Methodical Instructions and Lesson Notes on the Law of God

Plan. The holiness of the Mother of God; Her superiority over the Angels; veneration of Her by the Angels. Transition to the prayer being studied; learning to pray with a preliminary translation and explanation of expressions. We said last time that the Virgin Mary lived according to God's law from childhood until death. She became holy, gave birth to God and became higher than all the angels. You already know that Angels are not all the same: there are older Angels and there are younger Angels. What are the Elder Angels called? U. Archangels, Cherubim, and Seraphim. The Mother of God is above all the Angels: She should be venerated more than the Cherubim and glorified more than the Seraphim. We revere and glorify angels for their holiness, and the Mother of God is holier than all of them. We glorify the Mother of God with prayers, and there are separate prayers to Her. We will learn one prayer now. How did the Virgin Mary live from childhood to death? What has She become? Whom did She give birth to? Who has she become taller? How can the Mother of God be revered and glorified? Why do we venerate angels? How do we glorify the Mother of God? One should truly glorify the Mother of God. These words in Slavonic are pronounced as follows: It is truly worthy to bless Thee, the Mother of God. The word "should" is said to be meet; "in truth" - as truly. How to say the truth? What does it mean to eat worthily? how? How do you say "praise you"? What does blessedness mean? You? Let us remember the words of the prayer "It is worthy... The Mother of God." As long as people obeyed God's law, they lived in paradise and were happy, because, as you already know, God sends sorrow and misfortune upon us for our sins. The Virgin Mary never sinned and now lives in heaven. She became forever happy. We also call Her so in prayer. "Always", as you already know, is always in Slavonic, and "happy" means blessed. As always? How "happy"? The Mother of God was always sinless, which is why we call Her sinless in prayer, and in Slavonic – immaculate. Repeat this word all and remember. Immaculate - what does it mean? Then we call the Virgin Mary the Mother of our God. Stand all up and say: It is worthy... and the Mother of our God. We have already said that the Mother of God should be revered above the Cherubim and glorified incomparably more than we glorify the Seraphim. In prayer we say it thus: More honorable than the Cherubim, and beyond compare more glorious than the Seraphim. In these words we say that the Mother of God is higher than the Angels. The first people, Adam and Eve, sinned in paradise, and sinful people began to be born from them; From these people were born again people who were also sinners. And the Virgin Mary gave birth to God without sin, the prayer says: ... without corruption of God the Word. Since the Virgin Mary gave birth to God, in prayer we praise Her or magnify Her as the true or, in Slavonic, existent Mother of God. What is the Slavonic word for "without sin"? As "true"? What do they mean without decay? Existing? This is followed by memorizing the prayer, and it is divided first into five parts, and then less and less. Memorize the prayer "It is truly meet..." during one lesson, it is possible, since students hear this prayer at school every day. The repetition of the explanations and the text of the prayer is quite possible in the next two lessons, which are connected with the present and previous lessons. The Mother of God now lives in heaven and always prays to God for us. She loves us all, so never forget to pray to Our Lady.

Lesson 19. The Annunciation of the Mother of God

Methodical Instructions and Lesson Notes on the Law of God

Plan. The story of the life of the Mother of God at the temple and Her vow; migration to Joseph. Annunciation. Showing the icon with leading questions. Memorizing the first words of the angelic greeting; explanation of the meaning of the holiday. Moral Application. The Virgin Mary lived at the temple until she was 14 years old. Girls could not live longer at the temple, and therefore the priests wanted to marry the Virgin Mary. But She promised God to remain a virgin for the rest of Her life, and She was taken in by Her relative, Elder Joseph. He was a carpenter and lived in the city of Nazareth. Until how many years did the Virgin Mary live at the temple? What did the priests want to do when She was 14 years old? What did She promise God? Who took Her to himself? Who was Elder Joseph? In which city did he live? In the house of Joseph, the Virgin Mary worked, prayed to God and read divine books. Once She was reading a book and saw the Archangel Gabriel. The Archangel said to Her: "Rejoice, O thou who hast received mercy from God: Thou art glorified among all women!" [1] The Virgin Mary was frightened, but the Archangel said to her: "Do not be afraid, for you have earned the mercy of God: you will give birth to a son, and you will call him Jesus. He will be called the Son of God"[2]. Then the Virgin Mary replied to the Archangel: "I always obey the Lord, let it be as you said"[3]. The Archangel flew away from the Virgin Mary. Immediately after this, the icon of the Annunciation follows. You see, children, this is the Virgin Mary drawn. What does She do? Who stands before Her? Why do you think it's an Angel? What is the name of this Angel? What did the Archangel say first? What happened to the Virgin Mary? What did the Archangel say to Her afterwards? What did the Virgin Mary answer him? The first words that the Archangel said, we will remember better. In Russian, these words are said: "Rejoice, having received...", and in Slavonic: "Rejoice, full of grace! The Lord is with Thee; blessed art Thou among women. Repeat them after me. Blagodatnaya - what does it mean in Russian? As they say in Russian: ... blessed art thou among women? The Archangel Gabriel said to the Virgin Mary: Rejoice... We rejoice when we receive something good or when we hear good news. The Archangel Gabriel brought good news to the Virgin Mary, so he said to Her: Rejoice... The archangel said that Jesus Christ would soon be born on earth. People waited for Him for a long time, because the devil had taken power over people, and they could not cope with him. And God promised that when Jesus Christ is born on earth, He will overcome the devil. Therefore, the news of this is joyful, good for all people. What did the Archangel say to the Virgin Mary? When do we rejoice? So, what news did the Archangel bring? What was this news about? Who ruled over people? What did God promise them? For whom was the news of the birth of Jesus Christ joyful? In memory of how the Archangel said about the birth of Jesus Christ, a holiday was established. This holiday in Russian is called good news. "Dobry", in Slavonic, as you already know, is good. Therefore, the holiday in Slavonic is called the Annunciation. When someone gives us a good gift, we thank that person. God gave people good news on the Annunciation, so you need to thank God with prayer on this day. Likewise, other holidays are arranged in memory of the fact that God gave good things to people, and therefore on all holidays good people go to church and pray to God. Cf. Luke. 1, 28.- Ed.^ Cf. Lk. 1, 30-31, 35.- Ed.^ Cf. Luke. 1, 38.- Ed.^

Lesson 20. Our Lady's Visit to Righteous Elizabeth. Teaching the prayer "O Virgin Mother of God..." and the repetition of the prayer "It is truly meet..."

Methodical Instructions and Lesson Notes on the Law of God

Plan. The story of the teacher of the law about the visit of the righteous Elizabeth. The conclusion of the prayer "O Virgin Mother of God..."; explaining it and memorizing it. Repetition "It is truly meet...". Moral Application. After the Annunciation, the Most Holy Virgin Mary went to another city to visit one of Her relatives, the righteous Elizabeth. When Elizabeth saw the Virgin Mary, she rejoiced at Her and said: "Glorified art thou among women, and glorified is thy Son." In Slavonic, these words are said as follows: Blessed art Thou among women, and blessed is the Fruit of Thy womb[1]. Righteous Elizabeth called the Virgin Mary glorified because Jesus Christ was born of Her. That is why the Archangel Gabriel called the Virgin Mary glorified among women. To whom did the Virgin Mary go after the Annunciation? What was the name of this relative? What did Elizabeth say to Her? Why did she call the Virgin Mary glorified? Who else called Her that? You heard last time that the Archangel Gabriel said to the Virgin Mary: "Rejoice, full of grace! The Lord is with Thee; blessed art Thou among women." And when the Virgin Mary came to the righteous Elizabeth, Elizabeth said to Her: "Blessed art Thou among women, and blessed is the Fruit of Thy womb." With these words, the Archangel and the righteous Elizabeth glorified the Virgin Mary. With the same words we glorify the Virgin Mother of God in prayer. The Archangel Gabriel and the Righteous Elizabeth glorified the Virgin Mary even before Her birth of the Saviour, and we glorify the Virgin Mother of God now, after She gave birth to the Saviour Jesus Christ, and therefore to the words of the Archangel Gabriel and Righteous Elizabeth we add the following words: "... for Thou hast given birth to the Saviour of our souls." Instead of "because" in Slavonic it is said as; "The Savior," says the Savior. This is followed by the reading of the prayer by the teacher of the law and its memorization by the disciples, and then the repetition of the explanations. What is the Slavic word for "because"? Like the "Savior"? How is it in Russian? Whom do we glorify in this prayer? What do we call the Virgin Mary? Why do we call Her the Mother of God? With what words do we glorify Her? What did Jesus Christ save us from? Now we know two prayers of the Mother of God. Let's repeat them both. The prayer "It is truly meet..." follows. The Mother of God lived on earth in poverty. She knows all our needs by Her own experience. She loves all people and always prays to God for them, and God does everything that the Mother of God asks. She will pray for you before God, too, if you pray to Her yourself. Lux. 1, 42.- Ed.^

Lesson 21. Teaching the Lord's Prayer

Methodical Instructions and Lesson Notes on the Law of God

(first part) Plan. The concept of the Apostles; their activities and name; a request for teaching prayer; reading the Lord's Prayer; the meaning of its name; God is the Father of the universe; the reason for calling Him heavenly; Slavic expressions of these words. People are God's children; the duty imposed on them by this title; Explanation of the first petition. The concept of the Kingdom of God; its advantages over the kingdoms of the earth; the need to pray for him; Second petition. Obedience to God in heaven; a paraphrase of this expression; the text of the third petition. Repetition of the explained part of the prayer. Moral Application. H. You children know that Jesus Christ lived on earth and taught people how to live in God's way. Many people came to hear His teaching. Of all the people, Jesus Christ chose 12 people who were always near Him and always listened to His teaching. They knew the teachings of Christ well, and Jesus Christ sent them to teach other people. Therefore, these 12 people are called messengers, or apostles, of Christ. How many people did Jesus Christ choose from among all the people? What did they do? Why did Jesus Christ send them? What are they called? Who is called a messenger in general? What does the word Apostle mean? The Apostles were always near the Lord Jesus Christ. Once He was praying with the Apostles. When He finished praying, the Apostles said to Him: "Lord, teach us to pray!" [1] Then the Lord Jesus Christ said: "Pray thus: Our Father..."[2] There follows a clear, separate reading of the prayer by the teacher of the law. Who taught this prayer to the Apostles? The Lord Jesus Christ. We have other prayers as well, but the Lord taught people only one prayer, and therefore, in order to distinguish it from others, it is called the Lord's Prayer. Why the Lord's Prayer called the Lord's Prayer? Whom did Jesus Christ teach it? How many Apostles were there? What did they do? When did they ask Jesus Christ to teach them how to pray? Who takes care of everyone in the family? U. Father. You know that the whole world is one big family, and everyone has one father - God. God lives everywhere, but on earth we do not see Him, but in heaven His angels and the souls of holy people see Him. That is why God is called our Heavenly Father. We pray to our Heavenly Father. "Father" in Slavonic is Father. What is the Slavic word for "father"? What does Father mean? "Heavenly" in Slavonic: Who art in heaven[3]. What is the Slavic word for "heavenly"? What does it mean: Who art in heaven? In Russian we say: "Our Heavenly Father", and in Slavonic: Our Father, Who art in heaven. To whom do we pray when we say: Our Father?... Why do we call God our Father? Why - Heavenly? How are the words "Our Heavenly Father" said in prayer? We call God our Heavenly Father, so do we call ourselves whose children? U. By God. H. We bear the name of God because we call ourselves God's children. God commands people to do only what they do? U. Only good ones. H. What are the names of those people who obey God in everything and do only good deeds? U. Saints. H. Do we all always do only good things? U. Not always, we sin. H. We cannot become saints ourselves, and only who can do everything? U. God. H. Therefore, we need to ask God to help us live holy, so that we do not bear the name of God in vain. We say in prayer, "Help us to live holy, for we bear Your name." In prayer, these words are said as follows: Hallowed be Thy name[4]. How do these words speak in Russian? What do we ask of God in them? We bear the name of God on ourselves and must take care to live holy, so that we do not bear the name of God in vain. Many peoples live on earth: Russians, Germans, Chinese, Turks, English... Each kingdom is ruled by its own king. There is also a Kingdom in heaven - the Heavenly Kingdom. Angels and the souls of holy people live in this Kingdom, and God rules over this Kingdom. On earth, in every Kingdom, there are both good and evil people: thieves, robbers, offenders, deceivers, but only saints live in heaven. This means that the Kingdom of God is better than all the kingdoms of men. If all people obeyed God in everything, then there would be the same kingdom on earth as in heaven. It would be good for people to live then. Therefore, we need to ask God that the Kingdom of God come soon, that all people obey God in everything. Jesus Christ taught people to ask God for His Kingdom to come. In the prayer these words are read as follows: ... Thy kingdom come. Who on earth governs each kingdom? Whose Kingdom is in heaven? Who lives there? Who reigns? Which kingdom is better? When can the Kingdom of God be on earth? Who do you need to ask for it to come? How do we ask for this in prayer? The angels and the souls of the saints obey God in heaven in all things. "They obey God," in other words, they do the will of God. What is another way to say the words "obey God"? What do the words fulfill the will of God mean? Where do the angels and the souls of the saints live? We ask God for His kingdom to come to earth. And this will happen when people on earth will obey God in everything or will fulfill His will, as the angels and saints do God's will in heaven. In prayer we say to God: ... Thy will be done, as it is in heaven and on earth. When can the Kingdom of God come to earth? How can we say the words "obey God in all things"? How do we ask in prayer that people on earth do the will of God, as the angels do in heaven? Today we learned that the Lord Jesus Christ chose 12 people from among the people; He sent them to teach other people, and that is why they are called messengers or apostles. The Apostles asked the Lord to teach them how to pray. The Lord taught them the Lord's Prayer. This prayer is called the Lord's prayer because of this. In it we call God our Heavenly Father and ask Him to help us live holy: we ask that His Kingdom come to earth and that all people on earth do His will, as angels and saints do it in heaven. In Slavonic, this prayer is read as follows: "Our Father...". Memorization of the explained part of the prayer follows. In this prayer we call God our Heavenly Father. Good children obey their father in everything. Let us also obey God in everything, let us do only good deeds, so that even unbelievers may see that we are not called children of God in vain. Let us fulfill the will of God, as the angels in heaven do it. Lux. 11, 1.- Ed.^ Luke. 11, 2.- Ed.^ The meaning of certain expressions: izhe, esi, and, etc., can be clarified by the student no earlier than the second year of study.^ The literal translation of these words does not explain anything to the children, and the given interpretation to a large extent corresponds to the text of the prayer and is accessible to the understanding of children.^

Lesson 22. End of the Lord's Prayer

Methodical Instructions and Lesson Notes on the Law of God

Plan. Repetition of the memorized part of the prayer. The absence of bodily needs in Angels and their presence in people; petition for them in the Lord's Prayer; the fragility of man on earth; The consequence of this is a petition for bread only for today. Our duty to God is to do only good; the impossibility of our atonement for our sins and a request for forgiveness. It is our duty to forgive our debtors; The parable of the king and the lender. The concept of temptation and its purpose; the example of Job; evil is from men and the devil; a petition for deliverance from evil. Repetition of the text of the prayer. H. Last time we learned the beginning of the Lord's Prayer, today we will finish it, but first we will repeat the beginning. Why the Lord's Prayer called the Lord's? To whom did the Lord give it? How many Apostles were there? Why are they called so? To whom do we pray in this prayer? What do we call God? Why the Father? Why Heavenly? What do we ask of God? Angels live without a body and do not eat anything, but people, as long as they live on earth, need food, need bread. People cannot do without it, they need bread. Everything in the world is God's, which is why we ask Him for the bread we need. The word "necessary" in Slavonic is vital; We are in prayer and ask for our daily bread. How does "necessary" mean in Slavonic? What does vital mean? Say all this word more clearly, because it is difficult. We will not always live on earth: we will all die. Today we are alive, and tomorrow we can die. A dead man does not need anything. Therefore, it is necessary to ask God for bread only for today[1]. We ask God: "Give us our necessary bread today." "Give" in Slavonic dazhd; "today" - day. Remember these words. "Give us our necessary bread today" in Slavonic it is said as follows: give us our daily bread today. Let's repeat these words and memorize them. What can people not do without? How does "necessary" mean in Slavonic? Whose is everything in the world? From whom should one ask for daily bread? What is the Slavic word for "give"? Do we know when we will die? How long should we ask God for bread? What is the Slavic word for "today"? What do dazhd mean? today? How do we ask for the necessary bread in prayer? When a person does something bad, for example, offends someone, steals, that person is judged and punished. We often do things badly that we do not obey God, and we need to be punished for this. But God has pity on people and expects that the sinner will stop sinning and live in God's way. God does not punish us for each of our sins, because He loves us. He gives us all the good things and in return commands us to do only good deeds. With good works we must repay God for all that He gives us. Whoever borrows and does not repay, that person remains due, that person has debts. We constantly receive from God all that is good, and we ourselves do not pay God for it, which means that we are constantly accumulating debts to God. To disobey God is a sin, which means that our debts to God are our sins.