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St. ten martyred. in Crete: Theodula, Satornina, Euporus, Gelasia, Euniciana, Zotika, Pompius, Agathopus, Basilides and Evarestes These martyrs, natives of different cities, were collected and presented to the court of the ruler of the island of Crete, as zealots of the Christian faith, and were handed over to them for torture. Having experienced all kinds of torments on them, which they bravely endured for thirty days, remaining unshakable in their faith, the ruler ordered them to be beheaded. This was in 251, during the persecution of Christians by Emperor Decius. The fathers of the council that took place in Crete in 458 say in a letter to Emperor Leo that “their island has hitherto been protected from error by the intercession of these holy martyrs” 346 . – Subsequently, their relics were transferred to Rome. Their memory was also celebrated in Constantinople, in the church of St. Stefan. Rev. Nifonta, ep. Cyprus The son of wealthy parents, originally from Paphlagonia, Niphon, having received a good home education, also received from his parents the means for furthering his scientific education in Constantinople. The power of a good education is great, but, unfortunately, it cannot always protect a person from submission to another force, which also irresistibly acts on him if he is not awake enough to move away from it: to move away from the influence of vicious people. So Niphon, having carelessly become close to vicious comrades, became carried away by bad examples to such an extent that he not only forgot all the good suggestions of his teachers, but also seemed to lose all thought about God Himself... An immoral life does not make a person happy. It is imprinted with an ugly mark on his entire appearance. So it was with young Niphon, mired in the whirlpool of unholy amusements. “But the last spark of goodness, planted in his heart by his good upbringing, has not yet died out in him. Niphon did not completely lose the shame that suddenly awoke in him when he once met one of his former good comrades, and at the words that involuntarily escaped from him when he looked at his disfigured face, reflecting the ugly life he led... -What a scary face you have! - Nifont's comrade exclaimed with horror when he saw it, - not at all the same as you had it before... The impression of horror made on his comrade echoed with even greater horror in the depths of the heart of Niphon, mired in vice, and illuminated before him a disastrous abyss, on the edge of which he suddenly felt himself... “What if a person was so horrified by me,” a burning consciousness flashed through his mind, “then how terrible will I appear before God, and how will I appear in this form at His judgment?.. And with this performance, memories of the pure childhood he spent in the house of pious parents, and of all the suggestions and concepts acquired during further education in the capital, seemed to flood into his soul. The realization of how he had distanced himself from all goodness in the circle of worthless comrades appeared to him in all its terrifying clarity and produced a saving revolution in him. But it was not suddenly that his now beneficially illuminated thoughts and feelings, distorted by bad habits, could be realized in appropriate deeds. At first he had to endure a strong struggle: either he fell to the hope of God’s mercy and resorted to prayer, or he succumbed to despondency and confusion of thoughts, which distracted him from prayer. In the languor of the struggle between opposing feelings, he once came to the church and, leaning before the icon of the Mother of God, prayed fervently: “Have mercy on me, Intercessor of Christians, Joyful, Pure! Help me for the sake of Your great mercy! In You are all the hope and hope of those who repent!” From the depths of his soul he appealed to the Mother of God, Niphon was suddenly filled with inexplicable peace; it seemed to him that the features of her Divine face were illuminated with love and forgiveness, and he left the church encouraged and reassured. From then on, as soon as despondency or temptation approached him in the struggle against habitual thoughts and passions, he sought and found protection from them and repose in prayer to the Mother of God. Often, however, Niphon weakened in spirit, but since the impulse towards God and the blatant desire for the salvation of his soul did not fade away in him, God even responded to them with unusual support and help, revealing himself to him in wonderful visions and various signs... Thus, he finally overcame, struggling with zeal, all the temptations and addictions of the world and achieved such perfection in his life that he was awarded from God the gift of miracles and clairvoyance. Hiding from human glory, in his old age Niphon arrived in Alexandria, but even here he did not remain in obscurity, but, by a special revelation, was elected bishop of the city of Constantia on the island of Cyprus. However, his beneficent stewardship of his flock did not last long. Having foreseen his death in advance, Rev. Niphon reposed peacefully and was canonized by the Church. He lived and died during the time of Constantine the Great. † Repose of St. Theoktistus, Archbishop of Novgorod Not much information has been preserved about the earthly life of St. Archbishop Theoktistus; but even in the few news reports one can see what the main feat of his life was, glorified by heaven. After Clement, Archbishop of Novgorod, reposed on May 22, 1299, “The Novgorodians and the mayor Andrei, discussing for a long time about a successor, fell in love with the God-appointed, kind and humble Theoktistus, abbot of St. Annunciation. Gathering the veche at St. Sophia, Prince Boris Andreevich and all the Novgorodians respectfully brought him and sat him in the bishop’s courtyard until they found out where the metropolitan was.” The following year, “Metropolitan Maxim, Bishop Simeon of Rostov and Bishop Andrei of Tver arrived in Novgorod and installed Theoktistus as archbishop in the St. Sophia Cathedral; The people of Novgorod were very happy about their ruler” 347. The celebration for Novgorod was truly extraordinary! Only for the first time the Novgorod Bishop is dedicated in the Novgorod Church of St. Sofia. What the initiate himself felt, the monuments do not say. – Next year, with the blessing of St. Theoktista, the stone church of St. archang. Michael and consecrated two years later - the church is still intact 348. – In 1305 we see the blessed one. archpastor taking part in the treaties between Novgorod and V. book Mikhail Tverskoy about preserving ancient mutual relations. “Your reign, say the Novgorodians, must be held honestly (must), according to duty (according to custom), without offense; and you, sir, should also hold Novgorod (should) without offense, according to the duty.” The seal on the letter represents the face of the Mother of God with the eternal Child on the chest, with the inscription: Mr Ѳꙋ, and on the back the words: “Fektist Archbishop. Novgorod" 349. In the same year we see the saint consecrating the church in honor of St. Boris and Gleb and another, at the prince's court, in honor of the fathers of the first Ecumenical Council 350. – Two years later, the Novgorodians presented their archbishop under the seal. to the prince a complaint against his Novgorod governors. In September Prince Mikhail arrived in Novgorod and with personal orders calmed the Novgorodians 351. “But the times were troubled then.” Book Yuri Danilovich argued with St. V. book Mikhail for the reign of Novgorod, and Yuri’s machinations only caused trouble for Novgorod 352. - The scribe of the Apostle of 1307 said with sorrow: “under these princes, strife sown and grew, and our lives perished from princely quarrels and the lives of people were shortened” 353. - And blessed. The saint was already in poor health. In this state of affairs, in December 1307, “having blessed the Novgorodians, due to illness he retired to the Monastery of the Annunciation of the Virgin Mary in order to remain in silence” 354. – The blessed one was almost constantly ill after that, for three whole years. “He suffered a lot for God,” says a contemporary; “When he died, his holy soul ascended to heaven, and his face seemed to be illuminated with light, so that those who saw marveled and glorified God.” So Blessed Theoktist, even then, as hegumen of the Annunciation Monastery, was adorned with kindness of heart and humility. But God was pleased to visit him with a serious illness, and his soul, through bodily suffering, was still elevated in spiritual perfection. - Wonderful are the works of God! All-wise goodness knows who can reach perfection on which path and puts him on the best path. “Let us not grumble against the Lord when He sends us illness: we need it, it is our salvation.” Let us endure illness as a pacification of the plans of our pride, as a cure for various other moral illnesses, as the best state for acquiring firmness in goodness, skill in prayer and trust in God! Blazh. Theoktist, having matured in spirit through bodily suffering, rested peacefully on December 23. 1310 “His body was laid with honor, accompanied by all the clergy, in the monastery church of the Annunciation of the Virgin Mary 355. The first glorification of Saint Theoktistus took place 300 years after his death. The wife of the royal clerk, Juliania, was ill for a long time, so they lost all hope of her recovery. One night, her husband appeared to her in a dream in sacred majesty and said: “Look for the tomb of the Archbishop of this city, Theoktistus, and you will receive healing.” The clerk, after obtaining information from the chronicles about the tomb of Blessed Theoktistus, brought the sick woman to the Annunciation Monastery; He sang a funeral service here and generously distributed alms. The sick toga even felt relief and soon completely recovered. At the request of the grateful clerk, an icon of the saint was painted at the same time, according to an appearance to his former wife; and at the same time, the Sofia sexton Theodore, who was engaged in icon painting, painted his icon from the ancient original, which was preserved on the wall of the Sofia porch, and depicted the saint in a prayerful position in front of the icon of the Annunciation. - Then in 1644 The Novgorod viceroy of the Tsar, Prince Vasily Romodanovsky, out of reverent zeal for the saint, erected a chapel on the site of the collapsed church; then he built a shrine over the relics with the face of the saint, and finally he restored the stone church. In 1707 the relics of the saint were openly laid out. The healings continued. Thus, in 1710, the villager Maria, who had been sick for 20 years and blind for 3 years, when she kissed the face of the saint on his tomb, instantly received health. In 1714, the saint appeared in a night vision to the sexton widow Evdokia, who was lying in relaxation, and said: “Why are you being treated in vain by stupid magicians?” The sick woman ordered her son to lead her to the tomb of St. Theoktistus and here she received healing. In 1786, the relics of the saint, with the permission of St. Synod, were transferred from the abolished Annunciation Monastery to the Yuriev Monastery and were placed in the church, near the wall, near the iconostasis. Archimander. Photius built a chapel in honor of Saint Theoctistus 356. Rev. Paul the Confessor, Bishop of Neocaesarea. During the persecution of Likinievo (320), the local government accused him of resisting the authorities, branded his hands with a hot iron and exiled to the Euphrates River. After the death of Licinius, he returned to the throne and in 325 he was among the other fathers at the first Ecumenical Council in Nicaea. Collection l. III, 67. 181. IV, 45. 46. Nikon. l. II, 97. Novgor. I, II, III and IV years. under 6808 and 6810. Macaria ancient. Novgor. 1.371. Collection gram. 1. No. 9. 10. In the agreement of 1265, “you will hold Novgorod toll, as your father held.” See No. 8.11. “Duty” from “vulgar” custom. 1305 “the church of St. was sacred. M. Boris and Gleb and the great priesthood, Archbishop. Novgor. Feoktist." Collection l. III. 68. Great consecration - consecration performed by the archpastor himself; and the consecration performed by the abbot with a presanctified antimension is a small consecration, as if performed according to a short rite. Collection gram. 1. No. 10. Collection. l. III, 68. The Novgorodians themselves wrote (collected gram. 1. No. 11) that Mikhail, like V. the prince is their lawful prince. But Yuri worried them through bought supporters. Description Synod. handwritten No. 45, p. 292. M. 1856 Collection l. III, 67. 68. 181. 223. Collection l. III, 69. 181. V, 204. 205. Nikon. l. II. 107. RKP. saints b. total ist. No. 231, and Mosk. acad. No. 209. In the Oten calendar of 1718, “the monastery of the Annunciation was established. from Nova-Gorod 3 fields; relics hidden; There is no service, there is troparion and kontakion and miracles.” Service and life of St. Theoktista in the Bible. Yuriev Monastery. Macaria ancient 1, 421. 535. 536.