281. Слово в день памяти Святителя Алексия

(Said in the Chudov Monastery on February 12; printed in the Works of the Holy Father of 1853 and in the collection of 1861) Blessed are those who weep now (Luke 6:21). Isn't this a sad word? And would you like to hear it now, when we joyfully commemorate the blessed man, St. Alexis? “But it’s not my fault that I said it.” The Church rite commanded that it be proclaimed in the Gospel reading precisely now, and thus offered it to our reverent attention, reflection, and edification. The God-wise ecclesiastical ecclesiastics, bringing this word closer to the memory of Saint Alexy, allow us to understand through this that he, too, achieved bliss not without tears. So, we need to think about the pitiful path to bliss. It is not difficult for anyone to understand that not all tears can be a source of bliss. Children often cry when they have slight unpleasant sensations, when there are unimportant deprivations, or when unreasonable desires are not fulfilled; Often it is not children who cry for reasons that are not much more fundamental: but no one has yet found bliss in such tears, although some sometimes find pleasure in them. How can we determine which “cryers” are on the path to bliss? – Christ the Savior pleases the “poor”, not just, but the poor “in spirit” (Luke 6:20). And when, according to the legend of Saint Luke, he says: “Blessed are those who hunger now, for you will be filled” (Luke 6:21): He pleases those who do not hunger for bread, because being satisfied with bread is not bliss: but, as Saint Matthew says more fully and clearly, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness” (Matthew 5:6). In accordance with this, one should reason about those who cry. Blessed are those who weep “in the spirit” and from a spiritual impulse, who weep for “truth” and virtue, which they do not have, who mourn the untruths and sins with which they are burdened, who weep because of the sorrow of the spirit, which has angered and angers God, and then from the love of the spirit, who, with all their desire, see themselves as not sufficiently corresponding to God’s love and mercy. From this we can see why those who want to achieve bliss should not bypass the path of tears. The pristine, immaculate man was blissful in paradise without tears; and along the path of joy he walked towards the highest heavenly bliss. But when, seduced by the spirit of malice, man stumbled and fell into sin: the heavenly path of joy hid from him; and God himself, as a righteous judge, and at the same time as a humane physician, put him on a deplorable path 741 when he said to Adam, pointing to the land cursed in his deeds: “bear it in sorrow all the days of your life” (Gen. 3:17); when he said to Eve: “I will multiply and multiply your sorrows and your sighs” (Gen. 3:16). That God acted in this as a righteous judge is self-evident. And what He did in this, and as a humane doctor, this requires explanation. Christ the Savior said: “The kingdom of God is within you” (Luke 17:21). It is in us, of course, not in fullness, as it is in heaven, but at least in the firstfruits, when the grace of God lives in us, when “Christ dwells in our hearts through faith” (Eph. 3:17). In direct contrast to this, it can rightly be said that the kingdom of the devil, or otherwise hell, and the very fire of Gehenna, not in its fullness, but in the firstfruits, is inside a person when sin lives in him. This hidden fire reveals itself in actions. He constantly kindles desires for new sins in the sinner’s soul; and “burns... the conscience” (1 Tim. 4:2) with a dark, but always painful consciousness of evil, under special circumstances flaring up into the flame of despair. Therefore, just as water is needed to extinguish a fire, so to extinguish the unnatural fire of sin in the soul, tears of repentance are needed. Just as bitter medicines are used to heal a health disorder caused by luxury and excess in food and drink, so to heal a soul infected with the impressions of sinful pleasures, the sorrows of repentance and bitter tears are required. However, human efforts and means alone are not sufficient to heal a person’s soul infected with sin and to extinguish the sinful fire. And therefore, the wisdom and mercy of the heavenly Physician invented for this purpose their own, easy and perfect healing - the grace-filled water of holy baptism, overshadowed by the Spirit. But since we, even after being reborn by baptism into a new pure life, more or less fall into the sinful life of the old Adam: then after baptism the healing of repentant tears is necessary for us - and in greater quantities, the more disastrous is the illness after healing, the fall after restoration, and sin and evil after grace. Those living in the world, engaged in worldly affairs, bound by worldly customs, may doubt whether the path of tears indicated by the Gospel is some special path not intended for them, or, if they need to touch it, then how to reconcile this with the ordinary necessary movement of their lives. This confusion can be resolved with an example. David was King. Who does not know that the life of a Tsar is more burdened with difficult tasks and filled with varied activities than the life of a private person? But listen to what King David has to say about his life. “I will wash my bed every night, I will wet my bed with my tears” (Ps. 6:7). “My tears were my bread day and night” (Ps. 41:4). You see that the Tsar did not shun the tearful path to bliss, and did not find it inconvenient or indecent to combine the brilliant royal life with the life of a humble penitent. Having dominion over people, righteous David humbled himself before God no less than the humble of the earth. During the day the Israelites saw him in royal deeds and in royal glory: but at night people did not see him, but God alone saw him, “wearing away... with tears... his bed,” that is, washing his soul with them from the dust of vanity or uncleanness that fell on it in the movement of the day. There were days when he shared a banquet meal with his household and nobles: and there were days and nights in which tears of repentance, tenderness, love for God, zeal for the glory of God were the food of his soul. However, there is no doubt that, “sowing tears” of contrition, he “reaped with joy” (Ps. 126:5) gracious consolation. So, do not say that the path of tears is not your way: this is the right path for every sinner, and consequently for every person on earth: “for all have sinned” (Rom. 3:23). Do not say that it is difficult for you to introduce the repentant life into the ordinary, necessary way of your life: this difficulty is not in the essence of things, but in your inattention, in your failure to put spiritual work above the affairs of the world and the flesh. From the example of the righteous David, one can also draw a conclusion, which was also drawn before us from the example of Saints in general by the Venerable Isaac the Syrian. “Even though the saints weep, and their hair is filled with tears, until they leave this life: who does not have to cry? Even though you weep here in perfection and victory, he who is filled with sores will endure to be silent from weeping” (Sermon 21). Will anyone ask: how to learn soul-helping crying? - This is preceded by the answer of the same Reverend Isaac: “Having his dead body lying before him, and himself killed in vain by his sins, does it require teaching, with which thoughts he will use tears? Your soul is mortified by sins, and lies before you, what is better for you than the whole world: and does it not require crying? The world does not like to cry when passion or misfortune does not shed tears. He loves fun or laughter. Hastens with a galloping foot to achieve momentary bliss. It seems that he is now striving for such perfection of vanity that he does nothing at all, but only amuses himself. So many people are engaged in amusements, they talk about them so much, and write and publish, that it is incomprehensible how people do not get bored with the fun, which extends to satiety and fatigue. Do you know, do you think, where this path leads, to what consequences does this all-consuming passion for amusements, for luxury, for constant sensual pleasures bring? - The judgment has already been pronounced; and pronounced by such a Judge, whose definitions are unchangeable, because He is infinitely righteous and eternal. “Woe to you who laugh now, for you will mourn and weep” (Luke 6:25). This “now”, which you with such efforts fill with charms and dreams, will soon pass away; charm and dreams will disappear: and you will “cry” about the disorder of your external well-being, about the disorder of your health, about the disorder of your spiritual strength, and, what is most deplorable, you will “weep”, finally, for the fact that you did not cry short-term tears of repentance and tenderness, which would have brought you eternal consolation, and that with short-term joy and laughter you bought yourself eternal, scorching tears. In an hour of solitude and silence, sometimes remember and take to heart the teaching of St. Macarius of Egypt. “Brethren,” he said, “let us begin to weep until we come to the place where tears will scorch us.” Amen. In the author’s manuscript it was previously written: “tearful”, then it was corrected in pencil, as here. You might be interested in: