The Hebrew Scriptures say: “Thus says the Lord of hosts: I remembered what Amalek did to Israel, how he withstood him on the way when he came out of Egypt”(1 Sam. 15:2). And after about 480 years after this act of the Amalekites (Acts 13:20.), the Almighty indicated to the Israeli king Saul: “Now go and strike Amalek, and destroy all that he has; and do not give him mercy, but put to death from husband to wife, from boy to suckling, from ox to sheep, from camel to donkey.(1 Samuel 15:3)… There are plenty of similar examples in the Old Testament writings, and some of these stories may lead us Christians into bewilderment.
But here is an example of the conversation between the apostles and Christ, which speaks of the opposite:
“And he sent messengers before his face; and they went and entered into a village of the Samaritans; to prepare for Him; but [there] did not receive him, because he had the appearance of traveling to Jerusalem. Seeing this, His disciples, James and John, said: Lord! do you want us to say that fire comes down from heaven and consumes them, as Elijah did? But He, turning to them, rebuked them and said: You do not know what kind of spirit you are; for the Son of Man came not to destroy the souls of men, but to save” (Luke 9:52-56).
In this brief and seemingly not very significant history, the whole essence of Christianity is stated. Perhaps this would be enough for some to understand why our Lord, the High Priest, came. However, the essence of Christianity is simply obliged to be reflected in our inner world, as well as in our actions; and for this, it is important for us to clearly understand the essence of the gospel of the kingdom of heaven.
What will help to understand the essence of Christianity
Before Christ came to earth, Solomon was considered the wisest man on earth. It was he who most vividly expressed the problem of humanity as a whole, writing:
“I said in my heart about the sons of men, that God might test them, and that they might see that they themselves are animals. Because the fate of the sons of men and the fate of animals is the same fate: as they die, so do these, and everyone has one breath, and a person has no advantage over cattle, because everything is vanity! Everything goes to one place: everything came from dust and everything will return to dust” (Eccl. 3:18-20).
Man was created "in the image and likeness of God" to have dominion over the earth, and the Scriptures describe it this way:
“God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them: be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth. Let all the beasts of the earth fear and tremble at you, and all the birds of the air, everything that moves on the earth, and all the fish of the sea: they are given into your hands ”(Gen.9:1,2. Also: Psalm.8:4 -nine.).
However, one should pay attention to the fact that man was created on the same day, the sixth, along with animals. Such instincts as: the instinct of self-preservation, reproduction, dominance over other individuals - often, uncontrollably turn into greed and betrayal, adultery, envy and war ... why?
This, after all, is the key to the fact that the first people succumbed to sin so easily: “God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good. (And there was evening and there was morning: the sixth day)"(Gen. 1:31). They were perfect in the flesh, without deficiency, but at the same time, Adam was not blessed spiritually - but it was the seventh day that was blessed (Gen.2:3.). The apostle Paul wrote:
“We who have believed enter into rest... For somewhere it is said about the seventh [day] like this: and God rested on the seventh day from all his works With His... Therefore, there is still a Sabbath for the people of God. For whoever has entered into His rest, he himself has rested from his works, just as God from His” (Heb. 4:3,4,9,10).
And if we are talking about the essence of Christianity, then it is impossible not to remember that it was Christ who was the Lord of the Sabbath, into which each of us has to “enter”. This Leader said:
“I am the way and the truth and the life; no one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6).
“So it is written: the first man Adam became a living soul; and the last Adam is a life-giving spirit... The first man is from the earth, dusty; the second person is the Lord from heaven. What is the earthy, such are the earthy; and as is the heavenly, so are the heavenly" (1 Corinthians 15:45,47,48).
If you carefully examine the Scriptures, it becomes clear that before the coming of Christ, all those who were pleasing to the Most High God Yahweh, they were all moved by the Holy Spirit.
For example, in the kingdom of Israel of Samaria there was not a single righteous king - however, in the kingdom of Judah, true worship was restored from time to time ... why is that? We find the answer in the words of the prophet Ahijah: “that the lamp of David my servant shall remain before me all the days in the city of Jerusalem, which I have chosen for myself to dwell there with my name”(1 Kings 11:36). In the kingdom of Samaria, the Most High also, by the Spirit, kept the prophets for Himself, so that spiritual light would remain for people (Rom. 11:2-6.). Thus, by carefully studying the biblical story, we can understand that without the Spirit of God, a person cannot be pleasing to Him; for this, it is simply necessary to be blessed (Rom.9:10-14.).
We all need to honestly admit that we are flesh, created on the “sixth day” along with animals, that we are children of carnal Adam; if he had not sinned, then instead of him, there in paradise, we would have sinned. And for us, it is important to be brought into that "rest" by the second "Adam", the Father of eternity, Christ (see: Isaiah 9:6.).
The first people were created without sin - but it was they who soon left it to us as a legacy. So we come to the fact that in the biblical sense, the number SIX is the number of the flesh, the god of which is the devil:
“For the flesh desires what is contrary to the spirit, and the spirit what is contrary to the flesh: they oppose each other, so that you do not do what you would like. If you are led by the Spirit, then you are not under the law. The works of the flesh are known; they are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, magic, enmity, strife, envy, anger, strife, disagreements, (temptations), heresies, hatred, murders, drunkenness, outrageousness, and the like. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do so will not inherit the kingdom of God. The fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, goodness, mercy, faith, meekness, temperance. There is no law on those. But those who are Christ's have crucified the flesh with its passions and lusts" (Gal. 5:17-24).
The law, left through Moses, was only a "tutor" to the Messiah (Galat. 3:11,24.) - but the Jews took it literally, not understanding the essence; thus, the Law was for them the educator of OUTER behavior. Not having the Spirit from God, the Jews were not able to understand the Law; this was their main problem and mistake, the way they thought themselves - and how they judged others.
The scribes and Pharisees were blind guides who did not understand that the Law did not begin with outward education, but with the inner world (Mat. 23:26.). The history of Israel, through the Law of Moses, shows us all: no matter how much the Almighty God admonishes and punishes, without the Holy Spirit, this makes no sense. Scripture says:
“The ox knows its owner, and the donkey knows its master's manger; but Israel does not know [Me], my people do not understand... What else to beat you, continuing your stubbornness? The whole head is in ulcers, and the whole heart is wasted. From the sole of his foot to the crown of his head, he has no healthy place: ulcers, spots, festering wounds, uncleaned and unbound and not softened with oil ”(Is. 1:3,5,6).
That is why it is important for all of us to realize that ourselves, without that "Sabbath" blessing, we cannot truly draw near to God. "As it is written: there is none righteous; there is no one who understands; no one is looking for God; all have gone astray, up to one worthless; there is no one who does good, there is not one"(Rom. 3:10-12).
“Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. Not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; that My covenant they broke, though I remained in union with them, says the Lord. But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My law in their inwardness, and I will write it on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they will be My people. And they will no longer teach one another, brother to brother, and say, "Know the Lord," for all themselves will know Me, from the least to the greatest, says the Lord, because I will forgive their iniquity and I will remember their sins no more" (Jer .31:31-34).
This is confirmed by the prophet Ezekiel:
“And I will give you a new heart, and I will give you a new spirit; and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My commandments and keep and do My statutes” (Ezek. 36:26,27).
This happened at Pentecost, after Christ gave His life for us, thus showing the greatest love. And only THEN, humanity had the opportunity through the gift of the Holy Spirit to understand the essence of Christianity, the essence of the Law. Paul wrote:
“We preach the wisdom of God, secret, hidden, which God ordained before the ages for our glory, which none of the authorities of this age has known; for if they had known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory ... God has revealed [this] to us by His Spirit; for the Spirit penetrates everything, and the depths of God ... we received not the spirit of this world, but the Spirit from God, in order to know what was given to us from God, which we proclaim not from human wisdom with learned words, but learned from the Holy Spirit, considering the spiritual with the spiritual. The natural man does not accept what is from the Spirit of God, because he considers it foolishness; and cannot understand, because it [should] be judged spiritually” (1 Corinthians 2:7,8,10,12-14).
The Essence of Christianity Today
So: through the love of the Lord Christ and grace from God the Father (and only then, through understanding) the Christians of the first century found a true relationship with the Most High. The Apostle Peter admonished:
“You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, people taken as inheritance, in order to proclaim the perfections of Him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light ... And lead a virtuous life among the pagans, so that they, for what they slander you as villains, seeing your good deeds, glorified God on the day of your visitation... For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that we might follow in His footsteps (1 Peter 2:9,12,21).
And the essence of Christianity today is to become a follower of Christ as an advocate for humanity.
Let's take for example the story of Joseph, who became engaged to Mary: when the mother of Christ became pregnant in the absence of Joseph, before their wedding - what should he have thought? ..
According to the Law, Mary should have been stoned, and in the first place, Joseph himself had to do this (Deut. 22:14,20-24.). However, Scripture says: “Joseph, her husband, being righteous and not wanting to publicize her, wanted to secretly let her go”(Mat. 1:19). What then was his righteousness, if he literally did not fulfill the Law? - That: "... mercy is exalted over judgment"(James 2:13.). Likewise, Solomon wrote: “Save those taken to death, and will you really refuse those condemned to death?”(Prov. 24:11).
This is exactly what Christ did in relation to harlots, publicans and others, without dividing the Pharisees, Sadducees, Essenes, etc. into denominations. But the question was how clean is the inner “vessel” of a person for receiving the world from the Almighty (Matt. 23:25,26.).
And what do we, in the Christian world, have today?
Not many believers in Christ really think about why there are so many delusions and quackery among them today; why in any provincial town, some five or seven Christian churches (both Protestant and sometimes traditional) cannot find a common language? tongues - but to be honest, in fact, this is an exercise in self-deception, an attempt to prove that nothing has changed since the first century.
The Apostle Paul said: “I know that after my departure, fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and out of yourselves men will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them.”(Acts 20:29,30).
Both during the Middle Ages and during the beginning of the 21st century, we see that not only all Christian denominations are in a state of division - but often divisions occur within churches. Therefore, we can say that today's Christianity is in the state of Babylon the Great. The prophetic effect of this state was an event that is described in the book of Genesis:
“The whole earth had one language and one dialect ... And they said: Let us build ourselves a city and a tower as high as the heavens, and make a name for ourselves, before we are scattered over the face of all the earth ... And the Lord said: Behold, one people, and one all language; and this is what they began to do, and they will not lag behind what they have planned to do; let us go down and confuse their language there, so that one does not understand the speech of the other. And the Lord scattered them from there over all the earth; and they stopped building the city. Therefore a name was given to her: Babylon, for there the Lord confounded the language of all the earth, and from there the Lord scattered them over all the earth” (Gen. 11:1,4,6-9).
The inability to understand in unanimity the truth from the Most High indicates the absence of the Holy Spirit in Christianity today (1 Corinthians 1:10; Ephesians 4:5,6.). Let these words be no offense to all of you friends, because honesty is the basis of humility and understanding of the essence of Christianity. How unpleasant it would be to write about this - but the obvious facts point to the disorder in Christian currents. And before proving that some denomination was cleansed by the Holy Spirit and the fire of trials (see Dan.11:35; 12:10. Mark. , in strict accordance, were the events predicted at the time of the end of the ungodly world fulfilled? .. The Apostle Peter warned:
"Beloved! do not shy away from the fiery temptation sent to test you, as strange adventures for you, but as you participate in Christ's sufferings, rejoice, and at the manifestation of His glory you will rejoice and triumph ... For the time for judgment to begin from the house of God; but if it [begins] with us first, what will be the end of those who disobey the gospel of God?” (1 Peter 4:12,13,17).
And such Scriptures as for example: Micah.7:6-9. Jer.30:7,12-16,23,24. show that true Christianity of the last days will simply have to undergo purification through suffering, as it was in the days of the Lord Christ and His disciples (Zech.13:6-9. Mal.3:1-5.).
Who will be these true messengers of the Almighty, through whom humanity will find peace and Truth? (Dan.8:23; 11:31-33. Rev.11:2-8. Dan.12:3.)... The vast majority of the Christian world will not understand this at once. As such, the apostle Paul warned: “Brotherly love [between you] may abide. Do not forget hospitality, for through it some, not knowing, showed hospitality to the Angels. Remember the prisoners, as if you were in bondage with them, and the afflicted, as you yourself are in the body.(Heb. 13:1-3. See: Matt. 25:31-40.). Just like their Lord Christ, they will come without solid teleconferences, auditoriums of many thousands, expensive suits, tailcoats and wristwatches with diamonds. These will be those who, without grandiloquent phrases about the teachings of the trinity, the immortality of the soul and other theological interpretations, will discover the essence of true, pure Christianity.
Someone rightly remarked that the history of mankind can be compared to a wheel; and Scripture states: “everything that was written before was written for our instruction…”(Rom. 15:4). In the first century, the denomination did not matter - in which the Jews, for whatever reason, were. It mattered how much each individual strove for honesty in order to adopt not only the law: "do not kill, do not commit adultery, do not steal" - but it should be purity, not having internal malice and wickedness.
At the end of the wicked world, the followers of the Advocate-Christ will also gather all the sincere in heart to the pure, single Truth - the Lord Christ; and it will be the same, regardless of belonging to any denomination. Prophet Zephaniah wrote about this : “Wait therefore for Me, says the Lord, until the day when I arise for desolation, for I have determined to gather the nations, to call kingdoms, to pour out on them my indignation, all the fury of my wrath; for the whole earth shall be devoured by the fire of my jealousy. Then again I will give the nations a clean mouth, so that they all call on the name of the Lord and serve Him with one accord.”(Soph.3:8,9). “That we should no longer be babies, tossed to and fro and carried away by every wind of doctrine, by the craftiness of men, by the cunning art of deceit”(Eph. 4:14).
As we have already mentioned, at the beginning of the 21st century, it should be recognized that Christianity as a whole has not yet been cleansed of lies and delusions. If someone believes that he belongs to the "correct" denomination - and the rest are under the wrath of God - he is greatly mistaken, not understanding the essence of Christianity. No one today can know what the real motives of each of us are. The apostle Paul warned:
“Therefore, judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who will both illuminate the hidden in darkness and reveal the intentions of the heart, and then there will be praise from God to everyone” (1 Corinthians 4:5).
During the sign of the end of the ungodly world, that real division will begin, about which Christ spoke:
“You will also be betrayed by your parents, and brothers, and relatives, and friends, and some of you will be put to death; and you will be hated by all because of my name” (Luke 21:16,17).
The fact that (except for the first century) this prophecy refers specifically to the last days confirms the prophecy of Micah:
“... a son dishonors his father, a daughter rebels against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; a man's enemies are his household. But I will look to the Lord, trust in the God of my salvation: my God will hear me. ... Do not rejoice for me, my enemy! although I fell, I will rise; though I am in darkness, the Lord is my light. I will bear the wrath of the Lord, because I have sinned against Him, until He decides my case and executes judgment on me; then He will bring me into the light, and I will see His truth. And my enemy will see this, and shame will cover her, who said to me: "Where is the Lord your God?" My eyes will see her, how she will be trampled down like dirt in the streets” (Micah 7:6-10).
From the 8th to the 10th verses, they imply the exit of their apostate Christianity, the “harlot”, “Babylon the Great” (Rev. 18:4,5.), which we have already mentioned above. Something similar already happened in the apostate Jerusalem of the first century - compare: Acts 2:40. Luke 21:20-23. Rev. 18:20,21,24.
There will be two reasons for the persecution of true Christians, co-priests of Christ, at the end of the ungodly world.
The first is that “because of the increase of iniquity, the love of many (Christians) will grow cold” (Mat. 24:12). Lawlessness refers to the persecution of Christians by an ungodly ruler from the devil. The prophet Daniel wrote: “At the end of their kingdom, when the apostates fulfill the measure of their iniquities, a king will rise up arrogant and skillful in deceit. And his strength will be strengthened, although not by his strength, and he will produce amazing devastation and succeed and act and destroy the strong and the people of the saints.(Dan. 8:23,24).
To understand the second reason, we must again return to the story of Mary, the mother of Jesus, the wife of Joseph. If you read such passages of Scripture as: Rev.12:1-5,17. Dan.2:34,35. , then it should be concluded that the mother of the Lord is a type of the Kingdom of Heaven, Mount Zion (Rev. 14:1.). AND main point, which I would like to draw attention to, is the situation in which Maria found herself during her so-called "guilt" for pregnancy. The sons of the heavenly kingdom will find themselves in the same position; they will be judged and slandered, accusing them of spiritual fornication and deviation from the "real" Christianity generally accepted by all. But their judgment will be unjust, since they will not understand the hidden essence of what is happening - just as the Pharisees of the first century did not understand, condemning Christ for violating the law on the Sabbath, washing hands, communicating with harlots and tax collectors; likewise, claiming that He is a Galilean impostor (John 7:41,42,52.).
*** He who has ears to hear, let him hear: 1 Corinthians 2:14-16. Matt.18:10,23-35.
So David wrote: “Great is peace among those who love your law, and there is no stumbling block for them”(Ps. 119:165).
The law and essence of Christianity is purity, righteousness and love, which comes from the inner world of each of us - everything else is vanity. No matter how many sacrifices were made (of which many millions were killed before the time of the Redeemer) - everything is vanity ... The temple built in the time of Solomon turned into dust; everything we see will someday disappear - but the essence of Christianity: love for God, His Son and our neighbors, remains forever (1 Corinthians 13:8.). Hurry to do good, knowing what its truth is - only through this, we can become real Christians. May the Heavenly Father grant us this understanding. Amen.
Scriptures for reflection: Tit.3:3-6. Galat.6:1,2. James 5:14-20. (John 10:11; 15:12. Luke 11:23. 1 John 4:20,21.).
(S. Yakovlev).
Religion plays a huge role in the life of society and the state. It compensates for the fear of death with faith in eternal life, helps to find moral, and sometimes material support for the suffering. Christianity, if we talk briefly about religion, is one of the world's religious teachings, which has been relevant for more than two thousand years. In this introductory article, I do not pretend to be complete, but I will definitely name the key points.
Origin of Christianity
Oddly enough, Christianity, like Islam, is rooted in Judaism, or rather in its sacred book - the Old Testament. However, only one person gave a direct impetus to its development - Jesus of Nazareth. Hence the name (from Jesus Christ). Initially, this religion was another monotheistic heresy in the Roman Empire. Christians were persecuted just like that. These persecutions played an important role in the sacralization of Christian martyrs, and Jesus himself.
Once upon a time, when I was studying history at the university, I asked the teacher of Antiquity during the break, and they say, how was Jesus in reality or not? The answer was such that all sources indicate that there was such a person. Well, questions about the miracles that are described in the New Testament, everyone decides for himself whether to believe them or not.
Speaking, abstracting from faith and miracles, the first Christians lived in the form of religious communities on the territory of the Roman Empire. The original symbolism was extremely simple: crosses, fish, etc. Why did this particular religion become a world religion? Most likely, the matter is both the sacralization of the martyrs, in the teaching itself, well, of course, in the policy of the Roman authorities. So she received state recognition only 300 years after the death of Jesus - in 325 at the Council of Nicaea. The Roman Emperor Constantine the Great (himself a pagan) called to peace all Christian currents, of which there were many at that time. What is worth only the Arian heresy, according to which God the father is higher than God the son.
Be that as it may, Constantine understood the unifying potential of Christianity and made this religion the state religion. There are also persistent rumors that, before his death, he himself expressed a desire to be baptized ... All the same, the rulers were smart: they would do something at random until the pagans - and then bam - and before death convert to Christianity. Why not?!
Since then, Christianity has become the religion of all of Europe, and then of a large part of this world. By the way, I recommend a post about.
Fundamentals of Christian Doctrine
- The world was created by God. This is the first position of this religion. It doesn't matter what you think, maybe the Universe and the Earth, and even more so life appeared in the course of evolution, but any Christian will tell you that God created the world. And if he is especially knowledgeable, he can even name the year - 5,508 BC.
- The second position is that a person has a spark of God - a soul that is eternal and does not die after the death of the body. This soul was originally given to people (Adam and Eve) pure and unclouded. But Eve plucked an apple from the tree of knowledge, ate it herself and treated Adam, during which the original sin of man arose. The question arises, why did this tree of knowledge grow at all in Eden? .. But I ask this, because, ultimately, from the kind of Adam)))
- The third proposition is that this original sin was redeemed by Jesus Christ. So all the sins that are now are the result of your sinful life: gluttony, pride, etc.
- Fourth, in order to atone for sins, one must repent, observe church regulations, and lead a righteous life. Then, perhaps, you will earn your place in heaven.
- Fifth, if you lead an unrighteous life, you will perish in hell after death.
- Sixth, God is merciful and forgives all sins if repentance is sincere.
- Seventh - there will be a terrible judgment, the Son of Man will come, arrange Armageddon. And God will separate the righteous from the sinners.
Well, how? Scary? There is, of course, some truth in this. You need to lead a normal life, respect your neighbors and not commit evil deeds. But, as we see, many people call themselves Christians, but behave in the exact opposite way. For example, according to surveys by the Levada Center, in Russia 80% of the population considers themselves Orthodox.
But how I don’t go out: everyone eats shawarma in fasting, and they do all kinds of sinful things. What can you say? Double standarts? Perhaps people who consider themselves Christians are a little hypocritical. It would be better to say that believers, not Christians. Because if you call yourself such, it is assumed that you behave accordingly. How do you think? Write in the comments!
Sincerely, Andrey Puchkov
It is difficult to find a religion that would have such a powerful influence on the fate of mankind, as Christianity did. It would seem that the emergence of Christianity has been studied quite well. An infinite amount of material has been written about this. Church authors, historians, philosophers, representatives of biblical criticism. This is understandable, because it was about the greatest phenomenon, under the influence of which the modern Western civilization actually took shape. However, one of the three world religions still holds many secrets.
emergence
The creation and development of a new world religion has a complicated history. The emergence of Christianity is shrouded in secrets, legends, assumptions and assumptions. Not much is known about the adoption of this doctrine, which today is practiced by a quarter of the world's population (about 1.5 billion people). This can be explained by the fact that in Christianity, much more clearly than in Buddhism or Islam, there is a supernatural principle, belief in which usually gives rise not only to reverence, but also to skepticism. Therefore, the history of the issue was subjected to significant falsifications by various ideologists.
In addition, the emergence of Christianity, its spread was explosive. The process was accompanied by an active religious-ideological and political struggle, which significantly distorted the historical truth. Disputes on this issue continue to this day.
Birth of the Savior
The emergence and spread of Christianity is associated with the birth, deeds, death and resurrection of just one person - Jesus Christ. The basis of the new religion was the belief in the divine Savior, whose biography is given mainly by the Gospels - four canonical and numerous apocryphal ones.
In church literature, the emergence of Christianity is described in sufficient detail, in detail. Let us briefly try to convey the main events captured in the Gospels. They claim that in the city of Nazareth (Galilee), the archangel Gabriel appeared to a simple girl (“virgin”) Mary and announced the forthcoming birth of her son, but not from an earthly father, but from the Holy Spirit (God).
Mary gave birth to this son during the time of the Jewish king Herod and the Roman emperor Augustus in the city of Bethlehem, where she already went with her husband, the carpenter Joseph, to participate in the census. The shepherds, informed by angels, greeted the baby, who received the name Jesus (the Greek form of the Hebrew "Yeshua", which means "God the Savior", "God saves me").
By the movement of the stars in the sky, the eastern sages - the Magi - learned about this event. Following the star, they found a house and a baby, in which they recognized Christ (“the anointed one”, “messiah”), and brought gifts to him. Then the family, saving the child from the distraught King Herod, went to Egypt, returning, settled in Nazareth.
IN Apocryphal Gospels Numerous details are told about the life of Jesus at that time. But the canonical Gospels reflect only one episode from his childhood - a trip to Jerusalem for a feast.
Acts of the Messiah
Growing up, Jesus adopted the experience of his father, became a bricklayer and carpenter, after the death of Joseph, he fed and took care of the family. When Jesus was 30 years old, he met John the Baptist and was baptized in the Jordan River. Subsequently, he gathered 12 apostle disciples (“messengers”) and, going around with them for 3.5 years the cities and villages of Palestine, preached a completely new, peace-loving religion.
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus substantiated the moral principles that became the basis of the worldview of the new era. At the same time, he performed various miracles: he walked on water, resurrected the dead with the touch of his hand (three such cases are recorded in the Gospels), and healed the sick. He could also calm a storm, turn water into wine, “five loaves and two fishes” to feed 5,000 people to their fill. However, it was a difficult time for Jesus. The emergence of Christianity is associated not only with miracles, but also with the suffering that he experienced later.
Persecution of Jesus
No one perceived Jesus as the Messiah, and his family even decided that he "lost his temper," that is, became violent. Only during the Transfiguration did the disciples of Jesus understand his greatness. But the preaching activity of Jesus irritated the high priests who led the Temple in Jerusalem, who declared him a false messiah. After the Last Supper, held in Jerusalem, Jesus was betrayed by one of his followers, Judas, for 30 pieces of silver.
Jesus, like any person, except for divine manifestations, felt pain and fear, so he experienced “passions” with anguish. Captured on the Mount of Olives, he was condemned by the Jewish religious court - the Sanhedrin - and sentenced to death. The verdict was approved by the governor of Rome, Pontius Pilate. During the reign of the Roman emperor Tiberius, Christ was subjected to martyrdom - crucifixion. At the same time, miracles happened again: earthquakes swept, the sun faded, and according to legend, “the coffins were opened” - some of the dead were resurrected.
resurrection
Jesus was buried, but on the third day he resurrected and soon appeared to the disciples. According to the canons, he ascended to heaven on a cloud, promising to return later in order to resurrect the dead, to condemn the acts of everyone at the Last Judgment, to cast sinners into hell for eternal torment, and to raise the righteous to eternal life in "mountainous" Jerusalem, the heavenly Kingdom of God. We can say that from this moment an amazing story begins - the emergence of Christianity. The believing apostles spread the new teaching throughout Asia Minor, the Mediterranean and other regions.
The founding day of the Church was the feast of the descent of the Holy Spirit on the apostles 10 days after the Ascension, thanks to which the apostles were able to preach the new doctrine in all parts of the Roman Empire.
Secrets of history
How the emergence and development of Christianity at an early stage proceeded is not known for certain. We know what the authors of the Gospels, the apostles, told about. But the Gospels differ, and significantly, regarding the interpretation of the image of Christ. In John Jesus is God in human form, the author emphasizes the divine nature in every possible way, and Matthew, Mark and Luke attributed to Christ the qualities of an ordinary person.
The existing gospels are written in Greek, common in the Hellenistic world, while the real Jesus and his first followers (Jewish-Christians) lived and acted in a different cultural environment, communicating in Aramaic, common in Palestine and the Middle East. Unfortunately, not a single Christian document in Aramaic has survived, although early Christian authors mention the Gospels written in this language.
After the ascension of Jesus, the sparks of the new religion seemed to die out, since there were no educated preachers among his followers. In fact, it happened that new faith established throughout the world. According to church views, the emergence of Christianity is due to the fact that humanity, having departed from God and carried away by the illusion of domination over the forces of nature with the help of magic, still sought the path to God. Society, having gone through a difficult path, "ripened" to the recognition of a single creator. Scientists have also tried to explain the avalanche spread of the new religion.
Prerequisites for the emergence of a new religion
Theologians and scientists have been struggling for 2000 years over the phenomenal, rapid spread of a new religion, trying to find out these reasons. The emergence of Christianity, according to ancient sources, was recorded in the Asia Minor provinces of the Roman Empire and in Rome itself. This phenomenon was due to a number of historical factors:
- Strengthening the exploitation of the peoples subordinate and enslaved by Rome.
- The defeat of the rebel slaves.
- Crisis of polytheistic religions in Ancient Rome.
- Social need for a new religion.
The creeds, ideas and ethical principles of Christianity manifested themselves on the basis of certain social relations. In the first centuries of our era, the Romans completed the conquest of the Mediterranean. Subjugating states and peoples, Rome destroyed along the way their independence, the originality of public life. By the way, in this the emergence of Christianity and Islam are somewhat similar. Only the development of the two world religions proceeded against a different historical background.
At the beginning of the 1st century, Palestine also became a province of the Roman Empire. Its inclusion in the world empire led to the integration of Jewish religious and philosophical thought from Greco-Roman. Numerous communities of the Jewish diaspora in different parts of the empire also contributed to this.
Why a New Religion Spread in Record Time
The emergence of Christianity, a number of researchers rank as a historical miracle: too many factors coincided for the rapid, "explosive" spread of the new teaching. In fact, it was of great importance that this trend absorbed a wide and effective ideological material, which served it for the formation of its own dogma and cult.
Christianity as a world religion developed gradually under the influence of various currents and beliefs of the Eastern Mediterranean and Western Asia. Ideas were drawn from religious, literary and philosophical sources. This:
- Jewish messianism.
- Jewish sectarianism.
- Hellenistic syncretism.
- Oriental religions and cults.
- Folk Roman cults.
- emperor cult.
- Mysticism.
- Philosophical ideas.
Fusion of philosophy and religion
Philosophy - skepticism, epicureanism, cynicism, stoicism - had a significant role in the emergence of Christianity. The “middle Platonism” of Philo from Alexandria also had a noticeable influence. A Jewish theologian, he actually went to the service of the Roman emperor. Through an allegorical interpretation of the Bible, Philo sought to merge the monotheism of the Jewish religion (belief in one God) and elements of Greco-Roman philosophy.
No less influenced by the moral teachings of the Roman Stoic philosopher and writer Seneca. He considered earthly life as a threshold to rebirth in the other world. Seneca considered the acquisition of freedom of the spirit through the realization of divine necessity to be the main thing for a person. That is why later researchers called Seneca the "uncle" of Christianity.
Dating problem
The emergence of Christianity is inextricably linked with the problem of dating events. The fact is indisputable - it arose in the Roman Empire at the turn of our era. But when exactly? And where is the grandiose empire that covered the entire Mediterranean, a significant part of Europe, Asia Minor?
According to the traditional interpretation, the origin of the main postulates falls on the years of the preaching activity of Jesus (30-33 AD). Scholars partially agree with this, but add that the doctrine was compiled after the execution of Jesus. Moreover, of the four canonically recognized authors of the New Testament, only Matthew and John were disciples of Jesus Christ, they were witnesses of the events, that is, they were in contact with the direct source of the teaching.
Others (Mark and Luke) have already received some of the information indirectly. It is obvious that the formation of the doctrine was stretched out in time. It is natural. Indeed, after the “revolutionary explosion of ideas” in the time of Christ, an evolutionary process of assimilation and development of these ideas by his disciples began, which gave the teaching a completed look. This is noticeable in the analysis of the New Testament, the writing of which continued until the end of the 1st century. True, there are still various dating of books: the Christian tradition limits the writing of sacred texts to a period of 2-3 decades after the death of Jesus, and some researchers stretch this process until the middle of the 2nd century.
Historically, it is known that the teachings of Christ spread in Eastern Europe in the ninth century. The new ideology came to Russia not from any single center, but through various channels:
- from the Black Sea region (Byzantium, Chersonese);
- because of the Varangian (Baltic) Sea;
- along the Danube.
Archaeologists testify that certain groups of Russians were baptized already in the 9th century, and not in the 10th century, when Vladimir baptized the people of Kiev in the river. Before Kyiv, Chersonese was baptized - a Greek colony in the Crimea, with which the Slavs maintained close ties. The contacts of the Slavic peoples with the population of ancient Taurida were constantly expanding with the development of economic relations. The population constantly participated not only in the material, but also in the spiritual life of the colonies, where the first exiles - Christians - went into exile.
Also possible intermediaries in the penetration of religion into the East Slavic lands could be the Goths, moving from the shores of the Baltic to the Black Sea. Among them, in the 4th century, Christianity was spread in the form of Arianism by Bishop Ulfilas, who owns the translation of the Bible into the Gothic language. The Bulgarian linguist V. Georgiev suggests that the Proto-Slavic words "church", "cross", "Lord" were probably inherited from the Gothic language.
The third way is the Danube one, which is associated with the enlighteners Cyril and Methodius. The main leitmotif of the teachings of Cyril and Methodius was the synthesis of the achievements of Eastern and Western Christianity on the basis of Proto-Slavic culture. Enlighteners created the original Slavic alphabet, translated liturgical and church-canonical texts. That is, Cyril and Methodius laid the foundations of church organization in our lands.
The official date of the baptism of Russia is 988, when Prince Vladimir I Svyatoslavovich massively baptized the inhabitants of Kyiv.
Output
It is impossible to briefly characterize the emergence of Christianity. Too many historical mysteries, religious and philosophical disputes unfold around this issue. However, more important is the idea carried by this teaching: philanthropy, compassion, helping one's neighbor, condemning shameful deeds. It doesn't matter how a new religion was born, what matters is what it brought to our world: faith, hope, love.
Faith of the Saints. Catechism of the Eastern Orthodox Church
Saint Nicholas of Serbia (Velimirovich)
Introduction. About the Christian faith
Chapter 1. The Origin and Sources of the Orthodox Faith
Chapter 2. Christian Orthodox confession of faith
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Introduction. About the Christian faith
What is the essence of the Christian faith?
The Christian faith is based on the fact that Jesus Christ is a witness to the most important mysteries of life and the owner of knowledge about life. People cannot master this knowledge by their own efforts, but comprehend it only by faith in Him.
What are these most important mysteries of being and life, about which only Christ has true knowledge?
The most important mysteries of being and life are these:
The mystery of invisible realities: God, Angels, human soul;
The mystery of the creation of the world and the end of the world;
The mystery of God's providence, leading man and humanity to a specific goal according to His wisdom and omnipotence;
The mystery of the fall of man and his salvation through the incarnation;
The mystery of the Kingdom of God as the ultimate goal of a person's earthly life and the right path leading to this goal.
The mystery of the resurrection from the dead, the Last Judgment and eternal life.
But have any other teachers of faith, thinkers and philosophers tried to explain these mysteries?
Yes, many have tried to find an explanation for these mysteries. However, they relied only on the limited powers of the human mind and their reflections on the world and human nature. All their stubborn attempts to penetrate these secrets ended only in various assumptions and whole theories that contradicted one another.
What, then, is the advantage of knowing Jesus Christ?
The advantage of Christ is that He is an eyewitness. He testifies: I speak what I saw with my Father (John 8:38); and in another place: No one has ascended into heaven, but the Son of Man who came down from heaven, who is in heaven (John 3:13). He said to the teachers of the faith of his time: you are from below, I am from above; you are of this world, I am not of this world (John 8:23). He said to one of the leaders of the Jews: Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know, and testify of what we have seen (John 3:11). Then He repeated once more: I am the bread that came down from heaven (John 6:41). And He said many other things on this subject with the authority of a witness who saw all the secrets of heaven and earth, so people were amazed at His science, for never a man spoke like this Man (John 7:46).
Indeed, and in Everyday life we trust an eyewitness more than some theoretician or philosopher. However, there were other teachers of faith who claimed that they received their teaching from certain angels, but angels are also eyewitnesses of great mysteries. What does it mean?
It is true that sometimes the Lord God sent His angels to individual people to teach them and guide them on the right path. But much more often people experienced false visions, that is, the spirits of evil appeared to them in the guise of angels. However, the situation is different in the case of Jesus Christ. The angels neither taught him nor showed him the way. On the contrary, He Himself ordered the angelic host and cast out evil spirits from people. Angels served Him, and demons trembled in horror before Him.
Should we, then, think that Christianity is superior to all other religions in the world?
The Christian faith should not be compared with other religions and, strictly speaking, should not be called a "religion" in the pagan sense of the word. For it is not one of the various religions, but it is FAITH IN CHRIST AND THE REVELATION OF CHRIST. The Christian faith is a personal, unique and complete revelation of God to people for the sake of their enlightenment and salvation. The Lord God will not give another Revelation until the very end of the world, and one should not expect the coming of another messiah, except Jesus Christ.
How, then, should one regard certain attempts by our contemporaries to equate the Christian faith with all other religions?
These attempts are erroneous, for the blood of the Son of God cannot be equated with the ink of a writer. This is a dangerous experiment, for God cannot be mocked (Gal. 6:7). And although we, as members of the ancient Eastern Church, are indulgent towards every human being, we are strictly forbidden to equate the truth of Revelation, handed down to us by God, with the religions and philosophies created by people.
By what means should attempts be made to equalize the Christian faith with other religions?
First of all, by deepening our knowledge of our Orthodox faith, using faith in everyday life, immersing ourselves in faith to the point of self-forgetfulness, like a scientist who devotes himself to his discovery. Secondly, by wise and noble efforts (by no means by force), helping people to rise from the lowest steps to the heights of our modern faith, and not descend to imperfect beliefs and mix with them for the sake of some kind of agreement.
Why do we call our faith life-giving?
Because FAITH and LIFE are inextricably linked, like cause and effect. The Lord Jesus Christ said: He who believes in the Son has eternal life, but he who does not believe in the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him (John 3:36). In addition, it was said: the righteous will live by faith (Heb. 10:38).
Chapter 1. The Origin and Sources of the Orthodox Faith
Where does our Orthodox faith come from?
From God's Revelation.
From what sources can we draw an understanding of faith or God's Revelation?
From two sources: Holy Scripture and Holy Tradition.
1.1. Holy Bible
What is Holy Scripture?
The collection of sacred books of the Old and New Testaments is called the Holy Scriptures, or the Bible.
Why is Scripture called Holy?
Because the Most Holy Lord our God inspired holy people to create these books and directed their labors in order to teach us a holy life.
What does the word bible mean?
This word is Greek and means books. However, this word is used here not in the sense of "collection", but in the sense of "quality", that is, the meaning of the word refers not to a multitude of books, but to the Book of books, to the top of the pyramid of all books in the world.
1.1.1. Old Testament books
How are the books of the Old Testament divided?
On four groups: books of laws, historical, moralizing and prophetic.
What books of the Old Testament are the books of laws?
These are the five books of Moses, namely:
Genesis is a book about creation;
Exodus - a book about migration;
Leviticus - a book about the clergy and the offering of sacrifices;
Numbers - a book about numbers;
Deuteronomy is a book about the repetition of laws.
What does the book of Genesis teach us?
First of all, it convinces us of the Omnipotence of God and His Wisdom in the creation of the world by the creative Word of God. Secondly, it tells us with what great Love the Lord created man in His own image and likeness. Thirdly, it reminds us of the perfect truth of God, who expelled our forefathers Adam and Eve from Paradise, who, deceived by Satan, turned away ungratefully from their Creator and believed their destroyer, which led to the tragedy of the human race.
What do the laws of the Old Testament teach us?
They show how God taught people through the inevitable law of Truth to prepare them to learn the law of Love through the Savior Jesus Christ.
Which books of the Old Testament are historical?
Book of Joshua, Book of Judges of Israel, Four Books of Kings, Books of Chronicles, First Book of Ezra, Book of Nehemiah, Book of Esther.
What do these historical books teach us?
From them we learn about the active participation in all significant events of God, Who, from the most good intentions, corrects and heals sinful human nature in order to save people from the satanic networks of idolatry and turn them to Himself - the One True and Humanitarian God.
What books of the Old Testament are moralistic?
Book of Job, Psalter, Proverbs of Solomon, Book of Ecclesiastes or Preacher, Song of Songs of Solomon.
What do we learn by reading these moralizing books?
These books teach us how to relate to all sorts of events in everyday life and how to behave on the zigzags of life's roads, without losing sight of the Lord our God and His Commandments under any circumstances.
What books of the Old Testament are prophetic?
Books of the four great prophets: Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel.
The books of the twelve minor prophets: Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Sophronia, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi.
In addition, the Church uses: the Book of Wisdom of Solomon, the Book of Wisdom of Jesus, the son of Sirach.
Is this division of the books of the Old Testament strictly defined?
No, it's not. In the books of laws and prophets one can find many historical facts, and in the books of history there are also prophecies. Among all the books, the Psalter occupies a special place. Although the Book of Psalms is usually classified as a moral book, the Psalms are full of prophecies about Christ. In addition, the Psalter is the best prayer book in the entire Bible.
1.1.2. New Testament books
How many books are in the New Testament?
The New Testament is practically one book, for the whole of it, from the first to the last page, is devoted to one central theme.
What is central theme New Testament?
At the center of the New Testament stands one exceptional person, that is, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
How many small books make up the great book of the New Testament?
The New Testament consists of twenty-seven parts.
Can each of these small parts be called a "book"?
It is possible, judging not by its volume, but by its importance. Among them are the Epistles of the Apostles, containing only one printed page.
What books are included in the New Testament?
1. Four Gospels: from Matthew, from Mark, Luke, from John;
2. Acts of the holy apostles;
3. Seven Epistles of the Council: from James - 1, from Peter - 2, from John - 3, from Jude - 1;
4. Fourteen Epistles of the Apostle Paul;
5. Revelation (Apocalypse) of the Apostle John the Theologian.
What does the word "gospel" mean?
"Gospel" comes from the Greek word evangelion, which means good news, good news.
Why is it so named?
According to the person of Jesus Christ, who is perfect goodness and perfect newness in the history of mankind.
Who first used the word Evangelion in the New Testament?
The Lord Jesus Christ Himself, Who in His first sermon said to people: "Repent and believe in the Gospel" (Mark 1:15).
What do we learn from the Four Gospels?
We learn that all the promises that God made to people in the Old Testament were fulfilled, and that all prophecy, from the days of Adam onwards, was fulfilled in the person of Jesus Christ.
What else does the Four Gospels teach us?
We learn, on the one hand, of the perfect character of Jesus Christ, far more perfect than any of us can imagine; about His nobility and exceptional love for people; about His willingness to forgive and help; about His humility and outward poverty of clothes; about His sacrifice and suffering for the sake of people. In addition, we learn about His perfect divine origin, His supernatural birth, supernatural miracles, supernatural wisdom, power and love, His miraculous resurrection and miraculous ascension.
What else?
In short, from the gospels we learn all the basic truths about our Savior and about salvation.
What would we then call the Gospels compared to the rest of the New Testament?
The Gospels can be called the Books of Fundamental Truths.
What do we learn from the Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles of the Apostles?
We will learn about the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the apostles, about the tireless activity of the apostles in preaching the Good News about Christ, about the organization of the Church, the work of miracles in the name of Jesus Christ, and also learn about the life of the first Christians and Christian communities.
How then could one call the Book of the Acts of the Apostles in comparison with the Gospels?
The Acts of the Apostles could be called a book of practical application of the basic truths contained in the Gospels.
What do we learn from the Epistles of the Apostles?
We find there an explanation of the basic truths contained in the Gospels.
How then should these Epistles be called in comparison with the Gospels?
The Epistles should be called Books explaining the basic truths of the teachings of Jesus Christ.
What do we learn from the book of Revelation of St. Apostle John the Evangelist?
We will learn about the difficult struggle of the Church against all the beasts of light and hell, as well as about the final triumph of Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, about His victory over all the powers of darkness.
How then should the book of Revelation be called in relation to the Gospels?
Revelation of St. John the Evangelist should be called the Book of the final victory of the basic truths contained in the Gospels, which will come to pass at the end of the world drama, the main character of which from the very beginning was Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.
1.2. Holy Tradition
What is Sacred Tradition?
This is all that spiritual heritage that we received from our holy ancestors, which is in perfect agreement with the Holy Scriptures and helps us to understand the Bible correctly.
What is older: Holy Scripture or Holy Tradition?
Holy Tradition.
What is more extensive?
Holy Tradition. The holy evangelist John the Theologian confirms this with the words: Jesus created many other things; but, if we were to write about it in detail, then, I think, the world itself would not contain the books that were written (John 21:25).
What does Sacred Tradition cover in the first place?
Holy Tradition covers:
1. Brief and precise statement of our Orthodox faith;
2. Teaching about the seven holy sacraments and the rites associated with them;
3. Apostolic rules (canons);
4. Rules (canons) of the seven ecumenical councils:
I - Nicaea, A.D. 325, 318 Holy Fathers,
II - Tsargrad, 381 A.D., 150 St. fathers,
III - Ephesus, A.D. 431, 200 St. fathers,
IV - Chalcedon, A.D. 451, St. 630 fathers,
V - Tsargrad, 553 A.D., 160 St. fathers,
VI - Tsargrad, 680 A.D., 170 St. fathers,
VII - Nicaea, A.D. 787, 367 Sts. Fathers.
(These seven ecumenical councils were attended by only about two thousand representatives of the Christian Church from different countries peace).
5. Canons and rules of some local councils;
6. Rules on church discipline of St. Basil the Great and other saints;
7. Creations of the Holy Fathers of the Church;
8. Liturgical books;
9. Lives of Christian saints and martyrs;
10. Customs of faith, signs and symbols as expressions of our faith, hope and love.
Is it possible to separate Sacred Tradition from Sacred Scripture?
No, they are inseparable, for in the light of Sacred Tradition we correctly understand Sacred Scripture, and in the light of Sacred Scripture we value and love Sacred Tradition.
What would be the consequences of separating Sacred Tradition from Sacred Scripture?
The consequences of such a separation are pernicious and are expressed in erroneous interpretations of the Bible, heresies, schisms and, in the end, in the division of the Universal Church.
Who is called to preserve and prevent distortions of the text of Holy Scripture and the purity of Holy Tradition?
The Church, which, according to the apostle Paul, is the pillar and ground of the truth (1 Timothy 3:15). First of all, this is the duty of the church hierarchy.
Chapter 2. Christian Orthodox confession of faith
What is the essence of the Orthodox faith?
The essence of the Christian faith in the confession of the Eastern Orthodox Church is summarized in the Creed.
Are there other patterns of worship besides the Creed?
There are several examples of religion, such as the Apostolic Symbol, the Symbol of St. Athanasius the Great and St. Gregory of Neocaesarea. However, in the Orthodox Church, the Creed drawn up at two Ecumenical Councils is most often used: in Nicaea (325) and in Constantinople (381).
What is the Creed made of?
The Creed consists of twelve members:
1. I believe in one God the Father, Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, visible to all and invisible.
2. And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the only begotten, Who was born from the Father before all ages, Light from Light, God is true from God is true, begotten, not created, consubstantial with the Father, Whom all was;
3. For us, man, and for our salvation, who descended from heaven, and became incarnate from the Holy Spirit and Mary the Virgin, and became human;
4. He was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate, and suffered and was buried;
5. And he rose again on the third day according to the scriptures;
6. And ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of the Father;
7. And the packs of the one to come with glory to be judged by the living and the dead, and His kingdom will have no end;
8. And in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father, who with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified, who spoke the Prophets;
9. In One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church.
10. I confess one baptism for the remission of sins.
11. I look forward to the resurrection of the dead;
12. And the life of the future age. Amen.
2.1. Interpretation of the Creed
2.1.1. First member of the Creed
What is the first term of the Creed?
I believe in one God the Father, Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, visible to all and invisible.
Why do we believe in the only God?
Because only one God is the true God.
What is the very essence of God?
God is spirit, infinite, immutable, unattainable, incomprehensible, eternal, beginningless and boundless.
What are the essential attributes of God?
God is the most holy, all-good, all-righteous, all-powerful, all-wise, many-merciful, long-suffering, omnipresent, omniscient and all-satisfied Spirit.
Why do we call God the Father?
Because He is the father of Jesus Christ, His only begotten Son, and just as much of all those who become His children, having been reborn through Jesus Christ.
Why do we call God the Creator?
Because He created everything visible and invisible by His power and wisdom, and nothing came into being and does not exist without Him. God is the Creator, Creator and Sustainer.
What is meant by heaven?
Heaven is an invisible spiritual world to which an innumerable number of Angels belong.
Who are the Angels?
Angels are incorporeal and invisible spirits.
Are angels like people?
Yes. Like people, Angels are individuals, endowed with reason, feelings, power and a personal name. Like people, they find goodness in God.
How are angels different from humans?
Angels are incorporeal and immortal.
Who are guardian angels?
These are those of the Angels who are charged with the duty to protect and protect each of the people individually. Christ Himself confirmed this with the following words: See that you do not despise any of these little ones; for I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven (Matthew 18:10).
Are all angels the same?
All Angels are the same in nature, but differ in glory, power and their deeds. There are nine angelic ranks: Thrones, Cherubim, Seraphim, Dominions, Forces, Powers, Principles, Archangels and Angels.
What is another name for angels in the Bible?
Very often they are called the Heavenly Host, the Host of the Lord.
Why are they called the army?
Because they are a divine force that opposes evil spirits that are against God and attack people.
Who are the evil spirits?
Evil spirits are angels who have fallen away from God and become enemies of both God and people.
What is another name for evil spirits?
Evil spirits are otherwise called devils.
What does the word devil mean?
It means: slanderer or deceiver. Devils constantly slander God and people.
What evil deeds do the devils incessantly lead people to?
They inspire people with all sinful desires and lead them to evil deeds that are contrary to the Commandments of God, mainly hatred, lies and violence. About this Jesus Christ speaks to the unbelieving Jews, His persecutors: Your father is the devil; and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning and did not stand in the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks his own, for he is a liar and the father of lies (John 8:44).
How do you know if some people are tempted by the devil?
This is evidenced by their hatred of God and people, as well as their malice, deceit and violence.
What are the devils most afraid of?
Name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Whose name do the atheists hate the most?
The name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
2.1.2. The Second Member of the Creed
How is the second term of the Creed read?
And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the only begotten, Who was born from the Father before all ages, Light from Light, God is true from God is true, begotten, not created, consubstantial with the Father, Whom all was;
What does the name Jesus Christ mean?
Jesus means Savior, for He came to save people from Satan, sin and death. Christ means the Anointed One (as Kings, High Priests and Prophets have been called since ancient times).
How do you know that Jesus is the Son of God?
This should be understood in such a way that He alone is the Son of God, born from the being of God the Father, and not created by God.
Is there a big difference between the words "begotten" and "created"?
Yes, very big. Just as a person gives birth to his child of the same nature, but, at the same time, can create, for example, a mechanism that is of a different nature, so God gave birth to His Son from His eternal being, and therefore the Son of God is endowed with the same Divine nature from God the Father. But God also created countless animals and objects that do not have a divine essence.
Why is the Son of God called Light from Light?
God the Father is the eternal Light of wisdom and love, so it is logical that the Son, born of such a Father, is Light from Light.
What do the words mean: God is true from God is true?
The Son of God is called God in the same true sense like God the Father. Jesus Himself confirmed this by saying: I and the Father are one (John 10:30).
Why do we say: What is the whole bysha?
God the Father created everything in heaven and on earth by His Son, which the Bible confirms: Everything came into being through Him, and without Him nothing came into being that came into being (John 1:3).
2.1.3. The Third Member of the Creed
How is the third term of the Creed read?
For us, man, and for our salvation, who descended from heaven, and became incarnate from the Holy Spirit and Mary the Virgin, and became human;
Why did the Son of God descend from heaven, that is, from His eternal glory and bliss, descended into this world of suffering?
He came down for the people and for their salvation.
For what reason did He leave heaven? What prompted him to do this?
His mercy and boundless love for people.
He came to earth for the sake of all people?
Yes, He came to offer salvation to all the people of the earth. However, only those who believed in him and who responded to his love with their love were saved.
What do the words mean: incarnated of the Holy Spirit and Mary the Virgin?
Incarnated means that the Son of God took on human flesh. The Blessed Virgin Mary conceived Him in a supernatural way, miraculously, when the Holy Spirit descended on Her.
How could it happen that the Virgin gave birth to a Son without knowing a husband?
To Almighty God all things are possible. By His power He created at the beginning of the first man and woman, Adam and Eve. So here too, the power of the Most High overshadowed Her, and the Virgin Mary conceived Jesus Christ, a perfect Man and a perfect God.
In what way is Jesus Christ the same as other people?
He had a body and soul like any other person, but he was without sin. He was a perfect man, a man without sin or blemish.
How is Jesus Christ different from all other people in the history of the earth?
In one His personality two natures, Divine and human, were united. People are people, and He was the God-man.
Why do we call the Blessed Virgin Mary the Mother of God, the Theotokos?
Because the two natures of our Savior, divine and human, were united at the very conception. So God and man were born at the same time from Her in one person.
Why do we call the Virgin Mother of God?
Because She was and remains the Virgin before birth, at the time of birth and after the birth of Jesus Christ; She remained forever the Virgin.
Does the Orthodox Church venerate the Mother of God as a Saint?
Yes, She is revered above all other Saints, and even above the Angels, for God chose Her to be an instrument for the salvation of mankind through the birth of the Savior.
ByWhy do we call Jesus Christ the Savior?
Because He came down from heaven to save people from Satan, sin and death, for Satan caused sin, and after sin came death.
When did the first sin happen?
In Paradise, when Adam and Eve transgressed the commandment of God and submitted to Satan.
How are other people related to Adam's sin?
All people have inherited that sin from their first ancestors. We inherited sin from our ancestors of the human race, just as we inherit hereditary diseases from our parents.
Was that first sin the only one when Jesus came to save people?
No, countless other sins were added to that first sin, and people under their burden completely fell under the power of Satan.
Why didn't God exalt some person, a genius, to the accomplishment of the mission of Jesus Christ, in order to thereby spare His Son?
Because all people were sinful and mortal, even the greatest and the best. The whole world lay in sin. Satan and death ruled the world until the only almighty Savior came down from heaven, sinless and immortal, stronger than Satan, who brought liberation and salvation to the human race.
2.1.4. Fourth Article of the Creed
What is the fourth term of the Creed?
Crucified for us under Pontius Pilate, and suffered and was buried.
Who slandered and condemned Jesus Christ?
The Jewish elders and Pharisees, who envied Christ, because the people were more attracted to Him, who worked great miracles, but they could not do it.
Who was the judge that condemned Jesus Christ to death?
Pontius Pilate, Roman governor of Palestine, representative of the Roman emperor.
Why is the name of Pontius Pilate specially emphasized?
To historically confirm the moment of the death of Jesus Christ. In the same way, the Emperor Augustus is mentioned in the Gospel parable about His birth.
For what sin or crime did Pilate condemn Christ to death?
Not for any. Pilate personally confirmed before the elders and the people of Judea: I do not find any fault in this man (Luke 23:4). Then he said again: I examined in your presence and did not find this man guilty of anything of which you accuse Him (Luke 23:14). Then he repeated a third time: I bring Him out to you, so that you may know that I find no fault in Him (John 19:4). However, fearing the Jews, who shouted: if you let Him go, you are not a friend of Caesar (John 19:12), Pilate handed Him over to the Jews to be crucified.
How could the Lord God allow Jesus to die such a cruel death, being completely innocent?
Jesus died not because of his sin, but because of our sins. The eternal righteousness of God made such an innocent and priceless sacrifice for the atonement of Adam's sin and our sins.
Was such a huge sacrifice necessary?
Yes. With this sacrifice, the Lord God showed His boundless love for people: He (God) loved us and sent His Son as a propitiation for our sins (1 John 4:10).
Why do we call Jesus Christ the Redeemer?
Because Jesus Christ, by His suffering and His death on the Cross, atoned for our sin and delivered us from damnation and death.
How could He die, being an immortal God?
He died not as God, but as a man. His Divine essence and His soul never experienced death.
What is the uniqueness and greatness of the sacrifice of Christ?
First, in His absolute innocence; secondly, in His boundless love for people and His obedience to the will of the Father; and thirdly, in His voluntary desire to die for sinners in order to save them.
2.1.5. The Fifth Article of the Creed
What does the fifth member of the Creed sound like?
And resurrected on the third day according to the scriptures;
What event was the greatest victory of Christ?
His resurrection from the dead.
What has most confirmed that He is God Almighty?
Again, His resurrection from the dead.
What event testifies to the victory of Christ over Satan?
His descent into hell.
What is hell?
The kingdom of pitch darkness, where Satan owns the power of death. Christ was able by His death to deprive him of the power of the one who has the power of death (Heb. 2:14), that is, the devil.
Why did Jesus Christ descend into hell?
By His descent into hell He caused Satan to tremble and flee from His face. Myriads of human souls, languishing there, He gladdened His coming.
What did Jesus Christ do for human souls suffering in hell?
He preached His gospel - the good news of victory over death and confirmed His victory over Satan and over death. And after many believed Him, they were saved.
When did the resurrection of Jesus Christ take place?
On the third day after His death, that is, exactly as He foretold His disciples many times. Jesus Christ died on Friday and rose again on Sunday.
Who was the first to know about the resurrection of Jesus Christ?
Soldiers who were ordered by the Jews to guard His tomb.
Who did they inform about the resurrection of Jesus Christ?
Jewish chief priests and elders.
How did the elders and high priests react to this news?
They were afraid and worried, bribed the guards, giving them enough money, and ordered to announce to everyone that His disciples, having come at night, stole Him while we were sleeping (Mt. 28:13).
Which of the worshipers of Jesus Christ was the first to know about His resurrection?
Women who followed Him from Galilee. The angels who appeared before them at His tomb said: why are you looking for the living among the dead? He is not here: He is risen (Luke 24:5-6).
How and to whom did Jesus Christ irrefutably prove that He had risen from the dead?
He proved that He was alive bodily to His disciples and followers, and not once, but many times, for forty days, appearing to them alive, as evidenced by the Gospels, the Acts of the Apostles, the Epistles of the Apostles and Revelation.
What did Jesus Christ do during the 40 days from His resurrection to His ascension to heaven?
For forty days He continued to speak to His disciples about the greatest mysteries of the Kingdom of God.
Why is it said that Jesus Christ was resurrected on the third day according to Scripture?
Because there were prophetic words about His resurrection even in the Old Testament (for example, Ps.15:9-10; Is.53). Jesus Christ Himself compared Himself with the prophet Jonah, saying: as Jonah was in the whale's belly for three days and three nights, so the Son of Man will be in the heart of the earth for three days and three nights (Matt. 12:40). And once again, after His resurrection, He said to the apostles: thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for Christ to suffer, and rise from the dead on the third day (Luke 24:46).
2.1.6. The sixth member of the Creed
What is the sixth term of the Creed?
And ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of the Father;
When did the Lord ascend from earth to heaven?
Forty days after His resurrection.
What do we call this day?
Ascension Day.
Where did the Lord ascend to heaven?
From the Mount of Olives.
Who witnessed His ascension?
All His faithful disciples.
Why did the Lord ascend to heaven?
Because He completed His service to people and after that ascended to His eternal abode.
Did he ascend to heaven in human form?
Yes, in the guise of a real person whose body has risen from the dead.
Why was His ascension visible to many witnesses?
To convince all those who believe in Him that they will also ascend to heaven after the general resurrection of the dead.
What is the meaning of the words: sits at the right hand of the Father?
This means that Jesus Christ has the same majesty, glory and authority with God the Father. Before His ascension, He confirmed this to His disciples, saying: All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me (Matthew 28:18).
2.1 .7. The Seventh Article of the Creed
What is the seventh clause of the Creed?
And the packs of the one to come with glory will be judged by the living and the dead, and His kingdom will have no end;
What does the seventh article of the Creed teach us?
It says:
about the future coming of Christ;
about His future judgment on the living and the dead;
about the fulfillment of His eternal Kingdom of Heaven.
Will the second coming of Christ be different from the first?
The second coming will be completely different. At His first advent He was humble, ready to serve people and suffer for them. And the second time He will come in His majesty and glory to judge people, living and dead.
How does He Himself speak of His second coming?
He said: when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory, and all nations will be gathered before him; and separate one from the other, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats (Matthew 25:31-32). And after that He will judge the righteous and sinners according to their deeds.
Is there any description of His second coming?
There are several. For example, the Apostle Paul, comforting those who mourn for their dead, says: The Lord Himself, with an announcement, with the voice of the Archangel and the trumpet of God, will descend from heaven, and the dead in Christ will rise first (1 Thess. 4:16).
Is there any other evidence from heaven about His second coming?
There is. At His ascension, two angels appeared who said to the apostles: why are you standing and looking at heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven (Acts 1:11).
What else is revealed to us about the final judgment?
Christ Himself said that when He returns in His power and glory, He will reward everyone according to his deeds (Matthew 16:27).
What will He then say to the believers and the virtuous?
Then the King will say...come, you blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world (Matthew 25:34).
And what will He say to unbelievers and sinners?
Depart from Me, cursed, into eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels (Mt. 25:41).
And what will happen at the end?
The virtuous will receive eternal life and bliss, while the sinners will receive eternal torment.
What will be the second coming of the Lord?
Lightning fast! As lightning comes from the east and is visible even to the west, so will the coming of the Son of Man (Mt. 24:27).
When will the second coming, and the terrible Judgment, and the end of the world?
We do not know the time of these amazing events. Only our Lord reminded us that we should always be ready to meet Him: therefore, be ready too, for at what hour you do not think, the Son of Man will come (Matt. 24:44).
How to prepare for this terrible day?
Right thinking, right feelings and righteous deeds done according to His science, according to the advice of the Church and following the example of the Saints of God.
Did Jesus Christ mention any signs that speak of the approaching end of the world?
Yes. He mentioned that such signs would be: wars, revolutions, earthquakes, riots, famine, plague, slavery, false prophets, betrayals, increasing hatred and decreasing love, strange signs in the sky, pictures of terrible disasters, enmity between peoples, and so on.
Do we believe that Jesus Christ will overcome all these adversities?
We firmly believe. In all these troubles and tribulations, our Lord and Savior will win all saved souls, as He foresaw at the beginning of the drama of the world. None of those who believe in Him and call on His name will perish.
2.1.8. The Eighth Article of the Creed
What is the eighth clause of the Creed?
And in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, Who proceeds from the Father, who with the Father and the Son is worshiped and glorified, who spoke to the Prophets;
Why is the Holy Spirit called Lord?
He is called so with full right, just as God the Father and the Son of God are called Lord.
Is the Holy Spirit God?
Of course, God, the True God is from the true God, only He is not born from the Father, like the Son, but proceeds from the Father.
How then can we say that we believe in one God?
We really believe in one God, the great mystery about Whom Christ has revealed to us. He revealed to us the secret of the complete harmony of the three Divine hypostases of one and the same being of God. Therefore, we speak of the Triune God, or the Holy Trinity, as one God.
Did the Lord reveal Himself in the Old Testament as the Most Holy Trinity?
Not entirely clear. The prophet Isaiah in his vision heard the seraphim sing of God on the throne: Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord of hosts (Is.6:3). The thrice-repeated word holy corresponds to the three hypostases of God.
Why didn't the Lord reveal Himself in the Old Testament as the Most Holy Trinity?
Just as a person does not open his soul to servants and strangers, but confides his innermost secrets to his children, so God revealed the secret of His being not to "alien" people who were servants and slaves of the Law, but delayed the Revelation for His children, children of Love proclaimed in the New Testament.
To what extent is the mystery of the Holy Trinity revealed in the New Testament?
Only as much as a person can accommodate, being in his body. Archangel Gabriel announced to the Blessed Virgin: The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore, the holy being born will be called the Son of God (Luke 1:35). Therefore, the whole Trinity is mentioned here: the Spirit, the Father and the Son.
Is there another example?
There is another. During the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan, the sky opened, and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form, like a dove, and there was a voice from heaven, saying: You are My Beloved Son; in you I am well pleased (Luke 3:21-22).
Is there still?
The holy Evangelist John clearly points out: for there are three that testify in heaven: the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are one (1 John 5:7). By the Word, the apostle John means the Son and speaks of this in his Gospel: And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; and we have seen his glory as of the only begotten of the Father (John 1:14).
And another example?
The Lord Jesus Christ commanded His disciples: Go, make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit (Matt. 28:19).
Why is the Removed Spirit called Life-Giving?
Because there is no real life without the Holy Spirit, neither in heaven nor on earth.
Why does the Orthodox Church teach that the Holy Spirit proceeds only from the Father (as opposed to the non-Orthodox who claim that the Holy Spirit proceeds from both the Father and the Son)?
Because the Orthodox Church thinks logically and believes that God knows about Himself better than people know about Him. And our Lord God Jesus Christ, who announced the mystery of the Divine essence, revealed to His disciples about the Holy Spirit, that the Spirit proceeds from the Father, saying: The Spirit of truth, which proceeds from the Father, He will testify about Me (John 15:26).
Why is it said that the Holy Spirit spoke through the mouth of the prophets?
Because it is an indisputable fact. The Holy Apostle Peter writes: no prophecy in Scripture can be solved by oneself. For prophecy was never uttered by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke it, being moved by the Holy Spirit (2 Pet. 1:20-21).
Were the Apostles also inspired and moved by the Holy Spirit?
Certainly! However, there is no mention of the Apostles in the Creed, because no one doubted this when the Creed was drawn up. Only the Prophets are mentioned, because at that time heretics denied the fact that the Old Testament was created by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.
Has the Holy Spirit ever appeared in visible form?
He appeared in the form of a dove at the baptism of Jesus. In addition, He appeared in the guise of tongues of fire and descended on the Apostles on the day of the Spirits, on the fiftieth day after the Resurrection of Christ.
Can any Christian become a partaker of the Holy Spirit?
A true Christian can, for this follows from the words of Jesus Christ, full of reproach: If you, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the Heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him (Luke 11:13). The holy apostle Paul wrote: Do you not know that you are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? (1 Corinthians 3:16)
What gifts do we receive when we are worthy of the Holy Spirit?
All kinds of gifts of virtue: wisdom, understanding, knowledge, fear of God, courage, modesty, piety and others.
How can one be worthy of the Holy Spirit and His gifts?
Through strict control of one's heart and tongue; through earnest prayer and love; through the sacraments.
2.1.9. The ninth article of the Creed
What does the ninth member of the Creed sound like?
Into One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church.
What is the Church?
The Church is absolutely special society people throughout the history of mankind, for in essence this is the family of God, created by the Word and Blood of Jesus Christ and led by God the Father and inspired by the Holy Spirit.
What did Christ say about the Church?
Jesus Christ said: I will build My Church, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it (Matthew 16:18).
Who is the head of the Church?
The ever-living Christ, Who said: I am with you all the days until the end of the age (Matt. 28:20). And the Apostle Paul said how the Heavenly Father glorified His Son Jesus Christ and made Him above all things, the head of the Church, which is His Body (Eph. 1:22-23).
What is the relationship between Christ and the members of His Church?
The apostle Paul expressed this quite clearly in his words: you are collectively the body of Christ, but individually you are members (1 Corinthians 12:27).
Who are members of the Church?
People, men and women, all those who are united by the true faith, the same hope, are bound by one God's Law of love, sanctified by the same Holy Mysteries, and which are led by bishops and clergy.
How is the Church different from all other secular public organizations?
Attitude towards its members, for even the dead remain members of the Church, which is not the case in any secular organization.
How?
When a member of the Church finishes his life path on earth, he parted only with his body, but did not part with the Church. His soul goes to the Heavenly Church. That is why there are two wings of the Church: the visible Church and the invisible Church.
Who belongs to the visible Church?
All those Christians who live on earth in visible bodies and struggle for Christian perfection.
Who belongs to the invisible Church?
All those Christians who have died in true faith in Christ over the past twenty centuries, as well as the Old Testament righteous, whom the Lord saved during His descent into hell.
Do our dead parents, brothers, sisters, children, relatives and friends belong to the invisible Church?
Of course, but on the condition that they lived and died as Christians.
Which of the Churches is more numerous: visible or invisible?
The Invisible Church is much more numerous, and the number of its members is constantly growing.
Is there a connection between the visible Church, who is on earth, and the invisible Church, who is in heaven?
Exists. We seek the help of the Saints who belong to the heavenly Church.
What is this connection?
In the prayers of the living members of the Church for the dead and in works of mercy, on the one hand, and in the prayers and cares of the dead for the living, on the other hand.
What are the main features of Christ's Church?
The Church of Christ is one, holy, universal and apostolic.
Why do we say that the Church is one?
Because it represents a single spiritual body, the head of which is Jesus Christ, with the single Holy Spirit dwelling in it. The Apostle Paul, speaking of the sevenfold unity of the Church, said: one body and one spirit... one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all (Eph. 4:4-6).
How is it to be understood that there are independent Churches in the one Orthodox Church?
The independence of private Churches, that is, parts of the one Universal Church, is expressed in the use of the language of their people or in some external differences that are subject to Canonical rules. In other words, these Churches are members of the single body of the Ecumenical Church, and they, like the branches of one tree, feed on the same juices from one root.
What independent churches exist in the Orthodox Church?
Constantinople, Jerusalem, Alexandria, Antioch, Hellas, Cyprus, Sinai, Serbian, Bulgarian, Russian, Romanian, Georgian, Albanian, Polish, Czech lands and Slovakia.
Are they the same among themselves?
They are related, therefore they are called Sister Churches. In addition, the Russian and Balkan Churches call the Church of Constantinople the Mother Church, because they adopted Christianity from Constantinople.
Who Governs the Eastern Orthodox Church?
The Ecumenical Council, which consists of representatives of all independent Sister Churches.
Who leads the local churches?
Patriarch, Metropolitan or Archbishop with a Council of Bishops.
Can a person be saved without the Church?
No, it cannot, for the Church is the sacristy of God's grace, without which no one can be saved, just as a hand cut off from the body cannot live.
Why is the Church called holy?
Because it is sanctified by the holiness of its Founder, Jesus Christ, by His holy Word, works, sacrifice and suffering for the sole purpose of saving people and bringing them to holiness. In addition, the Church has given and is constantly giving many new saints and even more martyrs.
What does the Bible say about the holiness of the Church?
Here is one example: Christ loved the Church and gave Himself for her in order to sanctify her, having cleansed her with a bath of water through the word; to present her to Himself as a glorious Church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or anything like that, but that she might be holy and blameless (Eph. 5:25-27).
Do the sinners who belong to her defame the Church?
Sinners defame themselves, and not the whole Church, just as smoke from a chimney cannot pollute the entire air of the earth.
ByCan the Church reform sinners?
Helps a lot. This is the very important task of the Church - the cleansing of sinners from their sins in order to make them righteous members of the holy family of God.
What does the Church do with sinners who stubbornly refuse to come to repentance?
The Church cuts off unrepentant sinners from her body like dead members. The Lord said this: if he who has sinned does not listen to the church, then let him be to you as a pagan (Matthew 18:17).
Why is the Church called universal?
Because it is not limited by place, time, people, or language. It appeals to all mankind. The resurrected Lord sent His apostles to teach all nations.
Why else is the Church called universal?
It is also called Universal because it includes all the truths and all the means necessary for the salvation of every human soul in the whole world.
ByWhy is the Church called Apostolic?
Because the spirit, teaching and works of the Apostles of Christ are fully preserved in the Church.
Should the Church be subordinate to the Apostles in everything?
Must obey in everything.
Why?
Because Christ Himself chose the apostles and endowed them with the power to speak and work in His name. In parting words, He said to them: You will testify, because from the beginning you are with Me (John 15:27).
Should we obey the Apostles as we obey Jesus Christ?
They must, for He said to the apostles: He who receives you, receives Me (Mt. 10:40). Even more than that, He threatened the cities that would not receive the apostles with threatening words: Truly I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city (John 10:15).
What special authority did the Lord give to His apostles?
The power to bind and loose from sin. Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven (Matthew 18:18). And it was also said on the same occasion: to whom you forgive sins, they will be forgiven, to whom you leave, they will remain (John 20:23).
What is apostolic succession?
This is the preservation by the legal hierarchy of the Church of the teachings of the apostles and the acceptance of the grace of the gifts of the Holy Spirit and their transmission through an uninterrupted chain of church authority from apostles to bishops, from bishops to priests and deacons through ordination.
Has our ancient Orthodox Church preserved the apostolic succession?
Yes, I did.
Of course. We should be grateful to God and our parents for this.
2.1.10. Tenth Article of the Creed
What does the tenth member of the Creed sound like?
I confess one baptism for the remission of sins.
What is baptism?
This is the solemn holy Sacrament through which we become legal members of the Church.
How many Sacraments are there in the Orthodox Church?
Seven: 1. Baptism; 2. Chrismation; 3. Communion; 4. Repentance; 5. Priesthood; 6. Marriage; 7. Unction.
Why is only the sacrament of Baptism mentioned in the Creed?
First of all, because through the holy sacrament of Baptism we receive grace as newborn children of God in order to become Christians. Only then are we allowed to proceed to all the other sacraments for the sake of our spiritual growth.
Is there any other reason?
There is a reason, and it is that at the time of the compilation of the Creed, disputes broke out between the Orthodox Church Fathers and some heretics on the issue of the sacrament of Baptism, and there were no disputes about other sacraments.
Why do we say one baptism?
Because the sacrament of Baptism is performed on one person only once and cannot be repeated. Physically, we are born only once, so spiritual birth can only happen once.
2.1.11. Eleventh Article of the Creed
What does the eleventh member of the Creed sound like?
I tea the resurrection of the dead;
What does the resurrection of the dead mean here?
This means that God, by His will, will make immortal not only our souls, but also our bodies. Therefore, any immortal soul will acquire his immortal body according to his deeds.
What are the bodies?
According to the Apostle Paul, there is a spiritual body, and there is also a spiritual body (1 Corinthians 15:44).
After the resurrection, will the dead rise in the same bodies in which they were buried?
No, for the bodies of the dead are corruptible. They will be resurrected in spiritual bodies that are immortal and incorruptible.
Like GoWill God raise the dead?
By His Word, just like He created the world with His Word, just like He resurrected the dead girl, and the dead young man, and Lazarus with His word. The same thing will happen in the event of a general resurrection: the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and, having heard, will live (John 5:25).
What will happen to the living at the time of the resurrection of the dead?
Their bodies will instantly change and become spiritual and immortal, but in accordance with their deeds and disposition.
When will the general resurrection of the dead take place?
At the end of the world, when the Lord God considers that the number of the saved and the elect has been fulfilled.
In what state are the souls of the dead before the general resurrection?
In the state that corresponds to their deeds during their stay in their bodies on earth, that is, either in a state of anticipation of eternal bliss, or in a state of anticipation of eternal torment.
By what judgment is the soul condemned to temporary bliss or temporary torment?
The so-called separate, preliminary court.
When is there a separate trial?
immediately after the death of the individual.
At what judgment will it be decided what awaits the soul: eternal bliss or eternal torment?
At the last general judgment, which is also called the Last Judgment.
When will the Last Judgment be?
At the end of the world, after the resurrection of the dead.
What is the difference between the individual judgment and the final judgment?
At a separate judgment, only the souls of individuals are judged, and at the universal final judgment both souls and bodies will be judged together.
Why do not the souls of the righteous immediately receive eternal bliss in the Kingdom of Heaven after leaving this life?
Because they will wait for all of us, the rest, whom they always remember and for whom they always passionately stand up.
And for what reason?
They are waiting to be reunited with their resurrected bodies. Many human beings in the Kingdom of Heaven will differ from many Angels in that they will have spiritual bodies, while Angels are completely incorporeal.
2.1.12. The twelfth article of the Creed
What is the twelfth term of the Creed?
And the life of the next century.
What do the words life of the next century mean?
This is the life that begins after our death and resurrection.
What will be the life of the righteous in the next age?
true and full life in union with God and with the heavenly family of God; a life of crystal purity and divine glory, eternal light and joy.
What did Jesus Christ say about the righteous in the age to come?
Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the Kingdom of their Father (Matthew 13:43).
Will all the righteous receive equal blessings and equal glory?
Despite the fact that a blessed life will come for all the righteous, they will differ, as the sun differs from the moon and the stars from one another: the glory of the sun is different, the glory of the moon is different, the stars are different; and star differs from star in glory (1 Corinthians 15:41).
Why does God, the All-Merciful and Longsuffering, not save the criminals and atheists who persist in sin?
Because they don't want to be saved. They reject the call of God, despise the cross of Christ, oppose God's Law, do not believe the Truth, but rejoice in iniquity, oppress the Church and persecute believers; in a word, they are on the side of Satan against God and never repent.
Can sinners repent after death?
No, they can't. Only in this world can people choose who to be: voluntary servants of Christ or Satan. After death, they will join their master, whom they chose and followed in their earthly life. The Lord Jesus Christ said to His servants: where I am, there my servant will be also (John 12:26).
Chapter 3
What is the Holy Sacrament?
The Holy Mystery is a visible sacrament through which the invisible saving power, which is called God's grace brings miraculous gifts to those who receive them.
What is God's grace?
God's grace is those gifts of God that God the Father gives through the Holy Spirit, but according to the merits of the Son.
What are these gifts?
These are all kinds of grace gifts necessary for our rebirth, sanctification and salvation.
Is it true that we are saved only by God's grace?
Yes, if we voluntarily accept God's grace with faith, which is expressed through good works.
How many holy sacraments are there in the Orthodox Church?
There are only seven of them: Baptism, Confirmation, Communion, Repentance, Priesthood, Marriage and Unction.
Which Holy Sacraments can be repeated and which cannot?
The sacraments cannot be repeated: Baptism, Confirmation and Priesthood. The rest are possible.
3.1. Holy Mystery of Baptism
What is the sacrament of Baptism?
Baptism is a Sacrament in which the believer is cleansed of all sins, inherited and personal, and, like a newborn child, enters the Church of Christ.
What is the most important thing in the sacrament of Baptism?
Three times immersion in water in the name of the Most Holy Trinity: the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit with the corresponding prayers of the priest.
Why do we believe that baptism is necessary for any member of the Church?
First, Jesus Christ, by His own example, sanctified Baptism. Secondly, we must adhere to His commandment given to His disciples: go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit (Matt. 28:19). Thirdly, we must remember His stern reminder: unless one is born of water and the Spirit, one cannot enter the Kingdom of God (John 3:5).
What is the significance of being immersed in water three times and emerging from the water at Baptism?
Three times immersion means death to sins against the Holy Trinity, and three times the emergence from the water symbolizes rebirth to life in God.
What three things does the priest require of the baptized person?
Renunciation of Satan, repentance and acceptance of Orthodoxy according to the Creed.
When babies are baptized, who on their behalf vouches for renunciation of Satan, repentance and true faith?
For babies, these words are pronounced by the godfather, or godfather.
What are the duties of a godfather (godfather)?
The godfather (godfather) must educate and teach his godson the true faith.
What reverence is godfather(kumu)?
Orthodox Christians greatly revere godfathers, considering them spiritual godparents.
Why is it necessary to baptize infants?
Firstly, out of fear that if the child dies unbaptized, he will be excluded from the Christian family and therefore appear among the atheists at the Last Judgment. Secondly, because the apostles baptized children. Thirdly, the Lord Jesus Christ Himself loved children very much and demanded: let the children come to Me (Mark 10:14).
How should one treat parents who, due to their irresponsibility, allow an infant to die unbaptized?
Like murderers of their own children.
What should be done if the baby is very sick and there is no priest?
In such an exceptional case, the Church allows any Orthodox, man or woman, to conduct the rite of baptism in the shortest possible way, that is, immerse the child in water three times, while saying the words: “The servant of God (name) is baptized in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen ". If the baby survives, later on the parish priest must complete Baptism and perform Confirmation.
3.2. Holy Mystery of Chrismation
What is Chrismation?
Confirmation is such a sacrament through which a baptized person receives the gifts of the Holy Spirit, strengthening and making him wiser, helping him to keep the true faith and live in chastity.
How is this sacrament performed on baptized people?
The priest anoints certain parts of the body of a baptized person with holy myrrh, while pronouncing the words: "The seal of the gift of the Holy Spirit. Amen"
Where are these words taken from?
From the Epistle of the Apostle Paul, where it is said: He who confirms us with you in Christ and anointed us is God, Who also sealed us and gave the pledge of the Spirit in our hearts (2 Corinthians 1:21-22).
Why is the forehead anointed first?
To sanctify the mind to reflect on God and His teachings.
What does the anointing of the breast mean?
To sanctify the heart for the love of God.
Why anoint the eyes?
To sanctify them to see the grace of God in every creature.
Why anoint the ears?
To sanctify them to hear the word of God.
Why anoint the cheeks?
To consecrate them to express joy at good deeds and shame for sins.
Why anoint the mouth?
To sanctify them for the glorification of the Lord God and that they always speak truthfully and well-behaved.
What are the hands anointed for?
To sanctify them for good and noble deeds before God.
Why anoint the feet?
To sanctify them and guide the Christian along the true path leading to the Kingdom of God.
How can all this be summarized?
To sanctify a person as a whole, his soul and his body, his deeds and his behavior, so that he becomes holy, as God is holy.
Is it correct to perform the Sacrament of Confirmation immediately after Baptism?
That's right, because it says so in the Holy Scriptures, and in the Holy Tradition. Baptism with water symbolizes cleansing, and chrismation means sanctification by the Holy Spirit. Read: 1 John 2:20-27; 2 Corinthians 1:21-22; Acts 7:14-16 and also Exodus 29:4-7. It follows from the Bible that one sacrament is not separated from another.
Who performs the sacrament of chrismation?
The priest, however, not without the participation of the bishop in this sacrament. Bishops prepare and sanctify the holy chrism, without which a priest cannot perform the sacrament of chrismation.
Does the Old Testament speak of anointing, which became a type of the sacrament of chrismation?
Yes, they say. In ancient times, kings were anointed to be kings. This is stated in 1 Sam. 10:1; 16:13. At present, all Christians are anointed, for Christ has made us kings and priests to God and His Father (Rev. 1:6).
3.3. Holy Mystery of Communion
What is Communion?
Communion is a sacrament in which a believing Christian, under the guise of bread and wine, receives the very Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Who established the sacrament of Communion?
Our Lord Jesus Christ for the first time made the communion of His disciples at the Last Supper, on the eve of His suffering and death.
How did Jesus Christ give communion to the Apostles?
This is stated in the Gospel: And while they were eating, Jesus took bread, and having blessed it, broke it, and, distributing it to the disciples, said: Take, eat: this is My body. And taking the cup and giving thanks, he gave it to them and said: drink from it all, for this is My Blood of the New Testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins (John 26:26-28).
During which divine service is the sacrament of Communion prepared and performed in the church?
During the most important church service, which is called the Divine Liturgy.
Why is the Divine Liturgy more important than all other church services?
Because it reveals the whole drama of the life of Jesus Christ from His Nativity to His Ascension to heaven.
What moment of the Divine Liturgy is the most important?
The transubstantiation of bread and wine performed by a bishop or priest.
Why is the sacrament of Communion celebrated in the church all the time?
Because Jesus Christ commanded so: Do this in remembrance of Me (Luke 22:19).
Why is communion necessary?
Because our eternal life depends on it. Jesus Christ said: Whoever eats My Flesh and drinks My Blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day (John 6:54).
What are the consequences of not taking the sacrament?
In this case, we are in mortal danger, for the Lord said quite clearly: unless you eat the Flesh of the Son of Man and drink His Blood, you will not have life in you (John 6:53).
How should one prepare for the sacrament of Communion?
Fasting and prayer, confession of our sins and forgiveness of those who have sinned against us.
What do we receive through the sacrament of Communion?
We take into ourselves the living Jesus Christ Himself and, having united with Him, we receive eternal life, about which He Himself spoke thus: He who eats My Flesh and drinks My Blood abides in Me, and I in him (John 6:56).
Can you explain this with some real life example?
The baby takes the milk of his mother, which, in fact, is her body and blood, and, feeding on this, grows. Similarly, during Communion we partake of the Body and Blood of the Lord, and from this food our souls grow and improve.
What else could be said about the food of our souls?
Our bodies are created from dust, from the earth, and therefore they feed on earthly food, but our souls have a heavenly essence and therefore must feed on heavenly food. Jesus Christ said this about Himself: I am the bread that came down from heaven (John 6:58).
How often do you need to take communion?
At least four times a year (during four posts). However, it is advisable to start communion as often as possible, depending on the readiness for communion. It is especially important to take communion when you are sick.
What prayer should be said before communion?
"I believe, Lord, and I confess that You are the true Christ, the Son of the living God, who came down from heaven into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the very first.
I also believe that here is Your true and most pure Body and Your most pure Blood itself.
Therefore, I beseech Thee: have mercy on me and forgive me my sins, whether voluntarily or involuntarily, knowingly or unknowingly, in word or deed, and make me worthy to partake of Your holy Mysteries without judgment for the forgiveness of sins and eternal life.
3.4. FROMHoly Sacrament of Repentance
What is Repentance?
Repentance is a Sacrament in which the repentant receives remission of sins and reconciliation with God.
Which sins are forgiven through the sacrament of repentance, and which are not?
All sins that we have committed after baptism and in which we confessed to the priest and repented are forgiven.
However, hereditary sin by repentance alone, without baptism, cannot be forgiven. In addition, some mortal sins cannot be forgiven, for example, the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven either in this age or in the future (Matt. 12:32).
What is required to perform this Sacrament?
Confession of sins before a priest, after which the priest reads a prayer and, in the name of the Most Holy Trinity, forgives sins to the person who repents.
How do we know that a person who repents is forgiven of sins?
This is known from the Bible and Holy Tradition. Jesus Christ forgave the sins of the repentant, just like the Apostles did. From the Holy Tradition, the names of many sinners are known who repented of their sins, changed their lives and became Saints.
Who gave the right to bishops and priests to forgive sins?
The Lord Jesus Christ Himself, Who said to His apostles: to whom you forgive sins, they will be forgiven; on whom you leave, on that they will remain (John 20:23).
If someone sinned against his neighbor, and he forgave him, then does the sinner need to go to confession to the priest?
It is recommended, because any evil directed against people is also directed against God. There are no sins that do not harm God. Therefore, it is always necessary to come to the priest for the sake of confession and remission of sins.
With what spiritual disposition should one go to confession?
With sincere repentance and a contrite heart, with a sense of forgiveness for all who have sinned against us, and with the decision to submit to the priest if he imposes penance.
What kind of penance (punishment) can a priest appoint?
Very different, depending on the severity of our sins, for example, to fast, pray, compensate the victim, do a merciful deed, or even excommunicate from communion for a while.
How often should you repent?
The more often, the better. It is necessary to confess before the sacrament of communion. Finally, it is necessary to confess during a serious illness, for we do not know the day of our death. Therefore, one must be ready, perfectly ready, to join the heavenly family of God as a repentant, sin-free, blessed child of God.
3.5. Holy Sacrament of the Priesthood
What is the essence of the Sacrament of the Priesthood?
Priesthood is a Sacrament in which the Holy Spirit, through the laying on of the hands of bishops, imparts grace and the right to those who are ordained as a priest or bishop to perform the rest of the sacraments of the Church and guide the spiritual life of their flock.
How many degrees are there in the Sacrament of Priesthood?
Three degrees: bishop, priest and deacon.
How do they differ?
A bishop can perform all seven Sacraments of the Church, a priest can perform six, except for the Sacrament of Priesthood, and a deacon helps the bishop and the priest, but he cannot perform the Sacraments himself.
Who ordains a bishop?
Two or more bishops.
Who are the bishops?
Bishops are the heirs of the Apostles.
Who established the church hierarchy?
The Lord Jesus Christ Himself as the first High Priest, as mentioned in the Epistle of the Apostle Paul to the Jews. He, as the source of all authority and right in His Church, gave the apostles the power to teach, heal, and forgive sins.
What does the church hierarchy look like?
Above all - Jesus Christ as the eternal High Priest, from him come the Apostles, from the Apostles - bishops, and from the bishops - priests and deacons.
Why is it necessary to lay hands on this Sacrament?
First of all, this is what the Apostles did. At the same time, spiritual power is transferred by the laying on of hands on the one who is ordained. In this way, ecclesiastical authority and clergy are legally connected.
Can there be any church community that does not recognize the bishop and is not subject to him?
No, it cannot, for such a part of the Church is torn away from the body of the Ecumenical Orthodox Church and deprived of the grace of God.
Why do we call the priest father?
Because through the priest we are born anew at Baptism as children of God. From the hands during Communion we receive heavenly food (the Body and Blood of the Lord). In the Mystery of Penance we receive remission of sins from him, and in the other Mysteries we receive the gifts of the Holy Spirit. In addition, the priest constantly prays for us, teaches us, guides us with advice, warns, guides us. Therefore, priests are actually our spiritual fathers. Of course, they must be worthy of this name and their great mission.
3.6. Sacrament of Marriage
What is Marriage?
The Holy Sacrament of Marriage, or wedding, is the Sacrament through which the Holy Spirit unites a Christian and a Christian woman into a single being, who, before the priest, without hesitation declare that they will love each other and be faithful all their lives, and receive the blessing to give birth in marriage and raise children .
How did God bless the first married couple?
The Lord God blessed our forefathers Adam and Eve in Paradise and said: be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth (Gen. 1:28).
What is the unity of husband and wife in marriage?
This union is the closest of all relationships that bind people, for it is said: A man will leave his father and mother and cleave to his wife; and the two shall be one flesh (Gen. 2:24).
Did the Lord Jesus Christ confirm this ancient covenant of marriage?
Did the Lord Jesus Christ sanctify marriage?
He sanctified marriage by His presence at the wedding in Cana of Galilee and by turning water into wine at that wedding.
What meaning did he give to marriage?
The Lord has given marriage a deeper meaning. Just as water turned into wine, so in His presence carnal love is transformed into the spiritual love of two souls.
Did the New Testament make any changes in the way you think about having children?
The birth of children in pre-Christian times was intended to fill the earth, and the purpose of Christian marriage was to fill the Church of Christ on earth and in heaven, and ultimately to fill Paradise.
Does Christian marriage have some deeper symbolic meaning?
It has. The apostle Paul compares the marriage bond of a husband and wife to the bond of Christ and His Church. Therefore, he emphasizes that, like Christ, who is the head of the Church, the husband should be the head of the wife. Just as a man and a woman become one in marriage, so Jesus and His Church are one and inseparable.
3.7. Sacrament of Unction
What is Unction?
The Sacrament of Unction consists of the prayers of the priest and the anointing of the sick person with consecrated oil, through which the grace of God is invoked on the sick person for his recovery.
What is meant here by disease?
A disease of both the body and the soul.
How does the grace of God act in this Sacrament?
She heals the body from its infirmities and cleanses the soul from its sins.
Since when has this sacrament been celebrated in the Church?
Since the time of Jesus Christ. At the command of Jesus, the apostles went to preach the gospel different nations and many sick people were anointed with oil and healed (Mark 6:13).
How was this sacrament entrusted to bishops and priests?
According to the commandment of the Apostles. The Apostle James writes quite clearly: if any of you is sick, let him call for the elders of the Church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will heal the sick, and the Lord will raise him up, and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him (James 5:14-15).
Is the Sacrament of the Unction performed only on the seriously ill and dying?
No. This truly miraculous Sacrament is also performed on those who are easily ill.
3.8. The teaching of the Orthodox Church on the Holy Sacraments
Church says:
1. BAPTISM: the cleansing of people from all sins, which is consistent with the worldly doctrine of purity.
2. ANOINTION: strengthening, enlightenment by the Holy Spirit, which is consistent with the worldly desire to receive education and upbringing.
3. PARTICIPATION: feeding the soul with God's bread and wine, which corresponds to the physical need for food.
4. MARRIAGE: selflessness - complicity that echoes friendly help and responds to the instinct of procreation.
5. REPENTANCE: self-condemnation, cleansing with tears of one's sins, which corresponds to the worldly doctrine of truthfulness.
6. UNINFORMATION: healing of the soul, which corresponds to medical care body in the hospital.
7. ORDINATION: management, leadership, direction to God, which in public life meets the need for order, power and service.
Society says:
2. CONSCIOUSNESS
4. VIRTUES
6. HEALTH
7. ORGANIZATION
Chapter 4
There are three types of God's commandments:
The most ancient commandments, the Old Testament and the New (last) Testament.
The oldest commandments were not written down. The law of God was imprinted in the hearts of men and in their conscience, as the apostle Paul says about the Gentiles: when the Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do what is lawful, then, not having the law, they are their own law: they show that the work of the law is with them written in their hearts, as evidenced by their conscience (Rom. 2:14-15).
This ancient unwritten law was common to all of Adam's offspring. Since the time of the forefathers, it has been passed from mouth to mouth, from generation to generation, and has been preserved through the centuries as a Sacred Tradition.
However, by the constant efforts of Satan and because of the corruption of people, this natural law has disappeared from human hearts. Therefore, the Lord God, through Moses, fifteen centuries before Christ, gave people the Law written on the tablets. This written Law is called the Old Testament.
None of these two Laws could save the human race from the three main evils: from Satan, from sin and from death. These Laws were only preparatory, leading people to the last Law of God, called the New Testament. This New Law of God is given to people through our Lord Jesus Christ.
What is the Old Testament?
This Law of God, which God gave through Moses on Mount Sinai, was written on two stone tablets and consisted of ten commandments.
What do the Ten Commandments sound like?
1. I am the Lord your God... Thou shalt have no other gods before Me.
2. Do not make for yourself an idol or any image of what is in the sky above, and what is on the earth below, and what is in the water below the earth.
3. Do not pronounce the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not leave without punishment the one who pronounces His name in vain.
4. Work for six days, and do all your work; and the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God.
5. Honor your father and your mother, that your days on earth may be long.
6. Don't kill.
7. Do not commit adultery.
8. Don't steal.
9. Do not bear false witness against your neighbor.
10. Do not covet your neighbor's house; do not covet your neighbor's wife; neither his servant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is with your neighbor.
How were these commandments written on two stone slabs?
The letters of the four Commandments were inscribed on the first stone slab, putting our relationship with God in order. On another stone tablet, six Commandments were inscribed, ordering our relationship to man.
4.1. First Commandment
What does the First Commandment of God command us to do?
So that we believe in one God, Who is the only true God, and refuse to believe in many gods, for this is a sin and a deceit.
Was it natural for people in those days to believe in one God, as it is for us today?
At the beginning, people believed in one God, but over time, with the multiplication of sins and transgressions, people's conscience was darkened, and people with a rich imagination, under the influence of their passions and at the instigation of Satan, came up with many gods.
How do we sin against faith in one God?
1. The deification of the so-called great people (as the Romans deified their emperor) instead of God.
2. Worship of things: either worship of the creations of human hands, or worship of the world of God (deification of the sun, stars and nature in general) instead of worshiping God.
3. Allowing skepticism, that is, doubts about the existence of God, into our hearts.
4. Teachings about God, which differ from the faith of our fathers, that is, heresies.
5. Separation from the Universal Church, that is, schisms.
It does not forbid, for we do not worship them as God, but we honor them as the most worthy members of the family of God.
Why do we then pray to the Saints?
Because it is said that God grants the prayers of those who love Him. Saints are the greatest worshipers of God. Through their mediation, God helps us, and we know this from experience.
4.2. Second Commandment
What does the second commandment of God command us to do?
Do not deify anyone but the one God. As mentioned earlier, the second commandment forbids us to bow before the natural world and the works of human hands. The Lord God is above all His and human deeds.
Why then do we venerate icons?
We revere icons as blessed images of the one life-giving God, His Angels, Saints of God and martyrs for the faith, who are our intercessors and mediators before God.
When we pray before an icon, to whom do we pray?
To the Saint who is in heaven, whose face is depicted on the icon, and through him to the Lord God, the King of kings and all His Saints.
When we venerate an icon, whom do we touch with our lips?
With our lips we touch the image of the Holy One, and with our thoughts and hearts we touch the Holy One of God himself, as with a living and real person who is in the Heavenly Church.
Who condemns the Orthodox Church for the veneration of the Saints of God and for praying to them?
Exclusively Protestants who do not have the spiritual experience of communion with the Saints and who do not understand that the main work of Jesus Christ is that He created the family of God from the faithful and reborn people, connecting the children of God in heaven and the children of God on earth with the closest ties.
Who else sins against faith in one God?
We ourselves sin against faith in the one God and act like pagans when we overeat and get drunk, so that the stomach becomes our god. Or when we begin to deify money, property, exalt our personality, or the state, or the people, or civilization.
4.3. Third Commandment
What does the Third Commandment of God command us to do?
Do not pronounce the name of God in vain and in obscene conversations.
What is specifically forbidden to us by the Third Commandment?
FORBIDDEN:
Use obscene words when talking about God.
To pronounce the name of God in insignificant conversations or even to confirm a lie.
Swear by the name of God and blaspheme.
Break the commandments and vows given to God.
How to pronounce the name of God?
The name of God should be spoken rarely, only in prayer and always with great reverence, for this is the most holy name, from which demons tremble in fear, with which people and their deeds are blessed, which heals diseases and sanctifies the mouth that pronounces it.
4.4. Fourth Commandment
What does the Fourth Commandment of God command us to do?
Dedicate the seventh day to God and spend it as a day of rest.
What does the word Saturday mean?
Saturday means a day of rest, because in six days God created heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested from the works of creation. I just want to remind you that one day for the Lord is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like one day: before your eyes a thousand years are like yesterday (Ps. 89:5).
Why do we consider Sunday a day of rest?
Because our Lord Jesus Christ rose from the dead on the seventh day, and on Saturday He was in Hell, preaching the Gospel to the dead and saving them.
What day was a day of rest for Jesus Christ?
Sunday is the day He defeated last enemy, that is, over death. On Great Friday He conquered our sins, on Saturday He conquered the kingdom of Satan in Hell, and on Sunday He conquered death with His Resurrection. So gloriously He completed the mission of saving people. Only then did he give himself up to rest. Therefore, the resurrection is both His and our day of rest.
How should Sunday, the holy day, be spent?
Joyfully, remembering the victory of Christ over death;
Refraining from daily labors;
In prayer at home and in church;
Reading the Bible and other soulful books;
Reflecting on your deeds and thoughts over the past six days;
Visiting the sick and doing works of mercy;
Resting and glorifying in the soul of God, the Most Holy Theotokos, Angels and Saints of God.
4.5. Fifth Commandment
What does the Fifth Commandment of God command us to do?
We need to appreciate them, listen to their advice, listen to their experience, be grateful to them and love them the way they love us. Help them in their old age, and after their death, remember in prayers and do charity work in memory of them.
First, as is quite clear, because through them the Lord God gave us life. With their selfless love, invaluable care and efforts, we have grown and received education.
Secondly, because our parents, as one flesh, symbolize God the Father, and we symbolize God the Son. So our relationship to our parents is a symbol of our relationship to God, to the Holy Trinity.
Thirdly, just as we honor or do not honor our parents, so our children will honor us or not honor us, which has been proven by experience throughout the history of the human race.
What is the punishment for those who disobey this commandment?
Very hard. In the Old Testament, the Lord commanded that the one who speaks evil of his father or his mother must be put to death (Ex. 21:17). Noah cursed his son Ham and his descendants because Ham was disrespectful to his father and mocked his poverty. So Absalom died a terrible death, pierced by arrows, when he hung on an oak tree, tangled in its branches with his hair, for he rebelled against his father, King David.
Are there any examples in the Bible that children who honor their parents receive God's blessing?
There are many such examples in the Bible. For example, in the Epistle of Jeremiah there is an amazing example of obedience to the father of the sons of Rahab, who forbade them to drink wine, and the Lord of Hosts blessed them.
Did Jesus Christ follow this commandment?
Of course, he followed, both in his word and deed.
Does our honoring our parents help us in any other way?
Yes, by honoring our parents we learn and prepare to respect authorities, both in the spiritual life and in the worldly.
4.6. sixth commandment
What does the sixth commandment of God command us to do?
We are forbidden to kill our neighbor out of envy, hatred, self-interest or revenge.
Why is it forbidden to kill one's neighbor?
God created man in His own image and likeness and breathed life into him. Therefore, by killing a person, we rebel against God's likeness and against God's property. We have no right to take away what we cannot give.
How should you deal with suicide?
Suicide is the same as murder. Our life does not belong to us, but to God.
How should one think about killing in war?
There are different types of wars. The Old Testament often speaks of war as God's war. By this is meant the battle for truth against the horror of lies. In such a war, killing is justified and it is considered meritorious to be killed.
What are the killers in peacetime?
There are killers of the body and killers of the soul. Soul killers are those who, being a depraved atheist, kill human souls, corrupting them and turning them away from God.
Why are duels banned?
Participants in a duel respect neither church nor state laws. In a duel, the innocent party may be killed, while the guilty party may be spared.
How then to understand that the Bible approves the duel between David and Goliath?
This duel was not a personal test of strength, but a clash between the army of the true God and the army of God's enemies, idolaters. David went out against the defender of paganism and with God's help and God's inspiration he won. This is a wonderful example of God's providence and His Omnipotence for us. The duel between David and Goliath is nothing like an ordinary duel.
Who is the oldest and most vicious killer in the world?
The devil, for Jesus Christ said about him: he was a murderer from the beginning (John 8:44). If God had not prevented him, he would have killed all human beings. The rest of the murderers of people are the tools of the devil.
Why does the devil want to destroy the human race?
Because of hatred and malice, for he knows that people should receive the Kingdom of Heaven, which he lost. That is why the devil is called a misanthrope.
Why does God protect and preserve people's lives?
Because he loves people. That is why God is called the Lover of mankind.
4.7. seventh commandment
What is prohibited by the Seventh Commandment?
Illicit sexual intercourse is forbidden, such as: adultery, premarital affairs and other shameful passions, which have replaced the natural attitude towards the body with an unnatural one.
What is the essence of this commandment?
What is the reason for breaking this commandment?
First of all, these are the traps of Satan, which the enemy of all purity, chastity and holiness sets up for people, hating the multiplication of the human race and the growth of the spiritual family of God, that is, the Church.
Secondly, the ignorance of men and women who passionately examine each other's bodies instead of peering into souls. They know little about great confessors and God's people. This ignorance stems from wrong education and the corruption of society.
What sin does the Bible compare with the sin of adultery?
In the Old Testament, idolatry is called adultery, adultery, fornication. And idolatry is a mortal sin against God.
What are the fruits of fornication?
Death of the body and soul, self-deception, bad diseases, mental confusion, nervousness, sick and deformed children, despair and, in the end, madness.
4.8. eighth commandment
What is prohibited by the Eighth Commandment?
It is forbidden to steal. A person who steals is called a thief. We are forbidden to become thieves.
What is theft?
Secret appropriation of property belonging to the neighbor or the state;
Open violent robbery of another's property;
Deception of the poor or ignorant when buying or selling;
negligence on public service, trying to work less than required, and less than what is paid for;
Life through deceit, fraud and falsification.
What does God expect from us, what should we do?
Respect any property;
Earn the respect of others with respectable work;
To live by one's labors and to help less fortunate neighbors;
To be diligent and diligent in our service, striving to do more than is expected of us.
4. 9. The ninth commandment
What is prohibited by the Ninth Commandment?
It is forbidden to testify falsely about one's neighbor secretly, openly, or before a court.
What is the most dangerous lie?
False testimony against a person in judgment, when in support of their words they swear by the name of God.
What are the consequences of perjury?
Material and moral damage to a person falsely accused. However, even greater damage is inflicted on the false witness himself, for, speaking a lie, he darkens, corrupts and destroys his own soul.
Is it possible that a false witness will not be convicted and punished?
No. The Lord God Himself vouches for this, Who says: there is nothing hidden that would not be revealed, and secret that would not be known (Matt. 10:26).
What classic example from the history of Christianity speaks of a revealed truth?
When the guards of the Holy Sepulcher came to the elders and announced to them about the resurrection of Jesus, they gave the soldiers enough money and said: tell them that His disciples, having come at night, stole Him away while we were sleeping (Matt. 28:11-13). However, the lie could not hide the fact of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, but only covered the liars with eternal shame.
Did the Apostles warn Christians not to tell lies?
Being the main fighters for the incarnate Truth, the apostles were very sharply opposed to lies. Thus, the apostle James writes: if anyone among you thinks that he is pious, and does not bridle his tongue, but deceive his heart, his godliness is empty (James 1:26). The apostle Peter in the First Epistle is also irreconcilable to lies.
Where do lies and deceit come from?
From Satan, whom the Lord Jesus Christ calls the father of lies: When he speaks lies, he speaks his own, for he is a liar and the father of lies (John 8:44).
4.10. tenth commandment
What is prohibited by the Tenth Commandment?
Selfish desires and unrighteous desires to possess something that belongs to the neighbor.
Why are desires that have not yet become deeds forbidden?
Because bad thoughts lead to bad deeds. Our heart is the workshop from which all our thoughts, speeches and deeds come. Our Lord Jesus Christ said: From the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemy - this defiles a person (Matt. 15:19-20).
Do our dreams of appropriating the property of our neighbor make sense?
They don't make any sense. With such thoughts, we are going to build happiness on the misfortune of our neighbor. Therefore, such desires are simply madness.
How can you resist bad desires?
Controlling your desires, cleansing your heart with prayer and the fear of God, confessing to the priest all your sinful thoughts, remembering death and the Last Judgment of God, at which everyone will receive a reward for their deeds.
Chapter 5
What is the New Testament?
This is the Law of God, which was revealed and transmitted to people through Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Messiah.
What is another name for the New Testament?
The Last Law of God.
Why do they say so?
Because the Lord God will not give another Testament until the end of the world.
What is another name for the New Testament?
The Internal Law, the law of conscience, because it is based on the internal motives of our external activity.
Then what is the whole Law of Christ?
This is the new, last, internal law of God, the most perfect and only law of salvation.
Why did the Lord God not give such a Covenant through Moses?
For the same reason that we teach children what to do and what not to do, teaching them the ABC of right behavior, not trying to explain to children the hidden motives of right actions. The Apostle Paul explains it this way: I could not speak to you, brethren, as to spiritual ones, but as to carnal ones, as to babes in Christ. I fed you with milk and not with solid food, for you were not yet strong (1 Corinthians 3:1-2).
What is the difference between the external law given through Moses and the internal law given through Jesus Christ?
The Law of Moses is given as a preparatory Law for one small flock of people, and the Law of Jesus Christ is given to all the peoples of the earth, which are linked together into a single spiritual family of God by the priceless Blood of Christ Himself.
5.1. The Two Greatest Commandments of the New Testament
What are the two greatest commandments of Christ in the New Testament?
The first commandment of the New Testament:
Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength (Mark 12:30)
And the second commandment, similar to the first:
Love your neighbor as yourself (Mark 12:31).
What did Jesus Christ say about these New Testament commandments?
Jesus Christ said that the entire Old Testament is based on these two commandments, and also confirmed that there is nothing more important than these commandments.
Does this mean that the ten commandments of the Old Testament lost their significance after the proclamation of these two commandments of the New Testament?
No. It only means that the commandments to love God and neighbor made the Old Testament more perfect. The apostle Paul confirmed this when he said: love is the fulfillment of the law (Rom. 13:10). In other words, love is above commandments and prohibitions, for it restrains the most and creates the most.
What does it mean to love God?
This means: to love Him more than anything else: more than yourself, family, people, that is, more than anything in the world.
What does it mean to love God with all your heart?
This means: to melt all the feelings of your heart into one feeling of love for God.
What does it mean to love God with all your soul?
This means: to illumine and inspire your soul with love for God.
What does it mean to love God with all your might?
This means: to tame your will and subordinate it to a cause that is pleasing to God.
What does the second commandment of the New Testament mean: to love your neighbor as yourself?
First of all, this means that we need to love the Lord Jesus Christ, the Most Perfect Man, the closest and beloved to us, and through Him to love all other people close to us.
Is our love for Jesus Christ included in the first commandment?
Of course, it does, but it means love for Him as for God, in the hypostases of the Most Holy Trinity, that is, love for God the Son and at the same time for God the Father and the Holy Spirit. And here love is meant for Him as for a man, for a model of a real man, the noblest of all the sons of the human race.
Did the Lord Jesus Christ speak of the need to love Him?
Yes, he did, and very impressively. He said: Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever loves a son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me (Mt. 10:37).
Moreover, He said: Whoever hates me hates my Father also (John 15:23). Jesus Christ asks each of us: "Do you love Me?", as He asked the Apostle Peter: Simon Jonas! Do you love Me... (John 21:15). And the Apostle Paul says: Whoever does not love the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be cursed (2 Corinthians 16:22).
What then can be said about our love for other people?
Just as we love God through Jesus Christ, so we love people through Jesus Christ.
Is our love for Jesus Christ the foundation of our love for God and people?
Of course, so, for if we love Christ, who embodied love in Himself, then we love all whom He loves and for whom He died. Thus, both commandments of the New Testament oblige us to love Jesus Christ, the beloved Mediator between God and people. Without love for Him, our love for God and for people will not be complete and true.
What else does the New Testament say about love?
Indeed, a lot. For example, our knowledge of God depends on our love for God, for whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love (1 John 4:8). Or again: There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear (1 John 4:18), and where there is no fear, peace reigns.
What is the visible expression of our love for God?
Prayer and doing the will of God.
What is the practical expression of our love for our neighbor?
In charity, that is, deeds of mercy, deeds and thoughts, words and prayers for our neighbors in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ and for His sake.
5.2. About prayer
What is Christian prayer?
It is a way of our contact with God, through which we express our faith, hope and love.
What are prayers?
Inner Prayer
outdoor prayer
Personal prayer
Cathedral prayer
What is inner prayer and what is outer prayer?
Inner prayer is also called noetic prayer. It is performed in silence, without words, with the mind and heart. Outdoor prayer is also called oral and is pronounced in words.
How often should you pray?
It depends on how much we love God. The more we love God, the more often we ascend to Him in prayer. The most worthy will be those who pray to God without ceasing, following the words of Jesus Christ that they should always pray (Luke 18:1).
How can you pray continuously?
You can pray uninterruptedly with mental prayer, that is, with inner prayer. You can silently send up your inaudible prayers to God even on the road or during work, thanking Him, praising Him or calling for His help.
What is the shortest inner prayer?
"Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me!"
What is personal prayer and what is congregational prayer?
When a person prays alone, silently or orally, then this is a personal prayer. When he joins the prayer of other people in church or elsewhere, then such a prayer is called conciliar prayer.
Which of these prayers are obligatory for a Christian?
They are both required. You need to pray secretly, to yourself, but also openly, out loud. When a person is left to himself, he should pray everywhere, and should also pray with other Christians in the church. The saints did the same.
What are the main thoughts in prayer?
Any proper prayer usually consists of three parts: thanksgiving, prayer and praise. First, we thank God for everything we have received from Him, then we ask Him to fulfill what we need in this moment, and, finally, we glorify Him and magnify His goodness, omnipotence and glory.
5.3. Lord's Prayer
What is the Lord's Prayer?
The most perfect and common prayer, uttered both at home and in church, is the Lord's Prayer. It is called so because the Lord Jesus Christ gave it to His disciples as a model of prayer.
How does the Lord's Prayer sound in the Gospel?
Our Father who art in heaven!
May your name be hallowed;
May your kingdom come.
May Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven;
Give us our daily bread for this day;
And forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors;
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one;
For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen (Matthew 6:9-13).
How is the Lord's Prayer structured?
First, it contains an invocation, then seven prayer requests, and ends with a doxology.
How do we start?
We begin by invoking God, calling Him Our Father.
Why don't we say "My Father"?
Only Jesus Christ, not created, but begotten Son of God, has the right to call God My Father, and we, created by God and adopted by Him, thanks to the selfless sacrifice of Jesus Christ, sons and daughters, have the honor of His Father to call Our Father, since those who received Him, to those who believe in His name, He gave the power to become children of God (John 1:12).
Is there any other reason why we can call God our Father?
In this conversion lies the great meaning of brotherly love. Christ wants us to love one another as brothers. In addition, only those who recognize the same father can be considered brothers.
Why don't we call God "our Creator"?
Because the Lord God created the whole world, but He is more than the Creator of men. He is the Father of all people who have been reborn by the Holy Spirit and become children of God. Therefore, people are not just creatures, but children of God.
Why do we say: He who is in heaven?
Because the true God is eternally in heaven, that is, outside of time and space. He is not limited to the earth, as are the false gods of the pagans who worship nature and persons.
First prayer request
What is the first petition in the Lord's Prayer?
May your name be hallowed.
We pray to God to help us make sure that His name is revered by all people as the most holy and great name in the world. The commandments of the Old Testament, where God was considered the Creator and Judge, forbade people to pronounce the name of God in vain. Through the New Testament of love, we are obliged everywhere and always to bear the most holy name of our Father throughout our lives and be ready to die in the name of Christ, just as myriads of Christian martyrs died for the faith.
Second prayer request
What is the second petition in the Lord's Prayer?
May your kingdom come.
What desire do we express by this petition?
We pray to God to help us make sure that the Kingdom of Heaven of the Most Holy Trinity of the One Essence comes and fits into our souls, into our families, into our people and reigns over the whole earth.
How to understand that the Kingdom of Heaven will come to us?
Just as God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are One in the eternal harmony of peace, power and glory, so we desire that our mind, heart and will become one, as the Divine essence, the reflection of which is our souls. May the display be the same as the original!
How do we know that the Kingdom of God has come?
The kingdom of God... is righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit (Rom. 14:17). When we see that it overwhelms our souls and the souls of all the people around us, then we can be sure that the Kingdom of God has come.
Third prayer request
What is the third petition in the Lord's Prayer?
May Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
What desire do we express by this petition?
We resort to the help of God so that He stops our fluctuations between God and Satan, between good and evil, so that we can completely renounce the will of Satan and surrender to the will of our Father, as our Lord Jesus Christ did when praying in the Garden of Gethsemane: Take up this cup pass me by; but not what I want, but what You (Mark 14:36).
Why do we say: as in heaven?
Because in heaven the Angels and Saints, with all their hearts full of joy, submit to the will of God. God's will there is their will, and that makes them happy. That is why we pray for this for us on earth as well.
Fourth Prayer Request
What is the fourth petition in the Lord's Prayer?
Give us our daily bread for this day.
What desire do we express by this petition?
Firstly, by this petition we express our confidence that without God's omnipotence and mercy we will not be able to live even a day. Secondly, realizing that we can die any day, we ask you to save us from crazy desires to accumulate wealth for life in the boundless future, while our neighbors can die of hunger without even having bread to exist. In other words, we ask the Lord to give us exactly what we need, no more and no less.
What kind of bread are we talking about here?
This refers to both material and spiritual food, which we cannot receive without God's grace and mercy. Material bread grows on earth, but spiritual bread comes from heaven. The first is for the body, and the second is for the soul. About material bread, Jesus Christ said that a person will not live by bread alone... (Matt. 4:4), but about spiritual bread He said: I am the living bread that came down from heaven; Whoever eats this bread will live forever (John 6:51). So, the bread we need for existence is Christ himself, and the other bread is only an addition to that bread.
Fifth prayer request
What is the fifth petition in the Lord's Prayer?
And forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors.
What desire do we express by this petition?
We ask God to help us to restrain ourselves and forgive our neighbors their sins against us, just as He could forgive us our sins. It was said through His mouth: if you forgive people their sins, then your Heavenly Father will forgive you, but if you do not forgive people their sins, then your Father will not forgive you your sins (Matthew 6:14-15).
Sixth Prayer Request
What is the sixth petition in the Lord's Prayer?
And lead us not into temptation.
What desire do we express by this petition?
We pray to God to remember our human weaknesses and not send grave troubles on us for the sake of our confirmation in the faith and not allow the devil to tempt us in misfortunes.
What is the difference between God's testing and the devil's temptation?
The difference is truly enormous. When the Lord God allows us various sufferings, He does so with the intention of strengthening our virtues, just as steel is tempered in fire. The devil, on the contrary, tempts us with some kind of sin or disgrace with the intention of making us even worse, weaker, more evil, in order, in the end, to completely lead us away from God and completely destroy us.
Seventh Prayer Request
What is the seventh petition in the Lord's Prayer?
But deliver us from the evil one.
What desire do we express by this petition?
We pray to God to free us from bad deeds and bad people. We seem to be praying: "Save us, Our Father, from bad deeds and protect us from the most dangerous enemy."
Who is the most dangerous enemy?
Satan. All sinful thoughts and evil deeds that come from them come from Satan. That is why with this petition we pray to the Lord, Who is light and love, to deliver us from the enemy, which in itself is darkness and hatred.
doxology
How does the Lord's Prayer end?
A doxology that goes like this: For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
What do we express with this doxology?
We express our faith in God as an all-powerful and most glorious King who alone can fulfill our prayers. Therefore, we magnify him, glorify and love him.
What does the word "Amen" mean?
Amen is one of the names of God. The Lord said to the Apostle John the Theologian: Thus says the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of God's creation (Rev. 3:14). We end every prayer and every thanksgiving to God with this name. It is the same as if we were saying: God, Truth. In the same way, when we take an oath, we say at the end: Amen, which means: what we say is true, like the Truth or like God.
5.4. Character of a Christian in the New Testament
The new, or last, Testament was given to people through Jesus Christ, God incarnate, with the aim of forming a new character in people so that they become new people worthy to be called children of God and inherit the Kingdom of Heaven. This new character must be developed from all the gospel virtues, both personal and general.
5.4.1. Nurturing Christian character
What is the Christian character?
The main components are: obedience to Christ and His Church, personal efforts to succeed in virtue and special inspiration, or God's grace, received through the Church Sacraments.
What are the most important Christian virtues?
Faith, hope and love.
What is the meaning of this?
Right thinking through faith in Christ, chaste feelings through trust in Christ, and virtue through love for Christ.
What other Christian virtues are there?
Humility;
Generosity;
moral purity;
Mercy;
Restraint;
Meekness;
Zeal in faith.
How to achieve these virtues?
Persistent repetition until these virtues become as natural to us as breathing.
Is it possible to succeed in the development of our character by persistent repetition of Christian virtues?
Of course. Just as the education system is built mainly on repetition, so the training of Christian virtues in life is very essential.
What hinders the proper development of Christian character?
What is sin?
In fact, every sin is a lie and violence.
What sins are called mortal?
Those that lead to eternal death. There are only seven of them.
How do they relate to the seven virtues?
The seven deadly sins are opposed to the seven greatest virtues:
Pride is opposed to humility;
Love of money - generosity;
Depravity - moral purity;
Envy - mercy;
Intemperance - abstinence;
Anger - meekness;
Despair - jealousy in faith.
What other grave sins are there?
There are four more egregious sins punished by heaven:
Premeditated murder for the purpose of robbery;
Underpayment for hired labor;
Harassment of widows and children.
Are there lesser sins?
There are many sins that are not so grave, forgivable, which can manifest themselves in thoughts, words, desires and deeds.
How can one be freed from sins?
Through the sacrament of Repentance, strict control over oneself and not allowing the repetition of sin, as well as an active striving for good.
5.4.2. Beatitudes
The Lord Jesus Christ in His Sermon on the Mount commanded the disciples:
Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
The poor in spirit are those who consider themselves utterly insignificant in comparison with the majesty of God and passionately desire to be rich in God and in His Kingdom.
Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
Those who weep in this world, in the transient world, are like the Son of God, Who never laughed, but very often lamented because of the foolishness, sinfulness of people and their suffering.
Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
The meek are philanthropic and long-suffering people. Because of the meekness of Jesus Christ, they called it the Lamb of God. The angry and irritable are the opposite of the meek. Angry people quickly grasp, but just as quickly lose, but meek, patient and stubborn, through long time get their way. Christians were persecuted by the pagans and were almost all exterminated, but now they dominate the earth.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.
Those who are hungry and thirsty for the truth are people who suffer heavily from the vices of the world. They will see the victory of the risen Christ, who will overcome all the forces of evil, and their hearts will be filled with bliss and joy. They will also see the victory of the persecuted Church and rejoice.
Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.
As we deal with the children of God, so God will deal with us. Mercy for mercy. However, God's mercy is incomparably higher than human mercy, and the Lord promises the merciful that they will receive a hundredfold. Mercy is a dual virtue. Merciful to others, we must be merciful to ourselves and not forget about the salvation of our souls. Selfishness, vindictiveness and malice are the opposite of mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
The human heart is truly a spiritual eye that allows one to see spiritual things and, first of all, God. By a long feat and God's grace, the heart can be cleansed from the impurities of sin. The Lives of the Saints tell us this very well. From dirty thoughts and bad desires, the eye of the heart grows cloudy.
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.
Jesus Christ is called the Prince of Peace. He imparted a peaceful spirit to His disciples. Everyone can only give what he has. If we have peace in our souls, we will be able to convey peace to others. The agreement of the mind, heart and will creates a triple single world - the true, Divine world in the soul.
Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
To be persecuted for righteousness means to be like Jesus Christ and the apostles. A huge number of martyrs appeared in the Orthodox Church, who suffered for the truth, who populated Heavenly Kingdom Christ, for it is better to suffer for good deeds than for evil ones, as the apostle Peter writes (1 Peter 3:17).
Blessed are you when they reproach you and persecute you and slander you in every way unrighteously for me.
Here Jesus Christ speaks of the suffering of His followers. They will be tormented, slandered and scolded, but they must endure everything and not lose faith in Him, hoping that He will come in His time as the Victor and the righteous Judge, and will forever separate the righteous from the sinners.
Conclusion: Rejoice and be glad, for great is your reward in heaven.
Rejoice, weeping; rejoice in suffering; rejoice, dying, for the greatest of the human race, who have passed the same thorny path as you, are now waiting for you in that world where Jesus Christ rules and where there are no sighs, no sorrow, no suffering, but only life and joy eternal.
5.5. Christian virtues
Along with the Beatitudes, our Lord Jesus Christ instructed His followers to achieve other virtues, which are also important for the upbringing of Christian character. These virtues can only be achieved through conscious, selfless labor and a chaste life, following the example of the Holy Fathers of the Church.
5.5.1. Perfection of character
DO THE INNER PRAYER. Do it as the Bible says: When you pray, go into your closet, and having shut the door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your father who sees in secret will repay you openly (Mt. 6:6).
FAST. Keep fasting before God, not before people. Appear to those who fast, not before men, but before your Father who is in secret; and your Father, who sees in secret, will reward you openly (Matthew 6:17).
TAKE CARE OF YOUR SOUL. It is necessary to take care of both the body and the soul, and in different ways. The soul is different from the body, and it needs different food, different clothes, and different light, for, as Jesus said, man will not live by bread alone (Luke 4:4).
PROTECT THE INTEGRITY OF THE SOUL. The integrity of the soul determines the strength and peace of the soul, and a divided soul means weakness and destruction, for every house divided in itself will not stand (Matthew 12:25). The Lord also says: no one can serve two masters... you cannot serve God and mammon (Matthew 6:24).
CONTROL YOUR THOUGHTS AND FEELINGS. Good thoughts are the seed for good deeds. The Lord God the All-Seeing knows all our thoughts and warns that evil thoughts defile a person, for evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, thefts, false witnesses come from the heart (Matthew 15:19). Therefore, it is necessary to constantly monitor your thoughts and improve your soul.
DON'T LEAVE THE LANGUAGE. Remember that for every idle word that people say, they will give an answer on the day of judgment (Mt. 12:36).
AVOID HYPOMERISM AND SHAME. Remember the words of Jesus to the disciples, and therefore to us: beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. There is nothing hidden that would not be revealed, and secret that would not be known (Luke 12:1-2).
BELIEVE LIKE CHILDREN. Become sincere, trusting and humble like children, for unless you turn and become like children, you will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven (Matthew 18:3).
BE PATIENT AND STRONG. Having endured all the hardships in fulfilling the commandments of God, you will surely save your soul, for he who endures to the end will be saved (Mt. 10:22).
RESCUE EXCESS in food, drink, and other necessities. Look after yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with overeating and drunkenness and worldly cares (Luke 21:34).
BELIEVE UNCONDITIONALLY in the omnipotence and mercy of Jesus Christ. Don't be afraid, but believe. Remember that hope and love without firm faith is like a house without a foundation.
STUDY the Holy Scriptures, and the conviction of the power of God will grow every day, strengthening the faith.
SETIRE, for loneliness is very useful for self-observation, reflection on your own life and conversations with God. Alone is boring only for superficial people. Remember that Jesus Christ often went into the wilderness and remained alone.
RELEASE FROM THINGS. Man's life does not consist in having many things. The human soul is more valuable to God than the whole world. What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses his soul (Mt. 16:26). We must be careful not to humiliate ourselves, our personality, our soul with material goods, but soar with our soul above everything in the world.
STAND BEFORE GOD. A truly religious person understands perfectly well that he constantly stands before God, the Living and All-Seeing. Therefore, from being ashamed of sin and proud of righteous deeds.
STAY IN CHRIST, for it is said: I am the vine, and you are the branches; whoever abides in Me and I in him bears much fruit (John 15:5). Therefore, let Christ enter into your hearts as into His own house, and from there begin to rule over your thoughts, desires and deeds.
PREPARE FOR DEATH AND WAIT FOR JUDGMENT. A person who every day sees and hears thousands of people die, but does not think about his own death, is reckless. To a man who did not think about the approach of death, but filled barns with grain for many years to come, the Lord said: crazy! This very night your soul will be taken from you; who will get what you have prepared (Luke 12:20).
THANK GOD for everything. Even if the Lord gave you a small portion, but you are grateful for this, He will multiply His gifts, as He multiplied five loaves.
PRAISE THE LORD. Do not seek glory from men, but glorify God. The more you give, the more you will receive. Speak after Holy Mother of God: My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior (Luke 1:46-47).
5.5.2. Improving relationships with people
DO ALGORY SECRETLY. When you do alms, do not blow your trumpet as the hypocrites do... so that people glorify them, ... let left hand yours does not know what the right one is doing, so that your alms may be in secret; and your Father, who sees in secret, will reward you openly (Matthew 6:2-4).
SUPPLY WITHOUT DELAY. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you (Matthew 5:42). Serve everything in the name of Christ and for the sake of brotherhood.
LOVE ENEMIES. Love your enemies, bless those who curse you, and pray for those who despitefully use you and persecute you (Matthew 5:44). There is no other way to unite with Christ and establish peace and brotherhood.
DO GOOD TO PEOPLE. How? Just as you would like people to do to you, for this is the law and the prophets (Matt. 7:12). This commandment comes after the two great commandments of Christ.
FORGIVE YOUR BROTHER IN CHRIST. If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him; and if he sins against you seven times a day, and turns back seven times a day, and says: I repent, forgive him (Luke 17:3).
BE Humble. Christ was born in a stable. Why, then, are we fighting for the highest honors and first places? Sit down in the last place... for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted (Luke 14:10-11).
sympathize with the sinner. It's a way to help them get better. Ridicule and condemnation will not do him any good. Christ considered such people sick. He visited them (as, for example, Zacchaeus), ate with them, and spoke cordially with them. Therefore, He was able to restore their spiritual health and human dignity.
MAKE ACCEPTANCE WITH THE ENEMY. Before going to church or court, a Christian should try to reconcile with his enemy.
BOLDLY CONFESS CHRIST BEFORE PEOPLE. Whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when He comes in His glory (Luke 9:26).
BEWARE OF THE FALSE CHRIST. IN end times godless and enemies of Christ will proclaim themselves or another dangerous liar "Christ". Foreseeing this, the Lord Jesus Christ reminded: Beware that you are not led astray, for many will come under my name, saying that it is I... do not follow them (Luke 21:8).
GIVE YOUR OWN MERIT. Give what is Caesar's to Caesar, and what is God's to God (Matthew 22:21). This means: give to the worldly authorities what belongs to the world, and to God - spiritual gifts. Just as the profile of Caesar is engraved on coins, so the face of God is on the human soul.
BE REASONABLE. From everyone to whom much has been given, much will be required (Luke 12:48) either in health, or in wealth, or in knowledge, or in honors. If little is given to you, little will be required of you. God's truth is definite and perfect. It is not smart to rebel against such laws.
BE READY TO SERVE. Serving is ennobled from Christ and through Christ, so voluntary servants in the name of God are the new elite. The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and to give His life as a ransom for many (Matthew 20:28). If I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, then you must also wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example (John 13:14).
BE READY TO SACRIFICE, not only material things, but also your life for the sake of Christ, Who sacrificed Himself for our eternal salvation. There is no greater love than if a man lays down his life for his friends (John 15:13). You can have many friends, but the closest friend should be only Jesus Christ.
HOPE, do not lose Christian optimism in life's trials. In all troubles, misfortunes, sufferings, even in torment or on the verge of death, a Christian is full of hope, for he remembers the words of Christ:
Great is your reward in heaven;
Do not be afraid of those who kill the body, for they cannot kill the soul;
I conquered the world;
All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.
After the brilliant success of Darwin's book, the thought arose in the minds of scientists, is it possible to recreate the construction of the whole world in the same way - "stone on stone, brick on brick ...". The first scientific advance came when scientists began to think about the equations of general relativity applied to the entire universe. It turned out that these equations themselves do not have a stationary solution, that is, a solution in which everything would stand in its place and not move.
Einstein himself, in order to get rid of this unpleasant situation, introduced some small additive into the equation so that a stationary solution would appear. This additive he called the "cosmological" term, and its origin was related to some cosmological forces that might someday be discovered. Russian mathematician Alexander Friedman decided not to hide behind such a shameful "fig leaf", but to face the truth. He established that without a cosmological term, solutions can be of three types: expanding, when the Universe is, as it were, uniformly “inflated” from a certain point, contracting, when it shrinks to a point, and pulsating, when it shrinks to a point, and then again starts to expand.
At first, the master was slightly offended that some Friedman was correcting him, and then he publicly admitted that he was right, Friedman, of course, was interested in the expanding Universe, but he did not know how to build an astronomical theory out of this. Here last words one of his articles: “So far, this method (analysis of Einstein’s equations. - Auth.) can give us little, because mathematical analysis lays down its arms in front of the difficulties of the issue, and astronomical studies do not yet provide a sufficiently reliable basis for studying our Universe, but in these circumstances, it is impossible not to see only temporary difficulties. Our descendants, no doubt, will recognize the nature of the Universe in which we are doomed to live ... And yet it seems that:
To measure the deep ocean, to count the sands, the rays of the planets, although a lofty mind could - You have no number and no measure!
A few years later, the Dutch astronomer Desitter and the Belgian priest-astronomer Georges Lemaitre began to develop the model of the expanding universe. Being a theologian, Lemaitre thought that the first clot, from which the Universe expands, is like a primary atom, or, taking a more accurate biological comparison, like the first egg, which already contains the fate of its development and the fate of all who “hatch” from it.
Experimental confirmation of the expanding universe came with the work of the talented American astronomer Hubble. He himself came from a deeply religious family, but unlike Eddington, he inherited not pacifism, but an extremely aggressive attitude towards evil. Therefore, starting with personal youthful battles with offenders, he was distracted from astronomy by wars with the Germans. As a Marine in the First and as a military engineer in the Second. In between wars, he studied the radial velocities of displacement from us of various cosmic bodies. This determination was made by the Doppler effect in any of the known spectral bands of the star in the same way as a traffic police inspector, pointing a laser beam at us, measures our speed by the Doppler effect. The faster the object moves away, the more its radiation will shift to the red side, the faster it approaches us, the bluer the radiation will shift.
To make it well remembered, we will give a common anecdote. The traffic cop asks the violator: “Why did you rush through a red light like a madman?” The intruder replies: "I was approaching so fast that the light, in accordance with the Doppler effect, seemed green to me!"
Next, Hubble began to measure the distance between us and the object receding from us. As a result, a group of points appeared on the “distance to us - displacement velocity” graph that fits well into a straight line with a proportionality coefficient H, which is called the Hubble constant. According to Hubble measurements, it is equal to 500 km / (s * Mpc) (mpc - mil-liparsec).
Breaking out of this obscure text, let us summarize that, in full agreement with the theory of the expanding Universe, the objects of the Universe scatter from each other, and the speed of their scatter is proportional to their distance from each other.
At this moment, the grumbling of the creationists begins to be heard (who, after the end of the discussion on Darwin, did not disperse, but remained to listen if there was anything else interesting): “And you ask that Hubble, how does he measure the distance between the stars?” The question, it must be admitted, is not in the eyebrow, but in the eye. The distance to the nearest stars can still be measured by the magnitude of the annual parallax, but this is an insignificant distance on a cosmic scale with an insignificant displacement velocity. How to measure other stars? Here is one way, judge for yourself how good it is. There are variable stars - Cepheids, the brightness of which changes with a certain period. It is assumed that the Cepheids twinkling with the same period are exactly the same stars. Then it is not difficult to determine the distance to the Cepheid: a Cepheid with a given period, wherever it is, releases, according to our assumption, exactly the same amount of energy into the world space. Thus, when we see Cepheids with an equal blinking period, we see, as it were, a flashlight of the same power at different distances from us: those that are further away seem dimmer to us, and those that are closer are brighter. Based on this difference, the distance to the "lantern" is calculated.
You see, the whole method rests on the unfounded assumption that Cepheids with equal twinkling periods are identical stars. There are other ways to determine distances, but they are all of the same bad quality. Again, the sarcastic voice of one of the creationists is heard: “And you look into the textbook, what is it, today, H (the Hubble constant. - Auth.)” We look. Indeed, it is inconvenient. Today's value of H=75 km/(s.-Mps). And no comments: either Hubble made a mistake, or his methods were not entirely correct, or the dependence of our speed on distance is not direct, but some kind of complicated one ... Go figure it out!
However, astronomers, spitting on the creationists' grumblings, go on - not to stop, the right word, at such an interesting place due to the fact that these damned stars are so far away that the distance between them cannot be measured.
A new step followed when the Odessa physicist Gamov, who fled from Russia, considered the first seconds and minutes of the existence of the Universe from the point of view of quantum mechanics. He realized that the universe would have to be hot in such a course of events and gradually cool down. Starting from the works of Gamow, this theory was called the Big Bang, or the theory of the hot Universe. Approximately 1 million years after the explosion, the Universe comes to a state where the union of electrons with protons and neutrons begins, that is, the formation of hydrogen and helium atoms. After all the free elementary particles were included in the composition of atoms, light began to interact little with matter, and the amount of light that was then in the Universe should, like in a museum, be preserved up to the present day. This prediction of Gamow's theory was brilliantly confirmed. American radio astronomers Penzias and Wilson discovered radiation that does not have a source, that is, it radiates almost uniformly from all points of the universe. The emission maximum occurs at wavelengths of the order of 1 mm. The temperature of this radiation, called relict, turned out to be 2.73 ° Kelvin, although Gamow asked for a little more - 6 ° Kelvin. In this regard, let us recall the great wit Voltaire, who simply made fun of the idiocy of the biblical story, where the Sun appears on the fourth day of creation, and light on the first.
Theories of matter condensation went further: evenly dispersed dust should, due to random fluctuations, create slightly more and slightly less dense areas. In ordinary situations of this kind - fluctuations - everything falls into place: for example, an accidental compaction or dilution of the air in a room does not lead to winds or any other changes in the meteorology of the room. However, this is not the case in this case. Dense regions, due to their greater mass, begin to draw particles from less dense regions towards them, irregularities intensify, and somewhere they begin to form very dense conglomerates. Such a mechanism for the appearance of new stars was predicted by Newton, and the famous musician and even more famous director of the Royal English Observatory in Greenwich, William Herschel, slept and saw the formation of a star from a cloud.
When the condensation becomes very large, gravity begins to heat up the forming star, and nuclear reactions begin to take place in it with a large release of energy. Hydrogen nuclei turn into helium, which is practically a "slow explosion" of a hydrogen bomb. Helium and other elements continue to combine into larger nuclei up to the elements of the iron group. The gigantic temperature that occurs at this time in the stars creates forces that counterbalance gravitational contraction: this is, firstly, the pressure of light, and secondly, the pressure of matter, which, despite its high density (100 times higher than the density of water), can considered as an ideal gas due to the fact that the substance is in a plasma state - all electrons are torn off from the nuclei - and the nuclei can approach, without interacting with each other, at very close distances. In the end, the nuclear fuel in the star burns out: all the nuclei are combined to the size of iron nuclei, and a further increase in the nuclei already requires energy costs. The star goes out, although it retains the accumulated gravitational heat for a long time. The substance of such a dwarf star is compressed to unprecedented densities: 1000 t / m3, while the size of the dwarf can be no larger than the planet Earth. If the mass of the dwarf is slightly less than the mass of the Sun, then it has a chance to freeze and freeze. If it exceeds the critical mass - 1.4 solar masses - the star continues to shrink. As a result, a neutron star is obtained: since protons are “squeezed out” from the substance of this star, the remaining neutrons can approach, without repulsion, at very close distances, so that the density of such a star can reach 10″ t/m3.
In this form, at low masses, the star can settle down at this stage, but if the mass exceeds the Oppenheimer-Volkov limit (on the order of three solar masses), such a star shrinks further and forms a black hole. This name comes from the fact that a black hole is so heavy that it attracts all the light that it emits to itself. Thus, this star is not visible, but it can be found by other stars distorting their movement in its terrible gravitational field.
In addition to dying stars, there are exploding stars in the sky - new and supernovae. This phenomenon occurs when, in a system of closely approached binary stars, material from one star begins to flow to another: from a star like the Sun to a white dwarf or neutron star - an explosion of a new star, from one white dwarf to another - an explosion of a supernova of the first type. In the case of supernovae of the second type, the compositions of the pairs have not yet been fully determined, however, one of the components of the pair is a nuclear-burned star with big amount iron-type elements (Fe, N1, Mb). Supernova explosions play a very important role in the theory of self-formation of the Universe, because elements lighter than iron are formed by themselves when smaller nuclei merge with the release of energy. For the formation of heavier nuclei, the addition of energy is already needed. How did a world suitable for our life appear, requiring copper, iodine, zinc and other trace elements heavier than iron? Due to the ejection of these elements from exploding supernovae, in which they are formed, using the gigantic energy of the explosion.
Then come difficult moments for theorists when it is necessary to explain the formation of planets. We are well aware of the properties of our solar system and we see in them several marks of God, which are difficult to explain by the blind action of the forces of nature. It is known that all the planets rotate approximately in the same plane and in the same direction, which is in good agreement with their origin from a single rotating disk. However, the angular momentum of the planets (a value that is preserved without extraneous interference and characterizes the rotation of the system) turns out to be too large, and such a hypothesis does not work directly. The rotation of the planets around their axis occurs in the same direction as the rotation around the Sun. But there are already exceptions here: Venus and Uranus for some reason rotate in the opposite direction. The axes of rotation of the planets around themselves, as a rule, are directed more or less parallel to the axis of rotation around the Sun. The exception is Uranus - its axis lies almost in the plane of rotation. The distance of the planets from the Sun increases approximately exponentially according to the Titius-Bode formula, but Mercury, Neptune and Pluto do not fit into this sequence. Modern theories about the formation of planets together with the solar disk do not even have the audacity to answer all these complex features of the structure of the solar system.
Let us now return to the "great", innocently ruined scientist seer Giordano Bruno. He foresaw that every star is new world like the solar system, that it has its own family of planets, and that these planets are inhabited. As for the first statement, it really belongs to the category of prophecies, since Giordano did not cite any scientific evidence in favor of it, yes, due to his ignorance, he could not cite it. The second statement belongs to the category of providences, and its truth is very difficult to verify. The latest data from 120 surveyed nearby stars found three stars, each with one planet ranging from 0.6 to 8.1 Jupiter masses. Naturally, no life is expected on such a planet. General statistical analysis reveals a very low probability of the existence of a Sun-type star with an Earth-type planet with a possible distance from the star for life.
But there is someone to take care of us.
Consider, for example, our planet Earth. When a significant piece of the Universe opened up to astronomers, everyone saw how rare a habitable planet is. This is the distance from the Sun, and the period of revolution around its axis, so that the day does not turn the planet into the Sahara, and the night into Antarctica, this is the inclination of the axis of its own rotation to the axis of the orbit - so that the Earth has the necessary mild change of climates, this is a set of elements , which are included in this planet, because even on our closest neighbors - Mars and Venus there is nothing similar. The conditions there are such that it is possible to speak about the possibility of the life of some specialized bacteria, but even those cannot be found there.
Astrophysicist Ross chose 33 parameters necessary for the existence of life, which should deviate no more than 10% from their average value. A careful calculation gives the probability of a random combination of these parameters falling into the life-permitting region of about 1030.
The universe is not made up of evenly spaced planets. Just as fluctuations in the density of dust caused the formation of stars, so fluctuations in stars create clusters of stars - galaxies, and clusters of galaxies - metagalaxies. Having considered the position of the Sun among these large-cell structures, we see that here, too, the optimal variant for life has been chosen.
Consider now the laws governing the physical world. When ideas about multidimensional spaces appeared in mathematics, someone asked the question: “Why is our space three-dimensional?” The answer was quickly found by physicists Paul and Tatiana Ehrenfest. They showed that only in three-dimensional space do gravitational forces decrease as the square of the distance between bodies. And if this is not the case, there are no gravitationally stable structures.
Finally, scientists drew attention to this cascade of coincidences, and two atheists by worldview, B. Kahr and M. Rees, published a sensational article in Nature in 1979, where they introduced the anthropic principle of the universe. This principle is targeted, not effective, and therefore sounded a terrible dissonance in the ears of scientists of the 20th century: “The universe must be formed and formed in such a way that, as a result, a person could live in it.”
Non-believers only offered their "non-believing" interpretation of the "plurality of worlds": all possible worlds with all possible conditions of being are realized in the Universe, but only that world knows about itself, in which a person or some other rational being is formed. This hypothesis is probably interesting for fans of science fiction, but we will move on.
There are several subtle moments in the astronomical life of the Universe. One of them is the possibility of equilibrium between the gravitational force that compresses the star and the pressure force of the plasma gas and radiation inside the star under conditions of thermonuclear fusion. Maintaining such an equilibrium requires a strict correspondence between the constants of electrical and gravitational relationships in the macrocosm and the constants of weak and strong interactions in the microcosm.
Let's go further. If we accept, along with the Big Bang theory, that the world began with the annihilation of large masses of matter and antimatter, which resulted in the formation of many photons and a small remnant of matter, then the size of this remnant, from which the entire Universe will then be formed, is determined by rigid relationships between the constants of the weak and gravitational interactions and the masses of the proton and electron.
The second important thing is the smallness of the difference between the masses of the proton and the neutron (it only slightly exceeds the mass of the electron). This ratio determines the termination of the reaction of combining protons and neutrons into hydrogen and the interconversion of protons and neutrons, saving 10% of neutrons from all heavy elementary particles for further synthesis of elements. Strong and electrical interactions lead to the formation of helium atoms from neutrons, protons and electrons, and from them already - other chemical elements. If the strong force constant were slightly changed (only by 5%), then this thermonuclear reaction would stop, and the stars would not burn.
The implementation of further chemistry, that is, the synthesis of other chemical elements in the form in which they exist, also requires the finest relationships between the masses of elementary particles and interaction constants.
In order for stars with the size and luminosity of the Sun type to exist, a certain relation between the constants of gravitational and electromagnetic interactions and the masses of the electron and proton must be satisfied, and this relation must be fulfilled with an accuracy of 10^10.
These examples can be multiplied and multiplied.
But let us now consider the moment of the explosion itself. The further scenario is determined only by the density of the exploded matter. There is a critical density corresponding to about 20 hydrogen atoms in 1 m:! space. If this density is exceeded, then the substance will again be pulled together by gravitational forces to the starting point. If the density of the matter is below the critical one, then the expansion of the matter will be infinite. If we estimate the time in which everything that has happened since the Big Bang could have happened: annihilation, the formation of hydrogen atoms, the collection of conglomerates of matter at points of fluctuation, the formation of stars and galaxies, the burning of some stars into white dwarfs, neutron stars and black holes, supernova explosion, it turns out that during this time the Universe should have already contracted to the starting point or scatter to a very low density.
The only way out is that the density of matter at the beginning of the explosion was very close to critical. This equality must hold with tremendous precision.
To clarify this issue, astronomers are now frantically trying to “knock out money” and calculate the available mass in the Universe, but so far they are missing ten times.
"Let's make money" and we'll see what the theories of self-formation of the Universe have come to and how our highly respected creationists, theistic evolutionists and agnostic skeptics treat them. Let us first note that although the authors of the anthropic principle of the Universe structure rigidly associate it with the Big Bang theory, there is no connection here. No matter how the Lord creates a burning star, it must burn and maintain a balance between gravitational contraction and pressure of incandescent light and matter. No matter how the atoms of hydrogen, helium and others are formed, their lifetime, stability and properties also depend on the relationship between the constants, which we wrote about above. The same applies to the parameters of the Earth, and to its position together with the Sun in the galaxy and metagalaxy.
Let's continue. Creationists, of course, will tell us that there was no Big Bang, since the Earth is 7,000 years old. And scientists for the whole history after the Big Bang ask for 15 billion years, and they don’t have any evidence. They don’t know how to reliably measure the distances between stars, their Hubble constant jumps (more than 10 times), and in general, all their data on stars are exclusively indirect, into which an error could easily creep in.
Then they will say: “But what about the second law of thermodynamics? God gave this law so that everyone would know: without God, not to the threshold - in a closed system, order always falls. In an open system, where clean food can be brought in and a lot of rubbish thrown out of it, a person can maintain order as much as he can. What do we get with Darwin? The famous Belgian physicist Ilya Prigozhy distinguishes three types of systems: a system where thermodynamic parameters are in equilibrium (this includes closed, but not only closed systems), systems with a constant but slight deviation from equilibrium (where the situation is still described by linear laws) and systems with a strong deviation from equilibrium. In systems of the first and second type, evolution of the Darwin type, increasing complexity and order, cannot act. In systems of the third type, this is, in principle, possible. Indeed, strange things happen in these systems. The Soviet physicist Belousov studied the oxidation of bromine ions with malonic acid. As a result, a reaction was obtained in which the reaction mixture periodically changed color, passing from one reaction state to another and vice versa. The editor of the journal to which Belousov sent the article advised him to read the second law of thermodynamics again. The proud Belousov put his test tube on the shelf and stopped fighting with the magazines. One of the guests, seeing the flickering miracle, persuaded him to write the article again, but the result was the same. In the end, it was possible to enlist Belousov's help from a theoretical group, which theoretically dismantled the reaction mechanism and found that there was no contradiction with the second law of thermodynamics.
We, skeptical agnostics, are not convinced by this example and others like it. Here we see the random appearance of small islands of order among the chaos, and in the real Darwin's theory there would be a systematic ordering of organic matter. Rather, it seems that in highly non-equilibrium thermodynamic systems, long-term and stable maintenance of order is possible with the help of reason - either human or brought in by God's instruction, as in living matter.
“And what about the Big Bang,” creationists will say, “there is a closed system, entropy must definitely increase, and you have candy out of chaos. For some reason, some people insist that the chaos was hot, but is it easier to make candy out of hot chaos?
Here the theistic evolutionists, led by Abbé Lemaitre, will enter into the conversation: “If we consider the exploding primordial mass of matter really as the “egg” of the emerging world, then it is not difficult to imagine that the entire order of the future world is already contained in this “egg”. We encountered such examples at various levels of organization of living matter. And indeed, when a beautiful swan or a ribosome disassembled into separate proteins develops from a primitive-looking egg, it itself reassembles itself into a functioning machine, when the proteins fold themselves into a certain three-dimensional structure, creating a machine that performs chemical operations at high speed (if such a protein is expanded , in most cases, left to itself, it will again curl up into a working structure), we see that the wisdom of the whole is hidden in its parts. Where is the wisdom of the whole hidden in the first clot of exploding matter? We cannot give a definite answer, but most likely, at least in part, in these amazing proportions that the Lord imposes on physical laws, that is, in the anthropic principle of the structure of the Universe.
What do agnostic-skeptics conclude? “Although the Church does not explicitly forbid such an interpretation,” they say, “it seems impossible for us to replace 7 days of a biblical story with 15 billion years of science. How it actually happened, we don't know. You can’t look back, you can’t “talk” closely with the stars, having directly measured something on them without preliminary assumptions, it’s also impossible - it hurts far, and empty curiosity doesn’t really worry us. We see what the Lord has done, we believe that in 7 days, and we confess that “everything, make a tree ... it’s good”. Science will figure it out - well, it won’t figure it out - well, okay ... "