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St. Caesarea, brother of St. Gregory the Theologian Good fruit of a good tree - Caesarius, the youngest son of Gregory, Bishop of Nazianza, and the pious Nonna, from childhood revealed a variety of brilliant talents and deep curiosity. Having been sufficiently prepared by home education, he entered the Alexandrian school, where those sciences for which he had a special disposition were taught to greater perfection than anywhere else at that time, namely: medicine, geometry, mathematics, astronomy and astrology. Caesarius completed his education brilliantly, and the remarkable thing about him was that “he did not exalt himself with his knowledge over others, understanding that the contemplation of the highest wisdom, holiness and bliss of God is acquired by the purity of the heart, and not by the insight of the mind or high learning, and what was especially remarkable about him was that, while studying the natural sciences, not excluding astrology, he extracted from them only that which reminded and attracted to the wise and to the all-good Creator of the world" 106. Having completed his scientific education, Caesarea, on the way back to his native city, met his brother Gregory in Constantinople. Both of them remained for some time in this capital of the Eastern Empire, which could not fail to attract their attention with its wealth, splendor and other objects worthy of the attention of an enlightened person. Soon they themselves attracted attention with their high learning. Caesarea in particular soon received such glorious fame that he was offered distinctions in society, a noble marriage and a place in the Senate. A request was even sent to the then absent Emperor Constantius, asking him to honor and decorate his capital as the first of the scientists, excellent in knowledge of philosophy and other sciences, having Caesarea as his doctor and citizen. “But I,” says Gregory, “respected and highly valued by Caesarea in everything, prevailed; I convinced him to fulfill the prayer of his parents, his duty to the fatherland, and also my desire; convinced him to continue his journey, and, moreover, together with me, to prefer me not only to cities and peoples, honors and benefits, which were already abundantly flowing to him from everywhere or flattered him with hope, but almost to the sovereign himself and his orders” 107. Thus, after many years of absence, Gregory and Caesarius returned home. - Here, of course, the first concern for their parents and their main desire was to immediately accept St. baptism “in order to unite more closely with Christ, to whom they were preparing to offer as a gift all the feelings of the heart and all the riches of the mind.” This holy desire was immediately fulfilled. -Then the brothers, excellently prepared for social activities, each followed their own path, in accordance with their mental and spiritual disposition. Caesarius was called to the court of Emperor Constantius and held the rank of first physician with him. In November 361, Constantius died. After him, Julian ascended the throne and, as soon as he seized imperial power, immediately renounced the Christian faith, which he had hitherto adhered to at least in appearance, openly declared himself an enemy of Christianity and began to use his power to restore idolatry and bring Christian churches into desolation. – In order to win favor of paganism and give it more authority, Julian tried to attract the most famous Christians to his side and did not neglect any means to achieve this goal. At this time, therefore, it was as dangerous for the purity of faith as it was unpleasant for a Christian to remain at the imperial court, no matter what position he held. Despite this, Caesarius remained with Julian because, initially carried away by his affection for him, he had not yet recognized his cunning and cunning. But his brother Gregory, who, while still in Athens, at the same time as Julian, with his penetrating mind unraveled his personality and at the same time predicted what the Holy Church should expect from him, was upset by Caesarea’s stay at the court of Julian and therefore urged him to quickly leave the court of the wicked king and thereby stop the temptation that he set by his example to other Christians, disposing some to look condescendingly at Julian’s actions, and giving others a reason to his own condemnation. “We had enough shame for you,” he wrote to Caesarea, “not to mention ourselves and the anxiety and, let me even say, fear that hearing about you filled us with; I would like you, if it were possible, to listen to what others say about you and about us, no matter how many we know, if only they are Christians: “and the bishop’s son is now already in the service, seeks worldly ranks and glory, gives up victory over himself to greed, because now everything is inflamed by a passion for money, and for them people do not spare their souls, and do not set for themselves the only glory and security and enrichment in that to courageously confront time and place yourself as far as possible from all uncleanness and filth! How can bishops now persuade another not to get carried away by time, not to be defiled by communication with idols; How can we now punish those who have misbehaved in something else, when the bishop himself does not dare to say a word because of what happened in his house? With what disposition do you think we accept these rumors, who have decided to serve God and have recognized the only good in fixing our gaze on future hopes? Our father, who is very upset by the rumors and for whom life itself is a burden because of this, I also console and encourage somewhat, vouching for your way of thinking... And our mother, if she hears something like that about you (and we still manage to hide it from her), be sure that she will fall into inconsolable grief... Therefore, if you have any respect for yourself and us, come up with something better and more for yourself reliable. Moreover, I don’t see how much more time we should wait for you to arrange your life if you missed the present. But if you hold on to your previous way of thinking and, in order to satisfy your aspirations, everything is not enough for you, then I do not intend to say anything unpleasant, but I will only predict and testify that one of two things is necessary, either, while remaining a sincere Christian, to accept the most humiliated share of a Christian and act inconsistently with your merits and hopes, or, desiring honor, to suffer harm in the main thing, and to participate, if not in the fire, then in the smoke "... 108. Caesarea, indeed, did not escape trials from Julian, who managed by all means to attract such a talented and highly educated man to his side, but how these trials served only as evidence of the firmness and steadfastness of his Christian convictions can be seen from the following words of St. Gregory, spoken in praise of his brother: “What stupidity,” exclaims Gregory, “and even madness, to hope that one can catch Caesarea, my brother and son of such parents! May we be allowed to extend the word and enjoy the story, as those present at this wonderful event enjoyed! A valiant man, protected by the sign of Christ and covered with a great word instead of a shield, stands before the strong in arms and the great in the gift of speech, does not lose firmness when hearing flattering speeches, but appears as a fighter, ready to struggle in word and deed against the strong in both. And so the field is open; here is an ascetic of piety! On the one hand, the heroic Christ, arming the fighter with His sufferings, on the other, a cruel ruler, now seducing with friendly eyes, now frightening with the vastness of his power. And there are also two kinds of spectators: some remain in piety, others are already carried away by the ruler; but both of them are carefully observing what turn the matter will take; and the thought of who will win causes them greater confusion than the warriors themselves. Didn't you fear for Caesarea, didn't you think that success would not correspond to jealousy? But do not doubt, victory is with Christ, who has conquered the world... Caesarea decided on all his verbal tricks, rejected hidden and obvious seductions, like children's toys, and loudly proclaimed that he was a Christian and would be a Christian; however, the king did not completely remove him from himself. He really wanted to use and boast of Caesar’s learning”... 109. However, Caesarea, soon after this clash with Julian, left his court and returned to his homeland; Here he remained until the death of the apostate king. But as soon as Jovinian ascended the throne, he was again invited to the court and restored to his former rank and positions with special honors. Jovinian's death did not change his position. Valens also appreciated his merits and merits and, in order to put Caesarea on the path of higher honors, he gave him the title of quaestor or keeper of the royal treasures in Bithynia. During his stay in Nicaea, the main city of this region, there was a terrible earthquake in 368; almost all the inhabitants died under the ruins of their homes. Caesarea was one of the few who escaped, emerging unharmed from the ruins of his house. On this occasion, his brother Gregory wrote him the following letter: “for right-thinking people, fear is not useless... I will even say - it is beautiful and saving. Although we do not wish for ourselves that anything terrible should happen to us, we are nevertheless mindful of what has happened, because the suffering soul is close to God, and anyone who has escaped danger has a stronger attachment to the Savior. Therefore, we will not be upset by the fact that we participated in the disaster, but on the contrary, we will give thanks that we escaped the disaster, and we will not be different before God during dangers, but different after dangers... But whether we live on someone else’s side, whether we lead a private life, whether we perform public service, we will desire one thing: to follow the One by whom we are saved, and to belong to His property, caring a little about what is of little value and creeps on the ground. And to those who will live after us, let us leave behind us such a narrative that would greatly serve our glory, and much also for the benefit of our souls. But this is the most useful lesson for many, that danger is better than safety and disaster is preferable to prosperity. If before fear we belonged to the world, then after fear we began to belong to God... For me, be sure that I earnestly wish and pray most of all – to arrange what is necessary for your salvation and to talk about it definitively” 110. The holy words of Gregory corresponded to the same mood of the soul of his brother Caesarea, and soon, turning away from everything that the world considers attractive, he devoted himself to serving the one God. But his earthly life was short-lived. Soon after the earthquake he became seriously ill and died. His remains were transferred and buried in Nazianza. His brother Gregory honored him with a funeral oration 111. Having outlined it before, we can supplement it with details that characterize in particular the personality of Caesarea: “let’s also consider this,” says Gregory, “Caesarea will not be in charge, but he will not be under the leadership of others either; will not instill fear in others, but he himself will not be afraid of a cruel ruler, sometimes unworthy of being in charge, will not collect wealth, but will not be afraid of envy, or will not harm the soul by unjust acquisition and effort to add as much as he has acquired. For such is the disease of the love of wealth that it has no limit to the need for more and cures itself of thirst by incessantly drinking... Caesarea will not compose new speeches; but for the speech there will be no surprise; will not talk about the teachings of Hippocrates, Gallen and their opponents, but will not suffer from illnesses, collecting sorrows for himself from other people’s troubles; will not prove the positions of Euclid, Ptolemy and Heron, but will not complain about the ignorant who are arrogant without measure; will not show his knowledge in the teachings of Plato, Aristotle, Pyrrho, Democritus, Heraclites, Anaxagoras, Cleanois, Epicurus and I don’t know which of the venerable Stoics or Academicians, but he will not care about. on how to decide their plausibility. Do I need to mention anything else? But what, of course, is dear and desirable to everyone: he will have neither a wife nor children. But he himself will not mourn them, nor will he be mourned by them; will not remain after others and for others as a monument of misfortune. He will not inherit the estate, but he will have heirs, which are always more useful to have and which he himself wanted in order to move from here enriched and take everything of his own with him. And what generosity! What a new consolation! what generosity in the performers! The news is heard, worthy of general hearing, and the mother’s grief is exhausted by a beautiful and holy vow - everything that her son had, all his wealth, should be given for him as a funeral gift and nothing should be left to those who were expecting an inheritance. Is this not enough consolation? 112. St. himself Gregory, however, had many reasons to greatly mourn the death of Caesarea, since, in addition to the pain of the loss of his beloved brother, he alone was left with all the worries of managing the estates of his parents and Caesarea, after which the inheritance was assigned to charitable deeds. Caesarea, dying, said: I want everything I have to go to the poor. “How soon he died,” says St. Gregory about Caesarea - I alone endure sorrows and sorrows. Of the estates that the brother owned, some were swallowed up by the opening earth, when he himself was covered with the ruins of Nicaea, and others the demon gave over to plunder at the hands of worthless people... O my Caesarea! And venerable name! - he adds, - like a morning star you shone at the royal court, taking first place in wisdom and meek disposition, having many strong friends and comrades; for many you invented cures for serious bodily ailments; with his good deeds he saved many from poverty; but now you have died and fed many dogs, which surrounded me from everywhere and barked”... 113. These were people who, in the words of St. Basil the Great, who in this case also took a friendly part in the situation of St. Gregory, “they did not fear God, and perhaps forced by the greatness of the disaster, attacked him under the pretext that Caesarea took money from them. The loss is not heavy for him,” Basil continues to say about his friend Gregory 114, “because he has long learned to value wealth at nothing,” but since those around Caesarea before his death unscrupulously took advantage of most of his property, Gregory had to have many “offensive and intolerable worries” during the execution of his brother’s will from the false creditors of Caesarea, from whom St. asked. Vasily Master Sophrony to protect his meekest and most humble friend... Holy Forty Martyrs of Sebaste: Hesychius, Meliton, Heraclius, Smaragda, etc. The soldiers suffered for the confession of Christ at Licinia in Armenian Sebastia, in 320. Basil the Great, in a word of praise to them, says that they were condemned to spend the night in the open air near the city in a lake covered with ice due to winter time and the north wind, that the guard saw the heavenly powers distributing crowns and leaving one who left his feat unrewarded, and that the guard replaced him, that the mother of one young man, a barely breathing martyr, herself laid him on a chariot on which others were being transported to burning, that their holy bones were thrown into the water, that in his time (i.e., thirty years after their death) everyone ran to the saints in prayer and that they actually gave what they asked, appearing all together, and that their relics are in many places. Gregory of Nyssa wrote many words about the 40 martyrs, saying that although their bodies were burned, what remained from the fire was divided throughout the earth so that each region would receive a blessing from them, that he himself had a particle of their holy relics and placed the bodies of his parents near the relics of these warriors. In Constantinople, God glorified them especially under Queen Pulcheria, to whom St. appeared in a dream. Martyr Firs (December 14th) with 40 martyrs. The first spoke about the relics of St. hidden in Constantinople. martyrs, and they were indeed opened at the tomb of Deaconess Eusevia in two silver arks, which, according to her will, were placed at the head of her tomb. Sozomen, a historian and eyewitness, writes: “decent honors were given to the martyrs and a religious procession with psalmody was held in their honor, at which I was present.” This was around 438. Reverently to the memory of St. 40 Great Martyrs, always celebrated on Pentecost, the Orthodox Church decided to celebrate the liturgy on the day of their repose, to lighten the fast and thereby make this day more solemn. In Proverbs, during the Divine Service on the day of the Forty Great Martyrs, the Church pronounces - in the first, about those who will testify, says the Lord, as... I am: before Me there was no other God, and after Me there will be no God (Is. 43:9-14). Such witnesses were all the martyrs, who in Greek are actually called witnesses (μαρτυρες). In the second - about the blessed death of the righteous. The souls of the righteous are in the hand of God, and no torment will touch them. For even if they suffer torment in the sight of men, their hope of immortality is fulfilled. In the past there will be great orders, great benefactions. Like gold in the furnace I have tempted them, and like the fruitfulness of the sacrifice I have received (Wis. 3:1-9). The third also speaks of the spiritual bliss of the righteous after death, of which all the holy martyrs will be partakers. In the morning Gospel, the Church preaches the good news of the grace of God, which will instruct and strengthen preachers and confessors of the Christian faith. It will come to you as a testimony. Set it on your hearts not to first learn to answer: For I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which all who resist you will not be able to resist or answer (Luke 21:12-19). The reading of the Apostle proclaims that the sufferings sent and allowed by God are signs of God’s love, so that we may partake of His holiness (Heb. 12:1-10). The liturgical gospel preaches the calling to salvation and the reward of those who strive, according to the grace of God (Matthew 20:1-20). Grieg's word. Theologian 7, p. 246. St. Gregory Theologian Word 7, page 247. Letter 7 (St. Greg. God.). Sl. St. Gr. Theologian 7, – page 253. Letter from St. Gregory the Theologian 22nd. See memory of St. Grieg. Theologian January 25th. Sl. 7, St. Grieg. Theology, pp. 257–262. Poems about yourself - St. Grieg. God., pp. 284–285. In his letter on this matter to Master Sophronius (letter 32).