How the deceased are remembered on Trinity Parental Saturday: Orthodox tradition

24.09.2019

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Some “external” rituals, cleared of magical background, were sanctified by the new Christian meaning. For the sake of maintaining continuity folk culture they are included as a frame even in the outline Orthodox services. This is, for example, the tradition of decorating churches on the day of the Holy Trinity with birch branches. Let's figure out what accompanies the holidays of the beginning of summer since the baptism of Rus', and what was brought into them from the most ancient eras of Slavic culture.

What event do Christians celebrate on Trinity Day?

Trinity Day, according to the church calendar also called Pentecost, as it is celebrated on the 50th day after Easter, is essentially a birthday Christian Church. According to the book of the Acts of the Apostles, on this day the appearance of the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, took place, promised by the Savior who ascended to heaven on the fortieth day after His resurrection. Confused and frightened after the execution of the Crucified One, the disciples definitely needed consolation and strengthening of spiritual strength.

Having received special grace, each became a zealous and fearless preacher of the Christian faith. The very first sermon of the Apostle Peter, which he preached upon leaving the Zion upper room immediately after the miraculous event of Pentecost, immediately added up to three thousand people to the small community of not even three hundred disciples of Christ.

The Old Testament prophets served as heralds of the will of God the Father, who was removed from humanity not by distance, but by His uncreated nature. The apostles and companions of Christ saw with their own eyes the incarnate God the Son, who accepted all the fullness human nature except for the sin that damaged her.

On the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit, the third hypostasis of the Holy Trinity, descended in the form of tongues of fire on a small community in Jerusalem. Thus the fullness of the Divine manifestation to the world was accomplished. That is why the originally celebrated descent of the Holy Spirit was later called the Day of the Holy Trinity.

The unity of the Church is a dogmatic concept directly related to the Trinity Ecumenical Parental Saturday

The church-wide celebration of Pentecost has been established since ancient apostolic times. It was with the descent of the Holy Spirit - the first heavenly "anointing to serve" - that the apostles acquired the grace to perform church sacraments. This special grace was transmitted from the apostles through ordination - in Greek “ordination” - to the bishops of the Church, and from the bishops it was communicated to priests, priests, and “priests”.

The continuity of ordinations has not been interrupted over the centuries, testifying to the origin of the Church from Christ Himself, to its indissoluble unity. Each catechumen (prepared by preliminary “catechumen” conversations about the truths of faith) receives the grace of the Holy Spirit by joining the Church in the Sacrament of Baptism. Sometimes, according to the available evidence of “simple-hearted” people, this happens in a visible way, like the descent of a tongue of fire on a newly baptized person.

The popular expression “smeared with one ointment” refers to the Sacrament of Confirmation, performed in Orthodoxy immediately after the Sacrament of Baptism. For Roman Catholics, this is the so-called “confirmation”; it, like the First Communion of baptized infants, is delayed until adulthood. Church myrrh for the sacrament is prepared in a special way and is consecrated by the Patriarch on Maundy Thursday.

It is noteworthy that a drop from a vessel consecrated last year is transferred to each alavaster (a tall vessel with a narrow neck) with prepared myrrh, and this has been going on since apostolic times. That is, every person anointed with the sanctified world after baptism is anointed with the same substance as in apostolic times. This is how the unity of the Church is visibly expressed “at the molecular level.”

Trinity Ecumenical Parental Saturday in the Orthodox Church

The Dormition of a person, the separation of the soul from the body, does not mean for Christians the cessation of life, including prayerful and liturgical life, once given in the grace of Baptism and Confirmation. This faith is expressed in a short formula: “Everyone is alive with God!”

Divine service on Trinity Saturday

The service of Ecumenical Parental Saturday on the eve of the Feast of Pentecost marks the unity of the living members of the Church who have departed to the Lord, its fullness, which will be revealed at the general resurrection expected at the end of time. The tradition of the Church to celebrate the memory of martyrs who endured suffering and death for their confession of faith gradually turned into the commemoration of “all the faithful who have died from time immemorial.”

Church prayer services are dedicated to saints glorified by the Church. Trinity Parental Saturday, like other Ecumenical days of remembrance of the dead, has a special rite of serving the Ecumenical Panikhida for all Orthodox Christians who have died from time to time.

On the eve of Friday, the priest reads the seventeenth kathisma of the Psalter with the commemoration of all the “funeral synodics”, as well as the numerous notes of repose submitted by parishioners.

The special significance of Trinity Ecumenical Parental Saturday is that at the memorial service all deceased Christians are remembered, regardless of what the cause of their death was. Even in relatively recent times, pre-revolutionary Russia Not only violent death, suicide, or death from excessive drinking was considered unnatural (few people had heard of drugs at that time).

Praying with the words: “Let insolent death not kidnap me, unprepared!” - Christians expressed hope for a peaceful and shameless departure to another world after the Sacrament of Confession (Repentance) and Communion. They sought deep help in this by praying to the Holy Great Martyr Barbara. Death close relative without repentance was at that time a great rarity and a strong shock for the living. Suffice it to mention famous case, when, after the death of her husband Andrei Feodorovich, blessed Ksenia took upon herself a forty-five-year feat of foolishness, deliberately calling herself by the name of her deceased husband.

Commemoration of the Dead on Trinity Saturday

On Trinity Saturday, the Church initially commemorated those who died not “from old age alone,” but died on the road, being an unknown wanderer to those around them, drowned (often the identity of the drowned could not be identified), froze in severe frost, as well as suicides. Among the latter, the Church in our time includes those who died from drug use and excessive amounts of alcohol. We do not know for sure how worthily, in accordance with the commandments, this or that person lived his earthly life.

Often in churches, overly zealous and strict ministers, accepting notes listing names, meticulously inquire whether the person mentioned in the list visited the temple, how often he confessed. On Trinity Parents' Saturday it is appropriate, according to church charter, there will be only one question: whether the deceased has been baptized (for the unbaptized, only home prayer to the martyr Uar is allowed).

Come to the temple and order a commemoration for all deceased relatives on this day (the day before evening service on Friday) is a great blessing, since it is on Trinity Saturday that prayer for all Orthodox Christians without exception is blessed according to the church charter.

Trinity Parents' Saturday is one of the special days of remembrance established by the Church. There are other special days dedicated to the memory of the deceased. These are, for example, the Ecumenical Parental Saturdays of Great Lent (from the 2nd to the 4th weeks) with intense prayer, accompanied by the reading of the 17th Kathisma. They were established for the reason that in previous weekdays no funeral commemoration is performed at the Liturgy.

The ecumenical memorial service “Easter of the Dead” - Radonitsa, falls not on the eve of Saturday, but on the eve of Tuesday after the end of Easter week. By the way, it is on Radonitsa, and not on Trinity Saturday, that it is customary to clean up the graves of close relatives after winter.

From Intercession to Easter, the cemetery is visited only to bury the dead, without disturbing the graves of those previously buried. In the autumn, before the day of remembrance of the Great Martyr Demetrius of Thessalonica, a Slav by birth, who has long been revered as the heavenly patron of the Russian army, a service is held

“Trinity Parents” was revered in many places in our Fatherland as the main day dedicated to the memory of the dead. The Old Believers of Transbaikalia served a special “all-night vigil” in their homes on this day. It was customary, following the example of Forgiveness Sunday preceding Lent, to ask for forgiveness, but not from everyone, but only from the oldest and youngest members of the family. At the same time, residents of Transbaikalia “made drawings” by sanding trees in the forest along the boundaries of the future arable land. It was believed that the marked area would be under the special protection of deceased ancestors.

In Polesie, the “Grandfathers” holiday was celebrated for two days, Friday was dedicated to Grandfather Semik with the preparation of a Lenten dinner, and Saturday was dedicated to Baba Semichikha, with a quick, hearty meal. The girls, braided with branches into huge “wreaths,” walked around several birch trees in a round dance, touching the branches with their palms covered with scarves. At the same time, one, dressed as Grandfather, walked around the circle with a cross, and the other, dressed as Baba, with an earring.

Combined with the church-celebrated Trinity Ecumenical Parental Saturday, the good, albeit superstitious, traditions of the Slavic summer Semik are undeservedly inferior in meaning, but not in spirit, to the autumn celebrations of “All Saints’ Day” and Halloween. It is the first two days of November that are considered in the West the main holidays of remembrance of the dead. The pious tradition of remembering “all the faithful,” established by the Benedictine monks in 996 and widespread among Roman Catholics since the 13th century, was also adopted by the Western Slavs. However, being “creatively reworked”, mainly in the New World, on the occult holiday of Halloween, this tradition, in content and appearance, increasingly coincided with the spring witches' Sabbath on Bald Mountain, relating to the eve of May 1.

Should we support the fashion for necrophilic Satanism, which has come to Russia from overseas, which is characteristic of Halloween, or should we revive church and folk traditions Trinity Parental Saturday, taken Christian holiday and the parallel existing ritual institutions of the Slavic Semik - it’s up to us to decide. There is an opinion that homemade food, whether it be products grown in the field and garden or grains of national culture preserved by people for centuries, is always healthier than imported food.

Trinity Saturday is the day of all-Russian remembrance of the dead, falling on the Saturday before Trinity Day, the main spring-summer memorial day in Russia.

IN church calendar is called Ecumenical Parents' Saturday. During the ecumenical memorial service on this day, the Church commemorates all Orthodox Christians who have ever died.

The commemoration of all dead pious Christians is established on the Saturday before Pentecost due to the fact that the event of the descent of the Holy Spirit completed the economy of human salvation, and the deceased also participate in this salvation. Therefore, the Church, sending up prayers on Pentecost for the revival of all living by the Holy Spirit, asks on the very day of the holiday that for the departed the grace of the all-holy and all-sanctifying Spirit of the Comforter, which they were granted during their lifetime, would be a source of bliss, since by the Holy Spirit “every soul is given life.” "

Therefore, the Church devotes the eve of the holiday, Saturday, to the remembrance of the departed and prayer for them. Saint Basil the Great, who composed the touching prayers of Vespers of Pentecost, says in them that the Lord especially on this day deigns to accept prayers for the dead and even for “Those like those kept in hell.”

Trinity Saturday is associated with the founding of the Church by the Trinity and the Descent of the Holy Spirit. We pray for the departed, that the Lord would forgive them, and we believe that the Spirit of God touches not only those who live and pray, but also those who have died. Our loved ones have gone into another world with passions, vices, sins, and we pray and ask the Spirit of God, whom God sent, we ask Christ the Savior to have mercy on them. On the eve of Trinity Saturday, on Friday evening, parastas are served in our Church. "Parastas", from Greek, “intercession” - during this service they intercede for their departed, the prayer of the Church, and the Lord Himself said this, saves sinners.

We beg God for forgiveness for the deceased, because they can no longer beg for anything for themselves, they can pray for us, but not for themselves: “Help, Lord, give rest, Lord, to the souls of your departed servants, forefather, father, sisters, our brothers, those who lie here and the Orthodox everywhere.” The Orthodox ask on behalf of the Church that the Lord have mercy on those who left in the faith and hope of the Resurrection. Through the prayer of the Church, grace develops to such a state that helps the soul of the deceased to leave the bonds of hell.

On the day of Trinity Parental Saturday it is customary to go to service, where the 17th kathisma is read. It commemorates all departed Christians (from the ages). Such general prayer is very important for the deceased. In the evening, the 17th kathisma can be read at home.

Trinity Saturday has its deepest sacred meaning and will not lose it until the end of time, therefore memorial Saturdays are extremely necessary. Among the people, everyone knows the memorial Saturdays of the second, third, fourth of Lent, Trinity Parental Saturday, Demetrius Saturday, Radonitsa.

Many people have a desire to remember their deceased with notes, the priest reads them and says: “Lord, remember him in Your Kingdom.” Come to the grave, give alms, do a good deed, kind word to say is also alms in our time for those who left untimely.

Trinity Saturday is also called parental Saturday, because our parents are closest to us in the flesh, so we begin the commemoration with our deceased parents. In a church memorial note, we first write the names of deceased parents, grandparents, sisters, brothers, and remember relatives. The concept of “parental Saturday” is associated with blood ties that are close to us.

Parents' days give us the joy of prayerful communication in God with those who have passed on from this life. That’s why we love parents’ Saturdays, where we remember our deceased parents, benefactors, and relatives. We come to the Liturgy, submit notes to the Proskomedia, and pray at the Memorial Service. What more can we do for our dear departed? Give abundant alms, strengthen your home prayer for them, and prepare a special funeral dish, kutiya.

Orthodox Christians are not forbidden to visit the cemetery on this day to venerate the graves of their relatives after they have been remembered in church. After all, when we pray for the souls of those who have passed on to another world, it is generally accepted that they, at that moment in heaven, are praying for us.

With the saints, rest your souls, O Christ, where there is no sickness, no sorrow, no sighing, but endless life! Amen.

Several times a year in Orthodoxy it is customary to remember the deceased, pray for them and visit their graves. These days are called Parents' Saturdays. On the Saturday before the Day of the Holy Trinity comes Trinity Parental Saturday - the day when every Orthodox Christian remembers deceased relatives and close people. But why Saturday? How is this day celebrated, what traditions and customs are usually observed? And how many times a year is Parents' Saturday celebrated? These are the questions we have to answer in this article.

The meaning and meaning of Parents' Saturday

If this Saturday is intended to remember the dead in general, then why was it called parental Saturday? After all, unfortunately, among the deceased there are not only parents. There are several versions about this:

Because any person first of all remembers his loved ones - his parents;
Parents' days are considered Saturdays, since in all weeks of the year the dead are predominantly remembered on Saturdays.
According to many Orthodox priests The first people we should remember on this day are our deceased parents. Because they were the ones who gave us life and raised us. Therefore, the first prayer, according to the priests, should be specifically about the deceased parents.

How many Parents' Saturdays are there in a year?

There are three most famous parental Saturdays - Myasopustnaya, Trinity and Dmitrievskaya. There are seven of them in total in the calendar - Meat Saturday (Ecumenical Parental Saturday), Saturday of the 2nd week of Great Lent, Saturday of the 3rd week of Great Lent, Saturday of the 4th week of Great Lent, Radonitsa, May 9 - Commemoration of the departed soldiers, Trinity Saturday . It is worth noting that only one of them is a fixed date - May 9, all the others are moving.

Trinity Parents' Saturday. Judging by the name, you can guess that it precedes the holiday of Trinity. In addition to the departed, on this day they remember and reflect on the Last Judgment and Lent. Since ancient times, this was the largest and most revered memorial day in Rus'.

Meat-eating Saturday is held on the Saturday before the Holy Week. Last Judgment or before the Meat Week. This Saturday is so named because it is located in the meat-eating week. What do they do during Meat Saturday? They visit the temple, go to the cemetery, read prayers. It is worth remembering that the meaning of parental Meat Saturday is much broader than the usual commemoration of deceased relatives. You can remember all the dead, even those who are not relatives.

Dmitrievskaya Saturday has a centuries-old history. Such a day of remembrance was established long ago at the initiative of Prince Donskoy. On the day of St. Demetrius Saturday, as on other days, Christians hold prayers for the repose of the souls of the dead, especially parents. However, Dmitrievskaya Saturday carries a special meaning. It reminds us of those who died and also suffered for Orthodoxy. On such a day, the Slavs steamed for a long time in the bathhouse, after which they left a fresh broom and clean water to the dead so that they could wash themselves. After the Friday meal, a clean tablecloth was laid on the table, and food was also left for the ancestors.

Trinity Saturday is celebrated, as we have already mentioned, the day before the celebration of Trinity (Pentecost) and is considered the Ecumenical Parental Saturday in the Orthodox Church.

According to traditions and rituals, this day is no different from other Parents' Saturdays. On Trinity Saturday, people visited cemeteries, had meals, and prayed for the dead. At the same time, it is very important to tune in to the serious mood of this day, and put aside all the work that distracts you from prayer and reflection.

According to the opinion of many Orthodox priests, Trinity Saturday is, first of all, a symbol of the fact that the Old Testament church has gone into oblivion, and has been replaced by the New Testament one. Therefore, it is also customary to remember all departed Christians.

Traditions for Trinity Saturday

Funeral liturgies and memorial services are served in all churches on Trinity Saturday. At the liturgy you can order the remembrance of the departed. After church service Believers went to cemeteries, where they had ritual meals, commemorated dead relatives and decorated their graves with greenery.

On the day of Ecumenical Trinity Parental Saturday, the day of remembrance of the dead takes place. Orthodox Church conducts general funeral services, praying for all previously deceased Christians, regardless of relationship. This is also a designation of universal love, which does not distinguish the world between friends and strangers: “The memory of all departed Orthodox Christians from time immemorial, our father and brothers.” The name “parental” most likely comes from the tradition of calling the deceased “parents” who went to their fathers. And perhaps because they commemorated their parents first, and then all Christians.

Trinity Parents' Saturday is similar to other parent's Saturdays. It is important that on this day nothing distracts us from praying for the departed. How to spend this day correctly? In the temple, prayerfully remembering the dead who are dear to our hearts. And also to honor their memory good deeds, try to change yourself for the better. It will be the best gift for those who are dear to us and are behind the grave, in the face of God.

One of ancient traditions on this day - to help the poor and needy. In addition, on this Saturday they tried to remember those who might have been offended and asked for forgiveness, and also forgave their offenders.

Since many folk holidays have always been closely associated with pagan ones, some traditions are not associated with Orthodox customs. For example, it used to be customary to decorate the graves of deceased relatives with green plants and birch branches. Most likely, this tradition came from national holiday Whit Monday.

Prayer for the departed on Trinity Saturday

“Rest, O Lord, the souls of Your departed servants: my parents, relatives, benefactors (their names) and all Orthodox Christians, and forgive them all sins, voluntary and involuntary, and grant them the Kingdom of Heaven.”

In your prayer you must mention the names of all your deceased relatives. In order not to forget anyone, it is better to do this using a special memorial book. The names of deceased relatives are recorded in the memorial book. In Orthodoxy, believers usually conduct family memorials, according to which they remember by name many generations of their deceased ancestors both in prayer at home and during church services.

Trinity Saturday is the Saturday before Trinity Day, which is the time of remembrance of the dead. Let's figure out what you can do on Parents' Saturday and what you can't.

What date does Trinity Parents' Saturday fall on in 2018?

In Rus', there have long been several parental Saturdays - special memorial days– Meat-free parental Saturday, Saturday of the 2nd week of Great Lent, Saturday of the 4th week of Great Lent, Radonitsa, commemoration of deceased soldiers, Trinity parental Saturday and Dimitrievskaya parental Saturday. But only two of them are considered Ecumenical, since on these days all deceased Orthodox Christians are commemorated - this is Meat-Free Parental Saturday and Trinity Parental Saturday. The first occurs on the eve of meat-eating week - the seven days before Lent. And the second is on the eve of the Feast of the Holy Trinity, which is also called Pentecost. In 2018, May 27, and, accordingly, Trinity Parents' Saturday falls on May 26.

Trinity Parents' Saturday May 26, 2018: what to do

Of course, on this day it is customary to remember parents, but not only them. On Trinity Saturday, those who are not connected to a person by any family ties are also commemorated. The clergy say that the purpose of parental Saturdays is to unite the Church. Parental Saturdays give us the opportunity to experience the reality of the unification of all its members - both its saints, those living today, and those who have died.

On Trinity Parents' Saturday you need to go to church. On this day, believers come to churches for a special ecumenical memorial service - “In memory of all Orthodox Christians who have departed from time immemorial, our fathers and brothers.”

In addition, on Memorial Saturday, after a morning trip to the temple, it is customary to visit the graves of departed relatives and friends. On this day, graves are decorated with flowers and greenery and ritual meals are held.

Parents' Saturday before Trinity in 2018: what not to do

If a person was unable to get to church on Trinity Saturday, then it is not forbidden to read a prayer for the departed at home. Some believe that it is on Trinity Parental Saturday that notes can be submitted to the church for the repose of those who have taken their own lives without permission, as well as for those who have died unbaptized. But this is a misconception - this cannot be done, since the Church does not pray for the unbaptized and suicides.