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If you attend a church service, the language in which the ceremony is conducted is not entirely similar to purely Russian. Such phrases include “hallelujah” and “amen,” the Greek words for liturgy, symbol. In our article you can find out what hallelujah means in Orthodoxy.
Hallelujah in the Bible
In the Bible, this word is most often found in the Old Testament, especially in the Psalter, which was written at a time when it was customary everywhere and always to glorify the Creator. Surprisingly, the cry of praise does not appear in the New Testament except in the book of Revelation, written by the Apostle John after he was taken to Heaven and then returned to the island of Patmos.
On the interpretation of other words in Orthodoxy:
What does the word “hypostasis” mean? What does the word “amen” mean?
Describing the joy of the fall of Babylon in chapter 19, the Apostle John writes that he heard the loud voice of a large people, and then the praise of twenty elders and four living creatures, who glorified the Creator, saying: “Hallelujah.” (Revelation 19:1,3,4,6)
In this episode, praise is given to God, the affirmation that the Almighty Creator reigned, sent punishment to all false religions, and the wedding of the Lamb and the Church took place. Heaven praised the Creator for the destruction of the harlot, false religion, which became a violator of God’s first and main commandment.
Glorification of God the Creator in the Book of Revelation
Interesting! Many theologians and theologians argue that by the command of God himself, this word was not translated into other languages because of its divinity.
Praising God in Christianity
Every religion uses words with which believers praise the Lord. In Christianity it sounds like “hallelujah.”
The expression of praise comes to us from sacred Hebrew texts. The translation into Russian of the New Testament kept the expression “hallelujah” 4 times unchanged. The Old Testament contains this word and it appears 24 times, here are some examples:
(Ps 105:1)
Hallelujah! Give praise to the Lord because He is good and His mercy endures forever!
Psalm 105:48
Glorified be the Lord, God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting! And let all the people say: “Amen!” Hallelujah!
Ps 113:9
He brings a barren woman into her home as a happy mother. Hallelujah!
Psalm 135:21
Blessed be you from Zion, O Lord who dwells in Jerusalem. Hallelujah!
Rev 19:3
And they again exclaimed: “Hallelujah!” And the smoke from it rises forever and ever!
This word is mentioned as a specific praise to the Lord God. The Revelation of John the Evangelist uses the word of prayer as part of a song of praise:
John the Theologian
Apostle
“And I heard as it were the voice of a great people,
like the sound of many waters, like the voice of mighty thunders,
saying: Hallelujah! For the Lord God Almighty reigns.”
Regardless of whether people believe in God or not, we often hear joyful cries of “Hallelujah!” What does a word mean to a person at such a moment? It sounds when a person is overwhelmed with positive emotions. “Glory to Thee, Lord!” expresses a feeling of gratitude to the Almighty.
The main thing is that we do not pronounce the name of our God idly.
Origin story
The origin of the word “hallelujah” is associated with the ancient Jewish tradition. The translation of “hallelujah” from Hebrew means “Praise Yah” (Jehovah, Yahweh, Yag). This is a word that brings joy and praise addressed to God. It is mentioned more than 20 times in the Jewish chronicles of biblical history. Is the initial or last word of sacred texts. Jews use it as part of holiday prayers. For example, in the Easter service.
The original meaning was the clergyman addressing a group of believers listening to his words, and demanding a response from them. But gradually it transformed into an independent exclamation. It is this form that was adopted by the Christian tradition. There is a theological assumption that in order to impart a mysterious divinity, the word remained in its original, untranslated form.
Without a doubt, you should also read the article about the sin of misappropriation in Orthodoxy.
Literal translation of the prayer word “hallelujah”
At services in Christian churches you can hear the expression “hallelujah”. But not all believers know how this prayer word is translated.
The literal translation from the Hebrew "hallelujah" (הַלְּלוּיָהּ) means Praise Jehovah or Praise the Lord .
The Jews tried not to use the name of God again.
Therefore, the expression Praise Jehovah was shortened to Halelu-Ya'h. Amen, hallelujah - these Jewish expressions are not translated into Russian, but sound in Hebrew. Theologians believe that God commanded not to translate them. People should think for themselves what the meaning of these words means.
Archpriest Vladimir Golovin to the question “What is “hallelujah”?” answered:
Vladimir Golovin
Archpriest
“It's a Hebrew word. Its translation is: praise God. Semantic content – Glory to Thee, Lord! In the semantic Old Testament tradition, many Jews prayed and now pray not like the Slavs. They say, “May the Lord God hear me!” in the third person. They do not address God using “You.” Christians turn to the Lord directly, without mediation. On “You” straight to him.”
In the book “Stoglav” this word of praise is translated as “Glory to Thee, Lord!” Although the words “glory” and “to you” are not literally translated from Hebrew.
A fragment of the book “Stoglav” where it is said that the word Alleluia is translated as “Glory to Thee, Lord!”
In the Bible scriptures, the word of prayer is translated into Russian or transliterated as “alleluia” or “hallelujah”.
Origin of this word
To accurately determine the meaning of hallelujah, you need to know its origin . And it's no secret. It comes from the Bible, or more precisely, from the book of psalms of the Old Testament, and therefore from the Hebrew language. And as was clear from the Wikipedia definition, it consists of two words that mean just that: praise Yahweh or the Lord, God.
And here there is no need for any disputes, no secret magical meanings that they are trying to attach or find in hallelujah. Because in the Bible, the psalmists used it when they wanted to express their delight and praise to God. And this does not have any religious meaning, but these are the feelings that people wanted to convey and express with this word.
What is “hypostasis” and when did this term appear?
Hypostasis is a theological Orthodox term, the meaning of which implies a unique distinctive feature of each of the three Persons of the Holy Trinity, which is one.
