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Letter 370 371 372 373 374 375 376 377 378 379 380 381 382 383 384 385 386 387 388 389 390 391 392 393 394 395 396 397 398 399 400 401 402 403 404 405 406 407 408 409 410 411 412 413 414 415 416 417 418 419 420 421 422 423 424 425 426 427 428 429 430 431 432 433 434 435 436 437 438 439 440 441 442 443 444 445 446 447 448 449 450 451 452 453 454 455 456 457 458 459 460 461 462 463 464 465 466 467 468 469 470 471 472 473 474 475 476 477 478 479 480 481 482 483 484 485 486 487 488 489 490 491 492 493 494 495 496 497 498 499 500 501 502 503 504 505 506 507 508 509 510 511 512 513 514 515 516 517 518 519 520 521 522 523 524 525 526 527 528 529 530 531 532 533 534 535 536 537 538 539 540 541 542 543 544 545 546 547 548 549 550 551 Letter 370. To NN. Explanation of communion on the twelve feasts. Must stick to one spiritual advisor God's mercy be with you! I don't see that the Reverend. Joseph placed Holy Communion on you. Mysteries on the twelve feasts, as an urgent rule. He only gave you advice and blessed you for this, and you have done well if you do this when there are no obstacles, with due preparation and a cleared conscience. Listen to the advice of the priest of God, Fr. Ioanna N. You wrote to me in vain. You should have asked your confessor, of course Fr. John. Seeking advice here and there is frowned upon. An adviser to everyone, appointed by God, a confessor, who is usually a parish priest. God bless you! Save yourself! Letter 371. About the same thing and instructions on victory over self-indulgence and the narrow path of self-sacrifice God's mercy be with you! I wrote to you about communion on the twelve feasts, of course, because you had a question about that. Now you write that this is not feasible for you. There was nothing to ask! Then you talk about your shortcomings, which all stem from the fact that you lack the determination to deny yourself anything, and that self-indulgence reigns in you. And yet you verbally express your desire for salvation and ask for advice on how to lead your life in order to be saved? You see for yourselves that for your salvation you must overcome self-indulgence, as the Savior commanded: if anyone wants to follow Me, let him deny himself. When you do this, then you won’t even have a question about how to live in order to be saved! For it will be clear and realized that you cannot be saved except by following the path of self-sacrifice. This is the narrow path leading to the stomach. Then I ask you: do you know the commandments? I hear the answer: I know. So fulfill the commandments and you will be saved! There is no other way, and this is the word of the Savior. Ask for forgiveness of all sins. Your spiritual father will pronounce this good for you. Consider your whole life, check for yourself all your sins, according to the instructions of the commandments, and sincerely confess them to your spiritual father, with contrition and tears and a vow to abstain from all sin, great and small. How to overcome self-indulgence and decide to take the path of self-sacrifice? If you do not deny yourself and continue to follow the wide path, then, as the Savior said, you will fall through the wide gates to hell. It's inevitable. “Then put yourself in the moment of dying, when all that remains for you is death, and then judgment on your life. Just imagine what word you will hear (from the Judge God): come or go. If you truly feel this, then you will rise up as if scorched by fire, and there will be no room for self-indulgence. But you have to keep yourself in such fear constantly. I'll attach one. There is no need for you to write so far with questions. Decide everything with your spiritual father and ask him to be strict with you. This is an urgent commandment for you. Letter 372. Blessing to one who has entered a new place of ministry with instruction in piety. Answer about family and choosing a confessor God bless your new place of ministry. It is a great happiness for you that you can go to the church of God - the house of our God. With this doing, it will not be difficult for you to harmonize everything else: table, sleep, mutual communication, wandering of the senses: eyes, ears, taste, smell and touch, more than the tongue, and give to those who ask if possible; be friendly, meek, respectful to everyone, compliant, and not over-judgmental. Let the fear of God and the memory of death reign within you. Communion to St. As it should be, do not miss the Mysteries of Christ, but always with preparation. Should you take your family in? I can't solve this. But according to the usual order, the gander is always with the goose and goslings. So, if your position is strong here, I think you can transfer your family to your place. It will be more fun and warm for you all. And take your son from Moscow to you. It will be better for him. There are many activities at the factory; Maybe there will be something for him, or one that will work near you. How can I indicate a confessor without knowing anyone? Choose for yourself. If you do not decide, then act like the Apostles, when choosing an Apostle instead of the fallen Judas, either by lot, or talk with those who know these priests. Salvation can be accomplished in any situation. The main thing is to have a good mood in the heart. And according to it, adjust both your physical and external life. May the Lord give you understanding. Letter 373. To P.S. Thoughts on the death of S-on O-cha and consolation to those mourning him Lord rest the soul of the deceased servant of God S. The path is perfect; the traveler joyfully enters his home. The voyage is over; the unnecessary boat was broken and abandoned, and the swimmer went with the purchased goods to the King of the great city in order to receive due honor and profits with interest. And we are sitting here. There is a fable that a peacock with its feathers was magnified over another bird without such feathers. And when the need to fly came, that bird flew away, but the peacock remained in place, only looking at its backside. It seems? S.O. flew to the sky, and we are sitting here. Well, what should we do now, cry or something else? I think I should be happy for S-na O-cha. Glory to Thee, Lord! He will no longer toil on this boring and miserable earth. Maybe you need to cry for yourself? Not worth it! Are there many left here? In a day or two we’ll go there ourselves. I have always been of the opinion that we should not wear mourning for the dead, but festive attire, and not sing mournful songs, but serve a grateful prayer service. Everything has been turned upside down for us. That the remains of the body of the deceased should be given some respect is absolutely fair. But why do we treat this body as if it were a living person? You have to be surprised. The Lord is all alive. And S-O-ch is alive. What a fine fellow he is, what a handsome man! How clean and bright! If you had a look, you'd be staring at it. And we, having looked at his body enough: it was bluish, his eyes were sunken, and so on. imagine him like this. This self-deception is what tears the heart apart. In order not to tear your heart apart, you need to dispel this deception. Then a damp, gloomy grave will come to mind. Alas! Poor S-n O-ch! And he is in a bright place, in a state of complete joy, free from all connections. Lovely, how good he feels. To complete the grief, we think: he died, he’s gone. And he didn’t even think about stopping being. And everything is the same as it was yesterday on the eve of death, only he was worse, and now he is better. Not seeing him is not a loss. He's right there. Those who have departed are as fast as thought. I think that S-n O-ch is looking over my shoulder as I write and truly approves of everything. Then he will flutter towards you now. And if he sees that you are frowning, he will shake his head. Here, he will say, are wise men. They don’t see anything and don’t want to see anything. I am writing all this to console you, and especially E.V. We need to rework our ideas and consolation will be with us. Well, it’s impossible not to cry a little and not be sad. But with the power of imagination you can overcome, calm down and completely drive away grief. Mother E-ta V-na, S-n O-ch is with you, only in a different way. Please believe this and stop pushing hard. May the Lord comfort you all! I ask for prayers. Letter 374. To Mrs. N. About walking in the presence of God and general moral lessons We have the Lord the Savior, the All-Merciful, always ready to help. Turn the eyes of your mind and heart to Him. Can't go to church? Pray at home. Learn to walk in the presence of God, that is, to constantly remember God, the Omnipresent and All-Seeing, and to behave in thoughts, feelings and deeds as it should be in the eyes of God. And keep this one occupation until your consciousness merges with the thought of God. If you succeed in this, then you will not need any outside instructions. The fear of God will come and everything will begin to be arranged. Read the Gospel and the Epistles of the Apostles, a little every day, with reflection and application to yourself. Conduct yourself strictly; be merciful to others and humble yourself before everyone. Don't offend anyone, and when you are offended, thank them. Do not condemn anyone, consider everyone a saint, and consider yourself only a sinner. God bless you and your son! Letter 375. To NN. When asked about entering a monastery You can be saved everywhere, and salvation does not come from a place or from the external environment, but from your inner mood. If faith is alive, if there are no sins that separate from God and extinguish God’s grace, if communion with St. the church and the fulfillment of everything churchly is strong and faithful and zealous; then your state is saved, all that remains for you is to observe and preserve yourself in this order of life, remaining in the memory of God and death and always keeping a contrite and humble feeling in your soul. With such a mood, you will be saved both in a monastery and without a monastery. It is better to save yourself in a monastery; but whether this is better for you, someone else could tell you, but I can’t. Attach a prayer so that the Lord will definitely show you what to do. The Lord is near, loves everyone and wants everyone to be saved. He will not despise your prayer. Just pray with all your heart. Do not deny monasticism. Say that you are invited, looking at your monastic life (among the world). Therefore, when you enter a monastery to become a monk, you will not perceive something new, but something that is already familiar to you. There is only one addition: everything should no longer be of one’s own free will. But although this is sometimes difficult, it has the advantage that everything done this way is more favorable to God and has a greater influence on the moral system. May the Lord arrange your path as it pleases Him and is salvific for you. Put yourself into His hands and He will create. God comes unnoticed. Your good friend E. Feofan. June 10, 1888 Letter 376. Blessing and encouragement for those entering the monastery I'm very glad that a place is opening up for you. God bless! He Himself gives it to you. So with God! Enter into action with courage. Do not be afraid of work and do not be afraid of difficulties. Patience is required in every work and in every service, and without it there is no success anywhere. God will also bless you to accept the monastic robe (ryassophore). And try from now on to reveal the real nun in yourself. Twenty (20) rubles are being sent to you. Letter 377. Instructions to a woman who entered the monastery about the position of a teacher and about prayer So your situation is completely established. May the Merciful Lord bless him! Get ready to carry out your service (as a teacher in a monastery school) with all attention, diligence and fear as a task personally imposed on you by the Lord Himself. Let it be the first object of your prayers and your desires. Put everything behind him, because in his fulfillment your salvation lies. This work is a part of the Apostolic ministry and a continuation of their work of preaching to children. Would you like to have a prayer rule? Good wish. And your previous rule is good; but once you’ve gotten out of the habit of it, here’s something new. In the evening and morning, perform morning prayers and prayers for sleep. Attach short prayers to them - 24 St. St. John Chrysostom o that are among the prayers for sleep, repeating each 5 times. Then call upon all the saints: apostles, prophets, saints, martyrs and martyrs, reverend fathers and reverend mothers, and all those who have pleased God in every way. This is in general, but by name: the Lord Jesus Christ, the Mother of God, the Guardian Angel, the saint whose name you bear, the saints of whom there are thrones in the monastery; saints, revered by you, according to your circumstances, such as St. Tikhon, and others. Conclude by remembering the living and the dead for whom you pray. Mother of the abbess and sisters. Never pronounce prayers hastily, but not in a hurry, with thoughts and feelings that are expressed in the prayers being read. Before starting prayer, always prepare a little, collecting your thoughts and trying to place your attention before the Lord, to whom you are beginning to pray. Let the main disposition be one of prayer and repentance, for we all sin a lot. A broken spirit, a contrite and humble heart, God will not despise. According to every rule, pray for your sins, in which you sin. What should we try to achieve through prayer? So that the heart is warmed with love for God and the feeling for God does not go away. For this purpose the Jesus Prayer is prescribed: “Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me, a sinner.” Repeat this prayer more often and get the hang of it so that your tongue repeats it on its own. Please know that to succeed in prayer, you must try to decorate your heart with all the virtues, especially: humility, contrition, submission and rejection of your own will. We must establish faith that God sees and hears everything, and knows all our secrets. Why do you need to pay attention to yourself and tear away all the bad things, and as soon as they appear in thoughts or feelings, immediately spew them out, and immediately repent and ask for forgiveness. Do you have any of my books? Tell. I'll send you what you need. E. Feofan. September 20, 1892 Letter 378. When sending books, instructions are given to her about sorrows and the prayer rule You have a lot of sorrows. I regret that this is the case. But there is nothing to help this except patience, with trust in the mercy of God. Everything is from God - both pleasant and unpleasant. We must give thanks for everything. For even unpleasant things are sent for good: for purification, for humility, for strengthening good character and trust in God. There is no need to grumble. Endure this time, brighter days will come. Be grateful. How to read the prayers of the saints. Chrysostom? (24 in evening prayers for sleep). Read them before the prayer so that your attention is concentrated. But repeat mentally at all times. This is the best way to train yourself to remember God; and this remembrance is the basis of spiritual life. Bow down from the waist, and sometimes even to the ground. Say the Jesus Prayer every time and completely: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner!” and half: “Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me!” “Jesus Son of God, have mercy on me!” – This great prayer, the most important of the short ones, must be repeated more often, sometimes in full, sometimes in parts. Should the canon be read to the Guardian Angel? Read. And when you are weak or have a lot to do, instead of reading the canon, offer a short prayer to it: “O Angel of God, my holy guardian, pray to God for me, a sinner,” 50, with bows as desired (i.e. bow to the ground or from the waist). This can (i.e., short prayers) replace all canons. But attention must be kept not on words alone, but with corresponding thoughts and feelings. Work in prayer. She is a source of consolation, enlightened thoughts and affirmation of good character. I am sending you books: one copy of “The Invisible Warfare”, I am enclosing for Mrs. N. - I suppose there are several small brochures. You can distribute it to whoever you want. Books: “The Path to Salvation” – 1, Letters about Christians. Lives – 1, Invisible warfare –2, About repentance, confession... – 1, Collection of ascetic writings – 1, Lessons from the teacher. Simeon the Reverent – ​​2, brochures: 5 teachings. about the path to salvation, 2 words about baptism, 7 words about perfect conversion, 3 words about bearing the cross, 4 words about prayer, inspiration for patience, driving away heaps, about the eternity of torment, examples of writing down thoughts. God's blessing to Mrs. N., Fr. Protodeacon and Mother Abbess. Bishop Feofan. November 8, 1892 Letter 379. K o. N. Rule of short prayers bbsp; God's mercy be with you! Your prayer rule, due to weak eyesight, you can limit to time and an hour, as you do, is enough for it. Instead of reading prayers in prayer books, you can pray with short prayers. This thing is as follows: choose for yourself short prayers, according to your spiritual needs, about three, four or five dozen, memorize them and repeat them on the rule 5 and 10 times each, as they do with the Jesus Prayer, trying in every possible way so that the thoughts and feelings expressed by the prayers go inseparably with the words of the prayer. Work like this for an hour, and that’s enough. The main thing is that every prayer spoken comes from the heart. To do this, when memorizing, you need to think deeply about them. The content of prayers should be: doxology, thanksgiving, petition and especially repentance. Such prayers need to be selected. Sit down, read the psalms, and whatever verse falls on your heart, write it down. Then take the Octoechos, which all consists of tender appeals to God, choose the appeals that suit you and write them down. You can also learn from prayer books. There will be a lot. Choose from this the one that is most suitable for you, and pray these prayers. An example of short prayers can be seen in the 24 prayers of St. Chrysostom, which are placed in a series of prayers for the future sleep. You can now memorize them, think about them, feel them, and use them. It is clear that Chrysostom prayed with them. Convert the petitionary litany into short prayers, like this: the day (or night, evening) is perfect, holy, peaceful and sinless, grant me, Lord, and the other 6 prayers. Take from: “God have mercy on me” verses – to “reward me with the joy of salvation.” All these verses are deeply repentant. Here's the rule for the first time. Then you can select more prayers that suit your needs. Remember that it is not words that pray to God, but the mind and heart. Therefore, never pray with words alone. In the book “Invisible Warfare”, short prayers are mentioned. See the chapters on prayer. E. Feofan. April 4, 1891 Letter 380. In explanation of the parable of the unrighteous overseer You and I are not the first and we are not the last to stumble before the parable of the unrighteous steward. And the matter can be very simple. Only God does not give vision to the intelligent. Remaining with only our means, we turn the difficulty around, now from one side, now from the other, and we are left with almost nothing to do with it, however, with the thought that everything possible has been done for us, and that’s enough for us. You remember that you read my thoughts for each day, and the explanation of the parable of the unrighteous taskmaster. This explanation is not the same as that which is partly contained in the said “thoughts!” But if not the same, but different from this, and yet still mine, then you had a lengthy interpretation of this parable, compiled by me a long time ago, it seems in the late sixties, and published in one magazine - the Wanderer. If so, then I won’t tell you anything more except: read there again and again. It says everything that my head has reached, and don’t be angry at anything more. But if this is not so, and by your word “explanation of the parable” you mean only the idea of ​​the book: “Thoughts for every day,” then it would be good for you to attack that magazine article and read it. I don’t have these numbers, I sent them to the Athos monks in Moscow, because they had the intention of reprinting it separately and publishing it. I will write you some of what is written there. But my memory is useless and this something will be insignificant. I am amazed at the bewilderment of the words of the Lord: make for yourselves friends from mammon of unrighteousness... so that when you become poor, you will be received into eternal shelter (Luke 16:9). It is no wonder to create others in this way, but for this reason it is hardly possible to end up in eternal shelters. For everything there is from the Lord, and He will not tolerate even the slightest shadow of untruth. And the work of making friends through the mammon of unrighteousness will be in vain. But the text still contains the mammon of untruth as a means to acquiring eternal shelter. Obviously, the whole point lies in understanding who the mammon of untruth is, who gives fruit not at all according to her nature. You heard in Moscow that this bewilderment is resolved by admitting the assumption that the translation here is not correct. But the translation is correct and has never presented any difficulties. All translations contain mammon of untruth. And you rightly noted that this way does not eliminate the difficulty, but at the same time gives rise to the idea of ​​​​inaccuracy of translation, which is very dangerous. It is necessary to restrain the mammon of untruth and recognize the fidelity of the translation and find an idea in solving the bewilderment that satisfies at least a little. You suggested that the Savior did not understand the tax collectors who acquired wealth through obvious untruths, recognized by all, and in his saying suggested a way for them to get rid of eternal destruction? This thought is permissible, although the parable and all the speech about it were addressed to the disciples (Luke 16:1). For everyone listened to the Lord. Let us accept this thought and, expanding its application, let us assume that the Savior did not have specific individuals in mind, but meant everyone in general, of every kind and time, who are rich, who realize that their wealth is either all, or in some parts, unrighteous. A general way is proposed to avoid eternal disaster for all unrighteous rich people. This is how it will stand during the Savior’s speech. The unrighteous bailiff, seeing that he had been convicted and was in extreme trouble to fall into a poor state, managed to get out of this trouble, however, in an unjust way. But his owner, recognizing his trick, praised him for cleverly managing his business. The Savior explained that there was nothing to marvel at. This is how light stands, that the sons of this age are wiser than the sons of light, in their generation, in the circle of their deeds, in their spirit. But He immediately turned His thoughts to the sons of light, who still have to be such, without actually being in their family. Among these seekers, others may be in a similar comparative position as the unrighteous bailiff, that is, in the position of those who have unjustly acquired property, realizing that there is no salvation for them and wanting to know how to get rid of the misfortune of condemnation for unrighteous wealth. - This is the way the Savior shows them, saying: I also tell you. That wrong guard managed to escape from trouble according to the spirit and methods of this age. And I offer you a way to get rid of trouble not according to this spirit of the age, but according to other laws: “make for yourselves friends from the mammon of unrighteousness.” Turn your unjust wealth into a way of acquiring friends not of this century, but of the next, and they will accept you into eternal homes. The wrong steward in this century made friends for himself with unjust wealth, but you will gain friends for the century to come, for that reason the steward acquired shelter only for this age, but you will receive shelter for eternal ages. He acquired friends in the wrong way, but you will gain them in the right way, blessed from above, and therefore valuable from the Lord Himself - the distributor of eternal blood. Zacchaeus later, acting in this way, was recognized by the Lord as a child of Abraham. It seems that one can reconcile with such an explanation. Here all the words remain in their meaning and allegory is not introduced into interpretation. It seems that this was the very purpose of the parable. You can also accept this idea: in the words of the Savior, wealth itself is called mammon of untruth, despite the method of acquiring it. Wealth is a mammon of untruth because it itself is wrong in its nature: it lives by deceit, deceives with false hopes, and most importantly, by deceiving in the eyes. He offers enormous amounts of benefits, but when you look around, there is nothing left, everything is scattered like dust. The Savior proposes to turn the impermanence of wealth into something eternally valuable and obtainable: distribute it to the poor, through this it will become your eternal wealth and will constitute your eternal wealth. High minds adhered to this idea of ​​wealth: Blessed Augustine, Ambrose of Milan, and, it seems, Gregory the Great. I promised to write you something and I did. May the Lord bless you with every blessing. Be wise in your knowledge of the sacred objects of Divine revelation. The Lord of minds be your helper. I wish you all the best, joyful, soul-saving things. Letter 381. Bibliographic review of the saint about “Letters on Christian Life”, “The Path to Salvation” and his other books With you and your friend, I thank the Lord, who has illuminated your soul with the light of God’s truth about Christ Jesus. May the Lord confirm you more and more in this truth and life as it demands. Both you and your friend assure that my books “Letters on the Christian Life” and “The Path to Salvation” have helped you a lot. In themselves, these books do not have scientific merit and are a simple exposition of Christian life, as it should be according to the teaching of the Lord, St. Apostles and St. pastors and teachers of the Church. Perhaps this simplicity allowed the truth of God to enter the heart, and, having entered the heart, it took possession of it and made a revolution in it. The Lord is everywhere, and wants to save everyone, and immediately enters the heart as soon as he manages to open it with something. Just as you both began to be enlightened by the truth from my books, look for the continuation of this science there too. In “Letters on the Christian Life” and “The Path to Salvation,” active Christianity is depicted quite fully. They were born in the forties and published in the sixties. They are now like strangers to me; I forgot everything from long ago. But they contain pure truth. I was then, as I wrote, a mentor in St. Petersburg. Theological Academy for Moral Theology. The “letters” contain these lessons. These letters were approached later - “Letters about what spiritual life is and how to establish oneself in it”; “Letters on Spiritual Life” regarding Speransky’s letters on the same subject; – “Letters to various persons about various subjects of faith and Christian life”; “Thoughts for every day of the year according to church readings,” and similar short thoughts generated by themselves when reflecting on Christian life. And there is something else. And the printing and distribution of these books was undertaken by the Athonite elders (Athos Chapel, on Nikolskaya Street in Moscow). I am writing all this to you and your friend so that you know where to get books to supplement your knowledge about faith and life - all in one spirit. I will also note that “Letters on Christian Life” was first published in four editions, in four books. But they were recently published in a different form: Issues three and four make up the book - Inscription of the Chronicle. moralizing. Issues one and two make up the book proper, Letters on the Christian Life, with the same addition. The previous addition to the second issue is ascetic lessons learned from (lists of) fatherlanders of the monastery of St. Savva, near Jerusalem, was published in a special book with this title. The Mark contains something new versus what was contained in the previous issues 3 and 4. I am writing to you all about books because you did not propose any question in your letter, and that I am writing about my books is because I don’t know where else everything related to Christian life could be more fully depicted. Other writers would have written better, but they were preoccupied with other (questions) subjects, and not those about which you and I are seeking knowledge. Ep. Feofan. January 20, 1893 Letter 382. A good mood teaches you to benefit from everything. One thing you need. Grief and prayer for the lost. About trust in the Lord and about your complete seclusion I don’t remember what you wrote and what I answered you, and when. But as a result, apparently, it was not bad, then thank God! I'm not good at writing engagingly; but, I believe, your good mood, either accidental or constant, gave you the opportunity to find something beneficial for you in a simple word. May God grant you to always be in a good mood; then from everything you will draw edification and support for yourself. Learn this in the books of St. Tikhon - a treasure collected from the world; what an abundance of spiritual wisdom there is! It is good that you willingly read spiritual books. But usually a lot is written, but there is only one need: to unite heartily with the Lord and not depart from Him either in thought or feeling. Imitate St. to the prophet who says: I have seen the Lord before me, as he is at my right hand, so that I will not be moved. Behold the eye of God established over your heart and seeing everything in it. From here will come reverent fear of God, attention to oneself, rejection of all unkind thoughts and feelings, and remaining in sobriety. If the Lord gives you the habit of standing before God, then you will not need any lessons. This alone will teach you everything. God bless you in time for this. Your grief for your relatives who are dying and your prayer for them are pleasing to God. If everything has not gone out for them and there is something to instill in them, both your prayer and God’s favor towards them, then they will come to their senses, see the light of God and follow the path of God. Pray more heartily. Your benevolent prayer will resonate in their souls and awaken crushing thoughts. For there is communion of souls. Thinking about yourself, you lament the past and fear for your powerlessness; Always attach to this the hope of salvation. For we have the Lord the Savior, who only cares about the organization of salvation for every believer, that salvation, the foundation of which He Himself laid. He Himself laid the foundation of the salvation of all, He Himself applies it to everyone. Believe and surrender all of yourself to the Lord. You would like to go to the Highest. The gates of our monastery are open to everyone; my doors are locked to everyone. I cannot accept anyone, and I do not accept. I wish you all the best from the Lord. E. Feofan. February 26, 1893 Letter 383. Those who have turned from error are given advice to admonish others and books are sent that guide them in denouncing the Stundists and other sectarians Thanks be to the Lord, who freed you from the snares of the devil. Stand now and bravely resist all enemy attacks. God bless you and may He be your everlasting helper! But you also need to bear fruit. Which? - Circumstances have already indicated it to you. Having been enlightened by the grace of God and having seen the light of truth, now work to enlighten others who turn to you. You don't need to go far to get things done. It is given into your hands by itself. We must believe that this is the will of God. Therefore, take up this matter without hesitation. I’ll send you to the management what I have on hand. Letters to S.P.B. – They are directed against the Pashkovites. But the controversial side was not taken into account. The only thought was to explain that we have everything we need for salvation, and therefore there is no need for us to listen to everyone who comes indiscriminately. There is a complete overview of the entire Christian system here. But there is a need to clarify the details. The creed of the Stundists. – Book by Alexander Ushinsky. There is also something here that can be used to enlighten the Molokans. Accusatory Theology Archim. Innocent, volumes 3 and 4. Here the matter goes directly against the Protestants. But it is presented scientifically, I believe that you will be able to turn these naked speeches into edifying lessons. The most complete book of all, but the least understandable and digestible book, is The Stone of Faith. Written when Protestant wisdom began to break through among us. Read this one after all. Letters to S.P.B. and you can keep Ushinsky’s book with you, and try to return the others – the Stone of Faith and Accusatory Theology of the book, 3 and 4. They are sometimes needed. Read them and make notes and extracts, and you will always have the necessary aids at hand. If you come across anything, write, maybe I’ll say something. But I have never dealt with controversial issues, and I don’t know how to argue. May the Lord bless your efforts. I am also sending your book, as indicated by your wife, 1) what spiritual life is, 2) Psalm 118, 3) thoughts for every day of the year according to church readings. Is she going to write them out, will she ever get around to it?! I happened to have extra ones that I only have for distribution. Printing and selling are not in my hands, but in the hands of the Athos people. Please accept my best wishes to you. Ep. Feofan. February 26, 1893 Letter 384. The reason for the long non-response to letters. Origin, fruits and methods of maintaining spiritual zeal. About admonishing the Molokans and about the necessary books sent earlier I haven’t answered your and your wife’s letters for so long! Guilty! I apologize and forgive me! Sometimes infirmities got in the way, sometimes things got in the way. Although your letters were always before my eyes, but as everything is going well for you - I mean the spiritual side - I was in no hurry to answer you, answering more to those who needed it. And then we have a post office, or a trip to the post office happens once a week, and sometimes more. Yes, a headache that prevents me from sitting for a long time writing. My lack of response does not concern you alone; there are a whole bunch of unanswered letters. Don't think that I have forgotten you. I remember you very much, and I keep your best wishes. Both of you and your wife have one thing in your soul - a living zeal for the cause of salvation. The Lord has called you. Thank the Lord! But do not give up on doing everything that is necessary on your part. The Lord has begun the work of spiritual renewal in you. Believe and trust that the beginning will be accomplished (Phil. 1:6), if you maintain a living zeal and do not neglect the corresponding labors. Zeal is a matter of grace and evidence that this grace is persistently present in you and produces a grace-filled life. As long as there is zeal, the grace of the Holy Spirit is also present. She is fire. The fire is fueled by wood. Spiritual firewood is prayer. As soon as grace touches the heart, a turning of the mind and heart to God is immediately generated - the seed of prayer. Then comes the thought of God. The grace of God draws the attention of the mind and heart to God and keeps it on Him. Just as the mind does not stand without action, then, being turned to God, it thinks about God. Hence, the memory of God is a constant companion of a state of grace. The memory of God is never idle, but it certainly leads us into contemplation of the perfections of God and God’s works: goodness, truth, creation, providence, redemption, judgment and reward. All this together is the world of God or the spiritual realm. The jealous one remains in this area forever. This is the nature of jealousy. From here back, staying in this area supports and enlivens jealousy. Do you want to observe jealousy? keep all the prescribed moods. In parts this is spiritual firewood. Always have such firewood on hand and as soon as you notice that the fire of jealousy is weakening, take some log from your spiritual firewood and renew the spiritual fire. And everything will go well. From the totality of such spiritual movements comes the fear of God, reverent standing before God in the heart. Behold the guardian and protection of the state of grace. Delve into this, think carefully, instill it in your consciousness and heart, and constantly revive it in yourself, and you will live. You have been resurrected, as you say, but here you will always be in the state of having just been resurrected. I was very pleased that your word was so effective on some of the Molokans. Pray that the Lord Himself will instruct you on how to speak and how to act on these lost ones. Pray especially when starting to speak and while speaking. For a word from the heart with God’s blessing cannot be fruitless. Of the books you can use in this matter, 2 books of Apologetics, you can keep as long as you need them. I don’t need them now, but it’s not surprising that I will need them. And when I need them, I can’t help but worry that they are not with a neighbor, but far away. Therefore, I think that you will do better if you quickly make them unnecessary for yourself and return them. Their author, Innocent, is not an archbishop, but an archimandrite, former rector of the Kazan Academy and now deceased. I don’t particularly write to your wife; everything applies to her, except the end. But I am always ready to write to her as soon as any spiritual need of hers requires it. E. Feofan. May 19, 1893 Letter 385. Upon receipt of the required books being returned. About changing your place of residence in relation to spiritual life. Meaning of words: world, worldly life, layman I have received the books you returned. I thank you for being serviceable, so as not to disturb souls by worrying about their integrity. For the needs you encounter in clarifying the incorrect wisdom of some of your villagers and those around you, I think the information gleaned from these books is sufficient. Sometimes there is enough yes and no, for admonition, I mean the simple presentation of the Orthodox, but polysemantic speech rather obscures than enlightens. Are you planning to get out of your village, and move to the city, and take up some position, and are you asking whether to do this? When you ask, you certainly have your spiritual life in mind and want to know whether this will be beneficial for it and whether it will not be harmful. Spiritual life is not unconditionally subject to the influence of external conditions, and can bloom in any place and in any situation: for it is all in the internal structure, and does not bow to the external, but on the contrary, dominates it and directs it. Therefore, I think there is no sin in telling you: why not change places and activities? You yourself expect a lot from this change for your spiritual success, and if you manage to arrange your activities and relationships in such a way that what you expect comes true, then you can add: change it. God bless. And if this doesn’t come true, then what? Nothing. Then you will receive an experimental confirmation of the extent to which spiritual life is compatible with civil service and city service. Unforeseen harm can always be avoided if you look at the current situation with open eyes. I’ll conclude this: it’s possible, but see for yourself. The opinion that one cannot be saved in the world is true if one lives in a worldly way. But if you don’t live in the world in a worldly way, then there is no trouble for salvation from this. How many people are there and have been in the world who are being saved?! Why shouldn't you join them? The world is passions, people living solely according to passions, and a set of customs and orders of life invented to satisfy passions. To leave all this is to leave the world, although everyone around us lives in a worldly way, or in half - sometimes in a worldly way, sometimes not in a worldly way - mixed. Family and civil life is not in itself worldly, but happens when passions and their satisfaction are squeezed into the order of such a life. There are commandments for family and civil life. If you lead this life in such a way that the commandments reign in it, driving away everything passionate, then it will not be a worldly life, but a holy life blessed by God. According to our usage of words, a layman does not mean a person living in a worldly way, but a person who does not belong to the clergy and monasticism. Bishop Feofan. July 5, 1893 Letter 386. About the changing weather on the soul, a good confession and that the fear of death should be dissolved by hope. Advice for someone who is sick in body and prayer for someone who is sick in soul. Letter to a Penitent I apologize that I didn’t write to you last time, I don’t remember why I did so, but it’s true because, based on the satisfaction of your spiritual system, there was nothing to write. Now you have written something dark about yourself, without defining what it is. I believe that this is a consequence of the usual changeability, just as in nature there is sometimes a clear day, sometimes cloudy and even stormy with a thunderstorm. But now you have spoken, confessed and received communion, and peace of mind has returned to you. Lord grant that he may abide in you. But just as our mental weather is never the same, now you see where you should turn so that a clear sun shines on the horizon of your soul, and do this every time. To make confession go more satisfactorily, try to write down everything that is on your conscience, and when you approach your spiritual father, ask him to tell him everything from the record. After this, if he wants to ask you anything else, he will ask, or you yourself invite him to do it. By acting this way, you will always move away from the lectern, like someone who has taken off all the astringent clothing. The fear of death is a saving fear; but for you this saving power is destroyed by the absence of hope of salvation. Hope in the Lord the Savior, without destroying the fear of death, destroys its murderous morbidity, dissolving its sobering effect on the soul, devotion to the will of God. Think more often about death and everything that accompanies it and what will follow it, and borrowing lessons from everything, feed your heartfelt devotion to the will of God. At the same time, try in every possible way to ensure that throughout your affairs you always do things according to the commandments, consciously dedicated to God. From this you will feel that you are a servant of God and one of God’s own. Just as God never leaves his own, from this comes the confidence that He will not leave you either. Talk to your doctors about your poor health. The illness you suspect in yourself can be stopped so that it does not go further; and then the healthy parts can prevail over the unhealthy ones and thus return full health to the supposedly sick part. May the Lord have mercy on your brother, his mental illness is more significant than his physical illness. May the Lord grant him to free himself from the devil’s snare that entangled him. Letter 387. Encouragement and assurance of God’s mercy towards the repentant and indication of means to strengthen faith and hope. Letters to a respectable person in Tambov Your sins are great, and very great. But there is no sin that overcomes the mercy of God. Forgiveness of sins is given not according to our merits, but according to the mercy of a humane God, always ready to forgive as soon as someone turns to Him with repentance. And it is not the greatness and multitude of sins that makes one unworthy of forgiveness, but one impenitence. Once you have broken down and repented, forgiveness is already awarded to you in heaven, and at the moment of confession this heavenly decision is announced to you. The Lord Savior carried the handwriting of all the sins of all people on His body to the cross and there tore it to pieces. The application of this action of boundless mercy to everyone is accomplished in the sacrament of repentance, and it really happens. He who has received permission from his spiritual father stands innocent before the face of God's truth. The weakness of faith in this and the poverty of the hope of pardon are caused by our enemy. Our sins do not happen without his suggestion. From them he creates a barrier between us and God. Repentance and confession destroy this barrier. Knowing the power of this sacrament, that it destroys all his works and worries about the destruction of sinners, he tries in every possible way to stop its fruitfulness - and either completely rejects it, or induces disbelief in its power and hopelessness of receiving forgiveness through it. Your lack of faith and hopelessness are his wiles. Arm yourself against this and drive away the enemy and his suggestions. The Lord wants everyone to be saved, and therefore you too. After the arrangement of our salvation through the incarnate economy, the Lord now has one concern to attract everyone to Himself in order to grant them salvation. And He really attracts. Not a single sinner exists without this. And it attracts and calls you. What does your current concern for the salvation of the soul mean? It means the call of the Lord: come to Me, burdened, and I will give you rest! Is this concern your business? No! And it was the Lord who gave her all. If He has done all things, then can there be any doubt that He will give you salvation? He encourages you to seek forgiveness of sins from Himself, of course being ready to grant this forgiveness. Go to Him with full faith and do not let the enemy destroy your faith and hope of salvation. Saint Tikhon assures that the enemy, when he inclines to sin, inspires: do not be afraid, God is merciful, and when he brings you to sin, then he troubles and destroys the soul with fear, inspiring: there is no salvation for you. With such thoughts and others like them, work to restore your faith and hope of salvation. Bring to mind the prodigal son more often. The father did not wait for the prodigal son to reach him, but went out to meet him, and without waiting for his word, embraced him in his arms. Only, it turns out, God has the desires for the salvation of everyone, all God’s cares are directed here. The Heavenly Father assures: I do not want the death of a sinner; What is the Son of God doing at the right hand of the Father? Võnu intercedes for us. What about the Holy Spirit? And He also intercedes for us with unutterable groanings. So this is how things are in heaven. But the enemy wants to assure you that you have no mercy and no salvation from God, who is angry with you. And you believe him, this lie of his. For God has no thought of not having mercy, but has one thought and one desire - to have mercy and mercy. Come, everyone. You said that you had already abandoned your sins, and probably confessed and received permission. The enemy torments you only with lack of faith and weak hope. Reason and pray, and stir up your faith and hope. Hope and faith cannot be strong without deeds and labors for the cause of salvation. Please apply these active labors and faith and hope will immediately begin to come to life. What kind of affairs and works? The first aversion is to all sins - not only to deeds, but also to thoughts and sympathies for them. 2) Determine yourself to do things opposite to them. You must find and establish this for yourself. 3) The main thing is for the flesh to run. She must be severely punished - killed. 4) Establish a prayer order at home and church. 5) Organize external relations and avoid cases that can excite movements of passions. I guess that you have strong pride and rebellion. Seek humility and obedience. Keep the memory of God and the memory of death, and do not let go of the thought that God sees you, you are under His eye, and beware of everything that is not pleasing to God. To help remember God and the work of salvation, memorize the 24 prayers of St. Chrysostom, and read them more often. They are among the prayers for the future sleep. God bless you! Remember that no one can do for you what is needed for salvation. You must do this yourself. Help from the Lord is always ready; but it does not come to the one who does nothing, but only to the one who does, works, but cannot complete the task. E. Feofan. October 22, 1890 Letter 388. Enthusiastic memory of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra. Rus' is rich in shrines You started talking forcibly. – Thank you for your remembrance, especially prayer. Blessed is your journey. Kyiv. Lavra is an unearthly abode. As you passed the gap, it happened that you felt that you had entered another world. And there is something inside - what is not there, my Lord, father! I am often transported there in my mind, just as I would fly with my body. But our holy Rus' is dotted with amazing shrines. Lord preserve her and raise up the spirit of holy faith in her and secure her forever! Now sit back and admire what you see. I pray a sinful prayer for your father. May the Lord comfort Mother and may the Lord bless all of you. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. 22 October Letter 389. Thoughts after the holidays and the coming of the New Year. Reply to the invitation to Tambov Goes o. Feofan, and I am writing with him, believing that he will get the mail sooner. The holidays are over. Now let's get down to business. It would be nice to arrange it in such a way that there would always be everyday life on the outside, but solemn holidays in the heart. But until this comes, it is better to keep yourself in sackcloth and ashes in your heart, crying and lamenting before the Lord who created us. Year after year, day after day, we move forward, but only in the summer; when would spiritual age?! But this is not from us, it is God’s gift! Ask and you will receive, seek and you will find. The Lord is merciful and abundant. He is found not only by those who seek Him, but also by those who do not seek Him, and then honors the unloved with the title of beloved. Everything is as He Himself knows and as His omniscience arranges with truth and goodness. And we only have to cry out: save me in the image of destinies! A mournful year has passed. What will the new one bring? Why bring him something that is not sorrowful? We will reap what we sow. The Lord threatened for a whole year, and we spewed blasphemy against the Lord and His Christ in magazines. So why have mercy on us? As if it weren't even worse. I thank Vladyka for his desire to draw me to Tambov. We had a good time there last time. It would be true now too. But what can you do about laziness? I barely plan to walk along the road to Tsna once a week, or even less, where to go before Tambov? I wish you all the best from the Lord. My greetings and best wishes to all of you. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. January 7, 1872 Letter 390. Consolation in grief for the deceased. Explanation of some words from Psalms 68 and 108 May God rest the soul of the deceased slave Alexandra. But why are you worried? The image of her death does not represent anything saddening. Christian death! What is accidental is nothing. Many saints, glorified by the church, died accidentally. Remember Athanasius of Athos! It is better, instead of useless lamentation, to strengthen the prayer of salvation, and to keep ourselves ready for death every hour. Who can say when whose hour will strike. I prayed for the dead woman alive; the more earnestly I will pray for the departed. In your last letter you asked for an explanation of some passages from the psalms. In both psalms of St. the prophet depicts his disasters during the persecution of Saul. But since he himself was the image of Christ the Lord, in the circumstances of his life the Spirit of God gave him insight into the circumstances of the life of Christ the Lord. Both psalms clearly contain verses that are then applied to the Lord. The words of the psalms can be applied to every suffering righteous person and to all saints. Churches. So - imagine St. David wandering in the desert of Judea and look what verses 9-12 of Psalm 68 will mean in relation to him. his brothers began to look at him as a stranger, and as strange as a wanderer, the son of my mother. Brothers and mother, perhaps, mean the Jewish people here. Jealousy of home, etc. St. David is a representative of that part that was strictly zealous to fulfill all the commandments of God. Saul and his people are a representative of people who want to subordinate the Divine to the human. The spirits of David and Saul were opposite. And for the sake of this spirit St. was persecuted. David. This is what he remembers. I am jealous, he says, about Your house - the church and the reproach that those who disobey Your law show You - falls on me as if it were my own reproach. It weighs on me. The following is clear. I fasted, he says, and they laughed at me, I dressed in sackcloth - a sign of one who mourns, and they looked at me as if I were a holy fool. Verse 10, about jealousy, is referred to the Savior. And everything can be applied to Him. It can be applied to every righteous person; It’s not hard to guess how it is. The words of Psalm 109 in verses 6-13 are clear in themselves. Who do they refer to? 8 tbsp. St. Peter in Acts referred to Judas. And everything can be understood this way. When, through the untruths of people who repaid David with evil instead of good, the Holy Spirit gave this Psalmist the opportunity to see that the same thing would happen to the promised Messiah from the same generation; then he is clothed with a full feeling of the righteous wrath of God and in this feeling he expresses what should happen to the traitor if he were to deal with him in all truth; he utters this in the person of someone who has especially sensitively offended him. There is nothing more to say about this. Holy interpreters of the oath against enemies, often found in the psalms, explain precisely by the fact that here the Holy Spirit raises the wrath of David, and equips his tongue to express the punishments of God, so that the unrighteous of all times can see what they are worth, and what would have been done to them if not for the mercy of God. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. January 24, 1872 Letter 391. On the fight against laziness You write that laziness overcomes. How can this be? Manage to cheer yourself up. This weakness does not happen to anyone! You have to break yourself, and then, seeing that nothing will take you, endure this state. The Lord will give you consolation and movement, and your soul will come to life. Try to do a good deed that would require work and sacrifice, and maybe your soul will begin to sparkle. Otherwise, endure it, there’s nothing to do. It's temporary, after all. Sometimes from physical weakness, sometimes from being tired of waiting. Revive you, Mother of God. How is it that the elders, sitting in one place - in one cell, seeing no one and hearing nothing, constantly burned in spirit? There was the grace of the Lord. When the ability to attract God's grace weakened, they came up with a mechanical method, prescribed in the Philokalia, an artistic action of the Jesus Prayer. This can be even better. But many thoughts and deviations are attached to this, so confused that others consider this very art to be charming. So we became like a stranded cancer. We didn’t observe grace, we don’t know this art, and deadness has set in in everything. I remember art, because the way we all usually say the Jesus Prayer is not at all what is prescribed there. And it can certainly be strong; just no one to learn from. Lord, have mercy on us sinners. That NN has not come to life much, I am very happy about that. May God grant her to remain in this state. Her soul is good, has many good inclinations. And it found something. Maybe he'll get better. M. departed on November 25. May God rest her soul! I struggled, I worked hard. And that's enough! God is merciful. Pray to God for me, a sinner. I wish you all the best from the Lord. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. December 9. Letter 392. Edification at the coming of the New Year I was forced to write to you. Some troubles have come. And then our people got too lazy to go to the city. Thank you very much for your well wishes. Lord help me to spend the coming year in the fear of God. – Isn’t that what your dream is for?! Nothing will support the fear of God as strongly as the memory of the Last Judgment. One should not succumb to the spirit of despondency because of this. But you just need to take a good look around, and whatever turns out to be displeasing to the Lord, then immediately eliminate it and, if necessary, cleanse it with repentance. Then, relying on God’s mercy in everything, all that remains is to be complacent. Even at the Last Judgment, the Lord will not only seek how to condemn, but how to justify everyone. And he will justify anyone, as long as there is even a small opportunity. Save yourself and pray to God for us! Your pilgrim E. Feofan. January 13, 1873 Letter 393. Consolation in the death of the mother and special consolation for the daughter who was not present at her death May the Lord rest in peace the soul of His departed servant N - your mother! Unexpected death. Therefore, at least sadness is inevitable; but not alien to Christian consolations. Ripe fruit! Straight to the Lord's table. Let's pray for her. But won’t we get prayer help from her sooner! We Christians do not flow towards the unknown. Why, if mortal sins do not burden anyone, we undoubtedly believe that the doors of the kingdom are open to him. If we add to this some good and some sacrifices for the Lord’s sake; then all the more doubt should not remain about the bliss of the fate of those departing. This is your mother! Like father, like brother! N.N. Of course it will be hard. But she has enough intelligence not to torment herself with vain sorrowful thoughts. Not seeing your father and mother leaving: it’s like something terrible. There is nothing here except consolation. God takes away for the sake of the fact that maybe in the face of those leaving, she would not be able to withstand grief. As if she were weak, the Guardian Angel took her aside. The blessing of those departing is dear. But it was undeniable, and, perhaps, for the sake of absence, it extended to her even more strongly than when she was present. The blessing is not strong because it is heard, but because it is diligently spoken. If she doesn’t suspect this zeal, why be embarrassed? Most of all, one should not guess in this case, as if both the previous and this absence meant something punitive or impressive. Everything is from the Lord and everything is for good. May the Lord comfort you all. I ask everyone for prayers for me, a great sinner. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. June 17. Letter 394. Instruction after deprivation of parents. Invitation to the Highest and notification of your well-being You have surely already been comforted in your sorrow. May your Lord give peace to everyone's spirit. Now you, tea, remain the head of everyone. Direct a little at a time, if it is not in fashion now to manage. For this they themselves received the freedom to do as they please. Lord help you to choose better, and even more so to please the will of God and to follow the trail of God’s providence for us sinners. N.N. writes that now it will be inconvenient for you to go to Vysha, but I think that now it is more convenient than ever. This summer is so wonderful. I keep walking and doing nothing. Eat, drink, sleep, hang out. It will come true for me: fatter, thicker, fatter. Only, Lord, deliver us from the following words: and forget God who created him. And what do you do: back and forth, lo and behold, you forgot. Yesterday we celebrated the icon. Now they are orphans without a mother. I wish you all the best from the Lord. Pray to God for me. I bless you all. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. July 22. Letter 395. Upon the onset of Lent. Notification of your health and assumption of privacy Take comfort in fasting and fasting times. - God bless! And St. May the sacrament be for you eternal food for your soul. During this current post I decided not to show myself to people and not to receive anyone. Two weeks passed, at least not without attacks, but they were light. How N.N. swooped in and didn’t know what to do. I resisted by force, my persistence was on the line. Still, he resisted. For better or for worse, he stuck to his guns. But if God blesses us to endure so well until Easter, then it will be like this forever. Or at least from Easter to Easter. Your dream! I assume the posture of Psomisophanich and interpret. Bees - good thoughts. The boys are demons trying to disperse them. Guard - attention. Just wagging your finger is not enough. It is necessary to intimidate more strictly, by invoking the name of the Lord. One of the elders said. God bless you to work this fast for your salvation. It’s true, you always work. I’m such a lazy person - I don’t go out, but standing in prayer is not a striker, the bow is different, and away. I wish you all the best from the Lord. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. March 3, 1873 Letter 396. The beginning of the solitary life of the saint. Interpretation of sleep Letter 397. Instruction for living. away from the church. New Jerusalem and old Happy return from your pilgrimage! Thank you for the prayerful memory of St. places. God bless you! Now it’s like you’re in prison. Although you feel some deprivation, in general you will have a better time there than in Tambov. Having become accustomed to going to church, one cannot help but feel sorrow that there is no church service nearby. Little by little replace church prayer with home prayer. Hold the psalm before your eyes, and little by little, you will read a psalm, then another, slowly. Yes, some kind of handicraft you hold in your hands, otherwise boredom will come. Reading everything and praying - my head can’t handle it. Especially after eating, you won’t be able to stop sleeping without doing some handicrafts. May the Lord make you wise. Don’t start, everything has been known for a long time. And you can teach others yourself. I thank the Eminence Plato for the memory. I also ask his St. prayers for my many sins. Haven't you seen the New Jerusalem before?! It is very similar to the old one. In the old one, something else was changed after the fire in 1810, it seems. But those changes did not change the general system. I wish you all the best from the Lord. Bows and blessings to you all. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. July 24, 1873 Letter 398. The secrets of the inner life of the saint: temptations against the resolve to solitude and their resolution. Desire to interpret the entire New Testament Congratulations on your successful pilgrimage. Thank you for your prayerful memory of me, a sinner. And the thought began to occur to me to visit Kyiv, and even what? on Athos. But all this temptation is true. There's no reason for me to drive around. And it even seems that the best order of life for me is the one that I now maintain. Why am I already starting to blurt out in prayers, God grant me to sit longer to sit through it. It's good; Only sometimes do I get the urge to fly somewhere. But then it passes, and the desire to be alone takes over again. I asked the Father Rector to give you the first message; and N.N. I sent a second one from here, which, by the way, I also passed on to you. Pray harder that the Lord will drive away laziness and give you the desire to continue this interpretation. If only the entire New Testament could be interpreted, that would be good! But it’s not for me, a sloth, to wish for this and hope to fulfill it. I'm working on something. Be healthy and cheerful. Bow to all your family and God's blessing. I thank you for the news about the Lord. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. September 13, 1873 Letter 399. The saint’s humble response to his retreat and himself I laugh when someone says that I am in prison. This is not the same at all. I have the same life, only there are no ways out or tricks. The seclusion is real - don’t eat, don’t drink, don’t sleep, don’t do anything, just pray. I’m talking to Evdokim, walking around the balcony and seeing everyone, carrying on correspondence. I eat, drink and sleep to my heart's content. I have a simple solitude for a while. I’m going to at least spend Lent like real hermits; but the weak flesh gives up on this. There may definitely be temptation to Athos and Kyiv; but, after all, the enemy knows how to arrange everything with beautiful appearance. Yes, now there is no urge to do that. You yourself also have a shutter and, perhaps, it’s more shuttered than mine. Pray for my damnation. Everything is no good. And to work something laziness overcomes. He would still be asleep, but sit with his hands folded. Sometimes you dig something. Just think about why I’m going to torture myself, and I’m going to give up, and, well, I’m going to kick ass. And days after days pass and death approaches. I can’t find anything to say or justify myself with. Trouble! Ephraim the Syrian has a lamentation on his writings. After all, it’s written, he says, it’s good, but what am I? Alas! If he found it necessary to say this, then our brother Shatsky, how will he dodge it? You’ll start writing like you’re scolding, but in reality you’re a jerk. So he will get a hundred times more than everyone else. Alas, alas, alas! Your pilgrim E. Feofan. October 17, 1873 Letter 400. Review of yourself, your works and various subjects I owe you an answer to two letters. God bless you and have mercy on you for your memory! Rev. I was thinking of sending interpretation books to Plato; but now your lines have been adjusted, and I have already sent them to him. I ask for his prayers for my great sinfulness. The beauties called me a recluse, but here I don’t even smell of a reclusive spirit. He received the life of the Zadonsk elder Nathanael. Thank you. Very educational and well written. God bless the laborer. But I could not end the life of Mother Magdalene. I sent everything I had to Abbess Yeletskaya, asking her to finish it. She is smart (Abbess Cleopatra) and a real ascetic, it seems she was a pet of the Optina elders. Why can’t I see, have you met the Lord?! Arrange it. Otherwise there will be damage on both sides. I'm healthy. Thanks be to the Lord. But laziness has taken hold, and I don’t particularly feel like praying. A bow or two, and quickly move to the side. It is true that only the grave will correct us scribes in this regard. She will, of course, fix it, but won’t it be too late? But my soul is hardened and my ears simply do not lead. It was as if nothing had happened. Holy! – Oh, oh, oh!!! God bless the new Utkinsk churchwarden. Yes, something needs to be done. In any church you choose, you will always find a lot that needs to be added. I regret N. God help him to recover. Yes, after all, it’s impossible for him not to believe. Life will reveal what the university, or more directly, the fellowship, inspired. The disease has arrived, you will sigh involuntarily. I wish you all the best from the Lord. Pray to God for me, a sinner. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. November 21, 1873 Letter 401. Hard times. Illness and fear of death. On the interpretation of Psalm 118 Happy New Year! and happy holidays, even if they are almost over. Lord help you to while away your life according to God. You are right when you say that these are difficult times. The enemy is stirring things up. I found a handy weapon. God save us! And everything somehow relaxes. Isn't this the last time? The last ones, who knows! And one’s own death is more likely to be taken care of. My lower back hurts, but how?! I recovered with great effort. And then there’s the cough! And there... one thing after another. But all this has passed. Only the cough still doesn't bother me much. It has passed, but who knows how far what does not pass. Alas! How dark is it beyond the grave? Lord, be merciful to us sinners! You won’t be able to do anything worthwhile! - Write and write. But somewhere in the prophet it is written: “Woe to those who write.” True, woe! After all, you can’t write anything, but you can’t move. That's the problem! However, there is nothing more to do than write! In "Domash. Conversation” this year thoughts will be placed on Psalm 118. The first notebooks are widely distributed, so there will be one verse for each issue. Sent away for six months. And we’ll see what God gives next. Convey my deepest respect to the Vladyka of Kostroma and ask him not to forget my all-repentance in his prayers, just as I do not forget it. My greetings and best wishes to all of you! I wish you all the best from the Lord. - Pray to God for me, a sinner. Your good friend E. Feofan. January 1874 Letter 402. The saint's zeal for the completion of his affairs. Advice about the Kostroma Lord. About spiritual-judicial reform Time is passing and we are getting closer to death. And before you see him coming into the yard, I’m in a hurry to finish the job I started. When should I finish?! We will try. If you have a heartbeat, take suitable homeopathic drops, use it and it will go away. The Bishop of Kostroma is not making a deal. The late Vladyka of Kyiv held out to the end. And he needs to pull. Write a strict condemnation to him. Place penance on him, and then tell him to spit every time such a thought comes. She is a temptation for him. Let him repent. Write all this down, but as if on your own, and don’t say that I’m telling you so. I also heard about reviews of spiritual-judicial reform. What to do. We must pray that God will deliver us from this trouble. Otherwise, in these courts there will be complete sinlessness, as in secular ones. And then there is nowhere to go. There will be no judgment on anyone. My health is doing well. May you be healthy and cheerful. My sincere best wishes to all of you. Save yourself! Your pilgrim E. Feofan. February 9, 1875 Letter 403. Anxiety for Orthodox Rus'. Notice of your work and lifestyle On arrival from pilgrimage and on departure to the village - stock up on health. Thank you for the prayerful memory in holy places. God bless you and have mercy. Reverend Plato wrote about your stay with him and about his difficulty regarding the rector. What to do? this is the time. You have to endure, and still act. God is the helper of just causes. If the Lord abandons Orthodox Rus', then everything will go topsy-turvy. And I often wonder if He really abandoned her? We've already gone too far ahead. And I won’t hold back. However, there is no need to despair. History shows that there were times that were even harder, and then the sky cleared up. Lord have mercy on us! I am, thank God, healthy! And somehow I’m poring over the charter of St. Basil the Great. Strogonek! If the monks were forced to live by it, they would run away. N.N. I thank you for the writing, God bless and comfort him, as He Himself knows. He wants to go to the top. If you pray to God, he knows. And if you see my shrine, it’s inconvenient. I accepted O. Mitrofan, doing a test to see if it is sometimes possible to accept someone. I see that it is impossible. We have to push it to the end. When is it? Don't know. N.N. and N.N. God's blessing. I sent you books - one for the top and one for the bottom and N.N. one. There seems to be a flaw. They sent me little and nothing to draw from. God bless you! Be healthy and cheerful. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. July 29, 1875 Letter 404. Regarding the appointment of a new bishop in Tambov. About dreams and about the copy written by the saint from the Kazan Icon of God. Mothers God's mercy be with you. Thank you for your letter. The Bishop of Kostroma also wrote, which also gave me great comfort. But your Lord is taken from you. It is true that the Tambovites have sinned a lot, that God does not allow them to enjoy the kindness of their worthy Lords for a long time. What will the new one be like? Also Palladium. Old deacons and priests will be glad to have the same name. Get ready to get used to it again. Your dream - as if you were dying, I think it only means that you often remember death. You often think about her, so you dreamed about her. This is all a good dream. I’ve almost never had good dreams: they’re all so trivial. Your master, now truly a former one, was with us. I was very glad to see him. He gave me the consolation to come up to me and sat for a while. God save him! Did he think that this was the last time he visited the north of our diocese?! Thank you for the prayer memory. I am very pleased to hear that you like the copy of the Kazan Mother of God that I wrote. I tried to make it look as real as possible. And I think that this is so. Here comes autumn, cold, stormy and rainy. I wish you health and complacency and all yours. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. September 17, 1876 Letter 405. Regarding the declared Turkish war and about your current affairs One of our elders is coming to you. I am writing with him. I am sending you another book of the Philokalia - the first one will be for the tower, and this one for the niche. Then I didn’t send it because I didn’t send enough myself. Now they are sending more, and there is nothing to skimp on. Behold the war! We must pray and repent. After all, there is something to punish us for. And if there is, then you need to get down to business with fear and trembling. Let's become Ninevites! But if someone had said this in a sermon, or published it in the newspapers, I don’t think anyone would have batted an eyelid. This is what we have come to?! How are these Tambovites? After all, they didn’t sacrifice enough? Is it possible to add more after? Has Moscow given up?! Behold spring! – I just ordered the winter windows in the hall to be taken out, it’s a little warm; it was still a bit cold. I'm increasingly overwhelmed by laziness. Here is a small collection of prayers that barely made it to the end. But we also need from St. Chrysostom to choose, but laziness! What a grief. But a lot has been sent there. It will be enough by the end of the year. I'll be on time now. Does Simeon the New Theologian need to be translated?! I translate it line by line. How strict he is. But he has an abyss of spiritual wisdom! Pray to God for me, a sinner. The Lord will save the Lord of Kostroma. May the Lord bless you and all yours with every blessing. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. April 28, 1877 Letter 406. On the occasion of the death of the bishop. Exam after death Surely you have already returned. They cried, they grieved. Now it's time to console yourself. Vladyka departed not for the worst, but for the best. Therefore, for his sake, one must rejoice that work and troubles are over and peace begins. “And it’s better for us.” He will pray for us, and the prayer there is more direct and stronger. It is clearer to him what we need, and he will directly tell the Lord: grant them this and that. And since he will speak directly before the Lord, his prayer will be heard more clearly. Therefore, we have nothing to grieve, but rather rejoice both for his sake and for our own sake. Let's start getting ready too. There will be an exam. Let's review the program, and what we didn't teach, we'll relearn what we forgot, we'll remember what we don't know for sure, we'll confirm it. And we will hasten to sort this out. For who knows, maybe they are about to call: Feofan Vyshensky, or N. Tambovskaya, or someone else, and come out. There are no notebooks, no books, and no one to advise. Each one is like a finger, with only his own means. So what is it?! It is difficult to cope with any feelings. May the Lord comfort you with every comfort. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. May 27, 1877 Letter 407. Promise to write a photograph from an icon. About his illness and about various modern affairs May God bless you to see him through in spiritual joy. Congratulate all your friends too. I received what you sent. Thank you. I hasten to tell you about Oshurkin. The board has been received and the icon will be ready. It’s not soon, it’s his own fault. I already have no control over my missus (laziness); and he egged her on. She tied my hands and feet. I'll write and write. He will receive great fasting. And maybe later. Would you like to have the same photo? When you want, I will write for you too. But my boards are simple. If simple ones are unsatisfactory for you, send a difficult one. The other day I was seized with rheumatism in the sacrum, and it was not very merciful. But, thank God, he tamed himself soon. A day later the burning pain was gone. And the little one will go away on its own. Why should you grieve about Saint Plato of God?! He is now a prayer book for all who remember him. And this is much higher than visible coexistence. May the Lord bless you to remain on your tower with the Lord alone. About Fr. rector and I think the same. He did well to become a monk. The bishop will be smart and kind, and most importantly Orthodox. For there are, they say, very un-Orthodox. God bless and have mercy on Russian Orthodoxy. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. December 20, 1877 Letter 408. Is it necessary to grieve for the dead? About the book of Antiochus What do you write about P. A-not, and I think so. God be merciful! Why be sad? Whenever there was no hope that she would find mercy, she would have to kill herself; and since there is, there is nothing to mourn. How far are we behind her? You won’t turn around when they call you. It became empty. Yes, after all, she is alive and sometimes visits you. It's no longer empty. She, probably, looks at how sad you are and shakes her head: what a tricky people, just think. It is a pity for them that God delivered me from this prison. We should rejoice, but they mourn. If she appeared to you and you began to ask her to enter the body again; She will never agree with either her hands or her feet. Get into this crappy kennel! God have mercy. You definitely can't handle the trouble. Isn’t there some old relative who could take on all the troubles? Otherwise, let the new general carry out this service. Otherwise he wants to fuss around with the beauties. Let him trouble himself at home in retaliation. I received what you sent. Thank you. I did not translate the book of Antiochus in Jerusalem, but copied it in Greek, thinking that it had not been published. And it's printed. Here he undertook to translate it; but laziness tied my hands. But the loss is small that it is not in the translation. She's very good, but boring. Collections of texts rarely include explanations. Pray to God for me, a great sinner. Your pilgrim Bp. Feofan. February 25, 1879 Letter 409. Home desert. About travel and about my sore eye. Letters to Vera Alekseevna My greetings and best wishes to you! You are now in your desert—a real desert woman. At first, this is how the ascetics lived. In the house, somewhere in a corner, they set up a kennel and buzzed there invisibly to anyone. It is not surprising that we soon returned to this rite of asceticism, with a general cooling towards the church and monasticism even more so. If you went to Voronezh, congratulations; if not yet, God bless. And I was going to go somewhere for a ride, but the time had already passed. Maybe I’ll go to Moscow for an hour. But these are all riddles that, no wonder, will turn out to be empty. My eye is weakening, as it should be, and I conduct my business very modestly and quietly, i.e. doesn't cause any pain. God bless you all. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. August 7, 1879 Letter 410. Greetings to old friends from the new place of ministry (Vladimir). About your skill in writing sermons. Worries about school and the Church of the Cross Thank you very much for your memory and congratulations. I wish you both a Happy Christmas and a Happy New Year. – May the Lord God bless you with all the blessings in the coming year. You feel good. God bless! How kind you are! My sincere greetings to all of you. I remember everyone, and am grateful to everyone for the greetings and goodwill that I enjoyed while living among you. Do not leave the new Lord the same. This is no small consolation for us. I haven't made friends with anyone here yet. In Tambov it was somehow easier. The people here seem to be nice, but I still can’t say anything for sure. They just marvel. Since my arrival, there has not yet been a single service without a sermon, and they listen. To your lord, when there are sermons, when there is service every day. Yes, you'll fall off. Strengthen him, Lord! I don't think he can't talk. We're having trouble with writing fees. Remember, at first I didn’t say much, precisely because I thought of writing a sermon, as well as composing a book. That's what we all think. Reverend Seraphim then says to me: why think for so long? I sat down and wrote it in one sitting. I didn’t believe it was possible to do this. Then I somehow became annoyed that I wasn’t preaching sermons. I came from the all-night vigil and, well, write what will be written. I think it was a sermon about the love of God. During mass he began to speak timidly. Nothing, got away with it. Then another time, and a third time, and so it went. And all the sermons that are “words to the Tambov flock,” with the exception of 3–4, are of this origin. In the evening after the all-night vigil they wrote. I then tell you that until the Reverend comes. to the idea - write in one sitting - don't expect sermons. Push him onto this rut. You'll see how it goes. Preaching brings all sorts of pleasure. I am very glad that the school is finally open. And here we make a wish. The house has already been sold. Next we will open the year. O. I’m very sorry for Nicodemus. Lord grant him patience. Somehow they have a church... an iconostasis in Kazansky?! There is nowhere to serve in Vladimir in winter. Remember the Crusade? So clumsy. Let's redo it. The plan has already been drawn up. By Aug 30 there will be a new one, without a pillar - with a new iconostasis, we will decorate it a little. He collected money from the monasteries. Bow to everyone you know, big and small. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. December 29, 1863 Letter 411. Congratulations on the post. Advice and dreams of solitude. About his church of the cross and preaching God help you! Save yourself! I have the honor to congratulate you on your holy fast. May the Lord bless us to conduct it quietly, calmly, kindly and with all the blessings promised to the working fasters! Forgive the Lord for my laziness. I always remember you, and in my sinful prayer I remember you, considering you and all your kinship to be sincere. May the Lord reward you for your love and memory. Does your cell look at you friendly, as always?! If it’s friendly, you could try solitude for Lent! Now it has slipped my mind. Whatever your heart desires. Complete privacy, I mean. Until Easter. And curtain the window. Eh, love! eh! any. Someday the Lord will give me at least a week to stay like this. I was completely in the forest, but I didn’t have to. They have already broken down the church - the cross-shaped, clumsy one.. God help us by winter, so that we can serve in a new church! I’ve already listened to the sermons, and somehow I’m losing the desire. I’ll shut up again, or God help me. For woe if I do not preach the gospel. Pray to God for me. I wish you all the best from the Lord. Your pilgrim Theophan Bishop. Vladim. February 27. Letter 412. About his life and Bishop’s labors in Vladimir Thank you for the congratulations in memory of me, a great sinner. My only salvation is from the prayers of others, but I myself am no good, and I’m too lazy to pray. I finished my top so well that I don’t want to go out. The church is one flight away, but I don’t want to leave. And then it happened that Lenten services were not at all in harmony with consistory affairs. Our head is bitter. This is how you toil and toil for a whole century, but it’s all of little use. God! be merciful to me, a sinner! Everything is fine with us. The girls' school was opened, the church was consecrated, and my beauties are in bliss. And the boss, what a miracle! How she manages everything deftly, smartly, maternally, economically. I couldn't be happier. Beauties from 20. How wild they were at first and how they are used to it now. You'll be glad when you come to them. May the Lord bless you all and prosper you all in everything. I often remember everyone and pray my sinful prayer. And I remember all the others who approached me. Theophan Ep. Vladimirsky. March 16, 1864 Letter 413. Upon receipt of the order. Worries about the church. Instruction through a photographic card Thank you very much for your congratulations. I was late myself. Guilty. I wish you all the best from the Lord. Let your spirit be strengthened more and more in the Lord, in Him alone is our salvation. Everything begins to bloom and grow younger. If only the Lord would bless us to experience something vital instead of the dryness of formal affairs. Lord, have mercy! So they sent me the Lord’s punishment - a ribbon. Last time I dressed up for church. What a shame! Everyone looks at him as if he were a scarecrow, and yet, I can’t say that I myself am not occupied with this emptiness, despite all the knowledge that it is a wasteland. It was the enemy who came up with the idea of ​​torturing souls. This is a reward for Tambov. Tambov residents wished! They ruined their church, but have not yet begun to build it. Icons will be tea and Palekh will paint. It is very desirable for him to work, and his desire has a special attraction for us because of its cheapness. I agree to work at the same price as I painted in Tambov. N.N. blessing. And this card is not good, just like that one. Neither this nor that. Make fun of her that the sun stands for the Lord. Whoever’s relationship to the Lord is decisively established, it definitely makes a portrait of him, here’s yours, N.N. Sharply, clearly - you can see who it is. But her card comes out neither this nor that. Because the soul feels towards the Lord neither this nor that, neither yes nor no. It's time to move on. Why are you worried, man?! Your pilgrim Feofan E. Vladim. April 24, 1869 Letter 414. About my labors and troubles in Vladimir Guilty! Just a joke – I haven’t written for so long, I’ve been fussing about, overwhelmed by the waves of life. I received your last letter on the road; Upon returning, I stayed for a while, went on the road again, and then there were buildings. Yes, it’s like some kind of punishment. one after another. Everything went smoothly. The house has ovens, and he decided to decorate the top so that he could live there. The horizons are wider. I will see all the sunflowers, and certainly half of Vladimir. And there’s a balcony in almost the entire house - walk and enjoy the air, and develop broad ideas as much as you want. I now live in bivouacs in another building. Housewarming is coming soon. The church is roughly ready, finishing is in progress. year. I ask you not to forget me, a sinner, in your prayers. Bow to everyone we know. Peace be with you! Your pilgrim Feofan E. Vladim. Letter 415. The fruits of the saint's teachings in Vladimir. Intention to retire - to the Higher I would like to thank you for your congratulations; I congratulate you as well. I wish you comfort from the Lord. I am very glad to see the peace and consolation of dear Tambov. May the Most Merciful Lord protect him! Everything is given to us. Just thank the Lord. Now I hear in the city that on New Year’s Eve they won’t drink champagne at midnight, because last year His Eminence scolded them in his sermon for this. If this comes true, then from this side the Vladimir residents have surpassed the Tambov residents in obedience to the pastoral word. Or maybe it's being said just to say something. We'll see. It’s very interesting to know how things will turn out. After all, I didn’t have time with the church. We'll have to consecrate it without finishing it. I wish your Kazan church success. Bow to everyone you know. Rev. Kostromskaya is somehow unwell. Also, you see, a carbuncle. What is this fad or what? Our Eminence wants to retire to Vysha. How does it seem to you? And he sleeps and sees Vysha. I want to be free and have fun in the steppe. Your pilgrim F.E. Vladim. December 26. Letter 416. From Above. Works on the translation of the writings of St. Anthony on monasticism Our people are coming to you for something. And I am writing to wish you health and peace from our merciful Savior. Time flows and flows, and you can’t catch it. Just look at death. Oh, oh, there won’t be anything to do. Go... to death. He just ate, drank, and had fun, but no business came to mind. Now please take the rap. Oh, trouble! I am now sitting and translating the writings of St. Anthony the Great, the founder of monks, in order to later draw a conclusion about how he looked at monasticism. Nowadays everyone's ideas have spread. Monks – theirs, laymen – theirs. St. will tell us something. Anthony?! I started this when I arrived in Vysha, but I gave it up, but now it’s happened again. The language is difficult. Will I finish? And that’s a lot, 20 words, 20 messages, so many instructions! The whole book! At Rev. Ignatius, in his recently published book of collected sayings, takes a lot from these writings. The only pity is that he chose them not in order, but mixed, about one thing or another. My health, thank God! I wish you health and peace of mind. Pray to God for me. Hello to all of you. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. January 18, 1871 Have the cackling nuns calmed down?! It's time. The trouble is that they began to look at monks and nuns as laymen. Monasticism deprives all rights, trace. and ships. They beat you - be silent. Letter 417. How to replace church prayer in solitude. Complaints about laziness Thank you for the prayerful memory of St. Cancer. saints of God. God bless your solitude. If you don't go to church, don't worry. For God, every prayer from the heart is equally valuable, no matter where it is offered. Only one habit makes a difference here. And you can get used to churchless prayer. Read less from prayer books. Pray more like this on your own, and you can get by with just “Lord have mercy.” Shift the services to bows and be satisfied through them. All hermits and solitaries did this. And it's much better than reading. If you don't read at all, you won't get by. But something for memory, without a book. God bless! Thank you for your tribute to Rev. Joseph. May he pray for me. Laziness completely overwhelmed me. What could I have done if it weren’t for her being a damned one? Now it has become a little easier, as I told Vladyka Plato about it. Sure enough, he prayed. Oh, when will I get rid of her?! God's blessing to all of you. Pray to God for me, a great sinner. Your pilgrim Bp. Feofan. October 7, 1874 Letter 418. Thoughts on the collection from St. Fathers. Intensified Works on the Interpretation of the Messages Please accept my congratulations on the holiday and the new year. My fullest wishes to you. Be healthy and always be in good spirits! May your tower be higher than ours for you. May the Lord visit you with His mercy and may your heart be warmed in prayer and considerate appeal to Him. From articles such as St. Maxim, you should compile a collection and always have it on hand. It would be a spiritual locomotive. Once! Now I can handle the messages. Then I will undertake to compile a collection of all the holy fathers. And you pray that you will live to see it. The messages for another two years will be the most assiduous work. It would be sweeter for me to work on that collection; but interpretation is more necessary. Our elder Rev. Plato ordered to abandon everything for interpretation, and I abandoned it, and drove away my faithful (laziness), and my nose is gone. The work is going on very intensively. Rev. Theodosius will get used to it so much that he won’t even remember Tambov. It's always like this for the first time. And then he will fall in love. I wish you all the best from the Lord. Pray to God for me. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. December 27, 1874 Letter 419. About joy on the Feast of the Resurrection I also greet you on the bright holiday of the Resurrection of Christ. May you experience spiritual joy, which, however, does not depend on words or desires. Having tasted the power of resurrection before this resurrection, only they truly rejoice in the resurrection of Christ. Their flesh has died and they live in the spirit. How can we, carnal ones, rejoice in true joy? They make you happy, some singing, some eggs, some people are so accustomed to rejoice; Well, you'll be happy. And all this is not the same. Lord, have mercy on us! Are you going on the road? Bless, Lord! Bow earnestly and from me to the great ruler. Confirm him more firmly in the idea that he should not retire, just as he has already decided to continue serving. I'm healthy; but laziness took over again. I'm not doing anything. Will you really have to sleep through your 7th decade?! Is this paradise?! Be healthy and cheerful. May the Lord bless you with every blessing. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. April 24, 1875 Letter 420. Response to a request to write a copy of the miraculous icon of B. Mother What good will come of it if I paint an icon with my dirty hands? Now they’re not really diligent, but they’re still walking, and then they’ll stop walking. But I don't refuse. One condition: I will copy it not as the icon is with decorations, but as it is without the golden vestment. They brought this icon to me in order to remove the robe and place new mica under the face of the Mother of God. I then drew it, only on cardboard. And now you can take off the chasuble again and copy it, it will be a miraculous icon, as it is. Let the merchants order a new one themselves. Coming?! If so, let them send a cypress board to fit the icon. The one they have is probably a metachromotypic copy received from the monastery. From this icon they will take the measure for the cypress board. I won’t paint with decorations and chasuble, because this is Egyptian work, but it will still turn out bad. I bow deeply to the Lord and ask for prayers. God bless you and all yours. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. November 16, 1875 Letter 421. About the new bishop of Tambov Here's to you, lord! The Tambovites must have sinned, and God takes a shepherd. But take comfort! I hear that the bishop is very kind. And now about. the archimandrite said that someone wrote to him that the future bishop was cool. But if he’s cool as he should be, then that’s not bad, but good. The coachmen are good - the coolest: they hold the reins tightly and do not give free rein to the horses. I am healthy, and I wish the same for you. The cold has set in, even though the weather is clear. But, after all, you can’t go for a walk, just look out the window, like me, a great sinner. I wish you all the best, health and peace of mind. God bless you! O. Archimandrite is in a hurry, and so am I. Please do not forget me in your prayers. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. October 16, 1876 Letter 422. Congratulations on St. Pentecostal. Memory is mortal. An Unanswered Prayer I congratulate you on St. Pentecostal. May God help you to spend it in good health and for the salvation of your soul. You can serve all services at home with bows, and go to mass on Saturday and Sunday. You can receive Holy Communion more than once. Bless, Lord! Yes, yes. Time is flowing. And you won’t notice how death comes. There you showed me the signs of death in me. Although of very dubious significance, nevertheless, having placed myself in a state of being doomed to death, which could come and choke at any moment, I felt how bitter it was to be in such a state. And only undoubted hope in God’s mercy can delight him. How great and indescribable is the mercy of God, the cross of the Lord. In him lies all our hope. Are you praying to tell you where is the best place to be saved? And God doesn't say. If he doesn’t say it, it means he’s letting him know that there’s no point in praying about it. Because in the present situation there is nothing that could interfere with salvation. It's all about good will and the saving mood of the heart. Be concerned about this! What you have, keep it; what is missing, then add. What program? According to the beatitudes. What is written in the beatitudes must be taken into account in the heart; and heaven! God bless you! Pray to God for me, a sinner. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. February 14, 1877 Letter 423. On the news of the death of the Kostroma Archbishop. The saint's recollection of the death of his parents Thank you for hastening to announce the death of the Bishop of Kostroma. Before your letter, we did not know about this, but in the newspapers, it seems, three days later we saw news about this. I do not know how to grieve for those who depart when I am sure that they are departing to the Lord. How can we grieve for them when they rejoice? If they see us (and they certainly do), then how unpleasant it is for them to see our tears! We would say that we are crying for ourselves, that we are losing them, and this is not okay. For they do not cease to be close to us and do good to us, only invisibly, instead of visible. They are getting even closer to us. For visible existence is divided by space, and the invisible reduces the division, so remember the ruler (only from the heart - with a living memory), he is here. Understanding things this way, I never cry or grieve for the dead. This is from the time of the death of my father and mother. They died within two weeks of each other. When I found out about this, what a heavy and gloomy cloud fell over me! But at the same moment, non-gloomy thoughts came and dispersed all the darkness. I was comforted, and not a tear came out. I believe that my Guardian Angel inspired this to me. Since then I have been sharing this faith with everyone. Letter 424. Consolation about the deceased Master continues. About commemoration. The remarkable case of Princess Olkhina You are still grieving for the Lord and do not hope to stop grieving. May the Lord satisfy your sorrow! Restore the confidence that the Lord is very happy there and that at the same time he is not deprived of the opportunity to have communication, characteristic of his mysterious state, with all those who love him and pray for him. If you believe this, then believe that it happens to you. If it happens, then you now receive something that you did not have during your life. You think that time will not heal your sorrow. This is wrong. What will finally remain is a quiet one - not sorrow, but a memory that brings comfort. The Lord himself will try to reward you with this for such love for him. You promised me a brochure about his death and funeral. I am waiting. Is this how you remember? Yes, yes. The bloodless sacrifice will take your tear and bring it before the Lord. Heartfelt remembrance is the main thing on our part, and on the part of God’s Church it is a bloodless sacrifice. Together they do the complete work of remembrance. Look what happened to the princess? After the blow she lost her speech. He understands everything, but doesn’t speak, he just seethes. Two or three weeks before this there was a thunderstorm in St. Petersburg. The princess began to be extremely worried and horrified. Finally she said: “here she is!” and began to pray: “Have mercy on me, Lord!” repeating several times. Then she fell into bed, began to writhe slightly and was struck by something akin to unconsciousness. This went on for a day or more. They thought it was the end, so they condemned the doctor. But the princess got up and began to walk. My sister has arrived. She told her: listen Masha (Maria Sergeevna Olkhina). When I was lying there, a demon came and forced me to renounce Christ, saying that He would not help me. I cursed him and shouted: get out! A pretty, pretty Angel of God came and drove away the demon. Having told this, she added: look, write all this down for me, as I told you. She said all this clearly, as she usually spoke, but then the speech disappeared again, and it only seethed. What a story!? God bless you and have mercy! Pray to God for me, a sinner. Bows and good wishes to all of you. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. August 6, 1877 Letter 425. About the printing of letters by the Eminence. Plato. Turkish company results On Shrovetide and, if you like, on the eve of Lent! Lord grant that both this and that may be established for salvation. Letters from Rev. I think it’s better for you to print Plato while he’s alive. And so that they don’t guess that they have written to you, for this purpose, first of all, print them in the statements, and in the second, omit all the details that are in the letters by which someone might guess that they were written to you. How to print? If you publish it yourself, it will be expensive. I think you can get in touch with the editor of Soulful Reading and ask him if he would like to publish them in his magazine, with the condition that he deliver you 200 copies. If he agrees, that’s the end of the matter. Let N.N. contact him, not remembering that they were written to his sister, but to a certain friend who wants to offer these letters for reading to the Orthodox. You can attach one or two letters as a sample so that the editor can see what kind of letters they are. Yes, this editor was in constant correspondence with Vladyka and would happily agree to this. Then rewrite the letters yourself at home, all in bulk. You write everything well, and send it. It will be a good deed. I started painting an icon for A-va. Then for you too. The Athos books were received a long, long time ago. Thank you. Well, the war is over! Are the Turks happy, or are they hanging their noses? They nibbled them quite a bit. I think that the conference will not contradict anything, because there is no strength. We've got our hands on the Turk so tightly that we can't pull it off. The British run around like mongrels and blather to no avail. And shame on them, shame on them! They are also expanding! Glory to Thee, Lord! This is the last war with the Turks. Will they start to offend the Bulgarians? But it seems that the Bulgarians will be positioned in such a way that they themselves will fight back. They have great power! God bless you! Pray for me, a sinner. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. February 20, 1878 Letter 426. Fasting. Rumors of a new war. About works on icon painting Thank you for your congratulations. God bless you for your good disposition! Well, the post is just around the corner, and spring is just around the corner. We fasted, prayed, St. The Mysteries were received. Now what? Rejoice? But first you need to cry over the shroud about your sins. Then Christ is risen! And then, with the birds, sing a cheerful song of praise to God - the Creator and Organizer of all things! Are you afraid of a new war?! Yes, something seems to be going on. However, nothing definite. How cunning the enemy is! After all, everyone is happy that Christians are gaining freedom. But why did Russia do this? And well, yell at all costs. But let them yell. They won't have to do anything. And there probably won't be a war. And we might still hear the screams. for a long time. Let us pray that the Lord will arrange everything as His St. at will. I finished the icon and am sending it. “It’s a little cracked on top.” I covered it up five times, everything came out. Once the robe is on, it will not be visible. I forgot to sign. Let them sign it themselves the day they receive it. The evidence of the coming is more accurate. Your icon will be ready soon, but it will be ready after Easter. God's blessing to you all. Your pilgrim Bp. Feofan. March 29, 1878 Letter 427. Upon receipt of parcels, various messages and bows I just sent you a letter yesterday, and now here are yours. Thank you for the cassocks and gifts. The cassocks fit. Card of Rev. Ignatius received. Thank you. You complain about the drought, but we have rain and cold, even swamps. Now it is rising that wanted to dry out. For that, what is ripe will remain without cleaning. So on the scales there are cups - one rises, the other falls. Your icon is almost ready. But the other one still needs to be removed from it. And then laziness. Bear with me this sin. Your guys have just shown up and are on their way. God bless their path. Dirty, I suppose. Less shaking. Sit in your wilderness longer. Stock up on fresh air for the winter. I don't need anything now. When it becomes necessary, I will say so. Bows and blessings to all of you. Pray to God for me, a sinner. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. July 13, 1878 Letter 428. About the sick who fell into unbelief Guilty. I haven't finished the icon yet. I'll get started in a moment. The business got a little advanced and there was no time for drawing. You ask where you can get the latest letters. In the Athos Chapel in Moscow on Nikolskaya Street, Ferapontov probably has it too. I regret N. God grant him health, if it is saving; but let everyone come to their senses. Of course, there is no point in thinking highly of those who do not believe in anything. The spirit froze. How do they manage to kill him? I don’t understand. After all, it is part of our nature. It's truly such a bad time. The pestilence has affected spiritual life. The Lord's will be done! What does N.N. There, near the beauties, everything was found good, I’m very glad. Help him, Lord, to do good as best he can and as opportunities arise in his circumstances. Here comes winter; drives me into the corners. Less entertainment; more composure, prayers, contemplation of God, and in some, perhaps, despondency. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. November 2, 1878 Letter 429. Condition of the deceased. How appropriate it is to mourn for them. About your right eye Davich in the morning about. The archimandrite sent a note with a notice from N. about the death of N.N. May God rest her soul! You wrote that you would be very sad about her death. You can’t help but grieve, and you shouldn’t grieve too much at all. She wasn't the one who died. She is alive, she has just moved to another room and, presumably, she is already wearing different clothes. So imagine her that she is alive, only in a different place and in a different form. One could grieve if there were no reason to believe that she would find mercy from the Lord. What sins does she have?! I believed and worked for the Lord as much as I could. Just as there is no person without sin, she, of course, had her own. But the Lord sent a rather serious illness, and with it he took away all these sins, weaknesses and ignorance. Why, after this, will it remain to punish her with the truth of God? Without doubting that she will find God’s mercy, what is the point in crying and immeasurable contrition? Better pray and pray with a calm and God-devoted spirit. How long will the separation be?! After all, today or tomorrow we will move there too. May the Lord be merciful to all of us! N.N. Congratulations on your generalship. May God grant that he may still usefully serve the cause for which he is so zealous. N.N. I would like to thank him for his testimony. My illness is not at all terrible. The right eye weakens in vision and lags half behind the left. But this does not prevent me from reading, writing, or doing anything else. And there is no pain. Let's see if N. excels over my eye, as he did over N.N.'s rheumatism. Congratulations on your post, bypassing Maslenitsa. I wish you all the best from the Lord and all yours. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. February 4, 1879 Letter 430. About the state of your vision and the weather. About the new Moscow. Metropolitan Macarius. Feedback on the opinion on the appointment of the saint to Japan I congratulate you on the bright holiday of the Resurrection of Christ. May the Lord give you a bright life in everything. My vision still seems to be in the same position: neither back nor forward. But it seems that he will not turn back, but will move forward - to blindness not of the general eye, but of the right eye. Yes, I wish I could do it sooner. Otherwise babysit him. But it doesn't hurt the eyes at all. Sorry for not answering you soon. After all, we are flooded at this time. Now, tea, everything will go smoothly. How soon did everything dry out?! And the road, they say, is in good order. Did you hear the thunder? did you see the lightning? And here, somewhere nearby, the first lightning burned four yards. Here's the first visit! We heard that Rev. Macarius to Moscow? I'm very happy about this. Although there are those older than him; but he is the prettiest of all. I think so. And they want to take Vyshensky to Japan. He answers: I don’t want to go, but I’ll fly. Someone sits and invents wings. So, as soon as he comes up with an idea, I’ll buy wings and fly. But I don’t want to go - I don’t want to. God save you all and bring you into His eternal kingdom. I ask for your prayers. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. April 24, 1879 Letter 431. About being with the Lord and about inner cleansing Thank you for your congratulations and well wishes! Please accept my sincere greetings to you on the holidays, although they have already passed. In the coming year, may the Lord grant you all the best and most joyful. What to miss? The Lord is near. It’s all the same to be with Him, be it in this world or in the next world. If only He would deign to keep from everything unrelated to Him, both inside and outside. It’s easier to be correct outside. Shame in front of people helps. And inside - maybe, I suppose. And bad thoughts and desires take their course. And there’s no way to protect yourself. God, be merciful to us sinners! May the Lord bless you with every blessing. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. January 11, 1880 Letter 432. About household matters, a new attempt on the life of the Sovereign and the attitude of the governor towards the Vladyka O. Tikhon brought everything you sent. Thank you. You all miss housekeeping. Accept this as an obedience God has imposed on you. After all, serving each other is God’s work. Therefore, it can be corrected according to God, to please Him. There will still be plenty of time left to do prayer and reading. And this is instead of needlework. N.N. May the Lord give you peace! I remember her at every service. Now they have brought news of a new major attempt on the life of the Emperor and the entire house. God! what is going on in our world? I heard about the discord, that the governor is bullying. But the Lord has such wise tact that all this passes by without particularly unpleasant traces. Let's pray about this. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. February 10, 1880 Letter 433. Is it necessary to prepare a cemetery site in advance? About behavior during fasting Cemetery! What is the need to bother about him? Wherever they bury everyone, they will be the same. What help is there for the soul from the place where the body is buried? Remember the legend that they left the Church. Here you go! If something is wrong in the soul, you can’t spice it up with a funeral. Se - post. May God bless you to spend it in good health and for the salvation of your soul. You can pray at home without going to church. When fasting, it’s good to force yourself. And on other weeks you can pray at home, just go to the Presanctified Weeks. And at home, read the sequences as expected, otherwise you can get away with bows alone. May the Lord arrange the course of your life according to what is pleasing to Him and beneficial to you! Your pilgrim E. Feofan. March 3, 1880 Letter 434. Basic rules for monks I hasten to answer your last letter, received on September 21. Congratulations on your move to Tambov and your pilgrimage. Thank you for the prayers for my many sins and for the bow from St. Joseph. Does he remember me in his prayers? I remember him. Congratulations N.N. with recovery or strengthening of your health. May the Lord grant him to work cheerfully in the work that lies before him. What did the minister see and see? What the Jerusalem ascetic asks of the Vyshensky couch potato, I will say: 1) the main monastic rule is to be inseparably with your mind and heart in God, or to pray unceasingly; 2) to fuel this feat, certain prayers are prescribed - a circle of daily services that are performed in the church, and some cell prayers; 3) since the Jerusalem ascetic corrects the daily services herself, then no more prayers can be read to her, but instead of reading the usual prayers, bow down with the Jesus Prayer, or to the Mother of God and the Guardian Angel, to the saint of the same name, to the saints of the day. How many prayers and how many bows, let her determine for herself, in relation to how this is written about in the following psalter, where it is written what to read on what day for those preparing for St. communion. Just don’t let him burden himself. It’s better to do less, leaving yourself some freedom to add more sometimes. But the main thing is to know that all strength lies in the unceasing feeling for God, which, let it warm as best it can. Behold the law! Since feeling is what it is, then all rules are replaced by it alone; and since it is not there, then no amount of reading can replace it. Prayers are intended to nourish this feeling - and if they do not nourish, then they are in vain. Only labor, but no use. This is an outer garment for which there is no body or under which, or a body in which there is no soul. My God! What strictness is prescribed! Otherwise it is impossible to say how it is. God bless you with every blessing. Your pilgrim Bp. Feofan. September 26, 1860 Letter 435. About the news, frequent communion and how the Lord adorns His chosen ones I congratulate you both on the past holiday and on the new year. I wish you every spiritual renewal. About Fr. I already heard from the rector, also from Tambov. Isn't this a vague rumor? Why grieve? God will send you another, but he is good everywhere. That we received communion twice during Lent, good. God bless! You can take communion as often as you like. The priest invites Orthodox Christians to receive communion every day; but no one responds. If you find it possible to receive communion more often, it will not be bad. N.N. I wish you recovery, but in the meantime, God grant me patience! N.N. God bless you! I always remember her at the proskomedia. Has been suffering for a long time. God grant me patience. The Lord rinses it so that it is whiter. And the Lord still browned the martyrs. This is how He loves to pamper and decorate His own! Bow to everyone we know and to all of Tambov. Save yourself! Your pilgrim E. Feofan. January 4, 1881 Letter 436. Advance notification of death. About the news and works of the saint on writing Thank you for your congratulations and well wishes. I congratulate you on the holidays that have already passed and on the new year. May God grant you to be healthy and cheerful. You received warning from your mother that you will die. So what? Common path! Thank the Lord that such a reminder has been given and get ready. Although it may not happen very soon, it will still happen. Death never comes early to those who are ready. I was also glad from the bottom of my heart that the case of N.N. decided in her favor. But, after all, we still have to wait for gossip in St. Petersburg. The main thing is there. If they decide on the same thing, then there will be a triumph. The Vladimir beauty probably bought the dashing horses for her nephew and niece, who are in Moscow, near the Governor General. And if for herself, then she should do penance. Thank God I am healthy, but my eyes run their course. I have just finished the second volume of the Philokalia. I will send it to the people of Athos for census and printing. However, this will last for six months, if not more. Now I will take up the interpretation of the book of Hebrews, which is lagging behind. God's blessing to you all. Save yourself! Your pilgrim Bp. Feofan. January 28, 1884 Letter 437. About various news and about your health Although belated, I sincerely thank you for your holiday congratulations and well wishes. I wish you all the best in abundance this year. I am very sorry that such trouble befell N. and N.N. The fault lies in our excessive trust in the honesty of certain gentlemen. Let's start a good deed, but we are ashamed to strictly check the performers. So pay up! I'm very sorry. What about. Archimandrite Dimitri became Bishop Dimitri, and he is very happy about this. It should have been a long time ago. He is a most worthy person, adorned with bright qualities of mind and heart. God bless him to work now as a bishop. Card of Rev. Received Voronezh. Thank you. How ethereal he is! May he be a luminary, shining widely around. N. returned with medicines. God will give them something! But I refuse Vrevsky. He doesn’t heal behind the scenes, and I can’t show myself to him. So we part ways! If o. Jonah of Kyiv will beg, or Fr. John of Kronstadt, to whom I wrote, is kind. And if my sins do not allow their prayer to pass to the Lord, then God’s will be done! And I was almost ready to face blindness without whimpering. The time will come! Lie down! And now I would lie down, but you can’t put me to bed. Everyone is ashamed to do nothing. Bows to all of you and full of good wishes. Save yourself! Your good friend E. Feofan. January 26, 1884 Letter 438. About the completed work on compiling the Gospel History and so on. It’s my fault that I owe so much in response. It was a bit of a thing; I was a little lazy. Compiled the Gospel story in the words of St. evangelists, coming up with reasons why one and not another should give order to the events of the gospel. I finished everything and am now rewriting it. You said goodbye to your Master. It will be a miracle if he comes back again, with all the desire of both his and yours. Please pray to God more earnestly. You won’t wait for another Lord like him. For the honor you bestow upon the icon of the Lady, may the All-Merciful One always overshadow you with Her protective cover! I'm healthy. The last eye is still in effect. Pray that it doesn't clog like the first one. I stopped thinking about the operation. I am sending you the books of Abba Isaiah. Please pass on N.N. with N.N. and N.N. After the Lord, you are an old friend of mine. You should take on the job of distributing books. I send you my full best wishes. Bow to everyone we know. Save yourself! Your pilgrim E. Feofan. June 17, 1884 Letter 439. Brief reviews and news about the Gospel History and various subjects I am very glad that you completed your pilgrimage journey safely. Thank you for remembering me, a sinner, in St. places. Save you, Lord! And I hear that the Zadonsk monasteries are thriving. God sent such a rector. Everything is fine with him and the main monastery. It was he who sent Fr. to the monastery. Cassiana. Bless them there, Lord, all of them! Rev. Seraphim, I think, is hiding behind his illness. In fact, he loved solitude, and, Rev. Like Arseny, he runs around people, because he cannot be separated from God for a minute. Rev. Thank you Joseph for your prayers. And I remember him every day. I called the whole world about the Gospel story. And now I hear that the Synod will not allow it. It is expected that it will not be allowed. Because such codes had already been presented, and he did not allow it. Well - this will be a strong defeat to the highest self-exaltation - humility is a science. Everything is fine with me - both health and laziness. Thank you for your offer of warmth. Everything is there for this year. And a bunch of stockings, and cassocks, and boots. The people of Athos sent me Greek words of praise to St. Panteleimon. I'm translating. To write my own - all desire has disappeared. Bow to everyone we know. I ask for prayers. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. October 28, 1884 Letter 440. Thoughts before the post and feedback on posts about various subjects Happy New Year and Happy Lent! Have you heard: open the doors for repentance! The all-merciful Lord again stands at His open doors with open arms. Let us fall into His arms and weep before the Lord, who created us and arranges our salvation in every possible way through His providential actions for us. About your noble elections and N.N.’s extremely active participation in them. I already heard from someone. Kondoidi has taken root in Tambov. And what should you change it for when it’s good? I always thought about. Joasaph a good monk. For this, the Lord sent him a good death. I wish him peace and tranquility to his soul. We need to prepare ourselves too. It's been a week since I started my eighth decade! I wish you peace of mind and health! Pray to God for me, a sinner. Bow to everyone we know. Your Bogomolets E. Feofan. January 13, 1885 Letter 441. Works on the publication of the Gospel History and the Invisible War and review of the written works of Abbess Smaragda I'm sorry I didn't answer for so long. I apologize, without presenting any extenuating circumstances, for lack of them. I would like to thank you for everything you sent. Save me, Lord! Etc. I thank Joseph for the book. I just revised the Gospel story in print and am sending notes of typos. In three weeks I will receive copies and send them to you and the rest of Tambov and Rev. Joseph. Rev. Leontius was instructed by the Holy Synod to review and present an opinion. I am very grateful to him. My health is good, but my eyes are governed by their own laws. The people of Athos entrusted me with the obedience of translating “The Invisible Warfare” into Russian. I'm translating little by little. A book of ascetic nature. Published in Soulful Reading. The other day I received from Jerusalem from some Abbess Smaragda her written works - translations of the Philokalia and interpretation of some words of Isaac the Syrian. He asks to review it and tell me if it can be printed. The translations cannot be published because they were made not from Greek, but from Slavic. And the interpretations of St. Isaac may be printable. I haven't lost my senses yet. It seems that it should be published because the author is an abbess and her speech is firm and knowledgeable! God bless you all! Save yourself! Your pilgrim E. Feofan. November 4, 1885 Letter 442. Review of the Bishop who visited the saint. More about the books of Abbess Smaragda and about her Gospel History and Invisible Warfare Happy Christmas and New Year, I heartily congratulate you! May the Lord grant you every good thing that you desire and expect. Your great Lord brought me comfort with his visit. I liked him very much because of his disposition, his living spirit of jealousy, and the power of his strong faith. Help him, Lord! I am very grateful to you for the news about Abbess Smaragda. Her books are unfit for publication - one is already in print and in the best translation from Greek, and the other, although not bad, has no reason to publish it, because it says the same thing as St. Isaac. Here and there words escape her, from which it is clear that she attributes too much to the powers of man in the matter of salvation. But now, of course, I’ve learned from experience that it’s not safe to think like that. What a parable happened to my Gospel. History - I don’t know. A long time ago I re-read it and, with typos noted, sent it off for finishing. And so I wait and wait and can’t wait. As soon as I receive it, I will send it to you, and for Vladyka Joseph, if I don’t send it directly to him with the Most Reverend. Seraphim. Reading “The Invisible Warfare” in Soul Floor. Reading? I finished the other day. By half the year will end with printing. It is too blurred, and Elder Nicodemus himself would not have recognized the original. I wanted to say everything more clearly. Bow to all of you and God's blessing. God bless you! Your pilgrim E. Feofan. December 22, 1885 Letter 443. The saint’s response to the addressee’s wonderful dream. News about books and about the advice of Abbot Jonah regarding a sore eye Congratulations on your post. May the Lord grant him to last in good health and even in the best spiritual disposition. Your sleep is definitely very good. It was your Guardian Angel who said something. I just don’t know how he got the idea to take my image? After all, they see not the outside, but the inside. I don't hear anything about my book. I think they're wincing. I asked Vladyka, when handing over the books to the rector of the seminary, to tell him to print the announcement. Doesn't print. Rev., maybe, I forgot to say. If it doesn’t print, go to the world. He will know then. And he will pay the fine: take snuff. Are you asking if there will be prints of the Invisible Warfare? They will. This is an Athonite edition. The translation is finished. By the end of the year, maybe and printing will end sooner. Now I'm translating a similar book. K o. abbot. I wrote to Jonah and received an answer, and I am acting on his advice, and I believe that if the Lord wants to have mercy on me, then my eye will become stronger. My other health is fine. A little later I’ll write to the Eminence how things are going, and if any trace appears? God bless you! Bows and blessings to everyone we know. Save yourself! Your pilgrim E. Feofan. March 2, 1886 Letter 444. Sacrilegious insult to the Tambov Icon of God. Mothers. Rumors about new appointments in the spiritual department. News about your health I didn’t have time to answer you, just like the second letter. Thank you. It gives me great comfort to see that you and N.N. and others remembered me on the day of my Angel. Save you, Lord! I am very grateful to Vladyka that he so readily shared the evening of that day with you. I wrote to him about eye treatment, and what comes of it, nothing definite can be said yet. And about the legs too. I very much regret that the Mother of God was so wickedly insulted by the thieves exposing her beautiful Tambov icon. Surely the parishioners fell asleep, and in order to awaken them, the Mother of God allowed the wicked to do this sacrilegious deed. About the fact that Rev. Seraphim retired, I heard before; but I didn’t believe it. And now I’ve read it in Vedom. Moscow. In the Church Vestn. not yet visible. Maybe just word of mouth. The rumor said that he asked to go to Zadonsk, to the saint. Tikhon. In his place is Yaroslavl, Jonathan, also an Orlovets. Very meek. To Rev. Joseph, I think, and he will have full attention. In Zadonsk, Rev. Seraphim will be very calm. The rector is his former housekeeper, Procopius. However, all this still needs to wait for confirmation. Rumors are deaf and blind. My health is good, except for certain external infirmities. I just don’t want to do anything. Even though it would be within the reach of a lazy person; however, this can make it a bit boring. Time flies by unnoticed. God bless you! Bow to everyone we know. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. March 22, 1886 Letter 445. About the Bishop’s visit to the saint during a trip around the diocese. Wonderful icon of St. Mitrofan Congratulations on your safe return from your pilgrimage. May everything you see and hear be for your benefit. I express my gratitude for your prayer for me before St. relics. Conversation of the saint. God's Joseph has revived you. His gracious speeches serve the benefit of many. May God grant him to serve for the good of us sinners. Our bishop works a lot while traveling around the diocese. That's why I lost weight. Help him, Lord, in his labors! This time Vladyka was curious to see my church and the workers’ church. I wanted to show off before him and show him my silk vestment, painted with gold. And he said that he already has it. So the charge is gone. But the benefit is that I made sure that girls at school will learn this skill. For I have heard a rumor that some people there consider it fragile. I really regretted and regret that I didn’t have anything ready-made from my handicrafts; and now it’s a little difficult to prepare. Everywhere you need an eye, but I lack this. However, I am planning to draw an icon of the saint. Mitrofan. I have a very good one. It’s just not big and difficult to draw, but I’ll try. When I was given this icon, I was told that it was painted by a painter who saw the saint in a dream through prayer, and who painted him as he saw him. And indeed, the face is very characteristic, both strict and friendly. Whenever I could. If I please, I will send it to the Bishop. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. October 2, 1888 Letter 446. Consolation in grief over the deceased Again you will have sorrow and again your troubles may be even more difficult than before. I grieve with you and pray to the Lord to send you comfort and fill you with courage and patience. The Lord knows what he is doing. But since we believe that everything He does is directed towards our spiritual salvation, then although it is impossible not to grieve when exposed to sorrows, we cannot help but draw consolation from the faith in such mercy of our Lord to us and thereby pour out the fire of sorrow. Servant of God N., dead in body, is alive in spirit, with whom he abides with you. Imagine him not in a grave, but in a better place and in a better form than you usually saw him. And this will prevent grief from spreading widely. May the Lord draw near to you and be with you! Your good friend E. Feofan. August 29, 1889 Letter 447. Mutual good wishes. The basis of inner peace. Writing is the saint's joy Congratulations on the successful completion of your pilgrimage. Thank you for your prayers to St. Mitrofan and for the bows from the saints. Joseph. I am very grateful to him for his prayers. And I remember him every time in my prayers. I am very glad that you hope to find peace in your outward presence. May the Lord bless this and grant you such good things. With external peace and internal peace it is easier to stand, even though it may be strong in itself. And it seems to you that he has a strong foundation in trust in God and devotion to His holy will, with a readiness to accept everything, as if from His hand, with complacent submission. May God's protection always be extended over you. Rev. Joseph marvels as I write. But this is my joy. What would I do if not for this? Now, after finishing the Philokalia, I can’t find a subject I like and often get bored from idleness. Maybe, having had some rest, I’ll attack something and work on it diligently. God bless you with every blessing. Save yourself! Your good friend E. Feofan. October 9, 1889 Letter 448. Good news about the Athonite elders. About church prayer. Notice about your health I received new books and am sending them to you. It will be delivered to you by N.N. I send through Mx because it is easier for them to receive from the post office. You have loved solitude and want to be allowed to be with the Lord. Blissful disposition and most blessed desire. May the Lord strengthen him. You rejoiced at the stories of Fr. Raphael of Sarov about the Athonite elders. There have always been and will be many of them there, according to the promise of the Mother of God and the prayers of so many Athonite saints. If there are no ascetic elders there, then where should they be? And I have heard and continue to hear that there is an abundant breeding ground for ascetics. The Church is your consolation. Thanks be to the Lord, who allows you to experience the benefits of being in church. St. Chrysostom often mentions that you can pray at home; but you can’t pray at home like you do in church. I always remember you in my sinful prayers. Thank you too for praying for me. And pray again and again. My former infirmities are gone. But a new one appeared - dizziness. However, it is weakening, and there is hope that it will soon stop completely. This is a boring weakness, and it falls to the floor, which happened twice. God bless you and have mercy. I wish you all the best from the Lord. Your good friend E. Feofan. February 26, 1891 Letter 449. Fears from cholera and fear of the omnipresent Lord. Feedback on the Most Rev. Blind Joseph and about his sight You have sunk into your desert and forgotten about the light of God. We need to remind you of him. But I’ll put a request in advance - to forgive me my delay in answering. I, thank God, am healthy, although not in good health. But the dizziness subsided. Now we are surrounded by fears of cholera. There are rumors that someone has died here and there. However, it is not clear that this was something terrible. Those who returned from the Don died, but in our country the Highlands and the Downlands are harmless. If it pleases the Lord, He will not prevent cholera from reaching us in another way, if it deserves it. Lord, have mercy! Cold! We don't leave warm clothes. They wouldn't stop you from living in the village longer! The city is still a bustling city, not a quiet village. The Lord, however, is present everywhere and everywhere, as the Lord, before Whom it is proper to hold fear and trembling - not alone, however, but in union with hope in mercy from the all-merciful God. You mentioned high pr. Joseph. Wonderful old man of God! What strength of spirit! It is complacent to remain blind for so many years! And it suits me too. Will the Lord give me peace of mind when I am blind?! Be merciful to me, Lord! However, my blindness will not be darkness. For the right eye, everything is now covered with a gray cloth. When you circle it, the only thing you can see is the window, like a light brown oval spot. I wish you peace of mind, warm memory of God and sober prayer! Your good friend E. Feofan. August 9, 1892 Letter 450. Packing for a long journey. About the Kaz icon painted by the saint. God Mothers. Metropolitans from the Tambov bishops You are going on a long journey - to a place from which there is no return. No one can avoid this path. But the moment when they are ordered to enter it is unknown, but all that is known is that it can come at any moment; then it’s best to think that you’ll just have to go home and always keep yourself ready for that. I don’t remember when and how I painted you the icon of the Kazan Mother of God. But your intention to leave her in the Utka Church is good; honoring for the sake of the Lady Theotokos. My drawing adds nothing to your cause. I wish you success in this. You rejoice that the bishop who was in Tambov became a metropolitan of St. Petersburg. Yes, Tambov is happy. One might think that he supplies metropolitans. How many in our memory?! Arseny, Macarius and this Palladium. May God help him! I am sending you a copy of the ancient monastic rules. Your good friend E. Feofan. December 7, 1892 Letter 451. Blessing to the donor of the icon of God. Mothers. The enemy brings melancholy and boredom. About reading the Gospel and writing down the good thoughts that appear during this Thank you for the good memory and congratulations on your name day. The letter arrived just on the 12th. Save you, Lord! And before you wrote with Fr. Archimandrite about our miraculous icon, which you clothed in a magnificent robe and gave to your church. May the Mother of God cover you with Her powerful cover from all troubles and sorrows! You write that melancholy and boredom are tormenting. Trouble, after all, is external - there is no visible one?! So this is the enemy's business. The enemy does not like peaceful hearts, and so he somehow manages to squeeze the heart and drive out the sweet peace from it. Pray to the Lord and the Mother of God, and it will pass. Just don’t complain or be annoyed about this, but say: on business, on business! And add: forgive, Lord, my known and unknown sins. The enemy languishes to no avail, and you, turning this languor into languor for sins, outwit him, making him an instrument of a good spiritual feeling. Ave. Palladius and Gennady died. May the Lord rest their souls. I always remembered them alive; Now I will remember the departed, and they will remember us there and pray. You've already talked. And also talk and take communion. You can fast continuously and receive communion as often as the spirit requires. God bless you! You are secluded and alone with the Lord. May the Lord bless you to be in your heart as in your cell, i.e. Lord, yes you are. Reading the Gospel is the best reading. May the Lord give you good thoughts every time you read. Won o. John of Kronstadt wrote down these thoughts, and now he has published two decent books. And I once wrote it down. I had to advise one solitary woman to write down good thoughts. But when I sent the letter, I thought: after all, she doesn’t know what she might mean by this, let me write a few as an example, and I did. These thoughts are printed in the book: Letters to various persons about various subjects of faith and life, at the very end - the last letter. All thoughts are 162. Now they are specially printed by the people of Athos. I'll send you this brochure. I will also send a Reminder to the nuns about monasticism. Now there is no road. Wait a moment. I ask for prayers. God bless you! Save yourself! Your good friend E. Feofan. March 17, 1893 Letter 452. Brief answers on the contents of received letters. Letter to N. You complain that I rarely write. A righteous complaint. Please excuse me and forgive me. I keep going to write, but I still can’t get around to it. Your last letter was dated October 4, and is now the last of this month. I'm overdue a lot. Do you regret that you were not able to visit Voronezh this summer? As much as this relates to God, He will accept as a matter one zealous desire that did not have to be fulfilled not by your will. Say you have read the life of a saint. Anthony of God. The saint was great in all his simplicity. Thank God that they decided to publish his life in the best form, from which flows abundant edification, which you also happened to taste. Your good friend E. Feofan. November 1, 1893 Letter 453. Review of Mey’s poem “Born Blind” and the transcription of Job and Glinka into verse. True peace and deceptive worldly hopes. Letter to Mrs. N and her family The poems - born blind - are beautiful; but there is no truth in them. Read the Gospel. from John ch. 9 – healing of a man born blind, about the blind man of Bethsaida, Evan. from Mark ch. 8, from 22 art. to 26, the Savior's Discourse on the Mount from Matt. Ch. 5:6, 7. These three events are different in May and are combined into one. The terrain depicted is not Palestinian, but the Arabian desert, which is below Palestine. You are right in your judgment of the verse - beautiful! Mei is truly a wonderful person – which concerns many religious subjects. About two years ago I read Glinka’s poems – Job. It occurred to me to send them to you. Read it. I really liked them and read them from start to finish without stopping. It seems that the soul speaks in them. And sometimes you can take your soul away with them. This is how you know true peace!! God bless! So what - why the matter? And now we must pull in the direction in which it is given. We must look for the lost paradise in order to sing about the found one. There is the essence of the matter. Everything outside and except for it is a wasteland. And all this is not far, right at hand. However, you have to want it, and it’s not easy to want it. Help you, Mother of God and your Guardian Angel! But without this, everything will be the same, you will chase after something and then feel sad and annoyed. To chase again and to yearn again. Don’t you remember how in childhood you sometimes wanted to catch up with the rainbow? This is exactly what happens now when we are chasing something. The Lord definitely said: this is what you are looking for and this is what will happen! And the evil one makes you look for something and promises something for it, but nothing comes of it. Is it really possible to stay like this?! Sorry, very sorry! After all, I know perfectly well what is given on one side and what is given on the other! You need to choose the best, the constant, the unchangeable. It’s a shame to imagine this choice. The soul itself must choose. On her, after all, is an account for everyone, and she is honored. However, no one else produces and gives everything like the Lord. Breathe towards Him. He's nearby. And he asks to come to you. I knock, he says, will someone open the door? Now I turned Job around and remembered one place. Here it is! How good! Earn your heart into his ear. I remember there are many such places, but now I don’t remember. Letter 454: Blessing and Guidance for an Entire Family Thank you for your congratulations and well wishes. I have nothing left to congratulate you on. I was late, even though I was going to write everything. He received linens for the throne and the altar. Thank you. May the blessing of the Lord be on all of you, from your head to your last toe. As you read books, you will encounter a need for explanation. Write to Vysha. She will be happy to talk to you. Behold the post! I suggest that you often hold in your hands, or even not let go of, words about repentance and communion, and a collection of prayers. How to fast is not poorly written in the first book. Yes, read everything together! - Let Yakov Egorovich be the rector; Mother Anna Vasilievna – abbess; you are a reader; others are listeners. A holy family or one seeking holiness will come out. Bishop Feofan. January 27, 1882 Letter 455. Advice on the use of painful seizures I greatly regret your grief and pray to the Lord to eliminate the cause of it - the painful seizures of your young daughter. But prayer is prayer, and doctors are doctors. And God gave doctors and it is God’s will to turn to them. The Lord comes with His help when the natural means He provided for us are not enough. Therefore, if we pray, we will pray, but we should not neglect natural means. Seek and you will find! It occurred to me - does she have enough walks in the fresh air and physical labor at home, which also requires movement and tension? Don't baths and showers go with this? Ride with her every day. Otherwise, go for a ride - travel. We would go to Kiev, and somewhere else along the cast iron. There are also famous doctors in Kiev. But, of course, doctors, by God’s grace, also help. Therefore, let's pray. I wish with all my heart that this weakness passes and leaves no trace. God bless you all - mother, wife, children and especially the sick one. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. November 19, 1884 Letter 456. Encouragement and consolation for one subject to a long illness with fits It’s true that now you’ve already gone to Moscow and returned. What did God give? Has Zakharyin understood what strength is? If yes, thank God! If not, what should I do? – But still, don’t despair! Maybe there will be one in Kyiv. This disease is very secretive. And it doesn’t allow you to get to the root. I don’t think there is anything spiritual or hostile here. No, this is one of the diseases in which the vital force encounters some kind of delay in its movement from time to time. Hence the fainting. But no one has yet grasped what life force is. And this is the reason for the failure of any treatment. But assume that there is absolutely no doctor who can cure you, and then don’t be timid. Because the life force can again take the power and fix the matter itself. As it happens, the seizures stop on their own. Seizures, of course, are an unpleasant thing; but, after all, you can still live. You can live a hundred years. This is a bad consolation for both the patient and you. But what should we do?! God is our Lord. He decided that it should be so. We must submit. And still be good-natured and grateful. How can we say that this disease was not sent by the Lord to ward off any misfortune from the sick person, or from you. The course of life is hidden from us, and its accidents are so incomprehensible that we have no choice but to cry: Thy will be done, Lord! For we know that only good always comes from the Lord. God bless you! Save yourself! Bow to your mother and husband. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. December 15, 1884 Letter 457. About the same sick woman. You need to listen to the doctor. Rejection of sending gifts Happy New Year and happy dawn of St. post! I am very glad that you have finally found a doctor whom you trust with your daughter’s illness. May God grant her to get better! They say about Zakharyin that he is a master of his craft. And there is no doubt that he ended up in the real place of the disease, namely, in an abnormal state of the blood, as I see in the prescription. Now just do what is exactly prescribed, and God willing, everything will go well! I would like to thank you for the gifts. However, it’s time for you to stop sending. I am pleased to receive them as evidence of your goodwill. But as your letters sufficiently confirm the latter, the former turns out to be excessive. So please stop sending. This is the elder’s commandment for you; and you become humble novices. My health is good. Thank the Lord! God's blessing to your mother, and your spouse, and your children! Save yourself! Your pilgrim Bp. Feofan. January 13, 1885 Letter 458. Consolation during the continuation of illness I bring my sincere gratitude to all of you for your congratulations on the bright holiday and first on your name day, and for all your well wishes! In return, I congratulate you on the holiday and wish you every good thing from the Lord. Please forgive me for not answering you. Guilty! Your four letters are before me - they expose my laziness, but not my oblivion about you. I always remember you and I am not guilty of this. What I didn’t write is laziness’s fault. Things are not any easier for your beauty. I'm very sorry; but I don’t allow grumbling thoughts. Everything is from God, and God knows better than us what is best for someone, and don’t be angry with doctors. They don't heal themselves. And they are cured when God blesses. God has completely different thoughts about sickness and health than we do, and they are as distant from ours as heaven is from earth. It happens that God shields others with illness from a misfortune that would not have escaped them if they had been healthy. God hid Vera Alekseevna with illness from her suitors. And it’s not for bad! Believe in God and you will endure everything well. God bless you all - mother, your husband and you, and the sick beauty. Save yourself! Your pilgrim E. Feofan. April 7, 1885 Letter 459. After receiving grace-filled help, should you consult a doctor? Natural and supernatural healing - all from God Are you hesitating whether to go to Zakharyin? When your daughter is healthy and this, as you believe, is with the help of St. Tikhon, then you shouldn’t go to Zakharyin. Have you heard the proverb: after scraping with an axe? This is what will happen if you go to Zakharyin. And the holy lord says to you: God cannot be mocked. This is a reason both of the highest level and stronger. Listen to your master and enter into the power of his faith. His path is safer. As I have already written and now prescribe that there is no sin in turning to medicine, for the doctor is God and the medicines are God and the prescriptions are God. Ask the humble doctors. They will openly say that they themselves do not know how healing recipes are written. So, if you, trusting in God and receiving help from Him, and not from doctors and drugs, turn to natural means of healing, then there is no sin. When God has given these means, then one must turn to them. God was pleased to surround us with natural and supernatural means. And no one can be denied access to these sources. The key to them is faith. And God, when He wants to heal in this way, He Himself also invests the power of faith and draws us to where He deigns to give healing. We are blind. And not knowing where healing is hidden by God for us, we go through all God-given means, both natural and supernatural, all trusting in Him alone and betraying to Him the fate of ourselves and those we care about. God bless you! Bow to everyone we know. I will write to them too, but not now. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. December 3, 1885 Letter 460. Instruction on how to pray for the sick This is your second letter, and I still haven’t had time to answer the first one. Thank you. I am pleased to receive letters from you, although I am lazy in answering, which my old age gives me the right to do. What you and others you knew did there on my name day was very comforting. I thank everyone and the Bishop. You kindly organized a prayer for your daughter. Two prayer services a week, and a commemoration at the proskomedia. It would seem quite enough. But who is praying painfully here? God listens to prayer when one prays with an aching soul about something. If no one sighs from the soul, then the prayer service will crackle, but there will be no prayer for the sick person. Also a proskomedia, and also a mass. There is only your faith and hope here, the sign of which is your orders. But do you yourself attend prayer services? If not, then your faith is silent. You ordered; but by giving money so that others could pray, they themselves threw all worries off their shoulders. There is no one caring for the patient. It does not even occur to those serving the prayer service to ache before the Lord with their souls for those who are remembered at the prayer service. And where can they all get sick?! It’s another matter when you yourself are at a prayer service, or in church at a liturgy, when N is remembered at a proskomedia. Then your illness is taken up by the prayer of the church and quickly ascends to the throne of God, and the very prayer of the church makes it painful, although the servants are not sick. So you see where the power lies! Attend prayer services yourself, and ache with your soul for the sick. And it will happen. In church during the liturgy, you hurt during the proskomedia, and especially when after - We sing to you - they sing the hymn of the Mother of God: It is worthy to eat. Here the living and the dead are remembered again for the perfect sacrifice. Mass is stronger than commemoration only at proskomedia because it expresses your strongest condolences for the sick person and with that your strongest faith and hope that the Lord will not abandon you with His help. Where to order? - In Zadonsk at St. Tikhon. And if your soul lies in Kyiv, in Kyiv. Wherever your soul lies, order there. But most importantly, take care of the patient yourself. And help the poor more, not just those who walk. Ease a family burdened by poverty. His prayer will ease your heartache. Bless, Lord, all of you - your mother, you and your husband, your sick daughter and other children, and everyone who is around you, and your trading affairs. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. April 3, 1886 Letter 461. Trumpet for the sick I would like to thank you for your congratulations and your well wishes. I congratulate you both and wish you every desired good from the Lord. The first thing on your mind is your daughter’s illness. Worry about her and painfully cry out to the Lord, and instill in your daughter, too, and tell all your friends, too. Then all the prayers about her from outside will merge with yours and form a trumpet sound, powerful to attract the attention of the Lord. May the Lord deliver her from her illness. I received what you sent. Thank you. Everything is both wonderful and useful. Bow and blessing to your mother and husband, and children, especially the sick one. God bless you! Please convey my regards to those you know. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. Apr 29 1886 Letter 462. About a son who is not good at science. A difficult task. About his eye and translation, Reverend. Dimitri Thank you for your congratulations and well wishes. May the Lord grant you more and more good and soul-saving things. If there is no success, then taking your son out of school is a reasonable thing to do. God bless you to do this. There are many people in the world who are businessmen and businessmen, but science does not work. The question of which is better, scientists or businessmen, has not yet been resolved. And for business and science to come together in one person is rare. Take care of one thing, so that he develops a good character and good rules of life. Here, other than advice and admonition, it doesn’t hurt to use parental authority. You refuse to solve the question of what the world is. No, no, no! Please rack your brains! N.N. there is no time, and you and your mother sit at home, one against the other and reason. I wrote to N.N. so that she would form a council of you again and make a decision without fail. I told her where to look about it. My eye still serves. I use Vrevsky water as a lotion. She is good and kind to the eyes. But whether she will get cataracts, I don’t know. Let's wait and see. His Grace Dmitry complacently transfers the transfer to another diocese. And for him, in fact, only the work of bulkheading is difficult, but the things there are the same as here, and maybe they are even easier there. We will always wish that the Lord would help him there, as he helped him everywhere before. May God bless you all with every blessing. Save yourself! Your good friend E. Feofan. January 3, 1888 Letter 463. Advice about headaches I share your grief and concern with all my heart. May the Lord turn away all trouble from you and may your spouse receive relief and healing from illness. Headache in the form of N.N. most directly indicates that the head is tired with in-depth considerations. But it also happens from other accidents, for example, from an undetected cold, or cooling of the back and back of the head. The last case, soon captured, does not bother with pain for long. The first one takes it deeper; but there is nothing to be afraid of him either. However, you need to listen to the doctors. You need to give your head a rest. I would like to go somewhere for a month, at least; Yes, just ride around the cast iron without any purpose. And entrust the work for this time - for each part - to more intelligent and trusted employees, giving them complete instructions, identifying possible accidents as much as possible. I think it's possible to do this. And there is nothing to be afraid of. Go with him too. The house will remain in mother's hands. Beat the moon month; your head will clear and become stronger. I'm not suggesting a riotous one. Pray to God, read the Gospel, cast all your sorrow on the Lord. If this method of congratulations is inconvenient, here is another one. After all, it is not so much the deepening of the mind that torments the head, but rather the anxiety that destroys and torments the heart, and from the heart the languor passes into the head. My second recipe is aimed at this, namely, not to torment the heart with grief and worry; and transfer all sadness and care into the hands of God, so that the heart remains completely free. Then the head, no matter how deep you go, will endure everything without exhaustion. In establishing such a mood, the work is moral, with reflection that would revive trust in God. Please do so, N.N. You can combine both of these plans. You can’t give up everything and go for a ride without placing all your trust in God. Living in this hope exclusively for a whole month, the soul will be strengthened in it. When you return, all you have to do is maintain it, and it will remain with you for the rest of your life, and all your life it will ease the burden of worries, and will not let your head get as tired as it is now. Above all, let us pray, so that the power of God, which strengthens our strength, embraces you and protects you. God bless you! Save yourself! Your good friend E. Feofan. February 14, 1888 Letter 464. God remembers with grief. Message about eye use Thank you for your congratulations and well wishes! God bless you! And I received the previous letter, and I kept meaning to answer, but didn’t get around to it. There are a few things that have accumulated that are not allowing things to unfold. You have grief after grief. Do you know what this means? That God remembered you. It's weird to think like that, but it's true. And he remembered it not in anger, but in mercy. You see only hardships and losses, but the mercy hidden under this and in this is not visible. Please manage to see this, be comforted and thank God with all your heart. I received what my mother sent. Thank you. My eye is no better; but I think it’s not worse. If this is true, then this should not be attributed to the baron’s water, but to the prayers of Fr. John and Jonah: for I asked them precisely so that the darkness of the eye would stop. But the baron hopes to completely defeat the enemy and drive him away. Give it, Lord! God bless you! Save yourself! Your good friend E. Feofan. March 22, 1888 Letter 465. Suggestion about surgery for a sore eye Thank you for your congratulations. I congratulate you too, but not on the bright resurrection, but on the glorious Ascension. May the Lord grant you, lifted up, to remain in God's mind and heart. Thank you very much for informing me about the operation, which was happy and painless. N.N. They already wrote about this, and I replied that such consolation would not come to me. Because they cut off the outer thorn, but I have a thorn inside my eye. Here they do not cut off, but cut open the eye and push out the affected member - the lens. What pain must there be?! This pain scared me very much. And because of her, I rested my feet more before the operation. But as you said, a way has been found to make the eye insensitive; then there is no longer any room for fear, and I am ready for the operation. But it was not this fear alone that kept me from the operation, but more that Dr. Moskovsky, who examined my right eye, said that I had a cataract that was beyond the reach of surgery. If this is the case, then there is no point in thinking about the operation, although it will not only be painless, but also sweet. One thing still remains - the doctor looked at my eye when it was just starting to get clogged. It is possible that either the doctor did not fully examine and made a mistake, or that the cataract, having matured, degenerated and became amenable to surgery. Therefore, both eyes need to be examined by a doctor again. If the doctor finds the operation possible, i.e. acceptable, then I will accept it. Please accept my sincere gratitude for this news, which made me very happy. Send me the address of Dr. Lazhechnikov. I'll treat him. Your good friend E. Feofan. June 2, 1888 Letter 466. About complacent patience with illness I grieve with you for N. and pray that the Lord will show mercy to her and calm you all down. But at the same time, we all need to keep in mind the law according to which the Lord measures our fate on earth. Everything here is from the Lord, from small to large, and this is a means of preparing for the future life. The meaning of illness and health is the same; This is the meaning of your illness N. On the road to the future blissful life, she certainly, according to God’s wise and good judgment, must endure what she endures. Assimilate this view and instill the same in her, and what is painful in this illness will cease to burden the soul and will calm it down. Faith is a healer of the soul, inspired by hope and warmed by love. Having established yourself in this conviction, have all your care and heartfelt concern for treatment, but with peace of mind and surrendering everything to the will of God. Let N. settle down like this: earthly happiness, of course, is also good in its own measure. But if the Lord finds that it is better for me not to have that part of this happiness that depends on health, God’s will be done! The love of my husband, mother, father and relatives is enough for me. I give thanks to the Lord for this and for that, for what is given and for what is not given. May the Lord only give me complacency and patience and such a mood of spirit with which I would not be ashamed to appear before the Lord. Holidays are around the corner. Congratulations on them! May festive joy swallow up your sorrow. Please convey my regards, congratulations and good wishes to those you know. God bless you all! Save yourself! Your good friend E. Feofan. December 19, 1888 Letter 467. One should not envy those who can bequeath a lot for remembrance In your last letter you were jealous of those; who, after their death, have the opportunity to win over many to pray to God for themselves through the rich distribution of benefits to those in need. Are you seriously saying this and thinking so?! In fact, all that can be said about these orders is that they are not nothing, but have their own force, but not unconditional. This is a helping tool, and not the main thing, and only to the extent that the main thing is strong. The main thing is deeds of piety, truth and love with selflessness and sincere repentance, making up for everything that is lacking in these deeds and making amends for everything that is opposite to them, with full faith in the Lord Savior and in the entire economy of salvation. When this main thing is there, the work of salvation is safe, but when not, it is in extreme danger, and what you envied will turn out to be a belated remedy. Now we need to stock up on such things, or it is better to acquire such a good mood, which is usually expressed in such things. It seems like this is how things are going for you. May God help you to be in such order until the end. I rejoice that everything is good with you and I take comfort in this, wishing you every good, both mental and physical. Be healthy and good-natured. My health is fine. There are old people's infirmities, but they are not worth talking about. Bless you, Lord, everyone and all your deeds. Your good friend E. Feofan. November 27, 1889 Letter 468. Mutual prayerful memory. Sin cannot be dismissed from prayer. I congratulate you on your pilgrimage and safe return, and especially on the fact that you met your spiritual needs there. Thank you for praying for me too. May the Lord grant you to eat the spiritual fruits received in St. city ​​and through this grow in the work of salvation. It’s my fault that I didn’t write, and now I’m guilty again. I apologize. But you would be wrong if you think that no matter how I write, I don’t remember you. No, I remember every day and everyone by name and ask the Lord to show His mercy to you. You say that for you now there is only one God - all hope. This is how you should always feel: for without the will of God, even thousands of human helpers will not help. And what they then added, that she is a sinner and where should I dare to pray, is sinful speech. The Lord turns away from sinners when they sin and remain in sin, without thinking of correcting themselves. And when they turn to Him with repentance and a desire to improve and a promise, and begin to do this: then the Lord leaves all the righteous and turns to sinners who turn to Him, and has mercy on them. You will act according to this order. Although I do not believe that you are an outstanding sinner; but since there is no one without sin, then, of course, you are not alien to this common lot. Therefore, do not be so kind as to deny prayer with sinfulness and thereby cover up your laziness. In addition, know that someone else’s prayer can only help your own, and not replace it. This is our common limit - to pray ourselves and ask others for prayer. And the Savior promised that the two’s prayers are always heard. May the Lord bless you all with every blessing. Save yourself! With o. Archimandrite I send the 5th volume of the Philokalia. You don’t immediately put it on the shelf, but take the trouble to look in the middle. Letter 469. About humbly bearing sorrows I am guilty before you for not answering your letters. I ask you to forgive me for this sin. But you are wrong in thinking that I have completely forgotten you. Every day I remember you and all yours and ask the Lord to help you. I will grieve you in your sorrows. It seems that you have tried everything and all your burdens remain with you. May the Lord grant you complacent patience if he does not deign to eliminate what is unpleasant to you. since He is always good to everyone, we must conclude that, without removing from you that which burdens you, He finds that this is saving for you and for your daughter and son-in-law. Therefore, we must humbly submit to the will of God and endure; and when you lack patience, ask the Lord to send him and strengthen you. There is no need to tell you that the purpose of our life is not to live happily on earth, but to ensure that, whether we are happy or unhappy, we should prepare ourselves with dignity to receive eternal bliss in another life. Try to treat your situation in this way, so as not to step out of the circle of God’s intentions, with which He arranges the life of everyone on earth. There are more sorrows on earth than joys. God sends this and that, now to awaken from moral lull, now to put an end to wrongs and sins, now for their repentant cleansing, now to increase obedience to God, who arranges everything, to give a reason to show courage and patience for the glory of God and other high virtues. Any of these intentions of God is applicable to you. Pay attention to yourself and, having decided not to deviate from what God has judged, rest in the will of God, always wise and good. Your good friend E. Feofan. February 18, 1892 Letter 470. About resigned patience with illness. Likening St. martyrs Happy St. Pentecost! I wish you all the graces of the Holy Spirit, which are now prayerfully remembered in St. church, more than health and salvation! Your health has deteriorated. Shaky health can also shake salvation when grumbling speeches and cries of despair are heard from the lips of the sick person. May God help you get rid of both troubles! Do you see where I'm going with this?! Such speeches erupt from you, and speeches, of course, come from feelings and thoughts, but these latter are of such a nature that with them the work of salvation is not valid. Please heed this and get better. Health and illness in the hands of God's providence for us are the means to salvation when both are used in the spirit of faith. But they also lead to destruction when they are treated capriciously. What you especially need is patience that is complacent and submissive to God. As soon as such a disposition appears in your soul, you will immediately enter the path of salvation - to heaven. And look, then be inspired! You had surgery. Grant, Lord, that she will do the work for which she was adopted. May the Lord have mercy and save you! Another pain you have is from your daughter’s illnesses. I'll tell you what. Since you have already tried all possible means, then there is only one thing left for you - to make peace with this grief and bear it with submission to God, believing that this illness is necessary for the salvation of you and your daughter, as well as her husband. Having made peace in this way, keep yourself calm and give your daughter the same calm. Remember the position of the martyrs, who sometimes, being tortured, were left in prison for several years - 5, 10, 20. But they humbly endured and were complacent, having heaven before their eyes, for their patience. Your good friend E. Feofan. May 24–27, 1892 Letter 471. Blessed joy. Coming to terms with illness. How to create peace of mind Your letters breathe joy, especially the last one, where you describe the existence of the miraculous Vyshenskaya Icon of the Mother of God. This is what mercy the Mother of God has shown you! May Her protection be upon you and the protection around you. You have been trying to get treatment. Here's the treatment for you. Resort to the Mother of God and She will always keep you in a joyful mood. Your main sorrow is that your daughter’s illness no longer destroys you. I am very glad that she herself has made peace with her fate and lives peacefully. Let her surrender her fate into the hands of God and believe that her position, according to God’s judgment, is the best for her. Who knows what would have happened if it had been arranged differently. Now you are in the village - you are probably healthier, happier, and more refreshed. God bless you! Create peace of mind by creating religious feelings in yourself, and moreover, by complete devotion to the will of God, by faith that everything is built by the Lord, and in the best way for us. God bless you all. Save yourself! Letter 472. Mutual good wishes. It's better not to believe dreams. Enemy arrows. God hears every prayer Thank you for your congratulations and well wishes. I wish you all the best too. I’m very glad that everything is fine with you at home now. Be always healthy and cheerful. May the Lord comfort your eldest daughter and grant her patience, with relief or relief from her illness. In your Lenten letter you ask whether dreams can be trusted? It’s better not to believe, because even in reality the enemy brings a lot of trifles to mind, but in a dream it’s even more convenient for him. If any dreams come true, then, after they come true, thank the Lord for his mercy. And give thanks for pleasant and edifying dreams. Quickly cleanse your soul and memory from seductive dreams upon awakening. The best way to do this is prayer and bringing to memory good events, especially from the Gospel story. Then make a stronger impression - these events are in your head and don’t take your mental eyes off them. Keep your full attention on them. Bad thoughts will immediately begin to weaken and go away. That sometimes a thought flies through your head - it’s an unkind one, it’s an enemy’s arrow. The enemy uses it when he wants to distract attention from prayer and occupy it with something undivine. If your attention stops over this thought, then the enemy will fly up and begin to build different stories in your head in order to desecrate the soul and kindle some bad, passionate feelings. There is one law. Quickly turn your attention from the unkind to the good and stop there. Nothing is hidden from God, He sees everything. And he hears every prayer, but fulfills it not according to our desire, but as it saves us. – Pray more and always try to pray well, and learn to pray. Bishop Feofan. April 21, 1893 Letter 473. About the books of Farrar and others. Matveevsky - the life of I. Christ I forgot to write to you about Farrar. The life of Christ the Savior, compiled by him, is of little dignity. Its biggest drawback is that the teaching of the Lord is mentioned very briefly and not with due consideration. We have the excellent life of Christ the Lord. This is St. Petersburg. O. Archpriest Matveevsky. Everything is fully depicted in it, both the acts of the Lord and the teaching with interpretation and application to everyone’s life. – The book is big, big, big, 800 pages. Please write this one out. Price: 5 rubles, delivery for 4 pounds. Read it and praise everyone. The author's warehouse of the book. St. Petersburg on Vasilyevsky Island, on Kamskaya Street, in the church house at the Smolensk cemetery. E. Feofan. June 1, 1893 Letter 474. Apologies and congratulations. About illness and treatment of your feet. The machinations of the enemy during fasting. Letters to a certain person awakened from a sinful life to repentance Nowadays I have the same beginning in all my letters - I apologize for the delay in replying. I begin to write to you in the same way. I kept thinking that you had no time for letters at the dacha. Now you have returned. Congratulations, renewed, fresh, alive. May God grant you to always be healthy and good-natured for your mother, your spouse, and all yours. Thank you for your troubles about my feet. I continue bandaging; the kicking of the legs has stopped, but is still there; There are fewer spasms and the feeling of annoyance is lighter. But there is usually no sleep at this time, and this lasts up to 2 to 3 hours. But this problem is not great. You prescribe an addition to bandaging - massage. This gentleman (massage) is not attractive! How much fuss, and how long! 10 minutes, just kidding! This is why I put it off. What happens to you during fasting, fear, anxiety, must be assumed to come from the enemy. He's probably getting something from you. Confession and communion scorch him and drive him away. So he, foreseeing this, raises the alarm. Try not to depart from the memory of God and the memory of death. They not only during fasting, but also at all times, they drive him away and scorch him and will not give you an attack. You see for yourself how soul-saving fasting is for you, and you can command yourself to fast more often. God bless you all! Save yourself! Ep. Feofan. October 4, 1893 Letter 475. Guide to the fight against sin and cleansing the heart from sinful thoughts Everything you have gone through since your awakening to repentance is completely in order - there is nothing to add, subtract, or correct. You just need to add a little more in your fight against sin. What you have in common is: turn away from evil and do good - this is at every moment in deeds, in words, and in thoughts. Deeds and words seem to have become fairly orderly, but the internal order has not been established. It seems you haven’t yet figured out what should be your main priority now, what to keep in mind, what to strive for? You say you have read my books. Did you happen to come across the book “The Path to Salvation” (an essay on an ascetic)? It has three compartments. In the third, the question is resolved: I gave up sin, took the good road, what now? It states what it is and outlines how to achieve it. If you have not read this book, or if you have forgotten, then read it again and clearly understand what is written there. This book is also suitable for this book: What is spiritual life and how to tune in to it, and also Letters about spiritual life, regarding the letters of Count Speransky. Read these too, and with the help of all the instructions, build yourself a plan for your inner spiritual life. After this, you may have to face the question of some confusion. Here I will tell you only a little about my thoughts. When sinful deeds are stopped, the struggle moves inward, into the heart. The main thing here is thoughts; Behind the thoughts are sympathies, behind these are wishes; behind these inclinations to action, agreements, decisions. These are the last to commit internal sin. Not all of these internal movements are sinners. Sin begins where willfulness is visible. Thoughts are not sinful when a person himself does not arouse them and does not restrain those aroused against his will. There is sinful impurity here. But when sympathy and pleasure are attached to this, lustful sweetness, not driven away but restrained, then there is half an internal sin; if someone himself holds back this sweetness and kindles it, then the whole soul is already in a prodigal state. Real internal sin is inclination, consent and decision. Thoughts must be driven away, not retained arbitrarily. Sympathy, or sweetness, as soon as it appears, must be suppressed with all your might. This is the main point of internal warfare. The question of how is solved in the following way: pay attention to your heart, stand there before the Lord and do not allow anything sinful there. This is the whole point of internal warfare. I won't write this anymore. You will find details in the books. Now about your questions: I don’t think you have anything to go to the academy for. If you need to replenish something, replenish it through reading. When you have finished your work, it is better not to delay, but to immediately go to the monastery. Which one? as it seemed to you (N.), then go there. Don’t dream about peace in the monastery. Behold the path is narrow and regrettable. This is real. And until then? - Until then, take care of your inner self so that there is no seething there, little by little cleanse the spiritual atmosphere. The more often you go to church, the better. Beware most of all from lustful sweetness. Pursue her as your most important enemy. E. Feofan. November 24, 1892 Letter 476. Various Answers and Instructions for Maintaining Zeal for the Spiritual Life They did well that they used the time they could freely dispose of in a godly manner. And they received the fruit - relief from the battle. And glory to God! - Are your thoughts bothering you?! As you treated them, always do so. The science of this, that is, of fighting with good thoughts, was taught by Hesychius of Jerusalem. Buy his book and study it. How we lived - nowhere except church, no one to come to us, and reading at home is good; but you need reading, prayer and some kind of needlework that is not entertaining (learn to knit with one needle or two). It happens that reading and prayer are not needed either: here handicrafts with a short prayer are a very helpful thing. Make it a rule for yourself to fill all the time between classes with the Jesus Prayer. Designate to have stops throughout the day with the Jesus Prayer - two, three, five, three minutes. – Annoyance and anger when someone violates your privacy are worthless. This is the fruit of conceit: don’t you dare disturb me. This is where the enemy makes his living near you. Try not to give in to this feeling. Hostility and anger are permissible only when the subject of them is bad thoughts and feelings. - The prayer has weakened. This is due to dryness and cooling. Against this are short prayers, especially the Jesus Prayer. Memorize the 24 prayers of Chrysostom, which are included in the series of prayers for sleep. And read when there is dryness. Add thoughts about death, judgment, heaven, about the properties of God, about the beatitudes of the Gospel, about the events and deeds of the Lord the Savior. Maybe you stand inattentively in church, and then dryness is a punishment for that. – The advice of your spiritual father is good. This way, dryness will not have access. Just beware of von faronism. Kind movements of the heart and tenderness with tears are very good; but don’t look at this goodness. - What happens, as if the service has soon departed, or as if one’s own rule is completely unnoticeable. This is the fruit of attentive standing in church and the home rule of fulfillment - with attention and feeling. God grant that it always be like this. But avoid self-esteem. Tears are the great mercy of God. Between Chrysostom’s prayers there is: Lord, give me tears, mortal memory and tenderness. They deepened their feelings of sinfulness and worthlessness. There's no charm here. It is a delight when someone feels like he is something, nothing (Gal.6:3). “Illness humbles everyone, but teaches others to grumble against God.” Watch out. The enemy can dispel humble feelings and inspire proud ones. However, when you are sick, it is not a sin to go to the doctor. Health is a gift from God. It is necessary to take care. And when you can’t save, God created doctors and medicines. Using them does not mean going against the orders of God. - Commit your everyday affairs to the will of God and endure their duration: for for all time. But do not completely cut yourself off from the world until all matters are settled. – You want real monasticism. But where will you find it? It is hidden and invisible; Only all sorts of relaxations are visible. Sometimes the thought comes to mind that it is better not to see the monks, but to live in solitude strictly following the example of the ancient monks, reading something from books. You read the lives of saints. Take general notes on how the glorious ascetics and ascetics labored, what feats they accomplished and how. It will be very exciting. Letter 477. Advice and instructions for the fallen and the risen. About answers to those who question Pali. We got up. Thank you to the merciful Lord for accepting and giving evidence that He returns His favor to you - in those good spiritual states that you experience after fervent prayer. They are from the Lord and stand in the order of Christian life. But watch how dangerously you walk. The Lord returns His mercies to the repentant, so that those who sin do not fall into despair, and the enemy turns this into a temptation to new falls, inspiring: nothing, you fell, but God returned everything to you, sin and nothing else, you will repent and everything will return. This flattery is the most seductive of all, and seems unimportant, and yet its fulfillment is an extreme sin, crying out to heaven, namely, to sin in the hope of God’s mercy. God's mercy is immeasurable, but we are measured, and we can go so far that we stop repenting and lamenting from frequent falls, and without this there will be no vessel in us to receive mercy. Remember this in thought and feeling, and work out your salvation with fear and trembling. Remember what relapses in bodily illnesses mean. The second relapse seems to be still being healed, although with difficulty, and the third, it is the end of life. Look at what caused the fall. Suddenly, a fall rarely happens, but usually it begins quickly - with thoughts, light sympathies and slowness in thoughts, more and more. Before the lusts of sin, after which the fall does not slow down. At St. fathers, this course of the fall is described in detail. Take the book of Hesychius of Jerusalem about sobriety. You will see everything there, and therefore, as it is written there, act. The main thing here is to never leave a trace not only of sympathy produced by thoughts, but also of the thought itself, so that disgust and disgust with sin remains in the soul. – Regarding the fact that you are visited and that you have to talk a lot, I will only say one thing. When you are left alone after that, take the trouble to clean your soul, just as one sweeps out a room, and always bring yourself to the feeling of your insignificance and your sorrowful downfalls, so that the dream of your no small dignity, which others seem to see, does not settle there. Do not consider this point unimportant. – Regarding food during treatment, you can take it as prescribed by doctors, not to please the flesh, but as an aid to a speedy recovery, meaning that after recovery you will be more strict with this matter, with food, i.e. You can also observe this strictness when taking fast food, namely, take it in smaller quantities. But although this is possible, those who abstain and keep a fasting table during fasting, although weak, do better: which is what I advise you. They refused the operation, and it turned out better; It will be better if you refuse here too, out of fear of God. All food is healthy, as long as it is not spoiled, but fresh and healthy. How the elders of God lived for more than a hundred years, eating only bread and water. Abstinence from passions is better than all medicines; and it gives longevity. - The post is suitable. Having crossed yourself and commended yourself to God, keep the fasting table and be abstinent. Observe this especially during the week of fasting. Ask the Athonite elders. I think they will say the same. It is not food alone that gives one’s belly or health, but God’s blessing, which always overshadows one who surrenders himself to the will of God when he encounters hardships on the path of fulfilling God’s commandments. – After you get tired, you don’t do the evening rule well. First of all, walk around a little, even outside if it’s convenient, and lie down for a while until your head rests and the impressions you’ve experienced dissipate. Then follow the rule. Never give yourself the freedom to follow the rules somehow. Always do it as your first priority. Like a presentation before the Emperor. And if time does not allow, it is better to shorten the rule, rather than implement it somehow. If necessary, come up with this abbreviation yourself and be blessed for its fulfillment by your spiritual father. Or, having shortened it as needed, then fill in what was missing if it is of a general nature in content. Keep in mind and feeling that every compulsion and will for the work of God is seen by the omnipresent God and blesses the one who does it. – That you consider your illness to be God’s punishment for your sins, this happens, although it is not always seen. For everything is from God, and everything is for our spiritual and eternal good. – Regarding your property matter, it occurs to me to suggest to you: ask some lawyer, conscientious and knowledgeable of his business, to look at it and give you advice, or even entrust it to him completely. What I wrote to you: first resolve everyday affairs, and then withdraw from the world, I say this now, because without this, renunciation of the world will be only in name, a fishing rod will remain stuck in your heart, which will sensitively keep you in the realm of the world. However, if you hope to maintain spiritual peace in this matter, then run away from the world without waiting for its end. – I don’t quite see what kind of matters about which they come to you for advice, are they everyday or spiritual? Whatever their type, however, let the measure of your knowledge be for you the measure of your advisory speeches, and do not be ashamed to say: I cannot say when you do not know the matter clearly. And about spiritual things you can give advice in relation to what you yourself have experienced. The path of the fall is known to you, and the path of repentance and rebellion from the fall is also known, and the secondary fall and secondary rebellion, and standing on the good path are known. In all of this, you can offer advice about everything you know. What you haven’t experienced, say, I don’t know, without being ashamed. To increase your knowledge of spiritual matters, read Barsanuphius and John - answers. This is the best leadership book. And one more thing: talk more often about spiritual accidents with the Athonite elders. And you will gain wisdom for yourself and for others. Ep. Feofan. November 24, 1893 Letter 478. Clarification that prayer to saints is not idolatry We have now found a calm shelter; stay in it. May the Lord protect you and make you wise. But don’t doze off yourself. It’s good that you notice what remains from your previous wisdom and don’t hide it. You are embarrassed by the way you write - prayer to the saints, and you are afraid that you will be condemned for idolatry. No, our prayer to the saints and their honoring has nothing idolatrous. It would be idolatry if we considered them gods; but we honor them as servants of God and intercessors for us before God. Your inner feeling should tell you that you do not consider them God, and do not consider them the primary reason for the benefits you ask for, but only an instrument for giving them. Calling on the saint, we say: “Holy One of God, pray for us; ask the Lord to give us this and that.” Take this into account: we who live here on earth, children of the church, ask each other to pray for us. Everyone does it. And no one thinks that there is anything idolatrous here. You write to me: “Pray about this and that.” Are you afraid of being guilty of idolatry? I think that there was no one else in the world who thought so. How do you get the idea in your head that when the saints were here on earth, it was safe to ask them for prayer, but when they moved there - to the kingdom of heaven, it became impossible? Our departed fathers and brothers, despite this departure, remain in the Church of God, just like we who remained here. Our mutual relations, as members of the church, remain the same, in force, so we pray to them, as we prayed before. The essence of idolatry is that creatures appropriate divine properties, and for this reason they honor them; We do not attribute any divine properties to the saints of God, but honor them as the most perfect of people, who have achieved the fulfillment of Christ to the extent of their age, and through this have come closer to God, more sincerely than others. Go inside yourself and consider whether you consider saints to be gods. The feeling should tell you this. If it turns out that you consider them to be so, then stop counting, and if you don’t count, there is no need to embarrass yourself with the thought - so as not to fall into idolatry. May the Lord give peace to your soul. I bring you a cure for such confusion. As soon as something similar comes to mind, pray to the Lord for admonition and enlightenment of thoughts will come. Equally, when some passionate movement comes, pray - it will please you. Such prayer is always preceded by rejection, the more strongly one rejects a wrong thought and a wrong desire and attraction. The Lord is near and listening. May the Lord protect you from all evil and bless you in family matters; May he receive your son into the blessed monasteries! Letter 479. How to remember parents who died in sectarianism. The state of the souls of dead sinners. About purgatory and ordeals. Letter to a doubter about the received resolution of sins I was slow in answering you. Please excuse me. You ask how to remember your parents who died in sectarianism! In your private prayer, remember them and pray for them, turning to the infinite mercy of God, and commit their fate to it. There is no point in commemorating them in church. The Church prays for her children, that they may preserve their faith and succeed in it, but for those outside the Church she prays - to convert them to the faith and join the Church. Since this conversion must take place here on earth, the power of this prayer is limited by the presence on earth of those for whom the prayer is being made. The Church is a living union of all believers, all of whom, united into one under one head - Christ the Lord, form one body. It is made up of believers, both living and dead. Unbelievers - both living and dead - are outside it and outside the Lord Savior - its head. The local unbelievers are called, and if they take advantage of this here and enter the church, then they will be the same there too, i.e. children of the church. The Savior says: “Whoever has faith and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not have faith will be condemned.” And again: “whoever is not baptized with water and spirit will not enter the kingdom of God,” and this must happen on earth. And one more thing: in heaven only that which is permitted on earth will be permitted. There were such experiences that when one of those worthy of the kingdom died with some unresolved sin, the Lord condemned him to return to earth to finish what was unfinished. Those who die outside faith and church are like suicides. The Church does not pray for suicides, because they die in unresolved mortal sin, not purified by repentance. It is bitter for your love to hear about your parents, but you can add to them what is required about babies who died without baptism. The latter surrender to the boundless mercy of God. And you commit to God the fate of your parents, and pray for them in your private prayer - to do with them according to this mercy and according to your faith in this mercy. – Where are the souls of sinners who did not have time to justify themselves here? In some place designated for them by the righteous Judge. After death there is a private trial at which the fate of sinners is determined. But the final decision on their fate will follow at the general Last Judgment. Until then, they are only waiting for this terrible moment, they are horrified and suffer from it. -What is purgatory? – Purgatory is an article of Catholic faith. This is the place where unrefined sinners are purified here. Purification is accomplished through torment corresponding to sins. Everyone who has any sinful impurity enters it. – In the Orthodox Church there is no such teaching, but there is a belief according to which those who died with repentance and communion, but did not have time to undergo corrective labors or penances, make up for this with the church’s prayers for them and alms for them, and of course with their own prayers there. They live in hope and do not suffer; they are not in torment. It's similar to purgatory, but not the same. - What ordeal? – This is an image of a private court after death, at which the entire life of the dying person is reviewed with all sins and good deeds. Sins are recognized as atoned for by opposite good deeds or corresponding repentance. – Find the month of March. There, on the 26th, the passage of the ordeal of St. Elder Theodora. – All unjustified sinners who die in life undergo ordeal. Only perfect Christians do not linger at ordeals, but ascend directly to heaven like a bright streak. May the Lord bless you to preserve your zeal for pleasing God and, according to its attraction, without self-pity, do everything that your conscience recognizes as necessary for your salvation. Take a good look at my book: “The Path to Salvation” and also: “What is Spiritual Life.” Both clarify what is the main goal of the entire life of Christians, all their labors and exploits, and where, therefore, these exploits should be directed, namely the cleansing of the heart from passions. Whoever’s heart is cleansed will not be detained in ordeals. Bishop Feofan. May 19, 1893 Letter 480. Explanation of the power of the sacrament of repentance and permission received through confession. Letter to one who wavers in hope I read what you wrote about yourself and how you treated your weaknesses. Your zeal to be correct, and when something disapproving happens, to correct it as quickly as possible is commendable. Observe this zeal and this concern for salvation and never forget to use the means given to us by God against this, i.e. repentance, confession and holy communion. It is out of the same jealousy that you turn to me. But this is already wasted work. I can't add anything to what you do. Nothing more is required. They repented, confessed and took communion. Everything is done. Now it remains for you not to repeat more than what you repented of. Pay all your attention and care to this. The enemy troubles you and turns your thoughts to something else that is not necessary under the guise of what is necessary. You have received permission, and rest assured - thank God; and the enemy forces you to still seek permission, as if the permission received was worth nothing. Resolution in the sacrament of repentance is real permission, no matter who performs it. For the Lord Himself listens to confession through the ears of the spiritual father, and He resolves it through the lips of the confessor. My permission is unnecessary and is not pleasing to the Lord: for it means your lack of faith in the power of the sacrament, and you are giving labor to the Lord, seeking new permission from Him. So, calm down, and pay all your attention and all your care to correcting in yourself what you see as faulty. How to fix it? – Don’t do it and the malfunction will stop. Ep. Feofan. August 9, 1893 Letter 481. Advice to combat lack of faith and hopelessness and strengthen faith and hope in receiving salvation. Letter to the Lost Spouse Your sins are great, and very great. But there is no sin that overcomes the mercy of God. Forgiveness of sins is given not according to our merits, but according to the mercy of a humane God, always ready to forgive as soon as someone turns to Him with repentance. And it is not the greatness and multitude of sins that makes one unworthy of forgiveness, but one impenitence. Once you have broken down and repented, forgiveness is already awarded to you in heaven, and at the moment of confession this heavenly decision is announced to you. The Lord Savior carried the handwriting of all the sins of all people on His body to the cross and there tore it to pieces. The application of this action of God's boundless mercy to everyone is accomplished in the sacrament of repentance, and it really happens. He who has received permission from his spiritual father stands innocent before the face of God's truth. The weakness of faith and the poverty of hope for mercy are caused by our enemy. Our sins do not happen without his suggestion. From them he creates a barrier between us and God. Repentance and confession destroy this barrier. Knowing the power of this sacrament, that it destroys all his works and worries about the destruction of sinners, he tries in every possible way to stop its fruitfulness - and either completely rejects it, or induces disbelief in its power and hopelessness of receiving forgiveness through it. Your lack of faith and hopelessness are his wiles. Arm yourself against this and drive away the enemy and his suggestions. The Lord wants everyone to be saved, and therefore you too. After the arrangement of our salvation through the incarnate economy, the Lord now has one concern: to attract everyone to Himself to grant them salvation. And He really attracts. Not a single sinner lives without this, and it attracts and calls you. What does your current concern for the salvation of the soul mean? It means the call of the Lord: come to Me, burdened, and I will give you rest! Is this concern your business? No! It was the Lord who gave her all. If He has done all things, then can there be any doubt that He will give you salvation? He encourages you to seek forgiveness of sins from Himself, of course being ready to grant this forgiveness. Go to Him with full faith and do not let the enemy destroy your faith and hope of salvation. Saint Tikhon assures that the enemy, when he inclines to sin, inspires: do not be afraid, God is merciful; and when it leads to sin, then it troubles and destroys the soul: there is no salvation for you. With such thoughts and others like them, work to restore your faith and hope of salvation. Bring to mind the prodigal son more often. The father did not wait for the prodigal son to reach him, but went out to meet him and, without waiting for his word, embraced him in his arms. Only, it turns out, God has a desire for the salvation of everyone; all God’s cares are directed here. The Heavenly Father assures: I do not want the death of a sinner; What is the Son of God doing at the right hand of the Father? Võnu intercedes for us. What about the Holy Spirit? And He also intercedes for us with unutterable groanings. So this is how things are in heaven. But the enemy wants to assure you that you have no mercy and no salvation from God, who is angry with you. And you believe him, this lie of his. For God has no thought of not having mercy, but has one thought and one desire - to have mercy and to have mercy, come everyone. You said that you had already abandoned your sins, and probably confessed and received permission. The enemy torments you only with lack of faith and weak hope. Reason and pray, and stir up your faith and hope. Hope and faith cannot be strong without works and labors - for the cause of salvation. If you please, apply these active labors, and faith and hope will immediately begin to come to life. What kind of affairs and works? First, have an aversion to all sins - not only to deeds, but also to thoughts and sympathies for them; 2) determine yourself to do things opposite to them. You must find and establish this for yourself; 3) the main thing is that the flesh should run wild, it must be severely punished - put to death; 4) establish a prayer order at home and church; 5) to streamline external relations and avoid cases that can excite movements of passions. I guess that you have strong pride and disobedience. Seek humility and obedience. Keep the memory of God and the memory of death, and do not let go of the thought that God sees you - you are under His eye - and beware of everything that is not pleasing to God. To help remember God and the work of salvation, memorize the 24 prayers of St. Chrysostom and read them more often. They are among the prayers for the future sleep. Remember that no one can do for you what is needed for salvation. You must do this yourself. Help from the Lord is always ready; but it does not come to the one who does nothing, but only to the one who does, works, but cannot complete the task. Ep. Feofan. October 22, 1890 Letter 482. Consolation and clarification that death is a transition to something better. Do the deceased wish to return to earth? Response to the article by Otechestvennye Zapiki: “Fantastic Zoology” Great grief for you! And you can’t help but lament. However, do not forget to maintain a measure of contrition. Pay back your debt to nature: grieve, cry, and get to work. There is a cry for the dead, but for the living it is different: the living tell fortunes to the living. Take comfort from the promises of our faith. Here is the first: the Lord is near to the brokenhearted. Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Breathe to the Lord and according to your sigh He will send you consolation. It's a pity when someone dies. Here you have it: she died, you say, wanting to say that I don’t know what kind of trouble happened here. But there is no problem here. We have developed this belief that death is a horror. And what is she? there is also that of moving from one room to another, or moving from one place to another. Your Anna is as alive as before, but she lives a different way of life. She remembers her dear N., and the children and other household things. And it happens near you when the local authorities allow it. We usually think that we have buried the poor in the ground; damp, gloomy, heavy. But she is not there, she looks at those crying in front of you and shakes her head: why are they crying, for she is better there. If they asked her whether you want to return to earth to your N. She would never agree. There’s no reason why you wouldn’t want to come back to N., but you have to get into the body, and it’s terribly disgusting. If there is anything to grieve about, it is about her state of mind. But if she died after confession and communion, then her entry there is safe. – Even if she did not manage to accomplish anything before her death, remember her previous acceptance of these sacraments – that she is a child of the true Church of Christ, which is the body of Christ. So N.N. It’s time to stop grieving, and it’s better to establish your own life, and at least breathe sometimes, but conduct business without interruption or stop. God bless you! May the Lord comfort you! Save yourself! Letter 483. Exposure, analysis and refutation of an article recognizing the legends about the miraculous actions of St. hermits on legendary animals, fictions of the popular imagination. Letters to A.F.M. In the November book Otech. notes for 1854, in the article: Fantastic Zoology, there are legends about the miraculous actions of St. hermits on animals, namely: about the hyena, to which the eyes of St. were miraculously opened to a blind cub. Macarius of Alexandria (see Lavsaik ch. 19, p. 70), - about wild donkeys, which one hermit, with a word, forbade to trample his vegetables, - and about a lion, whom one hermit forced to carry his knapsacks when he tore his donkey to pieces (the last two legends I don’t remember where they are), - are placed along with the fables of the Greeks, Romans and Gauls, and together with the latter are brought under the same category - fairy tales, works of popular imagination, legends, brilliant with the poetry of the Greek genius. And this is not a reservation, not an unintentional review, because the compiler or translator of the article directly mentions the Thebaid hermits, therefore he understood who he was talking about. Such an outburst is offensive to every pious person, and even more so to the feelings of those who have the happiness of belonging to a fatherland, glorious for piety and faith, and to whom they are offered to the Fatherland. Notes of articles that are so contrary to the spirit of their fatherland. The Holy Church recognizes these and similar legends (of which there are not three, but many, as will be partly indicated below), undoubtedly true and offers them to her faithful sons in the Prologues, Chet.-Minaia and other books, in order to nourish in them the confidence that the Lord is present in her with His miraculous power, and is always ready to help those who call on Him with faith, as He Himself promised through the prophet: He will call to Me, and I will hear Him (Ps. 90:15). - How should a believer feel when, returning from church, where he heard the reading of these tales, offered as undoubtedly true, he opens a book written by people who are revered as wise men, and who have undertaken to enlighten his fatherland - and reads that these and similar tales are fairy tales, works of the people's imagination, legends, shining with the poetry of the Greek genius? - A sincere believer will not waver, but will only grieve and be filled with righteous indignation at the publisher of Fatherland. Notes. – But what will happen to those weak in faith or those who are neither warm nor cold? - From one story he will move with the same thought to another, from another to a third, etc., generalize all the stories, become clouded in mind, and fall into complete unbelief. - This is true and what the Fathers want. The notes and they seem to be deliberately trying to extinguish faith in our fatherland under the pretext of cleansing it of superstition and prejudice. Another will say: “Why enlarge a thing like that? Do two or three words mean much? - This is not the first time. This year is two or three words, poisoned, the last year is the same, and for the last year, etc. - and in its entirety a fairly large dose of poison of unbelief will accumulate in the reader and especially in the admirer of Fatherland. Notes and of course will bear fruit according to its kind. – But the main thing is that these few words are not an accident, not a slip of the tongue, but flow from the spirit and direction of the entire magazine. – A mind that has entangled itself in the principles of naturalism and relies exclusively on the laws of nature, as it imagines, does not believe in miracles in general, and therefore in any particular type of miracles. – If this is the source of those two or three words, then it is no longer possible to say that they mean nothing. Anyone who smells even the slightest smell of decay concludes that somewhere nearby lies a whole smoldering corpse. And he makes no mistakes. “For those who know the way of thinking of this magazine, these two or three words immediately bring to mind its entire evil and harmful system,” and they destroy them, “they destroy them with sorrow for the sons of the church and the fatherland, infected with the harmful teachings of the Fatherland.” Zap. - Therefore, no one should consider our words to be perky affection. They are the fruit of zeal for the purity of Orthodoxy. If the translator of this article, and with him the one under whose supervision the magazine is published, were sincere sons of the church, knew their mother, loved her, and obeyed her voice, not only to speak with their tongue, write and print, they would not even entertain such blasphemy against her. Anyone who loves someone is greatly affected by even a faint hint that is offensive to his beloved person. – And vice versa, we talk about a son who insults his mother in word and deed: this is not a son, he has no mother or for him, because his word and deed clearly reveal in him a lack of filial feelings for his mother. The filial heart is sensitive. If it were in the publisher Otech. Zap. and his employees in relation to the church, would have immediately stood up for his mother and would not have allowed her to be defamed. Apparently they do not have this mother, and they are not her children. “Is it really possible to believe everything that is written?” - No. Very little, for example, can be trusted from what is written in the Fatherland. Notes. “But we must distinguish who offers what is written and on what grounds obliges us to believe it.” – The Church, which is the pillar and foundation of the truth (1 Tim. 3:15), cannot but be believed. She offers her sons a legend about the miraculous actions of St. ascetics over animals, as undoubtedly true. Therefore they must be believed. - And we believe. “A mother will not deceive her children, and will not give them a stone instead of bread.” “The smartest people would have to agree to this conclusion, if they had enough intelligence to understand that there is a church, that it is in relation to us, and that we are in relation to it.” Meanwhile, there are reasons for believing in these legends, and the reasons are so solid that the most stubborn mind cannot but agree on them, unless through its delusions it has not yet managed to upset the laws of common sense in itself. The Lord, who is the truth and whose promises are: to her and amen, has promised: believe in Me, the works that I do, He will also do, and greater works than these will He do (John 14:12); and in another place: Amen I say to you: if you have faith like the grain of a mountain, you say to this mountain, “Depart from here,” and it will pass away, and nothing will be possible for you (Matthew 17:20). Even more - Mark 16:17:18. So the promise is not false. The promise is given to faith. Therefore faith can produce wondrous works. Do they think it is impossible to rise to the level of faith, that they do not want to believe in the power of faith?! - But in this case, why would the Lord give such a promise to faith if such faith were not possible for us? - The Lord does not waste words in vain, and His word does not return empty. If so, then why not believe that of those who are completely believers and wholly devoted to the Lord, one bridles wild donkeys with a word, another humbles and subdues a lion, another does similar things, and so on? Is this more difficult than moving a mountain?!! – And yet this is promised to true faith. – This is the reproach written to such unbelievers in one ancient Greek Patericon: “As for the miracle-working fathers, he who does not believe them, or does not accept what was said and done by them, does not believe in the Lord Jesus Christ Himself and His Apostles more than in them. For just as our Lord Jesus Christ restored sight to the blind with clay, cast out demons, raised the dead, turned water into wine, fed 5,000 people with 5 loaves, and performed other countless and unsearchable miracles, which the world cannot contain, so He gave them the power to heal every disease and every illness in people, just as He Himself, our true God, said: Believe in Me, works Whatever I do, he will do it, and greater things than these he will do (John 17:12). For where God, who exists above nature, is present, there supernatural deeds are also performed.” Applying this power of miracles, bestowed by the Lord on believers, to the particular cases we are examining, the pious compiler of the School of Piety deduces the obedience of animals to holy men from the restoration of the image of God in them (See Teach. Pious, volume VI, p. 79:80). Animals obeyed the first man in Paradise because they saw the image of the Lord of every creature shining in him. The image of God was eclipsed, and the obedience of animals to man ceased; but it immediately naturally returns, as it were, as soon as the image of God is restored in man. And this is what divine grace produces for the sake of faith and works of faith in people who have completely given themselves to the Lord, such as the hermits were, who put on the new man, created by God in righteousness and the honor of truth (Eph. 4:24). Why not believe those legends in which they are presented as masters of animals?!! Is it true that their outward humiliation seduces a proud mind?! But we must not forget that God’s weakness is stronger than man (1 Cor. 1:25), and that the most abundant grace is usually carried in meager vessels (2 Cor. 4:7). True Father. The notes require strict historical accuracy?! Very smart; but what is stupid is that they did not bother to investigate this reliability, and made a judgment based more on previously accepted concepts (the prejudices of the school), such a judgment that does not honor the publishers. And God gave them over to an unskilled mind (Rom. 1:28). In a small attack, at the beginning of the article, Otech. The notes generalize the idea of ​​​​the fabulousness of those legends in which animals are presented in wondrous obedience to St. fathers. It is by the way: “in oriental stories the first works of popular imagination are discovered. In these legends, brilliant with the poetry of the Greek genius, the lion, the raven (only in the Old Testament), the monkey (not a single legend concerns it anywhere), the hyena, the crocodile personify the meekness of the morals of primitive times, hermits, etc.” Let us imagine in general terms the basis for the historical authenticity of these legends. In the Old Testament, all the animals, obeying Noah, go to the ark, and a dove through a branch brings the news of the drying up of the earth; the donkey speaks to Balaam; the raven feeds Elijah; bears, by order of Elisha, punish impudent and depraved boys; The lions do not devour Daniel, despite the hunger that consumes them. If the translator of the article and the editor of the journal are not among those who at the Medical Academy, starting lectures on natural history, oblige their listeners to abandon all Mosaic nonsense for success in science, or those who at the university, reading civil history, exhibit St. the prophet Elijah as a rebel and rebel against the king - the wicked Ahab (I saw and read Lorenz's lithograph lectures with my own eyes, it seems, in 1845 or after), but on the contrary they believe in the divine dignity of the books of V.Z., then there is no point in convincing them that all these legends, despite the fact that they are oriental, are not the essence of the work of the people's imagination. - However, with this faith, one can oblige them to make reservations and restrictions in generalizations, so as not to lead others into doubt about their faith, and the obligation is all the more legitimate since among the animals mentioned by them there is one (raven), which is found only in the books of V.Z. It’s another matter if they do not believe in the divinity of the books of the Old Testament. – But then one may ask, how are such people allowed to be writers, or even more magazine publishers, who do not accept the basic principles of true knowledge?! However, we take from here the following consideration in our favor: if five or six legends are undoubtedly most reliable; then all other legends of a similar kind about similar persons (that is, saints), and similar (that is, saints) persons transmitted in no way can be, at least from the first time and for no reason at all, counted among fairy tales or legends, brilliant with the poetry of the Greek genius, until their infidelity is exposed by correct historical evidence. And in the New Testament history we find stories completely similar to the Old Testament, also about St. persons, and transmitted by holy persons - legends, in much greater quantities than the translator and the editor of Otech. Notes. – The question arises, why not suspend judgment, look at the books where they are contained, and weigh their reliability?! Anyone who values ​​truth would certainly do so. But we are certainly accustomed to doing everything hastily and spontaneously, and putting the first consideration we come across—our own or someone else’s—into the list of dogmas of the mind, shouting out loud to everyone: the mind cannot agree to this, the mind demands this. Such tales about the miraculous actions of St. God's hermits were given to us on animals: 1) Palladius, Bishop of Elenopolis in his Lavsaik (St. Petersburg, 1850, see chapters: 27:44, 45:47, 48:54:95). 2) Blessed Theodoret, bishop. Kirsky, in his history of Bogolyubtsev (St. Petersburg, 1853, see chapter 2, p. 31, chapter 6, p. 85, etc.). 3) Blessed John Moschus with St. Sophronius, who was then Patriarch of Jerusalem in his Spiritual Meadow (Moscow 1848, see chapters: 2:83, 91:100, 106:120, 123:156, 157:162, 166:179). 4) The skete elders - conciliarly - in their Patericon or in memorable legends (Moscow 1846, see p. 6:14; 73:2; 146; 340:21, etc.). All these legends of St. are recognized by the church as undoubtedly true and not without reason. Their narrators, almost all of them, are of the highest episcopal dignity in the church, people whose very rank inspires trust, persons who were appointed in the church precisely for this purpose, so that they have the right to rule the word of truth, true shepherds - honored for this by all the sons of the church. – Whose tongue turns to attach to their legends those terms that are used in the Fatherland. Notes? Moreover, everything they tell is told as eyewitnesses, or on the basis of eyewitness testimony. Palladius, Bishop of Elenopolis, before his episcopate, lived for a long time as a simple monk (in Modern Greek Lavsaik is listed as 33) in the deserts of Egypt, visited St. fathers, I myself saw their wondrous deeds, and heard from their lips teachings and stories about what they themselves saw. Then he traveled through Palestine, Syria, Asia Minor, and even was in Rome. – Finally, in the rank of bishop, at the request of Lavs, one of the great persons at the court, he wrote down everything he saw and heard (See his preface to his book). It is impossible to suggest a single thought to suspect these legends. He himself sees miracles, and from the lips of the miracle-working fathers he hears the legend of the miracles they saw and performed by St. fathers under whom they lived - and passes all this on to us. – What could be truer and more reliable? - Mr. Norov and Muravyov publish their travel notes; they are believed, they are quoted as an authority. - Why wouldn’t anyone believe the saint of God?! Blessed John Moschus and St. Sophrony, right there in the places they visited, and wrote down everything they saw and heard from the wondrous fathers. Blessed John Moschus put these notes in order and dedicated them to St. Sophronia; and this one, already in the rank of patriarch, handed them over to the believers (see the preface to this book). “Only someone who is accustomed to not believing anything can not believe St. Sophronius - the patriarch who saved the shrines of Jerusalem for us. And Blessed Theodoret, Bishop of Cyrus, either saw everything that he described, or heard it from eyewitnesses. Here are his own words: “I myself was an eyewitness of some of the persons I described, but of those I did not see, I heard about them from eyewitnesses - people inspired by the love of virtue, who were honored to see those ascetics and listen to their edifying instructions.” – What do they write in logic when weighing the reliability of evidence? - The testimony that is conveyed by an eyewitness, or from the words of an eyewitness, is the most reliable, there is a reliability beyond which one cannot wish, - if, moreover, the transmitter is educated and well-intentioned - qualities that blessed Theodoret possessed to such an extent, as well as everyone mentioned above. Memorable legends were compiled not by one person, but by a council of elders, and not at one time, but gradually. Nevertheless, the evidence of each event mentioned in them is contemporary evidence. In the monastery there was such a custom: when some edifying event happened, or a miracle was performed, the elders gathered, discussed it, made sure of its truth, and ordered the scribe to enter it in a special book kept for this purpose. This custom is described in the vies des peres du desert d'Orient, where the writer begins to describe the lives of the holy ascetics of the monastery (I don’t remember which volume). But having mentioned this custom, there is no longer anything to say about how high the reliability of everything contained in memorable legends is. After this, it would be necessary to show the reliability of each in particular legend from the Fatherland. Notes. - But we will limit ourselves to one thing, namely the legend of the miracle performed by St. Macarius of Alexandria over a hyena cub. – (I don’t remember and couldn’t find where the other two legends are). – Saint Palladius relates it, and says that this miracle was told to him by the servant of Christ Paphnutius, a disciple of this (St. Macarius) valiant ascetic. - And in conclusion he adds: this skin was refused by the servant of Christ to the saint. and blessed Athanasius the Great; and blessed Christ’s servant Melania told me that she took this skin from the holy and wondrous husband Macarius under the name of the gift of the hyena” - (See Lavs. p. 71). – Is it possible to demand anything else to confirm the authenticity of this legend? – The other two should also be judged by it, although at present we do not have the opportunity to indicate the particular features of their reliability. Instead of a final exhortation, we will cite the words of the blessed one. Theodoret, with which he concludes his preface to the history of the God-lovers. (The same goes for all the books mentioned above): “I ask those who will read this history of God-lovers - I ask them not to distrust what is said here, even if they had to hear something beyond their strength - and not to measure the virtues of the saints according to their own measure, but to firmly remember that the Lord usually proportions the gifts of the Holy Spirit to the spiritual dispositions of pious people, and bestows upon the most perfect even more gifts. I said this for those who have not yet penetrated into the depths of the works of God; because those initiated into the innermost secrets of the Spirit know how He favors those who honor Him, and how much He works miracles through some people among others, attracting non-believers to the knowledge of God by the greatness of His miracles. And whoever did not believe the events that I will talk about would show that he has weak faith in the truth of what was accomplished through Moses, Joshua, Elijah and Elisha, even in the miracles of St. Apostles. Anyone who believes in the truth of these miracles must believe that the legends about the first ones are alien to lies, because the same grace that acted in those (St. biblical men), was the culprit of performing miracles through these (holy ascetics). Grace is inexhaustible and, choosing worthy people, through them, like through what channels, pours out streams of beneficence.” After all of the above, one can rightfully demand that the legends presented by the Fatherland. The notes were removed from the category under which they were placed, and let the Father themselves take their place there. Notes, like creators of a special fantasy world, seek in everything the reflection of their empty dreams, in which, however, the brilliance of genius is not at all visible, and which are nothing more than works of a corrupted imagination. - Yes. Where there is no logic, where they do not care about observing its rules, where reason, which by nature is a logician, does not act, there are only dreams and ghosts of fantasy, although they are called ideas, principles and whatnot. Finally, I’ll give you the first thoughts that came out immediately after reading Otech’s article. Notes that keep us busy. – “Having read the article: fantastic zoology (Otech. Notes November, 1854), you involuntarily come to the thought: aren’t we living in a fantastic world?! “Our wise men have ceased to follow the laws of common sense, but have chosen imagination and fantasy as their leaders, and instead of the truth they preach their dreams, which not from above, but from the underworld, like vapors, fill their heads, and their tongues spew them out, inflaming them from Gehenna (James 3:6). And yet, they are still considered smart people and serve as disseminators of education. – In Fatherland Notes for the Fatherland, which is filled with pure faith, breathes it, is not only ready, but actually sheds blood for it, thoughts that are alien to it are divulged to everyone, humiliating and undermining faith in an inexperienced soul. – A century from now, the historian will be in great difficulty as to whether to believe the existence of the Fatherland. Notes? They are so contrary to the spirit of the fatherland that it will come to everyone’s mind: were they not the product of dark fables and legends that they once existed? – The remains of its heavy volumes will defend the truth of the magazine’s dishonest existence, but an eternal stain of shame and damnation will remain on those who spend time and effort to destroy the faith, to torment the hearts of believers, and to corrupt the minds of their fatherland. - And at what time? – Should we now rise to faith and cast some kind of shadow over it, when we cannot find consolation and support for ourselves in anything else except faith?! - The Sovereign Emperor, with all his heart and all his strength, is concerned about the spread of true enlightenment, and about the aversion of harmful teachings - he establishes a ministry, censorship, and censorship over censorship, and malice and malice break through and find good guides in daredevils. It is true that there are no eyes, or those who have the duty to look after it have eyes that see incorrectly. Lord, help us and deliver us for Your name’s sake!” Letter 484. How to ease the pain of childbirth And God also gives you the fruit of the womb. Congratulations! May the Lord who gave him give him a good outcome into the light of God. Of course, this does not happen without difficulties. God put it this way in the beginning as an indication of what the first wife, the mother of us all, did. But even in difficulties there are degrees. May the Lord have mercy on you and make these difficulties, as much as possible, less sensitive. Do you want to earn this benefit?! Relieve yourself from all sins. Now, out of necessity, you are often still and motionless. And you have more time to take care of yourself and examine yourself. Examine carefully, like the strictest investigative judge - then condemn everything that is faulty, repent of it and regret that it has been neglected, then confess, get permission and finally partake of the Holy Mysteries of Christ. With all this you deserve to meet the expected and desired benefit. There are two things that bring upon us the wrath of God, oppressive and oppressive: hostility towards others and lust, and the first is great space. Please take the trouble to find out everything that she revealed herself to be in you and put a stop to it without hesitation, no matter how plausible it may seem. Hostility, instead of people, now turn to what it was revealed in you and throw it out. Have you ever read or heard the words of the Apostle: “my heart has expanded toward you”? So spread your heart and in return you will receive what you seek and desire. I wish you all the best in every way! God bless you! Your good friend E. Feofan. December 13, 1888 Letter 485. How to pray for the fulfillment of what you want Cast all your sorrow on the Lord with all your heart and He will do what is right for you. Pray yourself - not just a bow or two, but earnestly and a lot, both at home and in church. Outside prayer is not at the forefront, but follows yours and serves as its support. If you previously prayed little about your fate - and there is a duty to do this - then the Lord puts you in distress so that you turn to Him, revive your trust in Him and fulfill this duty. If you really prayed a little, thinking maybe, I suppose, or didn’t think at all, then now repent before the Lord and make a vow to trust in Him alone in everything, let’s seriously, so that you can fulfill it diligently. Another aid to prayer is almsgiving. Seeking mercy from the Lord, show mercy to others. And if you did not provide, or provided little and carelessly, repent of this too and let us vow to always be merciful to those in need. Armed with such dispositions, wait with full hope for what the Lord will determine about you. Wait for what you want, but do not predetermine that the Lord will determine it, but surrender it to His will with complete submission to accept from the Lord whatever it pleases Him to send to you. The lack of such obedience distorts the prayer and deprives it of its power: for without it the prayer will have the following meaning: whether you want it or not, Lord, but give it; or as the saying goes: “take it out and put it in.” And I pray, but my prayer will not be strong, for I do not have the gift of prayer, which other men of God have, being many sinners and not having achieved the measure of true repentance. May the merciful Lord comfort you! Save yourself! E. Feofan. April 28, 1893 Letter 486. Upon fulfillment of the request. Answer about the guide to salvation Congratulations with joy! Lord grant that all your affairs will proceed successfully. See how humble prayer quickly attracted help from the Lord! Now, having experienced in practice where the source is, flow to it without being lazy, and believe that you will always receive what you need. “He who trusts in the Lord will receive mercy.” You are doing good, or you are planning to do it - devote an hour in the morning and evening to spiritual matters. God bless! What's going on? More prayers, then reading, or reading first, and then prayer. Apply judgment to yourself. What you recognize as faulty, condemn and scold yourself for that, adding a resolution to be correct in the future. Don't have a confessor? How so? Didn’t you confess and take communion?! Or do you mean a spiritual mentor? Look around there and you will find it. I can’t tell you anyone, because I don’t know anyone. Pray in faith and God will help. You seem to want me to take charge of you. I don’t undertake to lead anyone, but when someone asks about something, and I mean a good thing, I always answer with pleasure, and I promise you that. You will not find a real leader, as you define him. The Elder of God Paisios, half a century ago, searched all his life for a leader, and did not find one, but decided the matter this way: “seek guidance in the Word of God and in the teachings of St. fathers, especially ascetics, if in doubt, ask living zealots about salvation,” or two or three of you agree and resolve all your questions with common advice. It is written by the Wise One that the fear of God teaches everything good. Ask the Lord for such a mentor. The Word of God and the Fathers will enlighten you, and conscience will take charge of stimulating you to activity and supporting you. Always have the Word of God and other patristic writings at hand. E. Feofan. June 15, 1893 Letter 487. Answer to various questions for piety Your rule is good both morning and evening. Do you require a decision on how to read the Gospel and the Apostle - one chapter at a time, or, as is indicated in the church, one at a time? As you are already accustomed to reading in church, then continue this way. Try to reflect and remember. Instead of Thomas a à Kempis, choose to read another book by our writer, what kind of books do you have? The lives of the saints in Chet-Minea are good to read; Although we cannot live like this, we are obliged to imitate them whenever possible and even through force. Each life offers a general outline of the life of the holy day. From a general overview of these essays you will see what all the saints had in common, and from this draw a conclusion: therefore, one or the other is necessary. One akathist is enough. But it would be better to read the Akathist to the Mother of God. The canon on the outcome of the soul need not be introduced into the rule. Reading the Gospel and the Apostle has already been said. If you read according to the beginnings, then, having read what is prescribed in the morning, by the evening there will be nothing left; Is it possible to divide: in the morning read the concept from the Gospel, and in the evening - from the Apostle. Reading chapter by chapter is a lot. Bows are optional. If you did not have this in the rule, then before the beginning of the morning and evening prayers put 50 bows from the waist, small and 5 to the ground, on a large knot - a large bow on the rosary. The same is true at the end of the rule. When bowing, there are small prayers. The main one is Jesus. Then the Mother of God, his Saint and other revered ones. Decide how many bows to each face, so that in total there are 50. Approximately - 30 to the Savior, 15 to the Mother of God, 5 to other saints. Try to get used to the Jesus Prayer so that it speaks itself, both on the go and while working. And other prayers can always be repeated. God cleanse me, God be merciful, Instruct me Lord God, and the like. Wear rosaries as you wear them - nothing, if you don’t have superstitious riddles. Better yet, have them under the images for the rule. Not reading newspapers and novels is good, but do not bind yourself to the law. You can only decisively decide not to read bad novels: for there are very edifying ones. Skim the telegrams from the newspapers, and that’s enough. But the main thing is to always try to remember that the Lord is near and sees everything - and behave accordingly, both externally and internally. Anything you need, write. I will answer, at least sometimes lazily. E. Feofan. July 11, 1893 Letter 488. Prayer should always be from the heart and undistracted. Brief answers to the questions of one who is zealous for piety Your letter enlightened my thoughts about you. I see that you have sincerely taken up the work of salvation. This is the only thing needed. May God bless your undertaking and labors and direct your path so that you may become a mother-in-law and successfully reach the end. Your prayer rule is good. Just try to always pray from your heart; For the heart, this is the law: “God will not despise a contrite and humble heart.” The integrity of your prayer is disrupted by your thoughts. Did you notice?! Now try to fix it. The first step towards this is, when starting to pray, to arouse in yourself: the fear of God and reverence; then become attention in the heart, and from there cry out to the Lord. And extraneous thoughts will creep in; As soon as you notice, drive away. They will climb again, drive again. And that's it. Don’t let your tongue read the prayer, and don’t let your thoughts know where they were wandering, always drive them away and pray. We must work and pray to the Lord to help us cope with our thoughts. Do you have a collection of fatherly lessons on prayer? Read and delve into it, apply it to yourself. Work unceasingly on this, and God, seeing your work, will give you what you seek. Here are the answers: 2) Keep fasting on Wednesday and Friday urgently. 3) On the 10th they wanted to take communion. You did well if you took communion. 4) I will send about sobriety and prayer and Psalm 118. You can read them in the morning as little articles, instead of: “What is spiritual life?” In them you will find everything the spirit needs. 5) It’s a good thing that you put off reading novels. 6) You can write what you want to write as a secret, if necessary. 7) The enemy rises against you, and you against him, and do not give in. As soon as you start to resist him, he will run away. Just strictly necessary. 8) Thoughts are mentioned at the beginning. 9) How to read better. And silently and in a low voice, which reading has the best effect on the heart. Listen to your husband. Well, this way I get more peace and peace of mind, and then more comfort in doing spiritual things. If you can, hide your affairs in spiritual life as much as possible, and do not reveal them in your eyes, in conversations, or in other relationships, but act simply, just avoid empty chatter. About N.N. I hear well. Therefore, I believe that your correspondence with her will not be without benefit. Work hard, but don’t think of succeeding in anything without special help from God. Call on her more often. E. Feofan. August 15, 1893 Letter 489. After an explanation about the long absence of writing, answers are given about the confessor, the requested rosary, tears, the reading of akathists and other subjects on the issues of a married and family person who is zealous for piety I haven’t written to you for a long time, don’t speculate why, out of sheer laziness. Yesterday I was going to write, but they brought letters from the post office, including from your mother. I read and see that on this day, the 12th, you are moving to St. Petersburg. How can this be? I don’t know your St. Petersburg address. If you wait until you tell me your address, another month will pass. And I decided to write and enclose letters to N.N. in the package. We have no secrets. But N.N., I think, won’t even look at what I’m writing to you. Read my books! and expect me to send you more books? With pleasure, but write down which ones I sent, so as not to send the same ones again. I didn't write down which ones were sent. But do not be content with reading it once, but read it so many times to remember everything: for everything you need is written in the books. You visited N.N.; stay and listen to his lessons. He is an experienced man, but I have not seen life, so I can tell you something inappropriate. For this reason, I do not undertake to lead, I only say what comes to mind in response to questions. The confessor can rather be a leader. And it’s better not to change it. Quarrel with N.N. Why didn't you share?! Please always limit yourself to meek and submissive explanations, and erase quarrels from your vocabulary. There is nothing in the world about which one could seriously quarrel, except for the salvation of the soul. Repeat often the words of the Lord about “if the whole world gains...” Matthew 16:26. Beads. How can they help you? No; If only I were a saint, there’s no point in reaching for my rosary. Learn to knit yourself, and knit yourself. The beauty to whom the letters were written (the daughter of the manager N.N., near the monastery, a mile and a half from us) was given a rosary in her hands. However, when I send more books, I will also include a rosary. Getting involved and getting the kids to join in is a good deed. And walking on foot on a pilgrimage is suitable for exercising zeal for God. It is better to read the Akathist to the Mother of God alone, but always with attention, faith and feeling. The outbreaks are overwhelming. Learn not to give them permission, but, as soon as they appear, suppress them. It’s like it’s nothing to flare up, but it’s all selfishness, or a sinful person. Pray and gather thoughts yourself that would be like water against this fire. Keep the memory of God and the memory of death. These two thoughts are the power of all that is good and the driving away of all that is evil. It’s better not to eat or drink before mass, unless it’s an extreme situation. To be envious in everyday things is bad, but in spiritual things it is unlike anything. It is good to punish yourself with bows for bad things. How many? Depending on the case, two, five, ten. Only with fear and faith, so that no one sees. You can set aside a certain amount of money for a week for distribution and distribute it equally to those who ask. And large-scale assistance, if possible, without hesitation in a certain measure. But it is better not to cross the heart when it wants to help someone, only if possible. N.N. writes that when she returned, she found you warm, meek, and helpful. When I pray, thoughts creep in: I need to drive them away, they will creep in again, drive them away again, and so on. Just don’t indulge him, but as soon as you notice him, drive him away. This is the feat of sobriety. Work to ensure that your heart is in some kind of religious feeling, when your heart is in feeling, thoughts do not bother you and everything goes around feelings. Tears during prayer, both in church and at home, are beneficial, but there is no need to show them. These are spiritual margaritas, but when they are displayed they become dull and lose their shine and their value. But it is better to shed tears at home and hide your tears in church, leaving a tearful mood in your heart, or a broken spirit and a contrite and humble heart. Always try to have this. It is good to be transported to heaven and maintain contemplation there, both in church, during services, and at home. It is inspiring and invigorating. The urge to solitude indicates a good mood in your heart; but you can satisfy it every day. As soon as you have freedom from business, retreat to your room and try to be with the One Lord, go with your mind to your heart and there stand before the Face of the Lord, praising Him, thanking Him and asking Him for beneficial spiritual benefits. By doing this, you will become accustomed to walking before the Lord. That’s solitude, but why are you planning to retire into the wilderness, this is not a suitable business for you. Go to church on Wednesday and Friday during the week. And when there is a revered saint during the week, then go on such days instead of those. It’s good that you memorized the psalm: “alive in the help of the Most High.” Memorize others, for example, in the sixth psalm: “O God, my God, to You in the morning,” etc. It is better to read books - first one, and then another. Attention will be kept on one subject and it will be more convenient. When books have different articles, then you can read one or the other every day, one in the morning and the other in the evening. Your intention - to devote all your attention and effort to extinguishing your temper - take the trouble to carry it out. Do not be embarrassed by failures, or by the disobedience of the heart, which is now quiet and will immediately flare up. Break yourself, and ask the Lord to break you. When you start working on yourself, understand what you need to keep in mind. Have I sent you the book: “The Path to Salvation?” It explains in detail what is most important. Read the third part. The main thing is to make the heart pure. It is unclean from pride, in which all passions live and act. Extinguishing passionate thoughts and movements until they completely disappear is the goal of asceticism. Therefore, no matter what passionate thing you notice, arm yourself against it without self-pity. Correcting external behavior is, of course, good, but this is only a passing room, where galoshes and coats are tolerable, but in the living room you have to leave everything and enter in decorous attire. God bless you and your husband and children. Save yourself! Your well-wisher and prayer book E. Feofan. Have I written to you about the little prayers of St. Chrysostom, what are among the prayers for sleep? Memorize them and repeat each prayer in the morning and evening, and during the day. Letter 490. Response to a request for a portrait, sending new books and to various questions that continue to address the saint Again I was guilty of a long silence; a little matter came up. Is it good that you are so embarrassed by not receiving an answer from me? Judge this for yourself. Forward, please arm yourself with patience and set a longer period for waiting for an answer. Did God help you to agree with the Lavra confessor to take upon himself the work of bearing your infirmities? If yes, may the Lord give him the understanding to understand what you need and to dispose you to do it. Portrait. You have my real portrait, and you don’t need anything