The procession is ... The essence and description of the procession. Easter procession

In Orthodox churches, as well as in Catholic, but performing in their religious life Eastern liturgical rites, it has become a tradition to organize solemn processions with banners and icons, in front of which usually carry a large cross. From him, such processions were called religious processions. These can be processions arranged in the Easter week, in Epiphany or on the occasion of any significant church events.

The Birth of Tradition

Cross processions are a tradition that came to us from the first centuries of Christianity. However, at the time of the persecution of the followers of the gospel doctrine, they were associated with considerable risk, and therefore were committed in secret, and information about them is almost not preserved. Only certain drawings are known on the walls of the catacombs.

The earliest mention of the performance of such a rite dates back to the IV century, when the first Christian emperor Constantine I the Great saw in the sky a sign of the cross and the inscription: "Sim overcome." Having ordered to make banners and shields with the image of the cross, which became the prototype of future banners, he moved the column of his troops to the enemy.

Further, the chronicles report that a century later Bishop Porphyry of Gaza, before erecting another Christian temple on the site of the devastated pagan temple, made a procession to him to consecrate the land, which was scolded by idolaters.

The Emperor in Susselcoat

It is also known that the last emperor of the unified Roman Empire, Theodosius I the Great, used to go out with his warriors each and every time, setting out on a march. These processions, ahead of which the emperor was wearing, was dressed in sashcloth, always ended near the tombs of Christian martyrs, where an honest army was prostrated, asking for their petitions before the Celestial Powers.

In the VI century, the processions in the churches were finally legalized and entered the tradition. They were so important that the Byzantine emperor Justinian I (482-565 gg.) Issued a special decree according to which it was forbidden to perform them to lay people without the participation of clergymen, since the pious ruler saw in this the profanation of the sacred rite.

The most common types of religious processions

Becoming in time an integral part of the church life, the processions today have a variety of forms and are committed in a number of cases. Among them the most famous are:

1. Easter procession, as well as all other processions associated with this main holiday of the annual Orthodox circle. This includes the procession on the Palm Sunday ─ "walking on the ass". On Holy Saturday, the prototype of the procession is the removal of the shroud. It is performed at the Easter Matins (for details, see below), and also daily during the Bright Week and every Sunday until the day of the Passover.
2. Religious processions on the days of great Orthodox holidays, as well as the patron saints, celebrated by the community of a particular parish. Such processions are often organized in honor of the consecration of temples or celebrations dedicated to especially revered icons. In these cases, the route of the procession runs from the village to the village, or from the temple to the temple.
3. For the consecration of the water of various springs, as well as rivers, lakes, etc. They are performed on the day of the Epiphany (or on Christmas Eve preceding it), on Friday the Bright Week is the holiday of the Life-giving Spring, and on August 14, the day of the Expulsion of the Honest Ancients of the Life-Giving Cross of the Lord .
4. Funeral godparents accompanying the deceased in the cemetery.
5. Associated with some generally unfavorable life circumstances, for example, droughts, floods, epidemics, etc. In such cases, the procession is part of a prayer service for the intercession of the Celestial Powers and the sending down of deliverance from the calamitous disasters, including Also man-made disasters and military actions.
6. Inside the temple, performed on a number of holidays. A variety of the procession is also considered lithium.
7. Committed on the occasion of any public holidays or major events. For example, in recent years it has become a tradition to celebrate the Day of National Unity with the cross.
8. Missionary godparents conducted to attract non-believers or followers of other religious teachings to their ranks.

Aerial processions

It is interesting to note that in this age of scientific and technological progress a completely new non-canonical form of conducting the procession with the use of technical means has appeared. This term usually refers to the flight performed by a group of priests with an icon on an airplane, the commission of prayer services in certain places.

It began in 1941, when a miraculous list of the Tikhvin icon of the Mother of God was placed around Moscow. This tradition was continued in the perestroika years by making the Russian border trip, timed to the 2000th anniversary of the Nativity of Christ. It is believed that, as long as the procession on the plane lasts, so long the grace of God is sent down to earth.

Features of the procession of the procession

According to the Orthodox and Eastern Catholic tradition, the Easter procession, like any other performed around the temple, marches in the direction opposite to the movement of the sun, that is, counter-clockwise - "anti-sally." Orthodox Old Believers make their godparents, moving in the direction of the sun ─ "salted".

The whole church clergy participating in it goes in pairs in a vestment corresponding to this case. At the same time they are singing the prayer canon. An obligatory attribute of the procession is the cross, as well as charred censers and lamps. In addition, during the march bear gonfalons, the ancient prototype of which are military banners, which were once part of the sacred rites, because they were attended by the emperors. Also from the depths of the centuries came the tradition of carrying icons and the Gospel.

When is the beginning of the procession for Easter?

Among the many questions of interest to all who are just starting their "way to the temple", on the eve of the Bright Christ's Resurrection, this is asked most often. "What time is the procession for Easter?" Asked mostly those who attend church not regularly, but only on the days of the main Orthodox holidays. Answer it, calling the exact time, it is impossible, because it happens around midnight, and some deviations both in one and in the other direction are completely permissible.

Midnight Reception

The festive church service, during which the procession takes place, begins on the evening of Good Saturday at 20:00. The first part of it is called the Midnight Bar. It is accompanied by sad hymns dedicated to the cross suffering and death of the Savior. The priest and deacon make incense (fumigate with a censer) around the Shroud ─ a cloth board with a picture put in the tomb of Christ. Then, with the singing of prayers, they take her to the altar, and put on the throne, where the Shroud will be 40 days until the Ascension of the Lord.

The main part of the holiday

Shortly before midnight, it is time for Easter Matins. All the priests, standing at the Throne, perform a moleben, at the end of which one hears the bells ringing, announcing the approach of the light holiday of the Resurrection of Christ and the beginning of the procession. Traditionally, the solemn procession bypasses the temple three times, each time stopping at its doors. No matter how long the procession lasts, they remain closed, thus symbolizing the stone blocking the entrance to the Holy Sepulcher. Only the third time the doors are opened (the stone is thrown away), and the procession rushes into the interior of the temple, where the Bright Matins are performed.

Festive singing of bells

An important component of the solemn procession around the church is a bell-ringing ─ how much the procession for Easter comes from the doors of the temple, and the same joyful sounds called "sober" are beginning to be heard. The complexity of this kind of bell ringing is that it includes three independent parts, constantly alternating and separated by only a small pause. From the beginning of the century it was believed that it was during the procession of the bell-ringers that the most favorable opportunity for the bell ringers to show off was their skill.

The festive Easter service usually ends no later than 4 am, after which the Orthodox break fast, eating colored eggs, Easter, cakes and other food. Throughout the whole of the Bright Week, announced by the joyous ringing of the bells, it was customary to have fun, to go to visit and host relatives and friends. One of the main requirements for each owner of the house was generosity and hospitality, so common in Orthodox Russia.