There are situations when a priest needs to be invited to the house to perform services (confession, communion and unction of a sick person, funeral service, consecration of an apartment, house, cottage, prayer service at home or baptism of a sick person).
How to do this correctly? You can also invite a priest you know by telephone, addressing him, as in church, with the word “bless.”
But if you are a beginner, it is better, of course, to come to the church yourself so that you can find out from the priest or at the candle box what needs to be prepared to perform this or that service.
To consecrate the house, it is necessary to put the house in proper shape (clean up, take the dog away - usually Orthodox Christians do not keep a dog in the apartment, but if there is nowhere to place it on the street, in a kennel or barn, then you need to give it a proper corner in the hallway or other place where there are no holy icons, fence off her place of residence). You should prepare holy water, candles, vegetable oil, preferably special stickers with crosses, which the priest will paste on all four sides of your house to be blessed. It is necessary that there be a table, preferably covered with a clean tablecloth, where the priest can put holy objects.
You need to explain to your family the essence of what is happening, set them up for reverent behavior, that upon the priest’s arrival you should take his blessing, as well as after the rite of consecration, venerate the cross. Explain how this is done, how to contact the priest, prepare scarves or scarves so that women and girls can cover their heads. Of course, the TV and tape recorder should be turned off in the house, no parties should be started in neighboring rooms, all attention should be focused on the holy event taking place. In this case, there will be considerable spiritual benefit for your family if you invite the priest to stay for a cup of tea.
If you are going to give Holy Communion to a sick person, you need to prepare him (how exactly, the priest will tell you the day before, based on the patient’s condition), and tidy up the room. You will need candles, the Gospel, warm water, clean cloth. For the unction, you need to prepare, in addition to candles, seven pods (wooden sticks with cotton wool), a bowl with grains of wheat where they will be placed, oil, church wine - Cahors.
What is this?
Calling a priest to consecrate an apartment means inviting a priest into a home for the purpose of conducting a ceremony to expel evil spirits and invoke God’s grace.
Calling a minister may be required in the following cases:
- When a family changes their place of residence, I would like to receive a blessing to live in a new place.
- After the death of one of the residents of the house (especially if the death was violent, suicide occurred).
- We need to strengthen our mental strength.
- There is a seriously ill person in the family.
- I want to find happiness and prosperity in my home.
- Check-in to a new building (a new house, according to church canons, requires a blessing).
- Strange things are happening in the room.
Consecration is a rite of Orthodox Christianity, during which any objects and places are cleansed from the negative influence of the otherworldly demonic world. In order to consecrate the apartment, they turn to the temple servants.
If there is a need to consecrate a house, you need to do a number of the following actions:
- Visit the nearest temple.
- Approach the priest and ask him to bless the apartment, agree on the day and time of arrival.
- Purchase and prepare the necessary paraphernalia (candles, icons, holy water).
- Wait for the priest to arrive or pick him up in your own transport.
- Attend the ritual.
- Pay for the work done.
- Thank the priest.
The process of consecrating an apartment is as follows:
- Reading the prayer “Our Father”, Psalm 90. The celebrant prays for those living in the room and for specific people.
- Blessing with olive oil.
- Sprinkling the room with holy water.
The ritual lasts from 20 to 30 minutes . Sometimes the priest is asked to come again.
Communion to the sick at home
Communion is the most serious and important thing for which it is worth coming to church. The Lord Jesus Christ Himself said that only those who eat His flesh and drink His blood will have eternal life. How to prepare yourself for this great Sacrament in order to accept it for the healing of soul and body during illness? This will be discussed in this short article.
There are times when people, due to illness, infirmity and old age, cannot come to church themselves, confess and receive communion. Communion is not in church, but at home. Typically, such situations arise when a person is weak (i.e. sick) and cannot attend the Liturgy in church.
Then a priest is invited to their home to give them communion. The sacrament of communion at home is also performed on dying Orthodox Christians.
Holy sacraments are performed only on a conscious person. Parting words cannot be left until the last minute. If a person is seriously ill, you should immediately call a priest to see him.
Communion at home is performed with spare holy gifts. They are prepared once a year, on Maundy Thursday during Holy Week, and are stored in a special tabernacle, which stands on the holy altar in the altar. Perhaps, while attending church services, you have noticed a certain structure rising on the Throne. This tabernacle is a specially made object that looks like a small temple. With domes (one or several), with domed crosses and covered with a transparent cap. This is how she looks on the Throne:
they come in different sizes, different designs, but the meaning is the same - the Holy Gifts with which the priest gives communion to people are stored there for a long time, separately from the Liturgy. And these Gifts are needed precisely so that you can give Holy Communion to a person in a hospital or at home.
What are the Holy Gifts? In reality, it is the Body and Blood of Christ. This bread and wine are consecrated at the Divine Liturgy, invisibly turning into a Shrine. According to the Monk John of Damascus, the Body and Blood of Christ cleanse a person from all filth and drive away all evil.
Communion at home is performed according to the rite “Whenever soon a sick person is given communion.” This is a small sequence, during which the priest reads prayers for the healing of the sick person and the forgiveness of his sins.
It is necessary to consult with a priest about how to prepare a particular patient for communion. The sick also receive communion at home on an empty stomach (only those who are dying can receive communion without an empty stomach).
To invite a priest to a sick person’s home, you need to come to the church in advance (preferably a few days before the priest’s expected visit, if the patient’s condition allows it) and personally present your request to the priest. Agree with the priest about the time and day of the visit, and also leave your address and telephone number. If it is not possible to meet with the priest, you should leave your telephone number, address, and also write down the condition of the patient at the candle box (where they accept notes and sell candles). If the patient’s condition is very serious and his parting words cannot be delayed, but for some reason it was not possible to find a priest in the church, you should go to another church and try to find a priest on duty there. Of course, this can only be done if there is more than one temple in the city.
Before visiting the priest, in the room where the patient is, you need to prepare a table (there should be no foreign objects on it), cover it with a clean tablecloth or napkin, and place an icon. Warm boiled water, a cup and a teaspoon are also prepared.
After communion, the sick person should be given a piece of prosphora and warm water. If the sick person cannot read the prayers of thanksgiving for Holy Communion himself, you need to read them aloud to him.
We partake of the Holy Mysteries of Christ for the healing of soul and body. During times of illness and infirmity, communion is especially necessary for Orthodox Christians. Many examples can be given when, after confession, unction and communion, seriously ill people, whom relatives already considered dying, rose from their sickbeds.
The priests had to observe some special enlightenment of their minds and feelings at the moment of communion for the seriously ill.
One grandmother was dying, and the priest came to her for confession and communion. She was already 90 years old and during her last illness her consciousness was very clouded, she started talking, and did not always recognize her loved ones. But during confession, before communion, her mind returned to her again, and she confessed with full understanding and contrition of heart, she herself named her sins.
But it also happens. A young woman, about fifty years old, suffering from terminal cancer, after unction and communion, immediately felt a surge of strength, stood up, but began to go about her usual daily activities, forgetting about the prayer of thanks.
Unfortunately, many people are caught by illness as non-believers. This is the main problem and the main grief for them. And we must try, at all costs, to help them believe their Lord. And they realized that they were not rooting for something
and not
for some reason
, but
for something.
The point is not to atone for sins through suffering - there is no atonement, the point is to come to a state of repentance.
A person comes to this state only when he humbles himself. And a person’s illness humbles him. He could do everything, but now he can do nothing. Everyone depended on him - and now he depends on everyone. I think that we all should have an absolutely sincere desire to help our neighbor. And help not as a master, but as a servant. We, seeing Christ in every person, serve not this person, but Christ. Unfortunately, many sick people are bedridden for months; their loved ones have never invited a priest to come to them with the Holy Gifts. By inviting a priest to the sick, we help our loved ones to be saved and inherit eternal life. After all, salvation in the Orthodox Christian worldview is not an external event in relation to a person (as if God was first angry with us and then had mercy), but an internal rebirth, a person’s ability to live in the fullness of love and grace through union with God Himself.
Types of service
You can call a priest to bless the room in one of the following ways:
- Through an intermediary (website).
- Directly upon visiting the temple.
- By phone (if you have priest’s contact numbers).
The last two options are the cheapest. When using the first method, you will have to pay the site owner for selecting and calling a clergyman.
You can bring the priest to the apartment using your own transport or arrange for him to arrive on your own.
Where and from whom can I order the service?
If you need to consecrate your apartment, you can order this service in one of the following ways:
- Go to a special website and call the priest by filling out the online form.
- Go to the temple and arrange with the priest to come to the house.
- Call a clergyman you know and arrange for help.
The last two options are preferable. They are cheaper, but take some time to visit the church and communicate with the clergy. Ordering a service on the website will be more expensive. But then you don’t need to go to church and look for the priest. After sending the application, the priest himself will call you back.
How can you celebrate Communion at home?
To make Communion, you do not need to wait until they are allowed to attend churches. It is enough to invite the priest home, and he will perform the Sacrament. At home, clergy fulfill various requirements: they confess, administer communion, perform unction, and perform commemorations for the dead.
We publish the e-mails of the rectors of the churches of the Resurrection District. We recommend that you describe your request in a letter and leave a telephone number for contact. Alexander Nevsky Church Nevskoe — Email address is being protected from spambots. Javascript must be enabled in your browser to view the address. Vvedensky Church in the village. Khorlovo — Email address is being protected from spambots. Javascript must be enabled in your browser to view the address. Vladimirsky Church Ostashovo — Email address is being protected from spambots. Javascript must be enabled in your browser to view the address. Ascension Church Baranovskoe — Email address is being protected from spambots. Javascript must be enabled in your browser to view the address. Resurrection Church in the village of Ashitkovo - Email address is being protected from spambots. Javascript must be enabled in your browser to view the address. Resurrection Church Voskresenskoye — Email address is being protected from spambots. Javascript must be enabled in your browser to view the address. St. George's Church in the village of Vanilovo — Email address is being protected from spambots. Javascript must be enabled in your browser to view the address. Demetrius-Thessalonica Church Dorki - Email address is being protected from spambots. Javascript must be enabled in your browser to view the address. Jerusalem Temple in Voskresensk - Email address is being protected from spambots. Javascript must be enabled in your browser to view the address. Elijah Church Petrovskoye — Email address is being protected from spambots. Javascript must be enabled in your browser to view the address. St. John the Theologian Church in the village of Marishkino — Email address is being protected from spambots. Javascript must be enabled in your browser to view the address. St. John the Theologian Church Vinogradovo — Email address is being protected from spambots. Javascript must be enabled in your browser to view the address. St. John Chrysostom Church in Voskresensk - Email address is being protected from spambots. Javascript must be enabled in your browser to view the address. Kazan Church in the village of Achkasovo - Email address is being protected from spambots. Javascript must be enabled in your browser to view the address. Cosmo-Damian Temple Vinogradovo — Email address is being protected from spambots. Javascript must be enabled in your browser to view the address. Holy Cross Church in the village of Marchugi - Email address is being protected from spambots. Javascript must be enabled in your browser to view the address. Michael the Archangel Church in the village of Karpovo — Email address is being protected from spambots. Javascript must be enabled in your browser to view the address. St. Nicholas Church in Voskresensk - Email address is being protected from spambots. Javascript must be enabled in your browser to view the address. Panteleimon Church in Voskresensk - Email address is being protected from spambots. Javascript must be enabled in your browser to view the address. Church of the Intercession in the village of Ratchino — Email address is being protected from spambots. Javascript must be enabled in your browser to view the address. Transfiguration Church in Khorlovo — Email address is being protected from spambots. Javascript must be enabled in your browser to view the address. Seraphim Church Fedino — Email address is being protected from spambots. Javascript must be enabled in your browser to view the address. Sergius Church in Voskresensk - Email address is being protected from spambots. Javascript must be enabled in your browser to view the address. Trinity Church Konobeevo — Email address is being protected from spambots. Javascript must be enabled in your browser to view the address. Trinity Church Konobeevo — Email address is being protected from spambots. Javascript must be enabled in your browser to view the address. Assumption Church Konstantinovo — Email address is being protected from spambots. Javascript must be enabled in your browser to view the address. Church of All Saints in the Land of the Russian Shining Ones, Beloozersky - Email address is being protected from spambots. Javascript must be enabled in your browser to view the address. Church of the Nativity of Christ in the village of Mikhalevo - Email address is being protected from spambots. Javascript must be enabled in your browser to view the address.
