The ranks of priests of the Russian Orthodox Church. Church ranks

Hierarchy in Orthodox Church has a large number of names (rank). A person who comes to church meets with clergy who occupy certain positions and are responsible, as true servants of the Most High, for the flock.

Church hierarchy in Orthodoxy

Orthodox ranks

God the Father divided his own people into three types, depending on their proximity to His Kingdom.

1. The first category includes laymen- ordinary members of the Orthodox brotherhood who have not taken the clergy. These people make up the bulk of all believers and take part in prayer services. The Church allows the laity to conduct rituals in their homes. In the first centuries of Christianity, people had much more rights than they do today. The voices of the laity had power in the election of rectors and bishops.
2. Clergymen- a lower rank who dedicated himself to God and put on the appropriate clothes. To receive initiation, these people undergo the rite of hirothesia (ordination) with the blessing of the bishop. This includes readers, sextons (sacristans), and singers.
3. Clergy- the level where the highest clerics stand, forming the divinely established hierarchy. To receive this rank, one must undergo the sacrament of ordination, but only after spending some time in a lower rank. White robes are worn by the clergy who are allowed to have a family, while black robes are worn by those who lead a monastic life. Only the latter are allowed to manage the church parish.

About the various ministers of the church:

At the first glance at the clergy, you understand that for convenience, in determining the rank, the clothing of priests and holy fathers differs: few wear beautiful multi-colored robes, others adhere to a strict and ascetic appearance.

On a note! The church hierarchy is, as Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite says, a direct continuation of the “heavenly army,” which includes the archangels - the closest servants of God. The highest ranks, divided into three orders, through unquestioning service, transmit grace from the Father to each of his children, which we are.

Beginning of the hierarchy

The term “church account” is used both in a narrow and broad sense. In the first case, this phrase means a collection of clergy of the lowest rank, who do not fit into the three-degree system. When they speak in a broad sense, they mean clergy (clergy), whose association constitutes the staff of any church complex (temple, monastery).

Parish of the Orthodox Church

In pre-revolutionary Russia, they were approved by the consistory (an institution under the episcopate) and personally by the bishop. The number of lower-ranking clergy depended on the number of parishioners seeking communication with the Lord. The congregation of the large church consisted of a dozen deacons and clergy. To make changes in the composition of this state, the bishop was required to obtain permission from the Synod.

In past centuries, the income of the account consisted of payments for church services (clergy and prayers for the needs of the laity). Rural parishes, served by lower ranks, were provided with plots of land. Some readers, sextons and singers lived in special church houses, and in the 19th century they began to receive salaries.

For information! The history of the development of the church hierarchy has not been fully disclosed. Today they speak with confidence about three degrees of priesthood, while the early Christian titles (prophet, didaskal) have practically been forgotten.

The meaning and significance of the ranks reflected the activities that were authoritatively announced by the Church. Previously, the brethren and the affairs of the monastery were managed by the abbot (leader), who was distinguished only by his experience. Today, attainment of ecclesiastical rank is similar to an official reward received for a certain period of service.

About the life of the Church:

Sextons (sacristans) and clergy

When Christianity arose, they played the role of guardians of temples and sacred places. The duties of the gatekeepers included lighting the lamp during divine services. Gregory the Great called them “guardians of the church.” The sextons were in charge of the selection of utensils for the rituals; they brought in prosphora, blessed water, fire, wine, lit candles, cleaned the altars, and reverently washed the floors and walls.

Today, the position of sexton has been practically reduced to zero; the ancient duties are now assigned to the shoulders of cleaners, watchmen, novices and ordinary monks.

• In the Old Testament the term "clergy" refers to the lower ranks and the common people. In ancient times, representatives of the tribe (tribe) of Levi became clerics. The people were called all those who were not distinguished by “true” birth.
• In the book of the New Testament, the criterion of nation is omitted: now the lowest and highest rank can be received by any Christian who has confirmed compliance with certain canons of religion. Here the status of a woman who is allowed to obtain an auxiliary position is increased.
• In ancient times, the people were divided into laymen and monks, who were distinguished by great asceticism in life.
• In a narrow sense, clergy are clergymen standing on the same level as clerics. In the modern Orthodox world, this designation has extended to priests of the highest rank.

The first level of the hierarchy of clergy

In the first Christian communities, deacons were the bishop's assistants. Today they minister the word of God by reading scriptures and offering pleas on behalf of the congregation. Deacons, who always ask for a blessing for work, burn incense in the church building, and help perform the proskomedia (liturgy).

The deacon assists the bishop or priest in performing divine services and sacraments

• Naming without specification indicates that the minister belongs to the white clergy. The monastic order is called hierodeacons: their clothes do not differ, but outside of liturgies they wear a black cassock.
• The eldest in the rank of diaconate is the protodeacon, who is distinguished by a double orarion (long narrow ribbon) and a purple kamilavka (headdress).
• In ancient times, it was common to give the rank of deaconesses, whose task was to care for sick women, prepare for baptism and assist priests. The question of reviving such a tradition was considered in 1917, but there was no answer.

The subdeacon is the deacon's assistant. In ancient times they were not allowed to take wives. Among the duties was the care of church vessels, the covers of the altar, which they also guarded.

For information! In the present, this rite is observed only in the services of the bishop, whom the subdeacons serve with all diligence. Students of theological academies often become candidates for rank.

Second level of the hierarchy of clergy

Presbyter (head, elder) is a general canonical term that unites middle-order ranks. He has the right to administer the sacraments of communion and baptism, but does not have the authority to place other priests in any place in the hierarchy or to bestow grace on those around him.

The priest at the head of the parish community is called the rector

Under the apostles, elders were often called bishops, a term meaning “overseer” or “overseer.” If such a priest had wisdom and honorable age, he was called an elder. The book of Acts and Epistles says that the elders blessed the faithful and presided in the absence of the bishop, they taught, performed many sacraments and received confessions.

Important! The Russian Orthodox Church puts forward rules that say that today this church level is available only to monks with a theological education. Elders are required to have ideal morality and an age above 30 years.

This group includes archimandrites, hieromonks, abbots and archpriests.

The third level of the hierarchy of clergy

Before the Church Schism, which occurred in the middle of the 11th century, the two parts of Christianity were united. After the division into Orthodoxy and Catholicism, the foundations of the episcopate (the highest rank) were practically the same. Theologians say that the authorities of these two religious organizations recognize the power of God, not man. The right to rule is transferred only after the condescension of the Holy Spirit in the ritual of ordination (ordination).

In the modern Russian tradition, only a monk can become a bishop

A Christian theologian named Ignatius of Antioch, who was a disciple of Peter and John, reacted positively to the question of the need for one bishop in each city. Priests of the lower levels must unquestioningly obey the latter. Apostolic succession, which gives the right to ecclesiastical authority before the flock, was considered as a dogma in the doctrines of Orthodoxy and Catholicism.

Adherents of the latter support the unconditional authority of the Pope, which forms a strict hierarchy of bishops.

In Orthodoxy, power is given to the patriarchs of national church organizations. Here, in contrast to Catholicism, the doctrine of conciliarity of hierarchs has been officially adopted, where each chapter is likened to apostles, listening to the instructions of Jesus Christ and giving orders to the flock.

Bishops (archpastors), bishops, patriarchs have complete completeness of services and administration. This rank has the right to perform all the sacraments and ordain representatives of other degrees.

Clergymen who are in the same church group are equal “by grace” and act within the framework of the appropriate rules. The transition to another level occurs during the Liturgy, in the center of the church. This suggests that the monk receives the symbolic vestment of impersonal holiness.

Important! The hierarchy in the Orthodox Church is built on certain criteria, where lower ranks are subordinate to higher ones. In accordance with their rank, laity, clerks, clergy and clergy have certain powers that they must fulfill with true faith and unquestioningness before the will of the Supreme Creator.

Orthodox alphabet. Church hierarchy

Yu. Ruban

HIERARCHY(Greek ἱεραρχία - literally means “hierarchy”) is a term used in Christian theological terminology in a double meaning.

1) “Heavenly hierarchy” - a set of heavenly forces, angels, presented in accordance with their traditional gradation as intermediaries between God and people.

2) “Church hierarchy”, which, according to Pseudo- (who first used this term), is a continuation of the heavenly hierarchy: a three-degree sacred order, whose representatives communicate divine grace to the church people through worship. Currently, the hierarchy is a “class” of clergy (clergy) divided into three degrees (“ranks”) and in a broad sense corresponds to the concept of clergy.

For greater clarity, the structure of the modern hierarchical ladder of the Russian Orthodox Church can be represented by the following table:

The lower clergy (clerics) are outside this three-tier structure: subdeacons, readers, singers, altar servers, sextons, church watchmen and others.

Orthodox, Catholics, as well as representatives of the ancient eastern (“pre-Chalcedonian”) Churches (Armenian, Coptic, Ethiopian, etc.) base their hierarchy on the concept of “apostolic succession.” The latter is understood as a retrospective continuous (!) sequence of a long chain of episcopal consecrations, going back to the apostles themselves, who ordained the first bishops as their sovereign successors. Thus, “apostolic succession” is the concrete (“material”) succession of episcopal ordination. Therefore, the bearers and guardians of internal “apostolic grace” and external hierarchical power in the Church are bishops (bishops). Protestant confessions and sects, as well as our priestless Old Believers, based on this criterion, do not have a hierarchy, since representatives of their “clergy” (leaders of communities and liturgical meetings) are only elected (appointed) for church administrative service, but not possess an internal gift of grace, communicated in the sacrament of the priesthood and which alone gives the right to perform the sacraments. (A special question is about the legality of the Anglican hierarchy, which has long been debated by theologians.)

Representatives of each of the three degrees of the priesthood differ from each other by “grace” granted to them during elevation (ordination) to a specific degree, or by “impersonal holiness,” which is not associated with the subjective qualities of the clergyman. The bishop, as the successor of the apostles, has full liturgical and administrative powers within his diocese. (The head of a local Orthodox Church, autonomous or autocephalous - an archbishop, metropolitan or patriarch - is only “first among equals” within the episcopate of his Church). He has the right to perform all the sacraments, including successively elevating (ordaining) representatives of his clergy and clergy to sacred degrees. Only the consecration of a bishop is carried out by a “council” or at least two other bishops, as determined by the head of the Church and the synod attached to him. A representative of the second degree of priesthood (priest) has the right to perform all sacraments, except for any consecration or consecration (even as a reader). His complete dependence on the bishop, who in the Ancient Church was the predominant celebrant of all sacraments, is also expressed in the fact that he performs the sacrament of confirmation in the presence of the chrism previously consecrated by the patriarch (replacing the laying on of the hands of a bishop on the head of a person), and the Eucharist - only with the presence of the antimins he received from the ruling bishop. A representative of the lowest level of the hierarchy, a deacon, is only a co-celebrant and assistant of a bishop or priest, who does not have the right to perform any sacrament or divine service according to the “priestly rite.” In case of emergency, he can only baptize according to the “secular rite”; and he performs his cell (home) prayer rule and daily cycle services (the Hours) according to the Book of Hours or the “secular” Prayer Book, without priestly exclamations and prayers.

All representatives within one hierarchical degree are equal to each other “by grace,” which gives them the right to a strictly defined range of liturgical powers and actions (in this aspect, a newly ordained village priest is no different from an honored protopresbyter - the rector of the main parish church of the Russian Church). The difference is only in administrative seniority and honor. This is emphasized by the ceremony of successive elevation to the ranks of one degree of priesthood (deacon - to protodeacon, hieromonk - to abbot, etc.). It occurs at the Liturgy during the entrance with the Gospel outside the altar, in the middle of the temple, as if awarded with some element of vestment (gaiter, club, miter), which symbolizes the person’s preservation of the level of “impersonal holiness” given to him at ordination. At the same time, elevation (ordination) to each of the three degrees of priesthood takes place only inside the altar, which means the transition of the ordained to a qualitatively new ontological level of liturgical existence.

The history of the development of the hierarchy in the ancient period of Christianity has not been fully elucidated; only the firm formation of the modern three degrees of the priesthood by the 3rd century is indisputable. with the simultaneous disappearance of the early Christian archaic degrees (prophets, didaskals– “charismatic teachers”, etc.). The formation of the modern order of “ranks” (ranks, or gradations) within each of the three degrees of the hierarchy took much longer. The meaning of their original names, reflecting specific activities, changed significantly. So, abbot (Greek. egu?menos– lit. ruling,presiding, – one root with “hegemon” and “hegemon”!), initially - the head of a monastic community or monastery, whose power is based on personal authority, a spiritually experienced person, but the same monk as the rest of the “brotherhood”, without any sacred degree. Currently, the term "abbot" indicates only a representative of the second rank of the second degree of the priesthood. At the same time, he can be the rector of a monastery, a parish church (or an ordinary priest of this church), but also simply a full-time employee of a theological educational institution or an economic (or other) department of the Moscow Patriarchate, whose job responsibilities are not directly related to his priesthood. Therefore, in this case, elevation to another rank (rank) is simply a promotion in rank, an official award “for length of service,” for an anniversary or for another reason (similar to the assignment of another military degree not for participation in military campaigns or maneuvers).

3) In scientific and common usage, the word “hierarchy” means:
a) arrangement of parts or elements of the whole (of any design or logically complete structure) in descending order - from highest to lowest (or vice versa);
b) strict arrangement of official ranks and titles in the order of their subordination, both civilian and military (“hierarchical ladder”). The latter represent the typologically closest structure to the sacred hierarchy and a three-degree structure (rank and file - officers - generals).

Lit.: The clergy of the ancient universal Church from the times of the apostles to the 9th century. M., 1905; Zom R. Lebedev A.P. On the question of the origin of the early Christian hierarchy. Sergiev Posad, 1907; MirkovicL. Orthodox Liturgics. Prvi opshti deo. Another edition. Beograd, 1965 (in Serbian); Felmy K.H. Introduction to Modern Orthodox Theology. M., 1999. S. 254-271; Afanasiev N., prot. Holy Spirit. K., 2005; The Study of Liturgy: Revised edition / Ed. by C. Jones, G. Wainwright, E. Yarnold S. J., P. Bradshaw. – 2nd ed. London - New York, 1993 (Chap. IV: Ordination. P. 339-398).

BISHOP

BISHOP (Greek) archiereus) – in pagan religions – “high priest” (this is the literal meaning of this term), in Rome – Pontifex maximus; in the Septuagint - the highest representative of the Old Testament priesthood - the high priest (). In the New Testament - the naming of Jesus Christ (), who did not belong to the Aaronic priesthood (see Melchizedek). In the modern Orthodox Greek-Slavic tradition, it is the generic name for all representatives of the highest degree of hierarchy, or “episcopal” (i.e., bishops, archbishops, metropolitans and patriarchs themselves). See Episcopate, Clergy, Hierarchy, Clergy.

DEACON

DEACON, DIACON (Greek. diakonos- “servant”, “minister”) - in ancient Christian communities - an assistant to the bishop leading the Eucharistic meeting. The first mention of D. is in the epistles of St. Paul (and). His closeness to a representative of the highest degree of the priesthood was expressed in the fact that the administrative powers of the D. (actually the archdeacon) often placed him above the priest (especially in the West). The church tradition, which genetically traces the modern diaconate to the “seven men” of the book of the Acts of the Apostles (6:2-6 - not named at all by D. here!), is scientifically very vulnerable.

Currently, D. is a representative of the lowest, first degree of the church hierarchy, “a minister of the word of God,” whose liturgical duties consist primarily of loud reading of Holy Scripture (“evangelization”), proclamation of litanies on behalf of those praying, and censing of the temple. The church charter provides for his assistance to the priest performing the proskomedia. D. does not have the right to perform any divine service and even to put on his own liturgical clothes, but must every time ask for the “blessing” of the clergyman. The purely auxiliary liturgical function of D. is emphasized by his elevation to this rank at the Liturgy after the Eucharistic canon (and even at the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts, which does not contain the Eucharistic canon). (At the request of the ruling bishop, this can happen at other times.) He is only a “minister (servant) during the sacred rite” or a “Levite” (). A priest can do without D. entirely (this occurs mainly in poor rural parishes). D.'s liturgical vestments: surplice, orarion and shoulder straps. Non-liturgical clothing, like that of a priest, is a cassock and cassock (but without a cross over the cassock, worn by the latter). The official address to D., found in old literature, is “Your gospel” or “Your blessing” (not used now). The address “Your Reverence” can be considered competent only in relation to the monastic D. The everyday address is “Father D.” or “father named”, or simply by name and patronymic.

The term “D.”, without specification (“simply” D.), indicates his belonging to the white clergy. A representative of the same lower rank in the black clergy (monastic D.) is called a “hierodeacon” (lit. “hierodeacon”). He has the same vestments as D. from the white clergy; but outside of worship he wears the clothes common to all monks. The representative of the second (and last) rank of deaconate among the white clergy is the “protodeacon” (“first D.”), historically the eldest (in the liturgical aspect) among several D. serving together in a large temple (cathedral). It is distinguished by a “double orar” and a kamilavka purple(given as a reward). The reward at present is the rank of protodeacon itself, so there can be more than one protodeacon in one cathedral. The first among several hierodeacons (in a monastery) is called “archdeacon” (“senior D.”). A hierodeacon who constantly serves with a bishop is also usually elevated to the rank of archdeacon. Like the protodeacon, he has a double orarion and a kamilavka (the latter is black); non-liturgical clothes are the same as those worn by the hierodeacon.

In ancient times there was an institution of deaconesses (“ministers”), whose duties consisted mainly of caring for sick women, preparing women for baptism, and serving priests at their baptism “for the sake of propriety.” St. (+403) explains in detail the special position of deaconesses in connection with their participation in this sacrament, while decisively excluding them from participation in the Eucharist. But, according to the Byzantine tradition, deaconesses received a special ordination (similar to that of a deacon) and participated in the communion of women; at the same time, they had the right to enter the altar and take St. cup directly from the throne (!). The revival of the institution of deaconesses in Western Christianity has been observed since the 19th century. In 1911, the first community of deaconesses was supposed to be opened in Moscow. The issue of reviving this institution was discussed at the Local Council of the Russian Orthodox Church in 1917-18, but, due to the circumstances of the time, no decision was made.

Lit.: Zom R. Church system in the first centuries of Christianity. M., 1906, p. 196-207; Kirill (Gundyaev), archimandrite. On the issue of the origin of the diaconate // Theological works. M., 1975. Sat. 13, p. 201-207; IN. Deaconesses in the Orthodox Church. St. Petersburg, 1912.

DIACONATE

DIACONATE (DIACONATE) - the lowest degree of the Orthodox church hierarchy, including 1) deacon and protodeacon (representatives of the “white clergy”) and 2) hierodeacon and archdeacon (representatives of the “black clergy.” See Deacon, Hierarchy.

EPISCOPATH

EPISCOPATE is the collective name for the highest (third) degree of priesthood in the Orthodox church hierarchy. Representatives of E., also collectively referred to as bishops or hierarchs, are currently distributed, in order of administrative seniority, into the following ranks.

Bishop(Greek episkopos - lit. overseer, guardian) - an independent and authorized representative of the “local church” - the diocese headed by him, therefore called the “bishopric”. His distinctive non-liturgical clothing is the cassock. black hood and staff. Address - Your Eminence. A special variety - the so-called. "vicar bishop" (lat. vicarius- deputy, vicar), who is only an assistant to the ruling bishop of a large diocese (metropolis). He is under his direct supervision, carrying out assignments for the affairs of the diocese, and bears the title of one of the cities on its territory. There can be one vicar bishop in a diocese (in the St. Petersburg Metropolis, with the title “Tikhvinsky”) or several (in the Moscow Metropolis).

Archbishop(“senior bishop”) - a representative of the second rank E. The ruling bishop is usually elevated to this rank for some merit or after a certain time (as a reward). He differs from the bishop only in the presence of a pearl cross sewn on his black hood (above his forehead). Address - Your Eminence.

Metropolitan(from Greek meter– “mother” and polis- “city”), in the Christian Roman Empire - the bishop of the metropolis (“mother of cities”), the main city of a region or province (diocese). A metropolitan can also be the head of a Church that does not have the status of a patriarchate (the Russian Church until 1589 was ruled by a metropolitan with the title first of Kiev and then of Moscow). The rank of metropolitan is currently bestowed on a bishop either as a reward (after the rank of archbishop), or in the case of transfer to a department that has the status of a metropolitan see (St. Petersburg, Krutitskaya). A distinctive feature is a white hood with a pearl cross. Address - Your Eminence.

Exarch(Greek chief, leader) - the name of a church-hierarchical degree, dating back to the 4th century. Initially, this title was borne only by representatives of the most prominent metropolises (some later turned into patriarchates), as well as extraordinary commissioners of the Patriarchs of Constantinople, who were sent by them to the dioceses on special assignments. In Russia, this title was first adopted in 1700, after the death of Patr. Adrian, locum tenens of the patriarchal throne. The head of the Georgian Church (since 1811) was also called Exarch during the period when it became part of the Russian Orthodox Church. In the 60s - 80s. 20th century some foreign parishes of the Russian Church were united on a territorial basis into the “Western European”, “Central European”, “Central and South American” exarchates. The governing hierarchs could be of lower rank than the metropolitan. A special position was occupied by the Metropolitan of Kiev, who bore the title “Patriarchal Exarch of Ukraine.” Currently, only the Metropolitan of Minsk (“Patriarchal Exarch of All Belarus”) bears the title of exarch.

Patriarch(lit. “ancestor”) - a representative of the highest administrative rank of E., - the head, otherwise the primate (“standing in front”), of the Autocephalous Church. Characteristic distinctive feature- a white headdress with a pearl cross attached above it. The official title of the head of the Russian Orthodox Church is “His Holiness Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus'.” Address - Your Holiness.

Lit.: Charter on the governance of the Russian Orthodox Church. M., 1989; see the article Hierarchy.

JEREY

JEREY (Greek) hiereus) - in a broad sense - “sacrificer” (“priest”), “priest” (from hiereuo - “to sacrifice”). In Greek language is used both to designate the servants of pagan (mythological) gods, and the true One God, i.e., Old Testament and Christian priests. (In the Russian tradition, pagan priests are called “priests.”) In the narrow sense, in Orthodox liturgical terminology, I. is a representative of the lowest rank of the second degree of the Orthodox priesthood (see table). Synonyms: priest, presbyter, priest (obsolete).

HIPODIACON

HYPODEAKON, HYPODIAKON (from Greek. hupo– “under” and diakonos- “deacon”, “minister”) - an Orthodox clergyman, occupying a position in the hierarchy of the lower clergy below the deacon, his assistant (which fixes the naming), but above the reader. When consecrated into Islam, the dedicatee (reader) is clothed over the surplice in a cross-shaped orarion, and the bishop reads a prayer with the laying of his hand on his head. In ancient times, I. was classified as a clergyman and no longer had the right to marry (if he was single before being elevated to this rank).

Traditionally, the duties of the priest included taking care of sacred vessels and altar covers, guarding the altar, leading catechumens out of the church during the Liturgy, etc. The emergence of the subdiaconate as a special institution dates back to the 1st half of the 3rd century. and are associated with the custom of the Roman Church not to exceed the number of deacons in one city above seven (see). Currently, the subdeacon's service can only be seen during the bishop's service. Subdeacons are not members of the clergy of one church, but are assigned to the staff of a specific bishop. They accompany him during mandatory trips to the churches of the diocese, serve during services - they dress him before the start of the service, supply him with water for washing his hands, participate in specific ceremonies and actions that are absent during regular services - and also carry out various extra-church assignments. Most often, I. are students of religious educational institutions, for whom this service becomes a necessary step towards further ascent up the hierarchical ladder. The bishop himself tonsures his I. into monasticism, ordains him to the priesthood, preparing him for further independent service. An important continuity can be traced in this: many modern hierarchs went through the “subdeaconal schools” of prominent bishops of the older generation (sometimes even pre-revolutionary consecration), inheriting their rich liturgical culture, system of church-theological views and manner of communication. See Deacon, Hierarchy, Ordination.

Lit.: Zom R. Church system in the first centuries of Christianity. M., 1906; Veniamin (Rumovsky-Krasnopevkov V.F.), archbishop. New Tablet, or Explanation of the Church, Liturgy and all services and church utensils. M., 1992. T. 2. P. 266-269; Works of the blessed one. Simeon, Archbishop Thessalonian. M., 1994. pp. 213-218.

CLERGY

CLER (Greek - “lot”, “share inherited by lot”) - in a broad sense - a set of clergy (clergy) and clergy (subdeacons, readers, singers, sextons, altar servers). “Clerics are so called because they are elected to church degrees in the same way as Matthias, appointed by the apostles, was chosen by lot” (Blessed Augustine). In relation to temple (church) service, people are divided into the following categories.

I. In the Old Testament: 1) the “clergy” (high priests, priests and “Levites” (lower ministers) and 2) the people. The principle of the hierarchy here is “tribal”, therefore only representatives of the “tribe” (tribe) of Levi are “clerics”: the high priests are direct representatives of the clan of Aaron; priests are representatives of the same family, but not necessarily direct; Levites are representatives of other clans of the same tribe. “People” are representatives of all other tribes of Israel (as well as non-Israelites who accepted the religion of Moses).

II. In the New Testament: 1) “clergy” (clergy and clergy) and 2) the people. The national criterion is abolished. All Christian men who meet certain canonical standards can become priests and clergymen. Women are allowed to participate (auxiliary positions: “deaconesses” in the Ancient Church, singers, servants in the temple, etc.), but they are not classified as “clergy” (see Deacon). “The people” (the laity) are all other Christians. In the Ancient Church, the “people,” in turn, were divided into 1) laity and 2) monks (when this institution arose). The latter differed from the “laity” only in their way of life, occupying the same position in relation to the clergy (acceptance of holy orders was considered incompatible with the monastic ideal). However, this criterion was not absolute, and soon monks began to occupy the highest church positions. The content of the concept of K. has changed over the centuries, acquiring rather contradictory meanings. Thus, in the broadest sense, the concept of K. includes, along with priests and deacons, the highest clergy (episcopal, or bishopric) - so in: clergy (ordo) and laity (plebs). On the contrary, in a narrow meaning, also recorded in the first centuries of Christianity, K. are only clergy below the deacon (our clergy). In the Old Russian Church, the clergy is a collection of altar and non-altar ministers, with the exception of the bishop. Modern K. in a broad sense includes both clergy (ordained clergy) and clergy, or clerics (see Clergy).

Lit.: On the Old Testament priesthood // Christ. Reading. 1879. Part 2; , priest Controversy on the issue of the Old Testament priesthood and the essence of priestly ministry in general. St. Petersburg, 1882; and under the article Hierarchy.

LOCATOR

LOCAL TENNS – a person temporarily performing the duties of a high-ranking state or church figure (synonyms: viceroy, exarch, vicar). In the Russian church tradition, only “M. patriarchal throne,” a bishop who governs the Church after the death of one patriarch until the election of another. The most famous in this capacity are Met. , mit. Peter (Polyansky) and Metropolitan. Sergius (Stragorodsky), who became Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus' in 1943.

PATRIARCH

PATRIARCH (PATRIARCHES) (Greek. patriarches –“ancestor”, “forefather”) is an important term in the biblical Christian religious tradition, used mainly in the following meanings.

1. The Bible calls the P.-mi, firstly, the ancestors of all mankind (“antediluvian P.-i”), and secondly, the ancestors of the people of Israel (“the forefathers of the people of God”). All of them lived before the Mosaic Law (see Old Testament) and therefore were the exclusive guardians of the true religion. The first ten P., from Adam to Noah, whose symbolic genealogy is represented by the book of Genesis (chap. 5), were endowed with extraordinary longevity, necessary to preserve the promises entrusted to them in this first earthly history after the Fall. Of these, Enoch stands out, who lived “only” 365 years, “because God took him” (), and his son Methuselah, on the contrary, lived longer than the others, 969 years, and died, according to Jewish tradition, in the year of the flood (hence the expression “ Methuselah, or Methuselah, age"). The second category of biblical stories begins with Abraham, the founder of a new generation of believers.

2. P. is a representative of the highest rank of the Christian church hierarchy. The title of P. in a strict canonical meaning was established by the Fourth Ecumenical (Chalcedon) Council in 451, which assigned it to the bishops of the five main Christian centers, determining their order in diptychs according to “seniority of honor.” The first place belonged to the bishop of Rome, followed by the bishops of Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch and Jerusalem. Later, the title of P. was also received by the heads of other Churches, and the Constantinople P., after the break with Rome (1054), received primacy in the Orthodox world.

In Rus', the patriarchate (as a form of government of the Church) was established in 1589. (before this, the Church was ruled by metropolitans with the title first “Kiev” and then “Moscow and All Rus'”). Later, the Russian patriarch was approved by the Eastern patriarchs as fifth in seniority (after the Jerusalem one). The first period of the patriarchate lasted 111 years and actually ended with the death of the tenth Patriarch Adrian (1700), and legally - in 1721, with the abolition of the very institution of the patriarchate and its replacement by a collective body of church government - the Holy Governing Synod. (From 1700 to 1721, the Church was ruled by Metropolitan Stefan Yavorsky of Ryazan with the title “Locum Tenens of the Patriarchal Throne.”) The second patriarchal period, which began with the restoration of the patriarchate in 1917, continues to the present day.

Currently, the following Orthodox patriarchates exist: Constantinople (Turkey), Alexandria (Egypt), Antioch (Syria), Jerusalem, Moscow, Georgian, Serbian, Romanian and Bulgarian.

In addition, the title of P. is held by the heads of some other Christian (Eastern) Churches - Armenian (P. Catholicos), Maronite, Nestorian, Ethiopian, etc. Since time Crusades in the Christian East there are so-called. "Latin patriarchs" who are canonically subordinate to the Roman Church. Some Western Catholic bishops (Venetian, Lisbon) also have this same title, in the form of an honorary distinction.

Lit.: Old Testament doctrine in the time of the patriarchs. St. Petersburg, 1886; Roberson R. Eastern Christian Churches. St. Petersburg, 1999.

SEXTON

SEXTON (or “paramonar” - Greek. paramonarios,– from paramone, lat. mansio – “stay”, “finding”") - a church clerk, a lower servant ("deacon"), who initially performed the function of a guard of sacred places and monasteries (outside and inside the fence). P. is mentioned in the 2nd rule of the IV Ecumenical Council (451). In the Latin translation of church rules - “mansionarius”, the gatekeeper in the temple. considers it his duty to light lamps during worship and calls him “the guardian of the church.” Perhaps in ancient times the Byzantine P. corresponded to the Western villicus (“manager”, “steward”) - the person who controlled the selection and use of church things during worship (our later sacristan or sacellarium). According to the “Teaching News” of the Slavic Service Book (calling P. “servant of the altar”), his duties are to “... bring prosphora, wine, water, incense and fire into the altar, light and extinguish candles, prepare and serve the censer to the priest and warmth, often and with reverence to clean and clean the entire altar, as well as the floors from all dirt and the walls and ceiling from dust and cobwebs” (Sluzhebnik. Part II. M., 1977. P. 544-545). In the Typikon, P. is called “paraecclesiarch” or “kandila igniter” (from kandela, lampas - “lamp”, “lamp”). The northern (left) doors of the iconostasis, leading to that part of the altar where the indicated sexton accessories are located and which are mainly used by P., are therefore called “sextons”. At present, in the Orthodox Church there is no special position of a priest: in monasteries, the duties of a priest mainly lie with novices and ordinary monks (who have not been ordained), and in parish practice they are distributed among readers, altar servers, watchmen and cleaners. Hence the expression “read like a sexton” and the name of the watchman’s room at the temple – “sexton”.

PRESBYTER

PRESBYTER (Greek) presbuteros“elder”, “elder”) - in liturgical. terminology – a representative of the lowest rank of the second degree of the Orthodox hierarchy (see table). Synonyms: priest, priest, priest (obsolete).

PRESBYTERMITY

PRESBYTERSM (priesthood, priesthood) - the general (tribal) name of representatives of the second degree of the Orthodox hierarchy (see table)

PRIT

PRECHT, or CHURCH PRECEPTION (glor. whine– “composition”, “assembly”, from Ch. lament- “to count”, “to join”) - in the narrow sense - a set of lower clergy, outside the three-degree hierarchy. In a broad sense, it is a collection of both clergy, or clergy (see clergy), and the clerks themselves, who together make up the staff of one Orthodox church. temple (church). The latter include the psalm-reader (reader), sexton, or sacristan, candle-bearer, and singers. In pre-rev. In Russia, the composition of the parish was determined by states approved by the consistory and the bishop, and depended on the size of the parish. For a parish with a population of up to 700 souls, men. gender was supposed to consist of a priest and a psalm-reader; for a parish with a large population - a P. of a priest, a deacon and a psalm-reader. P. populous and wealthy parishes could consist of several. priests, deacons and clergy. The bishop requested permission from the Synod to establish a new P. or change staff. P.'s income consisted of ch. arr. from the fee for completing the requirement. The village churches were provided with land (at least 33 tithes per village), some of them lived in the church. houses, that is. part with gray 19th century received a government salary. According to the church The 1988 statute defines the P. as consisting of a priest, a deacon, and a psalm-reader. The number of members of the P. changes at the request of the parish and in accordance with its needs, but cannot be less than 2 people. - priest and psalm-reader. The head of P. is the rector of the temple: priest or archpriest.

PRIEST – see Priest, Presbyter, Hierarchy, Clergy, Ordination

ORDINARY - see Ordination

ORDINARY

ORDINARY is the external form of the sacrament of the priesthood, its culminating moment is actually the act of laying on hands on a correctly chosen protege who is being elevated to the priesthood.

In ancient Greek language word cheirotonia means casting votes in the people's assembly by show of hands, i.e. elections. In modern Greek language (and church usage) we find two similar terms: cheirotonia, consecration - “ordination” and cheirothesia, hirothesia - “laying on of hands”. The Greek Euchologius calls each ordination (ordination) - from the reader to the bishop (see Hierarchy) - X. In the Russian Official and liturgical manuals, the Greek is used as left without translation. terms and their glory. equivalents, which are artificially different, although not completely strictly.

Ordination 1) of the bishop: ordination and X.; 2) presbyter (priest) and deacon: ordination and X.; 3) subdeacon: H., consecration and ordination; 4) reader and singer: dedication and consecration. In practice, they usually speak of the “consecration” of a bishop and the “ordination” of a priest and deacon, although both words have an identical meaning, going back to the same Greek. term.

T. arr., X. imparts the grace of the priesthood and is an elevation (“ordination”) to one of the three degrees of the priesthood; it is performed in the altar and at the same time the prayer “Divine grace...” is read. Chirotesia is not “ordination” in the proper sense, but only serves as a sign of admission of a person (clerk, - see) to perform some lower church service. Therefore, it is performed in the middle of the temple and without reading the prayer “Divine Grace...” An exception to this terminological differentiation is allowed only in relation to the subdeacon, which for the present time is an anachronism, a reminder of his place in the ancient church hierarchy.

In the ancient Byzantine handwritten Euchologies, the rite of the X. deaconess, which was once widespread in the Orthodox world, similar to the X. deacon (also before the Holy Altar and with the reading of the prayer “Divine grace...”) was preserved. Printed books no longer contain it. Euchologius J. Gohar gives this order not in the main text, but among the variant manuscripts, the so-called. variae lectiones (Goar J. Eucologion sive Rituale Graecorum. Ed. secunda. Venetiis, 1730. P. 218-222).

In addition to these terms for designating ordination to fundamentally different hierarchical degrees - the priestly and lower “clerical” ones, there are also others that indicate elevation to various “church ranks” (ranks, “positions”) within one degree of the priesthood. “The work of an archdeacon, ... abbot, ... archimandrite”; “Following the creation of a protopresbyter”; “Erection of archdeacon or protodeacon, protopresbyter or archpriest, abbot or archimandrite.”

Lit.: Henchman. Kyiv, 1904; Neselovsky A. The ranks of consecrations and consecrations. Kamenets-Podolsk, 1906; A guide to the study of the rules of worship of the Orthodox Church. M., 1995. S. 701-721; Vagaggini C. L » ordinazione delle diaconesse nella tradizione greca e bizantina // Orientalia Christiana Periodica. Roma, 1974. N 41; or T. under the articles Bishop, Hierarchy, Deacon, Priest, Priesthood.

APPLICATION

ENOCH

INOC - Old Russian. the name of a monk, otherwise - a monk. In zh. R. – monk, let’s lie. – nun (nun, monk).

The origin of the name is explained in two ways. 1. I. - “lonely” (as a translation of the Greek monos - “alone”, “lonely”; monachos - “hermit”, “monk”). “A monk will be called, for he alone speaks to God day and night” (“Pandects” Nikon Montenegrin, 36). 2. Another interpretation derives the name I. from the other way of life of someone who has accepted monasticism: he “otherwise must lead his life from worldly behavior” ( , priest Full Church Slavonic dictionary. M., 1993, p. 223).

In modern Russian Orthodox church usage, a “monk” is not called a monk in the proper sense, but Rassophoran(Greek: “wearing a cassock”) novice - until he is tonsured into the “minor schema” (conditioned by the final acceptance of monastic vows and the naming of a new name). I. - like a “novice monk”; In addition to the cassock, he also receives a kamilavka. I. retains his worldly name and is free to stop completing his novitiate at any time and return to his former life, which, according to Orthodox laws, is no longer possible for a monk.

Monasticism (in the old meaning) - monasticism, blueberry. To monk - to lead a monastic life.

LAYMAN

LAYMAN - one who lives in the world, a secular (“worldly”) person who does not belong to the clergy or monasticism.

M. is a representative of the church people, taking a prayerful part in church services. At home, he can perform all the services given in the Book of Hours, Book of Prayer or other liturgical collection, omitting the priestly exclamations and prayers, as well as the deacon’s litanies (if they are contained in the liturgical text). In case of emergency (in the absence of a clergyman and in mortal danger), M. can perform the sacrament of baptism. In the first centuries of Christianity, the rights of the laity were incomparably superior to modern ones, extending to the election of not only the rector of the parish church, but even the diocesan bishop. In ancient and medieval Rus', M. were subject to the general princely judicial administration. institutions, in contrast to the people of the church, who were under the jurisdiction of the metropolitan and bishop.

Lit.: Afanasyev N. The ministry of the laity in the Church. M., 1995; Filatov S.“Anarchism” of the laity in Russian Orthodoxy: Traditions and prospects // Pages: Journal of Biblical Theology. in-ta ap. Andrey. M., 1999. N 4:1; Minney R. Participation of the laity in religious education in Russia // Ibid.; Laity in the Church: Materials of the international. theologian conference M., 1999.

SACRISTAN

Sacristan (Greek sacellarium, sakellarios):
1) head of the royal clothes, royal bodyguard; 2) in monasteries and cathedrals - the custodian of church utensils, the clergyman.

What is the church hierarchy? This is an ordered system that determines the place of each church minister and his responsibilities. The hierarchy system in the church is very complex, and it originated in 1504 after an event that was called the “Great Church Schism.” After it, we got the opportunity to develop autonomously, independently.

First of all, the church hierarchy distinguishes between white and black monasticism. Representatives of the black clergy are called upon to lead the most ascetic lifestyle possible. They cannot marry or live in peace. Such ranks are doomed to lead either a wandering or isolated lifestyle.

White clergy can lead more privileged lives.

The hierarchy of the Russian Orthodox Church implies that (in accordance with the Code of Honor) the head is the Patriarch of Constantinople, who bears the official, symbolic title

However, the Russian Church does not formally obey him. The church hierarchy considers the Patriarch of Moscow and All Rus' to be its head. It occupies the highest level, but exercises power and governance in unity with the Holy Synod. It consists of 9 people who are selected on different basis. By tradition, the Metropolitans of Krutitsky, Minsk, Kiev, and St. Petersburg are its permanent members. The five remaining members of the Synod are invited, and their episcopacy should not exceed six months. The permanent member of the Synod is the Chairman of the internal church department.

The next most important level in the church hierarchy is the highest ranks who govern dioceses (territorial-administrative church districts). They bear the unifying name of bishops. These include:

• metropolitans;
• bishops;
• archimandrites.

Subordinate to the bishops are priests who are considered the main ones locally, in city or other parishes. Depending on the type of activity and duties assigned to them, priests are divided into priests and archpriests. The person entrusted with the direct leadership of the parish bears the title of Rector.

The younger clergy is already subordinate to him: deacons and priests, whose duties are to help the Superior and other, higher spiritual ranks.

Speaking about clerical titles, we should not forget that church hierarchies (not to be confused with the church hierarchy!) allow several different interpretations spiritual titles and, accordingly, give them other names. The hierarchy of churches implies the division into Churches of Eastern and Western rites, their smaller varieties (for example, Post-Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Anglican, etc.)

All of the above titles refer to the white clergy. The black church hierarchy is distinguished by more stringent requirements for people who have been ordained. The highest level of black monasticism is the Great Schema. It implies complete alienation from the world. In Russian monasteries, the great schema-monks live separately from everyone else, do not engage in any obedience, but spend day and night in unceasing prayer. Sometimes those who accept the Great Schema become hermits and limit their lives to many optional vows.

The Great Schema is preceded by the Small. It also implies the fulfillment of a number of obligatory and optional vows, the most important of which are: virginity and non-covetousness. Their task is to prepare the monk to accept the Great Schema, to completely cleanse him of sins.

Rassophore monks can accept the minor schema. This is the lowest level of black monasticism, which is entered immediately after tonsure.

Before each hierarchical step, monks undergo special rituals, their name is changed and they are appointed. When changing a title, the vows become stricter and the attire changes.

In the Christian New Testament Church there are three degrees of priesthood established by the holy Apostles. Bishops occupy the leading position, followed by presbyters - priests - and deacons. This system repeats the structure of the Old Testament church, where the following degrees existed: high priest, priests and Levites.

To serve the Church of Christ, clergy receive the grace of the Holy Spirit through the sacrament of priesthood. This allows you to perform divine services, manage the affairs of the Church, and teach people through the Christian faith good life and piety.

The highest rank in the Church is bishops receiving the highest degree of grace. They are also called bishops - heads of priests (that is, priests). Bishops have the right to administer all Sacraments and church services without exception. It is bishops who have the right not only to perform ordinary Divine services, but also to ordain (or ordain) other Orthodox Christians as clergy. Also, bishops, unlike other priests, can consecrate chrism and antimensions.

All bishops are equal to each other in terms of priesthood, but the most honored, the oldest of them are called archbishops. Metropolitan bishops are called metropolitans - translated into Greek language"capital" will sound like "metropolis". The bishops of the most ancient Christian capitals are called patriarchs. These are the bishops of Jerusalem and Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, and Rome.

Sometimes one bishop is assisted by another bishop. The second of the named clergy in this case is called a vicar (vicar).

The sacred rank after the bishops is occupied priests. In Greek they may be called elders or priests. These clergy, with the episcopal blessing, can perform almost all church sacraments and services. However, there are also exceptions, which are rituals accessible only to the highest sacred rank - bishops. Such exceptions primarily include the following sacraments: ordination, as well as the sacraments of the consecration of antimensions and chrism. The Christian community, led by a priest, bears the name of his parish.

The most honored and worthy priests can be called archpriests, in other words, chief priests, leading priests. The chief archpriest is awarded the title of protopresbyter.

When a priest is also a monk, he is called hieromonk - priest-monk, translated into modern Russian. Hieromonks who are abbots of monasteries bear the title of abbot. Sometimes a hieromonk can be called abbot regardless of this, simply as an honorary distinction. Archimandrite is an even higher rank than abbot. The most worthy of the archimandrites may subsequently be elected as bishops.

The lowest, third sacred rank consists of deacons. This Greek name translates to “servant.” When church sacraments or divine services are performed, deacons serve bishops or priests. However, deacons themselves cannot perform them. The participation or presence of a deacon during the Divine Service is not mandatory. Accordingly, church services can often take place without a deacon.

Individual deacons, the most worthy and deserved, receive the title of protodeacon - first deacon, if expressed in modern language.

If a monk receives the rank of deacon, he begins to be called hierodeacon, of which the eldest is archdeacon.

In addition to the three sacred ranks mentioned above, there are other, lower official positions in the Church. These are subdeacons, sextons and psalm-readers (sacristans). Although they are clergy, they can be appointed to office without the sacrament of the Priesthood, but only with the bishop’s blessing.

To the Psalmists it is obligatory to read and sing both during divine services in the church and when the priest performs spiritual services in the homes of parishioners.

Sexton should call believers to Divine services by ringing bells. In addition, they are required to light candles in the temple, assist psalm-readers during singing and reading, serve the censer, and so on.

Subdeacons take part only in the ministry of bishops. They dress the bishop in church vestments, and also hold lamps (which are called dikiri and trikiri), presenting them to the bishop, who blesses those praying.

A priest in the Orthodox Church is not just a “priest”. An uninitiated person realizes that there are many degrees of priesthood in the church: it is not for nothing that one Orthodox priest wears a silver cross, another a gold one, and a third one also decorated with beautiful stones. In addition, even a person who does not go particularly deep into the Russian church hierarchy, from fiction knows that the clergy can be black (monastic) and white (married). But when faced with such Orthodox Christians as archimandrite, priest, protodeacon, the vast majority of people do not understand what they are talking about we're talking about, and how the listed clergy differ from each other. Therefore, I offer a short overview of the orders of Orthodox clergy, which will help you understand large quantities spiritual titles.

Priest in the Orthodox Church - black clergy

Let's start with the black clergy, since monastic Orthodox priests have much more titles than those who have chosen family life.

• Patriarch is the head of the Orthodox Church, the highest ecclesiastical rank. The Patriarch is elected at a local council. Distinctive feature his vestments are a white headdress (kukol), crowned with a cross, and a panagia (decorated precious stones image of the Virgin Mary).
• A metropolitan is the head of a large Orthodox ecclesiastical region (metropolis), which includes several dioceses. Currently, this is an honorary (as a rule, award) rank, immediately following the archbishop. The Metropolitan wears a white hood and panagia.
• An archbishop is an Orthodox clergyman who has been in charge of several dioceses. Currently a reward. The archbishop can be distinguished by his black hood, decorated with a cross, and a panagia.
• Bishop - head Orthodox diocese. He differs from the archbishop in that there is no cross on his hood. All patriarchs, metropolitans, archbishops and bishops can be called in one word - bishops. All of them can ordain Orthodox priests and deacons, consecrate, and perform all other sacraments of the Orthodox Church. The ordination of bishops, according to church rule, is always carried out by several bishops (the council).
• An archimandrite is an Orthodox priest in the highest monastic rank, preceding that of a bishop. Previously, this rank was awarded to the abbots of large monasteries; now it is often of an award nature, and one monastery can have several archimandrites.
• Hegumen is a monk in the rank of an Orthodox priest. Previously, this title was considered quite high, and only abbots of monasteries had it. Today this is no longer important.
• Hieromonk is the lowest rank of monastic priest in the Orthodox Church. Archimandrites, abbots and hieromonks wear black vestments (cassock, cassock, mantle, black hood without a cross) and a pectoral (breast) cross. They can perform church sacraments, except for ordination to the priesthood.
• Archdeacon is the senior deacon in an Orthodox monastery.
• Hierodeacon - junior deacon. Archdeacons and hierodeacons differ in appearance from monastic priests in that they do not wear a pectoral cross. Their vestments during worship also differ. They cannot perform any church sacraments; their functions include concelebrating with the priest during the service: proclaiming prayer requests, bringing out the Gospel, reading the Apostle, preparing sacred vessels, etc.
• Deacons, both monastics and those belonging to the white clergy, belong to the lowest level of the priesthood, Orthodox priests to the middle, and bishops to the highest.

Orthodox clergyman - white clergy

• An archpriest is the senior Orthodox priest in a church, usually the rector, but today in one parish, especially a large one, there may be several archpriests.
• Priest - junior Orthodox priest. White priests, like monastic priests, perform all sacraments except ordination. Archpriests and priests do not wear a mantle (this is part of the monastic vestment) and a hood; their headdress is a kamilavka.
• Protodeacon, deacon - respectively senior and junior deacons among the white clergy. Their functions fully correspond to the functions of monastic deacons. White clergy are not ordained as Orthodox bishops only if they accept monastic orders (this often happens by mutual consent in old age or in the case of widowhood, if the priest has no children or they are already adults.