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† Repose of the blessed. Simon Yuryevsky Blazh. Simon 36, the son of villagers who lived not far from Yuryevets of Povolgsky, in his young years accepted the yoke of foolishness. He secretly left his parents' house into the dense forest. The villagers of the village of Yalnatsky saw a half-naked man in rags in the forest, but they could not find out from him who he was and where he came from. Out of compassion they brought him to the priest. In the house of the good shepherd, he obediently went about his work and even helped others in their work, never remaining idle; he diligently visited the church of God. But, being weak-minded, he was subjected to ridicule and insults. One shirt, in winter and summer, was his clothing, and the earth served as a bed; He didn’t wear shoes even in the cold. So he lived in Yalnatsky for 15 years. Having moved to the city of Yuryevets, he no longer had any shelter here. Still barefoot and half naked, he wandered the streets, collecting ridicule and insults; Only in severe frosts did he go into the inn, but here he met impudent pushes and jokes. His favorite place was the porch of one or another church, where he spent time in prayer; He especially loved the Epiphany monastery. Those who were attentive saw traces of his kneeling prayers in the deep snow. From the harsh life his skin was completely blackened and from fasting it stuck to his bones. Through such feats of self-denial, his spirit was purified and strengthened by grace, so that he saw what others did not see. Once, acting like a fool, he entered the house of the governor Tretyak Tregub; The governor was angry that such a beggar had come to him, and ordered him to be pushed out. Driven away, Simon hinted at the misfortune that awaited the governor: but for this he was subjected to new beatings. The next morning, Tregub's wife fell from the porch of the house and was killed to death. At the coffin of his wife, the stern governor remembered the words of the holy fool and, repenting of his action, began to respect Simon. At other times the blessed one said: “Pray, there will be a fire.” But no one paid attention to the holy fool’s words. A few days later, the city caught fire at noon. Tretyak remembered Simon’s words and sent to find him. He was found on the porch, praying with tears before the icon of the Mother of God. The governor and others asked him for help against a terrible disaster. The blessed one, acting like a fool, hit the governor on the cheek and pointed to the place of the strongest flame, but this flame immediately went out. The Yuryevets resident Zubarev, crossing the Volga in a boat, was caught in the middle by a strong storm and his boat was ready to sink. Seeing the blessed one on the shore, he mentally begged Simon to pray for his salvation and promised him new clothes and shoes. The storm subsided, but the rescued one forgot about his promise. Some time later, Simon, meeting him in a secluded place, said to him: “You forgot the promise you made as you drowned in the water.” Zubarev confessed to his sin and was ready to immediately fulfill his promise; but the blessed one said: “I don’t need it, give it to the poor and don’t forget them: alms delivers from misfortunes.” Close to his death, Simon went to the house of the new governor Petelin. He, not knowing him, beat him severely, to the point that the blessed one fell ill. Abandoned in the governor's basement, he begged the servant to call his confessor; how he rejoiced at the great mercy of God when the priest came with the Holy Gifts; Confessed, partook of the Holy Mysteries and gave up his spirit to God. The body of the blessed one was buried in the Epiphany Monastery on November 4, 1584. In 1619, during the construction of a new church in the monastery, the tomb of the righteous man was found. At the same time, the woman Solomonia came and asked to serve a memorial service for her healer Simon. “I lay sick for two years,” she said, and already wanted to die. Once, in a thin drowsiness, someone appeared to me in only a shirt, barefoot, with long and black hair, with a round beard, and said: go to the Epiphany monastery, tell the priests to serve a requiem mass over the tomb of Simon, - the Lord will heal you through his prayer.” The patient, instantly awakening, felt healthy. In 1635, the Epiphany abbot Dionysius reported to the patriarch about the life and miracles of Simon, as well as about the crowded gathering of people to his tomb. The Patriarch blessed to paint the icon of Simon with radiance. The abbot also arranged a shrine. - After that, the Yuryevites witnessed the miracles of the blessed many times. Simone. They honor him as their prayer book to this day, although the Epiphany monastery no longer exists 37. Venerable Ioannikis the Great Truly great was the one who, having been in error, knew how to repent and correct himself; being close to honors that could put him on a brilliant path and bring him human glory, he turned away from it and preferred the obscurity of life in the desert; could not one be called great who, feeling himself under the influence of a strong passion, did not succumb to it, but threw himself almost into the mouth of a material serpent in order to escape from the mouth of the spiritual serpent - the tempter, and, having thus repeatedly demonstrated the greatness of his bright soul, found himself at the height of greatness when, without feeling the slightest bitterness against those who attempted to kill his enemies, he lovingly forgave them, even humbly asking their forgiveness for what, perhaps, unwittingly contributed to their irritation... Such, in short words, is the life of Ioannikis, remembered today by the Church, or, rather, such are the events that illuminated it with brilliant and unquenchable rays of true greatness. It is comforting to notice when getting acquainted with this life that it was prepared and developed using the simplest and most accessible means. Blessed Ioannikios was not born and spent his childhood in a brilliant environment, replete with all sorts of educational means; he did not even have the opportunity to become acquainted with literacy, having been born in the modest lot of a rural shepherd (in the village of Marikatovo, north of the city of Apollonias). Here, among beautiful nature, his natural feeling prompted him to know its Creator and inspired love for Him; and love for God taught him the true, best essence of all science and led him to the achievement of the main goals of all human knowledge: truth and goodness. Often, when a young shepherd, grazing his flocks, indulged in the contemplation of the wondrous beauties surrounding him, this contemplation lifted his thought from a soulless creature to the Soul of the whole world - God the Creator, and, overshadowing the animals entrusted to him with the sign of the cross, with an irresistible force he plunged into prayer and remained in it nights and days - and his flock, as if protected by the prayer of selflessly loving The God of the Immaculate Shepherd grazed peacefully and safely in the meadows, and neither animals nor evil people plundered him. Having reached adulthood, Ioannikios was taken into military service. Meek and humble, he soon gained the love of his young comrades, and at the same time, the courage of a soul devoted to God made him a brave defender of his homeland, which had to be defended from assassination attempts or violence by enemies. With his fearlessness and strength, he attracted the attention of the leaders and he was destined for all sorts of rewards and exaltations, but this was not what his soul, imbued with prayerful exaltation to God from childhood, was striving for... Moreover, at this time such accidents occurred in the life of Ioannikios that finally determined its further direction. Among his comrades, he learned a widely spread misconception against the veneration of holy icons, but by the Providence of God the man pleasing to God was not left without admonishment. One day, while walking with an army through the Olympic Mountains, he met an unknown monk, who, calling him by name, asked him reproachfully: “How can he, being a Christian, not honor the image of his Savior?” Realizing his error, Ioannikis, who constantly sought to devote himself entirely to serving God somewhere in desert solitude, finally decided to leave the world and turned to one holy ascetic, asking for his guidance on his chosen path; Having received advice from the elder to first live in a monastery, Ioannikios spent two years studying the customs of various monasteries, during this time he learned to read and write and, having prepared himself through feats of obedience and humble renunciation of his will, he retired into the desert. Here he settled in a dugout, where, eating meager food brought to him by a shepherd, he spent whole days and nights in prayer. Chanting the psalms of David that he had learned in the monastery, he added to them the following words: “my hope is the Father, my refuge is the Son, my patron is the Holy Spirit; Holy Trinity, glory to Thee!” This prayer is still read in the Church. – The ascetic life of Ioannikios did not remain unknown, especially since God Himself glorified him with the gift of clairvoyance and miracles. He healed the sick; even mental illnesses were overcome by its beneficial influence; He converted many heretics from error. Meanwhile, the ascetic, who benefits many and does no harm to anyone, despite this, did not escape the malice of envious people. Someone who was monastic on the same Mount Olympia, where Ioannikios asceticised, following his growing glory, could not bear it and, filled with a hostile, envious feeling, even planned to destroy the one glorified by God and enjoyed great veneration by people... Once, during a rainless period, this unworthy monk, named Epiphanius, set fire to the dry grass at the bottom of the mountain on which he was the dugout of Ioannikis, also surrounded by dry trees, and the whole mountain quickly caught fire... The death of the ascetic, it seemed, was inevitable. But God miraculously preserved him, and not only did he not burn or suffocate from the smoke, but even his cell survived the fire. Then, incapable of blaming his neighbor and only blaming himself for the fact that, perhaps, he had somehow inadvertently contributed to his embitterment, Ioannikios went to his ill-wisher and asked him to forgive him if he was guilty of anything; but even such kindness did not touch or arouse repentance in the evil envious man, who rushed at the saint and struck him with his staff with a sharp tip. But this time God miraculously saved Ioannikios from death, and he lived for a long time in miraculous exploits and in saving spiritual activity. He often appeared as a seer of the future, a healer of incurable illnesses, a mentor to the true path of many who were mistaken, a leader and assistant to all who turned to him. Among the many visitors to the ascetic were bishops and Patriarch Methodius the Confessor himself, who suffered a lot from the iconoclasts. Having reached the age of 94, Ioannikis spent the last part of his life asceticizing in seclusion and was awarded a peaceful death in 846. Honored by incorruption, he continued to be a miracle worker even after his death. Pilgrim Anthony in 1200 saw his head in Constantinople, in the church of 40 martyrs. Glorifying the Reverend, St. The Church calls to him: “You have appeared as an all-bright star, enlightening the world and illuminating those who exist in the darkness of passions; the strongest physician appeared; but since you have received the grace of healing, grant healing to those who ask you, so we call: Rejoice, Father John!” “With your tears you cultivated the barren desert, and with your sighs from the depths you brought forth fruit in a hundred labors; and you were the lamp of the universe, shining miracles, O John, our Father, pray to Christ God that our souls may be saved!” RKP. His life in Tsarskoe No. 113. Rk. Saints: “Holy and blessed Simon, like the Fool for Christ’s sake, Yuryevsky Wonderworker, introduced himself in l. 7102 (1593) months. November at 4 o'clock." - There is a mistake in the year. - Swede. about the monastery 163.