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St. Reverend Martyr and confessional Stefan Novy Stephen, born in Constantinople in 715, was dedicated to God by his pious mother from childhood and in his youth was taken by his parents to John, who labored on Mount St. Auxentia, opposite Constantinople, on the Gulf of Nicomedia. Here, diligently fulfilling all monastic obediences, Stefan, in addition, zealously studied the Holy Scriptures. Scripture and especially the works of St. John Chrysostom, which armed him with a powerful weapon in the struggle for Orthodoxy that subsequently lay before him. Having buried his father, Stephen, with the consent of his mother, distributed all the property left behind by his father to the poor, sheltered his mother and sister in a convent founded by St. Auxentius, and returned to the monastery, where he supported his existence by copying spiritual books. Seeking solitude, he retired to the top of the mountain and built himself a cell in a cramped cave, but even here many came to him, attracted by the holiness of his life and seeking the advice and teachings of an enlightened monk, and some, wishing to live with a proven ascetic, set up monastic cells near the cave and asked Stephen to be the abbot of the monastery thus founded. Meanwhile, the iconoclastic heresy was then rampant. After Emperor Leo III the Isaurian (717–741), Constantine Copronymus began to persecute icon veneration with even greater fury and, denounced by many pious monks, turned his anger especially on them. Gathering a multitude of people, he ordered him to swear an oath at the Cross, the Gospel and the Sacraments of Christ, that no one would venerate icons and would not have any communication with monks, and if he met them on the road, he would stone them... At the same time, autocratically appointing his like-minded person, the monk Constantine, as patriarch, he compiled an iconoclastic council in 754. And then godless deeds were committed in Byzantium, sacrilegious desecration of icons and of every shrine: church vessels in which the Divine Mysteries were performed were trampled under foot; icons were burned and thrown into the sea; in the Church of the Virgin Mary in Blachernae, the walls of which were decorated with picturesque images of the earthly life of the Savior, all this painting was destroyed, and animals and birds were painted in its place... The relics of the saints were not spared; they were destroyed with dishonor or thrown into the sea; those who rebelled against such blasphemy were killed and their corpses were thrown out to be devoured by wild animals. In this great sorrow and oppression, the Orthodox gathered in large numbers to Mount Auxentia to the glorious ascetic Stephen, and he consoled and encouraged them, and instructed them to stand firmly for the shrine and, if anyone did not feel enough courage, to hide in foreign lands... Knowing about such an influence on the people of Stephen, who was sacredly revered by him, the emperor wanted to have him on his side and demanded that he sign the definitions of the iconoclastic council he compiled; but when Stefan, refusing rich gifts sent with the purpose of appeasing him, refused to fulfill the unrighteous demand and ordered through a messenger to answer Copronymus that “he would not sign a council full of lies and idle talk,” then he was taken by force from his cell and imprisoned under strong supervision in prison. During the war with the Bulgarians, who attacked the empire, Stefan was released, but at the end of the war, the persecution of icon worshipers resumed, and Stefan was again persecuted. Through bribery, informers appeared who testified that he was inciting the people against the emperor; Stefan’s tonsure into monasticism of one of the courtiers, who, under the guise of a sincere desire for monasticism, only sought a pretext to accuse Stefan of allegedly forcibly tonsuring him, served as the reason for the final accusation of the righteous man and, “after the destruction of the Avksentiev monastery by fire, Stefan was sent to Chrysopolis, to the monastery of Philippika, and having stayed here for 16 days, after which he was exiled to exile. Proconnes Island. In 765 or 766 he was returned to Constantinople, where he was kept in the prison of Fiala." 435 But nowhere did the truthful voice of the confessor cease and everywhere attracted investigators who, from his instructions and blessings, gained the strength to courageously stand for the faith and commit themselves to martyrdom for it. Finally, “after the popular denunciation of the king, after a month’s imprisonment in the praetorium, on November 28, 767, Stephen died a martyr” 436. By order of Constantine Copronymus to kill him, his courtiers took Stephen out of the monastery, dragged him to the street, beat him with sticks, trampled on him, and finally one of the villains dealt him a fatal blow to the head 437. “Having labored in fasting on the mountain,” sings the Church of St. Stephen, - you destroyed the clever enemies of the militia with the full armor of the cross, O all-blessed one! Again, you clothed yourself courageously with suffering, killing Copronymus with the sword of faith, and for the sake of both you were married by God, O venerable martyr Stephen of all memory!” (Trope.). “Let us truly praise the Trinity Guardian and the Divine Stephen with songs, idle lovers, from the heart, as having honored the red mark of the Lord and His Mother, and according to now, out of love, let us cry out to him rejoicing: Rejoice, ever-glorious Father!” (Cond.). Commemoration of the martyrdom of Saints Timothy and Theodore bishops, Peter, John, Sergius, Theodore and Nicephorus priests, Basil and Thomas deacons, Hierotheus, Daniel, Chariton, Socrates, Comasius and Eusebius monks, and Etimasius the layman. They suffered during the reign of Julian the Apostate, 362 years old, in Tiberiopolis (Strumnitsa), a city of Macedon, and its environs. Their relics rested in that city until 870, when, by the will of the Bulgarian Prince Boris, they were transferred to Bregalnitsa (now Istib, about thirty versts from Strumnitsa). † The Suffering of Saint Christ Blessed Christ 438, an Albanian Serb, settled in Constantinople for forty years and took up gardening. Once, while selling a batch of apples to Turk, he had a dispute with Turk; From an argument it came to a quarrel. The angry Turk decided to take revenge on Christ in his own way: he reported to Chaush-bash that Christ had given his word to turn Turk; for such cases, the Turk is always ready with witnesses, and the Mohammedan judge is ready to trust them, and the Turk introduced them, like Christ, to the guardian of state secrets. To the interrogation of Chaush-bashi, Christ boldly answered that he had never thought and was not thinking of changing the Christian faith to Mohammedanism and that no one would force him to change his conscience. Chaush-basha ordered to punish him with sticks. For the fanatics of Mohammedan lies, this was not enough. They beat the bound confessor on the head until blood flowed in streams, forcing him to renounce Christianity. Finally, with a heavy block on his feet, they imprisoned him. – Caesar Dapan was sitting in prison at the same time. Out of compassion, he secretly released Christ from the stock and offered him food to eat. “What do I need food for? answered the sufferer; death is near; I’d rather come to my Christ with hunger.” Then he took a bundle of money from his belt and, handing it to Dapan, asked him to serve several liturgies for him after his death. On the same day the martyr was taken out of prison and beheaded. This was in 1748. † Repose of Blessed Theodore, Archbishop of Rostov Elder brother Rev. Sergius Stefan 439 was a significant person under the Radonezh prince Andrei Ioannovich; His wife Anna, having given birth to two sons, Clement and John, died; the widowed Stefan became a monk at the Khotkovsky Intercession Monastery; then he entered the Moscow Epiphany Monastery, where he was the confessor of Grand Duke Simeon. His youngest son John was taught to read and write and wanted to live under the supervision of his uncle, the reverend. Sergius. He was 12 years old when his father brought him to the Sergius desert and in the church handed him over to Sergius; Sergius at the same time, April 20, in memory of St. Theodore Trikhina, tonsured him into monasticism with the name Theodore; - then, the chronicle notes, they gave the monk the name of the saint whose memory was performed on the day of tonsure. Under the supervision of his great uncle, the young monk grew in purity and holiness, inaccessible to the breezes of the sinful world. He was so determined by the reverend. Sergius, that in his soul there was nothing hidden from his father and mentor; he did not hide from him any disturbing thoughts or deeds of sin, neither day nor night. “Thus I remain with the saint in perfect obedience, living a virtuous life.” Blazh. Theodore was awarded the rank of priesthood in the desert of Sergius. He grew so much in spiritual life under the guidance of the saint that when he celebrated the Liturgy with Rev. Sergius, the pure in heart saw an angel serving them. A desire appeared in his soul to found a special community monastery. He revealed this desire to the saint and then from time to time reminded him of the thought that never left him. The monk finally told him that he wanted to have him as his successor at the monastery of the Holy Trinity, but, considering his strong thoughts to be the work of God, he blesses him to choose a place for a special monastery. Blazh. Theodore, with several others whom Sergius had sent with him, found a place on the bank of the river. Moscow, called Simonov; For the first time it seemed to him convenient for the monastery. The monk, having learned about this, came to the place himself and gave his blessing to live here. Theodore built several cells at the Church of the Nativity of Our Lady and started a hostel 440. From the very beginning of the monastery, many were attracted to it by the glory of Theodore, who, like a vessel beautifully constructed by the creative spirit of Sergius, shone, according to the chronicle, with virtues, wisdom and prudent sense and, at the same time, with an attractive appearance, tall stature and beauty. His fame grew to the point that St. Sergius grieved for this fame and prayed that he would complete his course without stumbling 441. The Rozhdestvenskaya monastery was located near a high road, from which a lot of noise was added for the benefit. Theodora. Avoiding the rumors of visitors, he moved to another place, then forested and quiet; Here he set up his cell and labored in silence. The monks soon gathered here; Theodore built the Church of the Assumption of the Mother of God and cells for the brethren; Strict hostel life was established as an immutable charter for the monastery. Rev. Sergius even now wanted Theodore to remain in silent prayer and solitude; but had to yield to the wishes of Grand Duke Demetrius and St. Alexis; the latter ordained him as abbot, and the Grand Duke chose him as his confessor: noble people turned to him for advice 442; Thanks to the charity of Prince Grigory Khovrin, the founder of the Golovins, a new Simonovo was built, and the old Simonovo later remained a tomb for monks 443. Blazh. Theodore humbly and reverently occupied himself with painting icons for Moscow churches. Nowadays the Deesis is known, which he wrote for the church of St. Nicholas on Bolvanovka 444. The abbot was the Grand Duke's confidant for church affairs. In 1382 he led. the prince sent him to Kyiv to invite M. Cyprian to Moscow 445. In 1383 Blessed. Theodore was sent on errands. prince to patriarch Neil. Nile, talking with Theodore, fell in love with him and ordained him as an archimandrite, raising his monastery to the level of stauropegial 446. In the monastery of Theodore, under the supervision of Theodore, great ascetics were brought up; here the young Volokolamsk nobleman Theodore Poskochin, monastically Ferapont, and the nephew of the thousand Timofey, Kozma, monastically Kirill, began their spiritual life; Here the pious Michael, later Bishop of Smolensk, asceticised. Blazh. Theodore laid the foundation for the stone church of the Mother of God in his monastery 447. In 1388 he was again sent on errands from the leader. the prince to the patriarch, and the prince announced that he wanted to see him at the cathedral. At the request of the leader. The prince consecrated Theodore as Archbishop of Rostov, whereas before that time there were bishops in Rostov. This embassy was especially difficult for the blessed one. Theodora. He had to denounce Pimen, who had long been recognized as metropolitan both in Constantinople and in Russia: an unpleasant task that required caution. - In anticipation of the full council, he went with Pimen to Jerusalem; this got him into trouble with the patriarch. Another trouble: the long troubles in the case of the metropolitan put him in debt. – Finally, he returned to Russia with the Metropolitan of All Russia Cyprian, to the peace of the Russian Church 448. – In Rostov, Theodore founded a convent in honor of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary 449. For this monastery he painted an icon of the Mother of God according to a special vision, which called him to found the monastery 450. - Exhausted by the labors that he had to endure for the entire Russian Church during long and dangerous travels, blessed. Theodore did not rule the Rostov Church for long, but “he took good care of the flock and went to the Lord” 451; Having lived well, he “rested” on November 26, 1394 452. Blessed memory Theodore has been reverently revered since the 15th century 453. “Monthly. East." archim. Serg. vol. II, part 2, p. 374. Life of St. Stefan Novy in Russian. language - in “Soulful Reading”, 1860, part 3, p. 263. About him Martyrs in the East pp. 164. 165. Life of St. Theodora bishop Height. to the synod. b. 1723 No. 580 and b. St. Petersburg ak. Collection years. 6, 121. 122. Nikon. years. 4, 208. 221. 227. 228. Sl. old Simonov in 2 sq. Russian Antiquity, pp. 60–74. M. 1850 Inset book of Simon's monastery: Nikon. years. 4, 230. Klindovsky original; ancient Ross. state 1. page XXVIII. Letop. at Karamz. 5. pr. 60. Collection. years. 6, 122. In 1381 Theodore baptized at V. K. son Andrei. Nikon. years. 4, 131. Letop. at Karamz. 5. ir. 122. 124. Nikon. years. 4, 145. 229, 230. RKP. life of St. Theodora; Nikon. years. IV, 190. 230. East. act. 1. No. 252. Nikon. years. IV. 231. Collection years. 1. 233. IV. 122. 128. Cathedral. act of 1389 by Kalachov in 3 books. archive 3, 14–16. East. Hier. V, 700. Troparion of St. Theodore: “by the notification of the Holy Spirit, a great monastery has been erected by the Most Holy. Mother of God, in praise of her Nativity." On ancient ik. Our Lady of Eternity The Child blessing the upcoming St. Anthony and Theodosius Pecher. and Stephen the New, St. Ignatius Rostov. and Nikita Novgor. and others. At the bottom there is an inscription: “This is the image of St. The Mother of God was written according to the appearance of the holy man praying. Theodore, architect. Rost., by which the God-saved monastery was founded in the name of the birth. Mother of God." Nikon. years. IV, 231. 256. VIII, 64. In 1396 March. 19 Theodore's successor, Gregory, was ordained. Collection years. VI, 249. Rkp. Saints: “St. Theodore, the first Archbishop of Rostov, reposed in L. 6903 m. Nov. 28 d." The same in the collection. years. 1, 233. VI, 128; only here it is said: “As they sang mass, he reposed and shepherded the church of God for five years.” Track. It is clear that in the count from January, death occurred in 1394, and not in 1395. In the mouth 1522 under 28 AD: “in the same village the Most Reverend reposed. arch. Feodor Rostov." Music Blush. 713. In the RKP. In his life he is called a miracle worker.