Archbishop John (Maksimovich): Archpastor, prayer book, ascetic

The time has come to especially ask for prayerful help from Archbishop John himself, so that these days dedicated to his memory may pass with dignity. On the silver, that is, twenty-fifth anniversary of the repose of our ever-memorable Master, this book is being published. The Lord gave its compiler the joy of collecting multi-talented material, arranged in four sections, which, however, do not at all pretend to be complete. It was intended, as far as possible, not to repeat what was published shortly after the death of the Bishop, although the section of memoirs ended with the famous Word of Metropolitan Philaret, pronounced at the funeral service of our saint. The section of memoirs will tell the reader about the Lord’s faith, evidenced by his deeds, about his affectionate availability, about self-neglect, about constant feat. The section of testimonies about his prayerful help will clearly explain why people’s hearts are drawn to the Vladyka and why he and his prayerfulness have become so well known everywhere. Wherever help is needed! The third section is sermons. It is small, but how Orthodox hierarchical inspiration can be felt in it, especially in the “Sermon on the Pardoned Prudent Thief,” who, as Vladyka explains, showed such a feat of repentance and humility that none of Christ’s disciples was capable of at that time, which is why he was “the first to experience the power of Christ’s compassionate love”... No wonder Metropolitan Anthony wrote about Vladyka John as “a part of his hearts." The fourth section, consisting mainly of a small number of short Decrees of the Lord, tells us about his strict demands, in particular towards the clergy. For such workers in the field of Christ as Vladyka John, severity and exactingness do not contradict their pastoral love. One who is always strict with himself has reason to be like this at times. My personal memories of my first meetings with Vladyka, and first with Father Hieromonk John, are associated with the Milkovsky Monastery, in which he was the first Russian to take monastic vows at the hands of His Beatitude Metropolitan Anthony in 1926. Continuing to be in obedience to Metropolitan Anthony, Father John taught the law in the Serbian gymnasium, and soon (probably even before he became a teacher and educator at the Bitola Seminary), his inspired apologetic brochure How St. The Orthodox Church has honored and honors the Mother of God. The article was first published in the Calendar under the signature: Hieromonk John Maksimovich. Monk of the Milkovsky Monastery of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary into the Church. Yugoslavia, 1928 I read this article at the Milkovo monastery, having joined it in 1930. Father John visited there on visits. Hegumen Father Fr. Ambrose loved him very much and later spoke with admiration about his humility and readiness to fulfill any obedience. I remember how in 1930 our Bishop Tikhon of San Francisco was in Milkovo at the same time with Metropolitan Anthony after his consecration. In those days, Hieromonk John served our liturgy in concelebration with Deacon Savva Struve (later an archimandrite), at the same time Metropolitan Anthony tonsured the current Archbishop of Los Angeles Anthony and Monk Theophan, who died in Mahopac in the rank of archimandrite, and another monk. That year, Father John came to us from the Bitola Seminary, the students of which were very fond of their Russian teacher, touched by his asceticism and the domestic care with which he covered them and their sleeping ones with a blanket and blessed them... Then Vladyka served in the diocese of the most famous Serbian bishop, “Serbian Chrysostom” Nicholas of Ohrid (later Žić). This archpastor, well-known throughout the Orthodox world, extremely revered Vladyka, he wrote about him that even then Father John, going around the sick with the icon of St. Naum of Ohrid, healed many... The relationship between Vladyka Nicholas and Father John is especially sincere, touching and simple. Subsequently, Vladyka Nikolai published a small book in the “Small Missionary” series entitled “The Seller of Belgrade Newspapers - the Chinese Vladyka.” The Serbian girl asked in writing: why are there no saints now?! Bishop Nicholas replied in print: “There is a daughter!” and pointed out to her the example of the asceticism of Vladika John. Just these days, when we are preparing for the twenty-fifth anniversary of our Bishop, the coffin with the remains of Bishop Nicholas was transferred from America to Serbia and there was solemnly greeted by the Serbian hierarchy, clergy and people. After the death of Schema-Archimandrite Ambrose Milkovsky, at the request of the new abbot of the monastery, Vladyka John began collecting materials to compile the biography of Father. When I came to tell him what I knew and remembered about the deceased, Vladyka was overtired and bowed his head to the table. “Holy Vladyka, you are tired. Bless me, I’ll come later,” I said, “No! You said...” Vladyka raised his head and repeated what I had told him. He was like this at meetings of the Council of Bishops: he was overtired, as if he was falling asleep, but no! He hears and understands the essence of the matter. But he could no longer continue collecting materials about Father Ambrose, since he had to go to Shanghai. Where did Vladika John get such strength for himself not to rest in bed, to be ready to visit the sick at any time of the day or night, to always console, edify, and not always, but often, to make the impossible possible? For quite a few people keep the memory of the healings that took place and also of how the Lord responded to an unspoken thought. Of course, Vladyka, following the example of the holy shepherd of Kronstadt, had these grace-filled powers primarily because he received the Holy Mysteries every day, and at the same time he also slowly consumed the Holy Mysteries, remaining on weekdays, when he himself served, for a long time at the altar. His prayer and experiences at the same time are a great secret, about which we neither dare nor know how to say anything. In addition, he was always almost simultaneously with the people whom he listened to, whom he helped... and in spirit in communion with the saints. Saint John of Kronstadt writes about himself that he always tried to read the canons to the saints who were scheduled for a service on a given day. Likewise, when Vladyka traveled, he carried with him a full range of liturgical books, and also constantly translated troparia from Greek to those saints for whom only general troparia, and not special ones, were placed in the Slavic menaions. These Greek menaions, the subject of the Bishop's constant reading, are now in the library of Holy Trinity Monastery in Jordanville. Diligently and persistently, Vladyka tried to find out the dates of memory of those Orthodox saints who labored in the West, whom the Orthodox East had forgotten or half-forgotten. We have such a list of his with the names of nineteen saints of God, mainly French and Irish. He did not refuse prayer to anyone, as can be seen from various testimonies. I know a bishop who sincerely wished for Vladika John’s participation in his consecration, but Vladika was on the other side of America and on the day of the consecration he wrote to him that when the sacrament was supposedly performed on the dedicatee, he, too, offered for him the prayers prescribed at the consecration. And another bishop shared with us the idea that he knows only two bishops who would have such a “universal spirit” participation in the life of all other Orthodox peoples and their Churches: these are Metropolitan Anthony and our Archbishop John! Obviously this is true. Metropolitan Anthony was considered like no one else by the leaders of all Orthodox Churches. And both the French and the Dutch firmly relied on Archbishop John as the one who would lead them onto the road. And the Slavic peoples will remember the cordial attitude towards them, especially, from these archpastors. And newly converted Americans, like the French, especially love Vladika John. As the reader can see, for me personally, the memories of Vladika John are connected with the memory of Metropolitan Anthony and the Milkovo Monastery with his soul - Father Ambrose... But it's not just for me! Here in front of me is the magazine “Holy Land” for the year 1935. There, in Nos. 6, 7 and 8, there is an essay written by a very famous church figure close to Metropolitan Anthony, who left us a summary of his sermons, P. S. Lopukhin. The essay is entitled: “The Christian ascetic in modern conditions.” As the story progresses, the author reports that he received three letters almost simultaneously, which he cites... “They sent a card from Jerusalem to Father Ambrose and with tender love asked to write something about him.” From Poland they wrote: "...we were in Pochaev. There is the same spirit of friendly love as in Milkovo. Everyone sacredly cherishes the memories of our Vladyka Metropolitan Anthony. And what is especially remarkable: they do not talk so much about his learning and intelligence, but all about his sincerity and simplicity." From Harbin: "Bishop John of Shanghai came to us. He stayed here for five days, I followed on his heels. He bears the stamp of what made the strongest impression on me in Yugoslavia; he has the spirit of Metropolitan Anthony and the Milkov Monastery. The same sincerity and simplicity." In the same essay, the author recounts his last conversation with Fr. Ambrose, which took place in the clinic where Fr. Ambrose shortly before his death. At first the conversation was about something else. I quote further: "He (Fr. Ambrose) lowered his head in exhaustion. Having rested, he smiled and quietly asked: “Have you seen grandfather?” (This is how they sometimes lovingly called the Metropolitan. A.A.) “I asked him who was closest to him in spirit.” "Well, well... this is interesting." “He said that you and Fr. John". O. Ambrose raised his head, opened his eyes wide, crossed himself, wanted to say something, and suddenly fell on the pillow and sobbed. My God, how he cried! The next day he was taken to Milkovo to die, and I never again Father Fr. Ambrose never saw and kept in his memory this image of a man on his deathbed crying from the happiness of spiritual unity in God” (this ends the essay by P.S. Lopukhin). Happiness of spiritual unity!.. May God grant that we all experience such a feeling when we now pray at the tomb of our Vladika John, so dear to us. God grant that when we prayed for him, he warmed us with his prayer before the throne of God and asked us for strength so that we could become new. For such renewal, God gives people the joy of learning about new righteous people and in this feeling their strength. All things are possible with God (Mark 10:27)! And the fervent prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much (James 5:16). Amen. Sunday of All Saints in the Land MEMORIES OF ARCHBISHOP JOHN CONDITION OF ARCHBISHOP JOHN The last consecration performed by Bishop Anthony (Khrapovitsky) was the consecration of Hieromonk John (Maximovich) to the rank of Bishop of Shanghai. Bishop John took the episcopate at the age of 38. He comes from a noble family of the Kharkov province and was found by Bishop Anthony in Kharkov in 1914. After graduating from the Cadet Corps, he graduated from the Faculty of Law in Russia and the Faculty of Theology in Belgrade and then served as a hieromonk as a teacher at the Bitola Theological Seminary, taking monastic vows at the Milkovo Monastery from Bishop Anthony. In Bitola, Hieromonk John discovered himself as a zealous man of prayer. He was loved by the local Macedonian and Greek population, for whom he performed services in Greek. When presenting him with the staff, Bishop Anthony said the following: "Before my eyes, many, many episcopal consecrations took place, which I attended since childhood and even then listened attentively to the words of welcome to the new bishops. I remember how the elderly Metropolitan of St. Petersburg and Novgorod Isidore, handing over the staff to the new bishops, said, there is nothing tricky here, just try to fulfill the two commandments - serve well and do not put on airs. You love God’s service more than anything in the world, and not only do You have no importance, but Your simplicity is limitless, so You will fulfill these commandments to the fullest. Living as a pure virgin, do not become proud and do not say, as the Pharisee said: “I am not, like other men, predators and adulterers,” may the Lord protect your heart from such feelings. Pray with humility and this prayer will constantly enrich Your heart. These are my humble wishes to you and the wishes of the bishops present here. You love divine service and preserve this love in all the future days of your life. Many rulers and representatives of high spiritual rank, while they were in humble ranks, passionately loved the service of God, but having become rich in years, and sometimes in property, they gradually cooled off, however, you will never imitate them. My heart always sank painfully when they said about any bishop - he does not like to serve and is a bad prayer book, but for that he is a good administrator. The bishop does not need such an administration. If he sees his first duty in prayer, then the administration will arrange itself and everything around him will become better and better. However, You always refrain from condemning your fellow bishops for lack of zeal and do not allow subtle self-delusion into your heart, then the wealth of Your heart will increase every day and hour. Love theological science, but not just external information about certain events, but enlighten your soul and the souls of those around you with it, and with science give your mind saving food. Your path is clear - it is decorated with humility and goodwill towards everyone; do not be discouraged if you encounter ingratitude on your way. St. Athos developed a special type of figure who combined ardent activity and complete humility, and this is the path of growth of all virtues in Your heart and in the hearts of Those around You. Now, when you do all this, remember the words of the Apostle Paul - about whom? It’s scary to say about our Lord Jesus Christ: “Such is the reverend bishop who is befitting us, without malice.”... The consecration of Bishop John was particularly heartfelt. In addition to the Russian hierarchs, it was also attended by a representative of the Serbian Church, the famous theologian and preacher Nikolai Ohridsky, as well as the Serbian clergy. At the meal, one of the speakers described this consecration as follows. "Many lamps were lit here - archpastors, but they were, as it were, the remnants of old Russia, nurtured and educated by it. The new bishop is a young shoot of that life, which, all in storms and turmoil, did not break the Russian spirit - its exponent is the young bishop, who was welcomed in Bitola by the first sons of the Church - representatives of the Greek population and to whom high representatives of the most powerful Serbian Church came here now. May this be the path of the new future Russia." Bishop John served in the Shanghai see until the end of World War II, after which and the establishment of the communist regime in China, he facilitated the departure of a significant part of his flock from Shanghai and then their reception in the United States from the island of Tuba Bao in the Philippines, where they were stationed. For this, Bishop John carried out diligent efforts in Washington, and after his flock was accepted into the United States, he received an appointment to the see of the Western European Archbishop... (“Biography of M. Anthony” vol. V) MY MEETINGS WITH LORD JOHN My first meetings date back to the beginning of the church path of the young hieromonk Fr. John Maksimovich, from 1928 to 1934, that is, before his departure, as Bishop of Shanghai, to the Far East. The last meetings refer to the last, short period of the Bishop’s ministry as Archbishop of Western America and San Francisco (1963–66). Thus, I had to be, as it were, a witness to the beginning of the Vladyka’s church path, and after 40 years, a witness to the last moments of his earthly life. I met Vladyka John in the summer of 1928, during school holidays. I haven't turned 12 yet. I studied at a Russian gymnasium in Belgrade and entered the 3rd grade. I served in the Russian St. Trinity Church, which at that time was like the main cathedral church of the Russian Church Abroad. The head of the Church Abroad, Metropolitan Anthony, and other archpastors abroad often served in this church. One Sunday there were not enough altar boys and one of the subdeacons (Ivan Gardner, I think) “assigned” me to be one of these altar boys. Vladyka John, like most young people close to church life, loved and revered Metropolitan Anthony as a great church teacher and he was for him like an unattainable example in his personal life, the embodiment of meekness, humility and love for people. He told me about this more than once, knowing that I, too, loved and revered Metropolitan Anthony. Vladyka John followed the late metropolitan in many ways. Especially when dealing with people. It was simple, clear, direct, often affectionate and with what seemed to me a light Little Russian humor. Our acquaintance began simply. After one of the services, Vladyka asked me what my name was and where I lived. Having learned that I lived not far from him, or rather from the house where his parents lived, he invited me to go home with him. From 1929 to 1934, Vladyka taught at the theological seminary in Bitola, in southern Serbia, and only in the summer, during school holidays, lived with his parents in Belgrade. Later, when I myself became a gymnasium teacher, I understood why Vladyka was so successful as a seminary teacher, despite his natural disadvantage, some tongue-tiedness. He was not only an excellent teacher (he knew well the teaching methods depending on the age and development of students), but he also loved his students, who responded to him with the same love. In conversation, Vladyka loved to give many examples from the lives of saints, which made his speech even more understandable and relatable. It was easy to turn to him for advice and you could be sure that you would get a clear and concise answer. From then on I always returned home with him and became very close to him and loved him. I also had the chance to meet his parents, whom I sometimes saw in church. In church they (especially the mother) seemed strict, but then I became convinced that they were very nice and warm people. Vladyka did not resemble them in appearance, and judging by one photograph, he was strikingly similar to one of his ancestors (it seems his great-great-grandfather) who died in 1873. (that was Mikhail Aleksandrovich Maksimovich, 1804–1873) in honor of whom, probably, Vladyka was named Mikhail at baptism. He was a great scientist, a man of the Renaissance in his own way. He was not only a learned botanist and zoologist, but also a historian and expert on Russian literature, a philosopher, and an expert on Little Russian folklore. He was first a professor of botany, and then of Russian literature. He was also the rector of Kyiv University. In his youth he was familiar with Pushkin and Gogol. Another famous ancestor of the Bishop would be St. Metropolitan of Tobolsk John (Maksimovich), educator of western Siberia, died during the reign of Peter the Great (1715). In the 18th and 19th centuries, the Maksimovichs were known as nobles and Poltava landowners. Vladyka himself graduated from the Poltava Cadet Corps. Vladyka’s parents later lived in Kharkov; his father was for some time the leader of the Kharkov nobility, and Vladyka himself graduated from the Faculty of Law there. During his student years, Vladyka met the outstanding Kharkov Archbishop Anthony, the future Metropolitan of Kyiv, who had a strong influence on him. It should be noted that the Vladyka’s distant ancestors were Serbian nobles who left their homeland after its conquest by the Turks (at the end of the 15th century). By the way, the grandmother of Ivan the Terrible, the mother of his mother, Prince. Elena Glinskaya, was also one of the Serbian noble refugees. Vladika John was very fond of the Orthodox Serbian people and Serbia, as was the entire Russian emigration in Yugoslavia. The latter consisted mainly of representatives of former military personnel and their families and the Russian intelligentsia in general. 30 years have passed since Vladyka left for Shanghai, and now, as Archbishop of San Francisco and Western America (since 1963), he visited our parish in Seattle and on the first day of his arrival he came to see me, especially since I live right opposite the church. He came to see me in my room, in the semi-basement, where there was a separate entrance from the garden. Sometimes he came in several times, both during the day and in the evening. He sat in a chair and rested. Sometimes he was silent, sometimes he began to speak immediately. I remembered our native Russian Belgrade, my Abba, Metropolitan Anthony. Vladyka loved and knew Russian history well and was interesting to listen to. Like Metropolitan Anthony, he was, of course, of right-wing convictions and a monarchist. He believed in the revival of Russia. He was lenient towards people, forgave them and never condemned them. When I once unsuccessfully asked him about the troubles in San Francisco in connection with the construction of the cathedral, he immediately “fell asleep” for a few minutes and I never returned to such topics. Sometimes Vladyka would suddenly interrupt our conversation and immediately move on to the topic of those life and family problems that could worry me, but which I never told him about. You could trust him and he gave advice simply and clearly. On Saturday, July 2, 1966, Vladyka came to me and sat with me for about 45 minutes. He was supposed to go with the Miracle-Working Icon to a sick person, and then to Canada. To my question whether he would come to see me again on this visit, he answered briefly: “God knows what will happen to me today or tomorrow.” I took him across the street to the church house, where Yu. G. Kalfov was waiting for Vladyka. He and I stayed talking downstairs, and Vladyka went upstairs to his room. Soon, hearing some kind of fall there, we ran up there and saw Vladyka lying on the floor. They helped him get up and sit in a chair in his room. When asked what was wrong with him, they heard the answer: “I don’t know, this has never happened to me.” At that moment, the Lord had a slight, short body spasm and he left us forever. Firefighters and medics from a neighboring block were called and determined a quick and easy death. Bishop Nektary, who was then in Seattle, and the rector, Rev. Andrei Nakonechny (now both deceased) served a memorial service in the Vladyka’s room, and then in the church, after the coffin with the body was transferred there. The next day, the Vladyka’s body was already in San Francisco. This was my last meeting with Vladyka John, whom I knew and loved for 40 years. And now, after 25 years since his death, I feel that I miss him, miss him. When I visit the Lord’s tomb, I always turn to him with a request and for advice. I was attached to Vladyka John, one might say, from early childhood in the Belgrade church. Vladyka John was dark-haired at that time - he was not yet 40 years old, and I was an ordinary boy. But I incredibly loved Vladika John. Vladyka was the bishop of Shanghai, but he came to Belgrade quite often. When he was in Yugoslavia, he came to church, served, and in general everyone knew him, everyone loved him and considered him one of their own. I remember I pressed my head against him very tightly, and he said to me: “Don’t butt me.” These are my first impressions of Vladika John. Of course, we knew that there are two pillars of our Church on which everything rests - the very subtle, wise Vladika Metropolitan Anastassy and Vladika John, full of holiness and asceticism. Then events turned upside down. The Russian Church Abroad left Belgrade due to the fact that Yugoslavia fell under the rule of the new regime and, it seemed, all contact with Vladika John was lost forever. I have heard a lot about the exploits of Vladika John. Firstly, I heard that Vladika John never goes to bed, but always sleeps while sitting; that he was a prayer book is absolutely clear - the element of prayer was felt from the Vladyka. I met Vladika John for the second time in my life in 1950, when Vladika John took over the Western European Diocese. The situation was very difficult. The church was in poverty, the clergy was in poverty, and I was in poverty too. Economically, Vladyka John could not help me - there were simply no parishes, there was no place to assign. But a large number of donations came in the name of Vladika John in the form of church items, robes and the like. And so I remember - I was then a young 26-year-old priest - as Vladyka John told me: “Try on this cassock.” I tried on the cassock, and it was hard to say whether it was suitable or not. And Vladyka John knelt down to check whether the cassock reached my feet. What great humility! I must say that I was very embarrassed by this. Then Vladika John already visited us when we were in London. He usually visited us every year on the Dormition of the Mother of God, when there was a church holiday. Vladyka John was an amazing person. Everyone loved him, everyone endlessly worshiped him, but it was not adoration. No, they simply worshiped his feat and him as the person who carried out this feat. Vladyka John also used to visit heterodox churches, where there was the possibility of the grace of Orthodoxy, precisely in the form of the holy relics of common saints who became famous even before the division of churches. And so Vladyka John expressed a desire to visit Westminster Abbey. Westminster Abbey may have once been a very holy place. Miraculously, it was preserved as a parish church from the general destruction under Henry the Eighth, and now it did not contain that shrine that one would expect in an ancient church. We just come to see it as a wonderful tourist attraction in London. Vladyka also went. After staying there for some time, a very short one, he left: “Here,” he says, “there is no grace.” Indeed, there were the relics of great figures of England, great political builders of the country, writers, scientists, but there were no saints. Here is another impression I have about Vladika John. Vladyka John was supposed to come to London by train, from France, I think. We, the clergy - our late Vladyka Nikodim, myself and Archpriest Georgy Sheremetev, met Vladyka at the station. At that time, a hunched old man came out of the station building, wearing sandals on his bare feet, carrying a heavy icon on his chest, with his hood on somewhat crookedly, although he was not an old man then, but he had the appearance of an old man, he was so exhausted by life. Vladyka came out of the station and the Englishman, a simple man, said: “This is the bishop.” He felt great power in the Lord. Then it must be said that something that was connected with Vladika John, I think, should apply to all bishops, that is, when they are present in the church, you feel a holiday, although you think there is no holiday - an ordinary day, three stichera from the Octoechos, three from the Menaion on “I cried to the Lord,” there is no doxology, no polyeleos, but you feel a holiday, a great holiday - Vladika John is here. This should apply to all bishops, but this is far from the case. Applies, apparently, only to bearers of holiness, which was Vladika John. Where he was, there was something special - an invisible light, what we call grace, although we do not understand this word. Vladyka John performed divine services with a great mood, if we say this is too secular an expression, with great feeling and experience of the divine service. Vladyka John’s sermons were actually incomprehensible. When these sermons were read, they made a great impression. In the church, 2-3 people in front could hear them, but it was all lost. Vladyka John considered it his duty to preach. But for these sermons to reach those praying, this did not happen. It was difficult for Vladyka to pronounce words, and therefore it was difficult to understand him. Vladyka John could be both very strict and very lenient at the same time. If he knew that a person could do better, he was strict with him, and if he saw that a person could not, he was very lenient towards him and forgave him everything. I noticed two elements in Vladyka John: on the one hand, pedantic strictness in the sense of worship, for example, he will demand that you sing sedalene or exapostilary, no matter what voice, as long as you sing. On the other hand, he could be extremely lenient. For example, I know of two cases when “vicar-priests” converted to Orthodoxy and they had second marriages. The Bishop baptized and ordained them. So there was both severity and incredible kindness in him. If someone was offended by the Vladyka, the Vladyka himself asked that person for forgiveness, although the latter himself felt guilty. The Bishop looked at his flock as “his” flock - he was closely connected with them. He constantly visited hospitals and parishioners at home. Vladyka and I spoke little on theological topics. He had terribly little time, and I was embarrassed to bother him. But I know that every translation I sent to him, even the most insignificant one, was received by Vladyka John with the greatest enthusiasm and praised and thanked. And this gave me a certain energy to continue working, knowing that there is someone who will find time, even if it takes them away from their sleep, from their rest, to read it. Vladyka John’s services were very, very long. This was probably necessary for asceticism, but very few could withstand it. But now that the Lord is gone, you think how good it was to live and pray with him. You could have someone to open your soul to, who will support you, who, if you fall, will lift you up, who will encourage you, who will take pity on you, who will give spiritual strength - this is a saint. And when he is not there, you feel that your whole life is passing between pieces of ice, and this warm heart is not there. I know that Vladyka read thoughts. One time I had a very bad thought and Vladika John turned around and looked at me sternly. The Lord’s foresight was hidden, but in order not to sin with humility, he never wanted to admit it. I spent the last months of Vladika John’s life in San Francisco. Vladyka received me with such warmth that I simply cannot say how happy my heart was during these two months. Vladyka John was so inaccessible to holiness that lately I was simply afraid to be with him. As if you saw an angel, you would be afraid of the angel. Approaching his death, Vladika John was already in the sphere of God’s grace. Upon arrival, he treated me extremely warmly. Did Vladika John know about his death? It's hard to say. If he knew, as some say, then out of modesty alone he hid it. In any case, knowing that he decided to immediately pay my expenses upon arrival in San Francisco, I say: “No, Vladyka, that’s for another time.” “No, no, we have to pay now.” - "Why?" - “That’s how it should be.” Then he entrusted me with the management of theological courses, which I did with pleasure. Then Vladyka told me: “Okay, you’ve been resting for a month and a half, now get down to business - serve and work,” and suddenly unexpected news, terrifying news, that Vladika John had died. Vladika Nektary was in Seattle and I had to lead the first memorial service for Vladika John at the San Francisco Cathedral. It was unforgettable. We start shouting: “Blessed is our God” and then you start crying, another priest pulls you up and also starts crying. The deacon's voice breaks down and he cannot speak in litany... The whole city cried, including the clergy. Vladika John left this life carrying an aura of holiness and endless love for people. “Examples of Holiness and Piety” The Orthodox Church abroad not only carried out great cultural and educational work for 50 years, but also gave many examples of holiness and piety. We will limit ourselves to only six examples, although there were a lot of ascetics. ... The third ascetic was Archbishop John (Maksimovich), whom during his lifetime many considered a holy fool and only after his death they appreciated his high Christian virtue. He saved thousands of his flock from China and was an amazing ascetic and man of prayer. From the book “Foreign Russia” (ed. “Librarie des cinq contents” Paris.) Russian students, like Russian professors, were different from the Serbs. Among the latter, the majority graduated from seminaries and were preparing to become priests. They looked upon the study of theology as a step that would facilitate advancement up the hierarchical ladder. Their attitude towards the Church was casual, but many of them were sincere believers. We, Russians, were preparing to serve the persecuted Church; It was not a secure career, but complete uncertainty that awaited us. Among us there were a significant number of original, gifted people who left their mark on the life of the emigration. The most extraordinary among them was undoubtedly Mikhail Borisovich Maksimovich (1896–1966), future Archbishop John. Small in stature, heavyset and broad-shouldered, with puffy cheeks and red lips under a reddish Little Russian mustache, he gave the impression of great, concentrated strength. He didn't interact much with other students, only towards the end of the course I got to know him better and we had a few friendly conversations. He was very poor and made a living selling newspapers. Belgrade in those years was covered with impassable mud during the rains. Maksimovich wore a heavy fur coat and old Russian boots. Usually he would stumble into the classroom late, thickly covered with street dirt, slowly take out a greasy notebook and a stub of pencil from his bosom, and begin to write down the lecture in his large handwriting. He soon fell asleep, but as soon as he woke up, he immediately resumed his writings. Many of us were curious to know what kind of notes Maksimovich made, but no one dared to ask him to let us read them. This extraordinary student became the most extraordinary bishop of the foreign Church. After graduating from university, he accepted monasticism and priesthood. At one time he taught at the Bitola Seminary. In 1934, he was consecrated bishop and sent to Shanghai. There Bishop John led the life of a severe ascetic, deprived himself of sleep and food, wore sandals without stockings winter and summer, his cassock looked more like a beggar's clothing than a bishop's robe. His behavior embarrassed those around him with his foolishness. Some considered him abnormal, but this did not prevent him from being responsible for the material and spiritual needs of his flock and being tireless in helping all those in need. He created a shelter for homeless children and managed to evacuate them first to the Philippine Islands and then to America. Many Russians owe their salvation from the communists to him when the latter occupied Shanghai. After leaving China, Bishop John settled in France, in 1962 he received a see in San Francisco, where he died on July 2, 1966. Many now revere him as a saint. From the book “Abroad” (Paris 1973) In memory of the ascetic Archpastor Don’t forget that next to the Theological Faculty in Belgrade, where I am sending you to good and soul-helping teaching, there is a “living Academy”, this is our Abba Metropolitan Anthony, my former mentor and benefactor, and now the great teacher and saint of the Universal Church of Christ. Visit him more often, because from him you will receive and draw on a wealth of knowledge and wisdom that a modern theological school is unlikely to give you - These were the words that His Beatitude Dionysius sent me to Yugoslavia in January 1932, when the threat of removal from the University of Warsaw loomed over me, caused by a protest against the ministry’s ban on students using their native, maternal language at meetings of the Theological Circle. Abba Metropolitan Anthony received me as if he were his own, I enjoyed his love, affection and attention abundantly, and the Elder was offended and reprimanded if, sometimes, in the evening or during the day you did not come to him. In the modest chambers of Metropolitan Anthony, I also met Hieromonk Fr. John (Maksimovich). I repeatedly observed how fatherly the elder Metropolitan was to Fr. John; in the movement of his eyes, in every word addressed to Fr. John, joy for his spiritual son shone, complete trust and gratitude for the fact that he was multiplying the talent given to him by God. I visited Fr.’s Parents’ house several times. John. The pilgrimage of Serbian students to him was amazing. Serbs are not fans of their monasticism, but as soon as Fr. John, the Serb students literally besieged him. The righteous life of an ascetic monk, a strictness towards himself unusual in the world and a heart filled with love - attracted the attention of the Serbian students to him. The Lord brought Fr. to be at the ordination. John as bishop, to meet with him, already a bishop, and in the chambers of Metropolitan Anthony. “Make sure, Vladyka, that the rank of bishop does not spoil you... do not get carried away with delicious dishes, because bishops love to treat them to tasty things... and the beauty will cling to you,” Elder Anthony jokingly said to the ascetic, ascetic young Bishop, and the Elder’s face shone with joy about the new Hierarch of God. The people love our bishop's services and attend them willingly. But, as I observed in Belgrade, the Liturgy celebrated by Bishop John attracted an unusual number of worshipers when served by other bishops. Tongue-tied, the service is indistinct, and there are thousands of people praying... At the beginning of 1935 I returned to Poland for pastoral service. In 1936, I received a letter from Bishop John from Shanghai and, after some time, several of his sermons. And in 1958, in Paris, I personally talked with him. Many in Paris did not understand Vladyka; they were embarrassed by his appearance, that he walked barefoot. P.S. Lopukhin told me that there were also complaints against Vladyka Metropolitan Anastasia. One of the complaints asked that the High Hierarch order Vladyka John to wear shoes. Metropolitan Anastassy responded to this request, wrote a letter to Vladyka, and the parishioners, delighted by this, hastened to present their Archpastor with new shoes. The Bishop accepted the gift, thanked him, and carried the boots... under his arm, but did not put them on. Again a complaint to the Metropolitan, again Abba writes to Bishop John about obedience and receives an answer from him: “I fulfilled your instructions, you wrote for me to wear shoes, but you didn’t write for me to put them on, so I wore them... and now I’ll put them on.” And Vladyka Archbishop walked around Paris in boots. – Your Bishop John makes a strange impression. With his appearance, he alienates many, but one thing is certain about him - he is a man of God, an ascetic and a great man of prayer, D.N. Fedchenko, a parishioner of the Russian Exarchate in Paris, told me, and he told me the following incident from the life of Bishop John in Paris. – In one of the hospitals in Paris, a Russian woman lay motionless, with an incurable illness. The doctors, easing her physical suffering, came to terms with the thought of her death, and the hospital nurses expected her death. In the evening hours, on the eve of what the hospital nurses thought was her last night, Vladyka John entered the room where the dying woman lay. He came himself, not at anyone’s request, and stopped at her bedside. The “strange Russian priest” prayed for a long time, standing at the sick bed. And well, by midnight the patient got out of bed and demanded her clothes, wanting to leave the walls of the hospital. The surprised sister and nurse - after all, the patient was not able to get up, but now she stood up cheerfully and just as cheerfully walked towards them - they called the doctor. Having examined the patient, the doctors declared her completely healthy, and during the interview it turned out that “someone in black came to her and said that she was healthy and could go home.” The patient did not name the “visitor in black” who ordered her to get up and go home, but it was not difficult for the doctors to establish that it was Bishop John. On May 3/16, 1963, in a conversation about the San Francisco Troubles, Metropolitan Anastassy told me: “I don’t recognize Vladyka John. Previously quiet, silent and meek, he shows persistence, has become animated, and is unyielding...”. What happened to the ascetic Archpastor? His whole life was complete devotion to God and service to the Church, excluding personal interests or, especially, circle ones. Kruzhkovshchina, as a negative and, within the church, a destructive phenomenon, was absolutely alien to Vladyka John. But it existed and exists. The Bishop saw the substitution of principle taking place within the church fence with imaginations of circle and personal gain or interest, and he perked up, became persistent and unyielding. His attitude to this or that issue of church life always stemmed from the fundamental importance of this issue, and the assessment of events and facts was never made dependent on who was the author, the culprit of this issue, phenomenon or event. Archbishop John did not know how to sacrifice objectivity for the sake of personal friendship, for the sake of personal affection, or, even more so, to sacrifice objectivity for personal services rendered to him. Unusually strict in canonical matters and in loyalty to Orthodox Russian traditions and customs, Bishop John, at the same time, was alien to church provincialism. This trait was clearly revealed in him in his veneration and glorification, when he was Archbishop of Western Europe, of the saints of France who lived before the division of the Church; This trait of his was clearly revealed in the matter of preserving for those converting to Orthodoxy their former names received in baptism, if this saint lived, labored and was glorified before the division of the Church of Christ. – Tell me how you feel about Metropolitan Anthony and Fr. John? – the head of the library of the Theological Faculty of the University of Belgrade, V.F. Fradinsky, once asked me. Over 35 years have passed since that day. Over the years, the Lord brought many church leaders to meet, hear and see a lot in the church fence, and V.F. Fradinsky’s question: “How do you feel about Metropolitan Anthony and Vladyka John” still rings to this day. With the answer to this question, V.F. Fradinsky measured the measure of spirituality of the person being asked and determined the degree of his suitability for serving the Church. This question is still relevant today. To this day, it remains the right yardstick for determining the spiritual quality and business suitability of workers on the Field of Christ. Protopresbyter M. Znosko-Borovsky I gladly share with you my personal memories of the then Bishop John of Shanghai (Maximovich), bearing in mind the following words of the Venerable. Nestor the Chronicler and praying his prayer: “I beg you, my beloved brethren, do not judge me for my ignorance if, being so filled with love for the saint, I decided to tell absolutely everything I know about him, for I was afraid that the words of our Lord about an evil and lazy servant would not apply to me... But first of all I turn to the Lord: O Almighty Lord, giver of grace, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, help me, enlighten me my heart, that I may understand Thy commandments, that I may open my mouth and tell Thy wonders and the glory of Thy saint” (From the Preface of the Chronicle of the veneration of Archbishop John the Bishop of Edmonton). And I am “filled with love for the holy,” but I am afraid of my ignorance, my inability to convey “the glory of the saint of God.” And I don’t know where to start, how to set out in order the huge number of the most profound, gracious impressions of the greatest Righteous One, engraved forever in the heart. Not knowing where to start, I rewrote in my own hand some of the Vladyka’s letters that I had preserved, written by him to me between 1949 and 1962. I did this in order to experience once again the tenderness of the spiritual instructions of the Saint and to note that the Vladyka began each letter with a painstaking image of the beloved eight-pointed Cross of the Savior until the end. He marked these letters only according to the Orthodox calendar (completely ignoring the civil calendar) and wrote only according to the old spelling. He always wrote congratulations on Angel’s Day on the very day of the Holiday, so I received them only a few days later. This righteous man did not allow even such a small “falsehood” as sending congratulations before the holiday itself! The Bishop began his episcopal ministry in Shanghai in 1934 - the year of my birth in this large international trading port of China. My family had a house only three blocks from the majestic Cathedral of the Most Holy Theotokos, Help of Sinners, and my parents walked with us, their children, to this cathedral on Sundays and holidays. My brother and I, from 1939 until we left Shanghai forever for Tubabao Island in January 1949, attended a Catholic school located next to the cathedral. I very vaguely remember the Vladyka’s solemn consecration of huge, majestic golden crosses and raising them onto the five domes of the newly built beautiful cathedral. A multi-story diocesan house was built next to the cathedral, with a bell tower rising above the center. I remember behind the diocesan house the unfinished foundation for the second church, where Vladyka always performed the rite of the Great Blessing of Water on the Feast of the Epiphany. In the summer, when school was closed, my brother and I would often go there and play in the rather large church grounds. I was about 8 or 9 years old when, one hot summer day, I entered a huge, always cool cathedral to take a break from the heat. It was a weekday, about 7 o’clock in the evening, when it was still quite light. There was an evening service performed by the priest on duty, and the cathedral was almost empty. In his place at one of the massive columns of the cathedral, between the altar and the right vestibule, behind his lectern with liturgical books, stood Bishop John. Subsequently, I learned that Vladyka defended every day all nine daily services prescribed by the Orthodox Church, and that he took communion every day. After the service I approached him for his blessing. He asked my name and invited me to “talk.” I will never forget how, before leaving the church, he bowed to the ground in front of each icon in the huge cathedral, as if saying goodbye for a while to his close friends - the saints, and I followed him, holding his staff in my hands. My childish soul was immediately drawn to this extraordinary person, subconsciously feeling the deeply Christian love that Vladyka had for people, especially for children. For the first time I entered his large office on the second floor of the diocesan building. The entire right corner of the office, from the ceiling to the height of the lectern standing in the corner, was filled with many icons of all sizes. For some reason, it seemed completely natural to me that Vladyka, upon entering his office, would immediately begin to bow to the ground in front of the icons and again pray for a long time. Finally, he sat down at his desk, which was literally littered with papers, and talked with me for a long time. As later, he spoke about the Church, about the life of Her ascetics and saints, about martyrs, about Church Holidays. I didn’t want to leave home from this extraordinary man. It was already dark when the Lord blessed me and ordered me to go home. I began to attend services in the cathedral and serve every day, morning and evening. On weekdays, Vladyka often consumed the Holy Gifts himself, remaining in deep prayer at the altar long after the officiating priest had left. And again, as always, he kissed all the icons in the cathedral before leaving it for his chambers. Talking to me in his office. Vladyka sometimes fell asleep for a few seconds. I learned that he never went to bed, only indulged in short sleep in a chair or on his knees in front of his favorite icons, as his secretary, a certain Mr. Kantov, sometimes found him. I witnessed such an extraordinary incident. One evening, during a conversation with me in his office, Vladyka answered the phone that rang on his desk. I don’t know who the Saint was talking to, but I will never forget how, while continuing to talk, Vladyka dropped the telephone receiver and dozed off. The receiver lay in his cassock on his lap, and he, dozing, continued to hear and talk for a long time with the person who called him. According to the laws of physical nature, it was completely impossible for either the Master to hear the one who called him, or for that person to hear what the Master answered him. However, judging by the duration and meaning of what the Saint said, it was clear to me that - miraculously - a conversation was taking place! One day they brought Vladyka lunch into his office: I remember there was a plate of borscht and jelly in a mug. He was alone, and I was in the next room, where they brought me my dinner, a modest one. And now I see through the open door how Vladyka pours sweet jelly into a plate of borscht and begins to eat this tasteless mess. At that time, to me, a child, these cases seemed completely natural for the Lord. All the boys, the servants, loved the Lord, despite his severity. So, for mischief, Vladyka once ordered the watchman Mikhail to flog the guilty with a belt. For me, Vladyka became an ideal, and I decided to imitate him in everything. Somehow, during Lent, I stopped sleeping in bed and lay on the floor, stopped eating normally with my family, but only bread and water, etc. My parents became worried and took me to Vladyka. After listening to them, the Saint ordered the watchman to go to the shop and bring sausage. In response to my tearful remarks that “after all, it’s Lent,” the wise Archpastor ordered me to eat the sausage he brought and always remember that obedience to parents is more important than unauthorized fasting. “What should I do next, Vladyka?” I asked, still wanting to strive in some “special” way. “Go to church as you do, and at home do what your dad and mom tell you.” I remember how upset I was then that Vladyka did not assign me any “special” feats. Remembering another significant incident - or rather, incident - in the life of the Lord, at which I was personally present. It was a weekday day and the Liturgy was performed by one of the priests of the Shanghai Cathedral. As always, Vladyka John stood in his usual place, and I, it seems, served, I don’t remember. I remember well how this priest, during his sermon, scolded the Vladyka, pointing his finger at him and using words such as: “snake, scorpion, toad, hypocrite” and so on. The Bishop continued to stand in his place, not reacting at all to the insane attacks of his priest, but continuing to read from some book on his lectern. Then dad told me how he and many others were outraged by such unacceptable behavior for a priest towards his Bishop and asked Vladyka to punish the insolent person, but Vladyka did nothing, saying that this was his personal business. What holy kindness! And in general, no one has ever heard from the lips of this Righteous One a single word of condemnation of anyone. The late Archpriest Seraphim Slobodskaya told me how he once asked Vladyka the following question: “Who is to blame for the sad turmoil that is happening around the cathedral under construction in San Francisco?”, and Vladyka very simply answered with one word: “The Devil.” Counseling is the word that best defines the driving principle of the entire life and work of the greatest man of prayer and righteous man - not only of our warm-cold century - but, I firmly believe, in general the entire history of the universal Church of Christ. Otherwise, how can you explain what you yourself were a living witness to? How, for example, his face literally transformed during the Liturgy on great holidays, shining with an unearthly light, and his eyes, always full of divine love, clearly reflected the inexpressible joy from the presence of the Holy Spirit, inaccessible to us sinners. Or how on Easter night he flew around - as if carried by Angels - the entire spacious Shanghai Cathedral, shouting victorious from an excess of joy: “Christ is Risen!”, “Christ is Risen!”. His genuine rejoicing seemed to know no bounds then; he was completely absorbed in the joy of Christ, whom he truly loved to the end. But what is most amazing is the gift of seeing the human heart and attracting it to Christ. After all, if it weren’t for this righteous man, I would never have thought of serving the Church in the clergy. How amazingly accurately he predicted what would happen to us! Writing to my brother and me in October 1949, when we were only 13 and 15 years old, having just arrived from the Philippine Islands in Australia but already beginning to rarely go to church, he warned: “By departing from the ways of the Lord, we can only enjoy the body for a while - then we will feel the bitterness of that evil that seems sweet.” I cannot read these prophetic words today, 35 years later, without bitter tears of gratitude! He knew that I would write to him on May 19/June 1, 1960. “How I would like to personally talk with you, Vladyka! So much has happened and is imprinted on my mind after the Philippines that I do not recognize myself. The spiritual aspirations of my childhood drowned long ago in a sinful, material environment.” But the great righteous man saw that my spiritual aspirations had not completely “sunk”, and continued to call me to serve the Church, advising “...that (I) receive a theological education and for this purpose enter Trinity Seminary. May the Lord help you and bless you on that path!” (Letter dated January 18/31, 1961). Of course, I have no words to express my gratitude to the unforgettable Archpastor. During the earthly life of a bishop, we proclaim: “Through the prayers of our holy Master, Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on us!” I constantly thank God for the fact that He vouchsafed me to be a witness of His greatest saint, through whose prayers I did not completely plunge into the vanity of the world. I have no doubt that the day will come when the earthly Church will glorify Vladika John as one of those “of whom the whole world is not worthy, and let us give thanks to God, wondrous in His saints.” Childhood. Tomorrow something special is expected... At our new Cathedral of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Companions of Sinners (in Shanghai) will raise crosses on the domes. I remember a sea of ​​heads around the church... like on Easter. Father lifts me up, and I try to see the Lord through the crowd as he blesses the crosses prepared for lifting. I raise my head... somewhere high in the sky the main dome looms, and suddenly... I freeze in delight. Reflecting the rays of the sun, a golden cross floats upward. God! What a beauty! And here is the diocesan house, next to the Cathedral. We boys, although we were afraid, loved to climb to the top floor and look at the passers-by from there. Sometimes the Lord would find us at the window. We will press ourselves guiltily against the wall, and he will so affectionately call us to him, pull us by the hair, and, blessing us, send us away in peace, with a kind word of farewell. Behind the diocesan house there was a playground where we played. Vladyka, who mostly walked everywhere, when he passed by this site, always came to the children and, blessing us, mercifully talked with us. Before my eyes is his gentle, smiling face. Already as a student, I became seriously ill and was admitted to a Catholic hospital on the outskirts of the English concession of the city where Vladyka lived. I was in a difficult situation. I remember with what great joy my heart was filled when I saw the sweet appearance of our dear Master at my bedside, with sparkling eyes full of sympathy. How Vladyka prayed! I stayed in the hospital for several weeks, and Vladyka came on a certain day of each week, consoled me and prayed. Truly, you were a good shepherd! The Bishop could have ordered one of the priests to visit the sick. But he, despite the daily services, the burden of diocesan affairs, worries about an orphanage and the rather primitive conditions of urban movement, himself, partly on foot, partly on a tram, made long journeys, visiting the sick and suffering, in hospitals and prisons, thereby fulfilling the covenant of the Holy Apostle Paul: “in all things, giving himself an example of good works” (Titus 2:7). Is it possible to forget the service on Easter night in the cathedral? How the Lord shone then, not at all in an earthly way; how, when censing, he swept through the church like a whirlwind; how he exclaimed triumphantly and joyfully, shouting out more Easter greetings! I have never seen anything like this anywhere. And in general, Vladyka served with an unusually prayerful and penetrating spirit, so that both his fellow servants and the people were imbued with the spirit of prayer and reverence. 2. During the war, life was hard for Russian exiles in Shanghai under the Japanese yoke and Soviet influence. Vladyka shared with us all the sorrows and hardships. The war is over. Soviet influence was ready to swallow up all of Russian China. But God was merciful. It was also difficult for Vladyka to navigate without having contact with Vladyka Metropolitan Anastassy, ​​who at that time was restoring the life of the Church Abroad, disrupted by the war. And the Lord was trusting. Although he was accused of political instability, in his heart he never changed his right-wing convictions, which he proved not only by repenting before the Council of Bishops, but also by the fact that, as a spiritual leader, he led the exodus of Russian refugees from China, first to the Philippines, and then to America. On the island of Tubabao, the Lord again brought me to meet the dear Master and experience his favorable attitude towards my unworthiness, at that time a lonely and lost wanderer. Although the Bishop had a visa to the USA, he considered it his first duty to share the exile with his spiritual children, abandoned by the Providence of God to the islands of palm trees and typhoons. In the shortest possible time, church life was in full swing. A temporary diocesan office was established, a convent was established, three churches were opened, and a “Cathedral” grew up at the monastery, placed in a spacious military barracks and, for Easter, crowned with a homemade onion dome. The Vladyka left for America and everyone knows how, by the power of his spirit, he obtained from the powers that be the entry of his persecuted children. Having felt freedom, people appreciated it in different ways and thanked the elder in different ways. One thing can be said with confidence: Vladyka never harbored enmity against anyone in his heart, and treated ill-wishers as if nothing had happened between them at all. This trait of his especially admires me... Oh, if only we all knew how to behave like this in our difficult age! When I subsequently visited Washington, I could not help but notice the trace that Vladyka left behind him both in church life and among those living there in general. 3. Time passed. In the fifties, the Lord directed my steps to Paris, where the Lord was staying in Versailles at that time. I will never forget my meeting with the gracious archpastor. Vladyka lived at the cadet corps. I arrived unexpectedly. I was met by the Vladika's secretary and directed me to the Vladika's office on the top floor. With trepidation, I climbed the wide stairs; portraits of Russian sovereigns looked at me from the walls. I knock on the door and hear “Amen.” I didn’t know then that I needed to say a prayer: “Through the prayers of the saints our fathers...” I entered. The Vladyka sat at a desk littered with letters and papers and wrote. The poor appearance of the old man, without shoes, in a worn cassock, and with scattered hair, created a touching image of humility and simplicity... I stopped at the door. The Bishop, seeing me, exclaimed joyfully, his face suddenly lit up with a smile and he, jumping up from his chair and blessing me, embraced me in his arms. I did not cope well with tears of joy... A lively conversation flowed, we rushed from memory to memory, from one acquaintance to another. In this short time, it seemed like we were reliving the last few years. Having learned that I was going on a trip to Europe, Vladyka took out the Trinity calendar and gave it to me, pointing to the list of parishes in Europe. "Go with God. When you arrive in the city, immediately contact the local priest. Say that I sent you." With God's help and on the wise advice of the Lord, I traveled almost all of Europe, receiving spiritual nourishment and making friends and acquaintances who showed me the sights of the city, as no travel agency could have done. The hour of separation was approaching. Vladyka suggested going down to the church, which was built right next to the house. The Bishop served Vespers, after which he gave me farewell words. I approached the Vladyka to bless him, and he said: “No, no - I’ll take you to the tram.” From the Vladyka's residence to the tram stop you need to walk a considerable distance. I was embarrassed that the elder was accompanying me, and even so far, but Vladyka insisted on his own. And when the tram departed, I looked for a long time in tenderness at the hunched figure of the old man blessing me on my way... 4. Years passed. University. Marriage. Civil service. Church work. Meanwhile, caring, spiritual letters from the dear Vladyka arrive... And then, completely unexpectedly, the Vladyka’s offer to embark on the path of serving the Church. Just at this time, the Council of Bishops was considering the issue of glorifying Father John of Kronstadt, for which Vladyka John especially advocated. Then I saw a wonderful dream: Father John blessed me and exhorted me not to doubt. On the same day, the wife underwent serious surgery. But my health did not improve. We were completely depressed. Unexpectedly a phone call. The Bishop says to his wife: “Agree to the ordination, otherwise you will continue to get sick.” After this, Vladyka came to visit us, shared a family meal with us and had a pleasant conversation with us. And at parting he suddenly turned to his wife: “Well, dear, is it the diaconate or the priesthood?”, although he didn’t say a word about it throughout the evening. Needless to say, what impression such a decisive statement from the Bishop made on us. And we accepted this decision of our Abba. On his next visit to the east coast, Vladyka himself ordained me to the rank of deacon. I can only confirm that the Lord’s words came true. After I was ordained a deacon, my wife’s health improved noticeably. So several years passed, during which Vladyka never forgot about us in writing, and when he came to New York he invariably inquired about us by telephone. And here is a new offer from Avva - to accept the place of priest in his diocese. More thoughts and again my wife’s illness. At this point we decided that the Lord was apparently again offering us a source of healing. And we decided. But the Lord was no longer alive. The Lord vouchsafed me the title of priest, and today I cannot help but testify that my mother’s health was restored again without medical intervention. We have no doubt about the intercession and prayers of our dear Master. 5. Letters from the Lord no longer arrive, but we feel his care for us with undiminished strength, and we live in the memory of him... The hunched figure of an elder, somewhat vaguely reminiscent of the Venerable Elder Seraphim, appears before our eyes... here he is, a modern righteous man, a follower of Father St. righteous John of Kronstadt the Wonderworker... a true non-covetous, not seeking glory in the archpastoral title, not striving for honors and luxurious vestments... a good shepherd, the first to set an example of caring for his neighbors... a shepherd who lived the Church, in the Church and for the Church... a Christian who conquered anger within himself, which is why his face was illuminated with a joyful smile... father loving... a bishop who tirelessly labors... a man who knows no limits in his exploits... a servant of God who strives day and night in intelligent and concentrated prayer... an intercessor before God for the people who through him receive healing and the fulfillment of their aspirations.... Truly, brethren, “For such a bishop is fitting for us, reverend, kindly, undefiled, excommunicated from a sinner, and was above the heavens” (Heb. 7:26). The ever-memorable Vladyka John followed this behest of the great apostle throughout his arduous life, and succeeded to a great extent in fulfilling it. And this phenomenon is all the more wondrous because the Lord lived in our days, when in the end humanity became impoverished in faith and piety. Is this not the root of the misunderstanding that Vladyka so often encountered, even from seemingly church people? However, what the Lord, testing people, allowed during the life of the Master, is now dissipating like smoke before everyone’s eyes, and every day this chosen lamp of righteousness shines more and more brightly, strengthening the faithful in carrying out the Christian feat of humility, patience and love. Archpriest Valery Lukyanov Memories of Vladyka John My first meeting with Vladyka John took place near Paris, in the Lesna convent. The church was built in the monastery hall. I heard a lot about the dear Master and I really wanted to see him. We arrived before mass began; Vladyka was already standing in the middle of the church, in a white cassock, waiting for the vesting to begin, and all the worshipers stood along the wall. There were already quite a lot of people and I stood at the edge. When I saw Vladyka, how he stood, short, slightly hunched, with slightly tangled hair, for some reason I felt very sorry for him! I thought: how difficult and difficult it must be for him! And I began to pray for him from the bottom of my heart. He stood motionless. But as soon as I began to pray, he sharply turned his head in my direction and pierced me with his eyes, as if right through me. Surprise and joy even sent shivers down my spine! 2. At the beginning, we did not have our own church in Paris (Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia) and we hired a Lutheran church; We didn’t have a choir either; therefore we collected singers from all the churches; Of course, I was also included in this collective choir. Once, I don’t remember whether it was before the Cherubim or before the Eucharist, but the choir had nothing to sing and there was a long pause. In the choir they started asking me about Vladyka. I began to tell what I heard about him... And suddenly, I had a feeling: I must remain silent! After all, the Liturgy is going on and it’s as if the Bishop doesn’t like our conversations. I felt embarrassed; but the choristers were so impressed by my story that they began to insist that I continue. I thought that this could only be a figment of my imagination and continued to talk. But this time I felt that the Lord, this time sharply, ordered me to be silent; I stopped; and everyone asks to continue; and I say: “I can’t”! They ask why, and I answer that the Lord doesn’t want this, doesn’t allow it! Here is the second example of the Lord’s foresight! Of course, he couldn’t hear what we were saying! 3. I went to visit Vladyka several times. He lived in the Cadet Corps near Paris, in Versailles. He had a small cell on the top floor of the house. In the cell there was a table, its chair and several chairs around the table (perhaps there was another small table and a chest of drawers); in the corner there are icons and a lectern with books (I don’t remember the exact situation - I wasn’t interested in it then). There were no beds in the cells; Vladyka never went to bed. Sometimes, when we were talking to him, he, sitting in a chair, began to doze. Then I stopped, but he immediately said: “continue, continue, I’m listening.” And indeed, Vladyka answered all my questions. All night Vladyka prayed, leaning on a tall stick with a crossbar on top. Sometimes he prayed on his knees; Probably, when I bowed, I fell asleep a little in this position, on the floor. That's how he exhausted himself! 4. When he was not serving and was at home, he always tried to walk barefoot (to mortify the flesh), even in severe frosts he did this. Sometimes he would walk barefoot in the cold, along a rocky road, from the building to the church, which was located at the gate, and the building stood inside the park, on a hill. One day he injured his leg; doctors could not heal her and there was a danger of blood poisoning. Vladyka had to be admitted to the hospital, but he did not want to go to bed. Since this was impossible in the hospital, Vladyka eventually submitted. But he still put a boot under him to make it uncomfortable to lie down. The hospital nurses, French women, said: you brought a saint to us! A priest came to him every morning, served the Liturgy, and Vladyka received communion. 5. In the Lesna monastery there lived one young man, in an outbuilding, near the monastery fence. He was taken out by the Bishop (I think from China). He was all crooked and walked with a strong limp. His hands were twisted and he spoke poorly. He looked abnormal, but he was of sound mind. He smiled a lot and everyone loved him. One day I find out that he is in the hospital and very sick (it seems he has meningitis). Then I learned that Vladyka was told that he was hopeless and unlikely to live to see the next day. Vladyka immediately went to see him, prayed over him for a long time, and the next day he was released from the hospital healthy! His further fate is unknown to me. 6. When Vladyka came to us, we had a very difficult situation with premises in Paris at that time. And in order to create a church, I had to rent two garages (there were many of them in one found yard) and build a church in them. A few years later, Vladyka managed to find a house and build a home church in it. Now it contains an exact copy of the Miracle-Working Icon of the Mother of God of Kursk-Root, with a particle from the Miracle-Working Icon. I personally really loved this garage church. Although it was very shabby and she was small, she had a very prayerful mood. Our dear Vladyka came very often and served with us. He made it so easy to pray with him! He infected people with his prayer. I often confessed to him. He knew how to confess in such a way that you, without noticing it, remembered your sins and left calm and joyful that you were able to repent from your heart. The sinful Lord allowed me to work a lot in this church. Thank God for everything! And on Easter (although Vladyka did not eat anything during the entire Holy Week) he was the most cheerful of all, joyful, bright, so that all those praying involuntarily triumphed with him. 7. One lady (not from our Foreign jurisdiction) told her friend that she wanted to go to the church where Vladika John served. Her friend did not want to go: he (the Lord), they say, was not under her jurisdiction. But then she agreed to go and even venerate the cross, but she would not kiss the Vladyka’s hand. Both ladies were in the church and at the end of the service both came to the cross. The one who resisted at the beginning “melted” under the impression of the service and approached the cross with the thought of kissing the Lord’s hand. Vladyka let her kiss him and immediately after sharply pulled his hand away. She gasped! How could the Lord know?! 8. When we did not yet have a permanent reader, once one person read during Holy Week. Since the reading was long, he thought that Vladika would not notice, and turned two pages. The Bishop, standing in the middle of the church, without any book, “tattled”; the reader stopped, and Vladyka read by heart everything that he had missed. This was a lesson for him for life. He never did this again. 9 . One day a priest came to us (we didn’t have a permanent one at that time) and served an all-night vigil. The entire all-night vigil lasted 45 minutes! We were all terrified! So much was missed that we decided to tell the Bishop about this, in the hope that he would influence this priest, in the sense of observing the order of worship. And the Vladyka, smiling sweetly, tells us: “Well, there’s no way to please you! I serve for too long (on Holy Saturday, the service began at 9 a.m., and at 4 p.m. the communion of the worshipers had not yet begun; then the Vladyka served shorter), and he served too short!” We felt so ashamed that we condemned the priest and even the Bishop himself. How terrible is condemnation in general, and especially of clergy! And how sweetly and meekly Vladyka taught us this lesson! For the glory of God and the saints who glorify Him with their righteous lives A small group of sisters stayed with me for 4 years of refugee in Amman, where we fled from the Gornensky Monastery during the Arab-Jewish War in 1948. His Beatitude Metropolitan Anastassy, ​​foreseeing that our monastery in the Holy Land was lost to our Church, intended, together with Archbishop Nikon, to transfer us to the USA to Novo-Diveevo. Vladika Archbishop John then received an assignment to Europe and Metropolitan Anastassy wrote to me in Amman - Vladika John is going to Europe and I am entrusting you to him. He will never leave you. With the blessing of Vladyka John, while waiting for a visa to America, we took refuge in the Lesna Monastery, in Fourques in France, for two years. First meeting: To introduce himself to Vladyka Archbishop John had to go to Versailles. My old nun Agafonika and I were accompanied by the Lesno nun, Met. Flavian. I was warned that Vladyka John might receive us very harshly. To everyone's surprise. Vladyka was extremely attentive and affectionate. While treating us, he poured several spoons of sugar into my cup. He wanted to sweeten our lot, suspecting how many disasters, illnesses and grief we had suffered during the four years of refugee. The arrival of Vladyka John from Versailles was expected at the Lesna Monastery. We still haven't been introduced to him. Preparations were underway for the service and Mother Abbess Theodora asked our sister Catherine, the regent, to sing “The Chosen Voivode” in Arabic at the end of the service, which she really liked. Sister Catherine hesitated whether to sing, fearing that the other nuns would not like it, but she decided to obey and our sisters sang it. The service ended, everyone came up to take the blessing, and the last one came up with. Catherine. Blessing her, Vladyka John said with a smile: “They sang after all, and it was good!” For some holiday everyone was fasting and the arrival of Archbishop John was expected. Among the guests from Paris was a 13-year-old girl who refused to fast, fearing confession from the stern-looking Fr. Abbot Nikandr (Valaamts). The nuns and visitors came out to meet the Bishop. When the girl approached, blessing her, the Bishop put his hand on her head and said: “You will fast!” She fasted and was satisfied. Another case: Vladyka was in the monastery. Preparations were underway for the evening service. They went for the Lord, but his trace disappeared. They looked for him everywhere and could not find him. When Vladyka returned, we learned that the grieving Countess Olga Kapnis asked the Vladyka’s holy prayers for her young relative, who was in the hospital from severe nervous fatigue. Her situation was so serious that even her parents were not allowed to see her. Vladyka immediately went to the hospital, insisted that he be allowed to see the patient, stayed with her and returned to service. To the great surprise of doctors and relatives, the girl was healed and returned to normal life. During kathismas, the Bishop always stood leaning on the lectern. He looked as if he was dozing. In the depths of the church, Sister Ksenia whispered: “He didn’t sleep at night, but now he’s falling asleep.” The Lord immediately turned around and looked at her. She was ready to fall through the ground. Time passed, all efforts to get a visa to America ended in failure. Vladyka John was then Archbishop of Brussels and Western Europe and England was under his jurisdiction. Returning from England, Vladyka John decided that we should settle there. We received a visa to England with the right to work without delay. Through his holy prayers and fatherly care, the first Russian Orthodox convent in London was founded in honor of the Annunciation of the Most Holy Theotokos. Saying goodbye to us in the Lesna Monastery and bidding us farewell to a new life, Vladyka John said: “You will be in a big city, but you will live as if in the desert.” After many difficulties, a suitable mansion for the monastery was found. Examining it, the Bishop told me: "Sisters from the Holy Land - they need warmth. Arrange heating right away." They installed central heating and an accident happened. A worker broke the tap at the boiler and boiling water flooded the entire floor in the kitchen and pantry. On his next visit, Vladyka found out about this and asked for the Trebnik and holy water. Then he said a prayer over the stove, sprinkled everything with holy water and prayed for a long time over the installation of heating and electricity. He asked to hang the icon of the Mother of God “The Burning Bush” there. Since then, thank God, everything, through the prayers of Vladika John, has been in order. When visiting England, Vladika John always stayed at our monastery. Vladyka never went to bed, but rested sitting in a chair in his office next to the church. At night we heard him often going to church. Knowing that the sisters were all teachers at the Bethany school in the Holy Land, Vladyka blessed us to teach children the Law of God, the Russian language and singing. It happened that Vladyka was in the monastery when classes with children were taking place. Among the students were their English friends. We introduced the children, they came up for the blessing and, surrounding the Vladyka, did not want to leave. Vladyka John’s appearance was not attractive to secular people, but non-Orthodox people even felt his spiritual grace and when leaving, the English children told us: “How lucky you are that you have such a bishop!” We have been practicing the prayers of Vladyka John with children for the 36th year now. While visiting the church elder, Count Vladimir Kreinmichel, Vladyka refused a taxi and wanted to return to the city by metro. The headman accompanied Vladyka to the station, and when he returned, the ticket inspector asked him who he was seeing off. The elder answered - this is our Orthodox bishop. The controller says: “Although I am a Baptist, I see that your bishop is a saint!” During a visit to the monastery, there was a telephone from Meudon - Archimandrite Sergius had died. The Bishop ordered the funeral to be delayed and announced that he was immediately returning to France. Early in the morning we took Vladyka to the station by taxi. The young driver, an Englishman, asked for a blessing, if possible. The Lord turned around and blessed him. The driver told us: “What a wonderful, extraordinary bishop he is - he has a special power.” At one time a Russian family from China lived in London. At night my husband calls me in grief. For God’s sake, inform Vladyka John that my wife Olga is in a critical situation in the hospital. Her blood pressure has risen very high and doctors fear for her life and for the life of the baby she is expecting. I called Versailles, hoping that I would find Vladyka. He answered himself, found out the details, and then said that there was no need to worry - everything would be fine. Then he thanked me for calling him. Through his holy prayers everything ended well and a healthy girl, Ekaterina, was born. A friend of our monastery, Paraskeva Timofeevna Dimitriu, lay sick and half-oblivious. At our request, Vladyka John went to her, prayed and blessed her. That same day she got up healthy and said with tears that she felt like the illness had suddenly left her. Other people told me that when the Lord laid his hand on his head, the power of grace was felt and the soul became light. The Bishop fulfilled the commandments of God with selfless love and the Lord answered his holy prayers. It was the feast of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary, a church feast of the cathedral in London. Returning to the monastery, there was a conversation about the divine service and Vladyka John sadly said that at the all-night vigil in the cathedral they did not sing “Osmoglasen”. The sisters suggested we sing. The Bishop, listening to the singing, beamed. He often ministered to us, comforting us. He loved the singing of the sisters and valued knowledge of the intricacies of worship. For the Feast of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos, Vladyka John sent us a greeting that hung on the choir: “On the day of St. Roman the Sweet Singer, crowned by God for his zealous singing, I ask you to convey my greetings to all the nuns and sisters who, with zeal and zeal for the Holy Church, participate in the divine service through their singing. May the Lord bless with His mercy for their zeal and work for the glory of the Holy Church of Christ. I invoke God’s Blessing on you, on all who glorify God with singing, and on your entire Abode” - Archbishop John. With Vladyka, we children felt light and joyful Vladyka John tirelessly showed care, attention and spiritual guidance to us children in Shanghai. Every year he personally conducted exams on the Law of God in all Russian schools and orphanages in the city. All children had to know the name of their saint, his life, and had to partake of the Holy Mysteries of Christ on the day of the saint’s memory. The annual traditional school children's holiday of Saints Cyril and Methodius, the First Teachers of the Slavs, was celebrated by the fact that children of all schools had to attend the Divine Liturgy in the Cathedral on this day. The choir consisted of singers - children from different schools. After the Liturgy there was a refreshment on the cathedral site. Among the hundreds of children, the Vladyka himself was always present. I was brought up and lived in the Olginsky orphanage at the Women's Convent with Mother Abbess Ariadne and studied at the S. E. Diterichs Women's Gymnasium. Vladyka believed that schoolgirls should serve him and dress him during Divine services. I was honored to be a servant of the Lord from the age of ten until I was 16 years old. I also attended St. Roman Catholic School for some years. Sofia, where the teachers were missionary nuns who tried to convert children to Catholicism. Vladyka fought against Orthodox Russian children studying in this school. He came to the gates of this school at the end of classes, meeting and blessing us. He strictly said that we should not wear this uniform and go to this school, that we have our own Russian schools. The Nativity of Christ was celebrated according to the old Russian tradition. After the solemn all-night vigil in the Convent, we, a group of girls-pupils led by a nun, walked through the already sleeping city to the Cathedral with a lit Christmas star to glorify Christ and congratulate the Bishop on the holiday. Always beaming with joy, Vladyka received us in his chambers. Having glorified Christ, we took turns approaching him for blessing and each of us received from him a bag of sweets that filled large baskets standing in his cell. We gave him woolen socks knitted by ourselves as a gift for the holidays. And to our bewilderment, later we saw these socks on beggars. From the windows of the third floor of the monastery mansion where our shelter was located, we saw Vladyka walking down the street in pouring rain and bad weather, winter and summer, towards his brainchild - the shelter of St. Tikhon of Zadonsky. Along the road there was a “House of Mercy” for men and a shelter with a church for elderly women, and further away there was a prison. We knew that Vladyka was coming to visit these institutions. Sometimes, on his way back, he came to see us. The monastery was notified of the arrival of the Bishop by ringing the bells. In bad weather, all wet, wearing sandals on bare feet, going to the church and kissing St. To the Throne and the Miracle-Working Icons, Vladyka climbed the back stairs to the third floor to our children’s orphanage. Having sung to the Vladyka “These Despots have executed,” they approached him for blessing. He asked us the name of our saint and sometimes her life, asked which Evangelist the Gospel was read for that day. He wondered if we were full. During World War II, when food was really difficult, the shelter received soup from the public canteen. Then Vladyka would certainly try the food himself, scooping it directly from the pan with a spoon. Despite the fact that he was strict with us, we were drawn to him and, when we saw the Bishop walking through the city, we ran to him to receive his blessing. With Vladyka, we children felt light and joyful. In 1962, we joyfully met Vladika John in San Francisco. I was already married and we had three children. The Vladyka’s concern for his flock never ceased. Vladyka fought against mixed marriages, changing Russian surnames to foreign ones, and participation in the heterodox celebration of the Nativity of Christ. The authority of the Bishop and his personal concern for raising children in America convinced us, parents, that he would guide us and correct us. His instructions were as follows: “Living in a free country, one must especially enjoy the freedom of religion, and not refuse or change their customs.” His influence was expressed, for example, in the fact that children asked Santa Claus to bring them a Christmas tree on January 7, and not on December 25 (according to the civil calendar). Our work with Vladyka during the difficult years in San Francisco brought our family especially close to him. Despite all the trials for the Bishop, he continued, as in Shanghai, to visit the sick and infirm Russian people and to commune them with the Holy Mysteries of Christ. I often had to carry Vladyka in my car. Vladyka continued to devote time to children, including our children. He taught our 8-year-old son to read from the Book of Hours, staying with him after the Liturgy. He talked with 3-year-old Musenka and let her kiss his pectoral cross and prosphora - the radiant one listened to her babble while the church warden, lawyers and other public figures were waiting for him on urgent matters. It happened that Musenka was in the hospital for tonsil surgery. In an unusual environment, she could not sleep and cried all the time. The sisters were afraid to enter the children's ward because she began to cry even more. In the morning, my sister from the hospital calls me and asks who this guy in all black and with a black beard came to see Musenka at 11 o’clock at night. We were scared, he says, when he went to her room, afraid that she would burst into tears and wake up the other children. To our surprise, she added, when she saw him, she stopped crying, smiled at him, talked with him, and after he left she calmly fell asleep. We were going through my husband’s transfer for service to the state of Oregon due to separation from Vladyka. With regret, he blesses us on the road with icons of St. Nicholas and Rev. Seraphim of Sarov, taken from the walls of his cell. And in Oregon, the Lord did not break contact with us. He wrote letters to us, sent postcards to our children on their Angel’s Day, thanked us for the memory of him when he received modest parcels from them, and always signed himself “Archbishop John who loves you.” Sometimes the Lord honored our house with his visit on the way from Seattle to San Francisco. We visited in Oregon with the Miraculous Icon of Kursk-Root. The last time Vladyka, accompanied by a priest and an altar boy, visited us on his way from Seattle late in the evening. Everyone was tired from the journey and my husband persuaded Vladyka to stay with us for the night, but Vladyka never missed the Divine Liturgy and Holy Communion, and wanted to go to San Francisco at night. Finally, he agreed to stay and that he would serve mass in our house in the morning. Our whole family had to partake of the Holy Mysteries of Christ, and the Bishop himself confessed each of us. He told me to read the Holy Gospel every day for 10 minutes. To prepare for this Great Sacrament, he instructed us spiritually and ordered us to read that evening the Akathist to the Queen of Heaven and the complete rule before Communion. It was November 12, 1965 - the last time we saw Vladyka alive. We, his spiritual children, feel that the Lord was and is with us. Tatiana Kennedy (Urusova) I remember how in 1934, on the day of the Entry into the Church of the Most Holy Theotokos, Vladika John arrived from Yugoslavia in Shanghai. We've been waiting for him for a long time. Our Shanghai archpastor, Vladyka Simon, died in 1933. Then the Head of the spiritual mission, Archbishop Victor, wrote a petition to the Synod to appoint a new suffragan bishop in Shanghai. From the Synod he received an answer that they would send us the same prayer book as Archbishop Simon. We waited a long time for the new archpastor - the day of his arrival was a great celebration for our city. All clergy, public organizations and schoolchildren gathered at the cathedral on this day to meet Vladika John. The Bishop arrived, a short prayer service was served in the cathedral, and then a reception took place. I remember how at the meal, Vladyka John, seeing sugar, smiled: “Is this so much sugar?” “Yes,” we answered, and he said: “It’s not available here - no.” During the meal, the Vladyka spoke a word. Vladyka John’s first good deed in Shanghai was the founding of an orphanage. The Bishop gathered children on the streets of the city. At first I found 4 children, and then more came. A rich man donated a large house to the orphanage. The youngest shelter dweller was 4 years old. Vladyka was very affectionate with children. Vladyka John celebrated the Divine Liturgy all year round, every day. Another priest concelebrated with him. The services lasted a very long time. With the arrival of Vladika John, Vespers and Compline were celebrated in the evening. At Compline, from one to three canons to the saints were necessarily read out in advance. At 6 a.m. Midnight Office, Matins and Liturgy were served. Vladyka John had no hearing, but he made everything sing. At Vespers and Matins he stood with the clergy on the choir. Vladyka treated the clergy very strictly. Polyeleos was always sung in its entirety (i.e., the entire psalm). Many people did not like the fact that the services lasted so long. Children from the orphanage served Vladika John at the daily Liturgies. The shelter was a quick 30 minute walk from the cathedral. When it rained, the children came to the church barefoot and served barefoot. Vladika John served in sandals. He never slept lying down. He was very clean - he took a cold bath every day at 4 o'clock in the morning, even in winter. I remember that Vladyka John especially revered the days of remembrance of martyrs. For some reason it remains in my memory that he loved the holy martyr Tryphon. In 1938, Vladyka John left for the All-Diaspora Council in Yugoslavia and before leaving received numerous instructions from his flock. At the cathedral, Vladyka John was the secretary, and among the instructions there were complaints against him, which he calmly read. After World War II, many Russian emigrants in Shanghai took Soviet passports, including clergy. The head of the mission, Archbishop Victor, accepted the Soviet passport, as did the senior clergyman of our cathedral, Protopresbyter Mikhail Rogozhin. Vladika John and I did not follow this example. I remember that Vladyka John received a notification from the Soviet consulate that Archbishop Victor would arrive in Shanghai. Vladyka John called all the clergy and at the meeting said that he would not meet Vladyka Victor and we supported him. Upon arrival from Beijing to Shanghai, Archbishop Victor, accompanied by 8 Komsomol members, headed to the cathedral, where Fr. Mikhail served a prayer service. We watched what was happening from the church house. The next day I had to meet with Archbishop Victor. He called us “Johannites.” Vladika Victor says to me: “You are all for Vladika John.” And I answer: “Yes, and do you know why we are for Vladika John? If you want to know, I’ll tell you. Who signed Vladika John? You sent him to us. After Vladika John’s arrival, you came here many times and, turning to Vladika John, said: “Vladika, I respect you, I honor your high life, you rule well. Also, continue, and if the clergy do not listen to you, punish them without orders." “Vladyka, did you say so? He did,” Vladyka Victor answers. “That’s why we listen to him.” And now you are against Vladika John. You are now a Soviet subject and there can be no communication with you. I am Chinese, our clergy remains white, and you are Soviet. Do as you wish.”... After the evacuation of the Russians from Shanghai, Vladyka John traveled through Hong Kong to the Philippines. Subsequently, Vladyka John was assigned to Belgium. In Shanghai about. Hieromonk Modest, who died as abbot in the Holy Land, was close in spirit to Vladyka John, and in San Francisco, Fr. Archimandrite Mitrofan was very devoted to Vladyka. Due to the fact that Vladyka was busy from morning to evening, he was almost always late for services. He spent the whole day running around hospitals and houses. He had no concept of time - he did not wear a watch. During services, Vladyka always preached himself, but it was very difficult to understand him. Before the sermon, all the acolytes went to the middle of the church to listen to the Vladyka. Vladyka John was very fond of worship and the rules. There was a pastoral conference in Shanghai every Thursday. If someone was absent, then the Vladyka demanded a rapport-explanation from him. At these meetings, most of the time was devoted to liturgical issues. The Bishop asked the clergy the specifics of some upcoming services, testing their knowledge. Vladika John was not at all interested in food. They prepared food for him, but they never knew when he would eat. He loved tea, but never drank alcoholic beverages. Vladika John never spoke to me about life’s affairs—only about spiritual things. Even when there were troubles in San Francisco in connection with the construction of the cathedral, Vladyka did not share his experiences with anyone. In San Francisco, the flock loved Vladyka - he saved all the Shanghai refugees. Memory of Archbishop John I would like to talk about several events in connection with the memory of the ever-memorable Archbishop John, the 25th anniversary of whose death is prayerfully celebrated in this year of 1991. My late mother, novice Maria (Maria Dmitrievna née Shatilova) knew Vladyka John even when he was a student in Belgrade and then when he was already a monk. There is a description of one event when Vladyka John, having been notified that he had been chosen as a bishop and deciding that a mistake had occurred, on the way to the Synod of Bishops met his acquaintance and told her that a very sad mistake had occurred, that some priest John had been chosen as a bishop, and he was being invited. And it so happened that on the way back, Vladyka John again met with the same acquaintance and told her that something even worse had happened - it was he who had been chosen as a bishop. This description just talks about my mother. My mother, who was friends with the future Vladika John as a child, had correspondence with him when he left for China, but due to various circumstances, the correspondence was interrupted. When I was approximately 9–10 years old, the next Council of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia took place and the archpastors were to perform divine services in the Church-Monument of St. Vladimir in the village then called Casville, now Jackson, in the state of New Jersey. We then lived in the city of Vineland, about 70 miles from Jackson. My mother sent me to this celebration together with our rector so that I would receive a blessing from Vladika John. Due to the fact that my mother had not corresponded with Vladyka John for many years, he did not know about the fate of our family. I asked my mother: “How will I find out which of the bishops is Vladyka John?” and my mother, with her characteristic humor, said that the one who least of all resembles a bishop is Vladyka John. She mentioned that he is hunched over and sometimes wears boots on his bare feet. Arriving at the church, I immediately went into the altar to serve. Nobody had seen me before. And suddenly Vladyka John came up to me and led me out of the altar - he never said unnecessary words at the altar. On the choir he turned to me with the words: “Hello Styopa! How is your mother, Marinka? How is your brother, your sisters?” Then, with a smile and sparkling eyes, he looked at me stubbornly and asked how I recognized him. And I was embarrassed, remembering my mother’s description and muttered something shyly. Only many years later, when I studied at Holy Trinity Seminary and heard about what clairvoyance is, I realized that what was surprising was not that I recognized Vladyka, but that he recognized me—knew me by name, knew who I was and knew about my family! Another event was this: My brother, Pavel, not being a military man, lived in Vietnam for several years in a row. There he looked for children who had been wounded or orphaned during the then-ongoing war, and found places for them in shelters and hospitals. There he met a Vietnamese woman, Kim Yong, his future wife. They helped each other in the work of helping unfortunate children. My brother told her about the Orthodox faith, about St. Seraphim of Sarov and about other saints of God. At some difficult moments in her life, an old man appeared in a dream, telling her what to do and comforting her in difficult circumstances. Once, for Easter, I sent my brother cassettes of monastery singing and several books and magazines of spiritual content. Having received my package and shown the spiritual literature to Kim, my brother was surprised, because she, seeing the cover of a magazine, told him: “This is the old man who appears to me in a dream and consoles me.” This was the famous photograph of Vladika John among the graves of the Novo-Diveevsky Monastery cemetery in Sprint Valley. Subsequently, Kim was baptized into the Orthodox Church with the name Cyrus. The third event I would like to tell you about is the following. In connection with preparations for the celebration of the 1000th anniversary of the Baptism of Rus', speaker Vadim Shcheglov arrived at the congress in our diocese. His wife, Zoya, is an icon painter. When Zoya was still living in Russia and working as a restorer, she once noticed that the icon of the Mother of God on the shelf in the workshop began to smell fragrant. It was an icon of the Tikhvin Mother of God. Already in America, Zoe had a dream in which a young monk walking through a cemetery told her to paint three icons of the Mother of God. Of the three named, Zoya remembers only one - Tikhvinskaya. She painted this icon. When her husband Vadim came to us for the congress, we hosted him in the Church of All Saints Who Shone Shining in the Russian Land in Burlingame. After consulting with his wife, Vadim, as a sign of gratitude, donated this Tikhvin icon to our church. When Zoya subsequently came to San Francisco for the celebration of the 1000th anniversary of the Baptism of Rus', in the tomb of Vladika John she saw exactly the same photograph in which Vladyka walked among the graves at the Novo-Diveevo cemetery. Surprised, she said that this was the one who appeared to her in a dream and instructed her to paint icons of the Mother of God. She asked: “Who is this?” She was told that this was Vladika John, but she was confused because in a dream, when she asked the monk what his name was, he called himself Michael. Then Zoya learned that Vladyka John was Michael in the world. The monk to whom she told all this informed her that Vladika John’s cell icon of the Mother of God was precisely the Tikhvin one! Our church received this icon in the thousand-year year, and the next year, when we first celebrated the feast of the Tikhvin Icon of the Mother of God, it was a Sunday, and the previous Sunday was the day of the death of the ever-memorable Bishop John. Archpriest Stefan Pavlenko Vladyka John knew the character of the Serbs One young Serb was a theology student at the Orthodox Theological Institute in Paris. There was a split in his soul: should he marry or become a monk? He went to Versailles, where Archbishop John then lived and asked the Bishop: should I become a monk? Vladyka John lived in Serbia for a long time and knew well the morals and character of young Serbs. He knew that they could be stubborn and hot-tempered, and answered the student: no. This Serb later became a monk. When this Serb, already a monk, was lucky enough to meet Archbishop John in America, Vladyka blessed him with the shining gaze of the insightful Serbian scholar... The Vladyka knew that if the Serb had been told: “Yes, become a monk!”, the Serb would not have gone... Bishop Daniel of the Serbian Orthodox Church was a parishioner of the Russian Orthodox Church in Meudon, near Paris, when Vladika John arrived there. He amazed us by reading other people's thoughts. A lady who had recently been widowed came to our church. She intended to settle into a nursing home and wanted to talk about something with the Vladyka. The service ended, everyone venerated the cross, and she, having venerated herself, did not dare to speak to the Vladyka, but retreated into the depths of the church. The Vladyka himself then asked her friend: “What about this lady who needed to talk to me?” At the Lesna monastery in Furka, Flavian’s mother told me that they had not had rain for a long time and their garden was drying up. Vladyka John arrived, served a prayer service, walked around the garden in a religious procession, and it began to rain. Mrs. Petukhova, who knew Vladyka John from Shanghai, told me that Russian refugees from China lived in tents on the island of Tubabao. One morning the Vladyka walked around all the tents and blessed them. At night a typhoon swept over the island, but did not touch them. After World War II, our Church Abroad lost its cathedral in Paris. Thus, in this city there was not a single church left under the jurisdiction of the Russian Church Abroad. Our nearest church was in Meudon. Bishop Nathanael arrived there first, and then Vladyka John. Bishop John organized a temporary church in Paris, but he lived in Meudon with Fr. Alexandra Trubnikov and in Versailles, and came to Paris for services. Our church consisted of two garages. Inside, the church in honor of All Saints who shone in the Russian land was whitewashed, painted and decorated with icons. Vladyka John served here, and Grand Duke Vladimir Kirillovich also came here. But not everyone revered and loved the Lord. Once, it was in Meudon, Vladyka came out of the altar with a chalice, and one of our parishioners, when Vladyka uttered an exclamation, said something bad and suddenly fell and lost consciousness. They carried her out and took her home, and after a while, when she returned, she never spoke anything bad about the Vladyka again. Another time, at a sisterhood meeting, I heard one “sister” criticize the Bishop. I protested, but seeing that it was useless, I said goodbye and went home, going down to the metro station. I subsequently found out what happened after I left the meeting. The critical sister got out, walked to the subway, but did not get on it, and when she reached the end of the sidewalk, she hit a stationary bus and broke her arm. She was taken to the hospital where she lay for some time, and her arm failed to heal. My husband was a taxi driver and often drove Vladyka from Paris to Versailles and from Versailles to Paris. At the same time, he did not install the meter - which means he was losing working time and money. What happened? On the very first day when he took Vladyka, his next passenger forgot some account book and my husband went to the address indicated in the book. It turns out that this book belonged to a businessman and he really needed it. He was glad to see her back and told the clerk to give the driver a box of the best fresh oranges. The trip with Vladyka turned out to be more than paid for. Another time, my husband received a box of very expensive chocolates. Then he won the lottery ticket three times... With the Lord on Christmas Day I was 13 or 14 years old then. This happened either in 1963 or in 1964. I was then a senior altar boy at the Church of All Saints in the Land of Russia in the city of Burlingame, PC. California, and because of his duties in the church, he very rarely attended cathedral services in San Francisco. But my parents allowed me to serve Vladika John in the old cathedral on the Nativity of Christ. I remember how richly the church was decorated with huge fir trees and how we, the servants, brought Vladika John into the service with glory. On the first day after the festive meal at the St. Tikhon of Zadonsk, where Vladyka lived, the Lord vouchsafed me to accompany Vladyka while visiting sick Orthodox Christians in 5 hospitals. There were four of us: Vladyka, the driver of the car, Pavlik Lukyanov (now Hieromonk Peter) and me. Pavlik and I loaded several dozen small gifts into the car and drove off. On the way, Vladyka took out a tiny pre-revolutionary edition of the book of hours from a velvet bag and asked us to read the psalms, which we did. Since Vladyka visited the sick very often, the hospital staff knew him very well. The bishop in each hospital knew exactly which room to enter in order to receive a list of Orthodox patients. In one of the hospitals, Vladyka entered the office, went