else. The one you saw was probably taken when I was younger, and now I'm an old man. You only have two of my books. But they all contain what spiritual life requires. In the 118th Psalm, my thoughts, and in the book “on prayer and sobriety” everything is compatriotic. Here, in short, all the fathers, and all the teaching about spiritual life. I advise you to study them thoroughly, and then you will see for yourself that other books are not required. I won’t refuse to send you more, but deal with these first. Are you going to speak and partake of the Holy Mysteries of Christ this Lent? May the Lord bless you to do this. Who can help you deal with your temper? Manage it yourself. An outbreak occurs when someone allows themselves to do something against your will, desire, or command. As long as your lady is alive, you will not control your temper. She is the one in charge. Throw her out the door and gates and punish her so that she does not dare show herself to you. And you yourself must get out of the habit of debt. Who else can do this? Don't go into debt and you won't be in debt. Brief prayers to St. Chrysostom consists of the 7th prayer for sleep, 12 for the day, 12 for the night. The first ones begin: “Lord, do not deprive me of Your heavenly blessings,” the second: “Lord, accept me in repentance.” Please think about them carefully. They contain all the needs of spiritual life, and learn them. The daily flow of affairs in your life is good. Do not forget to keep in mind the omnipresence and omniscience of God and also death. These are the strictest teachers. From them comes the fear of God and all good things. Getting up at three o'clock would be nice, but it's too difficult for you. Leave it as it was. Short prayers to St. Read Chrysostom both morning and evening, repeating each prayer three times. They contribute a lot to maintaining attention. They will lead us into a walk before God and to unceasing prayer. An exercise in gossip, try to stop it. Don’t start it yourself, but whoever else starts it, keep silent, praying to the Lord in your heart. The Lord is near and listens to all the needs of your soul and is ready to satisfy them. Turn to Him with everything, and the more often the better. The usual way for those who listen to themselves to turn to the Lord is through the Jesus Prayer: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” Get her used to it! God bless you! Save yourself! And God bless your whole family! Would you find it possible to write more legibly? My eyes will thank you. Letter 491. Seeing the dying is a good science of living. It is not useful to collect many books. About the requested rosary. The saint's signatures in letters. Recommendation of “Soulful Reading”. Be a mother, not a commander. Letter to E. Ganskau Did your mother-in-law die and were you present with her during the last hours of her life? Seeing how they depart from this life is the best science of life. And I believe that you have learned quite a few lessons for yourself. May the Lord calm the soul of this slave with his eternal rest among the blessed! Three times you write in your letter that you expect parcels from me - this is with books and rosaries. Regarding books, I stand by what I wrote, that it is not useful for you to collect books. Study first the “collection of sobriety and prayer.” Psalm 118, if difficult, put it aside until later, and now sit over a book about “sobriety.” Book addiction is also a passion, not a useful one. And rosaries are a superstition, now I see that they should not be sent to you at all, and I will not send them. Please obey what I write, and do not think about evading it. Are you getting ready to take communion? Good deed. May the Lord grant you to do this for the good of your soul! The word: “prayer book” stopped writing a long time ago and you can’t wait; I write: “well wished”, or nothing but a name. For you, instead of everything, I will put: the blessing of the Lord be upon you. Your husband gave you a gift that was not the best. The best of all spiritual magazines: Soulful Reading and the cheapest of all. You did well in what you intended for your eldest daughter to be at peace. Add - be loving, and show your love. Be a mother, not a commander. And pray a lot for her, with tears. If you have no joy for her, where will she find it? And then what will her life be like?!! I wish you all the best and your husband, children and mother. The blessing of the Lord be upon you! Save yourself! E. Feofan. December 15, 1893 Letter 492. Explanation of the words of Elder Job about the myrrh-bearing women. From a letter to E.D. The words of the elder Fr. Job told you about the myrrh-bearing women to incite you to imitate them. The Christian life encounters many obstacles from the first steps, and the further you go, the more. Those who embark on this path of life must arm themselves with strong courage in order to walk without timidity in the struggles ahead with obstacles. And if you please, put on courage and vigor, and flow steadily, imitating St. Ap. To Paul, who said about himself: so I flow, that I may comprehend. - And you will achieve it. What? You may not be worthy to see Christ the Lord, for this is not universal, but you will achieve deep communion with God, for this is our goal - and the main promise of the Lord. He who courageously struggles with passions, strictly fulfilling the commandments of the Lord, as he succeeds, becomes purified in his heart, and as his heart is pure, he draws closer to the Lord, Who promised such: we will come to him and make our abode with him. Letter 493. On the spiritual erection of the cross (in the heart). Letter to Fr. John of Kronstadt And now the exaltation of the cross of the Lord. Then they erected the cross on a high place so that all the people could see and honor it. In memory of this, a cross is now erected in churches in monasteries. But all this is external. There is a spiritual erection of the cross in the heart. It happens when someone firmly decides on self-crucifixion or the mortification of their passions, which is so essential in Christians that, according to the Apostle, those alone are Christ’s who have crucified their flesh with passions and lusts. Having erected this cross within themselves, Christians keep it erected throughout their lives. Is this so, let every Christian soul ask itself and listen to what answer its conscience gives in its heart. Oh, don’t let us hear: “You only create pleasures for the flesh for lust; your cross has not been erected, it has been thrown into the pit of passions, and there it rots in neglect and contempt!” When the Lord was taken down from the cross, the cross remained on Calvary, and then it was thrown into the pit that was there, where these instruments of execution were thrown along with all other rubbish. Soon Jerusalem was destroyed and all its buildings were razed to the ground. The hole where the cross of the Lord had been thrown was also filled up. When the city was restored by the pagans (the Jews were forbidden to approach the place where it was); it so happened that in the place where the cross of the Lord was hidden, they erected an idol of Venus, the pagan goddess of fornication and all lusts. The enemy told them so. The same thing happens with our internal cross. When the enemy destroys the spiritual structure in the soul, this mental Jerusalem of ours, then the spiritual cross is thrown down from the heights of Golgotha of the heart and is covered with rubbish of pleasures and lusts, and lustful self-indulgence, like a tower, rises above our entire inner world, and everything in us worships him and follows his beckons until grace illuminates, inspires us to overthrow this idol and erect a cross of self-crucifixion. I wrote this to you instead of greetings on the holiday. E. Feofan. 14 Sep. '91 Letter 494. Review of the words and works of Fr. John and a humble review of himself. Blessing and asking for prayers God's mercy be with you, Most Honorable Fr. Archpriest! I bring you deep gratitude for your words and teachings, many edifying, simple and deep, brief and complete, all-containing without excesses or verbiage. God bless your pastoral work in all its breadth. You have been given grace not only to teach, but also to create. Lord help you to successfully serve your brothers in Christ with every gift that you have received from the Lord. You are working. And the time has come for me to lay down my guns. You are the good shepherd; and I am an unfit archpastor. I think that there has never been such a bad bishop as me. It is because of my sins that I am now deprived of strength: I am weak in body and even more so in spirit. There is nothing worthwhile behind us, nothing worthwhile ahead. One thing remains: God, be merciful to me, a sinner! God grant that at least this cry comes out of the heart. You wrote on your card that you are eating, my student. I would like to know when this was and where. Maybe I would remember you somehow. In fact, however, it is more enough to know how you are. I wish you every success in your affairs. I ask for prayers for my all-repentance. God bless you! Your sincere well-wishing E. Feofan. October 12, 1890 Letter 495. Refusal of a request for spiritual guidance You invite me to take you under my leadership. “I can’t—and I don’t understand this matter.” That's why I never undertake to lead. Please excuse my refusal. It is done for your benefit; for without knowing the matter, I could lead you I don’t know where. I wish you to find an elder for yourself, but I can’t point you to anyone. May the Lord make you wise in the matter of salvation. E. Feofan. January 5, 92 Letter 496. On accepting the proposed tonsure and on prayer If you yourself were looking for tonsure, perhaps I would tell you - don’t look, let Mother Superior do it herself. And when the mother abbess proposes, then you have to agree. – There were experiences that others refused, and then grief and melancholy. It’s better not to bring this trouble upon yourself. You have a disposition to pray. Give thanks to the Lord. This is the root of monasticism. And please satisfy yourself to the best of your ability and beyond your strength, both in church and in your cell. Would you like to learn prayer. Pray more often and more diligently, and you will learn. Nothing else is required. If you work patiently, then over time you will develop unceasing prayer. Set yourself this as the goal of your search and search. The Lord is near. Have the memory of God, and always try to keep the Lord before you and keep yourself in reverence before Him. Have you tried praying short prayers?! – The main one is the Jesus Prayer – G.I.X.S.B.p.m.g. “You can match her with others according to your spiritual needs.” For example, take 24 prayers of St. Chrysostom, who are in prayer for sleep. Memorize them with understanding and feeling - and then insert them into your cell prayer - and cry out to the Lord with them, saying three, five, or more each time. – When you establish yourself in them, try to select others. Where and where to get it? Listen to the church prokemenas and memorize them. Read the psalms and choose. Praying in short prayers gathers attention and sorts out all spiritual needs. Do not forget that the power of prayer is a broken spirit, a contrite and humble heart. Surrender yourself into the hands of God. And He will not leave you. Letter 497. Basic rules of piety. Tears of grace and the enemy Everything you have prescribed about the order of your spiritual studies is very good. May God bless you to show you firm constancy in everything. Keep in mind the main thing, namely, a well-disposed heart - towards the Lord and towards everything that the work of salvation requires of us. Always keep the Lord before the eyes of your mind and conduct yourself in everything as one should conduct oneself before the Lord. Always keep and kindle the fear of God and reverence for His indescribable greatness within yourself; and with him the heart is contrite and humble. Keep strong faith and indestructible hope. Humble yourself before everyone and consider others higher than yourself. Love silence and isolate yourself as much as possible in order to be in unity with the Lord. Then He Himself will become your leader and teacher, and you will no longer need other such persons. You are wrong to judge tears. This is God's mercy to you, protection from dryness of heart and petrification of feelings. The enemy's tears bring vanity and love ostentation - and they cannot continue this way for long. They are fleeting, just as the enemy is fickle. And you should not want to suppress them, but if vanity finds it, drive it away and in its place evoke humble and contrite feelings. Anything else you would like or need to write, write. Letter 498. On spiritual vigilance. Vanity in tears. The danger of cooling and its own cost The merciful Lord called you and put you on a good path. Thank the Lord! “And this is from the Lord, that having come out from there, adhere well to the order of life according to God. – Hold on tight: don’t close your eyes, looking sharply here and there, for the enemy does not sleep. He doesn’t lag behind you, but right there he’s looking to see if he can confuse you again; but the grace of God covers you and does not give you an attack. As soon as grace retreats for something, he is immediately there and begins to turn around - Lord save you! Now you are already vainglorious, as you wrote. This is on the enemy side. Vanity is his field of berries. And it is such that grace departs for it. Watch out! And what did you decide to be proud of?! With tears! Tears are crying about sins. When vanity comes due to tears, turn your gaze to your sins and say to your soul: see what you have piled up! Is there anything to be proud of here?! – If you do this sincerely, then instead of vanity you will perceive bitter contrition, which you always try to have under your tears. You experience cooling. And you see the reasons for it. These reasons are indeed such that they can cool. They all depend on your will - and you can reject them as soon as you want. You favor them for no reason, no reason - out of inattention, fearlessness and phoniness. What is this for?! Is cooling a minor problem? - Not easy. The enemy will jump up and stir things up, and before you know it, he’ll break your head. So, if you please, wake up and cheerfully look after yourself: you’ve already seen enough, you were amused at that time. “Now it’s time to be stricter with yourself.” You have forgotten the words of the Apostle: work out your salvation with fear and trembling, but you have lost even simple caution. I think that tears keep you from feeling better or feeling better about yourself. This feeling is the most dangerous. Work hard to deepen the feeling that you are nothing. The Apostle threatens you: if anyone thinks that he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself, and the truth is not in him. Letter 499. Fatherly admonitions and instructions on various subjects on issues of those who are zealous for spiritual life I apologize for taking so long to respond. I got ready and tried my best to get ready. I have before me your letters dated August 17, September 23, and September 30. A whole bunch! – Everything you write about yourself does not give rise to any concern about you. God bless! You behave strictly and conduct your affairs carefully. Continue this way, and God’s favor will not cease to overshadow and protect you. They calmed down and turned to God. Mercy is God's. Remember her often, or constantly keep in mind those vows that were spoken then, and strive to keep them. The spirit is broken, the heart is contrite and humble - the main thing. Then the omnipotent overexertion of oneself in the labors of prayer - fasting and novitiate. Consider yourself a suicide bomber, keeping in mind: death is about to happen, now, this minute, this moment. There is no better way to keep your mind sober than this. From the heart let the cry go unceasingly to the Lord: Lord Jesus Christ... and so on. You wrote that you get up at night and pray. This is very good. Pray with contrition and weeping. That’s when crying and tears are beautiful, but in church suppress tears and only hold on to a broken spirit. Work in matters of salvation—work in every possible way, but place all your hope of salvation in the Lord the Savior. This point is very important. If you deviate a little from the Lord with your trust, then the whole matter is distorted: for then the Lord retreats, as if saying: well, stay with what you place your trust in. And whatever it is, it’s completely insignificant. Refresh your head with good thoughts through reading and meditation. You have enough books. And any kind of order is good here. But read more Hesychius, Abba Dorotheus, Simeon N. Theologian, Isaac the Syrian, Barsanuphius, and all are good. – Don’t read too much at once. Don’t read just to read, but to refresh and nourish your soul. It feeds on what passes through attention into the heart and occupies it. If, while reading and thinking, any thought snatches you from the midst of creatures and takes you before the face of the Lord, close the book and stay with that thought, even for a whole day or more. This thought is one of the turns of the key that is handed to you in a dream. Another turn - the spirit is crushed; the third is movements of love for the Lord; the fourth is impulses of self-sacrifice or readiness to endure everything, to suffer everything, just to please the Lord and be saved. There are many other turns of this key. What does another dream mean? I think he is pointing out to you that if you work tirelessly to the point of exhaustion, you will not have worked in vain. Therefore, decide to work until you drop. 500 prayers are enough, but always with attention and movements of the heart: for the Lord does not need words, but the heart. As for bowing during this, you can make one waist bow for two knots (and a prayer for each knot), and a prostrate bow on a large knot. Bows can be commensurate with strength, but not for the sake of laziness, but for the sake of excessive fatigue. – It is inconvenient to say a prayer for every hour; and memorize the 24 prayers of St. Chrysostom, and recite them often. They embrace all the needs of our spiritual life. You can replace the entire rule with them, namely, repeating each prayer 5–10 or more times. This image of prayer is the best. You can choose other prayers for these prayers, whatever suits you best. That you don’t see your thoughts doesn’t mean anything. It means a lot if your attention is immersed in the Lord. Because this is the main thing that should be taken care of. As soon as you open your eyes after sleep, immediately direct your thoughts to the Lord and be with Him. This is what the Jesus Prayer is intended for. - The rule at home and being in church - everything must be directed, and during needlework, too, everything should be with the Lord. - The sister who comes to you, but of a different spirit, let him walk; Don’t push her away, but sometimes invite her to listen to a book, and read Hesychius, or Abba Dorotheus, or something else. - The old woman, what’s wrong with you, or with whom you are, must know a lot about spiritual life. So ask around, or while reading, if you come across something unclear, ask her to clarify. - Put her to rest. This is your duty! - When you write, write everything from your heart, what is on your soul, what requires my opinion, then mark it with a line in the margin - that’s how I do it now. – You mentioned that every trip upsets you spiritually, and you need time to collect yourself. If these trips are not absolutely necessary, then deny yourself them. And when there is a need, be as attentive as possible to yourself and your thoughts. – You all mourn your sins, not having the confidence that God has forgiven you for them. – Sins under the influence of the permission of the spiritual father are immediately forgiven. But their trace remains in the soul, and it languishes. With the progress of deeds in resisting sinful urges, these traces are erased, and at the same time the languor is diminished. When the traces are completely erased, then the languor will end. The soul will be confident of remission of sins. For this reason - a contrite spirit, a contrite and humble heart - form the basis of the feelings of the current path of salvation. “The further I go, the more shortcomings I discover.” Say: thank God! This is a sign that you are flowing well. As soon as thoughts begin to appear that you are good, know that you are going astray. And take care and correct yourself. “After a good deed there is vanity, after a bad deed there is hopelessness of salvation.” These are ordinary attacks of the enemy. Against the first, expose your sins and mistakes. Against the second is the certainty that there is no sin that overcomes God’s mercy. The death of the Lord was the price for all sins, no exceptions. You have noticed the power of reverence with prayer, and please maintain them and renew and strengthen them in every possible way. God bless! Carnal movements and passions, as those that have already passed, lightly remember in general, without details, only in order to humble your thoughts, otherwise they will immediately come to life, like worms dried up under a stone from being sprinkled with water. We must work hard to mortify these movements: for they have their basis in nature, therefore they are very living; strong, constant fasting, little sleep, exhaustion of the body, and especially prayerful sobriety, finally reach the point that they subside. Never stop worrying about this part of the feat. We would like to know what your main passion is. In response to this, I will remind you of a legend about one ascetic who asked his elder a similar question, namely: with what passion should we first fight? - The elder answered; fight the one who is now fighting you, and there will be no time to find out which is your main one. You act well when you hear what others think or say about you reproachfully, or even show it to your face. And keep it up! The first is not to show insults externally; then drive away such inner feeling and replace it with a good feeling towards those persons. And tolerate actions of this kind. The time will come, and you will greet everyone with a calm spirit. And envy!!! How can she be in a spiritual kind of action?! – Because in spiritual orders everything is available to everyone. I saw someone superior to you in spiritual relations. Put in the work, and you can get it too. But in everyday life, not everything is accessible to everyone. This is where envy comes in. Your food regulations will do. Have the goal of thinning the flesh so that bad movements will quickly freeze and thoughts in this area will cease. What bothers you - that after prayers you have to drink hot water before going to bed?! I don't see what could be confusing here. Eat without hesitation. If a thought comes, turn to the Lord and say: Lord forgive me! It seems that I answered everything for you. If anything is missing, repeat the question. There's such a heap! God bless you! Save yourself. What you sent has been received. Thank you. But please don’t worry about this in advance. I thank my sister for sending me the paraman. Beautifully done. Your well-wisher and prayer book, Bishop Feofan. P.S. Books and leaflets are sent. Of the latter, give something to the triggered paraman. Oct 27 '93 Coming - November 1st. Letter 500. On improving the work of fasting. How often should one fast and receive communion? About recording sins. About women's cleansing and the passionate dreams that occur during this process. About short prayers and how to imagine God during prayer. Letters to Archpriest Mikhail Peter. Putintsev Having fasted during this Lent, you wrote that you are dissatisfied with your fasting, although you love fasting and would like to do this work of Christian piety more often. - Since you didn’t indicate why you are dissatisfied with your fasting, I won’t say anything about it, I’ll just add: try to bring your fasting to the point that it satisfies you. You can ask your confessor how to improve your fasting. As for more often, there is no need to increase the frequency, because this frequency will take away not a small part of the reverence for this greatest work, I mean fasting and communion. It seems that I have already written to you that it is enough to talk and take communion in each large post out of 4. And in the fasts before Easter and Christmas twice. And look no more. Try to better organize and perfect your inner self. – You also notice that during confession you read the sins written in a notebook, which priests do not like. If they don’t like it, then stop doing it. Are you correct in writing about common sins of which no one is guilty? - And you write down things. For example, don’t write: I’m quarrelsome, but write down the case in which the quarrelsomeness was revealed, like this: my sister said an unpleasant word, I got angry, and they fought. And if you get along, add: we got along, thank God, or: we got along by force. Another thing: I liked the face of one person, and that impression remained. Realizing that this was bad, I began to fight and erased the impression (not to say faces). Same with everything. What are you saying about menstrual bleeding, why not ask your spiritual father about it. I am not familiar with this matter: but in general I judge this: these bleedings are not mental uncleanness - spiritual, but material uncleanness - bodily. After them, it’s enough to wash yourself clean so that no trace remains, and change your linen, and wash your hands. And then do with a clear conscience everything that you prescribed, asking, is it possible? – Passionate dreams in a dream before bleeding are not considered a sin, because these dreams are involuntary. But we must lament and grieve for them. Why do they come from the soul? If consent is given in a dream, and this is not a problem, but it burdens the conscience more, therefore, if possible, it is good to reveal this to the confessor. Your conscience will be calmer. That you repented in a dream, why, is good. Sim cleanses what is unclean here. Pray to God for everything, may he save you from these cases. The crying that was in your soul is also a cleansing movement of the soul. You can wish for it and support it. This is truly sorrow for God; St. use epiphany or prayer water at your own discretion, only with faith and reverence. Prayers to St. You can use Chrysostom instead of your home rule, which you keep in your cell - in the evening and in the morning. - Memorize them and think about them all. In them all spiritual life is commemorated. Determine how many times each to repeat so that you stand in prayer for the same amount of time; How long do you usually stand idle on the rule? – You can add your prayers to them, choose from the psalms: whichever poem suits your heart, write it down... Also the words of the litany of petition, in which they sing - Lord willing! you can turn them into prayers, only instead of: we ask and give - say - grant me, Lord. For example: the litany says: we ask the Lord for forgiveness and forgiveness of sins and transgressions. Instead, say: God grant me forgiveness and remission of sins and transgressions. That's all. By using these prayers as a rule with attention, you will soon become accustomed to standing in prayer without being distracted. Insert the Jesus Prayer into their midst. For example: having said ten times: Lord, do not deprive me of Your heavenly blessings, add: G.I.X.S.B.p.m.gr. If you take this up, then all the akathists, canons, and prayers can be abandoned, excluding prayers that are very close to the heart. A commemoration of the same type with these prayers. You can read it. A sister who comes up to you in church to tell you about her sorrows, let her come to your cell for this, or at the end of the service she finds time. God has no form and is invisible. God the Son is seen in human nature, since He took on this nature in His person. Therefore, He can be imagined in the form of a man, in all cases that are described in St. Gospels. This will be a historical imagination. His divine nature is invisible and has no image. The Holy Trinity exists outside of creation, and how it exists is unthinkable for us. When praying to God, it is better not to imagine Him in any way, but only to believe that He exists, is nearby, and sees and hears everything.. We must pray to Him for this. God bless the sisters you mentioned! – In all their needs, let them resort to the Lord in prayer, and He will hear. Letter 501. When sending books requested for the military church of St. Maria Magd. in Khojent, Turkestan diocese Your highest blessing, Most Venerable Fr. archpriest! I apologize for not satisfying your good desire for so long to have my books in the library of your church. “I am sending several of those that I have in my hands and that I can freely dispose of, especially those that can be used in the work of your ministry.” God bless you with every blessing. I ask for your holy prayers. This letter and a parcel with books (15 volumes) were received by me already in Tashkent, where I was traveling to Siberia, and therefore the books did not arrive at the Khodzhent church, but I found it most convenient to distribute them on behalf of Bishop Feofan to the patients of the Tashkent military hospital. Some of the books also went to the library of the Tashkent prison, for reading to prisoners. Letter 502. Again, when sending books and various sacred items. gizmos. Letters to Abbot Veniamin Your Highest Blessings, Ven. O. archpriest! I am pleased to fulfill your wish - and I am sending you several books, two rosaries, two icons of St. great martyr Panteleimon. The fleece on them is one from the Holy Sepulcher, the other from the relics of St. Tikhon. In the books you will find everything that I could tell you. And not one - she also offers in fatherly words. God bless your work both on yourself and your wife and on your parishioners. Please St. your prayers for my many sins. Your good friend Bishop. Feofan. 14 Sep. '87 Letter 503. Answer to questions about drinking wine and oil, holding money, reading the rule during Matins and about the spiritual leader Was there a need to write at such length? 1) Eat everything offered at the meal, without hesitation, but with abstinence and effort. Our oil is five times weaker than oriental wood oil. On the contrary, the wine prescribed in the statute is grape wine - weak. Our vodka is ten times stronger. The charter must be read carefully. 2) Keeping money for a good purpose is not love of money. “And then, when the job is done, you don’t have to save, placing all your trust in God.” 3) It is possible to read the rule during Matins - for those who are lazy and have their thoughts wandering here and there: all the same, Matins is in vain for them. - It’s impossible to do it in order. - What is Matins for? 4) An elder is needed as a leader for those who undertake the great inner life. And our ordinary life can get by with the advice of one confessor and even one of the attentive brethren. – We must pray to God, going to the confessor with a question and asking God to put the necessary thought into the confessor. “Whoever wishes this with faith will receive what he wants.” There is no point in writing at such length: you have to ask someone there. - What about the rulers? - You both have a high life! I ask for your holy prayers for my sinfulness. Your pilgrim Bishop Feofan. 26 Dec '73 Letter 504. About the book sent by the elder Fr. L.. Letter to V.A. Protopopov, later a priest The mercy of God be with you, Most Venerable Fr. abbot! Thank you for sending the books. I'm busy at the moment and can't stop looking at the book about. L. But I ran through it quickly and quickly, and didn’t come across anything like what you write about it. I only see that the elder’s speech is old and dark, just like the words of St. Look for fathers in old translations and are dark. But this guilt is beyond the jurisdiction. Meanwhile, I don’t think you’re telling a lie when you blame that book. But in the haste of reading at a run, he himself did not notice her condemnation of worthy lessons. Please take the trouble to indicate to me what you see as dangerous in her, so that when I am free, it will be easier for me to get down to business. I can't take it on for another three or four weeks or more. By then you will have time to send me the required instructions. Here is obedience for obedience! Your pilgrim Bishop Feofan. It occurred to me to add: about those places that you consider tempting, take the trouble to talk to the elder himself. And write down the explanations he will give. Letter 505. When sending books. Letters to the rector of the Zadonsk Bogoroditsky Monastery, Fr. Archimandrite Demetrius (†June 13, 1882) What books I have on hand, I forward to you. They are not for sale, but it is not in the nature of things for them to be free. Appraise them yourself and give all the money to the first person in need, asking him to pray for himself and for me. Your pilgrim Bp. Feofan. The interpretation of the Epistle to the Galatians can be obtained from the Moscow Missionary Society. Pass on your words to the Vladimir flock to someone. Your address is not entirely clear, will the parcel arrive? Letter 506. The saint’s humble response to his leadership. Answering questions about work at the behest of superiors and internal work God's mercy be with you, Most Honorable Fr. Archimandrite! What are you asking me? I am a very narrow-minded person in the spiritual discernment of things, and I can very easily call black white, and white black. Therefore, do not look at what I write as a good decision. Are you asking if you are making a mistake by continuing to bear the yoke of authority? No. You are obliged to carry it until your superiors say enough is enough. How it not only does not say this, but on the contrary imposes a new task on you, knowing your bodily infirmities; then the question is completely out of your mind: should you abandon your work? One could find a reason for abandonment - a preference for internal work over this external one. This is a very good reason; for there is no price for an internal matter, and nothing should be preferred to it. But even for his sake, it would be possible to leave the labors that are lying and imposed on you only in such a case when these labors would interfere with him and ruin him. But this cannot be said. You have an unceasing prayer to the Lord. Didn't current affairs interfere with her formation? One must assume that they will not interfere if a small fraction is added to them. These matters are only seemingly mundane; but in essence they are not of an earthly nature. Therefore, by working on them, it seems possible not to be separated from the Lord. Moreover, the soul’s being with the Lord or the Lord’s presence of the soul, which is the whole essence of internal activity, does not depend on us. The Lord visits the soul, it is with Him and plays before Him and is warmed by Him. When the Lord departs, the soul becomes empty, and it is not at all in its power to bring back the Visitor of souls. But the Lord departs, torturing the soul; but it happens that he leaves punishing, not for external deeds, but for something internally accepted by the soul. When the Lord departs torturing a soul, then when it screams, He soon turns back. And when he departs punishing, it is not soon, until the soul recognizes the sin, and repents, and mourns, and suffers penance. Now, if you leave the matter and thereby go against the will of the Lord, do you think that He will remain with your soul? If it is a sin against Him and He becomes angry, He will go away and not return. And it will happen that what is done for the benefit of internal work will turn to its detriment and even to its complete destruction. So, in my opinion, it’s better to pull the yoke until the owner unharnesses it against your will. What you replaced the Optina Rule with, I think, is better than it. In the Savvinsky Monastery, near Jerusalem, an hour before Matins they give a sign, and the monks, each in their own cell, bow with the Jesus Prayer 150 earthly and 1500 waist. Those who don’t make it in time will fill it up during the day. But strength does not lie in form, but in the spirit of prayer. What you try to feel in prayer is the most useful thing for prayer. To feel like a condemned person at the hour of prayer, one of the fathers put prayer in the essence. Somewhere, I don’t remember, the question is written: what is the best way to stand in prayer? And the answer: stand as if in court, fixing your gaze on the mouth of the Lord, from which the final decision is ready to come to you: come, or go away, and cry: Lord have mercy. – That’s what’s going on with you. It also seems to me that with a single Jesus Prayer you can fulfill all sorts of rules, just so that it is not only in word, but also in power. I believe that the saints in heaven are all praying for us together, although we extend our prayers to one or the other. And the Mother of God with everyone stands before God for us. When you ask the saints to add their intercession before the Lord to the prayer of the Mother of God, you are not doing anything special. This is always the case in heaven. With what reverence the whole heaven is filled with the hidden God! If only a little of this reverence would be lost to us! Our plumpness pulls us down to earth and makes us insensible. And oblivion, and the dissipation of thoughts with trifles, and laziness, and empty pleasure in anything, and the most evil thing above all: thicker boots - spiritual satiety, - and also familiarity with God, and also - alien appropriation, and it’s impossible to count how many rubbish things?! Feel sorry for those who left and pray to the Lord to guide their path for good. And that's enough. But why be annoyed and grieve? The Lord's land! If only they were saved. And thank God if they are saved. And if they deviate from the path of salvation, what can we do with them? May the Lord have mercy on them and save them. You made me talk. So I said a lot of idle talk. Forgive me for the Lord’s sake, and pray for my all-repentance. Your zealous pilgrim E. Feofan. 22 January '79 Letter 507. Congratulations and advice on remembrance Your Reverence, Most Honorable Fr. archimandrite! I congratulate you both on the holidays and on the New Year. May God grant you all the best for you this coming summer. Regarding the entry for commemoration, do this: choose from secular and non-secular whom the soul will choose until the number of names that you have been assigned is fulfilled, and write down about the others: both all relatives and known ones. God knows who these relatives and known ones are. And He will remember them if He needs a reminder. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. 2nd Gen. 1880 Letter 508. About the fight against drowsiness. On the improvement of the monastery and the choice of abbot I’m sorry that I’m a little late in answering you. Just as sleep overwhelms you, so does laziness overtake me. What happens to you in a dream is a natural thing, and there is nothing sinful here. Regretting this is certainly not a bad thing. But what will you do?! Try, when they read to you, not to sit down, but to walk. Maybe sleep won't take you away. If it is difficult to walk due to previous fatigue, then it is better to sit up straight and then sleep. Sleep a little, and then force me to read. I allow you, after services, or early, to sleep for two hours or more. And then listen to the reading. If this is also inconvenient, then there is nothing left to do but fight with strength. You fall asleep, scold yourself - and that’s all. It seems that you are already approaching old age. Regarding the new monastery, the following thought occurred to me: do not accept it there directly, but send it from your monastery, after a proper test of the suitability of the person being sent. So little by little replace all the bad ones there with the good ones. The law orders that the rector in dormitories be appointed at the discretion of the brethren. The ruler is only given the right to disapprove of the chosen one and appoint his own. But the Holy Synod approves it. If the bishop himself appoints by his own authority without choice, and the brethren complain to the Synod, then the Synod will reprimand the bishop and order the matter to be redone according to the law. And this is very awkward. God bless you with every blessing. I ask your saints. prayers for my many sins. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. 23 февр. 80 Letter 509. About the cell prayer rule Yes, everything is going well for you. And I’m perplexed as to what to fix. I’m even perplexed where you got the idea from. Pull as you are accustomed to. If sometimes you are unable to achieve something due to the infirmity of old age, scold yourself a little, have pity before the Lord and calm down. If you do the same thing again, if you don’t make it, you’ll do the same thing again, and so it always is. It seems to me that you are not giving yourself enough sleep. You could fulfill the night rule in the evening, and then sleep until morning. But as you write that you are used to it; then it is difficult for you to break orders. As for the rule, I think this way: whatever rule anyone chooses for himself, everything is good, as long as it keeps the soul in reverence before God. Also: read prayers and psalms until your soul stirs, and then pray yourself, outlining your needs, or without anything: God be merciful. Also: sometimes all the time assigned to the rule can be spent reading one psalm from memory, making up your own prayer from each verse. Also: sometimes you can spend the entire rule in the Jesus Prayer with bows. And then take a little from this, the other and the third. God needs a heart, and as long as it stands in reverence before Him, then that’s enough. This is what unceasing prayer consists of: always standing reverently before God. And in this case, the rule is only heating, or adding firewood to the stove. I am writing all this to you according to the book. How many experiences do you have?! From them choose what you find useful. I ask for your holy prayers for my many sins. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. Mar 9 80 Letter 510. About my lack of leisure time. Answer about drowsiness and change of the monastery abbot You are greatly and greatly to blame. There was a little business that I didn’t want to tear myself away from without finishing. Although it is not over yet; but at the end. This is a translation of St. Simeon the new Theologian. Therefore, I am changing my first decision, and I undertake to answer you so that you will not be upset with me. I owe a lot of answers to more than just you. In your letter dated January 9th you again complain of drowsiness. Well, what should we do with her? Nothing more than what I already wrote to you. Fight as much as you can; and when he overcomes, repent before the Lord and call yourself the sleepyhead. Will you fall asleep again? Having woken up, again take up repentance and praise yourself. Overcoming sleep is a gift from God. If it were necessary for you to be delivered from this illness, the Lord would have taken away your sleep long ago. Doesn't it take away? It’s true because it’s not good for you. However, not so that you sleep, but so that you have something to fight with. This is for you to exercise your moral strength. When they read to you, maybe it’s better for you not to sit still, but to sit and walk around a little. The dream will dissipate. That you tirelessly commemorate your acquaintances, living and deceased - behold, good! Spiritual alms - especially for those who have departed. That the bishop does not satisfy the request for a change in the skete abbot, this must be tolerated complacently. Among the Orthodox beliefs is that through his shepherds God reveals His will for his flock. Surely the time has not come to fire him yet. We have to wait. M. may not be a bad abbot; but he needs to grow up himself. Let it grow for now and then... I ask for your holy prayers for my many sins. Bow down to St. relics of St. Tikhon, and venerate them, and tell them what this is for me, so that the Holy Hierarch of God will help me. I am sending you a book - an interpretation of Galatians, which has just come out of print. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. 26 Feb. '81 Letter 511. About the church icon of B. Mother Your Reverence, Most Honorable Fr. Archimandrite! At about seven o'clock this evening I received a letter with a question about the icon, and an hour later I received a telegram asking me to give a quick answer. Nothing prevents you from writing a church icon the way you came up with, i.e. The icon of the Assumption, like the Kyiv one, is supported by St. Theodosius and Anthony. Who told you that St. Should Anthony not be depicted on such an icon? Once a saint is glorified, he can be depicted on any icon, and in any combination of holy persons and events. I’ll just say that if such a church icon is assigned to you to take the place of the local Mother of God on the left side of the iconostasis - opposite the right Savior, and does not have a special place, as it should be for church icons; in this case, in my opinion, it is better not to place such an icon here, but a simple, as usual, Mother of God with the Eternal Child. And specially draw the one you ordered and place it where it is more convenient. And if there is a special place for a church icon, then I think it’s impossible to come up with anything better, just the way you want. Who is more worthy to hold the icon of the Assumption than St. Anthony? The icon and the Mother of God itself were sent to him! And we think we don’t know how. Take a bow to whoever came up with this. God bless you with every blessing. I ask for your prayers for my sinfulness. The letter will be sent tomorrow 20, Friday. I don’t know how it will reach you. Whose fault is it that they didn’t start talking earlier? It is difficult to explain everything in a telegram. May God grant you to finish your church safely. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. 19 Mar '81 Letter 512. About the same icon. Recipe for infirmities when following the rule God's mercy be with you! Most Honorable Fr. archimandrite! Yesterday I sent you books about prayer, a collection. One book about. M. pass it on. I didn’t have time to write a letter. I am doing this now. I wrote to you regarding the icon from afar, without seeing either the church or the place of the icon in the church. Maybe what I said is not relevant. See for yourself, or as a general voice. And a general icon of the Assumption on a board of this size can be drawn, and it will be good. As for your infirmities, as you call them, then, as I already wrote, I do not know how to draw up a recipe against them. Be patient, fight, and reproach yourself when you don’t get tired, and that’s all. When sleep approaches, get up and walk around. When it starts to bother you, start talking with the reader about what you are reading. In the books it is written that when the Jesus Prayer takes power and penetrates the heart (it is imposed on the tongue - this is one thing, but it penetrates into the heart - this is another); then it gives vigor and drives away sleep. Try this recipe. God is everywhere. If you realize this vividly, then there will be no place for sleep, just as it cannot be: the Tsar stands before your eyes. The essence of the Jesus Prayer is to stand before God with your mind and heart. The book we sent says a lot about this. I couldn’t be happier with the shrine you sent. I am very grateful to you for it. I ask for your holy prayers. P.S. I have just finished translating the words of St. Simeon the New Theologian. And now I’m free to start writing. I will also write to M. if there is time left before the mail leaves. Letter 513. Concerning the testimony of the remains of Elder Pachomius. About the cell rule and commemoration. Letter to a young girl who wanted to enter a monastery I also greet you on a bright holiday, which is still ongoing. May God grant you bright days! O. M. writes that you will have an examination of the remains of Elder Pachomius. Now it has already happened. Would you like to know what God has given? Grant us, Lord, a new helper and prayer book. You wrote to Strastnaya, but the letter was already received on Fomina, because during the flooding of the rivers our communication with the city stops. Now it has been three weeks. I didn't catch what you were asking about the rule? And it occurred to me to tell you: what is the rule for you? Have one thing: always be with the Lord. Then determine everything else expromptu... every minute. And regarding sleep, you can act like this: when you feel sleepy, lie down and sleep, not to please the flesh, but to satisfy the need, so that later you can act more vigorously. And regarding remembrance: once a week remember everyone by name, and on other days in parts, and sometimes even with a general remembrance: Lord, remember everyone I remember, and do not repeat the names of those remembered, but just mentally review everyone. For God sees the thought, not the word. Thank you for the peace you give V.V. Let it ripen in your nest. Perhaps it will hatch and flutter out like a bird of paradise. Save yourself! Pray to God for my many sins. Your pilgrim E. Feofan. 3 May 81 Letter 514. A detailed, clear and convincing dispersion of objections to monastic life presented to a person who feels the calling of God from her relatives. Letters to one of the disciples of St. D.M. From everything that you have written about yourself, it is clear that God is calling you to monasticism - and all your disposition and all your thoughts are directed there; you will not find, nor do you find, peace in any other way of life. If this is your calling, then the sooner you fulfill it, the better. And oh. Ambrose gave you direct advice. Your relatives reason in worldly terms, not in spiritual terms. If you follow their speeches, then no one will have to become a monk or nun, and monasticism will become a kind of delusion. And it’s a sin to talk like that. The Lord approved it, the Apostles established it, and the Church recognized at all times its pleasingness to God. Your relatives would be right if they were told that the only salvation lies in monasticism. And no one says this. They only say that the best and most convenient way of salvation is monasticism - life in renunciation of the world. Read 1 Cor. 7 and 9. Man's purpose is not on earth, but in another life. If we were on earth, we would not die, but as we die, it means that our real life is not on earth. Earthly life is only a preparation for another life - and about that life the Lord said that there they do not marry, do not encroach, i.e. that there will be no everyday, earthly orders there, but there will be an Angelic order. Monastic life is adapted to it. Do you have a book: “What is spiritual life and how to establish yourself in it?” It explains well that a person has three lives - spiritual, mental and physical. The first is addressed to God and heaven, the second - to the organization of earthly life, the third takes care of the life of the body. It rarely happens that all these lives are revealed in the same strength, but for one one predominates, for another the other, for a third the third. Above all spiritual, p.ch. the spirit is higher than the soul and body, and because through it a person is brought closer to his goal, i.e. to heaven and God. Are such lives chosen? - Not visible. They themselves reveal themselves in the course of life and then force a person to live according to one life or another. God reveals the need for spiritual life and calls to it. So it's yours. It is fitting to listen to God more than to listen to people, your relatives. You are confused by the judgments of your family. But there is no basis in these judgments. Look here. “What can you do in particular in the monastery that you could not do in the world?” Things are not the most important thing in life; the main thing is the mood of the heart, turned towards God. Where is it more convenient to observe this - living in the world, or withdrawing from the world? The Apostle writes: “To him it is not I who live, but Christ who lives in me; Our life is hidden with Christ in God. Son, give me your heart. Pray without ceasing. Don’t worry about the siskin.” And there are many such instructions in which the superiority of life is proclaimed, when, like Mary, they choose the one thing they need. Turn the question and say: “What is there in everyday life that I could not do while living in a monastery?” Everything that you can do for your neighbors while living in cohabitation with the laity concerns 5, 10, rarely 15 people. And in a monastery there are always more than 100, and there are up to 1000. Thus, in a monastery you can do 10 and 100 times more for your neighbors than in lay life; and the fact that spiritual life is revealed there in a life inaccessible to the laity is a new, irreplaceable appendage. “The Savior never broke up family relationships; on the contrary, he preached love for others and peace.” Not terminated?! And what is this: “Whoever loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me”? - And even stronger: “Whoever does not hate his father, mother,” and so on. – The general conclusion from the Lord’s words is that according to him, family relationships should be subordinated to spiritual needs. Martha was concerned about family relationships when she asked the Lord: “say to her, Mary, that he may help me.” What about the Lord? - “Be concerned about many things. Mary chose the good part.” And in general, the tone of the Lord’s teachings is completely unfavorable for family and everyday relationships. And that the world also preached love, it is clear from my previous words that there is more scope for the exercise of these virtues in the monastery than in the world. “It’s like you can’t handle monastery life, huh. you are in poor health." But you are weak, living in a lay life, and therefore a lay life does not give you good health. And from here, rather, this is what follows: since you, worldly life, do not give me good health, then I abandon you as unsuitable for strengthening my health. Take also into account the fact that health does not depend on food alone, but most importantly on peace of mind. Life in God, detaching itself from the waves of the world, overshadows the heart with peace, and through this keeps everything in the body in a healthy order. And among the dishes, not only meat is beneficial to health. Lenten times are more favorable for this. Take the trouble to get and read Gufland's book on long life. He recommends lean foods as more conducive to longevity. “I will not find there (in the monastery) what I want, the monasteries have lost their meaning and are not at all what they should be, and they live there not at all as they should; the world is better now than it was, and therefore the monastery lost its significance and fell.” Have those who say this ever been to a monastery, and how long have they lived there? Many say this without having seen monasteries at all, but based on rumors: such rumors are spread mostly by people who do not know monasteries and monastic life. You never know who, having spent a day or two in monasteries and having encountered something there, attribute it to the monastery, and then to all monasteries and all monks. You can see without making inquiries how much truth there is in such speeches. Further, what do those who say this consider monastic and non-monastic? Monastic and non-monastic? One beauty went to visit a monastery and wrote: “What is this? “Everything here is the same as in the family: worries about the table, about clothes, about selling and buying, going out to families and receiving family?” (The monastery turned out to be not a communal one). Laywomen think that in a monastery all you should think about is praying?! And they forget that those who enter the monastery do not leave their stomach behind the monastery fence, but take it with them. And where the stomach is, there is care for food, where the skin is, there is a need to cover it with clothes, and a hut to live in; where labor obtains what is needed, there one must work, sell and buy. All this is not monastic in spirit, but just as you cannot live without it, and you cannot be a monk without life, then all this is necessary for monks. But you can do all this in a monastic way and thus involve it in the circle of monastic affairs in spirit. In cenobitic monasteries, part of this worldly responsibility lies with some, the strongest, while others only work for their monastic community. In the Egyptian monasteries, at the very beginning, it was divided so that some worked, and some managed and delivered everything that everyone needed, even hermits sold and bought, sometimes themselves, and more often through one of the laity. Perhaps your critics of monasteries do not mean the everyday side of monastic life, moral life, or the mood of the heart? But this is a secretive matter. Go to any monastery. From the outside, everything is orderly there, but is it the same from the inside? Who can talk about that? One God and the conscience of those living in the monastery. Third-party judges of this do not avoid the sin of unrighteous condemnation and slander. I believe that you will not find a single nun or a single monk who does not care at all about the inner good mood and does not try to expel all badness from his heart. But not everyone has the same success. That’s why, sometimes, bad things break through. However, it would be a sin to say about someone who breaks through something that he is always like that. He broke through, repented, stopped and continues to properly maintain himself inside. A monastery is a society of those struggling with themselves for the sake of the heavenly kingdom. Take a handful of rubbish and throw it into the water. Whatever is a little heavier will sink to the bottom and disappear. Only feathers, wood chips, and dust will remain at the top. So in the monastery. Those who live in spirit and are strong in character are not visible and avoid showing off, while those who are lighter in character are always visible and keep to the outside. New nuns always meet these nuns for the first time, and it happens that some get confused by this, and someday - when they have to meet real nuns. But in every monastery there are such in greater or lesser strength. Therefore, it is sinful to say that monasteries have lost their significance. This is a lie. And that the world has become a better place is sheer absurdity. “I will sin against my relatives by abandoning them and bring them grief by this, when they do not prevent me from praying to God; and the Savior commands to throw only when they interfere. And when I leave the world, I will still live among people, in an even larger circle than at home; Only then they are strangers, and here they are our own.” If you get married and have to live in Kazan, Perm or Irkutsk, will it be a sin to leave your family? And this is for a man, a husband. And then, when you leave your relatives for the Lord, uniting with Him spiritually, will it be a sin?! How is this possible?! Your relatives live needlessly. If their support depended entirely on you, then you could say this, but with this order there is no sin. Besides, why are you leaving them? For the sake of salvation for the sake of the soul and obeying the call of the Lord, forcing you to go to the monastery. Why are your relatives keeping you? Because they are pleased to see you near them. They have no thought about your salvation, but only care or regret about losing the pleasure of your presence. Proud feeling. If you listen to them, what will be the basis of obedience? Instinctive feeling of kinship. And this is a feeling of kinship. And this feeling of what price and what rank? It is a spiritual-animal feeling, intended only for earthly life and has no place outside of it. Those who seek the best, the spiritual, should not listen to him, but should subordinate him to their spiritual views, taking into account the orders that await you in another life. What will happen there? “They won’t marry or encroach there.” Consequently, there will be no family relations here. For they all come from marriage. There will also be fathers, mothers, sisters and brothers, but all spiritual. This spiritual kinship will already be found here among those who reject themselves and prefer the spiritual order of life to the spiritual and animal. When you choose a spiritual rank, you should put family feelings aside. When they told Him that His Mother and brothers were waiting for Him outside, what did the Savior do? Rushed towards them?! On the contrary, sitting calmly, he said that for Him, only those who fulfill the will of God are relatives. Isn’t it obvious that, according to the decree of the Savior, for those who follow Him there should not be a carnal kinship, but there should be something else - a spiritual one. And please comply with this decree. “They do not hinder us from praying” – i.e. They tolerate you going to church and doing the required prayers at home. But prayer is not just that. This is a prayer rite, and prayer is an uplifting of the mind and heart to God according to spiritual needs. Do relatives contribute to this? Not only do they not contribute, but the main hindrance to this is through the thoughts they excite. And the Savior said that if a hand or a foot or an eye causes temptation, i.e. They interfere with the good order, we need to cut them off, of course, here are their relatives. “When I leave the world, I will still live among people.” Of course, even there in the monastery there are people, but not like that, of a completely different spirit, here they are worldly or worldly, and there they are detached from themselves and everything earthly - for the Lord and heaven. And in monasteries there are also lay people, but there are also those who are not the same. You have to join their circle, and things will be completely different. “In the world we are our own, but in the monastery we are strangers.” On the contrary, for you there are people there, and here they are strangers. You are now a different spirit from your own people and, therefore, half strangers to them. And there you will become completely alienated. - “My sister’s heart defect is due to your intention to enter a monastery.” What fables! It comes from organic conditions; emotional feelings can only influence indirectly, and even then not always. In addition, people with heart defects live for a hundred years. As if your sister will die when you leave, that’s also an empty worry, to die, and both you and she can die every moment. If you keep this in mind, then no movement will have to be made. O. Ambrose advises well to hurry. Because the Lord calls and calls, but he will remain silent, and from this not only the desire to enter the monastery will fade away, but the very desire to save the soul will evaporate, and you will be a laywoman to the core. “It’s like they want to rob you.” Those entering the women's monasteries make a contribution to the monastery according to their strength - sometimes a decent one, but in return they enjoy some kind of benefits, it seems - they work arbitrarily, although everyone undergoes obedience. This shouldn't stop you. Apart from this contribution, you can keep everything else at your disposal. And no one cares about this. Our monasteries are set up in such a way that ordinary nuns can survive without this support. – Whose wisdom is this – the attraction to drunkenness has been put on the same line with your attraction to monasticism? Your attraction is clearly from the Lord. This is evident from his constancy and from the fact that you do not see peace because of his dissatisfaction and will not have it. And having satisfied, you may encounter difficulties. - But this is inseparable from all good. And when you enter a monastery, do not expect to rest. This is this path, the path of hardship and struggle, and this will be the real path. And the deceased is not real. Remember what the Lord said about the wide and narrow path. The Lord chooses you, and if you encounter bad things, they will be from the Lord for your good. Everything that you wrote at the end about your feelings, dispositions, decisions and expectations is all completely in order. And what did you add: “Isn’t it pride to want so much?” - This is an inappropriate thought. The Lord said: “Be perfect, even as your heavenly Father is perfect.” This is a commandment to those created in the image of God and recreated in the Lord Savior again in the image of Him who created them. After this, come up with some desire higher than this, so that you can say about it: is this pride? It seems that all your embarrassments have been addressed. May God grant you to calm down and enter the monastery with a calm spirit. God bless! Save yourself! And you have one more circumstance in P.S. “I am worried that Fr.’s advice has not yet been implemented. Ambrose." It will pass immediately as soon as you decide to do it and especially when you do it. And this concern should be attributed to God’s calling. Letter 515. How can the established cell rule be shortened? Relation of the rule to prayer Most Reverend Mother, as far as I could make out, it is advisable for you to shorten your cell rule of four hours, replacing it with a shorter personal prayer. And you ask how to position yourself? I can’t answer this question directly for you, not knowing how your life went and where you got your rule from and what your inner prayer is, about which you are so jealous. If you have determined your cell rule for yourself, then it is in your power to change it in every possible way. But if it was given to those with whom you previously consulted in your affairs, then you need to talk to him about changing this rule. It is possible to change, but the order requires that you ask. The rule is not an essential part of prayer, but is only its external side. The main thing is the prayer of the mind and heart to God, offered with praise, thanksgiving and petition, and finally with complete surrender to the Lord. When there are such movements in the heart, there is prayer there, and when not, there are no prayers, even if you stood on the rule for whole days. This is exactly what you are paying due attention to. So keep trying to achieve this. Seek and you will find. The Lord is near. You love the Lord, as you wrote, to Him and turn with all your needs, like a child to the Father. If you introduce me to your life, your internal structure and write what your rule is, then perhaps I could tell you something. Your good friend E. Feofan. February 22, 1888. Letter 516. The Essential Side of Prayer. Changeability of house rules. The Gift of Unceasing Prayer The prayer that you perform internally, from the soul, from yourself, according to your sense of your spiritual needs and others, is real prayer. And please continue to work in this kind of prayer more than any other. The main thing in prayer is feeling towards God from the heart. Prayer words for this, whatever ones you choose. Feeling towards God even without words is prayer. The word supports and sometimes deepens the feeling. The prayer rules for church services must be followed as they are. As for the prayer rule at home, it is not immutable, but can be changed in time, in duration, and in composition, one thing to keep in mind is that everything is not done to please laziness, and that the prayer comes from the soul. Whatever rule of prayer you have is good. You can add and change. Good short prayers to St. Chrysostom 12 for the night and 12 for the day. You can choose more impressionable verses from the psalms. Do everything with complete freedom. Sometimes and all the time of prayer, pray with your own prayers according to real needs; or insert such a prayer into your rule, at the beginning, middle and end, or without words, only holding the feeling for God with the cry: “God be merciful” or “Save the Lord through your destinies.” But there is, mother, unceasing prayer, which incessantly comes to God from the heart. This is a gift of grace. St. Macarius the Great says: pray and bother yourself in prayer, and God, seeing how earnestly you want to pray, will give prayer. In the Slavic Philokalia, Elder Maxim Kavsokalivit says about himself that for 2 years he prayed to the Mother of God, so that She would give or ask for prayer. One day, he says, as I prayed and venerated the icon of the Mother of God, a sweet light instantly sank into my heart and has been glowing there ever since; this is the gift of prayer! Seek it, too, and express it in words in prayer, keeping in mind the prayer that Maximus speaks of. Sometimes it happens that this light falls during the permission of the priest during confession, sometimes during the communion of St. Christ's Mysteries. Look everywhere. Keep your prayer work as it is, trying in every possible way to warm up your feelings towards God. It’s as if you don’t read anything, if there is anything, read everything about prayer. I have some books to give away. I am sending them, read them little by little. I wish you every success in drawing closer to God. You can stop visiting altogether, citing being too busy. Your good friend E. Feofan. March 20, 1888. Letter 517. On keeping the gift of inner warmth towards God You made me very happy with the news of God’s mercy to you. God bless! I did not contribute to this in any way except for instructions. What has been given to you by your faith is all from the Lord and Mother of God. Go there with thanksgiving with all the fullness of your heart. Keep this gift. How? above all by humility, attributing all the graces, but nothing to oneself. As soon as your thoughts turn towards yourself, grace will diminish, and if you don’t come to your senses, it will completely stop working, then cry and cry a lot. Second - feeling like earth and ashes, be as you are now, i.e. without turning to anything unnecessarily either in thought or in heart. Everything is with the Lord. Little by little the inner burning diminishes; immediately hasten to restore it in strength. The Lord is near. Turning to Him with condolences and fear, you will immediately receive. This is actually when the Jesus Prayer is useful, then it is in its true power. However, your condition can still be in its present form with just attention and feeling towards the Lord. Services in the church of God are all about the divine, and try to be there unapologetically. Above all, watch out for the entertainment of thoughts and their breaking, and passionate movements. Dispersion of thoughts and any kind of carnality or rest with food and sleep are the first enemies, and with them in commonwealth there is always irritation. Run away from the slightest movement of displeasure. However, the very matter of storing this state will teach you the need to choose means and techniques for this. When the desire to read comes, read only about prayer in those books that you have, choose such articles. I rejoice in you with all my heart! You wrote: “bless you to live like this.” Are you already thinking about handling this matter yourself? God forbid you. Gracious actions are all from grace. Know this and feel it. I ask your saints. prayers. Your good friend E. Feofan. July 24, 1888. Letter 518. In order to maintain being with the Lord, one must beware of absent-mindedness and captivity of the heart. Measure of food and sleep I hasten to tell you a word or two. Scattered. This is the first enemy attack hostile to the internal system. Take care to enter into relationships with others and to worry about business so that at the same time you remember the Lord and do and speak everything with the consciousness that the Lord is near and direct everything to please Him. To do this, when something comes up, first prepare to continue the work not to depart from the Lord, but to be in His presence and pray to Him about it. You can get used to this, just make sure to always act like this from now on. The second enemy of staying inside is attaching the heart to something and being captivated by something when impressed by the senses or when thinking about something. This one is meaner. You didn’t have this and you soon returned to your old ways. If your heart were to rest on something, you would have to suffer for a long time. Then it would be necessary to first tear the heart away from what it is attached to and develop an aversion to it. Please keep this in mind and beware in every possible way of both absent-mindedness and, moreover, captivity of the heart. There is only one way - not to deviate your attention from the Lord and from the consciousness of His presence. What makes you sad after a long conversation with someone? Because during a conversation you move your attention away from the Lord. This is unpleasant for the Lord, and He lets you know this with sadness. Please learn to constantly be with the Lord, no matter what you do, and to do everything for Him, trying to keep it in line with His commandments. And you will never be sad, for you will be aware of what His works did. About food. All excesses do not lead to good. Before the enemy has time to make you indulge yourself in anything, then he instills immeasurable severity and then forces you to do the same. You cannot do without food and sleep. Having become exhausted to the point of impotence, it is necessary to do the necessary things, and it is necessary to return to food and sleep. And this is where the enemy takes his toll, introducing both eating and sleeping a lot. Please, above all, be careful not to get on the road to pride and get stuck there. The first step on this road is an intrinsic value, a secret feeling that I am something and not nothing; the second is conceit or well-being - the feeling that I am not only something, but also something important both before people and before God. From these two, a whole heap of proud thoughts and feelings are then born, which are the most disgusting to God. Therefore, try in every possible way to be in a sincere feeling of complete self-abasement. To do this, bring to your mind more often what sins or mistakes you made in your previous life and condemn yourself for them. Kindly choose a measured rule in food and drink, as all the saints did. Let you have a brew, an egg, shreds of caviar and other things that are easier. Nothing for the sake of carnality, but only for health and never eat until you are full: satiety among monks is the same as satiety among the laity. About sleep. And here, too, we must keep it in moderation. It’s very good to go to Matins, but how to go to bed? so that there would be no more than six hours before matins. God bless you, I ask for your prayers. Save yourself! Your good friend E. Feofan. August 13, 1888. Letter 519. Light and darkness in the soul. About moving to another monastery How many times have you already realized the duty instilled in you by your conscience: to be with the Lord, not preferring anything to Him. The memory of this truly never leaves your mind! May this matter also be in your power. This is our goal, after all. When we are with the Lord, then the Lord is with us. And everything is light. In the room, when all the windows are open and the sun is shining, it is light, light. But close one window, it will get dark, and when they all close, it will become completely dark. So it is with the soul. When she is turned to the Lord with all her strength and feelings, everything in her is light, joyful and calm. When he turns his attention and feeling to something other than the Lord, this lordship is diminished. More things occupy the soul, more darkness enters. And it’s completely dark there. Thoughts do not darken so much as feelings; a one-time passion for feelings, not so much as an addiction to something. What darkens sin most of all is deeds. May the Lord and the Lady of Heaven and the Guardian Angel protect you. The Guardian Angel speaks the words you heard in your soul. You are in danger of being transferred to another monastery. Although this is honorable, it will be ruinous for your internal structure: therefore I agree with you that it would be better if this did not happen. However, it is undoubtedly true that where God’s purpose is, there is God’s help. And where God’s help is, everything will go smoothly. Therefore, it is better for you to position yourself this way: not to be partial to the place, but only to take care of how to conduct affairs properly, to which the place obliges you, and for this alone to pray and for this alone to ask for help from the Lord. Whether they leave you in this place or transfer you, try to be without embarrassment, resting in the will of God. And now tune in like this. For in this the stone is solid underfoot. May the Lord bless you to prosper in your internal order and the well-being of the monastery. Save yourself! Your good friend E. Feofan. October 2, 1888. Letter 520. Measures against absent-mindedness and guidance on how to manage thoughts. Tip about the rule Thank you for your congratulations and well wishes. I wish you all the best too. I was about to answer your previous letter, when the second one arrived. Maybe I would still be lazy; but you write about very important things, and it’s already a sin to be lazy. “And first of all, I wish you with all my heart what you wished for yourself, namely, that in the depths of your soul, throughout the whole year, you will silently praise the Lord. God grant! - In order not to get distracted, you came up with the idea of ​​renewing mortal memory with the striking of the clock; do not forget to restore your zeal and attention to the Lord every hour. This is good work! God bless! – But the main thing here is to awaken a broken spirit, a contrite and humble heart. These feelings should form the foundation of your entire internal structure. When they are there, your inner self is safe. “-Sigh for you!” I always pray to the Lord that He will preserve in you the good mood that you have. This attention of the Lord to you means and imposes a great obligation on you - to keep yourself strictly in line. This is what I pray for, that the Lord will give you severity towards yourself. “I’ll dwell on some pretext of thought, and lo and behold, the enemy has caught it.” Judging by the thought, this can be very unimportant and very important. – How to generally manage thoughts, see Abba Hesychius of Jerusalem and Philotheus of Sinai. The complete science about this is written there. On my own behalf, I will say, try to always be in feeling towards God (this is the lesson of Climacus). – This feeling will keep attention to the heart. Such attention will immediately catch someone else’s thought and tell you about it, and you, with God’s help, in the name of the Lord, will drive it away. – Have you acquired the skill of saying the Jesus Prayer? If yes; deal with this matter with reverent attention. And if not, try to get used to it. – I don’t know what your prayer rule is; but this is what I know: it is much better to compose this rule from short prayers than from longer, more or less prayers. There are many such prayers in our liturgical books. Choose the ones that are most suitable for you and then repeat each one several times, delving deeper into its meaning. And all the rules are here. 24 prayers to St. Chrysostom can be suitable for everyone. God bless you with every blessing! Save yourself! Your good friend E. Feofan. January 15, 1889. Letter 521. Reasons for not writing for a long time. Encouragement for the current good path. The orders of the authorities about us must be accepted as from the hand of God I am very sorry that I caused you trouble by not writing for a long time. But it's not my fault. At this time we are flooded with water, and our communication with the city is cut off. Now this began on Monday of the fifth week and continues to this day. On Passion and Holy Days we don’t send people to the city anyway. - That's the reason. And you went into philosophy. I'm not at all bored writing to you. But laziness happens. In your soul, as I see, everything is going well. And may God grant you to always steadfastly adhere to the path you have begun. The grace of God overshadows your soul. Guard this gift and be careful yourself, so as not to offend the Spirit of God. – Fear of God, humility, attention to oneself and to the Lord, unquenchable zeal for salvation, self-pity and the like, these are undoubted signs that the soul is alive, and the grace of God is with it. Zealous with all your zeal for pleasing God and salvation, surrender yourself completely into the hands of God. – You are concerned about a possible new appointment. – It seems I already wrote to you about this. Neither yes nor no, do not keep it in your thoughts and heart, nor on your tongue. And having said: be the will of God, remain calm, doing your affairs according to the monastery and its management. Place yourself in the feeling of being equal to a jugular animal, which, whether harnessed to a water carrier, or driven calmly into an elegant cabriolet, without thinking about the grace or ugliness of what is being transported. – If they are appointed to a new place, they will be appointed because God so wishes. And accept it as if from the hand of the Lord, and be sure that the one who gave you this new place will also give you the strength to act in it as you should, just don’t dream about yourself, humble yourself moreover, don’t weaken your spiritual work and don’t diminish your work on it. - Be careful from outsiders. Then the place will indicate how to act. May God give you wisdom and courage, wisdom to see how you should act, and courage to do as you should without sparing yourself or others. Read something from the Ascetic Fathers every day, except the Gospel and the Apostle. This will refresh your memory. Letter 522. Advice on the assigned position of abbess. Worldly and spiritual wisdom (attention to God) The attack has passed you by. Thank the Lord! The Lord points you to another misfortune. When God delivers you from her, give thanks too. And if it does not deliver, accept new obedience as a yoke that must be pulled every day, and not as wings to lift up. If you have a sincere desire to have a monastery leadership, as it is the duty of all sisters to lead into the Kingdom of Heaven, then the fewer there are, the better. Vladyka told you that you entered the monastery early, you still need to live in peace. I think that he said this in the thought that you need more worldly wisdom: since it is necessary for the abbess in managing the external life of the monastery. Just judging by, it’s never too early to enter a monastery. Are there many holy women who entered the monastery as children? Every time you are distracted when you are in K. But, as you quickly get comfortable again, then take from this the knowledge of how to control yourself under the onslaught of impressions from the outside. You propose a question - to teach you how to guard your soul more dangerously. This is a gift from God. Ask and it will be given to you. However, do not sit idly by, but seek and you will find. And all our good things come from God, but only when we look for them. Try to acquire the skill of listening to your heart and not giving in to any thoughts, feelings, or urges when they are not in a spirit pleasing to God, but immediately cut them off. Then the ability will come to listen to God and to every deed done, or words. And everything will be fine: both business and inner attention to God. – The basis for this is the feeling for God. The head of this feeling is the fear of God. When he comes into force, everything will be fine. God bless you for all this. Submit your outer self to God's will, and accept with humility and pleasure everything that He sends. I wish you all the best from God. Save yourself! Your good friend E. Feofan. July 4, 1889 Letter 523. About the transformation of the community into a monastery and the most useful innovation for this That your ruler saw everything in your community in good form is the grace of God. I am very happy about this with you. The bishop suggested that we work to transform the Community into a monastery: as an attentive novice of the authority God has placed over you, you can take on this matter. But whether to start, as you suggest, or wait, decide for yourself. How God will arrange it! Pray. It is good to take communion more often. But the execution of this is subject to review. And consider every time, is it convenient and suitable? Anything out of the ordinary always catches the eye of both others and your own. And you can eat something out of sight, something you shouldn’t expose your business to. When you decide to open a monastery, talk to the sisters so that God will bless this opening: “Let’s, sisters, establish something pleasing to God and accept it as a charter. What exactly? “Let us make it a law to fast and receive communion during all major Lents, and besides this, it is not bad for those who wish to receive communion at other times when there is need and need.” “When you establish this, then there will be no more worries about how to hide such a pious deed from the eyes of the pious: the deed will become not out of the ordinary.” It is a good deed that you try your best to walk in the presence of God. Humbly pray to the Lord about this, so that He will strengthen you in this saving work. You must mentally confess your sins to the Lord every day, and make every prayer in general a repentance. Review the litany of petition. – It says: forgiveness and remission of sins... we ask. In response, one should remember one’s sins, and with this recollection should exclaim: Lord grant! And you can drink Epiphany water, even every day. I saw in the monastery of St. Savva, who are near Jerusalem, and the brethren, after each liturgy receive an antidoron and drink St. water, which always stands in its place in a holy water vase in the church. God bless you with every blessing. I am sending you the third volume of the Philokalia. Your good friend E. Feofan. July 30, 1889 Letter 524. Live communication with angels and saints. About visiting the laity. Warning from self price I had just written you a response to my previous letter when I received the second one. Thank you for not keeping score with my answers. It’s comforting that you write about yourself, but don’t dream about yourself, then everything will be lost. All this is the mercies of God. Take care of yourself worthy of them. I have already written to you that internal suggestions are from the Guardian Angel and the saints of God to whom you pray or pay homage. It always happens that just as our heartfelt prayers are immediately heard by the saints, so their word to us immediately responds in our soul, as happens on telegraphs. The communication between our world and the heavenly one is always alive. Take care to always maintain a holy mood and always be in living communion with the saints of God. They see us and either rejoice when our hearts are in good order, or they are sad and grieved when things are bad. I am very glad to hear that the Philokalia (3 volumes) is not read indifferently by you. Take the trouble to read it more than once. Mark some places that are impressionable to you in the margins, and look through them from time to time. You ask: “how to confess to the Lord every day, with your own prayer, or add reading prayer to it.” Prayer from the heart makes reading unnecessary. You complain about visits from the laity on holidays. What to do? This is how we have already established monasteries. But try to eliminate worldly views from this, and as much worldly idle talk as possible; Don’t force yourself to talk about spiritual things, but when the opportunity arises, don’t refuse, as if in passing. Return visits twice a year are sufficient. No matter how good your soul feels, always remember the publican’s word. It always truly expresses our state. And the fact that you have to feel good in relation to God is God’s mercy, for which you should humbly give thanks. Do not forget to guard yourself from self-worth. It’s a thin snake and you won’t notice how it slips through and puffs up your heart. Your good friend E. Feofan. Oct 15 1889 Letter 525. On maintaining spiritual zeal. Rest for body fatigue It is very comforting that the Lord God has mercy on you and keeps your zeal strong. Stand strong and do not belittle this jealousy, for there is life in it. Do not listen to the fits of laziness that comes from carnality; counter this with desire, or even thirst for self-torture. And pray to the Lord and the Mother of God about this, that they may give you inspiration. Jealousy is fire. What can stand against it? She is all-conquering. But exhaustion does not come from laziness. I think this can be seen. Then give yourself a little rest. See for yourself where to insert it. Where is more convenient? After the all-night vigil you can sit for a while; because if you lie down, you will lie down. You can drink tea; but do not turn this into law, but accept it at your own discretion, so that in this matter the flesh, but the discretion of your conscience, is not the master. After mass you can also rest, and again in the same spirit. The most crafty enemy is carnivory. This frog pretends to be beating, but if you please her, she won’t be able to stop her, give her one thing, give her another. But tell her point blank: don’t you dare, and she’ll quiet down. May God bless you to complete the good work of consecrating your cemetery church. Save yourself! Your good friend E. Feofan. November 10, 1889 Letter 526. The saint’s joy about the good dispensation of the writer and instructions on maintaining sobriety and the fight against self-pity and pleasing the flesh. Advice on influencing other sisters. Where is better? May the Lord reward you with heavenly consolation for the consolation that you brought to me with your letter, in which you inform me that inner prayer is with you, that your guardian angel is constantly present in you, and that reminders from above about the unstoppability of maintaining mental prayer do not stop. What more could you want? Is it just that God gives you the strength and intelligence to diligently fulfill everything that is required of you in achieving salvation, from your efforts and labors on yourself. “Sobriety is in vain.” But keep patiently the same way of acting, and the lameness will be reduced. Noticing that you are limping, you lament and ask the Lord for forgiveness. And always do this, adding to this a consideration of how you happened to limp, and setting yourself protective rules on how to avoid such limps in the future. See the general eye of God over your heart, seeing everything in it, some justifying, and the other condemning, and accordingly arrange your inner life. God bless! You complain about self-pity, and you can’t help but complain about it. This is the most flattering friend who is not angry; but out of his blindness he always offers bad advice, which nevertheless seems so pleasant that he lacks the strength to go against it. That is why we have self-indulgence, and through self-indulgence the self becomes fatter and expands its circle more and more. You set the intention to take up the renunciation of the pleasures of the flesh. God bless. But feeling your powerlessness, you turn for strength to the wrong place. Turn to where St. draws his strength. Paul, who confessed: I can do all things through the Lord who strengthens me (Phil. 4:13). For your part, take the trouble to instill in yourself a fierce anger towards the flesh and a thirst to torture and kill it, in the confidence that this is the stomach. And this part will go well for you. You wonder whether you look at those around you correctly, but you look at them as indifferent to everything spiritual, despite your concern to warm them with love for God. And you decide to shut yourself up and talk to your sisters only on occasion. It is not yours alone who is rich in indifference, O. and not only your side is rich. But not everyone who seems indifferent is indifferent. There are many who do not like to talk about themselves, but keep spiritual thoughts and spiritual understanding within themselves. When, while reading in your cell, you come across an article suitable for the sisters, call a reader and tell her to read it in church. They will listen and be edified. Congratulations on finishing the cemetery church. May the Lord grant prayer to all those who pray in Him and grant them the blessings they ask for. Your dreams are very edifying. Your friend and guardian gave them to you. But listen! This mercy from above obliges you to the strongest zeal for salvation and to vigilant care for your sisters. That you remain in the wilderness for a long time. God's determination - and of course for your good. Hear what is sung: in every place of God’s dominion, bless the Lord my soul! Where the soul has gathered within itself, there is a better, brighter, more embellished place. You surrender yourself to the Lord; There is no need to look for any other solution. God willing, the best decision. I am sending you the books of the Philokalia. Volumes 5 and 4 are the best. You should not subscribe to my books. I always have them to give out. Let me know and I will send it. God bless you. Save yourself! Your good friend E. Feofan. September 10, 1890 Letter 527. Particular suitability for the community of the 4th volume of the Philokalia. How to judge the authority of inner feelings. Athos leaflets. Blessing for the good deed to the girl and praise of Simeon, Nov. Theologian Having sent you the 5th volume of the Philokalia without the 4th, I thought that the 4th had already been sent. Guilty! I was wrong. Now I am sending the 4th volume: it goes straight to the community members. You'll see how he will cheer up his sisters. These are all the teachings of Theodore the Studite. His community members, who live against their own will, are superior to solitaries. I’m very glad that everything is going well for you inside. May the Lord bless you! Are you asking if it is possible to blindly follow your inner feeling? The Apostle mentions the senses trained in the judgment of good and evil (Heb. 5:14). They learn through long study or experience and then correctly determine what they should follow - their inner conviction tells them. As you already know, experience does not expose your feelings as erroneous; then do as you did. The elders write about this, about reasoning with this and prayer. And this is possible; but not always convenient. Do you have the book of Barsanuphius and John? There are many similar issues being resolved there. Browse. Prayer must be used to sanctify and illuminate every step. What you read in the Athos leaflets and what you hear inside in your conscience are the holy rules from which the peace of mind is organized and maintained. God bless you to fulfill them. If you don’t go on visits, you do very well and observe this good custom. The Mother of God will repay you for the girl with protection and help at the right time. Simeon the Theologian is an invaluable treasure. More than anyone else, he inspires zeal for an inner life of grace. And he writes simply. Your good friend E. Feofan. October 29, 1890 Letter 528. About my ill health. Strict warning against noticed deviations in the execution of cell rules Most Reverend Mother! Three of your letters lie before me unanswered. But it’s not me who is to blame for this, but my illness. About four weeks before the holiday I caught a cold and am still very weak. I prepared the books you asked for after receiving your letter; but illness prevented me from sending him away. I'm sending now. I do it with pleasure. I still have one question left, about your prayer rule. Before you asked an hour earlier to finish the rule. Not seeing through the enemy's cunning, I agreed to this. Now the enemy sat down with you and explained that you can shorten the prayer rule further by introducing handicrafts into it. So your usual prayers have completely collapsed. It's not good. Take the trouble to restore it to the way it was in the beginning. If it is more convenient for you to finish the rule an hour earlier, then start it earlier. Throw away the handicrafts entirely. Where did you find such permission? no no. You need to overwork yourself, not invent benefits. This is a broad path, not kind. I am sending you the book “Inscription of the Chronicle.” moralizing." The end of this outline is the book: “The Way to Salvation,” which you have. Letter 529. Explanation of the rule. A remedy to get rid of dozing. A Guide to Learning the Jesus Prayer In your letter, 23rd Gen. you wrote down what you read on your nightly rule. It seemed to me then that there was too much reading, and I intended to write to you so that you would shorten the reading and, in the intervals, insert a mental prayer, mentally raised from the heart to the Lord with petitions for your spiritual needs. But in the letter of 26 Gen. you say that you refuse to read in the evening due to eye disease. And you decide to study mental prayer and, in order not to doze off, knit a stocking. It seems that the reading of prayers is completely abandoned. This is possible, but you need to eliminate the knitting of the stocking, and instead, when you feel drowsy, walk around the room, or lift something heavy, or, what is much better, take a thicker rosary and blow yourself on the shoulders. When I wrote to you not to shorten your prayer time, I wrote because I thought you were becoming lazy in your prayers. This is what we mainly need to avoid. Corruption means weakening or suppression of spiritual movements: which is very regrettable. But as I see that your zeal for the work of prayer is alive, I believe that you will leave both the time and the rule of prayer to your discretion; arrange both as you find best and most convenient for yourself. Have only one thing urgent, so that when you stand in prayer, the prayer comes from the heart and with feelings towards God, praise, gratitude and supplication with hope, and that no extraneous matter is mixed in with this. Do you want to learn mental prayer? You mean, of course, the Jesus Prayer. Good and great deed! But without the skill of concentrating in prayer, it is difficult to keep up with the Jesus Prayer. To get used to such concentration, do this - collect short prayer appeals from psalms and other prayers, which are closer to your inner structure, memorize them, feel them and pray with them, repeating each of them 3, 5 and 10 times to take up the allotted time, and in the middle of them insert the Jesus Prayer, and after all add the invocation of the Mother of God, saints and etc. and remembering our living and dead. You can also include reading printed prayers, for example, Bless the Lord for my soul and all that is within me. Praise my soul the Lord, Who is at all times, etc. For a sample, take this: 24 prayers of St. Chrysostom, who stand in prayer for the coming sleep. Convey the prayers and petitionary litany like this: Lord grant me a whole holy, peaceful and sinless day, and so on. Take Psalm 50 from the beginning until you give me the joy of salvation. These verses combine all repentant feelings. Memorize and pray them. This is how the entire prayer rule can be drawn up, in which neither books nor candles will be needed. Each prayer will give you more than one spiritual contemplation, and these contemplations will produce or support spiritual feelings. So search and you will find prayer, which will then flow from your heart like a river. God bless! Your good friend E. Feofan. 