are probably only a few such people with whom one could talk about prayer, suppose, and communicate, and understand each other. But more often there is a misunderstanding - this is at best, and at worst it is a mockery. But we cannot bear the ridicule, because we are talking about the innermost. Therefore, by doing so, maybe the Lord makes us understand so that we learn to live in our heart, and when Christ is in our heart, this is fullness, and we no longer need anything.

PARISH WOMAN: Father, how valuable is earthly life in relation to heavenly life, Eternal? If you can tell, in percentage terms - how much is earthly, how much is eternal?

IGUMEN EFREM: In terms of percentage, it is probably difficult to judge. We cannot distribute the grace of God by interest ...

IGUMEN ARSENY: "God gives too much spirit" ().

IGUMEN EFREM: Yes. I think that the more a person is blessed, the less he will love earthly life. As the apostle Paul said: "I have a desire to be resolved and be with Christ, because it is incomparably better"(). That is, Christ already lived in him, and he wanted to Christ, but for the sake of preaching, for the sake of the disciples, for the sake of building the Church of Christ on earth, the Lord left him. As much as we fear death, so much we love life; the less we fear death and strive for Christ, the less we will pay attention to this life. For example, I’ll tell you the story of an old man from "Charity", be sure to read this book: they came to one elder, and he was so much in prayer, he was so blessed and was in contemplation that when he raised his hands, he no longer remembered either the time or anything earthly, and for several days he could stand with raised hands therefore, when disciples came to him, he raised his hands and immediately dropped them, so as not to go into contemplation.

CLIENT: Wow ...

Igoumen Ephraim: Imagine, he could stand in prayer for several days, and the disciples were still worldly, earthly, so he quickly dropped his hands so as not to leave in contemplation and leave the disciples without instruction.

PARISH WOMAN: But earthly life also matters.

IGUMEN EFREM: Earthly life matters for the future life. And if the goal itself is earthly life, to have life, then I don't know ...

Parish: May I have a question. And what about situations in which feelings of joy or sadness arise. It turns out that these states arise automatically, and there is no choice whether to experience this state or not to experience it. And if you can still fight with joy when, for example, things are going well. Then with sadness - it is impossible ... How to be in this state, how to extinguish?

IGUMEN ARSENY: How can I pay off here? If you notice a feeling of sadness, then pray, and in prayer, in Jesus prayer "Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me" just reproach yourself, and then tell it in confession.

Parishioner: The fact is that I pray, and they find even greater sorrows.

Igoumen Ephraim: We are constantly in battle, in spiritual war, and the wicked one sees that you have begun to pray and call on God. Naturally, there can be even larger attacks.

IGUMEN ARSENY: The Evil One may begin to confuse you, confuse you, send thoughts that this sadness is from the fact that you are praying. Therefore, there must be experience of struggle.

IGUMEN EFREM: If you have not read the letters of St. John Chrysostom to Olympias, who was a devoted disciple of the saint, then read it. She was very sad that she parted with him when, as you know, he was exiled, and she was left without her teacher. And so the saint in letters to her writes about grief, read it, and writes to her that even the Apostle Paul, when he did not find Titus, he was grieved (see). That is, the saints also had that worldly feeling of sadness, which does not immediately pass. Sometimes sadness does not go away for years, and you only hold on to "Lord have mercy", that's all. And nothing else can save us, another thought, as soon as "Lord have mercy"... And this is peculiar to people, and we will not go anywhere from this. Sadness always haunts us. Sadness, sorrow, illness ... And it happens that the Lord does not specifically hear us and makes it clear what it means to be without God, to feel abandonment, and often so in our time, a time without grace, and it happens that we feel what it means to be without God.

Also, some other issues were discussed at the Sunday spiritual talk.

On September 17, 2017, Fyodor Efimovich Vasilyuk, Doctor of Psychology, Professor, Chief Researcher of the Laboratory of Counseling Psychology and Psychotherapy at PI RAO, Head of the Department of Individual and Group Psychotherapy at Moscow State University of Psychotherapy, President of the Association for Understanding Psychotherapy, passed away. Today, on the day of the funeral service and the funeral of the servant of God Theodore, the site Pravoslavie.Ru publishes an interview with a psychotherapist given to our portal 3 years ago.

About whether clergymen need knowledge of psychotherapy and about the experience of teaching psychotherapy to students - a conversation with Fedor Efimovich Vasilyuk, a psychotherapist, doctor of psychological sciences, professor, head of the department of individual and group psychotherapy at the Moscow City Psychological and Pedagogical University.

- Fedor Efimovich, as far as I know, your classes at the universities where you teach are also attended by clergy. Please tell us about it.

Such cases are not so frequent, but, nevertheless, we are pleased when priests find themselves in psychology and psychotherapy classes. In particular, I remember one archpriest near Moscow. He explained his interest in psychology as follows: “I am not going to become a professional psychologist, I am a priest. I have a lot of tasks in the parish, school, social service, work with children's families, and I need different specialists - and psychologists in particular. I want to understand that they can, I want to manage this process with knowledge of the matter, and therefore I receive such an in-depth education. " Here is one of the motives.

- Why did others need psychotherapy?

I can remember another Moscow priest who is currently undergoing a long program. First of all, he would like to deepen and, perhaps, do more exact way conducting spiritual conversations with parishioners. It seems to him that in child, family and adult psychotherapy he will find some tools that he can build into his priestly ministry, into counseling.

- Actually, pastoral counseling and psychotherapy are not the same thing.

Not to analyze and give advice, but to participate in a person's experience of some of his troubles, problems.

This is a double-edged sword, because psychology can sometimes imagine itself to be so self-sufficient, helping, as it were, from itself. And the church counseling is still building this work of help in such a way as to call on the Lord to participate, to participate in this, in overcoming trouble, crisis, in family troubles, etc. This, it seems to me, is the cardinal difference.

- Please tell us about your course that you taught to seminarians.

It takes in general, on the basis of higher psychological education, three years - training in "Understanding Psychotherapy". We proceed from the fact that in psychotherapy we meet a person in crisis, in some hopeless situation, in a situation of impossibility, when he cannot do anything about his misfortune, loss, some kind of betrayal. Nothing can be done, it has come true ... Some trouble has happened, but you have to live. And what is left for a person? It remains for him to survive this situation. To survive means to perform such a mental work that will rethink some values, your attitudes, attitude to life. It is this work of experience that is the main one in "Understanding Psychotherapy", therefore the psychotherapist's business is not then to analyze and give advice, recommendations, etc., but to participate in this work of experience. And what the psychotherapist does we call empathy. This is not only an emotional response, but also intellectual complicity, this is also the inclusion in the analysis of his situation. Empathy is all that the therapist does to help a person with their experience. This is the main meaning, and the method by which a person does it is the method of understanding. With the students, we mastered the basic techniques of understanding another person. It turns out that this is not the easiest thing; maybe even the most difficult one is understanding. This is what the course was about - this alphabet of techniques for understanding another person in trouble.

- And what did you manage to achieve in such a short course?

Well, I think the students learned this alphabet. Perhaps you remember - and I remember - that joy when, for the first time on the street, a word is formed from the letters that you already know. There were just letters, and now - a word! "Bread", you read, "Milk". This is a great joy. It seems to me that the students not only mastered these letters, but also learned to read "Bread" and "Milk". They took the first step of such a professional psychological assistance.

- How successfully did they achieve this without having a psychological education?

There were difficulties here, but the seminarians overcame them brilliantly. Of course, a number of concepts require some preparation, reading books. But, nevertheless, the lack of this knowledge in this case could be compensated for by two, it seems to me, things. First, at the expense of logic. After all, the course was taught to graduate seminarians, these were guys with a very well-trained mindset. It is important to be able to think well. They have such an organized mind. And second: they are quite empathetic emotionally. It is, in fact, the presence of a mind and a heart that made it possible to overcome the deficit of education in the field of psychology. Therefore, I am pleased with the result.

Fedor Efimovich, how do seminarians differ from psychology students at secular universities in your perception?

Of course, at universities, a lecture does not begin with "Heavenly King ..." But this seemingly external difference leaves its mark on the internal space of communication. Students at regular universities seem to be more open-minded; seminary students at first - so more withdrawn, as if their uniforms were buttoned up. Students of ordinary universities are more emotionally animated, and students of seminary ... one can feel that they have a lot of feelings, emotions, emotional life, but it seems to be like in nuclear reactor seething, so restrained. Both secular students and seminary students may have a lot of water, but there water is splashed everywhere, and here it is collected in a well and a feeling of greater depth.

- And what made the most, perhaps, a vivid impression on you?

It came as some surprise to me that at the very beginning of the course, many seminarians who needed to respond to some complaint of a conditional patient suddenly began to speak a little sermon, instructions, explanations of why, because of sinfulness, this happens to people. In this there was sometimes such an excess, for my taste, of edification ... But it passed rather quickly. I was amazed at how quickly they went in several sessions this way to allow themselves more open, free, lively communication in such a situation that they will meet every day when they need to support someone.

During breaks and after classes, I know that students asked you questions, approached you. What did they ask?

The questions were very different. One of the students is just a case when such discipline does not reach any inhuman limits, and they remain just people, just young boys, and thank God! - so, one of the students asked a question at the lecture, and then, while we were discussing other issues, fell asleep. And when I came to the answer to his question, I asked the seminarians sitting next to him to wake him up. They woke him up. He, poor man, woke up, and I said: "I am now answering your question, keep yourself awake for a minute." I answered and said: "Well, now you can continue to sleep." The man is tired, apparently. But then he came up with a very personal question. He has some kind of defect, his own peculiarity of speech, which he wants to correct as a future priest, because he understands that he needs to preach. And he asked me to advise him from a colleague, a psychologist, who would help him to fight these speech peculiarities, to cope. That is, it was this kind of very personal sometimes questions aimed at help. There were also such: where did it come from and why is it needed? does it not claim to replace the Church? and the like. Such acute, important, lively questions. So thank you very much for the opportunity to teach this course.

With the blessing of His Grace Innocent, Bishop of Nizhny Tagil and Serov, Mourning female the monastery on November 8, 2015 opened a new spiritual and educational project"Pastoral conversations c parishionersonquestions of faith.12 conversations with priests ”.

Objective of the project: to encourage listeners to a genuine communal life in the fullness of the truth of Christ, to expand the Christian worldview, to give Christians answers to their questions about Orthodoxy.

Conversations are designed for a wide range of listeners.Venue: Library of the Sorrow Monastery.

Due to the fact that the topic “ Religious and moral state modern society and the ways of salvation in it " Vladyka Innokenty reserves the right to (while the date of the conversation is not known) and with possible changes in the dates of subsequent conversations, we only inform about the next meetings with the priests.

Follow the announcements and announcements in the temples of the city.

Hierarchy of Christian values. Is there a place for Christ in our hearts? The meaning of the formation of a Christian worldview
Holy Scripture and Holy Tradition in our lives
Christian community: from the holy apostles to the present day
What is a church-going person? Problems and mistakes in churching	December
About the Sacraments of Confession and Communion in the light of the document "On the participation of the faithful in the Eucharist "	January
Preparation for the Sacrament of Baptism. The need for public talks. Baptism of infants	February
Obedience, freedom and personality	February
The secret of humility	March
A family. Church marriage. How to bring up children in modern conditions?	March
Child in the Church. Should children be forced to church? How to tell a child about the Sacrament?	April
Should we try to bring our neighbors to God? How can we talk about faith with non-church relatives and other people? Why don't all people become believers?

Regent Nikolay

I have been singing in the church since 1993. I came to the parish in 1992 for the first prayer service, it was still served behind closed doors, and since then began to go to church regularly, almost without missing services. Spiritual experience began to take shape when spiritual conversations between the priest and the parishioners began in the church, which took place at the beginning in the church. We always went to the akathist of St. Demetrius on Sunday evening, and immediately after that these conversations took place. The conversations touched upon the foundations of the Orthodox faith.

It was very interesting, the atmosphere is very simple, family-like. We put benches right in the church, we sat down, the church was heated by a stove-stove. Burning logs crackled, the priest stood by the analogion, spoke softly, not like a sermon, and recounted from the synopsis. He then had a photocopy of Bp. Barnabas "Fundamentals of the Art of Holiness", and from there was the main material of the conversations. Much has been added from the catechism. Very interesting. I then had extremely poor ideas about Orthodox faith, and therefore learned a lot for the first time. And although I was baptized about two years before these events, in 1991, the church knowledge was still lacking. In these conversations, I could already feel the atmosphere of the parish, its spirit, and I liked it. The parishioners, the altar readers, and the kliros sat side by side during the conversations. It was a kind of discovery for me that both the clergy and the parishioners are all at the same time, all together. They are also ordinary people. I began to perceive the Church not only as a gathering of Orthodox Christians, but even closer. This congregation has its core - the parish, which makes the “congregation” so united. This was a discovery for me. My spiritual experience gained in Ochakovo. My father and I tried to come to work and physically, when the territory was cleared of garbage, which was here in huge quantities. Boards, stones, fittings - what was there. They carried water for the refectory, bricks for the temple. We did everything that was needed then. At the beginning of 1993, during Great Lent, the canon of St. Andrew of Crete, and the priest invited me to the altar. I was in seventh heaven with happiness that I could see the church service from the inside. And I tried to visit the temple even more often, to attend the service, even sometimes to the detriment of training sessions... At the altar I was with Kirill Zhuravlev and, although he was younger than me, I learned to altar from him, adopted his church experience. Father also helped me master this activity. I consider it very important for myself that during these transitional years, I found myself in such a team where it was really possible to study church life. Father in many ways influenced my upbringing in these difficult teenage years, for which I am immensely grateful to him. Every week I confessed and received the Holy Mysteries of Christ, which was even more important for the confirmation in the faith. Imperceptibly for myself, I was changing, and I only felt that life was becoming easier, more joyful. For those who worked then at the church, one trailer was enough. Our common meals were held there, where the priest spoke on spiritual topics, told something. An instructive word was read at the meal. We often lingered here, listening and questioning the priest. It brought us all together very much. It was felt that the parish is more than our joint work on cleaning the territory of the temple. A connection was established between people completely different: both in age, and in knowledge, in social status. We adjusted to each other, endured, got used to, really becoming one big family. Life was full of this everyday work: the labors at the church and the labors of communion.

More and more people came. I switched to my studies, then went to work in the Danilov Monastery in the carpentry workshop, where I worked for 3 years, after which I worked there for 2 years in prosphora. But I did not leave the Ochakov parish, I came to the choir, and we sang here. Each began to deal narrowly with his own profile business: the choir - his own, Sunday School his workshops (carpentry and blacksmith) are also a special affair. The more people appeared, the more the initial atmosphere of parish communion changed. The meal has become large and roomy. We were already sitting in separate groups, and there appeared male and female tables. There were no more opportunities to ask questions, to have conversations, and meals changed. True, the tradition of reading spiritual teachings at the table was preserved. Everyone began to do only their own specific business. Salaries appeared, as the activity began to be carried out in a narrow professional manner. There was only one responsibility - to help the temple, but now she also became the responsibility for the fulfillment of her professional work. Want it or not. And when they began to work through “want it or not,” and through “must,” then temptations began to appear. At that time, being within the framework of the kliros, I stopped seeing, and what was happening in other places, I stopped seeing the inner life of the parish, only external changes were noticed. They were very important: the temple became tidier, new clergy appeared, the kliros grew, new chants appeared, and a complex dynamics of visiting the kliros was formed. Sometimes unchurched people came to us, but gradually they poured into the church life. All these changes around us influenced our worldliness. But thanks to the church sacraments, the spiritual guidance of Fr. Dimitri (he rallied all of us), everyone has such an inner core, which did not give the opportunity to dissolve in the mundane, and it seems to me that we survived in these years of "professionalization" at the parish.

Then I studied at the regency school at the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, after which I hesitated for some time: whether to return to the parish. Batiushka called me back, and since he is my confessor, I no longer hesitated. Since it took 10 years. V last years As I notice, many new people began to come to the temple. This should be associated with the appearance of daily divine services, i.e. the spiritual influence of the temple itself on this process directly affected. Confession is held every day in the church, there are sacraments. Daily services can be called the main achievement of the church and parish over the past 20 years. The possibility of daily communion of people with the sacraments of the Church - what could be more important! Again, a considerable number of people have appeared who work in the parish “for the glory of God,” which cannot but rejoice. For my part, over the years, I also gained a lot of experience in choir singing, as a result of which there is an opportunity to think less about the technical side of singing and devote more time to the spiritual life in the church. It is also possible to set quite difficult tasks for the kliros: to sing according to inspiration, sometimes to pray at the service.

The result of twenty years can be called the preservation of the parish core, which was laid in the beginning and which has survived to this day, around which our parish is developing. This is the main result for the parish, if we talk about the dynamics of parish life in the current period. We come here not mechanically, automatically, but out of spiritual motives. The material tasks of rebuilding the temple have been fully completed and we can fully focus on spiritual life. This is the task that we face today. Our task is not to quarrel, to love each other, to strengthen in love, because those problems that were at the beginning of parish life, concerning the right attitude to each other, they remain, they also require our attention. As for the old parishioners, I can say that over the past 20 years they have had a lot of money and changed for the better. Father himself has changed. Previously, he could immediately reprimand him for some kind of offense, but now he tolerates our infirmities and mistakes more and we ourselves feel ashamed of ourselves. From the outside you can see how much he has to endure. He sets the tone for everything, and he wants to follow, imitate, learn from him. Many old parishioners have also become much more patient and calmer.

Attitude towards parish communion

As Christians, we must imitate Christ, who said, "Love one another." And that turns out to be the hardest part. The arrival brings me up, and this is very important for me. I would like to live with everyone in peace and love each other more. I would like there to be less formal dry relationships, so that love prevails, and not coercion. I understand that only in an Orthodox parish can people understand in general what the law of love is.

I am now reading "My Life in Christ" by Fr. John of Kronstadt. I appeal to Theophan the Recluse, letters to Fr. John Krestyankin, and, of course, the creations of Paisiy Svyatogorets, which are like a handbook for me. All five volumes.

Children

I would like there to be a playground for children who cannot yet evaluate their actions. But they should still be present at the service. Otherwise, they will not come to church. A playground would allow more church children to communicate with less church children, so that the former influence the latter with their behavior, sometimes with words. The playground would delay this unnecessary running around, because it is really difficult for children, due to their motor skills, to stand whole services, and the noise and din around the church does not look very pious anymore. It is difficult for children to stand even on the kliros. We tried to organize children's choirs. At first, the children fired up the opportunity to stand next to the altar, directly participate in the divine service, but 3 or 4 services passed, and they cooled down, disputes began "we must", "we must not", i.e. began to do everything through force. Age from eight to thirteen years old. And in order for them to be carried away, you need to study with them carefully and for a long time, for which there is no possibility. Although the very presence of children in the kliros, of course, greatly enlivened the divine service.

Relation to the monastery

When I had to work for several years in the Danilov Monastery, despite the specifics of my presence in the monastery, I still had to communicate with hieromonks, hierodeacons, the monastery novice worked side by side with us (now he is already a monk), we had to sing in the kliros. And I noticed that the monastery can serve as an icon for the laity. This could be said about this monastery. If it were not for the monastery, we would have no one to look up to. In other parishes, where I happened to be, it is clear that the statutory life has been violated, and the parish has many spiritual problems. And the point here, as you begin to look closely, is that there is no orientation towards the monastery, the severity of order. We have about. Dimitri lives on the experience that he draws in the St. Daniel Monastery, and uses what he acquired during his years of study at the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, so our parish has the ability to use it. This is where my attitude towards the monastery as a whole follows. If people devote their entire lives to God without a trace, like monks, everything is arranged in accordance with this, and their way of life is better organized than in a parish, where there is a lot of worldly things. But the temple also lives its own high spiritual life, you can always feel it at certain moments. You come to church, even after a short break, and you feel that you have no strength to immediately join the rhythm of church life. And monks live it all the time. And we at the parish cannot fail to see this high standard, we must constantly compare: "And how is it in the monastery?" The monastery will always be an icon for the parish.

Traditions

I like how meals are organized in Ochakovo. All gather at the same time, which is agreed. But at the same time, there is no such soldier drill. There is exemplary order in Ochakovo, which is carefully and carefully maintained. People who come here rarely are guided by this strict order. I am glad that we have formed an island of piety here. We ourselves bake prosphora, which not every church has. On Saturdays and Sundays, cakes are baked for the parishioners so that after the service they can buy them and refresh their strength. The abbot's conversations with parishioners are also our original tradition. It is important that in the Ochakov parish, these or those parish features, developments, are brought together. As in the complex there is a lot, and for those who wish, within the framework of extra-liturgical activities, you can find various activities. In no parish have I seen such that the kliroshan singers could spend the night at the temple, if they return home far away. We have a large multifunctional Sunday school, which is also a big plus for its organizers and the entire parish. The parish has its own website, which is constantly updated, there is a parish newspaper, from where you can get a lot useful information... There is an excellent library with a large collection of the most diverse spiritual literature. I would also like to note, as a feature of Ochakov, the existence of a youth choir. We have to devote a certain amount of time to this, and although this is partly to the detriment of the main choir, it is more important that young people study, successors grow up, and traditions are passed on.

Prepared by Oleg Kirichenko