How to take a blessing for marriage from the priest. About God's blessing on your new business

The very desire to receive a blessing and the external symbolic expression of this desire (open palms of hands) is already prayer appeal to God. Therefore, it is enough to say to the clergyman: “Bless.” If a blessing is taken for special matters (surgery, travel, marriage, etc.), then you need to tell the clergyman from whom the blessing is taken about this.

How to ask for a blessing from the priest?

1. Bless, honest father!
2. Appeal to the priest. How to take a blessing. It is not customary to address a priest by his first name or patronymic; he is called full name the way it sounds in Church Slavonic with the addition of the word father: Father Alexy, or (as is customary among the majority of church people) priest. You can also address a deacon by his name, which should be preceded by the word father. But from a deacon, since he does not have the grace-filled power of ordination to the priesthood, a blessing is not allowed to be taken.

   The address bless is not only a request to give a blessing, but also a form of greeting from a priest, with whom it is not customary to greet with the word hello. If you are near the priest at this moment, then you need to bow and stand in front of the priest, folding your hands with your right palms up on top of your left. Father, making the sign of the cross over you, says: God will bless, either in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit - and places his right, blessing hand on your palms. At this moment, the lay person receiving the blessing kisses the priest's hand. It happens that kissing the hand confuses some beginners. We should not be embarrassed, we are not kissing the priest’s hand, but rather Christ himself, who at this moment is invisibly standing and blessing us. And we touch with our lips the place where there were wounds from nails on Christ’s hands

   The priest can bless from a distance, and also apply the sign of the cross to the bowed head of a layman, then touching his head with his palm. Just before taking a blessing from a priest, you should not sign yourself with the sign of the cross, that is, be baptized into the priest.

   The situation during a service looks tactless and irreverent when one of the priests goes from the altar to the place of confession or to perform baptism, and at that moment many parishioners rush to him for a blessing, crowding each other.

   IN Orthodox Church in official cases (during a report, speech, in a letter), it is customary to address the priest-dean as Your Reverence, and the abbot, vicar of the monastery (if he is an abbot or archimandrite) is addressed as Your Reverence or Your Reverence, if the vicar is a hieromonk. The bishop is addressed as Your Eminence, and the archbishops and metropolitans are addressed as “Your Eminence.” In a conversation, the bishop, archbishop and metropolitan can be addressed less formally by the bishop, and the abbot of the monastery can be addressed by father vicar or father abbot. TO To His Holiness the Patriarch It is customary to address Your Holiness. These names, naturally, do not mean the holiness of this or that particular person, priest or Patriarch; they express respect for the sacred rank of confessors and hierarchs.

Last update:
August 21, 2015, 21:58

Priests (that is, people who have received the grace of the Holy Spirit through the Sacrament of Priesthood for the sacred service of the Church of Christ) - bishops (bishops) and priests (priests) sign us with the sign of the cross. This kind of overshadowing is called a blessing.
When a priest or bishop blesses us with his hand, he folds his fingers so that they depict the letters IC XC, that is, Jesus Christ. This means that through the priest our Lord Jesus Christ Himself blesses us. Therefore, we must accept the blessing of a priest with reverence.
When in a church the clergy make the sign of the people with a cross or the Gospel, an image or a cup, then everyone crosses themselves and makes a bow from the waist, and when they make the sign of the cross with candles, bless with their hand or burn incense, and pronounce the words of general blessing “Peace to all” and others, then it is necessary to make a bow from the waist without sign of the cross; At the same time, you should not fold your hands, as is done during a personal blessing, much less bring them to your lips or chest.

To receive a personal blessing from a priest or bishop, you need to cross your hands: right left palms up, saying the words: “Bless, father (or lord).” Having received a blessing, we kiss the hand that blesses us - we kiss, as it were, the invisible hand of Christ the Savior Himself. As St. John Chrysostom says, “it is not man who blesses, but God with his hand and tongue.” This is clear from the words of the priest - “God bless!” Call on God’s blessing not only in important matters and dangerous undertakings, but also in all your ordinary everyday activities: on your food, so that you can eat it for health; for your honest work and in general for your good undertakings, so that they are successful; on your path, so that it may be prosperous; on your children, so that they grow up in faith and piety; for all your wealth, so that it may increase for the benefit of you and your neighbors.

Receiving a Blessing

A familiar picture of our days: a priest, standing on the salt, proclaims: “The blessing of the Lord is upon you” - and makes the sign of the cross over the parishioners. The praying grandmothers fold their palms in prayer and for some reason press them to their chests, performing an unknown ritual. There is a clear misunderstanding here of how to treat a clergyman and what a priestly blessing is. Every believer considers it imperative when meeting a priest to ask him for a pastoral blessing, but many do this incorrectly. Of course, there are no strict canons on this issue, but the traditions of the Church and simple common sense tell us how to behave.
Blessing has many meanings. The first of these is greeting. Only someone equal in rank has the right to shake hands with a priest; everyone else, even deacons, receive a blessing from him when they meet the priest. To do this, you need to put your palms together, the right one on top of the left, in order to receive the blessing hand in them and kiss it as a sign of respect for the sacred dignity. And for nothing more! The folding of the palms does not have any mysterious meaning; grace does not “fall” in them, as some old women teach. You can be blessed by a priest not only when he is in church clothes, but also in civilian clothes; not only in the temple, but also on the street, in public place. However, you should not approach an unveiled priest who does not know you for a blessing outside the church.
In the same way, every layman says goodbye to a priest. If several priests are standing nearby, and you want to be blessed by everyone, then first you need to approach the senior one.
Second meaning priestly blessing- this is permission, permission, parting words. Before starting any responsible business, before traveling, as well as in any difficult circumstances, we can ask the priest for advice and blessings and kiss his hand.
Finally, there are blessings during the church service. The priest, saying: “Peace to all,” “The blessing of the Lord is upon you,” “The grace of our Lord,” makes the sign of the cross over those praying. In response, we humbly bow our heads without folding our hands - after all, it is impossible to kiss the blessing right hand. If the priest overshadows us with sacred objects: the Cross, the Gospel, the Chalice, the icon, we first cross ourselves and then bow.

You should not approach the blessing at an inopportune moment: when the priest is giving communion, censing the temple, anointing with oil. But you can do this at the end of confession and at the end of the liturgy, while kissing the Cross. You should not abuse the blessing by approaching the same priest several times a day. The words “bless, father” should always sound joyful and solemn to a layman, and they should not be turned into a saying.
Without God's blessing, no business can be successful. That is why our pious ancestors tried to begin every business after prayer and having received a blessing from the priest.

The church is a kind of house that contains many traditions and laws. Receiving a blessing also has its own. So, how to ask for a blessing from the priest, what rules need to be followed, and in what cases is it better to postpone your request to a more favorable day?

The concept of “blessing” contains two components: “good” and “word”. “Good” in this context carries within itself the principle of God. God alone has the highest goodness, that is, purity. “Word” means God’s action, because all believers know that “in the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” From this we can conclude that the very term “blessing” means God’s grace, help, approval to the person who asks to bless him.

Blessings should only be asked if a person already has what he is asking to be blessed for. For example, if you want to get approval for your desire to start a family, then you should already have an agreement on marriage, only then go for a blessing. If you want to be blessed to buy an apartment, then first look for a new home, and only then ask for a blessing on it. The same applies to work, entering a university for any specialty, moving to another city, and so on.

Don't be alarmed if a church minister asks if what you are asking for a blessing on will be bad for you. For example, in the case of marriage, the priest will find out whether your fiancé (or bride) is an unbeliever or whether he (she) belongs to a different faith.

Basic Rules

• When blessing, the clergyman must fold his fingers so that they form the letters Ic and Xc, which means Jesus Christ. This position of the hand means that Jesus Christ himself will bless us through the priest.
• If, while in the temple, you hear words of general blessing, you must bow.
• A person who wants to be blessed must fold his hands in a special way: a cross, the right hand on top of the left, palms facing up.
• After receiving the blessing, a person kisses the priest’s hand, thereby symbolically kissing the hand of Christ himself.

If there is not one priest standing in front of you, but several, which of them should you ask to bless you? First of all, you should pay attention to their rank. Accordingly, the blessing must be received from the one whose rank is higher than the rest.

Is it possible to ask for a blessing outside of church? Even when the priest is not in clerical robes and is outside the church, you can ask him for a blessing. But this does not mean at all that you should approach an unfamiliar clergyman on the street with such a request.

It is not advisable to approach for a blessing when the priest is conducting a service, giving communion, that is, at an inopportune hour. Even if we ignore it, disturbing a person who is busy with something is simply impolite.

There is no need to approach the priest several times a day and ask to bless you. You should only go for a blessing in a good mood, when there are no other problems or thoughts in your head. You should only tune in to receive blessings from the Lord, because your attitude towards what is happening is the most important thing.

There are also times when it is necessary to remove the blessing. If you asked the priest to bless you to sell your apartment, but circumstances soon changed and you changed your mind, then you need to come to the priest and notify him about this, ask him to remove the blessing from you. For blessing is a gift from God that should be treasured.

Having taken note simple rules how to ask for a blessing from the priest, you will be blessed for any matter!

Orthodox Christians before some important matter or event, they usually go to church and ask the priest for a blessing. Why is this necessary?

What is the meaning of blessing?

The fact is that a priest is a mediator between God and people, and by turning to him for a blessing, you receive the support of Higher powers. If the Lord himself approved your work, then you receive spiritual help from Him. The very word “blessing” means that you are receiving a word from God for the good of your soul.

In the old days, nothing serious was undertaken without a blessing. It was believed that a business started without a blessing was doomed to failure, or even plunged a person into danger: for example, a merchant who went with goods to another city could be attacked by robbers along the way.

In what cases do people most often ask for a blessing?

This concerns, as a rule, some important events for a person - trips, operations, treatment, admission to hospital. educational institution, getting a job, getting married, starting a project.

How to ask for blessings correctly?

The blessing is asked after the liturgy. If there are several priests in the temple, then it is better to take the blessing from the one who is higher in rank.

As a ritual, blessing is a special type of sign of the cross. In this case, the believer who asks for a blessing must fold his hands into a cross - right palm to the left, palms up, and say the words: “Bless, father.” After receiving the blessing, you must kiss the priest’s hand - this symbolizes kissing Christ’s hand.

Can a priest refuse a blessing?

Maybe if he considers that your case goes against religious canons. For example, there are restrictions on some actions during the post. It is also unlikely that you will receive a blessing for divorce or abortion: according to church rules it is unacceptable. Definitely, the priest will not give a blessing for something that has a dubious moral side. So, you shouldn’t ask him for his blessing if, for example, you get a job in a nightclub.