During this period of time away from our community and churches, it is imperative that we remain faithful and continue to invite Christ to transform us with our private devotion at home, in our Little Church. There is nothing more valuable towards this end than prayer. When we pray from the heart, we come to know Christ our God. As Orthodox Christians, we are attempting to bring the life of faith that is embodied in our sacramental communities into our homes. We do this through prayer, fasting, reading the scriptures, love of one another, almsgiving, etc. We do none of these in isolation, however. We do each of these things with the guidance of the church. With many churches temporarily closing during this pandemic, we can still be guided by the church, and cultivate a little church in our own homes. As was said recently by an Orthodox Bishop in Canada, “God is giving us a crash course on prayer…. Is our faith only centered on Sunday Liturgies? Or are we centered on prayer? Sunday morning Liturgies should be the climax of our prayer life, which is our intimate relationship with Our Lord. Praying at home is essential for all of us. Now we have to realize this and fall back on it. Praying at home, morning and evening, as a family is essential…”

Below, I’ve included a few links to prayer resources, which include a prayer booklet, various prayers for specific saints and a few adaptations of the services created with our situation in mind. So find a solitary place in your home, set up an icon or cross, light a candle and pray. I’m reminded of the gospel reading from Matthew 6:6, “But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.” This mandatory lockdown is a unique opportunity to rely on God through our personal devotion to prayer. We are hidden away, so to speak, so we only have our own conscience and God as the witness of our labors. I would encourage you to carve out portions of your day to read the services, pray in secret for your loved ones by name, pray for the world, and cultivate a prayerful and peaceful environment in your home.

Let us continue the work of prayer, repentance and almsgiving during this time. I’m longing for the day when we can emerge from our domestic hermitage and we can hug our dear friends and neighbors once again. What a sweet time that will be!

1. Pocket Prayer Booklet - If you don’t have a prayer book yet, I’d suggest you buy a copy of what we call “the little red prayer book” (Click Here). They are compact, inexpensive, and this is what I personally use to guide my daily prayers. If you are new to praying through written prayers, I’d suggest you begin by praying “The Trisagion Prayers” in the morning and in the evening. In addition to the morning and evening prayers, there are other great prayers in this pocket sized book including prayers for your spouse, friends and loved ones, the sick, preparing for confession, Divine Liturgy, and much, much more!

2. Service for Sunday Absence - (also known as Typica Reader’s Service for Sundays) - this can be prayed together at home. There are many live-streaming options for Sunday’s Divine Liturgy, for which I am very grateful, but there is something also wonderful to me about doing the “work” of reading the service ourselves and offering our praises back to God in this way. I highly encourage you to try this out with your family during this period of time. To open the PDF document, click on the image above.

3. Paraklesis to the Theotokos - (Click Here to download) This is a supplicatory Canon to the Most Holy Theotokos and it is often said during the Dormition Fast, but it is also a very useful during times of tribulation (which I think we all would agree is right now). Recently I have been praying this with a small group of friends using the Zoom App (which is a private meeting app) and oh my goodness it has been such an encouraged to me, knowing I am not alone. We are connecting through our prayers!

4. Paraklesis to St Nikephoros - St. Nikephoros the Leper, who died in 1964, has appeared rather recently to a pious monk at Mt Athos assured him that he will intercede for all who ask his prayers to be protected and healed from the Coronavirus. Chills went throughout my body when I first read this. I immediately purchased a copy of the prayer booklet (Click Here) which The Life Giving Spring Monastery in California has produced. You can find a digital copy of the booklet through this blog post, but out of respect for the monastics who produced it, consider purchasing a physical copy of it through Zoe Press or making a donation to the monastery. You can also purchase a book of his life through the same website (Click Here).

5. The Lenten Office of Matins (Adapted Reader’s Service) - Shared with permission, this is a draft of a matins that can be read at home, without needing a priest or deacon present. These are to be read for weekdays only. Lenten services on Saturday and Sunday will follow a different order. Click the picture above to open the PDF document.

6. The Lenten Office of Vespers (Adapted Reader’s Service) - Shared with permission, this is a draft of a matins that can be read at home, without needing a priest or deacon present. The same is true for vespers, these are to be read for weekdays only. Lenten services on Saturday and Sunday will follow a different order. Click the picture above to open the PDF document.

7. Additional Prayer Resources specifically for Coronavirus (as offered through the OCA’s Website):

• Molieben Sung in Time of Devastating Epidemic and Deathbearing Pestilence

  • Music for the Molieben [Zip file]

• Abridged Molieben Sung in Time of Pestilence [From the Diocese of Eastern Pennsylvania]

• Reader’s Service of Prayer for Protection from the Coronavirus[From the Archiocese of Western Pennsylvania]

• Reader’s Service of Prayer for Protection from the Coronavirus

8. Supplies for your Prayer Corner or Home Altar - Having a prominent place in your home where you gather together as a family to pray is, in my opinion, an essential part of a Christian home. We have several places in our home with icons, but our home altar is where most of our family prayers happen. I usually stock up my prayer corner “supplies” from our Church Bookstore, so if you are needing additional items and don’t know where to get them, here are two places to check out:

• Orthodox Worship Materials (O.C.Children)

• ArchangelsBooks.com

Generally things that we use in our prayer corner include : icons, a cross, a candle holder with a beeswax candle, incense, charcoal and a censor, and a prayer rope. We also have an oil burning candle which we light for longer services (at home). I can share more about how to set up a prayer corner in another post.

On that note, I will leave you with a word of encouragement from the Holy Scriptures: “Encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all. See that no one repays anyone evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to everyone. Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” 1 Thessalonians 5:14-18

+ Destinie