One of the worst sins, which is still committed completely legally in Orthodox Russia, is abortion. Fortunately, recently there has been a large wave of protests against the killing of children in the womb, but many women continue to have abortions. Many who did them before nevertheless came to realize the horror of what they had done and repented. The Orthodox Church gives such women hope for forgiveness if they sincerely repent and lead a Christian life.
However, in the church environment, certain practices are becoming popular that are far from Orthodox dogma. One of these very well-known heresies, which is spreading even through some churches, is the so-called “rule of Schema-nun Anthony about babies killed in the womb.” Many priests have different opinions about this rule, and reading texts are even distributed in some monasteries. So what's the catch with these prayers?
Sincere repentance presupposes a complete change in life
What's the catch
Most pastors of the Russian Orthodox Church still agree that this “rule” contains deviations from the canons of the Orthodox Church, so it should not be used to atone for sin.
Interesting! Brochures with the text of this rule are published by samizdat, without the blessing of the ruling priest of any diocese.
The text was compiled by schema-nun Antonia, known in the world as Anastasia. This woman lived and professed the faith of Christ during the most difficult years of persecution of Christianity - in the middle of the twentieth century. She went through both the Gulag and forced treatment “for faith”, which they tried to break her. But she steadfastly confessed our Lord Jesus Christ until the end of her days.
In her youth, even before becoming a monk, she lost her pregnancy. Very grieving for her lost child, the future schema-nun tearfully prayed to the Mother of God for the soul of the unborn. And during such a prayer, she saw the Queen of Heaven herself, who told her exactly how to beg for the children who died in the womb.
Read about childbirth:
- Prayers to preserve pregnancy
- Questions about IVF
- What to do if the Lord does not give a child
The Orthodox Church has never rejected miracles, signs and appearances. Many saints were honored to see the Most Holy Virgin and hear revelations from her. But, on the other hand, there are many temptations from the enemy of the human race.
We cannot say whether the schema-nun’s vision was true. This applies only to her spiritual life. But the rule she left behind has obvious discrepancies with canonical Orthodoxy.
Elder schemanun Antonia
So, in particular, in these prayers petitions are offered to the Lord and John the Baptist to baptize the unborn child. A child who died before childbirth must be given a name, always from among the Orthodox saints. The absurdity of this action lies in the fact that the gender of aborted children is in most cases unknown, and both unborn boys and girls are given male names.
The rite of Baptism in Orthodoxy can be performed exclusively on living people who have consciously accepted Christianity. In the case when infants are baptized, the rite is carried out according to the faith of the parents and recipients.
Important! Any calls to perform the Sacrament over people who have already died (including the unborn) are a direct violation of the canons.
Many Orthodox priests call requests for the baptism of babies killed in the womb to be outright blasphemy.
The form of begging itself is also far from ordinary Orthodox prayer and is more like some kind of magical action. In addition to proofreading texts, it is necessary to complete a list of actions. So, you need to either pay for the baptism of a baby in the temple, or buy a baptismal set and give it to the temple for the poor people who came to the christening.
Of course, parents who bring their babies to church for baptism also buy all the paraphernalia necessary for the Sacrament. But at the same time it does not carry any mystical meaning. By and large, a person can be baptized without these items, and the Sacrament will be valid.
The pattern of reading the prayers is also alarming. The rule states that the number of all prayers must be strictly defined - no more and no less. In addition, if several people pray for one baby killed in the womb, then the number of prayers is divided among everyone and everyone reads less. Such arithmetic is unacceptable in Orthodox prayer - the main meaning lies not in the number of lines read, but in the meaning and faith with which they are read.
Mother Antonia accepts the schema
Until 1990, mother served in her church. Rivers of pilgrims flocked here from the farthest corners of the country. Mother helped everyone, blessed and gave advice and instructions.
However, Anastasia gradually began to lose strength. Therefore, she made a strong-willed decision and went further in her service to God.
Anastasia Yakovlevna left St. Nicholas Church in February 1990. She moved to a remote monastery. Patriarch Pimen personally blessed the old woman to accept the schema. Hegumen Benedict performed the tonsure.
Schema-nun Antonia with her granddaughter Natasha in the St. Nicholas Chernoostrovsky Monastery
He ordained Appollinaria as a schema-nun with the name Anthony, in honor of Anthony of Pechersk. From that moment on, mother began to receive fewer visitors; all her time was spent praying to God.
However, this did not result in fewer people suffering. People came to see Antonia almost every day. She helped everyone, devoted time to everyone. However, over the years, the old woman’s health became worse and worse.
At some point, her legs gave out, then problems with her kidneys began. The nun’s well-being and living conditions did not improve.
Alexy the First personally tonsured Antonia a nun in 1967, after which she became an altar attendant in St. Nicholas Cathedral
Where are the souls of babies killed in the womb?
Another controversial point is the very fact of the need to beg for innocent children's souls who were killed by their own mothers before they were born. From the Holy Scriptures we cannot know thoroughly what happens to the souls of these innocent children. But there are no dogmas stating that such souls go to hell. In addition, not a single prayer rule or church ritual can give exact guarantees of salvation.
Important! The salvation of a person’s soul does not depend on how many and what external actions a person performed, but with what faith he did it and with what repentance.
But even if we assume that innocent souls are in need of salvation, it turns out that the best way to unite an immortal soul with the Lord is not to give birth to a child at all, but simply to read the necessary rule over him posthumously.
The Bible does not give an exact answer to what happens to the souls of babies killed in the womb.
Christianity teaches that the fate of the immortal human soul depends on the kind of life a person led. Of course, young children do not have the sins that adults have; their souls are much purer. It is difficult to imagine the Christian God, Who is Love, as an evil punisher, casting innocent children's souls into hell. And although we cannot reliably know the posthumous fate of aborted children, the entire experience of Christianity testifies that the Lord has His Providence for them too.
If we even talk about the fact that someone needs intense begging, then it is absolutely necessary for parents who have decided to commit a grave sin. The rule of Schema-nun Antonia begins with the words “Lord, have mercy on my children who died in my womb.” They are asking for mercy not for murderers, but for innocent unborn babies. The Orthodox Church always places emphasis on sincere and deep personal repentance.
Advice and instructions from Schema nun Antonia Kaveshnikova
Schema-nun Antonia's advice and instructions are extremely useful and effective. Many of her spiritual children and monks are guided by them.
- From 00 to 03 o'clock the holy sky is open. A very valuable prayer during these hours. After midnight, it is good to make three great bows with prayer to the Savior, the Mother of God and the Guardian Angel;
- Schema-nun Antonia blessed her spiritual children to teach the prayers in memory: “Our Father,” “Rejoice, Virgin Mary,” “Creed,” the 50th and 90th psalms. I advised you to read the short prayer rule of St. Seraphim of Sarov, and the prayer: “Lord, enlighten my mind, calm my heart, help me in life, deliver me from the evil one”;
- If children are sick, you need to read Psalm 91 and the Lord’s Prayer seven times. If something is serious, you need to read it twelve times;
- If misfortune happens to a person, you need to read Psalm 90;
- If the children are restless or sick, then over the sleeping ones one must read the prayer “Rejoice to the Virgin Mary” forty times and give the children Holy Communion to the Holy Mysteries on three Sundays in a row.
Abbess Nicholas, St. Nicholas Chernoostrovsky Monastery
What to do if an abortion occurs
Unfortunately, many people come to faith and church membership in adulthood, carrying a serious burden of past sins behind them. Very often among them is the sin of abortion. Many decades earlier, during the time of anti-church propaganda, abortion was not considered at all as something bad or shameful. The embryo was considered "part of a woman's body" and she was free to do with it what she wanted. This public attitude has led to thousands of women having abortions without even thinking that they are actually killing their own children.
When such women and their husbands take the path of Christianity, the truth of what they have done comes as a real shock to many. The awareness of all the horror is sometimes so strong that a person can become despondent, depressed and decide that God will not forgive him. You should never think like that. According to many holy fathers, for God there is no unforgiven sin, but there is unrepentant sin.
About sins in Orthodoxy:
- Sin of idle talk
- What diseases are given for what sins
- Sin of Wrath
Advice!
The very first thing parents who are guilty of killing their children in the womb must do is to bring sincere and complete repentance for what they have done. It is very important that both husband and wife repent. Often the sin of abortion is attributed to the woman alone, but this sin always lies with both. Men often either force their wives to commit this sin, or they distance themselves, do not support their spouse during a difficult period, and shift responsibility for the decision onto her. But we must not forget that in an Orthodox family the head is the husband, and all responsibility for the family rests with him. Even if he did not force his wife to commit a crime before God, but simply did not stop her from taking a terrible step, he is no less guilty than she is, and must also repent.
Prayers for murdered babies can be read both at home and in church
Coming to confession for the first time, the confessor or priest may not allow you to receive Communion or impose penance (a special prayer rule). You should not be offended or think that the priest is very strict - the sin of abortion is great, and it will be a great blessing to endure all possible labors to atone for it.
Read about the Orthodox family:
- About the patriarchal family
- All about the Sacrament of Wedding
- All about contraception
Interesting!
According to the testimonies of many Christians, the humble performance of penance with sincere repentance gave great consolation to the soul of a sinner. In addition to the rule imposed by the priest, the parents of the mortified child can determine for themselves the work they can do, voluntarily assigned to atone for sin. This could be volunteer work in orphanages, social activities against abortion, helping women and young mothers who find themselves in difficult life circumstances.
Each of us can help our neighbor who finds himself in difficult conditions. There would be much fewer abortions if women were more confident in their future. To undertake labors aimed at saving children's lives and improving the conditions of orphans is an excellent addition to repentance for the sin of abortion.
Of course, having come to understand the seriousness of the sin committed, in the future there should not be a shadow of doubt whether to continue the pregnancy. Very often, women who have had abortions (especially early ones) are later unable to become pregnant and carry their child to term. This is a kind of retribution for a grave sin. Such women should not despair - they need to pray to the Lord for forgiveness and the gift of children. Many miracles happen through such prayers.
In addition, many church-going couples who have previously had abortions decide to adopt orphans. Of course, such a serious step needs to be considered very responsibly, and the motivation should not lie solely in the desire to atone for the sin of abortion. But if spouses are able to bear such a godly cross as adoptive parenthood, the Lord will never abandon such a family.
Icon “The Lamentation of Jesus Christ for the Murdered Babies”
