According to Orthodox canons. What are church canons: let’s explain it on your fingers

“For there is no truth in their mouth; their heart is destruction, their throat is an open grave, they flatter with their tongue.”

Ps.5:10

“There is great madness; you are ready to leave the verbs and speak your own.”

St. Peter of Damascus

“ERUSION DOES NOT APPEAR ALONE BY ITSELF, SO THAT WHEN IT APPEARS IN ITS NAKEDITY, IT DOESN’T CONVICT ITSELF, BUT BY CLEVERLY DRESSING UP IN TEMPTTING CLOTHING, IT ACHIEVES THAT WHICH IN ITS APPEARANCE TO THE INEXPERIENT APPEARS TRUER THAN THE TRUTH ITSELF... TO WHEN THERE IS NO ONE TO TEST AND SOMEONE THE WAY TO DETECT A FAKE… WHO OF THE SIMPLE CAN EASILY RECOGNIZE THIS?” (Holy Martyr Irenaeus of Lyon)

“The heretic, after the first and second admonition, turn away, knowing that such a one has become corrupted and sins, being self-condemned.” ( Titus 3:10)

according to St. Apostle John: who says : “I have known Him,” but does not keep His commandments; he is a liar, and the truth is not in him.” . (1 John 2:4)

"Every man is a lie"- this does not mean that every person always lies and tells lies in everything - no! But only that it is not rooted in Truth.

“Whoever, not observing either the unity of the spirit or the union of peace, separates himself from the bonds of the Church and the society of priests, he, not recognizing episcopal unity and peace, can have neither the power nor the honor of a bishop.” (St. Cyprian of Carthage, Letter 43 to Antonian)

About the rules, this is what the Orthodox bishop says in his oath before consecration: “I promise to uphold the canons of the holy Apostles and the seven ecumenical, and pious local councils, which are legitimized for the preservation of the right commands, and only at different times and in the summer from those who truly fight for the holy Catholicities in the East more Orthodox faith, the canons and holy statutes are depicted, and I testify to this promise that everything will be preserved firmly and inviolably until the end of my life; and everything that they have accepted, and I accept, and they have turned away, and I turn away” (paragraph 2). “If I transgress what I have promised here, or if I appear contrary to the divine rule,... then abie may I be deprived of all my dignity and power, without any sign or word, and may I appear as a stranger to the heavenly gift, at the consecration by the laying on of hands given to me by the Holy Spirit” ( clause 19).

“Whoever follows one who causes schism will not inherit the Kingdom of God”

St. Cyprian, exhorting the people not to communicate with all sorts of heretics and schismatics posing as bishops, writes “Do not think that you will not be defiled by the fellowship and the vicious sacrifice that he brings and the bread of the dead,” since it is through the bishop that the Church is united in Christ with God the Father, from whom the bishop receives the grace of the sacraments and sanctifies his Church with it. The faithful cannot be saved separately from their bishop, just as the body cannot live separately from its head - this is an axiom of Orthodox ecclesiology.

“The lamp of the body is the eye (Matthew 6:22)... and the lamp of the Church is the bishop. Therefore, just like the eye, it is necessary to be pure for the body to move correctly, and when it is not pure, the body moves incorrectly; so, together with the primate of the Church, as he will be, the Church is either exposed to danger or saved.” , says St. Gregory the Theologian (St. Gregory the Theologian, Letter 34, To the inhabitants of Caesarea.)

“The Church is called holy not only because it possesses all the fullness of grace-filled gifts that sanctify believers, but also because it contains people of varying degrees of holiness, including members who have achieved the fullness of holiness and perfection. At the same time, the Church has never, even in the apostolic period of its history, been a reserve of saints (1 Cor. 5:1-5). Thus, the Church is a collection not of saints, but of those being sanctified, and therefore recognizes as its members not only the righteous, but also sinners. This idea is persistently emphasized in the Savior’s parables about wheat and tares (Matthew 13:24-30), about the net (Matthew 13:47-50), etc. For those who sin, the Church has established the sacrament of Repentance. Those who sincerely repent of their sins receive their forgiveness: “If we confess our sins, then He, being faithful and righteous, will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). “Those who sin but cleanse themselves through true repentance do not prevent the Church from being holy...”14. However, there is a certain limit, beyond which sinners become dead members of the church body that bear only harmful fruits.

Such members are cut off from the body of the Church or BY THE INVISIBLE ACTION OF GOD'S JUDGMENT, or the visible action of church authority, through anathematization , in fulfillment of the apostolic command: “cast out the corrupt one from among you” (1 Cor. 5:13). These include apostates from Christianity, unrepentant sinners in mortal sins, as well as heretics who deliberately distort the basic tenets of faith. Therefore, the Church is in no way obscured by the sinfulness of people; everything sinful that invades the church sphere, remains alien to the Church and is destined for cutting off and destruction . « (Orthodox Catechism. Archpriest Oleg Davydenkov PSTBI 1997)

Hieromartyr Irenaeus of Lyons: “For where the Church is, there is the Spirit of God, and where the Spirit of God is, there is the Church and all grace, and the Spirit is truth.

The Holy Spirit, the guarantee of incorruption, the confirmation of our faith and the ladder for ascent to God. For in the Church, it is said, God has placed apostles, prophets, teachers and all other means of the action of the Spirit, of which all those who do not agree with the Church are not involved, but deprive themselves of life by bad teaching and the worst way of acting. For where the Church is, there is the Spirit of God, and where the Spirit of God is, there is the Church and all grace, and the Spirit is truth. Therefore, those who are not involved in Him do not feed for life from their mother’s breasts, do not use the purest source that comes from the Body of Christ, but dig broken wells for themselves from earthly ditches and drink rotten water from the mud, withdrawing from the faith of the Church, so as not to convert, and rejecting Spirit, so as not to come to your senses..."

(St. Ignatius the God-Bearer To the Philadelphians, III)

So, according to the Teachings of the Church - the Revelation of God Almighty, the unity of the Church is rooted in the unity of the Holy Trinity. The Church is united in faith and love, and those who deny this unity deny the incarnation of the Lord, because, according to St. Ignatius the God-Bearer, “faith is the flesh of the Lord, and love is His blood” (St. Ignatius the God-Bearer To the Philadelphians, III) On the other hand, faith, according to St. Ignatius, is unceasing prayer, which is unthinkable without love. The mutual prayer of Christians in the Church to the Father demonstrates the love of Christ for the Father. In other words, prayer is an intra-Trinitarian act, the eternal communication of the Son with the Father and the Spirit. There should not be a drop of lie in a Christian’s prayer, for it ascends to God, the Father of Truth, and the Son of God cannot lie. The slightest admixture of lies defiles prayer and turns it into blasphemy. : “If anyone, as the Scripture says, being hard-hearted and seeking lies (Ps. 4:3) dares to utter the words of prayer, then let him know that he is not calling on the father of heaven, but of the underworld, who himself is a liar and becomes the father of lies, arising in everyone" (St. Gregory of Nyssa, On Prayer, verse 2.)

Because, as the Apostle Paul says, the Church is “ pillar and ground of truth» (1 Tim. 3:15), then the basis of communication with her communication with the truth is required: “Those who belong to the Church of Christ belong to the truth”. Participation (in) the Church means connection with the truth, communion with idolizing grace, life in the communion of deification. A person who breaks his connection with the truth breaks off fellowship in the grace of God and ceases to be a member of the Church.

Due to the fact that the Patriarch of Antioch Ignatius accepted the opinions of Barlaam and Akindinus about divine grace, St. Gregory Palamas speaks with particular force about such shepherds who depart from church truth. These people, although they are called shepherds and archpastors, are not members of the Church of Christ: “Those who do not abide in the truth do not belong to the Church of Christ; and this is all the more true if they lie about themselves, calling themselves or if they are reputed to be shepherds and archpastors; However, we are taught that Christianity is not determined by external manifestations, but by truth and accurate faith.” .

I would like to emphasize that in the minds of St. Gregory Palamas, who for the Orthodox Church is the exponent of its teachings , strict adherence to church truth, and not human discipline, even in a hierarchical understanding, is the fundamental basis of belonging to the Church of Christ. Any deviation from the truth of God, the truth of the Church, is a crime and a falling away from it.

Staying in the Church means connecting with the truth and communion with divine grace. God wants “we, born of grace...were inseparable from each other and from Himself...Just as the tongue, being a member of ours, does not tell us that sweet is bitter, and bitter is sweet...so each of us, called by Christ, being a member of the whole Church, let him speak nothing more than what he recognizes as answering the Truth; if not, then he is a liar and an enemy, but not a member of the Church.” A person who breaks with the truth moves away from divine grace and ceases to be a Christian.

Sin against the Truth is more serious than other sins; it removes a person from the Church and can only be healed by repentance and renewal of the mind. The calling to contain the truth of Christ, according to the words of St. Gregory Palamas, also applies to all Local Churches that make up the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church of Christ. St. Gregory says that historically all local Churches experienced moments of falling away from the Truth, and only one Roman Church did not return to Orthodoxy, although it is the largest of all.

