The Sacrament of the Priesthood (ordination): what is ordination in Orthodoxy

What is consecration in Orthodoxy

Ordination is a Sacrament in which the laying on of hands by a bishop or patriarch is performed on a person about to take holy orders.

Ordination happens:

into the reader;
to subdeacon;
to deacon;
to the priest;
bishop.

A bishop, metropolitan or patriarch can ordain all ranks except bishop. Episcopal consecration is performed only by the patriarch. An equal sacred rank cannot perform consecration, but only the highest.

The sacrament dates back to apostolic times. The Gospel describes the feeding of several thousand people with five loaves of bread and two fish. There is an analogy here with the Eucharist , where the apostles are a prototype of the priests distributing the sacrament to the believers.

The apostles were the first clergy.

At what moments in the Liturgy is the ordination of a deacon, presbyter, or bishop performed and why?

The ordination of the Deacon takes place at the liturgy, in the altar, from the moment of the exclamation “And let there be mercies...” (i.e. after the anaphora) and before the litany “Having remembered all the saints...”. Such a moment is appointed because deacons are called only to serve during the celebration of the sacrament of the Eucharist, but they are not given the right to perform it. In view of this, they are ordained at the end of the canon of the liturgy, i.e. after the transfiguration of St. gifts. On the same basis, it is permitted to ordain deacons at the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts. In this case, the ordination takes place after the transfer of gifts to the throne (great entrance) and before the litany: “Let us fulfill our evening prayer to the Lord...”.

The ordination of presbyter takes place in the altar during the liturgy. The time of celebration is the moment of the liturgy after the great entrance, at the end of the Cherubic Song. Ordination takes place at this time so that the newly deceased can participate in the offering of a bloodless sacrifice.

Church rules do not determine the time of episcopal consecration to any specific days, but since In the apostolic decrees, instructions are given that the consecration of bishops. It took place on the “day of the Lord” i.e. on Sunday, therefore this day has priority over other days for decree in the ep. But because these requirements are not mandatory, then consecration in the bishop. Can be done on any day. Ordination should always take place in a church, in an altar. According to canon 5 of the Council of Laodicea, ordination is performed only during the liturgy. The moment of the ordination is the small entrance, after which, before the reading of the apostle, the ordination is performed. At this time, consecration takes place because the bishop can not only consecrate gifts, but also consecrate priests and deacons. According to the 1st Apostolic Canon, consecration must be performed by a council of bishops, consisting of at least 2 bishops. This order is because all bishops are equal in their hierarchical powers, and therefore not a single bishop. itself does not have the right to supply other bishops. This right belongs only to their council, for according to the word of St. Paul – “the lesser is blessed by the greater” (Heb. 7.7).

Literature: Neselovsky A. “Rights of consecrations and consecrations (experience of historical and dogmatic research) Kameney - Podolsk 1906 (pp. 166,167; 212; 375, 375).

Option 2 (service).

The deacon's ordination takes place after the consecration of the gifts, after the Lord's Prayer. Since the deacon does not perform the sacrament of the Eucharist, but only serves with it. The consecration of him occurs after the consecration of the Gifts, namely after the words of the bishop: “And may the mercies of the Great God and our Savior Jesus Christ be with you all” (i.e. after the anaphora) and before the litany “Having remembered all the saints...”. At the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts, the ordination to the diaconate is performed after the great entrance before the litany: “Let us fulfill our prayer to the Lord.”

The serving deacon loudly exclaims: “Command!” Two deacons come out of the Royal Doors, take the protege by the arms, lead him through the Royal Doors (he enters through the Royal Doors for the first time) into the altar, and lead him to the Throne and to the bishop. The Bishop usually sits on the left side of the Throne. Two deacons lead the protege around the Throne, they go around the Throne three times, each time the protege kisses the Throne at the four corners and, having walked around the Throne, bows to the bishop. And at this time those troparia are sung that are also sung in the Sacrament of Marriage: “Holy Martyrs,” “Glory to Thee, O Christ God,” and then “Isaiah, rejoice.”

This rite is often called the “wedding with the Throne.” In the Russian Church it is customary that the bishop removes the wedding ring from the hand of his protege and places it on the Throne. The deacon or priest never wears this ring again as a sign that from now on he no longer belongs completely to his family, as before. Now his family fades into the background, and his first family is the Church, so that he is now primarily engaged to the Church. This is a very characteristic moment. You remember that in the letters of the Apostles the Church is called the Bride of Christ, and Christ is called the Bridegroom of the Church. And so, if a priest becomes engaged to the Church, this means that he takes on the image of the Church Bridegroom, i.e. image of Christ.

After he has been circled around the Throne three times, he kneels at the right corner of the Throne, and the bishop lays his hands on him and reads the prayer of consecration. There are very wonderful, significant words in this prayer: “Divine Grace, always healing the weak and replenishing the impoverished, will ordain (i.e. consecrate, ordain) the most reverent subdeacon (name of the rivers) as a deacon. Let us therefore pray for him, that the Grace of the Holy Spirit may come to him.”

And after this ordination, another prayer is read, loudly, out loud. Then the people, and now it is usually the choir and clergy, sing “Axios”, this is a very solemn last moment of the Sacrament. The bishop brings the newly ordained deacon (or priest) to the pulpit, puts on him separate parts of the appropriate vestments, each time showing them to the people, and exclaims:

“Axios” (“worthy” - Greek), and all the people sing: “Axios, axios, axios.” This is a sign of the people’s participation in the ordination, which means that the people accept it. The people must necessarily do what is called reception, i.e. by accepting this Sacrament, he, as it were, certifies this Sacrament.

And the ordination of a priest takes place in the same way, only earlier - at the beginning of the Liturgy of the Faithful after the Great Entrance. The ordained person immediately participates in the liturgy. Ordination to the priesthood occurs only at the Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom or St. Basil the Great, but does not occur at the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts.

The rite begins after the transfer of the Holy Gifts from the altar to the throne at the end of the Cherubic Song so that the ordained person can participate in the consecration of the Gifts.

The consecration of a bishop takes place on a holiday with a large gathering of believing people. Since a bishop can not only consecrate the Gifts, but also perform Ordination as a deacon and priest, the Ordination of a bishop takes place before the reading of the Apostle. After entering with the Gospel and the Trisagion hymn, the protopresbyter and protodeacon lead the person being consecrated to the royal doors, and he is “received from the bishop into the holy altar, before the holy meal.” Here, having removed his miter, made three bows before the throne and kissed it, he kneels directly opposite the middle of the throne, folds his hands crosswise and places them on the edge of the holy table, and his head between them, falling directly to Christ, who is invisibly present here. The opened Gospel is placed on his head with the letters downwards, as an image of the hand of the Lord, calling him to preach the word of God, elevating him and subordinating him to the gospel law. The bishops lay their hands on top of the Gospel, and the presiding celebrant says the secret prayer: “...by the election and trial of the most God-loving bishops and of the entire consecrated Council, Divine grace...” and so on, as during the ordination of presbyter and deacon.

72. Explain the literal meaning of the Greek word “ordination.” What does the exclamation at the beginning of the ordination “Command..., command..., command, Most Reverend Vladyka” mean?

Ordination to the rank of clergy (deacon, presbyter, bishop) is carried out through the Sacrament of the Priesthood, which is called sacramental ordination, or ordination (Greek ceir - hand, tonew - to choose by raising the hand). Clergy belong to the highest levels of the church hierarchy, to which they can be ordained only after they have served in positions of the lower levels of the clergy. (Performed in the altar).

Ordination to the rank of clergyman (reader, singer, subdeacon, as well as elevation to the sacred ranks of protodeacon, archpriest, abbot and archimandrite) is carried out with the blessing of the bishop through the church rite of laying on hands, called hirothesia (Greek ceir - hand and titemi - to place, appoint, lay hand). Clergymen belong to the lower ranks of the clergy, they receive the grace of God for participation in church services and in all their actions in the Church they are subordinate to the clergy. The main liturgical elements of which are blessing, laying on of hands, prayer and naming. Unlike ordination, initiation into the ranks of clergy - ordination - is not a mysterious ordination of the Priesthood, but is a sacred act that is performed by a bishop's blessing and laying on of hands as a sign of confirmation in a church office. During this laying on of hands, the mysterious words of invoking grace are not uttered. (Performed outside the altar).

The person being ordained is led from the middle of the church by two subdeacons (for ordination to the deacon) or a protodeacon and a deacon (for ordination to the presbyter). They lead him among themselves, each holding his hand with one hand and placing the other on his neck, bending him down. At this time, the deacon proclaims in the altar: “Command,” asking the consent of the people of God for the Ordination. At the approach to the altar, another deacon exclaims: “Command,” asking the clergy’s consent to accept the new clergyman. The newly ordained one is brought to the royal doors and bowed before the bishop, the protodeacon says: “Command, Most Reverend Vladyka,” asking the bishop’s consent to the ordination.

Literature: Prot. Gennady Nefedov “Sacraments and rituals of the Orthodox Church”, Moscow 1999. (pp. 200, 204); Handbook of a clergyman v.4. ROC publishing house of the Moscow Patriarchate 2001 (pp. 348, 350).

Requirements for proteges

The person who is ordained is called a protege. To become a priest, you must go through all the ordinations, starting with the ordination as a reader.

The Apostle Paul writes in his letter what a person should be like who wants to become a priest, bishop and deacon. On this basis, the apostolic rules were drawn up, which are taken into account before ordination.

Anyone wishing to become a deacon or priest must be:

married once;
sober;
chaste;
honest;
not prone to drunkenness;
not a lover of money;
a stranger (who loves to receive strangers);
peaceful;
not a murderer;
a good steward of his own house (for he who cannot rule his family cannot rule the church).

Who cannot be a priest:

woman;
people under 18 and over 75 years of age;
having a physical disability for service (epilepsy, deafness, muteness, blindness, lack of fingers);
prone to drunkenness and drug addiction;
possessed;
self-imposed castration;
convert;
person of little faith;
having mortal sins (murder, sexual perversion, adultery, fornication, heresy, etc.);
married for the second time;
married to a harlot, widow, divorcee, actress, unbeliever, relative;
in slavery;
did not complete military service;
imprisoned;
holding an important government position;
having debts or loans.

Such strict restrictions are imposed on proteges because they must become an example to other believers. The following words are written on the priest’s pectoral cross: “be faithful to your image through purity, faith, and life.”

If a reader sins by fornication (intimate life before marriage) or other mortal sins, according to the apostolic rules, he cannot become either a subdeacon, a deacon, or a priest. The same applies to the subdeacon and deacon. Only readers and subdeacons can marry. Deacons and priests should no longer marry.

Orthodox Life

What is the credo of a priest and whether anyone can be ordained, Archimandrite Dosifei (Mikhailyuk), a teacher at KDAiS, knows for sure.

A priest must have a soul purer than the very rays of the sun, so that the Holy Spirit never leaves him without him, and so that he can say: “I live as no one, but Christ lives in me” (Gal. 2:20).

“Six words about the priesthood” by St. John Chrysostom

– What is the Sacrament of Priesthood?

– There are seven Sacraments in the Orthodox Church, which are an integral part of the life of every believer: Baptism, Confirmation, Repentance, Eucharist, Marriage, Blessing of Anointing, and Priesthood. Of course, each Sacrament is special in its significance and an Orthodox Christian can approach any. But not to the Sacrament of the Priesthood, for the Lord does not vouchsafe such a fate to everyone. As Jesus Christ says: “You did not choose Me, but I chose you” (John 15:16).

It should also be noted that the purpose of every Sacrament is to sanctify a person, to make him a participant in church life, a member of the Church of Christ, which leads all its faithful children to salvation and for the sake of which these Sacraments are performed. The Sacrament of Priesthood has a completely different goal: not the sanctification and salvation of the protege - he is ordained so that other people can be saved through him. Therefore, in this Sacrament, church-wide service comes first. This is the fundamental difference between consecration.

The Priesthood itself was not formed in the New Testament Church with the coming of the Savior into the world, but has Old Testament roots. As the Holy Scripture tells us, since the time of the prophet Moses, at the direction of the Lord, men from the tribe of Levi were chosen for priestly service, whom the Lord separated from all God’s chosen people, “to bear the ark of the covenant of the Lord, to stand before the Lord, to serve Him and to bless in His name.” (Deut. 10:8).

Having come into the world, the Savior also chose twelve disciples, and later seventy more, whom he sent to preach to humanity about the coming of the Savior into the world, about His suffering, death and Resurrection, about the Kingdom of God. On the day of Holy Pentecost, the Lord sent down the Holy Spirit on them and with this Lord's blessing they acquired the ability to bring down God's saving grace to others and rule the Church. Later, when the need arose for the worthy management and instruction of believers, the holy apostles, following the example of Jesus Christ and by the will of the Holy Spirit, chose successors and disciples for themselves. Through ordination they consecrated them to the service of the Church and transferred to them the succession of pastoral ministry. This ordination is a continuous spiritual connection that connects the modern priesthood through all centuries with the apostles, and through them with Christ Himself. Such a continuous connection is an indication of the canonical dignity of the priesthood, of their apostolic succession, which is especially important now - in the era of schisms, heresies and other attacks on the Holy Apostolic Catholic Church.

– What is consecration? What is the mystery of this action?

– Ordination is ordination to one of the degrees of the priesthood. There are three degrees of priesthood: deaconal, priestly and the highest degree - episcopal, through which apostolic succession is maintained in the Church. The ordination of a deacon takes place at the end of the Liturgy, after the consecration of the Holy Gifts, a priest is ordained after the Great Entrance, and the consecration of a bishop takes place after the singing of the Trisagion. As we see, the higher the degree of priesthood, the earlier in the Liturgy it is celebrated.

The Sacrament of the Priesthood always evoked joy and delight in all those present, both at the altar and in the temple. Of course, this Sacrament causes special joy among the priests, who rejoice for their new brother. It should also be noted that all those present in the church in some way participate in the ordination of the protege, since each of them responds to the exclamation of the bishop “Axios” with a threefold exclamation “Axios”. The word “axios” translated from Greek means “worthy,” and when the people say these words, they confirm the worthiness of the chosen candidate, giving their consent to his pastoral service. With this exclamation, people show that they are ready to place the work of their salvation in the hands of a newly appointed shepherd and follow him to Christ.

– What is the priest’s creed?

– Every priest is a sign on the path of salvation. He must always be ready to show every believer that narrow but true path that will lead him to Christ and the Kingdom of Heaven. In this case, the priest must act as a teacher and spiritual physician, guided by their principles. A priest, as a doctor, has no right to harm, but as a teacher, he must put his entire life on the altar of spiritual science, but teach and illuminate the path of salvation with his teaching. “Aliis inserviendo consumer” (“By shining for others, I burn”) is this credo as a symbol of self-sacrifice and should be at the forefront of the life of every clergyman.

– What should a priest be like?

– Being a priest is the greatest mercy, but it is also a very great responsibility, because a priest is a shepherd, followed by his flock. And in order to lead her to salvation, you need to make much more effort towards yourself. Answering this question, we, of course, turn to the holy fathers, to those ascetics of piety who, by word and by their own example, showed what one should be and how worthily one should bear this high title.

One such striking example is the holy righteous John of Kronstadt, who places great emphasis on self-development: “In order to manage others, you must learn to manage yourself first; in order to teach others, you need to acquire knowledge yourself... When all sorts of passions play with me, it’s better for me not to undertake to manage others..."

The mission of a priest in this world is difficult. But the holy fathers instruct: no matter what test the Lord sends, He always grants strength to pass it if a person completely believes in Him. This mission is not easy even now, in the modern world. I remember the sermon of Metropolitan Anthony of Borispol, in which he says that being a priest at all times was not easy and it requires enormous, superhuman strength from us. But in order to become a worthy servant of God, you must first of all put the Lord first in your life.

Interviewed by Natalya Goroshkova

How does priestly ordination take place?

All consecrations occur at different times during the Divine Liturgy . The priestly consecration takes place after the singing of the Cherubim. Two deacons take the protege, who is in front of the Royal Doors, by the arms and proclaim: “Command. Command!”

All three enter the altar through the Royal Doors and approach the Throne. The Bishop is sitting in front of the Throne at this time. During the singing of the wedding troparions (“Isaiah rejoice”), all three circle the Throne three times. At the same time, the protege bows to the ground in front of the altar and in front of the bishop, and kisses the Throne. This is repeated three times. Then the protege kneels before the Throne, and the bishop reads a special prayer, laying his hands on him.

Wedding troparions are sung as a sign that a wedding of the protege with the church . This is an image of the fact that he now does not belong to his family, but must serve God and the believers for salvation. To confirm this, he takes off the wedding ring from his hand and never puts it on again.

The bishop calls on Divine Grace, “healing the weak and replenishing the poor.” This means that from this moment on, God Himself will give the priest strength to serve the Church.

After reading the prayer, the bishop leads the newly minted priest through the Royal Doors to the pulpit. Asking the people: “Axios?”, which means: “Is he worthy?”, he puts on them one by one the elements of the priest’s vestments (epistrachelion, armlets, phelonion), a pectoral cross and gives them a service book. In this case, the choir must answer “Axios” three times, otherwise the ordination will be considered invalid.

Then the bishop says to the newly ordained priest: “ Christ is in our midst ” and kisses him three times with a brotherly kiss. The new priest's vestments should only be white. This is a sign of purity and holiness.

The bishop in the altar congratulates the ordained priest and gives him instructions for the upcoming service. The priest stands for the rest of the liturgy near the altar and prays. Then he usually goes out to read the prayer behind the pulpit.

From this moment on, the presbyter can perform all the Sacraments, except for Ordination.

About the sacraments. Sacrament of Priesthood

THE CONCEPT OF THE SACRAMENT

The priesthood is a sacrament in which, through priestly ordination (ordination), the Holy Spirit descends on the rightly chosen one and instructs him to perform the sacraments and shepherd the flock of Christians (Catechism).

The Sacrament of the Priesthood, like other sacraments, has two sides: external and internal.

External side

The sacrament consists of holy ordination with prayer. The use of ordination as a symbol of blessing and transfer to another of the power received from God is found in the Old Testament (Gen. 48, 14; Num. 27, 23; Deut. 34, 9). In the Christian Church, from the very beginning of its existence, ordination is a necessary accessory to the sacrament of the Priesthood. The holy apostles, having received power from Jesus Christ Himself, passed it on to their successors in no other way than through ordination (Acts 6:6; 13:3; 14:23), and commanded them to do the same in turn (1 Tim. 4 , 14; 5, 22; 2 Tim. 1, 6). The Orthodox Church has always followed this commandment with all strictness.

The inner side of the sacrament

constitutes the grace of the Holy Spirit, taught to persons ordained as deacon, priest and bishop. Already in the Holy Scriptures it is spoken of the election of certain persons to these ministries and the teaching of the Holy Spirit to them through the laying on of hands (Acts 6:10; Eph. 3:2; 1 Tim. 4:14; Acts 8:29; 13:2, etc. .). And the Church has always confessed that in the sacrament of the Priesthood, the ordained person is given the special grace of the Holy Spirit to serve the Church, and expresses his faith in prayers used during initiation to different degrees of the priesthood.

ESTABLISHMENT OF THE SACRAMENT

This sacrament was established by the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, who chose the apostles from among His listeners and disciples and gave them the authority to teach and perform the sacraments, and upon His Ascension He sent down to them the Holy Spirit, endowing them with the powers necessary for their service (Acts 1:8; 2, 4). Since then, the kindled Divine fire of grace of the Holy Spirit has been kept in the Church and has been successively passed on from generation to generation. A visual and symbolic sign of this successive connection between the gifts of grace and the power of the priesthood is the laying on of hands, which is used to bring down the grace of the Holy Spirit to the ordained persons.

THE CONCEPT OF CHURCH CLERIC PERSONS:

PRIESTS AND CHURCH OFFICERS

Persons over whom the sacrament of the Priesthood is performed - clergy - are of three degrees in the Church: bishop, priest and deacon.

Initiation into these degrees of the church hierarchy takes place after passing through the lower degrees of clergy, which are, as it were, preparatory. To persons of the lower degrees of clergy, or the so-called. The clergy belong to: reader, singer (secular bearer) and subdeacon.

THE CONCEPT OF ORDINARY AND ORDINARY

The sacrament of the Priesthood, performed through ordination, is also called ordination (this word comes from the Greek heir - hand and teino - I will spread). Ordination is always performed by the bishop during the liturgy, and, moreover, in the altar.

Ordination to the lower degrees of the clergy: reader, singer (secular bearer) and subdeacon is accomplished through the blessing of the bishop - through the rite of laying on hands, called hirothesia (from the Greek heir - hand and tifimi - I lay, appoint). Hirothesia is performed by the bishop outside the altar, in the middle of the church and not at the liturgy (usually before the liturgy).

ORDINATION TO CHURCH OFFICES

Ordination (hirothesia) as a reader and singer. The position of a reader or singer is to read, sing and canon in church, as well as to carry a candle before the Gospel, at the Great Entrance before the Blessed Sacrament, to serve at the altar (the duties of a sexton), etc. Therefore, in the rank of initiation into a reader and a singer, the initiate is called by the same name “candescent.”

Initiation as a reader and singer takes place among the church before the start of the liturgy, immediately after the bishop's vestments (before the reading of the hours or during their reading). Initiation can be performed simultaneously not on one, but on several chosen for this position. The subdeacons bring the chosen one (or chosen ones) to the position of reader or singer to the middle of the church, together they make three bows to the altar and then to the bishop. Approaching the bishop, the dedicatee bows his head, and the bishop, making the sign of the cross over him, lays his hands on him and reads the first prayer. In it, he asks God’s blessing for the service of the initiate as a priest, asking God:

“Thou shalt adorn Thy servant with Thy Holy Sacrament, and adorn him with Thy undefiled and immaculate robes: may he be enlightened, and in the future, having met the world, receive an incorruptible crown of life, rejoicing with Thy chosen ones in everlasting bliss.”

After this, troparia are sung: to the apostles, saints John Chrysostom, Basil the Great and Gregory the Theologian. (According to the Rule, the troparions are preceded by “Blessed be our God” and the usual beginning if the dedication is not made during the reading of the hours.)

At this time, the bishop ordains the reader and singer through cruciform tonsure, saying the words: “In the name of the Father (the protodeacon and the dedicatee say: “Amen”) and the Son (the same: “Amen”) and the Holy Spirit (the same: “Amen”) .

The very tonsure of the initiate, according to the explanation of Blessed Simeon of Thessalonica, means his dedication and complete donation to the service of God. The cruciform tonsure, with the pronunciation of the name of the Most Holy Trinity, serves as a reminder that the Lord Jesus Christ sanctified the entire universe by His incarnation and Cross, and the Triune God is the Creator and Finisher of everything.

After this, the tonsure is no longer repeated, although after that the reader or singer is elevated to the highest degrees of the priesthood.

As a sign of dedication to God and separation from the society of ordinary believers, after tonsure, the reader and singer puts on a short phelonion, which is the “firstfruits of sacred vestments” and “the beginning of the priesthood.” She dresses on the “neck”, as a sign that “he comes under the yoke of the priesthood and, dedicated to the service of God, enters under the protection of God Himself” (Archbishop Benjamin. New Tablet).

After this, the bishop, having blessed the head of the dedicatee three times and laid his hand on it, reads the second prayer for him as a reader and singer.

The bishop prays: “Lord God Almighty, choose this servant of yours and sanctify him; and grant him, with all wisdom and understanding, to teach and read Your Divine words, preserving him in an immaculate life.”

At the end of this prayer, the initiate (having bowed to the bishop and turning his face to the east) reads a part from the Apostle as a sign that his first duty is to read the Holy Scriptures.

After this, the phelonion is removed from him and, with a triple blessing by the hand of the bishop, the surplice is put on. Before putting on the surplice, the bishop blesses the surplice (above the cross) and the initiate, who kisses the cross on the surplice and the hand of the bishop.

After vesting, the bishop gives the newly initiated a lesson about the duties of a reader - the first, lowest degree of the priesthood.

After the lesson, the bishop says:

“Blessed be the Lord! Behold, the servant of God (name), reader of the Holy Church (name), in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.”

And they give him a candlestick with a candle, which he carries in front of the bishop and with which he stands in a certain place (at the iconostasis) in front of the bishop.

Ordination (ordination) to subdeacon

. Ordination to the subdeacon also takes place in the midst of the church, before the liturgy, immediately after the vestment of the bishop. Sometimes this initiation occurs on the same day as the initiation into reader and singer. Sometimes, if the latter has already been accomplished on another day, the ordination to the subdeacon occurs before the ordination of this person on the same day at the liturgy to the deacon.

If the initiation into a subdeacon follows the initiation into a reader, then immediately after the singer is vested in the surplice, the subdeacons present the orarion (“sticharion belt”) to the bishop. The bishop blesses the orarion, and the initiate, taking it, kisses the orarion and the bishop’s hand. The subdeacons gird the initiate in a cross shape.

The subdeacon depicts the ministry of Angels; therefore, at the initiation, he is given an orarion, with which he girds himself crosswise, to depict the wings with which the Cherubim cover themselves as they stand before the Throne of God. The subdeacon girds himself with an orarem (according to Simeon of Thessalonica) as a sign that “from now on, through humility, chastity of his loins and purity, he must acquire for himself the robe of spiritual purity: which is why he cannot marry after that.” But he can remain married if he has entered into marriage legally before initiation.

After girdling the orarion, the bishop blesses the dedicatee three times with his hand on the head and, placing his hand on his head, reads a prayer in which he asks for God’s blessing for the service ahead of him - “for the service of the Holy and Undefiled Mysteries.”

The bishop prays: “This servant of Yours is worthy to be, to serve Your Holy Church; the Master Himself, blameless, will preserve him in all things. And grant him to love the splendor of Thy house, to stand at the doors of Thy holy temple, to kindle the lamp of the dwelling of Thy glory. And plant it in Your Holy Church, like a fruitful olive tree, bearing fruit of righteousness, and show Your servant perfect at the time of Your coming, those who have pleased You will receive reward.”

At the end of the prayer, the protodeacon exclaims, “Let us pray to the Lord,” and the washing of the hands of the bishop, as required after vesting, is performed. To do this, the subdeacons give the newly ordained a basin and place a towel on him. The newly ordained subdeacon pours water on his hands and then, like other subdeacons, kisses the hand of the bishop and goes to the altar. (Here, according to the Charter, reading whatever prayers he knows within himself, he holds the “tub and hand with the ubrus” to the Cherubimskaya).

While singing the Cherubic Song, the initiate is led to the royal doors and again serves while washing the hands of the bishop. (According to the Charter, at the great entrance he walks behind everyone with a tub and a “handle”). After the great entrance, the subdeacon stands at the royal doors “in the designated place according to rank,” and at the cry of the bishop: “And let there be mercies,” he is taken by the subdeacons to the altar and, having received the blessing from the bishop, stands with the subdeacons.

The duties of the subdeacon, according to the interpretation of Simeon of Thessalonica, Vlastar, and others, include: vesting the bishop, serving him during divine services, preparing vestments and sacred vessels for sacred rites (the subdeacon can only touch empty sacred vessels when they do not contain the Holy Mysteries), keep sacred vessels, keep the covers and lamps on the throne and altar clean, light the lamps on the throne, etc.

ORDINATION (ORDINANCE) AS A DEACON

Before being ordained as a deacon as the first degree of the priesthood, the protege fasts and undergoes the so-called protege confession with a confessor appointed by the bishop. Here he confesses his entire life.

Deacons are made only from subdeacons. Therefore, according to existing practice, in most cases, an ordained deacon is first ordained a subdeacon on the same day (if he has not been ordained earlier).

In accordance with the initial establishment and purpose of the diaconal dignity, even in apostolic times (Acts 6:1-6) and in all subsequent times, the Church has always assigned to deacons only the duties of serving in the performance of sacred rites, but not the performance of them itself. The very rite of ordination to the deacon is based on this understanding of the diaconal ministry. Since the deacon does not celebrate the Eucharist, ordination to the deacon occurs at the liturgy after the consecration of the Gifts, namely after the exclamation of the bishop: “And may the mercies of the Great God and our Savior Jesus Christ be with you all” (before the litany: “Having remembered all the saints...” ).

Ordination to the diaconate can take place at the liturgies of St. John Chrysostom, St. Basil the Great, as well as at the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts.[1] Ordination to the priesthood can only take place during the first two and does not occur during the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts.

After the indicated exclamation, two subdeacons lead the person being ordained (being in the same rank) from the middle of the church to the royal doors with the exclamation:

“Commanded” (addressed to the people whose consent is sought for the upcoming dedication).

“Command” (to the church clergy).

When the initiate enters the altar through the royal doors, the protodeacon says:

“Command, Your Eminence Vladyka.”

At the royal doors, the initiate is received by the protodeacon and deacon, into whose rank he enters, they take the person entering by the hands and bring him before the throne.

The bishop, sitting on the pulpit placed at the left (northern) side, in front of the throne, blesses his protege bowing to the ground.

Then the protodeacon leads the ordained person around the throne three times. The ordained person, going around the throne, kisses all four corners of the throne, and also, after each circumambulation, bows to the ground of the bishop, kisses the end of the omophorion (after the first circumambulation), the club (after the second circumambulation) and the hand of the bishop, and then again bows to the bishop to the ground.

By walking around the throne three times, the ordained person expresses his vow to forever devote himself to serving at the throne of God, remaining in continuous union with the Church; By kissing the corners of the throne, the ordained person expresses his reverence for the holiness of the throne and his ardent love for God. By kissing the omophorion, club and hand of the bishop, he expresses filial obedience, gratitude and respect for the bishop, through whom God’s grace is brought down upon him.

During the three-time circumambulation of the throne, the troparia of marriage are sung, first in the altar, then in the choir.

In the first troparion: “Holy martyrs who suffered well and were crowned...” - the passion-bearers are called upon as our prayer books before God and, together, high teachers of preserving faith and purity, and models of selfless service.

In the second troparion: “Glory to Thee, Christ God, the praise of the apostles and the joy of the martyrs” - it is announced to the one being ordained that, following the example of the apostles and martyrs, the preaching of the one being ordained should be the Trinity of the Consubstantial One, and that he should serve Christ God in word and deed, with readiness, according to following their example, to lay down your life for the truth.

The third troparion: “Isaiah, rejoice, you have a virgin with child and give birth to the Son Immanuel,” it is indicated that the basis of the priesthood in the Church was the incarnation of the Son of God, Whom should be magnified by pleasing the Holy Virgin. These hymns are sung in a different order than at marriage, because the union of Christ with the Church is glorified in the highest possible way.

After circumambulating three times, the bishop rises from the pulpit (which is removed) and stands in front of the throne to its right side. After the third circumambulation, the ordained person bows to the throne three times, saying:

“God, have mercy on me, a sinner” (he does not kiss the bishop’s omophorion and club for the third time), then, standing to the right of the throne at the front corner, he bends one right knee, and on his hands (placing them palms down in a cross shape on the throne) he bows his head .

The initiate kneels on one knee as a sign that he is not entrusted with full priestly service, but only serving with the Holy Mysteries, but not performing them. Bowing his head on his hands means that he devotes all his strength of soul and body to serving at the throne of God.

At this time, the bishop places the edge of the omophorion on the head of the one being ordained, signifying that the one being ordained is preparing to be a participant in the pastoral burden and, blessing the one being ordained three times and laying his hand on his head, after the protodeacon’s exclamation: “Let us attend,” in the hearing of the whole church (arousing everyone to prayer) says the prayer of dedication.

“Divine grace, always weak (weak) heals and impoverishing (missing) compensating, will disperse [2] (name), awe, a mortgage in a deacon: we will pray for it, let the grace of an all -minded spirit come to it.”

In the altar they sing: “Lord, have mercy” three times, and the choir sings “kirie eleison” three times. The choir sings slowly while the bishop reads the prayers.

The bishop, having blessed the one being ordained three times and placing his hand on his head, secretly reads the remaining two prayers: “Lord our God” and “God our Savior,” in which he prays to our Lord Jesus Christ to preserve the ordained “in all honesty” and to grant him faith, love, grace-filled powers and holiness for the worthy completion of this ministry.

While the bishop is reading these prayers, the protodeacon recites in a low voice a peaceful litany about the bishop and the work of his hands and about the “now prosecuted deacon.” (The litany is printed in the bishop's Official Book in letters reversed to the letters of the prayers, and it is read by a protodeacon from the Official Book, at the same time as the bishop reads the secret prayers, himself standing in front of the bishop behind the subdeacon holding the Official Book.)

After the end of the prayers, the person being ordained stands up, and the bishop “loosens” the orarion girt over both shoulders, places it on his left shoulder, and also gives the ordained a hand and ripid, which the person being ordained kisses. When laying on these vestments and presenting the ripida, first by the bishop, and then in the choir, the following is said: “Axios” (axios - worthy).

This proclamation is an announcement that the one being ordained is worthy to be clothed in the visible signs of his rank and ministry (orar, poruchi and ripida) and that, having received the grace of the Holy Spirit, he has become worthy to perform the priestly service entrusted to him.

Having taken the ripida, the ordained one kisses the hand and shoulder of the bishop, stands on the left side of the throne and holds the ripida over the paten until the exclamation: “Holy to holies,” i.e., until the time of communion. (Usually the ordained person puts aside the ripida at the litany before the “Our Father.”)

The newly ordained deacon is the first of the deacons (following the protodeacon) to receive holy communion, receiving this preference for the sake of the renewal of Divine grace (priesthood) on him on this day.

After transferring the Holy Gifts to the altar, the newly ordained deacon appears at the pulpit to the people and pronounces the litany “Forgive me.”

By this he shows his new ministry - to make petitions, call people to prayer and lift them up to God.

ORDINATION (ORDINATION) AS A PRIEST

The ordination of priests, like deacons, has always been considered by the Church as the proper right of bishops. This right was communicated to the bishops by the apostles themselves, as is clearly seen from the words of the apostle. Paul to the bishops: Titus (1:5) and Timothy (1 Tim. 5:22). A necessary accessory to the installation of presbyters has always been the laying on of the episcopal hand and the prayer of the bishop.

Currently, the ordination of a priest (presbyter) takes place after the Cherubic Song and the transfer of the Holy Gifts from the altar to the altar, that is, even before the consecration of the Holy Gifts, so that the ordained priest can participate in the consecration of the Gifts.

During the Great Entrance, the deacon, ordained a priest, performs the diaconal service, carrying air on his head instead of a paten. He walks in the great entrance ahead of everyone (following the priests), holding the air on his head by the front ends with both hands, leaves the solea and stands behind the priests.

After the great entrance (when all the priests enter the altar), the one being ordained gives the deacon air, thereby postponing the deacon's service, and stands in the middle of the temple.

After the end of the Cherubic Song, before the bishop blessing the people with the trikiriy and dikiriy and singing “Is polla,” the ordained one makes three bows, and he is led from the middle of the church by the protodeacon and deacon, and not by the subdeacons, and then the ordination is performed in the same way as ordination as a deacon, with the difference that: 1) the ordained one is received at the altar by the priests into whose ranks he enters; 2) it is not the protodeacon who leads him around the throne, but the eldest of the priests (archpriest or archimandrite). 3) The one ordained as a priest bows before the throne not one, but both knees, as a sign that he accepts both a greater service and a higher gift than a deacon. At the same time, the exclamation “let’s hear” is pronounced by the entering priest (and not the protodeacon). After “let’s remember,” the bishop reads the final prayer.

“DIVINE GRACE, ALWAYS WEAKLY HEALING AND DESPERATELY RELEVANT, WILL GUARANTEE (name), THE MOST GREAT DEACON PRESBYTER: LET US PRAY FOR HIM, LET THE GRACE OF THE ALL-HOLY SPIRIT COME ON HIM.”

“Lord, have mercy,” the whole church proclaims three times. Protodeacon: “Let us pray to the Lord.” The bishop blesses the person being ordained three times on the head, places his hand on his head and reads two secret prayers, and the senior priest (not the protodeacon) reads the peaceful litany in a low voice.

In the first secret prayer: “God is beginningless and endless,” the bishop prays to the Lord to preserve the newly ordained “in immaculate life and unshakable faith.”

The second prayer is the conclusion and ending of the finishing prayer. Still holding the omophorion and hands on the head of the dedicatee, the bishop prays:

“O God, great in power and unfathomable in understanding, wondrous in counsel more than the sons of men, You, O Lord, Himself, also whom You have deigned to ascend to the presbyteral rank, fill with the gift of Your Holy Spirit, so that He may be worthy to stand blamelessly at Your altar, to proclaim the Gospel of Your Kingdom , sacredly minister the word of Thy truth, bring You gifts and spiritual sacrifices, renew Thy people through the font of the second birth.

For this one too, having met at the Second Coming of the Great God and our Savior Jesus Christ, Your Only Begotten Son, will receive the reward of the good iconography of His rank, in the abundance of Your grace.” - And doxology.

This prayer outlines the image of pastoral work: the continuation of the good, blessed, Divine-human economy (“iconomism”) of the salvation of people in the Church, accomplished by the grace of Christ through the shepherd.

Five forces, five actions are indicated here and of course in the priesthood:

to stand before the altar of Atonement, having your life as a sacrifice;

preach the Gospel of the Kingdom of God, affirm faith in our Lord Jesus Christ as the true Judge and Savior of the world;

preach the Divine truth and the truth of Christ, demonstrate it in relation to all cases and circumstances of life;

offer spiritual gifts and sacrifices: perform the liturgy; to offer a bloodless sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving for everything;

to show God’s fatherhood to the world (as a symbol of this work the priest bears the name “spiritual father”), to baptize with water, the Holy Spirit and the fire of faith in the name of the Most Holy Trinity, to give birth to people into a new life, to serve their spiritual rebirth.

After reading the prayers, the bishop gives the ordained priestly vestments: epitrachelion, belt and phelonion, as well as the Missal as a guide for the sacred rite. Accepting what is given, the ordained kisses what he receives, and then the hand of the bishop.

When presenting the priestly vestments and the Service Book, the bishop exclaims: “Axios.” The clergy and choir sing “axios” three times. The newly ordained one after all kisses the omophorion and the hand of the bishop, moves away and kisses his fellow ministers on the forehead, thereby expressing the communication and love that should unite them all, after which he stands in the ranks of the priests.

After the consecration of the Holy Gifts, the bishop gives the newly consecrated one on another diskos the top portion of the Holy Bread (“HS”), saying:

“Accept this pledge and keep it safe and sound until your last breath, for which you were tortured to be at the Second and terrible Coming of the Great Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”

The priest, taking it, kisses the hand of the bishop and, moving away, stands behind the throne, remaining bowed over the Most Pure Body of Christ lying on his hand, reads the 50th Psalm and prays to the Lord of hosts for strengthening in the great and terrible priestly service ahead.

Before shouting “Holy to Holies,” he returns the Holy Bread to the bishop.

The one ordained as a priest begins communion first among the priests (according to usual practice, after the first archpriest), receiving preference for the grace of renewal from the Divine Spirit.

Before dismissal, he reads the prayer behind the pulpit, thereby revealing to the people his entry into the priesthood. After being ordained, the newly ordained person performs the liturgy for seven days in a row, in accordance with the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit, from whom he received the grace of the priesthood.

ORDINANCE (ORDINATION) AS A BISHOP

In ancient times, the Church appointed only persons of presbyteral dignity as bishops. For the very installation of a bishop, correct election and legal ordination were required. In ancient times, election was considered correct when, if possible, all the bishops of the region participated in it, as well as the people, who, for their part, testified to the dignity of the chosen one. The election was followed by the consecration itself, which was performed exclusively by a council of bishops through the laying on of hands and the Gospel on the head of the person being delivered, with the saying of prayers.

The installation of a bishop at the present time.

After the election of a candidate for bishop and his approval by the patriarch and the Holy Synod, he is named bishop in the building of the patriarchate (or exarchy).

The consecration of a bishop is that one or several days before the ordination, in the presence of the patriarch and members of the Synod (or in the presence of the exarch of the region and bishops), after the usual beginning, the singing of the troparion and kontakion in honor of the Holy Spirit, a short litany and dismissal day of Pentecost (the usual beginning, litany and dismissal are pronounced by the patriarch or primate bishop, having put on the epitrachelion), the Administrator of the Affairs of the Moscow Patriarchate (or exarchate) reads the decree on his election to the person being named bishop. The chosen one replies: “I thank and accept, and not at all contrary to the verb.”

And then having spoken, he takes a blessing from the patriarch and the rest of the bishops. The naming ceremony ends with many years.

The ordination of a bishop is now usually performed by a council of bishops headed by a patriarch, or at least a council of three and at least two bishops (Apostolic Canon 1).

Trial of the newly elected bishop

happens on the very day of dedication before the liturgy. Before the end of the hours, the bishops who must consecrate the betrothed, accompanied by the clergy, leave the altar in full vestments and sit on the seats on the pulpit in the middle of the temple.

The protopresbyter and protodeacon, having taken the blessing from the patriarch, go to the altar, take the person being presented, dressed in all priestly clothes, and, having bowed (three times) before the throne (two from the waist and one to the ground), bring him before the pulpit in the middle of the temple, placing him on the edge big eagle. The protodeacon proclaims:

“The most beloved of God, chosen and confirmed, is brought to be consecrated as bishop of the God-saved cities (name).”

The Patriarch then asks:

“Why did you come, and what do you ask from our measure? And how do you believe?”

The initiate answers: “Consecration of bishop’s grace...”, and then confesses the Symbol of the Orthodox Faith.

After the second and third questions: “What do you confess about the properties of the three hypostases of the incomprehensible Divinity” and “what about the incarnation of the hypostatic Son and Word of God?” - the initiate sets out in detail the confession of faith about the three hypostases of the Triune God and especially sets out the doctrine of the incarnation of God the Word. After each answer, the initiate receives a blessing from the patriarch. Then he makes a promise to observe the laws of the holy apostles, the seven Ecumenical Councils and nine local councils and other canons, to obey the patriarch and the Synod.

Upon acceptance of this promise, signed by the hand of the newly ordained bishop himself, the patriarch blesses him, saying:

“The grace of the Holy Spirit, through my measure, produces you, the most God-loving archimandrite and hieromonk (name), the chosen bishop of the God-saved cities (name).”

After this, having received the blessing of the patriarch, the ordained one bows to the bishops three times and kisses each person’s hand.

Then there is a perennial ceremony, which the ordained person listens to facing east, standing between the protopresbyter and the protodeacon. After this test he

is taken to the altar, and the liturgy begins in the usual manner.

The ordination as a bishop itself

happens after the small entrance, before the reading of the Apostle, since the bishop can not only teach people and consecrate the Gifts, but also ordain priests and deacons.

After the small entrance with the Gospel during the singing of “Holy God,” and precisely before the singing of the final “Holy God” and the ascension of the bishops to the high place, the protopresbyter and protodeacon bring the person being consecrated before the royal doors, and from here he is received by the bishop into the altar before the throne. Here, having taken off his miter and bowed three times to the throne and venerated it, he stands before the throne on both knees, placing his hands crosswise on the throne and head, thereby testifying to his submission to the will of God.

Then the unfolded Gospel is placed on his head with the letters down, supported on all sides by the bishops - this is, as it were, the hand of the Lord Himself, elevating the initiate and at the same time subordinating him to the law of the Gospel.

The Patriarch (or senior bishop) loudly proclaims the final prayer of the sacrament to everyone:

“By the election and temptation of the most God-loving bishops and the entire consecrated cathedral, Divine grace, always weak in healing and impoverished in replenishing, guarantees (name), the most reverent archimandrite as a bishop: let us pray for him, that the grace of the All-Holy Spirit may come upon him.”

At the altar, the clergy sing “Lord, have mercy” (three times), and the choir sings “Kyrie, eleison.”

After this, the leading bishop blesses the person being consecrated three times at the head, saying: “In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.” The bishops place their right hands on the head of the person being ordained. Then two secret prayers are read by the leader, and one of the bishops quietly pronounces a peaceful litany.

The secret prayers read (“Sovereign Lord our God” and “Lord our God”) contain a petition to the Sovereign Lord to “strengthen the one ordained with the power of the Holy Spirit, to show his bishopric to the immaculate and holy, to make him an imitator of the true Shepherd, who laid down His soul for the sheep,” “that having completed the souls entrusted to him in this life, he may appear before the Throne of God without shame.”

After the prayers, when the Gospel is removed from the head of the person being consecrated, the cross and phelonion are removed from him, and the subdeacon presents him with a sakkos, an omophorion, a cross, a panagia and a miter. Having accepted each of these vestments, he kisses it, brings it to each bishop, receives a blessing, kisses everyone’s hand and puts on the vestments. When laying on the omophorion as the distinctive robe of the bishop, he exclaims: “axios,” but he puts on the sakkos, as a substitute for the priest’s phelonion, without the exclamation “axios.” After vesting, the bishops kiss the ordained one, and he goes with all the bishops to the high place (during the final chanting of the Trisagion).

During the reading of the Apostle, the newly ordained bishop “sits on the throne” (on a seat on a high place) among the bishops and “makes peace with the Apostle” at the beginning and end of the reading.

At the great entrance, he receives the chalice from the protopresbyter, and during communion he gives the holy cup to the presbyters.

After the end of the liturgy, when all the bishops are unmasked in the altar, the first bishop places on the newly ordained one, with his hands overshadowed, the bishop’s cassock, panagia, mantle (with sources), hood, and hands him a rosary (“chain rope”). Finally, all the bishops and the newly initiated go to the middle of the church and here, among the people, the newly initiated is introduced into the service of the archpastor through the presentation of the pastoral staff as a symbol of pastoral power. When presenting the staff, a fitting lesson is given to the newly installed bishop.

After this, the newly initiated blesses the people.

CONSTITUTION (CHIROTHESY) TO THE ORDER OF PROTODEACON, PROTOPRIEST, IGUMENE AND ARCHIMANDRITE

Elevation to all these church ranks occurs at the liturgy during the small entrance with the Gospel and is performed outside the altar, through blessing and laying on of hands, prayer, naming to the rank being performed and the exclamation: “axios.”

Anyone promoted to one of the indicated ranks is usually brought by the protodeacon from the middle of the temple to the throne, makes three prostrations there and is brought to the bishop in the middle of the temple, bowing to him three times. The bishop, sitting, blesses his head three times and, standing up, places his hand on his head. The archdeacon exclaims: “Let us pray to the Lord,” and the bishop offers a prayer for the one being ordained, corresponding to the rite to which he is being ordained.

When ordaining an archdeacon or protodeacon, the bishop prays:

“You yourself clothe the grace of this archdeaconry, inherent in Your servant (name), and decorate him with Your honesty (dignity) at the beginning (at the head) of the deacons of Your people and the image (example) of his goodness to be according to him. Create and achieve veneration in old age, glorify Your magnificent name..."

When consecrated as an archpriest (protopresbyter), the bishop prays:

“You yourself clothe our brother (name) with Thy grace and decorate him with honesty at the beginning of the position of elders, and be pleased with the image of his goodness to be with him. And with reverence and honesty in old age, be pleased to live a good life, and God has mercy on all of us, for You are the Giver of wisdom and all creation sings to You...”

Then the bishop marks the dedicatee with a cross and places his hand on his head, exclaiming: “axios.”

If the one being promoted to archpriest did not have a legguard, then he puts it on, and the one being ordained as archimandrite is given a miter, a cross and a mantle with tablets (without repeating the chanting of “axios”). After this, the newly consecrated archimandrite kisses the bishop’s omophorion on the right and left sides.

After this, the liturgy continues: all the clergy, while singing “Come, let us worship,” go to the altar through the royal doors in order.

After the end of the liturgy, the bishop gives the staff to the consecrated abbot or archimandrite and pronounces a teaching about his duties to the monastic brethren and the brethren to him.

[1] At the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts, ordination to the deacon takes place after the Great Entrance, before the litany: “Let us fulfill our evening prayer to the Lord.”

[2] “Will prosper” - Greek. proherite - “passes through the laying on of the hand of the bishop and makes the dedication.”

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II. Composition and structure of the Church

According to church laws, a monastery can only be founded with the consent of the ruling bishop, and it must be consecrated by him.

The monastery must be completely dependent on the bishop, subject to his supervision and court (4th rule of the Council of Chalcedon). A consecrated monastery cannot be converted into a secular dwelling. He is called to always serve godly purposes. The Fathers of the Double Council said in the 1st canon: “The creation of monasteries, a very important and praiseworthy work, wisely invented by our blessed and reverend fathers in ancient times, is now seen as being poorly carried out. For some, having given their estates and estates the name of a monastery and promising to dedicate them to God, describe themselves as the owners of the donated property. They cleverly plan to dedicate a single name to God, for they are not ashamed to assume for themselves the same power even after the donation, which they were not forbidden to have before. And such mischief was mixed into this matter that, to the surprise and chagrin of those who saw it, much of what was dedicated to God was clearly sold by the consecrators themselves. And not only do they not repent of the fact that they allow themselves to rule over what they once dedicated to God, but they also fearlessly pass it on to others. For this reason, the Holy Council determined: no one will be allowed to build a monastery without the knowledge and permission of the bishop; but with his knowledge and permission and with the performance of appropriate prayer, as it was anciently ordained by God, let the monastery be built; everything that belongs to him, together with himself, is entered into a book, which is kept in the bishop's archive. And a donor without the will of the bishop does not have the audacity to appoint himself or another as abbot in his place. For if someone cannot be the owner of what he has given to a person, then how can anyone be allowed to admire the possession of what he dedicates and brings to God?

The property of the monastery must, according to the canons, remain in the monastery forever. A number of rules threaten with grave penalties anyone who dares to damage the monastic property. Rule 24 of the IV Ecumenical Council reads: “Once consecrated monasteries, by the will of the bishop, remain monasteries forever; keep the things belonging to them, and henceforth not become worldly dwellings. Those who allow this to happen are subject to punishment according to the rules.”

This norm is repeated in the 49th rule of the VI Ecumenical Council. And in the 13th canon of the VII Ecumenical Council we read: “When, due to our sins, a disaster occurred in the churches, some holy churches, bishoprics and monasteries were plundered by certain people and became ordinary dwellings. If those who have taken possession of them want to give them back, so that they can be restored as before, then there is good and good; If not, then we command those who are from the priestly rank to be cast out, and monks or laymen to be excommunicated, as condemned from the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and let them obey, even though the worm does not die, and the fire does not go out... Because they resist the voice of the Lord saying, “Thou shalt not make My Father’s house a house purchase.”

Zonara, in his interpretation of this rule, wrote about the circumstances that led to its publication: “During the iconoclastic heresy, many daring things were done against the Orthodox. And more than others, the priests and monks were persecuted, so much so that many of them left their churches and monasteries and fled. So, when churches and monasteries remained empty, some occupied them and appropriated them for themselves and turned them into secular dwellings.”

The general rule about the dependence of monasteries on diocesan bishops was “subjected to a particular change in the 17th century by the establishment of so-called stauropegial monasteries. Stavropegia (σταυρο πηγιον) was the name given to the erection of the cross at the founding of a famous monastery not by the local bishop, but by the Patriarch, as a result of which the monastery received independent management and did not depend on the diocesan bishop.”239.

In stavropegic monasteries, the name is exalted not of the local bishop, but of the Patriarch. The Patriarch, who governs such monasteries through his governors, has the right to supervise the management and life of the monastery, and the right to rule on the affairs of the brethren. As Bishop Nikodim noted, “every Patriarch could use the stauropegial right in all the dioceses of his region, and the Patriarch of Constantinople outside his region throughout the East”240. In Russia, during the Synodal era, monasteries that were under the direct jurisdiction of the Synod, and not local diocesan bishops, were called stauropegial. In the 19th century, seven monasteries in Russia were considered stauropegial: Novo-Spassky, Simonov, Donskoy and Zaikonospassky monasteries in Moscow, New Jerusalem in the Moscow diocese, Spaso-Yakovlevsky in Rostov the Great and Solovetsky in the north. After the restoration of the Patriarchate, stauropegic monasteries are under the direct authority of His Holiness the Patriarch, who appoints his governors to stauropegic men's monasteries. Women's stavropegic monasteries have their own abbess, but at the same time they are under the jurisdiction of the Patriarch as the ruling bishop, even if they are located on the territory of other dioceses.

Internal administration in monasteries is headed by the abbot, subordinate in everything to the diocesan bishop. Initially, the abbot of the monastery was called “Abba” (αββας), “father”. Subsequently, the abbots of large and especially important monasteries began to be called archimandrites (from αρχων (chief) της μαυδρας (cattle pen), meaning in this case a community of monks, like the flock of Christ). This name originally appeared in the Patriarchate of Antioch. In the 5th century it spread throughout the Greek East. The name of a certain Archimandrite Basil is mentioned in the acts of the Council of Ephesus (431). A number of archimandrites are mentioned by name in the acts of the Council of Constantinople in 448. This term was also used in the Henotikon of Emperor Zeno in 482. This was the name initially given to abbots, whom bishops appointed to oversee all the monasteries of the diocese. Then, after this responsibility began to be assigned to the great sacellarii, the title “archimandrite” became an honorary title for the abbots of the most important monasteries of the diocese. In the 5th – 6th centuries, archimandrites, as well as abbots, could be not only presbyters, but also monastic deacons and monks who did not have holy orders. Later, only presbyters could be appointed archimandrites. According to the 120th novel of the holy emperor Justinian, the bishop can appoint archimandrites. Since 1908, in the Patriarchate of Constantinople, the right to elevate archimandrites belongs exclusively to the Patriarch.

In the Russian Church, the title of archimandrite was first mentioned in 1174 in relation to the abbot of the Kiev Pechersk Monastery Polycarp, and he was called both archimandrite and abbot. Under 1226 the archimandrite of the Novgorod Yuryevsky Monastery is mentioned, under 1230 - the archimandrite of the Nativity Monastery in Vladimir-on-Klyazma, under 1261 - the archimandrite of the Epiphany Monastery in Rostov. It is likely that, as was the case in the Patriarchate of Constantinople, the rank of archimandrite in the Kyiv era could only be held by the abbot of one and the most important monastery of the diocese; subsequently, the abbots of other significant monasteries in the diocese could already be titled archimandrites. At the same time, the simultaneous naming of abbots abbots and archimandrites disappears from use.

After the division of monasteries into classes in 1764, the title of archimandrite was assigned to the abbots of first-class and second-class monasteries. The rank of archimandrite, even in the synodal era, was in almost all cases a designation of office. There were few titular archimandrites who were not at the same time abbots of monasteries, and, most often, these were abbots of large monasteries, the abbots and sacred archimandrites of which were bishops.

In modern times, most of our archimandrites are no longer abbots or governors of monasteries. Now this is no longer a position, but only a rank or title. The reason for this metamorphosis in the use of the term “archimandrite” can be considered both the universal tendency to transform the names of both state and church positions into honorary distinctions, ranks or titles, and the peculiarities of church life in our country during the era of persecution, when monasteries were closed everywhere, and then resumed in small numbers, so that some of them contained several archimandrites.

Due to the fact that in the synodal era, candidates for episcopal positions were exclusively archimandrites, we have developed a custom in cases where a non-archimandrite is elected bishop, to elevate him to the rank of archimandrite before episcopal consecration. The right to elevate archimandrites in the synodal era belonged to the Holy Synod, currently it belongs to the Holy Patriarch, in the Ukrainian Orthodox Church - to its primate, the Metropolitan of Kyiv.

In the Russian Orthodox Church now, in almost all cases, elevation to the rank of archimandrite is accompanied by an award - the right to perform divine services in a mitre. Therefore, in terms of seniority, archimandrites are on the same level as mitred archpriests, unless they are abbots or governors of monasteries, the property of which, in addition to the miter, is also a staff.

In ancient times, the abbots of less significant monasteries were called abbots (ηγομενος). In Russia, according to the monastic states of 1764, the title of abbot belonged to the abbots of third-class monasteries. The abbess of women's monasteries are called abbess; in the East the name αρχιμανδριτις has also been preserved. Nowadays, as a rule, abbots, like archimandrites, are neither abbots nor even governors of monasteries. Currently, this is not a position, but a rank or title.

As long as archimandrites and abbots were abbots of monasteries, their rights were the same. According to the “Charter” of Basil the Great and the 123rd novel (Chapter 34) of Justinian, included in the “Nomocanon”, the brethren elect a rector from among themselves, but if there is no suitable person among the brethren, then the diocesan bishop appoints him. However, the candidacy of the rector elected by the brethren is approved by the diocesan bishop or Patriarch (in stavropegic monasteries). In Russia during the synodal era, the following order was adopted: the abbots of cenobitic monasteries were elected by the brethren and approved by the Holy Synod on the proposal of the diocesan bishop, and the abbots of non-communal monasteries, the so-called staff ones, were directly appointed by the diocesan bishop or the Synod (in stauropegial monasteries). The rector was elected not by age, but by ability and merit. The main concern of the abbot is to take care of the spiritual well-being of the brethren and the property at the disposal or ownership of the monastery.

As the 3rd canon of the Double Council says: “If the abbot of a monastery does not seek out the monks subordinate to him who are running away with great diligence, or, having found them, does not accept and take the trouble to restore and strengthen the fallen one in a manner appropriate to the ailment, the Holy Council determined that he should be excommunicated from the Sacraments . For if he who has dumb living creatures in his sight neglects the flock, he is not left without punishment, then he who has assumed pastoral authority over the flock of Christ, and with his negligence and laziness squanders their salvation, how will he not be punished for his insolence? A monk who is called to return, if he does not obey, will be excommunicated by the bishop.”

The duties of the abbot include monitoring the strict fulfillment of monastic vows and rules by the brethren, taking care of the regular and orderly performance of divine services, and supervising the monastery's economy. Without abusing power, the rector must teach the brethren by the example of his life and his pastoral word. The abbot should visit the cells of the monks and see whether the brethren live according to the rules, and make sure that none of the brethren leaves the monastery without his knowledge. But the abbot should not undertake anything important concerning life in the monastery without consulting with the brethren. At the appropriate time, the abbot of the monastery submits a report to the diocesan bishop or Patriarch on the behavior of the monks, monastic life and monastic management. The duties of the abbot also include his special rights. All the monastic brethren must obey him and honor him as a father. No one dares to contradict him. To correct careless and guilty monks and novices, the abbot can impose punishments on them. In everything, the abbot has primacy in the monastery.

Under his leadership and depending on him, officials are appointed in monasteries who are responsible for certain aspects of the life of the monastery: a viceroy, who runs the monastery with the blessing of the abbot and within the limits specified by the abbot himself; the confessor, who is entrusted with the spiritual care of the brethren, the duty of confessing the monks; the dean, who is primarily responsible for order and discipline in the monastery; a housekeeper who helps the abbot and viceroy in managing the monastery's economy. All these persons, led by the abbot, form a spiritual council, which discusses and decides the most important monastic affairs. Among the officials of the monasteries, mention should also be made of the treasurer, sacristan, and cellarer.

Church services in monastery churches are performed in turn by the hieromonks and hierodeacons of the monastery.

During the synodal period, the monasteries of the diocese were headed by monastic deans, acting under the authority of the diocesan bishop. In some dioceses there were several monastic dean districts.

Monasteries had a huge impact on the life of the Orthodox Church. In an era of dogmatic disputes, the monks did a lot to ensure that Orthodox Christians turned to monasteries for support. During the time of iconoclasm, the monks had to bear the brunt of the struggle for icon veneration. For this they were subjected to severe persecution. At the Iconoclastic Council of 754, only three bishops were condemned by heretics for venerating icons. This means that almost all the other eastern hierarchs joined the iconoclasts. Meanwhile, the monks continued to defend the veneration of icons. The VII Ecumenical Council, at which the dogma on the veneration of icons was formulated, honored the merits of the monks in defending Orthodoxy in a special way: the monks cast votes at the Council together with the bishops. The conciliar acts bear the signatures of 130 monks.

In the 10th century, Mount Athos became the center of monastic asceticism in the East. The structure of life that took shape there in the 10th century, under St. Athanasius, remains unchanged today without significant changes. The Athos monasteries are now located on the territory of Greece, but have broad autonomy in the Greek state. As at the very beginning of its history, Athos is under the jurisdiction of the Patriarchate of Constantinople. However, the monasteries of the Holy Mountain have fairly broad independence from their First Hierarch.

The inhabitants of the Athos monasteries belong to different nationalities: both in ancient times and now the Greeks predominate there; in the 19th century, the majority of monks were immigrants from Russia. Arab, Serbian, Bulgarian, and Romanian monks also labor on the Holy Mountain. Twenty Svyatogorsk monasteries, together with the monasteries and cells dependent on them, form a kind of monastic republic. The Holy Mountain is governed by a kinot - a general meeting of twenty representatives from the monasteries, headed by a protos. The General Assembly, as the first instance, considers disputes between monasteries and monasteries. Appeals are submitted to the Patriarch of Constantinople. Among the Athonite monasteries there are cenobitic monasteries (cines) and special monasteries (idiorhythmic).

ESTABLISHMENT OF THE SACRAMENT

This sacrament was established by the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, who chose the apostles from among His listeners and disciples and gave them the authority to teach and perform the sacraments, and upon His Ascension He sent down to them the Holy Spirit, endowing them with the powers necessary for their service (Acts 1:8; 2, 4).
Since then, the kindled Divine fire of grace of the Holy Spirit has been kept in the Church and has been successively passed on from generation to generation. A visual and symbolic sign of this successive connection between the gifts of grace and the power of the priesthood is the laying on of hands, which is used to bring down the grace of the Holy Spirit to the ordained persons. THE CONCEPT OF PERSONS OF THE CHURCH CLERGY:
PRIESTS AND CHURCH OFFICERS