26 Feb. 1891 Letter 530. Mutual greetings. In the case of community improvement. You shouldn't be afraid of envy. About reading Simeon N. God. and the Jesus Prayer I am guilty before you much and greatly. I apologize. However, do not think that I have forgotten you! No, I always remembered and was going to write everything. Thank you for your Easter and birthday greetings and wishes. May the Lord hear your prayers. I wish you all the best too. May the Lord make you wise and strengthen you! You did well to refuse G.'s place. Improve your community, then make it a monastery. Here comes the abbess. And it will be more fun for you to hear: Mother Abbess! when everything around will be the work of your hands. Don't be angry with the one who envies you. Her enemy confuses her, but she does not see, pray for her. And what lures sisters away should be joyful, because it means your sisters are so good that they want to have them. Let them go. God will send you the best. You liked Simeon the New Theologian. Read it more often. It will refresh and enliven your inner being. You ask: should the mind be forced to say the Jesus Prayer in church, when the soul is peaceful, serene, and when the mind, in this silence, listens to what is being read and sung? You should stand in the presence of God and in feeling for God, whatever you do. So it is in the church. In another letter you wrote: “in church, while listening to prayers, the Jesus Prayer is better for me.” This prayer revives and maintains attention to God with appropriate feelings. I am sending you three more books published after the one you received. I am also enclosing small brochures that I have on hand, 5 copies each. each. May the Lord give wisdom to the sisters. Your good friend E. Feofan. June 11, 1891 Letter 531. After grace-filled visits, one must be prepared to encounter sorrows and temptations. How to be unentertained when you have troubles. About the rule from St. Chrysostom and bows You have been granted great mercy from the Lord! This is your approval of your previous work and encouragement for more. Or maybe it’s also this: aren’t internal temptations, or external sorrows and hardships, approaching ahead? This is the thought of St. Isaac. You will feel, he says, a special effect of grace. Look strictly in all directions, so as not to be burdened by any misfortune. But closer than sorrowful misfortunes, fits of self-praise. Then collect everything from your previous life that you cannot in good conscience praise and suppress rebellious thoughts with it, just as sometimes a flash of fire is covered with earth, so that a small fire does not start from something small. Self-praise and self-worth are followed by sinful thoughts and movements and much more. God save you from all this! The Lord approves of your desire for solitude, but does not indicate the time. We must wait for certain instructions, and before that, maintain inner silence and diligently continue the work of improving the monastery. How to maintain inner uninterruption during troubles? Do things diligently, carefully, constantly and without fuss. Accept every work that is assigned to you as assigned by God himself, and do it as God’s. The thought will be with the Lord. This can be learned with the help of God. Whisper my good man. It is not mine, but St. Chrysostom. It gives a lot of exciting and protective thoughts. But when one thought about the Lord takes over, then it’s better to stay with it. Sweet bows to you. And taste this sweetness as soon as you have the opportunity. All prayer books praise them. Immerse yourself in humility! I am sending you a new book - from the old ones. Your good friend E. Feofan. July 31, 1891 Letter 532. Blessing for the transformation of the Community into a monastery. About the impact on sisters and books So you have completely begun the trouble of renaming your community into a monastery. God bless your work! Everything seems to be going well inside you. The merciful Lord gives you reminders of inner well-being in one way or another. You do well that you pay heed to this and direct your corresponding zeal for spiritual life. You are sad that the sisters do not all care about their inner life. Try to quietly lead them to this necessary work and pray for them more diligently than for yourself, and the Merciful Lord will awaken one or the other. And so that everyone is equally zealous for the real monastic dispensation, we must desire this and pray for this, and for this we must do everything on our part. But, not seeing success and the fulfillment of such a desire, we complacently endure this and wait. Do you want my sermons? I think you have - about repentance, confession and communion, and also words on the Lord's Day and the Mother of God and solemn days. Apart from them, they are not in print. There are sermons of three, five or more - in scraps. I have a few of these. You say you have the first volume of the Philokalia, but you don’t have the second. A special collection on sobriety and prayer from the Philokalia. Is there a 3rd, 4th, 5th volume of the Philokalia?! You will now receive the second volume, and a few scraps of sermons. But it is inconvenient to read sermons in a cafeteria. Here let them read the Fourth Menaion. God bless you and your entire monastery. Your good friend E. Feofan. October 30, 1891 Letter 533. Advice on continued sobriety. Graceful suggestions should encourage us to humility Thank you for your congratulations and well wishes. I congratulate you too and wish you all the best and soul-saving things. Succeed even more in inner vigilance over yourself and sobriety. This way you will gain experience in how to notice and repel the enemy’s excuses, which they constantly plant in your soul. From everyone, no matter what you take, St. father of the ascetic, you will find various instructions on this, and read them to refresh your memory and clarify your thoughts about this great ascetic work. God sent you a reminder to pray. Thank God. There is no charm here unless you create it within yourself and dream something great about yourself. And before, you received suggestions from above, which you heard with your inner hearing. God's mercy! And the greater the answer lies on you if you do not succeed in this. Having received a suggestion, you spend a day, and sometimes more, in a detached state and mood. Others do not have this and must themselves, as best they can, ascend to such a state, which is obligatory for everyone. Compare now, which is higher – what was obtained without difficulty, or what was achieved through labor and then? And from this you will receive an incentive to humble yourself before everyone. Humility and a contrite spirit should form the background of your life, like everyone who lives in the true spirit of Christ. E. Feofan. January 4, 1892 It’s 7. Letter 534. Small actions that are convicted by conscience should not be allowed. Following good intentions. Good reasoning and harmful language. Instructions on Confession Congratulations on your post. May God grant you the goodness to go through it until the Holy Resurrection and in good health. Strive without laziness so that your conscience does not condemn you in anything. You wrote that you allow some minor actions, for which your conscience later denounces you. No matter how hard you try, you have to prevent this from happening. Peace of conscience is the first condition for a peaceful relationship with God, and these latter constitute the conditions for spiritual success in the inner life. To conquer your desires, knowing that it is better to refuse them than to obey them, is a sacrifice pleasing to God, for which He will reward with inner consolation. And to lower these cases to victory over oneself means to place pleasing God below self-pleasing. When the enemy tells you ahead: “Make this and that order,” do not listen to him, but having driven him away with hostility towards him and his lessons, continue your prayer without interruption. When a thought says: “Pray again,” why not do it if the fatigue is not insurmountable. St. Simeon the New Theologian writes how the elder gave a rule to a certain young man George and added: “look, if your thought tells you, repeat what is prescribed for the rule - do not refuse it, but do it,” so he did so, and received extraordinary enlightenment. The thought says pray until midnight, and pray, if fatigue is great, rest a little and do what is suggested. If the fatigue is such that, without rest, business cannot be carried out as it should be, then by reasoning you need to determine your rest, and not by desire alone. In the book “Invisible Warfare” there is a special chapter about the fact that it is not good to let feeling and desire go ahead, but it is necessary for reasoning to go ahead. Any cases that are out of the ordinary greatly irritate the feelings and raise a storm of thoughts; This includes the news. After all, it’s invisible?! So, as soon as you notice, push away or move from your heart everything that bothers you and then determine by reasoning: whether and to what extent it is worth talking about it, and then do so, without pampering your linguistic pain. Sometimes vanity forces us to talk about this - to express our wise judgment about the case. It’s better not to talk at all here. At confession, you should not limit yourself to what the confessor asks, but, based on the answer to his surveys, you should also express your own comments on matters of conscience. Instill this in your sisters too. I always pray for you. Do not forget me in your prayers. E. Feofan. February 26, 1892 Letter 535. Christian renewal of life. About the instructions of Elder Elijah Ekdik. About the abbess and attitude towards the sisters Thank you for your congratulations and well wishes. I congratulate you on the holiday of the Resurrection of Christ! In His death we all died and in His resurrection we all rose again. And everyone becomes a partaker of these blessings in the Holy Spirit. baptism, where he dies for one life and comes to life and is resurrected for another. I wish you to live this life, and I wish you to be more and more established in it. According to the Apostle: just as Christ has risen and dies no more, so we too will walk in newness of life. What you read from Elder Elijah Ekdik contains great truth. If everyone would remember this and conform to it, everyone would be holy. What sinful thing can find a place where God is constantly seen! This cannot happen in any way, just as it is impossible for there to be darkness in the light of the sun. You have been following this practice for a long time, and the Lord, who desires your salvation, very often gave you reminders of this, so be careful! The abbess has not added anything to you; but if you think about what it means, then you will willingly add something to yourself, not externally, but internally, more zeal and tirelessness of God-seeing: from which wisdom will pour into the soul. Make it a rule for yourself to always speak to your sisters with a motherly heart and goodwill; strictly without despotism, condescendingly without concessions. And before speaking, turn to God in prayer for admonition and giving strength to the word. I ask you not to forget me, a sinner, in your prayers. Your good friend E. Feofan. April 24, 1892 Letter 536. Blessed dreams and suggestions should be considered a compulsion to improve. About a sister who fell into temptation I’m sorry for not answering your letter sooner. I'm sorry. Your dreams and invisible suggestions that resonate in your heart are all of good origin and mean one thing: that your path is good and will lead to a good end, if you do not stray from it and, without sparing yourself, continue it all in the same rank. So that you don’t become lazy and encroach on the benefits, thinking in self-delusion that you have already come a long way and have risen high, the merciful Lord will encourage you - as if saying: don’t look at yourself, look at your feet and don’t yawn around, but keep going and walking as if you haven’t started, for the path is still long. So always understand these suggestions - that they are not a reward for the past, but a compulsion to rush forward and forward. What each dream and each suggestion means in parts is difficult to unravel and unnecessary. What is needed is the general, but it is visible, and the fact that the outcome is always good, everything falls off the soul, and it is introduced into another detached area. What's wrong with N.N.? I'm very sorry. You are doing well to treat her motherly and show such warm care for her. May God help her. Let him keep in mind the parable of the Prodigal Son. The father, seeing his son returning, ran out to him, without scolding or reproach, hugged his son and returned his fatherly blessing to him. Repentance and a firm intention to stand for other good things always appeases the Lord. Let him repeat: I have sinned, I will not. And he complacently sets out on his way. May the Lord deliver your Abode from such shocks in the future. This is a good lesson for sisters not to rush indiscriminately into worldly relationships. Your good friend E. Feofan. July 20, 1892 Letter 537. An incident that tangibly proves God’s care. About the attitude towards the fallen sister. Special cases of God's inspiration and care must be recorded. About viewing published Charters It is comforting to see such a tangible indication that the merciful Lord does not take His eyes off you! You were driving to the benefactor of the Monastery and your horses were so scared; The Lord suddenly stopped them running down the mountain, when you were already under the carriage, for it is unusual for them to stop so calmly in fear. Without this, neither you, nor the coachman, nor the carriage, nor even the horses would exist. And they wouldn’t have collected anyone’s bones or chips from the crew. Did you serve a prayer service? You treated N. well, just like a mother. And bring the matter to the end and put her on her feet, so that later she can walk straight and walk boldly. But you take better care of yourself and carefully keep yourself in that inner order to which the Lord calls and obliges you with His suggestions and care for you. Do you write down what is special about you? I think that you should write it down so that you can review it from time to time and, seeing God’s care for yourself, be more and more zealous for the care and improvement of that internal structure to which It points. Be your heart in the Lord! I just finished looking at typos in the Charter. A month or two and they will come out into the light of God. Then you will have the consolation of reading them and learning something from them. God bless you with every blessing! Save yourself! I ask for your prayers! Your good friend E. Feofan. August 28, 1892 Letter 538. Repeating short prayers before communion. A reminder of humility. About writing down good thoughts Getting ready for St. communion, you all repeated one good poem and asked if it was possible to continue like this? Can. Short prayers, as soon as one falls on your heart, memorize and repeat often. No matter how many of them there are. From them a multi-stringed psalter will be composed, and jingle it, delighting spiritual ears. That you are trying not to give yourself any indulgence is a good thing. You have to keep yourself in line, like a soldier in formation. Don’t give in to conceit and self-worth. God forbid! Hearing sometimes admonitions from above, you may naturally think that you are an outstanding person, but meanwhile, this is rather evidence of your weakness, rather than strength. Humble yourself with this thought, and often remind yourself of your mistakes, of which we all have quite a few. May the Lord keep you in humility. You do well that you often go to a common meal, which is so good! The sisters will not grumble, and they will learn to order. And it will be useful for you yourself; you will expand less. Taking notes is beneficial, but memorizing is better, and doing accordingly is even better. Don’t your own good thoughts come? Everyone comes. They are suggested by the Guardian Angel and must be written down. Do you know the legend about a certain old man that all the walls of his cell were covered with writing? When they asked him what it was? He replied, these are the thoughts that the Angel of God inspires in me. In the Yeletsky monastery (Orel province) not long ago, a nun, Magdalene, labored, who wrote down thoughts that came to her on small pieces of paper and glued them to places visible on the walls. Get a notebook and write it down as you please. And handicrafts are good for you; they are a great protection against idleness. Your good friend E. Feofan. October 6, 1892 Letter 539. Day of the Holy Angel. Encouragement for non-slothful prayer. Self-price warning. The correct conclusion from the Philokalia. The relationship between prayer and handicraft. Parents of the Saint. Congratulations and feedback on the management of the monastery and yourself I owe you a lot of guilt. Please excuse me and forgive me. I kept thinking that I would have time to write in the next mail, that is, in a week. And the weeks kept flying, and that’s how many of them flew by. I will read your letters again and write about them, whatever God puts on my heart. The first unanswered dated October 4th. Mine was sent to you on October 11th. But this is not a response to yours, but a counter response by chance. In this letter you congratulate me on my name day, but October 11 is not my birthday on this day. My name day is March 12, Theophan of Sigrian Confessor. Then you remember that prayer is always with you and does not allow you to think and talk much about vanity, but you still struggle with laziness and fatigue. God bless! Thank Him for your prayer, for everything is from Him, and ask for strength to fight against those who are opposed to good. The second letter is dated October 25. This is probably a response to mine dated October 11, because your first lines contain thanks for the letter. Then say about yourself: Thank God that it has not yet occurred to me to value myself, that is, that you do not have self-worth. This is very good. And take care of yourself in this state. But look, self-worth is as cunning as a demon. May the Lord enlighten you! You write that you have no self-worth because your whole soul strives to praise the Lord, and you feel how it is drawn to Him with your whole being. This is a very good normal condition. The feeling that the soul is drawn to the Lord is secret prayer and it alone can replace prayer. For this is what unceasing prayer is! This is the conclusion for you from the entire Philokalia. Dedicate every breath to pure prayer and vigilantly watch where the enemy is directing his arrows from, and act accordingly. This conclusion is real. Let it be so. For Anastasius of Sinai, this constitutes the first point of his ascetic instructions. You still remind the sisters about spiritual matters, despite their coldness towards this. So it follows: some do not listen, but some listen with zeal and have good intentions in their hearts. Handicrafts and prayer vigils should not be interfered with. Everything has its time. When you are doing handicrafts at one time or another, then let your hands work and your soul pray. But when you are in prayer, all members must participate. Would you like to remember my parents? Thank you! My parent is Priest Vasily, and my mother is Tatyana. Your last letter is dated December 13th. Thank you for the holiday greetings, which are now flowing and not expected. Congratulations to you and your entire Abode. May the Lord grant you all to taste the blessings brought to earth by the Son of God who became incarnate for our salvation. Even though you were strict with your sisters, you were fair! When you are already very tired, then lie down and pray, keeping your spirit calm. Keep whatever happens to you that draws you to the Lord. You can live and be saved with this alone. P.S. I am sending you a book: Ancient Monastic Rules! Letter 540. Encouragement for a good celebration of Pentecost. It is a blessing to build a warm church. About the attitude towards guilty sisters. The cunning demon is self-worth. About the book being sent and about the book by Fr. I. Kronstadtsky The road is cut off. A pedestrian is walking. It’s already halfway through Lent. How has the merciful Lord blessed you to manage fasting, both physical and mental? Surely this is going well for you. Don't weaken. Having strengthened yourself under the influence of the veneration of the cross last week, you will live through Passion Week without weakening; and there the passionate one, painting before you the picturesque passions of Christ, will dispose you to the suffering of Christ and will inspire you to do things that at other times do not even occur to you. May the Lord make you wise in every possible way in the work of achieving salvation. We decided to build a warm stone church. God bless you to begin and complete this holy work. You did well to behave peacefully towards the sisters who had to be removed from the monastery - and pray for them. The enemy has confused them, and the Angel of the Lord will calm them down and correct them. May the Lord give this to them according to His ineffable mercy. I am sending you the books “Reminders to Nuns.” These are my sermons, delivered when visiting women's monasteries. What happened was said, but everything was something that was not bad for nuns to know. I accompany these books with the wish that they will benefit someone in your monastery. The Lord does not leave you with His mercy and tangibly allows you to feel His favor towards you in grace-filled enlightenments of the mind and spiritual consolations. - Since this is a feature, the enemy, who is trying to destroy everyone, is more likely to notice you and begin to set up his machinations. Therefore, be careful above all others. Almost every time I remind you, do not weaken in the accepted deeds, but at the same time, pay attention to yourself and do not allow self-worth to creep in on you. This demon is more cunning than all demons and manages to crawl into the soul through the most inconspicuous hole. He'll sit there and ruin everything. May the Lord protect you! I believe that your humble words about yourself are sincere and proclaim the truth. Blessed are the poor in spirit. God bless you with every blessing. Save yourself! E. Feofan. March 10, 1893 P.S. Father John of Kronstadt publishes his short sayings about the things of God and about spiritual life under the title: My life in Christ. If you come across them, read them. And tell me what they are. Letter 541 Post and its decoration. Light from Moscow. Short prayers and their grouping. Answer about self-worth, sobriety, self-mortification, food and night prayer Your two letters are before me - expose my laziness. - Guilty. Please excuse me and forgive me. In the 1st letter you say how you fast. The post is sufficient and spiritual is in order. - Decoration for both is your concern for the adopted girl and the unfortunate pious lady. Lord grant strength to your word! It is very pious that you take the plan of the church and the bell tower from Moscow. From Moscow - light to us. As you suggested regarding reading the Akathists, do so. Short prayers are always better. And besides those that I indicated to you, you can type a lot yourself and choose from them which are more suitable for you. You will have a long series of prayers. Memorize them and perform your prayers with them. You can divide them into groups like this - doxological, grateful, petitionary, repentant and whatnot. It’s even better to pray this way. You don't know if you have self-price. But is there anyone who does not have self-worth? It is good that you always present yourself to God as a repentant person. And pray to God to let you tangibly see what evils there are in the heart, and whatever you see against it, find a prayer, and always insert it into your prayer. – It’s good that you find out the price and necessity of sobriety. - And pray for him. Sobriety must be continuous, just as prayer is incessant. Both will take root in the soul when a feeling for God is established in the heart - warm and sweet and reverent, imbued with the fear of God. Love of the body, carnal knowledge, indulgence, self-pity, these are different names for the same thing. They are disgusted by self-mortification, which begins with a certain hostility towards the body, a desire to torment it and doing this with some pleasure. It’s good that you read the “reminder to nuns” for the sisters. Your food regulations are very good, if you please do so; and what you stated regarding cell night prayer is approving. God bless your work. Stay sober and stay awake. E. Feofan. May 1, 1993. Coming on May 9. Letter 542. Prayer is the main manifestation of spiritual life. Advice on continuous and diligent efforts for the success of all sisters of the monastery I’m very glad that everything is going well for you, not in the monastery, but in your soul! For here, since there is prayer, then nothing better is required. Therefore, it was noted somewhere that the ancient monks, when meeting with others - during mutual visits, or so where - first of all inquired how the prayer was going. In real prayer, all our relationships with God, the highest ones, are in action and make sure that at that time our spiritual life stands in its order. Prayer is evidence of our spiritual existence and its measure! What wonder is there when we read that one of the Saints began to pray and sometimes did not retreat the whole night with an increase in the day. Prayer lifted him to his home, where Father, Mother, brothers and sisters embrace him with complete love and console and delight him. May God grant you never to lose the prayer structure within. You have so many concerns about your sisters, it is impossible that one of them is not included in what you offer. Others, in their own measure, assimilate this. But you still do not stop acting on them, to the extent possible, praying unceasingly that the Lord, Whose daughters they are, will visit them and enlighten their thoughts and hearts. Volume 4 of the Philokalia contains the teachings of St. Theodore the Studite, where a great deal of instruction is offered to the community members for all cases that seem inevitable in this kind of asceticism. There are also ones for those working in the field. They would look through it and read it to the sisters, or they would be forced to read it themselves. This will be a handy means for the edification and guidance of the sisters. The Lord will enlighten you and help you arrange everything; pray to Him more earnestly. Your prayer should not be limited to yourself, but more than about yourself, you should pester God about the progress of the sisters. Letter 543. Regarding the removal of a troublesome sister. About prayer. The good will of unceasing prayer without words The Lord delivered you from NN. Thanks be to the Lord. Restore and maintain the usual course of your personal and monastic affairs. May the Lord help you to manage well in all troublesome situations. It is a great blessing for you that, as you say, your prayer is intact. And I can’t wish you anything better than: keep praying, and for this, do not expect anything from yourself, from your wisdom and efforts, but everything from the Lord, who is nearby and listens to the movements of hearts. You write that you have collected prayers. I believe that they are all applied to you and your circumstances, and even more so to your internal structure. Let the prayers of St. be a model for them. John Chrysostom, which outlines all the essential spiritual needs. But may the Lord grant you unceasing heartfelt prayer, which has no need for words, but stands on its own and is pleasing to God and fruitful for the soul. Patience and humility are the rulers of spiritual life. The first holds the earthly order, the second rules over the heavenly ones and holds them, or they themselves keep in it, out of their love for it. E. Feofan. 1 November 93 Письмо 544. Надежное прибежище, укрывающее от внешних треволнений. About preserving this gift (mental prayer) and using it for guidance in matters of spiritual life. Об удержании себя от гневных слов, и мыслей. Лучший источник средств на построение храма. Letters to the nun of the Nizhne-Lomovsky Assumption Monastery K-e (in the world Marfa Ivanovna K-a) The Lord delivered you from NN., but the troubles did not stop; for others also know how to annoy. But God's protection is over you. That prayer that acts by itself is a gift from God and a safe haven for you, where you can hide in case of any anxiety from outside. Watch this gift! And above all, flee from self-worth, this most poisonous serpent, but more sweet-tongued than others! Your guardian angel, watching over you, reminds you through your conscience of fervent prayer and the wrath of your invisible enemy. Have an appeal to St. your guardian angel, and he will admonish you in any case. This is the most reliable leader. You righteously decided that there is nothing to expect from N., therefore, fulfilling in relation to them what is prescribed by the commandments of God, however, regarding the orders and requirements of spiritual life, shut yourself up and decide everything under the influence of mental prayer according to the suggestions that come from this. These are your thoughts, and I believe that it will be good to act this way! Not uttering an angry word is great perfection. May Elder Hilarion help you. The basis of this is the absence of irritability of the heart, and it, like a spark, is filled with surrendering oneself to the will of God, with the consciousness that God allows troubles to test us and show us how strong our good inner direction is, which obliges us to behave in such cases complacently, believing that God Himself is looking at us at this moment. And your idea that those who cause us trouble are tools of the enemy is correct. Why, when someone causes you trouble, always believe that behind them there is an enemy inciting them and instilling offensive phrases and deeds in them. In the book “Invisible Warfare” there are good instructions this time. There are many of them in Barsanuphius and John and St. Climacus. Look through these books often. Avoid hostile and judgmental thoughts regarding NN. with her minions, be kind to them and pray to the Lord not to reduce His mercies to them because of you, but to strengthen you in patience and a reasonable attitude towards them. You also care about the church that has been started. But you do good, covering these worries with trust in the mercy of God. When there is God's favor and blessing, then everything will work out in the best possible way, for then the omnipotent beckons of God will be inherent, by virtue of which everything will come from where! Letter 545. Advice to a nun subject to dangerous weakness. Measures to maintain purity of speech and thoughts regarding the male gender You must declare your weakness of character to Mother Abbess and explain to her frankly what danger you are in. If you don’t pay attention to it, you need to fulfill her will. The sisters will pray for you. And God will deliver you from trouble. However, you also need to take care of yourself. Arm yourself with the fear of God, that God sees everything and is everywhere. Attract mortal memory too. And don’t part with these two. You need to avoid men in every possible way, don’t start conversations with them, and if you happen to talk, talk with some rudeness, or at least coldness and unsympathy. If there is danger in the apartment, hurry to change it. When, however, there is zeal to keep oneself pure not only from deeds, but also from words and thoughts, then the soul itself will find how to arrange this with God’s help! E. Feofan. 1 Sep. 1875 Letter 546. Answer to the question about secret tonsure And you can take secret tonsure, and without it you can be saved. How you feel better, I cannot say; see for yourself. I’ll just follow your decision and say: if you cut your hair, God bless you; and if you don’t cut your hair, God bless you. Take care to tonsure your soul with renunciation of everything and self-sacrifice, love of mankind and love of God. Bishop Feofan. 29 Sep. 1884 Letter 547. Calming the offended by deprivation of the promised mantle We thought about putting a robe on you but changed our minds. Of course this is sad: it would be better not to even think about it. And then there was public condemnation. But what should we do? It's done. We must endure. The Lord sent for cleansing. Submit humbly to His St. will. When you submit graciously, He will send you another kind of mercy - internal instead of external. If the reproach has any, even a small reason: remove this reason, and they will stop reproaching. If there was and is no reason for this on your part, then the reproachful rumor will stop by itself. Then they will again look at you graciously and give you a robe. So the only problem is that you have to wait it out. Be encouraged and wait it out. And another thing - is the mantle big?! Mantle - uniform. It neither adds nor subtracts anything in spiritual life. Look at those who have now received the mantle: have they become saints? Everyone is the same. And if they began to foil the mantle, it became worse. And you will become better, having been deprived of the mantle, if you graciously endure this falsehood and adorn yourself with humility and submission to the Lord. Why did you join the monastery? Dress up and be fashionable? Remember your first feelings and dispositions upon entering the monastery. How humble were they?! Then you did not expect anything except to be accepted. And now you want to be a queen. Banish these ideas, return to your first feelings, and calm down! Remember often Christ the Savior, how He was tried in front of the people and dragged through the streets when He was not guilty of anything. What is your grief worth compared to that?! Think about this especially when you feel like everyone is looking at you and winking. 26 l. you are in the monastery: show the young nuns that you have not lived in vain and that you have learned very well to endure all vain lies. Looking at you, they too will be inspired to endure everything. If you continue to be discouraged, then they too will lose heart and begin to think that there is no benefit from the monastery. Be kind! And save yourself! E. Feofan. October 15, 1884 Letter 548. Peace of mind is acquired by strict fulfillment of the vows of monasticism The monastery is a quiet refuge. Why does your soul have no peace? Look, is it because you do not fulfill everything required by monasticism as it should, and your conscience reproaches you for this, and you, out of self-indulgence, do not have enough severity with yourself to become a nun in the strict sense. God Himself arouses restlessness in you, wanting you to look around and start doing things right. If you listen to this voice of God, you will find peace; If you don’t listen, there will be no peace. Unless this is what will happen: God will stop arousing anxiety in you, seeing that you do not listen to Him, i.e. will leave you to your lazy will. And there will be peace, only mortal. So please take a look around and fix everything. This is what is needed: to plant the fear of God in the heart, remember God and death, and walk in the presence of God. Have sincere love for all sisters, do not despise, do not condemn or offend anyone. In the Church of God, during services and at home, the rule is to maintain the strictest and reverent attention to God, and to keep your thoughts and feelings in order. The body cannot be indulged in anything, neither in food, nor in sleep, nor in rest. Don't have an idle moment. Bow down as often as your heart desires. Continuously say the Jesus Prayer, with attention to the Lord present. Remember that a self-indulgent life is completely contrary to Christianity, and even more so to monasticism. Everything must be done with need, with self-denial and crossness. Do not let your thoughts wander, but keep them in the single memory of God - mortal memory. Here you go. If you please, tune in like this and you will be at peace... E. Feofan. Oct 8 1885 Letter 549. Suggestion to fight passions and complacently endure slander God's mercy be with you, Most Reverend Mother! Ask for words. I follow your words and attach what I consider necessary. “You’re not living properly.” Fix anything that isn't fixed. Without this you will never have peace. For conscience is a watchful guard! “The passions are with you, and you are defeated by them.” And passionate thoughts, and not just passionate movements, must be driven away and suppressed; there is nothing to say about such matters. Our passions are some lustful, others hostile. You have both of them and drive them away, without giving in to them at all. This is the main point of monasticism. “They slandered you,” even though it was not your fault. We must be patient. And this will take the place of penance for what you consider yourself guilty of. Slander is therefore the mercy of God for you. We must certainly make peace with those who have slandered us, no matter how difficult it may be. You cannot be saved with hostile feelings, just like with lustful ones. We must stand firm in self-sacrifice and resistance to our unkind feelings. Then there will be no sorrow. And as long as you indulge, the sorrow will not cease. Save yourself! God bless you! Bishop Feofan. Dec. 1886 Letter 550. Basic rules for working out your salvation. About his refusal to accept visitors. From the correspondence of His Grace Theophan the Recluse with the Chief Prosecutor of the Holy Synod A.P. Tolstoy God's mercy be with you, Venerable. m. Marfa! Ask them to write to you, but they didn’t write what you need to know. All that remains for me is to generally wish you spiritual salvation: which is what I wish. Of course you know how salvation is accomplished. I will, however, remember what should come first. The fear of God is the main thing. When he comes, like a good master, he arranges everything in his soul in his own way. Do you have it? If there is one, thank God and keep it; and if not, wake him up: for he is contained in our spirit, and if he does not manifest himself, then it is due to our inattention. From the fear of God - the first child - the spirit is broken, the heart is contrite and humble. Let the feeling of contrition never leave your heart! To maintain the fear of God, one must keep the persistent memory of death and judgment. As soon as you wake up, call on this memory and be in partnership with it all day long, as your first advisor. Add to this the consciousness of the presence of the Lord near you and in you, so that He sees everything, even the most secret things. This consciousness - with mortal memory - is inseparable from the fear of God. When this trinity settles in your heart, then prayer will begin from your heart, with incessant appeals to the Lord the Savior. If this is in you to any degree, then the work of your salvation is in progress, and if not, you need to raise everything in your heart. For if this does not exist, everything else is nothing. You did well that you did not come to our monastery: because due to ill health, I do not accept anyone. Your good friend Bishop. Feofan. 22 Feb 1888 Letter 551. Some thoughts on the sacrament of repentance (Letter to His Eminence Theophan). Recently, to gr. Alexander Petrovich Tolstoy was sent a word from an unknown writer, 17th or 18th century, about repentance, translated from Greek into Russian by Stefan Paneli, published in Nos. 5 and 6 of the Kherson Diocesan Gazette of this year and in a separate book. This word attracts special attention due to the depth and severity of its view of the sacrament of repentance in general, and in particular of confession. Apparently, it is the fruit of the author’s spiritual experience, and, it seems, finds complete justification for itself in the word of God and the patristic writings. Believing that this book can be very useful for our shepherds, the count would like, in order to distribute it among them as widely as possible, to enter into communication with whomever is necessary about printing it again, in a sufficient number of copies, and to provide all possible assistance in this matter. Meanwhile, it seems undeniable that this book produces a rather heavy feeling on the reader. Firstly, it contains a division of repentance into one that is limited to the liberation of the penitent from the sins committed by him from confession to confession, but does not change the damaged human nature, and the second repentance, which completely cleanses, regenerates our sinful nature, and, therefore, saves and opens the doors of heaven to us. Is this concept of the sacrament of repentance consistent with the teaching of the Orthodox Church? and secondly, in some places in this book there seems to be doubt about the possibility for every sinner to achieve a second repentance, which can lead to a weakening of hope in the saving power of this sacrament, and for some even to the doctrine of predestination. In general, it seems that our confessors imperceptibly, during confession, so that they are familiar with a similar view of her. Therefore, before the new edition of the word on repentance, the count wishes to resolve the questions and perplexities raised by him! Note. On behalf of the count, who was the chief prosecutor, he wrote, in all likelihood, Fr. Clement Zederholm, who served at that time as an official for the count. E.V. (Response letter from Bishop Theophan). Let me first of all thank you for the trust in my weakness with which you forward the word of repentance to me. I fulfill your desire with special pleasure, as a continuation of communication, which, may God bless, does not stop. I have read the word about repentance more than once. It is edifying, especially towards the end, and can be read with some benefit. The writer indicated the soul of repentance - contrition for sins, which is very often addressed in the word. But I do not find that the subject has been examined and presented in detail. As for experimental instructions, expect them from the Optina elders. I take the vocative side. In the process of repentance, there is no mention at all of the firm determination not to offend the Lord any more with one’s sin; deeds contrary to previous inclinations are mentioned briefly and in passing; the point of support of the repentant - hostility to sin and the vow to work for the Lord wholeheartedly, with the help of grace, without which he cannot take a step on a new path - is not clarified. In general, if we take everything together, there will be a lot of uncertainty and incompleteness in the concepts of the work of repentance and confession, in its parts and order. Moreover, there are many reservations that can confuse weak consciences. I leave indirectly related to the matter (such as p. 6, as if Adam fell in the hope of pardon. In this hope, only one who has sinned more than once and received forgiveness can sin. Adam had other tempting thoughts, and similar passages). I dwell on the main subject, p.15. "The grief must be supernatural." – Therefore, it cannot be prescribed. And on page 16 it says that whoever does not have such sorrow even during confession returns home with his sins. Very strict. Supernaturalism in the matter of repentance is out of place for him. The grace of God externally awakens the sinner to repentance. Having felt this impulse, one should not put it off, but immediately repent, stop sinning, and turn to the Lord God. Grace oversees the whole matter and follows the inclination of the will. By permission, grace enters the heart and dwells in it. It happens. But it is impossible to prescribe what is from grace. “A deep feeling of grief” is more reliable, but one cannot say that someone who does not have it has nothing: the feeling in many cases does not depend on us. Others do not grieve deeply, but more firmly resolve to sin no more. Some people hit the chest (firmly), and immediately fall into sin again, while others will simply say: I did something bad, and will no longer return to the way they were before. The essence of repentance is to change for the better. Everything else is the situation, preceding and following. On page 19 again: contrition is a gift, but he who does not acquire it is reproached. Here the ascetic who went to confession every year is set as a model. Well! ascetic!!! The ascetic constantly repents. On page 19, the process of repentance is depicted inaccurately. – Repentance certainly does not give the wealth of knowledge, which must be acquired through labor, but the darkness of sin is dispelled in repentance, otherwise there can be no repentance. This is what makes repentance possible, that through the action of grace, clairvoyance of oneself, God and one’s destiny is revealed. The features of the image of God are restored both in baptism and in repentance. Inclinations are not destroyed, but their roots are cut off. A person, with consciousness and jealousy, goes over to the side of good. Why does the bad remain in him, but ceases to be his property? It is his burden, humbling and redemptive. And repentance frees you from punishment. In resolution, the handwriting of sins is torn apart. The person is declared innocent. What to charge for? Corrective measures sent by Providence are not the essence of punishment. It’s as if the complete eradication of inclinations is left to us ourselves. Where should we go? If it is not the Lord, it is in vain. It would be possible to point out many concepts that are out of place; but this is logic, the infidelity of which does not always result in moral infidelity. From everything I conclude that you don’t have to worry about spreading this sermon. Don't blame me for saying this. I believe that it is desirable for your S-v to know a sincere judgment, and not one that would be distorted by outside influences. At the same time, I allow you to express my deep regret about your abandonment of the ministry of the Church of God and thank you from the bottom of my heart for the attention that you honored me with in your time! May the Lord bless your peace - the object of desire for many, for which my sinful soul is yearning. ABOUT! if only the door opened! With my sinful prayer, calling upon God’s blessing on you and your family and your affairs, with deep respect and sincere devotion I have the honor to be V.S. most humble servant Feofan Bishop of Tambov and Shatsk. You might be interested in: