Why do believers build temples?Why do so many of them scattered throughout the Orthodox Land? The answer is simple: the goal of everyone is the salvation of the soul, and achieving it is impossible without visiting the church. She is a clinic where the soul is healed from sinful falls, as well as its deification. The device of the temple, its decoration allow the believer to plunge into the divine atmosphere, to become closer to the Lord. To conduct the rite of baptism, wedding, letting go of sins can only a priest who is present in the temple. Without ministries, prayers, man cannot become a child of God.
Orthodox church
An Orthodox church is a place where God is served,where there is an opportunity to unite with him through such sacraments as baptism, communion. Believers gather here to make a joint prayer, the strength of which everyone knows.
The first Christians had an illegal positiontherefore, they did not have their own temples. Believers gathered for prayers in the homes of community leaders, synagogues, and it happened that in the catacombs of Syracuse, Rome, and Ephesus. It lasted for three centuries, until Constantine the Great came to power. In 323, he became a full emperor of the Roman Empire. Christianity, he made the state religion. Since then began the active construction of churches, and later monasteries. It was his mother - Tsarina Elena of Constantinople - who initiated the erection of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem.
Since then, the device of the temple, its internaldecoration, architecture have undergone significant changes. In Russia, it was the custom to build cross-domed churches, this type is still relevant. An important detail of any temple are domes, which are crowned with a cross. Already from afar on them you can mark the house of God. If the domes are decorated with gold, then under the rays of the sun, they flame, symbolizing the fire burning in the hearts of believers.
Internal organization
The internal structure of the temple requiredsymbolizes proximity to God, endowed with a certain symbolism, decoration, serves to meet the goals of Christian worship. As the Church teaches, our entire material world is nothing but a reflection of the spiritual world, invisible to the eye. The temple is the image of the presence of the Kingdom of Heaven on earth, respectively, of the image of the King of Heaven. The structure of the Orthodox church, its architecture, symbolism allows believers to perceive the temple as the beginning of the Kingdom of Heaven, its image (invisible, distant, divine).
As with any building, the temple must carry the functions for which it was intended, meet the needs and have the following facilities:
- For clerics who conduct services.
- For all believers present in the church.
- For penitents and those who are preparing to be baptized.
Since ancient times, the temple is divided into three main parts:
- Altar.
- The middle part of the temple.
- Pretense
Next, the temple is divided into the following parts:
- Iconostasis.
- Altar.
- Throne.
- Sacristy.
- A higher place.
- The pulpit.
- Solea
- Ponomara.
- Clears.
- Porch
- Candle boxes.
- Bell tower.
- Porch.
Altar
Considering the structure of the temple, special attentionmust be given to the altar. This is the most important part of the church, intended only for the clergy, as well as for those who serve them during worship. The altar contains images of Paradise, the heavenly dwelling place of the Lord. Denotes the mysterious side in the universe, part of the sky. Otherwise, the altar is called "heaven on Zele." Everyone knows that the Lord closed the gates of Heavenly Kingdom for ordinary lay people after the Fall of God; only the anointed of God can enter here. Having a special sacred meaning, the altar always inspires believers to be reverent. If a believer helping in the service, suggesting order or lighting candles, comes here, he must make a bow to the earth. For laymen, the entrance to the altar is forbidden for the simple reason that this place should always be clean, holy, this is where the Holy Meal is located. Rush and rampage, which by their sinful nature can be tolerated by mere mortals, is not allowed in this place. The place is for the priest to concentrate prayers.
Iconostasis
Christians have a sense of awe as they enterin the Orthodox church. Its structure and interior, icons with the faces of the Saints exalt the souls of the believers, create an atmosphere of peace, awe before our Lord.
Already in the ancient catacomb temples the altar beganfence off from the rest of the. Solea already existed then, the altar barriers were carried out in the form of lowered gratings. Much later came the iconostasis, which has a king and side gates. It serves as a dividing line that blocks the middle temple and the altar. The iconostasis is arranged as follows.
In the center are the royal gates - especiallydecorated doors with two doors, located opposite the throne. Why are they so called? It is believed that through them Jesus Christ himself proceeds to teach the sacrament to people. To the left and to the right of the royal gates, the northern and southern gates are set, which serve to enter and exit the clergy in the statutory moments of the service. Each of the icons located on the iconostasis has its own special place and significance, tells about an event from Scripture.
Icons and Murals
Considering the device and decoration of the Orthodoxtemple, it should be noted that the icons and frescoes are very important accessories. The Savior, the Virgin Mary, angels, and saints from biblical scenes are depicted on them. Icons in colors convey to us what is described in the words of the Holy Scripture. Thanks to them, a prayer mood is created in the temple. When praying, we must remember that prayer does not rise to the picture, but to the image depicted on it. On the icons, the images are depicted in the form in which they condescended to the people as their chosen ones saw. Thus, the Trinity is depicted in the form in which the righteous Abraham saw it. Jesus is depicted in the human form in which he lived among us. It is customary to depict the Holy Spirit as a dove, as he appeared at the time of the baptism of Christ in the Jordan River, or as a fire that the apostles saw on the day of Pentecost.
The newly painted icon is necessarily consecrated in the temple, sprinkled with holy water. Then she becomes sacred and has the ability to act with the grace of the Holy Spirit.
The nimbus around the head indicates that the face depicted on the icon has the grace of God, is holy.
The middle part of the temple
The internal structure of an Orthodox church necessarily contains the middle part, sometimes it is called the nave. In this part of the temple are the pulpit, the solea, the iconostasis and the choirs.
This part is actually called the temple.Since ancient times, this part is called the refectory, because here the Eucharist is tasted. The middle temple symbolizes the earthly existence, the sensual human world, but justified, burnt and already consecrated. If the altar symbolizes the Upper Sky, then the middle temple is a particle of the renewed human world. These two parts should interact, under the guidance of Heaven, the disrupted order will be restored on Earth.
Pretense
Pretext included in the Christian devicetemple, is its threshold. Penitents or those who prepared for Holy Baptism stayed in the roots of faith in it. In the vestibule, most often have a church box for the sale of prosphora, candles, icons, crosses, for registration of weddings and baptisms. In the vestibule there may be those who have received penance from the spiritual father, and all the people who for some reason consider themselves unworthy to enter the temple at the moment.
External device
The architecture of Orthodox churches is always recognizable, and although its types are different, the external structure of the temple has its main parts.
- Absid - a projection for the altar, is attached to the temple, usually has a semicircular shape.
- Drum - the upper part, which ends with a cross.
- Light drum - a drum with cut openings.
- The head is a cupola crowning the temple with a drum and a cross.
- Zakomara - Russian architecture. Semicircular completion of the wall.
- Onion - the head of the church onion shape.
- Porch - porch elevated above ground level (closed or open type).
- Pilaster - a flat decorative ledge on the wall surface.
- Portal - entry.
- The refectory is an extension from the west of the building that serves as a place for preaching and meetings.
- Tent - has several faces, covers the tower, the temple or the bell tower. Distributed in the architecture of the XVII century.
- Fronton - completes the facade of the building.
- Apple is a domed ball on which a cross is mounted.
- Tier - decrease in height of the entire building.
Types of temples
Orthodox churches have a different shape, they can be:
- In the shape of a cross (symbol of the crucifix).
- In the form of a circle (the personification of eternity).
- In the form of a quadrangle (Earth sign).
- In the form of an octagon (guiding Bethlehem star).
Every church is dedicated to a saintimportant Christian event. The day of their memory becomes an altar temple feast day. If there are several chapels with an altar, then each is called separately. The chapel is a small building that resembles a temple, but does not have an altar.
At the time of the Baptism of Russia the device of the Christianthe temple of Byzantium had a cross-domed type. It combines all the traditions of oriental temple architecture. Russia adopted from Byzantium not only Orthodoxy, but also examples of architecture. Preserving traditions, while Russian churches have a lot of original and original.
The device of a Buddhist temple
Many believers are interested in howbuilt the temples of the Buddha. We give a brief information. In Buddhist temples, everything is also established according to strict rules. All Buddhists worship the "Three Treasures" and it is in the temple that they seek refuge for themselves - from the Buddha, his teachings and from the community. The right place is where all the “Three Treasures” are collected, they must be reliably protected from any influence, from outsiders. The temple is a closed area, protected from all sides. Powerful gates - the main requirement in the device of the temple. Buddhists do not distinguish between a monastery or a temple - for them this is the same concept.
Every Buddhist temple has a Buddha image,it does not matter whether it is embroidered, painted or it is a sculpture. This image should be placed in the "golden hall", facing east. The main figure has a huge size, all the rest depict scenes from the life of the saint. The temple has other images - these are all beings worshiped by Buddhists. The altar in the temple is decorated with the figures of famous monks, they are located just below the Buddha.
Visiting a Buddhist temple
Those who want to visit a Buddhist templemust adhere to certain requirements. Legs, shoulders must cover the opaque clothing. Like other religions, Buddhism believes that non-observance of decency in dress is disrespect for faith.
Buddhist legs are considered the dirtiest part of the body because they touch the ground. Therefore, at the entrance to the temple must be removed shoes. It is believed that so the legs become cleaner.
Be sure to know the rule thatbelievers sit down. In no case should the legs point towards the Buddha or any saint, so Buddhists prefer to keep neutrality - to sit in the lotus position. You can just bend your legs under you.
