"Crown of Summer": a children's matinee dedicated to the feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary
"Glorify, Russia, the Mother of God, Her Most Holy Intercession"(Scenario of the Feast of the Intercession Holy Mother of God
for students in grades 5-7)
Purpose of the event:
The formation of spiritual and moral values of children and adolescents through their familiarization with the Orthodox and folk traditions, to the spiritual origins of Russian culture.
Event objectives:
To acquaint children with the history of the origin, symbolism and meaning of the feast of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos, folk customs of the celebration of the Intercession.
To reveal and replenish the knowledge of children about the most famous Russian churches dedicated to the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos.
To develop the abilities and inclinations of the child, aimed at the disclosure cognitive interest to history, architecture, Russian culture, art.
Develop a culture spoken word, enrich and elevate the vocabulary of students.
To cultivate an attentive and careful attitude to the word, a sense of beauty, reverence for the mystery of knowledge.
To form the positive qualities of the child, based on the spiritual origins of Russian culture (love for the word, patriotic feelings).
To educate the artistic and aesthetic taste of children through poetic passages from the works of Russian classics dedicated to the feast of the Intercession of the Mother of God, through temple architecture.
Methodological support:
An approximate list of necessary components for decorating a room and holding a holiday:
Icon of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos.
Images of the Church of the Intercession on the Nerl and the Intercession Cathedral in Moscow (St. Basil's Cathedral).
Troparion of the holiday on the poster.
Literary material (verses by Russian poets, excerpts from Ivan Shmelev's story "Summer of the Lord", autumn riddles, proverbs, sayings about the Feast of the Intercession).
Musical accompaniment (bell ringing, church hymns, musical works by Russian composers).
Pictorial background ( autumn leaves, rowan tassels on a snow-white bedspread, children's drawings dedicated to the Feast of the Intercession).
^ I. Literary and musical composition "Heavenly Cover -
above us"
Musical arrangement(bell sounds).
Reader children:
Glory, Russia, Mother of God,
In the ringing of bells.
Sing, belfries of all cathedrals,
Holy Protection of Her.
Hail, Merciful Mother,
In our souls and in our hearts
You are the Zealous Intercessor
All Rus' in all ages.
Governor in the war years
You lead the regiments of the cathedral,
Shield and sword, given to us by God,
Thy Omnipotent Omophorus.
Glory, Russia, Mother of God,
In the ringing of bells.
Sing, the ancient temples of the belfry,
Holy Protection of Her.
Lead teacher:
Hello dear children and adults! Today we have gathered together to celebrate the beloved in Rus' Orthodox feast of the Intercession of the Mother of God, which the Orthodox Church celebrates on October 14. On this day, we remember that the Virgin Mary covers us with Her Holy Veil, protects us from all sorts of troubles. Look at the image of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos... Just as the earth is covered with a multi-colored carpet of leaves in autumn, so the Most Holy Theotokos covers us with Her snow-white, generous, grace-filled Protection.
Reader child:
Cover
Let the slush and off-road,
Do not be sad, downcast eyes,
After all, the Mother of God is above us
Extends the omophorion.
From everything evil
Forest, and field, and houses -
Covers everything
Mother of God Herself.
Lead teacher:
Today we will glorify the All-Bright, Most Pure, All-Merciful Protection of the Mother of God, we will present our autumn gifts to Our Benefactor and Intercessor, and we will begin our holiday with troparion of the Feast of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos.
Reader children:
Today, blessed people, we celebrate lightly,
overshadowed by your, Bogomati, coming,
and to Your gazing immaculate image with a touching verb:
cover us with your honest cover
and deliver us from all evil,
pray to your Son, Christ our God, to save our souls.
Lead teacher: And now listen to the troparion performed by the children's church choir (audio recording).
Lead-children:
Where does the great feast of the Intercession originate from?
The Feast of the Intercession began with a story that took place in 910 during the all-night service in Blachernae Church in Constantinople.
Blessed Andrew and his disciple Epiphanius had a vision that struck them. Surrounded by prophets, apostles and angels, they saw the Mother of God in the air above the people bowed in prayer for the deliverance of the city from the Saracen enemies who besieged it.
Lead boy:
The Most Holy Lady took off Her shining omophorion, i.e. a wide veil, a cover, spread it over the worshipers and offered up a prayer to the Lord for the salvation of the world, for the deliverance of people from troubles and suffering. For the sake of Christ, holy fool Andrei and his disciple saw this wondrous vision.
Leading girl:
How was the miraculous vision of the Virgin interpreted?
It was interpreted as a sign of special mercy, patronage and goodwill of the Queen of Heaven. Believers saw in this a sign that the Mother of God vigilantly watches over the world, humanity, every suffering, they perceived it as a sign of help to the Greeks in the war.
Lead boy:
Listen to how the boy, the hero of Ivan Shmelev's story, speaks about the Feast of the Intercession "Summer of the Lord":
“So that’s what it is – the Cover! It is there, high, behind the stars: there is the Cover, it covers the whole earth, it encloses. Gorkin says: “The Most Pure One herself stands at a great height, with the Baptist of the Lord and your angel - Ivan the Theologian and with the angelic armies, and holds the great Veil - omophorion over the whole earth, and heaven and earth are sanctified, and all churches will light up, and people will rejoice " .
Will I see? No: far away, beyond the stars. And one holy man saw, it was given to him to see, and to announce to us - in that ancient city it was - so that people would not be afraid, but live - rejoice.
Therefore, my dear, we are not afraid of anything, under such and such a Veil.
(Solemn music plays.)
Reader children:
Cover
Cover today. At Blachernae Church
Andrey the holy fool and Epiphanius,
Bringing good news to others.
Opened to their pious eyes
Intercessor with heavenly omophorion,
Praying with them here.
Cover today. Road to Constantinople
Soul overcoming in the twinkling of an eye,
And I pray. Let there be an omophorion.
Lead teacher: The tradition of celebrating the day of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos did not originate in Tsargrad-Constantinople, but in Rus'. In the middle of the 12th century, the noble prince Andrei Bogolyubsky established this holiday in his Vladimir-Suzdal lands.
Leading girl: In 1165, on the water border of his principality, on quiet river The Nerl was erected by the prince, the first in Russia Church of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos. Light, single-headed, similar from a distance to a warrior in a silver helmet, in a white stone shirt. This temple stands to this day, looking like a white sail.
Reader children:
We came with you and froze
And forgot all the words
Before the white miracle on the Nerl,
In front of the Church of the Intercession,
What is not stone, but all of light,
Out of love, out of prayers...
Lead teacher: In Moscow, during the reign of the great Sovereign Ivan Vasilyevich the Terrible, the Cathedral of the Intercession of the Mother of God "that on the moat" was built (known as St. Basil's Cathedral). This cathedral was built by Russian masters, architects Barma and Postnik Yakovlev. Ivan the Terrible, struck by the beauty of the temple, ordered them to be blinded so that they could no longer "build such a marvel in another land ...".
Lead boy: Intercession is one of the most revered autumn church holidays among the people. His arrival is associated with the change of the season. It is believed that the Pokrov brings a white, snowy “veil” to the earth.
Leading girl: The proverb states: “The cover is the first winter”, “The cover covers the ground either with a leaf or with snow”, “On the Cover before lunch - autumn, after lunch - winter”.
Lead boy: By this day, the harvesting work was over and weddings were starting to play - so the Intercession became the cherished holiday of the betrothal of girls.
Leading girl: Young girls secretly turned to the image of the Mother of God with a heartfelt prayer : “You are the Protection, Mother of God! Cover me, a girl, with Your imperishable veil to go to a foreign side.
^
II. Musical part
Lead teacher:
The guys from the Russian Song ensemble came to visit us today with their musical gifts, now they will perform Russian folk songs that the girls used to sing at gatherings, and they will show how the guys and girls led round dances.
III. Competition part.(Children receive gifts for correct answers.)
1. "Competition of questions and answers"
Name the feasts of the Theotokos that are associated with the earthly life of the Most Holy Theotokos.
What does the phrase "stretches the omophorion" mean?
What were the names of the saints who beheld, saw the Most Holy Theotokos walking through the air?
What are the churches built in Rus' in honor of the Intercession of the Mother of God?
What were the names of the architects who built St. Basil's Cathedral in Moscow?
What folk customs and rituals do you know associated with the Feast of the Intercession?
- It is necessary to choose as many beautiful and expressive definitions for the word "Covering" as possible. Who is bigger?
Closing remarks by the facilitator:
The Mother of God loves and pities us all, protects us from troubles. Let us also prayerfully ask Her help for each of us, love and magnify the All-Merciful Protection of the Mother of God: “We magnify Thee, Blessed Virgin, and honor Your honest Protection.”
^
To the Heavenly Guardian
Mira Intercessor, Mother of all singing,
I am before You with a prayer:
Poor sinner, dressed in darkness,
You cover with grace.
If trials befall me,
Sorrow, loss, enemies, -
In a difficult hour of life, in a moment of suffering,
You help me, please.
Spiritual joy, thirst for salvation
Put in my heart;
To the Kingdom of Heaven, to the world of consolation
Show me the straight path.
-
I wish you, dear guests, children and parents, an inexhaustible, warm Maternal Cover all the days of your life - over you, over your families, over your labors.
(The holiday ends with a friendly tea party, during which the following competition games can be held.)
Competition-game "Gifts of Autumn"
Children are grouped in groups of three. The facilitator blindfolds the participants in the game and invites everyone in the group to touch the object once from different sides with their fingertip and try to identify the gifts of autumn.
^ Game "Birds"
On the ground (or in the center of the hall) a circle is drawn - the sky. All the players take the names of different birds (titmouse, crow, sparrow, swallow, etc.) and line up a few steps from the circle in a row. One of the children portrays the Fox. He walks between the circle and the birds and sings:
Magpie-white-sided,
Green tail, long nose!
Come to the mowing
They scattered oats there!
A participant in the game, who called himself a magpie, waves his arms as if he wants to take off and runs into a circle, and the fox catches him. At the end of the game, the birds caught by the fox, and the birds that ran away into the circle, take a stick or a tourniquet by the ends, and each side pulls towards itself. Whose side wins, that one wins.
^
Competition "Mysteries of Autumn"
For the holiday, I collected autumn forest beautiful multi-colored leaves on which the Autumn Sorceress wrote autumn riddles for you. Try to guess them:
Came without paints and without a brush,
Thin, long, ankle-sized, jumping a lot, but you can’t see it in the grass. (Rain).
It flies without wings and sings
Doesn't give one pass
He pushes others. (Wind).
green in spring,
put on in autumn
Red corals. (Rowan).
Buried in the ground in May
And they began to dig in the fall -
Not one found, but ten!
What's her name, kids? (Potato).
Without a path and without a road
Hiding in the clouds, in the mist,
Only feet on the ground. (Rain).
She dies in autumn
Cows without her are in trouble,
She is their main food. (Grass).
A dark bird flew across the sky
The sun has stopped. (Cloud).
Guess the riddle: what are we?
If it rains, we have work -
Stomp, spank in the swamps. (Boots).
Bibliography:
Ivan Shmelev "Summer of the Lord" - M .: "Lodya", 1999.
Kolesnikova V. Russians Orthodox holidays. - M., KRON-PRESS, 1995.
Nizova G.Yu. Our Holidays. - Ivanovo: "The Light of Orthodoxy", 2001.
Orthodox culture At school. October: Teaching aid. - M .: Publishing house "Pokrov", 2004.
1000 riddles, proverbs, sayings, tongue twisters / Auth. V.N. Ivankov. - M .: LLC "AQUARIUM BUK", 2004.
Holidays Orthodox Church/ Comp. I. Smolkin. – M.: Orthodox parish Temple of the Icon of the Kazan Mother of God in Yasenevo with the participation of Syntagma LLC, 2000.
Assumption of the Blessed Virgin by Francesco Botticini, 1475-77 London National Gallery
The relics of the Virgin - in heaven
For the first time documented mention of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin St. Andrew of Crete and Modest of Jerusalem (both lived in the 7th century), as well as St. John of Damascus (VIII century) in his Eulogy on the Dormition of the Mother of God. He writes how the Empress Pulcheria (5th century), having built the Blachernae Church of Our Lady in Constantinople, asked the Jerusalem Patriarch St. Juvenalia of the relics of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
St. Juvenal answered her that the body of the Mother of God was taken to heaven.
And he recounted the tradition of how the apostles were miraculously transferred across the sky to the burial of the Virgin. The Apostle Thomas was delayed and arrived only on the third day. A coffin was specially opened for him, which turned out to be empty, only the funeral clothes of the Mother of God remained, from which fragrance emanated: the Mother of God herself was bodily ascended to heaven. She did not descend into hell, like Christ Himself and John the Baptist.
From this fact comes the difference in the perception of the events of the Dormition among Christians of the East and West.
The special role of the Most Holy Theotokos in the gospel history in the West was fixed, among other things, in the opinion that the Virgin Mary did not survive human death, but was bodily transferred to paradise.
Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos; Tver icon of the 15th century
Eastern Christians believe that the special intercession of the Mother of God before God for the human race is connected not only with the gracious dispensation of her soul, but also with the fact that she knows what the death she has experienced is. After the Assumption, the Lord preserved the body of His Most Pure Mother from corruption, but, by virtue of the law common to human nature, the Mother of God died and after that she was taken to heaven.
The Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in its structure resembles Easter, which suddenly happened in the summer.
Shroud in the center of the temple, incense, flowers, solemn chants, crowds. And all this after fasting, almost as strict as Great.
Dormition of the Mother of God, Shroud
The shroud of the holiday tells about the burial of the Most Holy Theotokos. The temple is saturated with color not red (as at Easter), but blue (this is the color feasts of the Mother of God).
The Dormition of the Mother of God is glorified as an ascent: “During childbirth, You preserved virginity, but in Dormition you did not leave the world, Mother of God. You have passed to life, being the Mother of Life, and by Your prayers you deliver our souls from death.” This is the troparion of the holiday - a hymn that reveals its meaning.
Dormition in Jerusalem
Church of the Assumption of the Virgin in Gethsemane (Jerusalem), 12th century
In a special way, you mentally dwell in the event of the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos when you get to Jerusalem on that day. Just imagine…
Jerusalem. Old city. 4 am. After the night Liturgy from the square of the Church of the Resurrection of Christ, along the "path of sorrow", a huge procession transfers to the Gethsemane Monastery a shroud depicting the Assumption of the Mother of God.
According to Tradition, the Assumption took place in Zion in the house of John the Theologian, where the Mother of God lived.
However, the Jerusalem rite of burial of the shroud begins at Golgotha: where the grieving Mother stood when Her Son was crucified.
The quiet pre-dawn procession is similar to the Holy Saturday procession: it is a farewell with the hope of meeting you soon. And, of course, it recalls the day when the apostles, who preached in different countries, but miraculously assembled in Jerusalem, saw off the Most Holy Theotokos.
Tomb of the Mother of God (kuvuklia), Assumption Church in Gethsemane
The Most Pure Virgin was buried in Gethsemane, in the family tomb next to Her parents Joachim and Anna and Joseph, betrothed to Her.
Garden of Gethsemane, Jerusalem. Colorized photograph of con. 19th century
Now an underground church has been built on this site in order to celebrate the Liturgy directly on the tomb of the Mother of God, just as the Liturgy is celebrated on the tomb of the Lord. Here at sunrise they bring the shroud before the start of the celebration.
Tomb of the Mother of God, view from the northern entrance to the Kuvuklia. The Orthodox altar set above the sacred bed is covered with a red veil. Cave Church of the Assumption of the Virgin, Gethsemane
Death is like a holiday
There are holidays that clearly show the otherworldliness (unusualness) of Christianity. Usually the fact of death is a tragedy. For Christians, death is often included in the content of holidays. After resting, the saints gain the opportunity to continue their lives with God and offer prayers to Him for us. That is why Christians rejoice at the death of the righteous.
And in the Assumption of the Most Holy Theotokos, this Christian understanding of death is most fully manifested. Death is a transition to a new life, more real than earthly.
Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Fresco fragment, 17th century
And beyond the threshold of death, the soul of a Christian is met by Christ. This is the message that the image of the Dormition carries.
Priest Sergiy Kruglov, priest, poet:
The Slavic word "assumption" - from the word "sleep", the peaceful death of earthly life. But I see that the word "assumption" has a common root with the word "success". Success is a powerful deity worshiped by modern world, worship in deeds by many who in words call themselves believers and church people: a successful career, wealth, power.
But in the Christian sense, a completely different success is possible: the success of a fully lived life, the result of it, filled with heavenly light, meaning and love, like honeycombs with fragrant honey ... It was with such “success” that the Blessed Virgin Mary came to her dormition.
It is not clear to the non-church mind: how can one celebrate the day of death? However, for those who believe that a person lives forever, and death is just another birth (it’s not for nothing that the soul of the Mother of God is depicted on the icon of the Dormition as a newborn baby in swaddling clothes in the arms of Christ), a difficult, but transition to a further stage of life, is for Christians natural human sadness is mixed here with hope and joy: the Most Holy Theotokos, having crossed the limit of earthly life, did not leave us, now and forever She is our helper and intercessor.
Why an assistant? What did you deserve?
Death is the result of sin. And the Mother of God is the purest, most free from sin person of all who have ever lived on earth. Sin is the enemy of God. And the Holy Virgin Mary is not just aspiring to God, She is His Mother herself.
And therefore, after death, the soul of the Theotokos was taken to Heaven, and Her body, separated for three days from the soul, but not subject to corruption - the result of sin, on the third day, by the power of God rose, resurrected; The Mother of God was crowned with God's glory.
This is the glorification of a person who has overcome sin, illness, pain, sadness, separation, suffering, death, this is the achievement by creation of its goal - deification, which has already happened to the Mother of God, but to which everyone is called - and is celebrated on the day of the Dormition.
And precisely because of this, the Mother of God became the first intercessor and intercessor of people before God. Even a person who is far from the Church knows who the Most Holy Theotokos is. Everyone is familiar with the names of Her numerous icons: Joy of All Who Sorrow, Tenderness, Education, Seeking for the Dead, Healer…
The image of the Mother, who raised the Son-Savior and gave Him to suffering humanity, is close to the heart of everyone. And Her Assumption embodied what the heart of a child who has lost her mother so longs for: She left, but remained with us, She is alive, and Her maternal care and love are obvious and undeniable for a sensitive heart.
There is a legend: one righteous man was shown Paradise during his lifetime, its beautiful cloisters with many angels and saints in beautiful crowns. He asked: “Where is the Mother of God?” They answered him: “She is not here, She is on earth, among the sinful people.”
Pshenichnaya Olga Eduardovna, senior teacher.Place of work: MDOBU No. 7 "Swallow" Prochnookopskaya station of the municipality Novokubansky district of the Krasnodar Territory.
Material Description: I offer you a script for a holiday on the spiritual and moral education of preschoolers. The content is intended for children aged 6 - 7 years. This material will be useful to kindergarten teachers, music directors, teachers additional education.
The script of the holiday for children 6 - 7 years old "Earthly life of the Blessed Virgin Mary"
Target: organization of upbringing and educational work with children through the formation of spiritual and moral values.Program tasks:
Learning tasks: to ensure that children get acquainted with the main events that took place in the earthly life of the Virgin.
Development tasks: contribute to the development vocabulary, the ability to build complex phrases, retell and answer questions.
New words, concepts: Christmas, Mother of God, piety, mercy, humility, meeting, crucifixion, righteousness.
Educational tasks: create conditions for the education of love and sensitivity to the mother; manifestations of kind thoughts, words and deeds to dear person; contribute to the improvement of behavior, softening the character of preschoolers.
Visual and illustrative material: illustrations of icons of the Holy Mother of God.
Preliminary work: individual learning of poems about mother, explanation of the concept of "icon".
Lesson progress
On the central wall is an icon of the Mother of God with a baby. Icons of the Birth of the Mother of God, the Entry into the Temple of the Lord, and the Assumption of the Mother of God hang on the side walls.Music by Tchaikovsky.
Educator:
If the leaves on the trees turn yellow,
If the birds have flown to a distant land,
If the sky is gloomy, if the rain is pouring
This time of the year... what's her name?
Children: Autumn!
Educator: Right. For several years now we have been celebrating with you new holiday"Mothers Day". On this day, according to the Orthodox calendar, the Assumption of the Holy Virgin Mary is celebrated. The Virgin Mary is the mother of Jesus Christ. And on this day we want to say words of gratitude to all our mothers.
Look at this icon. You see with what love she looks at her son.
You all have mothers who love and protect you just the same. They are ready to give the most precious thing for you. Guys, tell me how you love your moms.
1 child:
There is no one dearer than my mother
There is no one fairer and stricter
There is no one my mother is kinder,
Affectionate mother of my dear.
2 child:
How I love her warm hands
Quiet voice gentle sounds.
With mom and the sun shines stronger for us
It's cold in the world without my mother.
3 child:
Who will regret and who will warm?
Nights do not sleep when we get sick.
There is no one in the whole world relatives
Mothers of my only dear.
The song “My Star” is performed, words and music by G. Vikhareva:
Here it is evening
The stars lit up.
Into warm beds
The children settled down.
I don't freeze
Even if I've been standing for a long time.
Quiet, patient
I look out the window.
I don't freeze
Even if I've been standing for a long time.
Quiet, patient
I look out the window.
I'm looking for everything in the sky
Your asterisk.
For beloved mother
I'll light it up.
Lots of bright stars
They look at me.
The brightest
My asterisk.
Lots of bright stars
They look at me.
The brightest
My asterisk.
Educator: Yes, you guys show how much you love your moms.
Quiet music sounds
Educator: I want you to look again at this icon. This is the icon of the Mother of God - the most important mother of all people on earth. I will now tell you about Her earthly life.
There lived a husband and wife. Their names were Jacob and Anna. They were very kind peaceful people but they had no children. They really wanted children and asked the Lord God about it.
And so, their daughter, Maria, was born. When Mary was three years old, her parents took her to the Temple in Jerusalem. There she was met by the chief clergyman Zechariah and led into the temple. So Mary remained at the temple to be brought up until she grew up. She did not get bored in the temple, she loved to embroider. But the main occupation was prayer. In character she was meek, humble, kind, and hardworking.
And then one day, while praying, she saw an angel.
Guys, do you know who the Angels are?
Children: Angels are messengers of God. They proclaim God's miracles.
A song is performed to the words of K. Yazykova "Angels":
Angels live in the sky
Glory to God Almighty sing,
People's prayers are lifted up to the sky,
Sweet dreams of children.
My Lord, open your heart
My Lord, open your heart
I know you are the living God.
God sends angels from heaven
To proclaim God's miracles.
They bring faith and joy
Messengers of God's love.
My Lord, open your heart
Let me hear the angelic choir.
My Lord, open your heart
I know you are the living God.
Educator: And then one of the angels said that it was pleasing to God that she give birth to a Son - our Savior.
And then Jesus Christ was born.
And this day - Christmas, is celebrated by all people on earth.
Guys, do your mothers sing you lullabies before going to bed? Let's sing a lullaby.
The lullaby "God's mother rocked the baby in her arms" is performed:
Mother of God rocked the Baby in her arms,
She rejoiced at the Son, quietly sang:
"Luli-lyuli-bay - a child-flower,
Lyuli-lyuli-bay is my own Son."
Both earth and sky, sing to God, sing.
Calm your heart with great joy.
"Luli-lyuli-bay - my Tsarevich is clear.
Lyuli-lyuli-bay - my son is beautiful."
Angelic powers hidden by heaven
Embrace the earth, sing along with us:
"Luli-lyuli-bay - my fragrant flower,
Lyuli-lyuli-bay - in rocky soil.
Educator: Tell me, guys, what affectionate words called Mother of God your son? And what sweet words mothers tell you?
Educator: A few days after birth, the baby was taken to the Temple in Jerusalem, to serve God. At this time, the elder Simeon lived in Jerusalem. When he saw the baby, he recognized the Savior in him and rejoiced. And Simeon predicted the future of Jesus to Mary, saying that she would have to suffer a lot and that she would see the death of her son.
And so it happened. Evil people Fearing that he would become king, they decided to kill him. The Mother of God was always next to her son and saw all his earthly suffering and his crucifixion.
She lived on earth for a long time after the death of her son, with her beloved disciple of Jesus Christ, John the Theologian. But the time has come for her to leave the earth.
Having finished her earthly journey, the Mother of God seemed to fall asleep, transferring her soul into the hands of Her divine Son.
Look how beautiful and kind she is. Orthodox people believe in Her Intercession and pray to Her, asking God's grace for their children.
Child: Above the bed, a little to the side,
mother of god icon
Her kind look shines,
If mom goes away
It's not scary to me alone -
Mother of God with me
I wake up early in the morning
I pray for the icon.
The song of V. Bobkov, M. Fishman "Virgin Mary" sounds:
Virgin Mary - heavenly beauty,
Virgin Mary - the soul of the spring of tears,
Virgin Mary - our all-singing Mother,
Virgin Mary - eternal grace.
Virgin Mary - queen of the universe of love,
Virgin Mary - protect everyone with a cover,
Virgin Mary - source of life-giving forces,
Virgin Mary, pray that the Son will forgive us.
Virgin Mary, in her holy surroundings,
Virgin Mary, bless every home.
Virgin Mary, let me know your mercy,
Virgin Mary, our all-singing Mother!
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God,
Prayers for the sake of Your Most Pure Mother
And All Saints have mercy on us.
Holiday Events
Surprisingly multifaceted and deep word "assumption" - speaks of death as a dream and combines peace, bliss, tranquility, joy and hope for awakening.
Description of the events to which the feast of the Assumption of the Mother of God is dedicated can be easily found in numerous books and articles. If we omit the discrepancies and various kinds of details, then the death and burial of the Virgin took place as follows. Last years Virgin Mary lived in Jerusalem. She spent days and nights in prayer, often coming to the places of crucifixion and burial of her Son for this. On one of these visits, the archangel Gabriel appeared before her, the same one who announced to her the joyful news of the birth of Jesus, the Savior of the world. This time he revealed to Mary her imminent death.
The Mother of God revealed this to some of Jesus' disciples and to Joseph of Arimathea, the righteous man who took down her Son from the cross and buried Him. The Mother of God prayed that the Lord would bring the apostles to her before her death. Miraculously, the apostles literally “flocked” to serve Her. All of them were gathered by the Holy Spirit so that they could be blessed with the blessings of the Most Pure Virgin Mary and arrange her burial.
Both the Mother of God and the apostles were together in prayer, waiting for the coming of the Son of God. Suddenly, the top of the room where they gathered seemed to disappear in the rays of an inexplicable light, and the King of Glory Himself descended - Christ, surrounded by many angels. Without any pain and bodily suffering, as in a pleasant dream, the Blessed Virgin reposed, betraying her soul into the hands of Her Son and God.
After mourning the separation, the apostles proceeded to the burial. Peter, Paul, James, with others from among the twelve apostles, carried on their shoulders the bed on which the body of the Mother of God lay. In Gethsemane - a place in Jerusalem at the foot of the Mount of Olives, where Jesus liked to retire - the procession stopped to give the last kiss to the body of the Blessed Virgin. At that moment, joyful angelic singing was heard and many sick people were healed. By evening, the body was placed in a burial cave and the entrance was closed with a large stone.
On the third day, the tomb was opened for the late Apostle Thomas: the body of the Mother of God was not there, only burial sheets remained, spreading a wonderful fragrance. On the same day, during the evening meal, the apostles heard angelic singing and saw the Mother of God standing in the air, shining and surrounded by angels.
It is impossible to say exactly at what age and when the Mother of God reposed. It was probably the 50s of the first century. She was about 70 years old.
When and how did this holiday appear?
It is difficult for a modern person to explain the meaning and significance of the Dormition of the Mother of God. The first and main difficulty is that, unlike the events from the life of Jesus Christ, recorded by his contemporaries - the evangelists (the gospel narratives appeared in the middle, second half of the 1st century), the description of the life of the Mother of God is based on traditions recorded several centuries after Her life. .
From the New Testament, we only know that Mary the Mother of the Lord Jesus Christ, after His death and resurrection, was with the apostles - the disciples of her Son. She lived with one of them - John, now known as the Apostle John the Theologian. In other words, the Bible says nothing about the time and circumstances of the death and burial of the Most Holy Theotokos. The first written references to this are found in the works of church writers of the 4th century without any details. come down to us church calendars The (monthly books) of the first centuries contain feasts in honor of many holy martyrs, but there are no feasts in honor of the Virgin Mary. The church-wide celebration of the Assumption of the Theotokos began only in the 7th century, and the events of death and burial, in the form we know them, were collected and presented only to XIV century Constantinopolitan monk Nicephorus Kallistos.
But it is precisely the fact that for the first few centuries of Christianity the name and personality of the Theotokos remained in the shadows, including in the Gospel narratives and in the writings of the apostles, gives us the opportunity to understand the meaning and meaning of the feasts of the Mother of God and, above all, the Assumption of the Most Holy Theotokos.
The fact is that the first centuries of Christians were a time of trial for the Church, a time of persecution. Christians equally honored all the dead members of the Church, those who partake of the Body of Christ. They especially singled out only the martyrs - true witnesses of Christ, those who, during the persecution, did not renounce God, but proved their faith at the cost of own life. The martyrs chose death in order to find true life, life with Christ God. Such a testimony, stronger than any sermon, contributed to the formation of the Church and the conversion of people to Christ.
Only at the beginning of the 4th century did Christianity gain the right to open existence in the Roman Empire. The era of martyrs, the era of living witness is over.
For the Church, an era of philosophical, cultural and even political reflection began, when it was necessary not only to express and explain their faith in a language understandable to the Roman world, but also to create a pedagogy of faith. For that time, it was very important to prove the God-manhood of the Lord Jesus Christ, only in this way it was possible to explain the non-illusiveness and absolute reality of both His birth and suffering, death and resurrection. The gospel clearly spoke of Christ as the Son of God, who was born a man and did not cease to be God. But vital to Christian Church the philosophical, theological doctrine of Christ needed not only a logical substantiation, but also a pedagogical and mystical disclosure. It was the person of Mary the Mother of Jesus who was able to give Christians the necessary support.
Judge for yourself. We can be sure of the humanity of Christ if we know for sure that he had a mother - a real woman, whose genealogy is known from the evangelists. The veneration of the Virgin Mary Mother of Jesus as the Mother of God, as the one from whom the Son of God Christ the Savior was born, in the best possible way helps Christians not only to understand, but to accept, to feel faith in the God-manhood of Christ.
The tradition of the Jerusalem community and its subsequent development provided diverse material for describing the most diverse events in the life of the Virgin Mary. You can have different attitudes to certain details, you can talk for a long time about the reliability of this or that fact. In this case, this is not so important, because we are talking about pedagogy, about an attempt to express a much more important truth about Jesus Christ and his Mother than, for example, the answer to the question of how the apostles actually gathered to her deathbed . The main thing is that these holidays focus on the key events in the life of the Virgin Mary, events that allow us to see the Mother of God, the Mother of God in her: the Nativity, the entry into the temple (dedication to God), the annunciation (receiving the news from the angel about the birth of Jesus), the birth of the Son and the Assumption.
What is the main thing in the feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary?
The words about the Assumption of the Most Holy Theotokos, spoken by the famous Orthodox theologian and preacher of the last century, Protopresbyter Alexander Schmemann, are very close and understandable to me.
On the Feast of the Assumption, the Church commemorates the death of the One whose Son conquered death, rose from the dead, and bestowed on those who believe in Him the promise of the last resurrection and the triumph of undying life. Let us remember that at the moment of death, the Mother of God gave her soul into the hands of her Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, and He accepted it. Let us also recall the story that on the third day the apostles did not find the body of the Virgin in the tomb. Thus, we see death and what has already happened in this death: separation and union, sadness and joy, and in the limit, at the last depth - not death, but life, life with God face to face. “After the birth of the Virgin, and after death she is alive,” the Church sings on the day of the Assumption of the Most Holy Theotokos and adds: “at the birth you preserved your virginity, but in the assumption of the world you did not leave ...”
For the Mother of God, death became a joyful meeting. And for Christians on the feast of the Assumption - the whole mystery of death is revealed as a joyful mystery. If death for many is the horror and grief of separation, a descent into terrible loneliness and darkness, then all this is not in the death of the Virgin Mary. Her death, like her whole life, is only a meeting, only love, only an approach to the unfading warm light eternity and entry into it. And this is already the beginning of a common resurrection, this is the hope of Christians, this is the future seen with their own eyes.
After the death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ, the Most Holy Theotokos lived for about twenty more years. The Apostle John, in whose house in Jerusalem She settled, took care of Her as a gentle and attentive son. All Christians loved and revered Her. The Mother of God was humble in heart, in deeds she was constant and conscientious, she always spoke only about what was necessary and good. Her words were always gracious, and conversation with Her was sweet. She wished well to everyone, did not offend anyone, did not despise and did not laugh at anyone.
The Mother of God often went to Bethlehem, where Christ was born, and to the places of His free suffering and death. Often She climbed the Mount of Olives, from which the Lord ascended to heaven, and with tears asked the Son to take Her to Himself.
Once, when She was praying like that, the archangel Gabriel appeared to Her. He served the Mother of God from Her very childhood. When She lived as a little girl at the temple and prayed for a long time in the Holy of Holies, Gabriel brought Her food from heaven and fed Her. He proclaimed to Mary the incarnation of God and always relentlessly guarded her.
And so he appeared to the Mother of God to inform Her of her imminent Assumption and brought Her a branch of Paradise. She rejoiced unspeakably and, bowing to the ground, thanked the Savior from the bottom of her heart.
When the time for Her Assumption came, the Mother of God prepared everything and was in Her house. Suddenly there was a noise, and a lot of clouds surrounded the house. On the clouds, at the command of God, the apostles flew from different parts of the earth. They were very glad to see each other, and they thought with surprise: why did the Lord gather them together? John the Theologian came out of the house to them, embraced and announced the imminent repose of the Mother of God from earthly life. The apostles entered to Her and were comforted by Her last conversation.
Suddenly the sky was opened, and the King of glory Christ Himself with heavenly powers and with the souls of the saints he approached His Most Pure Mother, lying on her deathbed. Seeing Her Son, She exclaimed: “My soul magnifies the Lord, and My spirit rejoiced in God, My Savior!” And, rising from the bed, she bowed to Him. fell asleep sweetly, and immediately the angels sang: “Rejoice, O Gracious One, the Lord is with you. Blessed are You in women."
When the apostles carried the body of the Mother of God to the place of Her burial, John the Theologian walked in front, carrying a branch of paradise. And the infidels were angry, and one of them tried to push the Most Pure Body. But as soon as his bold hands touched the bed, the angel of God cut them off. Then the wicked repented, believed in Christ and appealed to the Mother of God for forgiveness. And She healed him. And many other miracles took place during the burial of the body of the Mother of God.
Three days after these events, the Apostle Thomas came to Jerusalem, and so that he could say goodbye to the Mother of God, the apostles opened Her tomb ... and saw that the body was not there.
On the same day in the evening, the Mother of God appeared to them, surrounded by angels, shining with indescribable glory, and said: "Rejoice! I will be with you all the days." And the apostles exclaimed: "Most Holy Theotokos, help us!"
So they convinced themselves and then announced to the Church that the Lord resurrected the Mother of God on the third day and with her body ascended to heaven as the Queen of Heaven.
But, leaving the earth with her body, the Mother of God did not leave her with her grace. From above, She looks at us with loving eyes and, like an affectionate mother, fulfills all our good petitions, turns us away from every sin, protects us from the righteous wrath of God, and delivers our souls from death with Her prayers.
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