Антихрист

The reason for the strong influence of the Antichrist on people will lie in his hellish cunning and hypocrisy, which skillfully covers up the most terrible evil in his unbridled and shameless audacity, in the abundant assistance of fallen spirits to him, and finally, in the ability to create miracles, although false, but amazing. The human imagination is powerless to imagine the villain that the Antichrist will be; It is unusual for the human heart, even a corrupt one, to believe that evil could reach the degree that it will reach in the Antichrist. He will trumpet himself, as his forerunners and icons trumpeted themselves, and will call himself a preacher and restorer of the true knowledge of God; those who do not understand Christianity will see in him a representative and champion of the true religion and will join him. He will sound the trumpet, call himself the promised Messiah, the disciples of carnal wisdom will exclaim at the meeting with him, seeing his glory, power, genius abilities, extensive development in the elements of the world, they will proclaim him a god, and become his associates. 1 The Antichrist will show himself meek, merciful, full of love, full of all virtue; those who recognize fallen human truth as truth and have not renounced it for the truth of the Gospel will recognize him as such and submit to him because of his sublime virtue. 2 The Antichrist will offer humanity the creation of the highest earthly well-being and prosperity, he will offer honors, wealth, splendor, carnal comforts and pleasures: seekers of earthly things will accept the Antichrist and call him their ruler. 3 The Antichrist will reveal to humanity a disgrace of amazing miracles, inexplicable by modern science, similar to the cunning performances of the theater; he will instill fear with the thunderstorm and wonder of his miracles, will satisfy with them reckless curiosity and gross ignorance, will satisfy human vanity and pride, will satisfy carnal wisdom, will satisfy superstition, will lead to bewilderment of human learning; all people, guided by the light of their fallen nature, alienated from the guidance of the light of God, will be carried away into obedience to the seducer (see Rev. 13:8). The signs of the Antichrist will primarily appear in the airy layer: 4 Satan predominantly dominates in this layer (see Eph. 2:2; 6:12). Signs will act most strongly on the sense of sight, charming and deceiving it. 5 Saint John the Theologian, contemplating in Revelation the events of the world that must precede his death, says that the Antichrist will accomplish great things, “so that he brings down fire from heaven to earth before men” (Rev. 13:13). This sign is indicated by Scripture as the highest of the signs of the Antichrist, and the place of this sign is air; it will be a magnificent and terrible sight. The signs of the Antichrist will complement the actions of his cunning behavior: most people will be caught in following him. Opponents of the Antichrist will be considered troublemakers, enemies of the public good and order, will be subject to both covert and open persecution, torture and execution. Evil spirits, scattered throughout the universe, will arouse in people a general, lofty opinion of the Antichrist, a general delight, an irresistible attraction to him. 6 Scripture has depicted in many ways the severity of the last persecution of Christianity and the cruelty of the persecutor. A decisive and definite feature is the name given by Scripture to this terrible man: he is called a “beast” (Rev. 13:1), just as the fallen angel is called a “serpent” (Gen. 3:1). Both names faithfully depict the character of both enemies of God. One acts more secretly, the other more openly; but to the beast, which has similarities with all beasts, 7 combining in itself their varied ferocity, “the serpent gave his strength, and his throne, and great power” 8 (Rev. 13:2). A terrible test will come for the saints of God: the wickedness, hypocrisy, and miracles of the persecutor will intensify to deceive and seduce them; refined, invented and covered by the insidious ingenuity of persecution and oppression, the unlimited power of the tormentor will put them in the most difficult position; a small number of them will seem insignificant before all humanity, and their opinion will be given special weakness; general contempt, hatred, slander, oppression, violent death will become their lot. Only with the special assistance of Divine grace, under its guidance, will God’s chosen ones be able to resist the enemy of God and confess the Lord Jesus before him and before men. The monks of the Solovetsky Monastery convey the answer of St. Zosima, given by the elder to the disciples who asked him how to recognize the Antichrist when he comes. The monk said: “When you hear that Christ came to earth or appeared on earth, then know that this is the Antichrist.” The answer is the most accurate! The world, or humanity, will not recognize the Antichrist: it will recognize him as Christ, will proclaim him as Christ. Consequently, when the rumor spreads, spreads and intensifies about the coming of Christ, this will serve as a sure sign that the Antichrist has appeared and has begun to perform his predetermined and permitted service. The answer of St. Zosimas is based on the words of the Savior. The Savior of the world, introducing His disciples to the signs heralding His imminent second coming, said: “Then, if anyone says to you: Behold, here is Christ, or there, do not believe... If they say to you: “Behold, He is in the desert,” “do not go out; “Behold, He is in the secret chambers,” - “do not believe; For just as lightning comes from the east and is visible even to the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man" (Matt. 24, 23–27; see Luke. 17, 23–24 ). Venerable Ephraim the Syrian. Word 106. About the Antichrist. Part 2. Venerable Macarius the Great. Conversation 31, ch. 4. Blagovestnik. Explanation on In. 5, 43. Venerable Ephraim the Syrian. Word 106, Part 2. “It is very rarely appropriate for a devotee of prayer to look at the sky out of fear for the sake of (as a precaution) the evil spirits in the air, for this reason they are called spirits of the air, who produce many and various delights in the air.” Simeon the New Theologian. About the third way of attention. Philokalia. Part 1. Venerable Ephraim the Syrian. Word 106. Open 13, 2. 3The believer whom I saw was like a leopard; His legs are like those of a bear, and his mouth is like the mouth of a lion. In the synodal translation: and the dragon gave him his strength and his throne and great power. – Approx. ed. You might be interested in: