Orthodox prayer in Bulgarian’s routine

published on 3/4/10 9:36 AM

Photo: Архив

Stressed out by problems, quite a few Bulgarians look for consolation in church. In contrast sometimes people go to thank God in church following a happy event in their lives. In the Orthodox Christian tradition prayer is among the basic duties of believers given that the Bible commands them to pray incessantly. Prayer is not necessarily practiced in church. Any place and any time of the day Christians should find a few minutes for a brief prayer, explains Father Kilment Harizanov from The Assumption Church in Sofia:

“Finding a definition of prayer is not easy; it is something quite private and inmost, despite the gestures and facial expressions it involves. In fact prayer is when the human soul engages in conversation with God. It is the thread connecting mortals with the spiritual world. Man was created in the image of God, and so it is only natural for humans to look for connection with their creator and redeemer. We turn to God not only to ask for something, but also to express gratitude or to hymn Him. Of course, in time of trouble man often turns to God. In such moments prayer pours out deeply from the human heart. When man is in trouble, he is most spontaneous in pouring out his grief and suffering to God.”

The Orthodox prayer book offers special prayer samples for various grievous or joyful occasions, helping those who pray to find the right form of address to God. This fact however is often the subject of accusations coming from other denominations that reject written prayers as a way to communicate with God. According to Father Harizanov, however, written prayers compiled by the Holy Fathers go deep into the soul of the praying man, so the church strongly advises us to use these samples. “The Orthodox Christian tradition has the notion of intelligent prayer”, the priest says further. “It is necessary to think every single word over properly when praying and to experience the emotions and feelings expressed by the Holy Fathers. God can appreciate human effort and accepts any prayer, provided one is not praying mechanically and absent-mindedly”, Father Kliment argues. He explains that prayer is the basic criterion on whether one is a true Christian.

“By and large, present-day people are not very keen on praying. Praying is also surrounded by plenty of prejudice. Some tend to take prayer as an expression of helplessness or even laziness and inability to fix problems. This is not true. In Orthodox Christianity praying is tantamount to intense spiritual activity. Praying also means taking your thoughts and heart to God suppressing other passions and impressions. Prayer and fasting are the wings taking us to the sky. Bulgarians do not pray often, because the spiritual life of our contemporaries is rather bleak.”

Asked what they pray for most often, Bulgarians reply, “Health”, Father Kliment Harizanov says. Health is important, according to him, but praying is not as simple – asking for good things. Prayer is looking for communication with God above all.

“It is very important for Christians to start and end their day with prayer. It is not accidental that prayer books quote both morning and evening prayers. When you pray in the morning you get charged with spiritual energy and plead for divine support for any acts throughout the day. Praying in the evening is asking God to forgive wrongdoings committed during the day, and achieving in this way good, hearty sleep. Christians have double citizenship – of the Heavenly Kingdom and of the Earthly Kingdom and should conscientiously perform their duties as both Christians and members of their earthly community”, concludes Father Kilment Harizanov from The Assumption Church in Sofia.

English version Daniela Konstantinova

По публикацията работи: Darina Grigorova

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Orthodox prayer in Bulgarian’s routine

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