Слово на Святую Пятидесятницу. Святого Григория Богослова, архиепископа Константинопольского

Let's talk a little about the real holiday, so that we can celebrate it spiritually... We (Christians) celebrate as the Holy Spirit pleases, and He wants us to either say or do something good. This is precisely what our celebration consists of, i.e., in acquiring constant and eternal benefits for the soul, and not transitory and perishing ones, which little delight the feeling, but rather corrupt it and harm it. His body is overwhelmed by his malice. (Is it necessary to add more combustible substance to the flame, or to give the beast abundant food so that it becomes more indomitable and takes power over the mind?..). We celebrate Pentecost, the Descent of the Holy Spirit, the appointed day of promise and together the fulfillment of hope. Oh, what a mystery this is! How great and venerable it is! Now the bodily acts of Christ end (or better, the circumstances related to His coming in the flesh - the Virgin Birth, circumcision, baptism, crucifixion, burial, resurrection, ascension) and the actions of the Holy Spirit begin... The Holy Spirit has always been, and is, and will be. He never received a beginning and never ceased His existence, but is always united with the Father and the Son (for it was not fitting for either the Father to ever be without the Son, or the Son without the Spirit: it would be extremely inglorious for the Divine, as if due to a change in His counsels, to come to the fullness of perfection). So, the Holy Spirit has always been acceptable, and not accepting, - fulfilling, and not being accomplished, - filling, and not being filled, - sanctifying, and not being sanctified, - leading to deification, and not being led into deification. He is always the same, both in Himself and in relation to those with whom he is united: invisible, eternal, inconceivable, unchangeable, intangible, self-moving, ever-moving, free, autocratic, omnipotent. He is life and life-giving, He is light and the giver of light, He is the very goodness and source of goodness, He is the right and sovereign Spirit (Ps. 50:12, 14). He is the Lord who works as He wills (1 Cor. 12:11), dividing gifts, He is the Spirit of sonship (Rom. 8:15), truth (John 14:17), wisdom, understanding, knowledge, godliness, counsel, strength, fear (Isa. 11:3, 4)... Through Him the Father is known and the Son is glorified (John 16:11), and He Himself knows by Them alone: one dignity, service, worship, power, perfection, sanctification. However, why spread the word? Everything that the Father has is also characteristic of the Son, except birth (but these differences do not separate the essence, but are themselves determined by it). The Holy Spirit initially acted in the angelic, heavenly Powers - in those who are first in God and surround Him: for only to the Holy Spirit, and not to anyone else, do they owe their perfection and intractability or complete non-inclination to sin. Then the Holy Spirit acted in the forefathers and prophets, some of whom saw or knew God in images, while others foreknew the future, since the Spirit of God imprinted this on their minds, and they saw what was to come before them as present. After this, the Holy Spirit acted in the Apostles of Christ (I will not say in Christ Himself, in Whom He dwelt not as active, but as an attendant of equal honor), and, moreover, acted in them three times, since they turned out to be capable of receiving Him, and at three different times, i.e., before the glorification of Christ through suffering, after the glorification of Christ through the resurrection, finally, after the ascension of Christ into heaven, or according to the dispensation (Acts 3:21). This action of the Holy Spirit in the Apostles is evidenced by the healing of illnesses and the expulsion of unclean spirits, which they carried out, of course, not without the assistance of the Spirit, also by Christ, after the dispensation of our salvation, a breath that, obviously, was Divine inspiration and, finally, the division of tongues of fire, which we now celebrate. But in the first case, the Holy Spirit did not act openly, in the second - more clearly, and in the last - now - more perfectly, because He no longer acts only as before, but essentially reveals His presence - so to speak, co-abides, cohabits with the Apostles. Since Christ Jesus in the flesh spoke with us, it became proper for the Holy Spirit to appear to us in a bodily form, and when Christ ascended into His glory, it was necessary for the Holy Spirit to descend to us: it was necessary to come, because He is the Lord, and to be sent, because He is not adversary to God. The Holy Spirit comes after Christ so that we will not be left without a Comforter, and is called different so that we would consider them equal in honor (for the word other is put instead of “another self,” which expression does not mean humiliation and dishonor, but participation in domination, sole dominion). Further, the Holy Spirit appears in the form of tongues, because of His affinity with the Word (the Son of God), - in the form of tongues of fire, either because He is purified, or by His very essence, since our God is fire, moreover, a consuming fire (Heb. 12:29) ungodliness; appears in the form of divided tongues due to differences in talents, in the form of sitting tongues, to designate His royal dignity and repose among the saints (for the cherubim are the throne of God); appears in the upper room in order to show that those who wish to receive Him must ascend and strive from the earthly to the heavenly. The prophets preached about the Holy Spirit, as can be seen from the following sayings: The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me (Isa. 61:1); and the Spirit came from the Lord, and instructed them (Isa. 63:14); Fill the spirit of knowledge with Bezaleel, the builder of the tabernacle (Ex. 31:3); The spirit took Elijah in a chariot and was especially asked for by Elisha (2 Kings 2:9, 15); The good and sovereign Spirit establishes and establishes David (Ps. 143:10; 50:14); The Holy Spirit was promised first by Joel, who said: And it shall come to pass in the last days, that I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh (Joel 2:28), that is, those who believe, and subsequently by the Lord Jesus, Who Himself glorifies the Spirit and is glorified by the Spirit in the same way as he glorifies the Father and is glorified by the Father. And how generous is this promise! The Holy Spirit will remain forever - now with those who are now worthy of Him, and after that with those who will be worthy of heavenly blessings, if only we completely preserve Him with our virtuous life, and do not remove Him from ourselves according to our sins. This Spirit assisted the Son both during creation and during the resurrection, as the sayings of Holy Scripture convince us of: By the Word of the Lord the heavens were established, and by the Spirit of His mouth all their power (Ps. 32:6), or after Your Spirit, they will be created and renew the face of the earth (Ps. 103:30); The Spirit of God created me, and the breath of the Almighty taught me (Job 33:4); and again: send Thy Spirit, and they will be created, and renew the face of the earth (Ps. 103:30). This Spirit produces spiritual regeneration: may the testimony of Christ assure you of this: no one can see or receive the kingdom unless one is born again by the Spirit (John 3:3, 5), and from the first birth (which is the mystery of the night) is not cleansed by the daytime and light re-creation, by which each individual is recreated (Ps. 139:16). This Spirit perceives the shepherd of the sheep, creates him as a psalmist and points out in him the king of Israel: remember David; will he eat the goat shepherd who robs the buttocks (Am. 7:14), makes him a prophet: remember Amos; If he accepts a witty youth, even before he reaches adulthood, he makes him a judge of the elders: Daniel, who defeated the lions in the den, testifies to this; if he finds fishermen, Christ catches them, and they embrace the whole world of the seas 102 of his preaching: take as an example Peter and Andrew and the sons of thunder, who spoke about spiritual things; if he finds publicans, he acquires them as disciples: this is proven by Matthew, who was formerly a publican, and then became an evangelist; whether he finds fiery persecutors, jealousy changes and Saul makes Pauls, as zealous for piety as he found them zealous for evil. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of meekness, but also of wrath against those who sin. So, let us strive to experience His meekness and mercy for ourselves, confessing His Divine dignity and avoiding blasphemy against Him, and we will not want to see Him inexorably angry with us. Amen 103. Fishing net. Brockhaus Biblical Encyclopedia. Note electronic edition In short. See the words of St. Grigor. Theologian - handicraft. Moscow Synod, bibliography, VIII–IX centuries. (57/LVIII), l.l. 160 rev. – 166; Wed Created, St. Grigor. Theologian, ed. 1889, Moscow, part IV, pp. 1–17; Christian Read 1831, XLII, pp. 243–269; Church Led. 1897, No. 22. You might be interested in: