Слово на Благовещение Пресвятой Девы Богородицы. Св. Исихия, пресвитера Иерусалимского

Every grateful tongue honors the Virgin Mary according to its heritage and imitates in this the chief of the archangels Gabriel. One calls Her the Mother of Light, another - the Star of Life; one is the throne of God, the other is a church wider than the sky; one with a seat no less than the seat of a cherub, the other with an uncultivated vine, a fruitful vine, a pure dove, an imperishable dove, a rain cloud that conceives without decay, the metal from which the Unseen Stone comes, a ship full of cargo that does not need a Pilot. Another - also: the most extensive ark of Noah, the most glorious; that ark is of animals, This is of life; he held Noah, this one held Noah the Creator Himself; that one had two or three roofs, This one is the whole fulfillment of the Trinity, because the Spirit descended, and the Father overshadowed, and the Son dwelt, as it is said: The Holy Spirit will come upon You, and the power of the Most High will overshadow You: in the same way the Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God (Luke 1:35). Do you see how great the dignity of the Virgin Mary is? The Only Begotten Son of God, the Creator of the world, held by Her like a Baby, recreated Adam, sanctified Eve, crushed the dragon, opened paradise, and confirmed the seal of the womb. Truly great (dignity): She opened paradise (for She was to bring there the thief and all the heirs of the kingdom), in Her the seal of virginity was established by God the Word incarnate, Who did not need a door for entry and exit. The prophets lavish praise on you, O Virgin, and everyone calls you God-bearing, who has confirmed the secrets of miracles. And one calls You the rod of Jesse (Isa. 11:1), in order to explain firm and unyielding virginity; another compares it with a bush that burns and does not burn (Ex. 3:18), in order to explain the flesh of the Only Begotten and the Virgin Mary. She burned and did not burn: so You gave birth and did not open the womb, - You conceived and did not damage the loins, - You gave birth to the Child and left the womb sealed, - You gave milk and left the nipples untouched, - You held the Child and did not know his father, - You became a mother, but did not become a bride, - The Son was suckled, but the father was not found. The field bore fruit, but the fruit did not know the farmer; You brought the harvest, but did not receive the seed; You gave birth like a woman, but you did not decay like a woman; You conceived according to the law of nature, but You also conceived apart from the laws of nature. Another called You the closed gate and lying to the east (Ezek. 44:2), and bringing in the King of the closed gates; He also called You the gate that plagues Him, since You became the gate of real life for the Only Begotten. You are the gate to the east: for from Your womb, as from a royal palace, comes the true Light, enlightening every person coming into the world; You brought in the King of the closed gates, but you also drove him out again; without being conceived and without being born at all, the King of glory opened the gates of Your loins, and did not break the bond of virginity. The Bridegroom who came from You called You a captive city and a sealed Fountain and predicted You (Song of Solomon 4:12); A closed garden, because the sickle of corruption, or the time of harvest, did not touch You; A sealed fountain, because the river of life that came from You filled the world, and the bridal branch did not draw from Your source. David never ceases to cry out for You: Arise, O Lord, into Your rest, You and the ark of Your holiness (Ps. 131:8). Resurrect, from where? - from the bosom of the Father, not in order to separate from the Father (it is not legal to think and say this!), but in order to complete the economy determined before centuries and generations. Resurrect in order to raise the fallen, restore the broken, to receive Your creation, which has been tormented by the enemy until now. Rise, O Lord, into Your rest, which You have determined on earth and built in Bethlehem (cave, manger, swaddling clothes): for in heaven You do not need rest; You Yourself are the tranquility of all creation, but on earth you suffer bodily for us (for although You were hungry, You are the bread of life; and although You were thirsty, You are the prayer of those who thirst). Rise, O Lord, into Your rest You and the ark of Your holiness - the Virgin Theotokos. since You are the Sun, it is right that the Virgin is called the sky; since You are an unfading flower, then Virgo is the paradise of immortality. Isaiah, foreseeing this, foretold about Her: behold, a Virgin will conceive and give birth to a Son, and they will call his name Immanuel (Is. 7:14). Se is Virgo. Which? - incomparable among wives, excellent among virgins, a modest adornment of our nature, who delivered us from the shame of Eve and the reproach of Adam, - which the stench of lusts did not touch, and the worm of voluptuousness did not harm. This Virgin is with child. Where from, Prophet? “I will not say,” he says: this was reserved for Gabriel. Many identify the miracles of the Virgin Mary, but many of them are omitted. However, I certify the birth of the Ever-Virgin; Micaiah is the place where the miracle was performed; and David is the time, having said prophetically in the psalm: from the womb before the morning star I gave birth to Thee (Ps. 109:3). So, Gabriel will say: “from where,” since for this he is sent to the Virgin from heaven; he is present at the time of birth and is trusted to explain the manner of birth. If you want to know from me, then turn to the following prophecy: And she will give birth to a Son, and they will call His name Immanuel. What does Emmanuel mean? - “God is with us." Is God conceived from marriage and can be incarnate from a husband and a bed? Not at all, but from the influx of the Most High, from the presence of the Spirit. What did the Virgin say then to Gabriel? How will this be for me, even though I have no husband (Luke 1:34), i.e. “a miracle surprises Me, the word amazes me, and the presence of an angel confuses the Virgin: you tell Me wonderful and suspicious things. I am afraid of the news Annunciation, I am embarrassed by this unusual thing. How will this happen to me, even if I don’t know my husband? How can I become a mother without being a bride? The angel immediately added: The Holy Spirit will come upon You, and the power of the Most High will overshadow You (Luke 1:35), i.e. “If You had known a husband, You would not have given birth to God, who was pleased to take from You the form of a servant, You would not have become an organ of incarnation. But since You are pure from the marriage bed, and since You have kept the church incorruptible, then the Father also descends on You, and the Spirit overshadows You, and the Only Begotten is born carnally from You. So, do not be at all embarrassed, giving birth to the Creator of all creation, - do not be embarrassed, placing Him in a manger, sitting on the ridge of the cherubim, without having a place in the inn, and becoming the mother of the King of the high and low. become a teacher of patience and thanksgiving. The Word is voluntarily placed in a dumb manger, so that people who have become foolish by their own will may receive spiritual dignity from Him, so that (waiting for straw) they may find wheat, so that (like the creatures, thinking to find a handful of oats in the manger), they may taste the true bread, the supper of light, the sweetness of incorruption, from which is the knowledge of the kingdom, the betrothal of adoption, the inheritance of heaven, the communion of the Father and the Son. and the Holy Spirit. To him be glory forever and ever. Amen 136. See Curs. Compl. Patrolog. Migne, Tom. XCIII, col. 1460–1468. You might be interested in: