Types of litanies. General procedure for committing

one of the types of prayers during church services. It consists of a series of petitions (calls to prayer of various content) proclaimed by a deacon or other clergyman, and response acclamations of the people to each petition; the most commonly used and well-known acclamation in E. is "Lord, have mercy." At the end of E., the primate (bishop or priest) utters an exclamation (usually, but not necessarily concluding the prayer read during E.).

Terminology

To designate E. in Greek. Liturgical terminology uses the words συναπτή (prefabricated [petitions]), αἰτήσεις (petitions - as a rule, to designate E., in which the acclamation of the people is the words Παράσχου, Κύριε ()) and some others. pure, extended [prayer]), from which the Russian is formed. the word "E.", in Greek. tradition does not mean any E., but only a special one, after petitions to-swarm "Lord, have mercy" is sung repeatedly. The most general term for all types of E. in Greek. traditions - διακονικά (deacon [proclamations]); in ancient Russian tradition, the equivalent of this term was known - to-ry in modern. Russian practice is not used. There are other Greek. terms for designating E. (for example, peaceful E. in a number of Byzantine monuments is designated as εὐχὴ τοῦ τρισαγίου, lit. - the prayer of the Trisagion; etc.).

Origin

The oldest texts of E. are recorded in the descriptions of the Divine Liturgy, Vespers and Matins, contained in the VIII book. "Apostolic Decrees" (c. 380), as well as in the "Testament of our Lord Jesus Christ" (V century) (Russian translation, see: Skaballanovich. S. 86-91) and (fragmentary) in the works of St. John Chrysostom. M. N. Skaballanovich put forward an assumption about the origin of peaceful E. from commemorations as part of the anaphora of the Eucharistic liturgy, that is, from intercessio (Ibid., pp. 78-79). It is more likely, however, that E. and intercessio developed in parallel, and the core of E. existed in the order of the liturgy already in the 2nd century - with it one can identify the prayers pronounced by all the faithful together (as opposed to the prayer of one primate on behalf of all, i.e. anaphora) at the beginning of the liturgy of the faithful (Iust. Martyr. I Apol. 65-67; ​​H. Mateos also pointed out the verbal similarity of some expressions of Martyr Justin the Philosopher and petitions known from the later sources of E. - see: Mateos. Célébration. P. 165-166). To E., who opened the liturgy of the faithful (presumably - already from the 2nd century, authentically - from the 4th century), modern. peaceful and pleading E. orthodox. divine services. This E. in the IV century. (and possibly earlier) was read kneeling (see: Ibid. P. 163-165; it is to this practice that the canonical rules of Peter. Al. 15, I Ecumen. 20, Basil. 91, Trul. 90, prohibiting kneeling prayers, refer on Sundays and during Pentecost), but over time, kneeling during E. was abandoned (perhaps due to the breakup of E. at the beginning of the liturgy of the faithful into parts and an increase in the total number of E.); a trace of the ancient practice of kneeling reading E. in the later tradition are 3 special E. during vespers on the day of Pentecost and kneeling E. and prayer in the rite of consecration of the temple. Small E., according to Mateos, are an extension of the brief exclamation “Let us pray to the Lord”, which preceded individual prayers of the priest (Mateos. Célébration, P. 31-33), and their petitions were only gradually likened to the petitions of peaceful E.

Sugubaya E. byzant. Divine service undoubtedly comes from the practice of stationary worship - it was proclaimed during prayer processions around the city (from this perspective, the deacon's petitions, proclaimed during the litia at the all-night vigil, are close to pure E.). OK. 8th century the pure E. was included in the K-Polish rite of the Divine Liturgy, taking the place of the sermon after the Gospel, which had disappeared by that time (see: Ibid. P. 148-156). In manuscripts and early printed editions, the texts of E. are not quite stable and may differ both in the composition of petitions and in the texts of individual petitions. In printed editions of the liturgical books of the New and Newest Times, E. texts often have a constant composition, although discrepancies are also possible in different editions (changes could be caused, for example, in Russia, by state shocks).

In modern Orthodox worship

E. are used very widely and are part of all services of the daily cycle of worship (except for hours and pictorial), the rank of the Divine Liturgy, and many others. rites of Euchologion (Trebnik). There are 4 main types of E.: peaceful, small, pleading and severe. All these types of E. are present in the rites of Vespers, Matins and Divine Liturgy.

Mirnaya E. opens the service: at Vespers it is read after the pre-Psalm, at Matins - after the Six Psalms, at the Liturgy - immediately after the initial exclamation, that is, at the beginning of the Liturgy of the catechumens (the once peaceful E., however, opened the Liturgy of the faithful, that is, at the Liturgy). e. was proclaimed already at the end of the liturgy of the catechumens; a reminder of this practice is the E. of a special composition during the prayers of the faithful before the great entrance and the supplicant E. after it, but afterwards the peaceful E. was moved to the beginning of the service and began to be read before the Trisagion (with IX to XII centuries), and then - in its present place (beginning already from the XI century and finally - from the XIII century); see: Ibid. P. 29-30).

Small E. are read at Vespers and Matins after kathismas (in some cases, these E. are canceled; at Matins, small E. are also proclaimed after the 3rd, 6th and 9th songs of the canon (on the 1st day of Easter - after each song of the canon )), and at the liturgy - after the 1st and 2nd antiphons.

Pleading E. (the content of the swarm indicates the completion of prayer - see: Ibid. P. 158; Taft. Great Entrance. P. 318-322) precedes the final part of Vespers and Matins and follows "Vouch, Lord" (to- a swarm at vespers is an independent text, and at matins it is part of the great doxology). At the liturgy, petitions E., which take on additional petitions, are read after the great entrance and after the anaphora.

Deep E. in the rank of Vespers and Matins serves as a sign of the status of the festivity of the service (see Art. Signs of the feasts of the Monthly Word): in the ranks of Great Vespers, Glorification and Polyeleic Matins, the deep E. precedes the petitionary (at Matins - directly adjacent to it, and at Vespers - placed before “Vouch, O Lord”, and in this case, the strict E. Vespers acquires 2 additional petitions at the beginning: and in the morning, these 2 petitions are added to the pure E. only once a year - on Holy Saturday); at the daily service with "God is the Lord" the strict E. is placed at the very end of Vespers and Matins, before the exclamations and leave; at the service with the singing of "Alleluia" and prostrations of the earth, the special E. Vespers and Matins are canceled. At the liturgy, the deep E. is read after the Gospel and always begins with a petition (in the same way, the deep E. is read not only at the full liturgy, but also at the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts, even if there is no Gospel on it - in this case, the deep E. is read after paroemias , “May my prayer be corrected” and bows). For more details, see the articles Small Litany, Peaceful Litany, Petitionary Litany, Augmented Litany.

In addition to the 4 main types of E., there are others, for example. gratitude E. at the liturgy after communion; abbreviated special E. (read at matins at the end of the double psalm, at small vespers, at the so-called midnight office on the night of the 1st day of Pascha; the charter calls this E. “small litany”, that is, “small pure”); E., read by the priest at the end of Compline and Midnight Office; peaceful E. at water consecrations; abbreviated peaceful E., read secretly in the altar during consecrations; funeral peace, small and special E. at various commemorations of the dead, etc. In church practice, various additional petitions for certain needs are well known (these petitions are written out in the Treasury and the Service Book, and are also compiled anew if necessary), included in the peace and especially severe E.

During the pronunciation of E., the deacon stands on the pulpit, raising the orarion with his right hand (if E. is read by the priest, it is pronounced without raising his hands). E. on the 1st day of Easter and throughout Bright Week are pronounced by a deacon with a candle in their hands. It is customary to pronounce funeral E., as well as E. at water blessings, accompanying the proclamation of petitions with incense. In modern Russian In practice, usually for each petition of E., the sign of the cross and the bow are made, but in Old Russian. tradition, this custom was not known. In modern Greek In practice, the deacon and the people make the sign of the cross and bow from the waist only at the very end of E., but not during their petitions; in the practice of the Old Believers, the sign of the cross is also performed only at the final exclamation of E. (however, after the initial petition of the special E., it is customary for the Old Believers to make 3 bows to the earth; it can also be noted that in the Byzantine tradition, the reading of the special E. was accompanied by the uplifting of the hands of the whole people). Acclamations on E. - “Lord, have mercy,” and so on. - To-rye in the ancient Church were pronounced by all the people, in the modern. tradition, the choir sings (at the same time, in Greek practice, plural E. can be performed not by the choir, but with intonation of acclamations on E. by one singer or reader). In the 17th century The editors of the Typicon, now adopted by the ROC, attempted to revive the ancient custom of proclaiming acclamations to E. by all the people by including in the Typicon a polemical article entitled (see ch. 49: Typicon. [T. 2.] L. 418v.- 422. S. 844-851; the question of acclamations on E. is considered in the final part of the article: Ibid. S. 849- 851), but this attempt was ignored.

Lit.: Goar. Euchologion; Nikolsky. Charter; Skaballanovich. Typicon. Part 2, pp. 75-103, 106-107, 143-155, 158-163; Mateos. Celebration. P. 27-33, 148-173.

Diak. Mikhail Zheltov

E. in the singing tradition

Russian monody

In ancient Russian chanter In everyday life, answers to petitions in E. appear from the middle. 16th century Often only the text is recorded in the record, without notation. In the lists of the Jerusalem Charter, you can often find instructions to “speak” E., however, in the Charter of the State Historical Museum. Syn. No. 335 there is the following remark at the end of the all-night vigil: "... and we will sing in a large country in a grand voice, Lord have mercy three times": L. 23. About the singer. performance of the lines of E. already in the 15th century. The indication of the Novgorod IV Chronicle also testifies: “In the summer of 6984 ... some philosophers began to sing “Lord, have mercy”, and friends - “Lord, have mercy” ”(PSRL. T. 4. C. 130). In the Old Believer Pomeranian charter (Charter of the monastery of the Holy Epiphany on Vygurets. Saratov, 1911. L. 6 vol., 11), the verb “peti” is often used for E.. Perhaps in liturgical practice, the answers of E. were fulfilled, and the so-called. reading, and k.-l. simple chant. In the singer collections of the 17th century. (B-ka MDA. P-213 S-23. Inv. 231869; State Historical Museum. Syn. singer. No. 1191; Syn. No. 819, etc.) as part of the all-night vigil, E. great, especially (sometimes with the indication " big"), pleading. The lines “Lord, have mercy” of all types of E. are almost identical in melodic content (2-step sequences in a syllabic style), but differ in rhythmic design. The notated line "To You, Lord" is distinguished by a more developed melody and has several variants of various lengths depending on the type of E. In a similar melismatic style, the lines “Lord, have mercy” and “Amen” are sung in pure E.

E. liturgies were fixed with the advent of the full notated order of the liturgy, i.e. with ser. 16th century (RSL. F. 113. No. 240, middle of the 16th century; RNB. Kir.-Bel. No. 652/909, 1558; No. 569/826, 50-60s of the 16th century) (Makarovskaya 1999, p. 28; she, 2001, p. 417). Based on a study of more than 200 manuscript sources, of which more than 140 belong to the 16th-17th centuries, conclusions were drawn about the presence of stable cycles of lines E. E. “Forgive me…”: melismatic lines “To You, Lord” and “Amen”; 2nd cycle - pure E. and 1st faithful: the lines "Amen"; 3rd cycle - E. about catechumens and supplications E. liturgy of the faithful: melismatic lines "To You, Lord" and "Amen". Initially in the chant. In everyday life, the following of the liturgy was recorded in a short edition, in which repetitions of the lines of E could not be written out. Until the last. third of the 16th century the manuscripts are dominated by notation, replete with secretly closed styles with unstable graphics. From the last third of the 16th century the hymns of Everyday life, including E. liturgies, begin to be fixed by a fractional banner (Igoshev. 1997, p. 6-7).

Gradually, the composition of the chants of the liturgy expands until the appearance of a complete edition in the 1st half. XVII century., By the middle of the century it becomes the most common (RNB. Q 1. No. 1408; Kir.-Bel. No. 681/938, 1605; RSL. F. 272. No. 322, 1st floor. XVII century; F. 228. No. 36, 1st half of the XVII century; F. 37. No. 138, 1613-1645, etc.). These E. cycles could have variants in notation: firstly, some of the repeated lines could still not be notated in different lists, and secondly, the graphics of the lines could have variant differences. Separate river sources ser. of the 17th century, in which power notes were affixed by Vygov singers (RGB. F. 354. No. 144; GA Tver region. F. 1409. Inv. 1. No. 1044), make it possible to read cycles of lines in manuscripts from the fixation period in fractional banner (State Historical Museum. Edinoverch. No. 37, 3rd quarter of the 16th century; Eparch. chanter. No. 110; Syn. chanter. No. 1148; Shchuk. No. 622, last quarter of the 16th century) and identify the presence of cycles of variant repetition in order.

From Ser. 17th century the lines of the E. liturgy are unified according to the schedule and in this form are fixed in the Old Believer manuscripts of the Vetka, and then the Guslitsky traditions of the 18th-20th centuries. The pre-reform notation of the E. liturgy is more in line with the practice of polyphony (connecting signs between lines, etc.). The independent final sign “kryzh” is almost never found, instead of it at the ends of the lines there are often connecting signs: “translation”, “darling”, “two in the boat”. With the transition to unanimity for several. decades from the 2nd half. 17th century to early 18th century there were natural changes not only in the notation (there appeared "roofs", the connecting signs disappeared), but also in the length of the melody. So, the lines “To You, Lord” in small E. have been significantly reduced, the line “To You, Lord” has been halved in the petitionary E. Liturgy of the faithful, which no longer form an exact repetition with E. about catechumens. Also in the practice of the Old Believers since the XVIII century. up to now time “Amen” E. about the catechumens does not correspond to the “Amen” of the 1st petitionary E., but coincides with the “Amen” of the pure E. and the 1st E. of the faithful (see different lists of the Obednitsa).

In the Old Believer printed Daily Life, both in the Bespopov (M., 1911) and in the priestly (K., 1909), there are no notated lines of E. as part of the all-night vigil. A melismatic variant of “Lord, have mercy” with the indication “demestvo” is present in E. about the catechumens in “The Liturgy of the Znamenny and Demestvennago chant” (priestly consent) (M., 1909. L. 23v.). Another melodic variant in the syllabic style is placed for the pure E. at the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts (after the prokeimenon “Let him correct himself”, sometimes the usual melodic lines of E. were placed before it) (Ibid. L. 61-62v.). In the chants section of the demestvennoy liturgy, the lines of E. are also sung (Ibid. L. 75v.-76).

Synodal Obikhods (1772, 1833, 1860, 1892) published melodic lines of the great, intense and pleading E. Znamenny, abbreviated Znamenny, Kiev chants.

In the “Usual Church Hymns of the Ancient Chant of the Solovetsky Monastery” (M., 2004, pp. 73, 106, 133, 161, 163) for Vespers, Matins, Liturgy and the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts, great, severe and pleading E., typologically identical to E. Znamenny chant. In the Suprasl Irmologion, E. early Kiev singers are recorded. traditions (BAN of Lithuania. F. 19.116. Fol. 18-119v., 1638-1639).

In the Russian polyphonic tradition

known harmonization of traditions. chants, including author's, as well as independent compositions, author's or local (anonymous). In the Solovetsky Obikhod (M., 2004 p. 18), the great E., placed in the section for the all-night vigil, is a 2-voice tonal-harmonic succession. For the great E., harmonizations of the so-called. the usual chant (probably ascending to the znamenny chant), the more melodically developed Kiev one (Usual music of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra: All-night vigil. M., 2001. P. 7-8), abbreviated Kiev, as well as original compositions by N. N. Tolstyakov , S. V. Smolensky, Hierom. Nathanael (Bachkalo), N.N. Kedrov (father), N.N. Kedrov (son), M.E. “Orenburgskaya” and others. Among the tunes of pure E., one should note the author’s harmonizations of A. A. Arkhangelsky, Kedrov (father), P. G. Chesnokov, A. T. Grechaninov and numerous local tunes, such as E. “Bukovinskaya”, “Odessa”, “St. George”, “Sofronievsky”, “Mogilev”, “Pyukhtitskaya”, “Moscow”, the tune of the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, etc. Pleading E. has several. harmonization of traditions. chants: “usual”, znamenny, Kiev, Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, and there are also special options, for example. E. “Uralskaya”, Optina Pust., “Georgian”, “Vilna”, etc. (for various chants of E. see in the collection: Everyday church singing. M., 1997. S. 9-11, 16-17, 52, 75, 111, 140, 160, 167, 211, 225-226, 272; Musical collection of Orthodox Russian church singing. London, 1962. V. 1: Divine Liturgy, pp. 1-3, 61-72; Liturgies, Zolotonosha, 2000, pp. 1-8, 13, 109-125, 172-182, Bless the Lord, my soul: (Chants of the All-Night Vigil), M., 1995, pp. 28-30, 68-73, 84 and others (see the decree: Code of tunes. S. 410-414)). In modern E. is common in practice in the form of a 2-step melodic sequence.

In Greek liturgical practice

E. lines are more often pronounced by one or several. psalms. In the singer notated lines of E. were not found in the manuscripts: perhaps the lines of E. were read. This assumption is confirmed by the data of hier. Arseny (Sukhanov) about the liturgical practice of the 17th century: “Here, in no place have we heard that we sang “Lord, have mercy” on other litanies, but everywhere the faces and all those present are speaking” (Proskinitar Arseny Sukhanov, 1649- 1653 / Ed.: N. I. Ivanovsky, St. Petersburg, 1889, p. In present time is usually sung and notated in chants. E.'s books at vespers at litia (Ταμεῖον ῾Ανθολογίας. Κωνσταντινούπολις, 1869. Τ. 1. Σ. 224-225) and at the liturgy great great E., ominous E. after reading the Gospel, sometimes pleading after the entrance of E. Sugubaya E. sung pl. Melurgami for different glaces: Hartofilax Khurmusiima, Protopesal Grigory, Feodor Papaparashu Fawa (ταμεῖον ανθολογίας κωνσταντινούύύλις, 1869. τ. 3. σ. 26-33), Nikolai Protopsalt (Smirnsky) (on the 1st, 3rd, 1st plagal, 2nd plagal, βαρύς, 4th plagal tones) (Μουσικός θησαυρός τῆς λειτουργίας. ῞Αγιον ῎Ορος, 1931. Σ.6). In the Liturgy of Mon. Nectarios among the sung lines of the great E. on the 4th plagal tone, the exclamation of the priest “Let us pray to the Lord in peace” is also notated (see: Ibid. Σ. 12-13).

In Bulgaria "Psaltic Liturgy" (Textbook for the Seminary's Theological Seminaries / Art. M. Todorov. Sofia, 19923) notated by E. have an original chant (different from the Greek tradition, according to which all other chants are sung).

Lit.: Pososhenko A. Liturgy of John Chrysostom: Dipl. work / GMPI im. Gnesins. M., 1984. Rkp.; Igoshev L. A. Essays on the history of Russian. music 17th century culture M., 1997; Makarovskaya M.V. Cycles of melodic lines in the chants of the liturgy of the Znamenny chant // Historical and theoretical problems of musicology. M., 1999. S. 24-49. (Sat. Proceedings of the Gnessin Russian Academy of Sciences; Issue 156); she is. Song structure. Rows in the Liturgy of Znamenny Chant // EzhBK. 2001. S. 416-421; Uspensky N. D. Orthodox Vespers: The Rite of the All-Night Vigil (ἡ ἀγρυπνία) in Orthodox. East and in Rus. Churches. M., 2004. S. 299-300.

M. A. Makarovskaya, I. V. S.

Litany(from Greek ἐκτενὴς (ἱκεσία) (extended, intense (prayer)) - the name of a special form of joint prayer at church, when (or the priest, if there is no deacon) proclaims certain petitions, and the choir, for each petition, answers (sings) " Lord, have mercy" or "Give me, Lord."

The litany ends with a cry from the priest. There are several types of litany: great - begins with the words “Let us pray to the Lord in peace”; severe, i.e. strengthened, - begins: “With all my heart, with all my heart ...”, with a triple “Lord, have mercy” for each petition (starting with the third); pleading - in it the petitions end with the singing "Give, Lord" and the small one - consists of only three petitions and begins with the words "Paki and paki ..." (i.e. "again and again").

In addition to these types, there is also a litany for the catechumens, pronounced at the liturgy, a litany for the dead - the so-called. funeral, and litanies with special petitions, pronounced during the performance of the sacraments and other rites. Each prayer petition of the litany is accompanied by the sign of the cross and a bow from the waist.

Great Litany

Listen:

Abridged Great Litany

The great litany consists of 12 petitions or divisions.

1. Let us pray to the Lord in peace.
It means; Let us call upon the peace of God, or the blessing of God, to our prayer meeting, and under the shadow of the face of God, addressed to us with peace and love, let us begin to pray for our needs. In the same way, we will pray in peace, having forgiven mutual insults ().

2. For heavenly peace and the salvation of our souls, let us pray to the Lord.
“The world from above” is the peace of earth with heaven, the reconciliation of man with God or the receipt of forgiveness from God for sins through our Lord Jesus Christ. The fruit of forgiveness of sins or reconciliation with God is the salvation of our souls, for which we also pray in the second petition of the Great Litany.

3. For the peace of the whole world, the well-being of God's holy churches and the unity of all, let us pray to the Lord.
In the third petition, we pray not only for a harmonious and friendly life among people on earth, not only for the peace of the entire universe, but also for a wider and deeper peace, this is: peace and harmony (harmony) throughout the world, in the fullness of all God's creations (heaven and earth, the sea and "all that is in them", angels and people, the living and the dead).

The second subject of the petition; welfare, i.e. the tranquility and well-being of God's holy churches or individual Orthodox communities.

The fruit and consequence of the prosperity and well-being of Orthodox societies on earth will be a vast moral unity: consent, a unanimous proclamation of the glory of God from all the elements of the world, from all animated beings, there will be such penetration of “everything” by the highest religious content, when God is “perfectly in everything” ( ).

4. For this holy temple, and for those who enter it with faith, reverence and fear of God, let us pray to the Lord.
Reverence and fear of God are expressed in a prayerful mood, in laying aside worldly cares, in cleansing the heart from enmity and envy. From the outside, reverence is expressed in bodily cleanliness, in decent clothes and in refraining from talking and looking around.

To pray for the Holy Temple means to ask God that He never depart from the temple with His grace; but he kept the faith from desecration by enemies, from fires, earthquakes, robbers, so that the means for maintaining it in a flourishing state would not be scarce in the temple.

The temple is called holy according to the sanctity of the sacred actions performed in it and according to the grace-filled presence of God in it, from the time of consecration. But the grace that abides in the temple is not available to everyone, but only to those who enter it. with faith, reverence and fear of God.

5. About our Great Lord and Father, His Holiness the Patriarch(name), about our Lord, His Eminence Metropolitan(or: archbishop, bishop) (name),honorable presbytery, deaconship in Christ, for all the parish and people, let us pray to the Lord.

6. About our God-protected country ( Russianstee), the authorities and the army of her, let us pray to the Lord.

7. For this city, (or for this village) every city, country, and by faith living in them, let us pray to the Lord.
We pray not only for our city, but for every other city and country, and for their inhabitants (because, according to Christian brotherly love, we must pray not only for ourselves, but for all people).

8. For the well-being of the air, for the abundance of the fruits of the earth and for peaceful times, let us pray to the Lord.
In this petition, we ask the Lord to grant us our daily bread, that is, everything necessary for our earthly life. We ask for favorable weather for the growth of bread, as well as peacetime.

9. For the floating, the traveling, the sick, the suffering, the captive, and for their salvation, let us pray to the Lord.
In this petition, St. invites us to pray not only for those present, but also for those who are absent: 1) those on the road (swimming, traveling), 2) sick, ill (that is, sick and weak in body in general) and suffering (that is, chained to a bed with a dangerous disease) and 3) about those in captivity.

10. For deliverance to us from all sorrow, anger and need, let us pray to the Lord.
In this petition, we ask the Lord to deliver us from all sorrow, anger and need, that is, from grief, calamity and unbearable embarrassment.

11. Intercede, save, have mercy, and save us, O God, by Your grace.
In this petition, we pray to the Lord to protect us, keep us and have mercy through His mercy and grace.

12. Most Holy, Most Pure, Most Blessed, Glorious Our Lady Theotokos, and Ever-Virgin Mary with all the saints, remembering ourselves, and each other, and our whole life to Christ our God.
Therefore, we constantly call on the Mother of God in litanies, because She serves as our Intercessor and Intercessor before the Lord. After turning to the Mother of God for help, St. advises himself, each other and our whole life to entrust to the Lord.

The great litany is otherwise called "peaceful" (because it often asks people for peace).

In ancient times, litanies were continuous prayers in form and the common prayers of all those present in the temple, proof of which is, among other things, the words “Lord have mercy” following the deacon’s exclamations.

Special Litany

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The second litany is called “augmented,” that is, intensified, because for each petition pronounced by the deacon, the chanters answer with the triple “Lord have mercy.” A special litany consists of the following petitions:

1. Rtsem all with all my heart, and from all our thoughts, Rtsem.
Let us say to the Lord with all our heart and with all our thoughts: (further on, it is explained what exactly we will say).

2. Lord Almighty, God of our fathers, we pray to you, hear and have mercy.
Lord Almighty, God of our fathers, we pray to You, hear and have mercy.

3. Have mercy on us, O God, according to Your great mercy, we pray to You, hear and have mercy.
Have mercy on us, Lord, according to Your great goodness. We pray to You, hear and have mercy.

4. We also pray for all the Christ-loving host.
We also pray for all the soldiers, as defenders of the Faith and the Fatherland.

5. We also pray for our brethren, priestesses, holy monks, and all our brotherhood in Christ.
We also pray for our brethren in the service and in Christ.

6. We also pray for the blessed and ever-memorable Holy Orthodox Patriarchs, and the pious kings, and the faithful queens, and the creators of this holy temple, and for all the Orthodox fathers and brothers who have fallen asleep here and everywhere.
We also pray for St. Orthodox Patriarchs, about faithful Orthodox tsars and queens; - about the always memorable creators of the Holy Temple; about all our dead parents and brothers buried here and in other places.

7. We also pray for mercy, life, peace, health, salvation, visitation, forgiveness and forgiveness of the sins of the servants of God, the brethren of this Holy Temple.
In this petition, we ask the Lord for bodily and spiritual blessings to the parishioners of the church where the service is performed.

8. We also pray for those who are fruitful and virtuous in this holy and all-honourable temple, those who labor, sing and stand by people, who expect great and rich mercy from You.
We also pray for people: “fruitful” (i.e., those who bring material and monetary donations for liturgical needs in the temple: wine, oil, incense, candles) and “virtuous” (i.e., those who make decorations in the temple or donate to maintain the splendor in the temple), as well as about those doing some work in the temple, for example, reading, singing, and about all the people who are in the temple in anticipation of a great and rich mercy.

Pleading Litany

Listen:

1st petitionary litany

2nd supplicatory litany

The petitionary litany consists of a series of petitions ending with the words "We ask the Lord," to which the chanters respond with the words: "Give, Lord." The petitionary litany reads thus:

1. Let us fulfill (evening or morning) prayer to our Lord.
Let's make (or supplement) our prayer to the Lord.

2.
Protect, save, have mercy and keep us, O God, by Your grace.

3. Day (or evening) of the whole accomplishment, holy, peaceful and sinless, we ask the Lord.
Let us ask the Lord to spend this day (or evening) expediently, holy, peacefully and sinlessly.

4. The angel is peaceful, faithful mentor, guardian of our souls and bodies, we ask the Lord.
Let us ask the Lord for the Holy Angel, who is a faithful mentor and guardian of our soul and body.

5. Forgiveness and forgiveness of our sins and transgressions, we ask the Lord.
Let us ask the Lord for forgiveness and forgiveness of our sins (heavy) and sins (light) of ours.

6. Good and useful to our souls and peace of the world, we ask the Lord. Let us ask the Lord for everything useful and good for our souls, peace for all people and the whole world.

7. The rest of the time of our belly in peace and repentance, end, we ask the Lord.
Let us ask the Lord that we live the rest of our lives in peace and a calm conscience.

8. The Christian death of our belly, painless, shameless, peaceful, and a good answer at the terrible Judgment of Christ, we ask.
Let us ask the Lord that our death would be Christian, that is, with confession and Communion of the Holy Mysteries, painless, shameless and peaceful, that is, that before death we make peace with our loved ones. Let us ask for a kind and fearless answer at the Last Judgment.

9. Our Most Holy, Most Pure, Most Blessed, Glorious Lady Our Lady and Ever-Virgin Mary, with all the saints, let us commit ourselves and each other and our whole life to Christ God.

Small Litany

Listen:

Small Litany

The small litany is an abbreviation of the great litany and contains only the following petitions:

1. Packs and packs (again and again) let's pray to the Lord in peace.

2. Intercede, save, have mercy and save us, O God, by Your grace.

3. Having remembered our Most Holy, Most Pure, Blessed, Glorious Lady Our Lady and Ever-Virgin Mary with all the saints, let us commit ourselves and each other, and our whole life to Christ God.

Sometimes these petitions of the great, special, small and supplicatory litanies are joined by others, composed on a special occasion, for example, on the occasion of the burial or commemoration of the dead, on the occasion of the blessing of water, the beginning of the teaching, the onset of the New Year.

These litanies with additional "changing petitions" are contained in a special book for prayer singing.

Funeral Litany

Listen:

Funeral Litany

a) Great:

1. Let us pray to the Lord in peace.
2. For heavenly peace and for the salvation of our souls, let us pray to the Lord.
3. For the forgiveness of sins, in the blessed memory of those who have passed away, let us pray to the Lord.
4. For the ever-memorable servants of God (the name of the rivers), peace, silence, their blessed memory, let us pray to the Lord.
5. Let us pray to the Lord to forgive them every sin, voluntary and involuntary.
6. For the uncondemned to stand at the terrible throne of the Lord of glory, let us pray to the Lord.
7. Let us pray to the Lord for those who are weeping and sick, looking forward to Christ's consolation.
8. Oh, let them go from all illness and sorrow, and sighing, and inspire them, where the light of the face of God is present, let us pray to the Lord.
9. Oh, that the Lord our God will restore their souls in a place of light, in a green place, in a place of peace, where all the righteous abide, let us pray to the Lord.
10. For their counting in the bowels of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob, let us pray to the Lord.
11. For deliverance to us from all sorrow, anger and need, let us pray to the Lord.
12. Intercede, save, have mercy and save us, O God, by Your grace.
13. Mercy of God, the kingdom of heaven, and forgiveness of sins, having asked for ourselves, each other and our whole life to Christ God.

b) Malaya and

in) Triple Litany for the Dead consist of three petitions in which the thoughts of the great litany are repeated.

Litany for the catechumens

Listen:

1. Pray, announcements, Lord.
2. Faithful, let us pray for the catechumens, that the Lord have mercy on them.
3. He will pronounce them with the word of truth.
4. Reveal the gospel of truth to them.
5. He will unite them with His Holy Councils and Apostles of the Church.
6. Save, have mercy, intercede and keep them, O God, by Your grace.
7. Bow down your heads to the Lord.

Litany for the Departure of the Catechumens

Listen:

The people of the announcement, come out; announcement, come out; fir-trees of annunciation, go out. Yes, no one from the catechumens, faithful figurines, more and more, let us pray to the Lord in peace.

Thanksgiving Litany

Listen:

1. Forgive me, accept the Divine, Holy, Most Pure, Immortal, Heavenly and Life-Giving, Terrible Mysteries of Christ, worthily thank the Lord.
2. Intercede, save, have mercy and save us, O God, by Your grace.

When attending divine services in the church, we often hear prayer proclamations at them, pronounced by the deacon on behalf of all those present or individual petitioners.

Such petitions, called litanies, are one of the main components of the church service and reflect the religious state of the soul of each parishioner. What is the essence of the litany? Why is it being done?

What does the word "litany" mean?

Litany- a characteristic element of Christian worship. For the first time, the term began to be used in Greek temples, where under the word ἐκτενὴς implied "long prayer" or "Spread" . Some writers define the term as "zealous, diligent" .

Subsequently, the word acquired several other sounds, which depended on one or another type of litany. For example, the Great Litany was called εὐχὴ τοῦ τρισαγίου , which means "Prayer of the Trisagion" .

What is a litany?

In another way, the litany can be called a song of praise to the Lord. It is a prayer of special significance, recited with great zeal by all those who pray. In order to attract all those present in the temple to the proclamation, the litany is pronounced not by the clergyman, but by the deacon. Since some churches do not have a full-time deacon, in this case the priest replaces his functions.


The essence of the litany is not in reading a standard prayer from a prayer book, but in special expressions inviting to prayer and pointing to objects or persons that you should ask the Lord for.

Unlike some other sacred rites, it does not require special preparation. At the same time, it is not aimed at calming the attention of parishioners, but, on the contrary, at constant excitement. In order not to tire those present, they are divided into short, abrupt petitions, which end with exclamations of those praying and the choir.

What are the litanies?

Depending on the purpose or nature of the service, the litany may have several varieties. The most important is the Great Litany, which is read first at all divine services. It differs from other types of prayers in its fullness of content and special sublimity, since it does not begin with ordinary petitions, but with an appeal to God regarding spiritual needs.

In total, the Great Litany includes 14 main petitions, followed by ordinary requests. The prayer ends with the call of the deacon to ask the Mother of God and all the saints for needs.

The Small Litany is an abbreviated version of the Great Litany and includes only individual petitions from the 14 main ones. The august litany is prayers exclusively for specific people and contains the deacon's calls to pray with special concentration, trusting in God's love for mankind.

Another type of proclamation is Pleading, in which parishioners ask the Lord for any blessings, health, happiness for themselves and their loved ones. Litanies for the dead are read at the wake and imply an appeal to the Almighty with a request for the Kingdom of Heaven for the deceased, and Litian (or Litii) usually follow the Pleading and are used during the all-night vigil.

How is a litany celebrated?

The reading of prayers is performed in a strictly established order and begins with the fact that the deacon ascends to the pulpit and turns his face. In his outstretched right hand, he holds a special fabric ribbon (orarion), which is worn on the left shoulder of the sacred vestment. After that, the minister proceeds to the proclamation of prayer words, and after each reading he overshadows himself with the banner of the cross.

The litany is proclaimed in the form of a dialogue with the church choir, which, after each prayer, pronounces the so-called acclamations. Under these musical formulas is understood the chant of short expressions, among which the phrase is most often used "Lord have mercy".

Although this phrase may seem poor in meaning, in fact it is a very vivid expression of the attitude towards God and is recognized not only as understandable, but also very comprehensive.

As a final acclamation, the word is used "Amen". Parishioners who are present in the church during the service can take part in petitions and proclaim acclamations along with the choir.

A litany is a common prayer during a divine service. At this time, the priest usually utters prayer petitions, and the choir sings along with him, they say such words - “Lord, have mercy” or “Give, Lord.”

The litany usually ends with an exclamation from the priest himself. If there is a deacon in the temple, the church, then he leads the litany. If there is no deacon, then one of the priests conducts such a service.

Types of litany

This service comes in several forms. Let's talk in more detail about each of them. The great (as it is called) litany begins with the words "Let us pray to the Lord in peace." The strengthened litany (as the next type of this prayer to the Lord) begins with such words - "Rzem all, with all my heart ...". Moreover, the words "Lord, have mercy" are said three times after each petition.

Usually the Lord hears all prayers and helps people. The main thing is to believe in it. The last but not least type of litany is the small one. There are three total petitions in this service, which begin with the words - "Packs and packs ...". "Paki and paki ..." translates as "again and again."

Some churches serve litanies such as litanies for dead relatives. They are called restful. Many church leaders say that the litany is a special service.

There are no preparations for it, but it is not aimed at calming the attention of a person, a servant of God, but at constant arousal of attention. Usually the litany is divided into several small petitions, but in each one they say the words - "Lord, have mercy", "Give, Lord."

The History of Prayer

Litany is a Greek word. Then, and even now, this prayer was considered deep, sensual. Believers serve diligently, very concentrated. Back in Ancient Times, only deacons were allowed to conduct litanies. There used to be more of them than now.

But at the present time, it is allowed for the litany to be conducted by an ordinary minister of the church, a priest. He must be of advanced age, in years. It is believed that it is adult, experienced priests who know how best to conduct this or that service than to help parishioners after it.

After all, some people do not go home at the end of the litany, but want to talk to the priest in person. It can be just talk: about the church, its influence on a person, modern society as a whole. And someone makes a specific request for help, advice.

Who is a deacon

As you know, a deacon cannot be fully called a clergyman. But since a litany is not exactly a prayer, but only a call to it, it is allowed for a deacon (this is even desirable) to conduct this event.

Different churches have different canons and foundations, each church itself determines and sets the rules. But what is common, known to all, important and necessary to all parishioners is the same everywhere.

"Get up!"

"Get up!" - with these words, the All-Night Vigil begins, because usually everyone came to the temple in advance and waited for the start of the service while sitting. The monastic charter assumes that each person has his own place in the temple. In Greek monasteries, these are "stasidia", special chairs with high backs and armrests. The statutory (i.e., full, according to all the rules) worship service is quite long, and at certain moments a person in a stasidia can stand simply or relying on armrests; half-sitting on a raised seat (there is a special shelf); finally, to sit completely on the lowered seat (while reading kathismas, proverbs, teachings, etc.). The absence of seats is a distinctive feature of Russian churches.

The tongue of the angels and the tongues of men

Every now and then during the service you can hear the Hebrew word "Alleluia". It means in translation “praise God”: “allele - praise”, “Ya - God”. This is not a word in angelic language, as they sometimes say in Sunday schools, but a completely human call to praise God in the same way that angels praise. This call is often found in the Psalter. For some Psalms, mostly of laudatory content, this call has become a chorus, because Psalms are chants. When translated into ancient Greek, the refrain "Alleluia" was left without translation, and in the Christian Divine Liturgy it generally spread to the entire Psalter. The reading and singing of any group of Psalms ends with a doxology to the Holy Trinity: “Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and forever and forever and ever. Amen" and the chorus: "Alleluia, Alleluia, Aliluia: glory to Thee, O God!" (thrice).

Everybody sing!

What is the most common prayer in worship? "Lord have mercy!" It is included in the most popular, so to speak, element of worship - litany ("litany" - a series of brief prayer requests). The content of litany petitions touches upon the most important aspects of the life of every Christian (peaceful life, forgiveness of sins, God's grace-filled help). The august (i.e., intensified) litany begins with the words "Rzem all!" - "Let's say everything!". This is a call to all who pray. The deacon or priest utters some kind of petition, to which the singers, and ideally all people, respond with the simplest prayer: this or “Lord, have mercy!” once, or "Lord, have mercy!" three times, or "Give me, Lord!". In response to the call to surrender to God, people answer: “To you, Lord!”

In public worship, everything is meant to be spoken aloud. The fact that some priestly prayers have become “secret”, i.e., are pronounced only by the priest and from them we hear only final phrases, “exclamations”, is a feature of the development of Christian worship, and by no means the law of the genre. Initially, these prayers were not created for silent pronunciation. Because prayer is either praise or a request. When people come together to pray, they praise together or ask for something together. During a general worship service, asking for something of your own, personal, about which you do not want your neighbor to know, is not entirely appropriate. Of course, when we commemorate our loved ones at the Liturgy, then everyone commemorates their loved ones and prays for some of their needs, but these are moments specially stipulated by the very charter of Divine services. There, for example, the priest has a note in the book: "... and remembers those whom he wants by name." Or in response to the exclamation of the priest, “First, remember, Lord, the great lord and father of our Patriarch…” the people respond: “… and all, and everything.” This refers to “and all Christian men and women,” for whom everyone present is currently praying. This is probably the only moment when the thoughts of the worshipers can slightly disperse in different directions, when everyone remembers their own particular needs.

There is no prohibition against the laity singing during the service. The Constantinople divine service was organized in such a way as to attract people to singing as much as possible. In particular, the performance of the Psalms antiphonally, that is, with a refrain, is the invention of precisely this public, nationwide Christian worship.

Naturally, the more complex the musical repertoire sounds in the temple, the more difficult it is for people to participate in joint singing. But the fulfillment of litanies, as a rule, is within the power of any more or less literate person. If a person standing in the temple is already very ashamed of his voice or lack of hearing, then he can sing it quite quietly, almost to himself, so as not to embarrass those standing next to him.

His Holiness Patriarch Alexy, in his address to the Moscow clergy several years ago, called for popular singing to be planted in parishes. And he even specifically pointed out that it would be very good if the Eucharistic canon at the Liturgy would be sung by all the people.

Creator and creature

Every Saturday at Sunday Vespers we hear the great prokeimenon: “The Lord hath reigned, clothed in splendor… for establish the universe, that it will not move.” "Prokimen" is translated as "outstanding, standing in front" and means singing a selected verse from any Psalm as a refrain to one or more verses of the same Psalm. We know several types of prokeimns in worship, which are sung to different motives - in Church Slavonic, “voices”.

“Reign, clothe, establish” is the past tense of the Slavic language, which denotes an action completed in the past: “He reigned, He clothed, He established.” "Won't move" is the future tense. "Whatever does not move - which does not move, will not change." The Universe "will not move", as it will exist according to the law that the Lord created for it. In the Universe itself there is no force that would change the law of its existence. This is generally the meaning of the biblical attitude to the world as a creation of God. The main antithesis of "Creator and creature" is that the creature does not have independence in determining its fate. And in this sense, man differs from all other creatures precisely in this god-like ability to independently determine his own line of life, to choose the path to God or the path to death.

How can you learn to make excuses?

In the prayer “Vouchify, Lord,” which sounds at the Vespers, there are the following words: “Teach me about Thy justification…” In modern language, the word “justification” has acquired a purely legal character: when there is some suspicion and a person is freed from this suspicion, he is "justified". But in the Slavic language, the word "justification" corresponds to the Greek word "dikeoma", which also means "righteousness" and "commandment of righteousness." Righteousness is truth, righteousness. The fact is that the Old Testament ideas about righteousness are strictly connected with the Law of God, with the fulfillment of the Law. Naturally, a person who acts right, in accordance with the Law of God, is called a righteous man. It is this rootedness in the Law of the Lord that is the subject of prayer in this case - the literal “teach me Your commandments of righteousness” means for us: “teach me to be rooted in Your Law, teach me to do what is right, as Your Divine Law prescribes” - the Law, of course , not the Old, but the New Gospel Law of love.

Drawings by Vera Makhankova