Fish in the post. Fish Recipes: Lenten Menu

According to the charter, three times a week - Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, fish, alcoholic beverages and vegetable oil should be excluded from the diet. These days, the laity should adhere to the rule of dry eating. In addition, meals should be brought at a time after Vespers.

Interesting!

According to the church charter, dry eating is the use of only food that has not been subjected to heat treatment.

Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday are the days when food seasoned or cooked with vegetable oil is allowed.

Days of special severity

In the period from December 20 to 25, old style, that is, January 2-6, according to the new style, very strict restrictions on food are introduced when compared with previous days. This means that during this period, even on weekends, the diet should not contain fish and products that contain it.

Today, priests are of the opinion that the laity may not fast with all strictness. This means that it is not recommended to include fish in the diet only on Wednesday and Friday. However, this is not a rule, but rather an indulgence. Its introduction can be explained by the modern working pace. Most people spend a lot of time commuting to work, performing professional duties, and solving household problems.

Communion and eating fish

Advent is a period when communion is not only possible, but also desirable. In addition, the frequency of this action should be as large as possible. Actually, fasting is a time that in itself contributes to and prepares for communion.

Each church event requires compliance with certain rules. A true Christian must perform repentance and communion, which helps a person to be cleansed of sins and begin life with a pure soul and thoughts. But not all parishioners, especially newcomers, know how to prepare for the sacrament (fasting before communion).

What is the meaning of abstinence before communion

To perform the rite of the sacrament, the believer must undergo training, which includes:

Fasting or abstaining from animal products, fish and vegetable oil on special days.
Rejection of intimacy.
Reading prayers.
Moral humility, or the rejection of worldly entertainment, bad thoughts and deeds.

Fulfilling church canons, the parishioner prepares his soul and body for the opportunity to receive divine gifts and the grace of the Lord.

Why is it necessary to fast in food, deeds and thoughts, if after confession and communion all committed sins are nullified? The bottom line is simple, if the parishioner on the eve of the sacrament is in a state of satiety, satiety with fun, gluttony, bodily pleasures, then he will not be able to accept the grace of God. A well-fed body is more drawn to sleep and rest, and prayers do not reach his soul and mind in the quality required for spiritual enlightenment and forgiveness of sins both by God and by the Christian himself.

The listed abstinences are a kind of sacrifice of a penitent and communing person, which makes it possible to let Christ into his soul. If fasting is done consciously, and not for show, then the believer will feel more deeply the severity of sin and will not want to commit it again. The Lord cannot be deceived, and those who are careless about preparing for the sacrament can be punished even more, and forgiveness will not happen.

Types of posts and their features

Which fast to observe before communion depends on the time at which a Christian prepares for the sacrament and how often he attends church and confesses to a confessor.

In church rules, there are the following types of fasting:

Fasting can be strict when it is unacceptable to eat animal products and even fish. Exception for persons with pathologies in the gastrointestinal tract, with diabetes, pregnant, lactating, children and other parishioners with recommendations from a doctor on nutrition. If a person has gathered for communion when, according to the church calendar, they observe the Christmas or Easter fast, then all the days of fasting must be excluded from the products prohibited during the fast.
During ordinary fasting, there are days when it is allowed to include fish in the diet during fasting before communion. But the rest of the rules are the same.
Fasting, during which you can not eat not only fish, meat, dairy products, eggs, but also vegetable oil. Such a post is called "Firs".
Dry eating is a type of fasting when any food is prohibited until sunset, and then only lean foods can be eaten.

In order to follow the rules of preparation before communion and understand what kind of fast a layman should keep, you need to seek help from the ministers of the church - they will explain, taking into account the specifics of the time chosen for confession and communion.

Rules for fasting before communion

Fasting before communion must be followed to the fullest extent, taking into account the time and possible fasting according to the Orthodox calendar. In addition to fasting in food, the believer before communion needs to put his thoughts in order and consider his actions.

Restrict viewing of entertainment programs on TV, computer, attending events.
In your free time from household chores and work, you can devote time to reading church literature for personal enlightenment.
Eliminate quarrels, resentment in relations with other people. Reconsider your actions and, if possible, do a good deed.
To refuse for the period of fasting before communion from intimacy with a partner.
On the third day of fasting, the day before communion, read the obligatory canons: repentant to Christ, prayers to the Most Holy Theotokos, the guardian angel. The canons can be read at a convenient time during the day before communion. On the day of communion in the morning, you need to read the prayer for communion. All prayers and canons can be found in the prayer book for the Orthodox or you can buy separate literature on preparing for communion.
Fasting, or fasting, the believer must keep until the end of the morning liturgy and the celebration of communion. The church day does not begin in the morning, but in the evening of the previous day. Therefore, a parishioner who has gathered for communion and has endured a three-day fast must completely refuse food and drinks from the evening before communion.
Attend the evening service before the day on which the sacrament is scheduled. If Sunday is chosen, then be in the temple for the evening liturgy on Saturday.
Until the moment of partaking of the gifts of God, you need to be cleansed of sins with the help of confession, telling the priest about what is in your soul.

Only after a sincere confession and the absence of offenses, the sacrament of communion will have the power and significance that is preached by the Orthodox religion. If after a three-day fast there are doubts and unfinished business, it is better to postpone the ceremony and prolong your humility and achieve peace of mind so as not to commit other sins.

How long is the post

There are different requirements for the number of days of fasting that a believer must observe before communion:

A long fast during the week is the best option for fasting and humility for Christians who rarely attend church and do not follow all the canons. For 7 days, a person has time to think about his actions, pacify pride, forgive offenders and ask for forgiveness from relatives and friends. Having received earthly forgiveness, they will be forgiven by the Lord. Until recently, it was mandatory for all believers who wish to receive communion.
A three-day fast is the main preparation for communion for an Orthodox person. A beginner and those who have health problems can not keep a strict fast in food, but otherwise the requirements do not change.
Fasts on Wednesdays and Fridays for those who attend the temple weekly for Sunday service.

There is no need to fast before communion for believers engaged in military service or tourism, because these people eat only what is available and being in such a position regarding food, they should observe a spiritual fast.

Is it possible to eat fish in fasting before communion

It will not be difficult for a Christian who observes fasts according to the church calendar systematically to endure fasting for three days. But for a beginner, giving up everyday food can be difficult at first. Excluding meat and animal products from the diet, the newcomers have a worldly question, is it possible to eat fish on these three days? Are seafood and fish on the banned list? It is impossible to unequivocally answer whether it is possible to fast fish before communion or not.

It all depends on the period in which confession and communion are supposed to take place. You can eat fish on the days when it is allowed for consumption during normal fasting. But on the days of strict fasting, even fish is forbidden for believers.

Fish is allowed for pregnant, lactating, children, so as not to deprive them of good nutrition at the time of preparation for the ceremony and not harm their health. For the rest of the Orthodox, who doubt whether it is possible to eat fish while fasting, it is better to refuse it for three days, given that the period is short. Any doubts will be resolved by the priests of the church if the parishioner asks questions of interest, so that no mistakes are made in fasting before communion due to lack of information.

List of allowed products

The basket for a meal during a three-day fast cannot be called meager. The assortment is diverse and contains a complex of useful vitamins and minerals, if you make the menu correctly, and do not eat monotonous dishes:

cereals;
pasta without eggs, flour and water;
fruit;
vegetables, greens;
berries;
nuts;
mushrooms;
vegetable oil;
lean bread;
tea, black coffee, decoctions, compotes.

Spices, herbs and natural sauces without the addition of animal fats are not prohibited. If you approach the preparation of the menu with imagination, then fasting will not seem like torment, but the body will be prepared for purification and atonement for sins.

Finally

Communion must be taken seriously and the rite should be performed not because it is customary to do so, but only with the readiness to fulfill the church rules of preparation as a true Christian. Only with a full understanding of the meaning of divine gifts can one open one's soul for the faith and grace of Christ to enter into it.

This article will give a detailed answer to the question of whether it is possible to eat fish in, as well as how to cook this product in order to delight your home with delicious and unusual dishes.

As many already know, fasting begins on the twenty-eighth day of November, since this abstinence from food lasts exactly forty days, then fasting ends on the sixth day, right before the onset of the holy Christmas holiday. The sixth day of January is also considered fasting, but the seventh day will give Christians the opportunity to abandon fasting and eat any delicious dishes made from meat or fish, seasoned with vegetable or butter. Church scriptures say that with the help of such abstinence from food, a person must cleanse himself of everything sinful, therefore it is so important to forget about sinful thoughts and deeds during fasting, this is the only way to prepare yourself for the great holiday.

Fish days of this post

Since believers often want to know when it is possible to eat fish during the period of abstinence from food, it is worth saying that Saturdays and Sundays can be used to prepare delicious fish dishes. Also, fish can be on the table on great holidays that are celebrated by the church, in addition, fish dishes are allowed on the days of great saints and various temple holidays, so it’s worth learning a little more about such days. If we consider a milder charter, then the fish can be present on the table on almost all days of the week, with the exception of the third and fifth days of the week, during this period it is allowed to eat only raw food.

Who can eat fish dishes and when?

There are certain rules in the church calendar that say that people must adhere to a certain strict menu during the period of fasting, but for some people there may be an indulgence in the restriction of products. For example, if ordinary healthy Orthodox Christians must comply with the restrictions more strictly, then children of primary and school age can eat fish almost every day, this relief applies to students, people who have a harmful and difficult job, and fish can also be present on the table of expectant and nursing mothers.

This product contains all the necessary healthy vitamins and fats that children need for development, while adults are allowed to cook dishes from this product during hard physical work, since a person needs strength to perform his duties. At the same time, indulgence is allowed for weak and sick people, since it takes a lot of effort to fight the disease, for this it is important for the body to get the animal proteins contained in fish meat. Therefore, fish must be included in the lean.

Fish is prepared in various forms, but most often it is recommended to boil, bake and stew this product, in this case there is no need to use too much vegetable oil, which is prohibited during the days of the Christmas fast. There are several excellent dishes that can be prepared with fish, below are the best recipes that are allowed for cooking on fasting days, while they will help to diversify the believer's menu.

The best options for fasting fish dishes

There are several dishes that can become a real decoration of the table, even though the believer has to fast. Such dishes can be garnished with fresh or boiled vegetables; it is also allowed to add quite a bit of vegetable oil to the dish to improve the taste. All the same, if possible, then it is better to cook the fish in pots, a double boiler or an oven, in this case, you can reduce the addition of oil to the dish, and the fish will save many times more vitamins than with conventional frying in a pan.

Salmon with potatoes in pots

The dish is quite unusual, but all the ingredients are allowed to be eaten during the fasting period, but in the end you get a very tender and incredibly tasty dish, so you should discuss the products themselves to create the dish.

Ingredients:

Frozen salmon fillet - as needed;
Slightly boiled potatoes in water;
Ginger root ordinary (pickled);
A little vegetable oil;
Salt and various spices;
Crushed crackers or bread crumbs.

Cooking process:

It is not at all difficult to create such a dish, so every housewife will cope with it, in order to make the salmon tender and tasty, it is necessary to prepare fire-resistant dishes in which the fish with a side dish will be baked. The dishes are smeared with oil, and then covered with parchment, if it is not there, then foil is quite suitable, potatoes cut into slices or ringlets are laid out on the surface, sprinkled with salt and various spices.

Also, pieces of salmon fillet are rolled in spices and spread on prepared potatoes, pickled ginger is placed on top and everything is sprinkled with bread crumbs. It takes about one hour to cook in the oven, sometimes it takes a little longer.

fish salad

Even on fasting days, you can indulge yourself with a delicious salad, which will include mushrooms and different varieties of boiled fish, it is worth considering such a recipe in more detail in order to prepare the most delicious appetizer on the table.

Ingredients:

Several varieties of fish (perch or pink salmon);
onion head;
Mushrooms any;
Lean soy mayonnaise;
Peeled potatoes.

Salad Making Process:

Such a salad should be laid out on a dish in the form of layers, first you need to boil two varieties of fish, as soon as the product is ready, it is cooled and separated from the bones. The first layer is fish, then fried mushrooms are laid out and the layer is smeared with lean mayonnaise, then the onions are fried in a pan and also placed on mushrooms, everything is covered with boiled grated potatoes on top and again covered with mayonnaise.

It is best to decorate such a lenten snack dish with various fresh bright vegetables, as soon as the dish is ready, it is placed in the refrigerator, where the salad is infused for at least twelve hours.

Herring under a fur coat

Although this appetizer is quite traditional, such a salad will still be wonderful for fasting, but it’s worth saying right away that only lean mayonnaise, which is made on the basis of soy, can be used as a dressing.

Ingredients:

A couple of carcasses of large herring;
A couple of large boiled carrots;
A little salt if necessary;
A pack of lean mayonnaise;
4 large potatoes;
Boiled beets one piece;
Large bulb;
A couple of small apples.

Cooking process:

To begin with, it’s worth saying what is created in layers, so for starters it’s worth laying out a dense layer of potatoes, sliced \u200b\u200bherring and onion scalded with boiling water are immediately laid on top.

Top layers are covered with lean mayonnaise. Then grated apples, carrots and beets begin to be laid again, the layers are again covered with mayonnaise, and the salad is allowed to soak for a while. If you wish, you can decorate the appetizer with various fresh vegetables.

It is not at all difficult to observe even a strict fast, of course, for this it is worth finding new delicious recipes in order to cook something really delicious from ordinary vegetables and fresh fish. Fish contains a lot of useful components, so you should not refuse this delicacy during the period of strict fasting.

Instruction

The general system of fasts was established by the Russian Orthodox Church as early as 1166. Their total duration is 200 days a year. Posts are divided into multi-day and one-day. During the year, believers hold four multi-day fasts: Great, Petrovsky, Christmas and Assumption. One-day fasts are observed on Wednesday and Friday of every week, on Epiphany Christmas Eve, on the day of the Beheading of John the Baptist and the Exaltation of the Cross of the Lord.

Wednesday and Friday are called fast days. Moreover, in the period between the summer Petrov and Assumption fasts, as well as in the autumn before the Christmas fast, these days are strict fasts, i.e. prohibiting the consumption of fish, meat and dairy products. In the winter meat-eater between Christmas and Lent, as well as in the spring before Peter's Lent, boiled food, vegetable oil and fish are allowed. Fish products are also prohibited on the day of the Beheading of John the Baptist and the Exaltation of the Holy Cross.

Petrov, or Apostolic, fasting begins a week after the Holy Trinity. According to the regulations, fish is allowed only on Tuesday and Thursday and on weekends when the light fast begins. The method of preparing fish products includes boiling, stewing, baking and frying in vegetable oil. In the days of the Dormition Fast, the mother of Jesus Christ, Mary, is commemorated. This post is more strict than Petrov. Fish dishes are allowed to be consumed only once, on the feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord.

Advent fast always begins on the same day, November 28, and lasts for forty days until January 6, when Christmas Eve is celebrated. This post is inferior in severity to the Assumption and the Great. Fish and fish products that can be consumed with vegetable oil and wine are allowed on Saturday and Sunday.

The strictest and longest fast of all is Great. It precedes the onset of a great church holiday - Easter. Great Lent begins seven weeks before the feast and consists of the Lent, that is, four weeks, and Holy Week. Fortecost symbolizes the life of the Lord Jesus Christ on earth and his stay in the desert for 40 days, and Passion Day is dedicated to the memory of the last days of earthly life, suffering, death and burial of Jesus Christ. Believers during all days of fasting refuse dairy products, poultry, meat. And only two holidays involve the use of fish, vegetable oil and wine - the Annunciation of the Most Holy Theotokos (only if this day does not fall on Holy Week) and Palm Sunday. And on Lazarus Saturday it is allowed to taste fish caviar.

We are gradually beginning to prepare for the great feast of the Nativity of Christ. People who are just starting their life in the Church, as a rule, have many questions about the rules and traditions of the Advent. We tried to collect the most typical questions and asked them to Archpriest Alexei Mityushin, rector of the Church of the Life-Giving Trinity in Kosino.

We need the Advent fast in order to prepare our souls for the meeting of the great holiday - the Nativity of Christ. In the Orthodox Church, two events are celebrated in a special way: these are the Resurrection of Christ and the Nativity of Christ.

People have been waiting for the Nativity of Christ for many centuries in order to get rid of the power of the devil over themselves with the birth of the Lord. We continue to celebrate the joy of this birth of the Savior in the world until now. Therefore, Christians prepare themselves for this event in advance, by fasting.

Before the Advent, Christians do not fast for more than three months (after Dormition Fast). We relax spiritually and physically, and before Christmas comes the time to gather inwardly. When fasting disappears from our lives, we give slack both spiritually and physically.

The Advent fast is needed in order to worthily, in a Christian way meet the great holiday of Christmas. To bring gratitude to God for the fact that He did not disdain our human nature and became, like us, a perfect Man, taking upon Himself all the hardships of our earthly existence, diseases of the flesh and spirit.

How to observe the Advent fast?

The Christmas fast is not so strict and complicated, it is called the fish fast. The secular tradition of fasting is easier than the monastic one. Lay people can eat fish during this fast on all days except Wednesday and Friday.

And the monks, according to the church charter, eat fish only on Saturdays and Sundays; on Tuesdays and Thursdays - only if these days fall on holidays. For example, the Memorial Day of St. Spyridon of Trimifuntsky (December 25), the Celebration of the Icon of the Mother of God "The Sign" (December 10) or the patronal feast. After the first of January, monks no longer eat fish.

How to keep the Christmas fast for the laity?

It must be said that in the tradition of the Russian Orthodox Church, the laity should imitate the monks in their abstinence. Whoever has the strength can fast according to the church charter. Whoever does not have such an opportunity, let him not despair, do not lose heart, but during this fast he better exercises in humility, in love for others, in reading spiritual literature, in reading the Gospel.

What can not be done on Christmas Lent?

First of all, during the Nativity Fast, one should not sin with everyday sins. If during the fast we do not eat fast, but continue to be crafty, angry, irritable, we quarrel with our neighbors, condemn others, chat in vain - this will be a violation of the fast. Fasting is an opportunity to refrain not only from food, but also from such moral daily sins that we are used to not noticing in everyday life.

Is it possible to play a wedding (get married / get married) in the Christmas post?

Orthodox Christians cannot, of course, have a wedding during Advent. The wedding does not take place at this time. For those who decide to marry in the registry office, the Christmas post is also not the best time. It is important to remember that there is a time for everything: a time of joy and a time of abstinence. If a person considers himself an Orthodox Christian, then he must heed the voice of the Church.

Can you have sex on Advent?

This is a very subtle, personal matter. The apostle Paul, in his first letter to the Corinthians, says: « Wife not has power over her body, but her husband; likewise the husband has no power over his own body, but the wife” (1 Corinthians 4:7). If a husband and wife fast in bodily continence, then by mutual agreement.

If Orthodox Christians have a spiritual father, then this issue must be resolved with him. Such a question is much more personal than, for example, abstaining from meat. Maybe a Christian wife has an unbelieving husband, such abstinence is completely incomprehensible to him, this can lead to a quarrel in the family. Therefore, it is better to solve this problem with your confessor.

What can you eat on Advent?

In the Christmas fast you can eat fish, seafood, vegetables, fruits, bread. You can not eat meat, poultry, dairy products and eggs.

Can you eat fish on Advent?

In worldly tradition, in condescension to our infirmities, fish can be eaten on all days except Wednesday and Friday. For the laity, this is rather not a rule, but an indulgence. A modern person spends several hours a day on the road, gets tired at work, is at home in constant household chores, which is why we, as residents of megacities, are given such indulgent indulgences.

Wine is allowed to be drunk during Advent on Sundays and major holidays that fall during Lent. For example, the Entry into the Church of the Most Holy Theotokos (December 4), the Day of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker (December 19), the Memorial Day of St. Spyridon of Trimifuntsky (December 25), patronal holidays.

As King David said in the Psalter: “…And wine gladdens the heart of man, and bread strengthens him” (Ps. 103:15). Wine is allowed to be drunk both on holidays and on fasting days, but in moderation.

Is it possible to baptize on Advent?

Baptism can be performed on any day of Advent. There are no barriers to baptizing a child or an adult during Advent. Another thing is that you need to prepare for the sacrament: call the temple, agree on the time of baptism, talk with the priest. Now there is a rule of obligatory catechesis for adults and adolescents who are about to be baptized, and godfathers or mothers at the baptism of small children.

Be sure to ask about the preparation for baptism in the temple where you are going to be baptized yourself or baptize a child. You can find out on the parish website, by phone or behind a candle box.

Is it possible to receive communion on Christmas Day?

It is possible and, moreover, it is desirable to take communion more often than usual during the Christmas Fast. Since fasting is a time that helps prepare for communion. We are in abstinence, prayer. Therefore, observing the rules of fasting, we can approach the sacrament with the fear of God.

How to Prepare for Communion on Christmas Day?

Fasting, if observed, is in itself a preparation for communion. It is necessary to read the following to Holy Communion, read the penitential canon to the Savior, the prayer canon to the Most Holy Theotokos and the canon to the guardian angel.

What prayers are read in the Christmas fast?

Since not all of us have time to read the daily morning and evening rules outside of Lent, it would be best to start with them during the Christmas Lent and try to read them regularly. This will be the best prayer work for us, which it is desirable to leave in our ordinary life after the Advent.

In addition, in the Christian tradition, the Gospel should be read more often during fasting: either in a row, or the one that is read that day in the temple (this can be seen in the church calendar, which indicates reading for every day). And for those who follow the daily rules and regularly read the Gospel, it is worth reading the Psalter.

Is it possible to read akathists during the Nativity Fast?

At home, you can read any Orthodox prayers for the laity (without priestly exclamations). There is a well-known expression "The cell does not have a charter." Another thing is that an akathist is a solemn, joyful, thanksgiving prayer, which, perhaps, is not very appropriate, for example, on Good Friday - the day of the crucifixion of Christ. But during the Nativity Fast, you can read an akathist, especially since in December the days of memory of such famous saints as the Apostle Andrew the First-Called, Spyridon Trimifuntsky or St. Nicholas, Archbishop of the World of Lycia are celebrated.

Can you drink wine on Advent?

Wine is allowed to be drunk during Advent on Sundays and major holidays that fall during Lent. Entry into the Church of the Most Holy Theotokos (December 4), the day of the Apostle Andrew the First-Called (December 13), the Day of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker (December 19), the Memorial Day of St. Spyridon of Trimifuntsky (December 25).

Separately, it is worth mentioning the night from December 31 to January 1. In 2017 January 1st is Sunday. If you are going to receive communion on this day, then you must observe complete abstinence from food and drinks from midnight (this restriction does not apply to very young children and medication). In all other cases, the celebration of the New Year should also be modest, since the Orthodox continue the Christmas fast.

What can be commemorated in the Christmas post?

It is necessary to commemorate the dead at any time of the year by prayer: submitting notes for the proskomidia (part of the liturgy), funeral services, home prayer for deceased relatives and friends.

If we are talking about a memorial meal, then it should be fasting. The measure of abstinence and the possibility of relaxing fasting requirements should be discussed with your confessor or priest, whose opinion you trust.

Is it possible to conceive a child during Advent?

There is a tradition to refuse marital intimacy during fasting, so it is not worth conceiving a child on Christmas fast. On the other hand, the apostle Paul says: “Do not deviate from one another, except by agreement, for a time, for the exercise of fasting and prayer, and then be together again” (1 Cor. 7:5), so the question of the possibility of marital relations during Advent should be discussed with the spouse. If the conception of a child nevertheless occurred, do not pay attention to the superstitious ideas associated with this - the date of conception does not affect the child in any way.

Is it possible to eat marshmallows during Advent?

According to the monastic charter, milk and eggs are prohibited during the Nativity Fast. If these products are part of the marshmallow (which can be read on the product packaging), then it is impossible. Recall that the measure of abstinence and the possibility of relaxing fasting requirements must first be discussed with your confessor or priest, whose opinion you trust.

Is it possible to get married on Christmas Lent?

It is not entirely clear what is meant by the word "marry". If we are talking about a marriage proposal or meeting the parents of a chosen one or chosen one, then this is not prohibited. If we are talking about a wedding, then in the Orthodox Church during many days of fasting this sacrament is not performed.

By fasting, you can “sign at the registry office”, and postpone the wedding for later, but it’s better to ask the confessor for this blessing, consult with him on how best to proceed.

Is it possible to sew in the Christmas post? Is it possible to embroider with beads in the Christmas post?

Certainly you can. Sewing is a calm and pacifying activity that is quite consistent with the Lenten mood. It is better to embroider and sew than to waste time on TV or after hours on the Internet. By the way, according to church tradition, the Most Holy Theotokos herself was engaged in sewing - she sewed a veil for Solomon's temple. On the icons of the Annunciation, the Mother of God is often depicted with sewing accessories.

The main thing is that embroidery should not replace prayer in the temple. Otherwise, there are no prohibitions on doing embroidery at any time.

Any occupation must be approached with inner spiritual reasoning.

Where can one gather on Advent?

Unction during the Advent is a rarer phenomenon than unction during the Great Fast.

Nevertheless, in many Orthodox churches there is a tradition of unction during many days of fasting.

You can find out how to congregate in the temple of your choice on the parish website, by phone, or at the candle box. You will be told when you can confer and how best to prepare for the sacrament.

Residents of the sleeping areas of Moscow are better off choosing a temple in the city center, where there can be significantly fewer people than on the outskirts.

Unction is a sacrament in which we ask God for forgiveness of our forgotten sins. These do not include sins that a person deliberately concealed in confession.

Is it possible to eat crackers in the Christmas post?

Of course, you can eat crackers during the Christmas Fast - this is one of the leanest types of food, unless they are stuffed with milk.

Recall that the measure of abstinence and the possibility of relaxing fasting requirements must first be discussed with your confessor or priest, whose opinion you trust.

And, most importantly, you need to remember that the essence of the Nativity Fast is not only food restrictions, although they are also important. Starting with a gastronomic fast, a Christian improves in spiritual work - he learns to be responsible for his life through conscious self-restraint. Fasting in food is not an end in itself, but only a means to growth in Christ, one more step towards the Lord and the fulfillment of His commandments.

Priest Alexei Mityushin