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Our Holy Father Gregory the Wonderworker, Bishop of Neocaesarea Gregory, who was called Theodore before baptism, came from one of the noblest families in Neocaesarea; was raised in paganism. Preparing to become a lawyer, he was going to go to Rome for additional education in his field, but unexpectedly, due to family circumstances, he, together with his brother Athenodorus 259, had to first visit Caesarea, where they met Origen, a philosophy teacher and mentor at the Alexandrian School. This acquaintance determined the further direction of the fate of both young men. Origen, as Gregory later says, “first forced him to look for the scattered seeds of truth in the systems of philosophers and awakened his love for truth; then he began to expound the beginnings of the Christian faith and explained the Holy Scriptures”... Finally, he prepared them to receive holy baptism, which they accepted in Caesarea, and Theodore was named Gregory. For eight years Gregory listened and learned from his great mentor, and after that he returned to his fatherland with other goals and other aspirations. He was no longer attracted to secular activities; He fell in love with the desert, where he could freely indulge in prayer and his now favorite pastime: the study of the Holy Scriptures. Scriptures. Thus, he retired into solitude, putting aside care about everything worldly and striving for communion with the one God. Gregory's ascetic life did not remain unknown; Having learned about him, Bishop Fedim of Amasia wished to consecrate him as a bishop of the Neocaesarian Church, and the inhabitants of Neocaesarea also wanted to have him as their bishop; but Gregory did not want to part with his silent solitude and, most importantly, did not consider himself worthy of such an election, and therefore hid, moving from one desert to another. Meanwhile, the Neo-Caesarean Christians insisted on their desire to see the virtuous Gregory as their bishop. Blessed Fedim then turned to God with a prayer that He would look upon him and Gregory and sanctify his dedication with His grace... After that, he ordained Gregory as a bishop in absentia; The man of God no longer resisted the general election, realizing in his soul that it was not without the will of God that he was called to difficult service, to which he devoted himself with all his strength, and the Lord helped him and glorified him with the gift of miracles, for which the saint received the title of Wonderworker and second Moses. How successfully Gregory acted in his pastoral career can be seen from the fact that when he assumed the title of Bishop of Neocaesarea, there were no more than 17 Christians in this vast city, but after his death the entire city consisted of Christians, with the exception of 17 pagans. During the persecution from Decius (250), Saint Gregory, just as he and many of his flock withdrew from the city, saving his life, which was needed for the flock and for other Churches 260, also advised everyone to take refuge from the persecutors who did not feel the strength to endure torture for the faith: “it is better,” he said, “to take refuge and wait for the Divine call to martyrdom and heavenly help, rather than fall into arrogance, having boldly embarked on the feat of confession, and let yourself be tempted to betray the faith.” God miraculously preserved Gregory, who hid in a secluded hill with the former idol priest, whom he converted to Christianity and ordained as a deacon. Once, when they were looking for him as the head and shepherd of the Christians, noticing the approach of soldiers, St. Gregory and the deacon who was with him began to pray, with their hands raised, asking God to protect them. And indeed, the soldiers, who passed by the worshipers several times, did not notice them and, coming down from the mountain, said that they did not find anyone there, but saw only two fused trees. The holiness of the saint’s life, in general, was often clearly evidenced by extraordinary, miraculous signs; but then, as now, there were quite a few people who could only mock everything supernatural; Thus, wanting to laugh at the gift of clairvoyance attributed to St. Gregory, three similar people - on the path where the saint should have passed, one day they laid one of their comrades, pretending to be dead, while they themselves sat near him and plaintively asked for the burial of the poor man... The saint, having given the money that was with him, took off his outer clothing and gave it to cover the dead man. The deceivers began to mock his gullibility: “if he really had the Spirit of God in himself,” they said, “he would have seen that a living person was lying in front of him, and not a dead one.”... However, they probably thought differently when, starting to call and push away the pretended comrade, they saw with horror that he was really dead... Returning, after the end of the persecution, to Neokesarea, St. Gregory zealously continued his varied Christian activities; he took part in all the affairs of the Church, was present at councils against false teachers, for example. in 264 - at the Council of Antioch against Paul of Samosata. Died around 270 St. Gregory left behind many works, of which the most remarkable are: 1) The Creed, wonderful in origin, containing the exact teaching about the three persons of the Divine, about their consubstantiality, about their personal qualities, about their actions in relation to man; 2) Canonical letter to the Bishop of Pontus; 3) Translation of Ecclesiastes; 4) A word of praise to Origen, and others (about them, see “Teaching about the Father’s Church” Phil. Archbishop of Chernigov, § 63). † Repose of Rev. Nikon, abbot of Radonezh Rev. name Nikon, even during his lifetime, “as if some kind of sanctification was carried around,” says the ancient biography of him 261. Born in a place not far from the desert of God-bearing Sergius, in the mountains. Yuryev of the Volga region, in his early youth he heard about the angelic life of Sergius and wished to hear his instructions. Rev. Sergius sent him to study with his student Afanasy Vysotsky, the founder (1373) of the Serpukhov monastery. Athanasius planted it not without testing; but seeing his tears and firm determination for everything, he tonsured him into monasticism. Nikon zealously performed monastic virtues and was awarded the rank of priesthood. Blazh. Afanasy loved Nikon; but Nikon’s soul yearned for the desert of the great Sergius. He spent no more than two years in the Vysotsk monastery and, with the blessing of Athanasius, went to visit. Sergius; Sergius, seeing his pure desires, kept him in his monastery 262. The great mentor first assigned him ministry at the monastery and introduced him to the brethren of his desert. Then he received him into his cell. Here Nikon found in the example and instructions of Sergius both spiritual wisdom, and motivation for higher exploits, and reinforcement in spiritual sorrows. Nikon's heart was constantly open to his mentor. This in itself meant a lot for improvement in spiritual life. “The very announcement of evil thoughts to the father, says an experienced mentor, destroys them and weakens passions. Just as a snake, brought into the light, tries to run away and hide, so evil thoughts, being revealed in confession, run away from a person” 263. How much of the holy and spiritual passed with the instructions of Sergius into the soul of Nikon, which was open to them! Sergius, in recent years, first entrusted Nikon with part of his care for the brethren, then, 6 months before his death, he completely transferred the leadership of the monastery to Nikon. Nikon, having accepted the leadership (from 1392), decided to carry out exactly everything that the great founder of the monastery had commanded, and shared their labors with the brothers. But, burdened by fame and striving for silence, he first avoided the rumors of the authorities in his cell, and then allowed the brethren to elect another leader. So he spent another 6 years in silence. When the chosen Savva refused to be in charge, the brethren convinced Nikon to again take over the work of the abbot. “It is indecent for you, they said, to seek benefit for yourself alone, but also take care of the salvation of your neighbors.” Love forced Nikon to part with his beloved solitude, but with the condition - to give him a part of every day for himself. Desert life flowed quietly and godly. But then, the rumor about the approaching Edigei with a fierce army led (in 1408) all of Russia into fear. Rev. Nikon prayed to the Lord for protection and called on his mentor, who had moved to heaven, for help, so that the fruits of his desert labors would not perish. Once, after a long prayer, he sat down to rest and was half asleep or in a light sleep. Suddenly Saints Peter and Alexy appeared to him and with them the Venerable. Sergius. “It is the will of God,” said Sergius, that the invasion of foreigners should touch this place. But you, child, do not grieve, do not be embarrassed: the temptation will not last long and the monastery will not be deserted, but will spread even more.” Then, having taught the world, the saints ceased to be visible. The prediction came true. The monastery was burned. Rev. Nikon and the brethren, preceded by heavenly notification, temporarily withdrew from it and had the opportunity to save some shrines, books and cell things from fierce predators. Thus, some of the books and utensils of St. Sergius, still intact. On December 20, Edigei retreated from Moscow and disappeared into the steppes. Nikon and the brethren returned to the ashes of the monastery. The abbot had to rebuild the entire monastery. The Great Sergius followed the hard path, the path of extreme hardship, of his own free will. His disciples had to follow the path of need and deprivation through captivity. After heavenly instructions, Nikon worked on building the monastery with calm firmness. In less than three years, the buildings necessary for the monastic hostel were built; For common prayers they probably gathered in the refectory church. The wooden Church of the Holy Trinity, on the site where the Church of the Descent of the Holy Spirit now stands, was consecrated in 1417 on September 25, the day of the repose of St. Sergius 264. Blessed Nikon enjoyed the love and respect of the princes. At the request of the good prince Vladimir Andreevich, he testified to his spiritual will on the division of the inheritance between the children 265. Vel. Prince Vasily Dmitrievich honored the blessed student Rev. Sergius, as shown by the prince’s letters of grant 266. Under Nikon, the monastery of Sergiev acquired several lands, either through contributions or purchases 267, and more benefits for the protection of its peace 268. The monk was most concerned about establishing spiritual salvation in himself and others. St. Isaac the Syrian, whose teachings were copied in the monastery during the reign of St. Sergius, wrote: “from the memory of worldly objects, the fervor of love cools and the soul falls into vain and reckless desires” 269. Rev. Nikon carefully protected the brethren from this spiritual danger. Under him and on his instructions, in the Sergius Monastery, in addition to several liturgical books, the following were copied: two copies of the Ladder with the chapters of Gregory of Sinaite, the teachings of Abba Dorotheus, the Diopter of Philip the Hermit with the answers of Abba Barsanuphius and with the instructions of Hesychius 270. “A friend of silence, a worker of vigil, a model of chastity, an invincible home of prayer” 271, Rev. Nikon was mainly engaged in Divine services, cell prayer, reading books, and also encouraged the brethren. The monk recognized the discovery of the relics of his great teacher, the monk, as the sweetest reward for his labors for the monastery. Sergius. This was while digging ditches for the stone Church of the Holy Trinity. The holy relics were temporarily placed in a wooden church. July 2, 1422. The stone church, as a resting place for the relics of the great Sergius, was built and decorated with reverent love and fervent prayers; St. relics of St. Sergius were transferred to the new church during its consecration 272. That's why the church of St. Nikon remains unshaken for centuries, sanctifying those who now pray in it. Jealousy and vigor did not leave Nikon even in old age. Finally, feeling the approach of death, on his sick bed, he called the brethren and gave the last instruction: to observe the order of prayer, day and night, not to leave the monastery often, to be patient in temptations, to observe obedience to those in authority, to hate idleness, to love silence, and not to neglect poverty. It is clear that revelation showed him the peace prepared for him. He did not clearly reveal this to the brethren, but in extreme exhaustion he unexpectedly said: “Take me to the bright church prepared for me by the prayers of my father,” and died on November 17, 1426 273. His holy body was laid near the relics of his great teacher. Memory of Rev. Nikon was established to be revered everywhere in 1547, but the service to him was written almost a century earlier, by order of St. Jonah 274. The saints were close to each other in earthly life. Sergius and Nikon; remain close in the afterlife. More than once they both appeared together and worked miracles. So they appeared to the sick merchant Simeon: Sergius with a cross, Nikon with an icon, and granted him healing. Here is another experience, most recently, in 1846. In the monastery hospital, the novice Gabriel suffered severely from nervous fever. On the night of remembrance of Rev. Nikon sees that his soul seems to be separated from his body and rushes into some kind of abyss. Mentally he began to pray to St. Sergius and Nikon, in order to return him to life for repentance. And he lay, as others saw, without memory or movement. Suddenly he sees the doors open, luminous elders enter: one with a rod, which the sick reverend recognized as him. Sergius, the other was Rev. Nikon. Rev. Sergius, pointing his staff to Nikon at the patient, said: “help.” Rev. Nikon approached and by his very approach filled the patient with strength and joy. The patient stood up and crossed himself. The monks became invisible. Gabriel came to memory and the illness passed 275. He was later Bishop of Pontus. Gregory of Nyssa in the word § 23 ff. RKP. Life of Nikon Ave. M. Philaret life of Nikon Ave., M. 1854. The younger Afanasy Vysotsky entered the Vysotsky monastery, so the word says, after Nikon retired to Sergius, and stayed here until he became abbess for no more than 7 years; and the elder Afanasy was abbot of Vysotsky for only 9 years, from December. 1373 to Nov. 1382 Next. Nikon's stay in the Vysotsk monastery, from which he left in 1375, remains about two years. Ave. Cassiana is a demon. 1, in Philokalia, part 4, page 174. RKP. short life of St. Nikon. The inscription on the staircase of the monastery: “in l. 6920 (1418) the ladder was written in the monastery of St. Abbot Sergius. In the same summer, the church was consecrated in the same monastery on September 25.” Collection l. 6, 137. 138. Acts, rel. to legal life, p. 90. 91. St. Petersburg. 1857 A.E. 1. No. 24. Description Sergius Lavra. p. 155. 156. M. 1842 Act., rel. to legal everyday life, p. 441. Christ. Thurs. 1825, part 18. Description Sergius Lavra, pp. 177–189. The liturgical books of St. Nikon, still intact: gospel, service book, octoechos. Ibid., pp. 36. 37. 136. This is how St. Nikon is described in the Pachomius service to him. Menaion for November. M. 1646 at Rumyantsev No. 397. Collection l. 6, 138. Rkp. hagiography RKP. life; According to the prologue, he died on November. 17th 6935 Life of St. Nikon in the Menaion of Macarius; A. e. 1, 203. Pokhomiev canon of Nikon Ave. in Tolstoy 2, 227, in Rumyantsev, p. 593, in Tsarsky No. 563. Repose of Nikon Ave. November 17. - in the calendar of the charter and psalter of the 16th century. Tolstoy has 1, 100, 113. Monast. letters, M. 1863, pp. 69–71.