The Orthodox Christian perceives the sacrament as an obligatory sacrament for the spiritual cleansing of his personality. According to the teachings of the Church, in the sacrament of the sacrament, a person mystically unites with Christ. Therefore, the Orthodox canons prescribe the obligatory preparation of a person before meeting with God.
According to the canons of the Orthodox Church, before communion, a believer must fast for three days. In addition, a Christian should try to avoid scandals, quarrels, condemnations and other sins. Also, in preparation for the sacrament of the Holy Communion, it is mandatory to read certain prayers.
During all three days of preparation, the Christian needs to read the morning and evening prayers. They are found in any Orthodox prayer book. In addition, the canons to Jesus Christ (penitential), to the Mother of God (prayer), to the guardian angel, as well as the adherence to holy communion are considered mandatory.
Most often, an Orthodox person reads the canons to the Lord, the Mother of God and the guardian angel before the evening service. After the service, the person confesses. Arriving home, the Christian reads the first part of the sequence to Holy Communion, in which the canon is written before Holy Communion. All this can be found in the Orthodox prayer book. Evening prayers are read before bedtime.
In the morning, a Christian reads the morning rule, as well as prayers before Holy Communion (everything is in the Orthodox prayer book). Only after this a person goes to the service for the communion of the holy mysteries of Christ.
Sometimes a Christian reads three canons and the first part of the sequence before the sacrament on the evening before the sacrament, after the confession. At the same time, morning prayers and prayers for communion are read immediately before the liturgy. There is another practice of reading prayers for those who find it difficult to read large volumes at a time. So, during all three days of preparation, a person reads one canon every day (to the Lord, the Theotokos and the guardian angel), and reads the entire succession to communion (canon and prayers) in the morning before the liturgy.
It must be understood that there are no clearly established deadlines for reciting the prayers before the sacrament. The main thing is that the entire rule should be read immediately before the beginning of the divine liturgy, at which the Christian wishes to receive communion.
