107. Слово в день рождения Его Императорского Величества Благочестивейшаго Государя Императора Николая Павловича

(Said at the Assumption Cathedral on June 25, printed in the meetings of 1844 and 1848) We know that this is a commandment for our sons and for their households: they will keep the ways of the Lord to do righteousness and justice. (Gen.18:19). Since the year of the Tsar, which belongs to Him as a year of life, also belongs to the kingdom, as a year of reign: it is not surprising that on this day, the border between the ended and the beginning of the year of our Most Pious Autocrat, all of Russia rises and turns its sophisticated eye to the past, to the future, to heaven, with thanksgiving, with hope, with prayer. One of the features of the completed year of the kingdom 518 is that next to this year, like a young moon with the sun in a clear sky, the initial year of the coming of age of the Heir to the Throne appeared. How now I still see this wonderful evening, truly worthy of the day of Christ. Among the majestic church, among the hymns and prayers before the open altar of the Risen One, interrupted for a moment, to the open Word of life, to the saving Cross of Christ, the present King leads the young King of the future, while the crown and scepter and orb, as signs of the future reign, rest on the country. How many important thoughts can be read in this spectacle when it is still silent! So the entry of the Porphyrogenitus on the path to the Throne must be on the way to the altar. So a commandment, a vow, a prayer are the pre-betrothal of a crown, a scepter, an orb. So the cross is the preliminary crown of the crown, and the strength of the future Royal power must be derived from the kissed Gospel. So 519 in order to securely bequeath the Kingdom, for this, apparently, it is necessary 520 first to firmly bequeath piety. I hear the sacred vow of the Son of the Tsar, and suddenly it opens that coming of age, which He Himself entering into it with so much modesty called “early,” is, on the contrary, completely mature 521: because He sublimely understood the lofty thoughts of His Parent, and deeply felt the importance of the present moment. He stands before God as a living sacrifice made by the King-Father for the future well-being of the kingdom, and, in accordance with the will of the Parent, He presents Himself as a sacrifice, and the cloud of tears rising in His eyes makes it clear that the incense of His immaculate heart rises to grief. It seems to me that you were also present at this royal sacrifice, since at the same time you offered the same prayer: this is how the Most Pious Sovereign wanted, Who loves, since it is possible, to be one with you in everything. But I was closer to him, and I can testify to you that how amazingly wonderful the sacrifice once was, watered with a double and triple libation of water, so that heavenly fire would then come to it, so sweetly wonderful did our priceless living sacrifice appear, watered with universal tears of love, joy and prayer, so that the life-giving fire of blessing from above would come to it. You have gazed upon this moment 523, the King of heaven and eternity, before Whom not a single earthly moment is forgotten. These tears are brought to you, so sincere, so unanimous, so pure, which only the Father of the Fatherland can shed together with the sons of the kingdom 524. When our lot comes before Thy face; when your destinies ask you whether to open upon us the treasures of wrath for our sins, or the treasures of generosity for faith in you: then, Lord, remember this moment again, look upon these tears; and again pronounce judgment of mercy upon us; Bring us the sovereign lot of salvation and peace. To our most pious King, Who reigns not only for his contemporaries, but also for posterity, Who is just as concerned about the future reign as about the present, and He, the Eternal King, lays down His cares for the future before You, and provides for You, - multiply both the years of His reign, and Your blessings on them, the more abundantly, the more graciously He entrusts Yourself, and Your Heir, and Your kingdom to the power of Your Providence. Brethren! The case, which is so pleasant for us to consider, contains a truth that it is desirable to see more and more open to our attention, for our conviction, for our activity: good for the King and the people, the kingdom and the house, the ancestor and the clan, who strengthen a reliable future for themselves with God and piety. Abraham was almost alone, and at the same time he was a wanderer, without a fatherland, without a home, when God said in front of him, as if without him: “But Abraham will be a great and many nation, and because of him all the nations of the earth will be blessed” (Gen. 18:18). That is: lonely 525, nomadic Abraham will become the Jewish people, a strong kingdom, stretching from Egypt to Lebanon, then scattering from Babylon to Egypt, to Antioch, to Rome 526; will again focus in the new, spiritual, Divine “Son of Abraham” (Matthew 1:1), - in Jesus Christ; and again, more than before, it will spread in the new, spiritual Israel - in Christianity, and in this 527 exactly all the nations of the earth will be blessed with the highest and most extensive blessing. What a majestic tree that now overshadows the universe, in what a small grain of promise was hidden! And how wonderfully God speaks this promise! “Abraham will be”, that is, it will be true and will certainly be, “the tongue is great.” He does not say: “you will be,” although he speaks to Abraham’s face, but: “Abraham will be,” as if he were not here, making it clear that the work of the promise will be done, as if without him, not according to his provision, not by his strength, not according to his merits; for this is how grace works. And what is even more surprising, God does not even say: “I will make Abraham into a great tongue,” but: “Abraham will be,” as if the thing would happen by itself. The Lord in some way hides His all-effective power in order to show Abraham the basis of a good future, which especially needs to be made obvious. What is the basis? - Piety, and truth or virtue based on it. “We know,” the Omniscient continues His word to Abraham, “as a commandment to his son, and to his household according to himself; and they will preserve the ways of the Lord to do righteousness and justice.” Abraham will sow piety in his sons and in his house, and the offspring will be abundant and great. He bequeaths to them the truth: and they will receive an incalculable and indescribable inheritance of worldwide blessing. Here is the most ancient speculation, or, more precisely, here is the theory of a secure future taught by God Himself, explained, and still confirmed by 528 thousand-year experiments! Perhaps some will say that Abraham’s lot is special and unique in all of humanity. Yes, he is special, in terms of the purity and superiority of the Abrahamic faith, among the prevailing superstition and lawlessness; and unique according to the purpose of the promise, which is Christ: but in relation to the specified basis of a good future, this is not the only case, or an exception to the general rule, but on the contrary, it is only a very clear example of the general rule according to which Providence acts. God, Who so blesses “truth and justice” in man, cannot Himself deviate from truth and justice, nor change His eternal rules. If He promised, and according to the promise, He actually gave Abraham a blessed future on the basis of “as a commandment to His son and to His household according to itself; and will preserve the ways of the Lord”: then, without a doubt, it also bestows a good future, whether personal or hereditary, to everyone who, having commanded piety first to himself, acts with the power of piety on those who depend on him, being zealous about spreading it among his neighbors, and promoting its establishment in the times to come. The Apostle, without hesitation, proclaims the universal beneficial effect of piety for the future. “Godliness,” he says, “is useful for everything; it has promise for the present life and for the future” (1 Tim. 4:8). In the wisdom of the sons of this century, two thoughts are visible that dispose them to live in the present with blind hope, or, on the contrary, with desperate carelessness in relation to the future 529: first, that the world goes according to its own laws, and therefore one or several people would in vain strive to give this huge machine the desired direction; the other is that humanity moves towards perfection by itself, and therefore there is little importance in how you strike with your insignificant oar the wide river of time, which already flows, and everything that floats along it leads to a sea of ​​perfections of various kinds. In order to see whether these thoughts are right, you can submit them to one another for judgment. If the world, not excluding humanity, follows its own laws, like a skillfully constructed machine, then you are in vain to dream that humanity is moving towards perfection by itself. The machine goes through and repeats a certain circle of more or less complex and varied movements; and, without the artist’s hand, she does not reach any new, previously unknown perfection; over time, it moves faster or slower towards damage and destruction. And on the contrary, if humanity by itself, or at least in some other way, moves towards gradually increasing, or finally expected perfection: then, of course, either the world is not governed by its inherent laws like a machine, or, at least, humanity is not as tightly tied to the mechanical part of the world as mechanical wisdom thinks. The world follows its own laws! So be it; he follows the laws of necessity. And you, a free and moral being, shouldn’t you follow the laws of freedom and morality? Did the all-wise, righteous and good God only in a soulless world reign the law peculiar to Him: and gave the spiritual world over to rebellion and lawlessness? No! In the physical world, what is sown, this, and not the other, will grow according to the law of necessity 530; in the spiritual and moral world, what you sow freely is what you will reap. If you sow piety and truth, you will reap blessings and prosperity. If you sow wickedness and untruth, you will reap an oath, disaster, and destruction. Humanity is moving towards perfection! This is not entirely untrue. Philosophy found this idea in Religion; I envied her elevation; kidnapped her; but she didn’t understand and didn’t know how to use it. Religion has discovered that God leads humanity to perfection and bliss, cutting off incorrigible evil with justice, correcting corrective with mercy, giving His strength to weakness, but never suppressing freedom by force, but inclining it to goodness through love: proud philosophy, having listened badly, vainly retells that humanity goes to perfection by itself, defeating (as it adds) nature through art, discoveries, inventions, but (which she does not always preach, but shows in action) without trying to get closer to the Creator of nature. With Saint Paul, I pray to you, “brotherly, let no one deceive you with philosophy and vain flattery, according to the tradition of men, according to the elements of the world, and not according to Christ” (Col. 2:8). And now, as in the times of the tongues, turning away from the wisdom of Christ, “in the wisdom of God there is no understanding of peace through the wisdom of God” (1 Cor. 1:21). They think to embrace all humanity with one glance; indicate some kind of self-propelled progress towards perfection; extol the successes of so-called enlightenment and education; they promise a golden age: and where they most think that all this is happening and will happen by itself, and least of all care about blessing and enlightenment from above, - there precisely, and at the same time, they find neither virtues, nor morals, nor peace, nor security, vices are unbridled, feuds are endless, alliances are unreliable, wisdom has become nothing more than an industry, and knowledge is a commodity, books and shows are filled crimes and horrors, like dungeons and places of execution. Tell me, please, is this really the direct road and natural course to the perfection of mankind? Or, on the contrary, isn’t this the essence of crossroads, wilds, abysses, deviations, delusions, falls? But let's shorten the argument. If humanity, whether as a whole or in particular, must move towards the desired and expected future perfection, well-being, and bliss, then it is necessary that the true path to that be found, or better indicated. I say: it is better indicated: because the path laid out guesswork often does not lead to the goal even when it is presented in mind; and the path indicated by an experienced and faithful guide leads to the goal even when it is still hidden from view. What is this path? - The one that the Revelation to Abraham called, due to its adaptation to the diverse multitude of those who walk, “the ways of the Lord,” which, however, at its foundation is the only path of the Lord. Who shows this path? – Sometimes, when necessary, the Lord Himself comes from heaven, as, for example, to the same Abraham: “Walk before Me and be perfect” (Gen. 17:1). Usually, those who have experienced the trustworthiness of this path, with joy, proclaim their acquisition, and out of love for mankind, invite them to participate in it, as for example: “Blessed are those who are blameless in the way, walking in the law of the Lord” (Psalm 119:1). “Blessed is the man whose path is not a hundred sinners, but his will is in the law of the Lord. It will be like a tree planted by the flowing waters. Whatever he does, he will succeed” (Psalm 1:1–3). “Blessed are all who fear the Lord, who walk in His ways. Take away the labor of your hands; Blessed are you and good will come to you” (Psalm 127:1-2). “Be patient with the Lord, and keep His way, and He will exalt you to inherit the earth; never be consumed by a sinner, you will see” (Psalm 36:34). If, that is, it seems to you that the path of the Lord is difficult or long, and does not soon show you a pleasant future: do not waver in your faith; don't lose hope; finally the test will pass, and reward will be revealed. “Be patient and you will see.” Christians! You know that the great city of God, to which the path of the Lord actually leads - a blessed future that will completely justify this path - lies beyond the boundaries of time. But on this, and only on this, path lie peaceful abodes and safe cities of temporary blessings. Keep this path, we thank God, not lost: and just as our Most Pious Sovereign shows this path to His Heir, so you too precede on this path with a good example, and indicate and command it, parents to children, lords of households, mentors to those being taught, leaders to subordinates, elders to younger ones; Let us all shake hands with each other on the path of faith and piety, which is the only true path to prosperity and bliss! Amen. 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