Every person baptized in the Orthodox faith must know three prayers. Of course, there are prayer books that indicate “prayers for every need” - morning, for the beginning of any new business, prayer before a meal, and many others. Not everyone knows them by heart, and it is quite acceptable to turn to the prayer book and make prayers as needed in printed form. However, the Orthodox must know these three prayers by heart so that it is possible to read them at any time in their lives and teach them to others.

The main prayer of an Orthodox Christian
"Our Father"

Our Father, Who art in heaven!
May your name be hallowed,
let your kingdom come,
let your will be done
as in heaven and on earth.
Give us our daily bread today;
and leave us our debts,
like we also leave our debtor;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.

Prayer to the Virgin Mary - “Virgin Mary, rejoice”

Virgin Mother of God, rejoice, Blessed Mary,
The Lord is with you, blessed
You are among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb,
like the Savior gave birth to our souls.

Prayer "Symbol of Faith"

I believe in one God the Father, Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, visible to all and invisible.
And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Only Begotten, who was born of the Father before all ages;
Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, uncreated, consubstantial with the Father, Whom all was.
For us for the sake of man and for our sake of salvation, he descended from heaven and became incarnate from the Holy Spirit and Mary the Virgin, and became human.
Crucified for us under Pontius Pilate, and suffered and was buried.
And resurrected on the third day according to the Scriptures.
And ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of the Father.
And the packs of the future with glory to judge the living and the dead, His Kingdom will have no end.
And in the Holy Spirit, the Lord of Life, Who proceeds from the Father, Who with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified, who spoke the prophets.
Into one Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church.
I confess one baptism for the remission of sins.
I look forward to the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the age to come.
Amen.

The Jesus Prayer - Prayer to Jesus Christ

Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner

It is also necessary to make prayers in Church Slavonic so that your perception is not eclipsed by the symbols of the language that we speak every day.
Church-language prayer sets us up for humility and a return to the roots - for centuries, unchanged words live in our ancestral memory.

Pray in church and in private (in your home), and if you think about when, how and why to pray, read the daily prayer of St. Philaret.
In these words there is tenderness and consolation for the soul suffering from prayer.

Prayer of Saint Philaret

Lord, I don't know what to ask of You.
You alone know what I need.
You love me more than I know how to love myself.
Father, give to Thy servant what I myself cannot ask.
I dare not ask for a cross or consolation,
I just stand before you.
My heart is open to You.
You see needs I don't know.
See and do according to Your mercy.
Strike and heal, bring me down and lift me up.
I revere and remain silent before Your holy will
and Thy fates incomprehensible to me.
I offer myself as a sacrifice to You.
I have no other desire
except for the desire to do Your will.
Teach me to pray, pray in me yourself!
Amen.

P oliths are important and beautiful all without exception. After all, each of them was born in the depths of the souls of those who turned to the Lord, the best human feelings are invested in each - love, faith, patience, hope ... And each of us probably has (or will) his favorite prayers, those that somehow especially consonant with our soul, our faith.

H about there are three main prayers, to know by heart and understand the meaning of which any Christian is obliged, they are the foundation of the foundations, a kind of alphabet of Christianity.

The first one is the Creed.

WITH symbol of faith summary Fundamentals of the Orthodox Faith, compiled in the IV century. Knowing and understanding it is necessary for a believer, so let's read it translated into modern Russian:

I believe in one God the Father, the Almighty, the Creator of heaven and earth, and of everything visible and invisible. And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the only one, begotten of the Father before all time; as Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten and not created, having one being with the Father and by whom all things were created. For us, people, and for our salvation, who descended from heaven and took on human nature from the Virgin Mary through the influx of the Holy Spirit on Her, and became a Man. He was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate, and suffered, and was buried. And resurrected on the third day according to the Scriptures. And ascended into Heaven and is at the right hand of the Father. And He again has to come with glory to judge the living and the dead. Whose kingdom will have no end. And in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, who gives life to all, proceeding from the Father, honored and glorified on a par with the Father and the Son, who spoke through the prophets. Into one Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church. I acknowledge one Baptism for the remission of sins. I look forward to the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the age to come. True.

In Old Slavonic, the church language, the Creed sounds like this:

I believe in one God the Father, Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, visible to all and invisible. And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Only Begotten, Who was born of the Father before this age; Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, uncreated, consubstantial with the Father, Whom all was. For us for the sake of man and for our sake of salvation, he descended from heaven and became incarnate from the Holy Spirit and Mary the Virgin and became human. Crucified for us under Pontius Pshat, and suffered, and was buried. And resurrected on the third day according to the Scriptures. And ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of the Father. And the packs of the future with glory to judge the living and the dead, His Kingdom will have no end. And in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the Life-Giving One, Who proceeds from the Father, Who with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified, who spoke the prophets. Into one Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church. I confess one baptism for the remission of sins. I look forward to the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the age to come. Amen.

Prayer is not easy, the best interpretation of it is given by Protopresbyter Alexander Schmemann in his book "Sunday Conversations".

Let us try, following the reasoning of an experienced priest, to try to penetrate into the essence of this prayer.

So, Symbol of faith begins with the words I believe in one God the Father...»

These words are the beginning of all beginnings, the foundation of the foundations of Christianity. Pre-Christian man god, or rather gods, called natural phenomena. There was a god of the wind and a god of the sun, there were as many gods as there were forces acting in nature. “The world is full of gods,” said the Greek philosopher Thales, which meant that many different natural forces and laws operate in the world. The gods were a reflection of the world. Christianity, having proclaimed the one God, thus affirmed the originality of the spiritual, higher being.

The pagan gods were considered evil and dangerous, Christians immediately recognized the Father in their God. The father gives life and continues to love his creation throughout his life, he takes care of him and participates in his affairs, he forgives him for his mistakes and passionately wants his child to be beautiful, smart, happy and kind. The Gospel says about God: "He is love." He is the love for us, his children. And our reciprocal love for Him, our trust and filial obedience are natural.

Further. Naming God Father, Creed calls him the Almighty: I believe in one God the Father, the Almighty…”. With this word, we express our faith that it is in God's providence that all life, everything is from Him, everything is in His hands. With this word, we, as it were, entrust ourselves, our fate to the Lord.

Next line: " Creator of heaven and earth, visible to all and invisible". The world is not an accidental cohesion of cells, not an absurdity, it has a beginning, a meaning and a purpose. The world was created by Divine wisdom, He created it "and saw that it was good ...".

« And in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Only Begotten…“Saying these words, we immediately find ourselves in the very core of Christianity,” says Protopresbyter A. Schmemann.

Word " Lord” at the time of the emergence of Christianity meant “teacher”, “leader”. A leader who is endowed with Divine power, sent by God, in the name of God, in order to rule the world. This title was appropriated by the Roman emperors in order to establish the Divine source of their power. Christians did not recognize him as an emperor, for which the Roman Empire persecuted them for more than 200 years. Christians asserted: in the world there is only one bearer of Divine authority, one Lord - Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Only Begotten.

Jesus is a human name very common in Palestine at that time. Christ is a title meaning "anointed one", in Hebrew it sounds like "Messiah". The expectation of the Messiah was justified. The one who was expected, prayed for and proclaimed by all the prophets, has come. The man is Jesus, the Messiah is Christ.

About the fact that Christ is the Son of God, God Himself told us, and this is described in the Gospel: when Jesus was baptized in the Jordan, the Holy Spirit descended from heaven in the form of a dove and a voice was heard from heaven: “This is My beloved son, in whom I am well pleased...". The Son of God, sent to us by God, is His part. His love. His faith is in us humans.

The Son of God - just born, as any of us was born, And born in poverty, His Mother did not even have diapers in which to wrap Him, beds, where to put Him, a newborn ...

“Who is of the Father, born before all ages; Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, uncreated, consubstantial with the Father, Whom all was.” How to understand such words? Very simple. “Father! says Christ on the night of betrayal. - May they all be one - as You, Father, are in Me, and I am in You, so they (we, people! - Auth.) May they be one in us - so that the world may believe that You sent me ... ". This is the meaning of these words of the Creed about the Son of God, the Only Begotten.

« For us, man, and for our sake, who descended from heaven...» In the line, the most important, the most important word, the concept is salvation. Christianity itself is a religion of salvation. Not the improvement of life, help in troubles and hardships, but salvation. That is why Christ was sent because the world was perishing—in lies, in unscrupulousness, in human dishonesty. And He did not come to make us carefree and happy, successful in everything, but to show us the way to salvation from total lies and dishonor. This path is not easy, but He did not promise us that it would be easy. He simply warned: if we live the way we live, we will perish, and perish soon. But if we understand that our path is the path to death, then there will be the first step on the path to salvation.

« And incarnated from the Holy Spirit and Mary the Virgin, and incarnated". For non-believers, these words are often proof enough that the whole of Christianity is nothing more than a beautiful fairy tale. Virgo cannot become a mother under any circumstances. Indeed, it is impossible to prove the reality of a husbandless conception and birth, so we either believe in it - we just believe without reasoning - or there really is nothing to talk about.

So, to prove the fact of the birth of Christ from the Virgin Mary is impossible. But ... how much do we know today about the world that surrounds us? It is worth thinking, and it will become clear: the deepest laws of the world are unknown to us, and its mystical depth is also unknown, that depth where our mind meets the action of God the Creator. By the way, after all, the Church does not claim that a husbandless conception and birth is possible, she only says that this happened once - when God Himself came to earth in the form of a man! It was God's decision, God's providence, one of those Lord's ways that are inscrutable to us, that is, cannot be understood due to the fact that they are God's, and not human. Well, the reason for such a decision of God is quite understandable: only having received His Flesh and Blood from the Mother, Christ could become related to us, people, to the end, and that is how He became human. Since then, He has been one of us.

« crucified for us under Pontius Pilate... Why is this name alone mentioned in the Creed, because other people, not only Pontius Pilate, participated in the condemnation and torment of Christ? Not only in order to more accurately indicate the time when the crucifixion took place. Remember, the Gospel of John describes how Pilate asks Christ standing before him: “Why don't you answer me? Don't You know that I have power to crucify You and I have power to let You go?" Of course, Pilate knew: there is no fault for Christ. But human life The Lord was in his power. It depended only on his decision, on the decision of his conscience in those hours. And he was looking for an opportunity to let Jesus go - and he did not let go. He did not let go because he was afraid of the crowd, he was afraid of riots that could damage his career as a procurator. Procurator Pontius Pilate was faced with a choice: put an innocent man to death or risk his future in the name of justice. He chose the first. And every time in Creed we pronounce the name of Pilate, we remind ourselves: be careful - it is much easier to choose betrayal than to take the side of the truth. In every person who meets on our life path, you can see the image of Christ. And often we are faced with a choice: to do good to the person we meet or to betray him - out of weakness or fear, out of laziness or indifference, to betray, as he did “before Easter, at the sixth hour, Pontius Pilate” ... Our spiritual salvation depends on such a choice each time or our doom.

« And suffering, and buried". When, after the darkness of Good Friday, the day of crucifixion and death, we enter Saturday, a shroud rises in the middle of the temple, that is, a tomb under a veil with the image of the dead Christ on it. But anyone who has at least once experienced, together with other believers, this day, unique in its depth, in its light, in its purest silence, knows - and knows not with his mind, but with his whole being: this tomb, which, like any coffin, always there is evidence of the triumph and invincibility of death, gradually begins to illuminate with such an initially invisible, barely perceptible light that the coffin is transformed, as the Church sings, into a “life-giving coffin” ... In the early morning, still in complete darkness, we carry the shroud around the temple. And now it is no longer a grave sob that is heard, but a song of victory: “Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal!” - so writes Protopresbyter Alexander Schmemann. Christ announces to us that the kingdom of death is coming to an end. That "buried" does not mean "gone forever", that the resurrection will be!

We all have to die. But behind the words of the Creed stands for some only hope, for others - already the certainty that in our death we will meet with Christ and we will wait for the resurrection.

« And risen on the third day, according to the Scriptures". These words are the very essence, the core of the Christian faith. In principle, faith in Him presupposes faith in the resurrection itself. The Resurrection is a miracle revealed to us as a great gift - that's probably all that needs to be said about these lines.

“And ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of the Father. And the packs of the coming with glory, to be judged by the living and the dead, His Kingdom will have no end. The sky, according to Christian concepts, is that in the world that is high, spiritual, pure, this is what Christianity in man calls his spirit. Each of us has a piece of the sky. It was “heaven on earth” that Christ revealed to us, He showed us: the meaning of life is ascent. “Ascension to heaven” means, having gone through an earthly, controversial and full of suffering life, to finally partake of heavenly truth, to return to God, to knowledge of Him. Our faith and our love are directed to heaven.

« And packs of the future with glory to judge the living and the dead” - that is, “and again expected to judge the living and the dead.” The first Christians lived in anticipation of the second coming of Christ and rejoiced at the coming coming. Gradually, fear began to be mixed with the joy of waiting - the fear of His judgment, which we habitually call the Last Judgment. The concept of "fear" in Christian Scripture is used in two senses - in positive and negative. On the one hand, all human life is permeated with fear, fears. Fear of the unknown, fear of suffering, fear of misfortune, fear of death, finally. Life is terrible, and death is also terrible. The result of these endless fears is all our illnesses, physical and spiritual, mental. It is from this “negative” fear that Christ came to free us. That is why, says John the Theologian, fear is sinful, because it testifies to the lack of our faith. But also “the beginning of wisdom is the fear of the Lord.” Such fear is no longer from a lack of faith and love for God, but from their excess. Its essence, meaning is admiration, reverence. We sometimes experience a similar fear when we encounter something truly beautiful and suddenly realize how insignificant we ourselves are in comparison with this “something” ... Fear-admiration, fear-love and its consequence - infinite respect. For example, I am afraid of my spiritual father to the point of trembling in my hands and knees. I'm afraid precisely because I love him and for me his approval or disapproval of one or another of my words and deeds is infinitely important. This fear helps me avoid many problems and mistakes in life - I think over and calibrate my every step according to how the priest will appreciate it ...

Yes, we must wait for Christ "with fear and trembling." But also with the certainty that "there is no human sin that exceeds the mercy of God." If we repent of what has been done, He, returning to us, will forgive us, “His Kingdom will have no end,” and in His Kingdom we will be happy. After all, it’s not for nothing that we daily repeat: “Thy Kingdom come…”

“And in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the Life-Giving One, who proceeds from the Father, Who with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified, who spoke the prophets.” Who is this Holy Spirit whom the Creed calls us to worship along with the Father and the Son? The word "spirit" - "ruach" in Hebrew means "wind", "power", something invisible, but having power over the world around us. And when we say “Spirit” about God, we combine in our consciousness His invisibility and His power into a single whole. The Holy Spirit is the presence of God always and in everything. The Spirit "proceeds" from the Father, it is His love for us. His faith is in us, His mercy and care for us.

« who spoke the prophets”- that is, the One who spoke and speaks with us through the prophets, through their mouths: the essence of prophecy is in proclaiming to us the will of God, otherwise how would we know this will? ..

« Into One Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church". “I will build,” proclaims Christ, “my Church…” And he builds it. It builds the assembly, the unity of those who aspire to Him. At first, He gathers only twelve people, twelve apostles, to whom he says: “You didn’t choose Me, I chose you ...” And after His crucifixion, it is these twelve that remain on earth as the Church. They, in turn, invite people to join them, go with them and continue the work of Christ. The Church is not one externally - there are many churches in the world, she is one internally - by what she does, by what she is dedicated to - by her service to a common goal. “Cathedral” means universal, since the teaching of Christ is addressed not to any one people, but to all of us, to all of humanity.

« I confess one baptism for the remission of sins. I look forward to the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the age to come. Amen". The apostle Paul says that in baptism we are united with Christ. On earth we are born members of a nation, but a Christian through baptism enters into a new nation—the people of God. In baptism we give, we commit ourselves to Him, in return we receive His love. His Fatherhood is above us. And this is forever.

“Tea” means I hope and wait. So I love you and look forward to seeing you.

Prayer "Our Father"

IN the second "main prayer with which we walk along the road of Christianity" - " Our Father“- is a very warm, very kind, really filial (and daughter) prayer. In it, we especially deeply feel that the Lord is our Father, and not the sovereign.

“Our Father, Thou art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name, Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, as in heaven and on earth” - this is how the prayer begins. In its opening words, our insatiable and eternal desire to be close to the Father, always feel His love on us and realize ourselves protected by His will and His Kingdom. Because without Him it is difficult, bad, scary for us. Without Him, we are defenseless in the midst of the troubles of this world.

The second part of the prayer contains petitions about the most important thing, about that without which human life is unthinkable. " Give us our daily bread today..."We ask Him. That is, on the one hand, do not let us fall, do not let us perish from earthly, everyday needs: from hunger, cold, from the lack of what is necessary for physical life. But it is also a request for daily bread that nourishes our soul. It is not for nothing that in a prayer pronounced in Greek, “daily bread” literally sounds like “supernatural bread” - not only bread from our fields, but also bread for our souls.

The next petition plays a huge, sometimes decisive role in our life: and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors...". That is, forgive us, Lord, as we forgive, as we should forgive our loved ones. And with these words we express something very important for ourselves: after all, everyone deep down has both bitterness and resentment against someone, resentment unforgiven, old, sometimes unbearable ... And we would be glad to forgive, but we cannot! ..

Metropolitan Anthony of Surozh in his book "Conversations on Prayer" told a simple and at the same time amazing story.

“When I was a teenager, like any boy, I had a “mortal enemy” - a boy whom I could not bear in any way, a boy who seemed to me a true enemy. And at the same time, I already knew this prayer. I then turned to my confessor and told him about it. He was a smart and direct person, and not without harshness, he told me: “It’s very simple - when you get to this place, say:“ And You, Lord, do not forgive me my sins, as I refuse to forgive Cyril ... ".

I said: “Father Athanasius, I can’t…”. “Otherwise it’s impossible, you have to be honest…”. In the evening, when I reached this place in prayer, my tongue did not turn to say it. Incur the wrath of God, say that I ask Him to reject me from my heart, just as I reject Cyril - no, I can’t ... I again went to Father Athanasius.

"Can not? Well, then skip over these words ... ”I tried: it didn’t work out either. It was dishonest, I could not say the whole prayer and leave only these words aside, it was a lie before God, it was a deception ... I again went for advice.

“And you, perhaps,” says Father Athanasius, “you can say: “Lord, even though I can’t forgive, I would very much like to be able to forgive, so maybe You will forgive me for my desire to forgive? ..”

It was better, I tried it... And after repeating the prayer in this form for several nights in a row, I felt... that hatred was not boiling in me so much, that I was calming down, and at some point I was able to say: “Forgive me! “I forgive him now, right here…”

Can you imagine what a lesson in forgiveness, and therefore getting rid of negative emotions, was given to the future Metropolitan by his confessor? Not only that, by forgiving "our debtors", we ourselves become better, cleaner, we also become healthier - any negative information accumulated in our subconscious undermines the very foundations of our health ...

