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“He who is higher than Joseph” rests here, said a heavenly voice to John the Long-Suffering about St. Moses 350. The feat of Moses is a bloody feat for chastity, a wonderful courage that did not yield a step before the attacks of the most frantic female lust 351. Moses was the brother of George and Ephraim and served with them at St. book Boris. In 1015, when St. Boris was killed on the river. Alta, he was the only one who survived from the prince’s retinue and hid with Predislava, the sister of St. princes. In 1018, Svyatopolk's father-in-law Boleslav, King of Poland, took possession of Kiev and, pursued by Yaroslav, captured his two sisters and many boyars; Moses, among others, was taken captive and taken to Poland 352. There he languished in chains for five whole years. Strong in body, handsome in appearance, he attracted the attention of a noble and wealthy Polish woman. Inflamed by passion for the beautiful captive, she told him with sly compassion: “What torment you are suffering!” “So it pleases God,” answered Moses. “I will free you and make you a famous person, just be submissive to me, or I myself will belong to you,” said the lady. Moses pointed out in response the sad consequences of being attracted to women. “But I will ransom you and wish to have you as my husband, you are handsome.” “I do not desire,” answered Moses, “neither nobility, nor estates, nor money: spiritual purity is most precious to me. I suffered for five years; - perhaps the Lord will save me from the torment of eternity. Why should I lose an expensive reward for temporary consolations? And what kind of freedom is it to be a slave to your wife? From a young age I decided not to know my wife.” Panna bought him at a high price, dressed him in a rich dress, and ordered him to prepare a luxurious table; then she showered him with caresses and kisses of passion. Moses remained firm - he only increased the severity of his food. The irritated Polka ordered him to be locked in prison and starved him to death. Moses prayed. By the will of the lady, her trustees persuaded Moses to marry a young widow; “And the prince would not refuse the hand of a beautiful and rich widow,” they told Moses; At the same time, they demonstrated the sanctity of marriage and the fact that married life did not prevent the patriarchs from pleasing the Lord. “All this is true, my friends,” answered Moses; the righteous were saved in married life, but I, a sinner, cannot be saved with my wife. You must be true to your word. Even if I return alive to Russia, I will not marry anyone, I want to be a monk. Christ said in the Gospel: everyone who leaves father or mother or wife or child or village for My name’s sake will receive a hundredfold and inherit eternal life (Matthew 19:29). Who should I listen to, Christ or you? And Paul says: “He who is married does not care for the things of the Lord, how to please the Lord, but he who is married cares for the things of the world, how to please his wife” (1 Cor. 7:32-33). I ask you, who is more profitable to please: your wife or the Lord? Smart people write: servants, listen to your masters, but for good, not for bad. Be sure that earthly pleasures will not separate me from Christ.” Having listened to Moses' judgments about marriage life, the lady did not give up on her intention. She ordered to give Moses a beautiful horse and show him all her vast estates. It was given to the peasants to accept him as their master and her husband. “You worry in vain, dear lady: neither wealth nor honor will deceive me,” said Moses. “Don’t you remember that you bought me for money?” said the flushed lady; I will not let you out of my hands alive. “God is my protection, I am not afraid of anything,” answered Moses. Then the Lord sent him the opportunity to fulfill a long-standing vow of his soul: an Athos monk, ordained a priest, came to him and tonsured him into monasticism. Having learned that the captive was already a monk, the temptress flared with anger. Unable to find Afonets, she ordered Moses to be beaten with sticks until she threw off her black clothes. They beat him mercilessly. “Strike,” said Moses, “but do not demand the impossible from me.” Panna complained to the king. Boleslav allowed her to do whatever she wanted with Moses, and to please her, he ordered to expel all the monks from their possessions. The Polish woman reached extreme shamelessness with Moses; when the measures of shamelessness were unsuccessful, she ordered him to be made a eunuch, but so that he would not forget about it until the grave. The brazen wickedness of the passions is not left without God's vengeance. – One night Boleslav suddenly died; a rebellion arose in the land of the Lyakhs; The excited people killed their bishops and boyars. “The wicked Polka also died during the rebellion. This happened in 1027 353. For many years the blessed man was tormented by a frantic woman 354. Several years had to pass before the sufferer could recover in health to go to Kyiv 355; it is most likely that Moses returned from Poland in 1031, among other captives, when Yaroslav returned the cities of Red Rus to Russia. Free and somewhat recovered, he came to the cave to the Rev. Anthony 356. Here he spent ten years in fasting and prayer, but was constantly half ill. For his great victory over unclean passion, the Lord gave him the power to heal this passion in others. One brother, struggling in the flesh, came to the monk and begged him to help him in trouble. “I promise,” said my brother, “to do everything you tell me.” “Don’t talk to any woman in your entire life,” said the reverend. Brother promised. Then Moses touched his brother's body with his staff, without which he could not walk from previous torment; the unclean passion subsided, and the brother was freed from its temptations. The monk, foreknowledge of his imminent death, took holy communion. Tain and died peacefully on July 26 during the life of St. Anthony, probably in 1043. The relics of St. Moses rest in the Antonieva Cave. “Pray to Moses, who is buried here,” said a heavenly voice to John, who was suffering from unclean passion. And John himself, with the incorruptible bone of St. Moses, calmed the rage of the same passion in his poor brother. So the one who suffered so much for bodily purity, and after his death is the best doctor against the disturbances of the unclean flesh 357. “Other Joseph, great healer of purity and chastity, most honorable and equal to the angels of Moses, praising sins, pray diligently, pray to Christ God, that he may heal our passions and give great mercy.” Holy Martyr Hermolai, Hermippos and Hermocrates A priest from the clergy of the Nicomedia Church, a remnant of the many Christians burned along with the church in December 303, Ermolai converted to Christ and baptized Panteleimon (July 27). When this one was taken for interrogation, those priests were also captured and, after torture, beheaded in 305. Holy Martyr Paraskeva Her parents - Agathon and Politia - Romans, who through prayer received their only daughter, named her Paraskeva, since she was born on a Friday. Paraskeva suffered severely for her confession of Christ during the reign of Antoninus, in the 2nd century. Thrown into a cauldron with oil and resin, she remained unharmed; throwing this liquid into the eyes of the curious king, she blinded him, then, at his request, she gave him sight, and through her suffering, accompanied by miracles, she converted many to Christ. – After suffering, she was truncated. In 1200, the pilgrim Anthony saw her relics in Constantinople. Its church is still intact in Constantinople, on the left side of the Golden Horn in the area of ​​Khas-Kioi. Famous persons 358 are buried there. Polycarp on John, July. 18. V.’s wife recalled this event. book Izyaslav. Sob. l. 1, 64. V, 136. VII, 329; II, 265. Polycarp: “Boleslav led a great persecution against the monks, expelling them all from their region; God will bring vengeance on His servant quickly. One night Boleslav died in vain and there was a great rebellion throughout the entire land of Lyadka, and the people rose up and killed their bishops and their bolyars, as he would tell the chroniclers.” In which chronicler? According to Mr. Shevyrev, in Polsky. Hardly! “He will tell” - points to one famous chronicler - Nestor. In print. Patericon (l. 138), in Kossov (Zywoty p. 116) and in some. RKP. the patericon says; “having died - having stayed in the monastery for 10 years, and suffered in captivity in bonds for 5 years, and 6 summers - for purity.” In the Novgorod Patericon of Arseniev's list of the 15th century. (No. 28) reads: “having spent 10 years in a monastery, suffered 5 years in captivity and suffered chains, 6 years suffered passion for purity.” This is what it says in the seal. prologue of July 26. But if Moses, captured in 1018, remained in the hands of Polka until the death of Boleslav, until 1027, as all the lists of the patericon say, then we must assume that Moses, having been a chained captive for 5 years, remained in the hands of the lady for about 4 years. This is not mentioned in the Patericon. But in the prologue we read: “After a few days I flew back to health and came to the Pechersky Monastery.” Collection l. I, 67, VII, 330. If the death of St. Moses is attributed to 1043, then his settlement in the cave should be attributed to the end of 1032. This will not be contradicted by the words of Nestor, who, having spoken about the entry of Mother Theodosius into the nunnery, writes: “and one could see three luminaries shining in the cave and driving away the demonic darkness with prayer and fasting, I mean Rev. Anthony, blessed Theodosius and the great Nikon." The panegyrist and chronicler speaks of great ascetics who enjoyed fame, and therefore does not rule out the idea of ​​a new cave dweller, known only for his illness. The extent to which Moses was little known in the cave is shown by the words of the great John: “I did not know the name of the deceased; Later I found out that it was Moisei Ugrin.” Prologue and Ch. Menaea July 26. The complete life of the venerable martyr. Paraskeva in “New Treasure” in Greek. language (“Month. East.” Archim. Sergius, vol. II, part 2, p. 215).