Беседа 5. На память мученицы Иулиты 32 и продолжение сказанного в предыдущей беседе: о благодарении

The reason for this meeting is the proclamation made about the blessed martyr. For we announced to you in advance about this day that on it the memory of a great feat is taking place, a feat in the female body of the most courageous, then leading to amazement of all those present at the spectacle, and subsequently hearing the story of the torments endured - the feat of which Julita, the most blessed of women, labored, if only it is fitting to call the one who hid the greatness of her soul as a wife. the weakness of female nature, and by which, as I think, our common enemy, who does not tolerate victory from women, is especially overthrown. He boasted of great deeds, that he would shake “the whole universe, embrace him like a nest,” embrace him “like a nest, and take him like an abandoned egg,” and devastate “cities” (Is. 10:14); but it turned out that he was defeated by his wife’s valor. He intended to expose this wife during the temptation that, due to natural weakness, she could not fully maintain faith in God; but he learned from experience that she was more courageous than her nature and laughed at his fears just as much as he hoped to terrify her with them. She began a lawsuit with one of the powerful in the city, with a selfish and arrogant man, who had amassed wealth for himself through theft and robbery, who, having cut off a lot of land from this woman and her fields, villages, herds, slaves and all the utensils needed in life, appropriating them to himself, inclined the court to his side, supported by secret informers, false witnesses and the corruption of judges. When the urgent 33rd day arrived, the herald called, the intercessors for the cases were ready, and she began to reveal the arbitrariness of this man, began to tell how the estate was acquired in the beginning, and how the passage of time established its ownership, and then complain about the violence and greed of this man; then he came out and said that this case was not subject to trial, because it was not permissible for those who did not serve the gods of kings and who had not renounced their faith in Christ to enjoy common rights. The chairman decided that he was speaking fairly and demanding what was necessary. Immediately, incense and braziers were served, an offer was made to the litigants that if she renounces Christ, she can enjoy the laws and the benefits from them, and if she stubbornly adheres to the faith, then she will not participate in the courts, or in the laws, or in other civil rights, on an equal basis with those deprived of honor by the law of the 34 powers that were then in power. What after this? Has she been caught by the lure of wealth? Have you neglected what is useful for yourself in competition with the offender? Were you afraid of the danger that threatened the judges? Not at all. But on the contrary, she says: “Perish your life! Lose your estate! Let no body remain with me before I utter some wicked word against the God who created me!” And the more in her eyes the chairman was irritated by these words and inflamed to the extreme with anger at her, the more she thanked God, because, while litigating for perishable wealth, she apparently claimed possession of heavenly blessings, was deprived of earth in order to acquire paradise, was condemned to dishonor in order to be awarded the crown of glory, suffered bodily blows and was deprived of temporary life in order to receive the blessed hopes of being with everyone saints in the joy of the Kingdom. Since she was asked many times and repeatedly gave the same answer, calling herself a servant of Christ, and cursed those who invited her to renounce, the unrighteous judge not only deprived her of her property, which was taken from her unjustly and contrary to the laws, but thought to harm life itself by putting it on fire. And she did not flow so hastily towards any pleasure in life as she walked towards this flame, revealing spiritual joy in her face, in her entire appearance, in her words and in her cheerful mood. Exhorting those standing near the women not to weaken in the exploits of faith and not to make excuses for the weakness of nature, she said: “And we are of the same composition as men; created in God's image just as they are; The Creator created the wife, equally honest with her husband, capable of virtue. And aren’t our husbands and I alike in everything? Not only flesh was taken to make a wife, but also bone of bones. And therefore, along with men, we owe the Lord firmness, cheerfulness, and patience.” Having said this, she threw herself 35 onto the fire; and he, like some bright palace, enclosing the body of a saint, sent the soul to the heavenly land, to its proper rest, while preserving the honest body intact for his neighbors; and it, resting in the most beautiful suburb of the city, sanctifies the place, sanctifies those who come to it. The earth, blessed by the coming of the blessed one, exudes from its depths the most pleasant-tasting water, so that the martyr took the place of the mother of those living in the city, giving water, as it were, some common milk. This water serves as a preventative for the healthy, gives pleasure to those who enjoy chastely, and provides relief to the sick; because what kind of grace Elisha showed to the people of Jericho (2 Kings 2:19-22), the martyr showed the same to us - the salinity generally characteristic of the waters of this place, changing the blessing into a feeling sweet, and soft, and pleasant to everyone. Do not allow, husbands, that you should turn out to be worse than your wives in piety! Do not, wives, neglect this example, but steadfastly adhere to piety, having experienced by yourself that the weakness of nature does not in the least prevent you from acquiring goods! I would like to say a lot about the martyr, but the word that we began yesterday and remained unfinished does not allow us to dwell on this any longer. And by nature I don’t like anything unfinished. It’s also unpleasant to see an image that is only half similar; The labor of travel is also useless when the traveler does not reach the expected end and certain places of rest; getting a little by fishing means the same as getting nothing; and those who run in the field often, falling behind by one step, are deprived of their rewards. So we, having reminded ourselves yesterday of the apostolic words and hoping to briefly review their meaning, as it turns out, we missed more than we said. That is why we consider it necessary to pay you what is missing. So, the Apostle says: “rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in everything” (1 Thess. 5:16-18). Last day we talked about the fact that we should always rejoice, although unsatisfactorily in relation to the subject, it is nevertheless sufficient for ourselves. But is it necessary to pray unceasingly, and is such a commandment possible? This is what you are ready to ask, and I will try to defend it to the best of my ability. Prayer is a request for benefits sent by the pious to God. Petitions, no doubt, are not limited to words; for we do not think that God needs a verbal reminder, but knows what is useful even when we do not ask. So what are we saying? That it is necessary not to conclude prayer in words, but, on the contrary, to place more of the power of prayer in spiritual will and in virtuous deeds, continuously continued throughout life. For it is said: “whether... you eat, or drink, or do anything else, do everything for the glory of God” (1 Cor. 10:31). Sitting at the table - pray; if you eat bread, give thanks to Him who gave; if you strengthen the weakness of the body with wine, remember Him who gave you this gift to gladden your heart and relieve ailments. Has the need for food passed? May the remembrance of the Benefactor never cease. If you put on a tunic, thank the One who gave; putting on a cloak - deepen your love for God, who has given us coverings suitable for winter and summer, preserving our life and covering our ugliness. Has the day passed? Give thanks to Him who gave us the sun to carry out our daily affairs and who gave us fire to illuminate the night and serve for other everyday needs. May the night give you other incentives to pray. When you look up to the sky and fix your gaze on the beauty of the stars, pray to the Lord of the visible and worship the best Artist of all, God, who “created all things with wisdom” (Ps. 103:24). When you see that all animal nature is engulfed in sleep, again bow to the One who, even against our will, through sleep, frees us from the continuity of labor and, through a little tranquility, again brings us to the vigor of our strength. Therefore, let not all of the night be your own and exclusive destiny of sleep; Do not allow half of your life to become useless due to sleepy insensibility; on the contrary, let your night time be divided into sleep and prayer. Let even dreams themselves be an exercise in piety; for even sleepy ideas are often, as it were, echoes of daytime concerns: what are our everyday activities, such are, of necessity, dreams. In this way, you will pray unceasingly, not concluding your prayer in words, but throughout your entire life, drawing closer to God, so that your life will be continuous and unceasing prayer. But it is also said: “Give thanks in everything.” They say: “How can it be that a soul, tormented by misfortunes and, as it were, wounded by a feeling of sorrows, does not cry and indulge in tears, but what is actually hated, gives thanks for it as if it were a blessing? For how can I give thanks while enduring what an enemy might wish for me? The child is stolen untimely, and the mother, who is aching for her beloved, is tormented by illnesses that are worse than the previous pains of birth; How can she, leaving crying, turn to words of thanksgiving? Is this possible? Perhaps, if you consider that the closest Father, the most reasonable Trustee and Steward of life to the child born by her is God. Why don’t we allow the reasonable Master to dispose of His property as He pleases, but we are annoyed, as if deprived of property, and we regret the dying, as if an offense was being done to them? And you argue that the child did not die, but was given back, that the friend did not die, but set off on a journey and left you somewhat ahead along the same road along which we will need to go. Let the commandment of God live with you inseparably, constantly imparting to you, as it were, some light and illumination for judging matters. She, having previously taken upon herself supervision over your soul and having prepared in it the correct opinions about every thing, will not allow you to change from anything that happens to you, but will ensure that with a prepared thought, like a cliff located near the sea, you will safely and unshakably withstand the blows of strong winds and waves. Why are you not in the habit of thinking mortally about mortals, but accepted the death of your child as something unexpected? When they first informed you about the birth of your son, then if someone asked you: what was born? – what would you answer? Would you say anything else, or that a man was born? And if a person, then, of course, a mortal? What is unusual here if a mortal dies? Don't you see that the sun rises and sets? Do you not see that the moon waxes and then wanes, that the earth becomes covered with greenery and then withers? What is constant around us? What is by nature motionless and unchanging? Raise your gaze to the sky, look to the earth: they are not eternal. For it is said: “heaven and earth will pass by: ... the stars will fall from heaven, the sun will darken, and the moon will not give its light” (Matthew 24, 35, 29). Is it surprising if we, being part of the world, experience what is characteristic of the world? Looking at this, when the common fate comes to you, bear it with your eyes closed, not dispassionately and not insensitively (for what is the reward for insensitivity?), but with great difficulty and with thousands of illnesses. At the very least, endure it as a brave ascetic, showing strength and courage not only in striking down opponents, but also in bearing their blows with firmness; and like a wise helmsman, due to his great experience in navigation, not embarrassed by anything, keeping his soul in an upright position, not submerged and overcoming all bad weather. The loss of a beloved son or a dear wife, or someone dear to the heart, united by all ties of goodwill, is not terrible for one who is prudent, has a sound mind as the guide of life and does not walk according to some skill. For even for dumb people it is intolerable to deviate from habit. I have sometimes seen an ox crying over a manger after the death of another ox, with which it grazed and walked in the same yoke. It can be seen that other animals also strongly adhere to the skill. But you didn’t study that way and you weren’t trained that way. On the contrary, although there is nothing incongruous in starting friendship with a long relationship and a long-standing habit, it is completely unreasonable to cry about separation for the reason that we lived together for a long time. For example, your wife shared the lot of the hostel with you, giving you all the pleasures in life. She was the culprit of your peace of mind, prepared joys for you, increased your property, and in sorrows turned away most of the sorrows from you; and she leaves you, suddenly snatched away by death. Do not become embittered in suffering, do not say that there is some random confluence of events and there is no trustee governing the world. Do not imagine some evil creator, inventing evil teachings for yourself out of immoderate grief, and do not go beyond the bounds of piety. Since you have completely become “two into one flesh” (Gen. 2:24), then it is very excusable for you to accept the dissection and dissolution of this union with illness; but for this very reason it is of no use to you to invent or say anything incongruous. Consider that God, who created and animated us, gave each soul a special path in this life and set its own limits for each soul. According to the ineffable laws of His wisdom and truth, He ordained one to remain longer in the partnership of the flesh, and commanded the other to quickly be freed from bodily bonds. Just as among those thrown into prison, some are kept in burdensome bonds for a longer period of time, while others find rapid liberation from suffering, so the souls, some for a long time, and others for a short time, are kept in this life, according to the dignity of each, as the One who created us wisely, deeply and inexplicably for the human mind has provided for each of us. Don't you hear what David says? “Bring my soul out of prison (speaking of disasters)” (Ps. 141:8). Have you heard about the saint that his soul was released? For what did Simeon say when he held our Lord in his arms? What word did you say? Isn’t this: “Now you are releasing Your servant, O Master” (Luke 2:29)? For one who hastens to the life above, any punishment and any prison is more difficult than remaining with the body. Therefore, do not demand that God’s orders about souls be bent to your pleasure. On the contrary, about those who entered into an alliance with each other during life and then were separated by death, reason that they are like travelers who walk the same road and, from continuous stay with each other, have become united by habit. Such travelers, having traversed a common path, when they see that the road is further divided, since each one must already be separated from his comrade, do not neglect the path ahead, holding on to the habit of each other, but remembering the reason that originally aroused them to travel, each set off to his own goal. Just as their goal of the journey was different, and the rapprochement between them occurred from the habit of each other during the journey, so those united by marriage or some other community, without a doubt, each had his own limit of life, and the destined end of life necessarily divided and separated those who entered into an alliance with each other. Therefore, it is characteristic of a reasonable soul not to lose patience during separation, but to thank Him who combined the lots for the previous union. And you, when you had a wife or a friend, or a child, or something else that you are now complaining about, was alive, you did not thank the Giver for real blessings, but grumbled that others were still missing. If you lived with only one wife, you complained that you didn’t have the children you wanted; and if there were children, he didn’t get rich or saw some of his enemies prosper. Be careful that we do not make it necessary for ourselves to lose what is most dear to us, remaining insensitive when it is with us, and lamenting it too much when it leaves us. Therefore, if we are not grateful for the blessings given by God, then it becomes necessary to take them away in order to bring us to our senses. Just as the eyes do not see too close a bright color, but require a certain distance in proportion, so ungrateful souls, usually after the removal of goods, begin to feel past happiness. For, not knowing any gratitude to the Giver while they were using the gifts, after the loss they will please the past. On the contrary, none of us is exempted by any circumstance in life from the obligation to give thanks, if we want to conscientiously consider each of these circumstances. For the life of each of us contains many and not entirely unpleasant subjects for reflection, if only we take the trouble to look at lower states and thus, through comparison with the worst, measure what the good in our hands is worth. Are you a slave? There are others below you. Give thanks that you have an advantage, albeit over one, that you are not condemned to turn the millstone, that you do not take beatings. But even such a one does not lack incentives to gratitude, because he does not yet have shackles on him, he does not wear stocks on himself. For a prisoner, life itself is a sufficient incentive to give thanks; he sees the sun, breathes the air, and thanks for that. Are you being punished unfairly? Rejoice in the hope of the future. Are you justly convicted? And in this case, give thanks for the fact that here you are being punished for crimes, and are not being kept for eternal torment for sins that were not punished in life. In exactly the same way, a prudent person, in every kind of life and in every occupation, can render great thanks to the Benefactor for the present. But now many fall into the vice of evil people, not respecting what they have and wanting what they don’t have. For, not counting everyone who is lower than them, they do not express gratitude to the Benefactor for what they have, but, on the contrary, when compared with what is above them, calculating what they lack, and being deprived of what belongs to others, they grieve and grumble, as if they had been deprived of their property. The slave is indignant that he is not free; brought up in freedom - who is not of high birth, not of noble birth, cannot, in ascending order, count seven ancestors who lavished wealth on brilliant riders or martial artists. A nobleman complains that he is not too rich; the rich man grieves and laments that he is not the ruler of cities and nations; a military leader who does not reign; a king who does not possess all the sunflowers, but that there are still nations who have not bowed under his scepter. What comes out of all this is that the Benefactor receives no gratitude for anything. But we, putting aside grief over what we don’t have, will learn to give thanks for what we do have. In difficult circumstances of life, we will say to the wise Doctor: “in sorrow your punishment for us is small” (Is. 26:16); Let's say: “It is good for me, for you have humbled me” (Ps. 119:71); let's say: “the passions of this present time are unworthy of the glory that desires to appear in us” (Rom. 8:18); let's say: “it is not enough that we sinned about them, ... wounded us” (Job 15:11); Let us cry to the Lord: “punish us, Lord, both in judgment and not in rage” (Jer. 10:24); for “if we are judged by the Lord we are punished, lest we be condemned with the world” (1 Cor. 11:32). And with a prosperous course of life, we will say in the words of David: “What will I render to the Lord for all that I have rendered?” (Ps. 115:3). He brought (us) from non-existence into being; He honored us with reason, and gave us the arts as companions in life; produces food from the earth; He gave us cattle to serve us; for us the rains, for us the sun; For our sake, the highlands and plains are decorated, preparing for us a refuge on the mountain heights; Rivers flow for us, springs flow for us, the sea is open to us for trade. And the abundance of metals, ready-made pleasures everywhere - because all creation brings us gifts through the rich and unfailing mercy of the Benefactor towards us! And is it necessary to talk about unimportant things? For us, God is with people! For corrupted flesh, “The Word became flesh and dwelt in us” (John 1:14). The Benefactor moved in with the ungrateful; the Liberator came to the captives; to those sitting in darkness - the Sun of righteousness; on the cross - Impassive, brought to death - Life, to hell - Light; for the fallen, the resurrection, the spirit of procreation, the division of gifts, the promise of crowns, and so on, which is difficult even to count, and what generally belongs to the prophetic word: “What shall we render to the Lord for all that we have rendered” to us? Again, here it is not said that the Greatly Gifted One gave, but “repaid,” as if He was not the first to show mercy, but rewards those who show mercy; because he counts the gratitude of those who receive as a benefit to Himself. He gives you property, and He Himself asks you for alms through the hands of the poor; although he takes his own, he nevertheless brings you full gratitude, as if for your property. Therefore, “what shall we render to the Lord for all that he has rendered” to us? I cannot part with these words of the prophet, who is perfectly perplexed and weighs his poverty; because there is nothing worthy of reward to the One who, besides such great and glorious benefits, incomparable in their superiority, subsequently promises us even greater ones: heavenly pleasure, glory in the Kingdom, honors equal to the angels, knowledge of God, which for those who are worthy is the highest good, which every rational nature desires, which - oh, if only we could be worthy - having cleansed ourselves from carnal passions! “How,” they will say, “will we show our sociability and love for our neighbors, this is the first and most perfect of blessings, because “the fulfillment of the law is love” (Rom. 13:10), when, coming to someone who has suffered great disasters, we will not cry with him, not shed tears, but give thanks for what happened? To endure one's own suffering with gratitude serves as proof of patience and steadfastness; but to thank God for the misfortunes of others means to rejoice over evil and grieve those who mourn; meanwhile, the Apostle commands us to “weep with those who weep” (Rom. 12:15). What can we say to this? Shouldn't we again remind ourselves of the words of the Lord, what we are commanded to rejoice about and what to cry about? It is said: “Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is many in heaven” (Matthew 5:12). And again: “daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for Me,” but weep for your children (Luke 23:28). Consequently, God's word commands us to jump and rejoice with the righteous, and to cry and lament with those who shed tears of repentance or mourn those who live carelessly, because they do not know about their destruction. But one who mourns the death of people and cries out with those who weep should not yet be considered a fulfiller of the commandment. I do not praise that doctor who does not help the suffering, but himself becomes infected with diseases; I do not praise the helmsman who does not control those sailing with him, does not fight the winds, does not avoid the waves, does not encourage the timid, but he himself suffers from seasickness and loses his courage along with the unknown sea. Such is the one who, coming to those who are crying, does not give them any benefit with his words, but takes upon himself the ugliness of other people’s passions. One should be sad about the misfortunes of people who cry; for in this way you will become close to those who suffer, without showing either joy due to disasters or indifference to the sorrows of others. But it is indecent, together with the mourners, to indulge in excesses, such as: screaming or crying along with the suffering one, or in any other way imitating and competing with someone darkened by passion, for example, shutting up with him, wearing a black dress, falling to the ground, not combing his hair; for by these means it is possible to increase rather than alleviate the disaster. Don’t you see that if abscesses appear with wounds, and if tumors become inflamed, they intensify the pain, but the hands, with a light touch, reduce the feeling of pain? Therefore, you yourself do not aggravate suffering with your presence and do not fall along with the fallen. Whoever lifts someone who is lying down must certainly be above the one who has fallen; and whoever has fallen in the same way needs himself to be raised by another. But just as one should sympathize with what happened and silently grieve over sorrowful events, expressing mental suffering with a look of attentiveness and caring concentration on the face, so, when starting a conversation, one should not suddenly start reprimanding, as if rushing and attacking those lying down; because reprimands are intolerable to people whose souls are tormented by grief, and the words of those who are in a completely dispassionate state are poorly received by those suffering and are not so convincing that they can console. But having allowed the mourner to pour out his empty and useless cries and complaints, when the evil has already weakened and subsided somewhat, then you can carefully and meekly touch on admonitions. Those riding around young horses, when the horse is stubborn, do not suddenly pull on the reins and rein them in - for in this case it gets used to rearing and throwing off the rider - but first they give in to him and themselves indulge in his swiftness; when they see that the horse has exhausted its zeal in its own swiftness and efforts, then, having already been tamed, they take it into their own hands and, with the help of art, make it even more obedient. So let it be, in the words of Solomon, “it is better to go to the house of mourning than... to the house of feasting” (Eccl. 7:3), if someone, skillfully and meekly using the gift of speech, intends to communicate his own health to the sufferer, and not to become infected with someone else’s sorrow, like inflammation in the eyes. So, weep with those who weep. When you see a brother lamenting in repentance about his sins, weep with him and have compassion for him. In this way, with the passions of others, you will be able to correct your own, for whoever shed hot tears over the sin of his neighbor has healed himself by mourning his brother. Such was the one who said: “I have received sorrow from sinners who forsake Thy law” (Ps. 119:53). Shed tears for sin: this is a mental illness, this is the death of an immortal soul; sin is worthy of crying and unceasing sobs. May all tears be shed for him, and may the lamentations sent from the depths of the heart never cease. Paul wept over the enemies of the cross of Christ (Phil. 3:18), Jeremiah wept over the dead people. Since he lacked natural tears, he asked for “the source of tears” and “the last vitality” 36 (Jer. 9, 1, 2). I will sit, he says, “and cry” for my dead people for many days. It is the word that pleases such tears and such crying, and not the disposition to indulge in any sadness and be ready to cry for any reason. I also saw other sensualists who, out of excessive lust, under the pretext of sadness, turned to wine and drunkenness and tried to excuse their intemperance with the words of Solomon, who says: “Give wine to those who are sorrowful” (Proverbs 31:6). But this is a tributary word, which is not given permission to revel in, but human life is supported. Not to mention the mysterious meaning of this saying, according to which wine means mental joy; and according to the first meaning presented in the speech, no small concern is expressed in it so that those who are inconsolable and weeping bitterly, having given themselves over to crying too much, do not neglect food, but that, just as the heart of a lover of sadness is strengthened by bread, so fallen strength is supported by wine. But wine lovers and drunkards do not satisfy their sadness, but exchange one evil for another, and becoming some kind of ill-intentioned intermediaries, they exchange some mental illnesses for others. Imitating those who equalize the weights on the scales, they reduce sadness as much as they add voluptuousness. However, I think that wine should help nature, but it is not permissible to get so drunk with undiluted wine that it clouds the mind; because sorrow does not flow out along with the wine, but meanwhile a new evil appears in the soul - drunkenness. If reason is the doctor of sadness, then the extreme evil will be drunkenness, which prevents the healing of the soul. But put together in your mind everything I have said in order and you will find the possibility and benefit of apostolic legitimation; You will understand how to always rejoice, following a sound mind, how to pray unceasingly, how to give thanks in everything, how to console those who mourn, so that in everything you can be perfect and prepared with the help of the Holy Spirit and with the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ dwelling in you, to whom be glory and dominion forever and ever! Amen. This holy martyr suffered at the beginning of the 4th century A.D. The Holy Church celebrates her memory on July 31. Appointed, established. This law was issued under Diocletian in 303 A.D. You might be interested in: