Святые

“The most important thing for us, the most precious, the greatest, is holiness. Holiness is not just righteousness, for which the righteous are rewarded with the pleasure of bliss in the Kingdom of God, but such a height of righteousness that people are so filled with the grace of God that it flows from them to those who communicate with them.” Archbishop John Glorification of the holy saints of God Holiness is not just righteousness, for which the righteous are rewarded with the pleasure of bliss in the Kingdom of God, but such a height of righteousness that people are so filled with the grace of God that it flows from them to those who communicate with them. Great is their bliss, which comes from beholding the glory of God. Being filled with love for people, which comes from love for God, they are responsive to people’s needs and their prayers and are intercessors and representatives for them before God. These were, first of all, the Old Testament righteous, freed from hell by Christ and introduced into heaven, and “the greatest of those born of women,” John the Baptist. This then became the apostles and their immediate successors. None of the Christians doubted their holiness and after their death, mostly martyrdom, they immediately began to be revered and called upon in prayers. During the high spiritual upsurge in the first centuries of persecution of Christians, martyrs also appeared as such. The martyrdom itself was the door to the highest Abodes and Christians immediately began to call on them as holy saints of God. Miracles and signs confirmed this faith of Christians and were proof of their holiness. Also, then great ascetics began to be revered. No one decided to honor Anthony the Great, Macarius the Great, Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian, Nicholas the Wonderworker and many others like them as saints, but the East and the West equally honor them; only those who do not believe in holiness can deny their holiness. The host of God's saints grew constantly, and in all the places where there were Christians, new ascetics appeared. However, the general life of Christians began to decline, spiritual fire began to dim, and there was no longer that clear feeling that there is Divine truth. Therefore, the common consciousness of believers could not always determine who the real righteous and saint of God is. In some places, dubious personalities appeared who captivated part of the flock with imaginary exploits. Therefore, the church authorities began to monitor the veneration of saints, taking care to protect their flock from superstition. They began to investigate the lives of the ascetics revered by believers and check the stories about their miracles. By the time of the baptism of Rus', it had already been established that the recognition of a new saint was carried out by church authorities. The decree of the church authorities, of course, extended to the region under its jurisdiction, however, other places usually recognized the glorification performed somewhere, even if they did not include it in their monthly calendars. After all, church authority only testified to holiness. The righteous became saints not by the decree of earthly church authority, but by the mercy and grace of God. The church authorities only approved the praise in church and the prayerful invocation of the new saint. What kind of power should and could do this was not precisely determined, at least the episcopal power. There were glorifications performed by the highest Church authority of an entire local church; the names of the newly glorified were then included in the church calendars of that entire church; others were glorified in one area or another and their veneration gradually spread to other places. Usually the glorification took place in the area where the ascetic lived or suffered. But it also happened differently. Thus, George, a young man from the city of Kratova (Serbia), who suffered in Sofia (Sredets, Bulgaria) from the Turks in 1515, was already glorified in Novgorod 14 years later. Despite the fact that his fellow citizens revered him as a new martyr, and even his confessor compiled a church service, they did not dare to show this openly, fearing the Turks, and therefore in Novgorod, which was in trade relations with those places, by order of the Archbishop, a service was compiled and the memory of the martyr George the New began to be venerated, from where it spread throughout Russia. When Serbia and Bulgaria freed themselves from the slavery of the Turks, they began to use the service compiled in Russia, and the one originally compiled in Sofia is still the property of the library. For the last two centuries, when Russia lived in glory and prosperity, the glorification of new saints was usually performed very solemnly according to the decree of the Supreme Authority, sometimes (but not always) taking place throughout Russia, and especially in the area where miraculous relics were found. However, this does not change the general order in the Church, and if the Russian people, under the yoke of a godless government, cannot openly praise and call upon the glorified saint of God, it is the duty of the part of the Russian Church free from the oppression of atheists to publicly honor and call on the Wonderworker, like St. Nicholas, now revered throughout the world, and to pray to holy righteous John for the correction of our lives and for the end of the disasters that befell his Fatherland according to the prophecy ours. May the Lord grant that that longed-for day will come when it will thunder from the Carpathians to the Pacific Ocean: We magnify you, righteous Father John, and honor your holy memory, for you pray for us, Christ our God! Homily for the week of All Saints who have shone forth in the Russian land Today is the feast of All Saints who have shone forth in the Russian land - all the saints who have been raised by the Russian Church, the Russian land. Today is a holiday of the spiritual sky over Russia. That sky stretches wide, starting from the holy Prince Vladimir and the blessed Princess Olga. They were like the roots of all the saints who shone in the Russian land. The great host has grown, the great tree of holiness. True, even before the Grand Duke Vladimir there were saints, righteous ones who shone in what is now the Russian land. Those parts that now make up the borders of Russia, even before they became part of the Russian land, shone with the holy saints of God. Chersonesos boasts of seven bishops who visited that region in the early times, and Cyril and Methodius later preached there. Grand Duke Vladimir was baptized in Chersonesos and, together with the relics of the ancient martyr Clement of Rome, he brought the Orthodox Faith to Kyiv, marking the beginning of the growth of the Russian Church there. Now we celebrate all those saints of God - Saints Anthony and Theodosius and the many other miracle workers of Pechersk, all the saints who shone in the Russian land, those saints who affirmed Orthodoxy, acquired Christianity in the Russian land, who affirmed faith and piety among the people, those saints who pretended to be mad, but in reality were wise and with their seemingly ridiculous actions they themselves humbled themselves. pride, taught children to worship holiness and follow the Gospel. We glorify the many saints of God who have shone in different parts of the Russian land; those passion-bearers who patiently endured the suffering sent down to them and, finally, those martyrs who shone in ancient times in a small rank, but now have abundantly watered all patches of the Russian land with their blood. The earth was sanctified by their blood, the air was sanctified by the ascension of their souls. The sky over Russia was sanctified by the face of the holy saints of God who shine above it. There are countless of them. There is a wonderful book recently written - “Holy Rus'”. The cross of Russian holiness is described in detail there. From this book you can learn how holiness took root and grew in Russia, how others spiritually descended from some saints, how they were connected with each other, and all this truly represents the golden chain of holiness of the Russian land. We celebrate them all today, which are impossible even to list. We see marvelous saints who strengthened the Russian idea with their pastoral work. We see how the Russian land was famous not only for the exploits of tsars, boyars, and warriors, but also how its parts were spiritually connected with each other with age by this holiness. That is why Rus' was called Holy Russia - not because there were no sins, there was no lawlessness, - no, always, wherever there are people, there have been and will be sins and lawlessness. Since the fall of our ancestors, evil has entered the world, but all evil has never seemed ideal or even tolerable to the Russian land. It was evil, but after that they repented. Even the robbers repented; those who ended their lives on the chopping block, and then for the most part remembered the Lord Jesus Christ before his death, bowed to the people, asking for forgiveness for those crimes with which they brought temptation and asked to pray for the repose of their souls. This is how it was in ancient times, this is how it was in Russian history, and the Russian land still preserves that holiness. And we praise all the saints who, through their entire lives, set an example of that holiness to the Russian land. Here is the Grand Duke Vladimir and the Blessed Princess Olga - that is the story of the princes who shone as saints of God. Why are they saints? Because although from time immemorial they had power in their hands, had great wealth in their hands, they were not captivated by wealth, they were not enslaved by it. That wealth and that power served either to do good, or to give other people the opportunity to live according to the commandments of God. And other saints of God went into caves, retreated into dense forests and deserts, but there they became magnets that spiritually attracted those who were looking for the strengthening of their souls. And those saints who left and tried to be unknown - their obscurity became known and people flocked to them. They shine to us from time immemorial in our times. The Lord glorified their deeds, glorified their holy relics with miracles, and to this day they are preachers for the glory of God. St. Sergius - how many years he lived alone in a dense forest, where there was no one except animals. To this day St. The Trinity-Sergius Lavra attracts believers from all over not only Rus', but, one might say, from all ends and ends of the universe. And it is not famous for anything else than the feat of St. Sergius and the saints who were saved by his teaching. And now it is, as it were, the heart of the Russian Land, together with our capital city of Moscow, which not only shines with wealth and ancient buildings, but with the holiness of those saints who labored there and whose relics rest there. We glorify all those who, in different parts of the Russian Land, established Christianity and preached to those who did not yet know Christianity. Rus' united everyone in a single shelter, not so much by the unity of the border, but by a spiritual call to the holiness of the saints who shone in the Russian Land. Many names became part of the Russian people. And although the Russian people are based on the Slavic people, they have many different names, but no one was considered a stranger as soon as they accepted the Orthodox Christian faith. The Orthodox faith saved Rus'. The Orthodox faith sanctified her. The Orthodox faith strengthened her. And in the difficult times of the Tatar yoke, how did the Russian people save themselves? It was only through faith in God that even then, in those difficult times, the most churches were built, the most monasteries were founded. And in those difficult times, the Russian people always especially called on God, and then Rus' was spiritually resurrected. Long before our disasters and outside the borders of Russia, there were saints who belonged to the Russian people, who shone in Rus' and shone in other places. Here in Greece, who is one of the glorious saints of God? – John the Russian, who was a captive during the time of Peter the Great, then lived among the Turks and was so strong in the Christian faith that Muslims bowed before him, seeing a righteous life. They tried to convert him to Islam, but he remained firm - they did not insist further and were only surprised to see the righteous life of that Russian man who was among them first as a slave and at the same time spiritually reigning over them. And when the Greeks had to leave Asia Minor, they brought his relics to the church on the island of Euboea, near Athens. And now it is a place where Greek, and now Russian, refugee pilgrims flock. Paisiy Velichkovsky also labored outside of Rus', not yet glorified (Reverend Paisiy Velichkovsky was locally glorified by the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad in the St. Elias Skete on Athos, and then together with the Venerable Fathers of Optina in 1990 - ed.), but became the spiritual father of many righteous people who have been spiritual leaders in Rus' in recent times. We celebrate them all together. How varied are their lives! Some are princes, others are commoners. Some occupy high positions, others wander the streets, half-dressed - and at the same time, kings listen to their voices! John the Terrible, before whom everyone trembled, starting from the members of his family and who exiled Metropolitan Philip, the holy man who denounced him, obeyed the half-naked Basil the Blessed. One day Ivan the Terrible stood in the church and, coming out of it, he saw St. Basil the Blessed. He says: “Vasily, I didn’t notice you, I didn’t see you here.” - “And I saw you, Tsar, not here in the church, but how you walk along the Sparrow Hills!” And King John was embarrassed: “Yes,” he said, “during mass I was thinking about how to build a palace on the Sparrow Hills.” He defeated Veliky Novgorod. He approached Pskov, and another holy fool, Blessed Nicholas, offered him meat. “I will not eat meat today. Today is Friday,” says Ivan the Terrible. “But you are doing worse, you drink human blood,” Blessed Nicholas answers him, “quickly leave here.” If you hesitate any longer, you will have nothing to escape from here with.” And John the Terrible, with the words of the Blessed One, left the courtyard. The words of the Blessed One have already begun to be fulfilled, because... The king's favorite horse immediately disappeared. He quickly leaves Pskov without committing any violence there. Thus holiness prevailed everywhere. Already in times not far from us, Tsar Nicholas I came to Kyiv. There, sitting on the floor, he is greeted by Blessed Theophilus, also an as yet uncelebrated saint of the Russian land. He speaks various instructions to him and the tsar, the autocratic ruler before whom Europe trembles, listens to his voice. Until recently there were righteous people of the Russian land. Many of them are glorified, known throughout the world, many of them are hitherto unknown and will shine, if God wishes, when the time comes for this. Saint Hermogenes, for example, after his exploit, rested unglorified for three hundred years. God arranges it so that we look at various examples, not only glorify the present day, and then, leaving the church, get down to other things and forget about them. No, we need the saints to be our great leaders, so that we always have them before our eyes. Already here abroad, in our days, we have righteous people, although not yet glorified, but from whom people received wondrous signs. For example, Bishop Jonah of Manchuria. One can feel the end of his earthly life approaching. He calls the priest and begins to read the funeral service himself, and at the hour when his spirit departs to heaven, the boy who lies in that city sick with his legs, who for a long time could not walk, runs and shouts: “Mom, mother, Saint Jonah appeared to me now and says - I don’t need my legs anymore. Here are your legs." That boy who was lying motionless on the bed is now running! At that time, a rumor spreads that Vladika Jonah died at that very hour. In France, several years ago, when a cemetery was being moved, when one grave was dug up, the workers suddenly jumped back in horror. There lay an Orthodox priest in full vestments, and it turned out that this priest had lain there for more than sixteen years. He was dying of cancer, when usually a person decomposes alive, but he lay intact and incorruptible, and now his body has been transferred to Paris. The saints of God shine in our time. And how many of them there are in our unfortunate, exhausted Motherland! How many holy martyrs are there! How many martyrs are there! There are no numbers for them. How many of our saints were exiled in various places, who died, and whose lives are similar to those saints who were persecuted during iconoclasm and other heresies. And Peter Krutitsky, and Kirill Kazansky and many others who died somewhere in the unknown, whose relics will never be found, but shine like a bright light before our spiritual eyes in the Russian sky. All of them, the holy saints of God, glorified and unglorified, pray for us and show us an example. I repeat that there have always been sins and lawlessness in Russia. They existed from the very first times, when sin filled the earth, from the hour when our first parents sinned in Paradise. But sin should not remain sin, and if someone repents, then a criminal becomes a saint. Just as Mary of Egypt was a sinner, others were robbers, and then became saints. Let us pray now that the Lord will send their spirit into our hearts. So that we abroad, following their example, remember that it is not in vain that we bear the name of the sons of Russia. That it was not in vain that the Lord gave us the gift of having our own roots, that he allowed some to grow up in their homeland, and others to be born from Russian parents. Because if any country boasts of anything, then the Russian land boasts of holiness. “Beautiful France”, they say. Different countries are given different names - which people were surprised. But the Russian land is even more called “Holy Russia”. Only one other land has this name attached to it - the Holy Land, in which our Lord shone. No one from other countries, no one from other peoples accepts this title. Why? Because the most important thing for us, the most precious, the greatest, is holiness. This is the ideal, this is the limit of the aspiration of the Russian people. We forget to turn to the spiritual sky, but I hope we have not forgotten forever. Just as satellites, walking through the desert at night, look at the sky and find their way by the stars - so we must look at our Russian sky, so that the Lord will show us the way and lead us to peace and unity here abroad, so that the Lord will transform the hearts of Russian people abroad, and then, defeated by the spiritual onslaught, the external chains of space will fall. And Russia will rise again in all its glory and greatness. The blessing of the Lord is upon you. Saints Equal to the Apostles Cyril and Methodius “Going forward, teach all languages, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19), Christ commanded the disciples, appearing to them after His Resurrection from the dead. Fulfilling that command of the Lord, the apostles, after the descent of the Holy Spirit on them, dispersed to different countries, everywhere preaching about Christ, His life, teaching and resurrection. Almost all the then famous countries were visited by the apostles. In the far West they preached: St. the apostle Simon the Canaanite, also called a Zealot (zealot) - in Britain, and Jacob the Zebedee, brother of John the Theologian, in Spain. In Rome, the holy apostles Peter and Paul instilled the faith, where they completed their apostolic feat with martyrdom; and before that St. the Apostle Peter preached in Judea and Antioch the Great, and St. Paul traveled around, preaching the gospel of Christ, throughout Asia Minor, Macedonia and Greece. The beloved disciple of Christ, St., spent the last years of his earthly life in Asia Minor and the surrounding islands. John the Theologian, who wrote his Gospel and Revelation there, St. suffered there. Apostle Philip, who had previously traveled around Ethiopia and Arabia. St. Apostle Andrew the First-Called visited the countries of the future Russia, visiting the North Caucasus, sailing along the entire Dnieper, erecting the Cross on the Kyiv mountains and reaching Veliky Novgorod, and then preached in the Balkans, installed the first bishop of Byzantium and ended his life in Greece. The evangelists Matthew and Mark enlightened African countries, some of them were visited by the apostle. Simon the Zealot, who completed his apostolic labors in the North Caucasus, near Sukhum. The Apostle Thaddeus preached in Mesopotamia, Bartholomew preached in Armenia, and also visited Northern India. And Greater India, after preaching in Greece, was bypassed by Thomas, who reached the distant eastern borders and visited China. So “their message went out into the whole earth and their words to the ends of the world” (Ps. 18:5) and “from the east of the sun to the west” (Ps. 113:3) the Name of the Lord was praised. In the centuries that followed, new nationalities were formed, young strong tribes replaced the ancient peoples who had disappeared into the realm of history. Being, as it were, still in infancy and living the life of primitive peoples, they could not immediately perceive all the achievements of their predecessors and feed on the fruits they had already returned. Many treasures of the ancient world were destroyed, the value of which was incomprehensible to almost savages. But among those treasures there was one priceless bead, which could only be hidden in the ground for a while. This was the Faith of Christ, the spiritual food by which man lives. The abundant fruits of high theology, which grew from the apostolic preaching, were inaccessible and indigestible for the degree of spiritual development at which the infant nations stood. For them, apostolic preaching was again needed, the seeds of the Gospel had to be sowed again. The Equal-to-the-Apostles brothers Methodius and Cyril appeared as such sowers and apostles for the Slavic tribes and peoples, who continued the work of Christ’s apostles. In the 9th century, the Slavs occupied vast areas of eastern and central Europe, in the South they approached almost Constantinople and Thessaloniki, and in the West they even occupied what is now northern Italy and a significant part of Germany. But, living on the land through which St. passed. Andrew the First-Called, they could not take advantage of the fruits of his preaching, forming a completely new population for those countries, speaking their own language and living their own customs and views. The Faith of Christ was alien to their consciousness, although their heart was a good field for the seed of Christ's teaching. Workers were needed, and the Lord called and sent them, like once the twelve, and then the seventy apostles. Just as, when choosing twelve apostles, Christ was the first to call two pairs - the brothers Simon and Andrew, James and John, among the twelve were also the brothers Matthew-Levi and James Alpheus - so the two brothers Methodius and Constantine, in the schema Cyril, became the apostles of the Slavs. Being the sons of a noble nobleman of Thessalonica, from childhood they became acquainted with the Slavs, their language, customs and beliefs. Having received an excellent education, Methodius was appointed governor in one of the regions inhabited by the Slavs, and Constantine devoted himself entirely to science and, having been educated in Constantinople with Tsar Michael III, became a librarian at the church of St. Sofia, where the best works from all fields of science were concentrated. The brothers despised and abandoned all this for the sake of the cause of Christ. Methodius left his high position and the world, became a monk, also accepted monasticism and the priesthood of Constantine, and both brothers were ready to serve where the finger of God pointed. Their knowledge and talents received from God were soon needed to preach the Christian faith in different countries. First they were sent to the Saracens, who at that time took possession of Syria and lived near the Euphrates River. They were ardent followers of Mohammed and exalted his teachings over Christian ones. However, in many debates St. Constantine and Methodius refuted all their arguments and showed the insignificance of the Mohammedan faith, so that, being defeated by a word, the Saracen teachers wanted to poison St. brothers, but they couldn’t do it. After their return to Constantinople, they were soon to head to Tauride Chersonesos, where Sevastopol is now located, and then the Khazars lived who professed the Jewish faith. There they found the relics of the Hieromartyr Clement, Pope of Rome, disciple of St. Apostle Peter, exiled to Chersonesus for forced labor, and then drowned in the sea for preaching Christianity. Having now continued the work he had begun, the holy brothers not only preached the Word of God in that city, the future font of the Enlightener of Rus', St. Equal-to-the-Apostles Vladimir, but also visited the surrounding northern countries inhabited by the Khazars. They had disputes with the Judaizers and in them clearly and irrefutably showed the superiority of the New Testament over the Old, and that the Old Testament was only a prelude to the New. Having defeated the Judaizers, as well as the Mohammedans, as well as the pagans who lived there and baptized many Khazars, Methodius and Constantine returned to Constantinople, taking with them part of the relics of St. Clement. After a short time, they faced the third apostolic feat, which forever shone them with unfading glory. An embassy arrived from the Slavic Moravian prince Rostislav with a request to send preachers of the Faith of Christ speaking their language. At that time, the Slavic tribes began to become acquainted with Christianity, but the Greek and Latin languages ​​were incomprehensible to them. Now a wide door had opened before the brothers for preaching the Gospel of Christ, for numerous Slavic tribes were still in paganism and complete ignorance. They did not even have their own written language and, despite many good spiritual qualities, they were a monster for Christian peoples, being able to destroy everything that stood in their way. The preachers sent to them needed to regenerate them in order to bring them into the bosom of Christ’s Church and the family of Christian nations. That's what the holy brothers did. Realizing the responsibility and difficulty of the divine work they were beginning, they prepared for it by fasting for forty days. Then, after fervent prayer, Constantine compiled the Slavic alphabet, taking the Greek alphabet of 24 letters as a basis and adding 14 letters from other alphabets, since the Slavic language had more sounds than Greek. Immediately then, with the help of Methodius and his disciples - Clement, Naum, Gorazd, Savva, Angelar and others, he began to translate the Holy Scripture into Slavic, starting with the Gospel of John. On May 11, for the first time, “From the beginning was the Word, and the Word was to God, and God was the Word,” was inscribed in Slavic. From that day on, recorded Slavic speech poured out and the beginning was laid for the mental enlightenment of the Slavs, Slavic writing and education. Having translated the most important passages from the Holy Scriptures and some liturgical books, the brothers headed to Moravia and, preaching in their native Slavic language, converted many to the Orthodox Christian faith. Slandered by their enemies for preaching false teachings, to justify themselves they had to go to Rome, where they took part of the relics of St. Clement, where Constantine fell ill and died, taking the schema with the name of Cyril and bequeathing to his brother to continue their work. St. Methodius, consecrated archbishop of Moravia, returned to Moravia and established the church there, and after his death, his disciples, arriving in Bulgaria and Serbia, spread Orthodoxy there. Since then, the degeneration of the Slavic peoples began. After 100 years, Rus' was also baptized, taking advantage of the works of Sts. Cyril and Methodius. Grand Duke Vladimir was baptized in the same Chersonese or Korsun in which they preached, and from there he brought to Kyiv a chapter from the relics of St. Clement, Pope of Rome, for the establishment of faith in the newly enlightened Mother of Russian cities and the whole country. At the same time, Slavic liturgical books were brought, translated by St. Cyril and Methodius. The priests who arrived from the South Slavic countries were immediately able to perform divine services in the Slavic language native to the Russian people and explain the truths of the Faith in an understandable dialect, especially since at that time the difference between individual Slavic dialects was very insignificant. At the same time, schools were opened where children learned Slavic literacy and were trained to become priests, so that soon Rus', like other Slavic peoples, had shepherds from among itself. This was of great importance for the establishment of the Orthodox Faith in Russia, as before in Bulgaria. And then in Serbia. Works of St. Cyril and Methodius helped the Slavic soul to understand and assimilate the Teachings of Christ, made it akin to Orthodoxy and laid the foundation for the mental development of the Slavic peoples. All the good things that the Slavs had afterward are in one way or another connected with the internal and life revolution among them that the saints made. Cyril and Methodius. The self-awareness, identity and very existence of the Slavs were preserved thanks to them, and they are the spiritual fathers and ancestors of the Slavs. The Orthodox faith they preached revived the Slavs and made Rus' the guardian of Orthodoxy. From it came preachers who, imitating St. Cyril and Methodius, carried the light of Christ to other tribes, also translating the sacred books into their languages ​​and sometimes compiling the alphabet for them, as for the Zyryans of St. Stefan Permsky. Their successors carried the light of Orthodoxy to the Far East, where they continued the work begun by St. the Apostle Thomas. Therefore, truly St. Cyril and Methodius are the apostles of all the peoples of Eastern Europe and the great borders of Asia! What a joyful cry of gratitude will burst from the lips of people who have been sitting in a dark cave from birth and deprived of light, when someone, having dissolved their gloomy home, pours the life-giving rays of the sun into it and then leads them to freedom! We should feel the same feeling of gratitude towards the holy brothers Cyril and Methodius. “They brought light to the truth of the Faith of Christ to the Slavic tribes who sit in the land of the shadow of death” (Matthew 4:16) of paganism. They announced it to those who did not know about the Kingdom of Heaven and showed the way to it. They turned the servants of false pagan gods into servants of the True God! They taught those who lived in wickedness and rude morals to love goodness and truth, showed them the superiority of virtue, “purified their feelings” and made them pious and moral. They freed those who were under the power of sin and vices from the snares of the devil, revived them through holy Baptism and taught them a new life for the glory of God. At the same time, for the ignorant and half-wild Slavs, they compiled the alphabet, bestowed literacy and, having taught them to use writing, laid the foundation for their mental enlightenment. The success of the Slavs in all areas of life begins with Saints Cyril and Methodius. Former semi-robber tribes are turning into great nations and creating strong states imbued with the spirit of Christianity. So, wherever we look, wherever the light shines among the Slavs and good is done, we see traces of the works of the saints. Methodius and Cyril. Let us look at the spiritual sky - there is a numerous host of holy saints of God who labored in the Slavic countries. These are the fruits of the seeds sown by the holy brothers. Let's look at the earth - we will see the glorious Slavic powers, the history of the Slavic peoples full of exploits, the achievements of the Slavs in the field of science and the arts. For this we must be grateful to our same holy First Teachers And therefore, on the day of their memory, it is our duty to glorify them and exclaim to them with gratitude: “Glory to you, holy brothers, enlighteners of the Slavs!” . The Paralytic, the Samaritan Woman and the Man Born Blind Before ending today's service, I want to draw your attention to three gospel events remembered on the Sundays between the Week of the Myrrh-Bearing Women and the Ascension. In one the Gospel is read about Christ's healing of the paralytic, in the other - about the conversation with the Samaritan woman, in the third - about the granting of sight to a man born blind. Three were honored to talk with Christ and accept His gift: one was healing from a long-term illness, the other was the resolution of issues that she herself could not resolve, the third was bodily vision. But their future fate is different. Historical monuments are silent about the former paralytic, but a legend that can be trusted tells us that he was the one who later, as a bishop’s servant, hit Christ on the cheek during the interrogation of the high priest. It is known about the Samaritan woman that she believed in Christ and many years later, during the persecution of Nero, she suffered with her sisters and sons. The Church still commemorates her - the martyr Photinia. And about the healed man born blind, the Gospel itself tells that as soon as he confessed Christ, he was immediately expelled by the Pharisees. So the paralytic, after being healed of a temporary illness, inherited eternal death; The Samaritan Photinia, having been honored to speak with Christ, lived for a long time in peace and honor among her fellow citizens, only many years later testifying to her faith with her blood, and the former blind man, immediately after receiving the benefit, suffered persecution for loyalty to his benefactor. But his reward is also great: Christ Himself seeks him and, having found him, opens his spiritual eyes and calls him to follow the path leading to the higher kingdom. Let's remember these three examples. Having received any gift from God - be it spiritual or earthly, let us use it usefully to inherit eternal salvation. Let us remember that if we do not use it worthily, we will move away from God and lose eternal life. Let us follow Christ’s teaching, and if we have to suffer for it, Christ Himself will come to support and strengthen us, just as He came to strengthen and enlighten the man born blind who was healed by Him, and persecuted by unfaithful compatriots. Amen. Venerable Seraphim of Sarov In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. “In the middle of summer they will sing Easter,” it was once said in Sarov. 70 years passed after the death of the one who spoke these words, and on July 19, 1903, all of Rus' resounded with songs of praise glorifying God and His saint. Indeed, all of Rus' rejoiced then as on the day of Holy Easter, even more. Then terrible days came for Russia, but the memory of St. Seraphim did not die or weaken. Russian people also flock to him, glorifying him both in his tormented homeland and in all corners of the world where they are scattered. Other nations are beginning to become acquainted with the life of St. Seraphim; his biography is translated into different languages, causing not only admiration, but also the desire of many to apply in their lives the lessons given to us by the life of St. Seraphim. So, despite all the changes taking place in the world, the memory of St. Seraphim not only does not fade, but remains a lamp, shining ever brighter for humanity. The same thing happened in the days of his earthly life. Cities collapsed, kingdoms were restored, Napoleon went to Russia with 12 nations, and then Napoleon left it in disgrace, Moscow burned and again rose from the ashes, the Decembrists staged an uprising and were tried, but these events seemed to not concern St. Seraphim. He was all busy achieving “the one thing he needed”, working on “his spiritual growth.” “An egoist, closed in on himself,” “an ignorant person who is not interested in anything except what concerns him personally” - this is what many thinkers would say about him, who do not want to see the slightest benefit in the feats of self-improvement. But then the monk Seraphim dies. It would seem that the image of this old man, who so stubbornly ran away from the world, should now be completely erased from people’s memory. But a whole pilgrimage to his tomb begins, in all parts of Russia those who resort to him receive help, consolation and edification, and his veneration begins to spread among other nations. What is the power of St. Seraphim? What is his feat? He strove to implement the commandment of Christ: “Be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect”; he worked to restore in himself the original image of man, which was subsequently damaged by sin. The Monk Seraphim achieved his goal: he conquered sin and became a saint, truly becoming in the likeness of God. We cannot see the invisible God. But the Lord allows us to see Himself in His likeness, in His saints. And one of these similarities became the Monk Seraphim. In him we see restored human nature, freed from slavery to sin. He is the incarnate personification of the victory of the eternal over the transitory, holiness over sin, good over evil. St. Seraphim encourages everyone by his example to follow the path indicated by Christ. He calls you to fight sin and your shortcomings, being a beacon and lamp for all who seek salvation. St. Seraphim calls to seek the highest good, the spiritual fruit, about which the Apostle Paul said: “The spiritual fruit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, mercy, faith, meekness, self-control.” But for this it is necessary to “crucify the flesh with its passions and lusts.” The path to the heavenly kingdom is difficult, for sin has taken possession of human nature and corrupted it. Each of us has personal sins. There are also social sins in which the entire people are guilty. Thus, the entire Russian people are sinful in that they abandoned the pious life and customs of their ancestors, began to accept and seek what was alien to them, unorthodox, that they believed the slander spread about the Anointed of God, and allowed first to tear off the crown, and then to destroy with his entire family, his pious Tsar, the first to fall to the illustrious relics of St. Seraphim. St. Seraphim calls everyone to repentance and to the correction of life, both personal and social. Although this path is difficult, the saint of God will help you walk it. St. Seraphim is a beacon and lamp on this path; he is also an assistant. Through the prayers of Your reverend Father Seraphim, Lord, grant repentance and victory over sin to us sinners, and lead us into Your heavenly kingdom. Amen. In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Usually, when we hear church hymns in which the saints of God are glorified, remembered by the Church, we hear men’s names. But today the memory of two saints of God, or rather, saints, is celebrated - both holy names glorified today are female. The Holy Great Martyr Euphemia and the Holy Blessed Princess Olga - both received one more name: St. Euphemia is called “all praise”, and St. Olga was called by her contemporaries “the wisest of wives.” Saint Euphemia was martyred during the persecution of Christians under Diocletian, and her death and suffering are remembered on September 16th. And today her memory is celebrated on the occasion of one miracle that took place during the IV Ecumenical Council. The Fourth Ecumenical Council had to decide who was right - those who believe that Christ was God and man, the God-man, or those who claim that in Christ the Divinity completely swallowed up humanity, so that even His sufferings were only apparent. When representatives of the Orthodox, led by Sts. Anatoly of Constantinople and Juvenal of Jerusalem, with many arguments from the Holy Scriptures and Tradition, proved that Christ is the God-man, then, wanting to receive God’s special Instruction where the correct faith is, they wrote two confessions of faith - Orthodox and Monophysite. Both of them were placed in a shrine with the relics of St. Euphemia, who were in the church where the meetings of the IV Ecumenical Council took place. The shrine was enclosed, the church was locked, so that no one could enter it, and when three days later they unlocked the church and opened the shrine, the Orthodox confession lay on the chest of the saint. Euphemia, and the Monophysite was under her feet, and she seemed to trample on it. After such a clear indication from God, it was finally established that we now confess that Christ is the God-man, and the Monophysite faith was condemned. St. Euphemia then received the name “limit of St. Fathers”, “Confirmation of the Orthodox Faith”. Several hundred years have passed since this miracle. The Russian Grand Duchess Olga adopted Christianity and received the name Elena at baptism. She wanted to baptize all of Rus', many followed her example, but she failed to fully realize her desire, and even her son, the stern Svyatoslav, remained a pagan. But her grandson Vladimir decided to change his faith. When he began to lean towards Orthodoxy, he called his boyars and governors to a meeting to make a final decision. After many arguments given in favor of accepting Orthodoxy from Constantinople, the boyars said: “If this faith were not good, Olga, the wisest of women, would not have accepted it.” This argument was so convincing that the question of accepting the faith was resolved. What Olga could not do during life, she did after death. Her memory, like a saint, began to be glorified throughout Rus' on the day of her death, July 11, along with St. Euphemia, by whom the relics were transferred from Chalcedon to Constantinople. Centuries have passed. Gentiles took Constantinople, and Moscow became the capital of Orthodoxy. As if to commemorate this, by God’s favor, the unsewn tunic of Christ was transferred to Moscow under Tsar Mikhail Feodorovich, who, by the way, was born on this very day. Once upon a time, the Second Rome - Constantinople - had, as protection, the most precious shrines - the robe and belt of the Mother of God. It is known that the first Russian Christian princes Askold and Dir were baptized after they experienced a miracle during the campaign against Constantinople: when the robe of the Mother of God was lowered into the sea by the patriarch, a terrible storm arose that scattered the Russian ships, and the Russian governors and soldiers thrown ashore were baptized, amazed by this miracle. But it was not the robe of the Mother of God that was transferred to Moscow, but the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, His unsewn tunic. The Third Rome led all Orthodox nations, began to liberate the Orthodox East from infidels, and it seemed that the complete end of their power was close. But at the decisive moment, Russia itself fell under the even more terrible slavery of communism. In the enslaved Second Rome (Constantinople), if they do not dare to organize religious processions and generally express openly signs of veneration of the Orthodox faith, they can, although in their churches, freely offer praises and prayers to God, even prayers for the blessed kings, because the Greeks did not change the text of prayers containing such petitions. Today, a cancer with the relics of St. is placed in the middle of the church of the Constantinople Patriarchate. Euphemia with a Slavic inscription that this cancer is a gift from Metropolitan Anthony of St. Petersburg. This inscription seems to testify, and the Russian people, with their prayers, invisibly stand before the relics of St. Euphemia. And where the relics of St. Olga, churches are being taken away and turned into cinemas, museums and theaters; the remaining churches, with the support of the authorities, are invaded by living churchmen and self-sanctifiers. The godless government wants to enslave both soul and body, controlling even what is done in the churches. But the miracles performed after the death of St. Euphemia and Olga, give us hope that even now they intercede for the Orthodox. Let us end our prayer today with the petition found in the kontakion of St. Euphemia: “And now, like heresies, subdue the staggering enemies under the feet of the Orthodox kings.” Amen. Holy Righteous John of Kronstadt To his glorification Let the heavens rejoice and the earth rejoice! The new saint of God is glorified by the Church. A new prayer book and intercessor for sinful people openly appeared in Heaven. It is not from this day that he became a saint. From the day of his resettlement in the Kingdom of Heaven, he entered the ranks of the saints and with them he intercedes for those who turn to him for help. With them he glorifies the Creator and enjoys inexpressible joy. For a long time, even during his lifetime, many revered him as a saint of God. The miracles he performed testified to this. But this was only the opinion or feeling of individuals, and funeral services were performed for him, as for ordinary people. Now the Church proclaims: “Truly this is God’s chosen one. Truly this one is righteous and an intercessor for us before God.” The earthly Church celebrates, and the saints, all the angels and saints of God, rejoice in it. There is no envy or division between them. When one of them is glorified, everyone rejoices at him. They rejoice not so much at the honor bestowed upon them, but at the fact that through him people turn to God. They rejoice that people turn their mental gaze to heaven from the sinful world. Let us lift our spiritual eyes and see John in Heavenly glory. Who is he? He is a great righteous man. All his life he tried to keep the commandments of God and do everything as God commanded. He is a reverent clergyman of the Church. Not by inheritance, like the Old Testament priests, but by a sincere desire to serve God, he became a priest. He fervently offered prayers to God, diligently observed the church rules, and truly was a model and example for all clergy. Therefore, His prayer was effective. He was the embodiment of mercy, he pitied everyone, helped everyone. He not only responded to requests for help, but he himself sought out those in need. He condescended to everyone, tried to help everyone, giving material, worldly alms to some, raising others from the fall of sin and enriching them with spiritual gifts. He was also a formidable denouncer of human sins, like the prophet Elijah and John the Baptist, who was not afraid to openly speak the truth to his face. Gracious to those who repent, no matter how great their sins were, he did not tolerate persistence in sin. A great wonderworker, he filled the whole world with his miracles, like St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, and with his teachings he edifies everyone who seeks the path of God. A seer who saw what was inside of those who came to him, what their lives were like, and who gave saving advice to everyone, at the end of his earthly life he became a prophet who foresaw future disasters if repentance and correction of life did not come. Let us call to him now, when he has shone in the spiritual sky before everyone: “Pray for us, righteous Father John, turn us all to the path of salvation, and deliver your Fatherland and ours from the disasters that have come according to your prophecy, and let us joyfully cry to you: Rejoice, righteous Father John, most wonderful miracle worker, and prayer book for us to God! Holy and righteous Father John, save us with your prayers!” You might be interested in: