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Archpriest Andrei Tkachev, priest of the Church of the Resurrection of the Word in the Assumption Enemy, answers questions from viewers. Broadcast from Moscow. (Repeat from January 26, 2015)
— Hello, the “Conversations with Father” program is on air on the Soyuz TV channel. In the studio Sergei Yurgin.
Today our guest is the priest of the Church of the Resurrection of the Word in the Assumption Enemy, Archpriest Andrei Tkachev.
Hello, father. Bless our viewers.
- Hello. Peace to you.
— The topic of our program today: “Prayer.” An integral part of a Christian’s life is prayer, explain what it is?
— The definition of prayer given by the “Catechism” of Metropolitan Philaret (Drozdov) is “the lifting of the mind and heart to God.” If we choose simpler words, we can say that this is a conversation with God. Correct epithets would be “breath of the soul”, “heartbeat of the Christian heart”. This is verbal, rational communication between a creature and the Creator.
— Do you need to talk to God and how often?
— A conversation with God cannot arise suddenly and by itself, just as children do not begin to talk immediately after birth. The maturation of the spiritual organism is necessary.
This is necessary for the full existence of the individual, so that hidden talents and opportunities are revealed in her, she is attached by secret threads to the future world and then enters it prepared.
Prayer is needed for many other things: to live fully, to be human. One of the anthropological definitions of a person is: a praying creature. Prayer is given only to man.
The intuitive desire for God can be given to other animals. For example, the lions did not eat Daniel in the den: they smelled the smell of holiness and walked around him like cats. Oxen and donkeys could look with reverence at the Infant Jesus and warm Him with steam from their nostrils. Maybe when birds sing in the morning, they are praying. It’s not for nothing that David says: “Let every breath praise the Lord” - and he includes snow, hail, stormy spirits, mountains, all hills, and fruitful trees in his prayer. This is not only a metaphor, but also a fact; nature certainly has compassion for a person praying. However, for nature to pray, the presence of a praying person is necessary. He alone was given the opportunity to consciously and verbally communicate with God.
- The Psalmist David says: “Let every breath praise the Lord.” Does God need our praise?
“Perhaps our voices of praise add something to the robe of the Divine, although God, of course, does not need anything. God does not suffer from the absence of anything, since He is All-Satisfied, All-Good, we think of Him in an All-Satisfied, All-Perfect nature. But having created man as a being capable of a response, the Lord seeks this response. He wants our good, wanting to enter into a reasonable dialogue with us. He does not want to manipulate us, but He waits for us to enter into dialogue and respond intelligently to His actions. We need this, but it is good for Him to give Himself.
By entering into communication with us, listening to our requests, accepting praise and responding to repentance, He gives Himself to us. The Lord revealed to us that He wants this: “And call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you and you will glorify Me. The sacrifice of praise will glorify Me: and there is the way whereby I will show him My salvation.” Psalms are a book of praise that teaches prayer, and it is full of such calls. “Correct your life according to Me and call on My Name,” “I will praise, I will call on the Lord, and I will be saved from my enemies”—the Psalter tells in different ways how this happens to a believer.
—You said that a person should turn and see God. How does this happen? How to catch the breath of God in our vain times?
- This is a question of a person’s mental maturity. The words of a person's first prayer may be as funny as the babbling voice of a baby, but it is also sweet and brings joy. In the novel by F.M. Dostoevsky's "Idiot", the mother, responding with a happy smile to the first words of her child, says that this is probably how the Lord is touched by our first prayers to Him.
Just as it is necessary to mature to love, responsibility, serious thoughts and words, it is also necessary to mature to a conversation with God. There is a beautiful image: “twice born.” For example, first an egg is “born”, and then a chicken is born from it. But not from every egg. An egg that did not become a chicken is an image of a person who did not become a person, did not open up due to vanity, factors of upbringing, and sin.
There are many people who do not pray because this spiritual side has not been revealed in them. There are people who don’t love anyone: “And he didn’t want to bless anyone in all of nature” (A.S. Pushkin, “The Demon”). Just as there are people who do not want to search for meaning, they are not attracted by beauty, and are not interested in ethical issues. I think there are many such people.
— Maybe this is a predisposition imposed from the outside?
- Anything can happen. The absence of prayer in a person's life reveals a deeper flaw. While a person is alive, it is impossible to say anything definite about him. Someone prayed a lot, and at the very end they ruined their life. The prudent thief said only one prayer: “Remember me, Lord, when you come into Your Kingdom,” but this was enough for him to enter heaven. The lack of prayer throughout his life was redeemed by the fact that in the exhausted, beaten man on the cross, he recognized the King. We must leave some room for mystery: we do not know what a person will say to God in his last seconds.
Since we learned that the Lord exists, we have been trying to establish a connection with Him, a prayer connection, first of all. We pray and we want everyone to pray. Our lives would be better if everyone prayed. They didn’t just talk idlely, that is, they pronounced sacred words without the participation of the heart, but they prayed. So that there are fruits of prayer: the heart softens, thoughts become clearer, anger subsides, lust fades. But we understand that we cannot demand prayer from a person. You must be able to wait, have patience with a non-praying person.
— Some complain that we pray and pray, but the Lord does not hear us. Maybe we’re praying in the wrong way?
“It depends what we consider prayer.” We can consider it prayer to read through ready-made texts that we have inherited and suggested in prayer books. This is good, but not everything. You need to make the book’s prayer your own: understand every twist of thought in it, assimilate it with your heart. As Metropolitan Anthony (Bloom) said, those texts of the prayer book to which your heart responds are your texts, and they should be read. But there are texts where the heart is still silent: perhaps the words in them are too long or incomprehensible. In order to understand texts, the cultural work of deciphering the meaning is necessary.
One should not neglect prayer in one’s own words, if it does not turn into a composition of akathists, but a person expresses his heart in brief words. If you shout “Save me, I’m perishing” from the bottom of your heart, there is no need for long texts. This is what Peter shouted when he was drowning. The thief and publican also pronounce short texts, but at the moment they contain the whole person. It is very important to pray to God in your own words. And it is very important to thank God.
Just as it is very important to ask yourself: “Where is the Lord?” The prophets said that the people would be punished for their sins because they did not ask themselves this question from morning to evening. We must seek God. As it is said: “Seek God, and your soul will live.” A heartfelt impulse is needed. Sometimes these relationships are similar to how a person, wounded by love, looks everywhere for his beloved.
There is a period of spiritual dryness when a person is in a spiritual desert. As A.S. wrote about this. Pushkin: “We are tormented by spiritual thirst, I have been dragging along in the dark desert.” You are sad, scared, lonely, and you ask: “Where are you, Lord?” And this is prayer. When you sit with your head in your hands and say: “Where are you, Lord? What's happening?" is a prayer. God needs these cries.
At a time when the Jewish people are standing on the seashore and the dust from under Pharaoh’s chariot is already visible, the Lord says to Moses: “Why are you crying out to Me?” Although he says nothing, there is a cry in his heart that God hears and tells him what to do: “Stretch out your hand over the sea.” Thus begins the story of the crossing of the Red Sea.
Prayer sometimes does not imply open lips and a canonical text, but a complete turn to the Lord. Sometimes the person praying seems strange, such as the prophetess Anna in the First Book of Kings. When she prayed to God for the gift of a child, the priest Eli said to her: “Until you are drunk, until you are sober from your wine.” To which she replied: “Your servant is not drunk, Master, but I am a woman with a sad soul.”
In the Holy Scriptures and in church experience one can find many words that prayer should contain sincerity, honesty, and a living appeal to the Lord God. Although the mechanics of prayer are good: it warms up the heart. This is how a person who is used to doing exercises in the morning has better blood flow. But in the best case, openness and sincerity are needed - the heart must be wounded by the desire to speak with God.
— Question from a TV viewer from Moscow: “If official medicine diagnoses depression, is it enough to be treated only with prayer and participation in the Sacraments of the Church, but not take tranquilizers and antidepressants?”
— Depression is what we qualify as despondency, a severe mental state that affects the physical state. There are peculiarities in the prayer of people prone to despondency and depression: they should not be prayed for. Usually their health follows a sinusoidal pattern: they pray hard, and then plummet downwards, falling into depressive “niches”, then again they try to get out and collapse again. In this sinusoid, a person gets very tired and suffers.
You shouldn’t rely on medication treatment alone, but you should listen to doctors. You can't cure your soul with pills, but you can relieve peak states. You need to decide on medications individually: you can’t take a lot of them, but you shouldn’t neglect them either.
For a person with depression, physical discipline is very important: prayer should include bows. Let him pray less, but bow down. This also heals the soul from depression. Sometimes it is more beneficial for a person suffering from depression to engage in physical labor, as he slowly “rots” in his condition. He needs body discipline, he needs to cheer himself up.
It is necessary to participate in the Church Sacraments, take communion, and do everything that, in your experience, brings you peace, cheerfulness and joy. On the path of self-knowledge, you will learn what helps you and what is difficult. In depression there is no peace, no joy and vigor, so you need to do everything that brings them to you.
—What does the daily prayer routine of an Orthodox Christian include?
— Morning and evening rules, which are in every prayer book. They can be adjusted by each person depending on their strength, employment, and degree of church involvement. The point is not to read a certain set of texts, but to remember God and talk to Him.
“Open your way to the Lord,” the psalm tells us, “and trust in Him, and He will do it.” When you wake up in the morning, it would be good to immediately think about Who I am lying in front of. “I have seen the Lord before me, as he is at my right hand.” He crossed himself and went about his business. Each person has his own nuances of morning prayer, depending on his position, age, and work. The main thing is for a person to remember the Lord. In the evening we say: “Will this bed really be a coffin or enlighten my damned soul during the day?”
The night passed, the day approached - we did not die. What day will it be? God bless! The soul at this time is not tired, it perceives impressions well, so it is good at this time to read the Gospel beginning of the day, to learn something by heart. Many people know morning prayers by heart and can read them in public transport on the way to work. Due to the changed pace of life, this is acceptable, all these are legal forms, there is nothing wrong with them.
— If a beginner does not understand the meaning of the words in morning and evening prayers, what is the best thing for him to do?
— It is good that in the work of immersion in the text of prayers, one of the knowledgeable, more experienced people helps: friends, catechists, parents, of course, priests. For example, analyze the Penitential Canon. Everyone needs to know what they are reading. This is good work. Church canonized prayer cultivates in a person a poetic taste for a beautiful word spoken at the right time. This is a great thing, because now no one teaches this anymore.
A person prays with words that once poured out from the lips of holy people who lived long before him - and this is also very valuable. There is no need to rush here, but daily add something to your spiritual experience. If you know the Akathist to the Sweetest Jesus by heart, it will be a living Jesus Prayer, dissolved in various petitions. It fits well on the heart and is memorable. It’s a good idea to memorize Psalm 118, the so-called 17th Kathisma. This is a long song about the love of God's law. The Psalter is worthy of being known in large fragments. All this should be a person’s baggage, then, even if deprived of a book, he will not be deprived of prayer.
— Are the psalms a prayer, or is it some other form?
— Psalms are the tuning fork of prayer, its standard. In Jewish writing there is an expression that the Torah (Pentateuch) is the law of Israel and people, and the Psalter (Book of praises of King David and other psalmists) is man’s response to God. These are reciprocal books. The Book of Psalms teaches a person to pray; it can be considered the main prayer book of the Church, therefore the Psalms are read in the Church every day.
—You said that psalms are praises, but what about Psalm 136 “On the rivers of Babylon”?
— In the Jewish tradition, the Book of Psalms is called the “Book of Praises.” I used this name deliberately to emphasize that, although one must ask and repent, praising and glorifying the Lord is still greater and more important. Prayer should primarily strive in the area of praise. The Psalter ends with praise: “Praise the Lord from heaven, praise Him in the highest...” At the heights of prayer, David calls the entire Universe to pray - this is the end of earthly prayers and the beginning of the Kingdom of Heaven.
In general, the Book of Psalms has penitential and messianic (which preach the Lord Jesus Christ) psalms. It contains historical, prophetic, thanksgiving and laudatory psalms. The psalm “On the Rivers of Babylon” is, on the one hand, a historical psalm, on the other, a repentant one, and on the third, a prophetic one. It contains the story of the Babylonian captivity, a prayer request, a prophecy: “Blessed is he who hath, and shall dash thy little children against the stone.” The interpretations of the holy fathers say that by “babies” are meant evil thoughts, and by the stone against which they will be broken, the Lord Jesus Christ. “The stone, which he carelessly built, this was at the head of the corner” - this is Christ, Whoever falls on Him will break, and on whomever He falls will crush him.
The texts of the psalms are bottomless, and if you “chew” them, they constitute great sweetness for the human soul.
— Probably, even a lifetime is not enough to study all this?
- If we apply this to practical life, we will get a strong acceleration so that going through life will be fun and pleasant. But life is not enough for us to do this, so we will continue to pray in the Kingdom of Heaven.
One of the holy fathers gives an example of how a certain monk taught another to read the first psalm, “Blessed is the man who does not follow the advice of the wicked.” A year later they met, and the monk asked whether the brother read the entire Psalter.
“No,” he answered, “I am still reading the first psalm.”
- Why?
“Because I’m trying to do it, but I still haven’t learned how to actually do it.”
If you read the Psalter and Gospel this way: trying to incorporate what you read, then this is the goal of life. The richness of the psalms is so great that one would like this book to be open to everyone, and for everyone to draw from it.
— Probably, each of us caught ourselves reading prayers from the prayer book, but our thoughts sometimes wander far away, for example, solving everyday issues. What to do in this case: stop the prayer or start reading it again?
- As they say: “Keep the unstoppable.” The mind is uncontrollable, thoughts are racing. We must keep them. Will this always work? We must strive for this. And the priest, and the monk, and the bishop, and the teacher of the Theological Academy, repenting, will say: “I’m distracted, I’m distracted in prayer. Only the tongue speaks - the heart does not respond" or "the tongue speaks, but thoughts run away." This is a known problem to all of us. Could it be otherwise? Yes, but after acquiring strong prayer skills.
When thoughts run away, you can do anything: stop, return to what you read, use the principle “less is more.” “Struggle” over one prayer. And while you are fighting over it, it may turn out that the time for the rule has passed. But you prayed. This struggle is worth a lot: it seems to me that such prayer is of better quality: it brings a person closer to greater fruits than quick proofreading.
The biography of the righteous father Alexander Mechev says that he forced parishioners to constantly delve into liturgical prayers. One of his parishioners for a long time could not understand the prayer behind the pulpit, “Bless those who bless You, O Lord, and sanctify those who trust in You,” and Father Alexander himself helped her so that she would fight with herself and listen.
It happened to me that when reading the Six Psalms, some psalms immediately fell on my soul, while others seemed to pass by, as if I did not hear them. Then I began to pay more attention to those that were more difficult. Such work should take place during divine services for both the layman and the priest: everything that is taught as verbal food should not pass by, but get into you. Listening to the Apostle, the Gospel, understanding - this is also prayer. Prayer is a dialogical form of communication with God.
— Question from a TV viewer from Ulyanovsk: “I’m 84 years old, and I can’t say many prayers. I do this: I read the morning rule, then a chapter from the Gospel, one kathisma. During the day I read the Theotokos Rule and the Evening Rule 150 times, but I can’t do it anymore. When I read the Gospel, for some reason I cry a lot.”
“You don’t need to pray anymore, because you’re a young girl.” May Christ strengthen you to adhere to this rule until the last day. Cry, it is good: “Blessed are those who mourn.” Perhaps a lot depends on people like you. With God, dear mother.
This is Holy Rus'. Probably, we live thanks to such people who don’t even know about themselves. True humility never knows that it is humility, and a true man of prayer will never say that he is a man of prayer, but will consider that he prays little.
— The other side is when people take it upon themselves to read a large number of akathists, canons, kathismas, and, in the end, become exhausted. It happens that these obediences were given by different priests at different times. What should a person do in such a situation?
— It is necessary to take an “inventory” of all prayer rules. There is a great danger that a person may become overloaded. If he breaks, the Church will lose a warrior. For the sake of maintaining mental health, maintaining oneself in the ranks, it is necessary to reconsider all the rules. They are all good, you want everything, but you don’t need to overload yourself.
It is better not to pray enough than to pray too much. A person who has not prayed feels hungry for prayer, but a person who has prayed is heavy and turns away from spiritual food. This is a dangerous thing and, unfortunately, known to many.
— Question from a TV viewer from Podolsk: “The prophets knew long before the Nativity of Christ that the Savior would come to earth. Why do we ask God for something in our prayers, if He initially knows everything that will happen to us and the world?”
— God’s omniscience does not deprive a person of freedom, he always has the opportunity to choose, and we influence the fate of the world. God's thoughts on the fate of a people or a person can change depending on the behavior of the people or person. We can be convinced of this from the Book of the Prophet Jonah, who is sent to warn Nineveh about the inevitable execution of the city for the sins of its inhabitants. The Ninevites, having learned this news, bring nationwide, tearful repentance to God - and the execution is postponed by several centuries.
The prophet Isaiah begs for fifteen years of life for King Hezekiah, who was already plunging into the region of the shadow of death. But he weeps bitterly, turns to the Lord with a request to remember all his good deeds for the sake of His Name, Isaiah prays for him - and God’s thought about man changes. The fifteen years given to Hezekiah is a huge period of time during which everything can be changed. We know from experience how prayers lift a sick person from his deathbed. There is no doubt that through prayer we influence life, we ask the Lord God for what we are unworthy of, and He, out of His love, gives it to us for the sake of fervent requests.
There is such fervent prayer, as if a harlot grabbed Christ by the feet and did not let Him go. The holy righteous John of Kronstadt said that when he raised the paten and cup with the words “Holy of Holies,” he really felt like a harlot, clutching the feet of Jesus Christ and saying that he would not let Him go anywhere until he received what he asked. Such a prayer of faith acts on the history of the world and changes it. This is an indisputable fact. The fact that we do not all pray like this is our sadness.
Everything is predicted only in general terms; the picture of the future world is written in large strokes, and not in detail. And Christ was written in this way in the prophecies, so that the pure in heart could recognize Him, while others could be mistaken. A person can always make a mistake. Christ speaks in parables: everyone hears, but not everyone understands. The prophets also spoke in secret so that not everyone would understand, and the wicked would not understand. The history of the world with the Antichrist and the Last Judgment is written in general strokes, and the Lord leaves the details to us.
— It happens that people take upon themselves the obedience to read the Akathist to Saint Matrona of Moscow, because she helps in need, or some spiritual book, but at the same time they abandon the reading of morning and evening prayers, do not read the Gospel and the Apostle.
“I remember that I once had a rigoristic anger against such people, but over time I began to notice that my attitude towards them had softened. Let them pray, read as they wish, as long as they pray and warm their hearts. It is clear that while such a person does not know how to praise God, he only asks. Let him ask, it seems to me that a flame should flare up from this small fire. A person must live in a mode of creative movement and deepening into the topic. If a person began with an akathist, and then received communion, parted with some sin and became rich in good deeds, it means that prayer has done its job.
— Question from a TV viewer from St. Petersburg: “Is it a sin to ask the saints to pray to God for me, since the Bible says that between God and man there is only one mediator - Jesus Christ?”
“There is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Jesus Christ,” says the Apostle Paul. There is no sin in contacting the saints, but we are not obligated to do so. If a person has gone through some kind of Protestant school, he may have some confusion about turning to the saints. There is no need to force him to do this. If he professes the Nicene Creed, the dogmas of the Orthodox Church, in time it will come.
You can consider it a great gift that God has friends and they love us. Holy Martyr George, who shed blood for Christ, holy martyr Barbara, martyred for Christ, Holy John the Baptist, who baptized the quiet abyss in the waters of the Jordan, Holy Simeon, who held the Infant Jesus in his arms, Saints Joseph and Nicodemus, who took down the tortured body of the Lord from the Cross - all these are friends of God. And we ask them: “Pray for me, so that I too have faith and do not lose it, so that after death I end up with those who pleased God, ask God for me.” It is a great privilege to know that God has friends and to make requests of them. There is not only no sin here, but there is great happiness.
— Question from a TV viewer from the city of Arzamas: “How to understand the words in the Bible that you need to pray to God with firm faith and you will receive what you ask for, that only such prayer is pleasing to Him. If what is asked does not bring benefit or harm, will the Lord still give it through fervent prayer. If he doesn’t give it, how can I find out the reason why I didn’t receive what I asked for?”
—Prayer offered to God with strong faith nourishes a person in itself. In it he meets the Lord Himself, and this meeting saturates the soul. You have the answer within yourself, and it may be like this: “Whether you give or not give what I asked, it doesn’t matter. What matters is that I love You."
I stood up for prayer in the firm faith that the Lord loves me, forgives me, He knows me through and through, tolerates me and listens attentively. With this faith I stand before Him and ask for something. My soul, feeling that God is nearby, says: “Whether You give or not, that’s not important, what’s important is that You know me, and I know and love You.” In prayer we receive not only what we ask, but God Himself. Ask in faith and you will see many miracles in your life.
“Many people say: “God is in my soul, and I do not intend to show my religious feelings in public.” Maybe that’s why a person doesn’t go to church and doesn’t pray?
- This is a standard excuse. I envy those who have God in their soul; the Lord probably teaches them through some kind of inner teaching. Then you need personal, home prayer, which will inevitably show itself in the fruits of external life, and you will find those who also have God in their souls, you will want to talk to them.
You cannot help but talk about the One who is in your soul. If you are silent about Him, then this is indeed an excuse, and you should not dwell on it for long.
— How important is church prayer?
“I just spoke about the great value of the Book of Psalms. Church prayer is so important that one “Lord, have mercy!”, said together with everyone during the Liturgy, weighs more than the entire Psalter read at home alone. This is the price of church prayer.
“The Lord said: “Where two or three are gathered in My Name, there I am in the midst of them.” What if we read the Psalter as a family?
“Then, in essence, this will be the prayer of the home Church.” Then we will go to the temple of God for what we cannot do at home. At home, we can read and sing a lot in the lay rite; if necessary, we can even baptize a person without confirmation, but we won’t be able to receive communion. Let us love the temple of God and worship in the temple for the greatest thing it gives us - for the Eucharist. Temples are built for the Mystery of the Body and Blood.
— How often should you attend divine services?
- According to the loving heart. Of course, you can’t go below Sunday. This is the minimum, and then depending on your health, employment and loving heart.
His Holiness the Patriarch says that churches should be within walking distance, nearby. Then the more you love God, the more often you will walk, if you have the physical opportunity for this.
— If a person does not have a church within walking distance or is frail, the Soyuz TV channel broadcasts Sunday services for such people. Can this replace church prayer?
“Those who can walk should certainly walk on their own.” For those people who would like to walk, but cannot, this is the greatest help. A huge number of people cannot leave their homes or are in hospitals.
If we are healthy, of course, we need to go to church so that God can see and know us. So that he doesn’t tell us later: “I don’t know you,” as was said to the virgins with lamps without oil.
It is very important to familiarize your heart with the daily cycle of worship. Let’s say I would like to pray with the whole Church now, for this I need to know what is being read in the church now. I myself will not serve Vespers, but I remember from it Psalm 103, “Quiet Light,” the ninth hour, and thus I participate in the worship of the Church.
The Book of Kings emphasizes that when the prophet Elijah brought fire down from heaven onto the sacrifice, he cried out to the Lord during the evening sacrifice in the temple. That is, the answer is B
Tonight, Friday, June 25, an unusual meeting will take place as part of the Internet project “Online with the Ural Father.” The presenter will be Priest Sergiy Ermolaev, rector of the parish of Cosmas and Damian at Regional Clinical Hospital No. 1.