Initially, the word “Hypostasis” appeared in philosophy and translated from Greek means nearby, stand or foundation, in Latin - substance, existence. In theology, this term denotes a specific person or object that has its own individuality, in which the essence is realized.
Hypostasis is a term in Orthodox theology that is used to explain the doctrine of the Holy Trinity
In everyday life, it is understood as existence, individual being. According to the teachings of the philosopher Plotinus, this word meant the essence of something, but was not a term denoting personality. In Orthodox theology, this concept is accepted to describe the essence of God in three Persons.
The Fourth Ecumenical Council gave a clear definition to the term “hypostasis”; it differed from the concept of “nature”, which demonstrates the real existence of the divine and human in Jesus Christ. However, this connection has not undergone changes either in essence or in characteristics.
The great Cappadocians, among whom Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian, and Gregory of Nyssa stand out for their teachings, gave a clear distinction between the concepts of essence and hypostasis, general and personal.
Important! According to their teaching, everything in the Holy Trinity is common, and by hypostasis is meant the individuality of each holy Person. The great Cappadocians explained that God is a single indivisible essence, Hypostasis is inherent in each Person of the Holy Trinity, combining two concepts, they came to the emergence of the term “personality”
The great Cappadocians explained that God is a single indivisible essence, the Hypostasis is inherent in each Person of the Holy Trinity, combining the two concepts, they came to the emergence of the term “personality”.
The hypostatic nature of God the Son is expressed in Jesus Christ, Savior and Teacher.
The meaning of the word hallelujah
Two words that have remained in their original form and are used by clergy are “amen” and “hallelujah.” They come from the Aramaic language, amen translated means “truly”, “hallelujah” consists of two parts hallelujah “praise” and “I”. Ultimately translated it means “Praise God” or “Praise the Lord.”
The church service begins and ends with the song “Praise the Lord.” When remembering the Trinity, the clergyman sings “Praise the Lord” three times, as well as at special moments during the reading of the Gospel, the Little Entrance and Communion.
The prayer of Orthodox people also begins with this word, praising God for earthly gifts. The Word contains joy and love for believers. Some theologians are of the opinion that God commanded not to translate the words, to leave them in their original form to impart divinity.
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Hallelujah of love - praise of eternal love on earth
What is "hallelujah of love"? A song with this name became a hymn to love more than 30 years ago, when the rock opera “Juno and Avos” was first performed. At that time, the time of the pro-communist Soviet Union, any mention of God was punishable, it was forbidden to baptize children, it was forbidden to openly visit churches, and the appearance of a scandalous rock opera blew the minds of ordinary people.
The opera “Juno and Avos” was written based on real events, but shrouded in the grandeur of temple chants, emphasizing that real love is under the protection of the Mother of God herself. And for 30 years now the undying hymn “Hallelujah of Love” has been heard.
What does the word "Hallelujah" mean in Orthodoxy?
Some reference books indicate that this word is of Old Church Slavonic origin, which is a gross mistake.
Orthodoxy uses the Bible translated from Greek or English. In all the Holy Scriptures, only two words remained, “Amen” and “Hallelujah” remained in their original form, they were not touched by the translators. The Lord Himself spoke these words to the Jews through His messengers. If “amen” in Aramaic means “So be it” or “truly,” then “Hallelujah” is translated as “Praise the Creator,” “We thank God.”
The word "Hallelujah" expresses gratitude and admiration for the Creator of the world
This ode of praise can stand both at the beginning of hymns, including psalms and prayers, and at the end of Christian and Jewish services.
On a note! The cry of praise served as a formula for expressing gratitude to Jehovah God in the worship services of the people of Israel.
This word, meaning “Praise to the Most High,” came into Orthodoxy from ancient Hebrew services, at which God Yahweh, the One God, was glorified.
A true story of eternal love
“Juno” and “Avos” are the names of two sailing ships on which the handsome nobleman Nikolai Ryazanov, the favorite of Catherine the Great herself, sailed. Having dedicated his life to a military career from the age of 14, the stately military man did not come to court and, as a result of intrigue, was sent to the Irkutsk region, where he married the wealthy Anna Shelikhova. However, this marriage was not blessed by Heaven, the count's wife dies young, and Ryazanov is sent to Japan. Then he ends up in Petropavlovsk, and from there he goes to California, where he buys the ships “Junona” and “Avos” with his own money.
Here the 15-year-old daughter of the commandant Conchitta wins the heart of the warrior. Love flares up between them, but a real obstacle arises: Ryazanov was Orthodox, Conchita was a Catholic. The Count goes to Russia to obtain permission to marry, but dies on the way.
Tender Conchita remained faithful to her first love, every morning she went to a stone cape, looked at the ocean and waited for her betrothed, and when she learned about his death, she went to a monastery, where she spent 50 long years. This is the story that gave birth to the rock song “Hallelujah of Love.”
Usage in the Christian Orthodox tradition
In Russian church language this word is translated as “praise the Lord”, “praise Jah”. There are two forms of it used in the Christian church: it can be written "alleluia" or "hallelujah." Most often in divine services it is customary to use this word without translation in one of the forms.
In the liturgy of the Christian Orthodox and Greek Catholic churches, it is pronounced or sung at especially majestic and important moments.
When performing the Small Entrance or Entrance with the Gospel - the symbolic passage of the priest and deacon through the side door and the royal doors of the altar during the service. During the performance of the alleluia. The Alleluia is a common part of most Christian liturgies before the reading of the Gospel, when “Alleluia” is sung repeatedly after reading texts from the Psalter. In the Cherubic song, which prepares believers for the Great Entry and ends with a triple “hallelujah.” During the communion of the clergy, a kinonik is performed, ending with the threefold glorification of the Lord. After the parishioners have completed communion, this blessed exclamation is sung three times. The prayer of thanks after communion also ends with triple praise of the Creator.
In daily services, “hallelujah” is also mentioned often: at the end of each psalm, at the end of their groups and at the end of the reading of the major psalms . On non-holiday days of the central fast, it, together with special verses, replaces other words in the morning service, as well as in the church rite of funeral service for the dead.
An interesting fact from the history of the Russian Orthodox Church: this word, or more precisely, the number of its repetitions in everyday services, became the reason for a serious clash between theologians, and then one of the compelling reasons for the schism of the church in the 17th century. Until the middle of the 15th century, there was a double (pure) and triple (triple) repetition of “hallelujah” in services and in sacred texts. And this caused bewilderment among some particularly pedantic clergy, who started theological disputes about the correct number of repetitions. Which, in the end, led to a protracted conflict between supporters of the “pure” and “triple hallelujah.”
Patriarch Nikon tried to connect the type of Russian church service with the Greek one and decided to use the “tribal” form of glorification. The Old Believers did not accept this rule, considering this use of this word to be heresy and a clear denial of the will of the Mother of God. The Nikonians also considered the position of the Old Believers unreasonable. The Great Moscow Council introduced a final ban on the double hallelujah, stopping religious disputes. Double pronunciation was preserved only in Old Believer church services.
A word of love and joy for believers, praise and gratitude for earthly gifts - this is what “hallelujah” is in modern Orthodoxy. When an Orthodox Christian speaks this sacred word, he recognizes his belonging to the Creator and reinforces his gratitude with sincere faith.
"Hallelujah" as a reason for the schism of the church in the 15th-17th centuries
Until the 15th century, the Orthodox Church sang, but did not think about what “Hallelujah” was. The meaning of the word remained mysterious. The conciliar letter sent by the Pskov clergy was sent to the metropolitan. The reason for the dispute was whether to sing "Hallelujah!" once or three times. The year 1454 became a turning point when Efrosin of Pskov went to the great Constantinople to get an answer to the question of what “hallelujah” is and how many times it should be sung. The Monk Euphrosynus claimed that he received the answer from the Mother of God herself, and that it was necessary to sing strictly, that is, once.
In 1551, during the Council of the Stoglavy, the singing of the double “Hallelujah” was introduced. In the 17th century, Greek churches were already singing the triple or trebled "Hallelujah". Not wanting to lag behind the Greek Church, the innovation was picked up by the Russian Patriarch Nikon.
1656 was the year of the appearance of Old Believers in Russia, who did not accept Nikon’s innovations. They considered the three-finger "Hallelujah" and the three-finger baptism to be heresy. After the Great Moscow Council, held in 1666, the strict “Hallelujah” was finally banned.
Praise in worship
Byzantine rite
cannot do without praising the Lord
Church services, prayers and liturgies are not complete without praising the Lord. "Hallelujah" is sung in the liturgy of the Byzantine rite:
in the choruses of the second festive and third daily antiphon; at the small entrance with the Gospel; hymn before the Gospel; the Cherubic song ends with a threefold word of praise; at the end of communion; The hymn of thanksgiving for communion ends with threefold praise.
“Praise the Lord” is used as the conclusion of psalms, kathisma, “glories”, at the beginning and at the end of prayer. Prayerful words of praise are used during Lent and some other fasts. On funeral Saturdays, a “Hallelujah service” is performed.
Use in Catholicism and other faiths
"Hallelujah" is actively used in many services of Catholic churches in Latin.
- It completes the cycle of chants of the Catholic mass.
- The Alleluia precedes the reading of the Gospel. This is the name given to a separate type of Gregorian choral chant in the Protestant and Catholic traditions.
- This is also the name for chanting “hallelujah” in a choir; the soloist, between the group’s singing, reproduces verses from the Psalm, followed by choral singing. This type of worship is included in the daily service, except for days of central fasting and some special occasions.
There is an expression in Islam - “La ilaha illa Allah”, which means “There is no god but Allah”, and it can be considered related in pronunciation and meaning to the word “hallelujah”.
So what does the word hallelujah mean?
In simple terms it means praise God, glorify God. Despite the fact that everything is so simple, this word often causes a lot of controversy in religious circles, both in the present and in the past: In the present, they argue about the correct pronunciation and spelling. Some say it should be pronounced hallelujah, others say hallelujah and give them different meanings. Allegedly, “Hallelujah” means slandering God. In fact, there is no fundamental difference in this. It's just that in English and Hebrew it starts with the letter "x" and that's why some people think that you need to pronounce "Hallelujah" correctly. That is, it turns out to be a play on words, due to the difference in translations of hallelujah. But the main thing that you need to understand is not how hallelujah is written or pronounced, but what meaning is put into it. And this is where the debate ends, because both have the same meaning: praising God. But in the Russian colloquial language the word “hallelujah” should still be pronounced and written. In the past there were disputes in Orthodoxy and even led to a schism churches in 1666-1667. They argued about the number of pronunciations of this word in prayer, two or three times. But again, this is just a religious debate and does not affect the meaning of the word.
Prayer and Praise to God
The daily prayer of a believer should also begin and end with praise to God, then in repentance the person thanks him for the gift of faith, for the promises of forgiveness of sins. “Hallelujah” in prayer means that God is always with us, He guides us through life, and we are grateful to Him. Every believer must understand what “hallelujah” means.
This word is a hymn of love, faith, hope. It is sung when thanking God for the promise of Eternal Life. Even in death one can find joy, because the promise of resurrection from the dead brings the joy of meeting Jesus Christ, God the Father and the Holy Spirit in Heaven.
Conclusion
Faith and a reasonable attitude will come in handy in everything. For example, in a society of non-believers, such exclamations will not always be accepted normally; they may be unusual and strange; on the other hand, for a person who understands the translation and knows the Orthodox tradition, this exclamation will almost always be received joyfully.
Sources:
- https://ikona-i-molitva.info/chto-oznachaet-slovo-allilujya-v-pravoslavii/
- https://molitva-info.ru/duhovnaya-zhizn/slovo-allilujya-v-pravoslavii.html
- https://molitva.guru/interesno-znat/chto-znachit-slovo-allilujya-v-pravoslavii-katolitsizme-islame.html
- https://hranitel.club/82-allilujya
- https://pravoslavie.guru/slovar-terminov/chto-znachit-slovo-allilujya-i-ego-smysl.html
- https://religiya.guru/polezno-znat/tserkovnye-terminy-chto-znachit-slovo-allilujya.html
Lyrics of Hallelujah – Leonard Cohen
Now I've heard there was a secret chord That David played, and it pleased the Lord But you don't really care for music, do you? It goes like this The fourth, the fifth The minor fall, the major lift The baffled king composing hallelujah
Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah Hallelujah
Your faith was strong but you needed proof You saw her bathing on the roof Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew you She tied you To a kitchen chair She broke your throne, and she cut your hair And from your lips she drew the hallelujah
You say I took the name in vain I don't even know the name But if I did, well really, what's it to you? There's a blaze of light In every word It doesn't matter which you heard The holy or the broken hallelujah
I did my best, it wasn't much I couldn't feel, so I tried to touch I've told the truth, I didn't come to fool you And even though It all went wrong I'll stand before the lord of song With nothing on my tongue but hallelujah
Private questions
E. Golubinsky.
The song or song proclamation “Alleluia” passed along with the book of psalms from Jewish worship to Christian worship, no doubt, from the very first time of the existence of Christianity, for, according to the instructions of John the Theologian in the apocalypse (XIX, 1-6), the heavenly church of the New Testament glorifies the Lord with this same I sing.
(The Slavic form of the word - alleluia is the Greek form - ἀλληλούια; its own Hebrew form is: galeluia or with a semivowel e
hallouia. The word means: praise, glorify God; composed of two words: galelu or gallu - praise, glorify, from galal - praise, glorify, and Iya (Jah), which is an abbreviation of the word Jehovah - God)65.
Among the Jews, the song of alleluia was a song of joy and triumph, which is why it was sung mainly on the holiday of Easter (psalms 113–118, which have in their inscription: alleluia, were sung on the holiday of Easter; they accept that the Savior, after celebrating the Old Testament Passover and the New Testament Last Supper before his suffering went with his disciples to the Mount of Olives, “which sang” - Matthew XXVI, 30, Mark XIV, 26, namely the song of Alleluia). In the Western or Roman Christian Church, the song Alleluia retained its Jewish meaning as a song of joy and triumph; why did it become a custom there not to proclaim it during Lent and at funeral liturgies with other funeral services (but to proclaim it intensely on Easter day and during Pentecost)66. On the contrary, in the eastern, Greek church, the song of alleluia acquired the meaning primarily of a song of propitiation and repentance, reminiscent of the second coming of the Lord for the judgment of the righteous and sinners and that sinners should try to avoid condemnation through repentance67; why in the Greek church it is sung throughout the year, but mainly during Lent, as well as at funeral services.
Regarding the two controversial methods between us and the Old Believers of proclaiming the song of alleluia - tripling and doubling, until recently we accepted that, since ancient times, the only way of proclaiming a song among the Greeks was triplicate, and that doubling is an arbitrary novelty, or our Russian or Serbian. But according to the latest archaeological information, it turns out that this is not so, namely, that doubling is as ancient among the Greeks as triplicity, and that both methods of proclaiming a song were used jointly or identically by them until later times.
How was it with this duality of the method of proclaiming a song - was it so that triplicity and doubling began to be used at the same time, or that before (first) one of them, and then the other, and if we assume the second case, then which is relatively older or more original? : We cannot answer these questions due to the lack of positive data. The oldest evidence known to us about the method of proclaiming a song, dating back to the end of the 5th - half of the 9th century, speaks of triplicity,68 and this seems to give us some right to consider it older than doubling. On the other hand, it is not at all impossible that we are dealing here with a simple accident, i.e. that regarding the doubling of the Alleluia song there are as many ancient testimonies as about triplicities, but they only remain unknown to us. Be that as it may, starting from the first half of the 11th century, we have a number of evidence that the Greeks, along with the triplicity of the alleluia song, also used doubling, in other words, that they used both forms of exclamation - and triplicate - in simultaneous and joint use and double vision. The first evidence of the use by the Greeks of the special alleluia together and simultaneously with the treguba is found in the so-called Studite Charter of the Patriarch of Constantinople Alexei, who occupied the see from 1025 to 1043 and whose charter, having been transferred from Greece to Russia through the efforts of the Venerable. Theodosius of Pechersk, became our Russian Studio Charter69. Patriarch Alexei is followed by Nikon the Montenegrin, who lived in the second half of the same 11th century, in whom, along with the injunction to triple the Alleluia song, we find an injunction to double it in the first word of his Taktikon70. Then, in Metropolitan Cyprian, in his Followed Psalter, which has survived to this day,71 we find the intensification of alleluia as the only way to proclaim a song72. Since we positively know that the doubling of the alleluia was a Greek custom that existed together with the triplicity, then the assumption that Cyprian brought the Serbian novelty to us is, of course, unfounded. But from a comparison of Cyprian, in whose psalter we find a double alleluia, with his successor Photius, who in his letter to Pskov commands to triple the alleluia, another conclusion follows, namely, that in the times of our two metropolitans, doubling the song was the prevailing custom on Athos, among the monks which was Cyprian, and the triplicity of song is the prevailing custom in the rest of Greece, or at least that part of this rest of Greece to which Photius belonged by origin, that is, the Peloponnese. At a short distance from Cyprian († 1406) we find an instruction to double the song of alleluia in some cases by Simeon of Thessalonica († 1429)73.
That the special alleluia passed from the Greeks not only to us - Russians, but also to the Bulgarians and Serbs, must be assumed by itself, and in any case, the Bulgarian and Serbian liturgical books positively testify to this. And that in Russia the special alleluia was not only a feature of Moscow, but until later times was also in use in Kyiv, this is evidenced by Kyiv or South Russian liturgical books.
The Kyiv liturgical books give us the opportunity to indicate the time when among the Greeks the three-pronged alleluia became decisively dominant over the subordinate or dominant one. In the Sryatinsky Breviary of Gideon Boloban of 1606, the only way to proclaim a song is its doubling or aggravation. And since Gideon Boloban prepared his missal for printing, deliberately correcting it according to the Greek lists, deliberately requested from the Greek authorities (from the Patriarch of Alexandria - Meletius Pigas, when the latter was the locum tenens of the Patriarchal See of Constantinople): it is clear that in his time the tributary alleluia was not yet prevailed among the Greeks decisively over pure alleluia75. From what has just been said, it follows that the three-lipped alleluia received a decisive predominance among the Greeks or became dominant among them during the half-century from Gideon’s printing of his missal to Nikon’s undertaking of his correction of books, in other words, during the first half of the 17th century. However, even by the time of Nikon’s correction of the books, as we learn from the Proscinitary of Arseny Sukhanov, the three-lipped alleluia became just dominant and predominant among the Greeks and was recognized by the church authorities as having to be used exclusively, but in fact it was not yet exclusively used: Arseny more than once he notes in the Proscinitary that when the Greeks dominate the threefold alleluia (and with the voice of the church authorities for him one, as the Patriarch of Alexandria expressed to him in response to his question), others still continue to double it76.
Thus, the history of the method of proclamation of the alleluia song among the Greeks consisted in the fact that in an ancient time unknown to us, until the end of the century, they established either simultaneously, or one after the other, two methods of proclamation - triangulation and aggravation (assuming the latter case regarding time, the elders should recognize termination), - that these two methods existed together for a very long time, no less than until the beginning of the 17th century (one was used by some, the other by others, and by others, perhaps, it was indifferent to one or the other ) and what, during the first half of the 17th century, became decisively dominant among them, and then became the only one77, the triple song78.
For us, the Russians, the method of proclaiming the alleluia song should have the same history as the Greeks, that is, so that during the same time with them (a very long time) we used or accepted both methods of proclaiming the song - triangulation and aggravation and so that later after them they remain when using the first one. But we developed a special view of church customs, which did not allow any custom to exist in two forms, and according to which the existence of any custom in two forms meant that one form of it was correct and Orthodox, and the other was incorrect. and heretical. As a result of this, we had a question: which of the two ways of proclaiming the song of alleluia is correct and Orthodox and which is incorrect and heretical. If it happened that the question was decided in favor of trinity, then we (by chance) would remain in agreement with the Greeks regarding the song of alleluia; but it happened that it was decided in favor of duality, and we separated from them regarding the song.
We will make additions and amendments to the history of how the question of the method of proclaiming the song of alleluia was resolved in favor of doubling.
The issue was first raised in Pskov during the reign of Metropolitan Photius. Regarding how disagreement in the proclamation of the alleluia song appeared in Pskov, which gave rise to the question or forced the Pskovites to raise this latter, with a very high probability one should think that before Photiev’s predecessor Cyprian, the Pskovites all uniformly sang the alleluia song, but what about what they received from Cyprian the missal, and probably the charter or the following psalter, which the Metropolitan took the trouble to send to them when he learned that they did not have a right church rule,79 the double song also passed to them. Be that as it may, Photius, in a message to Pskov dated August 19, 1419, answered the Pskovites to the question they addressed to him about the proclamation of the alleluia song, that it should be triplicated or said three times three times (the triple alleluia should be pronounced three times with Glory to Thee, God)80. One cannot help but regret that Photius, wanting to give an answer to the Pskovites that would reassure and satisfy them, through this inadvertently seemed to sanction and recognize our Russian incorrect view of the subject. The Pskovites, asking Photius which of the two exclamations of the song should be used, understood: which of the two exclamations of the song should be recognized as correct and Orthodox and which as incorrect, heretical. Metropolitan Photius did not at all think of saying that one of the two exclamations was correct and Orthodox, the other incorrect and heretical, but understood the question of the Pskovians in such a way that in the proclamation of the song they wish to adhere to uniformity, and therefore, satisfying their desire, he prescribes one for uniform use from two equally correct and Orthodox ways of proclamation (for with two equally correct methods, whether both of them or one of them is used is all the same, and in the latter case, the correct one does not cease to be correct): but. Of course, he was understood by the Pskovites in their own way. If Photius, instead of definitely prescribing to the Pskovites one of two equally correct and Orthodox ways of proclaiming a song, had left it to them to make a choice, directly saying that both methods were equally correct and Orthodox: then our disputes about alleluia and we would have later learned the uniformity of triangulation from the Greeks (although, of course, we would not have learned it earlier than the Greeks, that is, although such an accident would not have occurred that we would have established before the Greeks exactly the same uniformity regarding the proclamation of songs that was then established among them ). However, it is more than likely that our own view of church customs would triumph over the authority of Metropolitan. Photius and that despite his clear statement that both ways of proclaiming the song of alleluia are equally correct and Orthodox, in the end the teaching that would prevail among us is that only one way of proclaiming is correct and Orthodox, and that the other way is incorrect and heretical.
