88. Слово в неделю двадесять вторую по Пятдесятнице, при продолжении молитв о избавлении от губительныя болезни

(Said in the Trinity Church of the hospice Count Sheremetev’s home, on the occasion of the resumption of this, October 26; printed separately and in collections of 1835, 1844 and 1848.) The parable now read from the Gospel, or the story of the rich man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31), is so well known that, when entering the teaching, there is no need to read again or retell what is written in the Gospel, but one can directly proceed to the reflections that it inspires. But first of all, this place brings to mind a “rich man” who did not lose his name in insignificant matters, who did not ignore the poor and sick Lazarus at the gates of his magnificent house, but carefully looked for him in other people’s houses, and built this spacious house for the poor and sick Lazarus, prepared inexhaustible benefits for life and healing, and completed this magnificent work of philanthropy with the construction of this majestic Church, so that Lazarus would be able to prepare himself not only by patience to the end, but also by other exercises of piety “for Abraham’s bosom.” “Father Abraham”, father of believers and lovers of mankind! both, if possible, and for us in your blessed bosom, together with the soul, the patience of Lazarus, who was saved, the soul of the servant of God, Bolyarin Count Nicholas, who was saved by the love of mankind; and may she rest in the bright abodes of your eternally blessed and blessing seed, our Lord Jesus Christ, whose ancient souls you protected, and who, for souls ancient and new, alone is resurrection and life and peace! Let us turn, brothers, to ourselves. – Who is rich and loves his wealth; who is prone to luxury; whoever feels an impulse to exalt himself with the advantages of his name and fortune: let him put himself before the Gospel parable, as before a mirror, and let him look to see if he resembles the rich man of the Gospel, and whether such similarity of moral character foreshadows with probability the same fate that befell the rich man of the Gospel after his death? "Be rich": This sounds like many of us; and this, it seems, is not an unfortunate trait, because it was seen in the face of Abraham himself, who, however, not only found consolation for himself after death, but also whose womb appears to be a repository of eternal consolation for others. “Clad in purple and fine linen,” that is, in the most elegant and precious fabrics, which in ancient times were used by noble and rich people: and this is like many of us; and also, it seems, it does not matter that a rich man wears clothes, according to the decency of his condition, that are clean, fine, and different from those of the common people. “Having fun all day long”: it seems, and this is not a serious crime, that someone who lives in abundance lives cheerfully, and shares legally purchased pleasures with people who are pleasant to him. This is the entire Gospel depiction of the life of the rich man. Let us add an image of his death: “The rich man also died; and buried him." Here it is even less possible to notice anything on which a bad omen could be based. What then? Is the rich man who dies blessed? at least free from punishment? - No! “in hell” - “in torment”. Oh God! - someone will think, - how easy it is to die, and therefore how difficult it is to be saved! The rich man of the Gospel seems to have done nothing for which he should be condemned to destruction. - Yes, beloved! It's really easy to die. Whoever, by the decisive direction of his will, inclination, passion, has been seduced and moved onto the wrong path - onto the path of wealth, luxury, vanity: he easily and imperceptibly rolls along the inclination of this path, not noticing that this inclination extends to hell itself. However, the example of the rich man of the Gospel does not show how difficult it is to be saved: for since it is not at all clear that he did anything for his salvation, then from this example it is absolutely impossible to conclude how much work this requires. You think to excuse him by saying that he did nothing for his own destruction: but isn’t it too much madness that you demand from everyone who perishes, so that he himself acts directly for his own destruction? People usually die not because they tried to die, but because they did not try to save themselves. Didn't do anything? “That’s the crime, that’s the trouble, that you didn’t do anything.” If someone does nothing for temporary well-being, for earthly gain, do you not consider it fair when he receives nothing? How can one demand that the righteous, freely ruling God, so to speak, forcefully give heavenly, eternal bliss to a person who does nothing to obtain this bliss and does not have an active desire and aspiration of free will for it? And so, here are some of the instructions that the Gospel parable of the rich man inspires. One should not reassure oneself too much by the external purity of one’s life: not committing gross, obvious crimes, not killing, not robbing, not oppressing, does not yet mean being virtuous and worthy of bliss; in some people this is only the external appearance of life, which does not yet mean a soul established in goodness; this is only the vestibule by which one enters the church of purity, only the footstool by which one ascends to virtue, which stands much higher. The blessings of this age must be enjoyed with moderation, even with some distrust, with fear, so as not to “receive your good in your belly,” without a trace of consolation for the future life. To lead a life “cheerful all the days,” brilliant all the days, in which work days are not distinguished from holidays by either labor or simplicity, in which holidays have no rest from amusements, is a “path,” according to the most condescending judgment, less often innocent, more often dubious, obviously “broad”: and therefore, if its visible breadth is not constrained by the secret alienation of the heart from worldly delights, by hidden spiritual exploits and virtues that overcome vanity, then the end of this path can be no other than that indicated by Christ’s saying: “lead the broad way into destruction” (Matthew 7:13). In order to better see what was missing in the person of the Gospel rich man, for favorable omens of his future fate, let us put the person of Lazarus against him. “There was a beggar named Lazarus.” Do you see what the rich man lacked against Lazarus? “He lacked the name itself.” “A certain man was rich,” says the Gospel. Oh, how quickly the image of this world is transformed here! Who needed to know and make known the name of the sick beggar, cast down on the earth, to whom no one paid attention? His only interlocutors, the dogs who licked his pus, did not correctly call him by name. But the name of Lazarus is written in the Gospel; known to Abraham; heard in heaven. And the name of the rich man, which passed from mouth to mouth at feasts and meetings of his many friends, admirers and acquaintances, disappeared without a trace. “A certain man”: and that’s all! What does this mean? - Without a doubt, this should be explained as a consequence of the ordinary principle that a person’s name appears and is hidden, remembered and forgotten, according to the type and dignity of his deeds. The objects of life and activity of the rich man were corruptible things, fleeting pleasures, vain glory: everything was absorbed by vanity, time, corruption; there was nothing to support the idle name of an idle man. Therefore, let people think that they are more partial to the honor and glory of their name than zealous for deeds worthy of honor and glory; - let them think about what will happen to their name? If they only try to somehow spread and elevate their name on earth, among people; but they don’t do anything by which they would be recognized, honored and accepted in heaven: then what can they expect for their name, unless it dies with mortals, disappears in the earthly air, or finally flashes, perhaps one day, before them through the flames of the underworld, to increase the punishment of their untamed pride and false love of glory? But in heaven they either will not know their names, or will not dare to pronounce them, so as not to desecrate the holy lips and ears of the inhabitants of heaven, and the pure air of heaven. Here belong the words of the Prophet: “I will not remember their names in my mouth” (Psalm 15:4). Let us stand for a short time between the rich man and Lazarus. - “I lie in front of his gates, and I want to be satisfied with the grains that fall from the rich man’s meal; but even when it comes, I will lick his pus” (Luke 16:20–21). Now features are revealed in the rich man’s face, which reveal his soul, poor in inner goodness, and reveal the secret of his death. Lazarus is “before the gates”: the owner of the house cannot help but notice him at every exit and entrance; but the rich man does not seem to notice him. Lazarus is not only poor, but also sick: and this does not touch the cruel soul of the rich man. The patient needs a little; The remainder of a loaf of bread would be too enough for Lazarus, of which the rich man eats little, saving the remains of his hunger for more delicious foods: and this is what poor Lazarus “desires” in vain. The dogs, due to a suggestion from a beneficent nature that they do not understand, come to serve as doctors over the wounds of Lazarus: the rich man still does not want to realize that he does not have as much compassion as the dumb ones have. “O man,” alien to humanity! - But we will hold out. We stand here, brethren, not to be indignant at the vices of others, but to learn to protect ourselves from vices, or to correct ourselves from them, and to avoid the abyss into which others have carelessly plunged. Here is another very necessary edifying reflection that we must draw from the Gospel story about the unfortunate rich man. Sensual life, if one carelessly indulges in it, occupying the soul with carnal and vain pleasures, imperceptibly weakens its inner strength and dulls the moral and spiritual sense, so that a person finally becomes dull, heavy and almost incapable of sublime motives and pure pleasures of true virtue. But how easy it would be, on the contrary, to turn that same wealth, which usually serves as food for sensual and carnal life, into feeding sublime motives in order to achieve pure pleasures through doing good to the needy and distressed neighbors! Brethren! how many “Lazaros” there are these days! Some are sick; others are poor; some are both. Thanks to the love of mankind of the Most Pious Sovereign, and to the Government animated and moved by him! Thanks to the philanthropy of the people! No one is left not only “before the gates”, on the street, but no one is left in a home that is uncomfortable or unsafe; those who heal and care willingly approach those sick with such a disease, about which the mere thought arouses disgust or fear in others; grains “from the meals of the rich” quite often fall into the mouths of the poor; even the poor share their mites with other poor people, or give their labor in alms, and themselves in service to the sick; Servants of purity and the Sacred flow everywhere to cleanse, soften and heal the spiritual wounds of those who suffer, and those who have not yet suffered physically. It seems that the Physician of souls and bodies Himself bows to the prayers of faith and to the deeds of love for mankind, and extends a merciful hand. Death no longer extends the power allowed to it; and illness begins to give way to health. However, do we dare to think that something better is already happening among us than what we see in the Gospel? - There is one sick and poor person there; one is rich, condemned, and this one has five brothers, similar to him in that they lived only for themselves, and not for God and their neighbor. May God have mercy on us, brethren, so that we may not have six unmerciful ones against one who demands mercy! Let us share, if possible, each with someone, and all with every ill-suffering Lazarus, “our good things, received in our temporary belly,” so that those who were accepted before us into the bosom of Abraham would not deny sharing with us the good things of God in eternal life. Amen. You might be interested in: