Methodical Instructions and Lesson Notes on the Law of God

Plan. The belonging of everything in the world to God; the need for prayer before and after meals. The reason for thanksgiving Jesus Christ and the explanation of the first sentence of the afternoon prayer. Explanation of the second sentence. The need to remember the soul and eternal life. Memorizing a prayer. moral application. You know that everything in the world is God's, so every work must begin with prayer. You know that you need to read the Lord's Prayer before eating. If someone feeds us, we thank that person. But first of all, we need to thank God for food, because everything in the world is God's. Whose is everything in the world? Therefore, how should you start any business? What prayer should be read before eating? What do we do when someone feeds us? Who should be thanked first? The Lord Jesus Christ taught us the Lord's Prayer. We read this prayer before meals, so after meals we thank Christ our God. The prayer after meals begins like this: We thank Thee, O Christ our God... Stand and repeat these words. Whom do we thank in this prayer? Why do we thank Jesus Christ? We thank God after eating for feeding us. Food in prayer is called earthly goods, and therefore instead of the words "Thou hast fed us with food" it is said: Thou hast satisfied us with Thy earthly blessings. What do we thank God for after eating? What is food called in prayer? As the prayer says, "Fed us with food"? As long as we live on earth, we need food, and when we die, we will not eat, but our souls will still live. Not all the souls of people will live in the same way: whoever lived on earth holy, will live well after death, in the Kingdom of Heaven, and whoever has sinned will suffer. We need food for the present life, but we must never forget about the future life of the soul. Cattle, when they are full, have nothing to think about: they have no immortal soul, they have only one life on earth, and man has a soul that will never die and will live without end. After eating, a person feels good, but he should never forget that food is needed only for the body and that the soul is more important than the body. Therefore, after eating, we thank God for the food and ask Him not to deprive us of the Heavenly Kingdom. In prayer we say: ... do not deprive us of Thy Heavenly Kingdom. As long as we live, what do we need? Will we need food after death? Our body will die, and what about our soul? How will we live after death? How will sinful people live? How are they righteous? Where do the righteous live after death? What is more important - the soul or the body? Why is the soul more important? What do we need to ask of God for the soul? How do we ask for this in prayer after eating? Let us now memorize the entire prayer after eating. In this prayer we thank Jesus Christ for feeding us and ask Him to give us the kingdom of heaven. You should never forget about it. What is the use if we are full and alive here, and then fall into eternal torment?

Lesson 29. Explanation of the Feast of the Meeting of the Lord

Methodical Instructions and Lesson Notes on the Law of God

Plan. Name of the holiday; sacrifice for the firstborn according to the Old Testament law; the unity of the temple among the Jews; the journey of the Mother of God to Jerusalem; Righteous Simeon; his meeting of the Saviour and his words; Anna the prophetess and her prophecies. The lesson is divided into three parts: the first two are a story and repetition questions, the last is a moral application. In N days we will have the feast of the Meeting of the Lord. This is how it is called in Slavonic, and in Russian it can be called "Meeting of the Lord". This feast was established in memory of the meeting of the Lord Jesus Christ when He lived on earth. Now I will tell you about who and where met Jesus Christ. In which city was Jesus Christ born? In what land? Among the Jews, on the 40th day, after the birth of the first boy, the mother was supposed to come to the temple with the child. Now we buy and light candles in church, and among the Jews it was customary to burn a calf, or a ram, or doves as a sacrifice to God. The Mother of God brought two doves. What holiday will we have soon? How can you call the Meeting of the Lord in Russian? What law did the Jews have when the first boy was born? What did they bring to church with a child then? Why were they brought? What did the Virgin Mary bring together with Jesus Christ? We now have churches in every village, but the Jews had only one temple - in the city of Jerusalem. Therefore, the Virgin Mary came from Bethlehem to Jerusalem on the 40th day after the birth of Christ. At that time there lived an old man of holy life - Simeon. God told him that he would not die until he saw Jesus Christ with his own eyes. On the day when the Virgin Mary brought Jesus Christ to the temple, God commanded Simeon to come there. In the temple, Simeon met Jesus Christ, took Him in his arms and said: "Now, Lord, the time has come for me to die, because I have seen the Savior"[1]. In addition to Simeon, Jesus Christ was met in the temple by a righteous old woman Anna. She said that the Infant is Jesus Christ, the Saviour[2]. Did the Jews have many temples? Where was this church? Where did the Virgin Mary come from to Jerusalem? Who lived in Jerusalem at that time? What did God say to him? Who told Simeon to come to the temple when the Virgin Mary came there with Jesus Christ? What did he do when he met Jesus Christ? What did he say? Why did he say that? Who else met Jesus Christ in the temple? What did she say? Now I will show you a picture, and you will point out where the Virgin Mary is, where is the righteous Simeon, where is the righteous Anna? And can you not guess who this old man (Joseph) is? What is he holding in his hand? What is in the basket? Now think about why the holiday is called the Meeting of the Lord? Righteous Simeon was glad that he had met the Savior and rejoiced that the time had come for him to die. Whoever lives holy, has nothing to fear from death: it is good for him to live on earth, and it will be good after death. Whoever wants good for himself lives holy, according to God's law. Cf. Luke. 2, 29-31.- Ed.^ See: Luke. 2, 32.- Ed.^

Lesson 30. Discourse before the Retreat on Fasting, Communion and Confession

Methodical Instructions and Lesson Notes on the Law of God

Plan. Reason for conversation; the name of the fast Great. The reasons for this name are; the establishment of fasting by Jesus Christ. Communion - lenten food and church prayer; Its advantages over home. Reasons for abstinence in food. Time of retreat; confession. The establishment of the sacrament of repentance by the Saviour. Application. H. Soon, children, Great Lent will come. It lasts seven weeks, and the last week is called Passion. Of course, you know that fasting is the time when we eat lenten food. The word "great" means "great". This fast is called great because it is the longest of all, and also because after it there is the greatest feast - Pascha. Great Lent was established by Jesus Christ. After His Baptism, He did not eat anything for 40 days and 40 nights. God fasted and commanded us. But it is difficult for us not to eat anything for so long, and therefore we fast only by not eating fast food. How long does Lent last? What is the seventh week called? What does the word great mean? Why is this fast called Great? Who established Great Lent? How did He fast? How do we fast? In Great Lent, good Christians fast, confess and commune. You will also fast, confess and commune. Now we will talk about how people fast, why they confess and what they commune. When people fast, they go to church every day, pray to God, eat less than usual, and try to sin less. When a person prays to God, who is he talking to? Of course, we will not say anything bad to God, so the more we pray, the less we talk and think about bad things. We always work for our body, but we also have a soul; We need to work for it too. Our prayer is work for the soul. It is best to pray in church, because there is a service going on, there are many icons, and many people pray together. When a lot of people do one thing, then the work goes on more controversially. That is why we go to church on feast days and during retreats. What do good Christians do during Great Lent? Where do they go to pray? How much do they eat during the retreat? What are they trying to do? Why do we need to pray more? Why do we work when we pray? Why is it better to pray in church than at home? During the retreat, in addition to prayer, people try to eat less and sin less. People eat less because it is difficult to pray for a well-fed person. When a person eats a lot, he wants to sleep, and not pray. The holy people who prayed constantly ate only one piece of bread, and even then not every day. When we fast, we ask God for forgiveness for our sins. What will be the use of our prayer if we sin during the retreat, as we always do? Therefore, whoever fasts must constantly remember God's law and sin less. What do people try to do during the retreat, apart from prayer? Why do they eat less? What does a well-fed person want? How much did the holy people eat? Why is it necessary to make a special effort to live righteously during the retreat? Usually people fast from Monday to Friday, and on Friday they confess. During Holy Week, they fast only until Wednesday. Why confession is made during Holy Week on Wednesday, you will find out later. The repentant approaches the priest in church, makes two prostrations before the icon, bows to the priest and tells him his sins. Then the priest reads a prayer and forgives the sins of the communist. From what to what day do they fast? What do they do on Friday? What do they do when they come to confess? What does a priest do? A priest forgives sins because God Himself gave him this power. When Jesus Christ lived on earth, He said to the Apostles: "What sins you forgive, God will forgive, and what sins you do not forgive, those sins God will not forgive"[1]. The Apostles first forgave sins themselves, and then gave the power to forgive sins to other people: bishops and priests. The priest will hear what sins we have, and will find out whether they can be forgiven or not. Then we tell our sins to the priest. Who gave the priest the power to forgive sins? What did Jesus Christ say to the Apostles? Who forgave sins first? To whom did the Apostles later give this power? Why do we tell our sins to the priest? When we fast, we prepare for confession: we pray to God and remember in what ways we are sinful before Him. When the priest forgives our sins, we take communion. I will tell you about Communion another time. If we do not confess, then many sins will accumulate on us. Although we sin again after confession, the more often we confess, the fewer sins we have. When our body gets dirty, we wash in the bathhouse. After the bath, we get dirty again, but the more often we wash, the cleaner our body is. Our soul is polluted with sins, and by confession we wash them away from the soul. Cf. Jn. 20, 23.- Ed.^

Lesson 31. Discourse on the Sacrament of Communion

Methodical Instructions and Lesson Notes on the Law of God

Plan. Establishment of the Sacrament of Communion. The Sacrament of Communion is a remembrance of the Savior. Substance during the sacrament. Performing the sacrament in the Christian Church. Repetition. Application. H. Last time we said that after the retreat, Christians confess and then take communion. The Lord Jesus Christ commanded us to partake of Communion. You know He lived on earth and died. On the eve of His death, Jesus Christ came to Jerusalem with all 12 Apostles. He knew that He would soon die, and therefore He wanted to say goodbye to His disciples. For this purpose, Jesus Christ ordered to store supper in a certain house and came there in the evening. When everyone sat down at the table, Jesus Christ took the wheat bread, blessed it, broke it, distributed the pieces to the Apostles and said: "Take, eat, this is my Body, which is broken for you for the remission of sins"[1]. Then He took a cup of red wine, gave it to the Apostles and said: "Drink from it, all of you, this is My Blood, which is shed for you and for many for the remission of sins"[2] Who commanded us to commune? Where did Jesus Christ come on the eve of His death? With whom did He come? What did He want to do? What did he tell me to store? When did you come to the house? What did Jesus Christ do when everyone sat down at the table? What did you take first? What kind of bread? What did he do with him? What did he say? What did he take then? What was the wine in the cup? To whom did he give the cup? What did he say? The apostles ate the bread and drank the wine from the cup together. They looked like they were eating bread, but in reality it was the Body of Christ; the Apostles drank from a cup that looked like red wine, but in fact it was the Blood of Christ. This means that the Apostles communed of the Body and Blood of Christ under the guise of bread and wine. When they received Communion, Jesus Christ said: "Do this always in remembrance of Me"[3]. The Apostles obeyed Jesus Christ, communed of the Body and Blood of Christ, and commanded all Christians to partake of Communion. What did the Apostles do? What did they eat and drink by sight? What was it really? So, they communed of what? Under the guise of what? What then did Jesus Christ say to them? What did the Apostles do next? As Jesus Christ and the Apostles commanded us to do, so we do now: we partake of Communion in the form of the bread and wine of the Body of Christ and the Blood of Christ. We commune during the Liturgy. Whenever the Liturgy is served, wheat bread and red wine are prepared. This bread is called prosvira or, rather, prosphora. Bread is made during Mass by the Body of Christ, and wine is then made by the Blood of Christ. You can take communion every time the Liturgy is served, and sick people are communed at other times. For this purpose, the Body and Blood of Christ are always guarded in the church. When you come to church for the Liturgy, then listen to the very words that Jesus Christ said when He communed the Apostles. In church, the priest says these words in Slavonic as follows: Take, eat... Drink of it, all of you... You already know how to say these words in Russian. I will now speak Slavonic, and you speak Russian. The students translate the quoted words in unison. Who told us to take communion? When do we take Communion, during what service? What is prepared for the Liturgy? What are they made of? Why do we partake of Communion? When is the sick communed? What is being done for this? How to say the words in Russian: Take it... Drink of it?... When are they spoken? Who says them? After that, all the content of the lesson is transmitted by the teacher of religion coherently. Jesus Christ commanded us to take communion always in memory of Him. Christians should always remember Jesus Christ. Without Him we will not receive the Kingdom of Heaven, and therefore whoever does not partake of Communion forgets Jesus Christ and, therefore, will not receive the Kingdom of Heaven. Never be lazy, children, to commune and commune. See: Matt. 26, 26; Mk. 14, 22; Lux. 22, 19.- Ed.^ See: Matt. 26, 27-28; Mk. 14, 23-24; Lux. 22, 20.- Ed.^ Cf. Luke. 22, 19.- Ed.^

Lesson 32. Prayer for the living and the dead

Methodical Instructions and Lesson Notes on the Law of God

Plan. An Incentive to Love Your Parents. Its manifestation is in obedience and prayer. The subject of prayer for the living. Calling people slaves in prayer. The text of the prayer for the living. Repetition of the content of the prayer. The state of the souls of dead people. A condition for the repose of souls. Prayer for them of the living. Its content, its text. Application. In every family, children are fed and watered by father and mother. They take care of children because they love them. Therefore, children need to love their father and mother. We can show our love for them by obeying them and praying for them. As long as they are alive, we must pray that God will preserve or save them from every sickness, from want and sorrow, and that He will forgive them their sins. In prayer we call all people servants of God. Why do you need to love your father and mother? How can we show love for father and mother? What should we pray for when they are alive? What are people called in prayer? For the living father and mother one should pray thus: Save, O Lord, and have mercy on Thy servants... Here you need to say the names of your father and mother, put a cross on yourself and make a bow. The same prayer can be prayed for other living people: say the words: Save, O Lord, and have mercy, and then add the names of those for whom we pray. What do we ask God for people in this prayer? Read it. You know that the souls of people do not die after the death of the body, but live in different ways: some live in peace, while others suffer for their sins. When people pray that God will forgive their sins, God forgives them. If God forgives the sins of the deceased, then his soul will cease to suffer and will live in peace. That is why we pray and ask God to give the dead a life of peace. The prayer for the dead is read as follows: Give rest, O Lord, to the souls of the departed Thy servants... After these words, the names of those people for whom we are praying are said. How do people's souls live after the death of the body? How will the soul live when God forgives its sins? What do we ask of God for dead people? How is the prayer for this read? Stand and read it, adding the names of your deceased relatives. God commands us to honor our father and mother, so we need to obey them and pray to God for them. As long as they live, we pray that God will give them health, and when they die, that He will give their souls peace. We have prayers for the living, in other words, prayers for health, and prayers for the dead - or for the repose. When, children, you pray to God, read these two prayers as well.