It is wonderful for an Orthodox person to start the morning with prayer. It is especially useful to attend the morning worship service in the temple. In large cathedrals, as a rule, two services are held in the morning.
The tradition of early Christian worship
Since the early centuries of Christianity, the morning has been considered an auspicious time for prayer. A person who wakes up after a night's rest must turn to God with prayers before the beginning of the coming day. In the history of Christian worship, matins (prayer in the morning) could begin with the appearance of the first rays of the sun, followed by a liturgy, after which the faithful received communion of the holy mysteries of the body of Christ. On major holidays, the service in the temple was held at night on the eve of the solemn event. The all-night vigil lasted for several hours, and by dawn the liturgy began. Now this practice is very rare. Only on Christmas, Easter and Epiphany does the service begin at night. On weekdays, Vespers with Matins is held in the evening, and the Liturgy begins the next day in the morning.
What time do morning services begin in modern churches
Depending on the day of the week, the status of the temple, and the total number of clergy serving in it, morning worship can begin at different times. In large cathedrals, where services are held daily, on weekdays the liturgy usually begins at 8 or 9 am. There are liturgical periods when it is not supposed to celebrate the Eucharist (Great Lent, except Wednesday and Friday, Holy Week until Thursday). At this time, a Matins service is held in churches, which can begin at 7 o'clock in the morning. In monasteries, an even earlier start of serving God is practiced, since the duration of Matins or Liturgy is much longer.
In church liturgical practice, it is ascribed to celebrate the Liturgy no later than 12 noon. In order to finish by this time, the service begins at 8 or 9 o'clock in the morning. However, there are separate indications that if the liturgy begins with the evening liturgy, then the Eucharist can be celebrated even later. This happens on the eve of the feasts of the Nativity of Christ and the Epiphany. The usual time for the beginning of the morning service in the parish church is nine hours after midnight.
I would especially like to note that in large cathedrals and temples with numerous clergy, on Sundays and holidays, the Liturgy can be served twice in the morning. So, the first liturgy is called early and begins at about 6 or 7 in the morning. During this time, a person can visit the church before the start of the working day (if it is a church holiday that falls on a weekday), confess and receive the Holy Gifts. After that, with a feeling of spiritual joy from communion with God, the believer can go to work.
The second morning liturgy is called late and usually begins at 9 am. A special place in the liturgical practice of the Church is occupied by services in which the ruling bishop takes part. The Liturgy at the episcopal service is a separate meeting of the bishop and the service itself. In such cases, the beginning of the service can take place at 9.30.
