For a person who has just come to faith and started attending services, the question always arises: is he doing the right thing, is he right about what is happening around him.
A person who has started going to church must understand for himself that when he is going to church, he is going to meet with God himself. This is the first and foremost condition. Joint church prayer does not allow thoughts to scatter, and church chants tune the soul to the appropriate mood.
Before the service, it is advisable to spend some time in silence and prayer. The temple is the home of God. Therefore, attending church should be reverent.
Every Orthodox Christian is instructed to attend Sunday and festive services. One should strive for an understanding of worship. All questions and doubts that arise should be resolved with the priest.
Dress when visiting the temple should be clean and tidy. For women, it is appropriate to wear clothes that are appropriate for their gender, that is, dresses and skirts that are not too revealing or tight. It is advisable to do without cosmetics. A woman in the temple must have her head covered (1 Cor. 11, 13). A man must be in church without a headdress (1 Cor. 11: 4). A woman during the period of purification cannot attend the temple.
Entering the temple, it is worth giving up all everyday worries. At the service, you do not need to turn around, create noise, talk, distracting people from prayer. Men, according to the ancient tradition of the Church, stand on the right side of the temple, women on the left.
At the service, you need to delve into prayer, singing and reading. If the thread of the service is lost, then the priests recommend praying silently: "Lord, Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner." You must not leave the temple until the final dismissal of the service.
And do not think that the candle is a bribe to God. “The sacrifice of God is spirit broken” (Ps. 50, 19). Putting down a candle, a person likens himself to soft wax, wishing to become the same yielding to the will of Christ, and calls on God to kindle a fire of faith in the heart.
The more a person continues to go to church, the fewer questions remain, everything falls into place. It is always worth remembering the words of St. King David: "I will come into Thy house according to the abundance of Thy mercy" (Psalm 5: 8), that is, a person enters the temple by the grace of God, and not according to his own will. And St. John Chrysostom urges, having received mercy from God, to bring in response such a sacrifice: "I will worship Thy holy temple in Thy fear" (Psalm 5, 8) - not like many of those praying who at this time scratch themselves, yawn, doze, but with fear and awe. He who prays in this way puts aside all evil, is disposed towards all virtue, acquires the favor of God.
