Being interested in the question of what a church parish is, for a start we will figure out how it differs from a church. People often use the words “parish” and “temple” as synonyms, however, a difference between them still exists. It is believed that the temple is just a building of worship, and the parish is people who come to the temple, who are called so-called parishioners. And they make up the whole community. What the parish is, the Gospel explains very well, in which there are such words spoken by Jesus himself: “Where two or three are gathered in My name, there I am in the midst of them.” This suggests that people go to the temple for worship to communicate with the Lord and with each other.
What are parishes?
The definition must be sought in history. Let's try to figure out how the parishes appeared and what contributed to this. To begin with, until 313, Christianity was banned on the territory of the Roman Empire. True believers gathered secretly for worship in separate places - in caves or houses.
After the end of the persecution for their services, the ancient Christians began to refurbish and consecrate former pagan temples. In this way, the very concept of the parish as the primary structure of the Church and the form of self-organization of church life gradually arises.
Who is a parishioner?
The Bible says that the Church is the mystical body of Jesus Christ, and the parish constitutes the cell of one large organism. A truly believing person should feel his involvement in the Universal Church through just such a community. This involvement is mainly carried out through the sacrament of the Eucharist, where the conversion of bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ takes place (through these holy gifts the Orthodox are united with the Lord), and through Him there is an unification with the whole Ecumenical Church. The very understanding of "being a Christian", first of all, includes participation in the sacrament of the Eucharist.
Mission and Charity
However, parish life is not only worship, it also includes non-church forms of activity - mission and charity. Missionary activity implies the education and upbringing of new members of the community. Behind it comes charity: this is helping the sick and the weak, the elderly, the disabled, orphans and widows.
Worship
You can come to the temple every day, stand in the service and participate in the sacraments, not forgetting about yourself and your salvation, as well as the salvation of your relatives, but you can not remain indifferent and not be interested in what is happening in your community.
It’s hard to call such people members of a ward or community. A true member will be one who recognizes community life as a common cause. This is the Liturgy, which is not only a part of the service circle, it includes everything: church services, missionary work and charity.
In the question of what a parish is, it should also be noted that the parish is not something separate and self-sufficient, it must necessarily be closely connected with the Church.
Church service
Every believer should try to get as deep as possible into the activities of the entire Christian Orthodox Church. Only then can we give the correct answer to the question of what is a parish. And here it is still important to understand that the Church, as the body of Christ, is in its way a huge living organism, in which, in addition to the main organ (heart), other organs must also work - the head of the arm, legs, liver, etc. And if the priest does not preach, then the community does not have a language, if there is no help to relatives, then it is armless, there is no training in the basics of the Christian Orthodox faith - it is headless.
The theme “What is a parish” can be summarized as follows: the church community, the parish is a single whole, a kind of fullness of its kind. And if something is missing, the parish does not fulfill its spiritual functions.