But what does "forgive" mean? A person offended you, humiliated you, harmed you, and you just forgive him like that, you say: “It's okay, it's nothing, it's not worth attention? ..” Impossible! To forgive means to forget? Also incorrect. Forgiveness begins from the moment when you are able to look at the offender not as an enemy, but as a weak, malleable, very often unhappy person. He, perhaps, would like to become different, not to harm people, but he cannot - he is weak, petty. And then the resentment will grow into pity. Here he stands in front of you - vain, tormented, tormented by his problems, not knowing the joy of kindness, mercy, compassion ... and it's a pity for him, poor fellow, it's just a pity, because is life really such an existence? .. When Christ was nailed to the cross, He asked: "Forgive them, Father, they do not know what they are doing!" This is forgiveness in all its depth, in all compassion.

“I think,” says Metropolitan Anthony of Surozh, “that this is a very important experience. It is very important that when we pray we do not say anything that is not true (or that we do not fully understand, we say purely automatically). Therefore, if anyone has a prayer book and he prays according to the prayer book, read these prayers when there is time, put before yourself the question of what you can say honestly, with all your mind, with all your soul, with all your will, note to yourself that you it’s hard to say, but what you can grow into with an effort - if not the heart, then the will, consciousness, note also what you can’t honestly say in any way. And be honest to the end: when you reach these words, say: “Lord, I can’t say this, help me someday grow to such a consciousness…”.

But back to prayer Our Father…". The following words are in it: and lead us not into temptation...". The word "temptation" in Slavonic means trial. And, probably, the most accurate interpretation of these words will be this: do not lead us into that area where we cannot withstand the test, where we will not be able to cope with the test. Give us strength, give us reason, and caution, and wisdom, and courage.

And finally, " but deliver us from evil". That is, deliver us from excessive trials, temptations, which we can only cope with with Your help, and especially from the machinations of the cunning devil, who pushes us to evil.

Jesus Prayer

No matter how serious our care is, no matter how heavy our grief, in despondency and sadness, in anguish and sorrow, in mental illness and bodily illness, we can always regain peace, health and joy. To do this, it is enough to know a short, at first glance, eight-word prayer. Thick volumes of books have been written about a short prayer. But many volumes do not fit what her words contain. This prayer is the essence of the entire Orthodox faith. To explain it means to explain the whole truth about man and God.

This is the Jesus Prayer:

« Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner «.

We have lost contact with the Divine — and that is the reason for all our troubles and misfortunes. We forgot about the spark of God that is in each of us. We forgot that a person is meant to protect and strengthen the connection between his own divine spark and the Divine fire, which seems to connect us to the "accumulator of the Universe." And we are given as much strength as we need, without any restrictions. The Jesus Prayer restores this connection.

Here is how the Athonite monks Kallistos and Ignatius write about this: “Prayer, with attention and sobriety, performed inside the heart, without any other thought or imagination of any kind, with the words: Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, insubstantially and silently raises the mind to the most called Lord Jesus Christ, with the words have mercy on me again brings him back and moves him to himself.

It is very important in the Jesus Prayer to understand well the meaning of its second part: "... have mercy on me, a sinner."

Can each of us sincerely call ourselves a sinner? Indeed, in the depths of his soul, a person thinks: I am not so bad, I am kind, honest, I work hard, I take care of my family, relatives, friends, I have practically no bad habits ... No, there are many people around who much more sinful than me. The only thing is that the word "sin" has not only a generally accepted meaning, but also another, much deeper one.

Sin is, first of all, a person's loss of contact with his own depth. Think about these words. Who can honestly say that every day he lives with all the depths of his soul, heart, mind, with all the scope of his will, with all his courage and nobility, lives in full force, using without a trace the physical and spiritual reserves that the Lord gave him at birth? Alas, this is how we live only in rare and wonderful moments of spiritual impulses. The rest of the time, our deeds and thoughts are at half strength, exactly as much as daily necessity requires.

But it's a shame! The Lord created us great, strong, beautiful, and we… we were crushed and almost completely forgot what we could be… And then it breaks out: “Lord, forgive me!..”

But the word "have mercy" is not a synonym for the word "forgive". This word is Greek, it has many meanings. “Forgive” means forgive and forget that I am like this. Lord, it just so happened, what can you do. In Greek, “have mercy” - “kyrie, eleison” - does not just mean “forgive”, but “forgive and give me time to come to my senses” - give me the opportunity to correct mistakes, help me become what You created me, what I should be. Saying the Jesus Prayer, we, exhausted by deeds and problems, living in endless haste and bustle, do not give up hope of becoming worthy and beautiful again. And you, Lord, have mercy on us - kyrie, eleison - and in the struggle for ourselves!

Always before praying for anything, asking for something from the Lord, say these few words in your heart several times. Believe me, they will give you much more than you can imagine...

In addition, the prayer book contains canons, akathists, as well as prayers on different cases.

Prayers for various occasions are usually said many times during the day - when a person starts some business, or something disturbs him, or sad thoughts disturb him; it is good to read short prayers when you are angry or annoyed, when you are afraid of something, even when you are just tired, and there is still a lot to do.

Each person sometimes has to experience many different difficulties on his life path, the impact of which may depend on their further outcome of fate. And when one's own efforts are not enough, the only hope is a direct appeal to God.

In the Church Orthodox culture, the souls of people find themselves alone with their main earthly savior during the reading of a certain prayer. At the same time, her words, sounding from the lips, must be learned by heart.

If we consider in more detail the features of all existing prayers, it turns out that they all differ from each other not only in meaning, but also in direction. Therefore, in Hard time, being in a difficult or hopeless situation, it does not hurt for any person to use Christian prayers. There are a huge number of them, but three of them are the most common and main.

Our Father

This is one of the most ancient prayers that every Orthodox should know.

The sacred words of the Bible say that the Lord's Prayer was written by Jesus Christ himself at the time when he preached to his pupils his teaching on how to pray correctly.

During the reading of this prayer, Christians begin their appeal to God by glorifying his exploits, strength and significance for all earthly abodes. Then the second part begins, where those in need of help mention their problems with a request to overcome them.

Our Father is a universal prayer. It is said to get rid of diseases. It helps to improve mood, lift the spirit, survive the loss of loved ones and much more.

During its pronunciation at home or in church in front of the icon, it is very important to believe in what is said, pronounce the words clearly and focus all your thoughts on the desired result.

By reading its text, a person can:

• Overcome depression;
• Reveal yourself;
• Develop an optimistic outlook on life;
• Get rid of diseases and troubles;
• Cleanse the soul from sinful thoughts.

The text of the prayer is as follows:

Our Father, Who art in heaven!

May your name be hallowed,

let your kingdom come,

let your will be done

as in heaven and on earth.

Give us our daily bread today;

and leave us our debts,

like we also leave our debtor;

and lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from the evil one.

For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.

Amen.

The prayer of living help and may God rise again was used in ancient times by poor and rich people who needed God's help.

In modern times, she also has not lost her popularity.

An important point for saying any prayer is the right mental attitude and the high attention of believers, which should be focused on every word spoken.

The prayer of the Alive in help is protective and protective in its meaning. As a rule, it is pronounced in front of the iconostasis to free the mind from bad and unfaithful thoughts.

It is important to remember that reciting this prayer by heart causes great difficulties. Therefore, during its pronunciation, it is allowed to use the text that is set out on paper. Its text reads as follows:

Alive in the help of the Most High, in the blood of the God of Heaven will settle.

The Lord says: Thou art my intercessor and my refuge, my God, and I trust in Him.

Yako Toy will deliver thee from the net of the hunter, and from the word of the rebellious.

His splash will overshadow you, and under His wings you hope.

His truth will be your weapon, do not be afraid of the fear of the night, from the arrow flying in the days, from the thing in the darkness of the transient, from the hell and the demon of the afternoon.

A thousand will fall from your country, and the darkness at your right hand will not come near you.

Both look at your eyes, and see the retribution of sinners.

As you, O Lord, are my hope, the Most High have laid down your refuge.

Evil will not come to you, and the wound will not come near your body.

As if by His Angel I commanded about you, keep you in all your ways.

They will take you in their hands, but not when you stomp your foot on a stone.

Step on the asp and the basilisk, and cross the lion and the serpent.

For I have trusted in Me, and I will deliver;

I will cover and, as if I knew my name.

He will call to Me, and I will hear him;

I am with him in affliction, I will crush him, and I will glorify him;

I will fulfill him with length of days, and I will show him my salvation.

The very essence of Psalm 90 lies in the fact that everyone who piously believes and hopes for God's help is endowed with the highest heavenly power, which will always help with any difficulties that arise. And the stronger faith develops in people, the higher God's grace.

Dreams of the Virgin

It consists of 77 texts, each of which is designed for specific life situations.

These include:

• illness;
• fires;
• attacks, etc.

Their origin dates back to 1613. At that time, the Russian Stepanov family, thanks to their healing services, enjoyed high popularity in their circles. Having learned about the miraculous power of prayers, they began to make tremendous efforts in order to collect all 77 prayer texts.

From the entire existing list of prayers that relate to the collection of the Dreams of the Virgin, below is the Dream Holy Mother of God 8 (Out of trouble):

In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen. Amen. Amen. - Beloved Blessed Mother, My Blessed Virgin Mary, Are you sleeping or not sleeping, And what terrible thing do you see in your dream? Arise, My Mother, from Your sleep! - Oh, my beloved child. Sweetest, most beautiful, Jesus Christ, Son of God! I slept in your holy city and saw about you a very terrible and terrible dream, which makes my soul tremble. I saw Peter, Paul, and I saw you, My Child, in Jerusalem, sold, caught, bound for thirty pieces of silver. Brought to the high priest, innocently condemned to death.

Oh, My beloved child, I will ask what will happen to a person who writes My Theotokos' dream six times from a pure heart in his book and will keep it in his house, or carry it clean on his way, - Oh, Mother of My Mother of God. I will tell you truly, as I am the True Christ myself: No one will ever touch this person’s house, grief and misfortune will be pumped out of that person, I will save him forever from eternal torment, I will stretch out My hands to help him.

And I will also endow his house with every good: bread, gifts, livestock, belly. From the court he will be pardoned, from the master he will be forgiven, he will not be condemned in court. The servants of the devil will not approach, the cunning will not cheat with their deceit. The Lord loves His children. It won't kill anyone.
Amen. Amen. Amen.

Symbol of faith

I believe in the One God the Father, the Almighty, the Creator of heaven and earth, Visible to all and invisible, in the One Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Only Begotten, Who was born from the Father before all ages; Light is from Light, God is truth and truth is from God, born, not created, consubstantial with the Father, He is the whole being. For us for the sake of man and for our sake of salvation, he descended from heaven and became incarnate from the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary, and became human. Crucified for us under Pontius Pilate and suffering and buried. And resurrected on the third day according to the Scriptures. And ascended into heaven, sitting at the right hand of the Father. And the packs of the future will wake up the living and the dead, His Kingdom will have no end. And in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the Giver of Life, who proceeds from the Father. Even with the Father and the Son, we bow down and glorify the one who spoke the prophets. Into the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church. I confess one baptism for the remission of sins. Tea of ​​the Resurrection of the dead and the life of the future age. Amen.

Prayer to the Most Holy Theotokos

O Most Holy Lady Theotokos, Queen of heaven, save and have mercy on us, Thy sinful servants; from vain slander and any misfortune, misfortune and sudden death, have mercy in the daytime hours, morning and evening, and at all times save us - standing, sitting, walking in every way, sleeping in the night hours, provide, intercede and cover, protect. The Lady Mother of God, from all enemies visible and invisible, from any evil situation, in any place and at any time, be to us, Mother of Grace, an invincible wall and strong intercession, always now and forever and forever and ever. Amen.

Important prayers. Read each.

Lord Jesus Christ,

Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner (3 times).

In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Important prayers for every Christian

PRAYER OF THE LORD.

Our Father, Who art in heaven! Hallowed be thy name, may the kingdom come

Yours, your will be done, as in heaven and on earth. Give us our daily bread today, and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors, and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

For Yours is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and forever and forever and ever. Amen.

PRAYER TO THE HOLY MOTHER OF GOD.

Oh, Blessed Virgin, Mother of the Lord, Queen of heaven and earth!

to my much painful sighing of our soul, look from the height of Thy saint on us, with faith and love worshiping Thy Most Pure Image! Behold, immersed in sin and overwhelmed with sorrow, looking at Your image, as if you live with us, we offer our humble prayers. No other help, no other intercession, no consolation, only to You, O Mother of all those who grieve and burdened! Help us weak, quench our sorrow, guide us, the erring ones, on the right path, heal and save the hopeless, grant us other time of our life in peace and spend silence. Grant a Christian death and at the terrible judgment of Your Son, the merciful Intercessor will appear to us, let us always sing, magnify and glorify Thee, as the good Intercessor of the Christian race, with all those who please God. Amen!

PRAYER SYMBOL OF FAITH.

I believe in one God the Father, Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, visible to all and invisible. And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God,

the only begotten, who was born of the Father before all ages. Light from light

God is true, from God is true, born, not created, Consubstantial

Father, He is the whole life. For us, man, and for our salvation, who descended from heaven, and became incarnate from the Holy Spirit and Mary the Virgin, and became human.

Crucified for us under Pontius Pilate, and suffered, and was buried. And he rose again on the third day, according to the scripture. And ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of the Father. And packs of the future with glory to judge the living and the dead,

His kingdom will have no end. And in the Holy Spirit, Lord,

life-giving, who proceeds from the Father, who with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified, who spoke the prophets. Into one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church. I confess one baptism for the remission of sins.

Tea of ​​the resurrection of the dead. And the life of the next century. Amen.

LIVE IN HELP…

Alive in the help of the Most High, in the blood of the God of Heaven will settle. The word of the Lord:

Thou art my protector and my refuge, my God, and I trust in Him. As if He will deliver you from the net of the hunter, and from the rebellious word, His splash will overshadow you, and under His wings you hope: His truth will be your weapon. Do not be afraid of the fear of the night, from the arrow flying in the days, from the transitory things in the darkness, from the scum, and the noonday demon.

A thousand will fall from your country, and darkness at your right hand, but it will not come close to you, both look at your eyes, and see the reward of sinners. As you, O Lord, are my hope, the Most High have laid down your refuge. Evil will not come to you, and the wound will not approach your body, as if by His Angel a commandment about you, save you in all your ways.

They will take you in their hands, but not when you stumble your foot on a stone, step on the asp and the basilisk, and cross the lion and the serpent. As if I trusted in Me, and I will deliver, and: I will cover and, as if I knew My name. He will call to me, and I will hear him: I am with him in sorrow, I will betray him, and I will glorify him, I will fulfill him with the length of days, and I will show him My salvation.

PRAYER TO THE GUARDIAN ANGEL

Holy angel of Christ, I pray to you, my holy guardian, devoted to me to keep my soul to my sinful body from holy baptism, but with my laziness and my evil habit, I angered your most pure lordship and drove you away from me with all the student deeds, slander, envy, condemnation, contempt, disobedience, fraternal hatred and rancor, love of money, adultery, rage, avarice, gluttony without satiety and drunkenness, verbosity, evil thoughts and crafty, proud custom and prodigal rage, having self-desire for every carnal desire.

Oh, my evil will, even the dumb beasts do not create it! But how can you look at me, or come to me, like a stinking dog? Whose eyes, Angel of Christ, look at me, entangled in evil in vile deeds? Yes, how can I ask forgiveness for my bitter and evil and crafty deed, I fall into it all day and night and at every hour? But I pray that, falling to the guardian of my saint, have mercy on me, a sinful and unworthy servant of yours (name), be my helper and intercessor for the evil of my opponent, with your holy prayers, and make the Kingdom of God a partaker with all the saints, always, and now, and forever and forever and ever. Amen.

What are the types of prayer?

Prayers can be conditionally divided into pleading, thanksgiving, penitential and doxology.

How is prayer different from conspiracy?

Fruits of prayer.

“The fruits of sincere prayer are: simplicity, love, humility, patience, gentleness, and the like. All this, even before eternal fruit, bears fruit here in the life of the diligent.” Saint Gregory of Nyssa

“The fruits of true prayer: a bright world of the soul, combined with a quiet, silent joy, alien to daydreaming, conceit and heated impulses and movements; love for one's neighbor, not separating the good from the bad for love... but interceding for all before God as for oneself." Bishop Ignatius (Bryanchaninov)

What are the causes of absent-mindedness and temptations in prayer?

“So, he who is diligent in prayer should ask for it and know that in such an important matter he must endure a difficult struggle with much diligence and effort, since the spirit of malice attacks them with special force, trying to subvert our efforts. Hence the weakening of the body and soul, effeminacy, carelessness, negligence, and everything else that destroys the soul, tormented in parts and given over to its enemy. So, it is necessary that the soul be ruled by the mind, like a wise helmsman, indicating the direct path to the mountain pier and betraying the soul undamaged to God who entrusted it.
Saint Gregory of Nyssa

What are icons for?

When can a prayer fail?

When what is asked is not useful to the soul of the one who prays, or when he needs to acquire humility and patience.

“The mouth can ask for everything, but God only fulfills what is useful. The Lord is a wise Distributor. He cares about the benefit of the one who asks, and if he sees that what is asked is harmful or, at least, useless to him, he does not fulfill the request and refuses the imaginary good deed. He listens to every prayer, and the one whose prayer is not fulfilled receives from the Lord the same saving gift as the one whose prayer is fulfilled. Therefore, be sure that any petition that is not fulfilled is undoubtedly harmful, and that petition that is heard is beneficial. The giver is righteous and good and will not leave your petitions unfulfilled, because in His goodness there is no malice and in His truth there is no envy. If He delays in fulfilling it, it is not because He repents of the promise, on the contrary. He wants to see your patience."
Saint Ephraim the Syrian

“First of all, we must know that it is not permissible for us to ask for everything we want, and that in any case we are not able to ask for something useful. With great prudence, petitions should be made, conforming them to the will of God. And those who are not heard need to know that either patience or intensification of prayer is necessary. Saint Basil the Great

“Sometimes our petition is immediately heard, but sometimes, according to the Savior, God is long-suffering for us, that is, he does not quickly fulfill what we ask: He sees that this fulfillment must be stopped for a while for our humility. When your petition is not fulfilled by God, submit reverently to the will of the All-Holy God, Who, for unknown reasons, left your petition unfulfilled. Bishop Ignatius (Bryanchaninov)

According to the Gospel, one of the conditions for hearing prayer is reconciliation with neighbors. The Gospel says: “If you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar, and go, first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift” (