At the end of April 2016, Orthodox Christians are preparing for the meeting of the brightest holiday - the Resurrection of Christ, Easter of the Lord. the site continues to follow the Holy Week - the most important week in the history of Christianity. Next in line is Holy Tuesday: on this day, we remember the preaching of Christ in the Jerusalem temple and the teachings given by the Savior in the form of parables and answers to questions ..
History of the day: Sermon within the walls of the Temple
On Tuesday morning, Jesus Christ came from Bethany to Jerusalem and taught the people in the Jerusalem temple. The chief priests and elders tempted Christ with questions, wanted to arrest Him, but were afraid to do it openly because of the people who revered Jesus as a prophet, admired His teachings and listened attentively.
From the gospel instructions uttered by Christ on Tuesday, the Church chose for the edification of believers on this day mainly the parable of the ten virgins, as especially appropriate for the time of the Great Week, in which we should be most awake and pray.
The Parable of the Ten Virgins
“Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who, taking their lamps, went out to meet the bridegroom. Of these, five were wise and five were foolish. The foolish, taking their lamps, took no oil with them. The wise, along with their lamps, took oil in their vessels. And as the bridegroom slowed down, everyone dozed off and fell asleep. But at midnight there was a cry: behold, the bridegroom is coming, go out to meet him. Then all the virgins got up and adjusted their lamps. The foolish said to the wise, Give us your oil, for our lamps are going out. And the wise answered: so that there is no shortage for us and for you, it is better to go to the seller and buy yourself.
When they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding feast, and the doors were closed. Then other virgins also come and say: Lord! God! Open to us. And he answered and said, Truly I say to you, I do not know you. Watch therefore, for you do not know the day or the hour when the Son of Man is coming.”
The marriage feast was chosen as an example as an event understandable to Jesus' contemporaries: according to the ancient oriental custom, the groom, accompanied by his relatives and friends, came to the bride's house. Since this was usually done at night, the bridesmaids, not knowing the exact time of the groom's arrival, stocked up on lamp oil and waited for the participants in the celebration. After the arrival of the groom, the doors of the house were closed, the marriage contract was signed and the wedding feast began.
With the parable of the ten virgins, the Church inspires the everlasting readiness to meet the Heavenly Bridegroom by chastity, almsgiving, and the immediate performance of other good deeds depicted under the name of oil prepared by wise virgins. According to interpretations Theophylact of Bulgaria, under the image of the virgins, the Lord offers a parable about almsgiving - the dream of the virgins means the physical death of a person, and the arrival of the groom symbolizes the second coming of Jesus.
Feofilakt calls lamps human souls who need oil - alms. With regard to the foolish virgins, he says that “they went to the sellers to buy oil, which means that they turned in their souls to the poor and began to think about what a good deed is alms and how they sinned against this virtue in their folly. ". When they returned and saw the locked door, this, according to his interpretation, means that after death there is no time for repentance.
About tribute to Caesar
The episode with "Caesar's denarius" is described in three books of the Gospel - in Matthew, Mark and Luke. The Pharisees tried to compromise the Savior: testing the wisdom of Christ, the religious leaders of Judea asked whether it was necessary to pay taxes to the Roman emperor (Caesar, in the old Slavonic form - Caesar). At that time, this question was painful for the province conquered by the Romans: the answer "yes" would discredit Christ before the patriotic Jews and would turn out to be blasphemy, since the emperor was written on the coins as a god. However, not everything is clear: the answer "no" could be regarded as a call to rebellion and used to accuse the rebellion.
However, Christ asked to bring Him a coin - a Roman denarius, which then went to the provinces, and naturally, had an image of the emperor, and wisely reasoned:
“Whose image and inscription is this? They said to Him: Caesareans. Jesus answered and said to them: Give what is Caesar's to Caesar, and what is God's to God. And they marveled at Him."
This was interpreted as follows - Christians are obliged to obey all earthly authorities, since they were appointed by God and disobedience to them is equated with disobedience to God. In addition, it is necessary to distinguish: the power of the earth comes and goes - and the power of God is unchanging over the world.
Good Tuesday: customs and traditions
On Tuesday of the last week of Great Lent in the villages, flax and hemp seeds are usually collected from the bins together, crushed in a mortar, and then juiced milk is prepared from them with water. All this is done in the morning, before dawn. Such milk is given to all domestic animals at dawn, as a precaution against future diseases.
Here is the main condition: men should not know this business, otherwise it will be useless. According to the remarks of the old women, it is known that if an animal does not drink juicy milk, then no good can be expected in it; it is then already either sick or enchanted.
Often on Good Tuesday, the end of work with clothes was carried out - washing, ironing and darning, so that nothing would distract from preparations for the bright Easter holiday. Particular attention is paid to the outfit for the Holy Resurrection - on this day, the dress in which Easter is celebrated must be completely finished.
The main sign on Good Tuesday is that if the day turned out to be damp, then the mushrooms will spring up in the summer. Also, the ancestors celebrated this day as the most useful for treatment: those who suffer from pain in the joints and lower back need to stand on the threshold of their house on Tuesday of Holy Week and say a prayer three times:
“God, help me! Holy Mother of God, bless!
I pronounce my pain from all the joints,
I drive away my sickness with holy prayer.
Get the sickness out of my arms and my legs.
Cross my pain, my threshold.
Be you, my words, Strong and sculpting,
To the body of my tenacious.
Key, lock, tongue.
Amen. Amen. Amen".
Orthodox table and fasting on Tuesday of Holy Week
On Tuesday and Thursday of Holy Week, it is allowed to eat hot food without vegetable oil. On this occasion, accept advice from the fasting staff of the editorial site: again, as on Good Monday, you can use frozen mixtures of vegetables and fruits. However, now the possibilities are somewhat wider: you can safely add rice or buckwheat as a side dish to some of the vegetables. A special item - potatoes: the simplest, boiled or baked in foil, potatoes with herbs are the perfect solution for those who want to be energized for the whole day.
Watch, for you do not know the day or the hour when the Son of Man will come.
Matthew 25:13
On Tuesday night, Jesus Christ also spent in Bethany, and on Tuesday morning he again came to the temple of Jerusalem and taught a lot in the temple and outside the temple (Matt. 24: 1). The chief priests and elders, hearing His parables and understanding what He was saying about them, tried to seize Him and kill Him. But the people openly feared to attack Him, who considered Him a prophet (Matt. 21:46), were delighted with His teachings (Mark 11:18), listened to Him with delight (Mark 12:37).
From the gospel instructions uttered by Jesus Christ on Tuesday, the Church chose for the edification of believers on this day mainly the parable of the ten virgins, as especially appropriate for the time of the Great Week, in which we should most watch and pray. With the parable of the ten virgins, the Church inspires the everlasting readiness to meet the Heavenly Bridegroom by chastity, almsgiving, and the immediate performance of other good deeds depicted under the name of oil prepared by wise virgins.
Archpriest G.S. Debolsky,
"Days of worship of the Orthodox Church", v.2
Chants from the Tuesday Service of Great Lent
Having slumbered with mental laziness, not gaining, Zhenishe Christ, a burning lamp, like from the virtues, and became like virgins, mocking while doing; do not close the wombs of Thy bounties to me, Master, but shake off my darkened dream, raise up, O Merciful One, and with the wise bring the virgins into Thy chamber, where the voice of those who are celebrating and crying out unceasingly: Lord, glory to Thee!
“Asleep by mental laziness, I did not acquire, Christ the Bridegroom, a burning lamp, which is the virtues, and became like foolish virgins in my senseless life activity, Lord! Do not close Your loving heart for me, but, driving away my sleepless sleep, rise and lead me with the wise virgins into Your chamber, where the joyful voice of those celebrating and crying out unceasingly: Lord, glory to You!
Stichira
Gospel of Matthew
Then the Kingdom of Heaven will be like ten virgins who, taking their lamps, went out to meet the bridegroom. Of these, five were wise and five were foolish. The foolish, taking their lamps, took no oil with them. The wise, along with their lamps, took oil in their vessels. And as the bridegroom slowed down, everyone dozed off and fell asleep. But at midnight there was a cry: behold, the bridegroom is coming, go out to meet him. Then all the virgins got up and adjusted their lamps. The foolish said to the wise, Give us your oil, for our lamps are going out. And the wise answered: so that there is no shortage for us and for you, it is better to go to the seller and buy yourself.
When they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding feast, and the doors were closed. Then other virgins also come and say: Lord! God! Open to us. And he answered and said, Truly I say to you, I do not know you. Therefore, watch, because you do not know the day or the hour when the Son of Man will come.
Matt. 25, 1-13
stay awake!
Dear brothers and sisters, approaching the days of His suffering, the Lord was especially close and frank with His disciples. I no longer call you slaves, for the slave does not know what his master is doing; but I called you friends, because I told you everything that I heard from my Father(John 15:15), the Savior said to the Apostles. Now he no longer perfectly, but with particular clarity, announced to them that He needed to suffer in order to thus prepare them for His suffering: You know that in two days it will be Easter, and the Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified.(Matthew 26:2). Seeing the grief that seized the Apostles, He comforts the disciples with the promise that He will not leave them.
But at the same time, the Lord does not hide the fact that they, and all Christians in general, will face the same fate as He, their Divine Teacher: Remember the word that I said to you: If I was persecuted, you will also be persecuted; if they keep my word, they will keep yours. If the world hates you, know that it hated Me before you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hates you(John 15, 20, 18 and 19).
And again, seeing them mournful, the Lord consoles them: In the world you will have sorrow; but take heart: I have conquered the world. And I will pray to the Father, and he will give you another Comforter, that he may be with you forever, and I myself will be with you until the end of the age. Peace I leave with you, My peace I give you... Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid(cf. John 16:33; 14:16; cf. Matt. 28:20; John 14:27).
