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St. Apostle from 70: Prokhor, Nikanor, Timon and Parmena Of the first seven deacons of the Apostolic Church (Acts 6:5), Prochorus was a companion of the Ap. Peter and then John the Theologian; founded the episcopal see in Nicomedia and, while preaching in Antioch, was killed by the pagans. Nicanor was killed by the Jews at the same time that Stephen the Archdeacon suffered. Timon was a bishop in Bostra of Arabia, and Parmen, in his exploits of preaching, died a martyr and was buried in the city of Soli, on Fr. Cyprus. They are remembered in the LXX cathedral on January 4, Nikanor on December 28, and Timon on December 30. Venerable Paul of Xiropotamia Paul, in the world - Procopius, was the son of the Greek Emperor and Michael Kuropalate, nicknamed Rangaway. His birth was joyfully and solemnly celebrated by Constantinople; meanwhile, not royal glory, but radiance in a wretched cell, exceeding in its quiet brilliance all worldly glory, was subsequently to be seen by the child born for the throne... As soon as Procopius was weaned, his father, a pious, peace-loving man, weighed down by the court unrest and in general by all the vanity of the world, which is all the more noticeable the higher a person is placed in his position, abandoned the throne and entered the monastery he himself built, called Mireleon, where he died in monasticism. The throne after Michael Kuropalatus was occupied by Leo the Armenian and, fearing a future rival for the rights to the throne in the young Procopius, he decided to mutilate him through barbaric emasculation. Procopius was, however, provided with the means to higher education, which he, thanks to his natural rich mental gifts, combined with the graceful spiritual qualities inherited from pious parents, made excellent use of, so that he was not slow to become famous among the modern world. But, wise both in his mental and spiritual development, Procopius early realized the entire emptiness of the splendor and greatness of the earth; He was also burdened by his own glory and even feared it, as a dangerous temptation for natural human pride, and therefore decided to leave the world. One day, dressed as a beggar, he left Constantinople and went to Mount Athos. Having first examined the monastery and studied the life of the monks, for the first time he felt an inexpressible calm and remained to live in the monastery of Xiropotamus, founded by Empress Pulcheria and shortly before that devastated by pirates who beat up the monastics there. Here, on the ruins of the monastery, he built himself a small cell and settled in it for prayerful feats, to which the marvelous nature in the most picturesque area and the undisturbed silence of desert solitude were so conducive. Not far from him lived another hermit, Kosma; Procopius became close to him and received monastic vows from him with the name Paul. Then he began to strive for a severe feat: he even slept on the bare ground, having a stone instead of a headboard. Paul's strict life surprised the monks themselves and served as a role model for them. Although he hid his rank and his learning from everyone, he could not hide his virtue, which glorified him far from the world and more or less contributed to the fact that people learned the way to him and took him out of his secret refuge in order to borrow goodness and truth from him. And goodness poured out into the world from the soul of the humble and wise Paul, prepared and matured in solitary asceticism. Emperor Romanus, who ascended the Greek throne, wished to find Procopius, a relative of his. Those sent for this purpose finally found him on the Holy Mountain, recognizing him as the monk Paul, and, despite his reluctance to part with his beloved solitude, they convinced him to go with them to Constantinople to see the sovereign and other relatives who wanted this. Once again, Constantinople solemnly and joyfully welcomed the royal - but no longer a baby, but an ascetic who appeared in the capital in all the humiliation of his monastic rank. Nobles and common people fell to him as to an angel and asked for his blessing. And for greater glory, God Himself glorified him by healing the Emperor Romanus, who was seriously ill at that time, as soon as Paul prayed for the sick man and laid his hands on him. Having fallen in love with Paul with all his soul and wanting to benefit from his conversations, the emperor asked him to stay at the Court to take care of the upbringing and education of his children. The loving Paul did not abandon this work, and for some time the emperor rejoiced, like a father, seeing his children under the most precious influence of the man of God. But again, and now more than before, the heart of the hermit grieved amid all the celebrations and splendor of life at the Court, and it was beyond his strength to bear the spectacle of unrest and the height of human passions. His soul yearned for the soothing desert, and one day he said to the emperor: “Sir, like a fish without water, so a monk cannot live without the conditions of cell life and desert silence; he is dead to God and lifeless in order to exactly fulfill his duty and obligations towards God. The world is not a monastic element. Therefore, let me return to my desert, where conversation with God is the highest good of my soul." The emperor did not want to be separated from his irreplaceable mentor and his children, he also did not want to keep him by force, and therefore he released him to Athos, providing him with the means to restore the Xiropotamian monastery destroyed by the pirates in all its befitting splendor under royal protection. Joy also came for Athos with the return of the glorious monk Paul. Through his labors, the monastery was restored from the ruins, into which many monks gathered who wanted to live the monastic life in a dignified manner under the wise guidance of the experienced Paul. Weighed down, however, by rumors and crowds, Paul, having established a monastery and entrusting its management to one of the most pious brethren, himself retired to the foothills of Athos, where he hoped to find complete silence among strict solitude. But even here his devotees came to him, and in a short time the desert, in which up to 60 of Paul’s disciples settled, took on the appearance of a monastery, which had to be built on the basis of the rules and conditions of desert life and at the same time protected from external attacks given its unsafe position, open from the sea. Thus, through the efforts of Paul, a new monastery arose in the name of St. George, which still retains its name Svyatopaulskaya in memory of its founder. Soon after the founding of this monastery, in which Paul himself was abbot, the time came for his death, which he foresaw in advance. Saying goodbye to the brothers weeping for him, the dying man himself began to cry and told them: “Stop crying, brothers! Do not disturb my heart with your tears. What to do! The time has come for which my soul constantly thirsted, but my flesh feared." After talking with the brethren about the last paternal instructions, he communed with St. Mystery and, saying my always prayer: “My hope is the Father, my refuge is the Son, my protection is the Holy Spirit, the Holy Trinity, glory to You!” with his face beaming with unearthly delight, he gave up his soul to God. It was July 28, 820. Paul's burial was solemnly performed in Constantinople in the presence of the emperor, the patriarch and the entire clergy 407. Subsequently, during the defeat of Constantinople by the crusaders, the relics of St. Paul of Xiropotamus were transported to Venice. A monument to the high spiritual mood and education of St. Paul have survived: the Homily on the Entry into the Church of the Most Holy Theotokos, the canon of the forty martyrs and the canon (written in iambic verse) of the honorable cross. Emperor Romanus the Elder, in his royal charter (chrisovul), given to Paul for the establishment of a monastery on Mount Athos, calls him the greatest of philosophers. (See “Af. Pater.”, part 1, p. 54). Celebration of the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God The Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God is called Hodegetria and, according to legend, it was painted by St. Luka. There are different legends about the antiquity of this icon in Russia. They say: with this icon the Greek princess Anna, the wife of St., was blessed on her way to Russia. Equal to the Apostles Prince Vladimir - sister of the Greek Emperor Vasily II. Others say that the Smolensk Icon was brought from Greece to Russia in 1046, when Constantine Monomakh, marrying his princess daughter to Vsevolod Yaroslavich, Prince of Chernigov, blessed her with the icon on her journey, which is why it was called Hodegetria - a guide. And Vladimir Monomakh, son of Vsevolod, moved the icon to Smolensk and placed it in the cathedral church of the Assumption of the Mother of God, which he founded on May 3, 1101. Since that time, the icon has been called Smolensk. In 1237, when the hordes of Batyevs approached Smolensk and the residents of Smolensk saw no help from anywhere, Hodegetria herself was the irresistible commander of the defenseless city. At night, in the cathedral, where her miraculous icon stands, She ordered the church sexton to announce to Mercury, a resident of Smolensk: “Mercury, come out soon, in military armor, for the Lady is calling you.” Mercury came to the church of the Mother of God, fell in front of the icon and heard a voice from the icon: “My saint Mercury, I am sending you to protect My house. The ruler of the Horde secretly wants to attack My city this night with all his army and with the giant of his strength in order to devastate the city; but I prayed to My Son and My God for My house, so that it would not be given over to the work of the enemy. Go out to meet the enemy, secretly from the people, the saint and the prince, who are not aware of the military attack, and by the power of Christ God you will defeat the giant; I myself will be with you, helping my servant; but there, along with victory, a crown of torment awaits you, which you accept from Christ.” With tears, Mercury bowed to the ground to the holy icon of the Mother of God and left the church and the city; calling on the Mother of God for help, Mercury penetrated into the midst of the enemies and killed the military giant. Mercury courageously awaited the invasion of enemies and repelled their strength, overcome from above by lightning-fast men in the presence of a bright wife, whose face filled the enemies with horror. After the defeat of the enemies, Mercury was struck in the head and thus sealed his feat with blood. In 1398, during Tamerlane’s invasion of the southern borders of Russia, Vitovt blessed his daughter Sophia, the wife of Grand Duke Vasily Dimitrievich, with the icon of the Smolensk Mother of God, who was in Smolensk to meet with her father, and with her the icon was transferred from Smolensk to Moscow and placed in the Annunciation Cathedral. Residents of the capital showed great reverence to the shrine. 58 years later, in 1456, during the reign of Grand Duke Vasily Vasilyevich the Dark, under Metropolitan Jonah, Misail, Bishop of Smolensk, and the local governor with many dignitaries of the city, who arrived in a retinue from the Polish King Casimir in Moscow to the Grand Duke, asked him to release their icon to Smolensk. The prince consulted with the metropolitan, bishops and boyars, and finally decided to present the Smolensk Icon of Hodegetria to the residents of Smolensk, ordering the list to be removed from it in order to put it in its place, and he performed a prayer service before it every day. A celebration was held for the release of the icon. After the liturgy, the Metropolitan and other spiritual capitals with a procession of the cross, accompanied by the Grand Duke, his children, boyars, troops and numerous people, walked two miles out of the city to the Savvina Monastery that was then on the outskirts of Moscow and, after performing the prayer service, released the icon of the Lady with tears. At the site of the prayer service, in 1524, under Grand Duke Vasily Ioannovich, the Novo-Devichy Convent was built in memory of the capture of Smolensk and annexation to the Russian state. In this monastery in 1525 they placed an icon copied from the Smolensk Hodegetria, and on July 28 they appointed a celebration of the appearance of the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God, with a procession of the cross, which to this day goes to the Novodevichy Convent in Moscow, in gratitude for the return of Smolensk from Lithuania. In 1812, the icon of the Smolensk Hodegetria was taken from Smolensk and transported to Yaroslavl by the Smolensk bishop (Falkovsky). Another Smolensk icon of the Mother of God also resides in Smolensk, especially revered by citizens. This icon was painted in 1602 and was originally located in the Dnieper Tower of the city wall of Smolensk. In 1728 it was erected in a wooden church built on a tower; and then in 1800 in the newly built stone one above the road gate. This Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God in 1812, August 5, when our troops abandoned Smolensk, was taken by soldiers and was constantly with the army, which kept it in its ranks in all cases against the enemy. The troops saw with reverence the image of the Mother of God among themselves and revered it as a great guarantee of help from the Almighty. On the eve of the memorable day of the Battle of Borodino, the miraculous icon was carried among the soldiers to bless and encourage them for the upcoming great feat of struggle for the faith and the fatherland. Upon achieving each victory over the enemy, rights. the soldiers offered thanksgiving prayers in front of the icon. When the Almighty blessed Russian weapons, and with the subjugation of the enemies, the city of Smolensk was cleared of them, the miraculous Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God, by the will of the military leader, was transported back to Smolensk, to be placed in its original place and to glorify the Lord of hosts, wonderfully punishing the arrogant enemies of the people's peace. Many offerings were sent to Smolensk with the icon. The icon arrived in Smolensk on November 5, and this day for the residents of Smolensk became an unforgettable monument and holiday of the expulsion of enemies from the fatherland, the help and intercession of the Mother of God. On the day of the holiday in honor of the Smolensk Mother of God, the Church tenderly cries out: “Now we are diligent to the Mother of God in sinfulness and humility, and let us fall in repentance calling from the depths of our souls: Lady, help us with mercy, struggling to perish from many sins: For you are the only hope of the imams. Let us never be silent, Mother of God, to speak Your strength unworthy. If it weren’t for You who were there to pray, who would have saved us from such troubles? who would have kept them free to this day? There are no other imams of help, no other imams of hope, except for You, the Lady.” The Church prays before the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God to save us from many troubles. Indeed, in the 16th century, when a holiday was established in her honor, and especially in the 15th, many troubles weighed on Russia: troubles from external enemies - from the Tatars and Poles; internal troubles - from civil strife; troubles mainly for the Church from the union, the instrument of which in the 15th century. there was the Moscow Metropolitan Isidore, a Dalmatian by birth, and many other troubles, especially those that happened in 1812, from which who would have saved us, who would have kept us free to this day, if the Lady had not come to pray? Celebration of the Grebnevskaya Icon of the Mother of God When Grand Duke Dmitry Ioannovich Donskoy returned, after the victory over Mamai, from the banks of the Don to Moscow and reached the city of Greben on the Chiri River, which flows into the Don; the inhabitants of this city presented him with an icon of the Mother of God, which became famous among them for its miracles and received from this the name Grebnevskaya. The Grand Duke accepted this icon with faith and, upon arrival in Moscow, ordered it to be placed in the Moscow Assumption Cathedral. The great-grandson of Donskoy, Grand Duke John Vasilyevich, preparing to go on a campaign against Novgorod in 1471, vowed to build a church in honor of the Dormition of the Mother of God, her miraculous Grebnevskaya icon, which he took with him on the campaign. His vow culminated in the Battle of Shelon in 1472; he fulfilled it by building a wooden church in Moscow Posad in honor of the Dormition of the Mother of God, while the large Assumption Cathedral had not yet been completed. John III placed the image of the Grebnevskaya Mother of God in this church, decorating it with silver and precious stones. On the icon case he ordered an akathist to be written to the Most Holy Theotokos, in praise of her and in gratitude for the gift of his son Vasily. With this St. This is how Russian squads repelled the Poles on Sretenskaya Street in 1612. The chronicle says that “from the Church of Our Lady of Grebnevskaya, Prince Dmitry Trubetskoy set out to liberate China and the Kremlin from the Polish bastard and Russian traitors.” During the fire of 1687, the Church of the Grebnevskaya Mother of God was completely engulfed in flames, so that they did not even have time to take out her image; but it was miraculously preserved and, according to the chronicle, “suddenly found itself in the air.” In the 18th century, the Grebnevskaya Church was renovated out of zeal for its miraculous image. Tsarevna Natalia Alekseevna, the sister of Emperor Peter the Great, having decorated the miraculous image from her treasures, accompanied him on foot from the Transfiguration village to the Church of the Dormition of the Mother of God on the forest, and there, having performed a prayer service, she placed the shrine in its place. Stefan Yavorsky especially contributed to the restoration of this church; They also witnessed the miracles that occurred from the Grebnevskaya icon. To this day, Moscow residents do not stop flocking to the Grebnevskaya Church to venerate the miraculous icon: many take it to their homes. With warm faith, the source of healing and consolation from the shrine does not dry up for those who flow. Celebration of the Igritskaya Icon of the Mother of God The icon of the Mother of God Hodegetria on Pesochnya was found in 1624. Not far from Kostroma, in the village of Savitsky, the boyar son Emilian Isaev Sevryug lived. He lost his sight and sought help from doctors in vain. One day - it was in 1724 - his peasants, grazing his sheep and horses in the desert called Igritsa, near the Pesochna River, came to an extremely dilapidated church that was ready to collapse. Entering the church, the shepherds saw the image of the Mother of God holding the Eternal Child in her arms, as if it had just been painted. Wondering how a newly painted image appeared in the old church, they prayed and went to their master and told what they saw. The pious Emilian, delighted by this, immediately sent to Kostroma for his spiritual father, the Trinity Cathedral priest Theodore, so that he would come to serve a prayer service. Upon the arrival of the priest, Emilian, having gathered his relatives, went to the dilapidated church, where the icon of the Mother of God was found. The prayer service was performed with the blessing of water. When the priest began to sprinkle the icon with sacred water, the water was absorbed into it like into a sponge, only it stayed on the eyes for a long time and then the saint. water flowed from the eyes like streams. The priest also sprinkled St. blind Emilian with water, and he immediately received his sight. Glorifying the Lord, who works miracles through the icon of the Mother of God, all those present returned home and told about the miraculous appearance of the icon and the beneficial healing from it. At the site of the appearance of the icon, the Pesochensky Monastery was built, 15 versts from Kostroma on the right bank of the Volga. The miraculous icon of the Smolensk Mother of God, located on Pesochnya, is carried to Kostroma every year. On Tuesday, the 9th week after Easter, the clergy depart from Kostroma, accompanied by many citizens, to the Pesochensky Monastery; All-night vigils are served here. The next day, having served the liturgy early, the clergy and people set off for Kostroma with the miraculous icon of the Mother of God and go very quickly in order to be in time for the late liturgy in the city. The icon is carried by the priests alone. In two villages along the road, prayers are sung in chapels. When they approach Kostroma, ringing starts in the cathedral. When crossing the Volga, they call in coastal parishes. Almost the entire city comes out to celebrate the icon. Celebration of the Southern Icon of the Mother of God At the beginning of the reign of Mikhail Feodorovich, the Swedes attacked Russia and, ravaging the outskirts of the city of Pskov, plundered houses, churches and monasteries everywhere. At this time, in the monastery of the Mother of God of Pechersk, within the boundaries of Pskov, there lived one God-pleasing elder, schemamonk Dorotheos. During the invasion of the Swedes, who frightened the entire Pskov region, he decided in 1616 to leave the Pechersk monastery and return to his homeland, to the village of Nikulskoye, near the city of Mologa. With this intention, he one day came to the morning singing and stood in front of the icon of the Pechersk Mother of God: suddenly he heard her voice from the icon, which commanded him to take the image of the Mother of God Hodegetria and go with it to his homeland; the voice indicated the place where this icon was located, and promised to grant him a peaceful refuge in his homeland. The elder, delighted by this Divine voice, immediately after Matins went to the indicated place, saw the image of the Mother of God Hodegetria, threw himself on the ground in front of him and prayed. When, after prayer, he took him in his arms, suddenly a miraculous image shone before him; the colors on the icon seemed to him so bright and fresh, as if it were completely new. The elder, delighted with the wonderful icon of the Mother of God that he had received, came to the abbot, spoke about the miraculous image and about the miraculously received command to go home with this image, and asked the abbot for his blessing to leave the monastery. The abbot, not trusting the elder’s words, did not agree to let him go. The elder was very saddened by the refusal and, having come to his cell, ran with prayer to the Mother of God, asking for her help and consolation; He spent the whole day and night in such prayer. At night, the Mother of God appeared in a dream to the abbot and, looking at him with anger, said: “Why are you preventing Elder Dorotheus from going with My image to his homeland? With this stubbornness you are resisting My will.” The abbot woke up from sleep and felt great horror from this vision. Immediately announcing the vision to the brethren, he went to the place where the image of the Mother of God Hodegetria was, and, taking it from there, reverently gave it to Elder Dorotheus and blessed him to go home. The elder accepted the image and blessing from the abbot and set off, deciding, upon arriving at his homeland, to place this image in his parish church, in the name of the All-Merciful Savior. He had already reached the Mologa camp and the Yuga River; I was already only seven miles from the village of Nikulskoye, when I suddenly felt tired, put the icon on a tree and lay down under it and fell asleep. Having awakened, he wanted to go on the road again, he went up to remove the icon from the tree, but he could not move it from its place; attempted three times, but the icon remained motionless. The elder was brought into extreme bewilderment, and heard a voice from the icon: “Why are you trying in vain to remove My image: I wish that here, where you are now, a monastery was built for monks, in it may My image abide forever, and with it My grace and power.” The elder, having listened to this voice, no longer dared to remove the icon from the tree, but built himself a cell, he brought the icon into it and settled himself, spending day and night in fervent prayers before the icon of the Mother of God. Residents of the surrounding villages learned about the coming of the elder and about the miraculous image of the Mother of God he brought, and from everywhere they began to come to worship this image, bringing with them those possessed by various ailments and diseases. The weak received healing as they believed. After the death of the elder, in 1623, there was no longer any inhabitant left in his cell; The priests of the village of Nikulskoye decided to take the icon of the Mother of God from it and move it to the church. The icon was moved; but the next day, when they came to matins, they did not find her in the church, but found her in the elder’s cell in the same place, and a burning candle in front of her. The priests took the icon a second time and placed it in the church, but the next day, as before, the image disappeared and was again found in the desert; The priests were convinced that their intention was not pleasing to the Mother of God, and they left the icon in the desert. Miracles from the icon multiplied; the priests considered it necessary to bring them to the attention of Varlaam, Metropolitan of Rostov. The Metropolitan reported to Patriarch Filaret. The Patriarch, with the consent of Tsar Mikhail Feodorovich, sent the Metropolitan a letter with permission to build a monastery and church on the site of the miraculous image of the Mother of God. After some time, a wooden church in the name of the Dormition of the Mother of God and cells for monastics were built. Thus, the foundation of the monastery was laid, which received its name from the elder Dorotheus and the Yuga River - the Yuga Dorotheev Hermitage, which is still famous for the icon of the Mother of God Hodegetria located in it. Celebration of the Shuya Icon of the Mother of God The Shuya Icon of the Mother of God is located in the Cathedral Church of the Resurrection of Christ in the city of Shuya, Vladimir province. It was written in 1654 after the end of the pestilence that happened that year, from which Shuya got rid of through the intercession of the Mother of God. The following legends have been preserved about the writing and authenticity of the miracles of this icon. “During the reign of the most pious Sovereign Tsar and Grand Duke of All Russia Mikhail Feodorovich, in the region of the city of Suzdal, in the monastery of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, also on Sharkhma River, there was a certain monk Joachim, living a reclusive life, always staying in his cell, going nowhere, seeking his salvation, many virtues And by doing this you pleased God, and incessantly, evening, morning and noon, you remained in prayer and conversed with God.” The Monk Joachim was an icon painter, and to his icons “the Lord gave His grace, and to this day gives His saint for the sake of working miracles, who come to those with faith. It is known to this day that the image of the Most Holy One is found in the city of Shuya. Mother of God, the handwritings of that holy father Joachim, from whom the Most Holy One comes with faith to this day for healing. Mother of God, prayers for the sake of and the supplication of that holy father. In the aforementioned city of Shuya, in the cathedral church of the Resurrection of Christ, there is a miraculous image of the Most Holy. Our Lady of Her Venerable Appearance, called Smolensk. About this holy image and about the miracles arising from it in the summer of July 7175 (1667) on the 2nd day, according to the charter of His Holiness Patriarch Joasaph of Moscow, by the Right Reverend Cathedral: of the Ipatsky Monastery by Archimandrite Kirill, from Suzdal of the Spasoevfimiev Monastery by Archimandrite Paul, of the Nikolaev Shartom Monastery by Varlaam, Zolotnikovsky the desert by Theoktist, from Suzdal, the Vasilievsky Monastery by Archimandrite Theodosius, the Suzdal Cathedral Church with Archpriest Simeon, there was a real testimony according to church rites, and the previous miracles that happened over the surrounding people and people (to whom the reference was made) were testified and appeared to be true.” Others believe that St. Paul was buried in the monastery of Perivleptos, which is now the Armenian Sulu monastery (see “Letters from the East, part 1, p. 300).