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Holy Martyr Ferapont For the conversion of pagans to Christianity, he suffered torture from hegemon Julian in Sarda in Libya, Sinaon of Phrygia and Ancyra of Galata; died in the Thracian region in Lydia, near the Erma River, under Valerian, in 259, after many tortures - by cutting off the head. Among other tortures, he was tied to four dry stakes driven into the ground, and in this position he was given such blows that his bones were exposed and the ground was drenched in his blood. Those stakes froze, grew branches and leaves and were preserved in the form of trees, the leaves of which exuded miraculous healings... The holy martyr Theodora the maiden and Didymus the warrior, who suffered in 304 There were no limits to the sophistication of the tortures to which the martyrs were subjected for the faith of Christ. But their courage did not yield to anything. The Lord watched over them and showed miraculous guardianship where the test exceeded the measure of human strength. So He defended Theodora, a young, beautiful maiden of a noble family, when blind, merciless anger encroached on the holiest of shrines - her maiden honor... Consigned to violence because she firmly professed faith in the truth of the Gospel, Theodora was miraculously delivered from the disaster that lay before her by the Christian warrior Didymus, who, boldly making his way through the crowd to the shameful house where the martyr was forcibly brought, invited her, changing clothes with him, to hide under the guise of a warrior, and he himself remained here in her place... So, the Lord protected the one who had no other weapon except prayer. But when Didymus’s holy deception was discovered, he was sentenced to death. Having learned about this, Theodora did not want to be the culprit of his death and began to convince Didim that he should not die for her and that she herself should and wants to accept martyrdom for Christ. But Didymus did not want to give up the crown of martyrdom... “If so, then let me be the first to go under the sword,” Didyma continued to convince Theodora, “and you, after me, be a martyr of Christ... You remain after me, but not I after you... You saved me from the death that may again await me... Send me pure to Christ... - Beloved sister! - Didim objected, - The Lord, who once kept you pure, can always keep you, but do not prevent me, condemned to death, from dying for Christ and washing myself from my sins with my blood... This holy dispute was interrupted by the order of the persecutor of Christians - to cut off both of their heads... St. Theodora was the first to bow her head under the sword, and Didymus died after her. Both of their bodies were thrown into the fire. Lecturer David of Gareji A stranger from Syria, who followed the great teacher John of Zedazni (commemorated on May 7), came with him to Iveria, to its capital - Mtskheta. When John sent his disciples to preach the Gospel to different countries, David, with John’s blessing, chose Tiflis (Tbilisi) as his field and settled in a wretched cave on a semi-mountain, now called Mtatsminda or Holy Mountain. Subsequently, David, together with his disciple Lucian, retired to the Gareji desert (60 versts from Tiflis - to the east along the left flow of the Kura). Here, placing their hope in the One God who fed Israel in the desert, they chose a place “beautiful, serene,” but completely inconvenient for life, “replete with shortcomings and needs for bodily reinforcement,” they were content with only plant roots to satisfy hunger, and only rainwater to satisfy thirst; but when the heat, and then the frost, deprived them of both, and Lucian began to lose heart, David did not waver in the hope of a miraculous providence for the people of Almighty God, and indeed, three female deer with their fawns ran into the desert to the hermits, whose milk they began to soak in... “Let the poor eat and be satisfied; let those who seek Him praise the Lord; May your hearts live forever!” (Ps. 21:27) the hermits sang together with King David in the tenderness of a grateful soul... One day, hunting for animals, hunters came here and, amazed by the wonderful life of the hermits, they spread rumors about them among the surrounding residents; then lovers of silence began to come here and settle, who gradually formed 12 monasteries here 429. Deciding to settle here in order to labor under the leadership of David, they had to carve out caves for themselves to live in and dug wells - artificial ones, into which channels were lowered for rainwater in the direction from the high mountain ranges surrounding the desert, down into wells or stone pits. After several years, when the welfare of all the monasteries had been established, David decided to fulfill his constant desire - to visit Jerusalem to venerate St. places. Having entrusted the management of the monasteries to Lucian and the presbyter Dodo (his memorial is May 23), the elder, with some of his disciples, set off on the road. When they reached the heights from which Jerusalem opened before them, David’s heart was filled with fear and trembling... “How dare I,” he said with tears, “to trample with my sinful feet the footprints of the God-Man” ... and, dismissing his disciples as more worthy than him to worship the holy places, David himself, in view of St. Church of the Holy Sepulcher, took three stones from the Holy Land and went back... But such high humility of the ascetic was not hidden from the world. According to the revelation that was about him in a dream vision, Elijah, the Patriarch of Jerusalem, sent messengers from the patriarch, who caught up with him on the way and to whom he returned two stones that he had taken from the Holy Land, while David kept the third one with him, with the permission of the patriarch, “so that he would take it, like grace, into his desert, for the memory and notification of his faith”... The rumor of such a wonderful incident spread throughout Jerusalem and its environs. David returned to his desert, bringing the stone with him, which is now preserved on his tomb and exudes the grace-filled power of healing to all who come with faith to worship the saint. Soon after his return, St. David received a message in a dream about his imminent death. Calling the brethren, he taught them saving instructions, then, after listening to the liturgy, he received Holy Communion. Tain, on his knees, with his hands outstretched to the sky, died peacefully - in the middle of the 6th century. – Its desert became famous for many other saints and wonderworkers. † Repose of Rev. Ferapont of Mozhaisky Rev. Ferapont, in the world Theodore, came from a family of Poskochin nobles and his homeland was Volokolamsk 430. From a young age, filled with the fear of God, he thought only about how to get rid of the rebellious world. He loved to talk about piety and prayed to the Lord to grant him angelic life. Having chosen a favorable time, he secretly left his parents' house and in the Simon's monastery begged the abbot to tonsure him into monasticism. Here he performed menial tasks with complete obedience and at the same time always attended church vigils and cell prayers. He sincerely revealed his secret thoughts to his elder and thereby maintained spiritual and physical purity. From time to time he listened to the instructions of St. Sergius. The abbot, noticing his ability and diligence in fulfilling his obediences, gave him various assignments, among other things, sent him to the distant Belozersk region. With a wandering staff, he walked along the deserted Belozersk side and was captivated by the silence of its forests. Returning to Simon's monastery, he brought with him a thirst for desert solitude. Rev. Kirill at this time was already living on the old Simonovo, in solitude. Striving with his soul for deeper silence, he asked Ferapont: is there a place on White Lake where a monk could be silent? Ferapont replied that there were many of them there, and both agreed to go secretly to the deserted side. Kirill found here the place indicated to him in the vision: they both erected a cross and dug dugouts for their homes. However, Ferapont did not stay long with Cyril and retired 15 miles to a beautiful place, between two lakes, to be alone with the Lord 431. Here he cleared the land for planting vegetables and, according to the legend of the desert fathers, drove away the despondency of silence, either by labor, or by prayer and vigil; He had to experience quite a bit of fear from the robbers, who, not tolerating the righteous man near them, drove him out of the desert. People began to come to him with a desire to share his desert exploits. At their request, he built a church in honor of the Nativity of the Mother of God and established a hostel. This was in 1398. The arrival of the elder hieromonk delighted the monk, since he himself did not want to take upon himself either eldership or hieromonkhood. He continued to labor in hard labor, not missing church services and cell rules. From time to time he went for spiritual conversations with Rev. Kirill. His brotherhood multiplied and the example of the saint inspired everyone with a love for harsh deeds. Wealthy people began to endow the monastery with alms. The brethren asked the monk to take over the management of the monastery; The monk said: “It was not I who fenced this place, but the Most Pure Mother of God: She can instruct you in everything useful.” Seeing the elder’s firm reluctance to assume authority over them, they elected themselves an abbot. For everyone, however, the monk remained a father and mentor. People came to his cell for advice in mental confusion. According to his thoughts, everything was located in the monastery. No one dared to keep anything in their cells except icons of saints, edifying books and simple handicraft tools. The brothers were busy either copying books or weaving fishing rods. There was deep silence in the church and the meal. Prince Andrei Dmitrievich Mozhaisky, to whom the Belozersk country also belonged, having heard about the new monastery in his desert homeland, granted the new monastery land and lakes, sent utensils for its church and asked to pray for it 432. So “this beggar cried out, and the Lord heard and saved him from all his troubles” (Ps. 33:7). The deputy of the Mozhaisk prince, returning from Beloozero, told the prince what an ascetic the bl. Ferapont in his Belozersk country. The prince, who had long wanted to build a monastery near Mozhaisk, sent his boyar to invite the elder to Mozhaisk to talk with the prince about the necessary matter. This invitation worried the elder, but he said: the will of the Lord be done, and, in accordance with the thoughts of the brethren, he went to Mozhaisk. “The Lord will reward you for your work, but I will forever remain your debtor,” said the delighted prince when meeting the monk. Then, revealing to him a long-standing desire, he asked him to take upon himself the establishment of a new monastery. At first, the monk responded only with tears, then he prayed to the Lord and agreed to fulfill the will of the prince. With the prince's rich means, a monastery in honor of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary in Luzhki, a mile from the city, was soon established. This was in 1408. Ave. Abba enjoyed the respect of High Hierarch Photius, who lovingly talked with him about spiritual life and invested him with the rank of archimandrite. Under the supervision of the experienced Abba, monastic life flourished in the new monastery; the number of brethren was significant. Rev. Abba repeated the Apostolic instruction to the brethren who lived not far from the city: “The night has passed, and the day has approached. Let us therefore reject the works of darkness. How will we begin to walk during the day without indulging in feasting and drunkenness, sensuality and debauchery, strife and envy? But put on our Lord Jesus Christ, and do not extend your care for the flesh to lusts” (Rom. 13:12-14). Rev. Ferapont reposed at a ripe old age on May 27, 1426. His holy relics rest hidden in the cathedral church of the Luzhetsky monastery, exuding miracles for believers. In the Belozersk Desert a church 433 is dedicated to his name. In the Gareji area, remote from the center of Georgia and uninhabited, of the 12 former monasteries, only two now stand out, and those are dilapidated, carved into the rocks. The rest are deserted and stand in ruins, representing magnificent art of antiquity. Rye. Life of Ferapont Ave. at Tsarskoye No. 136. Pachomius' Life of St. Cyril. Rev. Kirill Belozersky wrote to Prince. Yuri: “Your brother, Prince Andrey, was here; This is his patrimony and we needed to pay our respects to him, our sovereign.” A. e. I, 24. 28. 31. Prologue May 27; ist. Hier. 6, 850. 851. 855. 5, 26. Between hands. n. Philaret according to the inventory of 1630, “book of Rev. father of Ferapont and Martemyan." Ivanova described. state arch. 292. M. 1849.