Illness is always an unfortunate event in a person’s life. But a believer perceives it in a special way - as a kind of stop, a respite from the conveyor belt of work and household responsibilities, a time to reflect on his whole life, rethink himself, and set his priorities correctly.
How to treat illness correctly? How not to get discouraged when you find yourself in a hospital bed? Is it useful to analyze the reasons that led to illness without a confessor? How to correctly pray for the healing of yourself and your loved ones? Father Sergius will answer these and other questions.
On the eve of the day of the medical worker, domes and crosses were consecrated here and installed on the temple under construction, designed for 500 people. This unique construction is progressing at a fabulous pace - the temple building was erected in less than two years!
Its rector, Father Sergius Ermolaev, will talk about how this became possible and how the “parish in a hospital corridor” was developed.
The Internet meeting “Online with the Ural priest” will take place on Friday evening in the official group of the Ekaterinburg diocese on the VKontakte social network: vk.com/ekaterinburg_eparhia.
The live broadcast starts at 21:00.
Let us remind you that “Online with the Ural priest” is a series of video meetings with Orthodox priests and clergy of the Yekaterinburg diocese. It takes place online every Friday in the diocese’s VKontakte group.
The goal of the project is to represent the parishes and priests of the Yekaterinburg Metropolis, spiritual conversations with believers online. The following have already taken part in the project:
— Priest Pavel Kononenko and Priest Alexander Karachev: “God does not want hostility and does not deprive a person of freedom”;
— Priest Andrei Andreev: “You can come to church, pray, and then go on to work with God”;
— Archpriest Igor Bachinin: “Spirituality gives a person life-affirming meanings and values”;
— Hegumen Flavian (Matveev): “During the war, an elephant lived in the temple, and later they wanted to make a recording studio in the building”;
— Priest Kirill Pomortsev: “There are two extremes - vanity and despondency. We must not fall into them”;
- Archpriest Peter Mangilev: “Easter days are days of special grace”;
— Priest Igor Stukov: “Is it possible to learn Gospel love?”;
— Priest Dimitry Bazhanov: “The task of the bell ringer is to call people to Christ with his bell ringing”;
— Priest Sergius Kungurov: “The military temple is open to everyone”;
— Priest Maxim Krylov: “The restoration of the temple is not the restoration of a wall, but the creation of a community”;
— Archpriest Alexander Sandyrev: “Youth in the church are looking for joy, mutual understanding and happiness”;
— Priest Dusan Mikhailovich: “Man and his mission: do we choose it or does it choose us?”;
— Priest Konstantin Korepanov: “Why is the canon of St. Andrew of Crete so important for the beginning of Lent?”;
— Hieromonk Arkady (Loginov): “Conversation with God. What does the lack of spiritual enlightenment lead to in the life of a Christian?”;
— Archpriest Evgeniy Popichenko: “Lent is the time to establish a relationship with God”;
— Priest Kirill Kuzovnikov: “The importance of worship can only be shown by example”;
— Priest John Paramonov: “Prayer as a tool for acquiring the grace of the Spirit”;
— Priest Dimitri Zadorin: “Destination is what fills death itself with life”;
— Priest Igor Konstantinov: “Christian care and love must spread beyond the boundaries of the church community”;
— Priest Andrei Yuganets: “If the Lord God is the center of the parish, then everything will work out”;
— Priest Dimitri Vaulin: “Dialogue is the basis of a future marriage”;
— Archpriest Alexy Yakovlev: “Why is Tolkien needed when there is a Catechism”;
— Priest John Nikulin: “Here everyone watches Soyuz and knows Yekaterinburg”: traditions of celebrating the Nativity of Christ in Poland;
— Archpriest Andrei Kanev: Patriotism as responsibility for the place where you live;
— Priest Andrei Shchukin: “During the Nativity Fast, a person has the opportunity to look inside himself”;
— Priest Daniil Ryabinin: “When Divine grace touches the human heart”;
— Priest Alexy Rusin: “We try to love each other, tolerate and respect”: the secrets of a strong parish;
— Priest Ilya Alexandrov: “Can love for children be limitless?”
