All our life next to us is a great shrine - holy water (in Greek "agiasma" - "shrine").
Consecrated water is an image of God's grace: it cleanses believers from spiritual defilements, sanctifies and strengthens them for the deed of salvation in God.
We plunge into it for the first time in Baptism, when, while receiving this sacrament, we are immersed three times in a font filled with holy water. Holy water in the sacrament of Baptism washes away the sinful impurities of a person, renews and revives him into a new life in Christ.
Holy water is necessarily present at the consecration of temples and all items used in worship, at the consecration of residential buildings, buildings, any household item. We are sprinkled with holy water at processions of the cross, during prayer services.
On the day of the Epiphany, every Orthodox Christian carries home a vessel with holy water, carefully preserves it as the greatest shrine, prayerfully partaking of holy water in sickness and all kinds of weakness.
"Consecrated water," as St. Demetrius of Kherson wrote, "has the power to sanctify the souls and bodies of all who use it." She, accepted with faith and prayer, heals our bodily diseases. The Monk Seraphim of Sarov, after the confessions of the pilgrims, always gave them a taste of the holy Epiphany water from the cup.
The Monk Ambrose of Optina sent a bottle of holy water to a terminally ill patient - and the incurable disease disappeared to the amazement of the doctors.
Elder Hieroschemamonk Seraphim Vyritsky always advised sprinkling food and food itself with Jordanian (Epiphany) water, which, in his words, "sanctifies everything by itself." When someone was very ill, Elder Seraphim blessed to take a tablespoon of consecrated water every hour. The elder said that medicines are stronger than holy water and blessed oil - no.
The rite of consecration of water, which is performed on the feast of the Epiphany, is called great for the special solemnity of the rite, imbued with the memory of the Baptism of the Lord, in which the Church sees not only the mysterious washing of sins, but also the actual sanctification of the very nature of water through the immersion of God in the flesh into it.
The great blessing of water is performed twice - on the very day of the Epiphany, and also on the eve, on the eve of the Epiphany (Epiphany Christmas Eve). Some believers mistakenly believe that the water sanctified on these days is different. But in fact, on Christmas Eve and on the very day of the feast of Epiphany, one rite is used for the consecration of water.
Even St. John Chrysostom said that the holy water of the Epiphany remains incorruptible for many years, it can be fresh, pure and pleasant, as if this only minute had been drawn from a living source. Here is the miracle of God's grace, which everyone sees even now!
According to the Church's belief, haghiasma is not a simple water of spiritual significance, but a new being, spiritual-bodily being, the interconnection of Heaven and earth, grace and matter, and, moreover, very close.
That is why the great agiasma, according to the church canons, is regarded as a kind of lower degree of Holy Communion: in those cases when penance is imposed on a member of the Church for the sins he has committed and the prohibition to approach the Holy Body and Blood of Christ is imposed, the usual canonical clause is made: "Let haghiasm be honored." ...
Epiphany water is a shrine that should be in every home of an Orthodox Christian. It is carefully kept in the holy corner near the icons.
In addition to Epiphany water, Orthodox Christians often use water consecrated at prayer services (small water blessing), performed throughout the year. Necessarily a small consecration of water is performed by the Church on the day of the Origin (carrying) of the Honorable Trees of the Life-giving Cross of the Lord and on the day of Prepolovanie, when the words of the Savior, full of the deepest secrets, spoken by Him to the Samaritan woman are remembered: “Whoever drinks the water that I will give him will never thirst ; but the water that I will give him will become in him a fountain of water flowing into eternal life ”(Gospel of John, chapter 4, verse 14).
It is customary to use holy baptismal water on an empty stomach together with prosphora after the morning prayer rule with special reverence as a shrine. "When a person uses prosphora and holy water," said the recluse Georgy Zadonsky, "then the unclean spirit does not approach him, the soul and body are sanctified, thoughts are illuminated to please God, and a person is inclined to fasting, prayer and all virtue."
All our life next to us is a great shrine - holy water (in Greek "agiasma" - "shrine").
Consecrated water is an image of God's grace: it cleanses believers from spiritual defilements, sanctifies and strengthens them for the deed of salvation in God.
We plunge into it for the first time in Baptism, when, while receiving this sacrament, we are immersed three times in a font filled with holy water. Holy water in the sacrament of Baptism washes away the sinful impurities of a person, renews and revives him into a new life in Christ.
Holy water is necessarily present at the consecration of temples and all items used in worship, at the consecration of residential buildings, buildings, any household item. We are sprinkled with holy water at processions of the cross, during prayer services.
On the day of the Epiphany, every Orthodox Christian carries home a vessel with holy water, carefully preserves it as the greatest shrine, prayerfully partaking of holy water in sickness and all kinds of weakness.
"Consecrated water," as St. Demetrius of Kherson wrote, "has the power to sanctify the souls and bodies of all who use it." She, accepted with faith and prayer, heals our bodily diseases. The Monk Seraphim of Sarov, after the confessions of the pilgrims, always gave them a taste of the holy Epiphany water from the cup.
The Monk Ambrose of Optina sent a bottle of holy water to a terminally ill patient - and the incurable disease disappeared to the amazement of the doctors.
Elder Hieroschemamonk Seraphim Vyritsky always advised sprinkling food and food itself with Jordanian (Epiphany) water, which, in his words, "sanctifies everything by itself." When someone was very ill, Elder Seraphim blessed to take a tablespoon of consecrated water every hour. The elder said that medicines are stronger than holy water and blessed oil - no.
The rite of consecration of water, which is performed on the feast of the Epiphany, is called great for the special solemnity of the rite, imbued with the memory of the Baptism of the Lord, in which the Church sees not only the mysterious washing of sins, but also the actual sanctification of the very nature of water through the immersion of God in the flesh into it.
The great blessing of water is performed twice - on the very day of the Epiphany, and also on the eve, on the eve of the Epiphany (Epiphany Christmas Eve). Some believers mistakenly believe that the water sanctified on these days is different. But in fact, on Christmas Eve and on the very day of the feast of Epiphany, one rite is used for the consecration of water.
Even St. John Chrysostom said that the holy water of the Epiphany remains incorruptible for many years, it can be fresh, pure and pleasant, as if this only minute had been drawn from a living source. Here is the miracle of God's grace, which everyone sees even now!
According to the Church's belief, haghiasma is not a simple water of spiritual significance, but a new being, spiritual-bodily being, the interconnection of Heaven and earth, grace and matter, and, moreover, very close.
That is why the great agiasma, according to the church canons, is regarded as a kind of lower degree of Holy Communion: in those cases when penance is imposed on a member of the Church for the sins he has committed and the prohibition to approach the Holy Body and Blood of Christ is imposed, the usual canonical clause is made: "Let haghiasm be honored." ...
Epiphany water is a shrine that should be in every home of an Orthodox Christian. It is carefully kept in the holy corner near the icons.
In addition to Epiphany water, Orthodox Christians often use water consecrated at prayer services (small water blessing), performed throughout the year. Necessarily a small consecration of water is performed by the Church on the day of the Origin (carrying) of the Honorable Trees of the Life-giving Cross of the Lord and on the day of Prepolovanie, when the words of the Savior, full of the deepest secrets, spoken by Him to the Samaritan woman are remembered: “Whoever drinks the water that I will give him will never thirst ; but the water that I will give him will become in him a fountain of water flowing into eternal life ”(Gospel of John, chapter 4, verse 14).
It is customary to use holy baptismal water on an empty stomach together with prosphora after the morning prayer rule with special reverence as a shrine. "When a person uses prosphora and holy water," said the recluse Georgy Zadonsky, "then the unclean spirit does not approach him, the soul and body are sanctified, thoughts are illuminated to please God, and a person is inclined to fasting, prayer and all virtue."
The origin of the prosphora dates back to ancient times. It was typified by the offering bread in the tabernacle of Moses. In the first centuries of Christianity, believers themselves brought with them bread, wine, oil (that is, olive oil), wax for candles - everything that was needed for the worship. This offering (prosphora in Greek), or donation, was received by the deacons; the names of those who brought them were included in a special list, which was proclaimed with prayer during the consecration of the gifts. The relatives and friends of the dead made offerings on their behalf, and the names of the dead were also remembered in prayer. From these voluntary offerings (prosphora), part of the bread and wine was separated for deposition into the Body and Blood of Christ, candles were made from wax, and other gifts, over which prayers were also said, were distributed to believers. Subsequently, only bread used to celebrate the Liturgy began to be called prosphora. Over time, instead of ordinary bread, they began to specially bake prosphora in the church, accepting as a donation in addition to the usual offerings and money.
The prosphora consists of two parts, which are made of dough separately from one another and then joined together. On the upper part there is a seal depicting a four-pointed equilateral cross with inscriptions above the crossbar of the cross IC and XC (Jesus Christ), under the crossbar НI КА (victory in Greek). A prosphora made from flour from the grains of an innumerable set of ears means both human nature, consisting of many elements of nature, and humanity as a whole, consisting of many people. Moreover, the lower part of the prosphora corresponds to the earthly (fleshly) composition of man and humanity; the upper part with the seal corresponds to the spiritual principle in man and humanity, in which the image of God is sealed and the Spirit of God is mysteriously present. God's presence and spirituality permeate the entire nature of man and humanity, which is reflected in the production of prosphora by adding holy water and yeast to the water. At the same time, holy water signifies the grace of God, and yeast - the life-giving power of the Holy Spirit, giving life to every creature. This corresponds to the words of the Savior about spiritual life, striving for the Kingdom of Heaven, which He likens to leaven put in flour, due to which the whole dough gradually rises.
The division of the prosphora into two parts visibly signifies this invisible division of human nature into flesh (flour and water) and soul (yeast and holy water), which are in an indissoluble, but also non-fused unity, which is why the upper and lower parts of the prosphora are made separately from one another , but then they connect so that they become one whole. The seal on the upper part of the prosphora denotes the visibly invisible seal of the image of God, penetrating the entire nature of man and being the highest principle in it. Such a prosphora arrangement corresponds to the arrangement of man before the Fall and the nature of the Lord Jesus Christ, who restored in Himself this arrangement violated by the Fall.
The prosphora can be obtained behind a candle box after the liturgy by submitting a note "On health" or "On repose" before the start of the service. The names indicated in the notes are read in the altar, and for each name a particle is removed from the prosphora, which is why the prosphora is also called "taken out."
At the end of the Liturgy, the antidor is distributed to the worshipers - small parts of the prosphora from which the Holy Lamb was taken out on the proskomedia. The Greek word antidor comes from the words anti - instead of and di oron - gift, that is, the exact translation of this word - instead of gift.
“Antidor,” says Saint Simeon of Thessaloniki, “is the sacred bread, which was brought in the offer and the middle of which was taken out and used for sacred rites; this bread, as sealed with a copy and accepting Divine words, is taught instead of the Terrible Gifts, that is, the Mysteries, to those who did not partake of them. "
Antidor should be received reverently, folding his palms crosswise, right to left, and kissing the priest's hand giving this gift. According to the rules of the Church, the antidor should be eaten in the church, on an empty stomach and with reverence, because it is the holy bread, bread from the altar of God, part of the offerings to the altar of Christ, from which he receives heavenly sanctification.
The word artos (in Greek, leavened bread) means the consecrated bread common to all members of the Church, otherwise - whole prosphora.
During the entire Bright Week, Artos occupies the most prominent place in the church along with the image of the Resurrection of the Lord and is distributed to believers at the conclusion of the Easter celebrations.
The use of artos begins from the very beginning of Christianity. On the fortieth day after the Resurrection, the Lord Jesus Christ ascended into heaven. The disciples and followers of Christ found consolation in prayerful memories of the Lord - they remembered His every word, every step and every action. Gathering for a common prayer, they remembered the Last Supper and took communion of the Body and Blood of Christ. Preparing an ordinary meal, they left the first place at the table to the invisibly present Lord and laid bread on this place. Imitating the apostles, the first pastors of the Church established on the feast of the Resurrection of Christ to place bread in the church as a visible expression of the fact that the Savior who suffered for us has become for us the true bread of life.
The artos depicts the Resurrection of Christ or a cross on which only the crown of thorns is visible, but there is no crucified Christ, as a sign of Christ's victory over death.
Artos is consecrated with a special prayer, sprinkling with holy water and burning incense on the first day of Holy Easter during the liturgy after the prayer after the ambo. Artos is placed on the sole against the royal doors on a prepared table. After censing around the table with artos, the priest reads a special prayer, after which he sprinkles the artos with holy water three times with the words “Artos is blessed and consecrated by this sprinkling of sacred water in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen".
The consecrated artos is placed on the sole in front of the image of the Savior, where it lies during the entire Holy Week. On all days of Bright Week, at the end of the liturgy with artos, a procession of the cross is solemnly performed around the church. On Saturday of Bright Week, at the end of the liturgy, the priest says a special prayer, during the reading of which the artos is shattered, and when the cross is kissed, it is distributed to the people as a shrine.
The particles of artos, received in the temple, are reverently preserved by believers as spiritual healing from diseases and infirmities. Artos is used in special cases, for example, in illness, and always with the words "Christ is Risen!"
Prosphora and artos are kept in the holy corner near the icons. The spoiled prosphora and artos should be burned by yourself (or taken to the church for this), or run down the river with clean water.
O Lord my God, may Thy holy gift and Thy holy water be for the remission of my sins, for the enlightenment of my mind, for the strengthening of my soul and body, for the health of my soul and body, for the conquest of my passions and weaknesses through Thy infinite mercy with the prayers of the Most Pure Thy Mother and all Thy saints. Amen.
Many springs, wells, springs are known, where, through the prayers of the saints, water is poured, which has a greater blessing than the waters of Bethesda in Jerusalem. Not only drinking this water, but even dipping into the waters of these springs brings many healings and miracles. The Church has always performed and is now performing the blessing of the waters of public sources, rivers, lakes.
If we always did what the Church and the Word of God teach us, then the grace-filled gifts of the Holy Spirit would constantly be poured out on us, then every source would be a source of healing for us from bodily and mental ailments, every cup of water would serve as purification and enlightenment, "Water of healing and rest", holy water. But that doesn't happen. Water makes people sick, water becomes a dangerous, deadly and destructive element. Why tap water - and holy water does not help us!
Are the prayers of the Church powerless? When God intended to punish the first world with water, then He said to Noah: “The end of all flesh has come before Me, for the earth was filled with evil by them; and, behold, I will destroy them from the earth ... I will bring a flood of water on the earth to destroy all flesh, in which is the spirit of life, under heaven; everything that is on earth will lose life ”(Genesis 6, 13. 17). These words can be applied to our day as well. Do not be surprised that water does not heal, does not bring benefits. What is surprising here, when the main sacrament - the Eucharist, the acceptance of the Body and Blood of the Lord - serves many not for salvation, but for condemnation ... "He who eats and drinks unworthily, he eats and drinks in condemnation to himself, not considering the Body of the Lord." (1 Cor. 11:29).
The miraculous actions of holy water are awarded only to those who accept it with a living faith in the promises of God and the power of the prayer of the Holy Church, those who have a pure and sincere desire to change their lives, repentance, and salvation. God does not work miracles where they want to see them only out of curiosity, without a sincere intention to use them for their salvation. “A wicked and adulterous generation,” said the Savior about his unbelieving contemporaries, “is looking for a sign; and no sign will be given to him. " In order for holy water to be beneficial, one must take care of the purity of the soul, of the lightness of thoughts and deeds. And with every touch of holy water, raise a prayer in your mind and heart.
Prayer
O Lord my God, may Thy holy gift and Thy holy water be for the remission of my sins, for the enlightenment of my mind, for the strengthening of my soul and body, for the health of my soul and body, for the conquest of my passions and weaknesses according to Thy infinite mercy with the prayers of the Most Pure Thy Mother and all Thy saints.
Amen.
Do not think that holy water is medicine. Without sincere faith in God, it will bring no more benefit than an ordinary spring. In addition, a special prayer is required for the acceptance of holy water, for it is a shrine that must be drunk according to certain rules.
How to use holy water
Consecrated water is taken for diseases and as a preventive measure for spiritual health. But in itself, the use of water does not carry any benefit if you drink it mechanically, without participating in the ritual with your heart.
There are several rules for taking holy water. First, it is done on an empty stomach. Secondly, water is necessarily poured into a separate cup, and not drunk from a common can or bottle.
In addition, sick people can drink it at any time of the day, regardless of their diet. Also holy water is used externally - for rubbing the sore spot.
What words to say before and after use
There is a common prayer for the acceptance of holy water and prosphora. Sometimes they drink water separately. Then the word "" is dropped.
So, before drinking holy water, you need to cross yourself and say: “Lord, my God, may there be Your holy gift (prosphora) and Your holy water for the remission of my sins, for the enlightenment of my mind, for the strengthening of my spiritual and physical strength , into my soul and body, into the conquest of my passions and infirmities through Thy infinite mercy through the prayers of Thy Most Pure Mother and all Thy saints. Amen."