Here is the 2nd part of the 15th Rule of the Double Council of Constantinople: “For those who separate themselves from communion with the primate, for the sake of some heresy, condemned by holy councils or fathers, when, that is, he preaches heresy publicly, and teaches it openly in the Church, such even if they protect themselves from communication with the said bishop, before conciliar consideration, are not only not subject to the penance prescribed by the rules, but are also worthy of the honor due to the Orthodox. For they condemned not bishops, but false bishops and false teachers, and did not stop the unity of the church by schism, but tried to protect the church from schisms and divisions .«

Interpretation of Nicodemus (Milash), Bishop of Dalmatia-Istria on the 15th rule of the Double Council of Constantinople:

“Supplementing the 13th and 14th rules of this council, this (15) rule prescribes that if the indicated relationship should exist among the presbyter to the bishop and the bishop to the metropolitan, then even more so there should be such an attitude towards the patriarch, who must have all in canonical obedience metropolitans, bishops, presbyters and other clergy of the subject patriarchate.

Having established this regarding obedience to the patriarch, this rule makes a general observation regarding all three rules (13-15), namely, that all these prescriptions are valid only if, when schisms arise due to unproven crimes: the patriarch, the metropolitan and the bishop. But if any of the bishops, metropolitans or patriarchs begins to preach any heretical teaching contrary to Orthodoxy, then the rest of the priests and church ministers THE RIGHT AND EVEN THE OBLIGATION to immediately separate from the subject bishop, metropolitan and patriarch, and for this they will not only not be subject to any canonical punishment, on the contrary, they will be rewarded with praise, because by this they did not condemn or rebel against real, legitimate bishops, and against false bishops, false teachers, and they did not create a schism in the church; on the contrary, to the best of their ability they freed the church from schism and prevented division. "

Archimandrite (later Bishop of Smolensk) John, in accordance with the historical circumstances of the Russian Church, quite correctly and in the strict sense of canonical science, in the interpretation of this rule, notes “that the presbyter will not be guilty, but rather worthy of praise for separating from his bishop, if the latter “ preaches any heretical teaching that is contrary to the Orthodox Church, and if:

A) “preaches a doctrine clearly contrary to the teaching of the Catholic Church and already condemned St. fathers or councils , and not any private thought that might seem incorrect to anyone and does not contain any particular importance, so can easily be corrected, without being accused of deliberate unorthodoxy"; then

b) “if false teaching is preached (by him) openly and publicly in the church, when, that is, it is already thought out and is directed towards an obvious contradiction of the church, and is not only expressed in a private way, when it can still be exposed in the same private way and rejected, without disturbing the peace of the church.”

Interpretation of Aristin: “...And if some depart from someone, not under the pretext of a crime, but because of heresy, condemned by the council or St. fathers, then they are worthy of honor and acceptance as Orthodox.”

Interpretation of Balsamon: «… For if anyone separates himself from his bishop, or metropolitan, or patriarch, not because of an indictment, but because of heresy, as shamelessly teaching in the church some dogmas alien to Orthodoxy, such even before the investigation was completed, if he “protects himself,” that is, separates himself from communion with his leader, not only will he not be punished , but will also be honored as an Orthodox; for he separated himself not from the bishop, but from the false bishop and false teacher, - and such an act is worthy of praise, since it does not cut the church, but rather restrains it and protects it from division...

St. St. Theodore the Studite writes: “It is forbidden for an Orthodox person to remember at sacred memorials and at the Divine Liturgy someone who pretended to be Orthodox, but who did not cease to have communion with heretics and heretics. For if he, even at the hour of death, confessed his sin and partook of the Holy Mysteries, then an offering could be made to the Orthodox for him. But since he went into communion with heresy, how can such a person be brought into Orthodox communion?- The Holy Apostle says: cup of blessing, now we bless, is there not communion of the Blood of Christ? The bread we break is not the fellowship of the Body of Christ? For as there is one bread, we are one body; we all partake of one bread (1 Cor. 10:16-17). Therefore, the communion of heretical bread and cup makes the communicant belong to the opposite Orthodox part, and of all such communicants constitutes one body, alien to Christ.”

participation in apostasy, even involuntary (by silence), is a sin for an Orthodox Christian: for according to the word of Rev. Maximus the Confessor “To remain silent about the Truth is to betray it!« . The Holy Canons strictly prohibit the Orthodox from participating in apostasy and heresy. And our prayerful unity with the retreating hierarchy is our participation with them on a mystical level .

