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Holy Hieromartyr Simeon of Persia, and others with him The strengthening of Christianity in the Persian state did not and could not attract the attention of the government. Christianity took root in the best provinces (along the Tigris and Euphrates), shook the ancient faith of fire worshipers and brought Persian subjects into close religious communion with the Romans and Armenians, who were constantly at war with Persia. And so the multiplication of Christians in Persia inspired the magicians to anger and fury, and the Jews, always the ill-wishers of Christians, noticing the mood of the magicians, with their characteristic dexterity, began to stir up public opinion against them. Intercession on the part of the Roman government could not be feared; Three sons of Constantine the Great reigned there, not distinguished for their fortitude and wisdom of rule. And so Tsar Sapor decided for the first time to limit the rights of Christians and imposed heavy and unbearable tributes on them, and appointed harsh people to collect the tributes (probably he gave them to the Jews). The sudden deprivation of general civil rights was intended to induce Christians to renounce their faith, as leading to humiliation in society; Christians became not citizens, but slaves and captives. Excessive taxes against other compatriots, moreover, heavy and unbearable, entailed grievances, penalties, and the sale of property. Then the Bishop of Seleucia Ctesiphon, Simeon, as the first bishop and representative of the church, could not remain indifferent to the fate of his flock and took it upon himself to draw the king’s attention in writing to the unfair treatment of Christians and illegal demands; and the king then lived in Leda, a castle near Susa. The letter reads like this: “Christ redeemed the Church with His death, brought people into freedom with His blood and, having removed the yoke of slavery from our heads, relieved us of a heavy burden. And by promising us bright rewards in the next century, He strengthened our hopes, because His power is eternal and will never cease. And since Christ is the King of kings, we have decided not to allow ourselves to bear the yoke that you are planning to impose on us. May God turn us away from such a crime and preference for slavery to mortal beings over the freedom given to us. The Lord, to whom we obey and submit, is the Creator and Patron of your superiors, but we do not tolerate the unjust domination of our fellow slaves. And since our God is the Creator and Organizer of what you consider to be a deity, we consider the things He created to be wicked and indecent and we are equal to God. Moreover, you demand gold from us, but we lack neither gold nor property for that, and the Lord forbade us to accumulate gold and silver, and His Apostle commanded: “You were bought with a price; Do not become slaves of men" (1 Cor. 7:23). The king accepted the bishop’s statement with extreme indignation and, through a messenger, ordered him to say: “Are you so mad that with your insolence you endanger your life and those of your fellow believers, and bring death upon yourself and yours? Because in your pride and insane pretentiousness you rebel your people against me. I will destroy this plan, eradicate this plague, destroy you from human society and blot out your name from human memory.” The king’s threat was met with the following response: “I would rather die than betray my own people into slavery; and there is no use in life if you cannot live without crime. And if you threaten the death of my fellow believers, then the blame for their misfortunes will fall not on me, but on the king.” The king's irritation knew no bounds and was supported by those close to him; the magicians accused Simeon of disrespect for the Persian gods, and the Jews spread the rumor that he favored the Roman emperor more than his sovereign. “If you, sir,” said the slanderers, “send letters to the emperor, then no matter how reasonable and respectful they are, or the gifts are valuable, he values ​​them little and considers them almost nothing, and when the emperor happens to receive from Simeon even a small letter, even almost a fragment of a letter, he immediately stands up, shows respect to the insignificant letter and commands to carry out what is indicated in it.” Then, under the influence of his own anger and outside suggestions, the tsar issued a decree to immediately take into custody bishops, priests and deacons, destroy Christian churches, confiscate property, and present “Simeon, the head of harmful people, a despiser of my royal power, obeying the emperor, honoring only his God, and disdaining mine,” personally for interrogation. As a result of this, the magicians, with the assistance of the Jews, zealously destroyed Christian houses of worship, and Simeon was sent in chains to the king. With him, also in chains, were two old priests (out of the twelve who were in Ctesiphon - Seleucia), Abdelai and Ananias. When the soldiers, upon departure, headed through the part of the city where the church built by Simeon was located, which a few days before had been converted into a Jewish