The Lord asks his disciples to abide in Him and fulfill His commandments, for without Him they cannot do anything: Abide in Me and I in you. Just as a branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it is in the vine, so you too unless you are in Me. If you abide in me and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be yours. I'm going to prepare a place for you. And ... I will come again(John 15, 4, 7; 14, 2, 3).
The Lord consoles them, revealing that sorrows will be followed by joy, that they will be rewarded in the Kingdom to Come. And since His disciples were interested in the question of what the Lord’s Coming to earth would be, the Savior proclaims to them the Divine truth that at the end of the world He will come with great glory to judge the living and the dead and all those who believed in Him sincerely and with repentance until the end of their lives will vouchsafe His Kingdom, and those who did not believe or rejected, without repentance until the end of their lives, they will condemn them to eternal torment.
When it will be?(Mt. 24:3) the disciples asked. But the Lord answered them that about that day and hour no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, but only My Father alone(Matthew 24:36). Thus, the Holy Scripture keeps it in deep secrecy and does not reveal to us the specific time of the Second Coming, so that we always keep ourselves clean and blameless and be ready to meet the Lord at any time.
That is why the Lord warns the disciples: Watch therefore, for you do not know at what hour your Lord will come. But as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be in the days of the Son of Man: eating, drinking, marrying, giving in marriage, until the day Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. So it will be on the day when the Son of Man appears. So stay awake(Matt. 24:42; cf. Luke 17:26 and 27:30; Matt. 25:13).
In our time, more than ever, this warning must be remembered, for now there are especially many who are slumbering and sleeping. Spiritual sleep is not a bodily sleep that strengthens the body, but, on the contrary, an unhealthy sleep, a painful hibernation in which people chase after vanity and think that they are living a real life, forgetting about the soul, about God and about the Future Eternal Life. In order to deeply imprint in us a sense of danger, the need to be vigilant and to awaken our conscience from spiritual slumber, the Lord told the parable of the ten virgins, which we heard in today's Gospel reading.
This parable teaches us that, having accepted faith, we should accompany it with good deeds, which alone can support our spiritual life. The foolish virgins who went out to meet the Bridegroom did not prepare the oil of good deeds for their lamps. The wise, along with the lamps, stocked up with good deeds in order to adequately meet the Bridegroom. So our life should be all preparation for a meeting with the Lord, and for this, throughout it, we must unceasingly take care of acquiring and maintaining a living faith and ardent love for God, the Source of love, and for our neighbors.
The cares of this age overshadow the most essential concern and goal of our life - illumination by the light of Christ, its salvation and preparation for the Eternal Kingdom. Let us be sober in order to enter the heavenly chamber with the wise virgins and be vouchsafed from the Lord of eternal blessings. Amen.
Every day of Holy Week is full of deep meaning and filled with memories that are important for all Christians. These days, services are held in churches that help believers to touch the great events of the last days of the Savior's earthly life and prepare for the most important holiday in the Christian Church - Easter. Therefore, it is very important to visit the temple these days in order to get rid of the pre-holiday fuss and feel the significance of the events that took place more than two thousand years in Jerusalem and its environs.
Maundy Tuesday Events
Thanks to the stories of the evangelists, we know quite a lot about the events of each day of Holy Week. The Holy Apostle and Evangelist Matthew tells that on Tuesday night the Savior was in Bethany, in a village located not far from Jerusalem. In the morning Christ returned to Jerusalem, where he taught the people in the temple, and this sermon was so strong and bright that, according to St. Theophan the Recluse, it alone was enough to believe in the Divine origin of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Pharisees, who had long wanted to get rid of Him, wanted to use this sermon to turn either the people or the Roman authorities against the Savior. Wishing to provoke Him, the teachers of the people ask a question, which, it would seem, cannot be answered without causing indignation of the people. The Pharisees asked Christ: “Teacher! we know that you are just, and you truly teach the way of God, and do not care about pleasing anyone, for you do not look at any person. So tell us: what do you think? Is it permissible to give tribute to Caesar, or not?” (Mt.22, 16:17) With an affirmative answer, one could accuse the Lord Jesus Christ of supporting the Roman invaders, which would have angered the people. When denying the tax, the Pharisees could say that He is a rebel protesting against the power of Caesar. The Lord commanded to bring a denarius, a Roman coin, and pointing to the fact that Caesar is depicted on it, he said: “Give therefore what is Caesar’s to Caesar, and what is God’s to God” (Matthew 22:21). The words of the Lord, in addition to a direct answer to the question of the Pharisees, contained the deep meaning that secular authorities should not interfere in the affairs of the Church, and for believers, Divine teaching should be above all. Ashamed by this answer, the Pharisees turned away from Christ.
After leaving the Temple in Jerusalem, the Lord foretold to His disciples the fate of this city and the temple itself. The Evangelist Matthew writes: “And going out, Jesus walked from the temple; and his disciples came to show him the buildings of the temple. Jesus said to them, Do you see all this? Truly, I say to you, no stone will be left here on stone; everything will be destroyed." (Matthew 24, 2:3). This prediction was fulfilled in the year 70 from the Nativity of Christ, when the capital of the Kingdom of Judah was almost completely wiped off the face of the earth by the Romans.
