Psychological aspects of preparation for and participation in the sacraments of сonfession and the eucharist in the Orthodox Church

Abstract

This article presents an attempt to understand some of the phenomena and processes associated with the participation of a faithful Orthodox Christian in the sacraments of confession (repentance) and communion, as well as the corresponding prayer practice, from the perspective of a multi-disciplinary approach that includes psychological, theological, and philosophical points of view. Methods of analysis of texts and other sources, depth-psychological interpretation, comparative analysis of psychological concepts, analysis of individual cases, and synthesis are used. The subject of the study is the experiences of an Orthodox Christian believer that accompany sacred communication mediated by preparation for the sacraments of repentance (confession) and communion, as well as prayer practice. The relevance of the work is due to the rapid convergence of science and religion, which in many cases leads to an increased need for a scientific (as far as possible) understanding of certain phenomena related to the religious sphere (this understanding, among other things, performs the function of overcoming possible social conflicts). The practical significance of the work is due, on the one hand, to the need for a number of Orthodox Christian believers to understand the psychological prerequisites and features of preparation for the sacraments of confession and communion as well as participation. On the other hand, this awareness can serve to increase the level of understanding of the phenomenon of Christian faith and the needs of Orthodox Christian believers by atheists and representatives of other faiths. The article also presents a critical comparative analysis of the approach to the studied phenomena from the positions of Orthodox Christian psychology and psychoanalysis. It should be noted that the approach presented in this paper is innovative in that the authors have not found any texts similar to this study in scientific literature.