Everyone knows that when visiting a church, certain rules of conduct must be observed, many of which concern, it would seem, only women. From the point of view of a modern person, it is impossible to rationally explain them, and in order to find out, for example, why women cannot go to the altar, you will have to ask an Orthodox priest for clarification - or read this article.
Perhaps the woman is unclean?
Such an assumption about the female nature in the perception of Christian apologists comes to mind in the first place, it is stereotyped. Why should women not enter the altar except because it is an unclean being unworthy to be in the holy of holies?
Actually, of course not. If the fair sex were seen by the Orthodox as something dirty, then no one would at least venerate the Most Holy Theotokos and many holy wives. For Christian morality there is no fundamental difference whether we are men, women, priests or worldly people. We all go to salvation in God. Thus, this is not an answer to the question why women should not enter the altar; the Church makes demands on everyone, regardless of gender.
Then why not go in there?
If we glance at Syntagma, a peculiar dictionary of church law, we find that none of the laity can enter the altar, including men. An exception is the anointed of God, the ruler, and then he can go there only if he wants to bring some valuable gift.
What is an altar? This is the holiest place in the church in which the Bloodless Sacrifice is performed. The lay people are uninitiated, and because of this they cannot offer sacrifices, therefore, they cannot enter the sanctuary.
The altar is separated from the main space of the temple by a high majestic iconostasis with the Royal Gates in the center - anyone who was in the temple knows this. In the Catholic, and especially Protestant, church, everything is arranged a little differently, and the rules are different there, so we are primarily talking about the Orthodox Church. The separation of the altar is necessary for two reasons. Firstly, a lot of people gather in the church, especially during big holidays, and a crowd forms. Even if parishioners try to be as polite as possible and not disturb others, there is no escaping fuss. Such worldly vanity should in no case extend to the space of the altar. There should be calm and prayer order. Secondly, the sacrament performed at the altar during worship, should not be seen by the laity. Priests themselves need to handle the blood and flesh of Christ with the greatest care.
But different people enter the altar!
Indeed, church rules are changing, and now we can see some laity at the altar, for example, if it is a sexton who helps to conduct service, but does not have church dignity. Why can't women go to the altar? After all, we can see nuns in convents that calmly go in there, serving priests in the same way. In the distant past, there were deaconesses who had the right to conduct worship.
However, such a practice has long ceased to exist in the modern Orthodox church. However, as regards the history of the church, in the first centuries of its existence only the high priest could enter the altar once a year, no more, this place was perceived as absolutely holy, requiring special veneration.
Small clarification
However, for women, there are still special instructions in this regard. Why can't women go to the altar? The concepts of Christianity suggest that blood should not defile the church in principle, and menstruation is an obstacle to even participating in worship, not to mention entering the altar. Thus, only nuns have access there, but only the elderly.
What happens if a woman enters the altar?
In fact, it's okay. She will not desecrate the sacred place in this way, but will still violate church rules. This is the answer to the question why women should not enter the altar. Certain requirements imply this, and violation of them will entail the need for repentance, recognition of one’s misconduct, one’s guilt. In any case, everyone needs to know their place and follow the established rules.