Letters of the Optina elder Leo to the monk Ioannikiy

Letter 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 The collection includes letters from the Venerable Optina Elder Leo to his spiritual disciple, handed over to him from his tonsure, Fr. Ioannikiy (Bocharov). By mother Fr. Ioannikiy was the nephew of the famous elder schema-monk Theodore, a student of St. Paisiy Velichkovsky. Therefore, the first few letters were written by Elder Leo together with Fr. Theodore, his confessor and co-secretary. Until the last days of his life, Fr. Ioannikis sacredly preserved the memory of these godly elders. In honor of his elder and teacher, in 1851 he adopted the schema with the name Leonid. With love, carefully, he preserved the things given to him by the elders: the icon of the Vladimir Mother of God - the blessing of Fr. Theodora, who was with the Elder in Moldavia; spiritual books, between which was a handwritten book of the works of St. Isaac the Syrian, which belonged to the elder Fr. Theodora. In the cell of Fr. Ioannikis kept portraits of his spiritual mentors. At the end of his life Fr. Ioannikis, having lost his sight, retained in his memory many of the patristic sayings, and often explained how the elders interpreted this or that verse. According to the biography of Fr. Joannikia, many letters from the elders Theodore and Leo were presented to Fr. John's disciples and spiritual worshipers of the elders. The manuscript department of the Russian State Library preserves 18 letters from Elder Leo (three of them written jointly with Elder Theodore) addressed to Father John. The letters were written between 1818 and 1833. from the Alexander-Svirsky Monastery and from Optina Pustyn. Three of them have already been published: dated February 15 and March 14, 1822 - in the book “The Life and Deeds of Schemamonk Theodore”; dated April 17, 1822 - in the book “The Life of the Optina Elder Hieroschemamonk Leonid (in the schema of Leo).” This collection contains for the first time the letters of Elder Leo to his close disciple, which are preceded by an extensive biographical excerpt from the Chronicle of the Optina Monastery Monastery. Almost all letters arrived in several lists. Some of them are contained in the notebook of monk Peter Sevryugin, several letters were preserved in the list of an unknown person, part of one letter is contained in the handwritten book “School for Monastics” for January 1845. All letters are included in two handwritten books of letters from Elder Leo, which were being prepared for printing in the middle of the last century. It was they who served as the source for this publication. Analysis of the notes made it possible to determine the time of formation of handwritten books of 1854–1857. M.S.O.N.G.I.H.B.N.P.N.* Most dear fathers and brothers in the Lord, Fr. Gabriel, Fr. Evdokim, Fr. Ioannikiy, Fr. Aaron! We earnestly wish you to rejoice and have courage in the One Most Sweet Lord Jesus! We received your most pleasant writings from the most venerable deacon and listened to the content according to the strength of our feeble-mindedness. We - thank the Most Merciful God - remained calm about the visitor story, only when reading the first notification letter there was a little something sensitively tending to chagrin, but then it soon went away. We consider I. G-ch’s explanation to be an atonement for shame. O. Deacon Fr. Theodore inspired as much as possible so that the memory of God would continue. We all ask and beseech you all to learn courage and patience, which results in co-examination of the truth, but speed is rarely commendable. We inform you about ourselves: we, glory to the Most Merciful Lord God, as long as He endures our iniquity, remain at peace in body and spirit, more than on Valaam. Two paramans were sent: one Fr. Gabriel, another Fr. Aaron, but haven’t received it from the post office yet; When there is another opportunity, we will try to send it. Dearest brother Fr. Aaron! In general, we are with Fr. Theodore reasoned your dream according to the strength of our feeble-mindedness - and we do not affirm it as flattery and do not reject it as the truth, but, on the advice of St. fathers, it is better to surrender to the Fate and Providence of the Almighty, since when there is Him, our Creator, what a careful will for the benefit of our poor souls, He Himself will arrange in every possible way, through their own destinies; and we, according to our strength, must strive and constantly prepare ourselves for the creation of His holy and life-giving commandments, which heal our passions and prepare our hearts for the cooperation of His love. And, in short, we have to abide with our usual disposition and heartfelt devotion, your unworthy people of prayer, the wretched and many-sinful Hieroschemamonk Leonid and the many-sinful and unworthy most sinful schemamonk Theodore, we bow to the earth most deeply. I also ask, sinful and unworthy hierosch [monk] Antiochus, holy fathers, for your holy prayers and blessings; pray that the Lord God will give me His mercy and patience. I remain your unworthy novice, bowing to the ground. M.S.O.N.G.I.H.B.N.P.N. Our most honorable and most beloved brother in the Lord! We wish you to rejoice and be content in the Lord! We received your Scripture and heeded its contents according to the strength of our feeble-mindedness, to which, with the help of the Almighty, we respond. You ask to leave the monastery to our monastery or to stay in the monastery and rely on our will for this. We, with God's help, to the best of our ability, not in a subtle way, however, quite saw your stay in the courtyard and your association in your positions and with your father, the abbot, and were surprised at your fury and your malicious, violent actions, with which you irritate and upset his elder gray hairs; and, apparently, the words of the saint do not frighten you. Apostle Paul: “Resist the authorities and resist the commandment of God.” And with such a lawless lifestyle, you will never be able to have the peace of God in your souls, but perhaps betrothal to Gehenna; and we, with God’s help, understood from your circumstances and communications that now we do not find the blessed guilt of forcibly going out into unknown places. In confirmation, we have heard from a faithful person that our Archpastor has no permission and will for you to leave. And for the Lord's sake, in general, with Fr. Gabriel, we ask and pray that you try to correct your evil morals and not use your damned will, but obey the Father Superior in everything, in whatever way there is a violation of the commandment of God and the tradition of the Holy Father; and live until the time when the Most Merciful Lord pleases and until His holy will is done. And we are sending you a paper, albeit poorly written by Fr. Gabriel, agreed from our lips, and according to this paper, try your best, with the help of God, to correct the unhelpful actions you have written, and if you make a start legally and according to your conscience, then with the help of Almighty God you will experience joy and peace within your soul. And in short, we remain with our usual reverence and devotion, your humble servants and unworthy people of prayer, the many-sinful and unworthy hieroschemamonk Leo and schemamonk Theodore, we bow to the ground and ask for your holy prayers in support of our mental and physical infirmities. Alexander-Svirsky Monastery O. G[avriil] and Fr. These articles written by St. John must be fulfilled with God’s help: Firstly, it is too much to ask for forgiveness from Fr. abbot for disobedience, that he did not go to count the small sum, and so that in the future, with the help of God, when called, he would be ready. O. I[oannikiy] for an unauthorized purchase and for disobeying the previously appointed Fr. The hegumen must undertake penance, having asked for his blessing at the meal, and fulfill it. Whatever obedience we are not required to do, we must remember our own verse, and not interfere with other people’s verses. Without the blessing of Fr. the abbot or whoever is entrusted with the government will temporarily not buy any things for himself or for others; since this is considered sacrilege, as St. writes about this. Simeon the New Theologian in chapter 56. One must always be in accordance with the will of God; and how to know the will of God, ask the elders or the brethren with humility, about which St. writes. John Climacus in word 26 about prudent reasoning, at the beginning of the word. Without the blessing of Fr. the abbot or whomever the authorities have been entrusted with will not go to worldly prisons and hospitals to visit; and equally, you shouldn’t wander around to your fellow city dwellers, worldly people, without a blessing. It is more beneficial for two to sit in a cell than for one, but only with those of like mind and in agreement in wisdom. With God's help, we should try our best not to go to dinners, except when it becomes necessary due to great need, by order of Fr. abbot, or as needed on the road. In every possible way, with the help of God, try not to disgrace or condemn the rulers and other brethren with any suspicion. If it happens to a person who has done something wrong, he must soon repent and make a beginning. In the book of St. Isaac the Syrian, find the words below and read them carefully. In word 30 at the end: as it is not proper to contradict with an evil thought; but blame yourself on God, and so on. In word 36 at the end: the Spirit of God does not live in those who dwell in the chambers, but the devil, and so on. In word 37 at the end: every man benefits from temptation, and so on. until the end. In word 51: as if delivered into the hands of judges, one suffers, and so on. In word 55. Question: If it is fitting to keep all the commandments of the Lord, etc. question and answers to the end. In word 78: Do not seek to receive advice from anyone who does not exist in your sojourn, and so on. In the same 78: when you find peace on your path unchanged, then fear, and so on. In the same 78 at the end: as if temptations come from the spiritual rod into the prosperity and growth of the soul, and so on. until the end. Word 79: About pride. Read this entire word with attention to the end many times. In the words 50 at the end: it is better for us to die in asceticism than to live in a fall. It was not useful for O. Gabriel to return to Valaam for his residence, since his residence there turned out to lead not to humility, but to vanity and pride. Try your best to acknowledge your weakness. You can’t get along with your wife alone, even though you might write letters and so on; and most of all in his cell; at least there should be a third one. In every possible way, with God's help, be careful not to interfere in the affairs of the authorities, but it is only dangerous to pay attention and fulfill with the fear of God, which the authorities will entrust for obedience. Apart from your own necessary needs and your own blessed guilt, do not hire cabs for traveling around and do not drive around St. Petersburg without necessary needs. Do not take money from your zealous lovers of Christ for your special needs, so that we do not become like Judas the traitor in collecting money. And when you have an extreme and necessary need for something, then you should humbly ask Fr. abbot or whoever is entrusted with the leadership. But if someone is especially overzealous about something, then you can offer, when you diligently sit down, on the inextinguishably burning candle of the icon of the Mother of God, as much as the Most Merciful God puts in your heart, on wooden oil, and accept it. In addition to you, our dearest fathers and brothers, we add: if you want to listen to us, many sinners and unworthy ones, then you yourself should not begin any business about moving from the farmstead to any place. But when, despite all our above-mentioned precautions, you feel mental harm in yourself, then we ask you to immediately, as much as possible, write a detailed letter to us, many sinners, for consideration. And then, if the Most Merciful Lord tolerates our sin and we live, then with God’s help, if possible and according to our will, we will see what is useful for your souls, who are trying to write to you. And when you begin or do something according to your will, then you yourself will bear your own judgment and burden, and we, although many sinners and unworthy, will remain pure from your blood. The great sinner and obscene Hieroschemamonk Lev wrote these articles, together with the advice of his like-minded schemamonk, Father Theodore, with his own hand. I testify to this, the sinful and unworthy schemamonk Theodore. Our most beloved fathers and brothers, Fr. G[avriil] and Fr. St. John, we earnestly wish you to rejoice and be in good spirits in the One Most Sweet Lord Jesus. We received your pleasant writing and 2 f. Kalgan and 16 ginger from our servant Philip Efremov and humbly thank you for your notifications. We are gradually surprised, our dear father Fr. Gabriel, that you leave your spiritual ulcers to be healed, but lament and are embarrassed about the shortcomings of others, imaginary to you, and even more so about the superior circumstances. We will not give an answer to God about the orders of the leaders; and for us, subordinates, they will certainly give an answer to God. Even if a saint were to be the rector, and we were obstinate and disobedient, and walking according to our own wills, there would be no benefit for us, but would there be greater condemnation? We pay attention to ourselves and worry about our souls, how to appear before the judgment seat of Christ and give an answer to God for the deeds, words and thoughts we have done, and not worry about others for us, the weakest ourselves; but let us leave it to those who are strong and healthy and able to benefit others. And don’t be surprised at this, that upon your arrival and after reading the letters of Fr. And [the saints] fell into great relaxation from despondency: if he had been disposed to the will of God regarding his life, as we previously advised you about his many sins, then, having received and read the letters, he would certainly have felt relief and resolution in his soul. And now it is clear from the action that he was formed according to his damned will, as the demon inspired and advised him, and now he saw that his will, advised by the evil demon, was not fulfilled, and because of this he became despondent and contrite. But just be assured from us that we do not burden you or force you to listen to us and adhere to our advice; but we are only doing this so that we can clear our conscience and not give an answer to God at the Last Judgment. And when you live according to your own wills and according to your desires, which are contrary to the will of God, you will carry out your judgment, you will bear the burden, and we will remain clean from your blood; and whatever you sow, that is what you will reap. Your humble servants, many sinners, weak and paralyzed throughout the hieroschema. Lev and Schimon. Theodore. We bow to the ground and ask your saints. prayers to strengthen our mental and physical weaknesses. From the book of St. John Climacus with an interpretation, printed in Moscow, from the word 4 about obedience, page 80 on the back: “There are things that are impossible, even if we resist the devil in our own will, and let those who live in laziness hide, and who have endured in one silent place or in a common life, so that it may be possible for us to depart from the places we are fighting for there.” kindly indication. Even if you fight, it is a sign that you will fight.” Interpretation: It is impossible to eat, but the devil will resist his will when, because he wants every person to live in negligence and not do the will of God. If he finds such people, he will not resist them. If he resists them, everyone will resist his will. It is impossible for this to happen when. They bow to you Fr. Theophylact and Father Israel and ask for your holy prayers. Father Amphilochius and Fr. Barsanuphius received your respects from you, and they remain grateful. Our most honorable and most dear fathers and brothers in the Lord, Fr. G[avriil] and Fr. St. John, we earnestly wish you to rejoice and be content in the One Most Sweet Lord Jesus. We received the scripture you sent out on April 10th on the 14th and, according to the strength of our feeble-mindedness, heeded the contents. Although we, for our many sins and negligence, have lost our universal spiritual guide to salvation - but what can we do?.. We will not despair ourselves to the end, for when, according to his, in the last hours, we will follow his dearest instruction, that is, so as not to be separated from our spiritual community and union, but to remain among ourselves in advice, spiritual love and listen to each other - when this instruction with the help We strive to fulfill the Almighty, then, although we are in extreme spiritual poverty, we believe in the Most Merciful Lord, that He, having the boldness in Him, with His God-pleasing prayers for His unlimited benevolence, will help us in every possible way and even more so for the poor; only we ourselves must try not to fall away from his spiritual wisdom through our negligence; otherwise, although he was separated from us in body, he will remain with us in spirit. And what you write, that sometimes you feel a trembling fear there, so as not to be poisoned by anything - this, according to our bad reasoning, we should all be afraid of and tremble at the prospects, and not only in the capital, but wherever we happen to live. As for food, it seems that you have already decided this during your personal visit, that what is offered should be consumed with abstinence for the Glory of God, and not to seek excess for gluttony. And regarding the displeasures, in your opinion, from our brethren, we constantly ask and pray to our Most Merciful Master, Creator and Provider, to grant us the understanding of the poor for sinless dealing with them and to bestow patience upon those who find them. In such cases, it is necessary to remember for consolation Abba Cyrus, whom the entire brotherhood kicked out and blasphemed from meals, etc. But when leaving the body he thanked them for tempting him; Instead, he remained untempted by demons. And I’ll also remind you: Father, our universal father Theodore, tell me - where did you love? And St. The Apostle writes that “those who want to live godly will be persecuted.” And your great ones, who sowed and continue to sow, will reap and reap until there is abundance... But to admit that you are insufficient in everything is necessary, and not just for us, but for everyone in general; But we, the poorest, being so feeble-minded, we must live everywhere and constantly contact our brethren to borrow good things. And to cut it short, we ask you and pray in general, for the Lord’s sake, be patient there. And the fact that you express in a great degree that you happen to spend the night in three or more [houses], this is useful for you and me: you apparently forgot the words of the late Father Theodore - he often repeated the thought of the one spirit-bearing Elder, that we must train ourselves in such a way that if, when the time calls, we will have to sit in prison, so that we can have it together there too. Let us thank the Most Merciful Lord God, who arranges our destiny in favor of our poor souls, and again we ask you to be patient: maybe the Most Merciful Lord will not show us some of His ineffable mercy! We have nothing to worry too much about, but only, if possible, about our wretched soul. And when demonic thoughts lead us into a soul-destroying life, then we must imagine and remember why we left the world and everything in it - solely for the salvation of our soul. When we were tonsured, we were given a spiritual sword against evil thoughts - a rosary, in order to thereby reflect thoughts from the enemy, for St. John Climacus in “The Ladder” writes: “By the warriors in the name of Jesus, for they have not found the strongest weapons either in heaven or on earth.” Oh, our fathers and brothers! Let us take care of the salvation of our poor souls and strive to always call upon the Name of God for help. And in short, we have to abide with our most sensitive respect and usual devotion, your humble servants and unworthy prayer monks, the great sinners, the hieroschemamonks Leo, or in the form Leonidas, and Antiochus, we humbly bow in absentia, asking for your holy prayers in support of our mental and physical infirmities. We thank Dmitry Ivanovich Markelov for notifying us of the death of our benefactor; but it’s just a pity that they wrote briefly about him; I could have written to you how he died and on what date. Lord remember his soul! According to the remark, there was a stench of humility and simplicity in him, so that even a rare monastic would hardly find it! Surely you won’t see our Father there? Theodore! O. Ioannikios, it seems, is now possible, at his request, to visit us while we are still alive; but ask, praying to God, that the Lord may announce this. abbot; with a free spirit, and not to become stronger. Our most honorable and most beloved brother in the Lord, Fr. St. John, we earnestly wish you to rejoice in the One Most Sweet Lord Jesus and to be in good spirits with those who find you! We received your pleasant letter, sent on the 13th of the same month on the 17th, and thank you for the notification. As for your question in considering your situation, we, insignificant ones, no longer know what to advise: it is clear that for our many sins we have reached a dead end, that there is nowhere to go... I, unworthy, would like to advise you so that you can follow in the footsteps of Fr. G[abriel] asked for 6 months, but it’s unlikely to succeed, because the Abbot’s illness is not in its final stages. And at the same time, you will delve into your own health, how can a sick person ask to go on a long journey or move somewhere to another monastery? Nowadays you yourself know: the sick are little loved and are not received with relish. But if you are advised to go to Valaam, as determined by your superiors, then, given your weak strength, what will you do there? And with whom will you have spiritual intercourse? Well, it seems that there are enough proposals for humanity, and you see - there is inconvenience in everything. But it is clear from our human reasoning and assumptions that it is impossible to reconcile one’s soul, and therefore, due to my madness, I cannot find and cannot muster the spirit to advise your love to go where now, given such weaknesses and circumstances! If necessity demands it, then what will we do? We must go to Valaam! - Glory to the Most Merciful Lord God that well-meaning people and those who want good for their souls lived and now live there, and we, if circumstances force us beyond our expectations, must obey for a while. You, most dear, remember our universal father, Father Theodore, how he always surrendered to the will of the Almighty Trustee and Provider, and did not sin in his adherence, but reached a well-intentioned refuge and entrusted you and me to the Almighty Providence. He always advised and exhorted us to place ourselves in the Providence of our Redeemer and unflattering Trustee. The merciful Lord fulfills and turns everything into His will and for our benefit, although apparently through means and consequences that are contrary to us. And we, with the help of the Most Merciful Lord God, will endure and see how our fate ends, as well as Fr. Gabriel, we’ll see how much he’ll be in demand, but it’s unlikely to happen. - One can also say that not everyone will do according to our treachery, but they must take measures when they do, and it seems, apparently, that the head is showing itself - apparently, having come to their senses, it is necessary to follow the other wind. And about the adventures you mentioned that happened with Fr. N., yes, the news is your love, that these events did not occur without God’s permission - just delve more subtly into the previous and subsequent provisions accepted by them. But the Most Merciful Lord, as it is written, is with many saints and St. Isaac the Syrian (in which exact word, I don’t remember) - “The All-Merciful Lord endures all infirmities, we strive with His ineffable mercy, but He will not allow those who grumble continually, nor will He punish them.” And especially such adventures are allowed especially so that we, seeing the victims, warn ourselves against indulging in such temptations. But, oh woe to me, wretched one! Not only am I not brought to wisdom by the examples of those who suffer, but I myself am overwhelmed by many temptations and do not feel it. Also, to console your soul, we decided to remember the revelation that was given to our blessed Father, in which it was explained by experience that whatever thing the Most Merciful God desires to restore, no circumstances will be able to turn it away. But remember that as much as the Most Merciful Lord allows the enemy to act for our sins, the universal enemy the devil acts. And don’t worry about sending our appointment letter in the previous letter. Thank God that it happened that there were no fellow travelers; otherwise we were inclined to indulge in voluptuousness, but now we see from experience that we are content with volpukhas and radishes and are also strengthened - these are the forces. So, to shorten our meager lines and wish your love courage and long-suffering - and we hope in this, for it seems that you have been more patient, and with the help of our Creator we will endure to the end (i.e. until the visitation of mercy from the All-Bountiful and All-Merciful God); and as if He alone is omnipotent and omnipotent, He will arrange our destiny in general and my destiny to a saving end. We remain your humble servants and unworthy people of prayer, many-sinful hierosch. Antiochus and Leonidas and the monks Chariton and Macarius, we all humbly bow in absentia and ask for your holy prayers to strengthen our weak mental and physical strength. Our most honorable and most kindly brother, Father Ioannikios! We earnestly wish you to rejoice and be content in the One Most Sweet Lord Jesus! We received your scripture, published by you on September 18, on the 22nd of the same month and thank you for the notification. On the same date we received a letter from E. T.; writes that it is as if A[kilina] I[vanov]na is possessed by extreme illness; and we, at his request, sang a prayer service to the saint of God, St. Alexander of Svir, the Wonderworker. And if God wants her to live for the benefit, then we hope for the mercy of the All-Merciful God, punishing the punisher, but not putting her to death, that for the prayers of the saints of God, the Monk Alexander and Father Theodore, she will become lighter and mature. I ask and pray to you, my dearest oh. St. John, in all those who find good humor and, if possible, struggle in order to “make a beginning” with the help of Almighty God for the prayers of the saints of God. Even if we sin out of weakness and evil custom, let us be moved to repentance by strength, since it is written: “There is no sin, conquering God’s love for mankind.” Most of all, let us not weaken and despair of the mercy of our Creator and Redeemer. What St. writes quite clearly about. Peter of Damascus on sheet 84 in word 8: “For sin is very convenient for the righteous, but repentance is not convenient for everyone [for being near death, and first causing despair]. It’s good not to fall, or to fall and get up. If the fall happens, it’s good that you don’t despair and don’t turn away from your love for mankind, Master. For if anyone can do mercy with our weakness, let us not withdraw from Him, let us be oppressed below him, let us not abandon the commandments and not be able to achieve, but let us also know that one day before the Lord is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like one day. Below we despair, below we fall, but let us always make a beginning. If you have fallen, rise up, and if you have fallen, rise up, just like a doctor, don’t retreat, and a grievous suicide, don’t be condemned by despair. Be patient with Him, and He will show mercy either by conversion, or by temptation, or by other considerations unknown to you. It is the custom of the devil to impart to the soul, which either finds what is before it, or joy, or opinion, or sadness, or despair, or immensity of labor, or complete idleness, or, as it were, through the need of timeless things and understanding, or darkness and unreasonable hatred of all things,” and so on. Due to the length of the letter, I leave the following, but if you want, read it in the book and find comfort. And the fact that you have been appointed as an assistant to the newly appointed treasurer, you should not be faint-hearted about this, for whatever is determined without our will and desire - God’s help is in everything, only we must certainly remember ourselves and our title, rules and intentions. Although, by the will of God, we are allowed to remain in the designated position for as long as we can, and with the help of the Almighty we will only preserve our conscience and adhere to moderation, then no worse than your cellarship, which you went through with composure, they will release you without hesitation, seeing your lethargy in business and in interest. And besides, you will have a chance to go out - to go to the capital. However, with the help of the Almighty, it is now possible to submit a request. When they are not allowed to go on pilgrimage to Kyiv, then, it seems, you can also ask to find a place in the Kaluga or Oryol diocese, for which you rewrite previously submitted requests. When, more than expected, they are not fired due to their cunning, then we can assure ourselves that, apparently, it is not the will of God that we should go somewhere, but must endure, and attribute the sins we have committed to the fault of this stop; since it is written: where the will of God cooperates, there God will proclaim to the Hagarian heart to show mercy to us, and even more so to the pious priestly monks. During my stay, it seems, I told you my intention, that not only I wanted to go on a journey, but also to beg you from the Metropolitan. But the course of the matter turned out to be completely contrary to our intention, about which one of the clergy, reasoning, said: “Apparently, either the intended path is not for your benefit, or the time has not come yet.” I felt better about the latter and felt it with pleasure. Last post I received a letter from Fr. Gabriel and Fr. Israel with Theophylact. In general, they write that on August 17, His Eminence Philaret of Kaluga came to them and supposedly deigned to speak affirmatively about me, that he felt about my inevitable arrival in Optin or in general in his diocese. And meanwhile, a decree was announced from the St. Petersburg Consistory about his (Fr. Gavr[iel]) expulsion back to Valaam. And then he said: “If you want, oh. Gabriel, live here, then I myself will write a letter to His Eminence the Metropolitan about dismissing you, and be at peace.” Also, as a carnal man with carnal wisdom, it occurred to me out of idleness to give you advice: when the newly elected abbot I. arrives and is promoted, then you, having prayed to the Most Merciful Lord God, who controls our destinies, go to him and with all possible humility fall at his feet and ask, saying: “On me first, show your fatherly mercy.” And when you force yourself to do this with humility, then it is trustworthy that you will touch his heart and reluctantly deign to your desire, dear brother and father! Do you remember the holy fathers’ scripture that “it is our will and in our will to establish the good of the Most Merciful God.” We are sending a letter to Fr. at the same post office. Gabriel and his brethren; and, as much as they could, they advised most of all that they should always place themselves and their fate on the Providence of our Almighty Creator and Redeemer. And we also advise you the same: use the above to the best of human ability, and leave the fulfillment of your desires to the Providence of the Almighty, since He alone knows what is for our benefit and edification, and sometimes we “don’t know what we ask,” and therefore we do not receive what we ask for. From Fr. Paphnutia also received a letter and writes to us too. We wrote to him last week and sent him two portraits of the Batyushkins. And entrusting your fate to the Most Merciful Lord God, who punishes and raises up the weak, according to His true words: “For My power is made perfect in the weak”; and may the Most Merciful Lord, through the prayers of our father Theodore, enlighten and enlighten your mind to do useful things and may He confirm your love with His ineffable grace for the creation of His life-giving commandments. For this indecency, we remain with the most sensitive wish for your success in spiritual edification, your humble servants and unworthy prayer monks, the many-sinful hieroschemamonks Antiochus and Leonidas and the monk Macarius Gruzinov, we humbly bow and ask for your holy prayers. We also ask you: since you now have some freedom to wander, please inquire that Akilina Ivan[anovna] Cherkasova, poor thing, is she healthy? I doubt something and am overcome by my opinion about her health, because when she brought bread to see us off on the road, it rained very heavily and she got her feet wet. I asked her to drink a little elixir. She stood up straight. We wrote two letters to her - one through grandmother Fekla Ignatievna Kudryavtseva, and the other through Yakov Ivanovich Gruzinov; but she had no one to get it from other hands, and they hesitated to write to her directly, because she intended to change her apartment. And since we didn’t receive an answer from her, we doubt it even more. Please inquire about her health and notify her immediately. Moreover, when there was an opportunity, they came with the same sash that I took for myself from you, because only one person needs it. Please bow to Dimitry Vasilyevich Adintsov with all his auspicious family, and especially to Mikhail Dmitrievich. Our most honorable and most beloved brother in the Lord, Father Ioannikios! We sincerely wish you to rejoice in the One Most Sweet Lord Jesus Christ and to be in good spirits with those who find you. Your favorable writing and the most venerable benefactress Ak[ilina] Iva[anovna] regularly received and heeded the contents due to our feeble-mindedness. We received the nails and screws in the parcels from the boatman Balashev regularly; as well as a portrait of Father Fr. Theodora, who bears little resemblance, however. Do not grieve over your poor health, do not be cowardly, but courageously, with the help of God, endure with thanksgiving, blessing the Most Merciful Lord, who allowed us such weakness to feel about our inevitable and imminent death, for we are beaten with you - we do not feel, we are touched and are not encouraged to repent. This insensibility exists in us most of all from the distraction of our minds, rumors and worries about external affairs, for it is bad for us to try to be alone and pray in private; and for this very reason we remain like barren fig trees, not producing even the slightest fruit. But what are we going to do?.. Let us humble ourselves and accept the publican’s image of repentance, crying out within us every day: “God! Be merciful to me, a sinner and in all parts indecent, and not as I want, but as You, Lord, want, arrange for me a thing for salvation.” And for the prayers of our universal father Fr. Theodora, the All-Merciful and All-Powerful Lord, like a most loving father, will take revenge on our universal enemies who captivate our feelings and mental movements, and will resurrect our captive souls from the fall, in every possible way arranging our fate to a beneficial and saving end. So, when the Most Merciful God is for us, who then will dare against us? Glory to the Greatly Gifted Lord our God Jesus Christ, we have already lived through our sixth decade in this world, but we have never seen a single homeless sick person lying in the streets, but all of us, through the mercy of Him, our Creator and Redeemer, have been accepted by Christ-lovers under the roofs and given their due rest. To console your weakness, remember Vasily, the “evil servant”, expelled by his master from the house during a famine, how he was saved by patience; what is written about in the life of St. Niphon. We advise you to send your request to the abbot in the form. And having sent, let us pray to God to provide the best for us. And if the Lord tells him to sign, then let us consider it God’s Providence; and if he doesn’t sign, then everything will be useful for the future petition, and then we will suffer - for our sins. About the unpleasant circumstances encountered, what was written to you in detail from [Fr. Gabriel] and [Israel] by letter and so that you didn’t send it to us, then why didn’t you send it, and especially with A[kilina] I[vanovna] Cherkasova]? Or maybe you were really stuck there in the darkness, but you forgot - after all, things took a different turn for them. Don’t think that this will not work in favor of those who are well-minded and want to be saved. You have an opinion in the discussion of their civil strife, what should be, and we confirm. Bow down to Brother Alexy and tell him that this was not allowed to happen to him, not just, but, apparently, he either thought something about himself, or some other similar guilt followed from him. But let him pray to the Lord God, who governs our lives, and let him call upon Father Theodore in prayer. The Lord is Almighty to send down everything for the benefit of his soul and body. And to our brother Fr. It seems to Aron that the Most Merciful Lord, out of His ineffable mercy, began to allow temptations so that he could feel the fruits of the Lavra darkening his feelings. On the occasion of your meeting with him, express all humiliated respect from us insignificant ones and, with due worship, ask for his holy prayers to strengthen our weak mental and physical strength; and we also ask and pray for the same of you. And having shortened these insignificant lines, we remain with the usual respect and devotion, your humble servants and unworthy prayers, many sinners. Antiochus and Leonidas, and the monk Macarius bow in absentia and humiliately. And brother Sergius bows and asks for holy prayers as parting words to Vologda; next week he intends to leave from here. At the same time, we will send you another 25 rubles. to print 100 prints for us, since we have already released all of them. You, oh. Ioannikiy, when your health and time permit, and while you are there, try to do this yourself, report to Fr. Aaron. And if time does not allow or is not possible, then ask in our name the Valaam novice and our collaborator Mikhail Dimitrievich Adintsov, so that he can stay there until they publish it. Aleksandro-Svirsky Monastery Our most honorable and most kindly brother, Father Ioannikios! We earnestly wish you to rejoice and be content in the One Most Sweet Lord Jesus Christ! We were honored to receive your favorable scripture, which you sent out on August 19th, and we heeded its contents according to the strength of our feeblemindedness. In response to your question, with the help of our Almighty Creator and Redeemer, the Lord Jesus Christ, we deign to obey the circumstances, that is, to move to the Lavra as candlesticks. We believe, not only so that it is more convenient for me to go out when I call, but also so that the air in the Lavra is healthier, and the power is complete - the penalties are strict. At least with a little bit of human fear, you and I would tuck our tails, and less drag around and drive around under the guise of shopping; through which we dissipate our feelings with the loss of chastity and acquire a spiritual boa constrictor - destructive despair. We have long understood and reasoned that your residence in the courtyard and the gathering without any caution with the female sex exceeds the aggravation of the Lavra, and we will tell you more frankly, you contain only one name of the Valaam rules, and whoever looks at our deeds from among the enlightened and experienced in deeds will hardly agree to remain silent and betray God’s justice. At the same time, is it possible for me, at least in my duty and obligation, to remind your love especially, like our holy universal elder Father Theodore, to my nephew, so that we consider with attention the kinship and exemplary life of such a holy man, God-inspired instructions instead of significant benefit and not turn to greater condemnation. Why? From our negligence and weak will, for having heard and seen advice and instructions shining with chastity and light, we then voluntarily deviate towards pleasures and passions, and especially towards those prohibited by Divine Scripture? And as I heard from the faithful, you dare without permission and allow yourself to drink tea with sugar, and by doing so, of course, you defile yourself and your conscience! Oh, insensibility and darkness of the evil one! Truly, we can say that we don’t feel the beats, and we hurt ourselves with our negligence! Little by little, I come to amazement and amazement at the Almighty Master and Provider, the Lord Jesus Christ, who has many of His hidden servants, who work for Him with pure will and not evil simplicity and goodness, and I, unworthy, have deigned to see and talk with some of them, and to receive some consolation for my poor soul. And to cut it short, I remind you again - let’s make a beginning, with the help of the Almighty, although by moving to the Lavra, leave sugar and other soul-harming whims. Otherwise, look, although I cannot tell you directly that you will be excommunicated “from our host,” for the connection of the Holy Gospel is an inviolable union! But from the example of the saints, father (and especially St. Isaiah of Skete), although it is scary, to relieve my conscience, it is fitting to say to you: “Look! If you do not listen lawfully and for the edification of your soul to your many-sinful imaginary elder Leo, then “your apostasy will punish you!” But may the Merciful Lord give you a feeling for good and consideration from those who harm. Although I am bad and darkened, I remember little by little that when you came during the lifetime of our father, Fr. Theodora, when he laid your hand on his neck, and took your burdens upon himself, and assured you of your salvation, if only you listened to his advice; and after him, whom you should listen to, you yourself can understand... So, when, even after the venerable Father, you listen to his advice, then the Most Merciful Lord will not abandon you with His ineffable mercy, but will in every possible way arrange your path to a soul-saving end; of which we remain the most zealous desires and humble servants, many-sinful hierosch. Antiochus and Leonidas. Our most honorable and most kindly brother, Fr. Ioannikiy! We earnestly wish you to rejoice in the One Most Sweet Lord Jesus Christ! We received your pleasant letter, sent on December 15th, on the 19th of the same month and heeded the contents. Glory to the All-Merciful and Most Merciful Lord! Now you have already been transferred to the Lavra - you have been wooed for a long time, but you are not brought in soon! And when at the beginning, with the help of the Almighty, we are not forced by the position of a good principle to change the above-mentioned necessary objects, then let us see what St. writes. Theodore of Edessa in the 6th chapter: “Stone, fall from the mountain, transforming into a grove of waters. This, which has been destroyed by all sorts of images, brings destruction to the one who acquires them.” Therefore, most dear, let us remember our vows given by us at the time of tonsure, and the divinely inspired instructions of your most beloved and memorable uncle, St. Theodore, who taught us this both in word and in the exemplary deeds of his life. And let us, as far as possible, pay attention to ourselves and our hearts and take care of the edification of our poor soul; You and I will face a different judgment than others who have not seen his exemplary life and have not heard his words, “dissolved in spiritual salt”! Forgive me for the Lord's sake and have patience with my madness, something comes to me, and I feel with a heartache about N., for our Fr. senior and second in command N. - apparently, the old Valaam chimera, which he often acted in your eyes, is again belching in him! But I ask you to pray for him, so that he doesn’t get bogged down in his self-conceit and lust! “For this reason, I think it’s necessary that you forward his letter to us so that we can get to know his style and thoughts.” He wrote to us and only expressed his empty holiness, and, moreover, his lack of intelligence. And having shortened these thinly complicated lines of ours, we remain with our usual disposition and heartfelt devotion, your humble servants and unworthy people of prayer, many-sinful hierosch. Antiochus and Leonidas, with all like-minded brethren, we humbly bow in absentia and ask for your holy prayers in support of our mental and physical weaknesses. Although our Fr. Israel strives for us with zeal, but we wait for it in cold blood and reluctantly, because our Fr. Archim[andrite] and the inspector, having been at odds with each other, have become infected with paper protests, and therefore are awaiting an investigation. In addition, the provincial architect recently made a detailed estimate of the decoration for the Bishop's House in the large Trinity Monastery and assured that there will definitely be a Bishop's House and the Olonets Diocese here. And what about the stingy papers mentioned above? So their expression will stink and deafen those who hear, that our entire order will have an unbearable stench, shame and blasphemy to endure, but we would like to hear lower!!! But what to do? When my sins forced the All-Merciful Lord to allow this! Take the trouble to write what you intended... Alex[andro]-Sv[irsky] monastery Your Reverence! Our most reverend brother in the Lord, Fr. Aaron, together with our brethren, Fr. Ioannikiem and Fr. Khariton! We earnestly wish you to rejoice in the One Most Sweet Lord Jesus Christ with complacency and trust in the Provider God! We, unworthy ones, had the pleasure of receiving your favorable writing from the M. M. giver and heeded the content of it, as weak as possible of our concept. Regarding your appointment to the monastery of St. Ephraim of Perekom the Wonderworker, this should be attributed to the Providence of the All-Merciful God, who arranges everything and invisibly controls all creation, including us indecent ones. Although we anger His benevolence with our deeds and sins, He, by the nature of His immeasurable mercy and love for mankind, in every possible way teaches the opportunity and methods so that we, even if it is a little, come to our senses and correct our lives in a befitting and proper manner according to the vows we have given to repentance and the observance of God’s commandments. But I, accursed, insensible, ungrateful, all these gifts, and methods, and guilts shown to me, sad and careless, coldly accepting, in the darkness of ignorance and oblivion I spend the days of my life, being darkened by my evil will, laziness and voluptuousness, and the time given to me for repentance passes in vain!.. I forget the light of a true Christ-like deed and the funeral feast of wearing my cross - and out of insensibility I considered it as unnecessary! But pray, holy fathers, so that even though through your holy prayers the Most Merciful Lord, with His ineffable mercy, grants me, the accursed and negligent, even in these last days or the one-tenth hour, to do the necessary work in the grapes of His goodness and not to lose the mercy of the Creator and Redeemer of our Lord Jesus Christ. Regarding your appointment to this obedience from the Archpastor, you first had to delve into your conscience, spiritual strength and spirit of courage, and then you must obey the archpastor’s will. But since it’s all over, now we must, with an unflattering recognition of our weakness and insignificance, pray and ask the All-Merciful Lord God and His Most Pure Mother, the Lady Theotokos, so that for Her Mother of God prayers and intercession the Greatly Gifted Lord will grant you wisdom in management and spiritual strength to bear such a very difficult yoke. And when, in all our undertakings, we attribute things and deeds not to our imaginary art, but to the cooperating almighty Providence of God, then invisibly and insensitively the Almighty Lord will prosper in everything and arrange... As for your desire and zeal, so that I, an indecent one, may cohabit with you in the monastery entrusted to your love and spend the remains of my days under your benevolent contemplation and brotherly care and consolation - I, unworthy, such your zeal and brotherly love not only accept with joy, but also mentally kiss; and meanwhile, we can only wish and will about such our mutual desire, but the All-Merciful Lord God, as Omniscient about ours and those who have not done it, will deign and arrange. And since your love is not unaware of the extreme weaknesses of my health, allowed to me to the point of exhaustion for my many sins, and, moreover, I recognize and feel that in this monastery, by my residence, I cannot set an example for the brethren in anything except temptation and weakness, then let us lay this on the Most Merciful Lord, Who is strong and omnipotent to accomplish useful things for those who wish. In this case, it is a pity for humanity that Fr. Israel submitted a petition for relocation since the New Year and has already sent it to the Consistory, but only remember that it is for one Diocese. Our brethren, Fr. Hilarion and Fr. Israel and the others not only, at your request, pray to the All-Merciful God for your well-being, but also zealously yearn to join your love at your disposal, and only pray to God that His holy will be followed. And entrusting you to the Almighty Lord and His ineffable mercy, we abide with our due respect, your humble servants and unworthy prayer-goers, many-sinful hieroschim. Antiochus and Leonidas with like-minded brethren, we ask for your holy prayers to strengthen our weaknesses. Alex[andro]-Svir[skiy] monastery Our most honorable and most beloved brother in the Lord, Fr. Ioannikiy! We earnestly wish you to rejoice in the One Most Sweet Lord Jesus Christ and to be in good spirits with those who find you. Two of your letters, one from Fr. Israel, and the other by mail, received it promptly, and also received your parcels intact. We thank your love many times that even to this day you do not forget our misery, but remember in your good will, for which the Most Merciful Lord will not abandon you and yourself in every way, but will send His ineffable mercy and gracious mercy. As for what you sent Fr. Gabriel’s letters filled with emptiness, we ask you to be little surprised at this, since whoever lives lawfully in obedience is enlightened by the funeral feast of obedience, while we are darkened by self-indulgence and self-indulgence! Oh brother! Let us delve deeper and let us see the machinations of our universal enemy the devil, what they are, used by him in every place! And especially when a person does not try, as much as possible, to take care of paying attention to his heart and “watching his mind,” which train the senses to limit their actions and not waste the time given for repentance! And without this “doing,” although with our bodies we withdraw into silent places, with our minds we wander throughout the whole world. To which I will tell you the following incident: the Kaluga red-haired novice Philip was visiting us and, apparently, some stand deep in the church and seem to be in a frenzy. And exactly the same, only in the opposite part; then he comes to our cell to pour out the ornateness. Having noticed the harm, we did not even allow him into his cell, and we forbade our conversations with him to continue. Alone, I, a great sinner, leave the Church from evening singing, and out of his arrogance, in front of many, he began to reveal his deeds to me. I asked him: “Brother Philip! Tell me, perhaps, when you stand in the Church, where do you force yourself to place your mind?” He answered: “I fix my mind on the sky, and from there I spread it all over the world!” - "Oh! how high and far you fly! - we said, “may the Lord protect us from such attention.” At your request, we will try to send you the book of St. Isaac the Syrian for a while. Regarding your doubts about placing a candlestick on St. The meal, if such negligence and insensibility have already entered, then what are we going to do? According to such a necessary need, you will supply with fear and reverence and reluctantly! That’s why, when living in such places, keep your feelings and conscience, he who only has two heads! What to do? – Let’s not open our mouths and relax ourselves to the extreme! Or maybe the Almighty Lord will not honor you for your prayers with our great representative, Father Fr. Bring Theodore to the refuge more kindly! Forgive the Lord for the address to Fr. I forgot to include Paphnutia in the letter to you. But now I am enclosing, but it is polysyllabic and understandable; when the right opportunity came, they transferred it back to us. – What do you mention about Fr. Aaron, that he is unwell and has a type of fever - we wish him to be healthy and complacent. We, as humans, reason according to humanity, but the Most Merciful Lord, as our true Father and Trustee, apparently arranges the best, allowing everything for our edification; and therefore we must accept all adventures with all patience and thanksgiving. You, the sick one, express all this from us and bow down; and don’t be lazy to bow to brother Boris. This we ask and pray for your love together with your beloved brother Fr. Chariton, when he finds weaknesses and illnesses, philosophize and endure with thanksgiving. In short, we abide with our usual feeling, your humble servants and unworthy prayer monks, the many-sinful hieroschemamonks Antiochus and the paralytic Leonidas with other brothers of the same wisdom, we humbly bow in absentia and ask for your holy prayers in support of our infirmities. Your Reverence! Most dear brother in the Lord, Fr. And[oanniky]! We earnestly wish you good health mentally and physically and rejoice in the One Most Sweet Lord Jesus Christ! Your pleasant writing, sent by you and Fr. Paphnutius, and with him all the aforementioned donations from benefactors were regularly received. We most earnestly thank you for your benevolent efforts and goodwill, for we are most sensitively reassured by you. But we, insignificances, consider our gratitude for nothing! May the All-merciful and Greatly Gifted Lord, in His ineffable mercy, reward you with His love for mankind and grace for all your brotherly acts filled with love. Regarding... I inform your love that our brother Fr. Israel, at the request of the abbot, went to Putilovo with the boatman Burchin for the tombstone in order to resolve the four-year problem with the house of the late A-n; if the occasion was favorable, we advised him to visit you. O. P[afnuty] arrived safely on April 25, and Fr. The archimandrite, at his request, accepted it for a while - let him first take a closer look and look at him. And then, as the Most Merciful Lord arranges. And what do you write about your dissatisfaction with Fr. the treasurer for disrespecting your proposals and for slandering him with indignation, because you were embarrassed by this and, with such embarrassment, arrogantly want to change your place of residence; then, most kindly, I ask and implore you to listen patiently to our crudely complex proposal. I first ask you: “Tell me, perhaps, and consider with co-examination, with such indignation, embarrassment, zeal, having accepted the wound to the point of exhaustion, how can we possibly undertake any path, blinded by anger and indignation to the point of excess?” With such blindness, we cannot truly walk the true path, but rather, no matter how we rush from the frying pan into the flame; for the subject of transition is very important and this matter, like others, must be begun with long-suffering and a complacent feeling - then the transition will be useful and thorough. And, leaving behind many expressions, we advise you to leave this arrogant whim, as illegal and indecent, as guilt, go out and be patient in L[avr]e. To the extent possible, let our weak strength ask and pray with the complacency of the All-Merciful God, who raises up and strengthens the weak, so that with His grace and mercy you and I may be granted the opening of some kindly haven to the position of a good beginning; and for our patience the Lord is strong and almighty to make everything impossible possible, only we will endure with hope, and everything will be done. And what do you write about the venerable Fr. S.P.A., this seems to be indisputably the quality we have with him, and therefore we demand special help from God! And glory to the All-Merciful God, who has arranged for your tongue to be kept from zealous explanatory conversation, as well as the almighty power to keep your tongue from accusatory writing. And in the future I ask and pray that you do not accept such harmful thoughts and do not dare to take such daring and expressive actions; but we must generally pray to the Most Merciful Lord, so that Himself, who knows the news of destinies, will correct it, for, as it seems, we are “incurable from man,” but the Lord Himself is the only one who is strong and omnipotent to restore. And as for benefactor A[Vdotya] Terentievna’s proposal about letters, I will try with God’s help, although I understood this clearly for a long time, and as she herself wrote and is now writing for the sake of P. V-ch, for which reason I also mentioned. I also remind your love: so that the universal enemy does not bring you the suspicious thought that we are keeping you in Lavra for our whims, as if you serve us a lot by sending us needs and distributing letters, as if we, due to our voluptuous residence, are very pleased with you and are most sensitive to your services; but so that for our whims who would damage his soul? “We don’t want this, although we have a weak feeling and reason poorly. But let us remember this too: where will we go, and what will we find? And especially with our mental and physical weaknesses? [...] scary to even think about! And this place is no good either. And St. fathers do not command to move to non-peaceful places of residence; and besides: wherever we go, we will carry our infirmities and passions with us, and especially if we go out without respect for our interests, then expect an important temptation! Yes, again, we remember this too, that only with longsuffering and hope do those who thirst for this find peace. And we quite understand that your excessive work prompted you to such zeal and indignation; We regret that despite our great labors, our passions grow stronger and grow younger; and this is because we do not attribute these labors to our sins, that is, we do not reason that we endure them for sins. But, however, let us not despair, but with complacency, let us continue the course of our days and, to the extent possible of our weak strength, humble ourselves and repent; Then the Most Merciful Lord, seeing our patience and humility, will have mercy and lead us, as if from a prison, to a quiet and silent refuge. Your humble servants and unworthy pilgrims, many sinful hieroschim. Antiochus and Leonidas, with all our brothers of the same wisdom, we bow. N.B. God bless you and have mercy on you for thinking of leaving 50 rubles. and with Fr. By Israel you will pay for everything, and your head will be free. Also, keep the shawl - we don’t need shawls, but we don’t dare to forbid E[vdokia] Terentyevna, so that something nasty or upsetting doesn’t happen to her. Tell Andrey Evseevich that I don’t remember the book he mentioned, “The Acts of Peter of Alexandria”, below Fr. Macarius remembers, and we had his book, printed about the heretic Martin the Armenian and about the action of the Kyiv Council on him, but we returned it to him, it seems, through Mikhail Kipriyanovich (Mikhailovsky regiment non-commissioned officer and musician), and we did not take any more books from him. You order Diomede Kondratievich to ask him, and if he does, he will deliver. Tell him that you received his letter, Evseevich, and delivered the enclosed letter to Father Isaac; he will write to him, but he must suffer from me for a week, and, having recovered, I will try to write back to his honesty. Our scribe began to write the book of Simeon the New Theologian and wrote the life of the leaf, and I am finishing the rest myself, because after leaving Fr. On the third day Archimand[rit] expelled Israel. And only 6 sheets remained to be completed, but my chest hurt; otherwise, with God’s help, as soon as I finish my life, I will send you with a boatman, and find a scribe there to finish writing the rest. Father Fr. A[ndrey], your most kind assistant, announce that I received his letter and heeded the contents, but I’m in no hurry to respond because he has already completely decided to submit a petition to move to P. or wherever they will send him. We are extremely sorry for his hasty action, for his business, in our feeble-mindedness, is a very unprofitable enterprise; and not only in the second, but lower in the first there will be little together, only one temptation will follow, and there is nothing more to expect. However, I will try, having recovered, and write to his reverence as best I can. Please, show Pyotr Manuilovich my highest respect with worship and a wish for patience and courageous understanding, for, according to the Lord’s word, without patience we will not receive salvation! Your Reverence! Most Revered Monastic Fr. Ioannikiy! Most beloved brother in the Lord! Your two pleasant little letters, sent with the trustworthy Arkhip F[eodorovich] Bur[chin], and with him all the benefactors’ letters and their parcels were received in every order, namely: A[kilina] I[vanovna] Mrs. Cherkasova’s letter and a bag with 20 apples and 5 felts, and the second – a letter from General A[lexandra] Al[ekseevna] Mrs. K[asogovskaya]. And what do you mention about the book by the teacher. Theognosta, we didn’t write to you about her, but about a notebook, no more than six pages long, containing an extract from the complete life of St. Gregory Palamas about prayer, how Elder Jonah made love with St. Gregory, thinking that only monks should perform unceasing prayer, and the worldly are free from this. The Angel of the Lord, appearing to him, admonished him so that in the future he would not dare to be covetous about things that are lawful and would ask forgiveness from St. Gregory. Dmitry A[lexandrovich] Bryanchanino sent a letter and explained the circumstances, but due to my extreme weakness, I have neither the strength nor the spirit to write an answer; and besides, rumored circumstances complement this and fill your head. If on occasion you see A.A., say that you received the letter and parcels correctly, but due to extreme weakness I could not write, but I will try to answer if circumstances do not prevent. And in short, we abide, your humble servants and unworthy pilgrims, the great sinners, the hieroschemamonks Antiochus and Leonidas, with all those who are devoted to us and to you, we humbly bow. Your Reverence! Our most beloved brother in the Lord, Father Ioannikios! We sincerely wish you good health mentally and physically! Your three pleasant little letters, we, insignificant ones, had the pleasure of receiving each in due time and with them all the parcels in all order: 1st - with Burchin, 2nd - with Fr. F[eophylact], and the 3rd with br. A[lexander]. And all the other letters have also been received, but it’s only surprising that the gift from V[asily] P[etrovich] Bu[shmi]n was given to Fr. Thirty half sheets of postal paper, isn't that what you sent me from bro. A[lexander]. We most humbly thank you for your diligent and caring assistance in our assignments. May the most merciful Lord reward you with His mercy and grace for all your labors and compassion. As for the anecdotes of the O[Tensky] third-class monastery, although for well-meaning people and for us unworthy it is extremely unpleasant and burdensome to hear, and especially for me it is even painful - but what can I do? But also the style of the letters that you sent, written to your love from Fr. We don’t like A[arona] at all and he seems downright disgusting. We also notify you that we, from His Most Rev. at the current post office we were honored to receive a letter in which N. can and covers up his shyness against our rudeness and thinness; writes, allegedly, His Very Rev. He wrote a letter to us a long time ago, and to which, with regret and sorrow, he feels his unworthiness, and to this day has not received an answer from us, however, he is confident in our love for him, and with good faith, his sensuality expresses that I did not write back to him, not due to any indignation or unpeace, but apparently due to extreme weakness of health, since he has no doubts about the continuation of my love. And so he compiled a fable in the faces and some other riddles and absurd stories and ends the letter with imaginary humility. [Ekaterina] [Ilarionovna] is evident from Kh. that she was frightened that the elders almost came to blows because of her reverent courtesy, and then she decided to write something very extensive to us worst, but it was comprehensive: about her stepmother, with whom she deigned to spend the night during her stay in the [Laurel], she did not note a single word - neither bad nor good, and for this reason we notice that quite seasoned and taught from the great Elder. However, with the help of God, we, to the best of our ability, tried to write to her imaginary shrine, and now it is unlikely that she will write to us. And as you and I make a reservation - we see and describe the vices of others, but do little about our own, and unfortunately, we are overcome by delays, and besides, we pay little attention to proper abstinence, then, O most dear brother, Fr. Ioannikiy! For the sake of the Lord, I ask and pray to you - let us strive, to the best of our weak strength, for the prayers of Father Fr. Theodora, do not develop such a harmful mental habit in order to put off time during preparation for St. Mysteries of Confession and St. Communion of the Life-Giving Mysteries. We should not put this off at all, but with firm hope, determination and good faith, approach the Most High Lord God in the sacrament of Communion to those present, and expect help and protection for ourselves from this and from all our infirmities, deliverance and purification, yes, for He is strong and omnipotent. So, I remind you again: let us try in every possible way to prepare more often for the reception of the Holy and Life-giving Sacraments, for the cleansing of our souls and bodies. And regarding your infrequent visits to [Ekaterina] [Ilarionovna], for which you received a reprimand from her, we advise you better to endure reprimands than to drag yourself from home with mental and physical futility and scatter your feelings, become wounded and hurt the hearts of others, being carried away by voluptuousness against the conscience and duties of our rank. And this is especially dangerous due to the infirmity of our feelings and the subsequent soaring of lust, which also changes a kindly mind. About P[avl] I[lyinsky] M[khail] V[asilievich] wrote to us something similar before - we believe that he sewed a fable in your faces and covered up his shame, since he cannot be given a dismissal in St. Petersburg, but in the province where his father is. For the 2nd letter. “We received two of the repaired watches you sent, and the gold Demidov watch cost 50 rubles.” do not give them away, but keep them with you until we write something decisive to you: either send them to us with a faithful one, or something else. My friend and comrade Fr. [Makarius] granted his desire - they laid a cross and a miter, let him take the trouble to wear it and pray to God for us! And equally let [Suvorov] Rado[Nezhsky] console himself with what he knows; Thank God he doesn’t bother us with his long letters. Father Theophylact arrived safely, and although on our part he was highly recommended to our Fr. Archimandrite, in favorable cases, but as an opposing party does not yet exist in the last class, and besides, as we see, and on his part we see there was a flaw in the reception explanation, namely: Fr. The Archimandrite assigned him the obedience of being an assistant to Diomid Kondratievich, the refectory, but he fell into some kind of thoughtfulness, and it seemed to him that he was being appointed as a gatekeeper or a watchman, and he refused that he was not able to go through with it. Father Archimandrite explained to him that we have quite a number of weak people and most mercifully refused him. However, at his convincing request, he left him to spend the Easter holiday, and then go to the midday countries through St. Petersburg. But, however, as the Most Merciful Lord arranges, perhaps this will be the turn of the argument in the method. On the 3rd letter. – Glory to the Most Merciful Lord, who arranges everything for our benefit, and our brother [Alexander] arrived safely and brought everything intact that was sent with him; He was received kindly by all our superiors and is now doing well – he goes to the choir. Please listen patiently now to your question about your communications with the great Abbot [Aaron] - that your morals have already turned out to be diverse and your correspondence is the same, as this can be seen in part from your letters. I’ll tell you: this correspondence, apart from mutual harm, will not bring you any benefit, and it would not increase greater anger and hatred towards each other. And under these circumstances, it is highly commendable to make a complete resolution both in commissions and even more so in correspondence. Yes, it seems that this will be tolerable for him, since he has a brother without a position, capable of pleasing him in everything. Only with danger, let us listen to ourselves and strive mentally to love him, to move away for our weakness, and to hate his disgusting deeds. I am also not a little surprised at how you recklessly decided to write to him the words of the named, and now already ordained, Bishop. – I think you pretty much knew that Fr. abbot. [Aaron] will accept this without appetite, but with zeal he will justify himself, and scold and reproach those who pronounce his actions. For this reason, the Wisdom of Solomon says: “Do not reprove the wicked, lest they hate you” - and it is only allowed to reprove the wise, who will love for this, and teach guilt to the wise, so that they may be wise. And you knew and felt exactly that the abbot. [Aaron], due to his elevation and the course of his line of affairs, will not accept your warning rumors, but on the contrary, the ulcer and abuse are inconceivable. Therefore, shall I praise you for this? Truly I will not praise, but in the future I forbid in every possible way to write such stories about such people, but only to the most like-minded. What do you mean: Father Theophylact will tell us in detail about the tyrannical actions of Fr. abbot [Aaron], although he told us in detail and majestically, these tyrannies and actions seemed moderate to us, due to our usual plumpness. During our personal meeting, we ask the benefactor E[vdokia] T[erentyevna] to express our most sensitive respect with worship and most zealous gratitude for her great mercies and goodwill, which she pours out to us indecently! And, concluding, we have to abide with our due high veneration and devotion, your humble servants and unworthy pilgrims, the many-sinful hieroschemamonks Antiochus and Leonidas, with all like-minded people, and we humbly bow. Most venerable and dearest brother in the Lord, Father Ioannikios! We sincerely wish you peace of mind, edifying feelings, health and salvation! Please enjoy your writing with an investment of 10 rubles. assign. and two obstinate letters from Fr. Abbot [Aaron] had the pleasure of receiving them and, having read them, heeded the contents. Thank you very much for delivering letters to our benefactors. You ask, in order to inform you in more detail, whether you can be received by the rector and brethren here and whether, due to your weakness, it is possible for you to move to this Hermitage? Then I enclose a letter to the elder father Isaac, to whom, as much as I could, I explained what measures and disposition should be taken if you decide to visit our borders and experience our wretched residence; otherwise it often happens: “The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” Read this letter sent to him and you will see what general advice we have given you. And I don’t have the courage to write another more affirmative and more thorough, taking into account the circumstances and the course of affairs in the monastery and the disfavor of the supreme authorities towards me, insignificant, according to the rumors. And Father the Builder, as it seems from everything, is peaceful towards me, and I am also pleased with him, and most of all with his brother Father Anthony, who is in charge of our monastery. Also, some of the other well-minded people treat me peacefully and favorably, while those who are counter-intuitive are gradually diminished: some of them leave on their own, while others are politically expelled for not bringing the proper fruit to the place, but giving temptation. And it seems that with the assistance of God’s gracious help, we feed ourselves with good faith that the monastery will be even more orderly and peaceful. But it’s unpleasant that the Archbishop went from slandering Fr. The builder is not favored. This saddens us somewhat. But let the will of the Lord be done in everything, and whatever is allowed to us, everything will follow for our benefit. Our Kaluga Seminary rector Fr. V[ladimir] knows you well and respects you; he seems to be a modest and reverent person. Hegumen [Aaron's] jokes seem strange and disgusting to us; the content of them, laughter, or even crying, is worthy. If you write soon, please let me know if last year’s fly-yar, which belonged to the Cheremenets Builder Fr., has been delivered to you. G[ennady]. And if it is not delivered, then I intend to send again to the Bryuzgin canvases with Al. Dmitrievich. We believe that he will soon go to the capital to visit you. When we met with him, he asked me to show you his zealous respect. And on the occasion of your meeting with the Cheryenets Builder, Fr. G[ennady] express my highest respect. The Great Philaret’s informative letter, with a resolution imposed on it, was quickly sent to the Consistory, and from there a decree to the B[orisov] hermitage, which ordered the Zalesssky Builder and the Borisovsky archpriest dean to carry out an investigation; during the execution of which the testimony taken from the abbess refuted all the false denunciations of the great-eminent and holy-living elder, because he made a denunciation with the receipt of a letter from one of his imaginary disciples who was in deep charm, and thereby showed his prudence and foresight by using the testimony of fables in person! O. Seraphim settled down here to completely decide, a request was sent on this occasion through the Consistory, could he be fired by the authorities there? Now he is waiting for mercy from the Alexander-Svirsky Monastery of the Archimandrite, to whom he wrote a letter of petition. I wrote a letter to Father Hilary on the advice of Fr. Seraphim for speed on the occasion of Arkhip Feod[orovich] Burchin’s passage through Olonets and asked to inform us about the thoughts of Fr. Archimandrite about this vacation. Our former elder Fr. Vasily [Kishkin] died in the Ploshchanskaya hermitage on April 27 - on Monday on Fomina, and was buried on Wednesday. I also ask you to tell the honorable A[kilina] Ivanovna and L[lyubov] N[ikolaevna] that I received their second letters, but time does not allow me to unsubscribe, and besides, they have almost the same content as the previous ones, to which the answer was written to them, and I hope that they will forgive me with complacency. Witness to them our and all unanimous veneration; or maybe they had already decided on the journey they were taking - to visit the midday region and absorb the purest air. And having shortened the meager lines, entrusting myself and you to the patronage of God and the Queen of Heaven, I remain your unworthy pilgrim, the sinful hieroschemamonk Leo, humbly bowing with my devoted brethren. Your Reverence! Most venerable brother in the Lord, Fr. Ioannikiy! We sincerely wish you to rejoice in the One Most Sweet Lord Jesus Christ and to endure with complacency and gratitude! Your scripture and with it 10 rubles. assig. I received it in good order on September 6th and, reading it, heeded the contents. To which I now answer briefly. Firstly, may the Merciful Lord forgive you that you have not written for a long time, but I, a great sinner, did not have anything to exact from you for this, but only to the best of my ability, I beg the Almighty Lord to grant you patience in those who find it, and through them may he guide your soul to perfect salvation. Although I, who am indecent in humanity, sympathize with my heart about your current situation, and especially about your indecision, I sympathize to excess, but at the same time I feed myself with good faith that in this sorrow, for the prayers of Father Theodore, the All-Merciful Lord will comfort you and fulfill you according to His desire. since it is written in the 33rd Psalm: “Many are the sorrows of the righteous, and I the Lord will deliver from them all.” And St. Isaac the Syrian writes in the 37th word: “Every son is uneducated and does not accept wealth for his father’s house, even if he receives help from him; For this reason, God tempts and torments others, and also shows talent. Glory to the Lady, in tart treatments I bring us the pleasure of health.” And what do you explain that Alec. Iv. conveyed to you M.’s thoughts that he doesn’t even want to hear about your dismissal; and oppression and gossip are still multiplying, then we, O most dear one, will cast all our fate and ourselves upon the One Provider and Patron, the Most Gracious and Almighty Lord. He, in His mercy, will protect us and pacify those who oppose us and bend us to mercy. And I ask and pray you to continue living there with gratitude and hope, until the Most Merciful Lord, seeing our patience and humility, deigns and invisibly puts it in the heart of the Archip[astyr] to let you go... You will remember that we entered the monastery not to collect money, but to mourn our sins and be completely saved, therefore, please listen patiently. From your income you have done a great deal of good to the poor and received the strange, strengthening, feeding and comforting; and from charity, according to the commandment, they themselves felt favorable in their feelings! And now, if you endure the reduction of what is due to you from the circle number with gratitude, then this will be imputed to you as a special benefit. Yes, take as an example the story of my stay in Svirsky for 5 years against my will; although apparently there was no strong oppression similar to yours, however, those who felt it through experience saw... And you yourself mean that only one sufferer goes through a greater funeral feast from the main beginning. But you and I do not remember the long-suffering one, blessed by the whole Church, who uttered these words: “If we receive good things from the hand of the Lord, then will we not endure the evil ones.” We received the sacristy from Adintsov, sent to the Cherkasovs, with a camelot and 12 arshins of dradedam; but since it was sent without a box, it was all wrinkled. Until the arrival of our father [Gabriel], who begged to visit Orel and Karachev with his relatives and benefactors and fill his imaginary need, this sacristy lies with me until his order. And twenty prayers were received. I am surprised at you that you began to fulfill his whims - they can hardly be limited. It’s a pity that Evfimiya Osipovna suffered from the fire; I hope that the Lord will not leave her, if necessary, bow to her from me and although 10 rubles. (at our expense) they sent it to her with the faithful one. Really, it’s a pity for humanity and Fr. The builder A-go, however, apparently was still worthy of such a visit and the time given to him for due repentance and resolution of entanglements. The rumors about the monastery that have reached you, although partly undeniable, let’s see: in these difficult times, where and in which of the most exemplary monasteries can a proper arrangement of order and rules be found, and especially in imaginary dormitories - where is unanimity among the brethren? And in our monastery, since the Merciful Lord is patient with our many sins, there are up to 15 and in the monastery about 10 who are committed and unanimous to us. What more could you want now? And [A.D.] is a worldly man and blind with the eyes of his heart - he looks at the same faces. In the book of St. Simeon Nov. Read the Theologian’s chapters 70, 71 and 72 and you will find a complete solution to this. May the Most Merciful Lord enlighten you, and enlighten you, may you become wise in humility, and may He help you, and may He protect you, may He protect you from all the snares of the enemy, and may He forgive you all your sins, voluntary and involuntary. And I, a great sinner, send you my fatherly forgiveness and blessing, and through the prayers of our late Fr. Theodora, may the peace of God rest on you. For this I remain your unworthy pilgrim, Hieroschemamonk Leo, and with my devoted brethren I bow humbly. P.S. O.I., thank God, is completely determined and is little by little at peace, although Svir whitefish and salmon are still belching, but he trusts and bows to you. O. A[aron] is extremely unhealthy, not only in body, but also in soul, and the first one who opposes us, but cannot act, because he has become disgusting to everyone. Your Reverence! Most venerable and most beloved brother in the Lord, Fr. Ioannikiy! We sincerely wish you good health mentally and physically! Your pleasant writing, which you sent by mail on the 23rd of January, was received in my cell on the 29th, and since I was away - in Belgorod, the Borisov Hermitage and on the way back in Sevsk and the Ploshchanskaya Hermitage, and with the help of the Almighty returned safely on March 20th at 11 o'clock in the morning, I now begin to answer, re-reading accumulated letters. Icons in a box sent by Yegor Tikhonovich through Mr. Zhukov, namely: two icons of the Tikhvin Mother of God - the first, begged from Father Archimandrite Fr. Gabriel, and the other, donated by the zeal of the benefactor Pyotr Vasilyevich Lesnikov with a silver crown at my complete disposal, were duly received. E[vdokia] Terentievna also sent us herrings (10 poods). Truly, the Most Merciful Lord commanded her to comfort us the weak, since they are needed in this place. Glory to the Merciful Lord that the Lesnikos safely handed over A. P[etro]vna and, apparently, profitably - the Lord is with them. About the desert dweller Father P[afnutius] whom you mentioned, who stayed in the Lavra and from home for a month, and you noticed that he regrets the Lavra, that he left without judgment - and not according to his dispensation; which is why they are overcome by double-mindedness. And I, feeble-minded, constantly assumed that it was unlikely that his imaginary silence would come into confirmation; but your assumption differs significantly from his; for you do not rely on yourself and your strength, and your only desire is that the Lord, who knows the message of destinies, arranges your salvation by His Almighty Power; and therefore, I, most indecent, am confident that the All-Merciful Lord will not leave you, but will give you an opportunity and a way to move to a convenient place to the position of a good beginning and to the edification of your soul. Glory to the Most Merciful Lord, who arranges useful things in every possible way, now it has become much quieter in our monastery, and the party of opponents of silence is little by little dissipating. We feed ourselves with good faith, which will subside; The only pity is that Father Seraphim is extremely embarrassed, and I hear that he is philosophizing a lot against me and flirting with me about my absence to Belgorod, Borisovka, etc., and he grumbled to excess. God save him and have mercy, and may the All-Merciful Lord grant him to come to a sound mind. It’s quite a pity for A[rkady], the brother of Father A., ​​and the most universal temptation for the entire monastic image! It’s surprising that you haven’t received a fly-catcher yet! I intend to write to Fr. Nifont, so that he would write to that janitor to notify him about this. - I ask the Cherkasovs to express my respects, I received their letters, as well as B[ogdano]voy, but I still don’t find the strength or time to write them back. If you meet with them, announce to them my position, so that they do not become faint-hearted; I intended to write more, but by mistake I did not first consider what I was writing on a written letter, which is why, having already written a whole page, I was forced to cut off the letter. May the All-Merciful Lord help you and cover you from all the snares of the enemy. Your unworthy pilgrim, the sinful hieroschemamonk Lev with all his devoted brethren. Your Reverence! Most venerable and dearest brother in the Lord, Fr. Ioannikiy! We sincerely wish you to remain in peace of mind and in blissful hope in the mercy of God, to overcome every temptation with magnanimity, and to be saved physically and spiritually. Your most sincere writing about the Lord to me, the worst, accompanied by you on May 30th, has now been fully received by me; at the first thought of the weakness of the spirit of the world it seems to us sorrowful, but for the ineffable future glory it seems most favorable; and therefore may the all-holy will of the Lord be done for us in this and in everything. So, although our desire is not fulfilled, they do not dismiss you into our monastery, and apparently it appears rather sadly that they are oppressing you; but believe me, oh dearest brother Fr. Ioannikiy, and let it be known to your love that either the time has not come, or so that we may abandon some of our coldness and weakness and more diligently ask the Almighty Lord, so that He, with His Almighty Right Hand, will help us, if His holy will pleases. And if this is God’s favor, then nothing will hinder our work; for St. John Chrysostom writes in Margarita: “What God proposes, men cannot destroy,” and again: “God, wherever He wants, the order of nature is defeated.” Yes, take as an example the transfer of my unworthiness from the Sv[ir] monastery to this monastery - after all, they held me back for five years against my strong petitions, and at the beginning of the sixth, and without any of my petitions, as if for obedience, I was sent, and the Lord, the Merciful, invisibly arranged that I was dismissed. And for Father Macarius all the obstacles and insidious weeds remained without action. And now, by the goodness of the Almighty Lord, we peacefully and complacently abide with faith and trust, trusting in the protection of the Greatly Gifted Lord, that you too, without a little delay, will be dismissed and joined to our small society in a single fence, just be patient a little longer, and the All-Merciful Lord will console you in every possible way. And this, although involuntary, stay and sorrowful adventures will serve you in time to repel the belching that may inevitably follow during your stay here at the Egyptian cauldrons (or better to say, St. Petersburg kulebyak and whitefish or salmon fish soup). Therefore, out of my bad feeling, I advise on my part that unless the Almighty Lord Himself arranges various circumstances for you, do not leave the Lavra of your own free will, and especially do not dare to go to those who are calling - there is little use there! And in the fatherland there are no such rules as to invite someone to the monastery with the promise of harmful seductions! And I don’t understand how not to refuse such requests. And the fact that you are asking my permission to apply to the Novgorod monasteries, then after this request for donation, is it really impossible for you to continue living in Lavra? If it is possible, then, as I said above, from the Lavra, be patient, as long as you don’t move. And when, beyond hope, they are forced to leave, then it is better, in my stupid mind, to go then to some Novgorod monastery. Then God is able to fulfill your good desire in a short time, arranging it in a edifying haven. And don’t doubt about your poverty and few acquaintances - maybe the Lord will provide you with acquaintances and comfort you in that place. The direct intention of relying on benefactors is contrary to God, but with God’s help this is not rejected. As for begging you from the Bishop, you shouldn’t even think about it. And oh oh. A request was sent to Macarius, but there was no response from the Oryol Consistory. And in this we rely on the Providence of God, and what follows must be accepted as sacred. In the Ploshchanskaya desert, even the offering of the Builder is not certain, and Markelin’s situation is getting worse and worse. Me[lania] Iva[anovna] is in her weakest position: the water one is pouring in at her most powerful. And entrusting you and yourself to the protection of the Almighty Lord, may He help you and protect you from all the snares and slander of the enemy, and may He forgive you all your sins - voluntary and involuntary; and I, the indecent one, send you fatherly forgiveness and blessing; and through the prayers of our venerable fathers Theodora and Cleopas, who found the sorrows of those who endured and received salvation, may the peace of God rest upon you. Amen. I remain your unworthy pilgrim and spiritual father, the many-sinful Hieroschemamonk Leo, and with my devoted brethren I bow humbly. [Note]: Considering it a spiritual pleasure, I testify to you, most honorable father Fr. Ioannikis, and I, the most insignificant, my sincere veneration; I most sensitively thank you for your love and remembrance of me, most unworthy. Looking in spirit with spiritual sorrow at your good will, surrounded by obstacles, although I am unworthy, I dare to cry out to the Lord, may he deliver you from slander and unite your spirit with feelings to Father and us. I have the honor to remain with my deepest respect and goodwill towards you, your reverence, the most insignificant novice, the much-sinned monk Pavel, I bow in all humility. Prayer before the beginning of each letter: “Through the prayers of our holy fathers, Lord Jesus Christ our God, have mercy on us.” You might be interested in: