People whose relatives and friends have voluntarily passed away from this life, due to their ignorance, always ask how to pray for a person who committed suicide after death. After all, for everyone this is a difficult test and great grief. Believers know that praying for the soul of a suicide is a very brave and dangerous step.
After all, a person who has independently taken his own life has committed a great sin, which means he will not be able to pray for it, nor will he be able to receive forgiveness from above. Does this mean that prayers for those who commit suicide are not read after death?
Is it possible to pray for suicides?
The Orthodox Church prohibits praying for a person who deliberately took his own life, just like for those who have renounced God (atheists). The relevance of this ban has been proven for a long time. Many holy fathers who took upon themselves the responsibility of atonement for the sin of suicide felt terrible.
At the same time, a feeling of heaviness was present in my soul all the time, and tempting thoughts often visited me.
The Rule of Timothy of Alexandria below was written for those who committed suicide and were serving the Church. However, recently, more and more baptized people who did not receive church knowledge in the process of life, did not undergo the sacred sacraments and did not pray to the Lord, are killing themselves.
The majority commits the gravest sin of being out of mind, although medical reports practically do not talk about this.
A priest who is asked to pray for a suicidal man has a very difficult choice to make, because he did not know this person and did not know how he spent his life. Therefore, relatives and friends often hear the answer “no” from the holy fathers.
People who do not receive consent distrust the church even more and move away from it.
Therefore, the Russian Orthodox Church allowed the reading of consoling prayers, but not performing funeral services and alms for people who decided to die.
Also, relatives and friends can take responsibility and take up the private (home) reading of prayers.
How can one pray for a person who committed suicide after death, so that his soul goes to heaven? First you should receive a blessing from the priest. A petition is read to Elder Lev Optinsky. Giving alms to a suicidal person will help, as will the righteous lifestyle of his family and friends.
Let us repeat once again: you cannot independently begin to read the prayers of Leo Optinsky.
First, you need to receive a blessing from the holy father. Before this, you should go through the sacrament of communion and confession several times in front of the priest.
Under no circumstances should you start praying for people who have committed suicide, children, pregnant women, sick people, girls who have recently become mothers, as the likelihood of temptation is high.
If temptations nevertheless arise, then it is better to stop reading prayers and trust in the will of God.
Preface
Church canons prohibit “offering and prayer” for suicides (Timothy 14), as those who deliberately cut themselves off from communion with God. The validity of this rule is confirmed by the spiritual experience of ascetics who, daring to pray for suicides, experienced irresistible heaviness and demonic temptations.
This rule of St. Timothy of Alexandria was directed against fallen members of the Church. However, at present, most of those who committed suicide are people who were baptized, but who did not receive either church education or church care. They end their lives not as a result of conscious opposition to God and the Church, but because they are “out of mind,” although this is not recorded by medical evidence. It is impossible for a priest who did not know the deceased in his life to decide how to relate to such a death, and relatives and friends of suicides, meeting the priest’s refusal to perform a funeral service, move even further away from the Church, without receiving consolation.
In this regard, the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church blesses, for the purpose of spiritual nourishment of the flock and uniformity of pastoral practice, it proposes, without performing funeral services for suicides and “offerings” for them, that is, commemoration in church, to teach the close and relatives of such deceased the following consoling prayers.
In addition to performing the proposed rite, relatives and friends can take upon themselves, with the blessing of the priest, the private reading of the prayer of the Venerable Elder Leo of Optina. Most of all, such dead people are helped by the distribution of alms for them and the pious life of their relatives and friends.
Prayers
Here is a prayer to Lev Optinsky for suicides:
“Seek, O Lord, the lost soul of Your servant (name): if it is possible, have mercy. Your destinies are unsearchable. Do not make this my prayer a sin, but Thy holy will be done.”
These are the words of the rite of prayerful consolation of relatives who died without permission
Blessed be our God:
Trisagion according to Our Father:
Alleluia, tone 6. Verse 1: Lord, do not rebuke me with Your wrath, nor punish me with Your wrath. Verse 2: Have mercy on me, O Lord, for I am weak.
Troparion: Have mercy on us, Lord have mercy on us:
Slava: Lord, have mercy on us:
And now: Doors of Mercy:
And abiye antiphon, voice 3:
Verse: Have mercy on us, O Lord, have mercy on us, for we are filled with much humiliation (Ps. 122:3).
Heavenly Father, more loving, more loving of mankind, merciful, merciful, merciful, be merciful to us, oh, all-embracing and accepting of all! (Kontakion of St. Roman the Sweet Singer in Great Thursday).
Verse: The fool says in his heart: there is no God (Ps. 52:1).
Heavenly Father, more loving, more loving of mankind, merciful, merciful, merciful, be merciful to us, oh, all-embracing and accepting of all!
When, O Judge, you sat down as the Compassionate One, and showed Your terrible Glory, O Savior: oh, what fear then, of the burning cave, to all those who fear Your unbearable judgment! (Great Pok. Canon. Read., paragraph 8, tr. 4).
There are no other imams of help, no other imams of hope, unless You, Lady, help us, we rely on You and boast in You, for we are Your servants, let us not be ashamed.
Master, Lord, Merciful and Lover of Mankind, we cry to You: we have sinned and committed lawlessness before You, we have transgressed Your saving commandments and the love of the Gospel has not been revealed to our despairing brother (our despairing sister). But do not reprove us with Your wrath, punish us with Your wrath, O Lord of humanity, weaken, heal our heartfelt sorrow, may the multitude of Your bounties overcome the abyss of our sins, and may Your countless goodness cover the abyss of our bitter tears.
To her, Sweetest Jesus, we still pray, grant to Your servant, your relative who died without permission, consolation in their sorrow and firm hope in Your mercy.
For You are a Merciful and Lover of Mankind, and we send glory to You with Your Beginning Father and Your Most Holy and Good and Life-Giving Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.
Most Holy Theotokos save us.
Bless in the name of the Lord, father.
Regular (small) vacation.
Canons
You can understand how hard it is for people who have lost a loved one. They need the consolation that Leo's prayer will provide. In this case, the clergy advise giving alms, helping those in need and sincerely asking for forgiveness for what you have done.
This canon was compiled by Metropolitan Benjamin. When Blagoptina helps the Slovenia of your confessor, you can use a prayer service. It is believed that Lev Optinsky helps suffering people who sincerely pray.
Priests advise not to pray during illness, deterioration of health, or possible temptations. The same rule applies to pregnant and nursing mothers, women whose children have not reached 4–5 years of age. In this case, you should rely on the good providence of the Lord and stop reading the prayer service.
CANON ABOUT THE WILLINGNESS OF THE LIVES OF THE DEAD,
as it is said privately
VOICE 2
SONG 1
IRMOS: In the depths of the abyss, sometimes the Pharaonic all-army is a pre-armed force; The incarnate Word consumed all-evil sin: glorified Lord, gloriously glorified. Rest, O Lord, the soul of Thy dear servant.
All-merciful Lord, have mercy on me according to Your mercy, fly to You beginning and pray boldly for the murdered one, so that this will not be my judgment or condemnation, Most Righteous Judge.
Rest, O Lord, the soul of Your departed servant.
May my prayer not be a sin, as the meek David says: below, to burden the soul, he who has given himself up to death without permission; but martyr, through your prayers, grant us forgiveness of our sins.
Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.
Ever flowing rich mercy to all, O All-merciful Christ God, and now grant Thy servant (the name of the river), who prays to You, mercy and be considered with those who have died in piety, even if he died wickedly in foolishness.
And now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.
Having confirmed my wavering mind, Mother of God, strengthen me with the Divine commands of Who was born from Your sanctified womb and abolished, Lady, the dark kingdom of hell, with boldness and non-condemnation to pray for the deceased (name of the rivers).
SONG 3
IRMOS: Having established me on the rock of faith, you have enlarged my mouth against my enemies: for my spirit has rejoiced, always singing:
There is nothing holy like our God, and nothing is righteous more than Thee, O Lord.
Rest, O Lord, the soul of Your departed servant. Your beauty will illuminate the deceased with favor, in faith with the deceased, rich in mercy; For you are our God, our only sinless and abundantly merciful.
Rest, O Lord, the soul of Your departed servant.
In the place of refreshment in the eternal rest, vouchsafe to receive also Thy servant, who put an end to his cowardly life: for Thou art the only Mighty One, and hast taken our infirmities upon Thyself, O Lord our God.
Glory to the Father and the Son in the Holy Spirit.
Dwell in the devil of heaven, O Master, receive Thy servant (the name of the rivers), so that he may not hear Thy righteous voice: “We do not know thee,” even though he is truly guilty of this.
And now I am forever and ever. Amen.
You raised us up when we were put to death, O Mother of God, having given birth to life more imperishable than the Giver of Life; and bring Thy servant (name of the rivers) out of the most sublime hell, begging for Thy mercy.
Video on the topic: Prayer for suicide. Priest Maxim Kaskun
What are the reasons for the ban
What are the reasons that the Church prohibits praying for those who have killed themselves? The fact is that Orthodoxy does not recognize the very idea of suicide at all. An interesting fact is that Judas, who betrayed Jesus before the crucifixion, was hated not for this, but because he decided to take his own life.
According to the rules established by the Church, praying for suicides is prohibited, as is performing funeral services for them.
Even within the walls of a temple, you cannot pronounce the name of a person who committed suicide. The Church believes that people, having left this life voluntarily, were too tied to the earth and chose to refuse to live in the Lord.
To believe that the Church turns away from suicide would be wrong. The holy fathers simply leave it to God himself to decide whether to forgive or not forgive his sinful soul.
Church attitude
The Church prohibits communication with people who have committed suicide. This means that they made an independent decision to reject communication with the earthly world and God. The clergy point out suffering and pain on the part of those praying who disobeyed. It was generally accepted earlier that this rule applied only to those who were not believers and did not follow church canons.
Now the situation has changed a little. The majority of people who said goodbye to life by suicide, according to statistical studies, were baptized. The Church explains this situation in this way. These people did not receive a good upbringing throughout their lives, were not worthy parishioners, and did not turn to the Lord for blessings and help.
Their action is not a contradiction with church canons, but a spiritual struggle with internal “demons.” Most often, a clergyman who did not know about the life of the deceased, was not familiar with the deceased, will refuse to perform the funeral service. Relatives, as a result of this situation, aggravated by grief, will distance themselves from the church without receiving proper consolation.
In general, suicides include those killed in a duel, during a showdown, or those who died as a result of independent actions aimed at ending their life’s journey. Fans of extreme sports can also be included in this list. After all, they independently decide to risk their lives, despite the opportunity to say goodbye to it. In fact, drug addicts, substance abusers, and alcoholics are also included in the list of people who voluntarily ruin their lives.
Clergymen are prohibited from performing their funeral service within the walls of a church or temple, commemorating them at a memorial service, or during a prayer address. It is forbidden to bury a person close to a temple.
Among the exceptions to the use of prayer for suicides are mental disorders. Such people are registered or stay in an institution designated for this purpose. In this case, you should provide a certificate from the institution to the ruling bishop of the diocese to which you belong as confirmation of this fact. In this case, you will receive permission.
Are there exceptions?
There are exceptions to the rules. They apply to those who committed suicide while in a state of insanity. At the same time, all church rituals are performed in full. It is allowed to pray for such people in church and submit notes for the repose of their souls.
However, these cases must be considered separately by priests. It is also advisable to provide a certificate stating that the suicide was out of mind.
It is impossible to remember those who committed suicide on Parents' Day, as many people believe. There are no special days of remembrance for such people.
Who should I contact?
Uar needs to pray for the repose of the souls of those who committed suicide. There is only one rule for reading - at home (in no case in church). He once appeared in a dream to Cleopatra and announced the forgiveness of the sins of her relatives, who worshiped pagan gods.
Therefore, relatives and friends of those who committed suicide and did not have time to be baptized turn to him.
It is worth noting that the elders advised praying for a suicide on the rosary. As you go through each one, you need to say “Virgin Mother of God, rejoice...”.
At the beginning of the appeal to the Mother of God and at the end, you should say your request.
conclusions
The Church prohibits many things. In the event that your loved one said goodbye to life, it is necessary to carry it out properly. Therefore, they use prayers for suicides, which can be read at home.
When reading them, you should adhere to a number of rules and sincerely ask for forgiveness for what you have done. You can help someone close to you by giving the prayer due attention and time, without shortening the text. It is worth concentrating, clearing your thoughts of unnecessary worries and completely surrendering to spiritual communication.
Choose life with Christ!
“For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16) “Choose
life, that you and your descendants may live to love the Lord your God, He listened to His voice and clung to Him; for this is your life and the length of your days...” (Deut. 30:19-20)