After Fotiev’s decree and on the basis of it, a uniform trio of the alleluia song was established in Pskov. But 35 years later, from Fotiev’s decree, a defender of the double song appeared among the Pskovites. This was a certain monk Athanasius, who traveled to the East and is, as we said above,81 in all likelihood, one and the same person with that Tver hieromonk Athanasius, who, according to records in manuscripts, is known as a person who lived more or less long in the East, namely – on Athos82. Having founded a monastery in the Pskov region (St. Nicholas, currently non-existent and located unknown where)83, he introduced into it the custom of doubling the alleluia song, which he had adopted on Athos, as it was dominant there and was accepted by him, in contrast to the Pskovites, as the only the correct and orthodox way of proclaiming a song. When the Pskovites learned about the innovator who had appeared among them, they became very worried and began to cruelly revile him. One unknown Pskovite, who belonged to the number of zealous admirers of the strict monastic life of Athanasius, wrote him several letters in which he urged him to renounce doubling, as a heresy, recently allegedly borrowed by the Greeks from the Latins, and diligently, with the help of careful by the way of the collected evidence, he proved to him that the only correct and Orthodox way of proclaiming a song is threefold. When Athanasius, citing the example of Athos, the Patriarch Joseph of Constantinople and all the ecumenical patriarchs84, remained adamant, the Pskovites declared him a heretic. Afanasy addressed a complaint against the Pskovites to Archbishop Euthymius of Novgorod (2nd, Vyazhitsky, who occupied the see from 1434 to 1458)85. But the answer of the archbishop, who still held the proper view of the subject and recognized as equally correct and Orthodox both one and the other way of proclaiming the song, did not protect him from his detractors. Then Archbishop Athanasius addressed a complaint to Metropolitan Jonah87. The Metropolitan, without resolving the dispute on the merits, wrote only an admonition to the Pskovites so that “there would be no disagreement among them in the churches of God and in the Orthodox Christian faith”88. Not having time to overcome Afanasiev’s stubbornness, the Pskovites ended the matter by writing a decree or, as it were, a sentence, in which it is commanded to sing the Alleluia song in honor of the three persons of the Holy Trinity, as it is written in the Theologian, i.e. in the Apocalypse of John the Theologian, and which says , that whoever doubles the song separates the Holy Spirit from the Father and the Son and sings so to his own sin and condemnation89.
Thus, having been met by the Pskovites at his first appearance with them after Metropolitan. Photius, the alleluia, little by little, then began to acquire defenders among them, so that after another 35 years from their campaign against her in the person of Athanasius, disputes arose about her between themselves. Then one of the defenders of the special alleluia decided to bring it triumph over the threefold through the fictitious life of one of the Pskov saints and through the creation of supernatural revelations to himself - we mean the life of St. Euphrosynus of Pskov, i.e., the first life of the unknown, which was later literary reworked and partly remade by priest Vasily91, and the vision of the Mother of God to the author of the life.
This life of Euphrosynus is nothing more than a falsification or forgery, which appeared in such a way that data from the history of the monk Athanasius, whom we spoke about above, was transferred to Euphrosynus.
By itself, without any positive indications, life should be taken for fiction. During Euphrosinova’s youth, says the author of the life, there were disputes in Pskov about the Alleluia song; These disputes aroused in Euphrosyne a desire to find out the truth about our song, that is, about whether to triple or double it, and to find out the truth he went to Constantinople to the Ecumenical Patriarch92. But Euphrosynus’s youth falls precisely during the reign of Metropolitan. Photius93. Why on earth would he go to Constantinople to see the patriarch, when in Moscow the patriarch’s representative was a Greek like himself, and when, without going to Constantinople, he (Euphrosynus) could get the answer he wanted from the metropolitan? Why on earth would he go to Constantinople to the patriarch, when the Pskovites addressed the metropolitan with precisely this question and received a direct answer from him? In general, it would be completely incredible and completely untenable to assume that during the reign of Metropolitan. Photius Euphrosynus or someone else addressed our or any other church and liturgical question besides the Metropolitan to the Patriarch, because this detour of the Metropolitan would be completely incomprehensible and could not be explained in any way.
Be that as it may, the fact of fiction and falsification of the life of Evfrosinov should be recognized as a positive fact. The unknown defender of the alleluia song had at hand letters from an unknown Pskovite to the monk Athanasius and, in general, all the documents related to the latter’s dispute with the Pskovites about the alleluia song. The letters convey the assurances of Athanasius that he was instructed to double the song of alleluia from the Patriarch Joseph of Constantinople, in general from the ecumenical patriarchs and on Athos94. These assurances are not at all called false in Pskov’s letters; they only eliminate Athanasius’s reference to the Greeks by saying that they should not listen to the latter, since recently they allegedly turned away from the truth and became infected with heresies. But the defender of the double alleluia had enough learning to see the inconsistency of this elimination: from the Council of Florence, at which the Greeks could and, according to the author of the letters, actually became infected with heresies, Patr. Joseph did not return (as the letters themselves say). Consequently, it was clear that Athanasius saw Joseph and was supposedly taught from him to double the song of alleluia even before the Council of Florence, otherwise - even in good times, during the inviolability of his Orthodoxy. Thus, the defender of the double song could have sincerely believed that Athanasius was taught by the patriarchs. Joseph to double the song of alleluia, with the recognition, it is implied, of tripling the song as an incorrect and unorthodox custom, or a sincere belief that the Greeks are Orthodox to the point of being damaged
