Preparation process
Before Communion, it is necessary to comply with the established list of rules and church requirements. The full process of Succession occurs after the layperson has fulfilled the following conditions:
- Compliance with physical and spiritual fasting.
- Reading the prayer rule.
- Confession one day before Communion.
- Observance of the Eucharistic fast.
- Quitting smoking on the day of the sacrament.
On a note! A canon is a church rule. In this case, we mean the three-canon - three obligatory prayers for Holy Communion, which are read in strict sequence.
Physical and spiritual fasting. In the first case, this means a complete abstinence from animal food, in the second - abstinence from entertainment and reading various spiritual literature. The limitation period is 3 days.
Reading the prayer rule. Here it is necessary to read three canons from the prayer books.
Repentant - Jesus Christ
Prayer service to the Mother of God
Guardian Angel
Follow-up to Holy Communion.
Confession. It is imperative to confess the day before the sacrament at the evening service.
Eucharistic fast. It is understood that you cannot drink or eat from midnight on the night before Communion.
To give up smoking. You should not smoke for about a day or at least before the start of the sacrament.
Important! In the last three days, reading prayers is mandatory. The prayer for Holy Communion is read in Russian, any of the three canons or all three at once (preferably).
Recommendations for proper preparation
A few days before Communion, it is necessary to prepare morally and spiritually. The minimum period for such undertakings is the last 3 days, but it is better to allocate a little more time for this.
Easter Clock
This is the order that one must read the entire Holy Week instead of morning and evening prayers, as well as before communion:
If the priest: Blessed is our God:
The worldly one says: Through the prayers of the saints our fathers, Lord Jesus Christ our God, have mercy on us. Amen.
Christ rose from the dead, trampling down death by death, and giving life to those in the tombs.
(Thrice)
Having seen the Resurrection of Christ, let us worship the holy Lord Jesus, the only sinless one. We worship Thy Cross, O Christ, and we sing and glorify Thy holy resurrection: for Thou art our God, do we know no other to Thee, we call Thy name. Come, all faithful, let us worship the holy resurrection of Christ: behold, joy has come through the Cross to the whole world. Always blessing the Lord, we sing of His resurrection: having endured crucifixion, destroy death by death.
(Thrice)
Ipakoi, voice 8th
Having anticipated the morning of Mary, and having found the stone rolled away from the tomb, I hear from the angel: in the light of the ever-present Being, with the dead, why do you seek as a man? You see the graveclothes, preach to the world that the Lord has risen, the slayer of death, as the Son of God, saving the human race.
Kontakion, tone 8
Even though you descended into the grave, Immortal, you destroyed the power of hell, and you rose again as a conqueror, Christ God, saying to the myrrh-bearing women: Rejoice, and grant peace to your apostles, grant resurrection to the fallen.
To whom and how to read
The clergy pay the most attention to parishioners who have just embarked on the path of righteousness - they are not accustomed to lengthy readings and do not quite understand the meaning of the prayer in Communion and any others. The same applies to sick people or children.
For certain categories of parishioners, the priest individually decides how appropriate it would be for them to begin a spiritual path along with complex and lengthy prayers. In some cases, instead of akathists and strict canons, it is allowed to read other, shorter and simpler prayers from different prayer books.
The standard rule for reading and saying prayers in Russian consists of the penitential canon for Jesus Christ, the prayer canon for the Mother of God and the Guardian Angel, and the obligatory reading - Following to Holy Communion. The Three Canons are read on the day before the liturgy, usually Saturday - since the canons are usually read at Little Compline, which is performed in the evening before the liturgy.
For example, a layman decided to celebrate Communion on Sunday. This means that throughout the entire Saturday before he must read the three main canons. It is worth noting that it is not too labor intensive, especially if you read it intermittently - the church allows this practice. Even with very slow reading, one prayer for Holy Communion does not take more than fifteen minutes, all three canons - from 30 to 40 minutes.
Conducting Communion without fasting and prayer preparation is permitted in the event of a threat of death for any person - in such cases, only communion and confession of the dying person are important.
Prayer to Saint Basil the Great
To repent of sins and ask for pardon for committed misdeeds, the fifth prayer of St. Basil the Great is read, which is included in the morning rule, which is mandatory for Orthodox believers.
In Old Church Slavonic:
Lord Almighty, God of hosts and all flesh, living in the highest and looking down on the humble, testing the hearts and wombs and innermost parts of men, the fore-foreseen One, the Beginningless and Ever-Everlasting Light, He has no application, or transformation, overshadowing; Himself, Immortal King, accept our prayers, even now, boldly for the multitude of Your bounties, from the bad lips we create towards You, and forgive us our sins, whether in deed, word, or thought, knowledge or ignorance, we have sinned; and cleanse us from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit. And grant us with a cheerful heart and a sober thought to pass through the whole night of this present life, awaiting the coming of the bright and revealed day of Your Only Begotten Son, Lord and God and our Savior Jesus Christ, when the Judge of all will come with glory, to whom he will give to each according to his deeds; May we not fall and become lazy, but be watchful and raised up for the work that is to come, and prepare for the joy and Divine palace of His glory, where those who celebrate the unceasing voice and the ineffable sweetness of those who behold Your face, the ineffable kindness. For You are the true Light, you enlighten and sanctify all things, and all creation sings to You forever and ever. Amen!
In modern Russian:
Lord Almighty, God of disembodied forces and all flesh, living on the heights of heaven and looking down upon the valleys of the earth, observing hearts and thoughts and clearly knowing the secrets of men, the Beginningless and Eternal Light, which has no changes in power and leaves no shadowed place on His path. You Yourself, Immortal King, accept our prayers, which we now, hoping for the abundance of Your compassion, bring to You from unclean lips; and forgive us our sins, committed by us in deed, word and thought, consciously or unconsciously, and cleanse us from all impurity of flesh and spirit. And grant us with a watchful heart and a sober thought to live the whole night of this earthly life, in anticipation of the coming of the bright and glorious day of the second coming of Your Only Begotten Son, the Lord God and our Savior Jesus Christ, when the common Judge will come with glory to reward everyone according to his deeds. May He find us not lying down and sleepy, but awake and risen in the midst of the fulfillment of His commandments, and ready to enter with Him into the joy and Divine palace of His glory, where the unceasing voices of those who triumph and the inexpressible joy of those who see the inexpressible beauty of Your face. For You are the true Light, enlightening and sanctifying the whole world, and You are glorified by all creation forever and ever. Amen.
Adviсe
The rules for reading prayers, going to church and other rules must be combined with other elements of the spiritual path:
- The reading of any prayers must come from a pure heart and be said with bright thoughts.
- It is advisable to read on an empty stomach and in complete silence - lightness and concentration are important.
- If you have any questions regarding prayer practices, you need to go to church and ask questions directly to the priest.
- In the period between Communions, one should try to observe other obligatory fasts, at least to a minimum, attend church and gradually get rid of sinful deeds and thoughts.
- It is worth remembering that visiting church is not an “obligation” a couple of times a year during Christian holidays, but rather an activity of the soul and heart.
Prayer practices, rules of preparation for Communion and observance of all necessary canons are important and mandatory. If a person is at the very beginning of his spiritual path, this article will help him understand the basic requirements and subtleties of reading prayers and other important spiritual requirements.
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Prayer of Simeon the New Theologian
Preparation for rituals includes the mandatory reading of prayers. They provide an opportunity to plunge into an atmosphere of awe and feel it with all your soul. Before confession, you can say the prayer of Simeon the New Theologian.
In Old Church Slavonic:
God and Lord of all, who has the power of every breath and soul, is the only one who can heal me! Hear the prayer of me, the accursed one, and the serpent nesting in me, consume by the influx of the All-Holy and Life-Giving Spirit. And grant me, poor and naked, all virtues, to fall at the feet of my holy (spiritual) father with tears, and draw his holy soul to mercy, to have mercy on me. And grant, Lord, in my heart humility and good thoughts, befitting a sinner who has agreed to repent to You; and may not completely abandon the one soul that united with You and confessed You, and instead of the world chose and preferred You. Be aware, Lord, that I want to be saved, even if my evil custom is an obstacle: but what is possible for You, O Lord, is all that is possible; what is impossible is from man. Amen.
In modern Russian:
God and Lord of all! He who alone has the power of every breath and soul can heal me, hear the prayer of the accursed me, and consume the serpent nesting in me through the influx of the All-Holy and Life-Giving Spirit, killing me. And to me, poor and naked of all virtues, vouchsafe to fall at the feet of my holy (spiritual) father with tears, and draw his holy soul to mercy, to have mercy on me. And grant, O Lord, in my heart humility and good thoughts, befitting a sinner who has agreed to repent to You, and may you not in the end abandon the one soul that united with You and confessed You, and chose and preferred You instead of the world: for we know, Lord, that I want to be saved, even if my evil custom is an obstacle: but it is possible for You, Master, the essence of everything, what is impossible is of man. Amen.
Follow-up to Communion
According to the prayer rule for Bright Week, the psalms must be omitted from the text. Therefore, before communion, one must mentally read the verses of Metaphrast translated from the liturgical language:
Also read: What can and cannot be done for Easter?
Behold, I begin Divine Communion; Creator, do not burn me with communion! For You are a fire that burns the unworthy; but cleanse me from all filth.
Then:
Accept me as a participant in Your mystical Supper on this day, Son of God. For I will not tell secrets to Your enemies, I will not give You a kiss like Judas. But like a thief I confess You: “Remember me, O Lord, in Your Kingdom!”
And poems:
Shudder, man, when you see the deifying Blood: for it is a burning coal, scorching the unworthy. The Body of God both deifies me and nourishes me: it deifies the spirit, but it nourishes the mind incomprehensibly.
Then the troparia:
You attracted me with love, Christ, and changed me with divine desire for You. But burn my sins with immaterial fire and grant me to be satisfied with pleasure in You, so that I, rejoicing, may magnify Your two comings, O Good One.
How can I, unworthy, enter into the bright host of Your saints? After all, if I dare to enter the bridal chamber with them, my clothes will expose me, for this is not what they wear to marriage, and, bound, I will be expelled by the Angels. Cleanse, Lord, the filth of my soul and save me, as a Lover of mankind.
You need to talk to the child and explain, and not command and drag him by force.
It is important in advance, even before preparation, to explain to the child in simple language why he now needs to prepare for communion. And in fact, every parent should have a timely conversation with their child that when he turns 7 years old, his childhood is over, that adulthood has begun and all the sins and bad deeds of God and his Angels are taken into account and recorded on him. And in order to be cleansed of sins, he must independently confess and receive communion. What is supposed to be repented of at Confession, the child also needs and can be explained in advance, because you know all the bad deeds and inclinations of your child very well. There is no need for parents to write a note to their child or force him to stand over his soul until he writes this note. Leave the child his individual Confession and do not ask him about what he confessed or what the priest asked about. If the child wants, he will tell himself, if not, then no.
