There is a wonderful expression: if we picked up the gospel as often as we pick up a mobile phone, then our life would be different. And indeed, mobile phones and tablets are constantly with us. We often forget to turn to God.
Modern rhythm of life imposes its principles. We fuss and hurry somewhere. But it is necessary in this haste to allocate time to the One who gave us life. Stand at home in front of the icons, pray, read the Gospel.
Don't know what it is? What are they reading for? And what kind of prayers exist before and after reading the Gospel at home? We will cover all this in the article.
When you need to comfort the soul
The gospel is the life story of our Lord Jesus Christ. For an Orthodox Christian, the Gospel is the main book. ATit has all beginnings and ends, it is a symbol of Christ. The Lord appeared into the world of sinners with His own eyes, He went out to preach. That is, the Lord is among us. It is difficult to fit into consciousness, a terrible and reverent action is taking place - God is among people, among sinners. This is a great mystery, incomprehensible to the human mind. And reading the Gospel, we touch this mystery.
Why read?
The Lord speaks to us through the gospel. When we read this Book, we touch what happened two thousand years ago. We are there, among the apostles, next to God. And through the gospel chapters He speaks not only to the whole world. Christ addresses each of us specifically. Thus, when we read the Gospel, the soul unites with God.
What does the word "gospel" mean?
Translated from Greek - "good news". This is the good news that God has incarnated in the form of a man. He came to the sinful world so that people would come to the kingdom of heaven. This means that the Gospel is the source of life for the soul, its guide to heavenly abodes.
How to read: general rules
It all starts with a prayer before reading the gospel and after reading the chapter. Where can I get prayer? Its text is published below:
Prayer before reading the Gospel:
Prayer before reading the Gospel:
Rise in our hearts, O Lord of mankind, Your theology is an imperishable light, and open our mental eyes in Your gospel sermons understanding, put in us andFear of Thy blessed commandments, let all carnal lusts be right, let us go through spiritual life, all to your pleasing and wise and active. Thou art the enlightenment of our souls and bodies, Christ God, and we send glory to Thee, with Thy Father without beginning, and the All-Holy, and the Good, and Thy Life-giving Spirit, now and forever, and unto the ages of ages, amen.
Prayer after reading the Gospel:
Glory to Thee, O Lord the King, the Son of the living God, who made me unworthy, Divine Thy words and the voice of Thy Holy Gospel, hear; With this, by Your sovereign voice, strengthen me in repentance of the real sowing of life to pass away at night, delivering me from every slander and malice of visible and invisible enemies: Thou art alone strong, and reign forever. Amen.
So, we take the Gospel in our hands and stand in front of the icons. We read the prayer given above, then we read the Book of Books. At the end of the reading, we read out the prayer of thanksgiving (the text is given above).
A little more about reading
Prayer before and after reading the Gospel is given above, as well as the general rules for reading this Book. But let's learn how to read it:
- First of all, it is necessary to pray, as already mentioned.
- A woman puts on a headscarf before reading the Gospel.
- The man is left without a hat.
- The gospel cannot be read like a fiction book: sitting in an armchair, cross-legged and drinking delicious tea at the same time.
- This book is read standing in front of the icons.
- Starting reading, you need to cross yourself once.
- After the chapter of the Gospel is read, the prayer of thanksgiving is read.
- At the end of its reading, you should cross yourself three times.
Ask for what?
The most interesting, but at the same time difficult question: what do they ask God when they read the Gospel?
Recall that before proceeding with requests, you need to read a prayer after reading the Gospel at home. What to ask the Lord for? Usually they ask for the he alth of their neighbors. In mournful situations - the help of God. In general, you can ask for everything, but it is somehow not customary to ask for material benefits, unless we are talking about an emergency situation when there is nothing to pay. Alas, this happens.
Can we pray for the repose of our neighbors?
Praying in the Gospel for the repose of deceased relatives is not accepted. As we have already said, they pray on Him for the he alth of relatives and friends.
But what about our dear dead? Leave them without prayer now? Of course not. Pray for them according to the Psalms. Read one kathisma a day. More precisely, not quite so: the kathisma is divided into glories. The first glory is read for the living relatives, the second - for the deceased, and the third - for friends, acquaintances and benefactors.
If a person died recently and there are no more 40 days, then it is very good for him to read the chapter in full. And so - until the fortieth.
How to say prayers?
The question of the modern population is very frequent. Is it possible to read the Gospel and prayers on a tablet, computer or mobile phone?
Bin some cases, yes. When there is no prayer book at hand, for example, on a trip or on vacation. But when a person is at home, it is better to read prayers after reading the Gospel, before him, the Ps alter and everything else in the "old-fashioned" way - according to books and prayer books, respectively.
If we were in the service
Is it necessary to read the Gospel on this day? After all, it was already read in the church.
How often do we stand in the service? No offense to anyone, but the body is in the temple, and the thoughts are far beyond its borders. And well, if not, no, but back to what is happening in the service. We are trying to listen to the words of the Gospel, the Cherubic song, to absorb what is happening. Alas, we do not always pay attention to the gospel in the church. Yes, and extraneous sounds are still distracting.
Therefore, it is better to read this Book at home, with attention, trying to understand the meaning of this or that chapter. We read the prayers before and after reading the Gospel - do not forget about them.
Summarizing
The main purpose of the article is to tell the reader what the Gospel is, why read it. And what prayers before and after reading the Gospel should be read. Let's highlight the main aspects:
- The gospel is the earthly path of Jesus Christ, His preaching.
- While reading this source, the soul is united with Christ. The Lord came to earth to save the sinners, not the righteous. He speaks to each of us with the words of the Gospel. Not abstractly refers to the universe, but specifically to each person. The gospel is the way to salvation. When we read it, we embark on this path.
- It is advisable to read one chapter daily. Carefully, trying to understand what is written. If you read in Church Slavonic, get an interpretation in Russian. It will be much more useful than wading through a derby of not entirely clear language.
- According to the Gospel, they pray for the he alth of relatives and friends. Prayers for repose are offered while reading the Ps alter.
Conclusion
We told the readers everything that was planned in this article. What remains to be added?
The gospel is a treasure for the Christian soul. And it is desirable to open it more often. The Christian's home rule includes reading the Gospel, the Ps alter and the Acts of the Apostles. How to read the first two Books, we talked above. As for the Apostles, the book is read one chapter at a time, after reading the Gospel.
What is the most important thing when reading? Faith and focus. Nothing good will come of it without these two maintainers.
