Глава 13. 1807–1808

...Be filled with the Spirit, speaking to yourselves in psalms, and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your hearts to the Lord... 786 In the "Eorthodrome" the wisdom of Saint Nicodemus reaches its highest and deepest manifestations. The heartfelt words of the creators of the canons, which he interprets in this book, give him the opportunity to show in every detail where they committed the “praiseworthy theft” 787. “Eortodromoy” with a volume of 750 pages of “in quarto” format is a true treasury of knowledge that the monk scattered throughout his huge book, which tells about many theological, moral, religious, liturgical problems, and the author addresses clergy, monks, and the whole world! Looking at the system of notes created by the Holy Father himself, you don’t know who to be more surprised at: the hymnographers or their interpreter? The Monk Nicodemus is not content with interpreting the canons. The reader should know everything that the Holy Fathers wrote in prose about each of the holidays under discussion and where these Words are located: in the Lavra, Vatopedi, Iviron, Dionysiata, etc., and what phrase they begin with... And in the midst of this feast of knowledge and much learning, you see Saint Nicodemus kneeling before Cosmos and Damascus 788 and saying: “I am unwise, foolish and unlearned.” A prominent hierarch who amazed the audience of theologians and professors with his conversation, when asked how he knows so much? After all, they studied together! - answered: “I also studied at another school - the school of Nikodim Svyatogorets!” Everything that he said in general, a serious researcher will find in only one book of the saint - in “Eorthodrome”. This book in itself is a school, or, if this definition is not too successful, this work is the work of an entire school of sages and saints, and not just one poor monk from the Holy Mountain. Nicodemus Chrysostom not only interprets the canons, but, one might say, finds in them a reason to present in a concentrated form theology, dogmatics, philosophy, history and patristic philology, and does all this with such high skill that the reader enjoys almost more the beauty and richness of the interpretations than what they explain. Unfortunately, this treasure is unknown to many, and it is especially sad that those who study theology, ethics and homiletics do not know it, all because the book is too large and does not sell well. The authors of works on these topics do not know that they will find ready-made and rich materials on their problems, accompanied by a detailed index, in the “Eorthodrome”. Thus, with the word “Mother of God” we find 143 references to topics related to the Blessed Virgin, whether we are talking about Her maternal appeal to Her Son or about the Filial appeal to the Mother of Her Divine Son. Oh, if I had the pen of Chrysostom just to collect and harmoniously present these epithets, I would bring unknown pleasure to the readers, and to the Lady a most beautiful wreath! And what would the name be? The name should have been borrowed from John the Geometer 789: “The most amazing height”! But how was St. Nicodemus able to complete this work? After all, he was exhausted by poverty and illness at the end of his life. Where did he get the mental strength for such work, when his unbrotherly enemies were constantly inventing new intrigues against him? Where did his endurance come from, where did this deep river of knowledge and “omniscience” come from? On page 403 of “Eortodrome” he himself answers these questions for us. Speaking about the God-receiving Sepulcher in the interpretation of the canon of Holy Saturday, the monk writes the following: “I say this, and my heart leaps within me, my spirit rejoices and my soul rejoices” 790. The Holy Father took up this work at a time when he was exhausted from fatigue and was exhausted by the illness that had befallen him. But his soul, wounded by divine love, did not want to obey the laws of nature, to a certain limit, which it surpassed when God, who is above nature, moved into it. In the introduction to the canon of the Ascension, the Monk Nicodemus secretly presents the struggle between nature and desire, from which he emerges victorious: “Therefore, although I was troubled by the interpretation of other canons - for I interpreted these canons last - I nevertheless forced myself, calling on the help of the Ascended Christ our God... and wrote a commentary on them more concisely, for the reason stated above...” 791. Despite the fact that his bodily strength left him, the ascetic was able to give the Church an amazing book, the like of which the Orthodox world had never known before. Such an inner fire consumed his God-bearing soul! “Eorthodromium” by Nikodim Svyatogorets “famous statement of your words” 792. In his introduction, St. Nicodemus explains the reason why God should be given glory in songs and doxologies: “As God does good to people, so people should thank their Benefactor God... Since God is the living and essential Word, He rejoices when He is called by this name, and therefore thanksgiving sent through the word is more pleasant for Him than all others. And the word is not only something that is read prosaically, without any meter, but also something that is composed in harmonious verses, and in chants, and songs...” 793. He talks about the crossing of the Red Sea and the praise that Moses offered, composing verses in Hebrew 794, about Samuel’s mother, the prophetess Anna, who composed the third song about the good deed God had done for her, he also talks about how Jonah 795 and the three holy youths 796 composed songs about their salvation. So the prophet David, for the numerous benefits shown to him by God, composed many psalms, “which are set to a certain melody and filled with song harmony" 797. “...And in the New Testament it was established to celebrate annually the great Lord’s holidays, in which the Only Begotten Son of God poured out rivers of His grace and good deeds to the world through the House of His Incarnation” 798, as Theodoret of Cyrus says: “The God who created us, having bound us after the Fall with worries and sorrows, gave us a reason for spiritual consolation, establishing divine holidays; for their subject is the remembrance of the gifts of God and the anticipation of the complete destruction of all sorrow” 799. That is why the Fathers wrote solemn words and poetic creations for various holidays, composed harmonious songs, melodies and various chants, so that, according to Basil the Great, “along with what is sweet and euphonious to the ear, we inconspicuously accept what is useful in words, like the wise doctors who, giving bitter medicine to drink to those who have an aversion to it, often coat the cup with honey. That is why these harmonious chants were invented, so that... those of young disposition would sing only in appearance, but in reality would educate their souls” 800. For this reason, says the Monk Nicodemus, Clement of Alexandria, the martyr Athenogenes, Bishop Nepos, Victorinus, Lactantius, Gregory the Theologian, Andrew of Crete, Joseph the Hymnographer, Anatoly and many others composed various hymns, “and especially and significantly - the Jerusalem hierarch Cosmas and the namesake of grace John, the Jerusalem presbyter, who came from Damascus - two sacred Muses, two heavenly Orpheus and two good-voiced and sweet-sounding nightingales of the holy Church of Christ: they decorated, they did good, they sweetened all the great and Lordly feasts of our Lord Jesus Christ and our Lady Theotokos" 801. Further, the saint writes that due to the loftiness of his thoughts and the incomprehensibility of the ancient Greek language, especially for ordinary Christians, he undertook the interpretation and simplification of the language of the canons, “to benefit our simple brothers, through simplicity of interpretation, and to those experienced in the ancient Greek language, through a printed edition. We were prompted to this by many brothers, zealots of goodness and champions of the common good of Orthodox Christians...” 802. The Monk Nicodemus examines the meaning of the irmos, troparion, canon and song and moves on to their roots, setting out historical facts, under what circumstances the various canons and songs were sung, from which the nine songs sung in churches originate, and reveals the reasons that prompted Cosmas the Sweet Singer to use a certain voice for each holiday, finding in this a symbolic meaning. And finally, he writes: “So, now that everything has been told and set forth, you, brothers, are called to read this book, firstly, by the Lord Christ Himself, Whom is sung and glorified on all the Lord’s feasts by singing these festive canons. Secondly, the divine and sacred creators of these canons call you... the sacred duo of hymns, the all-loving and unilateral pair of divinely inspired hymns, and in Christ the three-desired and one-wise duo of spirit-driven musicians who put in a lot of work and sweat in order to compose these most beautiful, melodious and wise divine canons... with them I also call, insignificant one, who collected this interpretation and explained it in simple language, all Orthodox Christians, both clergy and laity, both young and old, both unlearned and experienced in the ancient Greek language... And for those who hunger for the bread of wisdom, this book will become a spiritual meal, full of myriads of heavenly foods... For those who thirst for the nectarine and sweet water of the sacred troparions, it will become a honey-flowing and full-flowing source, pouring out to them the spiritual stream of immortality that resurrects the dead. And finally, for those who wish to penetrate into the divine and spiritual meaning of the Lord's holidays, for them this book will become a blooming and fragrant paradise, filled with the most fragrant plants, spikenard, saffron, reed and cinnamon; filled with the sweetest fruits, dates, pomegranates, nuts and fruits; and finally, filled with various heavenly gifts, enlightening the mind, attracting the heart and delighting the entire inner man..." 803. As soon as the Monk Nicodemus finished “Eorthodromium,” he immediately notified Patriarch Gregory 5, who had returned to the Ecumenical Throne after his second exile to Athos, that “with God’s help, the interpretations in simple language of the Lord’s feasts and the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos, as well as the sacred antiphons of the Octoechos, have been completed, as Your Holiness bequeathed to me when you were on Athos.” He fervently asks that, “since the Patriarch is aware of my poverty, an order should be issued to rewrite and publish this book for the common benefit of Orthodox Christians.” The Patriarch responded with the following letter 804: “Most Reverend Cyrus Nicodemus among the monks, child of the Lord, beloved of our measure, may there be the grace of your learning and peace from God, and from us prayer, blessing and forgiveness. We have received a letter from your scholarship, which talks about rewriting the interpretation of the canons of the Lord and the Mother of God feasts. Praising the zeal of your learning, since we have known for many years your diligence in spiritual writings for the general benefit of Orthodox completeness, behold, we determine that the most reverend Cyrus Nicephorus, Chartophylax, will hand over to your learning the necessary amount for the rewriting of your work. And the Church will take care of the printed edition of the book... May your scholarship receive deep prayers and blessings from the Holy Church for the labors that you have undertaken interpreting the canons. And from the Rewarder God, both for these and for your other labors... may you be awarded a reward in the Kingdom of God... Patriarch Gregory of Constantinople, prayer book in Christ, June 1808, 10.” The book was sent to Joseph of Vatopedi, who, among other things, wrote: “I found in it, like rubies and sapphires, pious words of high theology about the Holy Trinity; like emeralds and jaspers, mysterious and deep thoughts about the Economy of the Incarnation of God the Word; like precious pearls, natural science sayings are inserted throughout; like topaz and gold from Sufir, theories of moral philosophy; and simply to say, I found in it a rich treasury of the Spirit, with which the entire Church of Christ is enriched, and every reader becomes a rich man...” 805. He also expresses his praise to Nicodemus in three iambic epigrams. In the same way, Chartophylax Nicephorus wrote his “Statement” on the “Eorthodrome”: “I read the Interpretation on the canons of the Lord and the Mother of God feasts... and in my opinion, the book containing the said Interpretation is like a nectar and full-flowing spring, the water of which is transparent and pure in appearance, sweet and mellifluous in taste, resurrects the dead in power and is life-giving in action. Overall, I found this book to be spiritual and exuding grace. As a poet would say: “Sorrow and anger drown in it and oblivion of disasters comes” 806. I saw how the author of the book, Mr. Nicodemus, seemed to dig through channels and lay out canals, and through tedious labors opens in this book another well of Jacob, a water-bearing rock of Moses, the boiling water of Siloam, a divided spring from the highest waters of the Spirit, so that all the verbal sheep of the Church of Christ would drink from it living and pleasant waters pouring out immortal sweetness. So, if anyone thirsts with spiritual and mental thirst, let him come to this source and drink insatiably of the living and immortal water, about which I know well that it will become in him another source, flowing into eternal life, as the Lord said 807. And let him also thank the one who dug this source for the benefit of all the brothers. But first of all, and in everything, and with everything, may he thank the Mother of God Mary, the Guardian and special Representative of this holy Mountain, many times and a thousand times, who not only with her powerful power and luminous grace enlightened and strengthened the writer for the creation and compilation of this book, which cost a lot of work and filled with great benefits, but also made this sacred land initially, from ancient times, her Paradise and a garden full of various fruits and all kinds of flowers, and spiritual plants: which means - full of men, not only doing saving commandments and godlike virtues, but also shining with sacred arts, for the glory of Her and Her Only Begotten Son, and for the benefit of all Christ's fullness" 808. Nikephoros accompanied what he wrote with three iambic epigrams, one of which is as follows: “Rejoice, writer of this Commentary, Saint Nikodim, honor, The power and glory of the people of Naxos. For with countless works the Canons He interpreted everything for the divine holidays, Collected the light and words of the saints. It is fitting that everyone praise this husband To the peoples, as Orthodox, with extreme care Who wrote the immortal Book, With which he astonishes the souls of Christians" 809. The saint’s friend, Kollivad Christopher 810, also read this monumental book and sent him this wonderful message: “I have read, my beloved spiritual brother, the book you created, “Eorthodromius”; I read, however, not all of it, but only part of it. However, from this one part, as if by its claws, according to the proverb, I recognized the lion 811. Of course, I rejoiced in my heart: after all, you filled this book, beloved, with such verbal ambrosia that, as it seems to me, you completely put to shame both the Sirens, if they existed, and the nightingales themselves (unless someone means the Heavenly Powers by nightingales). I saw something new in this book, which became an echo responding to the voice of the prototype; and, so to speak, I saw, according to the man of desires 812, the voice of words, like the voice of the people 813. And just as in the Gospels the Theologian is called the Son of Thunder, 814 because of the heavenly and supernatural dogmas revealed to him, it would be fair to call you the Son of Thunder, for you expounded the songs of the church and sung by the saints. After all, this source, filled with pleasant and animal water, was sealed because of the shadow of obscurity covering it, and therefore is of very little use. But you, having poured out its sweet and abundant moisture into many channels, allowed everyone to take advantage of it. For here he transformed poverty into breadth, and there he added depth of meaning, here he ascended to the height of contemplation, and there he expounded the length of right dogmas; and having collected a whole host of testimonies from the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, from saints glorified by the gift of words and even from external sages, with the help of all these riches he shone like some new lightning from Olympus, and gave birth to the faithful, as if in an oyster shell, in this book, genuine pearls 815, which should have been published by means of a printed edition, the witch is speech, lower than words, their voices are not heard 816 - and this is not otherwise than with desire, as with readiness, as with joy: wake up, wake up!” May Christopher's prayer for a second edition be heard. May my heart be exalted towards You, the Word, and may nothing sweeten my weakness from worldly beauties 817. What we wrote about the “Eorthodrome” is also true about the “New Ladder”, in its content, height, wisdom and the circumstances in which it was created. “The New Ladder” is, so to speak, the swan song of the reverend: he completed it with great difficulty, overcome by a growing illness. This book deals exclusively with the topics of interpretation, theology, spirituality, morality, and dogmatics. The Monk Nicodemus took all the degrees of Octoechos (75 of them) and created an entire large-format book, 350 pages long, as he writes, “a spiritually beneficial book that was lacking in His Holy Church” 818. And if the “Eorthodromium” serves as proof of the manifold wisdom of the Monk Nicodemus, then the “New Ladder” reveals to the reader the abundance of gifts and gifts of the Holy Spirit, which the monk was in fact endowed with in abundance. Of course, the monk’s last work was bound to become the most mature fruit of his divine experience and the most beautiful result of his amazing learning and deep wisdom. If we were unaware of the possibilities of his endless memory, we would have the right to assume that the “New Ladder” is not at all a work created in just a few months (and even during this time, the work was constantly interrupted by the illness that had previously overcome the inflexible ascetic, which befell him at that period of his life), but that before us is a creation that required many years of diligence and much more bodily strength than the saint had left. Meanwhile, his biographer Euthymius reports that he wrote this book during an illness, in the middle of 1808, that is, a year before his venerable death. What force helped him accomplish this feat? We have already said this above. “Where God, who is above nature, dwells, supernatural things happen.” We believe that the “New Ladder” alone would be enough to show that St. Nicodemus is a great theologian, equal to the previous holy Fathers, for in this book he concentrated almost all theological bookishness. It is gratifying that it was recently republished by the pious publisher from Volos, Mr. Sotirios Schinas 819. As was the case with the “Heortodromium”, the Monk Nicodemus sent a letter to Patriarch Gregory about the “New Ladder”, “since,” as he writes 820, “during the Patriarch’s stay in the holy monastery of Iviron, he personally appeared before His Holiness and informed him of his intention to interpret in simple language the sacred antiphons of the Octoechos...”. To this letter, the patriarch, who at that time returned to his throne for the second time, replied that, “praising the zeal of your learning, since we have known for many years your diligence in spiritual writings for the general benefit of Orthodox completeness,” 821 the Church will gladly bear the costs of rewriting and publishing this book as well. As was his custom, Nicodemus the Holy Mountain sent the “New Ladder” to his longtime friend, didascal and collivadian Christopher Prodromitus, so that he could make his judgment. Unfortunately, few letters from the reverend to his friends have survived, and therefore we are deprived of important data about his friendly and family connections. Christopher, having studied the book, sent the following letter to the Monk Nicodemus, which we present here in full 822, since it not only expresses the author’s love for the monk, but also describes the content of the most beautiful and thoughtful “New Ladder”. “I have read, dearest of my brothers Nicodemus, the book you sent, which you laboriously compiled to interpret the seventy-five degrees of the Octoechos. And truly, I found in it sacred ascents 823, according to David, along which some, although burdened with the weight of the body, fly upward with virtues; others, spreading the wings of thought, ascend to the heights of divine knowledge; or, through these sacred powers, one ascends when he discusses the Divinity of the Only Begotten; the other descends when he reflects on the reasons for the Economy of the Incarnation. And simply to say, in all these degrees, and in each part of them, wherever the mind plunges, it everywhere finds that the degrees bear their name symbolically: that is, they contain high thoughts, like some angels ascending and descending on the Son of Man, as the Lord Himself said in the Gospels 824. So, know, O beloved, that reading this work filled my heart with unspeakable pleasure. After all, Christ's Holy Church in these last times has been enriched with such a sacred book, full of divine and human gifts: human, for it is dotted with stories, parables and sayings of external sages; and divine, for it is adorned with the words of the Holy Scriptures, the testimonies of the divine Fathers and moral exhortations. And above all this, like a kind of crown and a golden and blessed palace, to speak in imitation of Pindar, it shines with the purest, richest and orthodox theology. And therefore, if I say that you exude rivers of theology, then I will not sin against the truth. Of course, it would be very fair to say: Oh, Athos! oh, silence! And even more than that: oh, solitude! oh, the grace of thought! O breadth and fruitfulness! And after that: oh, beauty and fluency of speech! How great will be the loss for the children of the Church of Christ if you do not bother to print this most useful book of yours! Therefore, together with others that cannot be counted, O wondrous one, may this work of yours be counted among the children born of you, as the truly intelligent Sinesius says, that is, among the sacred books, and this work of yours: be! Entirely embraced by love in Christ, Christopher the Monk.” Then the monk sent “The New Ladder” to another of his acquaintances, the scientist Onufriy Kunduroglu, who subsequently compiled his short biography. Onuphrius deeply respected and revered the Monk Nicodemus, and, it seems, maintained friendly relations with him when he came to the Iveron Monastery 825 from Kapsala to venerate the Most Holy Goalkeeper. Onuphrius, “having carefully read and learned once, twice, and many times” how wonderful this book was, was struck by its spiritual beauty and sent the following letter to the saint 826: “I have read and understood once, and twice, and many times, which you sent me at my request, the sacred Book of Interpretation of the degree of Octoechos. And I don’t know what to tell you about it, father: after all, this book inspires the reader with reverence and respect for its author. It is high, thanks to the height of dogmatic theology. It is broad due to the variety of topics covered. It is extremely clear due to the simplicity of the language. She is strong, thanks to her courage and strength of thought. She is methodical in the way she writes. So, I please the one who wrote such a book; I praise the one who publishes it; and I will thrice please all the people who have been honored with such a generally useful book. And it is rightly called “The Ladder,” for it elevates the reader from the low and earthly to the high and heavenly. After all, she teaches him the unity of the Essential Divinity and the trinity of the Divine Hypostases; tells about the perfections of God; shows the difference which properties in God are natural and essential, and which are hypostatic; sets forth the dogmatic teaching and reveals that the Holy Spirit is truly the perfect God, glorified with the Father and the Son, and proceeding from the one Father, and that He strengthens all creation, preserves things in accordance with what they were created for; brings into being what did not exist, gives life to it and moves it; sanctifies all intelligent and verbal creatures, and simply gives everything to everyone in accordance with the dignity of each. This book refutes the various errors and slander of the Sabellians, Arians, Eunomians, Macedonians, Doukhobors and all heretics in general, and with the sharpest sword of the Spirit cuts, like a thread, and dissolves, like a web, their innovations. Reading this book enlightens the mind and makes it godlike; eradicates malice and cultivates virtues; educates morals and changes them for the better; fights passions and grants victory over them; and to put it briefly, just as the right does not require correction, just as the complete does not need addition, so she, since she is complete, teaches everyone everything useful for everyone, and there is hardly any good that she does not give to everyone, like inhaling air, and eating bread, and drinking water, and the circulation of the elements; and since she is right, then she directs a person to God, who is right by nature. Therefore, we raise our hands to God in tearful prayer, so that we may soon see this book published for the benefit of all. “To your all-honorable Reverend Learning, an obedient servant in everything, Onufriy Kunduroğlu.” “Oh, what a most desirable thing would be revealed to the Orthodox if by chance, or, better to say, through sacred prayer, a certain Ladder was found, leading those who wish from earth to Heaven, from the world to God, from what is below to what is above and from the temporal to the eternal! Indeed, this would be most desirable! For as great and almost limitless is the height of the sky in comparison with the earth, it is just as difficult to ascend to this height...” writes St. Nicodemus 827. As we wrote earlier, the “New Ladder” is an imitation of the Ladder of St. John, which had such a profound influence on the monk in the first years of his monastic life and has already been briefly described by us. Comparing that Ladder with his own, the holy father, among other things, writes: “For this interpretation is truly a ladder that lifts people to Heaven... And in short, this interpretation is a Ladder richer, higher and safer than the well-known Ladder of John. Richer, because that Ladder has only thirty steps, and this one has seventy-five, so that those who ascend will be carried away by its rich and spiritual thoughts; higher, because it contains the high theology of the Holy Spirit, or, better to say, the Most Royal and Essential Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit; and safer than John's, because out of every three degrees one always constitutes the Trinity 828 about the Holy Spirit. And this in order, on the one hand, to encourage those who ascend with His power and grace, so that they would not be afraid or dizzy from the height of the ascent, but would be strengthened, stretching forward and forgetting what is behind, according to Blessed Paul 829; and on the other, to decorate this heavenly Ladder with theology of His Divinity; and at the same time, to strengthen this Ladder, like the so-called braces or ligaments placed inside the wall, in order to further strengthen it...” The Holy Father concludes his preface by describing the great benefit of the New Ladder 830: “So, my beloved brethren, as you read this book and receive benefit from it, glorify God, the Giver of all good things, and give thanks to His goodness, for the sake of which He was pleased to bring to a favorable end this generally useful book, which was so lacking in the Church of Christ...” How characteristic of the great and holy soul of the saint that, despite the persecution, sorrow, slander that fell upon the most holy ascetic, the worker of the mysterious vineyard of the Lord, he did not despair, but continued to work, knowing well that he must also drink the cup of his Lord, as happened with all the Fathers who lived before him - after all, they were subjected to many trials and endured many sorrows for some reason the mystical law of Divine Providence. And, as one wise man said, “There is only one thing we can be sure of: that we will suffer and that we will die.” After all, it was not hidden from him that the abuse to which he was subjected, by God’s permission, came from the common enemy of the human race, the devil. People are not evil, but they often become executors of Satan's evil advice. It was against him that the Monk Nicodemus took up arms, and it was he who was burned in the humble deserts of the unknown Kapsala. 3. The last rays of the setting sun ...Be always ready for anyone who demands an account from you in your hope, to give an answer... 831 . The reverent Euthymius, who described the exploits and life of the Monk Nicodemus and called him a “non-wandering luminary” 832, saw how he was approaching the inevitable decline, after a wondrous procession that took place for almost half a century in the midst of the dark winter of popular ignorance, and therefore felt the deepest sorrow. Euthymius was already an ascetic elder, and did not expect that the reverend father, “his steward,” who was much younger than Euthymius, would precede him in paying off the common debt. But he grieved even more because the premature death of the saint was supposed to deprive “our poor people of such a leader of the lost.” Describing the worsening of the saint’s illness, he emits from the depths of his soul a lament about the irreparable loss of the people and the Church, expressing at the same time love and compassion for his brother: "Oh! And how can you write to me, my fathers, without tears about this sad news! How proud our poor people began to be and to glorify God that He had given them such a never-wandering light in such an unfortunate time, when godlessness and wickedness had spread to almost all parts of the earth, and such a leader for the lost and consolation for the mourning! Yes, I confess that he is such, and not only from his books, with which he enlightened and will continue to enlighten the entire Orthodox Church of Christ, but I say this from what I saw every day: when almost all those wounded by sins left the bishops and confessors and resorted to Nicodemus, dressed in rags, to find healing and consolation in their sorrows. Not only from monasteries, and monasteries, and cells, but also many Christians from different places came to see Nicodemus and receive from him the satisfaction of their sorrows. But I will tell you, fathers, sad news. When he was writing the interpretation in a sedate manner, his illness intensified, which was expressed in weakness and lack of appetite, and no matter what he ate, no strength was felt in his body, but, on the contrary, it began to collapse. His teeth fell out and he became a little deaf.”833 Added to this grave illness was the sorrow caused by the Council's decree of Gregory 5, which proclaimed that “occurring commemorations of those who have died in piety should be performed without distinction on Sundays, Saturdays, and other days of the week, so that the discord that once arose is completely erased.” And Patriarch Gregory, who expected a terrible death in 834 and who was more concerned about the great problems of the enslaved people, considered the Tradition of the Fathers and the statutes of the Church to be monastic strife, unworthy of attention! That is why he issued this definition during his second patriarchate, thereby intending to reconcile the disputing monks who disturbed the Holy Mountain by applying the so-called church oikonomia. Meanwhile, some subtle church problems, due to their connection with ancient Tradition, are of particular importance. Consequently, such a conservative teacher of the Church as the Monk Nicodemus could not remain indifferent when Traditions were violated and trampled on without serious reasons, only because of some short-term and even surmountable need or for the reason that his opponents had sufficient means and contacts in the Church of Constantinople. After all, we should not forget that respect or disrespect for the Traditions of the Church, as well as for the Holy Fathers, reveals decline or revival in every period of church history, in accordance with the position of the Church in relation to the Holy Tradition. The Monk Nicodemus fought with the help of his invincible pen from the first years of his stay on the Holy Mountain until the last days of his long-suffering and holy life. But where convictions are exhausted, indifference begins. And “seeing that here the commanding fathers of the Mountain do not pay any attention to either the Traditions of the Holy Fathers, or the statutes that they see every day,” 835, and remembering how much suffering the collivads suffered, remaining faithful to the Traditions of the Church, Nicodemus the Holy Mountain considered that it would be more correct to remain silent, content with drawing up the “Confession of Faith”! “This giant of the spiritual struggle for the spread and preservation of the Orthodox faith and life composed... a confession and apology for his faith in refutation of the wicked accusations that were made by some envious monks of the Holy Mountain!” 836. But such is the lot of holy men. “It is impossible for one who cares about virtue not to have many enemies,” cries Chrysostom 837, “whether in response to good deeds, as was the case with the Lord, the apostles and saints, or through the action of the devil who hates good, or because of the filth of envy, which “affects even the best.” Therefore, the holy father, speaking about the reasons for nearly half a century of ongoing hostility against the collivads and, above all, the special attacks on him personally, wrote the following in his “Confession of Faith”: “Envy is a terrible thing, beloved, and restless, constantly being in excitement, it never ceases to do what is characteristic of it by nature: namely, attributing vice to the blameless, accusing the innocent and even the most pious and Orthodox, in order to slander them as slanderous and wicked. To confirm this, there are enough examples of the great teachers and saints of our Church, I mean Athanasius, Basil, Gregory, Chrysostom and the rest, who, being the most pious and most Orthodox, were slandered by their opponents as wicked and slanderous. And if it was impossible for such and such great saints of the Church to get rid of envy and slander, then how could we be above them, unworthy even of their feet? There are even some people who, not knowing at all what “kolivad” means, and not imagining why we are accused and slandered, only hearing others call us kolivads, and heretics, and slanderous, and other defamatory nicknames, they immediately add their own slander. Therefore they are like those foolish Athenians who, being ignorant, accused the just Aristides and voted against him on a potsherd, deciding that he was worthy of ostracism 838 and should be expelled from Athens. Meanwhile, they did not know him at all before, but only heard from others that he was worthy of ostracism and exile, as described in Plutarch’s “Comparative Lives.” Regarding slander, let us cite a popular and colloquial proverb that is very suitable for such circumstances, which says: “As soon as one dog barks, another immediately begins to bark.”839. St. Nicodemus fought, defending the Traditions and statutes of the Church, which are inextricably linked with dogmas and constitute the restraining force of the Church, no matter how insignificant they may seem. Orthodoxy as a teaching, as a liturgical tradition, as a special spirituality, as a written law, as an unwritten tradition from time immemorial, represents an integral unity - an indissoluble whole affirmed by the Holy Spirit. Knowing this, the holy father did not tolerate compromises and distortions introduced by the changeable and motley human thought, to which neither the experience of the Church, nor dogmas, by their origin incomprehensible to reason, nor the authority of the Holy Fathers are subject. Orthodoxy is not subject to change and evolution. Orthodoxy does not need additions and the only thing that is necessary is not at all the confinement of the infinity of Orthodoxy into the narrow framework of human limitations, but our expansion and elevation and deepening so that we can not exhaust its spirit - this is impossible! - but to partake of its inexhaustible wealth, to the extent that such a thing is permissible by limited human nature. ...With the heart one believes for righteousness, and with the mouth one confesses for salvation. 840 To refute the slander, the Monk Nicodemus was forced to compose, as he himself writes, “a personal Confession of our Faith in order to briefly answer how we think about what we were unfairly accused of. For we hear the supreme Peter calling: “Be always ready to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give an account” (1 Peter 3:15), so that those who, out of passion, speak this against us, shut their mouths, fearing God and future retribution; and the brothers, who were tempted out of ignorance and cooled because of what was said against us, stopped being tempted, seeing that our heartfelt thoughts were already frank - in word, in writing, and in print. Because, according to the Apostle, they believe with their hearts leading to righteousness, and with their lips they confess leading to salvation (Rom. 10.10)” 841. Further, Nicodemus the Holy Mountain, firstly, confesses, proclaims and accepts the twelve members of the Creed, while he quotes the words of St. John Chrysostom from “Discourse 40 on the Epistle to the Corinthians” that “dogmas have been sent down from Heaven - the terrible canons of the Symbol.” Secondly, he professes and ardently accepts all other dogmas of the Orthodox Church, both about the high Trinity Theology and about the deep Economy of the Incarnation of God the Word, saying together with the Great Basil: “We believe as we were baptized, and we glorify God as we believed” (First Word on Asceticism). Thirdly, he piously confesses and receives the seven divine Church Sacraments, according to the image and order preserved by the Eastern Church of Christ. Fourthly, he adheres to the Apostolic Traditions, “which we have been taught, whether by word or by the epistle of the holy Apostles,” and continues in what he has learned and believed, according to Paul, who proclaims this in the “First Epistle to the Corinthians,” in the “Second Epistle to the Thessalonians,” and in the “Second Epistle to Timothy.” Fifth, St. Nicodemus, together with the Apostolic Traditions, contains and accepts the Traditions of the Church, set forth by the heirs of the Apostles... since the dogmas of faith constitute the Traditions of the Church, and the Traditions are based on the dogmas of faith, “for both have equal power for piety” (Rev. 91), according to the Great Basil. Sixth, he writes, “we contain and accept all the sacred Rules of the all-validated Apostles, the Seven Ecumenical Councils, Local, and individual rules of the holy and God-bearing Fathers, approved by the 6th Ecumenical Council in the 2nd canon and the 7th Ecumenical Council in the 1st, and with the rules we also accept the Acts of these Holy Councils; for both have the same power. Seventh, in order to summarize what has been said to us: everything that Christ’s Holy, Catholic, Apostolic and Eastern Church, our common and spiritual Mother, accepts and confesses, we also accept and confess with her, and what she rejects and rejects, we also reject and reject with her, as her sincere and faithful children” 842. The topics on which the Monk Nicodemus defends himself allow us to conclude that his enemies added other accusations, including those related to issues of faith, to the denunciation of his main beliefs - about remembrance and Divine Communion. After all, from the fact that the Kollyvads for them were “farmazons, slanderous and heretics” 843, it followed that they also thought erroneously about the key and essential objects of faith. Then, in order to reveal his views on the issue of commemoration, the monk provides some information about the coliva offered in the Church and writes: “Having confessed all this, we now come to the point of briefly justifying ourselves in what we are accused of; Before our justification, we considered it necessary to give information to the readers what the so-called kolivo means. So, kolivo is boiled wheat, which is a symbol of the human body, since the human body nourishes and grows through bread; why the Lord likened His Divine Body to a grain of wheat, for He says this in the twelfth chapter of the Holy Gospel of John: “Unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, then only one remains; and if it dies, it will bear much fruit.” The dead body is buried in the ground and rots, like grain. So, this became the reason for the Church of Christ to create the so-called kolivo, both on the feasts of saints and at the funeral commemorations of our departed brothers in Christ...” 844. Then he moves on to his main topic - about commemorations, partly defending his slandered brothers. He develops the dogmatic provisions according to which the Church commemorates on Saturday, appealing to the authority of John of Damascus, Dionysius the Areopagite, Gregory of Nyssa and others, as well as citing other passages related to this issue. He refers to the church order, set out in the liturgical books - Triodion and Octoechos, as well as in the statutes of the holy monasteries of Athos. Addressing his accusers, who came up with the ironic nickname “kollyvads,” he writes: “So, we, who keep the above-mentioned tradition of the Church, which commemorates the dead on Saturday, we, who keep the spoken words of the divine Damascus and the sacred Triodion, - we, I say, are accused and called kolyvads. Who? Those who transgress this tradition of the Church and perform commemoration on Sunday! <...> Wouldn’t it be fair... to praise us as guardians of Church Tradition?” 845. Anticipating the reaction of his opponents, who might say: “O friends, judging by the evidence you cite, you believe that the commemoration of the dead should be performed only on Saturday and not on any other day of the week,” he replies: “We, brother, are not interested in the other days of the week, but only Sunday; for we see him chosen before others, and before the Sabbath itself, for the sake of the advantage of the Resurrection of the Lord, which took place, and the resurrection of all the faithful, transformed into it, and because of the joy of the Resurrection...” 846. “Let us put an end to this chapter and say that if nothing else moves our brothers in Christ to stop calling us Kolivada, let them be put to shame by the testimony from above and by the glory and honor with which God has now honored the two first leaders of the defenders of Church Tradition, calling for commemorations to be made on Saturday: namely, the late Father Parthenius Zograf, the general confessor of the Holy Mountain, whose relics appeared after their discovery fragrant. And also the blessed former primate of Corinth, Cyrus Macarius... He glorified the highest Providence of God by the obvious miracle that took place at his death” 847. Thus, the Monk Nicodemus completed his extensive treatise on commemorations and the “advantage of Sunday,” based on the sacred canons of the Church, liturgical books, the words of the Fathers and the statutes of the Holy Mountain. In addition, in the “Confession of Faith”, among the issues on which Nicodemus the Holy Mountain is defended, there are two such: 1) “That our Lord’s craft was a carpenter”; 2) “On the history of the Magi.” We are talking about the opinions expressed in the book of St. Nicodemus “Spiritual Exercises”, about which his enemies were tempted, which is why he justifies himself quite verbosely, proving the correctness of his thoughts. We have already written about the Sacrament of the Divine Eucharist in its place; on this point he also defends himself very convincingly. Already at the very end of the “Confession of Faith” he writes: “Oh, woe is me! Who will give my head, according to Jeremiah, a source of tears, and I weep for the contrition of the daughter of my people 848? And is it not worthy of weeping to see so many brothers who have left the world and live in mountains and caves in order to save their souls, shed so much bloody sweat, remain in feats of fasting, vigils, and suffering that exceed all measure, travel with a heavy burden, delivering water and passing through impenetrable and steep places - and finally, after all this, to see how they nurture such a person in their hearts? poisonous basilisk?! - hatred, I say, towards your brothers? ABOUT! and who does not groan? ABOUT! and who will not shed tears coming from the heart? Therefore, we ask: come to your senses, most honest fathers and our beloved brothers in Christ, come and feel the harm that the enemy is causing you; give up stubbornness, eradicate from your hearts hatred of your brothers and plant in them love for your brothers, which is a union of perfection, as blessed Paul says 849. Stop, fathers, slandering your brothers, and begin to praise them and everyone, remembering that apostolic saying, which says: “Finally, my brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good report, if there is any virtue or if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things” (Phil. 4:8). Let us put an end to this Confession and Justification of ours and say this short, but noble and true word. Brothers and fathers, if you do not eradicate hatred from your heart, and plant love, and do not stop slandering your brothers, know (and forgive us this insolence) that you lived in vain on the mountains and hills; all your ascetic deeds and labors and sweats are vain. Should I say more? Even if you endure martyrdom for Christ, but have hatred and do not love your brothers, your martyrdom will be in vain; and this is not our own word, but the golden mind and tongue of John; for he says this: “... nothing is greater than love and is not equal to it, not even martyrdom itself, which is the supreme of all goods; and how, listen. Love makes disciples of Christ even without martyrdom, but martyrdom without love could not do this” 850 (Sermon on the Great Martyr Roman). So, brothers and fathers, putting aside hatred and envy and slander against brothers, let us accept the sign and distinction of the disciples of Christ - love, and peace with each other, and like-mindedness, and unanimity, let us embrace each other, and so let us offer up our prayers in the world to the ruler of the world, God, who pacified us with the Blood of His Cross and gave peace to those far and near, according to the Apostle 851; glorifying with one mouth and one heart the all-holy Name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, the One in the Trinity of the Divinity, to Him belongs all glory forever and ever. Amen" 852. “Only a true saint could think and speak like that. Only a saint, in whose heart the abundant love of Christ reigned, could turn with such affection and kindness to his enemies and slanderers, forgive them from the depths of his soul and call them with pain and love to the path of salvation. Nicodemus the Holy Mountain was truly a great saint. May his prayers to the Lord preserve and strengthen the unshakable peace of God in the Church, and may there be indissoluble and unshakable unity between believers” 853. This refers to an indication of where the hymn writers borrowed certain expressions. In the canons of the Twelve Feasts and in other hymns of the Orthodox Church there are many borrowings from the Holy Scriptures and the works of the Holy Fathers (for example, St. Gregory the Theologian). The great hymn writers Cosmas of Maium and John of Damascus, who compiled most of the canons for the Twelfth Feasts. An engraving depicting these two saints and the kneeling Nicodemus of the Holy Mountain adorned the first edition of “Eortodromy”. John the Geometer (c. 10th century), Byzantine poet (wrote epigrams), monk, at the end of his life - bishop of the city of Melitina (M. Asia). Ἑοϱτοδϱόμιον. T. 2. Σ. 253. Ἑοϱτοδϱόμιον. T. 3. Σ. 12. Note that this “more concise” interpretation takes at least 100. See the troparion of the Feast of the Epiphany (“you made known,” i.e., testified). Ἑοϱτοδϱόμιον. T. 1. Σ. 17. The 1st biblical hymn, glorified at Matins, and, consequently, the irmos of the 1st hymn of every canon is dedicated to this event. The sixth song is borrowed from the prophet Jonah. The 7th and 8th cantos are dedicated to the miraculous salvation of the three youths in the cave of Babylon. Ἑοϱτοδϱόμιον. T. 1. Σ. 18. Blazh. Theodoret of Cyrrhus. Message 5: PG. 82. Col. 636. St. Basil the Great. Discourse on the First Psalm: PG. 29. Col. 212. Ἑοϱτοδϱόμιον. T. 1. Σ. 19. . Ἑοϱτοδϱόμιον. T. 1. Σ. 20–21. Ἑοϱτοδϱόμιον. T. 1. Σ. 34. Ἑοϱτοδϱόμιον. T. 1. Σ. 15. Ἑοϱτοδϱόμιον. T. 1. Σ. 13–14. Kollyvad Christopher Prodromitus was not only a friend of St. Nicodemus the Holy Mountain, but also one of the most educated people of that era. His Hellenic scholarship was especially outstanding, which is reflected in the letters cited in this book: in the original they were written in classical ancient Greek. In antiquity there was a widespread proverb: “A lion is recognized by its claws.” We are talking about the prophet Daniel, who is often called in services “the man of desires” (the expression goes back to the Old Testament: Dan.10:11). This refers to the ancient idea that pearls are born through the penetration of lightning or a sunbeam into a shell. S. Schinas (1887–1975), publisher of Orthodox literature, including patristic works, from Volos. The 2nd edition mentioned by M. Theoclitus was published in 1956, the 3rd edition was published in Thessaloniki in 1976. Right there. Σ. 16. This phrase repeats word for word what was said in the letter quoted above regarding “Eortodromy”. The letter was published in Novaya Stravitsa. See: Ibid. Σ.17. Degrees (from the Greek “ascent, steps”) are sung at Sunday and festive all-night vigils before the prokemene. They were composed in imitation of Psalms 119–130,132 (the so-called “songs of degrees”), which were sung on the steps of the Temple of Jerusalem or while ascending the Jerusalem hill. The degrees convey the contrition of the human soul for sins, a prayer to God for help and a petition for the cleansing of the soul by the grace of the Holy Spirit and thanks to this they raise the soul, as if by steps, to Heaven, preparing for hearing the Gospel. Wrote the power of St. Theodore the Studite, while in exile in Thessaloniki (794–797). – Note. ed. Onuphry was a monk of Iviron, which is why he was also called “Onuphry Ivirit”. The letter is quoted from The New Ladder. See: Νέα Κλῖμαξ. Σ. 18. The prologue of St. begins with these words. Nicodemus to the “New Ladder”, see: Νέα Κλῖμαξ. Σ. 9. Those. sedate, dedicated to the Blessed Trinity and beginning with the words “To the Holy Spirit” or “by the Holy Spirit.” – Note. ed. Sschmch. Gregory 5 was hanged by the Turks, enraged by the Greek revolt, from the gates of the patriarchal residence at Phanar on Easter Sunday 1821 (March 25). The gates have been blocked since then. – Note. ed. Κολιτσάϱας Ἰ. Νικόδημος ὁ Ἁγιοϱείτης (1749–1809) // Ἀκτῖνες. 1954. 17. Σ. 35. – Note. m. Theoklit. St. John Chrysostom. Discourse 15 on the Gospel of Matthew. 9: PG. 57. Col. 234; in Russian translation see: John Chrysostom, St. Complete collection of creations. T. 7. Book. 1. 2000. P. 163. Col. 750. Ostracism - in Ancient Athens, expulsion from the polis by decision of the people's assembly by voting on clay shards (ostracons). The Athenians feared tyranny and therefore every year they could ostracize anyone who became dangerous to democracy. If there were at least 6,000 shards with the name of the condemned person, he was expelled, usually for 10 years. – Note. ed. Ὁμολογία Πίστεως. Σ. 105–106. The translation preserves the spelling of St. Nicodemus, he wrote the word “kolivad” with one lambda, as it should have been done, because this word is derived from the Greek. “kolivo” (with one λ). But in the modern modern Greek language, both words are written with two λ, therefore in the Russian language, in accordance with the rule of preserving the double consonant, the following tradition has developed: the word “kolivo” remained unchanged (since it came into the Church Slavonic language with the translation of the first liturgical books), and “kollivad” as a term of late time (19–20 centuries), which came from modern Greek and reflects the spelling in this language (i.e. with two λ), is also written in Russian with a double consonant. – Note. ed. Ὁμολογία Πίστεως. Σ. 106. Here and further in the Russian translation of the Confession of Faith, references to the Holy Scriptures and the Fathers of the Church are included in parentheses. These are the links of the Venerable himself. Nicodemus, who always indicated the place of the quotation, but in the book of M. Theoclitus such references were probably removed to save space. – Note. ed. Ὁμολογία Πίστεως. Σ. 108–109. Ὁμολογία Πίστεως. Σ. 141. Ὁμολογία Πίστεως. Σ. 114. The translation left the spelling of the word “kolivad” with one consonant (λ), as was the case with St. Nicodemus. – Note. ed. Ὁμολογία Πίστεως. Σ. 142–143. Next, Rev. Nicodemus talks about the miracle that happened at the death of St. Macarius of Corinth: a girl who had suffered for four years from four festering wounds on her arm, which were considered incurable by a surgeon, was healed as soon as the skufa that the saint used to wear at home was placed on her sore arm. St. John Chrysostom. The first word of praise about the holy martyr Roman. 1 // John Chrysostom, St. Complete collection of creations. T. 2. Book. 2. 1994. P. 652. Ὁμολογία Πίστεως. Σ. 179–181. Quote from their magazine “Ζωή” (“Life”) dated March 17, 1955. – Note. m. F.