The doctrine of God and the Holy Trinity by St. Cyril of Jerusalem

Contents Introduction Biography of St. Cyril, Archbishop of Jerusalem Brief notes on the literary activity of St. Kirill Chapter 1. The doctrine of God in general and His properties Properties of the mind of God Properties of the will of God About the unity of God About God the Creator of the world Chapter II. The doctrine of the Holy Trinity, of God the Father Chapter III. About the second hypostasis of the Holy Trinity The Messianic ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ The Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead The Ascension of Jesus Christ Christ on His Throne The Second Coming Chapter IV. About the Holy Spirit Conclusion The Church founded by the Lord Jesus Christ was subjected to severe persecution for three centuries. Its external enemies, among whom the seed of the Christian faith grew and developed, exerted all their strength to destroy this wonderful and unprecedented religion. However, despite such strong persecution, she grew and became stronger all the time. The enemies turned out to be powerless to destroy the Church of God, based on the stone of faith, and the latter emerged victorious from this struggle. A new era has come in the life of the Church - an era of struggle against internal enemies who, with their ungodly fabrications, intended to distort the essence of Orthodox teaching and cloud the dogmas. Heresies were such terrible enemies. But God’s providence did not abandon the Church of Christ. To preserve the purity and holiness of the teachings of its Founder, our Lord Jesus Christ, His immutable saving truths, God was pleased to promote from among Christians those chosen ones of God who, with the importance of their service in the Church, combined the heights of spirit and greatness of deeds, who selflessly entered into the fight against heresies, zealously defending the interests of the Universal Church, preserving the unity of the faith of Christ and the integrity of the dogmatic truths that Not only did they themselves preserve this holy faith and love for Christ to the end, but they also led many others to God, contributed a lot during life and no less continue to contribute after death to the spread of the Gospel and its strengthening in the hearts of believers. The great hierarch of the Church founded by God, Cyril of Jerusalem, belongs to the ranks of these holy fathers. He lived and labored precisely at a time when the Arian heresy worried the entire Christian world and sought to completely destroy the spiritual heritage collected by the Church over the first three centuries and, it would seem, was ready to wipe out the Invincible by its enemies. In the hope of God's help, the true warrior of the Church of Christ firmly stood guard over the faith and traditions of the apostles. He was persecuted, repeatedly expelled from the pulpit, and sent into exile, but until the end of his life he remained an unshakable and faithful servant of the Universal Church. With his teaching about God and the Holy Trinity, about repentance and the salvation of souls, the Archpastor not only enlightened the flock entrusted to him and protected them from heretics, but also pagans - he brought them to Christ and pointed out the true path leading to salvation. Being a great zealot for God, a guardian of piety and the teachings of Christ, St. Cyril tirelessly sowed the gospel seed, and, enlightening all those entering the bosom of the Church with the light of Christ and instructing them in the faith, he called upon everyone to fight heresies. “You have many enemies,” he said, “take a lot of arrows, because you must shoot at many... The weapon is ready, the sword of the Spirit is prepared. But you must also, with good will, strain your right hand in order to wage the battle of the Lord, defeat opposing forces, and remain invincible in every heretical matter 1 . Preaching the word of God is one of the main tasks in the life of a Servant of the Altar of the Lord. In his daily teachings, he revealed and taught to believers and those wishing to become believers in Christ those Christian truths, without which neither life in God nor salvation is conceivable. Moreover, his edifying teachings were so strong and effective that not only pagans, but also Jews entered the fold of the Church of Christ; even heretics abandoned their freethinking and returned to Orthodoxy. Therefore, the seedbed of faith and piety needed, first of all, to explain the sacraments established by God, to reveal the ancient Apostolic Creed, that is, to adequately prepare the catechumens for the transition from darkness to light. Along with the revelation of Divine truths, St. Cyril reveals the errors of the heretics and shows their inconsistency, which further strengthens the faith of the people and protects the flock from what could destroy them. Thus, in one of his teachings he says: “Remove from yourself lewdness of all kinds, do not be a glutton and a sensualist; rise above all love of money and covetousness. Do not go to pagan solemn gatherings, and never wear aprons when you are sick. Turn away from all baseness and greed. Do not fall into Samaritanism or Judaism; because Jesus Christ has already delivered you. Abandon all observance of the Sabbath, and do not call any indifferent food low and unclean. Above all, hate all heretical gatherings and protect your soul in every possible way with fasting, almsgiving and reading Divine words, so that in chastity and pious dogmas, having lived out the rest of your time in the flesh, you can enjoy the only salvation” 2. Biography of St. Kirill, Archbishop of Jerusalem Saint Cyril of Jerusalem lived and labored in the 4th century. The Church ranks him among those great and wonderful Fathers who completely devoted themselves to serving God and, through their tireless struggle against heresies and activities in the field of Christ, opened a new era in the life of the Church. Historical information about him is scant, and much of his life remains unknown. So, we do not know who his parents were, in what year and where he was born, how he was brought up and how he spent his youth 3. Based on some considerations, it is believed that St. Kirill was born around 315 in the mountains. Jerusalem or its environs 4. From the works of the Holy Father we can conclude that he was the son of Orthodox and pious parents, who raised him in the Christian spirit, and had an excellent education. The evidence he provides to refute pagan and heretical errors reveals in him knowledge of mythology, physics, physiology, dialectics and other sciences. In addition, he was quite knowledgeable in theology, knew the Holy Scripture perfectly, when interpreting which he refrained from allegorism and understood it only in the literal sense. “...For the Divine and holy mysteries of faith must not be taught without the Divine Scriptures,” he says in one of his teachings about the Holy Spirit, “and not be carried away by simple probability and the arguments of reason 5 . “So, let us say only what is written about the Holy Spirit,” he seems to continue the same thought, “but if something is not written, let us not be curious about it” 6 . From this we can conclude that St. Cyril is a product of the Antiochian school, which, in contrast to the Alexandrian school, was alien to allegorism in the understanding of the sublime Divine truths, guided by faith and what the Holy Spirit himself revealed in the Holy Books, which is also noticeable in the works of the Holy Father. From the same works it is clear that St. Kirill began to lead an ascetic lifestyle early; and for cultivating moral qualities in himself, which were combined with his great talents, he, while still young, was numbered among the clergy of the Jerusalem Church 7 . Around 335 St. Cyril was ordained a deacon by Macarius, Archbishop of Jerusalem, and ordained a presbyter around 345 by Macarius' successor, Archbishop Maximus. With his elevation to the rank of presbyter, Archbishop Maxim entrusted him with the duty of teaching the people from the pulpit, preparing Jews and pagans who wanted to become members of the Church of Christ for the worthy acceptance of St. Baptism. On this occasion, the young shepherd pronounced his Catechetical and Secret Words, saturated with the spirit of the Gospel. This work was not easy. Judging the internal state of each of those preparing to receive the Sacrament required a lot of effort and great experience. He had to vigilantly monitor the spiritual growth of his pupils-catechumens, observe their lives in order to make sure of the sincerity of their conversion and see whether they could be admitted to Baptism or not. In 350–351, after the death of Archbishop Maximus, the clergy and people elected Cyril as Bishop of Jerusalem. His consecration to the episcopal rank was carried out by Akakios, Bishop of Caesarea 9. The beginning of his archpastoral service was marked by the appearance of the Cross of the Lord in heaven 10. The inhabitants of the city and everyone in Jerusalem at that time, seeing this extraordinary miraculous sign, were overwhelmed with fear and joy. Everyone hurried to the holy church of God, everyone prayed and “... everyone unanimously, as if with one mouth, glorified the miracle-working Christ Jesus our Lord” 11 . Then many of the Jews and pagans turned to Christ, for they saw and were convinced that the teaching of the Orthodox Church consists “... not in the wisdom of men, but in the manifestation of the Spirit and power” (1 Cor. 2:4) 12. The divine appearance of the banner of the cross made a deep impression on the Archpastor himself. It strengthened his faith and even more inspired him to fight the enemies of Orthodoxy and, indeed, from that time on, Saint Cyril completely devoted himself to the service of the Church, constantly caring for its external and internal improvement. To this end, he sends a letter to Emperor Constantius. Describing the divine cross-shaped radiance of the glory of God, St. The saint tries to influence the emperor and deviate him from the wicked teachings of Arianism, so that, to the joy of Christians, he, like others, glorifies the Consubstantial Trinity 13. But the heretics so entangled him with their false teaching that no one could save him from this destruction. Acacius, Bishop of Caesarea, also belonged to the Arian heresy. Moreover, the latter was hostile to St. Kirill. Disagreement arose between them in religious doctrine 14 . In addition, there were disputes about the primacy of departments 15. Akaki, elevating his see, tried in every possible way to humiliate the honor and dignity of the Bishop of Jerusalem, regardless of the fact that the first Ecumenical Council in one of its definitions gave priority to the honor of the see of the Jerusalem Church. Saint Cyril defended the rights of the latter from the claims of Akakios and thereby further aggravated the situation. Akakios and his followers became angry not only against St. Cyril, but also against all Orthodox bishops who communicated with him. They began to be removed from their pulpits and Arianists were installed 16. Having gained wide scope in the seizure of Orthodox thrones, they began to look for an opportunity to deprive the chair and St. Kirill. Such an opportunity, indeed, soon presented itself to them. There was a terrible famine in Jerusalem. Residents of the city, deprived of all means to support life, flocked in crowds to the holy church and prayerfully asked their Archpastor for help. He helped them in every possible way. When all the church money was distributed, St. Kirill was forced to sell church utensils and use the proceeds to support his suffering spiritual children. Having learned about this, Akaki accused St. benefactor before the king in squandering church property. He was summoned to Caesarea for trial. But the Holy Father did not appear at this trial. For two years Akaki demanded him to come to him, and St. Kirill still didn’t show up 17. Then Akaki convened a council in 357, which was attended exclusively by his like-minded people, and condemned St. in absentia. Cyril and expelled from the pulpit 18. Leaving Jerusalem, the convicted bishop submitted a report to the participants of the council, in which he pointed out the illegality of their decision and demanded a high court. On this occasion, he appealed to the emperor himself, and the latter agreed to convene a local council to consider his case. But convening a council of Orthodox bishops was difficult and almost impossible. The bishops of the Palestinian churches were dependent on Akakios; Arianism also dominated in Alexandria, and in the place of Athanasius, expelled by heretics, George, a like-minded person of Acacius, was installed. Cyril, therefore, had to travel to Antioch, but the Church of Antioch, like other eastern churches, was in a suffering position. Bishop Eusebius was expelled, and her throne went to the Arians. But by the time St. arrived here. Kirill, the Church remained without a bishop. Two monks Flavian and Diodorus 19 took care of preserving the faith and purity of morals. Finding no support for myself here, ov. The father goes to Silouana, bishop of Tarsus. The elder, responsive to Orthodoxy, received him with love; He even allowed him to perform divine services in the church and deliver teachings. Akakios, having learned about the stay of St. Cyril in Tarsus, tried to persuade Silouan to stop communicating with him and expel him from himself. However, the venerable elder, knowing the unjust and illegal demand of Akaki, could not do this and remained with St. Kirill was just as good-natured, for he saw in him a worthy servant of the Altar of the Lord and a zealot for the faith. In 350, Emperor Constantius convened a council in Seleucia. It was attended by 150 bishops, including a small number of Orthodox Christians; the overwhelming majority were Semi-Arians and Arians. Arrived at the cathedral and St. Cyril from Tarsus. He submitted a report to the council to review Akakiev’s unfair trial against him. At first, the council discussed dogmatic issues related to faith, but none of the parties allowed changes in their symbol and everyone remained unconvinced. Then the semi-Arian bishops, led by Silouan of Tarsus and Basil of Ancyra, proposed that the council consider complaints and accusations regarding the affairs of bishops. This time Akakios, who illegally condemned St. Kirill, doubted that he was right, and, in order to avoid trouble, left the cathedral. After repeated invitations, the council began to examine the case in the absence of the accuser. For such daring and illegal actions as were shown towards the Bishop of Jerusalem, Akaki was convicted and deposed, and Cyril received the right to return to his see. However, the danger of the Saint did not pass. Akakios, returning to Constantinople, accused St. Cyril before the emperor, and the latter took the side of the slanderer. In 360 they convened a council in Constantinople. The latter, through the efforts of Akakios, rejected the decisions of the Seleucia Council and condemned St. Kirill and his supporters. After the conciliar heretical trial, they were all deposed and exiled to prison 20. The See of Jerusalem again passed into the hands of heretics. Akaki triumphed, but his triumph was short-lived. In 331, his patron Emperor Constantius died and Julian took the royal throne. The latter, for his own reasons, returned all the bishops previously exiled for their faith. He returned to his pulpit and St. Cyril, remaining the same faithful and unshakable guardian of the apostolic traditions. Julian was an ardent enemy of all religions and especially Orthodoxy. With insidious intent, he granted freedom to all religions, hoping that all religions would destroy one another in the struggle among themselves. He even helped the weak. To this end, the emperor intended to raise the Jewish religion and decided to restore the Jerusalem temple 21. But the God-revealed words once spoken by Daniel and confirmed by the Savior could not pass without a trace. When work began, St. Cyril denounced those who opposed the truth, pointing out that the Jews would not be able to lay stone upon stone. And so it happened. When everything was equipped and prepared for laying the walls, a strong earthquake occurred and all the surviving old foundations, with all the preparations, were sent out to the last stone. New attempts to get to work were impossible, because fire repeatedly came out of the ground and burned the workers. The people were in awe of the extraordinary phenomena. Many of the Jews and pagans accepted the Christian faith and asked St. Kirill to accept them into the fold of the Orthodox Church 22. Having learned about this, the emperor became very angry with Christians. He ordered an amphitheater to be built in Jerusalem so that, upon returning from the Persian campaign, all Palestinian Christians, along with their shepherds and mentors, would be devoured to beasts. The same fate awaited the archpastor of Jerusalem. But the Lord ruined the emperor’s intentions and the latter died in one of the battles 23. His throne was taken by Jovian, a supporter of Orthodoxy. Calm reigned in the Church for a while. The Arians became quiet and even many joined the Orthodox. Acacius himself signed the Nicene Symbol at the Council of Antioch in 363. But he soon died. The Caesarea See was occupied by the nephew of St. Cyril the pious Gelasius 24. Everything seemed to be going for the better, but the situation soon took on a different character. Emperor Mobian was deposed and his throne passed into the hands of Valens, again a supporter of the Arians. In 365, he issued a decree that ordered all bishops who returned under Julian to be imprisoned again. He parted with his flock and St. Kirill. The orphaned episcopal sees of the Orthodox churches were replaced by Arian bishops. Christians were again persecuted, heretical teachings were preached everywhere; To this misfortune, other heresies appeared: Doukhobors, Apollinarians, Gnostics. The Egyptian bishops Alexander and Carpocrates, who were in exile in Palestine, entered the fight against the latter. They stood firmly for the faith and tried in every possible way to protect Christians from heretical errors. In this great matter, Saints Basil the Great and Epiphanius of Cyprus helped them a lot with their letters. Saint Gregory the Theologian, on behalf of the Antioch Council, took care of the eradication of the unrest that appeared in the Arabian churches, and at the same time supported the Christians of the Jerusalem Church in observing the faith and piety. The above-mentioned churches were in such a disastrous situation until the death of Valens / 378 /. Therefore St. Kirill had a lot of worries and work ahead of him even after returning from exile. Around 379, during the reign of Emperor Theodosius I, he returned to his see and, like a good shepherd, began to improve the Church, establishing peace and unity between the sides of the flock that had been divided during his absence. A tireless champion of the Orthodox faith and piety, he spent the last eight years of his episcopal service in pastoral labors and concerns for the salvation of the children entrusted to him by God. Busy with the management of his Church and the education of his flock, St. Kirill also took part in the affairs of the Universal Church. In 361, Emperor Theodosius invited him to a council in Constantinople and occupied one of the first places among the council chairmen and, together with all the Fathers who were at the council, pronounced condemnation on the heretics of the Semi-Arians or Doukhobors. St. died Cyril in the 72nd year of his life on March 18, 386 25. Brief remarks from the literary activity of St. Kirill Saint Cyril of Jerusalem left behind small, but very rich in content creations. They are preserved in the Church to this day and represent a most valuable monument of antiquity. The works of the Holy Father include: the Preconciliatory Word, eighteen Catechetical and five Sacramental Words, a Discourse on the Paralytic and a letter to Emperor Constantius. In addition to these creations of St. The so-called “Book of Cyril” is attributed to the father, but, according to the research of a number of theologians, it is St. Does not belong to Cyril of Jerusalem. This is a collection of later times, dating back to the seventeenth century, and containing articles directed against the Latins, Lutherans and others. The collection received its name from the first article, which is, with a few exceptions, a reproduction of the 15th Catechetical Word of Cyril of Jerusalem. Some Protestant theologians (Rivet, Riffel and Houdin) tried to prove that Saint Cyril is not the author of all the above-mentioned creations that exist under his name; but at present their belonging to St. Cyril stands beyond any doubt, although the last five teachings became known in literature two centuries later. The reliability of this fact can be stated on the basis of the creations themselves. Thus, all catechumens are located in a certain plan, there is a close connection between them, often retellings of the content of previous teachings are given, expressed in a brief form or in a few words, there are a number of references and indications of what has already been said in other catechumens, such as, for example: in catechumens 18, 22 the author refers to the catechumen. 2 and 3; in public 7, 1 – at 6; in public 11, 9, 13 – by 10; in public 13, 9 – at 12; in public 17, 2 – on 4, 4, 7, 8 and 9; in public 3, 1 – on 7; in public 12, 4 – on 11; in public 14, 18 – at 13; in public 16, 32 is indicated by 17; 24 § 14th Announcement, as the beginning of the second part of it and the continuation of the first is a generalization of the first 23 paragraphs - all this suggests that they belong to one author, who is St. Kirill. In addition, the belonging of the works of St. Cyril finds confirmation in the works of a number of saints. Fathers who in their works cite almost all of his Catechetical and Secret Words 26. All these catechumens are catechetical in nature and are very important for the Church as a statement of dogmas and explanation of rituals. In the first respect, they constitute a fairly complete doctrine of faith, arranged in order of the members of the Jerusalem Creed, which, according to the author, is the abbreviation and essence of Holy Scripture 27. The teachings were primarily aimed at enlightening the catechumens of Jews and pagans, who gathered in the temple in order to prepare in a worthy manner to receive the sacrament of Baptism and the new faith; they were pronounced orally by the shepherd 28. The preparatory word was spoken by St. Cyril in the church before Great Lent, and he pronounced catechetical words throughout Lent, and, in all likelihood, during evening services 29. The last word of publicity was spoken on Holy Saturday. Mysterious words were offered during the days of Bright Week, starting on Monday 30. All these teachings represent, as it were, a ladder, along the steps of which the catechumens, who wanted to become Christians, gradually ascended to the full knowledge of the faith of Christ and life in Christ. Having pointed out in the Preliminary Word the free transition from pagan darkness to the light of the Church of Christ and revealing the essence of the sacrament of Baptism, without which one cannot be a fellow member of this light, St. In the first teaching, Cyril inoculates the catechumens to moral renewal; in the second he speaks of the saving effects of Repentance; in the third - about the need for baptism, through which a person is reborn into a new life. In the next two words, the author sets out the doctrine of the subjects of Christian knowledge - dogmatic and active faith; from the sixth to the eighteenth - there are explanations of the symbol of faith in the order in which it was compiled. Mystery words are devoted to explaining the rites of Baptism, Confirmation, Eucharist and the Lord's Prayer. In the conversation “... about the paralytic at the font” of St. Cyril gives moral instructions and denounces those who pervert the meaning of the gospel words: “... he who is healed does not know who the Healer is” 31. And in the last Epistle to the pious King Constantius, he talks about the miraculous appearance of the Cross of the Lord with an exhortation to the king to turn to the right faith. All teachings are based exclusively on the words of Holy Scripture, to which the Holy Father attaches special importance. He says that not a single Divine secret should be offered without Holy Scripture. “Don’t even just believe me, who tells you this, if you don’t receive proof of what I proclaim from the Divine Scriptures” 32. Therefore, before beginning the teaching on faith and dogma, he lists all the canonical books of the Old and New Testaments, with the exception of the Apocalypse 33. In some cases, St. Cyril is guided by St. Tradition and bequeaths to the flock to firmly keep it and reverently observe everything that is taught to them 34. However, it should be noted that the teaching of St. Cyril about Tradition, as a reflection of the apostolic tradition, is expressed in the spirit of Irenaeus of Lyons, whose works were well known to him 35. When revealing the doctrinal truths of St. Cyril simultaneously refutes heretical false teachings that obscure the meaning of Christian dogmas, as a result of which his creations are also polemical in nature 36 . In the doctrine of God and the Holy Trinity, St. Cyril mainly concerns only those essential properties of God that are contained in the creed. Other properties of the One in the three Hypostases of God are not subject to detailed explanation, and if they take place in creation, then only insofar as this was required to define God as the Supreme Being. However, when presenting his teaching, the Holy Father does not bring to the fore the absolute idea of ​​Divinity, but only His relationship to the world, so to speak, the really external side of Divine life, which the Holy Spirit especially captured. in Holy Scripture. Strict consistency in the presentation of the teaching about God by St. Cyril is not present, because his task did not include compiling dogmatics as a science, but instructing new members of the Church of Christ in the faith. Therefore, in order to form a doctrine about God and the Holy Trinity, as close as possible to the dogmatic system, it is necessary to extract dogmatic material not only from those catechumens or their subsections that are specifically devoted to the disclosure of one or another dogmatic truth, but also from individual phrases, sentences and even thoughts that speak about something completely different, for otherwise it is impossible to give a complete idea of ​​how St. thought of God. Kirill. Wanting to preserve the accuracy of the theological thought of St. Father on dogmatic issues, I quote certain passages from his works without paraphrase. All texts taken from Holy Scripture that appear in my course work are borrowed directly from the Announcements, without replacing punctuation, as the value of the sacred Books of deep antiquity. The size of the chapters in the work is not the same. This is explained by the availability of material on one or another issue of my topic, which I had the opportunity to extract from the works of St. Cyril of Jerusalem. This course work is divided mainly into four parts: Part 1 contains the doctrine of God in general and His properties; 2nd part - the doctrine of the Trinity God and in the Persons and God the Father; 3rd part – teaching about the Son of God; Part 4 is about the Holy Spirit. Chapter 1. The doctrine of God in general and His properties According to the teaching of the Holy Scripture, God is Spirit 37 and a personal Spirit, always similar to Himself 38 and having in Himself the cause of being, for God is God 39, God who lives forever (Dan. 4:30, 31 40; 12:7) 41. In His Being, He is simple and identical, has nothing heterogeneous in Himself 42, is not subject to the sequence of things, neither chance nor fate 43. God is perfect in everything 44 and in Himself “... reveals the numerous powers of the Divine, not being abundant in one, and not lacking in another, but being similar to Himself in everything...” 45 He is not dependent on anyone, is not comprehended by anyone 46 and cannot be described by anything 47 . Although man is the image of God and is the crown of all living beings created by God, he is so weak and insignificant before the Face of the greatness of God that he cannot even imagine His very Being. “Great and honorable was Abraham, but great before men; when he appeared before God, he consciously uttered the truth: “I am earth and ashes” (Deut. 18:27) 48. He did not add only “earth,” because he could not compare himself with this great planet, but he also added “ash,” and thereby showed his insignificance, his corruption 49 . Therefore, the being of God cannot be the subject of human speculation. “What God is, we cannot explain this” 50. The Word of God tells us only that God is greater than all, greater than all; that He is above all the heavens and more excellent than the earth 51, for He contains His “handful” (Ps. 40:12) 52. “Do not think that the sun is brighter than Him or equal to Him. For the one who originally created the sun, all the more must be incomparably larger and brighter than the sun” 53. Man is unable to depict either His beginning, image, or form. “You have not heard His voice anywhere, nor seen His vision,” says the Evangelist John (John 5:37); we cannot imagine even the likeness of God (Deut. 4:15) 54, we are unable to hear His name 55, we cannot give Him worthy praise 56. The psalmist David says: “Exalt the Lord with me, and let us exalt His name together” (Ps. 33:47) 57, for he himself did not have sufficient strength to do so. But even if they all united, even then they would not be able to praise as they should; and what’s more, if all the members of the present and future Church had gathered, if the very heavens had raised their voices and thundered more powerfully than thunder, then even then they would not have been able to praise God according to what He is in Himself 58 . Just as a meager vessel cannot say anything about its meager creator and sculptor, so man cannot say anything about his Creator and Maker 59 . A. The Being of God is inaccessible to human knowledge. Man is so weak that he cannot comprehend His throne 60, is unable to explain His servants - the holy ethereal heavenly powers: Thrones, Dominions, Principalities, Powers 61, is not able to know with his inquisitive mind his own being: he has a soul, but cannot express its distinctive properties; has the gift of speech, but is not able to explain it. He is not even able to understand the world around him and the diversity of things 62. For him (man) the names and “natural histories” of animals, which came into being according to one command of God, are unknown, 63 the composition of every thing and the effectiveness of every grain, etc. are incomprehensible and even unsearchable. 64 And if he does not know everything that happened by the will of God, then how can he know God Himself? “If what God has prepared is incomprehensible to his understanding, then can He Himself who prepared it be comprehended?” “O depth of wealth and wisdom and understanding of God! For you have not tried His judgment, nor searched His ways” (Rom. 11:33) 65. If “judgments” and “ways” are incomprehensible, then the Lord of the ways 66, whose greatness is above all, is even more incomprehensible. People living on this earth, “like springs” (Is. 40:22) 67, not only cannot comprehend the being of God, which is known to Him alone, but also do not have the opportunity to even in the slightest degree approach the idea of ​​Him. “If anyone decides to say something about God, then let him first depict the boundaries of the earth. You live on earth, and you do not know the end of your home - the earth; How can you adequately imagine in your mind the One who prepared the earth? You see the stars, but you don’t see the Creator. Number the visible stars, and then describe the Invisible One, Who counts the multitude of stars and names them all” (Ps. 144:4) 68. b. God is an all-perfect Being 69. He cannot be depicted or seen, for He is invisible 70; according to the Apostle Paul, God “... is also in the living light, unapproachable, but no one has seen Him, but the least man can see Him” (1 Tim 6:16) 71. God is incorporeal 72, and an incorporeal Being cannot be subject to carnal vision. “God,” says the Evangelist John, “no one has seen anywhere.” (John 1:18) 73. The mere radiance of God's glory is fatal to man. The prophet Ezekiel saw only the likeness of glory, and not the glory itself, and in fear and trembling he threw himself to the ground (Ezekiel 2:1) 74. The Prophet Daniel, when an angel appeared to him, fell on his face like a dead man and could not look at him until the heavenly messenger took on the form of a man (Dan.8:15-18) 75, after which he said: “Lord, in Your vision my womb was converted within me; and the strength will not remain in me, and the breath will not remain in me” (Dan. 10:16, 17 76). All this suggests that if God Himself had appeared as He is in His being, everyone would have perished. When Moses wished to see the Face of God, God said: “You cannot see My Face; for man will see my face and live” (Ex. 33:20) 77. And only out of His love for mankind, God, preserving our lives, hid His Divinity from us, spreading the sky over the world like a curtain. The Prophet Isaiah says on this occasion: “If you open the heavens, the mountains will tremble from You and melt” (Is. 64:1) 78, as if by fire, for, according to Moses, God is the consuming Fire (Deut. 4:24) 79. And the Holy Scripture says that God descended on Mount Sinai in fire, His voice was heard in lightning and thunder, which is why the Jewish people were horrified and asked Moses: “Speak to us, and let not God speak to us, lest we die” (Ex. 20:19); “What kind of flesh lives that hears the voice of God, speaking from the midst of the fire, and will live?” (Deut.5:26) 80. But God cannot be represented as fire; God is an eternal, inexhaustibly shining light, an irresistible power applied to our weaknesses 81 . Therefore, man is not able to perceive God as He is in Himself, cannot look at His glorious Divinity, and is not able to comprehend His power and strength. God is also completely unknowable from the higher beings He created - the angels and all their ranks. The Holy Scripture says that angels always see the Face of the Heavenly Father (Matthew 17:10), but they see Him to the extent that they can contain him 82. God in His being is known and seen only by the Only Begotten Son of God and the Holy Spirit 83 . “It is not as if he saw the Father; there is one: only He who is from God is in the form of the Father,” said the Savior (John 6:46) 84. And since the Son was born of the Father, He, like the Holy Spirit, has fellowship in the Divinity of the Father “before the eternal years” and therefore knows Him as long as it should 85. The Holy Spirit knows God to the same extent as the Son of God, because, according to the words of the Holy Scripture, “The Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God, who knows what is in man, even the spirit of man living in him; likewise no one knows the message of God, but the Spirit of God” (1 Cor. 2:10, 11) 86. V. But it is also characteristic of man to know God in due measure, for, as they say, if a person cannot drink all the water in a source, this does not mean that he should not therefore draw it from it and as much as is necessary for him; if he cannot contain the sun in his eye, he should not look at it and as necessary, etc. 87. Indeed, what God is in Himself is impossible to explain, but He did not completely hide Himself from the rational beings He created. Without knowing or comprehending God in His being, a person can cognize His Divine and infinite properties, which are manifested and revealed in the finite forms of the visible world. “From the majesty of the beauty of creatures, the Father knows them comparatively” (St. Thess. 13:5) 88 . One has only to turn our attention to the nature around us, to the variety of its phenomena and even to individual objects of the visible world, and everywhere we will notice the handiwork of the wise Artist. The sky, created “from the fluid nature” of the waters and unshakably established, the earth, the sun, the moon and all the stars moving among the watery sky, the property of which is contrary to the fiery planets, but not causing disturbances in the world system - all this speaks of the wisdom, power and glory of the wondrous Creator and Creator 89. The structure of the radiant sun, which, according to the Psalmist, “like a bridegroom, proceed from his chamber” (Ps. 18:6) and, making its way, pours light from the east to the west, clearly knows the One who created it and determined its course by His command 90. Beautiful gradualness of daylight, facilitating a person to look at the bright rays of the sun; darkness tempered by moonlight 91; clouds carrying rainwater 92 ; days decorously inferior to one another, “increasing in summer and decreasing in winter, while in spring and autumn granting each other equality in duration”; inseparable companions of the days of the night, with whom the same thing happens, for the Psalmist says about them: “... day to day vomits a word, and night to night proclaims understanding” (Ps. 19:3) 93 - all this, by its harmonious order, clearly testifies that there is no other God except the Creator, who has put a limit to everything and brought everything into order 94. “Who is the father of the rain? Who is the birthplace of the dew drops? From whose belly comes ice" (John 37:29) 95. God is the Creator of everything, and this entire cosmos, in which, with all its diversity, wonderful harmony, purposefulness and extraordinary beauty reign, clearly shows the creative activity of its great and wise Creator. “Let's look at spring and at flowers of all kinds, different despite their very similarity: at the scarlet of the rose and the whiteness of the lily; all this from one rain and from one earth. Who gives them the difference? Who creates them? 96 And everyone will say that this, like everything that exists, belongs to the wise actions of the Artist. The creative and providential works of God are even more revealed in the lives of dumb animals, which amaze every sane person with such a wise and uniform adaptation to known conditions 97. “Go to wickedness, O lazy man, and be jealous,” says Solomon, “having seen his ways and be wiser than him... go to the bee and see if there is a worker” (Prov. 6:6, 8) 98 God reveals himself especially clearly to man in man himself, for “perhaps you don’t know this: you don’t care about the animals that are outside of you. Finally, enter into yourself and understand the Artist in your essence 99. Man, as has already been said, is one of the highest living beings created by God, distinguished from all others by his rational, God-like soul, and the latter, being a spiritual essence, in itself already represents God and to a certain extent contemplates Him 100. But in order to know God more closely, it is necessary to cleanse yourself from sinful deeds, your mind from evil thoughts, your soul from all impurity, turning your spiritual gaze to heaven. The psalmist David, on behalf of God, says: “Exercise yourself and understand that I am God” (Ps. 6:11) 101. Also through Isaiah it is said: “...wash ye, be clean, take away the wickedness from your souls before My eyes” (Is. 1:16) 102. In the Lord's Prayer we read: “Our Father, who art in heaven...”, and heaven can also be those who bear within themselves the image of the Heavenly (1 Cor. 15:49), who lead a spiritual life and do not desecrate this image, and to such God has given the promise: “I will dwell and resemble you” (2 Cor. 71:16) 103. They hear the voice of God within themselves, feel His presence, for the spirit living in a person makes his mind a Divine dwelling 104 and helps him to know God, as once John the Baptist, carried in his mother’s womb, “... bursting with joy (Luke 1:44), and without seeing with bodily eyes, he knew the Lord in the spirit” 105. In the knowledge of God, faith helps a person a lot, which strengthens and enlightens all the properties of his soul and brings him closer to God. “Faith is the eye that enlightens the eternal conscience and imparts understanding; for the Prophet says: “And if you do not believe, you will not understand” (Is. 7:9) 106. But God is revealed and known not only in the human soul and in the presence of higher spiritual qualities. No, God reveals Himself in all His wisely constituted being, the numerous and wondrous members of which, in their various actions, serve one final purpose. And the thought involuntarily arises: “... Who animated the inanimate? Who sewed us together with sinews and bones, clothed us with skin and flesh” (Job 10:11), and together with the birth of a baby, brings forth fountains of milk from the nipples? How does a child grow into a youth, a youth into a young man, and then into a husband, and a husband also change into an old man? Meanwhile, no one notices the strict, daily sequence of changes. How is it that some of the food turns into blood, some is separated into eruption, and some is transformed into flesh? Who sets the heart in constant motion? Who wisely protected the tender eye with the cover of eyelids? The polysyllabic and marvelous structure of the eye is barely explained by the somewhat lengthy books of doctors. Who included a single breath in the whole body? Do you see, man the Artist? Do you see the all-wise Creator? 107 The highest source of knowledge of God is supernatural Revelation, when the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, dwelling in the bosom of the Father (John 1:18), with the Holy Spirit and through the Spirit, who tests the depths of God (1 Cor. 2:10), reveals God to people, as much as anyone can contain and perceive 108. The Apostle Paul says that “The God of our Lord Jesus, the Father of glory, will give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, called Ero (Titus 3:4–7) 109. d. With all the diversity of Divine properties manifested in the world, Bor in His very essence remains immutable and unchangeable 110. Possessing all-perfection, He always remains the same. In His creative and providential activity, God reveals the numerous powers of the Divine, but does not overabundance in one and does not become scarce in another 111, does not diminish or increase, and in everything remains similar to Himself, for with the Father of Lights “... there is no change or change” (James 1:17) 112. And if God is called the Father 113, the Lord 114, the Almighty 115, the King 116, the Host 117, the Creator 118, the Creator 119, the Giver 120, the Righteous Judge 121, the Supreme Physician 122, then there is therefore no “different and different" 123 . e. Being unchangeable in His essence, God, therefore, does not depend on the conditions of time, for time refers to the existence of changeable and finite things. There is no time for Bora. “God... did not begin to live in time and will never end” 124, God is eternal 125 and there will be no end to His kingdom; The Holy Scripture says: “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever” (Ps. 44:7) 126. King Nebuchadnezzar, having come to know God, calls Him the One who lives forever (Dan.4:30) 127 and says: “For His power is everlasting, and His kingdom endures forever” (Dan.4:31) 128. e. God, as the First Cause of everything that exists, is not limited by any conditions. Neither time nor space applies to Him. He is alone everywhere 129 and in everything 130. “His throne is heaven, but he who sits on the throne is above heaven. The earth is a foundation (Isa.66:1); but the power extends to the underworld” 131. The psalmist David says: “How can I go from your spirit? And do I flee from Your face? Even if I go to heaven, You are there; Even if I go to hell, there you are; If I take up my wings early, I will dwell in the last seas, and there Your hand will guide me and Your right hand will hold me” (Ps. 139:7, 8) 132. Thus, God dwells in the world and outside the world, in heaven and on earth (Hav. 2:11) 133 . Just as the sun warms the whole world with its rays, just as the air fills the universe, so God fills everything with His presence, for if the works of God’s hands embrace everything in the world, then is their Creator really “far removed from the world?” 134. A. God, according to the teaching of Holy Scripture, is omniscient. He comprehends everything, sees everything, knows everything - and knows everything in the most perfect way. “Not only in part he sees, but in another part he is deprived of the ability to see, but the whole is the eye, the whole is the hearing, the whole is the mind. Not only in part does he comprehend, as we do, but in part he does not know. Such a concept is blasphemous and unworthy of the being of God. God is the foreknowledge of things 135 and “seeing the deeps” (Dan.3:54) 136. Nothing is hidden for Him. Righteous Job says: “... the drops of rain are numbered to Him” (Job 36:27) 137; He knows the difference of the clouds (Job 37:16) 138 and the numerous stars 139. God knows the thoughts of people, tests “the hearts and bellies” (Ps. 7:10) 140, knows who is sincere and who is hypocritical 141. God tests our wills 142, knows all our deeds and sins 143, our needs. “For this is our Father’s message, we demand them,” says the Evangelist Matthew (Matthew 4:8) 144. b. Along with omniscience, God also possesses all-perfect wisdom, which is clearly evidenced by the “all-wise universe” that He has wonderfully constructed 145 . The psalmist David says about this: “For Thy works are magnified, O Lord; You have created all things with wisdom (Ps. 103:24) 146. God, therefore, is “greater than all, wiser than all” 147, God is the all-wise Creator 148, Who, as the righteous Job says, “bent the heavens to the earth; and number the clouds with wisdom ( Job 38:37 ); and the clouds were not torn apart over her” (Job.26:8) 149. a. God performs all creative and providential actions through His free, omnipotent will. God is the Lawgiver of life, and therefore He does everything and lays down laws as He pleases 150, for “... with God all things are possible” (Matthew 19:26) 151. Nothing is exempt from the action of this almighty power of God and “... all things are workable” to Him (Ps. 119:91) 152. Righteous Job says: “But I will call on the Lord Almighty, who does great things and is unsearchable, and is glorious and abundant, and they are without number” (Job 5:8, 9) 153. God holds everything in His power and controls everything, and if He suffers a lot in relation to people and all His other creatures, He suffers according to His will. “He also supports idolaters in His power, but tolerates them by descent. He also possesses the heretics who reject Him, but leaves them out of long-suffering. He also possesses the devil, but leaves him out of long-suffering, and not out of weakness, like a conquered one... God allowed the devil to live for two purposes: so that he, the conquered one, would be more ashamed, and people would be crowned. All-wise, truly, God's providence! It turns evil will into a reason for the salvation of the faithful” 154. God possesses the living and the dead, “... for /according to the teaching of the Holy Scriptures/ God is able to raise from the dead” (Heb. 11:19) 155. b. God alone is holy and holy by nature 156. V. One is good and surpasses everyone in His goodness. Looking at everything that the Lord does, the Psalmist sings “... how great is the abundance of Your goodness, O Lord” (Ps. 30:29) 157. And, indeed, “He is the most abundant and unfailing source of every good, a river of blessings” 158. According to His great goodness, God created us “... for good works” (Eph. 2:10) and those who have deviated through sin from good to evil, also covers us with goodness, directing all bad deeds and actions to good goals 159 . According to the Evangelist, God “... His sun shines on the evil and on the good, and rains on the righteous and on the unjust” (Matthew 5:45) 160. d. God is generous in goodness 161 and rich in mercy (Eph. 2:4) 162. *When the grace and love for mankind appeared of our Savior and God, not from the works of the righteous, which we have done, but in His mercy, He saved us by the washing of rebirth and renewal of the Holy Spirit” ... (Titus 3:4-6) 163. He has mercy on everyone, calls everyone to Himself, forgives the sins of everyone, makes the last first and accepts into the bosom of His mercy those who came at the eleventh hour 164, for no human sins can surpass and “... do not overcome the multitude of God’s bounties” 165. d. According to the teaching of the word of God and His Revelation, in which an abundance of providential actions are revealed that support the world in all its fullness, God is ineffably philanthropic. With His love He nourishes everyone and everything in the world, covers all sorts of vices, shortcomings and sins of people, heals the weak, saves the perishing 166. “Do not say: “I am a fornicator, I am an adulterer, I have committed grave sins, and not once, but many times; will God really forgive me? Will all this really be forgotten? 167. God's love for mankind is so great, so abundant, that even if the whole people sinned, it cannot surpass it 168. The people of Israel once retreated from God, made other gods for themselves, and worshiped the calf, but God did not retreat from his love for mankind. People denied Him, but God did not deny Himself 169; fell into grave sins, and God, as is characteristic of Him, became their Savior 170. He forgave the sins of the high priest Aaron (Deut. 9:20) 171; had mercy on the one who transgressed the commandments of King David (2 Samuel 12:13) 172; had mercy on Ahab, king of Samaria, a lawless idolater and killer of the prophets (1 Kings 21:29) 173; Jeroboam, who sacrificed to idols, was forgiven (1 Kings 13:6) 174 Manasseh, who betrayed the Prophet Isaiah to a painful death, was spared (2 Chronicles 33:13) 175; the forefather Adam himself, through whom all sinned, was preserved and saved by repentance, etc. 176, for the Lord is philanthropic, quick to forgive and slow to punish 177. In His love for mankind, He gave everyone the means of cleansing from sins and made everyone worthy to become heirs of eternal life 178. His love is so abundant that He is always applied to our weaknesses 179 and “... not one, and not only two, but many, he opened doors for us to enter into eternal life, so that, as much as this depends on Him, everyone could enjoy it without hindrance” 180. He gave the world what was lost by the first people and became the Father of all by grace 181 and love for mankind 182. “For God loved the world, for He also gave His only begotten Son to eat, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish, but may have eternal life” (John 3:16) 183. f. By His very essence, in all His Divine intentions and providential actions, God is faithful and righteous. The Holy Scripture says about this: “The witness in heaven is faithful” (Ps. 89:38) 184. “God is faithful and righteous” - we read in the Pentateuch of Moses (Deut. 32:4) 185. Three Jewish youths, by whose faith God extinguished the flame of fire and saved them from death, say: “Thou art righteous, O Lord, in regard to all that thou hast done for us; as sinners and transgressors" (Dan. 3:27, 29) 186. And being righteous 187, he judges those who sin with justice, imputing to everyone his deeds and actions, and grants them forgiveness “... in accordance with the present time of repentance. For it is the nature of a righteous Judge to judge every action accordingly” 188. All of the above properties are properties of the one true God. The Holy Scripture indicates that there is only one God as the most perfect Being (Eph.4:5) 189 and there is no other god in the world except the Creator 190. “One is God Almighty 191. One and the same Jehovah God, sitting on the cherubim” (Ps. 79:2) 192, is the same everywhere and everywhere 193. In the words of the Apostle Paul, “Even if they are spoken as gods, either in heaven, or on earth, and so on. But to us there is one God the Father, from whom are all things, and we are with Him: and there is one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we are (1 Cor. 8:5, 6) 194. The one, original, omnipresent, omnipotent God, according to the teachings of the Church and the Holy Scriptures, is the First Cause of all finite existence and the Creator of the world 195, Creator of “... heaven and earth, visible to all and invisible” 196. And God Himself once said through the prophet Isaiah: “I am God, create peace” (Is. 25:7). God is the lawgiver of life 197, Creator of everything sensual and spiritual 198, “Creator of centuries - existing in time” 199, Creator of the heavenly disembodied forces - Angels and Archangels 200, Producer of all creatures and everything that fills the world, who brought everything into existence from non-existence 201 according to the plan destined by Him 202 . With one command, God created the firmament, said “... let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters” (Gen. 1:6) 203, beautifully arranged the earth, created the heavenly bodies and all the stars that serve “... for a sign, in times and years” (Gen. 1:14) 204; established an order of days and nights, which “... almost cry out to the unheard heretics, and almost say in their harmonious order that there is no other God, the Crown of the Creator, who put a limit to everything and brought everything into order” 205. According to His will, God gave direction to the waters 206, created the depths of the sea and set a limit to the waves, about which the Holy Scripture says: “You will come to this and will not pass, but your waves will be broken within you” (Job 38:11) 207; by His command He brought forth plants from the earth, saying: “... let the earth sprout the former herbs, sowing seed according to their kind and likeness” (Gen. 1:11) 208 brought out various “... beasts, cattle, and creeping things according to their kind” (Gen. 1:24, 25) 209 and created man 210. But the creation of the latter was different from all other creations. In the Council of the Trinity, God said: “Let Us make man in Our image and likeness” (Gen. 1:26) 211. “And God created man, the dust of the earth” (Gen. 1:7) 212, and gave him a free, rational, immortal, incorruptible, living soul, having the power to do what he wants 213. Thus, God adorned man and placed him incomparably higher among all living beings. In the beginning, “...God create a just man” (Eccl. 7:30) 214 i.e., sinless; but man, being free in everything, came out of obedience to the will of God, transgressed the commandment and through this deviated towards evil. That’s why God said: “I planted fruitful grapes for you, all true ones: why did you turn into sorrow, strange grapes?” (Jer.2:21) 215. For disobeying the commandment, God expelled the first people from paradise 216. The earth was condemned to grow “thorns and thistles,” but was not completely abandoned by God. The all-wise providence of God extended both over her and over people. He predestined to save the world from sin through His only begotten Son 217. When time was replenished, the true Vine rose from this land, as the Lord said through the Prophet: “Truth came up from the earth, and Truth came from the heavens” (Ps. 84:12) 218. Chapter II. The doctrine of the Holy Trinity, about God the Father The Holy Orthodox Church, based on Divine Revelation, teaches that God, one in His being, is threefold in Persons: God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. All three Hypostases are equal in Divine dignity and require equal veneration. Thus, “... together with the idea of ​​God, unite the idea of ​​the Father, so that the glorification of the Father and the Son with the Holy Spirit is accomplished inseparably, because there is no other glory with the Father, and no other with the Son, but one and the same with the Holy Spirit!” 219. God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are united, unmerged and inseparable. Therefore, one cannot allow the thought that by three hypostases there are three separate Gods. “We proclaim not three Gods: let the Marcionites be silent! On the contrary, with the Holy Spirit through the one Son we proclaim one God. Faith is inseparable, piety is indivisible. We do not introduce division into the Holy Trinity, as others do, we do not allow fusion, as Savely did. But we piously know the one Father, Who sent us the Son as Savior, we know the one Son, Who promised from the Father to send the Comforter; we know the Holy Spirit, who spoke in the Prophets and descended on the Apostles in the form of tongues of fire” 220. The Lord Jesus Christ Himself pointed out the trinity of Persons in God with the unity of the Divine being. Sending His disciples to preach, He told them: “Go therefore and teach all languages, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 23:19) 221. The name of God “Father” is a personal and distinctive property of the first Hypostasis of the Holy Trinity. Therefore, in the Creed it is said: “I believe in one God the Father,” in order to distinguish Him from the Son and the Holy Spirit, and so that, together with the idea of ​​the Father, we can imagine the Son in our thoughts, for between the Father and the Son there is nothing separating them 222. This means that everyone who believes in the One God must believe and piously acknowledge that the same one God is the Father of His Only Begotten Son, our Lord Jesus Christ 223. “For if the Father, then, of course, the Father is to the Son 224; and if the Son, then, of course, the Father’s Son” 225. The Jews, recognizing only one God, do not accept the Christian dogma of the trinity of Persons in God, and do not recognize as true that God is the Father of the Lord Jesus Christ. But they thereby contradict their own Prophets, through whom the Lord proclaimed His will and Himself testified about His Son, saying: “Thou art my Son, this day I have begotten Thee” (Ps. 2:7) 226. And again: “He will call upon Me: Thou art My Father, My God, and the intercessor of My salvation: and I will make Him the firstborn, high above the kings of the earth” (Ps. 83:27, 28) 227. And these God-revealed sayings do not refer to David or Solomon - the kings of the Jewish people, as the Jews might have assumed, for otherwise they themselves would not explain, “... why is the throne of this, depicted in them in prophecy, “like the days of heaven” (Ps. 83:30), “... like the sun before God” ( Ps. 83:37), and “like the moon in them is perfect?” (Ps. 83:38) 228. Therefore, how can one not attribute prophetic legends to the Son of God and not respect what was written by the Holy Spirit: “From the womb before the star I gave birth to Thee” (Ps. 109:3); and again: “... will he abide with the sun, and before the moon, the generations of generations (Ps. 72:5)? To attribute all this to a person is completely and utterly unthinkable 229 . They / the Jews /, thus, “... to this day are tottering and gathering together against the Lord and against His Christ” (Ps. 2:1-2) 230, believe that it is possible to please God the Father without faith in the Son, not knowing that, according to the Gospel, “... no one will come to the Father except by the Son” ( John 14:6), Who said: “I am the Door” ( John 10:7), “I am the Way” (John 14:6) 231 to the kingdom of heaven and to the joy of the Most High God. God the Father, from whom the Son is begotten, is not subject to birth 232 and does not have a Father like Himself, but Himself begets the Son and alone is the Father 233. According to the Holy Scriptures, God is the Father of many, in his own sense and by nature - the Father of only one Only Begotten Son of our Lord Jesus Christ 234. Moreover, “... he did not acquire this in time, that He might be a Father, but He is always the Father of the Only Begotten; He was not childless before, and it was not later that he decided to become a Father; but before any Hypostasis, before any sensation, before time and all ages, the Father has paternal dignity, being adorned with it more than all other dignities, and he became a father not by passion, not by copulation, not in ignorance; not because it suffered expiration, diminished, changed. For “...every gift is perfect, coming down from above from the Father of lights, but with Him there is no change or change (James 1:17) 235. So, having become the Father from eternity, God did not change in His being and did not lose anything from the birth of the Son, who received everything from the Father and became perfect, like the Father, for “the Perfect Father begot a perfect Son” 236 and handed over everything to Him. Therefore, the Son honors His Father (John 11:27), fulfills His will, loves and Himself abides in the Father’s love. He says: “Even as I have kept My Father’s commandments, I continue in His love” (John 15:10) 237. And the Holy Church worthily confesses God as the Father of the Lord Jesus Christ, always glorifies Him, magnifies Him, like the Apostle, saying: “Blessed is the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of generous gifts and the God of all joy” (2 Cor. 1:3) 238. But being the Father of the Only Begotten Son, Who testified about Him precisely as His Father in the words: “Know ye not, that in them even My Father is worthy of My being” (Luke 2:49) 239, God is also called the Father and the people He created, which the Savior Himself also speaks of in the words: “I will ascend to My Father and Father Yours" (John 20:17) 240. Thus, God is the Father and His Son and His creatures - people. However, one cannot allow the thought that the Son of God is equal to man, for although the Name of God “Father” is one, the power of meaning of this name is different. And the Savior strictly points out this difference when he says: “I ascend to My Father and your Father” (John 20:17). He, as we see, did not say “... I ascend to our Father,” but separated these two concepts of the Father, calling Him first His Father – “... to My Father,” that is, to the Father by nature, and then added – “... and to your Father,” i.e., to the Father by appropriation 241. Although in the Lord’s Prayer we say: “Our Father who art in heaven” (Matthew 6:9), we say it only because God is very lenient towards us and this is a “gift” of God’s love for mankind 242. Therefore, we call God our Father, not as having been born of Him by nature, but as having been delivered from sinful slavery and brought into sonship by the grace of God the Father through the Son and the Holy Spirit. The Holy Scripture says about this: “Is not this your Father himself who acquired thee, and created thee, and created thee” (Deut. 32:6)? And again: “... and now, Lord our Father, art thou, but we are clay, all the works of thy hand” (Is. 64:8) 244. A clearer evidence that God is not called the Father of men in the proper sense lies in the following words of the prophet Isaiah: “For you are our Father, before Abraham saw us and Sarah did not bear us” (Is. 63:16) 245. In the Holy Scriptures, God is called the Father of orphans (Ps. 67:6), but he is called their Father not because He Himself gave birth to them, but because He provides for them and protects them 246. But, as it has been said, He is not the Father of men in the proper sense, but He is the Father of the one Christ by nature, and not by appropriation; and the Father of men is in time, and the Father of Christ is before time, as the Savior Himself said: “And now You, the Father, glorify Me with Yourself with the glory that You have, before the world was not” (John 17:5) 247. And in order to be more convinced of the truth that in the Holy Scriptures more than one is certainly called a father by nature, one should pay attention to the Apostle Paul, who is considered the Father of the Corinthians. But in itself it is clear that the Apostle Paul was the father of these people not because he begat them according to the flesh, but because he spiritually revived them and taught them the true faith. “Although you have many teachers about Christ,” he says, “but you are not many fathers: for in Christ Jesus you have given birth to the gospel” (1 Cor. 4:15) 248. Righteous Job said: “I was the father of the weak” (Job.29:16); he also called himself a father, not in the sense that he gave birth to them all, but that he took care of them and gave alms 249. During the suffering of the cross, the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, having seen His Mother in the flesh and His beloved disciple John, said to him: “Behold, your Mother,” and to Mary-Mother: “Behold, your son” (John 19:26, 27), i.e., parting with His Mother in earthly life, the Savior entrusted Her to the care of His disciple, and at the same time adopted the disciple to the Mother, thereby teaching all people proper mutual love and indirectly resolving what was said by the Evangelist Luke: “And His father and His mother wondered” (Luke 2:33) 250, which the heretics refer to as proof of their false teaching that the Savior was born of a husband and wife. But just as Mary is the Mother of John by love, and not by birth, so Joseph is called the father of Jesus Christ by care during his upbringing, but not because he gave birth to Him in the flesh, for, according to the Gospel, he “without knowing her, until he gave birth to his firstborn Son” (Matthew 1:25) 251. So, God is the Father of man by grace, love for mankind and by appropriation, and the Father of His Only Begotten Son by nature. Chapter III. About the second hypostasis of the Holy Trinity a. The Only Begotten Son of God, the Lord Jesus Christ as true God 252, more simply than all centuries, in an incomprehensible way born from the Father 253, is the second Hypostasis of the Holy Trinity. And the Holy Scripture says: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was to God, and God was the Word” (John 1:1) 254. Therefore, He “was not other than what He was, nor was He made otherwise, but from the beginning was begotten the Son of the Father, who is above all principality” (Eph. 1:21) 255. God the Word, having become the Son of God from eternity, is in everything like God the Father and always remains with Him in inseparable and unmerged unity, about which He Himself says: “I and the Father are one” (John 1:30) 256; and again: “The Father is in me, and I am in the Father” (John 14:10) 257. Thus, with the general unity of the Divine being, the Son, like God the Father, retains His Personal divine properties, without dividing or merging with Him 258. For, speaking about unity with the Father, He did not say: “I am the Father,” or: “... I and the Father are one and the same,” but: “The Father is in me, and I am in the Father”; “I and the Father are one,” thereby showing that He is perfect and true God in everything 259. The Son has the Father in Himself, but was not transformed into Him, because it was not the Father who subsequently became man, but the Son 260, being in the Father, He at the same time abides in Himself, as He is by nature 261, and has equal Divine dignity with the Father 262. According to the words of the Holy Gospel, “He who has seen the Son has seen the Father” (John 14:9), for the Son is like Him in everything 263, as “Eternal, begotten of the Eternal, Life from Life, Light from Light, Truth from Truth, Wisdom from Wisdom, King from King, God from Bor, Power from Power” 264. And whoever is worthy to see the Divinity of the Son enjoys the contemplation of the Father 265. But at the same time, one cannot assert that the Son is sometimes alien to the Father and agree with those who claim that the Father is sometimes the Father and sometimes the Son. This teaching does not belong to the Church. On the contrary, the Father, having begotten the Son, remained the Father and does not change; gave birth to Wisdom, but He Himself did not lose wisdom; having given birth to Strength, he did not faint; Having given birth to God, He Himself did not lose the Divinity 266. From the birth of the Son, He has not lost anything, having diminished or changed, and likewise the Son has no lack, “Perfect Son and perfect Father: “And He who begot is God and He who is begotten is Bor” 267 . “And He who is Begotten has no Father, and He who is Begotten has no brother. And He who begot was not changed into the Son, and He who was begotten did not become the Father. From one and only the Father there is one Only Begotten Son. There are not two unbegotten, and not two Only Begotten, but one Father who is not begotten. For he who does not have a Father is not begotten, and one Son is eternally begotten of the Father—not born in time, but begotten before the ages, not having continued to grow, but thus he was begotten as He is now 268 . The very act of the birth of the Son from the Father is a great and incomprehensible mystery. Neither people, nor the earth, nor everything that exists on it knows him; but heaven and all the ranks of angels know 269. God begat the Son, not as man begets man, but as He alone knows, 270 and the birth of the Son from the Father cannot be reduced to carnal concepts. God, according to the teaching of the Holy Scriptures, is Spirit (John 4:24) and the birth of the Son from Him is spiritual 271. The Father gave birth to the Son, not as the human mind gives birth to a word, because the spoken word, spreading in the air, disappears 272 without first judging, then he gave birth, but he gave birth from eternity; gave birth much sooner than a human word or thought comes out; He did not bring Him into being from non-existence and did not adopt a son who had not previously been, but, as the eternal Father, He eternally and ineffably begot the Son 273 - “The Word is hypostatic and living, not spoken by mouth and scattered, but eternally ineffable and begotten in Hypostasis. For “In the beginning was Tin, and the Word was to God, and God was the Word” (John 1:1) 274; gave birth to the Word who sits at the right hand of the Father, the Word who understands the will of the Father and, at His command, creates everything; The Word, listening to the Father and Himself speaking 275: “...yea, as I have seen with My Father, I say” (John 8:38) 276; The Word is sovereign and reigns over everything and receives everything from Him (Matthew 11:17) 277. Just as the Father has life in himself, so even the Sons have life in himself” (John 5:26), and let all honor the Son as they honor the Father” (John 5:23); “As the Father (whatever he wills) lives, so also the Son, whoever he wills, will live” (John 5:21) 278 - He begat the Son, who is the true God, called Emmanuel, which means “God with us” (Matthew 1:23) 279. The Prophet says about Him: “This is our God, it will not be imputed to Him…” (Bar. 3:36–38) 280, for only the Son of God is born by nature from the Father 281, having no brother 282. However, “... not two beginnings, but the head of the Son, the Father, is one beginning” 283. b. And since God is a being without beginning and did not become the Father at any time, but always has a Son, then the Son born of Him is also God without beginning. God the Father Himself said through the prophet about Him: “From the womb before the morning star I gave birth to Thee” (Ps. 109:3); and again: “Thou art My Son, I have given birth to Thee this day” (Ps. 2:7) 284. Likewise, the Begotten One says about Himself: “The Son remains forever” (John 7:35) 285. “And now, Father, glorify Me with You with the glory that I had with You before the world was destroyed” (John 17:5) 286; and again: “Because you loved Me before the foundation of the world” (John 17:24) 287; “Before even Abraham could not be beaten, I am” (John 8:58) 288. Since the Jewish people did not understand what was said and did not believe that the Son of God was before the forefather Abraham and with Him, the Lord said: “Abraham your Father would have rejoiced, that he might have seen My day: and he saw it, and rejoiced” (John 7:56) 289. According to the teaching of the Holy Scripture, the Only Begotten Son of God, having no beginning in His being, has no end in it..., “For it is fitting for Him to reign until He puts all His enemies under His feet” (1 Cor. 15:25) 290. He “... and will reign in the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end” (Luke 1:33) 291. The prophet Daniel says: “To him has been given honor and power and a kingdom, and all people, nations and nations will work for him: His power is everlasting power, which will not pass away, and His kingdom will not be scattered” (Dan. 7:13, 14) 292. The psalmist sings: “Thy throne, God, is for ever and ever” (Ps. 44:7) 293, “... and Thy years shall not fail ( Ps. 101:28) 294. Like God the Father, He, as the true and all-perfect God, is holy 295, wise 296, omniscient 297, invisible and incomprehensible to anyone in His essence 298. In response to the words of Moses, asking: “Show me Yourself, that I may see You with understanding” (Exodus 28:13), Christ said: “No one will see My Face and live” (Exodus 28:20) 299. When He revealed Himself in part to His disciples, being in the flesh, “... His face shone like the sun” (Matthew 17:2), and they could not look at the Divine word of the transfigured Lord 300, for “He is God and wisdom and power.” With the Father He reigns, and through the Father He is the Creator of all things” 301. He is the Creator and Giver of Life 302. He has full power, strength and might: He is the God of all 303 and there is no God except /You/Him” (Is. 45:14, 15) 304. V. According to the teaching of the revealed Scripture, the Son of God is the Creator of the world and everything that exists 305, “All this was,” says St. Evangelist John the Theologian, “and without Him there was nothing as there was” (John 1:3) 306. Heaven and earth, the entire visible and invisible world - everything was created by Him at the behest of the Father, Who gave Him the destiny of what was being created 307. The Apostle Paul says: “By Him (the Son of God) all things were created, both in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether they were Thrones, whether they were Dominions, whether they were Principalities, whether they were Powers: all things were created by Him and by Him” (Col. 1:16, 17) 308. Just as God the Father creates from eternity, so the Son always creates, for, as He once said: “The Son cannot do anything for Himself unless He sees the Father doing it; For even as the Father does these things, and the Son does likewise” (John 5:19); My Father is working hitherto, and I am working” (John 5:17) 309. There is no contradiction in this creative act, “... for all that is mine is yours, and yours is mine” (John 17:10), said the Savior 310. This is confirmed by the revealed narrative of the creation of man, because “He who said: “Let us make man in Our image and likeness” (Gen. 1:26), undoubtedly talked with someone Co-existing” 311. The prophet David speaks more clearly about the Son as the Creator of the world. In his words: “He commanded and waited for that speech” (Ps. 33:9). Since the Father commands and speaks, and the Son, at His command, creates everything” 312. He, in the words of the Evangelist John, “... was in the world, and the world was made (John 1:10); “... and all things concerning Him will come to pass,” says the Apostle Paul (Col. 1:16–17) 313. Even if someone named the “eyelids” themselves, then, by the behest of God the Father, the Creator is our Lord Jesus Christ, “Whom (God) hath appointed an heir to all, and by Him also made the eyelids” (Heb. 1:1) 314. d. Being not from eternity the Only Begotten Son of God and the Creator of everything that exists, 315 Jesus Christ received from the Father eternal dominion over everything 316. And “... did not accept the right to rule for the sake of success, but by nature he has the dignity of rule, and not in any improper sense, as we call it masters, but in truth it is called Lord; because, at the behest of the Father, He rules over His own creations” 317. The Son, as was said above, is like the Father in everything 318 and takes part equally with Him in everything (John 5:19) 319. When God the Father was pleased to create the world and everything that fills it, then, at the behest of the Father, the Son created everything, so that this beckon would preserve the authority of the Father, and the Son would also have power over His own creations; and the Father was not a stranger to dominion over His creatures, and the Son reigned over what was created not by anyone else, but by Himself, because it was not angels who created the world, but the Only Begotten Son of God 320, “... to Him all things were” 321. The Savior once said: “My Father delivered it to me” (Matthew 11:27) 322. But He accepted all this devotion not in time and not as not having had it before, but as always keeping it in full perfection, without depriving the Giver in it, 323 Who, according to His will, subjected all things to the Son. And the Apostle Paul says: “Whenever you say that all things are subject to Him, you will find that all things are subject to Him / and further /: that God may be all things in all” (1 Cor. 15:27, 28) 324. d. But the world, which was subjugated to the Son of God, was corrupted as a result of original sin and fell away from Him. Man, created in the image of God, forgot all truth, forgot his Creator 325. And the Son of God, Who was predestined from eternity to be the Savior of the world 326, had to heal the sinful ulcer, correct all errors and bring everything to the Lord of all 327. He, “to whom all things were” (John 1:13), had to come into the world and take upon himself its burden. The appearance of the Son of God to a world in sin and vice occurred through a supernatural birth from the Virgin Mary, who conceived in Her womb without a husband - by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit 328. Having been born from the flesh of the Blessed Virgin, God Himself thus took on Her flesh and became human. John the Theologian says about this: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was to God, and God was the Word... And the Word became flesh” (John 1:1, 14) 329. For centuries, heretics have tried to eclipse this Christian dogma and thereby overthrow the Church of Christ. Some of them argued that God was not born of a Virgin at all; others allowed birth, but not from a Virgin, but from a wife cohabiting with her husband; still others argued that Christ incarnate was not God, but some kind of deified man; “... that the Word, which was not from eternity, was made man, but a certain man, having succeeded, was then crowned” 330. Many asked questions and said: “What was such an important reason for God to descend to humanity? And is it at least to some extent characteristic of the nature of God to live with people? Is it possible for a Virgo to give birth without a husband?” 331. But the Holy Church, strictly following the Holy Scriptures, recognizes the incarnation of the Son of God as an undoubted truth, and, speaking out against heretical errors, shows their complete failure. She firmly believes in the inspired narrative of John the Theologian that “the Word became flesh and dwelt in us” (John 1:14) 332. Otherwise, that is, “... if Christ the God / as indeed /, did not accept humanity, then we are strangers to salvation. Let us worship Him as God, and let us believe that He became man. To be called a man without the Divine is not useful; and not confessing humanity with divinity is not saving. We confess the coming of the King and Physician 333, for the Lord, born before the ages from God the Father, took human flesh from the Virgin in time for the sake of us and our salvation 334, the need for which grew more and more and was already leading the whole world to a mortal end. Sacred History tells that God at the beginning created a “right” man 335, the most excellent among all His creations - he created him in His image 336, but through the attempt of an envious devil he lost his previous state, and, having fallen into sin, he sowed evil throughout the world. From that time on, lawlessness, moral corruption and incredible vices grew and multiplied in all subsequent tribes and peoples. “The true God was neglected” 337, instead of God they began to worship idols, beasts, various animals, the serpent and the dragon 338. “Everything has turned aside, and was together without the keys: do not do goodness, not even one” (Ps. 13:3) 339. “Oaths and theft, and fornication, and murder spread throughout the earth” (Hosea 4:2). “And he devoured his sons and his daughters to the demon” (Ps. 105:37), etc. 340. According to the prophet Isaiah, the plague on people was so great that from the feet even to the head there was no integrity left in them and it was no longer possible to “apply a plaster, lower than oil, lower than duty” (Is. 1:6) 341. The prophets, seeing such a difficult state of the people, grieved for them and cried out to God for help. “Who will give out of Zion the salvation of Israel?” - the prophet and psalmist David prayerfully sang (Ps. 3:7) and asked the Lord, saying: “... let Your hand be on the man of Your right hand and on the Son of Man, whom You have strengthened for Yourself, and will not depart from You” (Ps. 79:18, 19) 342; and again: “Lord, bow down the heavens and come down” (Is. 113:5) 343, for the evil among the people is great and irreparable; “... the plagues of mankind exceed our medical allowance, ... your prophets have been destroyed, your altars have been dug up” (1 Kings 19:10) 344; … You need to be a corrector” 345 . And the prayers of the evangelists of the Word of God and intercessors for sinful people were heard. The Lord took pity on the suffering and, out of His immeasurable love for them, deigned to send His Only Begotten Son 346, “so that whoever believes in Him will not perish, but may have eternal life” (John 3:16) 347, and through the prophets he announced His coming. Thus, the prophet Malachi said in the Name of God: “The Lord, Him you seek, is coming, and will come suddenly” (Mal.3:1) 348. The prophet Isaiah was commanded by God to ascend a high mountain and preach to Zion and the cities of the kingdom of Judah about the coming Savior. “Behold your God,” he said, “behold the Lord comes with might” (Isa. 40:10) 349. Zechariah, foreseeing the salvation of the world, proclaims: “For the great joy of the daughters of Zion, preach to the daughters of Jerusalem: Behold, your King is coming, righteous and saving for you” (Zechariah 9:9) 350. According to the Psalmist, “... He will fall like rain on the fleece” (Ps. 21:6) 351. And through the prophet Zechariah the Lord says: “Behold, I am coming, I will dwell in your midst,” says the Lord, “and many nations will flee to the Lord” (Zechariah 11:10, 11) 352. Sending the Promised Deliverer into the world, the Lord indicates the time of His coming, where and from whom He should be born, and also communicates through His chosen ones the signs of this long-awaited appearance. Thus, the book of Genesis says that the Lord will come with the end of government in the kingdom of Judah 353. “The prince will not fail from Judah, nor the leader from his feet, until the desire of the tongues comes to him” (Gen. 49:8, 9) 354. The prophet Daniel narrates more specifically about the appearance of the expected Messiah: “And you were weighed and understood, from the exodus of the word, the hedgehog, and the hedgehog to build Jerusalem, even to Christ the Elder of seven weeks and sixty-two weeks” (Dan.9:25) 355. Sixty-nine weeks make four hundred and eighty-three years. At the end of this time, from the “defense of Jerusalem and the impoverishment of the princes” in Judea, the latter will be ruled by a foreign king, under whom Chryotos should be born 356. Jerusalem was again erected / fenced / by Darius in the eighth year of his reign and in the first year of the sixty-sixth Greek Olympiad. The latter took place after four years, because after four years the solar currents leave a whole day out of the three remaining hours after each year.”357 Herod reigned in the one hundred and eighty-sixth Olympiad, in its fourth year, which means that from the 66th to the 186th Olympiad inclusive, there are a little over 120 Olympiads, which is 480 years; the remaining three years consist precisely in the interval from the first to the fourth year. So, from the royal decree on the restoration of Jerusalem, according to the Prophet, until the time of the coming of Christ “... seven weeks and sixty-two weeks” 358. The coming of the Lord in the flesh will be from the south: “God will come from Teman” (Hab.3:3), and “in the midst of the two he will be known” (Hab.3:2) 359. The place of His birth from the Blessed Virgin Mary should be the city of Bethlehem, for the prophet Micah, foreshadowing the future glory of this city, said: “And you are in Bethlehem, the house of Ephrath, a little food, so that you were among the thousands of Judah: from you will come forth an Elder, so that I may be a Prince in Israel, and He went forth from the beginning from the days of the world” (Micah 5:2 ) 360 . What are the signs of the Lord, whose coming is announced by the prophets? And Zechariah says: “Behold, your King is coming to you, righteous and saving, He is meek and always / not on a chariot, but / on a horse and a young stallion” (Zech. 9: 9–10) 361. This is a unique sign of the coming King-Lord. One of all the kings of the earth, Jesus Christ, sat on a stallion that did not yet bear a burden 362. But since other kings can also sit on the stallion, the prophets point out other characteristic signs by which one could recognize the King of Heaven. The prophet Zechariah says: “And His newness will be established on that day on the Mount of Olives, which is straight to Jerusalem to the east” (Zechariah 14:4) 363. The Prophet Isaiah distinguishes the Coming One by His Divine deeds and says: “Behold Our God... He will come and save us. Then the eyes of the blind will be opened, and the ears of the deaf will hear. Then the lame will leap like a tree, and the tongue of those who perish will be clear” (Is. 35:4–6) 364. According to the same Prophet, one of the exceptional signs of the Messiah Christ will be that “the Lord himself will come to judgment with the elders of the people, and with their princes” (Is. 3:14) and will be condemned by them 365. The Jews do not attach much importance to this prophetic tale, “because they stopped the ears of their hearts so as not to hear” 366. They do not want to know that without confessing Jesus Christ, who came in the flesh and became man, it is impossible to comprehend Him, that He would be inaccessible to people. “Because we could not both see and enjoy the fact that He is in Himself; He became what we are, so that in this way we might be worthy to enjoy Him. For if we are not able to fully see the sun, created on the fourth day, then can we see His Creator God? 367. If Daniel, when the angel appears, says: “... my womb is turned away from me, and strength is no longer in me, and breath does not remain in me” (Dan. 10:16, 17) 368; If the Jews could not bear the appearance of the Lord at Sinai in cloud and thunder, then would they be able to accommodate His Divinity? But, in addition, there are other reasons for the Lord’s acceptance of human nature. He came to be baptized and to consecrate baptism; came to perform miracles among the people, walking on the waters, and since before His coming in the flesh, “the sea was seen and ran, the Jordan returned back” (Ps. 114:3); then the Lord took upon Himself the body so that when it saw the sea it would hold, and Jordan received Him without fear” 369. The main reason for His taking on flesh through birth is that through the virgin foremother Eve, death entered the world, through the Virgin, therefore, or rather, Life had to appear from the Virgin, which, according to the Prophet, would be from the line of David. The Psalmist says about this: “The Lord has sworn to David in truth, and it will not be repudiated: I will plant the fruit of your womb on your throne” (Ps. 131:11) 370, and in another place: “I have sworn one oath about My Holy One, if I lie to David: His seed will endure forever, His seed will remain like the sun before Me, and like the moon is perfect forever” (Ps. 89:36, 38) 371. Without a doubt, these prophetic words do not refer to an ordinary person, not to Solomon, the son of David, but solely to Jesus Christ, for Solomon’s throne was not eternal or “like the sun” 372. Archangel Gabriel, announcing to the Virgin Mary the birth of the Lord from Her, clearly says: “... and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David” (Luke 1:32) 373. The Prophet Isaiah testifies that “... and in that day there will be a root of Isha, in whom the nations will hope” (Is. 11:10); The Apostle Paul, preaching His Name, says that He will come in the flesh from the “seed of David” (Rom. 2:3; Tim. 2:8), to whom the Most Holy Virgin, the Mother of the long-awaited Lord Jesus Christ, appeared in due time. And this truth lies beyond any doubt. According to the revealed revelations of the prophets, it was the virgin who was destined to be the Mother of God, whom the Lord chose from the line of David, through Her Salvation was to appear to the world. Therefore, the prophet Isaiah proclaims His Holy will, saying: “Behold, the Virgin will be with child and give birth to a Son, and they will call his name Emmanuel” (Matthew 1:23; Isaiah 7:14) 374. The Jews distort this prophecy and consider it more true that the Savior of the world should be born not from a Virgin, but from a young woman. But if you trace those biblical passages where it is said about the young woman, then the truth will be revealed here too. “For the Jews must ask: is a virgin raped when she cries out for help? After your corruption, or before your corruption? Therefore, if Scripture says in another place: “Cry the damsel, and do not help her” (Deut. 22:27), then is it not talking about the virgin? 375. And the fact that in the Holy Scriptures a virgin is sometimes called a maiden can be seen and concluded from the story of Abishag. It is said about her: “The maiden had good vision” (1 Kings 1:4) 376. Because of her beauty, she was among King David’s chosen ones and there is no doubt that she was brought to him as a virgin 377. Nor is the opinion of the Jews that the above prophecy of Isaiah, since it was pronounced before King Ahaz with a preliminary appeal: “... ask yourself a sign from the Lord your God in depth or in height” (Is. 7:11), refers to Ahaz’s son Hezekiah. As is known, Ahaz reigned for only sixteen years and during his reign a prophecy was pronounced; his son Ezekiah took the throne after him in the twenty-fifth year of his life. Consequently, Hezekiah was born to Ahaz nine years before the prophecy. And if this is so, then what was the point of pronouncing a prophecy about someone who was born, and who was born before the reign of Ahaz himself” 378 . In addition, “The Prophet did not say that the virgin conceived in her womb, but says according to foreknowledge: she will receive 379, for it was fitting for Jesus Christ, all Gods, to come from a pure palace - to be born of a Virgin without a husband. And this extraordinary birth, which befits God alone, is indicated by the Lord Himself through the prophet David, saying: “For you brought Me out of the womb” (Ps. 21:10) 380, while the image of birth is completely different for those who are born according to the order of marriage 381. Having deigned to become the God-Man for the fear of people, the Lord was not ashamed to take flesh from their members, of which He is the Creator; He still creates babies in the wombs (Jer. 1:5; Job 10:10, 11). “Therefore, He who, when creating men, touches their members and is not ashamed, would He really be ashamed to create for His own sake holy flesh, this veil of the Divinity?” 382. Moreover, everything in the human makeup is pure, if it is not desecrated by adultery and other bad deeds. God created Adam and Eve - husband and wife, and not one of the members of the body, as He created it in the beginning, had filth in itself 383. Therefore, bodily purity is characteristic of all people. “Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit living in you?” - says the Apostle Paul (1 Cor. 6:19) 384. From such pure and holy flesh Christ the Savior became man. “My flesh is from them,” says the Lord through the prophet (Hos. 9:12) 385, that is, from the same people for whom he came into the world, from the Most Holy Virgin Mary, Who was betrothed not to her husband, but to God in sincere faith (Hos. 2:20) 386. The Greeks and Jews prove that it was impossible for Christ to be born of a Virgin. But their premises are unfounded and therefore serve as a reproach to themselves. So, if the Hellenes in their fables proclaim as an undoubted truth that lifeless stones turned into people, then how dare they say that it is impossible for a virgin to give birth? If it is accepted as true that a daughter was born from the brain, then why does it consider it unthinkable for a son to be born from a girl’s womb? And if they stand by their lie that Dionysus was born from the rib of their god Day, why do they reject the true teaching of the Church? 387 The Jews can be met with the following question: “... what is more difficult - to give birth to a barren, elderly woman, after the transformation of her usual wife, or to give birth to a young virgin? And from Sacred history it is known that Sarah remained barren for a long time, and when “... she ceased to be a woman” (Gen. 18:11), she gave birth to a baby supernaturally. Therefore, if it is possible for a barren woman to give birth supernaturally, then it is also possible for a virgin to give birth; “And you either reject both, or accept both. For one God created both this and ordered this; and you don’t dare to say that this is possible for God, but this is impossible” 388. It is known that it is not in the order of nature for human members to change into a different form and then again assume their former state, while the hand of Moses became white like snow and was suddenly restored. “You will say: God willed and changed his hand. There God, having willed, can do; can it really not be here? That miracle was only for the Egyptians, but this miracle was given to the universe” 389. And Sacred History contains a lot of such phenomena. By the will of God, the simple rod of Moses turned into a serpent and even became terrible for the ruler himself. “Whoever held this rod before will flee from it as from a serpent (Ex. 4:3); because the rod truly became a serpent.” He accepted all its properties: he had teeth and snake eyes... And if all this is so, then let those who oppose the truth say what is more difficult: for a virgin to give birth or for a rod to become a living being? 390. “From the rod are born eyes that see, but from a virgin’s womb will not a child be born, when it pleases God?...” 391. Such an extraordinary phenomenon happened with Aaron’s rod. According to the Writer of Life, it /the rod/ produced in one night what other trees produce after many years 392. The rod, as they say, “is frozen,” although everyone knows that a dry tree from which the bark has been removed, even if placed in the river itself, cannot grow. “But since God is not related to natural properties, but is Himself the Creator of natures, the barren, dry, barkless rod vegetated, blossomed and bore fruit - nuts (Num. 17:8). Therefore, the One who prenaturally bestowed fruit on the rod for the sake of the prototypical Bishop, could not, for the sake of the true Bishop, grant it to the Virgin to give birth?” 393. But the Jews, who contradict the true teaching, are not convinced by these examples and do not retreat from their incorrect conclusions. Therefore, they should be reminded of other extraordinary phenomena found in the Holy Scriptures, but closer to supernatural birth. However, let them say for themselves: “... by whom was Eve born in the beginning? What mother conceived her motherless?” Scripture says that she came from the rib of Adam. And if this is so, then is it not possible to admit that a virgin can give birth without a husband? 394 To prove the latter, we can cite an example even closer to supernatural phenomena, which speaks of something higher, surpassing every human thought and every concept. “That bodies are born from bodies—this, although unusual, is nevertheless possible. But that the dust of the earth became man - this is more wonderful; that the mixed clay takes on the appearance of membranes and clarity of the eye - this is even more wonderful; that from homogeneous dust comes hard bones, and the delicate composition of the lungs, and other various members - this is very wonderful; that clay, becoming animated, moves around the universe on its own and prepares a home for itself - this is wonderful; that clay learns, speaks, creates, reigns - this is wonderful. So, where did Adam come from, the ignorant Jews? Was it not God who took dust from the earth and created this wonderful creature?” What then? The dust of the earth is transformed into a man, but a virgin cannot give birth to a son? It turns out that for people it is completely impossible - it happens, but what is not beyond the possibility cannot be 395. The opinion of those heretics who proclaim that the Savior was born of Mary and Joseph, according to what is said in the Holy Scriptures: “... and received his wife” (Matthew 1:24) 396, is also unlawful and groundless. But from the same Scripture it is clear that the Most Holy Virgin Mary was not Joseph’s wife at all, and if She is called his wife, it is only because she was entrusted to his care. Just as Rachel, by promise alone, was called Jacob's wife, while still out of wedlock, so Mary was called Joseph's wife by betrothal alone 397 . And that She really remained a virgin at the subsequent time of her life is clear from the Gospel stories about Her. “In the sixth month,” it says in one place, “the angel Gabriel was sent from God to the city of Galilee, whose name was Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man, whose name was Joseph” (Luke 1:26, 27) 398. And in another place it is stated, when the census was being taken, “... Joseph also went up from Galilee to be registered with Mary, his betrothed wife, who was not idle” (Luke 2:4, 5) 399. Thus, in both cases, the Writer emphasizes that it was the virgin who was betrothed to Joseph, and in the narrative of the census of the people he does not say that he goes to register with his wife, but only with the one who was betrothed to him. And since Mary by that time turned out to be “not idle,” to Joseph’s surprise, he wanted to let Her go, but the Lord through the Angel said to him: “... do not be afraid to accept Mariam your wife: she who is born in her of the Spirit is Holy” (Matthew 1:20) 400. The Apostle Paul testifies that God did not send His Son from man and wife, but from the woman herself (Gal. 4:4), that is, from the Virgin, for in the Holy Scriptures, as was said, a virgin is also called a wife 401. The Most Holy Virgin Mary Herself speaks especially clearly about all this. Having heard from the Angel the extraordinary news about the conception of the Son, She asked in surprise: “... how will this happen, where I don’t know a husband?” 402 And by this she showed that She was unmarried and not a wife. But the Angel answered Her: “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you: by the same will He who is born holy will be called the Son of God” (Luke 1:34, 35) 403. From this it becomes clear that conception did not come from the lust of husband and wife, as the heretics proclaimed, but actually from the Virgin and the Holy Spirit, as a result of which the very birth of the Son was undefiled, immaculate and most pure 404, for the Holy Spirit prepurified and sanctified the Virgin Mary before accepting God in Himself 405. And “where the breath of the Holy Spirit is, there all uncleanness is taken away” 406. f. Jesus Christ was born from the Blessed Virgin, who conceived by the influx of the Holy Spirit, according to the prophecy of Micah 407, in the city of David or Bethlehem 408, moreover, he was born as a perfect man, having accepted real human flesh in all its fullness, not excluding even servility 409. From the Holy Scriptures it is known that from conception He remained in the womb of His Mother for 9 months 410. He was not born ghostly, nor did He pass through the Virgin as if through pipes, for having been born, He was fed with milk from Her breast, grew and was brought up among the people, needed food, etc. If all this had been a dream, then our salvation would have been a dream 411. The Savior Himself once said to those who doubted Him: “Handle Me, and see that a spirit does not have flesh and bones, as you see Me has” (Luke 24:39) 412. and. But having been born of the Virgin Mary according to humanity, the Savior Christ did not cease to be God. “In Christ there are two natures. Apparently He is a man, but invisibly He is God” 413. And how righteous Elizabeth testified about God when He was still in the womb of His Mother. Seeing the Virgin Mary come to her, she said: “Where do I get this, so that the Mother of My Lord may come to me?” (Luke 1:43) 414. Simeon testifies about Him, taking Him into his arms, saying: “Now you are releasing your servant, O Master, in peace, according to your word: as mine eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared before the face of all people” (Luke 2:28, 29) 415; Anna the prophetess testifies; John the Baptist testifies (John 1:33) 416; the Holy Spirit testifies, descending on Him in the form of a dove, so that John would know that He is God, for it was said to him: “Behold the Spirit descending and remaining on Him: He is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit” (John 1:33); The Lord God Himself testifies of Him, having once proclaimed through the Prophet: “Thou art My Son, this day I begat Thee” (Ps. 7:9) 417, and now proclaiming: “This is My beloved Son, in Him I am well pleased” (Matt. 3:17) 418. The Apostle Peter sees the Son of God in Him and says to him: “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God” (Matthew 16:16) 419. All the Apostles, who gave their lives for Him, the entire Christian world and even demons testify about Him - and they, seeing Him, said in fear and trembling: “What do we have to do with You, Jesus? We know You who You are, the Holy One of God” (Mark 1:24) 420. Messianic ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ The Lord Jesus Christ, according to the teaching of Divine Revelation, came into the world to take upon himself the full weight of human sins, and thus fulfill all righteousness. Having been God from eternity, He in the last days (Heb. 1:2) took flesh from the Virgin and became a man, as was required to fight evil and destroy lawlessness. “The devil has used the flesh as a weapon against us; and knowing this, Paul says: “... I see another law in my fortunes, opposing the law of my mind, and taking me captive... (Rom. 7:23). Therefore, with what weapon the devil overcame us, with the same weapon we were saved. The Lord accepted from us like us in order to save humanity, He accepted like us in order to give greater grace to the impoverished, and so that sinful humanity entered into communion with God” 421 . In order to free the world from the bonds of the devil and deliver the human race from death, the Lord had to endure suffering and even die for it. But if He had appeared only in one Divine nature, the devil could not have approached Him, as the Apostle Paul says: “Even though they knew that they were not, they crucified the Lord of Glory” (1 Cor. 2:8) 422. “Therefore the body [of Jesus Christ] became a bait of death, so that the serpent, hoping to devour, would vomit even those who were already devoured” 423. For this is why the Lord appeared to the world, to become the Savior of the living and the dead 424. b. The essence of the universal messianic ministry of the Lord is clearly expressed in the Name Jesus given to Him by God through the Angel (Matthew 1:20, 21) 425, which, translated from Hebrew, means Savior and from Greek – Healer 426. It /name/ says that He who came from God is the Doctor of souls and bodies, the Healer of diseases and illnesses, the Savior of all mankind 427. “He will save His people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21) 428. The Lord began His great and terrible ministry from the time of baptism in the Jordan River 429, when God anointed Him for this with the Holy Spirit (Acts 10:38) 430, which descended on Him in the form of a dove 431. Therefore, He is also called the Anointed One or Christ, in which (the name Christ) also reveals the same messianic meaning 432. In the Old Testament, high priests, prophets and kings were called anointed, who, when elected to their ministry, were anointed with holy myrrh or oil 433. And this anointing was a prototype of the actual anointing by the Holy Spirit of our Lord Jesus Christ, the true High Priest, 434 the Prophet about whom Moses foretold (Acts 7:37; Deut. 18:15), 435 and the Eternal King 436, superior to those on earth, for He is a Special King - the King of Glory (Ps. 23:7 ) 437, King bestowed by the Angels and co-throne with the Father 438. Concerning His royal dignity, the Psalmist says: “Your throne, God, is forever and ever a scepter of righteousness, a scepter of your kingdom. Thou hast loved righteousness, and thou hast hated unrighteousness: therefore for the sake of anointing Thee, God, Thy God, is more than Thy partaker with the oil of gladness” (Ps. 44:8) 439. He appeared to the world as that King who will never despise His servants 440, for as a Physician, girded with the lention of humanity, he came to heal the sick 441. He is the King and Master 442, the Lawgiver 443 and the Beginning of our fear 444; He is the Sheep according to humanity and the Shepherd according to the love of mankind of the Divine 445. Having received from eternity the indelible seal of the priesthood, He appeared as the great Servant and Intercessor for us before God 446. “This Jesus Christ is the come Bishop of the good things to come” (Heb. 9:11) 447, Who is not anointed with human hands, but is eternally anointed by the Father to a high priesthood that surpasses man 448. He is the High Priest, having an inviolable priesthood (Heb. 7:24), which He did not receive from others by succession, and He Himself did not “glorify Himself to be a High Priest, but say to Him: “Thou art a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek” (Heb. 5:5, 6) 449 and differs from others also in that His priesthood is confirmed by an oath ( Hebrews 7:20, 21 ) 450 . Having come into the world, this High Priest performed the great Sacrament, offering Himself to be slaughtered for the sins of all mankind 451. “For Christ,” according to the words of the Apostle Paul, “has come as the Bishop of the good things to come, through a greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands, that is, not sowing the creature, nor the blood of a goat, nor the blood of a calf; but by His own entering alone into the holy place He obtained eternal redemption” (Heb. 9:11, 14) 452. “And do not be surprised that the whole world has been redeemed. For it was not an ordinary man who died for him, but the Only Begotten Son of God... If, then, the reigning death in the world is by sin alone (Rom. 5:17), then is it not more by the righteousness of the One who reigns? If Phinehas, having become jealous and killed the icy one, stopped God’s wrath; then Jesus, not putting another to death, but offering Himself as a ransom price, will not satisfy his wrath against men? 453. Moreover, if under Moses the lamb saved the firstborn of the Jews from the Destroyer, then could not the Lamb of God free the world from sins more quickly? If the blood of a dumb lamb provided salvation, then even more so did the blood of the Only Begotten provide salvation! 454 V. Christ died for the sins of people, but He Himself did not commit a single sin, lest flattery be found on His lips (1 Peter 2:22; Isaiah 53:9) 455. Pilate, who judged Him, also declared to the people: “I find not a single guilt in this man” (Luke 23:14) 456; and, having washed his hands, added: “... I am innocent of the blood of this Righteous One” (Matthew 27:24) 457. The thief on the cross, aware of his just condemnation, reproached his accomplice, who was mocking the Savior, and said: “We are worthy of our deeds. This one will not do a single evil thing” (Luke 23:41) 458. And indeed, He was innocent of anything, He did not sin in word, deed, or thought, “... neither was flattery found in His mouth” (1 Pet. 2:22, 23; Is. 53:9) 459. d. The Lord went to suffer and die for the sins of people not under coercion, but voluntarily. “Whoever we rebuke is not rebuked, the suffering will not be forgiven” (1 Peter 2:23) 460. As an omniscient God, He knew about the cup that was coming to Him and told others that “the Son of man will be given up to be crucified” (Matthew 26:2) 461, but he did not shy away from death, did not run away, for he wanted the whole world not to perish in sins 462. “Behold, we are ascending to Jerusalem,” He informed His disciples, “and the Son of man will be betrayed... to death (Matthew 20:18, 19) 463. The prophetic words of the Lord came true. Upon coming to Jerusalem, one of the disciples, named Judas, betrayed his Teacher to the scribes and Pharisees, and they sentenced Him to death by crucifixion. So, as was foretold by the Prophet, “He who eats his bread will magnify stumbling against Him” (Ps. 40:10), becoming ungrateful to the Master of the House 464, for “... as soon as he left the meal, after drinking from the cup of blessing, he wished to shed righteous blood for the saving drink” 465. But the Savior was not ashamed to die for the world, and when the traitor, convicted by His words “... thou hast declared” (Matthew 26:25), left the house where the Supper was prepared, He said: “The hour has come, that the Son of man may be glorified” (John 12:23) 466, and he will be glorified not because he had no glory before / for he was glorified with glory before the foundation of the world /, but because he received the crown patience and free death 467. And that the Lord really did not endure all the torment and death on the cross under duress, this is clear from the words of the Savior Himself. He said: “... the area of ​​the imam is to lay down my soul, and the area of ​​the imam is to receive again” (John 10:18) 468, making it known that it was solely by His own will that he was inferior to his enemies, and if he had not wished, he would have passed by all this. “So, of his own free will, /He/ went into suffering, rejoicing at the accomplishment of the deed, grinning at the sight of the crown, rejoicing at the salvation of people, not ashamed of the cross, because he saved the universe. For it was not a man of little knowledge who suffered and struggled through the struggle of patience, but God made man” 469 . d. This whole way of the cross, performed by Jesus Christ for the sake of our salvation, is the truth beyond any doubt. But since from the side of the Jews - open enemies of Christianity - a number of objections are heard against the redemptive feat of Christ the Lord, it is necessary to show that all moments from the life of the God-man are attested to by the Holy Scriptures. What the Gospel now tells us about was what the Prophets foretold in advance 470. They foresaw His future by the Holy Spirit and very vividly depicted all His suffering and death. The beginning of the last and entire thorny path of the Lord, as mentioned above, was laid by His apostle Jude, who learned from Him Divine wisdom, “... he spoke peace (Ps. 34:20), and / finally / prepared battle” 471, Prophet David, therefore, in the Name of God says: “My friends and my sincere ones have come straight to Me and stash” (Ps. 37:12 ), make their words softer than oil, and they are arrows (Ps. 4:22) 472. With these prophetic words, he expresses the treacherous actions of Judas, who with insidious flattery, as if rejoicing at the sight of his Teacher, kissed Him, said: “... Hail Rabbi” (Matthew 26:49) and thereby betrayed Him to death 473. The most merciful Lord desired the repentance of the traitor and even reminded him of this, saying: “Judas, wilt thou betray the Son of man with a kiss?” (Luke 22:47) 474. But his heart was so cruel that he was not ashamed of the Savior and gave Him to the soldiers and high priests who came with him, who, according to the words of the Psalmist, with exact fulfillment, became hungry like dogs, returned for the evening and walked around the city (Ps. 57:7). Thus, the Prophet, indicating the presence of certain high priests at the capture of the Lord, also indicated the time and place where this happened 475. The traitor on the part of the scribes and Pharisees was offered thirty pieces of silver for Christ - and the Lord foresaw this and through the prophet Zechariah foretold, saying: “And the river to them, if there is good before you, give My reward, or deny it. And I set my reward at thirty pieces of silver” (Zechariah 11:12) 476. What accuracy in prophecy, what great infallible understanding of the Holy Spirit! The prophet did not say ten, or twenty, but exactly thirty, exactly how many there were.”477 But it was not the reward that they should have given to the Lord for His great mercies that they gave. And their Savior, instead of gratitude, received dishonor, instead of worship, reproach 478. The unappreciated one was valued at the price of thirty pieces of silver. The prophet Zechariah, with the same inexpressible accuracy, predicts what Judah will do with the price of blood he accepted - pieces of silver, and says: “... and he received thirty pieces of silver, and put them in the church of the Lord in a crucible” (Zechariah 11:13) 479. Is this so? And the Holy Gospel answers: “Judas repented and threw the pieces of silver into shame in the Church” (Matthew 27:3, 5) 480. But since they (pieces of silver) were the price of Blood, the Jewish high priests “... were given to the poor villages” (Matthew 27:10), which the Prophet pointed out with the word “crucible” 481. The soldiers, taking Jesus Christ, brought Him into the bishop's courtyard to mock him and condemn him to execution. And the prophet John, as if present here, sees everything, and in denunciation of the wicked he says: “... woe to their souls, even having conceived evil counsel against themselves, saying: Let us bind the Just One, for it is not necessary for us to eat” (Is. 3:9) 482. Some may object: why could not the God incarnate, who once freed the four-day-old Lazarus from the bonds of death and the iron bonds of the Apostle Peter in prison, allow Himself from them? Indeed, this was in His power, and, in addition, “...the Angels stood ready before Him, saying: Let us break their bonds (Ps. 2:3), but they are held back, because the Master is pleased to endure this” 483. Christ the Savior was brought to trial before the elders, for this was required by the will of God 484. According to the foreshadowed prophecy of Isaiah, “The Lord himself will come to judgment from the elders of the people, and from their rulers” (Is. 3:14) 485. These elders and princes, carrying out judgment on the Lord, mock Him, strangle Him with lawless and unclean hands, and He endures everything. Others come and spit on the face of the One who by spitting healed a man blind from birth. “Will you repay the Lord with this? Are these people boisterous and foolish?” (Deut.32:6) 486. And the prophet Isaiah, contemplating in spirit this lawless judgment against God, said with surprise: “Lord, who believes our hearing?” (Isa.53:1). “For it is an incredible thing; if God, the Son of God, the Arm of the Lord, endures it” 487. But for the sake of His people He also accepts reproach, as it is said about Him: “I put My cloaks on wounds, and My cheeks on blows, but I did not turn My face away from the cold of spitting” (Is. 50:6) 488. Then, having bound Jesus Christ, the high priests and elders of the people led Him from Caiaphas / the high priest / to Pilate, as the prophet Hosea announced this. According to the latter: “And she bound Him... and brought Him as a gift to King Jaarim” (Hos. 10:6) 489. But Pilate was not a king and one could assume that this prophecy is not true; however, it is at the same time irrefutable, as the Gospel confirms: “Pilate, hearing that He (Jesus Christ) was from Galilee, sent Him to Herod, who was then in Jerusalem (Luke 23:7). And Herod was the king to whom, according to Hosea’s prediction, Pilate gave the Lord as a gift 490. This prophecy, fulfilled with great accuracy, also contains another deep meaning. In it, as they saw, it is said that the Lord was given as a gift to the king, and through this “... but Herod and Pilate had the best friend with them that day, for before the best they had enmity” (Luke 23:12) 491. By His great mercy of God, the Lord Himself surrenders to death, and at the same time reconciles those at war. “And it was fitting for Him who had to pacify earth and heaven to first of all reconcile those who condemned Him. For the Lord Himself was here, changing the hearts of the princes of the earth” (Job 12:24) 492. The divine love in Jesus Christ for people never waned, and therefore He meekly accepts all the sorrows and suffering from them: the soldiers mock Him, Pilate sits on an elevated place and judges, and the Lord Himself, sitting at the right hand of God the Father, stands before and is condemned; the people, delivered by Him from Egyptian slavery and from a whole series of other misfortunes, cry out against Him: “... take, take, crucify Him” (John 19:15), so that the Prophet speaks with amazement about: “... against whom will you open your mouth? And against whom will you stick out your tongue?” (Isa.57:4) 493 ; and the Lord all the time provides for his (the people’s) salvation, grieves for him, but does not resist, he is silent. And Pilate, seeing this, feels sorry for the Sufferer: “Have you not heard,” he says to Him, “that they testify against You?” (Matthew 27:13). Christ does not answer this either. He, according to the exact prediction of the Prophet, “... as if you were deaf and did not hear, and as if you were dumb and did not open your mouth; and like a man he did not hear, and had no reproof in His mouth" (Ps. 37:14, 15) 494, while the Jews, "... like a lion in an oak grove, gave His voice against /Me/" (Jer.12:8) 495, mocking Him, and at the sight of His suffering, "waving their heads" ( Ps.109:25) 496. But since Jesus Christ is the Son of God and the King of all, 497 who accepted a free death, then with all their evil, inhuman mockery of Him, they cannot overshadow His royal dignity. They mock Him, but they also bow down; They are led to death, but they dress them in purple and place them on their heads, like a crown for a king, etc. 498. Finally, Life was hung on the tree, for this is what Christ said: “It is known that the Passover will be in two days, and the Son of Man will be given up to death” (Matthew 26:2); The prophet Jeremiah says the same thing: “I, like a gentle lamb, led to the slaughter, did not understand” 499 . The Prophet Moses very definitely points to His crucifixion and, mourning this, says: “And Your life will hang before Your eyes, and you will fear day and night, and will not have faith in Your life” (Deut. 28) 500. The Prophet depicted His very image on the cross with a copper serpent crucified on a tree, looking at which those bitten by serpents received healing, and thereby foreshadowed the salvation and healing of all people from sinful diseases in the Person of Jesus Christ, crucified for them 501. Hanging on the cross, Christ, exhausted by suffering and terrible pain from tearing wounds, thirsted. But the cruel Jewish crucifiers on a cane gave him otset instead of water, which the Psalmist indicated with extraordinary precision with the words: “And you gave gall to my food, and gave me otset to drink for my thirst” (Ps. 59:22) 502. The soldiers pierced the Savior's rib, and blood and water flowed from the pierced wound as a testimony to many 503. The Lord was crucified on Golgotha. And the latter in interpretation and translation means: Place of the Skull, so that the very name of the place of His crucifixion corresponds to the high dignity of him “who is the Head of every authority” (Col. 2:10) 504, “...who is the image of the invisible God... and He is the head of the body of the Church” (Col. 1:15, 18) 505. It was the third hour of the day when the Lord stretched out His most pure hands for us on the cross (Mark 15:23) 506: “from the sixth hour there was darkness until the ninth hour” (Matthew 27:45) 507; “...and from the ninth hour there is light again.” So it was said about this from God through the prophet Zechariah: “... and in that day there will be no light, but winter and frost; and the day will be one” (Zechariah 8:9) 508. And that it was winter time can be judged from the fact that during the capture of the Lord a fire was lit in the courtyard of the high priest, near which his disciple Peter warmed himself (John 18:18) 509. The Prophet Amos, as if in addition to the prophecy of Zechariah, shows that the sun will darken precisely on the occasion of the death of the Lord, for it will be during the day. He says: “And it will come to pass in that day,” says the Lord God, “that the sun will go down at noon, and the light of the earth will be darkened in the day” (Amos 8:9). That day will be a holiday - the day of unleavened bread, and the Prophet, announcing it, says: “And I will turn your holidays into pity”; because this happened on the days of unleavened bread, on the feast of Passover 510. “... and I will lay Him down,” continues, “as the lamentation of a loved one, and those who are with Him as a day of sickness” (Am.8:9, 10) 511; because during these days their wives grieved and cried, and the Apostles, hiding, were sick and suffered from pity for the Teacher 512. The soldiers divided the clothes of the Lord among themselves and gave the tunic by lot, which was also predicted by the prophet David with unprecedented expressiveness. As if in the presence of this fact, He announced in the Name of the Sufferer crucified on the cross, “... dividing My garments for myself, and casting lots for My clothing” (Ps. 21:19) 513. But the Savior also wore a purple robe; for, mocking, “...she clothed Him with a scarlet robe” (Matthew 27:28). Is this really what the prophecies say? And so the prophet Isaiah, by the Holy Spirit, sees Christ in His clothing and asks: “Who is this who came from Eden? Are His robes from Bozrah scarlet?” (Isa.13:1) 514. And in order to express the very meaning of the scarlet, i.e., that it was a reproach to Christ, he continues: “Why are Your garments scarlet, and Your garments, like a winepress that has been trodden on?” And the Lord answers him: “I have stretched out my hands all day long to a people who disobey and speak against words” (Is. 65:2) 515. Next to Christ, two thieves were crucified, and thus the Righteous One (Matthew 27:24) 516, Who did no evil (Luke 23:41) 517, who came to save the world and the people 518, was numbered among the lawless people. Sinless (1 Pet.2:22; Isaiah 53:9) 519, according to the foreshadowed prophecy of Isaiah, “... and be counted with the wicked” (Is.53:12) 520, although one of them turned out to be more grateful and prudent than the Jewish elders themselves, the scribes and Pharisees and all those who, at the sight of the Crucified One, “nodded their heads” ( Ps.109:25) 521; for the thief, realizing his sinful deeds, confesses the Lord and He honors him with salvation: “Amen, I say to you,” Christ says to him, “today you will be with Me in paradise” (Luke 23:43) 522. The Great Secret Sacrifice has taken place. Having accepted the oset, the Lord said: “It is finished” (John 19:30) 523. But since He died voluntarily, He added: “Father, in Your hand I commend My spirit” (Luke 23:46); said “... I betray” to accept again, and after these words “... give up the ghost” (Matthew 27:50) 524. And the whole world trembled at the sight of the dying God-man: the sun darkened and darkness fell over the whole earth, as the prophet Zechariah said, “... neither day nor night” (Zechariah 14:7) 525, the earth shook, the stones fell apart, the graves were “opened” and many of the dead rose up 526. He who “...in the dead there is freedom” (Ps. 87:6), “released His prisoners from the doom of the incapable of will” (Zech. 9:11) 527 and gave life to all the righteous; He voluntarily descended in spirit into hell in order to bring out from there all those swallowed up in death, as He testified in advance through His Prophet, saying: “I will deliver from the hand of hell, and I will redeem from the hand of death” (Hos. 13:14) 528; and death itself was thus defeated; Seeing the Lord of life descending into hell, uncontrollable by the bonds there, she was horrified and fell, for she could not resist God, and now a voice is heard from everywhere: “Where is the sting of death? Where the hell is the victory? (1 Cor. 15:55) 529. And since the flesh of the God-man - the veil of the Divinity was desecrated, then at the very moment of His death the representative veil of the church was “torn in two, from the highest to the lowest” (Matthew 27:51) 530. They buried His pure body in a tomb hewn from stone (Luke 23:53; Mark 15:46) 531. And the prophet Isaiah, as if pointing out to those who want to know where the Lord of the world is placed, says: “Look at the solid stone that you have sanded” (Is. 51:1); “Look and see,” continues the wise Sirach (2:10), that “... having killed my life in the river, and laid a stone on me,” the prophet Jeremiah replenishes in the Name of God (Pl. 3:53) 532. So, the cornerstone is chosen, honorable (1 Pet. 2:6), the stone of stumbling for the Jews is placed inside the stone for a short time and thereby grants salvation to people 533. The coffin in which the body of the Lord was buried was located in the garden and was sealed, according to what was said: “... into the heap of nuts he breathed in” (Song. 6:10) and “... the heap is enclosed, the source is sealed” (Song. 4:12). The Jews did so: “... remember,” they said, “like a flatterer He is still alive, saying that in three days I will rise. Commanded them to confirm the tomb” (Matthew 27:63, 64). And then “they went and solidified the tomb, marking the stone with the custodians (guards)” (Matthew 27:66 534). But all this serves them as a reproach, as Job says: “... and in the chambers you will judge /them” (Job.7:18) 535; for they themselves show with great certainty that Christ was the true God-man, really suffered, died and was buried 536. And the prophet Isaiah, having announced the coming of the incarnate God into the world, also mentioned death and burial - “... and the burial of Ero will be in peace” (Is. 57:2) 537. But here the Prophet added “... in peace,” because the Lord, with His burial, pacified heaven and earth and brought sinners to God 538. And “... from the face of unrighteousness the righteous took hold” (Is. 57:1) 539. Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead Out of His immeasurable love for the human race, the Lord Jesus Christ accepted a free death 540. For the sins of the whole world, He suffered terrible torment, was crucified and buried 541; for His indescribable mercy He was abandoned by everyone (Ps.87:6) 542 and, as the Prophet says, was brought down “... into the dust of death” (Ps.31:16) 543. But could death hold back the One who has within Himself the source of eternal life (Ps. 25:10)? Of course not. In hope of God the Father (Ps. 15:1), to whom He gave His spirit, dying for the sins of the world (Luke 23:46) 544, the Lord said long before: “... for thou hast not left My soul in hell, lest Thy Reverend see corruption” (Ps. 15:10) 545; and again: “For the sake of the poor and the groaning of the needy, now I will rise again, says the Lord” (Ps. 11:6) 546. And since life was really supposed to come after death, he foretold this through the Prophet, saying: “I will exalt You, O Lord, for You have lifted me up, and You have not made My enemies rejoice in Me” (Ps. 20:9, 2) 547. The Lord testified especially clearly about His resurrection when He appeared into the world with glorified flesh. In one of his conversations with the opposing and unbelieving Jews, He said: “Just as Jonah was in the belly of the whale for three days and three nights: so will the Son of Man be in the heart of the earth for three days and three nights” (Matthew 12:40) 548. And these prophetic words came true exactly. When the body of the deceased Christ the Savior was taken down from the cross and laid in the tomb, the myrrh-bearing wives came to the burial place to anoint his /body/ with fragrant myrrh, as required by the then Jewish charter, and did not find the Lord in him. Perplexed about what had happened, with sorrowful hearts and tears in their eyes, they stood at the tomb, and, not knowing what was written about Him, they thought that they had taken Him, just as Mary Magdalene, having come in the morning, “... was still in the darkness” (John 20:1) 549, and not finding the Risen One, she said: “... having taken my Lord, and not knowing where he laid Him"; but the Angel who appeared said to them: “... why are you looking for the Living One with the dead? He is not here, He has risen” (Luke 24:5, 6) 550; In addition, he added: “Go and speak as His disciples, as if He has risen” (Matthew 28:7) 551. And when they returned from the tomb: “... and behold Jesus / Whom they sought / I found, saying: Rejoice” (Matthew 28:9) 552, and they, seeing their risen Lord, worshiped Him with fear and joy (Matthew 28:9). The soldiers guarding the tomb, at the sight of the extraordinary phenomenon that occurred that night, were also convinced of the true resurrection of Christ, and, returning to the city, announced everything that had happened to the elders and high priests. The same, feeling ashamed, said to them: “Cry, as His disciples came at night, stealing Him away for us sleeping” (Matthew 28:13) 553; and so that this truth of the resurrection would not be proclaimed among the people, they gave the soldiers a sufficient amount of gold and silver. “...if this is heard by the hegemon,” said the haters of the Risen One, “we will satisfy him (hegemon/) too” (Matthew 28:14) 554. However, despite all their efforts, it was not possible to hide the unconcealed, for even if they convinced the soldiers of their slander, they could not convince the universe. Why were those guarding the tomb of Jesus Christ not condemned, just as the guards of the prison from which the Apostle Peter miraculously emerged were condemned? Herod condemned them because, out of ignorance of the matter, they did not find an excuse for themselves; “... and these, knowing the truth, and hiding it for silver, were saved by the bishops” 555. Few of the Jews were then convinced of this, and the world submitted to the truth. Those who hid this truth hid themselves, but those who accepted it appeared, for they were clothed with the power of the Lord Jesus Christ, who not only resurrected Himself, but also raised the dead with Himself 556, on whose behalf the prophet Hosea says: “He will heal us by the second day, on the third day we will rise again, and we will live before Him” (Hosea 6:3) 557. And so it happened. Christ resurrected and “... rose up with many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep, and came out of the tomb after His resurrection, went into the holy city, and appeared to many people” (Matthew 28:52, 53) 558. But the Jews, disputing Christ, are not convinced by the Holy Scriptures and prove the opposite. And therefore we have to ask them: “... on what basis do you dispute our Savior by claiming that Elisha and Elijah raised the dead? Is it because now we do not have such witnesses to what is asserted who would have lived then? Therefore, present such witnesses to what happened then. This is written, and this is also written. Why do you accept one and reject the other? Did the Jews write this? And the Apostles were all Jews. So why don't you believe the Hebrews? Matthew, who wrote the Gospel, wrote it in Hebrew. And the preacher Paul the Hebrew was from the Jews (Phil. 3:5), and the twelve Apostles were from the Jews. Then the fifteen bishops of Jerusalem were successively appointed from the Jews. Therefore, on what basis do you accept yours and reject ours, even though this was written by your own Jews?” 559. That the dead can be resurrected is quite clearly seen from the fact that Elisha raised the dead, and he raised them not only during life, but also after death 560. The dead man touched only his bones and came to life; and if this is so, then why does Christ not rise from the dead? 561. The Holy Scripture presents a closer example and genuine proof of the possibility of the resurrection of Jesus Christ in the person of the prophet Jonah, who spent three days and three nights in the belly of a whale and remained alive. But what is more difficult: to rise from the earth for a buried person, or to remain unharmed inside the aforementioned sea animal, where the heat is so great that even bones rot for a short time? How did Jonah survive in it? “And when is the property of all people such that without this breathing of air we cannot live, as he was alive, without breathing this air for three days?” They will say: “God’s power descended on Jonah, languishing in hell.” What of this? By sending down strength to His servant, the Lord grants him life, but He cannot grant it to Himself? If one thing is certain, then the other is also certain... For I believe that Jonah is preserved, because with Borah all things are possible” (Matthew 19:26) 562. But in addition to all kinds of examples and testimonies about the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Risen Christ Himself testifies to Himself by His repeated appearance to the people. So, soon after the resurrection He appeared to the Apostles, who, seeing Him, at first did not believe, for Christ appeared before them “by a closed door” (John 20:19), and they were afraid to see Him” (Luke 24:37) 563. And since the One who appeared was not a “spirit” - a ghost, but the same Teacher, Whom the Jews crucified and Who actually rose again, He, seeing their confusion, said: “Why are thoughts entering your hearts? See My hands and My nose, for I myself am; touch Me and see that a spirit does not have flesh and bones, as I have” (Luke 24:38, 40) 564. And “... to those who still do not believe them and wonder with joy, I say to them, “... do you have anything to eat here?” They gave Him some baked fish and honeycombs from the bees” (Luke 24:41, 42) 565. Having risen from the dead, the Lord appeared separately to Peter, “... also one and ten” (1 Cor. 15:5), then appearing to more than five hundred brethren alone /6/, then appearing to Jacob” (1 Cor. 15:7), His brother according to the flesh. But some may admit the idea that those who have seen the Lord before now preach about Him only out of goodwill, but in reality He has not risen and has not appeared to them. Such an assumption would be reliable if only His disciples testified about the Risen One. And since, according to the Apostle Paul, He appears to many (1 Cor. 15:6), and even to himself, the persecutor and enemy of the Lord, then how can there be any doubt about the testimony of the enemy? He who was a hater and persecutor now preaches the resurrection 566. And this is not surprising, for the whole world testifies to the Risen Christ - “... the night and the light of the full moon, because it was the sixteenth night of the new moon; and the stone of the tomb, which received Christ into itself, and this stone will stand against the Jews; because he saw the Lord; and the stone was then rolled away, and it, lying to this day, testifies to the resurrection" 567. The swaddling clothes with which His most pure body was wrapped testify to Him; The angels who appeared at the tomb testify; the soldiers guarding the coffin testify; Peter testifies, although he denied Him three times, as well as all those who saw and touched the hands and feet and the nail wounds; The wives who were at the tomb testify as having seen the Lord Himself; the sea and the fishing, the fire and the fish lying on it bear witness; those raised from the dead testify to Him 568 ; and the prophet Isaiah also testifies with great clarity, for he says: “... raise up from the earth a great Shepherd for the sheep (Is. 43:11; Heb. 13:20) 569. And these testimonies are sufficient to verify the truth of the resurrection of Christ, for, according to Scripture, “at the mouth of two or three witnesses everything will stand” (Matthew 18:16) 570. Thus, the one who was at first mocked and crowned with thorns and accepted death on the cross “for our sin” according to the scriptures, He, according to the Scriptures, was resurrected (1 Cor. 15:3, 4) 571 and crowned with the diadem of victory over death 572, thereby laying the foundation for a new general resurrection: “now Christ is risen from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep,” says the Apostle Paul in one of the messages (1 Cor. 15:20) 573. “If Christ does not rise,” he notes in another place, “our preaching is in vain, and our faith is in vain” (1 Cor. 15:14) 574, and we are still “in our sins” (1 Cor. 11:17) 575. Having made a saving sacrifice and delivered the human race from sins, the Lord Jesus Christ ascended to heaven 576. On the Mount of Olives, he parted with his disciples and, accompanied by the angels of God on a cloud, departed to the heavenly world, from where he had previously appeared for the messianic service 577, so that, having accepted our will, he would bring everyone to his father, saying: “... behold I, and the children whom God has given to me” (Is. 8:18) 578. Therefore, the Holy Church teaches in the Symbol to believe in the One who rose on the third day and ascended into heaven 579. And the truth about the ascension of the Lord from earth to heaven is not subject to any doubt, for even in the Old Testament God proclaimed through the Prophets and said: “Lift up your gates, O princes, and lift up the gates of eternity: and the King of Glory will come out” (Ps. 23:7), i.e., Christ will ascend, for only He, as the prophet Amos says, “... creates into heaven His rising" (Am.9:6); and in another place it is said: “... God arose with shouting” (Ps. 46:6); and again: “...thou hast ascended on high, thou hast taken captivity captive” (Ps. 46:17), etc. 580. In addition, the Holy Scriptures contain a number of other similar examples that confirm the reliability of the ascension. “For when the ascension of the Savior is disputed as something impossible, remember what was said about the transference of Habakkuk. For if Habakkuk was carried by an Angel, lifted up by the hair of his head, then much more than the Lord of the Prophets and Angels, ascending on a cloud from the Mount of Olives, could by His own power ascend to heaven. Remember similar miracles; Observe superiority to the miraculous Lord. For they were carried, but He carries everything. Remember that Enoch was laid to rest, and Jesus ascended... Elijah was taken up on a chariot of fire; and the chariot of Christ / God / is likewise a thousand of them that eat goblets” (Ps. 68:18) 581. Elijah was taken “... as into heaven” (2 Samuel 2:11), but Christ was taken into heaven; he reported that his disciple would be given extra grace through the Holy Spirit, and Christ communicated to His disciples such an abundance of this grace that they, through the laying on of hands, passed it on to believers 582. Christ on His Throne Having ascended into heaven, the Lord Jesus Christ sat down at the right hand of God the Father. Moreover, He received the throne not by success, as some think, but from His very birth, since He sits with the Father from eternity 583. The Prophet David says about Him: “Your throne is ready from the beginning; you have been from everlasting” (Ps. 92:3) 584. And the prophet Isaiah proclaims that in one of the revelations that came to him, “... I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and exalted” (Is. 6:1) 585. And since no one has ever seen God the Father, there is no doubt that the Son who appeared to the prophet was the Son. The Psalmist David clearly speaks about this: “The Lord said to My Lord: Sit at My right hand, until I will make Your enemies Your footstool” (Ps. 109:1) 586. And Jesus Christ, confirming the prophecy spoken by him through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, took it to Himself, saying: “How then does David call His Lord by the Spirit, saying: “... the Lord said to My Lord, sit at My right hand...” and so on? (Matthew 22:43) 587. In this sense, the Apostle Peter repeated these words in his speech delivered on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:34) 588. But he speaks more specifically about the sitting of the Son of God at the right hand of God the Father in his epistle (1 Peter 3:21, 22). According to the Apostle Paul, “Christ Jesus died, and even more so also rose again, and he is at the right hand of God” (Rom. 8:34) 589. In his letter to the Ephesians, he says the following: God “...according to the working of the might of His strength, He did in Christ, raising Him from the dead and seating Him at His right hand...” and so on. (Eph.1:19, 20) 590. He testifies to this in other epistles (Rom.8:34; Col.3:1; Heb.1:3; 10, 12, 13; 12:2) 591. In agreement with everyone, Jesus Christ Himself said the same thing about Himself, saying: “Above all I say to you, from here you will see the Son of man sitting at the right hand of Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven” (Matthew 26:64) 592. The ascension of the risen God-man Lord Jesus Christ into heaven was the completion of the entire dispensation of our salvation completed by him. Out of His immeasurable love for the human race, the all-merciful Lord gave everyone the life lost through the fall of their ancestors, freed everyone from sinful slavery, shedding His honorable blood for Jews and pagans 593, and brought everyone to the Lord of all 594. The very evil in which man was immersed was not completely destroyed. Therefore, in order to satisfy the truth of God and cleanse this visible world from all uncleanness and unrighteousness, Jesus Christ deigned to descend from heaven to earth a second time. But this coming of His will be very different in comparison with the first. At his first coming, He appeared in poverty and humiliation, wrapped in swaddling clothes in a manger; in the second, he will come in glory and majesty, clothed “... with light like a robe” (Ps. 100:3, 2), carried by the army of Angels 595, “... in command, in the voice of the Archangel” (1 Thess. 4:16) 596. The prophet Malachi, foreseeing this glorious coming of the Lord by the Holy Spirit, says: “... and the Angel of the covenant which you desire: behold, he comes, says the Lord Almighty. And who can endure the day of His coming? And who will stand in His vision? Zane Toy enters like the fire of a furnace, and like the soap of those who feather. And he sits boiling and purifying like silver and like gold” (Mal.3:1, 3) 597. Also, the Apostle Paul in his letter to Titus, mentioning the first coming, speaks with sufficient clarity about the second, when “the grace of God / the Savior / appears to all mankind, overwhelming us, so that, having rejected ungodliness and worldly lusts, we may live chastely and righteously and godly in this present age, awaiting the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of the Great God and our Savior Jesus Christ” ( Titus 2:11–13) 598. He will also come to bring about righteous judgment on the world. “... and I will come to you with judgment,” says the Lord, “and I will be a swift witness against sorcerers, and against adulterers, and against those who swear lies in My name” (Mal. 1:5) 599. Then the deeds of each person will be revealed. According to the Apostle Paul, “...if anyone builds on this foundation, gold, silver, honest stone, wood, hay, reeds, every work will be revealed: the day will reveal it; it will be revealed before fire” (1 Cor. 3:12, 13) 600. Yes, and the Lord Himself, sitting on the heavenly throne and coexisting with us, sees providences and tests the hearts and wombs of men 601, and therefore will reward everyone fairly; now He will come not to be judged again, but to judge those who condemned. He who was previously silent during the judgment (Matthew 26:63), as a reminder to the lawless who acted boldly and mercilessly in the last days of earthly life, will say: “... this is what you did, and you kept silent” (Ps. 10:4, 41). “... then He came according to His dispensation, teaching the people convincingly; and at the second coming, even if they do not wish, they will submit to His kingdom, if necessary” 602. This glorious coming of the Lord will bring about the end of the visible world. “Because corruption, theft, adultery and all kinds of sins are spread over the earth, and blood is mixed with blood in the world (Hos. 11:2); so that this wonderful monastery does not remain filled with lawlessness, this world will pass away and be better 603. Then, according to the prophet Isaiah, “... the sky will roll up like a scroll, and all the stars will fall like leaves from a vine, and like the leaves of a fig tree fall” (Is. 34:4) 604; then “... the sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light” (Matthew 24:29; Joel 2:31) 605. “They will perish” (Ps. 101:26) and appear in a new and better form: “... all (heaven and earth) promise like a robe, and like a garment I wear, and they will be changed" (Ps. 101:27): and all this will inevitably happen: “Heaven and earth pass by,” the Savior once said, “but My words do not pass by” (Matthew 24:35) 606. The Holy Scripture does not speak about the time of the second coming and everything that will happen then. “You have no understanding of the times and seasons,” it is said in the book of Acts, “which the Father has ordained in His power” (Acts 1:17) 607. It /Scripture/ indicates only the signs by which one can judge this terrible day. Therefore, the Savior, being on earth, caring for the salvation of his children, exhorted and commanded: “... watch, for in the same hour you remember, the Son of man will come” “Matthew 24:41) 608. At the request of the disciples, who wanted to know when this would happen, He showed them the very signs. The first such sign will be the appearance in the world of false teachers who will come in the name of Christ and deceive believers, therefore the Lord says: “Be careful that no one deceives you. For many will come in My name, saying, “I am Christ,” and they will deceive many” (Matthew 24:4–5 609. The second sign will be a very difficult time for the people. Wars and civil strife will begin, nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be destruction and destruction and cowards in every place (Matthew 24:7) 610. “... and then many will be tempted, and will betray one another, and will hate one another” (Matthew 24:10) 611. The next sign of the coming of Christ will be the preaching of the Word of God to all nations and there will not be a place left in the world where the Name of the Coming One would not flash forth, Who foretold: “... and this Gospel of the Kingdom will be preached throughout the whole world as a testimony in every tongue, and then the end will come” (Matthew 24:14) 612. The last sign - the strangest phenomenon in the life of the people - will be the coming into the world of the Antichrist 613. His power will come just before the end of the world. At first, as a learned and intelligent man, he will pretend to show positive aspects: modesty, chastity and philanthropy; He will deceive the people with false signs and wonders and present himself as the expected Christ and God 614. The Apostle Paul says about this: “Unless the falling away comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of perdition, the adversary, and exalt himself more than any that is said to be God, or that is worshiped like him, sit in the Church of God, showing to yourself that God exists” (2 Thess. 2:3) 615. Subsequently, he will mark his deception with all kinds of lawlessness and atrocities, so that he will surpass all the former unrighteous and wicked people before him, towards everyone, especially towards us Christians, having a bloodthirsty, cruel, merciless heart, filled with all deceit. Then, according to the prophet Daniel, “... there will be a time of tribulation, tribulation, such as it was, before the language was created on the earth, even in the time of this” (Dan.7:1; Matt.24:21) 616. It will be a terrible, fierce beast, a serpent insurmountable by people, “and this is the coming of Satan according to the work of all power and signs and lying wonders, and all the deceit of unrighteousness among those who are perishing” (2 Thess. 2:3-10) 617. And in every way he will act, “... as if it were possible to deceive even the elect” (Matthew 24:21) 618. But the Omniscient Lord warns His people against these iniquities of the Antichrist and teaches: “When you see the abomination, I stand in a holy place, whoever honors, let him understand; then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains,” etc. (Matthew 24:15, 16) 619, for this lawless man, who seized power by magic 620, will treat the saints of God with treachery and cruelty, and will put many to death 621. But out of His immeasurable love for the people whom He redeemed at the price of Divine blood, the Lord will limit their sorrow to a few days, and the lawless reign of the Antichrist will last only three years and six months, as indicated by the prophet Daniel in the words: “And it is given into his hand even for a time, and times, and half a time” (Dan.7:25) 622. When this time is fulfilled, that is, approaches the end, then the sign of the cross will appear in heaven (Matthew 24:30) 623 and all those living on earth will see Jesus Christ, “coming on the clouds of heaven with power and much glory” (Matthew 24:30) 624. Moreover, He will come instantly and unexpectedly, “... as lightning comes out and appears to the west, so will be the coming of the Son of man” (Matthew 24:27) 625 and this coming will put an end to the power of the Antichrist, “... whom the Lord will kill with the spirit of His mouth...” (2 Thess. 2:8) 626. Then the angelic trumpets will sound and there will be a general resurrection of the dead and a change in the living. “First the dead in Christ will rise, the reverent of the living will then be caught up in the clouds, receiving as a reward for their labors an honor that is higher than man; because they labored above the strength of men, as the Apostle Paul says in his letter: “... for the Lord himself will come down from heaven in commandment, in the voice of the Archangel, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first, then we who are alive and remain will be caught up with them in the clouds to the meeting of the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord” ( 1 Thessalonians 4:16, 17 ) 627 . But the very appearance of the heavenly Lord will be very terrible and extraordinary. According to the prophet David, “God will come, our God will not be silent, a fire will kindle before Him, a storm will surround Him,” and so on. (Ps.49:3) 628. It will be especially terrible for those who hated Christ, persecuted Him, tortured Him and crucified Him, 629 for the Lord will come with His holy Angels to bring judgment on the world. Then He will sit on the throne of His Glory with the Father and the Holy Spirit and, at the behest of the Father, will pronounce His Divine judgment on him 630. As for God the Father in relation to the Last Judgment, then, according to the Holy Scriptures, “The Father judges no one, but all judgment is given to the Sons” (John 5:22) 631. And since “... it is not something else, but one and the same - both the beck of the Father and the beck of the Son, then in order not to deprive the Father of his power, the Son will judge by the beck of the Father 632. And all nations will appear before Him (Matthew 25:32) 633 - each with his own deeds 634. “And a river of fire will flow to test men. Those who have golden deeds will become brighter. But if anyone’s work is like a reed and weak, it will be burned with fire, 635 for Christ the Judge is no respecter of persons. Therefore, He “...does not judge by glory, but will reprove by words” (Is. 11:3) 636. As the Word of God teaches, then, besides everything else, everyone will be judged by his own conscience, “with thoughts condemning or reproving one another, on the day when God judges in secret by man (Rom. 2:15, 16) 637. And the Lord will divide people according to worthy merits “like a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats” (Matthew 25:32) 638; He will call the righteous into the kingdom of heaven, and send sinners into eternal fire 639 (Matthew 25:46) 640, where they will be tormented forever and will not be destroyed 641. The Prophet Daniel says on this occasion: “... at that time all of Your people will be saved, written in the book (obviously in the book of life). And many from those sleeping in the earth will arise, these to eternal life, and these to reproach and eternal suffering. And those who understand will be enlightened like the brightness of the firmament, and from the many righteous like the stars forever...” (Dan.12:1-3) 642. For such the door of eternal life will open and they will reign with Christ in His endless kingdom 643. A. According to the teaching of the Orthodox Church and the Word of God, the Holy Spirit is the third Person of the Holy Trinity. The Only Begotten Son of God Himself commanded the Apostles to teach “... all languages, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19) 644. But all three Hypostases, as was said, are unfused and inseparably united with each other and represent one God 645. Therefore, the essence of the Holy Spirit, like the essence of the Father and the Son, is unsearchable and indescribable 646. All that can be said about Him is what the Spirit Himself “said” about Himself in Scripture, although spiritual grace is necessary for the mere transmission of this 647. “So let us say only what is written about the Holy Spirit. If something is not written, let’s not be curious about it. The Holy Spirit Himself spoke the Scriptures, He spoke about Himself, whatever was pleasing to Him, or what we can contain, but what He did not speak, it is not brave to speak about 648,” and especially about nature or hypostasis 649. For salvation, it is enough to know only that there is God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit 650. Moreover, there is only one Saint. Just as there is one God the Father and there is no other father, and just as there is one Only Begotten Son of God and He has no brother, so there is one Holy Spirit and there is no other spirit equal to Him 651. Therefore, the Holy Spirit is the greatest Power, He is divine and unsearchable; because he is alive, intelligent, and sanctifies everything that God does through Christ. He enlightens the souls of the righteous; He is in the Prophets; He is also in the Apostles in the New Testament. May those who dare to separate the power of the Holy Spirit remain hated! One God the Father, Lord of the Old and New Testaments; there is one Lord Jesus Christ, prophesied by the Prophets in the Old Testament and come in the New Testament; one Holy Spirit, who through the Prophets preached about Christ, and after the coming of Christ descended and anointed Christ 652. In His dignity, He is higher and more excellent than all the heavenly incorporeal powers, for they are sent by God to serve, but the Spirit experiences the depths of God; as the Apostle Paul said, “For the Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God” (1Kor.2:10) 653, He is co-essential with the Father and the Son 654 and has equal Divine dignity and the same gifts with the Father and the Son. “Not other gifts of the Father, but others of the Son, and others of the Spirit. For there is one salvation, one strength, one faith. There is one God the Father, one Lord, His Only Begotten Son, one Holy Spirit, the Comforter 655. And therefore the gifts of the Holy Spirit are very different and extraordinary.” Great, omnipotent and wonderful in gifts is the Holy Spirit" 656. He instructs some in a virtuous life, teaches others wisdom, gives some the power to cast out demons, and imparts the gift of interpretation of Holy Scripture; educates some to disdain earthly, bodily things, prepares others for martyrdom; in some he strengthens chastity, in others he teaches almsgiving, and in these he produces other things 657. But with all His gifts, He remains indifferent to Himself, for it is written: “To whom the manifestation of the Spirit is not given for the benefit. To one is given the word of wisdom by the Spirit, to another the word of understanding, about the same Spirit, to another faith, by the same Spirit: to another the gift of healings, about the same Spirit: to another the actions of powers, to another prophecy, to another spiritual reasoning, to another the birth of tongues: all this acts one and the same Spirit, dividing the power to whomever he wants” ( 1 Corinthians 12:7–11 ) 658 . Just as the same rainwater, which irrigates everything in the world, becomes different and multi-colored in all kinds of plants that feed on it, such as: white in lilies, purple in violets; one takes on the form and taste in dates and the other in grapevines, etc., and is all in all, and yet retains the same property; so the Holy Spirit, sharing His grace to everyone, “as He wills,” remains one, uniform and inseparable 659. V. According to the teaching of Holy Scripture, the Holy Spirit is inexpressibly different from all God's creatures, and it cannot be confused with those spiritual concepts that take place on the pages of God-inspired books. Just as Aaron is called Christ, just as David, Saul and others are called Christ, but there is only one true Christ; so among all spiritual beings, properties and concepts, one is the true Holy Spirit 660. “Many things are called spirit. For an Angel is also called spirit; our soul is called spirit; and an unclean act is called spirit; and the opposing demon is called a spirit. Therefore, hearing this, by the sameness of the name, not almost one for the other” 661. The Word of God says about the soul: “His spirit will depart and return to its land” (Ps. 110:5-4); “Build up the spirit of man in him” (Zechariah 12:1) 662. Something else is said about the Angels: “The angels create His spirits, and His servants a fiery flame” (Ps. 103:4); the wind is also spoken of as a spirit (Ps. 47:8; 7:2, 148:8) 663. But that is not how the Holy Spirit is. It is not pronounced by the tongue and cannot be expressed in human words. The Holy Spirit has life in Himself, possesses the highest wisdom and gives others the power to speak wisely, and He Himself speaks and converses 664. As the book of Acts narrates, the Holy Spirit instructed Philip in the baptism of the Eunuch (Acts 8:29), commanded the Apostles who were in Antioch to separate Barnabas and Saul “for the work according to their calling” (Acts 13:2); He repeatedly told the Apostle Paul that bonds awaited him, and he announced what was said to him: “Even as the Holy Spirit bears witness throughout all the cities, saying that bonds await me and sorrow” (Acts 20:23) 665. Thus, He, having life in Himself, separates, calls and sends with authority. “For this is the good Sanctifier of the Church, the Helper, the Teacher, the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, about whom the Savior said: “To him you will teach all things... and he will remember all that I have spoken to you” (John 14:26) 666. He is the Guardian of human life and the good Patron in troubles and misfortunes 667. But since the concept of spirit is something indefinite; since everything in general that does not have a gross body is called spirit, it is not immediately necessary to conclude that in one place or another of Holy Scripture the Holy Spirit is spoken of 668. Therefore, in order to show the distinctive property of every spirit, the Word of God appends to each of them the corresponding definitions 669. When, for example, he speaks of the soul as a spirit, he speaks with the addition: the spirit of man; if he calls the wind spirit, then he says: the spirit is stormy; if he calls sin, he says: the spirit of wandering; or when he calls a demon, he says: unclean spirit, and this shows that there is only one true Spirit - the Holy Spirit. Demons are also disembodied spirits and living beings. But between them and the Holy Spirit there is a great and incomparable difference 670. These unclean spirits are cruel enemies of man. They try in every possible way to captivate his soul and, like bloodthirsty wolves, are ready to make it their prey: they suppress feelings, darken thoughts, and often subject them to terrible torment 671 . A completely different attitude towards the person of the Holy Spirit. “His coming is illuminated with rays of light and knowledge. He comes with the compassion of a sincere trustee; because he comes to save, heal, teach, enlighten, strengthen, console, enlighten the mind, first in those who received Him, and then through Him in others” 672. It brings a person closer to God, purifies his soul and makes him able to contemplate God 673. He sends people “knowledge” 674, enlightens spiritual vision 675, admonishes, instructs and leads to good goals 676. “There is a lot of covetousness in the world, but Christians are not covetous. Why? According to the guidance of the Spirit. A truly precious gift is the Holy and Good Spirit. We are justly baptized into the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit" 677. A person often enters into a struggle beyond his strength with powerful and fierce demons, which many are not restrained by iron bonds, and defeats him, subjugates him to his power with a few prayerful words, by the power of the Holy Spirit abiding in him. “This means that we have from God a great Supporter and Patron, a great Teacher of the Church, a great Intercessor for us” 678. d. Having fellowship with God the Father before all ages (eternal years), the Holy Spirit always intercedes for us before God. “For what we will pray, as we ought, we do not know, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings that cannot be uttered” (Rom. 8:26) 679. He assists the martyrs in passing the ascetic path 680 and provides witnesses for Christ, for “... no one can speak of the Lord Jesus except by the Holy Spirit” (1 Cor. 12:3) 681. Just like the Father and the Only Begotten Son, the Holy Spirit possesses all the properties inherent in God. He is majestic and omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent and wonderful in gifts 682. He is the Leader, Teacher and Sanctifier of Angels, Archangels and all the heavenly powers of the incorporeal and all rational beings created by God through Christ 683. This Holy Spirit continually preached about Christ in the Prophets; He was active all the time in the Apostles; He still seals souls in baptism. He descended on all the Old Testament Righteous Ones, rested on all the saints. He was sent to build the tabernacle 684; dwelt in Moses and was sent down upon the seventy elders who were with him 685. Judges and kings were guided by the power of the Holy Spirit. The future was foretold to them by the Prophets. So, for example, David says: “The Spirit of the Lord is in me” (2 Sam. 23:2), “... and do not take Your Holy Spirit from me” (Ps. 50:18); and again: “Your good Spirit will guide me to the right land” (Ps. 142:10) 686. The Prophet Micah, in the Name of God, narrates: “Unless I am filled with strength by the Spirit of the Lord” (Micah 3:8); Joel cries: “And it shall come to pass, says God, that I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh...” (Joel 2:28); and Haggai says: “I am with you,” says the Lord Almighty, “and My Spirit is present in your midst”1 (Ag. 2:5, 6); like him, Zechariah narrates: “Besides, you accept My words and My laws, Alika I command in the soul of My servant My servant the Prophets” (Zechariah 1:6) 687, The Prophet Isaiah, announcing the future of the Messiah, testifies: “... and the Spirit of God will rest on Her, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and strength, the Spirit of knowledge and piety: He will fill His Spirit The fear of God" (Is.11:2, 3), as well as in other places: (Is.41:1, 44:4, 48:16, 51:21, 51:1, etc.) 688. And Ezekiel says: “... and the Spirit of the Lord came upon Me, and said to me: Say, this saith the Lord” (Ezek. 11:5); "... and carry me away into captivity into the land of Chaldeans in a vision by the Spirit of God” (Ezek. 11:24) 689. The Prophet Daniel (Dan. 13:45, 4:5) and a number of other Prophets 690 speak about the Spirit, for the Spirit shares His gifts with the power of each as He wills” (1 Cor. 12:11) 691. In the New Testament, the Holy Spirit descended on the Holy Virgin Mary and sanctified Her to receive the Lord Jesus Christ 692; He lived in Zechariah and through him prophesied about the appearance of the Messiah with the Forerunner Ero; Righteous Simeon was filled with it, having the promise “... not to see death, before he even sees Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:26) 693. And He descended on Christ Himself during baptism 694. The Lord also gave it to His disciples: “And this he said, and breathed, and said unto them, Receive the Holy Spirit...” (John 20:22) 695. In addition, He (the Lord) promised to send Him to them after His ascension into heaven, saying: “... but you sit in the city of Jerusalem until you are clothed with power from on high” (Luke 24:49) 696. And the words of the Lord came true. His disciples, awaiting the fulfillment of the promise given to them, inseparably remained in the indicated city. And when the day of Pentecost arrived, “... suddenly there was a sound from heaven, like a storm of breath. And you filled the whole house where he sat (Acts 11:2) and the nations appeared to them, dividing them like fire, sitting on one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit" (Acts 2:34) 697. And He taught them everything. For after this they began to perform miracles 698 and spoke in different languages ​​699 so that those who arrived in Jerusalem on the occasion of the holiday listened to the sermon about Christ, each in his own dialect, and were amazed. But this is a replenishment of the prophecy of Joel, which the Apostle Peter cited as proof of the miraculous phenomenon, saying: “And it will come to pass in the last days,” says the Lord, “I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters will prophesy...” (John 16:17, Acts 11:18) 700. Thus, simple, unlearned fishermen, through the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit, surprised the world. They explained the Holy Scriptures, denounced the scholars - princes, elders, scribes and high priests of the Jewish people 701 and with the spiritual network of their teaching they caught thousands of new members, leading them to faith in Christ (Acts 2:41) 702. “So great was the grace that acted in all the Apostles together that very many of the Jews themselves who crucified Christ believed and were baptized in the name of Christ” 703; and so abundant that for all their meekness they were terrible. “But no one dared to cling to them from others, but I magnified them as a people, and I cling to them who believe in the Lord, a multitude of men and women” (Acts 8:14) 704. This grace of the Holy Spirit acted throughout the entire Church of Christ and was transmitted to everyone on whom the Apostles who accepted it from God laid their hands 705. Moreover, those who accepted it, such as the seven deacons, like the apostles themselves, performed signs and wonders. Archdeacon Stephen “... full of the Holy Spirit, looking up to heaven in the form of “... the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God” (Acts 7:55) 706. Because of the abundance of grace in him, “... his face shone like the sun, like the face of an angel” (Acts 6:15) 707. The Apostle Philip, filled with the Holy Spirit, performed miracles: he cast out demons, healed the paralytic and the lame; The Apostle Paul, called by the Lord to preach about Christ, by the power of the Holy Spirit “... performed thousands of exploits and carried the word about the crucified Christ to all ends of the universe 708. This Holy Spirit, in agreement with the Father and the Son, established the New Testament for the Universal Church, freed us from the unbearable burdens of the Law,” which was once the shadow of future blessings 709, and granted eternal life, for the Holy Scripture says: “Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he will not enter the kingdom of God” (John 3:5) 710. d. According to His highest Divine dignity and comprehensive actions in the world, the Holy Spirit is also called by names corresponding to Him, Thus, He is called the Spirit of God (Matthew 3:16, Rom.8:14); By the Spirit of the Father (Matthew 10:20, Eph.3:14); by the Spirit of the Lord (Acts 5:9); by the Spirit of God and Christ (Rom.8:9) and Christ alone (1 Peter 1:11; Phil.1:19); called the Spirit of the Son of God (Gal.4:6); the Holy Spirit (Rom.1:4); Comforter (John 16:7); the Spirit of revelation (Eph. 1:17); The Spirit of promise, as the Apostle Paul says: “In Him also, having believed, you are marked with the Spirit of promise, Holy Eph. 1:13); called by other similar names; in the psalms He is sometimes called sovereign (Ps. 50:14), sometimes good (Ps. 142:10); in the prophet Isaiah He is called the Spirit of wisdom, understanding, counsel and strength, knowledge and piety and the fear of God (Is. 11: 2–3) 711. “And all this, both before and now said, confirms that although the names are different, there is one and the same Holy Spirit, living and independent, always co-present with the Father and the Son; not spoken or exhaled by the lips and throat of the Father or the Son, and spread in the air, but hypostatic, Himself speaking and acting, and building the house, and illuminating; so that the saving dispensation for us of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit is continuous and consistent and one.” 712 . Therefore, “... let no one say that there is another Spirit there, and another here; otherwise he will offend the Holy Spirit Himself, who is honored with the Father and the Son, and who is co-accepted during holy baptism in the Holy Trinity” 713. Therefore, for salvation it is necessary to maintain firm faith, equally in the Father and the Son, and in the Holy Spirit, for through Him the seal of Divine grace is given to everyone, as it is written: “... in Him also he who believed was marked with the Holy Spirit of promise” (Eph. 1:13) 714. Saint Cyril expounds the doctrine of the Trinitarian God in a purely Orthodox spirit. But since there are some ambiguities in it, due to certain expressions and terms, then upon first acquaintance with the doctrine of St. The father cannot always come to the right conclusion. Therefore, in order to give proper judgment in the direction of St. Kirill, one must always remember the conditions under which he had to labor. His life and work took place in a special, exceptional environment. Suffice it to say that he spent 16 whole years in exile, deprived of the opportunity to live in his hometown, the episcopal see of which was occupied by the Arians at that time. But even those 23 years that he spent at intervals in Jerusalem, ruling the church, brought him little peace. The staunch defender of Orthodoxy for his beliefs was constantly persecuted by the Arians and suffered a lot from them of all kinds of sorrows, such as accusations, slander, etc. St. Cyril was not always appreciated by some Orthodox bishops. The latter suspected him of non-Orthodoxy and hated him. True, when St. Cyril was in the ranks of deacon and presbyter, his Orthodoxy stood beyond all suspicion, and the Orthodox world looked to him with hope as its future leader and protector. When he took the episcopal see and showed his leadership activities, unanimity and loyalty towards him ceased. Some Orthodox bishops began to have a negative attitude towards him, suspecting him to be a hidden enemy of Orthodoxy. But in reality St. Kirill was not like that. All his activities, on the contrary, spoke of the firmness and constancy of his religious beliefs. For his Orthodox faith, he was hated and persecuted by the Arians, waged a constant struggle with them, protected his flock from heretics, wanting to invariably preserve the apostolic faith in them. As a true father and teacher of the Church, he firmly commanded and spoke to his beloved children, “... so that this confession of faith at all times of your life should serve as a guide for you, and you should not accept another confession besides it, even if we changed our minds and stopped saying the opposite of what we now teach, or if an opposing angel, transformed into a bright angel, wanted to deceive you” (Gal. 1: 8, 9) ... For the statement of faith was not compiled according to human reasoning, but the most essential was selected from all Scripture, and from this one doctrine of faith was compiled” 715. But the era in which St. lived and labored. Kirill, was an era of struggle, general confusion and mistrust. Its true defenders were often declared enemies of Orthodoxy, and real enemies were mistakenly mistaken for friends. The state of the church at that time /IV century/ St. Basil the Great compares it to a night battle, when it is very difficult to distinguish one’s own from one’s enemies /Letter to Athanasius V./. What was St. accused of? His father's opponents? The main reproach he was given was the absence in the Catechetical Words of the term ομοογσίος, which, allegedly, was replaced by the non-purely Orthodox term ομείος - similar, and through this he was considered an adherent of Arianism. But about Orthodoxy, St. Kirill should have been judged not by what he did not say, but by what he said and taught to others. The strictest critic could not find anything unorthodox in his teaching. If St. The Father deliberately does not dare to explain the inexplicable being of God, does not strive to penetrate the inaccessible secrets of Divine life and speaks somewhat secretly about the Only Begotten Son of God, calling Him not consubstantial, but similar to the Father - this does not at all mean that he belonged to the heretical party of the Arians. The Holy Church, in the fight against various heresies, developed a whole series of similar theological terms, which the Apostolic Church did not know, but in the first half of the 4th century they were not yet widespread and, as little known to many, they were even confused with concepts. Therefore, it is not surprising that in the works of St. Kirill does not have the term “consubstantial”. The Church of Jerusalem professed the Apostolic Creed, which did not contain this term, and its Archpastor, when revealing the Divine truths contained in it (Symbol), was guided not by the arguments of reason, but by the Holy Scripture 716, which is above all authority, and in the teaching about the Son of God he does not sin or err in the least. Thus, without calling the Son consubstantial with the Father, St. Cyril calls Him the true and perfect God, naturally begotten of the Father 717 and having no deficiency. “... For the Father, as true God, begot a Son like Himself, true God” 718. And He who begot was not changed into the Son, and He who was begotten did not become Father. From one only Father there is one Only Begotten Son. There are not two unbegotten, and not two Only Begotten, but one Father is unbegotten. For he who does not have a Father is not born. And one Son was eternally begotten of the Father - not born in time, but born before the ages, not having continued to grow, but such was he born, as He is now 719.” “...Therefore the Son is true God, has the Father in Himself, and was not transformed into the Father, etc.” 720. So what? Isn't this an Orthodox teaching? Doesn't it say that the Son is one in essence with God the Father? Is it not a contrast to the heretical fabrications of the Arians, who proclaim the temporal beginning of the Son of God? Although St. The father does not sharply speak out against these enemies and does not even call them by name, but, nevertheless, he fundamentally refutes what they taught. We “... did not introduce division into the Holy Trinity,” he says, “as others do” 721; Let us not say: it was when there was no Son” 722; Let us not assume that the Son is one of the creatures 723, for, according to Scripture, “... This is the Lord of all” (Acts 10:36) 724, by nature before the “daystar” (Ps. 9:3) born of the Father 725. And with this St. Kirill clearly shows that his teaching is alien to the views of which they are trying to accuse him. True, he was also accused of having intercourse with the Semi-Arians. But as for such, they are not explained by the deviation of St. Father from the Orthodox faith, but the practical necessity of finding support and sympathy among those representatives of theological views who, after all, were not, like the Arians, irreconcilably hostile to Orthodoxy and with whom it was possible to fight both against the Arians themselves and against other heretics who had decisively and definitely deviated from Orthodoxy. Non-belonging of St. Cyril's commitment to this party is clearly reflected in his constant struggle with Akaki and in his direct indication of the consubstantial Persons of the Holy Trinity 726. Judging by the teaching of St. Kirill, you can’t even think that he was of a different direction. There is no place in his teaching about the Triune God that is not captured by the Holy Scriptures, there is no question that is not confirmed by the words of the Lord or His Prophets. He says directly: “The Divine and Holy mysteries of faith should not be taught without the Divine Scriptures and not be carried away by simple probability and arguments of reason. Don’t even just believe me, who tells you this, if for what I proclaim you do not receive evidence from the Divine Scriptures...” 727. In the matter of faith, he was firm and unshakable, and at the same time thoughtful and careful. Revealing the Symbol, it concerns only those truths that are directly related to the salvation of man. Thus, in the Announcement of the Holy Spirit, so that either out of ignorance or out of imaginary reverence, not to say anything unworthy about Him and not to accept condemnation 728, he tells believers only what the Spirit “said” about Himself 729. “But don’t be curious about nature or hypostasis... For our salvation, it is enough for us to know that there is a Father and a Son and a Holy Spirit” 730. About the procession of the Holy Spirit of St. Cyril does not mention in his works, does not prove the reasons for His existence, because he does not find specific indications of this in the Holy Scriptures, “... and what is not written,” he stipulates, “we do not dare to talk about that” 731. However, it was impossible to ignore this essential issue, since in the Gospel there are a number of places where it is said that the Spirit comes from the Father, is sent through the Son, or by the Son from the same Father. Therefore, in order to do what is right and not fall into sin, as he notes, having mentioned the descent of the Holy Spirit on Jesus Christ, he said: “... but now let us listen to the sayings of the Savior Himself about the Holy Spirit,” and cited those places of Holy Scripture where it speaks of His (Spirit) procession, without giving any interpretations 732. St. Cyril also does not call the Spirit God; but at the same time does not allow the thought that the Spirit is not God. “Our trust is in the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. We do not proclaim three Gods... On the contrary, with the Holy Spirit through the one Son we proclaim the One God,” he says, 733 thereby expressing the complete truth regarding all the Persons of the Holy Trinity. And in order to more clearly express the trinity in the unity of God, St. Cyril, as has already been said, calls the Son of God similar to the Father, and the Holy Spirit co-essential with the Father and the Son, 734, that is, the same God, but at the same time independent, hypostatic, having the same Divine gifts and properties, not divided in His being and inseparable in the Trinity. Thus, he shows that the entire economy of our salvation was accomplished by God the Father in the Son through the Holy Spirit, as the Holy Orthodox Church teaches about this, It follows from this that it is not in the actions and not in the views of St. The reason for the conflicting opinions of his contemporaries about him lay in the mood of mutual distrust that captured many leaders of the Orthodox Church of the 4th century in their struggle against heresies. Only such great luminaries as Athanasius the Great, Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian could rise above the general level and evaluate events and actions according to their true inner value, regardless of external circumstances. But the activities of St. Kirill was so great and fruitful that she could not be overshadowed by any external circumstances. The True Shepherd, like Athanasius the Great, not only waged a constant struggle against the Arians and other heresies, taking care of preserving the faith and apostolic traditions, but also very carefully ruled the church entrusted to him. Combining both, he was most concerned about peace in the church and looked with inexpressible sorrow at the divisions taking place in it and the brotherly hatred between the bishops. During the era of this struggle, he was not so much an ardent fighter and antagonist, but rather a kind mentor and reconciliator. But in defending the rights of the church and the sanctity of its teachings, he was always steadfast and decisive. In this defense, he stood above settling personal scores with his opponents, and for him it was most important to explain to the other side its errors and point out the truth. For these greatest works and exploits, for his tireless activity in preserving the faith and preaching the Word of God, the Ecumenical Council, in a letter to the Western hierarchs, called him the most reverent and most God-loving bishop. And if contemporaries of St. Cyril, who stood too close to him to calmly evaluate the tasks of his activities aimed at the good and pacification of all, expressed different and far from the truth opinions about him, then, after his death, the Eastern and Western Churches unanimously agreed in recognizing his greatest merits and canonized him. Publicity sl. 4, 37, 62, 63. “Creations like those in St. our father Kirill, archbishop. Jerusalem." ed. P. Sergiev Posad. 1803, p. 5. Publicity sl. 16, 2, 220, 221. Magazine “Addition to the ed. creativity Holy Fathers", part 14, Moscow, 1855, p. 104. Creations like those in St. O. our Kirill, architect. Hierus., ed. P, Sergiev Posad, 1893, p. 5; Orthodox Theology. encyclopedia, vol. X, compilation. edited by N. N. Glubokovsky, published. successor A. P. Lopukhina, St. Petersburg, 1909, p. 238. Historical teaching about the Fathers of the Church Philaret, arch. Chernigovsky and Nezhinsky, vol. II. S. Petersburg, 1855, p. 90; The Greek-Eastern Church during the period of the Ecumenical Councils of F. A. Ternovsky, 1833, p. 90. Mention Creation St. Cyril Hierus., pp. 5–6, 313, Op. Journal, Add. to ed. creativity Holy Fathers, page 116. Mention Creation St. Kirill Hierus., pp. 313–314. Church history by E. Sozomen, book. 4, 25, pp. 292–293, St. Petersburg, 1851 Ibid., pp. 292–293; Ecclesiastical History of Theodoret, Bishop of Cyrrhus, book. 2, 26, p. 175. St. Petersburg, 1852 Ecclesiastical Iothoria E. Sozomena, book, 4, 24–25, pp. 287, 294. Magazine “Addition to the ed. creativity Holy Fathers", p. 14, p. 120. Historical teaching about the Church Fathers of Philaret, Arch. of Chernigov and Nezhinsk, vol. 2, p. 91. St. Petersburg, 1859. Ecclesiastical History of Theodoret, Bishop of Cyrrhus, book. 2, 24, pp. 170–171. St. Petersburg, 1852 Magazine “Addition to the ed. creativity Holy Fathers", part 14, pp. 126, 127. St. Petersburg. 1855. Historical teaching about the Church Fathers of Philaret, Arch. of Chernigov and Nezhinsk, vol. 2, p. 90. Church history by E. Sozomen, book. 5, 22, p. 368. Church history by E. Sozomen, book. 5, 22, pp. 369, 370. Historical teaching about the Church Fathers of Philaret, Arch. of Chernigov and Nezhinsk, vol. 2, p. 92. Works of St. Gregory the Theologian, τ .1., p. 129. Ed.P. P. Soikina. Magazine “Addition to the ed. creativity Holy Fathers”, part 14, page 132. “Creations like those in St. our father Kirill, archbishop. Jerusalem." page 8; mention Magazine “Addition to the ed. creativity Holy Fathers", page 136. Historical teaching about the church fathers of Philaret, Archbishop of Chernigov and Nizhyn - volume, II, p. 94, St. Petersburg, 1850. Will announce. sl. 5, 12, p. 70. Will announce. sl. 4, 3, 46, 5, 12, 69; Prepositions 11–12, pp. 16, 17. Will announce. sl. 4, 3, 46, 17, 20, 249, 18, 34, 276. “The conversation is about relaxed. § 16, 309; John 5:13. Will announce. sl. 4, 35, 36, pp. 61, 62. Will announce. sl. 5, 12, 13.70. A. Yes, St. Cyril opposes Simon the Magus and denounces him as the inventor of all heresies, who wished to purchase the grace of the Holy Spirit for money. Publicity sl. 15, 5, pp. 203, 16, 5.6, 222:16, 10, 224, 3, 7.40, Preag. sl. § 1, 4, pp. 11, 13. b. Convicts Jews, Greeks and Samaritans. Pre-agreed sl, §10, pp. 15, 16; Publicity sl. 4, 37, 62, 6, 11/10, 77, 78, 6, 33, 89, 6, 11, 77, 8.1, 100, ХII, 2, 3.139, 12, 13, 144; V. Refutes the teaching of Savely 16, 4, 221. d. Opposes the Gnostics. Publicity 6, 12–36, 78, 91; in word 14, 21,19З - against the Manichaeans; in word 16, 4, 7, 221, 223 - against Marcion; at 16, 8, 223 – protnv Montana; at 16, 6.6, 222, 224 – against Manes, etc. d. Convicts the Jesses 8, 7, 103 and all heretics in general 11, 21, 136, 12, 3, 140. Publicity sl. 11, 5, 7, 127, 128. Publicity sl. 9, 3, 105, 6, 2–4, 72, 73. Publicity sl. 6, 3, 4, 5, 72, 73. Publicity sl. 11, 12, 130, 131. Publicity sl. 9, 12, 13,109–110. Publicity sl. 9, 14, 110–111. Publicity sl. 2, 11, 31, 7, 11, 97, 9, 1, 104, 10, 7, 116. Publicity sl. 9, 1, 104, 6, 5, 74. Publicity sl. 10, 7, 116, 9, 1, 104. Publicity sl. 6, 6, 74, 7, 11, 97. Publicity sl. 17, 23, 233, 6, 6, 74. Publicity sl. 9, 2, 16, 105, 112. Publicity sl. 9, 13, 14, 110, 111. Pre-agreed sl. 13, 17 pp.; Publicity sl. 1, 5, 24. Secret guide.sl. 5, 11, 298 – in modern Slavic. The text says “as if I will dwell in them, and look like...”. Publicity sl. 4, 4, 47, 11, 18, 134. Publicity sl. 8, 1, 100, 7, 14–15, 99. Publicity sl. 6, 4–5, 73, 74. Publicity sl. 6, 7, 75, 8, 3, 101. Publicity sl. 3, 3, 37, 15, 21, 212. Publicity sl. 8, 8, 103, 6, 7, 75. Publicity sl. 5, 4, 64; Prenegl. sl. 12, 17. Pre-agreed sl. 8, 15; Publicity sl. 3, 7, 40. Publicity sl. 6, 8, 76, 4, 5, 47. Publicity sl. 8, 2, 100, 101 – the Announcement contains only the middle of the text: “If I ascend to heaven, if I descend to hell.” The beginning and end are supplemented from the Slavic Bible. Publicity sl. 5, 2, 64, 1, 3, 22. Preposition. sl. 17, p. 20. Publicity sl. 7, 14, 99. In the Gospel “theirs” is written together. Publicity sl. 5, 19, 300, 5, 13, 296. Publicity sl. 6, 4, 101–102. Publicity sl. 2, 5–19, 27–35. Publicity sl. 4, 32, 59–60, 3, 15, 43, 44. Publicity sl. 2, 16, 34. The word “Lord” is not in the text of the Gospel; it is contained in the previous verse, but is implied. Pre-agreed sl. § 7, 14. Publication. sl. 8, 4, 101, 6, 7, 75, 6, 36, 91, 7, 1–2, 92, 6, 9, 76, 7, 11, 97. Publicity sl. 8, 8, 103, 17, 34, 257. Publicity sl. 9, 4, 105, 7, 4, 94. Publicity sl. 18, 13, 265, 266, 18, 6, 261. Publicity sl. 6, 4, 5, 73, 7, 8, 96, 9, 15, 111. Publicity sl. 2, 1, 25, 4, 19, 54. Publicity sl. 16, 4, 221, 222. Publicity sl. 11, 13, 131, 132. Publicity sl. 11, 16, 17, 133. Publicity sl. 11, 5, 127, 7, 2, 92, 93. Secret guide. sl. 5, 19, 300. Conversation about relaxation. §2–3, 302. Conversation about relaxation. § 5, 304. Publicity sl. 11, 21, 22, 136. Publicity sl. 11, 23–24, 137. Conversation about relaxation. § 5, 304. Publicity sl. 11, 24, 137, 138. Publicity sl. 11, 10, 22, 23, pp. 129, 136, 137. Publicity sl. 11, 19, 21, 24, 134–137. Publicity sl. 10, 4–5, 114, 115. Publicity sl. 11, 21, 22, 135, 136. Publicity sl. 6, 11, 78, 11, 22, 136. Publicity sl. 6, 10, 11, 77, 12, 15, 146. Publicity sl. 12, 3, 139, 12, 29, 155. Publicity sl. 12, 3, 139, 140. Publicity sl. 12, 22, 150, 151. Publicity sl. 12, 29, 154, 155. Publicity sl. 12, 32, 156, 17, 6, 242. Publicity sl. 17, 6, 241, 242. Publicity sl. 4, 9, 49, 12, 14, 145. Publicity sl. 3, 14, 43, 17, 9, 242, 243. Publicity sl. 10, 12–13, 119, 120. Publicity sl. 10, 13, 120, Conversation about the settlement. § 1, 2, 6, 302, 304 Publicity sl. 3, 14, 43. Secret guide. sl. 3, 1, 2, 289, 290. Conversation about diss. § 15, 308. Publicity sl. 1, 6, 24, 10, 5, 115. Publicity sl. 13, 2, 158, 159. Publicity sl. 13, 3, 5, 159, 161. Publicity sl. 13, 2, 159, 160. Publicity sl. 13, 5, 159, 161. Publicity sl. 13, 5, 161, p. 162. Publicity sl. 13, 8, 162, 163. Publicity sl. 13, 15, 168. Conversation about relaxation. § 12, 307. For the interpretation of this, see Announcement. sl. 13, 21, 170–171, 3, 10, 41. Publicity sl. 17, 19, 248, 13, 24, 172. Publicity sl. 13, 3, 159, 2, 10, 30. Publicity sl. 13, 34, 178, 14, 16, 18, 190, 192. Publicity sl. 14, 17, 19, 191, 192. Publicity sl. 13, 35, 178, 3, 12, 43. Publicity sl. 13, 35, 178, 179. Secret guide. sl. 2, 7, 288, 3, 2, 290. Publicity sl. 13, 34, 178, 14, 3, 183. Publicity sl. 13, 34, 178, 14, 1, 182. Publicity sl. 14, 12, 188. On the resurrection, see Announcement. sl. 4, 12, 50, 5, 6, 66, 10, 10, 118, 14, 1, 22, 182–195, 18, 16, 267. Secret guide. sl. 2, 5, 287. Publicity sl. 14, 12, 14, 15, 18, 188, 190, 192. For the resurrection of the dead, see Oglas. sl. 18, 2–19, 260, 269. There, in the announcement, only a portion of the text is indicated, “Handle Me and see,” the rest is supplemented from the Gospel. Publicity sl. 14, 11, 187, 188. Publicity sl. 14, 21, 22, 23, 193–195. Publicity sl. 4, 13, 51, 14, 24, 159. Publicity sl. 4, 13, 14, 51, 14, 23, 25, 195, 196. Publicity sl. 14, 27, 197, 14, 30, 199. Publicity sl. 14, 27, 197, 198. Publicity sl. 14, 28, 198, 14, 29, 198. Publicity sl. 14, 29, 198, 199. Publicity sl. 15, 6, 203, 204. Publicity sl. 15, 9, 204–207. Publicity sl. 15, 15, 16, 209. Publicity sl. 15, 15, 17, 209, 210. Publicity sl. 15, 16, 20; St. Cyril interprets these words in some detail. Publicity sl. 15, 22, 212, 213. Publicity sl. 15, 10, 20, 21, 206, 211, 212. Publicity sl. 15, 19, 211, 18, 17, 269. This question of the resurrection of the dead is raised only in connection with the question of the Last Judgment. It is thoroughly revealed in chapter 18. sl. 2–21, pp. 260–270. Publicity sl. 15, 22, 26, 213, 216, 18, 18, 19, 26, 9. Publicity sl. 15, 26, 33, 216, 219. Publicity sl. 16, 3, 5, 221, 222. Publicity sl. 16, 24, 233, 234. Publicity sl. 16, 3, 221, 17, 2, 3, 239, 7, 11, 97. Publicity sl. 16, 23, 233, 4, 16, 52, 6, 6, 74. Publicity sl. 17, 5, 241; Pre-agreed sl. § 15, 19 pp. 15, 24, 214. Publicity sl. 16, 12, 20, 226. Publicity sl. 16, 12, 20, 226 Publicity sl. 16, 12, 225, 226, 17, 2, 239. Publicity sl. 16, 13, 226–227. Publicity sl. 16, 17, 18, 230, 16, 22, 232. Publicity sl. 16, 19, 231,16, 20, 231. Publicity sl. 16, 22, 23, 232, 233. Publicity sl. 16, 23, 233, 17, 2, 239. Publicity sl. 17, 12, 245. Tanovod. sl. 3, 1,2, 289. Publicity sl. 17, 22, 24, 25, 31. Pp. 250, 251, 255. Publicity sl. 17, 16, 17, 247, 248. Publicity sl. 17, 21, 23, 24, 250, 251. Publicity sl. 17, 21, 249, 250. Publicity sl. 17, 24, 25, 251. Publicity sl. 17, 26, 28, 252, 253. Publicity sl. 17, 29, 253, 254. Publicity sl. 17, 4–5, 240, 241. Publicity sl. 11, 18, 19, 20, 134, 135. Publicity sl. 7, 10, 97, 11, 4.5, 127. Last to the emperor Constantius § 8, 315.