Diary. Volume XVII. 1872-1873

I • II • III • IV • V • VI • VII • VIII • IX • X • XI • XII • XIII • XIV • XV • XVI • XVII • XVIII • XIX • XX • XXI • XXII • XXIII • XXIV • XXV • XXVI This edition is the first publication of all currently known diaries of the holy righteous John of Kronstadt (1829 - 1908). The diaries cover the period from 1856 to 1898. At the moment, there are no diary notebooks for 1885 - 1890 and 1894 - 1896 and for the period from 1898 to mid-1908. The absence of notebooks over the years does not in any way detract from the significance of the publication, since the missing notebooks would have added some details concerning the life of the righteous man, without adding anything substantive. In connection with the publication of the diaries, it should be said that for the first time they provide the opportunity to compile a true biography of the righteous man, both from the point of view of facts and the essence of his spiritual feat. The currently available biographies of Father John of Kronstadt are somewhat simplified: they are neither an icon nor a photograph, but rather look like a popular print. As an entertaining read, such biographies have a right to exist - but as an aid on the path to salvation, as a spiritual guide, they can do more harm than good, since they can mislead the reader about the life of the righteous, painting a picture of the world around him, in which there was little resemblance to the real, often very harsh reality. Many pages of the diary are written by Father John with the utmost frankness, so that the reader may wonder if he is an ordinary person, Father John - although he is a priest, and perhaps sinners like us. However, a careful reading and study of the diaries of the righteous man shows that no, he is not at all like that and that there is almost an abyss between him and us. What modern Christians are already accustomed to, what constitutes, one might say, the almost everyday side of the life of a modern person, that world of thoughts, which is almost the usual environment of the inner life of a modern Christian and is not even realized by him and is not assessed in any way - this was recognized by the righteous as a bitter fall, requiring on his part the most cruel, merciless reproof. His self-reproach is so great, consistent and persistent that it shows that truly the Spirit of God was at work in him - and even though the Lord allowed him to stumble, He also quickly raised him up. By the strength of his struggle with mental temptations in the midst of the sea of ​​life and in the midst of the world in which he lived, the holy righteous John sets an example of one of the greatest saints of the 19th - early 20th centuries, on whom the great mercy of God rested, which, according to the word of the Apostle Paul, does not depend on the one who struggles, but on God who has mercy (Rom. 9:16). Knowing that Father John loved divine services and himself read the canon at Matins, some priests also try to read the canons at Matins, but often do not get what they expect, because, making extraordinary but isolated efforts, they lose sight of the concern for the hourly and minute-by-minute correction of their soul, the unceasing presentation of their conscience to God, which requires tension of a different quality. In this case, it is no longer a person who strives to do something good from his point of view, but the soul of a person is enlightened, like glass by the rays of the sun, by the word of God, which is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword: it penetrates to the separation of soul and spirit, joints and marrow, and judges the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And there is no creature hidden from Him, but everything is naked and open before His eyes; Let us give an account to him (Heb. 4:12-13). Man is judged by it every minute and tries to remove from the soul every stain that is revealed on its clothes by the Divine verb. That is why the diaries of the holy righteous John of Kronstadt begin with an in-depth reading and interpretation of the Holy Scriptures. It is impossible to be saved and have the right to live without knowing the Law of Life, without fully studying the will of God, embodied in the Holy Gospel. This is the first commandment of the righteous to all those who are being saved - to read, delving into the content, and again read the Holy Scriptures, delving into the inspired verbs, and judge themselves with them, and as they are fulfilled, again ask the Lord to open the mind to understand what is being read. It is like an unshakable stone on which only everyone can erect the structure of their salvation. From the diaries of Father John, we learn how he struggled with the passions inherent to one degree or another in every person, what his true relationships were with his colleagues in the church, with his wife Elizabeth and with relatives - and these relationships were very far from what is usually portrayed by his biographers. But from the diaries we also learn which path the righteous man followed and what Christian way out he found from the complex collisions of human existence. Nowadays there is a lot of talk about a person’s right to personal privacy, that one should not touch on what a person wrote in his personal diary. Saying this, people forget that at the Last Judgment there will be no personal secrets, innermost feelings and thoughts. To such honorers of personal secrets we will respond with the words of the holy righteous Father John himself, which he wrote, referring to his diary: “Do not destroy this book even after my death: perhaps someone will be found similar to me in thoughts and feelings and will show his deep sympathy for what is written in this book, if not for everything, which I do not dare to hope for (because there may be errors here, with strict criticism), then at least for some parts of it. I consider everything that is good and just in this book not to be mine, but to belong to God, since we are not able ... to think anything from ourselves, as if from ourselves, but our ability is from God [2 Cor. Zg 5]. My only mistakes and shortcomings." The publication of the diaries fulfills the will of Father John, all the more immutable since the testator in this case is one of the great saints of the Russian Orthodox Church of recent times. Hegumen Damascene (Orlovsky) The text of the Holy Scriptures, quoted by the author in Church Slavonic, is given in the publication in Russian translation. The parallel Church Slavonic text of some quotes, necessary for understanding the author’s interpretation, was introduced by the editors and is printed in square brackets: My hope is in You [Church Slavic: and my composition is from You]. A deviation from the general principle of citation are some poems that are cited in the Slavic language, which seems more appropriate stylistically or semantically. The publication uses the following conventions: (Luke 1:1) - an indication of a quotation of Holy Scripture made by the author; [ OK. 1.1 ] - an indication of the quotation of Holy Scripture made by the editors; [...] – unread word; [glory] – supposedly read word; [animals] is a word missing from the text, but necessary in the context, introduced by the editors. [Nikolai Tunderlin] has my book “Lives of the Saints.” Ask for sour cream from the glacier. 26 Aug 72 My nieces are semi-officially paid for fifty rubles, and on top of that I have to deliver clothes to them. Write a letter to Augusta Alex. Both will cost me about a hundred rubles a year. Go to Korshunov on Monday, September 4th. On September 26, 72, for Nikolai Serebrennikov, take out a particle on the proskomedia and pray for the lost. Holy Apostle John the Theologian, pray to God for the perishing youth. The wolf kidnapped him, the lion tormented him. Was it not the image of my mother that I saw in a dream at night in a woman sick with cholera? November 28, 72 Pray harder. Bogdanov was given four books on November 23, 1872. Vyazkin was given four books. Bring chromolithographed images from the attic and hang them in the office. Force the carpenter. January 20, 1873 To pave a path to Rykachev about poor widows. July 22. Put a key on my office door. Today, August 5, a small beggar from the clerks was given 60 kopecks for a caftan. See if he'll buy it! A crooked beggar is given 30 kopecks to buy a caftan. The basis for the all-night vigil is the words of the Savior: if the owner of the house had known at what watch the thief would come, he would have been awake and would not have allowed his house to be undermined. Therefore, be ready [Matt. 24, 43 – 44]. September 13, 1873 First grade books for student Fedotiev and third grade for Mistrov. You were born of God and must show in your life the fruits, or deeds of Divine birth: repentance, tenderness, holiness, humility, abstinence, mercy and other deeds; you must protect yourself from carnal lusts that war against the soul; We must put off the old man with his deeds and put on the new man, created by God in righteousness and in the excellence of the truth [Col. 3, 9 – 10]. There is no need to eat or drink after the service of early mass. November 9, 1872 Mark this. My Lord, Lord, teach me to arm myself with all my strength against sin, and not against the sinner, and to hate sin, and not the sinner, the devil, and not the person deceived by him. (July 12. Matins: struggle during service with bodiless enemies. Father Matthew, Father Paul - [brothers] in the church.) Relief and healing of the soul, when with all my heart I hated sin, and not sinners, I prayed for sinners from my heart, considering myself the first sinner. Friends! I will set myself the task of incorruptible life and, to the best of my ability, I will develop the concept of it and how the Gospel and the Church lead us to this life. The question is very important. Since in all of us the desire for perishable, fleeting life and carelessness about the imperishable or, what is the same, eternal life prevails, such reasoning will be very timely, appropriate and useful. It’s in vain that I rage at the poor - I have something to help them. On September 24, 1972, a red-haired tradesman was given 80 kopecks in silver for a steamship and clothes. Will he leave? He spoke from the heart to his wife and brought her to tears, and he himself softened, by God’s mercy. It's good to speak up. Isn’t confession based on this?.. I revealed my sin to You and did not hide my iniquity; I said: “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,” and You took away from me the guilt of my sin [Ps. 31, 5]. My wife γυνη ’ μοῦ φιτεῖ μὲ 1 The old has passed away, everything is new [2 Cor. 5, 17]. About worship. The Church teaches and educates its own in everything that is done in the church: by dividing the church into three parts, and by icons, and [...], and rituals, and sacred rites, and singing, and reading. I forgot the words of the Gospel: they are overwhelmed by the sweets [Russian: pleasures] of life, and do not produce fruit [Lk. 8, 14]. And I am overwhelmed by the pleasures of life and do not produce fruit, but remain stubble. Some beggars are terribly lousy and rotting, emitting an extremely disgusting odor. Don’t eat meat: it makes your heart extremely hard and causes heaviness throughout your whole being. It was not in vain that those who lived according to God abandoned him. The importance of the church for an Orthodox Christian, the importance of the sacred rites and prayers performed in it. It is necessary to visit the church as a house of prayer and a school of Christian faith, hope and love, or Christian piety, as a place of spiritual healing, purification and sanctification, enlightenment, consolation, strength, a place of spiritual armor and warfare against invisible evil forces. Divine service reveals the Creator in His renewed creation; the Savior - in matters of saving intelligent verbal creatures 2; The Creator is in the divinely wise flattery of 3 who captures the enemy of the human race and overthrows his power. The purpose of using the sacred books of the Old Testament, especially the inspired Psalter, in worship is to show the agreement of the Old and New Testaments and thereby continually and clearly, as daylight, show the Divine greatness of our faith, in which the promises, prophecies and prototypes of the Old Testament have come true. In the worship of our Church, the ancient forefathers, patriarchs and prophets are constantly rejoicing with the New Testament apostles, hierarchs, martyrs, saints in glorifying the works of God revealed in the salvation of people. This continually testifies to the Divinity and salvific power of the Christian Orthodox faith and the Church for the entire human race. The service depicts the struggle of the chosen people and the war with all-destructive sin and with its culprit - the serpent, the ancient murderer, and the Savior, the God-man, defeating the opposing destructive demonic forces with the Cross of His suffering; The Mother of God, standing as a wall and [representing] before God about the world and especially about God’s chosen ones, about Christians who truly and silently venerate Her. In worship, guilty humanity is presented, constantly propitiating the truth and holiness of God with the sacrifices of prayer, praise and thanksgiving, and especially with the Bloodless Sacrifice of the Body and Blood of the God-Man. Hidden in the divine service are the highest, liveliest, and most admirable spiritual interests of humanity: its salvation from the passions that are constantly fighting it, its deification, its eternal bliss, its peace and tranquility of soul, its enlightenment in the darkness of vanity and passions, its spiritual strength and victory over the all-evil sin and the enemy of the human race. In vain I was angry with Father Archpriest on October 18, 72 for his signature in my parish register: he had a legal basis, and he spoke to me kindly and brotherly afterwards. Crimean apples have a very calming effect on the nerves. Eat them and then drink tea. November 22, 1872. I broke my fast on November 22 and 23 and I feel prodigal movements in the flesh and, in general, an increase in sinful movements in the flesh. Again the post needs to be kissed. Loyalty to the Lord! What is required of stewards is that everyone prove faithful [1 Cor. 4, 2]. Frosts began on January 6; On January 9, 10, 11 and 12 there was a strong blizzard with strong winds; 12th and 13th – frost about 20 degrees. He who does good to the poor lends to the Lord [Prov. 19, 17]. Remember this. He was dead, and behold, he is alive forever and ever, Amen [Rev. 1, 18]. I live, and you will live [Jn. 14, 19]. The words of the Lord Jesus Christ are very comforting. You will be dead, but you will also be alive forever and ever. Your salvation, Christian, is celebrated during the liturgy - stand kindly, with fear, with attention, in peace. To the glory of the Holy, Consubstantial, Life-giving and Indivisible Trinity - the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Man is created in the image of God. Life 9, 6. And God said: Let us make man in Our image and in Our likeness... And God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female he created them. Life 1, 26 and 27. By the sweat of your face you will eat bread until you return to the ground from which you were taken, for dust you are and to dust you will return. Life 3, 19. And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; And I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh, and give you a heart of flesh [Ezek. 36, 26]. I know, Lord, that his path is not in the will of man, that it is not in the power of the walker to give direction to his steps. Jerem. 10, 23. The shepherds became senseless and did not seek the Lord, and therefore they acted foolishly, and their entire flock was scattered. Jeremiah 10, 21. If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation [2 Cor. 5, 17]. Our soul is mind, word and spirit, and these three are one. Trinity in man. “My wife gave birth to me” (Greek) A verbal creature, a creature (church-glorified) is a creature gifted with a word, that is, reason, in contrast to unreasonable (wordless) creatures. Charming (church glory) – seductive, deceptive (from “charm”, “flattering” - delusion, lie, cunning) You might be interested in: