Pastoral counseling based on the letters of Bishop Feofan (Govorov)

Ep. Feofan "Collected Letters" Saint Theophan is one of the great ascetic pastors of the Russian Orthodox Church of the 19th century, who devoted his entire life to serving God and his neighbors. Many turned to him for advice and help, and not a single one was abandoned in difficult moments of life, receiving appropriate instructions and support from him. From his numerous works, Saint Theophan is known as a pastor-preacher in the ranks of hieromonk and bishop, an exegete of the Holy Scriptures, a teacher of morality, and as an experienced spiritual leader and mentor. But since the topic of our work is “Pastoral counseling according to the letters of Bishop Theophan,” we will try to reveal and show what exactly his archpastoral counseling consisted of. The topic is interesting because it has not been developed by anyone and, moreover, is very complex. The difficulty in revealing the topic is that there are no letters addressed to Saint Theophan, which would help to trace how the questioners were satisfied with his answers, how the admonitions and instructions of the saint affected them, how many he saved from spiritual death, reviving them to spiritual life. This work consists of an introduction, three chapters and a conclusion. In the introduction - about pastoral counseling. The letters of St. Theophan, like any literary work, bear the imprint of the character of its author. Based on this, the letters must be considered inextricably with his personality. Therefore, the first chapter will be a short biography of St. Theophan. In the second chapter - about the works of the saint and in more detail about his letters. The third chapter is the pastoral instructions of St. Theophan. The fourth and final chapter contains a general description of pastoral counseling based on the letters of St. Theophan. The meaning of letters. Reviews about them. When considering the contents of the letters, we consider it necessary to cite words and individual expressions from them that will help to more clearly imagine the method of his pastoral influence on those questioning. When quoting excerpts from letters, we will indicate the issue and number of the letter, and if the letter is written on several pages, then the page by opening which you can check the correctness of the presentation of the thought and the quotation of the letter. The path to the Kingdom of Christ is narrow and cramped. A Christian needs a lot of strength, courage and spiritual experience to steadily follow this narrow and cramped path. If a traveler walking through unfamiliar terrain needs an experienced guide to show the way, and warriors need a skilled commander for a successful battle, then, undoubtedly, Christians wandering in the country of a sinful world, which is filled with dangerous enemies, need experienced guards and guides. These guides and guardians are the divinely appointed shepherds of the Church on the path to salvation. They must be well prepared for this great service, since not only believers, but also those ignorant in matters of faith turn to them with various questions, asking for “clarification.” True shepherds must also possess such great art as guiding human hearts, which is not given to everyone. Archimandrite Boris said well about pastoral art: “Pastoral art is something completely different from the knowledge of the human heart that poets possess. It is something that is given to a person from above. This is deep insight of the mind, knowledge of the human soul and its needs, which is communicated only by the Holy Spirit, testing the depths of God and man. This constant and diligent study of the people, carried out during personal relations with them, has the same, if not more, importance for the successful activity of the shepherd as his home, book studies. 1 Undoubtedly, a very important and necessary concern falls on the pastor for each person individually, as well as for the entire flock entrusted to him. Pastors should remind their flock more often and clarify the truth that earthly happiness is possible for us, but only as the beginning and guarantee of eternal bliss. Man was created for immortality. Therefore, first of all, he must satisfy the immortal needs of his soul. Shepherds must be faithful interpreters of God's destinies that relate to their own lives and the lives of their flock; they should be a living instrument of the Lord's grace in turning away from the vanity of the world and serving God in spirit and truth. Pastoral spiritual care for the individual human soul, as a special creation of God, is the implementation of the Divine idea. Pastors should not consider it sufficient to care for their flock that they are teachers of faith and piety, performers of divine services, judges of matters of conscience and leaders. They are the trustees and leaders of the flock along the entire path of their spiritual life, guardians and defenders, educators of their moral life, as well as representatives for the souls of the flock before God. The Holy Scripture clearly speaks of the need for such special care for the individual soul of every believer. Even at the time when man was seeking salvation from sin and evil, the First Shepherd of human souls, our Lord Jesus Christ, was already prepared by the all-good and all-powerful God. Therefore, He Himself, in the ten and other commandments, directly addresses every person, so that he does not have other gods and does not create idols, does not worship them. The psalmist David enthusiastically expresses this conviction of Old Testament man about God’s care for him with the words: “The Lord is my Shepherd, I will not need anything. He makes me lie down in green pastures and leads me beside still waters, He strengthens my soul, He guides me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.” ( Ps. 22:1-3 ). Eight centuries before Christ, the fulfillment of the divine promise of the future Good Shepherd, in the person of the Messiah, became especially clear in the prophetic utterance of Ezekiel. He wrote: “For thus says the Lord God: Behold, I myself will seek out my sheep and look after them. I will find the lost, and bring back the stolen, and bandage the wounded, and strengthen the sick, and destroy the fat and violent; I will shepherd them with righteousness. And I will appoint over them one shepherd, who will feed them, my servant David; he will feed them, and he will be their shepherd.” (Ezek.34:11,16,23). Jesus Christ Himself, the apostles and many holy fathers and teachers of the Church taught about caring for the flock. Jesus Christ was the first to point out the human soul as an independent being, a substance, and proclaimed it morally free. She immediately became the most important and irreplaceable value in this world. In the Holy Scriptures we read: “For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul? Or what ransom will a man give for his soul?” (Mark 8:36–37). When the Pharisees and scribes reproached Jesus Christ for communicating with sinners, He answered with irresistible words: “I tell you that there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who do not need to repent.” (Luke 15:7). A good example of pastoral counseling is the Savior’s parable “About the Good Shepherd” (John 10). In it, He revealed in detail what a true shepherd should be, who, in addition to the entire flock entrusted to him, must also take care of each person individually. From this we can conclude that He considered it a necessary quality of the “good shepherd” that he should know his sheep and call them by name, knowing their characteristics and needs. In other words, the shepherd needs to get to know each of his flock, according to the characteristics and needs of his soul, so that he can guide them along the path of spiritual life and salvation. Evangelists say that during his three-year ministry, Jesus Christ did not leave those around him without attention. He did not neglect, but patiently taught one woman at Jacob’s well: “A woman comes from Samaria to draw water. Jesus says to her: Give Me a drink... The woman says to Him: Master! Give me this water, so that I won’t thirst and won’t have to come here to draw”... (John 4:7-15). He gave advice to one rich young man (Matthew 19:16-22); or to some superior (Luke 18:18–23) and in many other cases he offered his help. He called publicans and sinners who followed and shared meals with Him and His disciples. (Mark 2:15). Jesus Christ taught and raised each of his apostles according to his natural characteristics and needs. The holy apostles followed the path of their Teacher. They visited the sick and healthy at home. Thus, the Apostle Paul preached about Jesus Christ not only in synagogues, but also in private homes. He himself spoke about this: “How I have not missed anything useful that I would not have preached to you and taught you publicly and from house to house.” (Acts 20:20). The Apostle Paul especially clearly and impressively emphasized the need for pastoral care in his farewell conversation with the Ephesian shepherds, where he said: “Take heed therefore to yourselves and to all the flock, of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the Church of the Lord and God, which He purchased with His own blood.” (Acts 20:28). The Holy Church always in practice carries out its care for its flock only in different forms: She prays “for every Christian soul” during divine services, when visiting the sick at home, for those who have fallen from the faith, and also takes care of the religious education of believers. In accordance with the teaching of the Savior and the apostles on spiritual care, the fathers and teachers of the Church taught. So St. Gregory the Theologian, although he recognizes the difficulty of counseling (and this is only because ruling a person, the most cunning and changeable animal, is an art of art, and a science of sciences) 2, but considers it a necessary duty of the pastors of the Church, because the shepherd will have to give an answer for all the flock entrusted to him at the Last Judgment. St. John Chrysostom, in his treatise “on the priesthood,” points out the great reward for caring for the flock of Christ. 3 In the book “The Pastoral Rule” by St. Gregory Dvoeslov in the third part speaks in detail “about how a shepherd, who has legitimately achieved pastoral service and lives in accordance with his rank, should teach and edify his flock.” 4 We all understand perfectly well that leading human souls is a difficult matter, and therefore pastoral work, as a spiritual educator, leader and trustee, is very difficult. Although some measures of influence that are moral are available to the shepherd, they do not always lead to positive results. He has to constantly live in sorrow for his flock, for he cannot be indifferent when he sees the death of his flock. To do this, the pastor needs to choose the right method of approach. He must approach each of his flock in accordance with the characteristics of each. The pastor must be able to discern which medicine will bring the greatest benefit to the healing of wounds, and according to this principle, apply the appropriate medicine. It follows from this that a shepherd must be a good psychologist. This is what Bishop Feofan was like. Based on the principle of the inseparability of the personality of the teacher of morality in the care of his flock, expressed in his letters, the first chapter of our work will be a short biography of Bishop Theophan, focusing primarily on his upbringing and education of moral character, as well as his activities as a zealot for salvation. Chapter I. The life and work of St. Theophan His Grace Theophan, in the world Georgy Vasilyevich Govorov, was born on January 10, 1815 5 in the village of Chernovsk, Yeletsky district of the Oryol province. His father was the priest of this village. Childhood years passed in the circle of parents and relatives. Of course, this environment had a very great influence on the formation of his moral character. His father, Vasily Timofeevich, had an influence and religious and moral attitude on his son. He took the children to church on Sundays and holidays. When the children grew up, their father forced them to read, sing in the choir and serve at the altar. If the whole church environment leaves an impression on adults, then even more so in children it excites and strengthens religious and moral feelings and gives food and direction to all the forces of the soul for future life. Having experienced all the beneficial influence of the Church in childhood and realized all its necessity, Bishop Theophan, speaking about the means of raising children, considers the main thing for them to be churchliness, which he writes about in his works. 7 Tatyana Ivanovna, Georgy’s mother, was busy raising her children, because their father was busy with parish affairs. She tried to instill in her son the basic Christian virtues: obedience, meekness, love for neighbors, which together create the spiritual image of a Christian. Despite his great modesty and religiosity, the future bishop stood out among his peers for his liveliness, resourcefulness in difficult situations and perseverance. “A person’s first life impressions are usually the deepest and strongest, and therefore such family education undoubtedly had great moral significance, unconsciously but firmly planting in the child’s soul the true seed of the future life of a great Christian ascetic.” 8 The bright, deep mind inherited from his father, a remarkable memory, as well as tireless energy and perseverance in achieving his intended goal, were combined in the future saint with rich spiritual gifts received from nature. From his mother he inherited a tender loving heart, meekness, liveliness and impressionability. Primary education, which consists of the ability to read, write, and comprehend the first operations of arithmetic, was given to him after seven years. In 1823, Georgy was sent to the Livensky Theological School, the 9th year of which was very easy. After completing his studies at the school, he was transferred in 1829 to the Oryol Theological Seminary as one of the best students. The teaching in the seminary was brought to the proper level. He was attentive to all sciences, but showed a special interest in philosophy and psychology, which were fascinatingly taught by B. A. Ostromyslensky. Despite the fact that Govorov was considered the best student, he remained for a repeat course in the philosophy class. In addition to general education subjects, he was interested in music, singing and learning languages. In the senior, so-called theological class, Georgy Govorov’s knowledge of the Word of God was so significant and thorough that during the exam they drew the attention of the Right Reverend Nicodemus of Orlovsky, a remarkable expert on the sacred text. This circumstance was of decisive importance in the fate of the young seminarian. Being in the last grade, in the depths of his heart he dreamed of a higher school, although he was mentally looking for a suitable parish, since he knew that the rector of the seminary, Archimandrite Sophrony, valued the solid memorization of textbooks by students, of whom he did not belong. God's providence decided otherwise. By order of the diocesan archive, Govorov was sent to continue his studies at the Kyiv Theological Academy. In 1837, Georgy Govorov was enrolled as a student at the Kyiv Academy. Along with academic success, there was also his moral education. All the good qualities that he acquired in the preschool period became increasingly stronger. While still studying at the seminary, Govorov discovered a penchant for solitude and hard work, and a religious disposition. 10 Despite the fact that by nature (according to his relatives) he was distinguished by his great sociability and cheerful disposition, when he came on vacation, the young seminarian loved to retire. 11 He was distinguished by humility, meekness, kindness, and was a stranger to any kind of exaltation and pride. It was at this time that George discovered an extraordinary love and reverence for the memory of Saint Tikhon of Zadonsk. He went with his aunt Martha Nikiforovna to venerate the relics of St. Tikhon, when they were not yet open. Thus, he was then dominated by the highest aspirations for religious and moral perfection, the desire to realize what he later wrote about, characterizing his youth as a time of struggle and feat to eradicate passions and instill good dispositions. 12 At the Academy, George's spiritual powers received even greater development. He became more deeply and consciously concerned both with theological education and with the work of his salvation. It was here that his mental education was completed and the general direction of his moral life was clearly defined. The Kiev Academy at that time was in a flourishing state, as it had a strong teaching staff. His mental abilities, under the guidance of good professors, developed greatly; a special love for written work was discovered; There was a significant interest in theological sciences. The student wrote his essays directly on the topic, without digressions, logically, briefly and simply, without using unclear expressions. “No one wrote better than him,” his academy comrade Macarius, Metropolitan of Moscow, later said about the Right Reverend George, “only due to his modesty he could not read them loudly.” 13 Georgy Govorov was in good standing with the Academy's authorities. In the inspector's reports, he was noted as a student who had very good abilities and diligence, “very modest”, “honest behavior”, “distinguished by his good behavior and love of worship.” 14 His mother died in 1838, and his father the following year. This grief greatly shocked the young man. Student Govorov's frequent visits to the Kyiv caves with relics and monuments of sacred antiquity, which testified to the exploits of Russian monasticism, had a beneficial effect on the young student. It is not for nothing that Saint Theophan, already at the end of his days, recalled the Lavra in one of his letters: “The Kiev Lavra is an unearthly monastery... I am often transported there in my thoughts... I could fly with my body.” 15 Archimandrite Jeremiah, known for his religious life and asceticism, had a considerable influence on the young man and the rector of the Academy. It was at this time that the thought of renouncing the world matured in him. Returning after the holidays, he submitted a petition to the rector, in which he asked permission to take monastic vows. A few months before the end of the academic course, Georgy Govorov was tonsured a monk with the name Feofan. The ceremony of tonsure was performed by the rector of the Academy. By this time, three more of his comrades had also accepted monasticism, among whom was the later famous Macarius, Metropolitan of Moscow. The monks went to the Lavra to the hieroschemamonk Parthenius, famous for his exploits, to ask for blessings and advice for a new life. “Here you are, learned monks,” the elder told them, “having established rules for yourself, remember that the one thing that is most necessary is to pray.” And pray unceasingly with your mind in your heart to God - that’s what you strive to achieve. 16 The words of the ascetic sank so deeply into Theophan’s soul that he finally decided to devote himself to solitude to talk with God in prayer and to save his soul. While still at the Academy, he accepted the rank of hieromonk and graduated from it as one of the first masters. After graduating from the Academy, he was appointed rector of the Kiev-Sophia schools. He was assigned to teach Latin. However, the ideally disposed monk, devoted to prayer, was burdened by administrative and economic responsibilities. In 1842, Hieromonk Feofan was appointed inspector and teacher of logic and psychology at the Novgorod Theological Seminary. But he didn’t have to work here for long either. His superiors highly appreciated his mental and moral abilities, and in 1844 Hieromonk Feofan was transferred to the St. Petersburg Theological Academy to the position of Bachelor of Moral and Pastoral Theology. In 1845, on March 22, he was assigned the duties of assistant inspector of the Academy, and on July 3 of the same year he was appointed a member of the committee to review seminar notes. This new duty was not to the liking of the naturally meek monk, because... it was necessary to apply rigor in education. On August 21, 1846, Hieromonk Feofan submitted a request for dismissal from the position of bachelor and assistant inspector. His soul yearned for a more congenial area of ​​strict monastic service. God's providence showed him a different calling. Hieromonk Theophanes was appointed a member of the mission in Jerusalem. Here he had the opportunity to study on the spot the ancient hotbed of eastern asceticism. He visited all the sacred places of the East - Palestine, Egypt, Syria, etc. Since he was interested in the ancient Christian monasteries of monasticism, he paid special attention to studying the life of ascetics and monuments of ancient ascetic writing. In the library of the Palestinian Lavra of St. Savva the Sanctified, he found and collected many ancient manuscripts of patristic literature. He saw and became acquainted in detail with the famous biblical manuscript of the 4th century at Sinai, later published by Tischschendorf. He visited the cave in which Pavel of Thebes labored for 90 years. From this trip he brought a lot of ascetic literature, which he later published. The seven-year stay of Hieromonk Theophan in Palestine had an impact on his subsequent life, as he personally contemplated the sacred places imprinted with monuments to the earthly life of Jesus Christ, His Mother and St. apostles 17 For his labors in Jerusalem, he was elevated to the rank of archimandrite (1855). After returning from Jerusalem, on September 12, 1855, he was appointed rector of the Olonets Theological Seminary. He held this post for about a year. In May 1856, Archimandrite Theophan was sent to Constantinople to serve as rector of the embassy Church. “By decree of the Holy Synod of June 13, 1357, Archimandrite Theophan was appointed to the position of rector of the St. Petersburg Theological Academy.” 18 Saint Theophan, in his educational activities, both at the Academy and in the seminaries in which he had to work, was a true Christian, a teacher with the most exalted views on the matter, and was also demanding of his duty. He considered Christian love to be the main principle of educational measures, and the best environment and means of good upbringing was the church of God and worship. I tried to be as close to my students as possible. With his fervent prayer and preaching of the Word of God, he attracted people to the church and cultivated a feeling of love for worship. They turned to him whenever spiritual or moral help was needed. Reviewing the activities of Fr. Feofan, as an educational, church and his trip to the East, we can say that it was a preparatory stage for further independent activities, which began in the rank of bishop. On June 1, 1859, Archimandrite Feofan was consecrated Bishop of Tambov and Shatsk. His diocese was very extensive. Bishop Theophan took care of the education of girls of clergy rank, because it made a big difference. He wrote about the importance of education for women in one of his letters: “If her husband goes astray, she will know what to remind him on occasion” 19 . However, he did not wait for the opening of the women's diocesan school, because... was transferred to the Vladimir department. Bishop Theophan also took care of the education of the clergy. For this purpose, the Tambov Diocesan Gazette was opened. Bishop Feofan also published his articles in them. In 1862, a special order was issued for the diocese on the opening of parochial schools for the common people. The saint's labors were tireless. His concern for his flock and the affairs of diocesan administration was truly paternal, which was dissolved in his flock and zeal for the glory of God. His archpastoral care extended to everyone and everything. For the good and salvation of his flock, he belonged entirely to her, and left little time for his own needs. 20 With her he shared both joy and sorrow. When devastating fires began in 1860, Saint Theophan appeared as a true comforter angel to his flock. He traveled around the diocese and delivered sermons, consoling his flock, comparing their suffering with the fate of the long-suffering Job. It was not only on this occasion that the Eminence delivered his sermons. He said them at every service, because he feared moral responsibility for omitting the smallest and most insignificant things. Their main subject was moral teaching and edification, revealing in them questions about the paths of moral perfection. It should be noted that between the Right Reverend Theophan and his subordinates there were purely family relations. He was truly the father of his flock, as he cared for orphans and the unfortunate, for the families of the clergy; Most of all, he cared about their internal improvement, about preaching the Word of God and the spread of true enlightenment. It was difficult for the flock to say goodbye to their leader and trustee when he was appointed to the Vladimir See (1863). During his stay at the Tambov See, Bishop Theophan had to participate in the opening of the relics of St. Tikhon of Zadonsk. His major work, “Letters on Christian Life,” which will be discussed in more detail later, also needs to be attributed to this time. Bishop Theophan arrived at the Vladimir See on August 31, 1863, and already on the second day he entered into spiritual communion with the flock through preaching. There was no less work to be done here, for it was necessary to care not only about the salvation of the souls of the flock, but also about the management of all diocesan affairs. Here he had to fight the schism, calling on his flock to be firm in the Orthodox faith. He cares about enlightenment here too. Under him, a school for girls of clergy and the “Vladimir Diocesan Gazette” was opened. Bishop Theophan traveled a lot throughout his diocese, edifying his flock with the word of God. All possible troubles in the management of the diocese weighed heavily on the meek and loving hierarch. His thought gradually grew and became stronger until it finally matured about completely abandoning the world in order to completely surrender to the thought of God. At his request, St. The Synod, by decree of June 17, 1866, dismissed him from the administration of the Vladimir diocese and gave him the right to settle in the Vyshenskaya desert, which the bishop had chosen earlier, as its rector. But the saint’s soul longed for complete solitude, and his abbotship was still associated with many worries. His Grace Theophan again asked the Holy Synod to release him from this duty. His request was granted. “The time of retreat is the most important period, one might say, the center of the life of the Right Reverend Theophan, for then his great works and exploits, and above all, his feat of prayer, were predominantly revealed in full force” 21 . He spent 28 years in the desert, and 22 of them in complete solitude. His main occupations were prayer, reading and writing. Being in prayers and deeds, he completely forgot about his “I” and lived exclusively by love for Christ the Savior and his neighbors. Such a feat brought him closer to God, and on the other hand, to his neighbors who seek God. This spiritual sobriety and severity towards himself gave him the power of great understanding of human souls and made him a moral leader of people. His Eminence Theophan was a great sage and ascetic. The ideal of asceticism is the discrepancy between existing life and the ideal of moral perfection of a Christian. However, in solitude, he did not forget that the goal of his feat was not personal, but social and pastoral, which was expressed in his prayers for the world, for his neighbors. 22 Although His Grace Theophan shut himself off from the outside world, he did not stop spiritual communication with it. If during these years the Right Reverend could not serve his neighbors through preaching and instruction, he served them with prayer, guided them to salvation with his highly spiritual works, and instructed them with the help of his letters. In conclusion, about the archpastoral service and solitary life in retreat, we can say that he lived with everyone in love and harmony, and was accessible to everyone, especially the poor and mourning. He treated everyone kindly and lovingly, with the greatest humility and meekness. No one had ever heard a menacing commanding word from him. He always knew how to be forgiving of weaknesses and lack of education, and knew how to forgive everyone. Saint Theophan was a bishop of God, a true evangelical shepherd who could lay down his soul for his flock. He was connected with his flock by strong and inextricable ties, and therefore considered himself responsible for it, devoting his entire life to its spiritual guidance. On January 6, 1894, Saint Theophan died peacefully. Chapter II. Works of Saint Theophan Bishop Theophan, living a pious life worthy of imitation and aimed at fulfilling a single goal - great service to God, accumulated invaluable experience in pastoral counseling. He instructed his flock on the true path not only in sincere conversations and sermons, but also in literary works and numerous letters. For the pastors who follow him and study with him, they represent great spiritual and moral support. The number of printed works of the Right Reverend Theophan is very large. If they were all put together, they would form quite a significant library. The Vyshensky monk expressed himself about so many of his labors in his memoirs: “What in a word: rivers of God-wise teachings and streams of the living water of Christ’s teaching flowed from the heart and mind of St. Theophan.” 23 The works of Saint Theophan were noticed and appreciated during his lifetime. So the St. Petersburg Theological Academy in 1882 elected Bishop Theophan as its honorary member, and in 1890 awarded the academic degree of Doctor of Theology 24, “in expression of deep respect for his tireless and prolific activity in the field of Orthodox moral theology and interpretation of Holy Scripture.” 25 In addition to the St. Petersburg Theological Academy, he was elected an honorary member by the councils of the Moscow, Kiev and Kazan Theological Academies. The works of Bishop Theophan, despite their large number, 26 all express one subject of human life - about Christian salvation. It should be noted that Bishop Theophan completed the feat of Paisius in translating the Philokalia. He translated from Greek “The Words of our Reverend Father Abba Isaiah the Hermit” (M. 1883); from the modern Greek “Words of our venerable and God-bearing father Simeon the New Theologian” (M. 1870). In 1891, a “Collection of ascetic writings extracted from the patericons of the monastery of St. Sava the Sanctified, near Jerusalem,” was published in Moscow. Saint Theophan published the “Ancient Monastic Rules of St. Pachomius the Great, St. Basil the Great, Rev. John Cassian and etc. Benedict.” M. 1892 Along with his scientific and literary works, Saint Theophan was engaged in enormous correspondence in the Vyshenskaya desert, which was the fruit of his activity in the matter of counseling. He wrote letters not only to relatives and friends, but also to people who lived far from him: letters to bishops, priests, monks, workers of science and life; nobles and simple, rich and poor of all ages and ranks, people who wanted to live according to God. He wrote his letters not only about subjects of religious and moral life, but also on various everyday circumstances, bringing all his thoughts to one thing - eternal salvation. In accordance with the variety of needs of those who wrote, he either gives advice, or admonitions, or helps to resolve perplexed questions, or supports them in patience, in troubles, misfortunes, all sorts of labors and sorrows of their lives 27 . He himself wrote in one letter: “You can write... and you will receive advice 28. If sometimes the Right Reverend was slow to answer, then out of his Christian humility he added: “I beg your pardon... 29, I’m guilty.” 30 We find these expressions in his letters. Bishop Theophan in his letters, in the words of the Apostle Paul, “became all things to all, in order to save at least some.” (1 Cor. 9:22). Archpriest M. Khitrov wrote about such extensive correspondence of Bishop Theophan: “From all over Russia, letters flew to the Vyshenskaya Hermitage expressing spiritual and physical sorrows, with bitter complaints about untruths, about worldly vanity, about spiritual longing. From 20 to 40 letters were received daily, and the saint hurried to answer each one. And his answers were a true healing balm for sorrowful souls. He sensitively tried to guess the spiritual need of the writer and spared no effort, thoroughly and cordially explaining all questions and perplexities. 31 Another fact speaks of his extensive correspondence: only one landowner family in Tambov had about a thousand of his letters. Since the topic of our work is pastoral counseling based on the letters of Bishop Theophan, we will focus our attention on them. Brief overview of the letters of Bishop Theophan Already during the life of Bishop Theophan, his letters began to be published, due to their importance. In 1860, when he was still at the Tambov department, his “Letters on Christian Life” were published; they were compiled and processed earlier. These letters are addressed to the admirer of Bishop Feofan, Princess P.S. Lukomskaya, 32, although her name is not mentioned anywhere in them. The “Letters” contain a whole system of Christian moral teaching. Later, the “Letters” served as material for the composition of the works of the Right Reverend Theophan, “The Path to Salvation” and “The Outline of Christian Moral Teaching.” In terms of content, the “Letters” are distinguished by their remarkable depth of psychological analysis, warmth and cordiality. With their simplicity and clarity in literary terms, they are accessible to the people. When reading the “Letters” one feels the influence of the academic activity of the Reverend. Due to great demand, they were published in four issues. The first issue contains 37 letters, the second – 62, the third – 25, the fourth – 20. All four issues of letters were combined into one book in the new edition of I.L. Tuzova. (St. Petersburg, 1880) This book also contains all the additions to the letters. The letters were once again revised and fragmented by Bishop Feofan in 1890–91. The first two issues remained the same, but the third and fourth were published under the title “The Outline of Christian Moral Teaching.” (M., 1891) The final addition to the “Letters on Christian Salvation” is his work “The Path to Salvation” (a short sketch of asceticism). Due to its popularity, it went through seven editions until 1894. The main subject of the Letters is the dispensation of salvation. In 1870, “Letters on Spiritual Life” began to be published in the magazine “Home Conversation.” They were published as a separate book in 1872, St. Petersburg. There are 22 letters in total. The reason for their compilation, as Bishop Feofan says in the preface, was the letters of Count M. M. Speransky. In them, the author set out to present a picture of spiritual life in its most diverse forms. “And, indeed, here we find a huge collection and a deeply meaningful presentation of the phenomena and facts of spiritual life, starting with the first grace-filled movements of the Christian heart towards communion with God and ending with the highest moral perfection of man.” 33 In Moscow, in 1878, a book was published containing 80 letters from Bishop Theophan, entitled “What is spiritual life and how to tune in to it?” But even in a letter to the Athonite monks dated November 25, 1877, he mentioned them and asked for their consent to print the letters, only without the name of the author. 34 From a letter dated December 3 of the same year it can be concluded that he received consent, for he asked that the post be printed. 35 He wrote these letters to the beauty. 36 In them the question was raised and resolved about how a person can turn from sin and take the true path, the path of salvation. All this is depicted in the letters in a simple and intelligible form. “Letters to a person in St. Petersburg regarding the appearance of a new teacher of faith there.” They were originally published in Soul-Saving Reading for 1880 and 1881. Subsequently they were published as a separate book at the Synodal Printing House. (St. Petersburg, 1881). These letters are directed against Pashkov and his followers, as well as against Lord Redstock, with whose teachings they were close. There are seven letters in total. In the first of them, Bishop Theophan sets out the general position about Pashkov’s false teaching and denounces its main points, and also sets out in detail the Orthodox teaching on these points. The remaining six letters expose more specific provisions of Pashkov’s false teaching and, in parallel, Orthodox Christian teaching. Bishop Theophan speaks in them about the grace of the Holy Spirit, about salvation, about the sacraments and rituals established by the Church. These letters are precious material for convicting and moral theology. The “letters” against Pashkov subsequently became the main bulwark not only against these sectarians, but also against the Stundists and other freethinkers. According to the definition of St. Synod, in view of their such important significance, the “Letters” were published in large quantities. "Letters to various persons on various subjects of faith and life." They were originally published in the magazine “Soulful Reading” for 1880–81. The Right Reverend Theophan himself wrote about them in one letter that “The letters to different persons were only up to 30, and then they all went to one person who was educated, energetic, wise and a believer from the bottom of her heart.” 37 These “Letters” were published as a separate book by A.G. Govorov in Moscow in 1882. The second time they were published by the monks of the Athos monastery. (M. 1892) There are 86 letters in the book. Athonite monks also published letters in separate brochures. Thus, the twenty-third letter was published under the title: “The first evangelists of the resurrection of the Lord.” (M. 1892). Letter eighty-six, entitled “Examples of recording good thoughts that come during contemplation and prayer, numbering 162.” (M. 1892). The very name of the brochures already speaks about their content. The listed letters of the Right Reverend Theophan are not all. After his death, many of the recipients rushed to share precious letters from their dear ruler. At first, these letters were published on the pages of the “Tambov Diocesan Gazette” and the magazines “Soulful Reading” (mainly), “Christian Reading”, etc. These letters were collected together and published by the monks of the Athos Panteleimon Monastery in eight issues from 1898 to 1902 under the title “Collected Letters of St. Theophan.” A separate index was published for them, compiled by Archimandrite Nikodim, caretaker of the St. Petersburg Alexander Nevsky Theological School. Eight issues contain 1,471 letters. All these letters of Saint Theophan are filled with his great fatherly love for all his spiritual children, whom he wisely and with relentless zeal led in their religious and moral life. 38 In 1882, letters to monastics were published in two parts under the title “Letters from a Spiritual Father to Spiritual Children.” (Kazan, 1882). In the “Proceedings of the Kyiv Theological Academy” for 1915, volume I, an article was placed with letters from the Right Reverend Theophan to Colonel S.A. Pervukhin, from previously unpublished. There are 30 letters in total. In the same year they were published as a separate book under the title “The Most Reverend Theophan, former Bishop of Vladimir and Colonel S.A. Pervukhin in their mutual correspondence.” Archpriest John Korolkov. (Kyiv, 1915). Both the article with the letters and a separate book of them were dedicated and published to the centenary of the birth of Bishop Theophan. Chapter III. Pastoral instructions The letters of Bishop Theophan, in terms of the richness of the thoughts expressed in them, in their depth, simplicity of presentation and the urgent need of those questioning on various issues of faith and life that interest them, are precious material in the work of counseling the saint. Now the question arises: “What exactly was his archpastoral care expressed in his letters?” We will get the answer from their content. There are about two thousand of all published letters of St. Theophan. Of course, it would be unnecessary to consider each letter separately, since they often repeat the same answers sent to different people. When considering the content, it will be more convenient to divide the letters into appropriate sections. In this we will be further helped by the fact that Bishop Theophan, as an experienced shepherd, takes into account the age and gender of the questioners, their family and social status, celibacy and education. Based on this, we will divide the letters into the following sections: 1. For young and old people (male and female), celibate. 3. Persons holding relevant positions. 4. Persons with higher education. § 1. Letters to young and old people (male and female), celibates Saint Theophan received many letters from people young and old. They turned to him with various questions, asking for clarification, guidance and moral support, both in the truths of faith and in their peaceful life. The saint hastened to extend a helping hand to everyone and give the required instruction. He had a special approach to everyone, because... knew that not everyone took his advice equally. He believed that it was more convenient to guide young people on the path of perfection with warning and explanation, and for older people with exhortation and instruction in the truths of faith. a) Letters to young people. A lot of letters were addressed by Saint Theophan to young people. With his letters, he hastens to console some in moments of grief, to others to explain this or that action in their lives, to others he gives parting words, and to others he instructs in the truths of faith. So, for example, in a letter dated June 17, 39, the saint consoles his daughter, who was not at the death of her mother. “Not seeing your father or mother leave is like something terrible. There is nothing here but consolation. God takes away for the sake of the fact that maybe in the face of those leaving, she would not be able to withstand grief. As weak, the Guardian Angel took her aside. The blessing of those departing is precious. And it was, undoubtedly, and, perhaps, for the sake of absence, extended to her even more strongly than when she was present. The blessing is not strong because it is heard, but because it is diligently spoken.” 40 Saint Theophan also took care of the physical life of those he led, providing all possible material and spiritual support. In one of the letters to N.N. dated May 7, 1877, he claims that when treating her sister, one can and should combine prayers for help to the Almighty with the art of a healer, since “God created a healer, and medicines are God’s creations. The healer does not heal himself, but God heals through him. God inspires the doctor, and he prescribes real medicine. And when God does not help the doctor, I don’t know whether any of them will get the real medicine... And run to the holy saints, and do everything that all pious people do in such cases.” 41 Further, the saint warns to replace the intervention of healers with fervent prayers for the granting of health. In the next 42 letter to the same address, Saint Theophan explains that healing with myrrh was canceled due to the abolition of this rite in the Church. “The myrrh here is not the holy myrrh that is in Confirmation, but the myrrh of myrrh-streaming relics. Sister – patience and prayer, humble submission to God’s determination and a pure life according to the commandments. God sends the sick or healthy state of the body as forms of salvation.” 43 Expressing his sympathy for the sick woman, the saint advises her to accept the illness as one sent by God for salvation and calls on her to rely on the Almighty. If there is an order from above, let him go to some holy place, having warm and firm faith. 44 In a letter to a sick young man, Saint Theophan carefully asks whether medicines were used to treat his illness. 45 However, while caring for physical health, he always remembers their soul, not leaving the sick without appropriate instruction. Such written instructions were given to a seriously ill patient. In this letter, Saint Theophan points out that during illness, first of all, one must cry out to the Lord, the Mother of God and all the saints. “Let your prayer to the Lord not be stopped in your mouth.” 46 In one of his letters dated January 11, 1889, Saint Theophan writes about the girl’s desire to devote herself to God, despite the fact that there is a “profitable” groom: “Her desire clearly has a sign of God’s calling. Therefore, it is better for her to remain a virgin and enter a monastery. Mother of God be her protection.” 47 Another letter addressed by the saint to a young Christian woman who decided to devote her whole life to God. Calling upon her the blessing of God, he prays for the strengthening of her soul to fulfill her plans. Then he advises her to go better to the monastery, since in the monastery there are fewer temptations and there is more opportunity not to stray from the true path than living in a cell. 48 For those wishing to retire to a monastery, Saint Theophan advises them to completely renounce the world and, having received a parental blessing, to zealously fulfill monastic duties. “The desire to join a monastery is a good desire. Fulfilling it will not be disgusting to God, only when going to the monastery, put a covenant in your hearts: to betray your whole soul to the one God, throwing away all earthly desires and hopes. You must beg for a parental blessing so that it will accompany you. Whether you will spend your monastic life well is up to you. God's help is ready, but it comes to those who are diligent themselves. You will take care with all your soul to do what is pleasing to God, God’s help will always be with you, and God will give you success in everything. But if you give up and become lazy, God will leave you. Then, of course, your monasticism will be worthless. One must devote oneself to the work of God until death, i.e. at least die, and not retreat from what is good.” 49 Here is another letter from Saint Theophan to a young girl who wanted to enter a monastery. In this letter, he gives a detailed, clear and convincing explanation of the objections to monastic life presented by the relatives of the young woman, 50 feeling the calling of God. In another letter to a university student, on the same occasion, the saint gives advice to first finish his studies at the university, enter the Academy, and after graduation, join a monastery, since “nowadays there is a greater need for knowledgeable figures. You, with your mood and knowledge, could be saved not only by bowing, but also by admonishing those who are mistaken, which is of great value to the Lord.” 51 However, the saint, without imposing a personal opinion, proposes to act according to the call and command of his soul, having first of all consulted with his spiritual father on this issue.” Soldiers also turned to the saint for advice, asking for guidance. So, he wrote a letter to the Transdanubian warrior, in which he blesses his path and calls on him not to weaken in the truths of faith. He can receive moral support from the books of the saint sent to the warrior. 52 In four letters 53, Saint Theophan gives advice to T.A.K., who graduated from the Moscow Theological Academy, who wished to be a teacher of civil history, so that, with the help of God, he prepares to take up the position he has chosen, teaching everywhere the truth of God, which is one. However, T.A.K. received an appointment to the Voronezh Theological Seminary; but even here the saint supports him by sending him the books needed for teaching. For instruction, warning and strengthening in the truths of faith, Saint Theophan sends his books, in which many can find what is necessary for the salvation of their souls. So, he sends his “Letters on Spiritual Life” to one young girl. “These letters were written to a young girl of your age, so you will probably find something familiar to you here.” 54 And in a letter to Belichka, the saint advises, first of all, to take care of the salvation of the soul, and books are the guide in this matter...” When the soul is saved, everything else be gone, or whatever, the salvation of the soul is reconciled with all the orders of life, and not only reconciled, but also revives and sanctifies them all... The letters will show you the program that must be followed in this matter.” 55 Saint Theophan wrote many letters to S.V. 56. In them he gives various kinds of explanations to the girl. In the first 57 two letters he explains that in the matter of salvation there is only One Intercessor, the Lord Savior. A special participation in the matter of saving the world is given to the Mother of God, since the Savior of the whole world was born from Her. “But the Mother of God is given honor in this matter, for from Her human nature was taken by the God-Man. This participation is essential, internal. Therefore, She is the Supreme of all... and Her power before the Lord is exceptional, special. Her sonship of the God-man and her motherhood to Him endure to this day.”... 58 Angels and saints in the matter of salvation are intercessors before God, for they pray for us. In the next letter 59, the saint explains that in the matter of salvation, faith alone is not enough, but it is necessary to build your life according to the commandments of God and sanctify yourself with the sacraments. Explains to her the continuity of the apostolic tradition, its meaning and the faithfulness of the Orthodox Church to it. 60 He warns the girl against secular amusements, as they can make her head spin and lead her astray from the true path. In this matter, her mother is a good leader and mentor, whose advice and admonitions she must strictly follow. 61 The saint calls on her to fight against the movements characteristic of youth, which should not be given indulgence, for they can take root over time. This is how she should act in this case: “Treat them as impudent people invading your home against your desire. With this you show the door, and treat those in the same way. As soon as you notice, drive out, without regret. They'll come again, drive them away again. They will come again and persecute you again... They will fall behind... just don’t hold on to regret... Without resistance to regret it is impossible to be in good governance.” 62 Saint Theophan gives instructions to the girl about the need for unceasing prayer and the rule of prayer. “The rule of prayer is a safe fence of prayer... Prayer is an internal matter, and the rule of prayer is external... To be constantly in a prayerful mood. A prayerful mood is a thought about God and a feeling for God together. The thought of God is the thought of His omnipresence, that He is everywhere, sees everything and contains everything. Feeling for God - fear of God, love for God, a zealous desire to please Him Alone by everyone, with the same desire to avoid everything that is displeasing to Him, and most importantly, surrendering oneself to His Holy will unquestioningly, and accepting everything that happens as if from His hands directly. A feeling for God can occur in all our deeds, activities and circumstances, if it is not only present, but has already been established in the heart 63 . In another letter 64, the saint advises what prayers she should memorize in order to keep her mind in the thought of God. When praying there must be a spiritual mood. 65 The saint explains to the young woman the perplexed questions that arise when she reads the Holy Scriptures. By sending books, he helps her spiritually strengthen herself to fight the wiles of the devil in later life. 66 In two letters to her, the saint gives an explanation to her perplexed question about why we pray for the departed and what kind of communication we have with them. The saint answers the first question this way: “Because we are commanded to do so.” And what is commanded is clear from the fact that there was no time in the Church of God when this commemoration was not performed. This means this comes from the apostles and the Lord Himself.” 67 Those who have departed from us are alive, but they only live a different life. They are in communication with each other, hear our prayers and pray for us. 68 Saint Theophan gives an explanation of miraculous icons, through which God’s mercy is manifested towards people through the power of faith demonstrated by someone, and to arouse universal faith. He gives an example of how in the Kharkov province the daughter of Count Kapnist received healing from the Kozelshchanskaya Icon of the Mother of God. 69 b) Letters to elderly people. In addition to young people, elderly people also turned to Saint Theophan, who, having lived a long life and having life experience, still often needed spiritual support. And when they turned to the saint, they were not mistaken, since he hurried to console them and give them all possible instruction or help. Older people often have deeper and more serious questions than younger people. Convinced that people in old age, more than others, need to take care of their souls, Saint Theophan, in a letter to N.M. dated September 27, 1892, 70 gives instructions on salvation and indicates what the prayer rule should consist of: “Avoid sins and do every good thing that you encounter in the course of your life, not only with your body, but also with your soul and heart, not only externally, but also internally, that is, so that your thoughts and the feelings were always pleasing to God. What else besides a good life? The prophet says: “I will seek my face from You; I will seek Your face, O Lord” (Ps. 26:8). This expressed the unceasing remembrance of God with an incessant desire to please Him to everyone. This is the prayer system - “inside”. 71 This constitutes the first point of the prayer rule. His second point is heartfelt prayer. We must always pray: when we get up, we do morning prayers, and in the evening, we do our bedtime prayers. In addition to everything, you need to visit the church. Here is one woman seeking salvation and asking St. Theophan for guidance in this. At the beginning of the response letter, the saint cites excerpts from the questioner’s letter, from which it follows that she expressed pride in front of her spiritual father. The saint does not approve of this act, for pride interferes with many things along the path to the Kingdom of God. Calls on her to be stricter with herself and to think more thoughtfully about the manifestations of her pride 72 . People turned to Saint Theophan with questions about what to do when doubts arise in matters of faith. One female person writes about this. This is what he answers to strengthen and support her: “Doubts almost come to everyone, but they come and go away. You can always find thoughts that conquer doubts and drive them away. The works of God must be looked at from all sides: they have a bright and bright side, and there is a gloomy, hidden side. This is how God arranged it to test the sincere search for Him and the humility with which one approaches this task. For the sake of God, for someone so loving, suppress your doubts. With this you will make a sacrifice to the Lord, for which He will not remain in debt.” 73 In the next letter to the same address, 74 advises to fight the spirit of blasphemy. If he gets used to you and has access, he tries to confuse you more and more. Therefore, there is no need to lay down your arms, but always be ready to resist him. At such times, one must turn to the Lord with especially fervent prayer. He advises you to read the article by St. Demetrius of Rostov, which speaks well about blasphemous thoughts. The saint cites the example of Saint Niphon, who was tormented by the same illness and explains at length how he struggled with it. It is necessary to fight not only the spirit of blasphemy, but also empty ghosts, resorting to the help of the Lord Savior and Guardian Angel. Further in this letter it is revealed how to confront ghosts. There are many letters from Saint Theophan to people who are especially in dire need of spiritual help and guidance - to people who have experienced a lot at critical moments in their lives. Particularly noteworthy are the saint's three letters to an unknown person who awakened from a sinful life. 75 The saint sets out in detail in them the thoughts that gradually lead a person to sin. So he writes: “When sinful deeds are stopped, the struggle moves inward, into the heart. The main thing here is thoughts, behind thoughts are sympathies, behind these are regrets, decisions... These are the last to commit internal sin. Not all of these internal movements are sinners. Sin begins where willfulness is visible. Thoughts are not sinful when a person himself does not arouse them and does not restrain those aroused against his will. Real internal sin is inclination, agreement and decision.” 76 The saint advises the awakened one not to allow anything sinful into his heart. The book of Hesychius of Jerusalem will serve as support for this, since it clearly states what interests him. For better knowledge about spiritual matters, he should read Fathers Barsanuphius and John. With his letters, Saint Theophan hastens to console a woman who has converted from sectarianism to Orthodoxy, since there is much that is new and incomprehensible to her. There are many things in the new faith that are unlike her previous life, and this confuses her conscience; she hesitates, suffers, and is even ready to return to her previous life due to the lack of a firm guiding hand. She simply cannot understand the Orthodox teaching on the prayerful invocation of saints; it seems to her that this leads to the grave sin of idolatry. With his reply letter, the saint hastens to console the questioner and explains to her that calling upon saints in prayer is not idolatry. “No, our prayer to the saints and their honoring has nothing idolatrous. It would be idolatry if we considered them gods; but we honor them as servants of God and intercessors for us before God. An inner feeling should tell you that you do not honor them as God and do not consider them the first reason for the benefits you ask for, but only an instrument and a gift for them. Invoking the saint, we say: “Holy One of God, pray for us; ask the Lord to give us this and that.” Take into account this: we who live here on earth, children of the Church, ask each other to pray for us... Everyone does this and no one thinks that there is anything idolatrous here.” 77 Further in this letter the saint sets out the essence of idolatry. In the next letter 78 to her, he answers the question of “whether it is possible to pray for parents who died in sectarianism”; similarly describes the state of soul of dead sinners, writes about purgatory and ordeals. There are especially many individual instructions in St. Theophan’s letters to older people about certain means of salvation: about prayer, about reading spiritual and secular books, about doing good. So in a letter to the blind woman N.N. 79, the saint writes that prayer should be an elevation of the mind and heart to God, that in it we should glorify God, give thanks for everything that has been done to us and the gift of spiritual blessings to us. From heartfelt prayer there are special movements in the body and spirit, but this is not the case in everyone. 80 The main thing in prayer is feeling towards God from the heart. 81 Prayer is a spiritual barometer and thermometer in life; 82 real prayer is a gift from God; 83 prayer is the source of everything. 84 For guidance and better understanding of the truths of the faith, Saint Theophan sends books to recipients, and also advises which books are most useful for a Christian to read. 85 In one of his letters, the saint approves of such a virtue of a woman as accepting an orphan as an upbringer. He writes on this occasion: “God is pleased when His children direct their eyes to Him in prayer... But He is no less pleased when some beloved children carefully rush to look after His other children. So don't be embarrassed. And while praying, correct God’s work, and while looking after the little one, do the same. And God looks at you the same way, both when you pray and when you are busy around the baby.” 86 Saint Theophan gives her advice on how to raise a child in order to guide her on the true path from childhood. 87 People who felt a calling to monastic life turned to Saint Theophan for guidance. He blesses some for this feat, and advises others to create salvation in the world. In a letter to a resident of the city of Elatma, D.I.T. (who has no family), the saint advises to go to a monastery, for there are many temptations in the world. 88 A similar letter from the saint to V.S.V. about entering the monastery. 89 And in a letter to N dated August 9, 1893, 90, Saint Theophan advises a woman to stay at home rather than go to a monastery, since she has a monastic way of life in her house and she will not find better peace. However, in response to complaints about the absence of a leader, the saint advises “to take guidance in the word of God and in the writings of the fathers. General commandments are unknown to anyone, but for specific cases you will find instructions through written communication with someone. This, in my opinion, is a suitable road for you! What draws you to a monastery is similar to a calling, but it is not a decisive indication of that and requires special discussion. You are drawn to the concept of the monastery, that there is peace there... but it is not always there...” 91 One woman turns to the saint for advice on how to spend her free time and how to fill it. She receives an answer to this question from St. Theophan in a letter dated June 24, 1873: “When there is nothing to do, open the Gospel, take an event or text and think about it; this activity is very life-giving if the soul finds the way.” 92 Already in her declining years, a woman turns to the saint for parting words, awaiting the last decree. In response, an encouraging letter follows, in which he writes: “However, the decree has not yet been received! You think that this is the end, but in fact, maybe the Lord will destine you to live for more than one summer. May the Lord give you at the same time the strength to live without infirmities and burdens.” 93 In one of the letters to the saint, the question was even asked about whether it was necessary to prepare a place in the cemetery in advance. The answer came from Saint Theophan that first one must take care of the soul, but there was no help from the place where they would be buried. 94 In a letter dated December 12, 1873, 95 the saint advises one woman to fast as often as possible. He refuses to indicate his spiritual father to another petitioner, since he does not know anyone there. 96 One woman, named Maria, asks St. Theophan if it is possible to bear the name of the Mother of God. The saint is surprised by such a question... “This is the first time I’ve heard about what you write. There is no prohibition in the Church to bear the name of the Mother of God. And there cannot be any trouble from the fact that someone celebrates their name day on the day of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Trouble can only come from unkind feelings towards the Mother of God, from a lack of faith, reverence, and trusting refuge under Her roof.” 97 § 2. Letters to family people A significant majority of the total number of letters from Saint Theophan are addressed to family people. Among them, many letters were written to secular people who were interested in spiritual issues, wanting to arrange their lives in a Christian way. They also sought help and advice in difficult moments of their family life in the hope of receiving consolation from the saint, experienced and knowledgeable in matters of life and faith. He did not refuse advice and help to anyone, adding at the end of his letters: “I am not bored in answering you and you can find time. Therefore, you can freely address your spiritual questions.” 98 “Write, I will answer.” 99 What the questioners were interested in in the letters can be traced from the letters of St. Theophan to one secular family. This is how the saint answers the question of how to combine everyday affairs with serving God. “To those who are worldly - for worldly things, and to those who have renounced worldly things - for heavenly things. You and Blueberry are half-worldly. How to walk along this middle?! A friend of the world is an enemy of God. Therefore, there is no middle ground. Meanwhile, it is impossible to live without everyday and worldly affairs. How can this be? It is necessary to touch one side only visibly - without the heart. Which side should I choose for this? Of course, everyday and worldly. And then she will cease to be like that in spirit.” 100 In other letters, Saint Theophan explains in detail that salvation can also be achieved through family virtues. Thus, in a letter dated January 9, 1875, the saint writes: “Whoever lives in a family receives salvation from family virtues. But the point is not to present everything in an excellent way, but to do everything possible. Once everything is done, there is no need to torture yourself. Of course, you shouldn’t act carelessly, but you shouldn’t torment yourself, leaving everything to the Lord.” 101 A similar letter was written by the saint to N/N. dated December 29, 1976, in which he convinces the questioner that family matters do not interfere with the work of salvation, since according to the commandments it is necessary to help others and work, only during work one must always be “thought with God.” “After all, it’s no wonder to be saved. You just need eyes and energy. It's simple. Be with God in thought and in body, do the deeds that are assigned to you according to the commandment. That's it! Is this too much? 102 Or here’s another letter to the same person: “You complain about the chores that interfere with your internal well-being. You may be looking at these troubles too harshly. The entire economy rests with you. Since farming is a necessary task in family life, and this life was established by God, then all work on this matter is God-blessed work. God is not pleased only with completely getting bogged down in these labors without need and out of addiction to love, but also with forgetting God and relying only on one’s own labors, without feeling the need for God’s help. You can work on the housework, remembering God, asking for help from him for tea and asking immediately during labor and bearing labor as a duty due to Him. I think that by acting this way, you can please God even in troubles.” 103 Caring for the soul is one of the main duties and needs of a Christian, and therefore one must make every effort and find time to care for it; everyday worries should not be an obstacle in this great undertaking. This instruction is given by the saint in a letter dated December 17, 1888. 104 They turn to Saint Theophan with a request to explain what exactly salvation consists of. This is what the saint writes: “Fear God and fulfill His commandments... For in this lies salvation. Love the Church of God. Be on good terms with everyone... don’t forget to give alms within your means... Be patient, whatever God sends you to endure” 105. And when asked about how to achieve salvation, the saint helped with advice. First of all, Saint Theophan points out, patience is necessary for a Christian, because... patience is a condition of salvation and without it there is no salvation, 106 and the most reliable path to the inheritance of the Kingdom is humility. 107 In his letters, Saint Theophan gives a lot of advice on ways to combat doubts in the matter of faith; 108 many warnings regarding conceit in the matter of moral perfection; 109 many approvals and consolations on the path of moral perfection. 110 But in order to be successful in business, you must always be in memory of God. “The Lord is everywhere,” the saint writes in a letter dated April 24, 1877, “and he sees everything, what everyone actually does for what. He is always ready and with help to anyone who runs to Him for it. Thus, if you always put it in your heart to listen to the Lord who is inherent in you and in you and direct everything to please Him alone, and then turn to Him with every bewilderment, with every spiritual need, with faith and complete devotion to Him, then be sure that all your affairs, both internal and external, will go in the most successful way. It is a great thing to realize that we can do nothing without Him, and an even greater thing is to only resort to Him with faith, expecting, undoubtedly, help.” 111 In a letter dated February 6, 1878 112, Saint Theophan advises how best to take advantage of moments of solitude. These minutes, as St. Theophan writes, must be turned to prayer and contemplation of God, for in this a person can receive spiritual consolation that nothing else can give. In many letters, family people addressed the saint with questions about raising children. In his response letters, the saint tried to explain to parents what their duty towards their children was and how they should raise them, in order to lay in them the beginning of true faith from childhood. Thus, in a letter dated September 21, 1875, the saint writes: “It is the duty of parents to admonish children, and it is also yours. And be afraid of what? A kind word never irritates. The commanding only does not produce any fruit. In order for the Lord to bless children to avoid danger, we must pray day and night.” 113 In another letter dated June 25, 1877, 114 the saint explains to parents why their children are alienated from them. According to him, the parents themselves are to blame for the alienation of children, since they devote little time to raising them, without delving into the inner life of the child, with its joys and sorrows. Children, not feeling affection from their parents, act aloof. While caring for the salvation of their souls, parents must also take care of their children. To the question of one family asking for clarification in the matter of raising children in an orphanage, the saint points out how it should be and what children are obliged to teach there. “Take the trouble,” writes the saint, “without shame and without fear of the world to give your children a true Christian education, imparting to them only Christian concepts in everything, teaching them Christian rules of life and kindling love for the Church of God and all church orders. Select such teachers and teachers, and especially such a boss.” 115 Saint Theophan in his letters instructs parents to warn their children against temptations, 116 which could be the cause of their fall, from frequent all kinds of secular entertainment, such as balls, evenings, theaters and festivities. He advises purchasing books that defend the truth and forcing children to read them. He gives advice to parents in another letter, 117 on how to teach the Law of God to young children. Children, first of all, need to be taught the Old Testament, which is a preparation for the New, forced to retell individual stories about this or that event, and teach children to memorize individual sayings from the Holy Scriptures of the New Testament. It is necessary to force them to learn morning and bedtime prayers. Many people asked St. Theophan for advice on how to relate to hesitant and unbelieving children. Thus, in one letter, the saint advises that if a son hesitates, then one must pray for him, so that the Lord will have mercy on him and send the light of grace, which will drive away all hesitation in him. 118 In another letter to the same family, he expresses his joy over their acquisition of a son who is already a believer, and advises them to intensify their prayers, since they can act on the soul even without words. 119 And if the son is an unbeliever, then “ask your angel to arrange for your son’s angel to stay (on the path of saving faith). And even there is a direct influence of soul on soul. Only pray if you have heart disease.” 120 A mother’s prayer for her children is the most intelligible to the Lord, like no one else’s. 121 Saint Theophan pays especially great attention to the upbringing of children in his essay “The Path to Salvation.” It sets out in detail the life of a person, beginning in the sacrament of Baptism and ending in his moral perfection and last communion. This is what the saint writes about the purpose of raising children: “The goal to which everything should be directed is that this new person, who has come to consciousness, recognizes himself not only as a human being, as a rationally free being, but also as a person who has entered into an obligation with the Lord, with whom his eternal destiny is inextricably linked, and not only recognizes himself as such, but also finds himself capable of acting on this obligation and seeing in himself primarily that gravity." 122 Saint Theophan received many letters from family members who asked for guidance in prayer. In his response letters, with great joy in his heart, he hurried to explain the essence of prayer, giving advice on how to perform it and what kind of prayer brings people closer to God. Thus, in a letter dated September 14, 1874, to a certain wife, asking for advice regarding the prayer rules at home, the saint writes: “Remember that it is not a matter of words and bows, but of raising the mind and heart to God. You can say everything that you have written and make all the indicated bows, but not remember God at all, or somehow with absent-minded thoughts and wandering of the mind. And therefore, without praying, fulfill the prayer rule. It turns out that prayer is a sin before God. Deliver, Lord! We must do God’s work with fear and trembling; keep this in mind. Try in every possible way so that where there is a word, there is a mind, or, as Saint Climacus says, to enclose the mind in the words of prayer. When starting to pray, one must establish one’s attention before God and not depart from Him” 123. Further in this letter, the saint advises memorizing prayers by heart, because reading from a book dispels concentration. And when prayers are memorized, they must be pronounced in such a way that they come from the depths of the heart. The saint advises memorizing psalms that are close to your heart and reading the daily Gospel. In the same letter, the saint instructs her husband, who has converted to the faith. Sets out in detail what faith should be and what God’s mercy consists of. And in order to have religious concepts, he advises reading St. Tikhon, St. Demetrius of Rostov, St. John Chrysostom, Basil the Great, etc. 124 In letters, Saint Theophan is asked to indicate the means to achieve mental prayer. He describes them in detail in one of his letters, 125 indicating four main points through which mental prayer can be achieved. These points are: a) Get used to walking in the presence of God, before the eyes of God, with corresponding feelings. b) As soon as there is freedom, bow down in feelings of contrition and humility. c) Read books all about prayer - and think about it. d) Above all, try with all your might to conduct church services in the memory of God - and then do the home rule. 126 The saint indicates how one can achieve undistracted prayer; 127 in what order can the established prayer rule be shortened and what relation does the rule have to prayer, 128 about the essential side of prayer. 129 In a letter dated May 30, 1890, 130 Saint Theophan convinces the woman not to refuse prayer under the pretext that she is a sinner. This is what the saint writes to her: “And then they added that she is a sinner and where to dare to pray - this is sinful speech. The Lord turns away from sinners when they sin and remain in sin, without thinking of correcting themselves. And when they turn to Him with repentance and a desire to improve and a promise, and begin to do this, then the Lord leaves all the righteous and turns to sinners who turn to Him and has mercy on them. You can act according to this procedure. Although I do not believe that you are an outstanding sinner, but, just as there is no one without sin, then, of course, you are not alien to this common lot... Therefore, do not be so kind as to deny prayer with sinfulness and thereby cover up your laziness. In addition, know that someone else’s prayer can only help your own, and not replace it. This is our common limit - to pray ourselves and ask others for prayer. And the Savior promised that the two’s prayers are always heard.” 131 Saint Theophan cared not only about the mental state of those he led, but also about their physical health; in case of their illness, he gave them various medical advice in letters, comforting the parents of sick children. Thus, in a letter dated February 14, 1879, the saint consoles a mother who was grief-stricken by her daughter’s illness. 132 In other letters, he indicates remedies for the treatment of one or another disease 133 and gives advice on how to care for the sick. 134 He comforts his sister's husband as she lies on her deathbed. Calls on him to strengthen himself and be a man of strength, since he is entrusted with the responsibility of raising children. “Brace yourselves and take heart. After all, the sister herself will not die; the body dies, but the face of the dying woman remains. It only moves into other orders of life. So you, when she moves away, go there with your attention... They don’t hide her in the grave. She's in a different place. Just as alive as she is now.” 135 People turned to the saint for consolation in the event of the death of one of the family members or relatives. One father asks the saint for consolation on the occasion of the loss of his children through death. 136 Saint Theophan wrote three letters to him, in which he consoles his grieving parent. In one of them, dated May 11, 1882, the saint writes: “It is impossible not to grieve. And mourn. It is so natural that the Lord, who is everywhere, looking at your sorrow, will not be offended that with heart disease you meet what He, of course, out of love for you, deigned to send you. So grieve, but in moderation - according to Job. As many as ten children were taken from him at once. Of course, he also grieved, but he did not allow his grief to spill out to immensity, overcoming it with complacency out of devotion to the will of God for those born. “The Lord gave, the Lord was taken away, as the Lord willed, so it was” (Job 1:21). Strain yourself and rise to the same level of devotion, and if it is not enough, cry out to the Lord, who is near and quick to obey, and He will give... they are not deprived of communication with you, but they are with you. I think they are very amazed to see you crying and ask each other: why are dad and mom crying? We feel so good. We don’t want them, but we want them to come to us soon.” 137 In another letter 138 to the same person, the saint gives an example of how one woman lost three children; the eldest daughter of them was in a very good mood and knew how to pray. After some time, her husband died. But the woman strengthened herself, took courage, and devoted herself entirely to prayer and the will of God. And the all-merciful Lord had mercy on her, sending her a dream to console her. In a dream, she sees her husband in a semi-gloomy state. To her question: “How are you?”, the husband replies that the Lord is merciful, but we must be patient until everything passes. And when she asked about her eldest daughter, she learned that the Lord was sending her to earth to comfort the mourning. After this, the woman’s grief went away. At the end of the letter, Saint Theophan calls on the parent to settle on the idea that it is good for children to live there, and therefore they need to stop grieving. Saint Theophan hastens in his letters to console a mother crying over her dead daughter. He writes to her: “It would be wonderful if the mother did not cry for her daughter. But at the same time, you need to know when to stop: not to kill yourself and not to forget those concepts about death and the dead that are given to us by Christianity. She died! She didn’t die, the body died, but she is alive, and lives just like us, only in a different way of living.” 139 The saint consoles a wife with a letter who is grieving over the death of her husband. The saint understands well the plight of a widow who has lost her husband, and sympathizes with her, warning her not to fall into despair, forgetting God’s mercy. A similar letter was written by the saint to the man who had lost his wife, dated November 23, 1893. 140 In these letters, Saint Theophan explains that people should always be prepared for death, and there is no need to go to a monastery to prepare oneself for it, but one must die at one’s post. If this is the mother of the family, then she should wait for this hour near the children. 141 They also turned to the saint with questions about how to celebrate Lent; 142 how to conduct it properly; 143 about its beneficial influence; 144 how to begin Holy Communion; 145 how often can you receive communion. 146 To all these questions the saint without delay gave appropriate answers to the questioners. Saint Theophan not only approved of the desire of many people to enter a monastery, but also called upon God’s blessing for those wishing to get married 147. He indicated what their family happiness should consist of. In a letter to his nephew A.G. Govorov dated September 2, 1876, he wrote: “Take care of your love with your wife. This is the source of a happy family life. But you need to take care of it so that it doesn’t get clogged.” 148 In another letter 149 dated February 10, he wrote to him: “May sincere love and peaceful harmony be established between you until the end of your days. – Above all, be afraid of losing trust in each other or having it shaken in some way. This is the basis of a happy married life.” 150 He rejoices in the happy family life of those he leads, and when the spouses grieve that they have no children, he hastens to console them with his words. This is what he writes as a consolation to a young woman about childlessness: “The fact that there are no children, of course, is boring... But we must surrender this to the will of God and submit to Him... Maybe the time will come - and there will be children.” 151 To another married woman, in a letter dated December 13, 1888, 152 gives consolation to ease childbirth. And when her child is born, she advises how to choose the right name for him. 153 For guidance and better assimilation of the truths of the faith, Saint Theophan sent books to many recipients, while giving instructions on how to use them 154. Saint Theophan showed considerable concern for the poor and orphans. He sent out his pension to those in need of financial assistance. This can be judged from the memoirs of the Vyshensky monk. 155 An example of St. Theophan’s care for orphans is a letter he wrote dated September 5, 1882, 156 in which he wrote that a ten-year-old Bulgarian boy brought from Bulgaria by an officer was accepted into the Vyshensky monastery. This officer soon died. The boy was taken in by a priest, but he also died, and his mother brought the pupil to the monastery. He was sent to the Shatsk Theological School. But the saint tried to get him into a secular school and asked to find out if this was possible. The saint wrote many letters to his nephew and pupil when he parted with him. In them he expresses fatherly concern for him, being interested in his fate and material structure. Having learned that his nephew has been appointed to the post of judicial investigator in Moscow, the saint hastens to instruct him how he should approach the performance of his duties. In a letter dated November 29, 1873, he wrote: “Your position requires punctual execution of court orders. But sometimes there is room for arbitrariness. Whenever you can show mercy and provide consolation, do not miss this opportunity. One short prayer for you on this occasion will be stronger than a hundred of your long prayers.” 157 Upon news of marriage, the saint sends him a blessing with wishes for all the joys of family life; 158 sends him gifts for the wedding. 159 And every family event evokes the warmest response from the saint, especially the birth of children. 160 The saint showed his tender care for his nephew and his family until the last days of his life. In a letter dated October 14, 1893, he wrote: “I am healthy and everything is fine. And you all got sick there. May God help you all to get well soon!... I am very glad that Tikhonushka (A.G. Govorov’s eldest son) is working. God bless him! Not everyone can be scribes. There must also be working people, without whom scribes cannot even set foot... For beauties (daughters of A.G. Govorov), needlework is more useful than science. They feed the handicrafts, and ask for bread from the sciences, while they themselves only look up with their noses in the air.” 161 The saint did not leave without spiritual guidance until the last days of his life those who sought guidance from his spiritual experience. He wrote to one woman asking for spiritual guidance in the matter of salvation on October 27, 1898: “Work in matters of salvation—work in every possible way, but place your hope of salvation in the Lord the Savior. This point is very important... If you gradually deviate from the Lord with your trust, the whole matter is then distorted, for then the Lord retreats, as if saying: well, stay with what you place your trust in. And this, whatever it is, is completely insignificant.” 162 The questioners were so accustomed to consulting with the saint in everything that they even asked such questions: how to choose a bride; 163 whether a mother should give her son consent to marry a bride she does not like; 164 asked for advice on such matters and troubles as the division of estates; 165 about gardening; 166 regarding the construction of a distillery. 167 Knowing that his answer would bring at least a little relief to those asking, Saint Theophan always found a free minute to answer even such small everyday questions. § 3. Letters to officials During his stay in the Vyshenskaya desert, Saint Theophan enjoyed great authority among everyone for his good character and learning, his highly ascetic life, practical experience and for his varied leadership of people who asked him for help, turning to him for consolation, instructions and advice. This is confirmed by the fact that his opinion was also valued by such a high-ranking official as the Chief Prosecutor of the Holy Synod, A.P. Tolstoy. Going to explain the “Tale of Repentance” translated by Stefan Paneli from Greek into Russian, he asked him for advice. In his response letter, having analyzed the “Word” in detail, the saint points out its shortcomings, expressing his opinion in conclusion with the following words: “From everything I see that there is no need to worry about the dissemination of this sermon.” And to justify the fact that he does not impose his opinion, he adds: “Don’t blame me for saying so. I believe that it would be desirable for your S. to know a sincere judgment, and not one that would be distorted by outside influences.” 168 Saint Theophan had to address all sorts of issues in his letters. In particular, in some of his letters he gives similar instructions about the path of salvation, starting from the very moment of the sinner’s conversion and ending in his confirmation in God. Particularly remarkable in this regard is his letter to attorney at law M.R. Karyakin dated March 12, 1888. 169 The saint in this letter points to the purpose of a Christian man and the purpose of his earthly life, which consists in moral improvement and a blissful state in the Kingdom of Heaven. Further, the saint writes: “But in order to be worthy to enter the Kingdom, I must be cleansed of passions and everything bad.” 170 On the part of a person, it is also required to understand “everything good that exists, or should be in us, and to cultivate it in ourselves through grace-filled means - prayer in church and at home, reading sacred books with contemplation of God and doing the good deeds set before us, confession and communion.” 171 With these words, Saint Theophan points out the path to spiritual perfection. Then he explains its essence and gives instructions on how it should be used. First of all, he advises: “Make sure that when you pray, prayer comes from the heart. Prayer, in fact, is the sigh of the heart to God: if this is not there, there is no prayer. Your prayers are measured; There is no need to type a lot, but it is better to perform a little with all the attention and feeling. Between the rule of morning and evening prayer, during the day, sigh more often to God from the heart, or else stand at your usual place of prayer and pray for the present need.” 172 “Take the trouble to do this: before praying, always think about prayer, what it relates to and to whom, and what it should be, think and draw your heart into the prayer area - reverence, hope and devotion to God... If the thought runs away and the feeling moves back, force yourself. When the work of prayer is going smoothly, you want to pray and you don’t want to give up on prayer, then continue the prayer, praying with your words, or with your thoughts about what is most needed in your spiritual life.” 173 Saint Theophan gives instructions to Koryakin in reading the books of Holy Scripture: “When reading, keep your heart unoccupied, open to the truth, and, embracing what you read with understanding, put it into your heart; at the same time, one or another poem will touch the heart, and another will touch it very much. Notice these poems that touch you and remember them more often during the day, especially the one that touched you the most. This will renew the revival of the heart - this work is very fruitful. It is better to read not a lot, but with assimilation and feeling, than a lot without this: without this, reading will be sacred on the road.” 174 The saint gives the following advice about thinking about God: “Take some divine truth, understand it in its composition and foundations, carry it through to the senses and draw lessons for yourself. What truths should we take? Everything from the divine properties, passing through creation, redemption and general providence to the Last Judgment and eternal life. This is according to the catechism. - Take one. Poems that will touch your hearts when you read them are the best subject for contemplation of God. Time... how free.” 175 Since doing good is one of the steps of following into the Kingdom of Heaven, Saint Theophan gives the following instruction about it: “The commandments are the norm; practice - presenting cases: it is better not to invent cases, but to do what presents itself. There seems to be one thing to do, and another thing not to do. Both rarely do without a struggle with what rebels inside and what is encountered outside. It is a big mistake to consider obstacles or resistance to doing as an impossibility. “I can’t” should not come from the lips of a zealot. Doing business is great wisdom - a gift from God. We need to pray about this. 176 Saint Theophan points out that “confession and holy communion are inevitably necessary: ​​one cleanses, the other – bath, plaster and food. You must take communion during all four fasts.” 177 All this feeds the good side. There is also a bad side, which feeds on the same thing as the good side. For this, the zealot of salvation must constantly struggle with his bad side.” 178 Further, Saint Theophan points out what exactly this bad side of man consists of. He describes the very process of sin and indicates the means to combat it. This bad side in a person consists of “egoism, selfishness, self-indulgence and self-pity.” We must fight against all this. “The main methods of struggle: recognize the enemy in the faintness that has appeared, become angry with him and, straining, drive him away, calling on the Lord Savior for help; and then repeat these acts until the bad disappears and the soul calms down... Energy, courage and patience are required.” 179 In this letter, Saint Theophan gives instructions to Koryakin about the fight against the flesh: “Take the trouble to pull up this uncontrollable slave so that she does not interfere with her mistress. How?.. I think you know! This applies to food, sleep, and other benefits. Make the flesh feel like there is a heavy hand on it. As soon as the flesh weakens, the spiritual feeling comes to life. It means a lot in this regard - not to let it fall apart, to keep all the limbs in line through the internal tension of the muscles. This greatly supports the spirit and helps the soul to stand in a sober mood.” 180 The saint also gives instructions to him (Koryakin) and indicates the means of combating the sin of blasphemy, which attacked him. 181 At the end of the letter, the saint sends blessings to his entire family and good wishes in the matter of salvation with the help of God. Along with the letter, the book “The Path to Salvation” was sent to him, about which it was noted in the letter: “In it you will see yourself, how you were in adolescence, how you deteriorated and how you improved, and what is to come... It was written more than 40 years ago, but is not out of date.” 182 In another letter to Koryakin dated January 20, 1890, the saint encourages him on the path of salvation, despite the troubles in his thoughts and feelings. “And the troubles you experience in your thoughts and feelings,” the saint writes, “will all subside over time, if in spite of them you do not stop being jealous with all your zeal for the one thing that pleases God. To this end, there is one sure way - to have the memory of God and the memory of death. They will instill the fear of God, which will be both a motivator for everything pleasing to God and a turner away from everything that angers God, and a guardian of good internal acquisitions, and a destroyer of everything bad that lies there.” 183 Saint Theophan gives him instructions about the home rule 184 and indicates what real prayer should be, which is necessary along the path to the Kingdom of Heaven. “Real prayer is that,” the saint writes in a letter dated October 1, 1889, “that comes directly from the heart and ascends to God. And no other prayer is if it is not like that. This is what we should be all about on the day of prayer. But usually our mind is cluttered with many non-divine thoughts, our will with many worldly worries, our heart with sympathies and earthly pleasures, why at that hour ascending to God for us is the same as climbing out of a quagmire. Small prayers are very suitable for this remedy or aid. They train the mind to stick to one thing; little by little they win sympathy over to their side and distract them from their worries...” 185 Shows him that the main thing in the matter of salvation is the disposition of the heart, and not the deeds. “When the heart is filled with good dispositions, then godly activities stand without deeds. Watch your heart and do not allow anything unclean, anything wrong, or anything unloving to enter there. In other churches, wherever you look, candles are burning: so, when the heart harbors good dispositions, it is full of brightly burning candles, visible from the sky and attracting Divine favor.” 186 And in a letter dated October 28, 1891, 187 the saint expresses joy at his correction and, being a guardian of the truth, advises him to suppress all untruths, even to the point of his life. Saint Theophan also corresponded with Archpriest Mikhail Kheraskov, who was the inspector of the Vladimir Diocesan Women's School, then the rector of the Seminary. In his letters to him, the saint expressed his joy at the prosperity of the school and showed fatherly concern in the education of beauties (as the bishop jokingly and affectionately calls the pupils of the diocesan school), while giving advice on their upbringing. 188 He expressed his love for them in his prayers. This is evidenced by the words from the letter dated November 12: “My prayer is always for children. I loved them and love them like family.” 189 He also consoled Fr. Michael in letters when he was forcibly removed from the post of rector of the Seminary, advising him to meekly “submit to violence and endure.” 190 The correspondence of Saint Theophan with the deeply religious Colonel S.A. was quite extensive. Pervukhin. 191 The reason for the correspondence was an article by St. Theophan entitled “The Soul and the Angel are not something corporeal, but a pure spirit,” 192 in refutation of the views on this issue of Bishop Ignatius Brianchaninov, set out in the article “The Word on Death.” In the first two letters 193 to Pervukhin, the saint sets out in detail about the incorporeality of the soul of man and angels, in refutation of the thoughts of Bishop Ignatius. And when Pervukhin retired due to illness (1872), the saint gives him advice on where it is better to find a place of solitude to create salvation, but mentions that one can be saved in the world. 194 The saint consoles him during his illness, advising him to replace church prayer with home prayer. In a letter dated June 6, 1892, the saint writes: “You can’t go to church - this is the most difficult thing. But manage to replace this with prayer at home, not reading, but your own - not verbose. Or here’s how: during the hours of the Liturgy, imagine yourself standing in church and go through in your memory everything as the Liturgy goes on with the corresponding thoughts and feelings. It will be like being present in church during the Liturgy.” 195 The most important in content and extensive in quantity was the correspondence between Bishop Feofan and Nikolai Vasilyevich Elagin, a writer on church issues. N.V. Elagin, having relations with the social and literary movement of Moscow, was also close to the highest spheres of the spiritual department. It was thanks to this correspondence that Saint Theophan received information about the church life of the country and about outstanding events in civil life. The seventh edition of the “Collected Letters of St. Theophan” contains 150 letters to N.V. Elagin, which touches on many important issues. The saint devotes a large number of letters to the sad state of Russian society, in connection with the spread of sects: Lord Redstock, 196 Pashkov, 197 L. Tolstoy, 198 Shtunda 199, etc. In these letters, Saint Theophan characterizes each and indicates how to fight them. A smaller number of the saint's letters are directed against the Holy Synod's translation of the Bible into Russian from the Hebrew original instead of the Greek. 200 There are also letters regarding the Russian-Turkish war. 201 In two letters to N.V. To Elagin, the saint expresses his concern with the appearance of a rumor that an article by German theologians about the Holy Trinity was published in a spiritual magazine. 202 Pointing out the erroneousness of their views, the saint adds that German theologians cannot reason according to the Orthodox; indicates the inconsistency of the teachings of German theologians on this issue. In a letter dated February 14, 1877, the saint writes about their teaching: “The Germans cannot reason according to the Orthodox. Everyone lies. It’s true that Lange, who was placed there, is lying. They have everything... God is developing. The developing God is not God, for at every moment he becomes something other than what he was. And the true God is always what he is.” 203 In a letter dated April 29, 1879, 204 the saint gives an explanation of where evil comes from in the world. He writes: “That evil is not from God, but allowed by God; because the goal for which the world was created can be achieved with evil as well as without evil. The source of evil is in freedom, which did not want to submit to the will of God.” Further in this letter, the saint answers his questions: was the fallen angel free and where are the souls before birth? § 4. Letters to people with higher education Recognition of the great spiritual experience and high education of Saint Theophan is the correspondence with one learned natural scientist and chemist who was looking for spiritual life. Saint Theophan approves of his desire to conduct a conversation about life according to God, assuring that he is happy to satisfy his need: “It is true that without advice it is difficult, but not everything is about advice. God begins life, God leads in it. Therefore, we must resort to Him and always resort and wait for a decision from Him. How He decides and how His decision reaches the heart, you can’t figure it out, it is aroused by Him and brought to completion by Him... “Without Me you cannot do anything,” says the Lord (John 15:5). And so it happens. And none of those who please Him of their own accord does what pleases Him. Our relationship with God is all marked by prayer. The whole point, therefore, is in prayer 205. In the following letter dated January 17, 1877, 206, the saint gives advice on prayer and how to combine it with the duties of a secular person. But the learned chemist began to doubt that studying chemistry could extinguish his spiritual life. In his response letter, Saint Theophan points out to him that every activity is a gift from God, you just need to perform them wisely and they will lead to God. In addition, it is also necessary to see traces of God in the phenomena that you study. “Take the trouble to see the traces of God in those phenomena,” writes Saint Theophan, “which you are studying, and, having seen it, confess it to the Lord and mentally ascend to Him in the continuation of your work itself. Then your studies will be a little like reading a spiritual book. Another thing: acquire the skill of working your head with scientific studies only at certain hours, and at the end of them, get out of your head and remain with the Lord alone; Don’t let earths, salts and acids get into your head... Such a skill will come, but you have to work smart.” 207 Sending him letters about spiritual life, 208 the saint notes that the questioner can learn a lot from them for his own benefit. They set out in detail what the life of a Christian should consist of and how to achieve the Kingdom of God. Thus, in the second letter, the saint writes “that the essence of Christian life is to become the mind in the heart before God in the Lord Jesus Christ, by the grace of the Holy Spirit, and from there, sending with all internal movements and all external actions, turning everything in oneself, both small and great, into the service of the Trinitarian God, surrendering to Him entirely with consciousness and freedom.” 209 Some letters to the chemist also touched on philosophical issues, 210 in response to the questions of the first. One worker of science also asks St. Theophan for feedback on his work. In a response letter to him dated June 1, 1881, 211, the saint points out shortcomings in the essay and indicates sources for its completion. § 5. Letters to priests and bishops Saint Theophan also received many letters from priests who also sought consolation and spiritual help from him when faced with various unclear issues in their spiritual life, and also asked for advice in the fight against sects. The saint hurries to their aid, giving his wise advice and instructions. One priest asked Saint Theophan for advice about changing his confessor. This is what the saint answered him on February 11, 1882: “I answer from my desk: who knits?.. This matter is a matter of conscience; To whom the soul opens up, everyone should go to him. But in reality, you may encounter obstacles, also advisory ones, and not small ones. You can't jump over, no matter how hard you run. The confessor of many years has been abandoned?! And having replaced, he will feel that he is being hit on the cheeks. Whose conscience will tolerate this? Therefore, there is nothing to think about change. The question is, what should we do? Another speaks sweeter and the soul clings to him. This is something I can’t solve. Is that how it is? Separate the confessor from the counselor. Let the one who speaks better be the adviser, and the confessor the confessor.” 212 Further in this letter the saint gives advice to the priest on what he should advise a woman who is troubled by blasphemous thoughts. First of all, she needs to be given an article by St. Demetrius of Rostov about this subject and point out that these are the thoughts of the devil, so that she rejects them, resorting to the Lord for help. In another letter dated April 22, 1885, 213, the saint indicates that priests should be leaders and comforters of their flock in difficult moments of their lives, advising them to calm down with hope for the best, adding to this intense prayer. 214 To the same priest, in a letter dated June 24, 1887, Saint Theophan gives an explanation about the frequent communion of the laity and whether it is possible to give spare Gifts to people going on trips. One priest asks the saint to send books for his library. The saint readily responds to his request and sends what he requested. 215 The saint also sends his books to the theological girls’ school. 216 Twenty-two letters were written by Saint Theophan to the city of Kyiv to Archpriest N. Florinsky. In his first letter to him, dated January 26, 1868, he gives advice on treating the mentally ill. “Should I use reprimand? After all, all passionate people are possessed. Each passion has its own demon, which feeds its passion or itself through a person. Drive him out, and the support of passion will fall away. Then what is natural, for example a habit, ... can be dealt with very easily.” 217 In other letters 218 to him, the saint expresses his fatherly regret about the spread of unbelief in society, calling on the latter to defend the true Orthodox faith. And when a new false teacher of the faith, Redstock, appeared, the saint indicated what his teaching consisted of and sent his books, written to expose his false wisdom. 219 Saint Theophan wrote one letter dated October 12, 1890, 220 Fr. John of Kronstadt. In it, the saint gives feedback on the works and words of the archpriest. “I bring you deep gratitude for your words and teachings, which are very edifying, containing everything without excesses or verbiage. God bless your pastoral work in all its breadth. You have been given grace not only to teach, but also to create. May the Lord help you to successfully serve your brothers in Christ with every gift that you have received from the Lord.” 221 Two letters were written by Saint Theophan to Metropolitan Isidore of St. Petersburg, 222 in which the reasons for his retirement were stated. There is a letter from the saint to His Eminence Nikodim (Belokurov). 223 Saint Theophan expresses gratitude in it for the admission of his nephew A. T. Govorov to the Moscow Theological Seminary and asks to take care of his upbringing. Saint Theophan had to write many letters on issues of monastic life at the request of persons interested in them by their position. So he advises the abbot of the monastery how to rule the monastery more wisely; 224 to the confessor - about the moral guidance of spiritual children in confession. 225 In letters to the novices in Sarovsk, Alexander and Theodore, the saint gives instructions on the proper conduct of monastic life and on prayer. 226 Among the total number of letters, there are those in which the saint explains texts from the Holy Scriptures that are incomprehensible to many. 227 How Saint Theophan responded in letters to events in church and political life Saint Theophan understood perfectly well that the condition for salvation is belonging to the Church, and the enemy is trying by all means to tear people away from it, acting through individuals. Therefore, he tried to keep believers from being led astray from the true path. The saint mourns the decline of faith among educated people of Russian society. He expresses his grief in a letter dated July 17, 1888 to N.V. Elagin with the following words: “It is bitter, it is bitter what is happening among us among the thinking. Everyone has lost their mind. Philosophical views are not in use; they are guided by the wind, blown by principles. The Holy Faith has been cast into the background and even the theologians have lost the real foundations of Orthodox theology, and everyone is laughing.” “And the Lord, it seems, has turned his eyes away from us and does not send workers. How many times have I tried to scream, but nothing comes out of my head. Maybe others experience it too. Is this not God's abandonment? God, be merciful!” 228 In a letter to Archpriest Nikolai Florin dated January 13, he also writes about the decline of faith in high society and calls on him to defend faith and morality. “There is nothing to say about the bitter state of God’s truth in society. No matter what you come up with, everything falls out of your hands... What to do!.. Everyone in your circle, do what you can... You can form a small society of zealots to print prayers explaining the Christian faith and morals... And let someone carry or distribute them around the city and in the villages. You will take charge of writing the articles. The simpler the better...” 229 And many letters were written to them, as can be seen from their contents, directed against the anti-religious current of thought of that time. The purpose of his letters was to protect people from being carried away by these movements and to confirm them in the truths of the Orthodox faith. 230 Saint Theophan, while in seclusion, vigilantly monitored the spread of contemporary Russian sectarianism and schism. He also followed some ecclesiastical and political events. As a true shepherd of the Church of Christ, he responded to everything from his seclusion. In his letters the saint expressed one or another of his views, giving many various advice and instructions. He responds in letters to the false teachings of Pashkov, a follower of Redstock, which spread in the nineteenth century. Before writing these letters, he collects information about false teaching and delves deeply into it. In many letters to N.V. Elagin, Saint Theophan asked to send points of Pashkov’s teaching and books published by him and his followers: “If possible, collect the books published by Pashkov’s followers, and the Holy Scriptures with handwritings and notes. The best way to scratch this soul molester is from them.” 231. “Send more points. The books you send are welcome. Get their prayer book, which is mentioned in the article “Russia”. 232 And in a letter to M.D., Saint Theophan also asked to send information about Pashkov. “I’ll wait to hear what you say about the Pashkovites; I urgently need to know what they rely on, that they have fallen behind the Church.” 233 Having studied the main provisions of the teaching of the Pashkovites, Saint Theophan wrote 7 letters entitled “Letters to one person in St. Petersburg regarding the appearance of a new teacher of the faith there.” In these letters, he analyzes and denounces the main points of Pashkov’s false teaching, while at the same time, detailing the Orthodox teaching on these points. 234 He himself sent letters to priests and called on everyone to fight against sects. Sending ten copies of letters against Pashkov to Archpriest Nikolai Florin in Kyiv, he wrote on August 24, 1881: “I am sending you ten letters to St. Petersburg. Distribute them to old acquaintances, or even to unspiritual people around the city, for whom, in your opinion, it would be useful to read them. This is against Pashkov, who is the worst Molokan and whip, who has neither the Church, nor the Sacraments, nor the priesthood, nor prayers - nothing. Repent, believe in the Lord and live well - that’s all. Everything else is on the side." 235 In one of his private letters to Elagin dated January 7, 1880, he wrote: “Pashkov ate my soul” 236. Further in this letter, he asks Elagin to report on Pashkov’s false teaching to the bishop, since he hoped with his help to call upon the priests to a general struggle against false teaching. He also mentions this same struggle in a letter to the priest dated August 24, 1881: “All this is your business: - understand, the acting priesthood - to trouble and resist! But I didn’t take up my own business - my job is to sit and sort out my rosary.” 237 Letters were sent by the saint against Pashkov and to Elagin, whom he also asked to distribute letters, but not to the priests. 238 Saint Theophan did not ignore the denunciations of other sectarians: Molokans, Stundists, Khlysty and Skoptsy, who were firmly established in Rus'. Since he did not have the opportunity to personally conduct conversations with sectarians, seeking their conversion to the true path of Orthodoxy, he gave written advice and instructions to the priests on how to deal with them. In his letters he outlined their teachings and all the customs of their life. One priest turned to the saint for advice and guidance when sectarians appeared in his parish. This sect was hidden and there was no way to find out the essence of its teachings in order to know in which direction to fight it. In his response letter, Saint Theophan dated July 2, 1879, outlined in detail what kind of sect this could be: “These are not Molokans, but Khlysty or Skoptsy. A Molokan will never hold icons or images of sacred things... and will not go to church. But the Khlysts go to church and do everything, as do the eunuchs. The Skoptsy have degenerated from the Khlysty... It is impossible to learn anything from them, because their first point is not to reveal anything about the sect, even if the skin were torn off. 239 He goes on to explain how they conduct their meetings, how one should treat them, and what kind of conversations one should have with them. In a letter to Archpriest N. Florin dated October 9, 1883, the saint approves of Ushinsky’s book, written to refute the wisdom of the Stundists, and calls on the latter to fight them. 240 He also wrote about this book in a letter to N.V. Elagin dated January 12, 1882. 241 He himself helped many with books to make the fight against the Stundists easier. 242 Saint Theophan made no little effort to fight the Molokans, collecting information about their teaching, 243 expounding the Orthodox teaching on icon veneration, against the Molokans. 244 While living in the Vyshenskaya desert, Saint Theophan was also interested in schismatics. In his letters, he gave his admirers a lot of different advice and instructions aimed at eradicating the schism. Such a letter was written dated June 9, 1871 245 to N.V. Elagin. To combat the spread of schism and false teachings that were spreading at that time, the saint first of all calls on the capital's clergy as a true spiritual army. He mentions this in one of his letters: “These ulcers are destroying many in St. Petersburg and everywhere. And it would be necessary to oppose them with spiritual warfare. In St. Petersburg, among the clergy there are many excellent priests, both in education and in character... If we made them trumpeters, and the walls of Jericho, of course, would fall, to the consolation of the faithful sons of Israel and to the glory of God.” 246 Saint Theophan perfectly understood the serious danger to Orthodoxy that threatened from the machinations of the popes and their propaganda. So, for example, in one of his letters he wrote about the spread of Catholic teaching: “Rumors are also reaching our forest that Catholics are sowing their wicked teachings... and, as if, with success. They are masters of showing off. It would be good to translate and use the book by Fr. Vladimir Guetta "Schismatic Papacy" (Papaute Schismatique). Offer to do this on occasion to Nikolai Vasilyevich Elagin, if you know him... How wonderfully he screwed both the pope and the papacy!? And in the magazine “Faith and Reason” - 1888 and 1889. his article... Photius... very clearly exposes the grimy beginnings of the papacy.” 247 From this excerpt it is clear how Saint Theophan cares about the defense of Orthodox teaching. Knowing that there is no suitable Spiritual literature and books that all Orthodox Christians need for their guidance, he writes to the editor of the “Church Gazette” dated December 15, 1891 and asks the latter to find people who would help collect accusatory material, where all points of Catholic teaching would be presented and analyzed in detail and thoroughly. “But we don’t have a book that, having in his hands, an Orthodox Christian could reflect the nonsense of the priests. They will say so much that the listener will inevitably be amazed... Muravyov, Avdey Vostokov (Reverend Anatoly Mogil) are heavy and not easy on the head. Papaute Schismatique o. Who can access Vladimir Getta? and nothing else, tea, nothing... Yes!... His Eminence Nikander! But that's incomplete. Persuade someone to extract from all the most striking, easy to read and victorious.” 248 Saint Theophan, taking advantage of every opportunity, himself loved to say a weighty word in denouncing Catholicism. Thus, in one of his letters “On Christian Life,” he talks about the similarity of Catholic dogmas with Orthodox ones and points to the introduction by the Catholic Church of new teachings about the procession of the Holy Spirit from the Son, about the non-participation of the Mother of God in original sin and about the primacy of the pope. Further in this letter, he warns against getting carried away by the flattery of Catholicism and advises reading books in which he explains its essence. 249 In 1893, a book by St. Theophan entitled “Bishop Theophan on Orthodoxy” was published in Moscow. In it he speaks in detail about the indulgences of the Pope, about the changes the Pope made to many dogmas and about the sacraments that were also changed. 250 Saint Theophan was also interested in major church events, about which he also expressed his opinion. When in 1873 the Holy Synod published the Bible in Russian, based on the Hebrew text as the original, preferably the text of 70 interpreters, the saint believed that it was best to base it on the text of 70, as received from the apostles. He wrote several articles in the magazine “Soulful Reading” in 1875 for the defense of the text of the 70s. Many private letters were written regarding the publication of the Bible from the Hebrew text. Thirteen such letters were written, in particular, to N.V. Elagin. 251 In them, he pointed out the integrity of the text of the 70 interpreters and asked Elagin to find people who could publish the Bible according to the text of the 70. It found a response in the letters of St. Theophan and such is the church event, like the celebration of the nine hundredth anniversary of the Christian birth in Rus'. “There was and is a need to say one word on the occasion of the proposed anniversary (900th anniversary of the baptism of Rus'...).” 252 He approves the publication by the Holy Synod of an akathist with pictures and a description of the life of St. Vladimir, for his part proposing to translate liturgical books for this significant date. 253 In addition to church events, Saint Theophan was also interested in political ones. Such an event was the Russian-Turkish war. He spoke with deep patriotism about that war, knowing the sad situation of the Slavic peoples under the yoke of Turkey. 254 He monitors all military events, waiting for its successful end. In a letter to N.V. Elagin dated July 4, 1877, the saint writes: “Our war is going on... but how slowly?! I don't have the patience to wait. I would like them to push the Turk as soon as possible - and the spirit will be gone.” 255 In another letter dated August 2, he wrote: “And the war is going on... I would like it to go better... One day, another and our Sophia... and there on the road is Philippopolis - and Adrianople...” 256 The saint’s concern for his neighbors is clearly expressed in his letter dated November 1, 1893 257 to Mitrofan Rafailovich Koryakin, filled with touching and loving paternal words consolation to the bereaved families of those killed in the shipwreck on the ship "Rusalka". From all of the above, we can conclude that Saint Theophan was a real shepherd - a trustee, guided by him on the path of their spiritual life. He loved with true fatherly love everyone who sought advice, help and guidance. Therefore, the saint attached great importance to his correspondence. Nothing could ever stop him from rushing in letters to help the grieving. The saint always had time for this great work. He considered it his duty to answer every letter, no matter what its content, because he was sure that refusal would be an insult to the person addressing him. The saint never refused advice or help to anyone, and if he was delayed in answering, it meant that he had more urgent work to do. How much time, labor, spiritual experience and patience was needed for this, so that everyone who applied could respond to his request, completely satisfying him; calm the worried Soul and console the languid heart. The content of the saint's letters is extremely varied, however, their main theme is moralizing. His letters contain answers to one great question - the question of the path to salvation, only it is presented in them according to the personal spiritual needs of the questioners. In his letters, the saint instructed and admonished, and answered other questions that interested them; He consoled others in their sorrows, supported them in the troubles, labors and sorrows of their lives; He warned others against being carried away by various kinds of errors, and revealed certain truths of the Christian faith and morality. The saint took care of the spiritual enlightenment of those who inquired, sending out his books free of charge and giving advice on what literature was useful for a Christian to read. The saint showed considerable concern for orphans and the poor, sending them his pension. “I never keep money, and I unwind everything. So keep them when they happened,” the saint wrote in a letter to N.V. Elagin dated January 15, 1886. 258 Thanks to cordial interviews through letters, family relationships were often established between him and the recipients, since he knew how to somehow especially enter into the position of his leaders, demanding from them sincerity and frankness, to which he attached great importance. This is confirmed by the words of St. Theophan to a young lady seeking spiritual life. “You promise to be honest. Good! Frankness is the first priority in correspondence. Otherwise there was no point in starting it. And always write from your head - everything that is on your soul, and especially express in more detail those questions that stir in your head and begin to persistently demand a solution. Then decisions will be made, just as a thirsty land accepts water.” 259 People were attracted to him by both his simple, highly religious life and his pure fatherly instructions. Because of the vitality and urgency of the saint’s answers, the questioners were so accustomed to consulting with him in everything that they turned to him in any difficult situation in life. Seeing the grave condition of the questioner, the saint sincerely worries with him, trying to give the most effective advice. Saint Theophan's answers were sincere instructions from a Christian father to his children. They are simple in content, unartificial, full of heartfelt love and fatherly wishes. Therefore, his instructions are convincing, touching, and deeply sink into the souls and hearts of those asking. In them one can feel the simplicity and warmth of the saint’s feelings, with which he addresses his leaders. His letters show an inimitable ability to adapt his answers to the needs of those who contact him. He, like a true shepherd, calls the lost into the fold of the Church. The personality of Saint Theophan reveals a remarkable psychologist. He is well versed in the very recesses of the human heart. And it really shows in his answers. Saint Theophan sought to give not only general guidance and establish the basic structure of the spiritual life of those who entrusted themselves to him, but also entered into their private needs, directing every step of their lives. Due to his meekness and humility, Saint Theophan, despite such quite tangible leadership and moral influence on others, did not consider himself a leader and mentor to others. Many of his letters speak about this. Thus, in a letter to M.R. Koryakin dated June 16, 1888, the saint wrote: “Stop calling me your leader, mentor and shepherd. I don’t undertake to be such a person for anyone, and when someone asks, I say that it seems suitable to me.” 260 However, the saint’s concern for the salvation of those he led always came first and therefore prompted him to write publicly. His letters, with their clarity, vividness and simplicity of presentation, as well as his deep and experienced acquaintance with the spiritual life of man and his needs, and especially the extraordinary properties of his pastoral disposition, undoubtedly made a very strong impression on those questioning. They have not lost their meaning to this day. Each of his letters sheds true sweetness and consolation in the heart. And it was not without reason that letters from all over Russia and even from abroad flew to the Vyshenskaya Hermitage expressing spiritual and physical sorrows. There is no better way to say what the letters are, as Archpriest M.I. Khitrov said about them: “The letters of His Eminence Theophan are a true treasure. Once you start reading his correspondence, you won’t soon tear yourself away from the inspired pages. What freshness and elegance of style, what an amazing wealth of all kinds of comparisons, what simplicity and cordiality is reflected everywhere, in every letter.” 261 Saint Theophan himself rejoiced when he heard about the beneficial influence of his writings. He expressed this joy in a letter to O. S. Burachek dated December 16, 1892. “You brought me great comfort by informing me that some beauty read my book and became a monk. For me, the only hope of salvation is from books... They will read and pray... And God will show me mercy for their sake...” 262 With his letters, the saint saved many from spiritual death, guided and confirmed many on the path of true perfection, while pointing out the necessary means to moral perfection. This is evidenced by the saint’s contemporary, sworn attorney Mitrofan Rafailovich Koryakin: “With his letters, Saint Theophan turned many to the right path of repentance and brought many to the mind of truth, thereby erecting for himself a miraculous and indelible monument, both in the hearts of people converted by him from darkness to light, and equally in the hearts of those people who are worthily called the true sons of the Orthodox Church. The now deceased elder was destined to come to my aid at the most critical moments in my life, when one night I was already on the brink of moral death. It was then that he called out to me with his saving leadership, I awoke from the darkness of sin and morally came to life.” 263 Recognition of the great significance of the works and exploits of Saint Theophan is a poem written after his death by Sleptsov, which contains the following lines: “He worked on the field of our souls For everything, for all of us His answer is always direct..." 264 Thus, the letters of St. Theophan can serve as an excellent guide for modern pastors and counselors, good material for the edification of those seeking salvation and moral consolation and admonition for all those who suffer. Literature used 1. Ep. Feofan. "Letters on Spiritual Life." St. Petersburg, 1872 2. Ep. Feofan. "Letters to various persons on various subjects of faith and life." M., 1892, 2nd ed. 3. Ep. Feofan. "Letters on the Christian Life." St. Petersburg, 1880 4. Ep. Feofan. “Letters to a person in St. Petersburg regarding the appearance of a new teacher of faith there.” St. Petersburg, 1881 5. Ep. Feofan. “Letters. “What is spiritual life and how to tune in to it?” Ed. 5, M., 1904 6. Ep. Feofan. "Collected Letters", vol. 1, M., 1898 7. Ep. Feofan. "Collected Letters", vol. 2, M., 1898 8. Ep. Feofan. "Collected Letters", vol. 3, M., 1899 9. Ep. Feofan. "Collected Letters", vol. 4, M., 1899 10. Ep. Feofan. "Collected Letters", vol. 5, M., 1899 11. Ep. Feofan. "Collected Letters", vol. 6, M., 1900 12. Ep. Feofan. "Collected Letters", vol. 7, M., 1901 13. Ep. Feofan. "Collected Letters", vol. 8, M., 1902 14. Archimander. Nicodemus "Index to the letters in Bose of the deceased Saint Theophan." M., 1904 15. "The Last Testaments". (Correspondence from the last year of the life of Bishop Theophan) M., 1896. 16. Archpriest Korolkov. “Reverend Theophan, former Bishop of Vladimir and Colonel S. A. Pervukhin and their mutual correspondence.” Kiev, 1915 1. Creations of St. Gregory the Theologian. M., 1889 2. Saint Gregory Dvoeslov. "The pastoral rule." Kyiv, 1874, ed. 5. 3. Creations of St. John Chrysostom. St. Petersburg, 1895, vol. 1. 4. Anonymously. "Reverend Theophan, the recluse of Vyshensky." M., 1895 5. Archim. Boris, Notes on Pastoral Theology. Kyiv, 1892, issue. 4. 6. A. S. Klyucharev. "Reverend Theophan the Recluse and His Pastoral Activities." “Orthodox interlocutor” for 1904, part 2; for 1910, parts 4 and 5. 7. Prof. I. Korsunsky. "The Most Reverend Bishop Theophan, formerly of Vladimir and Suzdal." M., 1895 8. P. A. Smirnov. “The life and teaching of Rev. Feofan Vyshensky the recluse." Shatsk, 1905 9. A. Sokolov. “The psychology of sin and virtue according to the teachings of the holy ascetics of the ancient Church in connection with the conditions of pastoral counseling.” Vologda, 1905 10. V. P. Rybinsky. "In memory of His Grace Theophan, Bishop of Vladimir and Suzdal." "Proceedings of the Kyiv Theological Academy for 1894" v.1. 11. Ep. Feofan. "The Path to Salvation." Odessa, 1886, ed. 6. 12. Archpriest M.I. Khitrov “The Most Reverend Theophan the Recluse of Vyshensky.” Ed. 2, M., 1905 13. Tambov diocesan statements for 1894 and 1895. 14. Magazine “Soulful Reading” for 1894, 1895. 15. Magazine "Church Gazette" for 1894 16. Magazine "Church Bulletin" for 1894 17. Ep. Feofan, “On Orthodoxy.” M., 1893 Archim. Boris, Notes on Pastoral Theology. Vol. 4 Kyiv 1982, p. 8 Creations of St. Gregory the Theologian. Part I, p. 20, M. 1989. Creations of St. John Chrysostom, St. Petersburg, 1985, vol. I, p. 405. "The pastoral rule." St. Gregory Dvoeslov. Kiev, 1874, ed. 3, p. 89 In No. 12 of the Church Gazette for 1894, in the note to the article “About the Right Reverend Theophan,” errors that are found in obituaries regarding the date and month of his birth are corrected. Father George had six more children. Ep. Feofan "The Path to Salvation". Odessa, 1886, p. 48. A. P. Smirnov “The Life and Teachings of the Right Reverend Theophan, the Recluse of Vyshensky.” Shatsk, 1905, p.11. Ep. Feofan "Collected Letters". Vol. 1, No. 194 Rybinsky V.P. “In memory of His Grace Theophan, Bishop of Vladimir and Suzdal.” Works of the Kyiv Spirit. Academy, vol. I, p. 421 Eminence Theophan, Letters on Christian Life. Vol. 3, p. 153. “Church Gazette” for 1894 No. 8, p. 257. Klyucharyov A. “Reverend Theophan the Recluse and His Pastoral Activities.” Orthodox interlocutor. 1904, part II, p. 404. Bishop Theophan "Collected Letters". Vol. 3, No. 388, p. 33. “Soulful Reading” for 1894, No. 3, p. 526. P. A. Smirnov “The Life and Teaching of Rev. Theophan of Vyshensky the recluse,” pp. 50–54. I. Korsunsky. "The Most Reverend Bishop Theophan, formerly of Vladimir and Suzdal." M., 1895, p. 41. Bishop Feofan. "Collection of Letters". Vol. 2, no. 226. Prof. I. Korsunsky “Reverend Theophan of the former Vladimir and Suzdal”, p. 79. P. A. Smirnov “The Life and Teachings of the Reverend. Theophan of Vyshensky the recluse”, page 122 L. Sokolov. “The psychology of sin and virtue according to the teachings of the holy ascetics of the ancient Church in connection with the conditions of pastoral counseling.” Vologda 1905, pp. 1–4 I.T. “In memory of Rev. Ep. Feofana." Tambov diocesan bulletin. 1894 No. 6, p. 116. The saint writes about conferring the degree of Doctor of Theology in a letter to the editor of the Church Gazette. Ep. Feofan “Collection of letters”, Vol. 7, no. 1215. “Church Bulletin” for 1894, No. 4, pp. 51–53; No. 5, pp. 83–85. Letters on the Christian Life. St. Petersburg, 1880 a) Outline of Christian doctrine. M. 1895 b) The path to salvation. Odessa. 1886 c) Letters on spiritual life. St. Petersburg, 1872 d) What spiritual life is and how to tune in to it. M. 1878 e) Wake up, sleep. M. 1902 f) Patristic instructions on prayer and sobriety. M. 1889 g) Letters to various persons on various subjects of faith and life. M. 1892 h) Letters to a person in St. Petersburg regarding the appearance of a new teacher of faith there. St. Petersburg, 1881 i) Soul and Angel are not a body, but a spirit; M. 1891 j) About repentance, communion of the Holy Mysteries of Christ and the correction of life. M. 1895 l) Interpretation of the “Six Psalms.” m) Interpretation of “Psalm 118.” M. 1899 n) Interpretation of the letters of the Apostle Paul to the Romans; 1st and 2nd Epistles to the Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, Thessalonians. Pastoral Epistles to Philemon and to the Jews. M. 1890–1896 o) Five teachings on the path to salvation. M. 1900 p) A reminder to all-honorable monks of what monasticism requires of them. M. 1897 Tambov Diocesan Gazette. “The word on the day of the annual commemoration in Bose of the late Right Reverend Theophan, pronounced by the Reverend. Alexander, bishop Tambovsky and Shatsky." Ep. Feofan. "Collection of Letters". Vol. 1, p. 110. Archpriest M. Khitrov. “Reverend Theophan the Recluse of Vyshensky” M., 1905, ed. 2nd, p. 46. Prof. I. Korsunsky. “Reverend. Bishop Theophan...” p. 102. A.S. Klyucharyov. “Reverend. Theophan the Recluse and his pastoral activity." Orthodox interlocutor. Part 4, pp. 514–515. Tambov Diocesan Gazette for 1894, No. 6, p. 119. Ep. Feofan. "Collection of Letters". Vol. 1, no. 104, p. 95. “Soulful Reading” for 1894, No. 7, p. 455. A.S. Klyucharyov. “Reverend. Feofan and his pastoral activities." Orthodox interlocutor, part 6, p. 572. Kazan, 1910 In some letters the saint limits himself to indicating the date, omitting the year. Ep. Feofan "Collected Letters". Vol. 3, no. 393, p. 39. Right there. Vol. 1, No. 38, pp. 38–39. Right there. Vol. 1, no. 39, p.40. Right there. No. 40, pp. 40–41. Ep. Feofan "Collected Letters". Vol. 1, no. 244. Right there. No. 87; No. 357; 352. Ep. Feofan "Collected Letters". Vol. 1, no. 38. Right there. Vol. 8, No. 1450–1453. Right there. Vol. 1, no. 78, p. 65. Right there. Vol. 6, no. 942–979. There are 38 letters in total. Right there. Vol. 6, no. 942–943. Right there. Vol. 6, No. 942, p.5. Ep. Feofan "Collected Letters". Vol. 6, no. 944. Ep. Feofan "Collected Letters". Vol. 6, no. 975. Ep. Feofan. "Letters to various persons on various subjects of faith and life." Ed. 2, M. 1892, pp.801–803. Ep. Feofan "Collected Letters". Vol. 1, No. 135, pp. 146–148. Right there. No. 137, pp. 151–154. Right there. Vol. 3, no. 475–477. Ep. Feofan "Collected Letters". Vol. 3, no. 478, p.127. Right there. Vol. 3, No. 382, ​​530; Vol. 6, no. 968. Ep. Feofan "Collected Letters". Vol. 4, no. 596, p. 74. Right there. Vol. 5, No. 773, p. 31. Ep. Feofan "Collected Letters". Vol. 3, No. 433 Right there. Vol. 5, No. 776, 777. Right there. Vol. 1, no. 120, p. 128. Right there. Vol. 8, No. 1388, pp. 131–132. Ep. Feofan "Collected Letters". Vol. 8, No. 1222, p. 6. Ibid., Vol. 2, No. 254, p. 83. The same letter Vol. 2, no. 273. Ibid., Vol. 2, No. 296, pp. 152–153. Ibid., Vol. 5, No. 870. Many letters were written by the saint, in which the meaning of patience is indicated. Vol. 8, No. 1234, 1287, 1240. Ep. Feofan "Collected Letters". Vol. 1, No. 135, 137. Ibid., Vol. 3, No. 539, 540, 542. Ibid., Vol. 1, No. 193, 196,199; Vol. 3, No. 525.533; Vol. 4, no. 556. Ibid., Vol. 8, No. 1247, pp. 23–24. Ep. Feofan. "Collected Letters", Vol. 2, no. 271. Right there. Vol. 2, no. 288, p. 142. Ep. Feofan. “The Path to Salvation” Odessa, 1886, p. 29. Bishop Feofan. "Collection of Letters". Vol. 1, No. 89, pp. 71–72. Ep. Feofan "Collected Letters". Vol. 8, No. 1457, p. 195. Right there. “Letters to various persons on various subjects of faith and life,” ed. 2, M. 1892, pp. 80–85. Right there. "Collected Letters", Vol. 3, no. 575. Right there. Vol. 3, No. 576. There are many similar letters about prayer. Vol. 2, No. 249, 256, 277, 278, 326, etc. Ep. Feofan. "Collection of Letters". Vol. 8, No. 1270. Similar letter, no. 5, no. 857. Right there. Vol. 5, No. 868, Issue. 8, No. 1314, 1361, 1385, 1399. Right there. Vol. 4, No. 649, Issue. 8, No. 1304. Ep. Feofan "Collected Letters". Vol. 1, No. 90, 91, 92. Right there. No. 90, pp. 76–77. Right there. Vol. 2, No. 349. Similar letters no. 8, No. 1268, 1273, 1274. Ep. Feofan "Collected Letters". Vol. 2, no. 251. Right there. Vol. 8, No. 1276, similar to No. 1308. Right there. Vol. 1, No. 145, 176; issue 8, No. 1413. Right there. The year of the letter is not specified. Ep. Feofan "Collected Letters". Vol. 1, No. 66, 83, 103, 194; issue 2, No. 261, 230, 236, 295; issue 3, No. 350; issue 8, No. 1291, 1323, etc. Tambov Diocesan Gazette for 1894 No. 6 “Memoirs of the Vyshensky monk”, pp. 119–120. Anonymous, “The Most Reverend Theophan the Recluse of Vyshensky” M., 1895, p. 186. Ep. Feofan. "Collection of Letters". There are many similar letters, vol. 8, No. 1318, 1319, 1325. Right there. Vol. 1, no. 143, p. 168. Anonymous, “The Most Reverend Theophan the Recluse of Vyshensky,” p. 182. Anonymous. “The Last Testaments” (correspondence from the last year of the life of Bishop Theophan). M. 1896, p. 9. Ep. Feofan. "Collection of Letters". Vol. 8, No. 1434. Right there. Vol. 1, No. 49, 77. Ep. Feofan "Collected Letters". Vol. 3, no. 551, p. 256. Right there. Vol. 1, No. 185, pp. 203–213. Right there. Vol. 1, no. 185, p. 204. Right there. Vol. 7, no. 185, p. 205. Ep. Feofan "Collected Letters". Vol. 7, p. 205. Right there. Vol. 7, pp. 205–206. Ep. Feofan "Collected Letters". Vol. 7, p. 210. Ep. Feofan "Collected Letters". Vol. 7, no. 203. Semyon Arkadyevich Pervukhin is personally acquainted with the saint. There are 30 letters to him in total. In 1891 it was published as a separate book entitled “The Soul and the Angel are not the body, but the spirit.” M. 1891 Archpriest John Korolkov. “Reverend Theophan, former Bishop of Vladimir and Colonel S.A. Pervukhin in their mutual correspondence.” Kiev, 1915, pp. 12–24. Ep. Feofan. "Collected letters." Vol. 1, no. 4, p. 29. Right there. No. 30, p. 89. Similar letter No. 29. Ep. Feofan. "Collection of Letters". Vol. 7, no. 1123–1131. Right there. No. 1132–1141, 1143, 1153. Right there. No. 1169–1172, 1175, 1183. Right there. No. 1114, 1115, 1145, 1151. Right there. No. 1060, 1084, 1089, 1090, 1104. Right there. No. 1113–1115, 1117, 1119, 1120. Right there. Vol. 7, No. 1111, p. 100. Right there. No. 1121, pp. 109–110. Ep. Feofan "Collected Letters". Vol. 2, no. 255, p. 84. Right there. No. 270, p. 122. Similar letter No. 283. Ep. Feofan. "Letters on Spiritual Life." St. Petersburg, 1872, p. 20. Ep. Feofan. "Collection of Letters". Vol. 2, No. 264, 266. Right there. Vol. 4, No. 751, p. 247. Ep. Feofan "Collected Letters". Vol. .3, no. 501. Right there. No. 206, 208, 209, 218. Right there. No. 494, pp. 166–167. Right there. Vol. 5, No. 759, 760. Right there. Vol. 3, No. 506, 508. Ep. Feofan "Collected Letters". Vol. 5, No. 915–917, 920–926. Right there. Vol. 2, No. 240, 241. Right there. No. 358–361, Issue. 6, No. 964–966, No. 973. Right there. Vol. 7, No. 1183, p. 206. Right there. Vol. 2, no. 296, p. 5. Ibid., No. 224, 228, 289, 285, 287. Ep. Feofan "Collected Letters". Vol. 7, No. 1136, p. 130. Right there. No. 1138, p. 131. Right there. Vol. 2, no. 264, p. 107. “Letters to a person in St. Petersburg regarding the appearance of a new teacher of faith there.” St. Petersburg, 1881 Ep. Feofan, "Collected Letters". Vol. 2, no. 220, p. 22. Right there. No. 1132, p. 123. Ep. Feofan "Collected Letters". Vol. 2, no. 220, p. 22. Right there. Vol. 8, No. 1444, pp.174–177. Right there. Vol. 7, no. 1150–1151. Right there. Vol. 3, No. 383–384, no. 8, No. 1444. Ep. Feofan "Collected Letters". Vol. 4, no. 582, p. 56. Right there. Vol. 7, No. 1195, p. 225. Ibid., No. 1217, p. 255. Ep. Feofan. "Letters on the Christian Life." St. Petersburg, 1880, part 1, pp. 30–32. Ep. Feofan. “On Orthodoxy”, M., 1893. Ep. Feofan. "Collection of Letters". Vol. 7, No. 1060, 1084, 1089–1098, no. 2, No. 215 Right there. Vol. 2, no. 289, p. 142. Right there. Vol. 7, No. 1180, 1188. Right there. Vol. 2, No. 259, p. 100. Right there. Vol. 7, No. 1114, p. 102. Right there. No. 1115, p. 105. Ep. Feofan. "Collection of Letters". Vol. 7, No. 1038, p. 83. Ep. Feofan. “Letters. “What is spiritual life and how to tune in to it.” M., 1904, p. 4–5 Ep. Feofan. "Collection of Letters". Vol. 1, No. 188, p. 222. Similar: no. 3, No. 495, 506, issue. 4, no. 751. Prot. M. I. Khitrov. “Reverend. Feofan, the recluse of Vyshensky.” M., 1905, 2nd ed., p. 46. Prof. I. Korsunsky. "Reverend Theophan, former Vladimir and Suzdal." M., 1895, p. 278. M. R. Koryakin. “Letters to the Reverend. Theophan the Recluse,” “Soulful Reading” for 1895, part 1, pp. 423–426. Sleptsov. “In memory of the late Bishop Theophan in Bose” “Tambov Diocesan Gazette” 1894 No. 6, p. 238.