synagogue, Simeon asked to be spared the need to see it, and the request was respected. Simeon, brought to the king under guard, did not bow to him. The king was very angry at this and said: “Now with my own eyes I am convinced of the truth of the rumors about you. Why don’t you want to bow to me, when you bowed before?” Simeon: “Because I was not brought before you as a prisoner to renounce the true God, as now, and I, without any doubt, fulfilled what was due to royal dignity; now it is indecent to do this, because I am going to suffer for piety and our teaching.” The magicians surrounding the king told him that Simeon should be executed as a conspirator and opponent of the royal will. Simeon noticed that they, having abandoned God and ruining the state, want to drag Christians into their lewdness. The king interrupted his words with a demand - to bow to the sun. Simeon: “If I do not idolize you, who are higher than the sun, because you have life and reason, then how can I bow to a soulless and unreasonable creature?” “Finally, the king ordered him to be imprisoned until the next day, hoping that he would change his way of thinking. At the gates of the palace sat an old eunuch, the king’s tutor and now the caretaker of the royal house, who had formerly been a Christian, but because of maintaining his high position at court, had converted to paganism. His name is Usfazad. As Simeon was escorted past, he fell to his knees out of respect for the confessor; but Simeon passed silently, turning his face away from him. At the same time, the feeling of guilt in apostasy awoke so vividly in the eunuch that without further reflection he hurried to his house, changed his precious official clothes for mourning ones and sat down again in his place near the palace. This aroused talk and surprise; The king himself ordered to call him and asked: “Why is this disguise? Why did you put on sad and black clothes when I am still alive and wearing a crown on my head? Has one of your sons died, or is the lifeless body of your wife in front of you, and are you grieving for her?” The king received an unexpected answer and did not understand it, since Usfazad declared himself guilty of death. Therefore, the surprised king said: “Has an evil spirit taken possession of you that you say such nonsense in my presence?” Eunuch: “No, I am an old man with intelligence and consciousness. I did this because I am guilty both before God and before you. I lied to God and fell away from His true teaching, and did your will. I deceived you too and bowed to the sun only outwardly, and not from the heart.” Then the king called him a distraught old man and threatened him with execution if he did not give up his seductive conviction. But the elder declared that he was a Christian and would never again deny the true God to please deceptive people. Still, the king wanted to save his life for his faithful service to him and his father, and with meekness to bring him to a change of thoughts; but when the eunuch repeated that “he would never bow down to the creature and despise the Creator,” he ordered him to be beheaded immediately. Usfazad asked for the only mercy - to make it public that he was not being condemned for any other crime, but only for inflexibility in his faith, to which the king agreed. The death of the martyr followed on the same day, on the heel of Passion Week, April 15. Simeon was notified of this in prison, rejoiced at the conversion and glory of the eunuch, and prayed to God to strengthen him to the end. At three o'clock the next day he was again presented to the king. And this time he refused to bow before the king. Sapor, calling him a rebel, demanded a direct announcement: does he want to take advantage of his leniency and agree to the demand, or does he prefer death? Simeon replied that he preferred his enmity to his favors. Despite this, the king still tried to convince him and advised him to only bow to the sun once and then never again. Simeon rejected the conviction with contempt, and the king, turning to those around him and pointing to Simeon, said: “I have seen different peoples, distant lands and all my possessions, but I have not met a more pleasant and noble face. Consider whether I should not spare his life, despite his errors? In these words one can discern an outburst of nobility in the soul of the king, who felt the cruelty and injustice of the whole matter, but could not openly reveal this to those who thought only about the destruction of Christianity. Therefore, as soon as the king finished his speech, the bishop was unanimously condemned to death by the sword. At almost the same time as Simeon, many of the higher and lower clergy were captured in different places, as troublemakers of the people, guilty of the refusal of Christians to pay additional taxes; Convicted, they are presented to Leda for joint execution with Simeon. Among them were five bishops, and all up to a hundred. And here they were required to worship the sun, but they directly declared to the head of the magicians, who presided at the trial: “We do not bow to the sun and we do not obey your advice. Do what you are commanded, you vile enemy of our people.” Together with Simeon, they were brought to the place of execution, and since the king still hoped to bend Simeon, he ordered the condemned to be executed one by one before his eyes. But the confessor’s courage did not waver; He stood calmly before those who were still expecting words of consolation and encouragement from him, and said to them: “My brothers in God, be courageous and do not be afraid... Our Lord was killed, but He lives, and your death will become life with Him” - and, bringing to their memory the passages of Scripture Matthew 10:28,39; John 15:13; 2 Timothy 2:8,11, concluded the speech with the words: “Our love, and His reward; Our work is ours, and His is the reward; our suffering, but His resurrection; our blood, and His kingdom. He will give us peace and life, consolation and bliss, calling loudly: come, faithful servants, enter into the joy of your Lord; you have used one talent faithfully, take ten as a reward” (Matthew XXV). After the execution of the others had been carried out, it was the turn of Simeon and his two priests. Ananias began to tremble as he took off his clothes. The chief of the court artists, Fusik, who was standing in the crowd, noticed this and, approaching, encouraged him with the words: “Do not be afraid, Ananias; close your eyes for a short time and then you will see the light of Christ.” These words themselves pointed to the person who uttered them as a Christian. The king, notified of his action, demanded him to come to him and reprimanded him all the more severely because it was on this day that he was entrusted with matters that would take up all his time; moreover, recently only he was elevated to his rank. To the king’s reproaches, Fuzik replied: “My work was sanctified by their execution, and their death gave me life. I lay down the dignity that you gave me, and I openly say that all my joy is in the torment and death that you have prepared for them.” And as the king seemed not to understand these words, Fuzik added about himself that he was a Christian and preferred the honor of dying for Christ to all honors from the king. The angry king immediately ordered his execution; they tore out his tongue and pierced the back of his head with a sword. This was on the same day that Simeon and others suffered, that is, April 14, 344. On the same day, Sapor issued a decree on the general persecution of Christians throughout the entire state, and since the minds of the people were already prepared for this, and the jealousy of Christians intensified, so that many voluntarily surrendered into the hands of the executioners, it happened that in the very first ten days after the death of Simeon, up to sixteen thousand Christians were beaten in the royal residence and surrounding area without any trial; magicians and priests diligently searched for those hiding, removed them from houses and hidden places and killed them. The executions followed one after another so quickly that the names of those executed were not asked, the swords became dull and the hands of the executioners refused to serve. Then many of those who served in the royal chambers were killed, and with them Azad the eunuch, much loved by the king. When the king found out about this, he ordered to stop such extermination of the people without trial, and to search for and bring to trial only the leaders and teachers of the Christian faith, that is, mainly bishops and priests. That at the same time the virgins who dedicated themselves to God were not spared, especially those who were distinguished as teachers (for they had the responsibility of teaching girls) or close kinship with the martyrs, we have two examples. The daughter of the above-mentioned Fusik was presented to the court and, as she firmly refused to pay divine honor to the sun, she was naked, brutally scourged, burned with burning torches, then hanged, ulcerated all over her body with iron hooks and finally beheaded. Simeon's sister Tarba, with her other sister, the widow Fervutha, and her slave, suffered about a year later under the following circumstances. The queen accidentally fell ill, and the nosy Jews, who had already proven themselves so in the case of Simeon, spread a rumor at court that the queen fell ill as a result of the spell of Tarba, who wanted to avenge the death of her brother on the royal family (Sozom. East Church. XI, 12). The king ordered the head of the magicians and two of his subordinates to conduct an inquiry into the accused, and since the latter remained adamant in their faith and chastity, they were condemned to death for witchcraft and poison. But the king did not agree with the opinion of the judges, because he doubted their guilt, and ordered them to be released if only they worshiped the sun. Courageous Christian women rejected the king’s offer, and the magicians were left to choose the type of execution for them. And the magicians, in connection with the accusation, ordered their bodies to be cut into two equal parts, between which to create space for the passage of the queen for the purpose of the latter’s recovery. And on April 4, 345, the execution of the martyrs took place. Namely, outside the city they set up two stakes for each, of which they tied each one by the head to one, and to the other by the legs, and sawed them into two with a saw. So St. The martyrs died on April 4, 345. Then the torturers erected six large poles, three on one side of the road and three on the other, and hung the sawed-off body parts on them. The queen, accompanied by a military detachment, was carried between the hanging bodies. Thus fanaticism was combined with the deepest superstition! Everything described took place in the immediate vicinity and presence of the king; It goes without saying that news of this spread everywhere and for the provincial courts the events in the capital served as an obligatory example and encouragement for the zeal for the extermination of Christians. † Venerable Zosima of Solovetsky The great lamp of the deep north of Russia, the head of the hostel in the country of severe cold, Rev. Zosima was born in the Novgorod region, in the village of Tolvue, on the shores of Lake Onega 221. His parents Gabriel and Varvara, neither rich nor poor, raised him in the fear of God, teaching him to read and write. – They wanted their son to enter into married life; but he refused, wanting to serve the Lord alone. Fulfilling this desire, he left home and began to live alone, as a hermit, in fasting and prayer; Having accepted the monastic robe, he was eager to live a monastic life. Although reading books brought food to his soul and illuminated his mind with information about the path of salvation, he wanted to have a guide in his spiritual life. During his time in his native land, those who took the monastic vow remained to live among worldly people. Zosima did not like this: closeness to family and friends involuntarily disturbed the hermit’s peace. Grieving for himself and others, he wished for the best, wanted to see the monks gathered in a community and away from worldly people. When his parents died, he paid them his last debt, distributed their property to the poor and went north to seek the desired silence. On the coast, at the mouth of the river. Sumy, Rev. Zosima found the monk Herman, who had previously lived with St. Savvaty on Solovetsky Island. He told him about the life of St. Savvaty and how convenient Solovetsky Island is for a silent life. – Zosima was delighted and asked Herman to take him to the island. - Herman readily agreed, and they set off in a boat across the White Sea to the island. Arriving comfortably at the desired place, the hermits walked around the island with the thought of where God would bless to build a monastery, and stopped not far from the seashore, on the shore of a lake with pleasant water. They set up tabernacles for themselves and spent the night in prayer. This was in 1436 222. In the morning, St. Zosima left the hut and saw an extraordinary light above their place and a church in the air. – Still unfamiliar with the visions, he was horrified and in fear hurried into the bush. Elder Herman, seeing his changed face, realized that he had seen something special, and asked: “What happened to you, my brother? You saw something extraordinary!” Zosima told him what happened. The elder told him in turn how, even under Savvatia, worldly people were driven out of this place and how it was designated for the residence of monks. - Delighted by the heavenly assurance about the purpose of the place, Zosima confirmed his intention to found a monastery here. Having prayed to the Lord, the hermits began to cut down trees to build a cell; They worked during the day and spent the night in prayer. At the end of the summer, Herman went to the Sumy coast to stock up on bread, and hoped to return in the fall. But the winds and then the snow did not allow him to go to sea, and he remained on the dry shore for the winter. Zosima was left alone, but put his trust in the Lord. He doubled his prayer vigils. The psalter with the resurrection is still intact, according to which, as St. Philip in the inscription, “Zosima the Wonderworker himself ruled.” The spirits of evil began to disturb the hermit with various ghosts, trying to drive him away from the place. Zosima labored firmly. “If you have been given, he said, power over me, do what you want; if not, labor in vain.” The ghosts have disappeared. But starvation began to threaten: the meager supply of bread was disappearing. Zosima grieved, but turned to the Lord with a prayer for help. - And then two people come to him with a supply of bread, flour and butter and say: “Take this and put it with you; “If you have a need, you can eat it until we return.” Zosima did not have time to ask who they were and how they got to the island in winter? Having waited in vain for a considerable time, he realized that this was help from the Lord, and thanked Him. – In the spring, Herman brought with him a supply of bread and fisherman Mark with fishing tackle. Spiritual friends glorified the Lord together for His wondrous goodness. The name of the staunch ascetic Solovetsky began to become famous; began to appear to Zosima with the desire to share a silent life with him. The monk accepted with love and joy. On the site of the wondrous vision, a small church of the Transfiguration of the Lord was built and there was a meal with it. They sent one to Novgorod to ask for the blessing of the archpastor and the antimension for the new church. Saint Euthymius, imagining the dangers from the wild Lapps and from the harsh terrain, doubted for the first time whether he would have the strength to fight such difficulties; but then he thanked the Lord for His grace, which animated His servants with such courage. He sent Abbot Paul with an antimension to consecrate the church and to administer the new monastery 223. Rev. Zosima and Herman joyfully accepted the blessing of the archpastor; the church and monastery were consecrated. This is how the Solovetsky monastery began! To support their brothers, they chopped wood, dug soil for a garden, and took salt from lakes. They also sold the latter to outsiders who began to travel to the island; and in return they bought bread. – Having acquired the means of living through the labor of their hands, the monks, following the instructions and example of Zosima, zealously glorified God in the church and were satisfied with little. But greedy envy started a war against the hermits. Boyar people came to the island and took away fishing from the monks. “This is the fatherland of our boyars,” they said, while until then no one lived on the island. The Lapps also cruelly abused the monks. These attacks of anger greatly worried Zosima. Elder Herman reassured him: “we need patience and prayer,” he said. Meanwhile, Abbot Pavel could not endure the difficulties of life on a harsh and remote island for long. After him were Theodosius and Jonah, but they returned to Novgorod even sooner. Since third-party abbots did not get along on Solovetsky Island, the brethren decided to elect one from among themselves as abbot. - Blessed. Zosima had Brother Ignatius in mind and suggested him; the brethren asked Rev. Zosima accepted the rank of abbot, but he did not want a high title for himself. The brothers came to Herman and said: “We have gathered here for the ascetic of God Zosimas, none of us can be hegumen; The abbot must be the one to whom we have entrusted our hearts.” Then they secretly sent Novgorod, so that the archpastor would summon and ordain Zosima as abbot. The archpastor agreed and, calling Zosima, convinced him to accept the rank of priesthood and abbess. In Novgorod they had already heard about the wonderful ascetic Solovetsky, and many wanted to receive a blessing from the new abbot of Solovetsky in their homes. Rev. Abbot Zosima was given church utensils and bread for the monastery; others volunteered to help the monastery in possible needs. The new monastery had many needs, especially the need to protect the peace of the hermits from the willfulness of the boyar people. The Monk Zosima undoubtedly asked the famous Novgorod people to do this. - But in Novgorod then, by the grace of Shemyaka, there were strong unrest that led to a war with the. prince The desert lover could not stay in Novgorod for long; he asked his former abbot Jonah to continue efforts for the peace of the monastery, and he himself returned to the island to arrange for the spiritual salvation of himself and others 224. – The brethren greeted their abbot with joy. And it was not only the monks who were impatiently waiting for him. Pious lay people also arrived on the island to receive the blessing of the ascetic abbot. “The next day, St. Zosima celebrated the liturgy in his monastery for the first time, and the brethren noticed that his face shone with an extraordinary light, and a special incense was felt in the church. This consoled the brethren and strengthened their confidence in the abbot. “The monk gave prosphora to the merchants who were at that time. But they carelessly lost her on the road. The monk Macarius (formerly Mark) saw a dog standing over something and in vain trying to grab what lay in front of him. It turned out that it was a prosphora lost by the merchants. One can imagine the feelings this aroused in the merchants. The monk zealously began organizing the internal life of the monastery. Having established community life as an indispensable rule for her, he inspired the brethren to lead a monastic life as the great fathers of community life commanded: not to desire or seek anything for themselves, but to take care of common peace; in church stand with the fear of God, do not leave your place until the end of the service, do not talk to others; During the meal, remain silent and listen to edifying reading. His charter on the life of the brethren is still known to this day. “The abbot,” it says, “the priests, the elders, and all the brethren eat and drink at the meal; the food is the same for everyone; in the cells, with the exception of the sick, there is no table; Do not remove food or drink from the meal. Clothes and shoes are issued from the treasury. If anyone can, buy himself a cell; otherwise they live in the cells of the monastery. There is no income either for the priests and brethren, or for those serving in the monastery and outside the monastery: everything necessary for everyone is issued from the treasury 225. Since the initial church, with the increase of the brethren, became cramped, the monk began to build a new one. But just as construction began, a fire destroyed it. The monk was not embarrassed and ordered the construction of a large church to begin soon. They built a church in honor of the Transfiguration of the Lord with a holy chapel. Nicholas, then a fraternal meal and with it a church in honor of the Dormition of the Mother of God, then cells and services; all buildings were wooden. To general spiritual joy, the churches were consecrated, and new zealots of the desert community appeared. God blessed the monastery through the prayers of the saint. Former abbot Jonah received letters one after another for the Solovetsky monastery. – The lord’s letter is also remarkable in terms of the historical significance of the person by whom it was given. “Here I am Martha, the wife of Isaac Andreevich, and my son Theodore Isaacovich was given to the house of St. Savior and His Most Pure Mother and St. Nicholas, on Solovki, to Abbot Jonah and the elders, at the sea near the river. Suma near the chapel there are two bows of land where Parthenius and Porfiry live, and on that land there is an ancient village, reapings, forests, fishing grounds and salt lakes; these two bows are given to the house of St. Savior and His Most Pure Mother and St. Nicholas; According to this charter, the abbot and the elders will own them forever. And to remember my husband Isaac, my parents and children, and provide them with lunch on Demetrius’ Day” 226. Another diploma is more important. This charter, sealed by Archbishop Jonah, mayor, thousand and five ends of Novgorod, granted the monastery ownership of Solovetsky Island with all its lands, bays, lakes, nearby islands 227. The rumor about the high spiritual life of St. Zosima attracted zealots of eternal salvation from all sides to the island. Priests, deacons, clerics, and monks came, wanting to live with the monk and benefit from his instructions; the elder received them with love. – Even Lapps and Chud, even the Norwegians came to St. Zosima and learned about spiritual salvation. Knowing little of the Russian language, they listened to the language of a pure heart, which without words speaks to hearts about God and eternity 228. – We see these disciples of Zosima from their own letter, written under Zosima’s successor, - “I am Theodore Ivanovich, governor of the Kayan army, so says the letter, and sub-governors Eleutherius and Theodore, Novgorodians and children of Karelian, Vymoltsy and Tivrultsy and the entire Kayan army, gave the bell to St. I will save on Solovki, abbot Arseny, the priests and elders of the Solovetsky monastery forever” 229. In 1465, Rev. Zosima transferred the relics of St. Savvatiya from the river Vault to your abode. This was both a consolation and a lesson for the monastery. The venerable mentor set before the eyes of his disciples an example of strict life, an example not of the Far East, but of his native north. The famous ascetic Solovetsky inspired his followers with courage 230. Rev. Zosima, through tireless feats of fasting and prayer, had already achieved high perfection. “But the people of the sinful world did not stop from time to time insulting the Solovetsky monks. The monk went to Novgorod to intercede for the monastery. This was under Archbishop Theophilos. “Boyar children often come to us,” the abbot told the bishop, and they insult us a lot, not allowing us to fish and threatening to even completely drive us out of our desert: intercede for us.” The Bishop promised help. The elder also made a request to the Novgorod boyars. Boyarina Marfa, the widow of the mayor, was then a strong figure in Novgorod. It was necessary to turn to her more than anyone else with a request, because those who lived on her lands close to the island, more than anyone else, insulted the novices of the monastery. The monk appeared to her. The proud noblewoman, outraged by her servants, considered the complaints of the monks an insult to herself and ordered Zosima to be expelled from her house. And the Reverend calmly endured the insult and said with a sigh to his disciples: “The days are coming when the inhabitants of this house will not walk in it, its doors will be closed and will not open again, their house will be empty.” “The other boyars respectfully received the monk, whoever had him. – Martha then felt guilty and invited St. old man Having met him with her children, she asked to forgive her guilt before him and the monastery. - She handed him a new deposit and a deed for land and fishing 231. - At dinner, to which several boyars were invited, Zosima sat silently and, as usual, ate little. Looking at those sitting with him, he saw that six of the boyars were sitting without heads; the second and third time he looked at everyone, and saw the same thing. Tears of pity flowed from his eyes, and he no longer touched food. His disciple Daniel, when they left the boyar’s house, asked him: what does it mean, father! That during the table you looked at those sitting three times and then cried with a downcast face? The holy elder revealed to the disciple what he had seen, and did not order others to talk about it until the time came. At dinner with Martha, the God-fearing boyar Pamphilus was with others; the next day he invited the monk to his meal; at his urgent request, the saint revealed his vision to him, under the same condition; Pamphilus later became the Solovetsky monk Pachomius. The monk returned to the monastery. His prophecy and vision were soon fulfilled. In 1471 he led. the prince was forced to subdue Novgorod with weapons, outraged by the passions of Martha and others. Dmitry Isakov, the son of Martha, Vasily Seleznev - Guba, Kiprian Arbuzeev, Jeremiah Sukhoshchek and two others, as the main rebels, were executed. These are the ones whom St. saw. Zosima without a head. The noblewoman Martha with her son Theodore and daughters were imprisoned in Nizhny Novgorod, and the words of the monk about the desolation of Martha's house 232 came true. Under. The leadership of the great Abba formed strong ascetics of piety. Such were the priest and his disciple John, Vasily the disciple, Onuphrius the disciple and hermit, Gerasim the disciple and the hermit 233. The Monk Zosima always remembered death and the judgment of God; and having lived to a ripe old age, he prepared a coffin for himself and mourned himself like a dead man, looking at the coffin. Gray-haired, feeling the approach of death, he called the brethren and said: “children, I am going on the path of the fathers, choose a mentor for yourself.” “They began to cry about being separated from him. “Don’t cry,” said the monk, I entrust you to the merciful Savior and Mother of God.” The brethren announced with sorrow that only he, their mentor, could appoint a mentor for them in his stead. The monk pointed to Arseny and, turning to the latter, said: “You are the builder and nourisher of this monastery; see that everything established in the church and the meal is preserved and that the order introduced by my humility is observed. I command my disciples to observe the rule of the monastery; intoxicating drink and women's faces should not be on this island; Even milk-giving animals should not be here. I will be separated from you physically, but I will remain with you in spirit.” Having said the last thing: peace to all, he made the sign of the cross and gave up his soul to the Lord on April 17. 1478 Soon the saint’s disciples were convinced that their Abba was with them and the Lord accepted him as his own. His disciple Gerasim, having come to the monastery from the desert, where he had labored as a hermit, went to pray over the tomb of St. Savvaty and met Rev. Zosimus, who told him: “Strive to receive a reward for your labors.” On Maundy Thursday, when the brethren came to receive Holy Communion. Tain, Rev. Zosima said to Gerasim: “Go and join in,” and behind this he stood at St. Tain, until everyone has joined. Another disciple Dositheus, who later became abbot, prayed for his sick brother; The monk who appeared said: “It is not useful for you to ask for a brother; he will still remain ill.” Swimmers of the White Sea many times experienced wondrous help in terrible dangers when they called upon the Monk Zosima for help. Sick people of various kinds received healing both in the monastery and away from the monastery when they asked for it, pleasing the Lord Zosima. A young woman, the daughter of Jeremiah, who was a servant of the Monk Zosima, in her madness cut her chest and throat with a knife. Her parents prayed to Zosima for her with bitter tears. The next night the Rev. appeared to her. Zosima and Savvaty, handing over a vessel with ointment, said: anoint your wounds with this, - for the tearful prayer of your parents, we came to heal you. She, as it seemed to her, anointed the wounds and woke up, having been dead until then, and three days later she became completely healthy. A resident of Unezhma Nikon, while two magicians were quarreling among themselves, served one of them. Another, getting angry, began to “beat the kudes”, beat the drum with spells; frightened Nikon became ill. In troubled thoughts, he sent his son for help to the magician whom he served, but there was no benefit. The Solovetsky elder, who happened to be in a curtain, came to the sick man, admonished him of the sinfulness of his trust in magicians and convinced him to turn with prayer to the Venerable. Zosima and Savvatiya. He obeyed and recovered. – The monks, as can be seen from many experiences, were jealous of weakening the power of magicians among the people and inspired simple hearts to better thoughts. - This is a wonderful experience for that. Church clerk Shui Onisim was a pious man, his wife Maria was healed by Zosima in the monastery. Then he himself fell ill (“he’ll be called a French hedgehog”). The general trust in magicians was so strong that the good Onesimus summoned the magician to himself. When they were sitting at the table, the magician suddenly began to scream terribly; and Maria, the wife of Onesimus, sees Zosima, Savvatiy and also Elder John, Zosimin’s disciple; Zosima hits the magician with a rod and says: “What did you come here for? It is not right for you to come to the servant of God.” The monk anointed the sick man with a brush from a vessel on his head and face. Onesimus felt relieved, but began to grieve greatly that he had committed a grave sin - he called on the magician and thereby insulted Zosima and Savvaty. Zosima appeared and said: Don’t be discouraged, Onesimus, read or listen to the psalter and you will be completely healthy. In 1547, the cathedral ordered that all churches honor the memory of St. Zosima and a service was written to him; and in 1566 Aug. 8 his relics were transferred to the chapel of the cathedral church, dedicated to St. Zosima and Savvatiya 234. Constantly overwhelmed by troubles and passions, we resort to you, Rev. Zosima, and we pray to be a prayer book for us before God. Visit graciously, our father, so that those who are saved by you may sing: blessed is the God of our fathers” 235. Rev. Akakios, Bishop of Melitino He lived in the 5th century, was a member of the Council of Ephesus, at which he denounced the heresy of Nestorius. The Monk Akaki rendered a great service to the Church in that during this time of unrest and controversy that arose over various theological issues and heretical teachings, he defended Orthodoxy and promoted reconciliation between pastors. Rev. During his lifetime, Akaki was glorified by God with the gift of miracles, through which many pagans were converted to the true God. Among other miracles, it is told how once in the Church of the Mother of God, built by St. Akakiy, on the site of the idol church he had destroyed, at that moment, as the fragile vault was ready to collapse into the interior of the church and the people present at the Divine service rushed to the exit with horror, Saint Akakiy exclaimed: “The Lord is the protector of my life! Whom shall I be afraid of? - and the vault, ready to fall, remained in the air until the service was over, and the saint and the people left the church unharmed, after which the vault collapsed... (See “Teaching about the Father’s Church.” Phil. Chern. Part III, § 217). Sources: a) the life of St. Zosima and Savvatius, described by Zosima’s student, Abbot Dosifei, and corrected in the presentation by M. Spyridon († 1503), known from the Menaion of M. Macarius and lists: with few changes it is in the Menaion of St. Demetrius on April 17, and abbreviated in the prologue. “Written 30 years after the repose of the blessed father abbot Zosima,” says Dosifei, next. in 1508 b) Serbian Leo the Philologist, revised by the monk Zinovy, a word in memory of St. Zosima, printed. in Orthodox Interlocutor. K. 1859, part 2. It repeats Dositheus, but in places it explains what is not clear in Dosifei. According to Dosifei, the archbishop to whom Abbot Paul was sent was St. Jonah; but this is irreconcilable with the history of St. Zosima and with the life of St. Ions. – St. Jonah has been an archbishop only since 1458 (see Nov. 8th). Even the dedication of Zosima to abbot, if it took place in 1452, as the Solovetsky Chronicle says, was not carried out by St. Jonah, and St. Euthymius. - It is so certain that the foundation of the monastery took place under St. Euphemia (1429–1457). The inaccuracies in Dorotheus’s narrative are natural: he came to the monastery in the last year of the reverend’s life. Zosima did not write in the 19th century. The charter granting the entire Solovetsky Island to the Solovetsky monastery could not have been written earlier than 1458, from which time St. Jonah, who signed it. But according to the lists it is considered a letter from the wonderworker Zosima (description of the Solovets Monastery, p. 59). The latter, of course, means the participation of the monk in receiving it from Novgorod. This is how the display of the monastery monuments is reconciled with the correct chronology. For the troubles of Novgorod, see the life of the saint. Euphemia March 11th day. Described. Solovets. Monast., pp. 223. 229. Ed. in description Monast., p. 47. M. 1836. The year of the charter is not indicated: but it was given already when the Church of the Mother of God was built during the meal, which did not happen before the abbess of Zosima. According to the ancient measurement, the bow contained two crimps, and the crimp was 126 fathoms long and 32 fathoms wide. Gram. ed. in East Jer. 2, 386–389. More precisely, in the description of the Solovetsky monastery. 48–51. About its time - above approx. 206. Preface by Ave. Maxim. Right Social security 1859 2, 216. Dositheus. Collection Solov. gram. No. 5. Rights. Social security 1860 2, 27. Description Solov. monast., p. 51. 229. Dosifei. Martha's charter of 1470 in description. Solov. Monast., pp. 56. 57. Collection years. IV, 133. V, 12. VI, 192. Dositheus. They are included among the saints in the RKP. descriptions of saints. In the description of one miracle, St. Zosima, a contemporary of the miracle, having said that Elder John appeared together with Zosima and Savvaty, continues: “We all know the same John, the Solovetsky tonsure and resident; many testify about him, as a great ascetic, he went to monasteries - he loved the desert and lived in the desert, adorned with all obedience and humility and meekness; and there was a lot of work for the monastery in the fishery catching." East. Russian Cer. 3, 201. 204. Description. Blush. Muz., pp. 595. 599. Canon for April 17 in Menaion, M. 1625. He is at Tsarsky No. 563.