24. Слово в день Святой Пасхи

(Spoken at the Assumption Cathedral on April 2; printed in the meetings of 1822, 1835, 1844 and 1848) No matter how many times we have repeated it now, we still do not get tired of repeating it, and we hope that you do not get tired of hearing the same word so often: “Christ is risen!” What a wonderful word! How does it change the appearance of everything that exists! Until now, many of the people knew only the land on which they appear for a short time, and soon disappear, no one knows where; others have heard something about hell, as an abyss that threatens to swallow everyone and does not give anyone back; Not many thought about heaven as such a high dwelling, to which someone saw a ladder only in a dream, and only one along which the 150 Angels of God were visible ascending, but no people were seen. Now that “Christ is risen,” what does the earth turn out to be? - She is a breeding ground for the sky; the short-term and destruction-ending life of a person in the body - let's say in words what the ritual observed between us during the mutual expression of the joy of resurrection expresses prophetically - the life of a person in the body is the beginning life of a chick in an egg, to which, upon breaking the shell, the highest and most extensive circle of life opens; it is only necessary that the chick’s embryo be embraced, penetrated and excited by the warmth of the mother’s blood; that is, it is necessary that the germ of heavenly life in a person be embraced, penetrated and excited by the life-giving power of the blood of Christ. Now that “Christ is risen,” and when to Him, as the God-man, “has been given all power in heaven and on earth” (Matthew 28:18), not only has heaven become accessible, but has even been united with earth in such a way that it is difficult to find a limit and difference between them; for both the Divinity appears on earth and humanity appears in heaven; The angels whom Jacob saw ascending and descending along the ladder of heaven now walk in hosts on the earth, as messengers of the Son of man, who rules in heaven. What is hell after the descent into hell, “Christ is risen”? The fortress into which the winner entered under the guise of a prisoner; a prison whose gates are broken and the guards are scattered; this is truly, according to the image of Christ, the monster that swallowed the Prophet overthrown from the ship; but, instead of devouring and destroying him, it became for him another, although not so calm, ship to carry him to the shore of life and safety. Now it becomes clear how someone hoped to pass through hell itself safely: “Even if I walk through the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me” (Ps. 22:4), - You, Who came down from heaven for us 151, like us, walked on the earth, and, like us, descended into the shadow of death, so that from then on you could pave the way for Your followers in light of life. Finally, haven’t we ourselves already been made different by the resurrection of Christ? – Let us believe one of the faithful witnesses of the resurrection of Christ that it reborn us too, if not in action itself, at least in hope. “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,” exclaims the Apostle Peter, “Who, according to the abundance of His mercy, begat us to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Peter 1:3)! But, if we are generated by the resurrection of Christ only “into hope”; and after our hope follows the hope of all creation, “for the creation longs for the revelation of the sons of God” (Rom. 8:19): then all the miracles that the resurrection of Christ performed are only the beginnings of further miracles, which it will reveal in the future, especially at the end of time, and even in endless eternity. According to these inexhaustible miracles that have happened and are about to happen 152, the resurrection of Christ is for us a source of reflection, contemplation, surprise, joy, gratitude, hope, always full, always new, no matter how long ago, no matter how often we draw from it; it is eternal news. And for this reason, no matter how confident we are about each other that each of us knows the resurrection of Christ, we still want to proclaim to each other a thousand times, like unheard news, that “Christ is risen”; no matter how we are certified in the truth of this event, attested by eyewitnesses of the Risen One, proven by signs and wonders, not disputed by the enemies of Christianity, we still thirst to hear confirmation that “Christ is truly risen.” If the word is food, as it is said, “man will not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God, man will live” (Deut. 8:3): then the word about the resurrection of Christ, like manna, as the Wise One depicts it, is “bread having every delight in itself, and suitable for every taste” (Wis. 16:20). Are you weary of sin and hungry for righteousness? Come, be satisfied: “Christ is risen, who was delivered up for our iniquities, and risen for our justification” (Rom. 4:25). Are you tired of the joyless yoke of the law, and do you want to move from this slavery into grace-filled freedom? Come, taste the Easter that you desire: “For our Passover was devoured for us” (1 Cor. 5:7); “In the freedom with which Christ freed us, stand, and do not remain under the yoke of work” (Gal. 5:1). Are you sick with fear of death? Take medicine against this disease: “Christ has risen from the dead, and is the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep” (1 Cor. 15:20). Are you exhausted in battle against the enemies of your salvation? “Taste the good word” (Heb. 6:5) of the resurrection, and in it the victorious “power of the coming age; God will rise again, and His enemies will be scattered” (Ps. 67:2)! Does false taste in your soul seduce you and impel you to seek food for your desires in the corruptible and vain things of the world? Correct it with the sacrament of the power of resurrection: “If you are risen with Christ, seek those on high, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God” (Col. 3:1). Or has your soul already “longed for the mighty, living God,” and is tormented by desire, “when you will come and appear before His face” (Psalm 41:3)? The living hope of the resurrection will quench the languor of this thirst, and will preserve the thirst itself, as if it were healthy and saving, presenting to the mind that “when Christ appears, your life, then you also will appear with Him in glory” (Col. 3:4). You see, Christian, what an abundance, what a variety of spiritual food our Easter, the risen Christ, presents to us. Does your soul now feed on it? Do you really “taste” that “the Lord is good” (Ps. 33:9)? Do you feel within yourself the power of the Resurrection of Christ, resolving you from sins and from the curse for them, casting down the passions and lusts of the old man, creating a pure heart in you, and renewing a right spirit in your womb, strengthening you in faith and hope, inflaming you with love for the Giver of Life? Or are you hungry and thirsty at the Lord’s table, and your soul is not satisfied and empty? “However, we don’t want to lead you into confusion and despondency through this test.” No! Although sadness, even according to God, is saving: but now is not a time of sadness, but of joy, which can also have its saving effect: “for the joy of the Lord is our strength” (Neh. 8:10). So, have you tasted the goodness of the Risen One? “Let your soul rejoice in the Lord” (Psalm 34:9), and let this joy move you to a closer union with Him. Have you not yet tasted His goodness? All of you, however, rejoice that He does not separate you from this eating, but also calls you to this, allowing you to hear the gospel of His resurrection, and to be among those gathered in the name of the Risen One, where, according to His promise, “He is in the midst of them” (Matthew 18:20). If you feel yourself unworthy of joy: rejoice in that wondrous goodness that does not exclude even the unworthy from participating in joy. May the joy of the resurrection of our Lord introduce into all of us the life-giving and saving power of His resurrection. “For this is the joy of the Lord, our strength.” Amen. According to Jew. collection: ascending and descending... In collection 1822, 1835 and 1848: leaving heaven... In collection 1822 and 1835: accomplished, accomplished and about to happen,... You might be interested in: