Bell ringing in Orthodoxy. Why the bell tolls When church bells toll

The bell ringing sounds at certain moments of the church service to express joy, sadness and the triumph of the Orthodox faith. He announces the beginning of the service and invites the faithful to the temple.

“Since ancient times, in order to gather people for prayer, some instruments were used that could produce a strong sound. The church was designed to gather the people of the whole city. At the beginning of the emergence of Christianity, believers were persecuted, they gathered secretly and they could not give any signals that they were going to pray. And then, when Christianity became the state religion, then, in order to call the people to prayer, a bell appeared, which improved over time, the skill of casting bells appeared. They say that in Zvenigorod there was a bell that could be heard for many, many miles around. The selection of bells there was characterized as crimson ringing with a strong and melodic sound. So the bell is called upon to call a large number of people to church prayer, since church services should be conciliar, that is, universal. The bell calls all people to come and give praise to God all together in the temple of God,” says priest Alexander Ilyashenko.

What is the bell ringing like?

According to the chronicles, in Rus' there was a peculiar way of ringing. Russian bells gave sound not by swinging the bell itself along with the tongue, but by striking the movable tongue against the motionless bell. Such a distinctive feature gives the Russian church ringing a special sound. In addition to the swinging manner, a certain number of bells gives a characteristic ringing in Orthodox churches. It has long been the custom to supply each bell tower with a set of bells from the smallest to the largest sizes. And among the requirements of bell ringing, in addition to striking one bell, there were also chimes and chimes, which are possible only with bells of various sizes, weights and sounds.

By the characteristic ringing, you can understand what is happening in the temple and what event of church life is celebrated on a particular day. church calendar. There are several types of ringing:

Blagovest- single blows to the big bell. Such a ringing announces the beginning of the divine service or announces the celebration of the sacrament of the Eucharist at the Liturgy and the reading of the Gospel in other services. Such ringing can sound both independently and as part of other ringing. The larger the holiday, the longer, louder and more often the blessing.

trezvon- several bells ringing at the same time. Such a ringing expresses joy and triumph and is performed after the gospel before the service or sounds separately before the start of the solemn services. All groups of bells participate in it (large - bells, medium - bells and small - bells).

Chime- alternating strikes, consisting of a chime and a chime. The chime is performed before the consecration of water on the days of temple holidays and when the Cross is immersed in water during the consecration of water. During the chime, first they strike a large bell, then another smaller one to the smallest one, once, then they strike in the same order.

Bust- one blow to each bell from small to large. It is performed in the reverse order than the chime, first slowly hitting each bell once from the smallest to the largest, and then hitting all the bells simultaneously. Such a ringing expresses grief, it is performed during the funeral of the dead.

The ringing of bells can be completely different: solemn, joyful, sad, announcing trouble, the onset of a holiday, talking about the beginning of worship, and inviting people to the temple. It is believed that the ringing of bells creates special vibrations in the surrounding space, which have healing and cleansing power. When the bells ring, the human soul changes into better side, he joins God and turns to him with a prayer. Thus, we can conclude that the ringing of bells is a prayer transformed into sound.

At the dawn of Christianity, there was a prejudiced attitude towards church ministers. They were considered servants dark forces and pursued in every possible way. It is clear that in such conditions the bells were out of the question. Believers gathered in secret, and also secretly prayed. But years passed, and Christianity gained worldwide recognition. The clergy no longer needed to hide, and they began to call people to the service by ringing bells.

The bells were cast in special workshops. Each such bell was unique and had its own original sound. Their sizes were also different. The ringing of bells filled the surrounding space and was heard for many kilometers around.

You are probably familiar with such an expression as crimson ringing. It was characterized by a soft sound and a pleasant timbre, and in this respect resembled a sweet and tender berry. A rougher and incredibly powerful sound was made by a large church bell. With its help, people were called to worship, warned of danger, fire, etc. At the same time, the nature of church bells has always been different.

In Rus', in order to make the bell sound, the ringer swung the tongue inside it, which, hitting the inner surface of the bell, made it sound. At the same time, the style of bell ringing could be completely different. Everything depended on the situation, the nature of the actions of the ringer, the number of bells and their size. So, for example, when using a carillon, one could get an original bell melody.

By the nature of the bell ringing, one can determine what event it corresponds to. So, for example, single rare blows are called blagovest. As a rule, this type of bell ringing indicates the beginning of a service in the temple, as well as the beginning of the Liturgy or the reading of the Gospel.

The simultaneous ringing of several bells is called a chime. He announces a festive divine service.

The combination of blagovest and chime is called chime. Such a bell ringing is resorted to when lighting water, as well as on the days of the Temple.

Sequential strikes on all available bells, starting with the largest, are called bust. It testifies to grief for the dead person.

In this regard, we met with the bell-ringer of the Gradoyakutsky Transfiguration Cathedral Vitaly Kalugin and learned a little about the bell-ringing craft.

What is the purpose of the bell ringing?

The ringing of bells is needed in order to call people to worship, as well as to announce to people about some important moments and features during worship. Also, the bell ringing reminds those people who are outside the temple that a divine service is now in progress, that now is the time to pray so that people have the memory of God. Often people, hearing the bell ringing and knowing that an important moment of worship is taking place in the temple, are baptized, thereby showing reverence for God and the church.

What time do the bells ring?

The bells are rung at the beginning of the evening service, at the Six Psalms (this is approximately the middle of the service), at the Gospel and at the end of the service, when the Mother of God is glorified in her song “My soul magnifies the Lord.”

In the morning, at the Liturgy, the bell ringing sounds before the start of the service: at the reading of the third and sixth hours, before the start of the Liturgy itself, at the Eucharistic canon (this is the most important moment). They also call when they meet and see off the bishop, and at the end of the service. In some temples, they call when reading the prayer "Symbol of Faith".

Bell ringing is obligatory on Saturdays, because on Saturday they glorify the Mother of God, and on Sundays, since every Sunday is a small Easter.

- Is ringing on holidays different from ringing on ordinary days?

It doesn't differ radically. On big holidays - Easter or Christmas - the ringing is more solemn than on weekdays. The guard ringing is more different from the festive one. During fasting, the bell is rung very rarely, the ringing is quieter, the bells are struck less strongly, because on ordinary days, after each stroke of the bell, the Trisagion is read: “Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us”, and in Lent - Psalm 50, so the interval between the strikes of the bell increases. In this way, the watch bells show that there is a time for reflection, prayer, and work on oneself.

On Holy Week, the bell ringing will almost stop, because at this time it is remembered how Christ went to free suffering in order to atone for the sins of the human race. And on the night of Easter, a bright and joyful chime will sound throughout the city.

In addition, there are traditions of bell ringing, depending on the temple and the region. For example, in some temples the bells are rung more or less frequently. Or we can hear the ringing of bells during the Eucharistic canon, and in the south they often ring during the reading of the "Symbol of Faith."

- Tell us about the types of ringing.

The ringing is divided into blagovest and trezvon. The blagovest is gradual strikes on a large bell so that the sound is uniform, and not chaotic, as I have already said, after each strike on the bell, the Trisagion prayer is read, then the strike follows again.

Trezvon is the ringing of all bells when they ring three times at short intervals: they rang, they stopped, they rang. This ringing is before the beginning of the Liturgy, at holidays, and also at the meeting of the bishop.

Chime - ringing alternately from a large bell to a small one, such a ringing happens at the burial of the shroud. Tribor is a ringing from small to large, and at the end all the bells are struck. For example, Thursday Holy Week will read the Passion Gospels. Each Passion Gospel is accompanied by a ringing of the bell.

There is also a double call. This, like the chime, only rings twice. Usually such a ringing before prayers and after the Liturgy.

If several Liturgies are served in one church, for example, early and late, then traditionally the ringing of the early Liturgy is less solemn than that of the later.

- What are red bells and crimson bells?

IN Church Slavonic the word "red" does not mean a color, but "beautiful, fine." Therefore, the red ringing is one of the most beautiful, brightest ringing. Such a ringing can be heard on Bright Week, when the whole city is filled with a melody sounding from the bell towers.

Raspberry ringing - according to one version, a sweet, pleasant ringing for hearing. According to another version, the crimson ringing is a ringing sounding from bells that were cast in the city of Malin on the territory of modern Belgium, which were then brought to Russia.

- Tell us about the types of bells.

There are three types of bells: bass, tenor and triplet. Bass - the largest, they are responsible for the blagovest. Tenor medium in size, triplet - the smallest bells on the bell tower, which are used for tri-ringing, double-ringing, chiming. Bass bells make dull, heavy sounds, tenor bells are softer. The bells vary in size, from a few meters in diameter to several centimeters.

It can be said that the entire bell tower is a great musical instrument serving a good cause during the preaching of Christ.

What are bells made of?

The bells and tongues are 80% bronze and 20% tin. What is this composition for? Bronze - to have a fortress, and tin is responsible for the sound.

- How do they ring the bells?

The bell-ringer follows the service, as a rule, this is a person who knows the service well. At certain moments of the service, he climbs the bell tower and rings the bells.

To ring the bells, you need leverage on them. Ropes are tied to the tongues of tenor and triplet bells, pulled close to the wall of the bell and beaten, a bunch of ropes of tenor bells are taken in one hand, and triplet bells are beaten in the other. That is, the ropes tied to the tongues of the bells are in a taut position, they only need to be hit. And the treols need to be pulled and called. To the largest bells - bass pedals are made, a rope is tied to them and, pulling it, they make a sound from the bell. But if the bell is very large, it is struck not on one wall, but first on one, then on the other.

- Is it hard to learn to call?

It is not easy to learn any business. The main thing here is practice, and there is enough practice for the students of the seminary, because we participate in divine services and learn the sexton and bell-ringing art along the way. Now I am in my 3rd year and I am still studying and will continue to study bell ringing, because there are still moments that need to be learned better.

- What does it take to become a bell ringer?

Usually the rector blesses the ringing. For me, for example, this is one of the types of obedience.

- Where are they taught to be bell ringers?

There are ringing schools in big cities - Moscow, Novosibirsk, where both men and women are trained. But most often the ability to ring bells is passed from one person to another. For example, I was taught by older seminary students.

- Can those who wish to look at the bells climb the bell tower?

On Bright Week, anyone can climb the bell tower and ring the bells - the bell ringer or sexton on duty will lead you to the bell tower. It doesn't matter if you know how to call or not, they will help you, prompt you. And so you can rejoice at the Easter holiday with the ringing of the bell.

There is a tradition when, during the Easter period, bells are carried to settlements where they do not exist, so that people can ring and thereby glorify the risen Christ.

On ordinary days, in order to climb the bell tower and ring the bells, you need to ask for blessings from the rector of the temple.

- Is it true that the sound of the bell has a healing effect?

In a spiritual sense, I think so. After all, the ringing of bells reminds us of God, thereby directing our mind to the comprehension of the Trinity.

- Do you think the bell ringer is a vocation, or can anyone become one?

I think that every person who has a hearing can become a bell ringer if they bless. With God's blessing, God's help, nothing is impossible.

- What will be the ringing for Easter?

There will be a bright and constant ringing throughout the city for the procession during the Liturgy. And as I noted above, such a ringing will be throughout the Bright Week.

TO HELP THE RINGERS

Methodological material for educational purposes

Author of the article: Kryuchkov A.E., ringer of the Church of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker on Bolvanovka in Moscow,
musician, artist of the Bolshoi Theater of Russia

The bells, without a certain theological-liturgical and scientific-culturological content, are only sounding bronze statues of an aesthetic and applied nature - a museum exhibit. For the sake of their "revival" the whole complex of historical, liturgical, scientific-theoretical and technical knowledge is needed as a complex and as the basis for the existence and use of bells in the liturgical life of the church with its history, continuity, sound and development. After all, the bell is a rather complex cultural phenomenon that exists in two worlds - the visible and the invisible. This higher, sacred, invisible meaning is acquired by a set of measures comparable to the growth of a person from the veil to an intelligible action. A complex and long process of production is just beginning this way, because the bells must be delivered to the temple. To realize their presence with the whole parish, feeling their spiritual symbolism. Lift, hang correctly, with all the additional complex of work, then correctly combine into a single cathedral organism with a complex system of connections, then, having gathered courage, begin to comprehend the sound and the technique of its extraction, then understand the whole sacred meaning of the connection with the service in the temple and feel it sacred spirit. And only then do the bells acquire that sacred symbol, the top of which lies beyond the bounds of our sensory perception - in the invisible. And people, participating in the ringing or hearing them from the outside, involuntarily, intuitively, by faith, correlate with this higher meaning, are trying to find earthly joy and spiritual harmony already here, on earth, in the visible, material anticipation of Heaven. For a ringer, as a performer and as a Christian, it is necessary to be present not only at a specific sounding point on the ground, being on the bell tower, but to try to continue this whole chain of related meanings from the past to the present. And from the present - to the acquisition of knowledge and sensations, in order to feel the fullness of the liturgical action and your participation in it as part of the Divine Voice, convening those who are called to the “Vespers Velia”, the image of which is the bells.

PART 1. FOUNDATIONS OF ORTHODOX SERVICE.

A church service is a combination according to a special plan, into one set of prayers, sections of Holy Scripture, hymns and sacred rites to clarify some specific spiritual idea or thought. Finding the guiding thought or idea of ​​each service and establishing a connection with it in all its constituent parts is one of the tasks of studying Orthodox church services. Every day is a day of the week, and at the same time a day of the year, so there are three kinds of memories for every day: 1) “daytime” or hourly memories, connected with a certain hour of the day; 2) “weekly” or weekly memories, connected with individual days of the week; 3) memories "annual" or numerical, connected with certain numbers of the year.

Thanks to this threefold kind of sacred remembrance that falls on each day, all church services are divided into three circles: DAILY, WEEKLY, and ANNUAL. The main “circle” is daily, everyday, and the other two are additional.

DAILY CIRCLE OF SERVICES those services are called that are performed by the Holy Orthodox Church throughout the day. The names of the daily services indicate at what hour of the day each of them should be performed.

For example: PM indicates the evening hour. Compline - for the hour following the "supper" (that is, after the evening meal). MIDNIGHT OFFICE - at midnight. MATINS - for the morning hour. LUNCH - for lunch, that is, noon. FIRST HOUR - in our opinion means the 7th hour of the morning. THE THIRD HOUR is our 9th hour in the morning. THE SIXTH HOUR is our 12th hour. THE NINTH HOUR is our third hour in the afternoon.

The tradition of inconsistency in the account (the difference is about 6 hours) is explained by the fact that the eastern account is accepted, and in the East, sunset and sunrise, in comparison with our countries, differ by 6 hours. So the 1st hour of the East corresponds to our 7th hour. And so on.

VESPERS. It is performed at the end of the day, in the evening, therefore it will be the first among the daily services. According to the Church, the day begins with the evening, since the first day of the world and the beginning of human existence was preceded by darkness, evening and twilight. With this service, we thank God for the passing day.

Compline. This service consists of reading a series of prayers in which we ask the Lord God for forgiveness of sins, and that He would give us, for the coming sleep, peace of body and soul and save us from the wiles of the devil during sleep. Sleep also reminds of death. Therefore, in Orthodox worship at Compline, it is reminded to those who pray for awakening from eternal sleep, that is, for the Resurrection.

MIDNIGHT SERVICE. This service is intended to be performed at midnight, in remembrance of the Savior's nightly prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane. The “midnight” hour is also memorable because “at the midnight hour” in the parable of the ten virgins, the Lord timed His Second Coming. This service calls on believers to be always ready for the Day of Judgment.

MATINS. This service is performed in the morning, before sunrise. The morning hour, bringing with it light, vigor and life, always arouses a grateful feeling towards God, who gives life. With this service, we thank God for the past night and ask Him for mercy for the coming day. In the Orthodox service after Matins, the coming into the world of the Savior, who brought new life with Himself, is glorified.

FIRST HOUR, corresponding to our seventh hour in the morning, sanctifies the day that has already come with prayer. At the first hour, the judgment of Jesus Christ by the high priests, which took place around this time, is recalled.

THIRD HOUR corresponds to our ninth hour in the morning. It recalls the descent of the Holy Spirit on the apostles, which took place around this time.

SIXTH HOUR corresponds to our twelfth hour of the day. It recalls the crucifixion of our Lord Jesus Christ, which happened from the 12th to the 2nd hour of the day.

NINTH HOUR corresponds to our third hour in the afternoon. It recalls the death on the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, which took place at about 3 o'clock in the afternoon.

DIVINE LITURGY or Mass is the most important divine service. It recalls all earthly life Savior and is done Sacrament of Communion established by the Savior Himself at the Last Supper. Liturgy is always served in the morning, before dinner.

All these services in ancient times in monasteries and hermits were performed separately, at the time set for each of them. But then, for the convenience of believers, they were combined into three services: EVENING, MORNING, and AFTERNOON.

Each of the above daily services would have to be sent separately, as is done in many Orthodox monasteries, but due to the conditions of worldly life at the present time, the celebration of all services, with rare exceptions, is transferred to the evening and morning hours. Each of the daily services has its own order of connection with the weekly and yearly services, depending on the events recalled. Following the custom of the Old Testament Church, The New Testament Church begins the circle of daily church services in the evening.

Reading at home daytime hours(during the day) and compline(before bed) and midnight office(on rising from sleep) was a common practice in Byzantium and in Rus'. Nowadays, this practice is rare - in the daily life of pious Christians, Compline and Midnight Office have taken the place of prayer rules: for a dream to come and morning. However, in their origin, these rules are nothing more than an abbreviated Compline and Midnight Office with additional prayers.

GREAT COMPLICATION. Currently in Orthodox Church The liturgical Rule recognizes two types of Compline—great and small. Great Compline is celebrated today only during Great Lent, and also as part of the All-Night Vigil of the feasts of the Nativity of Christ, Theophany and the Annunciation Holy Mother of God.

SMALL COMPLICATION. His Charter prescribes to be performed daily, except for the days of singing Great Compline and Bright Week. It is an abbreviation of the Great. In fact, this is the third part of Great Compline, to which the 50th psalm (at the beginning) and the Creed (after the daily doxology) are added. In the modern Russian Church, in view of the widespread practice of directly serving Matins immediately after Vespers, Small Compline out of worship both in parishes and in most monasteries.

Midnight Office one of the daily worship services. In the first centuries of Christianity, it was performed at night, since at night it was then the safest for worship. Later she was included in matins. It is not performed if the All-Night Vigil is served, as well as in some other cases according to the Charter.

In the modern parish life of the church, the daily circle has become even more dense and reduced. On the eve of Sundays and holidays, the following takes place:

Evening service - ALL-NIGHT VISION, which combines: Vespers, Matins and the First Hour.

Morning Service - LITURGY. And before it are performed: the 3rd hour, the 6th hour.

WEEKLY SERVICE CIRCLE.

The Holy Church gradually gave prayerful remembrance not only to every hour of the day, but to every day of the week. So, from the very beginning of the existence of the Church of Christ, the “first day of the week” was dedicated to the remembrance of resurrection Jesus Christ, and became a solemn and joyful day - a holiday.

IN Monday(the first day after the resurrection) incorporeal forces are glorified - Angels created before man and God's closest environment.

In Tuesday saint is glorified John the Baptist like a great prophet and righteous man.

IN Wednesday the betrayal of the Lord by Judas is remembered and, in connection with this, a service is performed in memory Cross of the Lord(fast day).

IN Thursday glorified St. apostles and St. Nicholas the Wonderworker.

IN Friday the sufferings on the cross and the death of the Savior are remembered, and a service is performed in honor of Cross of the Lord(fast day).

IN Saturday memory is given to the Old Testament Sabbath of rest and expectation of the Savior. are glorified Mother of God which is gratified daily, and forefathers, prophets, apostles, martyrs, saints, righteous and all saints who have reached rest in the Lord. All those who have died are also commemorated. true faith and hope for the resurrection and eternal life.

ANNUAL SERVICE CIRCLE

As the faith of Christ spread, the number of Saints increased: martyrs, saints. The greatness of their deeds provided an inexhaustible source for pious Christian songwriters and artists to compose various prayers and hymns in memory of them, as well as artistic images - icons.

The Holy Church included these emerging spiritual works in the composition of church services, timed their reading and singing to the days of memory of the saints designated in them. The range of these prayers and chants is wide and varied. It unfolds for a whole year, and each day there are not one, but several glorified saints.

The manifestation of God's Grace to a certain people, locality or city, for example, deliverance from floods, earthquakes, from attacks by enemies, etc. gave an indelible occasion to prayerfully commemorate these incidents.

Thus, every day of the year is dedicated to the memory of certain saints, important events, as well as special sacred events - holidays and fasts.

Of all the holidays of the year, the biggest is Light Christ's Resurrection- EASTER. It is the feast of the feast and the triumph of the feasts. Easter happens not earlier than April 4th and not later than May 8th, on the first Sunday after the spring full moon.

Present in the year 12 Great Holidays established in honor of our Lord Jesus Christ and Mother of God. These holidays are called twelfth.

There are holidays in honor of great saints and in honor of the ethereal Forces of Heaven - Angels.

All holidays in the year according to their content are divided into: Lord's, Mother of God and saints' holidays.

According to the time of celebration, the holidays are divided into: motionless, which occur every year on the same day of the month and on mobile, which, although they happen on the same days of the week, but fall on different numbers months in accordance with the time of the celebration of Easter.

According to the solemnity of the church service, the holidays are divided into: great, medium and small. Great holidays always include the All-Night Vigil. Middle holidays - not always.

liturgical church year begins on September 1, old style, and the entire annual circle of services is built in relation to the Easter holiday.

Thanks to the knowledge of the threefold kind of sacred memories that fall on each day, the prayer can explain to himself the following observation:

1 . If for several weeks, at least two, you attend each church service and carefully follow the content of the prayers, then you can notice that some, for example, “Our Father” or a prayer to the Most Holy Theotokos and the litanies, are read at each service. Other prayers, and most of them, are heard only during one service, and they are not pronounced after another.

Consequently, some prayers are used without fail at each service and do not change, while others change and alternate with each other..

The change and alternation of church prayers occurs in this order: some prayers performed at one service are not performed after another. For example: the prayer “Lord, I have called…” is performed only at Vespers. The prayers “Only begotten son…” or “We have seen the true light…” are sung only at the Liturgy. Then these prayers are not repeated until the next day, where we hear them at the same service at which we heard yesterday. Consequently, these prayers, although they are repeated every day, are always timed to coincide with a specific service.

2 . There are prayers that are repeated every week on a certain day. For example: "Seeing the Resurrection of Christ ..." we hear only on the eve of the resurrection at Vespers. Prayer of the “Heavenly armies of the Archangel…” - only on Mondays. Consequently: the “turn” of these prayers comes in a week.

3 . Finally, there is a third series of prayers, which are performed only on certain dates of the year. For example: “Your Christmas, Christ our God…” is heard on January 7th, and “Your Christmas, Virgin Mary…” is heard on September 21st.

If we compare the three kinds of changes and alternations between church prayers, it turns out that prayers are repeated every day, relating to sacred daily and “hourly” memories. A week later - to the "seven". A year later - "annual".

Since all our prayers alternate with each other and repeat (circle), some - with the speed of the day. Others are weeks. Third - years. Therefore, such prayers are given in church books the name of the service of the “everyday circle”, “the circle of the week”, “the circle of the year”. Every day the prayers of all three “circles” are heard in the church, and not just one of them. However the main “circle” is the “everyday circle”, and the other two are additional.

COMPOSITION OF CHURCH SERVICES.

The alternating and changing prayers of the daily, weekly and annual circles are called "changing" prayers. The prayers that occur AFTER EACH service are called "unchanging". Every church service consists of a combination of changing and unchanging prayers.

UNCHANGING PRAYERS that are read and sung at every service: 1 - opening prayers, with which all services begin and which, therefore, in liturgical practice are called the "Usual Beginning." 2 - Litanies. 3 - Exclamations. 4 - Leaves and holidays.

CHANGING PRAYERS. As already mentioned, the Church reads and sings selected passages from Holy Scripture and prayers written by devout Christian writers. Both are introduced into the composition of church services in order to depict and glorify the sacred event of the three circles of worship: daily, weekly and annual. Readings and chants from sacred books are named after the book from which they are borrowed. For example: psalms from the book of Psalms. Prophecies are from the books of the prophets. The gospel is from the gospel. Changing prayers are found in church service books and have various names.

The most important of them are the following:

1) Troparion- a song that briefly depicts the life of a Saint or the history of a holiday.

2) Kontakion(“kontos” - short. Greek) - a short song depicting some particular feature of the celebrated event or the Saint.

3) magnificence- a song containing the glorification of a Saint or a holiday. The magnification is sung during the All-Night Vigil before the festive icon, first by the clergy in the middle of the temple, and then repeatedly repeated by the chanters.

4) Stichira(polystich. Greek) - a hymn, consisting of many verses written in one size of versification, having for the most part verses of Holy Scripture in front of them.

5) Dogmatist- a special stichera, which contains the teaching (dogma) about the incarnation of Jesus Christ from the Mother of God.

6) Akathist- "Non-sedal". Prayer, especially laudatory singing in honor of the Lord, the Mother of God or the Saint.

7) Antiphons- alternating singing, opposition. Prayers to be sung alternately on two kliros.

8) Prokimen- "lying in front." The verse that precedes the reading of the Apostle, the Gospel and proverbs.

9) involved- a verse that is sung during the communion of the clergy.

10) Canon- This is a series of sacred chants in honor of a Saint or a holiday that are read or sung at the All-Night Vigil at the time when the worshipers kiss (apply) the Holy Gospel or the icon of the holiday.

SERVICE BOOKS.

The books required for worship are divided into:

1 - Holy liturgical: A reading is made from the Holy Scriptures - the Gospel, the Apostle, the books of the Prophets, the Psalter.

2 - Church and liturgical: They contain the changing prayers of the daily, weekly and yearly circles. Of them:

A) - "Hourbook". It contains prayers of the daily circle. Order and text - Midnight Office, Matins, Vespers, etc.

B) 1 - "Oktoih" or Octophone. It contains prayers of the seventh circle of content. It is divided into 8 parts, corresponding to eight church tunes, and is used at all times, except for Great Lent, ending with the feast of the Trinity. Prayers and chants are arranged by day.

B) 2 - "Triod". There are two types: "Lent" and "Color". It is used during Great Lent and up to and including the feast of the Trinity.

C) - "Menaia" or Monthly. It contains the prayers of the annual circle. They are divided into 12 parts according to the number of months. All the prayers and hymns in honor of the Saints in the Menaion are arranged by numbers.

Division of Daily Time

PART 2. SERVICE RINGS

DIVISION OF BELLS BY GROUPS

The Russian tradition of liturgical bells implies an internal division of the total number of bells into groups:

1. - Blagovestnik - the largest and lowest sounding bells. They are from 1 to 4-5.

2. - Ringing bells - medium. They make up a variety of ringing, expressing its main melodies and rhythms. Calling can be from 2-3 to almost two dozen.

3. - Ringing bells are the smallest. They color the ringing with a special subtle rhythmic and intonational peculiarity.

TYPES OF SERVICE RINGS

1. BLAGOVEST - a bell announcing the beginning of worship. It represents uniform, not fast blows to a large, or to one of the large bells. The Annunciation not only announces the time of the beginning of the service, but also prepares Christians for it. He is already a service. If there are several evangelizers, then the ringing is performed according to the order of the holiday in the corresponding bell: on Great holidays - in a large or festive one. On Sundays - on Sunday (polyeleia). On weekdays - on weekdays. During fasting - in fasting. In accordance with the status, the size of the bell also decreases.

2. CELL. Several or all simultaneously ringing bells, with rhythm, dynamics and tempo corresponding to this ringing. The ringing can be performed in one step, in two or in three, depending on the liturgical daily circle, which contains THREE main services: vespers, MATINS and LITURGY.

Before Vespers, a chime is performed in one reception. Before Matins, since this is the second service, the chime at two reception. Before the Liturgy three reception.

3. CALL. Alternate successive strikes (from one to seven per bell) from the largest bell to the smallest. In liturgical practice, it is performed to emphasize the importance of the upcoming service or action:

1) - On the feast of Epiphany (Theophany), this ringing is performed at the rite of consecration of water, it symbolizes the descent of the Grace of God on the consecrated water.

2) - When the Shroud is taken out in the order of Great Friday of Great Lent, it marks the exhaustion of the strength of the Savior crucified on the cross.

3) - On Great Saturday Matins, when the shroud is buried, a chime is made.

Three times a year, on holidays associated with the Cross of the Lord:

4) - in Great Lent, on the week of the Adoration of the Cross.

5) - on the feast of the Exaltation of the Cross of the Lord.

6) - on the day of the Origin of the Honest Trees - the removal of the Cross to the middle of the temple is also accompanied by a chime.

7) - When the shroud is taken out at the All-Night Vigil of the feast of the Assumption of the Most Holy Theotokos (the evening before).

8) - On the feast of the Assumption of the Virgin. At the evening service on the day of the holiday, at the burial of the shroud of the Virgin, a ringing is performed.

4. BUSY. Ringing one beat on each bell from small to large. Busting is a death knell. It has some varieties:

1) - at the burial of the priesthood, before sorting, they strike the largest bell 12 times. Busting symbolizes human life in its development and maturation, so the blows follow from the small to the big bell.

2) - At the burial of the laity, first, a search is made from a small to a large bell. At the end of each "circle" of enumeration, all the bells are struck simultaneously, symbolizing the interruption of a person's earthly life.

SUNDAY BELLS.

Since the daily cycle of worship, or, in other words, the church day, begins with vespers, the peals, respectively, begin on the eve of the day being celebrated. Ringing on Sundays is the most common and frequent in everyday practice, unlike everyday ones. They are a model for many holidays, so their structure is a necessary model for the basic liturgical knowledge of the bell ringer. Bells for Sunday Vespers . Before Sunday afternoon, on Saturday evening, the ringer, having received a blessing from the primate, performs bells and whistles before the start of the All-Night Vigil. The Annunciation is carried out at the Sunday bell. First, two strikes are made on the bell until the sound is completely attenuated after each strike, then uniform strikes begin. At the end of the blessing ringing in one go.

The next bell at the all-night service is called double chime. This is a trezvon in two steps, in other words, two peals after a short period of time, and means the beginning of Matins. The ringing at this time symbolically marks the beginning of Matins, as the beginning of a new time in the life of mankind - the morning of eternal life. When making a double ringing, it must be remembered that there should be reverent silence in the church during the reading of the Six Psalms, so the ringing must be completed before the reading of the psalms, or rather, before the exclamation of the priest at the beginning of Matins.

Ringing for the Gospel This chime in one go, performed during the singing of the power antiphons, at the time of the removal from the altar of the Gospel. The ringing occurs during a special insertion into the holding of Matins polyeleic service, which begins with singing - "Praise the name of the Lord ..." and should be stopped before the reading of the Gospel. Since the Gospel symbolizes the Lord himself, the ringing in this place is a greeting to the one who came down to us in the form of the teaching of the Son of God.

Ringing on the "Honest" so called because it takes place on the 9th ode of the canon, before the beginning of which the deacon exclaims: “Let us exalt the Mother of God and the Mother of Light in song!”. Then the chant "My soul magnifies the Lord" is already sung, in the refrain of which they sing: "The most honest Cherubim and the most glorious without comparison Seraphim ...". It's 9 beats on the big bell. The number 9 is not random, it stands for 9 angelic ranks with which the Mother of God is compared in this hymn.

No bells are allowed at the end of Sunday Vespers. In any case, there are no indications in the "Typicon" on this matter, however, in many churches, the abbots bless the bell ringers to ring.

For the Sunday Liturgy evangelize in the same way as before the Vespers, with the difference that ringing at the end of the blagovest they perform in three stages. If there is an early Liturgy, then the evangelism is performed at the middle bell, less often and quieter. At the end of the gospel, there is no ringing.

Ringing on the Eucharistic Canon(after the Creed) contains 12 strokes of the holiday bell, those. according to the number of Apostles present at the Last Supper of the Lord. It is performed after the Eucharistic prayers have been recited by the priest and helps the believers to turn their hearts to God. "Woe to our hearts!" - proclaims the priest. "Imams to the Lord" - answers the choir and those who are coming. "Thank the Lord!" - proclaims the priest. From this moment on, the blows to the big bell begin, according to the words of the choir: “It is worthy and righteous to eat.” Here it is desirable to evenly distribute the beats during the singing and end the ringing by the end of the reading of the Eucharistic prayers, to the exclamation: "Fairly about the Most Holy, Most Pure, Most Blessed ...".

At the end of the Sunday Liturgy, final chime.

BELLS OF THE GREAT (TWENTIETH AND GREAT) HOLIDAYS

Christian holidays are certain days church calendar, celebrated with divine services that have an individual liturgical character. This is recorded in the names of the holidays, the dates and order of their celebration, as well as in the content of the texts performed during the service. Their purpose and meaning is the remembrance, glorification and theological interpretation of the key stages in the history of Salvation, which is embodied mainly in the events of the earthly life of Jesus Christ (the Savior), and the Virgin Mary, a real participant in this divine-human process. Hence - an exceptionally important place in the calendar of events dedicated to Them.

The holidays are distributed within two overlapping annual cycles - FIXED - (Minean) and MOBILE - (triode or Easter-Pentecostal). Celebrations and memorable events of the first cycle are strictly fixed only on the days of the month. The holidays of the second are fixed only by the days of the week, being strictly correlated with EASTER, which is the starting point for the entire moving annual cycle. The date of Easter moves within 35 days: from April 4 to May 8.

All holidays have a certain status or classification:

EASTER - as a "holiday holiday", has the highest status and is outside this classification. The most important holidays of modern Orthodox calendar are called "Twelfth".

Twelfth fixed holidays

Twelfth rolling holidays

1. Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem - a week before EASTER.

2. Ascension of the Lord - on the 40th day after EASTER.

3. Day of the Holy Trinity. Pentecost is 50 days after Easter.

The second step in the festive hierarchical ladder is occupied by holidays, which are called “great” in the liturgical language.

Great non-twelfth holidays:

There are holidays that formally are not great in status, but are celebrated very solemnly: the days of memory of Sergius of Radonezh, Seraphim of Sarov, Nicholas the Wonderworker. These are especially, popularly revered saints. Divine services are celebrated on these days according to the order of the Great Feasts. Ringing these days is also made with the participation of all the bells.

In addition, all churches have their own significant dates, on the days of which services are performed according to the order of Great Feasts: days of patronal feasts, revered images, memorable events, days of visiting the parish by the ruling bishop.

On the days of the Great Feasts, services are basically similar to the Sunday service, and in this case, the ringing should be considered from the point of view of its nature: the duration and solemnity of the ringing and the participation of the largest bell.

Ringing at the end of the All-Night Vigil and after the Liturgy on feast days is prescribed and necessary.

CHRISTMAS RINGS

Ringing on the feasts of the Nativity of Christ and Epiphany (Baptism) often presents significant difficulties in understanding, especially for beginner bell ringers. Therefore, it is necessary, first of all, to know the structure of the holidays, the order of the services, and their changes, in connection with the transfer of the Royal Hours, depending on the days of the week.

on the morning of January 6th attributable to weekday , in the temple are performed Royal Hours, Pictorial, Great Vespers, which serves Liturgy of Basil the Great.

Royal clock. Three times a year, special rites of hours are established, which are called great in liturgical books, and among the people - royal. vernacular name came from ancient tradition Byzantium: on this clock in cathedral the Emperor himself was obliged to attend. Russia adopted the traditions of church services from Byzantium, and our noble sovereigns strictly followed this rule. The royal hours are celebrated on the eve of the holidays of Christmas and Epiphany, on the so-called Christmas Eve (January 6 and 18), and are dedicated to these sacred events, as well as on Good Friday - for the sake of the Passion of the Lord. The royal hours are read in a row - from the first to the ninth. At each hour, in addition to the psalms, paremia is read - a passage from the Old Testament containing a prophecy about a remembered day, a text from the Apostle and the Gospel. In addition, special troparia are sung.

pictorial. They are celebrated on those days when there is no liturgy (as on some weekdays of Great Lent, etc.) or when it is served after Vespers, that is, on the days of special Lent. The name Pictorial is given because this service is some kind of image, i.e. the likeness of the Liturgy.

By the Royal Hours is performed 1) - blagovest. After the clock is made 2) - chime 3) - 12 strokes almost twice as long during the Eucharistic Canon. After the end of the Liturgy, 4) - chime.

Under the holiday itself on the evening of January 6th a special All-Night Vigil is served. Before it starts - 1) - blagovest and chime. The Vigil consists of Great Compline (since Vespers is celebrated in the morning), with a festive Litiya, and Matins with Polyeleos. At the Polyeleos 2) - ringing to the Gospel. 3) - Chime at the end Vespers and Liturgy. Festive Liturgy Begins at midnight on January 7th. The clock in front of her is unreadable. It serves the Liturgy of John Chrysostom with shorter intervals between 4) - 12 strokes in the Eucharistic Canon. After the Liturgy, at night - 5) - chime.

Option 2 . On the eve of the holiday, when January 6 and 7 fall on weekend, Royal Hours are moved to Friday morning. This happens because they associated with strict fasting, and Saturday and Sunday are not fasting in their essence in the liturgical sense. At the same time, the Liturgy is not performed on Friday. Before the Royal Hours - 1) - blagovest. After the Royal Hours are served Fine. Before Fine - 2) - chime

On Christmas Eve January 6th in the morning Liturgy of John Chrysostom is served. Before Liturgy 1) - blagovest and chime. On the Eucharistic Canon (short version) 2) - 12 strokes to the big bell. After Liturgy 3) - chime at the end and before Great Vespers (not long). After Vespers 4) - chime at the end.

Under the holiday itself, on the evening of January 6, the All-Night Vigil is served (maybe at 17 or 22 hours). By its beginning, 1) - blagovest and chime. At Matins, at the Polyeleic Service, for the reading of the Gospel, 2) - chime. After the end of the All-Night Vigil and before the Liturgy of Basil the Great, 3) - chime.

January 7th at 00:00 holiday begins Liturgy of Basil the Great. The clock is unreadable in front of her. The Eucharistic canon is long 4) - 12 strokes. After the end of the festive Liturgy, the festive 5) - ringing "in all".

RINGS FOR THE FESTIVITY OF THE EPOPHIENCE (BAPTIC)

The order of services on the feast of the Epiphany is a similar composition of bells as on the feast of the Nativity of Christ, for options with the transfer of the Royal Hours also take place depending on the days of the week. On the eve of the holiday, on Epiphany Christmas Eve, a great consecration of water is performed, so the chime is included in the ringing.

1 option. On the eve of the holiday (Christmas Eve), on the morning of January 18th attributable to weekday, in the temple are performed Royal Hours, Great Vespers, and the Liturgy of Basil the Great.

By the Royal Hours is performed 1) - blagovest. After the Royal Hours - 2) - chime before the Great Vespers and Liturgy. The liturgy of Basil the Great differs in that the intervals between 3) - 12 strokes almost twice as long during the Eucharistic Canon. After the end of the Liturgy, after reading the Prayer for the Ambon, during the procession of the clergy, led by the priest, to the place of consecration of the water, 4) - chime. The duration of the chime is until the time the priest immerses the cross in the water to be blessed. And during the dive 5) - short chime .

Under the holiday itself ( on the evening of January 18th) All-night vigil is served. Before it starts - 1) - blagovest and chime. The Vigil consists of Great Compline (since Vespers is served in the morning) and Matins with Polyeleos. At the Polyeleos 2) - ringing to the Gospel. At the end - 3) - Chime at the end Vespers.

On the day of the holiday on January 19, in the morning, Liturgy of John Chrysostom. Ringing on it occurs in the usual order: on the clock 1) - blagovest and chime to the beginning of the Liturgy. Further 2) - 12 strokes to the Eucharistic Canon (intervals are shorter).

At the end of the Liturgy, after the priest reads the Prayer beyond the Ambon, the water is blessed. The composition of the bells here repeats the order at the first consecration: 3) - chime until the immersion of the cross, and 4) - chime during the dive.

Option 2 . On the eve of the holiday, when January 17 and 18 fall on weekend , Royal clock carried over to the morning of the previous day. This happens because they associated with strict fasting, and Saturday and Sunday are not fasting in their essence in the liturgical sense. At the same time, the Liturgy is not performed during the transfer. Before the Royal Hours - 1)-blessing. At the end of them - 2) - chime. Next are the Pictorial. At their end, there is no ringing.

On Christmas Eve, January 18, the morning is served Liturgy of John Chrysostom and Great Vespers . Before the beginning of the Liturgy, at the clock, 1) - blagovest and chime. During the Eucharistic Canon 2) - 12 strokes into a big bell (short intervals). After the end of the Liturgy and before the Great Vespers 3) - chime. In this version, with the transfer of the Royal Hours, the order of the service of the rite of consecrating water changes. It's happening on Great Vespers , after the petitionary Litany, in the place where Litiya is served on other holidays. In this place of service, during the procession of the clergy, led by the priest to the place of consecration of water, 4) - chime until the moment of immersion in the water of the cross. Since the immersion of the cross - 5) - short chime. At the very end of the service, when the faithful begin to parse the holy water, the final 6) - festive chime "to the fullest".

January 18 in the evening served All-night vigil . The order of calls on it is as set: 1) - blagovest and chime to the start of the service. 2) - chime at the Polyeleos service for the reading of the Gospel. 3) - Festive chime at the end of the service.

January 19 in the morning is served Liturgy of Basil the Great , where the Great consecration of water takes place. Ringing order: on the clock 1) - blagovest and chime to the start of the service. 2) - 12 strokes into a large bell during the Eucharistic canon (intervals are longer). At the end of the Liturgy, after the priest reads the Prayer beyond the Ambon, the rite of blessing the water begins. From the beginning of the procession of the clergy until the immersion of the cross 3) - chime. During the immersion of the cross - 4) - chime. At the very end of the service, when the faithful begin to parse the holy water, the final 5) - festive chime "in all".

ORDER OF SERVICES AND RINGS OF MIDDLE HOLIDAYS

In the Orthodox liturgical system, vigil and polyeleos services are included in the middle holidays. Vigil services on weekdays and Saturdays are performed on the same services of the daily circle and according to the order of the Great Feasts. Only in comparison with the Great Feasts, at Matins, before the canon of the feast, the canon of the Mother of God is sung, and at the Litiya of the Great Vespers, before the stichera of the feast, the stichera of the temple is sung.

Such holidays can be the days of popularly revered saints, images or events. Patronal feasts of churches. The following services are performed:

1. 9 o'clock. (if read) Great Vespers.

2. Small Compline (if served).

3. Midnight Office (if served).

4. Polyeleic Matins.

5. 1st, 3rd, 6th hours.

6. Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom.

The chimes at Great Vespers and Matins are performed as during the All-Night Vigil. Ringing at the Divine Liturgy according to the Rule. However, on middle holidays there are no chimes for Matins and there are no 9 blows to the “Most Honest ...” when praising the Mother of God. At the end of the service, the bell is also not supposed to. Thus, the ringing occurs only at the beginning of the service and towards the "Gospel". However, all these rules are at the discretion of the abbot.

RINGS EVERYDAY

At present, everyday bells are not a frequent occurrence. The real need for the use of bells in our time is not great. We are used to being guided by the clock. We know the schedule.

On weekdays, before divine services, the annunciation is heard in a simple day, small bell. Trezvon also happens to him, and it must be performed carefully.

Ringing equally on weekdays and holidays is undesirable.

At the service without a festive rank - only the blessing of the everyday bell. At the Liturgy, the ringing is only at the beginning. There is no ringing at the Eucharistic canon and at the end.

RINGS DURING GREAT LENT

With the advent of Great Lent, changes are taking place in liturgical practice - the system of counting the days of the week is changing. If at the usual time (during the singing of the Oktoech) Sunday is considered the first day of the week, then in Great Lent it is Monday. The order of reading kathismas changes. And in the general order of reading becomes more, and less singing. The nature of this singing also changes and becomes more restrained.

There are varieties of ringing that are unique to the period of Lent. For example, sentries: before the 3rd hour, three strokes of the fasting bell are made, before the 6th hour - six strokes, before the 9th - nine strokes, and before Compline - 12 strokes.

In many churches, ringing during Lent is generally canceled.

To Vespers, Matins and the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts - ringing at two(two hour bells and a smaller one behind it in size).

Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts. During it, the Sacrament of the transformation of bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ is not performed. They partake of the Holy Gifts, which were consecrated on the Sunday preceding it. And the meaning of this divine service is simple: the Church cannot leave believers without the most important thing - without that Food, eating which, according to the Savior's word, a person has eternal life. Throughout Great Lent, the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts is celebrated on Wednesdays and Fridays. Thursday of the fifth week. The first three days of Passion Day, as well as March 9 / February 24 (the first and second finding of the head of John the Baptist) and March 22 / 9 (40 Martyrs of Sebastia), if the celebration falls on the period of Holy Fortecost of Great Lent.

On the days of preparation for Great Lent, on Wednesday and Friday during Cheese Week, Liturgy is not served, but the reading of the Hours is performed according to the Lenten model. However, according to this pattern (“chasing”) is not yet necessary.

IN Forgiveness Sunday at Vespers, they ring the Annunciation with a great bell.

From Monday to Thursday of the first week of Great Lent at Great Compline the Great Penitential Canon of St. Andrew of Crete is read. By Compline they make blagovest in the Lenten bell.

At the end of the first week of Great Lent, the Triumph of Orthodoxy is celebrated. After the Sunday Liturgy, a special prayer service is served. This is a special rite performed by the bishop or the rector and the clergy in the center of the temple with the removal of the icons of the Savior and the Mother of God, with the singing of the Great Prokimen, with the pronouncement of anathema, with the proclamation of eternal memory and longevity. During the singing of many years - ringing.

Wednesday and Friday during the entire period of Great Lent, they celebrate Vespers ringing at two because the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts is served in conjunction with Vespers. The ringing at two is made before Vespers.

On Saturdays and Sundays, fasting for the service is canceled, since the Liturgy is performed on these days. Sunday is a small Easter. Consequently, the nature of the Sunday bells during Great Lent does not change.

What else is important for a bell ringer to know is the order of ringing in the Eucharistic Canon of the Liturgy during Great Lent. On Saturday - Liturgy of John Chrysostom. In Sunday - Liturgy of Basil the Great, on which the interval between 12 beats of the canon is longer.

The Liturgy of Basil the Great is served 10 times throughout the liturgical year:

5 times - 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 Sunday of Great Lent at the Sunday Liturgy.

2 times on Holy Week on Maundy Thursday and Holy Saturday.

The first week of Great Lent is an example of ringing for the entire period.

Third Week of Great Lent - Worshiping the Cross. At the Sunday service after the Great Doxology, a Life-Giving Cross the Lord, who will be there until Friday of the fourth week of Forty. Ringing to the beginning and during the service are made as usual. And during the removal of the cross, when the rector, taking the cross on his head, carries it to the middle of the temple, chime is made, which continues until the laying of the cross on the lectern in the middle of the temple. From now on a chime is made.

Features of the fifth week: On Thursday, the memory of Mary of Egypt is celebrated. On Wednesday evening, at Matins and Vespers, ringing but without the big bell. On Thursday evening, at Matins, the entire Great Penitential Canon of St. Andrew of Crete is read in one go. For this reason, the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts is celebrated on Thursday morning. To her evangelism is done but not in a big bell, and ringing.

Fortecost ends by Saturday of the 6th week with two holidays - Lazarus Saturday followed by the Great Twelfth Feast - Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem (Palm Sunday). These days, the Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom is being served, which means that there is no fasting for the service, and the bells are not lenten, but in accordance with the charter of the holiday - festive chimes and chimes.

CHINGS OF PASSION WEEK . Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday - the ringing remains the same as during the period of Pentecost: the hourly ringing is performed, and before Vespers - the ringing "at two" for the Liturgy of the Presanctified gifts.

TO Maundy Thursday Morning(Wednesday evening) – blagovest to the polyeleos bell. Hours, Vespers and Liturgy of Basil the Great(Thursday morning) are performed together, so the ringing is made only in front of the clock good news into a polyeleon bell.

On Thursday evening served in churches Good Friday Matins reading the 12 gospels. Before Matins the Annunciation is laid. And while reading the Gospels - hitting the big bell by the number of gospels read. At the end of the service, according to the charter, bells are not allowed, but in many churches they make ringing, for those who pray carry the Thursday fire to their homes.

On Good Friday in the morning the Royal Hours are served. To them - blagovest.

On the same day, at the Great Friday Vespers(maybe at 14-00), on which, according to tradition, the removal of the Shroud is performed, the annunciation is carried out with a rare accent on the big one.

In the moment removal of the Shroud from the altar chime one beat on each bell from large to small. Upon placing the Shroud in the middle of the temple - ringing.

Good Friday evening(Great Saturday Matins) the Annunciation will be heard at the big bell. By the end of the service, at the Great Doxology, the burial rite is performed, culminating in a procession with the Shroud around the temple. At the procession - chime striking once from the big bell to the small one. During the placement of the Shroud in the middle of the temple, ringing.

From this moment, according to the established tradition, it is not customary to make any bells until the Midnight Office of Great Saturday, that is, until the good news for the Easter service.

BRIEF REVIEW-SCHEME OF RINGS OF THE PASSION WEEK:

Monday Tuesday Wednesday- fasting calls.

Thursday: to Matins (Wednesday evening) - the bell of polyeleos.

By the Hours, Vespers and Liturgy(merged. Thursday morning) Blasphemy at the polyeleos bell.

To Matins Good Friday(Thursday evening) - blasvet in the holiday bell. Reading the 12 Gospels. On each gospel, a big bell is struck according to the number of the read gospel. After the service - chime.

Good Friday: In the morning - Royal Hours. Blessings to them.

During removal of the Shroud(maybe at 14-00) - chime. Upon setting - a chime.

To Matins Great Saturday(Friday evening) - Blagovest. During the procession with the Shroud around the temple - a chime. Upon setting - a chime.

Saturday - no bells until Midnight Office, which is the beginning of the Easter service.

EASTER RINGS

The Midnight Office on Holy Saturday is the last service of Holy Week. In modern practice, it is adjacent to Paschal Matins. At present, before Midnight Office (at about 23-00) blagovest to the holiday bell 5 min.

After the Midnight Office begins directly Easter service co Bright Easter Matins. Exactly at 00-00 o'clock the clergy in the altar sing the Easter stichera three times "Your Resurrection, Christ the Savior ...". After this, the procession begins, during which ringing all the bells, but not yet in full force. The ringing must be started already when the first altar boy with a lantern passes the porch of the temple to the exit. The ringing continues until the moment when the marchers, having gone around the temple around, stop at the western gate to perform Easter start. When the priesthood gathered at the entrance and everyone turned to the people, then stop ringing.

After the Easter beginning, at the end, after several exclamations: "Christ is Risen!" and answers "Truly Risen!", the ringing resumes with jubilant force. This is the most active moment of the ringing of the entire annual cycle, for the ringing affirms the Resurrection of Christ. Ringing needs to stop when the priesthood enters the altar.

The next ringing on Easter night is performed before the Liturgy. Serving before him Easter canon. Praise psalms. The catechumen of John Chrysostom is read. Litanies and Paschal leave. During the holidays, you need to quickly climb the bell tower, because the Easter Hours begin, which last no more than 5 minutes. During this time it is necessary to make chime for the Liturgy.

At the Liturgy, during the reading of the Gospel in several languages, relies one blow to the big bell after each gospel and short chime 2 minutes. by reading everyone. But if the feast of Easter coincides with the Annunciation, then there are no readings in tongues.

On the Eucharistic Canon, as usual, 12 strokes of the big bell.

After the end of the Liturgy festive chime "in all".

BELLS OF THE BRIGHT WEEK . All Bright Week evangelize to the holiday bell and ringing "in all". Since the Hours are sung at this time, and not read, it is necessary to call before the Hours and somewhat shorter. Some rectors bless before the beginning of the Liturgy to ring at all without a blagovest.

Throughout Bright Week, processions are made around the temple, accompanied by chimes.. At such moments, the bell ringer needs assistants who give signals about the movement of the procession. The chime must be stopped for the priesthood to read the Gospel, litanies, and sprinkle with holy water. The procession stops at all four sides of the temple, however, pauses between chimes are not the same: in front of the altar, they read and pause longer. The last stop is at the western part of the temple. There is also reading. The ringing is resumed from the entrance to the temple and to the passage to the altar. This chime can be considered final if there is no festive prayer after the Liturgy. If there is a prayer, then ringing even after its completion.

EASTER PUBLIC RINGS. According to the established tradition, on Bright Week, everyone, with the blessing of the rector, is allowed to visit the bell towers and ring the bells. The main thing here is not to leave the bells unattended. Guests must be accompanied by a bell ringer, who is responsible for the safety of the bells and connections, as well as for the safety of people.

BISHOPAL RINGS

When waiting for the service of the ruling bishop, the evangelization begins in advance, at the direction of the rector at the festive bell. As a rule, on this day they start calling a little earlier. Especially important in this case is the bell ringer alarm system. It can be an internal broadcast, light bulbs or a regular walkie-talkie. When the bishop approaches the gates of the temple (for 100 or more meters), the chime begins. If the bishop is expected for Vespers, then the ringing stops after about 20 minutes, as he proceeds to the altar and puts on the mantle.

If the bishop is met for the Liturgy, then after proceeding to the church, as it should be, two more parts of the chime are added to the Liturgy. The ringing of 12 strokes at the Eucharist is performed at longer intervals, since when serving as a bishop, all liturgical actions are performed more sedately. In other moments, the ringing remains the same.

In those cases when not one, but several bishops are expected to serve, then upon arrival and going to the church of one of them, after a counter chime, they resume the blagovest and wait for the next bishop, upon whose arrival everything resumes, as described above. At the end of the service, they wait for the exit of the bishop of their church. His procession to the house of the clergy, to the refectory or departure from the territory of the temple is accompanied by a peal.

If the bishop leaves before the end of the service by a side or service exit (not solemnly), then the wire chime is not performed.

If the bishop is "in his" church or monastery, then at the end of the service chimes, his journey through the territory of the temple is not accompanied by a chime.

RINGS IN PRIVATE SERVICES. One difference between private worship and public worship is that it is not inscribed in the annual, weekly and daily cycles and is performed as needed.

Before the consecration of the temple a water-blessed prayer service is served, at which chimes are made as on a patronal feast - a chime before the start of the prayer service and a chime during the immersion of the cross in water. During the consecration of the temple, a chime is performed during the procession of the procession with the relics. There is also a chime before the procession.

At the burial of priests and monks 12 strokes are made on a large bell, and bust, during the introduction of the coffin with the body of the deceased into the temple. Likewise when exiting.

At the wedding a trezvon is performed at the end of the rite, while the wedding couple sings of many years, at the moment the young people leave the temple.

Passing calls are performed during the procession in those churches, past which the procession takes place. Passing bells can be made while carrying relics and icons.

FESTIVAL, CONCERT AND MEMORIAL RINGS. These chimes occur as an exchange of creative experience between bell ringers, or as certain thematic and free chimes in honor of some holiday. Festival bells, as a rule, are annual, and gather bell ringers from different parishes and cities. At the same time, it is also a concert program. As a rule, a large number of bell lovers gather at such chimes. They call either on one bell tower, or on several.

In Rostov Veliky and Suzdal, concert bells are played on the belfries of museum reserves.

On the days of festivities, on Maslenitsa, small mobile bell towers often ring out on the streets, carrying entertaining and educational functions.

Memorial bells are made as a reminder of important historical events. In recent years, in many cities of Russia, chimes have been performed at noon on May 9 in memory of the victory in the Great Patriotic war 1941 - 1945.

Since 2007, memorial church bells have begun to ring on the territory of the Kulikovo Field Museum-Reserve.

The ringing of bells causes joyful surprise in every person, regardless of whether he is a believer or not. The play of bells makes people, against their will, look towards the temple and smile.

A bell tower with several melodious voices is the pride of every temple. The ringing of bells, which has healing power for Orthodox souls, depending on the type, “calls” people to serve, “sings” during the celebration and sounds like an alarm when in danger.

Hearing the bell ringing, you need to cross yourself and pray

What is the purpose of church bells

In the arrangement of a Christian temple, each thing has its own purpose. The souls of Orthodox Christians, when listening to church overflows, are filled with light, joy, peace, tranquility. When the bells sound like alarms, Christians know that trouble has happened.

Orthodox ringing is filled with amazing power, which has the ability to penetrate into human hearts.. In church sounds and overflows Russian Orthodox people learned to distinguish between triumph, call and alarm, hearing a certain ringing.

An amazing phenomenon - when the bells sound, the doves, the prototypes of the Holy Spirit, do not fly away, but, on the contrary, rush to the temples.

Hearing the chimes, the Orthodox people rush to the Divine Services, to which they are called by the rhythmic strikes of the bell. Sounds announcing the triumph of the Church and festive services fill the hearts of believers with fun and joy. Triumph and veneration are caused by chimes during solemn Divine services.

Types of bell ringing

Having fallen in love with the church bell ringing, the Russian Orthodox people connected with it all their solemn and sad events. Orthodox bell ringing serves not only as an indication of the time of Divine service, but also as a filling of joy, sadness and triumph. That's where they came from different kinds ringing, and each species has a name and meaning.

A bell ringer can only be a churched personpossessing certain qualities:

• inner flair;
• sense of rhythm;
• sound knowledge;
• knowledge of performance techniques;
• knowledge of the Church Rule.

The bell-ringer must be a prayer book and observe fasts in order to convey to the people the triumph of Orthodoxy through the overflow of sounds.

The ringer paints with sound, like an artist paints

Hearing the steady beats of the big bell, the Orthodox know that this is the good news. , call to worship .

The more significant the event, the greater God's voice is chosen:

1. The festive blagovest sounds on Easter or on special holidays; for its sounding, the blessing of the rector of the temple is necessary.
2. The Sunday Annunciation is sounded on Sundays, the polyeleos is for special services.
3. Everyday services begin with the daily evangelism, and in Great Lent - Lenten.
4. The alarm announces trouble, thank God, it sounds extremely rare.

With successive repeated strikes on all the bells in the church, chimes, prayers for the blessing of water, Liturgies, and temple holidays are announced.

At the actual bell ringing, the bell ringer strikes two bells.

The trezvon speaks for itself, at this time all the bells, large and small, work, each time it strikes three times with a short break. Low and sonorous sounds fly straight into the sky and the souls of Christians, announcing the beginning of the Divine service or the end of the gospel.

Morning, monastic healing ringing from all diseases

History of the appearance of bells

The first mention of bells was found in documents that are more than 6 thousand years old. The prototype of the wondrous work is the bell flower, whose petals come into motion at the slightest breath of the wind. The first task of the bells was to give a signal. They were put on pets, hung on doors.

Interesting about Orthodoxy:

China is considered the birthplace of the first cast bells, where bells are used in purification rites. According to legend, the master could not mix the necessary metals to achieve the desired sound, all products either cracked or did not sound. On the advice of the monks, the master's daughter threw herself into the molten metal, and the first big bell "Lovely Flower" sounded throughout China.

Egyptian monks were the first to use bell ringing to call Christians to services.

For information! Church chimes acquired the greatest distribution in Rus' in the 16th century, surpassing in weight all available in European countries.

God's voice has become an element of Russian culture. According to legend, chimes drive away evil spirit, therefore, in times of pestilence, the invasion of enemies, church bells did not stop.

Over time, even musical notation appeared for playing these unique works of human hands. In Russia, bell ringing festivals are often held, filling everything around with God's glory.

The world's largest Assumption bell - "Tsar Bell"

Healing power of bells

Scientists have proven that bell chimes have healing power not only in cleansing the space from evil spirits, but also in healing people.

An amazing discovery made by researchers shows that church sounds propagate in space in waves in the form of a cross, having a positive effect on the physical, mental and spiritual state of a person.

Repeatedly, Christians have noted recovery, deliverance from birth diseases after being under the cover of the play of God's voice. Especially the ringing of bells has healing power in case of psycho-emotional diseases.

Modern achievements make it possible to listen to various overflows of church music in the recording, being indoors, thereby clearing the surrounding space from evil spirits.

Advice! Turn on the songs of bell overflows and enjoy the joy and peace in your home, not forgetting that sound therapy lasts no more than half an hour.

Bell ringing. Space cleansing and healing