You can also read a short prayer: "Lord, may it be for me a sinner (sinner) to use this sacred water not for judgment and condemnation, but for cleansing, healing and eternal life." At the end of the ritual, you need to thank the Lord and pray for healing (if the person is sick).
Holy water storage rules
Consecrated water is a shrine, and the attitude towards it should be appropriate. Water must be stored separately from food. Best of all - in the place of the iconostasis.
It is advisable to stick a label on a jar or bottle with holy water so that household members do not confuse and drink the shrine like ordinary water. You also need to keep holy water from animals.
Holy water does not disappear and does not lose its taste. Once consecrated, it retains this property forever. In addition, ordinary water can be consecrated with Epiphany holy water - one drop is enough for a bottle.
If you still have to pour out holy water (for example, after compresses), in no case
Teaches us that God's Grace is poured out on people in different ways. Sometimes this happens through material and quite real objects, for example, icons or objects. Sometimes - through the blessing of a priest. Sometimes believers receive grace-filled energy through prosphora and holy water, namely believers, since only by faith can God's help be sent down. Therefore, prosphora are inseparable from prayer.
What is prosphora
Those who have been to the church have seen these small round loaves, decorated on top with a cross or other sacred symbolism. They are received in a candle shop and taken home for themselves and their loved ones. Tasting such bread is preceded by a prayer for the reception of prosphora and holy water. They came to us from the first centuries of Christianity. Translated from the Greek "prosphora" means "offering". Once upon a time, believers, gathering for a common prayer service, brought bread with them as a donation. The deacons received him and entered the names of the donors on special lists. Then special prayers were offered for them. From these depths of history came the prayer before accepting the prosphora.
Consecration of water
To consecrate water, a special ceremony is performed. The priest lowers the cross into the water three times, accompanying his actions with a special prayer. This is not a prayer before accepting holy water, but a prayer and for its illumination. As a result, water becomes a carrier of Divine energy. With its help, ailments are healed and evil forces are driven away. In dwellings sprinkled with holy water, the spiritual atmosphere is improved.
Prayer for the acceptance of prosphora and holy water
According to tradition, prosphora and holy water are taken on an empty stomach in the morning. The reason lies not in the physiology of our body, because we are not talking about conventional medicines. The meaning here is purely symbolic: the day begins with a shrine. In addition, once in the stomach, holiness bearers should not mix with ordinary food.
However, the most important component of such a morning ritual is the prayer for the reception of prosphora and holy water. But it should not be formal, not a mechanical reading of the text, but an appeal to God with sincere faith and love. Without this, all efforts are in vain. The Lord bestows grace on all people, but only a believing person is able to receive it.
The prayer begins with a request from the Almighty for the enlightenment of the mind. This is understandable, because in worldly life, and even more so in spiritual life, clarity and sobriety of thought are necessary. A person with a sleeping mind is equally far from both material and spiritual values.
Further, the prayer for the acceptance of prosphora and holy water includes a very important point, this is a prayer for the sending of spiritual and physical forces. In religious terms, there is no contradiction between them - both for ordinary earthly life and for serving the Lord, both are required.
Following the request for strength for the soul and body, health is requested for them. Here health should be understood not only as the absence of ailments, but also as deliverance from sins, because according to the teaching of the church, diseases are sent to us precisely for sins. The Lord keeps us from them, but, being mired in sins, we ourselves turn away from His help.
The prayer ends with a request to remove from us destructive passions, as well as bodily and spiritual weaknesses. In the sending down of the requested, hope is expressed in the prayers of the Most Pure Virgin Mary and all the saints.
Prayer for happiness
The prayer for the acceptance of prosphora and holy water is small in terms of the volume of the text, but unusually deep in content. Reason, spiritual and physical strength, health and freedom from harmful passions and infirmities - this is what is necessary for human happiness. They ask the Lord for the gift of all this, reading a prayer.
Today, prosphora is prepared in small bakeries established at the temples. They are called prosphora. The rules for their baking and the composition of the constituent components are very strictly established. This is a responsible business, and therefore it is entrusted only to pious people. Prosphora are also needed at the liturgy for the preparation of holy firewood, which is then used during the sacrament of the Communion.