the Florentine cathedral doubled the hymn of Alleluia, and therefore, he could have formed a sincere conviction that the hymn should be doubled. With this sincere conviction, our defender of the double song decided to fabricate the life of the first. Euphrosynus and the daring composition of the apparitions of Euphrosynus and the Mother of God to himself (internally justifying himself, of course, by the fact that he decides to lie in order to bring triumph to a just cause). Of course, they did not have any memory of the monk Athanasius, who at one time was proclaimed a heretic by the Pskovites, so to refer to him in defense of a purely alleluia would mean to refer to a person who had no authority in the eyes of the Pskovites and whose name was for them with empty words. But Rev. Euphrosynus was a famous ascetic who founded a strictly communal monastery and educated disciples who founded several similar monasteries; in a word, he was almost the same for the Pskov region as Venerable. Sergius of Radonezh for the Moscow region. There could not have been a more authoritative reference than to him for the Pskovites. And so, wanting to give the special alleluia a triumph over the trebuba by means of the greatest authority that could only be invoked before the Pskovites, our defender of the special alleluia, putting Euphrosynus in the place of Athanasius, wrote about him that he went to Constantinople to find out the truth about alleluia , as if he had been taught by Patriarch Joseph to double it, as if he had heated debates about it with the Pskovites, and as if, without having time to teach the latter the truth, he was declared a heretic by them in their blindness. This composition or this composition of the life of Euphrosinov is clearly revealed from its comparison with the letters of the unknown Pskovite to the monk Afanasy, on the basis of which, with other documents, it was composed. In general terms, the history of Prey. Euphrosyne is completely the same with the story of the monk Athanasius, as the latter is indicated in letters to Athanasius from an unknown Pskovite. Euphrosynus went to the East and there he learned to double the song of alleluia; upon returning from the East, he founded his monastery, in which he introduced double song; The Pskovites rebelled against him for this and, not having time to force him to abandon the double song, they proclaimed him a heretic: the same is true for Athanasius. Two completely identical stories take place at the same time: Euphrosynus argued with the Pskovites during the reign of Novgorod Archbishop Evfimy Vyazhitsky, who occupied the see from 1434 to 1458; Athanasius argued with them (as can be seen from the letters of an unknown Pskovite to him) several years after the Council of Florence, which took place in 1438–39, and very shortly after the capture of Constantinople by the Turks, which happened in 1453. This complete simultaneity of the two completely identical stories, doesn’t it indicate that in two stories one should see one story divided into two in such a way that from one person with whom it actually happened, it is transferred to another person as a fiction? But we have a particular feature common to both stories that finally convinces us of this. According to his life, at the head of the Pskovites who rebelled against Euphrosynus for a special alleluia. There was a disgrace named Job, who ruled all spiritual and civil affairs in Pskov and was nicknamed by the Pskovites the pillar, whom Euphrosynus nicknamed the bloodthirsty pillar and whom the author of his life himself, for abdicating the priesthood for the sake of a second marriage, calls Judas the traitor. From the letters of an unknown Pskovite to Afanasy, we know that it was Job who was at the head of the Pskovites who rebelled against the latter, and that he, Afanasy, called him Bloodworm and Judas95. Apparently, there is a significant particular difference between the history of Euphrosynus and the history of Athanasius: Euphrosynus, according to his life, was only in
Constantinople and refers only to Patr. Joseph, and Afanasy, according to letters to him from an unknown Pskovite, also referred to Athos. But why the author of the life is silent about Athos in relation to Euphrosynus is completely understandable: in his monastic charter, Euphrosynus makes it clear on one occasion that he has not been to Athos96.
So, there can be no doubt that the life of Euphrosynus is nothing more than a fiction, which appeared in such a way that the story of the monk Athanasius was transferred to it. We said that the author of the life used not only letters from an unknown Pskov resident to Afanasy, but also other documents. In the appendix to the life there is placed, under the name of Euphrosyne, a letter to the Pskov clergy (“our lords and the priest of the gathering of the Holy Trinity and others, the entire priestly rank,” pp. 112–117 vol.), in which the author strongly scolds Job, calling him the pillar of the bloodworm Ievkom, the mark of Christ and the second Judas (in the RKP. l. 116 there is a gross typo: “the mark of Christ and the second”), and in which he proves at length that he considers it his duty to listen not to them - the Pskovites, but to the cathedral church. Since Euphrosynus had no need to write to the Pskov clergy and his life does not say that he wrote; since from the letters of an unknown Pskovite to Afanasy, we know that this one wrote defamatory messages to the Pskov clergy, cursing in them mainly Job97 and since in the message, assimilated by Euphrosynus, there is literally what, according to the Pskovite, Afanasy wrote98: then we have no doubt that the message does not belong to Euphrosynus, but to this latter. Unfortunately, the message is read in an unfinished form (interrupted in mid-phrase), the reason for which incompleteness, in all likelihood, is that later in the message something was said that would not have gone to Euphrosynus at all, for example, that Athanasius further referred to Athos99 . We said above that the author of the life had at hand the letter of Athanasius to Euthymius and the answer of Euthymius to Athanasius and only reworks the second of them (assimilating the first to Euphrosyne). Here are the reasons for our assumption. The people of Pskov appear in life as rebelling against Euphrosynus for a special alleluia, when he had already built a monastery and when there was already an abbot in the monastery. But the author of the life himself says that the first abbot was appointed to the monastery by Archbishop John, l. 51 vol., which is obviously a typo instead of: Jonah, and Jonah was the successor of Euthymius. This contradiction of the author to himself can only be explained in such a way that he speaks about the installation of an abbot on the basis of the latter’s installation letter, in which the name of Archbishop Jonah appeared, and in the letters he retained the name of the archbishop who appeared in them, i.e. he did not forward the name Euphemia in the name of Jonah100.
But for our defender of the alleluia, the main thing was not to compose the life of St. Euphrosynus, but to invent the appearance of the Mother of God for himself, for which the life of Euphrosynus was only a visible reason and pretext. The special alleluia contains the great mystery of the resurrection of Christ; this secret remained hidden for the Old Testament patriarchs and prophets, and equally remained hidden for the entire New Testament host of holy men, so that not a single ecumenical council could or dared to reveal it; Saint Euphrosynus himself, who from his youth devoted himself to the revelation of the mystery, died in ignorance of it, since in Constantinople he was only commanded to double the alleluia, but they could not say anything about its meaning: and now, finally, through the prayers of St. Euphrosyne, the Mother of God, appeared to the writer of the life to announce to the Church of God the hidden secret of the special alleluia. Such a great and, so to speak, universal instrument in relation to the great mystery of the profound alleluia was destined to serve as a humble Pskovite who hid his name! And if this modest Pskovite had not decided to write the life of Euphrosynus, then the great secret of the special alleluia could still remain a secret for the church101...
The question of where the writer got his teaching that the special alleluia contains the mystery of the resurrection of Christ can be answered with two assumptions - or that it was suggested to him by the stichera of the service of St. George, in which, after the proclamation of the alleluia itself (three times), instead of: Glory to Thee, God, it is added: “Glory to Thee, Christ the giver of life,” - “Glory to Thee, Christ the benefactor,” “Glory to the risen Christ”102, or that he took it (teaching) among the Latins, who actually proclaim the song of alleluia in honor of the risen Christ. Perhaps the first assumption is more likely, but the second is not at all incredible: due to the border of the Pskov region with Latin land, the author could be familiar with the teachings of the Latins, and he himself directly hints at this familiarity103.
The life of Venerable Alleluia, written by an unknown zealot. Euphrosyne did not achieve the immediate goal for which it was intended - it did not bring about the triumph of a special alleluia over the treasury in Pskov and the Pskov region104; but it achieved another, much more important, goal, for which it was not designed: on the basis of it105 the Council of the Hundred Heads sentenced: throughout the Russian land, to sing the extreme alleluia, and leave the third one, like the Latin heresy (chapter 42).
Metropolitan Macarius is subjected to strong and cruel reproaches for his definition of a special alleluia, made on the basis of such a bad source as the life of Euphrosyne. But we are of the decisive opinion that a significant and large part of the blame should be removed from Metropolitan. Macarius and entrusted to the Rev. Maxim the Greek. We think with full confidence that Macarius made his definition of a special alleluia not so much on the basis of the life of Euphrosinov, but on the basis of the word of Maximov to those who dare to say alleluia through church traditions106, and that if he, referring to the life, does not refer to the word, then because Maxim the Greek and all the Greeks of that time did not have any authority in the eyes of the Russians of that time. The dependence of the definition of the Stoglavy Cathedral on Maximov’s word is completely clear. The Council in its definition states that alleluia means in Russian: glory to Thee, O God: but this is exactly what Maxim says in his word. The Council asserts that the three-pronged alleluia is a Latin heresy; but this is exactly what Maxim says in the same word. Until Met. We in Russia had or still had Macarius, as it was then among the Greeks, in the simultaneous use of three-bite and extreme alleluia107. Metropolitan Macarius, who generally cared about establishing uniformity in our worship and in relation to the song of alleluia, already stood on the Russian point of view of considering any one way of its proclamation correct and Orthodox, “in a word” Maximov was mistakenly convinced that at that time the Greeks had in the general uniform use of the alleluia, and as if we had, along with the alleluia, the three alleluia, there is a Latin heresy: and he decided on his definition, intending to bring the Russian church into harmony with the Greek church and thinking about the latter that it was like that in ancient times time, “in its good times” (for if, as Maxim assured, the three-bit alleluia is a Latin custom, then one could only think of the Greek Church that the three-part alleluia was always used in it).
What to think about the very word of Maxim to those who dare to say alleluia through church traditions? Maxim was an ardent champion of truth, like the ancient prophets, to whom, not without reason, he equated himself. But the sun is not without spots, and our word must be taken as nothing more than a small spot on Maxim’s generally very bright memory. An ardent champion of the truth, this time he was deliberately unfaithful to it. In his speech, he speaks of the special alleluia as if in his time it was in common uniform use among the Greeks; but this is not true: perhaps in his time the three-word alleluia had not yet become decisively dominant, as it did a century later, but there is no doubt that it was among them at least in the same use as the extreme alleluia108. He states in the word that “whatever we have: glory to Thee, O God, that is, the Jews have: hallelujah”; but that he knew the real meaning of the word alleluia, we have positive proof of this109. He asserts in his speech that the tripping of alleluia is a custom of the Roman Church; but that, having lived so much time in Italy, he did not know how the song of alleluia is proclaimed in the Roman church, and that it cannot be said at all about the Roman church that its custom is to triple the song, this is impossible to assume110. He asserts in the word that the doubleness of the alleluia song in the psalms was learned from the angels of St. Ignatius the God-Bearer, and there can be no doubt that he distorts the legends about the teaching of Ignatius the God-Bearer by the angels to antiphonal or two-choir singing of psalms not out of ignorance, but intentionally (or deliberately gives preference to apocryphal legends over reliable legends).
But how could it happen that Maxim wrote a word that so darkened his memory? Regarding this, it is necessary, or at least, with all probability, to think the following. In Moscow during Maximovo’s time, the extreme alleluia, if not in general use, was at least in use in the highest, courtly sphere111; some very dignitary champion of the special alleluia invited Maxim to serve him with his pen, and he, hoping to achieve through the dignitary what he was looking for in relation to himself (leave to his homeland or, at least, freedom from imprisonment and church excommunication) and had a weakness agree112...
The general provisions of our polemic with the Old Believers regarding the proclamation of the Alleluia song are as follows.
Both the triple and the severe alleluia are of equally ancient origin and in both one and the other there is nothing unorthodox (the first in honor of the Holy Trinity, the second in honor of the two natures of Jesus Christ); For a very long time, both methods of proclaiming a song were used by the Greeks together indifferently, but then, when uniformity and unity were established among them in relation to the method of proclaiming a song, triplicity became such a uniform and unified method among them.
We Russians must and have recognized ourselves as obligated to be in agreement with the Greeks regarding worship; Consequently, we also had to introduce, as Nikon did, triplicate in place of what was accepted (on the untenable grounds indicated above) to the uniform use of doubling.
E. Golubinsky.