But we know from the word of St. Photius what: “In matters of Faith, even the slightest deviation is already a sin leading to death; and even a slight disregard for Tradition leads to complete oblivion of the dogmas of the Faith.”

rule of the Apostle Paul : “The heretic, after the first and second admonition, turn away, knowing that such a one has become corrupted and sins, being self-condemned.” They knew the Rule of the same Apostle : “But even if we or an angel from heaven were to preach to you a gospel other than what we preached to you, let him be anathema.” (Gal.1:8),

— 3rd Rule of the Third Ecumenical Council: “In general, we command that members of the clergy who are of the same mind with the Orthodox and Ecumenical Council should in no way be subordinated to bishops who have apostatized or are apostatizing from Orthodoxy”;

— 45th Apostolic Canon: “A bishop, or presbyter, or deacon, who prayed only with heretics, shall be excommunicated. If he allows them to act in any way, like the servants of the Church: let him be deposed”;

— 10th Apostolic Canon: “If anyone prays with someone who has been excommunicated from church communion, even if it were in the house, let him be excommunicated.”

All the Saints who lived after St. Maxim and Theodore also knew the subsequent Rules of the Church - "laws against heretics" , which they followed in life:

1st Rule of the VI Ecumenical Council: “We determine by God’s grace: to keep inviolable to innovations and changes the faith handed down to us from the visionaries and servants of the Word, God’s chosen Apostles.

We sweep aside and anathematize all those whom they swept away and anathematized, as enemies of the truth, who gnashed in vain against God, and who strived to lift untruth to the heights. If anyone of all does not contain and does not accept the above-mentioned dogmas of piety, and does not think and preach like this, but attempts to go against them: let him be anathema, according to the definition previously decreed by the above-mentioned saints and blessed fathers, and from the Christian estate, as an alien, let him be excluded and cast out. For we, in accordance with what was previously determined, completely decided not to add anything, not to subtract, and could not in any way.”

1st Rule of the VII Ecumenical Council: “We accept the Divine rules with delight and fully support the unshakable decree of these rules...Whom they anathematize, we also anathematize, and those who are cast out, we also cast out them, and those we excommunicate, we excommunicate.”

Epistle of the VII Ecumenical Council to the Alexandrians: “Everything that has been established against church tradition, the teachings and the writings of the saints and ever-memorable fathers has been established and will continue to be established - anathema.”

words -Rules of Helmsmen

The helmsman, chapter 71 : “If anyone shakes the God-bearing Father that this is not what we are calling, but a crime of tradition commanded and wickedness towards God... For a heretic is and is subject to heretical laws, even if he deviates little from the Orthodox faith.”

“The heretic, after the first and second admonition, turn away, knowing that such a one has become corrupted and sins, being self-condemned (Titus 3.10-11).

The words of the great Teacher of the Church St. Mark of Ephesus : “Anyone who deviates even slightly from the Orthodox Faith is a heretic and is subject to the laws against heretics.”

About non-communication with heretics as with "NOT-Church", as the words of St. Rev. are spoken to those cut off from the Church. Ephraim the Syrian: “Non-communication with heretics is the beauty of the Church and an expression of its vitality, i.e., a sign that the Church has not become dead and is alive spiritually.”

Venerable Maximus the Confessor NEVER did not identify the Ecumenical Catholic Church with heretics, because according to the teachings of the Church, heretics OUTSIDE Churches!

The Church is not limited to any place, or time, or people, but contains within itself true believers of all places, times and peoples. (Orthodox Catechism.) and according to the word of the Holy Martyr Ignatius the God-Bearer - “Where Jesus Christ is, there is the Catholic Church”!

For St. Maximus, communion is communion with Christ and in Christ, and this communion is carried out in a common confession of right faith in Him. If Christ is confessed falsely, then communication with Him and with those who confess Him faithfully becomes impossible. One can find many statements in the writings of St. Maximus that confession of the right faith is an indisputable condition of communication, for those those who do not confess Christ correctly, that is, according to tradition, find themselves outside of Him: “Those who do not accept the apostles, prophets and teachers, that is, the fathers, but reject their words, reject Christ Himself.”

canonical Epistle of the VII Ecumenical Council to the Alexandrians:

“Everything that has been established against church tradition, the teachings and the writings of the saints and ever-memorable fathers has been established and will be established in the future - anathema.”

St. Basil the Great says this about non-communication with heretics:

“As for those who say that they profess the Orthodox faith, but are in communication with people who adhere to other opinions, if they are warned and remain stubborn, it is impossible not only to remain in communication with them, but even to call them brothers” (Patrologia Orientalis, Vol. 17, p. 303).

“... those who maliciously distort the teaching counterfeit the truth... the ears of simple-minded people are deceived; he was already accustomed to heretical evil. The children of the Church are fed with ungodly teachings. What should they do? In the power of heretics is baptism, accompanying those departing, visiting the sick, consoling the sorrowful, helping the oppressed, all kinds of benefits, communion of the Mysteries. All this, being accomplished by them, becomes for the people a knot of unanimity with the heretics” (Letter 235).

“Listeners, instructed in the Scriptures, should experience what the teachers say and accept what agrees with the Scriptures, and reject what disagrees, and those who hold such teachings should be even more disgusted” (Creations. Part 3. M. 1846. P. 478).

"Not must tolerate those teaching new teachings, although they pretend to seduce and persuade the unsteady. Beware that no one deceives you (Matthew 24:4-5). But even if we or an angel from heaven were to preach to you a gospel other than what we preached to you, let him be anathema. As we said before, so now I say again: whoever preaches to you a gospel other than what you have received, let him be anathema(Gal. 1:8-9)” (ibid., p. 409).

St. John Chrysostom on heretics and non-communication with them:

“If a bishop, cleric, or leader in the Church is deceitful in relation to the faith, then run away from him and do not communicate with him, even if he were not only a man, but even an Angel descended from heaven.”

“He who has fellowship with heretics, even if in his life he followed the life of the disembodied, makes himself a stranger to the Lord Christ...”

“Beloved, many times I have told you about godless heretics and now I beg you not to unite with them either in food or drink, or in friendship or in love, for whoever does this alienates himself from the Church of Christ. If anyone leads an angelic life, but unites with heretics through bonds of friendship or love, he is a stranger to the Lord Christ. Just as we cannot be satisfied with love for Christ, so we cannot be satisfied with hatred of His enemy. For He Himself says: “Whoever is not with Me is against Me” (Matthew 12:30).

St. Cyprian of Carthage and St. Firmilian of Caesarea about heretics as antichrists - heretics outside the Church:

“If heretics everywhere are not called otherwise than enemies and antichrists, if they are called people, which should be avoided who are perverted and condemned by themselves, then are they not worthy of our condemnation of them, if we know from the apostolic writings, that they were condemned by themselves? (Letter 74).

Saint Cyprian did not allow several different beliefs to coexist simultaneously in the Church. There can only be one faith in the Church. He also did not allow the possibility of heretics remaining in the Church: if someone is a heretic, then by definition this someone is outside the Church . St. Firmilian of Caesarea confirms this teaching when he writes that “all [the heretics] were evidently self-condemned , And themselves announced the verdict before the Day of Judgment …»

St. Hypatius (former abbot of the monastery in Constantinople) about Nestorius:

“From the time I learned what unrighteous things he said about the Lord, I was not in communication with him, and did not remember his name, because he is no longer a bishop». This was said before Nestorius was condemned by the Third Ecumenical Council.

St. Rev. Theodore writes about heretics and communication with them:

“So if, observing your condition in this way, you linger for a while with reverence, then this is good, whether it is for a short time or a long time. There is no other limit to this, except to begin Communion with a pure heart, as far as possible for a person. If any sin occurs that removes one from Communion, then it is obvious that such a person can receive Communion when he has fulfilled his penance. And if again he evades Communion due to heresy, then this is correct. For communion from a heretic or someone clearly condemned for his life alienates him from God and betrays him to the devil.

Consider, blessed one, which of the indicated courses of action to adhere to, according to your observation of yourself, and thus proceed to the Sacraments. Everyone knows that the heresy of adulterers now dominates our Church, so take care of your honest soul, your sisters and your spouse. You tell me that you are afraid to tell your presbyter not to mention the leader of the heresy. What should I say to you about this? I do not justify it: if communication through one commemoration produces impurity, then the one who commemorates the heretical leader cannot be Orthodox. May the Lord, who raised you to such a degree of piety, Himself preserve you in everything intact and perfect in body and soul for every good deed and for every need of life, with your spouse and with your most pious sisters. All of you pray to the Lord for our unworthiness!"(Reverend Theodore the Studite. Epistle 58. To Spafaria, nicknamed Mahara)

St. Ignatius the God-Bearer places bishops in the same relationship to Christ in which Christ stands to God the Father : “Jesus Christ is the thought of the Father, just as the bishops placed at the ends of the earth are in the thought of Jesus Christ.” (Ephesians, III). On the other hand, the faithful “united with the bishop in the same way as the Church is with Jesus Christ and as Jesus Christ is with the Father, so that all things may be in harmony through unity” (Ibid., V). Moreover, in the Church there can be only one bishopric, common to everyone, for there is one God the Father, but there are many bearers of the bishopric - hierarchs. St. Cyprian teaches: “The Church throughout the world is one, divided by Christ into many members, and the bishopric is one, branched out into a unanimous body of many bishops.” (St. Cyprian of Carthage, Letter to Antonian about Cornelius and Novatian.). This episcopacy, like the fatherland in heaven and on earth (Eph. 3:15), does not come from people, “not from the will of the flesh, not from the will of man” (John 1:13), but descends "from the Father Jesus Christ, bishop of all" (St. Ignatius the God-Bearer. To the Magnesians, III). Thus, according to St. Ignatius, the bishop is the image of Jesus Christ, who is united with his flock just as Christ is with the Father and as Christ is with the Church, that is, “one flesh” (Eph. 5:29–32). This is the secret of the bishop’s unity with his Church!

Orthodox literary works contain an inexhaustible source that allows one to communicate with God. The canon is considered one of the types of church verbal art.

The difference between a canon and an akathist

Prayer is an invisible thread between people and God; it is a spiritual conversation with the Almighty. It is important for our body like water, air, food. Whether it is gratitude, joy or sadness, through prayer the Lord will hear us. When it comes from the heart, with pure thoughts and zeal, then the Lord hears the prayer and responds to our petitions.

The canon and akathist can be called one of the types of conversations with the Lord, the Most Holy Theotokos and the saints.

What is a canon in the church and how does it differ from an akathist?

The word "canon" has two meanings:

1. The books of the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, collected together, accepted by the Church and taken as the basis of Orthodox teaching. The word is Greek, acquired from Semitic languages ​​and originally meaning a stick or ruler for measuring, and then a figurative meaning appeared - “rule”, “norm” or “list”.
2. The genre of church hymn, chant: a work of complex structure, aimed at glorifying saints and church holidays. Included in morning, evening and all-night services.

The canon is divided into songs, each of which separately contains the irmos and troparion. In Byzantium and modern Greece, the irmos and troparia of the canon are metrically similar, allowing the entire canon to be sung; during the Slavic translation, a single syllable in the metric was broken, so the troparia are read, and the irmos are sung.

Only the Easter canon is an exception to the rule - it is sung in its entirety.

Read about the canons:

The melody of the work obeys one of eight voices. The canon appeared as a genre in the middle of the 7th century. The first canons were written by St. John of Damascus and St. Andrey Kritsky.

Akathist - translated from Greek means “unsaddled song”, a liturgical chant of a special laudatory nature, which is aimed at glorifying Christ, the Mother of God and the saints. It begins with the main kontakion and the 24 stanzas following it (12 ikos and 12 kontakia).

At the same time, the ikos end with the same refrain as the first kontakion, and all the others end with the refrain “hallelujah”.

Reading the canon

What unites the canon and akathist?

A certain rule serves as a unification of these two genres of chants. The construction of works is carried out according to a fixed scheme.

The canon includes nine songs that begin with Irmos and end with Katavasia. It usually has 8 songs. The second is performed in the Penitential Canon of Andrew of Crete. The akathist consists of 25 stanzas, in which kontakia and ikos alternate.

The kontakia are not verbose, the ikos are extensive. They are built in pairs. The stanzas are read once. There is no chorus before them. The thirteenth kontakion is a direct prayer message to the saint himself and is read three times. Then the first ikos is read again, followed by the first kontakion.

The difference between canon and akathist

The holy fathers mainly practiced the compilation of canons.

The Akathist could come from the pen of a simple layman. Having read such works, the highest clergy took them into account and gave way for further recognition and dissemination in church practice.

Read about akathists:

After the third and sixth songs of the canon, the priest pronounces a small litany. Then the sedalen, ikos and kontakion are read or sung.

Important! According to the rules, it is possible to read several canons simultaneously. But reading several akathists at the same time is impossible, and the stanzas of this work are not separated by the intense prayer of all those present.

The canons are read at prayer services. Their reading is also blessed at home. Akathists do not include morning, evening, and all-night services in the cycle. Akathists are ordered for prayer services and also read at home. The canons are clearly defined by the Church Charter. The parishioner chooses an akathist himself, and the priest reads it at the prayer service.

The canons are performed throughout the year.

Akathists are inappropriate to read during Lent, because the solemn and joyful mood of the work cannot convey the quiet and calm mood of Lenten days. Each song of the canon tells about some biblical event. There may not be a direct link, but the secondary presence of a particular topic is certainly felt. The Akathist is considered easy to understand. Its vocabulary is easy to understand, the syntax is simple, and the text is separate. The words of the akathist come from the depths of the heart, its text is the best thing that an ordinary person wants to say to God.

An akathist is a song of gratitude, a song of praise, a kind of ode, so the best reading for it is when they want to thank the Lord or a saint for their help.

How to read the canon

During home reading of the canon, the traditional beginning and end of prayers are taken. And if these works are read together with the morning or evening rule, then no other additional prayers need to be read.

Important: You need to read so that your ears hear what is spoken with your lips, so that the contents of the canon fall on your heart, with a feeling of the presence of the living God. Read with attention, focusing your mind on what you read and so that your heart listens to thoughts directed towards the Lord.

The most widely read canons at home are:

1. Canon of repentance to the Lord Jesus Christ.
2. Canon of prayer to the Most Holy Theotokos.
3. Canon to the Guardian Angel.

These three Canons are read when preparing a person for the Sacrament of Communion. Sometimes these three canons are combined into one for simplicity and ease of perception.

Saint Andrew of Crete. Fresco of the Church of St. Nicholas. Athos Monastery Stavronikita, 1546

We all are weak and sick in life, or our relatives need our attention and help in recovery, then we read the Canon for the sick.

The greatest and most significant canon is the Canon of St. Andrew of Crete. It is complete, containing all nine songs, and each includes up to thirty troparia. This is truly a colossal masterpiece.

The entire repentant meaning of the work is an appeal not only to God, but also to the person praying himself. A person is so immersed in his experiences when reading the canon, as if he directs his gaze inside his soul, speaks to himself, to his conscience, replays the events of his life and mourns the mistakes that he has made.

The Cretan masterpiece is not just a call and call to repentance. This is an opportunity to return a person to God and accept His love.

To enhance this feeling, the author uses a popular technique. He takes as a basis the Holy Scripture: examples of both great falls and great spiritual deeds. Shows that everything is in the hands of a person and according to his conscience: how you can fall to the very bottom and rise to the heights; how sin can take a soul captive and how, together with the Lord, you can overcome it.

Andrey Kritsky also pays attention to symbols: at the same time they are poetic and accurate in relation to the problems raised.

The Great Canon is a song of songs of living, true repentance. The salvation of the soul is not a mechanical and memorized fulfillment of the commandments, not the habitual doing of good deeds, but a return to the Heavenly Father and a feeling of that very gracious love that was lost by our forefathers.

Important! During the first and last weeks of Great Lent, the Penitential Canon is read. In the first week, he instructs and directs to repentance, and in the last week of Great Lent he asks about how the soul worked and left sin. Has repentance become an effective change in life, which entailed a change in behavior, thinking, and attitude?

But the modern rhythm of life, especially in big cities, does not always allow a working person to attend godly services with the singing of the Canon of St. Andrew of Crete. Fortunately, this amazing text is not difficult to find.

At least once in their life, it is advisable for everyone to read this work thoughtfully, which can truly change a person’s consciousness and give the opportunity to feel that the Lord is always nearby, that there is no distance between Him and a person. After all, love, faith, hope cannot be measured by any standards.

This is the mercy that God gives us every minute.

Watch a video about the three Orthodox canons

Prayer chants have always been the main and most important works of Orthodox church hymnography. From the very beginning of Christianity, the canons were written exclusively by the holy fathers, who always stood and will stand above ordinary laity in their spirituality. But it is noteworthy that these works are not always understandable to the average person, because they are imbued with special insight and theology.

However, as it is written in church laws, “every breath praises the Lord.” That is why in the 6th century, liturgical leaders began to use in their practice works that were more easily perceived by ordinary people - these were akathists. And in order to understand whether it is better to read the canon or akathist, we suggest looking into the depths of Christian history.

What are canon and akathist

Few believers online or people who are just entering the service of the Lord often ask the question: what is an akathist and a canon?

Akathist is one of the types of hymnography in church service, which contains praises of holidays, saints, the Most Holy Theotokos and, of course, the Lord. They begin with the word “Rejoice.” Most often, it also glorifies New Testament traditions.

A canon is also one of the types of hymnography in church services, which is the main work reflecting a holiday or saint. They often intertwine New Testament and Old Testament events.

What does canon mean? Comparison with Akathist

These prayers were composed according to certain rules. For example, a canon often consists of 9 songs that begin with an irmos and end with a katavasiya. But there are also works with only eight songs. True believers know that the penitential canon of Andrew of Crete is one of these.

The main difference between the two works is that the canons were written exclusively by the holy fathers, but some akathists were written by simple lay people. Nevertheless, these works became widespread in liturgical practice and were approved by the clergy.

What is the canon and when is it read? They are read in church all the time. Morning, Compline and Midnight services are performed with this work. Why do they read the canons? Because this is determined by the charter of the Temple or Church. They can also be performed in prayer services or read in a quiet home environment.

But akathists have never been included in the daily liturgical circle. It can only be read during the fifth week of Lent. They read it as a praise to the Blessed Virgin Mary. However, they have earned their place in the prayer services. And believers read them more often at home, because they are lighter, more understandable and easier to remember.

In the old days, the works of the holy fathers were always sung in full. Today this rule is being missed. Often only the troparia are read. They can also sing Irmos to a melody that corresponds to the current week. The choice of melody also affects the voice. There are only eight of them and they constantly alternate. Akathists are not subject to the voice.

Another difference between these works is that the canons are performed throughout the year, and akathists are often performed only during Lent. During the period of Great Lent, these prayers are not read on Sundays. However, the work exactly corresponds to the calm and quiet mood of mundane everyday life.