Further, the Lord begins to speak to the disciples about the end of the world and about the Second Coming, calling upon His disciples to be constantly awake and in anticipation not only of these great events, but also to be ready at every moment to stand before God.
Parables of Great Tuesday
At the Liturgy of the Most Reverend Gifts on this day, the parables of the ten virgins and the talents are read. The parable of the ten virgins is found in the Evangelist Matthew. In it, the Lord tells how ten virgins were preparing to meet the bridegroom with lamps. This image was close and understandable to the contemporaries of the Savior, since at that time in the east there was a custom according to which the groom came to the bride's house accompanied by relatives and friends. Since this arrival often took place at night, the bridesmaids met the dear guest with lamps. In the parable, the five girls were sensible and they prepared the butter beforehand, but the five other girls did not take care of it. When they went to the merchant for oil, the bridegroom came, and the doors to the wedding feast were closed. The Lord Himself interprets this parable to the disciples, saying that no one knows the time of the coming of the Son of Man. By oil, the holy fathers understand the virtues that the soul of a Christian must take care of before the coming of the Lord.
In the parable of the talents, the Lord also speaks allegorically about His Second Coming and the need for every person to be prepared for this event. In this story, the master, leaving, gives each of his slaves one or more talents, that is, coins, so that they use this money to good use. Returning, the owner of the house demands an account from them, and each of the slaves tells how he used what was given to him with benefit. Only one slave could not increase the talent entrusted to him, for which he was expelled from home in disgrace.
Troparion, tone 8:
Behold, the Bridegroom is coming at midnight, and blessed is the servant, whom the vigilante will find him: he is not worthy of the pack, he will be found in the despondent. Watch over me, my soul, do not be weighed down with sleep, but you will not be given over to death and the Kingdom will be shut up outside, but rise up, calling: Holy, Holy, Holy Thou, God, have mercy on us with the Theotokos.
Kontakion, voice 2:
Hour, soul, thinking of the end and fearing the cutting of the fig tree, diligently work the talent given to you, accursed, vigilant and calling: let us not abide outside the chamber of Christ.
Prayer (Great Compline, Canto 8):
Angels and heaven, on the throne of glory sitting and like God unceasingly glorified, bless, sing and exalt him forever.
Thou hast heard every soul how Christ proclaimed His divine disciple, saying the end: having understood thy end, prepare the rest: the time of the exodus is coming.
Thou hast known a barren soul, a crafty servant, a parable;
May the candle be cleared, may this oil and oil be poured out, as if compassion for the virgins, may you then open the chamber of Christ to my soul.
On Saturday, flight and in the winter the Teacher speaks, the seventh storm predicts the present century, in it he will find death like winter.
Like the speed of lightning is transient, so then there will be a terrible coming of your Lord, my soul: you heard, you are ready to be the rest.
When the Judge comes with thousands, and darknesses of angelic ranks and forces, then what a fear to my soul, what a trembling, alas! All standing naked.
Let us bless the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, the Lord.
There is only one God, the Trinity, who did not become sons of the Father, changed below to the Son in the procession, but characteristic, and both Light, God, Three I glorify forever.
Through the prayers of God, Mother of God, accept our prayer, grant Thy mercy to all richly, and give Thy peace to Thy people.
A unique time is coming, which all Christians revere with special trepidation - Holy Week. Nearly two thousand years ago these days, Christ came to Jerusalem to suffer, die on the cross, and be resurrected. For the salvation of the whole world.
Throughout its centuries-old history, the Church has compiled wonderful prayers, hymns and whole services in which all facets of those tragic and fateful moments are played out. In our cycle, we will briefly talk about how services are performed throughout the entire period of time - from Holy Monday to Holy Saturday.
During the first three days of Holy Week, the Church remembers the last parables and teachings uttered by the Savior during His earthly life. In general, parables occupy a special place in the Gospel and are read regularly throughout the year, but the Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday passages are special, they contain the whole essence of Christian doctrine.
On these days, the entire Psalter and the entire Gospel are read (with the exception of passionate passages, which are read especially on Thursday evening, on the eve of Good Friday). Also on these days, the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts is celebrated three times.
And Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday have a common troparion. In the church tradition, this is the name of a small hymn, which reflects the main meaning of a particular holiday. Troparion of the first three days of Holy Week -. It beats the plot of the parable of ten virgins who met the groom in different ways. He teaches us to always be sober, cheerful and ready to meet Christ.
Fasting in the first half of Holy Week is prescribed the strictest. Naturally, in our time, any feats need to be negotiated with the confessor, depending on the strength and state of health. And in ancient times, nothing was eaten on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. Didn't eat on Friday either. But on Thursday and Saturday, an indulgence was allowed - hot food with butter.
So, what are the divine services of each day of the week before Easter? Let's consider them briefly.
Great Monday
MORNING: Clock. Fine. Vespers. Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts.
EVENING: Matins. 1st hour.
The main motive of all the liturgical texts of this day is the personal meeting of Christ and man, as well as the readiness of the latter for it. The Church remembers the Old Testament Patriarch Joseph, whom the greedy brothers sold into slavery and who from ancient times was considered a prototype of the suffering Jesus.
The gospel story about the Lord's cursing of a barren fig tree is also read in the temple. A dried tree symbolizes a soul that does not bear spiritual fruits - true repentance, faith, prayer and good deeds. From the parables of the Savior, the stories about two sons and about evil vinedressers are especially remembered. In the last passage, the evil vinedressers are the Pharisees and scribes who ended up killing the Son of the Owner of the vineyard.
At the Liturgy, a special place is occupied by the reading of the Gospel, which contains the words of Christ about the future of the whole world and about His second coming. In addition to the Gospel, passages from the Old Testament are also read. The main place is occupied by the beginning of the book of Job. Quotes from this ancient sacred text are heard in the temple for almost the entire Passion Week, and this is no coincidence. Job is considered the most perfect righteous man of the pre-Christian era, an example of humility and love for God. And the suffering he endured is in many ways a type of the suffering of the Lord.
Maundy Tuesday
MORNING: Clock. Fine. Vespers. Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts
EVENING: Matins. 1st hour.
Maundy Thursday
MORNING: Clock. Vespers. Liturgy of Basil the Great
IN THE EVENING:
Great Heel Matins
This day begins the actual passionate cycle. On Thursday evening, Christ established the Sacrament of the Eucharist, in which, for two thousand years now, believers have been able to unite with Christ in the maximum possible way for a person.
The full Liturgy of Basil the Great is served. It is a continuation of Vespers. In principle, it should be served in the evening, but in modern practice it was moved to the morning. The most important texts of this day are the troparion “Whenever the disciples are glorified” and the anthem. In these amazingly beautiful prayers, Christians confess Christ as God and ask to be made worthy of union with Him in the Mystery of the Eucharist.
In the cathedrals and temples where the bishop serves, after the Liturgy, a special rite is performed - the washing of the feet. Following the example of Christ, who washed the feet of the disciples after the Supper, the bishop washes the feet of his fellow-servants.
On Thursday, the Psalter is no longer read (until Fomin's Sunday) and prostrations are not made (they are performed only before the Shroud).
On the same day, the Patriarch performs the consecration of the world - a special aromatic composition that is used in the Sacrament of Chrismation. It takes place once in a lifetime - immediately after Baptism.
On Thursday evening, on the eve of Good Friday, a service unique in its beauty is performed - the reading of the twelve Passion Gospels. These passages describe from beginning to end the path of suffering that Christ went through. According to the Charter, the Gospels should be read late at night, closer to midnight. But in modern conditions, this service is performed earlier - in the evening. During the reading, believers stand in the temple with lighted candles. There is a tradition to keep the fire of these candles after the end of the service and take it home.
Good Friday, Passion of the Lord
IN THE MORNING: Royal Hours
AFTERNOON: Vespers. Removal of the Shroud
EVENING: Great Saturday Matins with the rite of the Burial of the Shroud
In Holy Week reaches its climax. This day is dedicated to the remembrance of the death of Jesus Christ on the cross, the removal of His body from the cross and burial. Since the Liturgy is considered the most solemn service, it is not performed on the day of the death of the Savior as a sign of the deepest mourning. In the morning only the Royal Hours are read. They are named so because each Hour has its own Apostolic and Gospel readings. We again and again prayerfully experience all the vicissitudes of the Judgment of Jesus. Friday is the day of a special service, at the end of which the Shroud is taken out of the altar to the middle of the temple - a large cloth with an image of the deceased Christ embroidered on it.
In the evening, Saturday Matins is performed with the rite of the Burial of the Shroud.
All texts of prayers and Holy Scripture are imbued with the idea of co-dying of the creature to its Creator, participation in the Passion. Particularly noteworthy are the Old Testament readings of this day - excerpts from the books of the prophet Isaiah, who described His suffering 500 years before the birth of the Savior.
Matins - in fact - the funeral of Christ. Before the Shroud, Psalm 118 is sung, the verses of which are interspersed with special refrains mourning the Savior. These choruses sound on behalf of the Most Holy Theotokos and are the greatest masterpiece of church poetry.
At the end of the rite of mourning for Christ, the Shroud is carried around the temple in a procession with the singing of a funeral prayer Holy God. After the enclosing, the Holy Shroud is brought into the temple and brought to the royal doors - as a sign that the Lord Jesus Christ, even after His death, while remaining in the tomb with His body, according to His Divinity, was inseparably "on the throne with the Father and the Holy Spirit."
At the end of the service, people in the temple come up to venerate the Shroud while singing the stichera. This hymn recalls the secret disciple of Christ, Joseph of Arimothea, who, after the death of the Savior, went to Pilate and asked him for the Body of the Lord, which he then buried with the righteous Nicodemus, also a secret disciple. They removed the Body of the Savior from the Cross, wrapped it in a shroud, and laid it in a new coffin, in which no one had been buried before (this coffin Saint Joseph prepared in advance for himself) in the Garden of Gethsemane, in the presence of the Mother of God and the holy myrrh-bearing women.
Holy Saturday, Blessed Saturday, Silent Saturday
MORNING: Clock. Fine. Vespers. Liturgy of St. Basil the Great
There is probably no other service (except Easter) that can be compared in beauty with the service of Holy Saturday. - the eve of the Holy Resurrection, in the divine service of Great Saturday, both mourning and festive features of Sunday can be traced.
After the Hours and Icons, Vespers is served with the Liturgy of Basil the Great - the last of the year. Its calling card is paroemias - a collection of 15 Old Testament passages, which contain prototypes of the suffering, death and resurrection of Christ and prophecies about the coming of the Kingdom of the Lord and the New Testament Church. Two huge songs of praise occupy a special place among these texts. One belongs to Miriam, the sister of Moses, who immediately sang of her when the Israelites crossed the Red Sea. Another song was sung by three Jewish youths, miraculously saved by the Lord in the furnace, which the Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar ordered to kindle. Both images symbolize Christ, who descended into hell, defeated the devil and brought out of the underworld all who wanted to go with Him.
At the liturgy, during the Great, instead of the Cherubic Hymn, an amazing hymn is sung: “Let all human flesh be silent, and let it stand with fear and trembling, and let nothing earthly in itself think: the King of kings and the Lord of lords comes to be slaughtered and given as food to the faithful. The faces of the Angels with every Beginning and Power, the many-eyed Cherubim and the six-winged Seraphim, the faces of the closing and crying song come before Him: alleluia, alleluia, alleluia.
Listening to this hymn, we remember that, according to the teachings of the Orthodox Church, Great Saturday is the day when the Lord descended in soul into hell, preached the news of the Kingdom of God there, and led the souls of the righteous to freedom, to paradise, where before that only those who were taken alive to heaven had stayed the prophets Elijah and Enoch, as well as the prudent thief who confessed Christ on the cross.
Before the Liturgy, all the vestments in the church are changed from black to white. Saturday is the end of Holy Week. Usually, after the morning service during the day, the consecration of Easter cakes, eggs and Easter cakes is performed. Then people go home to gather together at night and glorify the Risen Savior.
In Jerusalem, on this day every year a unique event takes place - the descent of the Holy Fire.
Tuesday of Holy Week is one of the most important days of the liturgical year full of deep spiritual meaning.
Great Tuesday. The Parable of the Ten Virgins
On this day, four whole chapters from the Gospel are read in the church, the content of which is comprehended, first of all, in relation to the life of every person, humanity and the Church as a whole, in canons and hymns, masterpieces of ancient Christian poetry.
On Great Tuesday, we remember the denunciation of the scribes and Pharisees by the Lord, His conversations and parables, spoken on this day in the Jerusalem temple: about the tribute of Caesar, about the resurrection of the dead, the Last Judgment and the end of the world, the parables of the ten virgins and the talents. The parables depict the unexpectedness of the coming of the Lord (about ten virgins) and the righteousness of God's judgment (about talents).
The Son of God came down to earth, incarnated for each of us. The Lord suffered a lot in this world, he did not even have where to lay his head. And then something happened that is difficult to explain in words: the Judge Himself was put on trial for the condemned, the Worthy of Glory suffered reproach from the unworthy, the Immortal accepted a shameful death on the cross from mortals.
And today our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ can exterminate all our sins, completely destroy sin, if we work on our souls, work spiritually, bring sincere repentance. It is difficult, but if desired, it is possible - to become white with all your heart, to purify yourself, to become at least a little worthy of the high title of a Christian. Only without the help of God we cannot cope in a difficult battle. God will not reject a single heart that calls to Him for mercy and cleansing. After all, we remember how the Lord Himself taught: ask, and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you (Luke 11:9).
What should we ask God first of all? What do we want from Him? The answers to these questions can be found in the words of our Savior: Seek first the Kingdom of God and its righteousness (Matthew 6:33). Here, it turns out, what is the point! God has prepared heavenly blessings for us. From the addition of the world as an inheritance to people, a blessed eternity is assigned.
But there is also a condition: our salvation is impossible without true and sincere faith, without love for the Lord and sincere repentance of our countless sins. We can become true children of God and heirs of the Kingdom of Heaven only when we are imbued with the spirit of fiery repentance, we acquire Divine love and the fear of God, we learn not to doubt our mercy, trusting in the will of the Creator.
The last sermon in the Jerusalem temple: "Caesar's is Caesar's"
Approaching the days of His suffering, the Lord was especially close and frank with His disciples. I no longer call you slaves, for the slave does not know what his master is doing; but I called you friends, because I told you everything that I heard from My Father (John 15, 15), the Savior said to the apostles that day.
Maundy Tuesday
Now He no longer secretly, but with particular clarity, announced to them that He needed to suffer in order to prepare them for His sufferings in this way: You know that in two days it will be Easter, and the Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified (Matt. 26 , 2).
At the same time, on Maundy Tuesday, Christ preached to the people for the last time in the Temple of Jerusalem; accordingly, His sermon was of particular importance. Reflecting on the Gospel reading of that day, St. Theophan the Recluse remarks: “It was enough just to listen to all this with attention in order to be convinced that He is the true Savior of the world — Christ, and to submit to His commandments and teachings.” We can only briefly dwell on some points of this gospel narrative.
On Tuesday night, Jesus Christ also spent in Bethany, and on Tuesday morning he again came to the temple of Jerusalem and taught a lot in the temple and outside the temple (Matt. 24: 1). The Pharisees, who had already finally decided to kill Christ, did not fail to seize the moment and catch the Savior in words, provoking Him into an answer that would inevitably either lead to the indignation of the people, or would become an occasion for a political denunciation to the Roman authorities.
At the same time, their hypocrisy reached an almost caricature form: not only did they, the zealots of the Law and nationalists, not disdain to implement their plans by an alliance with representatives of the most odious sect of the Herodians, in fact, accomplices of the Roman invaders, the Pharisees began their speech with surprisingly false and flattering words: Teacher! we know that you are just, and truly teach the way of God, and do not care about pleasing anyone, for you do not look at any person (Matt. 22, 16).
The same people recently spoke about Christ: He is not of God (John 9:16), He deceives the nations (John 7:12); and even: You are a Samaritan, and a demon is in You (John 8:48), but now it seemed to them that they had come up with a question that, with any answer, would destroy Jesus, and with flattering words they tried to make sure that He would not evade the answer.
The Pharisees asked Christ: What do you think? Is it lawful to give tribute to Caesar, or not? (John 8:49). The slyness of the question was that if the Savior had answered: yes, then the Pharisees would have accused Him before the people of supporting the Roman occupiers, and if: no, then they would have reported Him to the authorities as a rebel. Jesus answered very wisely and simply: He asked for a Roman coin, a denarius, on which the image of the emperor, Caesar, was minted, and said his famous phrase: give what is Caesar's to Caesar, and what is God's to God(Matthew 22:21).
In addition to a deep spiritual meaning (that secular authorities have no right to interfere in matters of faith, and the teachings of Christ are higher than any political ideology), these words also had an undeniable worldly truth: since Judea allowed Roman coins to circulate on its territory and was actually part of the Roman empire, of course, she had to obey Roman laws and pay taxes.
And the denarius itself, according to ancient legal consciousness, in a sense, really belonged to the emperor: the image of Caesar is a sign that the coin was minted on his behalf, and he, accordingly, is the supreme owner of the entire money supply of the empire. It would be even more strange for a Jew to seek to keep coins with a pagan image of the deified emperor. Human cunning once again failed to resist divine wisdom.
The intrigues of the Pharisees gave the Savior a reason to address the people with a very important speech. In his sermon, Christ pointed out those terrible flaws in the religious life of the Israeli people, first of all, in relation to its leaders, the same Pharisees, which will lead the Jews to reject their true King and Savior and betray Him to be crucified.
It should be noted that in words the Pharisees were indeed zealots of piety: they demanded from the people the strict observance of God's commandments and themselves claimed to be an example of following the Law. The Savior Himself called His listeners: whatever they tell you to observe, observe and do (Matt. 23:3).
However, such zeal was by no means fed by sincere faith and love for God, but by banal lust for power, greed, vanity and hypocrisy, i.e. desire, instead of living a true life in God, to put on some kind of pious mask, behind which you can hide your face, distorted by all too human passions.
We see how such an internal attitude will lead to outright deicide. The temptation of hypocrisy threatens every believer, which is why Christ is so harsh in His words to the Pharisees: He compares them with painted coffins, blind leaders, vipers , killing them), and does not spare them and other, no less cruel words.
The Parable of the Ten Virgins
Unexpectedly, the Savior ends His formidable speech with surprisingly touching and bitter words: Jerusalem, Jerusalem, beating the prophets and stoning those sent to you! How many times have I wanted to gather your children together, as a bird gathers her chicks under her wings, and you did not want to! Behold, your house is left to you empty (Matthew 23:37-38).
Christ showed that, despite all the iniquities of Israel, He still loves His people and mourns for their imminent fall, just as He loves every person and mourns for his sins.
Immediately after the denunciation of the Pharisees, leaving the temple, the Savior predicts to his disciples the fate of Jerusalem. Pointing to the majestic buildings of the Jerusalem temple, Christ said: Do you see all this? Truly, I say to you, no stone will be left here on stone; everything will be destroyed (Matthew 24:2). The prophecy was exactly fulfilled in A.D. 70, when Emperor Titus stormed and razed to the ground the capital city of Judah.
The speech about the mournful future of Jerusalem gradually turns to prophecies about the fate of the whole world and the coming Second Coming of the Savior. The eschatological predictions of Christ have as their goal not the satisfaction of idle curiosity about the last days of the universe, so characteristic of man in all ages, but a specific moral task: to convince the disciples to always be spiritually awake and at any moment be ready to meet God, because you don’t know when hour your Lord will come (Matthew 24:42). We are talking here not only about the Second Coming of the Savior and the Last Judgment following it, but also about the inevitable death for every person, the day and hour of which is also not given to anyone except God.
Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of Holy Week are dedicated to remembering the last conversations of the Savior with the disciples and the people.
On each of these three days, the Gospel is read at all services, it is supposed to read all four Gospels. But whoever can, he must certainly read these passages from the Gospel at home, both for himself and for others. An indication of what to read can be found in the church calendar. When listening in church, due to the large amount of reading, much can escape attention, and home reading allows you to follow the Lord with all your thoughts and feelings.
With careful reading of the Gospels, the sufferings of Christ, coming to life, fill the soul with inexplicable tenderness... Therefore, while reading the Gospel, you are involuntarily transported in your mind to the place of events, you take part in what is happening, you follow the Savior and suffer with Him. Reverent contemplation of His sufferings is also necessary. Without this reflection, the presence in the temple, and hearing, and reading the Gospel will bring little fruit.
But what does it mean to meditate on the sufferings of Christ, and how to meditate? First of all, imagine in your mind the suffering of the Savior as vividly as possible, at least in the main features, for example: how He was betrayed, judged and condemned; how He carried the cross and was lifted up on the cross; how he cried out to the Father in Gethsemane and on Golgotha and gave his spirit to him: how he was taken down from the cross and buried... Then ask yourself why and why He suffered so much suffering, Who had no sin, and Who, like the Son of God , could always abide in glory and bliss.
And also ask yourself: what is required of me so that the death of the Savior does not remain barren for me; what must I do to truly participate in the salvation gained at Calvary for the whole world? The Church teaches that this requires the assimilation of the mind and heart of all the teachings of Christ, the fulfillment of the commandments of the Lord, repentance and imitation of Christ in a good life. After that, the conscience itself will already give an answer whether you are doing it ... Such reflection (and who is not capable of it?) Surprisingly soon brings the sinner closer to his Savior, closely and forever binds him with the union of love with His cross, strongly and vividly introduces into the participation of the one who what happens at Calvary.
The path of Holy Week - the path of fasting, confession and communion, in other words - fasting, for worthy communion of the Holy Mysteries in these great days. And how is it possible not to fast in these days, when the Bridegroom of souls is taken away (Matt. 9:15), when He Himself is hungry at the barren fig tree, thirsting on the Cross? Where else to lay down the weight of sins through confession, if not at the foot of the cross? At what time is it better to take communion from the Cup of life if not in the coming days, when it is served to us, one might say, from the hands of the Lord Himself? Truly, whoever, having the opportunity to approach the Holy Meal these days, evades it, evades the Lord, flees from his Savior. The path of Holy Week is to render, in His name, help to the poor, sick and suffering. This path may seem distant and indirect, but in fact it is extremely close, convenient and direct.
Our Savior is so loving that everything that we do in His name for the poor, the sick, the homeless and the suffering, He personally appropriates to Himself. At His Last Judgment, He will demand from us especially deeds of mercy towards our neighbors, and upon them He will establish our justification or condemnation. Keeping this in mind, never neglect the precious opportunity to alleviate the sufferings of the Lord in His lesser brethren, and especially take advantage of it during the days of Passion Week - by dressing, for example, the needy, you will act like Joseph, who gave the shroud. This is the main thing and accessible to everyone, with which an Orthodox Christian in Holy Week can follow the Lord who is coming to suffering.
Parables of the Unfaithful and Discreet Servants and the Ten Virgins
The master leaves his house and entrusts the management to two servants. One, thinking that the master will not return soon, begins to beat his comrades and eat and drink with drunkards (Mt. 24:49); the other does its job well. The master will return unexpectedly and will make the prudent slave the manager of the estate, and he will deal harshly with the unbeliever: he will dissect him, and subject him to the same fate with the hypocrites; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 24:51).
In the second parable, the situation for the characters is even more tragic. Ten virgins are waiting for the arrival of the bridegroom: five of them are wise, they have prepared everything in advance: they took lamps with them and stocked up with oil for them; the rest, foolish, hoped that they would not have to wait for the groom, and they did not take oil with them.
The bridegroom slowed down, the foolish virgins fell asleep, their lamps went out, and when the bridegroom came at midnight, they rushed to look for oil, were late and found the doors already closed. So any person must always be awake so that the light of his faith does not go out, so that he can adequately meet the coming Savior. With all the apparent fuss, despite the fact that so many people are now physically deprived of sleep, spiritual hibernation is perhaps the most distinctive feature of our time.
Archimandrite Kirill (Pavlov) remarkably said about this: “In our time, more than ever, this warning must be remembered, for now there are especially many dozing and sleeping. Spiritual sleep is not a bodily sleep that strengthens the body, but, on the contrary, an unhealthy sleep, a painful hibernation in which people chase after vanity and think that they are living a real life, forgetting about the soul, about God and about the Future Eternal Life.
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