Слово в праздник Рождества Христова. Святейшего Афанасия II, патриарха Иерусалимского (XIII в.)

Today the angels rejoice in heaven and praise God: for the Divine mystery, hidden from the ages, has been revealed. Today people are rejoicing on earth: for the mediastinum of hostility has collapsed, and eternal peace has come, since the Son of God wanted to be the son of man. Today, wise men from the east of the earth came to worship the King of heaven and earth, and brought Him gifts - gold, frankincense and myrrh: gold meant that He was a king; and Lebanon, that He is God; myrrh, - that for the sake of us, killed by sin, He was dead for three days. Thus the prophecy of David was fulfilled, which said: “The kings of Tarsh and the islands will bring gifts, the kings of Arabia and Sheba will give gifts, and all the kings of the earth will worship Him, all nations will serve Him” (Ps. 72:10-11). Today the star predicted the Sun of Truth. But where? Is it not in heaven, where is the throne of glory? No; and in the den of Bethlehem, which is in the city of Judah, over the manger of the dumb. Oh, the greatest and unspoken mystery! How does He who sits on the cherubim with the Father and the Holy Spirit descend into such a poor state that it becomes human, and is born in the manger of dumb animals? He who dresses in light, like a robe, wraps himself in wretched shrouds in order to free us from the bonds of sin, and, surrounded by thousands of thousands of angels and archangels, today appears in the den of Bethlehem only with Mary His Mother and Her betrothed Joseph? O Bethlehem, holy land! How can I express your glory, for the sake of which the Lord Christ was humiliated, while before this you were unknown even in the opinion of your inhabitants; when the Son of God was born in you, then your name and your glory were heard in all the ends of the universe? Moreover, the Godfather David prophesied about you, saying: the glorious word was spoken about you, the city of God (Ps. 87:3); Micah also prophesied: “And you, Bethlehem, land of Judah, you are no less in the domain of Judah, for from you will come a Leader who will shepherd my people Israel” (Micah 5:2). Oh, the all-holy nativity scene! How did you accommodate Him whose throne is heaven and whose foot is earth, and who is everywhere and fills everything? Oh, dear manger! How did you receive the One who touches the mountains and they smoke? Today the shepherds of the foolish sheep recognized the good Shepherd of the wise sheep, and preached the salvation of all who live in the universe. Today angels and men united, and rejoicingly praised God, saying: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men!” Today the prophecy of Habakkuk and Isaiah has been fulfilled. Isaiah said: Behold, the Virgin will conceive and give birth to a Son, and they will call his name Immanuel, as we say, God is with us (Isaiah 7:14); and again: A son was born to us, and was given to us, and his rulership was on his side, and his world had no end, and his name was called: great angel of counsel, wonderful, counselor, mighty God, ruler, prince of peace, Father of the age to come (Is. 9:6). Habakkuk prophesied: in the midst of two animals you will know, sometimes, when you come closer in the summer, you will know (Habakk 3:2). Today, all creation, visible and invisible, mysteriously brought gifts to this celebration, the first heaven - the angels who praised God: glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will towards men - and the second heaven - the star that led the kings of the earth to the den and manger; The kingdoms of the earth presented to Him the Magi, the female sex - the Virgin Mary, and the male sex - Joseph and the shepherds. Today we must, O host of believing sons of baptism, must rejoice in spiritual joy, and bring love to Him instead of gold, for this is what the holy book teaches: “as gold is more valuable than all riches, so love is more valuable than all virtues”; and instead of the frankincense - the prayer: “may my prayer be corrected, like incense before You, Lord”; instead of myrrh - mortification of passions, for this is what the Apostle Paul says: put to death your evils that are on the earth, fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil lust and covetousness, which is idolatry (Colossians 3:5). So, let us celebrate this holiday, as the holy apostles teach us, saying: “Christians should spend holidays in vigils, prayers, psadmonies and spiritual songs” (Colossians 3:16). The Christian people need to stand in churches with the fear of God and tenderness, and the time of prayer should not be made a time of talking, but with a pure heart, ask God for forgiveness of sins. For the church is the earthly heaven; and anyone who mocks it during prayer arouses the wrath of God, as the holy apostles expressed in their commandments. In addition, they commanded us that bodily food should be without satiety and drunkenness, for overeating and drinking give rise to lustful thoughts, and from such thoughts sin is heard; when a person commits a sin, then God removes him from the kingdom of heaven and condemns him to eternal torment where the fire does not go out, and the worm does not die, and the cold does not warm up: there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. But the kingdom of heaven and eternal life and eternal blessings will be inherited by the one who shuns evil and does good. But since we are weak and sin at all times with our five senses, it is necessary for us to confess our sins before God and before our spiritual mentors, and diligently fulfill the penance assigned by them, for this is what Scripture says: “If we confess our sins, then God will forgive them to us.” Moreover, we will ask the Virgin Mary and all the saints to pray for us to the Lord Christ. We, gathered here together, men and women, old and young, cry out unanimously with the Archangel Gabriel to the Virgin: “Rejoice, full of grace, the Lord is with you; Blessed are You among women and blessed is the fruit of Your womb. Rejoice, mystical rod, which grew from the root of Jesse and brought forth the flower of life, Christ our God. Rejoice, holy ark, bearing the Giver of the law of the new covenant. Rejoice, all-golden stamna, who received the Divine manna, which is the bread of life that came down from heaven and fed the souls of those who believed in Him. Rejoice, most honorable and most glorious of angels and archangels. Rejoice, You are the only Virgin who milked the One who nourishes all flesh. Rejoice, joy of the angels. Rejoice, glory of the righteous. Rejoice, mediator between God and people. Rejoice, surety for sinners. Rejoice, praise to the whole universe. Oh, Virgin Mary, pray to Your only begotten first-born Son, our Lord and God Jesus Christ, for us sinners and the poor and weak, that He may grant us to hear His sweet and joyful voice, saying: Come, blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world (Matthew 25:34); let us glorify Him with the good Father and His All-Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen 78. See “The First Journey of the Right Reverend Porfiry to the Athos Monasteries and Hermitages.” Part 2. Appendices to the second section of this part. Moscow, 1881, pp. 218–220. You might be interested in: