185. Слово по освящении храма Благовещения Пресвятыя Богородицы в Кафедральном Чудове монастыре

(Said December 3 days; printed in the Works of the Holy Father and in the collection of 1848) And I say to you: Because you are Peter, on this rock I will build My Church, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it. (Matthew 16:18). Every time a church is consecrated and a prayer is offered for it, that God may “make” it “unshakable forever,” the words of Christ are proclaimed, promising the steadfastness of the Church of Christ. What did our God-wise Fathers think when they ordered us to combine in this way, with the prayer for the steadfastness of the church, the promise of the steadfastness of the Church? - No doubt they thought that this promise could support this prayer. The church is consecrated and protected by God not for its own sake, but for the sake of the Church gathering in it, that is, the greater or lesser council of Orthodox Christians, with their Hierarchy; why the church is also called the Church. Consequently, in order to pray with hope for the steadfastness of the church, for this we must have a basis in the hope of seeing the Church unshakable, and we seek this foundation, this affirmation of hope in the promise that the Lord gave to His Church, that “the gates of hell will not prevail against it.” But when we have the immutable promise of the Lord about the steadfastness of the Church; Is prayer about this already necessary? However, we pray about this, and except for the present case, as for example, when we sing “confirmation of those who trust in You, establish, O Lord, the Church” 653. And that this prayer is not superfluous, we are given sad confidence by the fact that the fall of some even great Churches actually happened. Where, for example, is the African Church, in which the Hieromartyr Cyprian once shone so brightly, and which communicated to the Universal Church many memorable Council Rules? “It is so destroyed that even its remains are not visible.” If experience itself testifies that the great Church is not safe from fall and destruction: then where does the promise apply: “the gates of hell will not prevail against it”? And on what basis can the safety of the children of the Church be based? – These questions cannot be foreign to any of us: because we are in the Church, as in Noah’s Ark; if the ark is broken and plunged into the abyss, what can keep us above the abyss? I am not willing to enter into a discussion about a controversial subject. I know the advice of St. Paul: “Do not hold back any word for the destruction of those who hear” (2 Tim. 2:14). But I also know that this peaceful exhorter was sometimes forced to enter into an argument, “not for ruin,” but for the edification of those who “heard,” when he saw that silence would be worse than an argument. It happened that the Supreme Apostle Peter, however, of course, without violating the unity of faith and love, was reproached by the Supreme Apostle Paul. “In his face,” he says, “he is opposed to his mouth, because he is disgraceful” (Gal. 2:11). It is advisable to use the word of the Lord, primarily as a lamp for the paths of knowledge and for the paths of life, as food for the soul: but it is not in vain that it is presented under the image of the “sword of the Spirit” (Eph. 6:17); It is sometimes necessary to use it to cut through the intricacies that threaten to entangle souls in non-Apostolic nets. To the question: how is the Church of Christ unshakable and indestructible, when some Churches have obviously shaken and collapsed? – The Orthodox Eastern Catholic Church answers: The Church of Christ is unshakable, firstly, in Jesus Christ himself, on Whom, as on an eternal foundation, it is established forever, and with Whom, like a body with a head, it is united by the union of immortal life; secondly, it is unshakable in its universal unity, not in such a way that no part, larger or smaller, could fall away from this unity, but in such a way that, despite the sometimes falling away of some parts, there always remains one, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church, preserving the pure confession of faith and teaching of life, intact Holy Scripture and sacred tradition, and the continuous succession of the Hierarchy and sacraments. This solution to the question is so directly and closely derived from the Holy Scriptures that to verify it, it is almost enough just to repeat the words of Christ and read some of the testimonies of the Holy Writers. “I will build my church,” says the Lord, “and the gates of hell will not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18). The Apostle Paul of the Church of Corinth writes about the foundation of the Church: “No one can lay another foundation than this one that lies, which is Jesus Christ” (1 Cor. 3:11). Note that the Apostle not only recognizes Jesus Christ as the original and unshakable foundation of the Church, but also denies the possibility of another similar foundation; and as he writes, among other things, against those who said: “I am Cephas” (1 Cor. 1:12), then in his general saying there is also this particular thought that “Cephas,” that is, the Apostle Peter, cannot be recognized as the original and unshakable foundation of the Church, although, however, he can and should be recognized as secondary, established in Christ, and in Christ only as an unshakable foundation, but in In this position, not alone, but with all the Apostles and Prophets, according to another saying of St. Paul: “created on the foundation of the Apostle and Prophet, which is the cornerstone of Jesus Christ himself” (Eph. 2:20). To the Christians of Ephesus, the same Apostle writes about the Church and about Christ: “And He gave to Him there are also Apostles, and Prophets, and Evangelists, and Shepherds, and Teachers, for the perfection of the saints, for the work of service, for the building up of the body of Christ, so that we may grow into Him all things, of which Christ is the head, from which the whole body is composed and put together in a decent manner, by all by the touch of alms, by the action in the measure of each one part, the restoration of the body creates love for itself” (Eph. 4:11-12, 15-16). The image of the Church is as living as it is deep and significant! If