Prayer "Sorokoust for he alth" has recently caused a lot of controversy, because some priests believe that such a prayer addressed to living people is not read. However, an appeal to historical data indicates that in Russian Orthodox traditions there are actually two types of services with the same name.
Only in Russia
One of them was developed only in Russia. This is a forty-mouth, which is performed for a dead person within forty days after his death. In this case, it is necessary that the priest or close people read the Ps alter forty times. This was usually done on the third, ninth and fortieth day after death. Such a prayer has nothing to do with what a magpie for he alth is. What this is can be learned by studying the church organization of past centuries.
Then the parishes were divided into districts, ineach of which had forty churches. It was possible to order the required number of memorial liturgies in all forty churches on the same day, performing the necessary ritual. This is how the funeral prayer with this name was formed.
The number "forty"
In a completely different way, as it is believed, the magpie about he alth appeared. What it is? This service is also associated with the number "forty", which, in turn, is associated with the number of days of the fast of the prophet Moses, the period of wandering in the desert of the Jews, the stay of the Savior in the desert after Baptism, the time Christ taught the Apostles after the Resurrection.
Sorokoust about he alth (what it is, every believer should know) is a mention in the service (liturgy) for forty days of both the living and the dead indicated in the notes, because it is believed that "for Almighty, everyone is alive." At the proskomedia, a piece of prosphora is taken out for a person, which is then immersed in the Blood of Christ with prayer words for cleansing from sins, that is, for everyone who is prayed for, a thankful offering is made to God.
How to order a prayer service
Today, not everyone knows how to order a magpie for he alth. What is it from an "organizational" point of view? A petition can be submitted at any time, however, during the period of fasting, liturgies are served less frequently. Note that not every person can be asked for with the help of such a prayer, since only baptized persons are allowed to the liturgy, therefore proskomediaNotes cannot be submitted to any name.
Magic or not?
Sometimes there are suggestions that it is better to apply to several churches at once for a magpie for he alth. Reviews report that people turn to three, five or more religious institutions in order to remove damage, the evil eye, or piled up troubles or illnesses. This is not forbidden, however, some see elements of “church magic” in such actions, when the main element (prayer) is supplemented with a selection of numbers or the arrangement of churches in a certain order (triangle, star, etc.). Priests believe that it is enough in the traditional service to attribute to the name of the person for whom the note is submitted, his needs (“sick”, “suffering”), which indicates a request for healing or help in a difficult life situation.