What is the difference between a canon and an akathist?

• The Akathist celebrates later liturgical events, which include the New Testament. The work of the holy fathers is more focused on the Old Testament period, although some events are intertwined;
• The believer chooses an akathist independently and at his own discretion. A chant is a work determined by the charter;
• The akathist has an introduction, but the second one has a simple beginning;
• The akathist constantly contains the word “Rejoice”;
• The canon is performed in the church constantly, almost daily. The second is obligatory only when praising the Mother of God, which is read once a year. All the rest are used in home prayers or during prayer services in churches;
• The akathist is simple in structure and understanding, easier to understand;

What is canon in fan fiction?

Fan fiction is a literary work written based on a canon in which the author became interested. The writer of such a work does not invent a world or characters, but uses ready-made images for his work.

Canon is a very multifaceted concept in Orthodoxy. From Greek it can be translated as “rule” or “law.” First of all, it relates, of course, to the field of church law, denoting decisions of Ecumenical or Local Councils, as well as a number of other normative definitions. But that is not all.

Canons in Orthodoxy

Also, this term often refers to established and time-honored traditions of the Orthodox faith and culture. For example, there is an iconographic canon. This is a set of rules, although not written down anywhere or approved by anyone’s authority, on how to paint an Orthodox icon. In the same way, we can talk about canons in relation to architectural, biblical or, for example, song traditions.

But there is a more important, due to its frequent use, definition of this term. According to him, a canon is a special form of liturgical text.

Canon as a prayer format

The liturgical canon is a prayer, quite lengthy and extensive, built according to a strictly defined scheme. This plan consists of a peculiar division of the canon. According to him, the entire text is divided into nine so-called songs. This is due to the fact that the canons, according to the original Greek tradition, certainly sang in churches. In principle, the liturgical charter of the Orthodox Church still prescribes the singing of these prayers, but the long-established practice of reading has supplanted this early tradition. The only exception is the canon dedicated to the Resurrection of Christ, which is sung during the Easter service. But this is, rather, because this service does not involve readings at all - for the sake of solemnity and festivity, all parts of it are prescribed to be sung.

So, the canon is nine songs. Each song is divided into several so-called troparions - short prayer addresses. According to the rules, each song must contain sixteen troparia. But in fact there may be significantly fewer of them, most often four or six. Therefore, in order to fulfill the letter of the charter, they have to be repeated. It is important that no matter who the canon is addressed to, the final troparion of each song is always dedicated to the Mother of God.

The first song is preceded by a short chant called “irmos”. The latter is usually sung. There are several types of irmos - these are standard texts that are duplicated in different canons according to a special system.

Further, according to the rules, each troparion is preceded by a certain verse from the Holy Scriptures. These are also standard and are called Bible songs. But today they are consumed only during Lent. The rest of the time, biblical songs are replaced by shorter appeals to the one to whom the prayer is addressed. For example, the penitential canon contains the following appeal: “Have mercy on me, O God, have mercy on me.”

The last two troparions are preceded not by proclamations, but by “Glory” and “And Now.” This is the standard designation of the formulas: “Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit” and “And now, and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen".

It should also be taken into account that, although formally there are nine songs in the canon, the second does not exist for most of them, and after the first there is a third. So in fact, there are usually eight songs.

There is also a Lenten version of the canons, consisting of three songs. But they are not read on their own, since during divine services the canons are combined with each other. The song always ends up being eight or nine.

History of the canon as a hymnographic genre

Canons of this kind appeared in Byzantium around the 7th century and spread quite quickly, displacing the even more extensive genre of kontakion. Initially, the canons consisted of an interweaving of nine hymns, borrowed from the Holy Scriptures, with Christian prayers. However, gradually the latter began to predominate, and biblical songs began to decline, until they were completely replaced in liturgical practice by short proclamation verses.

Eucharistic canon

The Eucharistic canon is the most important liturgical sequence of prayers. In fact, it has nothing to do with the hymnographic genre discussed above, but nevertheless is called by the same term.

Essentially, the Eucharistic canon is a series of the most important prayers of the liturgy, connected by a common structure, theme and purpose. This sequence verbally formalizes the celebration of the sacrament of the Eucharist - the transformation of bread and wine into the flesh and blood of Christ.

The penitential canon of Andrei Kritsky

If we return to the main liturgical format of the canon, we cannot help but recall another masterpiece. We are talking about a work written by St. Andrew of Crete, which is called “The Great Canon.” In its structure, it follows the standard order, but at the same time it contains many more troparions for each song - about thirty.

In Divine services, the Great Canon is used only twice a year. It is read once in its entirety and once divided into four parts, which are read sequentially over four days. Both of these times fall during Lent.