Orthodox doctrine determines that prayer is a dialogue between man and God. In Christian practice, prayer addresses to the Mother of God, angels and saints are also common. Regardless of who the petition is addressed to, prayers are divided into three categories according to their main content.
One of the types of prayers in the Christian tradition is the prayer of repentance. Penitential prayer is called upon for a person to ask God to forgive his sins. Christianity claims that there is not a single person on the planet who would live and not sin. Therefore, repentant prayers are relevant and necessary for any Orthodox Christian, regardless of his spiritual level of perfection. Repentance is one of the most important for a person professing Orthodox Christianity.
Another type of prayer in Orthodoxy is a thank-you address to God, the Mother of God, angels or saints. For an Orthodox person, a feeling of gratitude to God should always be inherent. Even the apostle Paul in one of his epistles said that a Christian must always rejoice, constantly pray and give thanks for everything. For a Christian, God is perceived as a Creator and a loving Father, therefore, for the fact that humanity has the opportunity to unite with its Creator in church sacraments, Orthodox people should have a sense of gratitude. In addition, thanksgiving prayers are used after receiving the request from God, the Virgin, angels or saints.
There are also prayer prayers in Christianity. They can be addressed both to God and to other holy personalities. In them, the Christian asks for help in his everyday needs, fulfilling the Savior's covenant that in order to receive the necessary, one must ask. According to the Orthodox doctrine, regardless of the fact that God knows the needs of each person, a Christian should ask for necessary things. It is in this that man’s free will manifests itself in the pursuit of his Creator.
