The great penitential canon of Andrew of Crete is read in the first four days of Lent, one part at a time. The entire creation is read in the seventh week. The canon teaches people to repent. Accept your sins and learn to fight them. This scripture also instructs to take an example from pure and selfless people.
About Andrew of Crete
Rev. Andrei was born somewhere in the 660s of our era, in the city of Damascus. Legends convey that until the age of seven the child could not talk. Andrei's parents were believers and often attended church. Once during the sacrament, the blessing of God came upon Cretan and he spoke. After this miracle, parents gave Andrew to study the basics of religion.
When the guy was 14 years old, he was transferred to serve in Jerusalem, in the Monastery of the Holy Sepulcher. Andrei was a very versatile young man, so he was immediately identified in a notary.
Then Andrew moved to Constantinople, where he served in the orphanage in the dignity of deacon for 20 years. In the same city, he began to write his chants, which to this day are widely used in the Orthodox Church.
After this future saint was sent to the island of Crete with the rank of bishop. There he faithfully served the church, guiding the true heretics on the path and giving support to believers. Andrew in Crete built several orphanages, temples. For his faithful service he received the rank of archbishop. In 1740, the monk died on the way from Constantinople to the island of Crete.
About the canons
Andrei Kritsky was the first to write canons instead of kondaks. The saint has chants for all the great holidays: Christmas, Easter, Palm Sunday and others. Many of them are also used in modern liturgical mine. The canons are closely related to the "bible songs." The structure of this chant is as follows. First comes the irmos, which is the connecting chain between the biblical song and the content of the canon. Next come the troparia. They are sung alternately with songs. The most outstanding creation, undoubtedly, is the great canon of St. Andrew of Crete. He teaches us to repent. It is best to ask the Lord for forgiveness during Lent when the canon of Andrew of Crete is read.
Canon content
In his canon, Andrew briefly touches on the entire Bible. From the 1st to the 8th song is the Old Testament, after - the New. Andrew evaluates each story of the biblical characters of the canon from the point of view of human morality. If this is a bad deed, then he discusses his sinfulness, and if good, then he declares that this should be sought. The author hints to us that we can save our souls when we abandon our vices and strive for virtue.
Song 1
In the first song, the canon of Andrew of Crete talks about original sin. Eve succumbed to the temptation of Satan and gave the apple to Adam. He, in turn, was seduced by power and tried it. In this song, Andrei says that we are all sinners, and if the Lord punished Adam and Eve for violating one commandment, then how will he punish us who violate almost all of them. We can only repent and ask for forgiveness from God.
Song 2
In the second song, the great canon of Andrei of Crete talks about how we all succumbed to carnal comfort. Firstly, they pulled on clothes, ashamed of their naked body, which was created in the likeness of the Lord. The second - put in the forefront of pleasure and beauty of the body, and not mental. Even in this song of the great canon of Andrew of Crete, it is said that we are subject to all earthly passions and, unfortunately, do not want to fight them. For all these sins, we must sincerely ask God to forgive us. The main thing is to understand your own bad deeds and strive to get rid of them.
Song 3
In it, the great penitential canon of Andrew of Crete tells how the Lord could not stand the disgrace that was happening in Sodom and burned the city. Only one righteous Lot managed to escape. Andrei calls on everyone to renounce their Sodom pleasures and run away as soon as possible. The sins of this city haunt us every day, tempting to repeat them, I think many give in. But, the main thing is to stop, think about what awaits us in the future. What will be our afterlife after Sodom entertainment.
Song 4
It states that laziness is a great sin. If a person, like a vegetable, moves forward without being aware of himself and the world around him, then his end will be appropriate. The patriarch of the song worked day and night to have two wives. One of them meant hard work, and the other - mind. Thanks to this combination, we can improve our contemplation and our activity.
Song 5
The penitential canon of St. Andrew of Crete tells of St. Joseph, who was betrayed by his brothers and beloved, and sold him into slavery. He calmly endured everything, did not anger at his fate. Andrei says that each of us can betray his neighbor. But the trouble is that every day we betray ourselves and our souls. Without suffering any calamities, we violate the commandments of the Lord and do not even think about it.
Song 6
Andrew in this song calls for humanity to become the true path. Do not turn away from the Lord, like some historical characters. And to believe that just as God delivered the sick from leprosy by the hand of Moses, so our soul can forgive her sins.
Song 7
In the seventh song, the canon of St. Andrew of Crete tells us that no matter how serious sins a person commits, if he sincerely repents, he will be forgiven. In the opposite case, the punishment of the Lord will be great. It is necessary to pray to God in his three guises and to the Mother of God with repentance and a request for forgiveness.
Song 8
Andrei narrates that our Lord gives everyone according to his merits. If a person lived righteously, he will ascend to heaven, like Ilya in a chariot. Or in life he will receive the support of God, like Elisha to divide the Jordan River. If, however, to live in sin, as Gehazi, then the soul will burn in the fiery hyena.
Song 9
In this song, the great canon of Andrew of Crete tells us that people have forgotten the ten commandments of God, which were beaten out on the tablets by Moses. They do not heed the writing of the gospel. Once Jesus came to our world to save us. He blessed infants and the elderly, because some had not yet had time to repent of their sins, while others could no longer. If a person is sane, then he himself must ask the Lord for forgiveness.
Songs that are read on Tuesday of Great Lent.
Song 1
It tells how Cain killed his brother by envying him. Andrew asks to live his life righteously, without thinking to whom and what the Lord has given. If a person lives according to the commandments of God, then grace will come to him soon. One must strive to be like Abel, who, with a pure soul, brought his gifts to the Lord.
Song 2
Calls on people to repent that they have rejected spiritual wealth and attach importance only to the material. In the pursuit of clothing and other goods, they completely forgot to pray to the Lord. We forget that a mentally rich person will be much happier.
Song 3
This song of the canon of Andrew of Crete calls to live like Noah, to whom the Lord alone gave a chance to be saved. Or like Lot, the only survivor of Sodom. Because if we sin, then the fate of people in the flood will befall us.
Song 4
In knowledge is power. We must strive to see God in ourselves, and a staircase to heaven will be built, like the patriarchs. In everyday life, we imitate Esau, who hates everyone. One must live in love and harmony.
Song 5
As the whole Jewish people lived in Egyptian slavery, so our soul lives all the time in sin. It takes courage and an end to slavery. Even if at first you need to suffer, then in the end result we will gain true freedom of spirit. Then life will become much easier and more pleasant.
Song 6
He continues to talk about the adventures of Moses, who sought to lead the people out of Egyptian slavery. People do not have much faith to tolerate a little wandering in the name of a good goal. So we all need at the same time. We need to believe in the Lord and ask for forgiveness, and then we can free our soul from the slavery of sins.
Song 7
The song of the great canon of St. Andrew of Crete tells us how we repeat the sins and passions of biblical characters, but do not have the strength and desire to follow the great martyrs. Our body attempts to commit sinful acts, such as adultery, without thinking about the consequences for the soul.
Song 8
The eighth song tells about people who could find the strength in themselves to repent and accept the Lord in their souls. So Andrei calls us to renounce the sinful past life and go towards God. At the end of the eighth song, the outcome of the Old Testament is summarized - you must not repeat the sins of the biblical characters and strive to live like the righteous of this Holy Scripture.
Song 9
In the ninth song, the canon of St. Andrew of Crete gives comparisons from the New Testament. As Jesus resisted the temptation of Satan in the wilderness, so we must fight all kinds of temptations. Christ began to work miracles on earth, thereby showing that everything in this world is possible. The main thing is to believe and live according to the covenants of the Lord, and then our soul can be saved on the day of judgment.
Wednesday
On Wednesday, 9 songs are also being read. Since the first days of the creation of the world, there have been people who praised the Lord our God for their deeds. Andrew calls on people to repent of their sins and become like those saints in everyday life. Glorify the name of the Lord by doing things worthy of him. Also remembered in the songs are great sinners who turned their backs on God, gave preference to material goods, or succumbed to the temptation to try the forbidden fruit. The Lord punished them according to their deserts for their deeds. So our soul after death awaits the day of judgment, on which it will not be possible to lie, it will not be possible to hide its atrocities with some imaginary excuses. Therefore, Andrew calls on us to repent during life, ask the Lord for the forgiveness of sins and strive to change our actions for the better. Learn to resist temptation. This is nothing complicated. Just remaining a person, you will see that most of the covenants of the Lord indicate to live without jealousy and gluttony, without betrayal and desire to get someone else's.
Thursday
On this day of Great Lent, the last part of the canon is read. As in previous songs, virtues are sung and condemned the sins of mankind that have been committed over the centuries. Also in this part they cry out to the Lord, Jesus, the Virgin Mary with a request to forgive the sins and give the opportunity to repent.
Also, the canon of St. Andrew of Crete teaches us to admit our mistakes, not to seek blame for a bad life in those around us. Accept your sin as a proven fact. But this does not mean that it’s worth reconciling. On the contrary, pleading guilty is the first step to forgiveness. If we stop now, we have a chance of eternal life after death.
It is when the canon of Andrew of Crete is read, in Great Lent, that we have the opportunity to realize our sins and begin a new life. A life that will be pleasing to God. Then humanity will be able to feel grace, peace, and with a calm soul, wait for the day of judgment.