the Church must be the body of Christ, then this must, without a doubt, be one Universal Church: because no one has ever attributed many bodies to Christ. If the Universal Church is the body of Christ, the Son of God: then this body, without a doubt, is always pure, always healthy, never destroyed; because anything contrary to this would be unworthy of the Son of God. If from Him “the whole body” of the Ecumenical Church, “composed and put together decently by every touch of alms, creates regeneration”: then, without a doubt, from Him it is filled with nothing other than life, strength, light, purity, incorruptibility. If “for the creation” of this “body of Christ” the Apostles, Prophets, evangelists, shepherds, teachers were given: then the shepherds and teachers, or otherwise, the Church’s Hierarchy, must be preserved in the Church continuously, since the creation of the body of Christ must continue continuously. Just as a body growing and continuing to live, some substances belong only temporarily, and over time, even in multitudes, are separated from it, without thereby interfering with its growth and perfection: so the growth and perfection of the body of the Church is not hindered, even if they are numerous, by people who “in time believe, and in time of adversity,” or other kinds of temptations, “fall away” (Luke 8:13), who “from us she came forth, but was not made mad by us” (1 John 2:19). This teaching about the steadfastness of the Church has the advantage of obvious truth that for the most part it is not rejected by those who disagree with us; and they are strengthened only by adding to it what we do not say, and what the Evangelists and Apostles did not say. They say in the West: the Church is unshakable, firstly, in Christ, secondly, definitively and almost exclusively, in the Apostle Peter, thirdly, in his successor, who is also called its visible head; and to this they add that only on these supports can the salvation of Christians be safely established. What to think about the last two additional parts of the teaching? Are they needed? Do you agree with the teaching of the Apostles and the Apostolic Church, which we presented before this? Divine Petre! the original pure confessor of the one Name, “O Him it is fitting for us to be saved!” (Acts 4:12) Bless us the one saving name of “Christ, the Son of the living God” (John 6:69), the one Head of the one body of the Church, exalting, in agreement with you, above every name of man. If, according to the strict judgment of the Apostle Paul, “no one can lay another foundation than the one that lies, which is Jesus Christ” (1 Cor. 3:11): then how do they think about laying another and a third foundation? If, according to the further explanation of the same Apostle, we “created on a foundation an Apostle and a Prophet, which is the chief cornerstone of Jesus Christ himself” (Eph. 2:20): then why do they want to cast out the eleven Apostles from this foundation, and put in their place someone who does not belong to the Apostolic ranks? If, according to the Apostle’s word, “for the perfection of the saints, for the edification of the body of Christ,” by the way, “Apostles” were given, many for the multitude of those called to faith, all of whom collectively and directly received grace from Christ and from the Holy Spirit: then what difference is there in the fact that of their successors, one was given consecration by Peter the Supreme, another by James or John, on an equal footing with Peter “the pillars of honor” to be" (Gal.2:9), "there is no difference" from these (Gal.2:6) from these Paul, according to the ancient recognition of the Church, together with Peter the Supreme, to another Andrew the First-Called, and so on? To install Timothy as Bishop in Ephesus, Paul did not require Peter, just as Peter did not require Paul to install Mark as Bishop in Alexandria. Timothy and his successors were just as firmly “ordained on the basis of the Apostle” Paul, as Mark and his successors were “ordained on the basis of the Apostle” Peter. When did Peter become the only support for the steadfastness of the Church? When, who, and where, in the same sense, became Petrov’s successor? Holy Scripture does not show us this. On the contrary, Scripture and tradition show that, after the martyrdom of Saint Peter, the great Hidden of Christ, John the Theologian, and Simon, the kinsman of the Lord, the Bishop of Jerusalem, remained for a long time and with their Apostolic dignity ruled in the Church. And as true as it is that they had no need for the Roman Episcopal See, it is equally undeniable that the Roman Episcopal See, along with the others, bowed its dignity to their Apostolic primacy. And then, over time, church tradition presents us with not one and only successor to Petrov, but three, in three different places. We can take proof of this from the treasures of antiquity from those very people who now contradict this. Saint Gregory the Dvoeslov, who occupied the place in the hierarchy that they now want to present as the only throne of the Apostle Peter, in a letter to Eulogius, Patriarch of Alexandria (Paris ed. 1675, Vol. 2, book VI. Seq. 37), writes: “although many are Apostles, yet in relation to the authorities, the single throne of the First Supreme Apostle has gained strength in general respect - one in three places. For he exalted the throne on which he was pleased to rest and end his present life,” that is, the throne of Rome. “He adorned the throne to which he sent the disciple Evangelist,” that is, the throne of Alexandria. “He strengthened the throne on which he sat for seven years, although afterward he departed from it,” that is, the throne of Antioch. “One,” continues Saint Gregory, “and one is the throne, on which, by Divine power, three Bishops now preside.” Having heard about the name of the Ecumenical Patriarch (however, only used for honor in the East), the same Holy Pope was afraid of the vastness of the sign of this name, and was jealous for the honor of all Patriarchs, and not just one Western one. He wrote to the Patriarchs - Eulogius of Alexandria and Anastasius of Antioch (Book IV. Epistle 36), like this: “if they allow this to be said without prohibition, then by this they deny the honor of all the Patriarchs.” Here is the teaching of the Eastern Church on patriarchal thrones, in the mouth of the Patriarch of the Western Church! Because in his time the East and the West were one, as the Eternal East commanded them from above. If the Word of God knows only one Head of the Church - Christ: then by what right does human wisdom want, in addition to this Divine Head, to give this immortal body another head - a mortal one? If the Universal Church, according to the word of the Lord, should be such that “even the gates of hell will not prevail against it”: is it consistent with this to give it such a head that the gates of hell could behead the Church? “What was the purpose of the Monothelitian heresy,” asks the learned Theologian and Bishop of the new West (Bossuet’s words about the unity of the Church), “that it accidentally kidnapped the Pope?” To this the ancient and new East responds: yes, the Monothelitian heresy gained a little by kidnapping Pope Honorius: because the Pope is not the head of the Church; because, when he fell into heresy, the Orthodox Church retained other Patriarchs and Councils for the defense of the truth, independent of his power. But if heresy really kidnapped the head of the Universal Church; if heresy acquired a universal head and its power: what would then happen to the dignity and steadfastness of the Church? Blessed is the Divine Founder of the Church, who did not entrust its safety to one man, mortal and, whoever he was, not sinless. He did not say to Peter, and therefore did not say to any of his successors: “the gates of hell will not prevail against you.” But he said about His Church: “the gates of hell will not prevail against it,” even if they overcame this or that person many times over, even if they overcame someone who was supposed to be a support for many, but not for the entire Church. Whoever takes special note of the fact that the Word of the Lord about the founding of the Church is addressed to the Apostle Peter, and to him alone: ​​let him delve into the circumstances in which this happened. Peter alone, preceding the other Apostles, confessed Christ with a new Christian confession: “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God” (Matthew 16:16): and therefore alone, mainly before the other Apostles, heard the new word of Christ about the Church: “And I say unto you” (Matthew 16:18); and, on the original universal foundation stone - Christ, the first of the subsequent, smaller foundation stones, that is, the Apostles, was laid, and, moreover, not so much he himself, but his faith and his confession. This is how St. Chrysostom interprets the word of Christ: “on this rock I will build my Church, this is, on the faith of confession” (on Matthew Conversations 54). Those who are jealous of St. Peter more than he wants from them, let them listen to this supreme Apostle more than their own or others’ wisdom. St. Peter does not want to found and establish you on Peter, but on Christ. “To him,” he says, “it comes, I am a living stone, humbled from man, but chosen by God, honorable, and you, like a living stone, are built into a spiritual church” (1 Pet. 2:4-5). St. Peter knows only one name, without which one cannot be saved - the name of Christ, and not three names - Christ, Peter and Petrov's successor. “For there is,” he says, “another name under heaven, given among men, by which it is fitting for us to be saved” (Acts 4:12). Christ, the “Living Stone,” - here, brothers, is the original, deepest, one, universal, eternally unshakable, bearing everything on Himself, the Foundation on which we must affirm our hearts, our faith, our life, our hope of salvation, edifying successively on the foundation of the Apostles, Prophets, Pastors and Teachers of the Orthodox Universal Church! In this Foundation is our steadfastness; This is our security. If we do not strive to affirm our faith and our life on this Foundation, then no imaginary pillars, no supports of human wisdom and strength can support our church, built on the sand of opinions, prejudices, passions, which is inevitably threatened with great destruction. If we marvel at what great grace and power was given to Peter in the word of the Lord: “You are Peter, and on this rock I will build My Church,” then let us think about how this grace was acquired. It was acquired not from flesh and blood borrowed, but from the Heavenly Father, internally “revealed”, from the full soul, a sincere, undoubted, fearless confession of faith: “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the Living God.” The work of building the Ecumenical Church is above our efforts and concerns, although, however, it should not be alien to our prayers: but there is a part of this work that concerns each of us more closely, and requires our complete care; this is the work of creating that Church about which the Apostle wrote: “you are the churches of the living God” (2 Cor. 6:16) - the work of the spiritual creation of our spiritual church, the arrangement of the salvation of our soul. Peter is great in grace for the great Church: for this small church it is necessary that each of us be, at least small, but not too small, an imitator of Peter and a successor to his grace. It is necessary that you also be a “disciple” of Christ, that is, use all the means possible for you to acquire a true knowledge of God and Christ. It is necessary that you also ask through prayer from the Heavenly Father the “appearance” of this knowledge in a living feeling of the heart. It is necessary for your soul to be filled with faith in “Christ, the Son of the living God.” It is necessary that you also sincerely, undoubtedly, fearlessly confess “Christ, the Son of the living God,” when necessary, in words, but always in life, as your Teacher and Savior; so that you also try to act in everything according to His teaching and His commandments. And if, through weakness or carelessness, you plunge into temptation, like Peter into the waves, it is necessary that you, like him, immediately stretch out your hands to Christ with repentance, prayer and hope. Only with such dispositions and works of faith will you also be able to participate in the promise given to Peter: “I will build” in you “My Church, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it!” Amen. Candlemas. Canon, Irmos 3 songs You might be interested in: