Friday, October 19, 2012
19.10.2012 About Lestovka
Lestovka
Form and symbolism
The lestovka is traditionally constructed of leather, with "steps" made by looping leather around small twig sections. It has a total of 109 "steps" – small loops or knots, unevenly grouped. Lestovkas produced today are often made of vinyl or PVC, and the twig sections are today often replaced with rolls of paper, rubber or even plastic. Most lestovkas are joined to form a large loop, but the older variant, which is a simple rope unjoined at the ends, may still occasionally be found.
At the bottom of the lestovka hang four lapostki, which are flaps, usually triangular, but such variations as bell or oak-leaf shapes are not uncommon. These represent the four Gospels, and sometimes have icons, crosses, religious symbols or scripture verses printed or stitched on them, the stitching around these leaves symbolising the teaching of the Gospels. Simpler lestovkas will have the lapostki covered with silk brocade or velvet, and this is a traditional way of reusing church fabrics, either of vestments that have become too worn out for clergy to wear, or of altar-coverings and similar fabrics.
Between these lapostki are seven small movable pieces, usually tucked in securely and not visible unless the stitching between the lapostki is undone. These seven pieces represent the seven Mysteries (Sacraments) of the Church, their location between the leaves of the lapostki indicating their origin in and central relation to the Gospels.Next, the main loop will have three large steps on either side where it joins the lapostki (in lestovkas that are joined together), and on the Lestovka itself are three more large steps, giving a total of nine, representing the nine months in which Christ was in the womb of the Theotokos (Blessed Virgin Mary), and also for the nine choirs of angels.
After the three large steps on either side is a space, representing the heavens and the earth.
Coming to the main set of counters, one finds twelve small babochki (rungs, steps), signifying the Twelve Apostles. Then are thirty-eight small counters, representing the thirty-six weeks and two days during which the Theotokos carried Christ in her womb. Next, thirty-three small counters for the number of years Christ lived on earth, followed by seventeen small counters for the seventeen Old Testament prophets plus St John the Baptist who prophesied about the coming of Christ.
Usage
If one is unable to attend services in church for whatever reasons, it is considered commendable to pray on the lestovka, using a number of repetitions of the Jesus prayer combined with specific bows and prostrations.
When using the lestovka as part of a rule of prayer, the three counters at either end are used for the following prayers (accompanied by bows) at the end and beginning of the prayer session:
- Боже, милостивъ бѹди мне грѣшномѹ. (грѣшнѣй if one is female)
- Создави мѧ, Господи, помилѹй мѧ.
- Безъ числа согрѣшихъ, Господи, прости мѧ.
- God be merciful to me a sinner. (bow)
- Thou hast created me; Lord, have mercy on me. (bow)
- I have sinned immeasurably; Lord, forgive me. (bow)
- Some say, at the last line, "помилѹй и прости мѧ грѣшнаго/грѣшнѹю" (have mercy and forgive me a sinner) instead of "прости мѧ" (forgive me).
The remaining one hundred small counters are used for the repetition of the Jesus prayer, with bows and prostrations.
Other uses of the lestovka include counting the twelve or forty repetitions of Lord have mercy used as responses at the Divine Liturgy and Canonical hours. The seventeen counters are also used to count the number of bows during the Prayer of Saint Ephrem.
Occasionally, some Old Rite bishops will use lestovkas (with the lapostki cut off) in place of a chain for wearing pectoral crosses and panagias.
Monday, June 18, 2012
Monday, June 11, 2012
Present situation
In 1971 the Moscow Patriarchate revoked the anathemas imposed on the Old Believers in the 17th century. In 1974, the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia issued an ukase revoking the anathemas and asked forgiveness from the Old Believers for the wrongs done them. Under their auspices, the first efforts to make the prayer and service books of the Old Believers available in English were made. Nevertheless, most Old Believer communities have not returned to Communion with the majority of Orthodox Christianity worldwide.
Estimates place the total number of Old Believers remaining today at from 1 to 10 million, some living in extremely isolated communities in places to which they fled centuries ago to avoid persecution. One Old-Believer parish in the United States has entered into communion with the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia, after a split in the congregation. The remainder have remained Old Believers.
Old-Believer churches in Russia currently have started restoration of their property, although Old Believers (unlike the nearly-official mainstream Orthodoxy) face many difficulties in claiming their restitution rights for their churches. Moscow has churches for all the most important Old Believer branches: Rogozhskaya Zastava (Popovtsy of the Belokrinitskaya hierarchy official center), a cathedral for the Novozybkovskaya hierarchyin Zamoskvorech'ye and Preobrazhenskaya Zastava where Pomortsy and Fedoseevtsy coexist.
Within the Old-Believer world, only Pomortsy and Fedoseevtsy treat each other relatively well; none of the other denominations acknowledge each other. Ordinary Old Believers display some tendencies of intra-branchecumenism, but these trends find sparse support among the official leaders of the congregations.
Nowadays, Old Believers live all over the world, having fled Russia under tsarist persecution and after the Russian Revolution of 1917. Some Old Believers are still transient throughout various parts of the world today. Significant established Old Believer communities exist in the United States and Canada in Plamondon, Alberta; Woodburn, Oregon;Erie, Pennsylvania; Erskine, Minnesota and in various parts of Alaska including near Homer in the Fox River area villages of Voznesenka, Razdolna, and Kachemak Selo,Nikolaevsk, Beryozovka, Delta Junction, and Kodiak, Alaska (the Anton Larson Bay Area, and on Raspberry Island). Two flourishing communities also exist in Sydney,Australia, along with rural areas of New Zealand. Communities also have been established in many parts of South America, including Brazil, Uruguay, Bolivia and Argentina. Small hidden communities have been found in the Russian Far North (specifically remote areas of Arkhangelsk Oblast and the Komi Republic) and various regions of Siberia, especially concentrated in the areas between the Altai Mountains and Tuva Republic. Perhaps the highest concentration of older established Old Believer communities, with foundations dating back hundreds of years, can be found concentrated in Eastern Siberia, specifically the Transbaikal region in desolate areas of Buryatia and Zabaykalsky Krai.
6th century icon, depicting Christ giving a blessing. Two digits appear straightened, three folded. The Old Believers regard this as the proper way of making the sign of the Cross.
Popovtsy
The Popovtsy represented the more moderate conservative opposition, those who strove to continue religious and church life as it had existed before the reforms of Nikon. They recognized ordained priests from the new-style Russian Orthodox church who joined the Old Believers and who had denounced the Nikonian reforms. In 1846 they convinced Amvrosii Popovich (1791–1863), a Greek Orthodox bishop whom Turkish pressure had had removed from his see atSarajevo, to become an Old Believer and to consecrate three Russian Old-Believer priests as bishops. In 1859, the number of Old-Believer bishops in Russia reached ten, and they established their own episcopate, the so called Belokrinitskaya hierarchy. Not all priestist Old Believers recognized this hierarchy. Dissenters known as beglopopovtsy obtained their own hierarchy in the 1920s. The priestist Old Believers thus manifest as two churches which share the same beliefs, but which treat each other's hierarchy as illegitimate. Popovtsy have priests, bishops and all sacraments, including the eucharist.
- Belokrinitskaya hierarchy—The largest Popovtsy denomination. One can refer to the Russian part of this denomination as the Belokrinitskoe Soglasie (the "Belokrinitsky Agreement") or as the Russian Orthodox Old-Rite Church.
- Neokruzhniki (extinct)
- Novozybkovskaya hierarchy or Russian Old-Orthodox Church
- Beglopopovtsy (extinct, now the Russian Old-Orthodox Church)
- Luzhkane, also known as Luzhkovskoe soglasie; in some places, they had no priests and so belonged to the Bespopovtsy (extinct).
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