RESOURCES
MORNING & EVENING PRAYERS
A prayer rule is the outline, a plan, of a daily routine for prayer. The rule should first specify the places and times of prayer and then continue with the specific prayers to be said in an outline of the sequence of these prayers. A prayer rule for one who is on the path of a God-pleasing life and may include memorizing the Psalms. It may include replacing long prayers with short ones and the use of a prayer rope. It may not be static.
It is good to have a prayer rule on account of our weakness so that on the one hand one does not give in to laziness, yet on the other hand restrain any enthusiasm to its proper level. The greatest practitioners of prayer kept a prayer rule. They would always begin with established prayers, and if during the course of these a prayer started on its own, they would put aside the others and pray that prayer. If this is what the great practitioners of prayer did, all the more reason for us to do so. Without established prayers, we would not know how to pray at all and would be left entirely without prayer.
However, one does not have to do many prayers. It is better to perform a small number of prayers properly than to hurry through a large number of prayers, because it is difficult to maintain the heat of prayerful zeal when prayers are performed to excess.
PRAYING THE LITURGY
PARISH ETIQUETTE
This guide is meant for personal reflection, not as a means of judging others. Keep in mind that there are different traditions among the Orthodox faithful. In Orthodoxy there is a wider acceptance of individualized expressions of piety, rather than a sense that people are watching you and getting offended if you do it wrong. Variations in behavior with pious intent should not be confused with disrespectful behavior. If you are uncertain about something, ask Father. We come to church to pray and worship God above all else, and that should be our focus.
A PREPARATION FOR CONFESSION
This guide is to the Holy Mystery of Repentance. It is in truth another baptism. It is the power of God to forgive and cleanse us from all sin and to grant us the knowledge and strength to live the life into which we have been baptized, the life of Christ. It is therefore essential that we understand this mystery, inasmuch as we are able, and that we accept this great gift of God for our salvation, approaching it as often as we should.