to the desk, opened the drawer and took out the list that was ready for him. There are no words to describe the expressions on the faces of the patients when they saw the Lord. In each room we entered, we sang the troparion and kontakion to the Nativity of Christ. The Bishop consoled each patient and presented a gift. Often the Gentiles called the Lord to them. The Bishop approached everyone and blessed them. Even one Russian Jewish woman kissed the Vladyka’s hand with tears, having received a gift from him... and the Vladyka beamed with joy throughout the entire day. Thurs. Vladimir Vadimovich Krasovsky The Lord had an incredible memory I want to share my memories of the Pleasant of God - about his incredible memory. When, I think in 1952, there was a meeting of the Synod in New York, in the old building on West 77th Street, Vladyka John and I met and wanted to get to know each other. During the conversation, Vladyka asked me that I also had a little sister who died in infancy? Yes, I answered Vladyka - how do you remember this, I naturally know that baby Natalia was a year older than me: she was born in 1905, on March 10, was baptized on April 10, died of meningitis on May 10 of the same 1905. Vladyka even remembered where she was buried - in a tomb next to the cathedral in the Peter and Paul Fortress in St. Petersburg. My father and his parents and our other relatives are buried there. The church was built with a cross: from the entrance, in the left niche (northern?) under the window, little Natusya was buried. And the Lord knew this... Another time, he and I met at the entrance to the Synod on 93rd Street in New York: Vladyka was leaving, and I was entering there. Vladyka told me that it was the day of the death of my brother Oleg, which I myself did not remember, and even now I forgot... Vladyka had such a memory... Princess Vera Konstantinovna In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit! For a long time, among the Orthodox Russian people there has been a belief that the bishops of the Orthodox Church die “in threes” - of course, over a certain period of time. This ancient belief involuntarily came to my mind now. Shortly after the last Council of Bishops of the Church Abroad, a year and a half ago, a very old man, Vladyka Archbishop Stefan, died. Then, just over a year ago, the orphaned Church Abroad prayerfully escorted its long-standing primate and spiritual father, the unforgettable elder Metropolitan Anastassy, ​​on the “path of the whole earth.” And now, finally, the third name... Yesterday during the all-night vigil, an urgent telephone call from Vladyka Nektarios from California brought us sad news: one of the oldest hierarchs of our Church, the first deputy Chairman of the Synod, the ascetic archpastor, Vladyka Archbishop John suddenly died in Seattle, where he arrived with the Miraculous Image of the Mother of God. Stunning news... Now, when I think about Vladyka John, I remember what happened a long time ago, more than 30 years ago, when my late parent. Bishop Demetrius, knowing what sorrows and troubles the High Hierarch of the Church Abroad, His Beatitude Metropolitan Anthony, had to endure in Yugoslavia, invited him to the Far East, to distant Harbin, where church life was then improving. “You will rest with us, Vladyka,” wrote Vladyka Demetrius to the Head of the Church Abroad. Vladyka Anthony answered like this: "Friend, I am already so old and weak that I cannot think of any journey other than a trip to the cemetery... But instead of myself, as my soul, as my heart, I send to you Vladika Bishop John. This small, weak man, almost a child in appearance, is some kind of miracle of ascetic fortitude and severity in our time of general spiritual relaxation." a young, newly ordained bishop, his great Abba. This is how Vladyka John was then - this is how he remained, and even now, in our days, he was before our eyes the same “miracle of ascetic fortitude” - a high example of a spiritual, prayerful attitude. Vladyka John always prayed; Vladika John prayed everywhere. It is not for nothing that, back in Harbin, the young but also spiritually minded priest Fr. Hieromonk Methodius subtly noted: “We all stand for prayer, but Vladika John does not need to “stand up” for it, he is always in a prayerful mood.” And no matter what changes occurred in the external environment, in the external conditions of Vladika John’s life and work, the matter of prayer and God’s service was always in the first place for him, and nothing could tear him away from this. Not a single person can contain all the perfections and be the bearer of all the gifts. Everyone can make a mistake, they make mistakes - no one is free from this. But those who dealt with Vladyka John, namely, as a man of prayer, as an archpastor who cares about human souls and is always ready to come to the rescue, those who experienced the power of his prayer on themselves and on their loved ones, will never forget the Vladyka - and will always carry in their souls a grateful memory of the warmth and light that he gave them. The Bishop died - the unceasing prayer with which our great prayer book burned, constantly praying “for everyone and for everything” was cut short... But the Church Abroad will not forget him. We hope that Vladika John will find mercy and boldness at the Terrible Throne of the Lord of Glory, and there he will pray for his own people and for his flock just as he prayed here on earth... And it is our duty. the duty of grateful love is to answer his prayer - with prayer. Let us pray for his bright soul... Amen. Testimonies of Archbishop John's prayer help In 1953 we lived in Paris. My daughter, Olga, was not yet 5 years old. At the beginning of October she had appendicitis surgery, she was recovering and everything was going well. Suddenly the temperature appeared and began to rise. The doctor, a very kind person and a wonderful doctor, came to see us almost every day. All possible tests were done on my daughter to determine what was wrong with her. The temperature was high throughout December and by the end of December the doctor insisted that Olechka be sent to the hospital, where she would have round-the-clock care. It was Saturday. All our relatives and friends worried with us and prayed. In the evening, our dear friend came to see us and said, let’s go to Vladyka John to pray. He will pray and everything will be resolved. Vladyka then lived in a cadet corps in Versailles, near Paris. On the way to Versailles, my friend Maria Iliodorovna talked about the power of the Vladyka’s prayer, how he helps people, and that I should listen to the Vladyka’s words at the end of the prayer service. The service was already underway when we arrived. I asked at the candle table that Vladyka be conveyed my request to serve a prayer service after the Liturgy. At the end of the service, the person on duty at the candle table came up to me and said that Vladyka should give communion to the sick boys in the hospital infirmary, and that a prayer service would be served by a priest. My heart just sank, and we decided to wait for Vladyka. We waited for Vladyka in silence - I wanted to pray, but all the time I was thinking about how my daughter Olechka was doing with a high temperature - after all, she could die. Soon Vladyka came and I told him about my daughter’s illness. Vladyka served a prayer service, and, giving the cross, he put his hand on my shoulder, looked at me smiling and said, “everything will be fine, mother, my daughter will be fine, everything will be fine.” Having blessed us and given us a prosphora, Vladyka said, go with God! I had an incredible feeling of relief in my soul and I believed that everything would be fine. At night Olechka was delirious - I put compresses on her head and prayed. In the morning the temperature dropped. When I began to prepare her to take her to the hospital, she complained for the first time that her arms and legs hurt - she had round spots there and couldn’t touch them because of the pain. I called the doctor and told about the spots and he told me that now it was clear to him what was wrong with my daughter, and there was no need to take her to the hospital. The doctor immediately came to us and identified the disease as subcutaneous tuberculosis - it can be treated at home - she needs rest, good nutrition and care. Seven months later, my daughter has fully recovered. I believe that she received healing through the pure and holy prayers of Vladika John. Thank God, everything turned out well, as the Lord said. We have been trying to move to the USA for 3 years. Finally, in 1961, we received permission to leave. I was pregnant and I was very worried about what awaited us in the USA. We have lived here in France for 35 years and have close and acquaintances, but there is no one there. Now I have to leave my mother, brother, sister and friends. After talking with my confessor, Fr. Mitrofan, I followed his advice to go to Vladyka John. My husband, daughter and I came to Vladyka and Fr. Mitrofan led us to his cell. In front of the icons, the Vladyka had a lot of candles burning. The desk was littered with letters - many of the letters contained money for sending - Vladyka helped everyone in any way he could, and most importantly with prayer. It was very simple, holy and peaceful in the cell. Vladyka blessed us, and when his daughter came up, he smiled at her and said: “Oh, this is Olechka, who was so sick, yes, everything will be fine!” I told Vladyka about our plans and my experiences. He listened with his eyes closed - either thinking or praying. Then he told us: “Well, go, go, you can live anywhere. Just stick to our Church, then everything will be fine, and if you don’t, it will be bad.” Vladyka blessed us to leave. Having moved, everything was fine, as Vladyka had foreseen. THE LORD HIMSELF GOES TO THE SICK In 1962 we lived in New York. Mom sent a letter from Paris that on the evening of New Year’s Eve, Algerians attacked my brother, beat him until he lost consciousness and took his money - it was payday, and in France they didn’t pay with checks, but gave money in an envelope. The brother was taken to the hospital and an x-ray showed that he had a crack in his skull. His eyes were swollen and bloodshot - he was in terrible condition. The doctor said that he was beaten with a pipe or an iron stick. Mom was notified of what had happened only the next day at noon and she immediately went to see him at the hospital. And my brother tells her that Vladika John came to him at night, gave him communion, prayed, touched his head and asked if he needed money. The brother was very embarrassed that Vladyka offered him money and he refused it. Having told his mother about this, his brother asked how Vladyka found out that he was in the hospital and that he was left without money - after all, my mother did not know about what had happened yet! But many who knew the Vladyka knew that there was no need to ask the Vladyka - the Lord himself sent him and showed him where and to whom to go. After all, Vladyka did not sleep, his nights were spent in prayer and the Lord revealed to him who needed healing and Vladyka went there. In Paris, everyone knew Vladyka in the hospitals and he was allowed in at any time. He unmistakably knew where to go. My brother did not know Vladyka personally, but Vladyka came to everyone or came on foot. When they took a second X-ray of my brother’s head, they didn’t find a crack and my brother recovered quickly, but the doctor couldn’t understand anything! THE LORD CONSOLES THE DYING MOTHER Our connection with Fr. Archimandrite Mitrofan continued in the USA. When he was in New York, we took him to our home for a few days. We really enjoyed hearing about his life with Vladyka John. He loved the Vladyka very much and was his faithful spiritual son. When we had trouble, I always wrote about. Mitrofan to California. In 1979, my mother became very ill - she was 81 years old. She had cancer and after a short stay in the hospital, the doctor told my sister that my mother would soon die. They brought my mother home so that she could at least die at home. Everyone looked after her. They called me in Connecticut, where we lived then, so that I would come quickly to find my mother alive. I came to my mother and took care of her entirely so that other family members could rest. My mother’s health deteriorated every day - she suffered a lot and therefore doctors or nurses came to her almost every day to give injections. While praying, I remembered Vladyka John and immediately wrote to Fr. A letter to Mitrofan, where I am and what’s wrong with my mother. Medicines did not help my mother and it was painful to watch her suffer. The answer came quickly from San Francisco. Father Mitrofan sent cotton wool with oil from the unquenchable lamp from the tomb of the Vladyka and wrote in a letter: “Anoint the sore spot every day, crossing yourself and with the words “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, through the prayers of our Vladyka Dear John, heal and ease the suffering of sick Helen!” Every morning after morning prayers, I smeared the sore spot with prayer and after a few days I noticed that my mother fell asleep peacefully after that. And a week later, she asked that they no longer give her injections: “Vladyka is helping me, treat me, and if the pain returns, pray and anoint me with oil.” So I smeared my mother with cotton wool every day and she quietly and calmly, without suffering, faded away. She died on the feast of the Archangel Michael. I believe that through the prayers of Vladyka John, the Lord sent her a painless Christian death. We had a holy man among us - Vladika John, and did not appreciate him. But the Lord to this day does not leave us with his prayers. Valentina Dikova Kansas, USA. HEALING FROM DISEASE AFTER ANOINTING WITH OIL FROM THE TOMB OF VL. JOHNNA This was at the end of 1977. My husband is Father Fr. Mikhail Konstantinov flew overseas to visit his uncle and aunt, because... my uncle was very ill. I, staying at home with the little children in his absence, learned from the doctor that I had a large cyst on my thyroid gland that needed to be operated on. I was very sad because... I was afraid to cut my throat. I was worried. Moreover, the priest was not at home. Often visiting our monastery “New Shamardino”, I shared my sadness with the now deceased Mother Abbess Elena. She advised me to take holy oil from the lamp from the tomb of Vladika John of Shanghai, anoint my neck and cyst with a cross, and turn to Vladika John in prayer. So I did. Having gone to the doctor for the third time, he determined that my cyst was already dissolving on its own and I did not need to undergo any surgery. Lord, how glad I was that I would be at home with the children, that I received healing through the prayers of Bishop John of Shanghai. And now, having arrived in San Francisco, I bow to his Holy Relics with gratitude for his mercy towards me, a sinner. Mother Irina Konstantinova, Sydney, Australia. IMPROVEMENT OF HEALTH AFTER THE FUNERAL SERVICE IN THE TURMENT Vault Unfortunately, I don’t remember exactly all the data, but I will try to convey in general terms what happened. Our cathedral often receives letters asking for prayers at the tomb of the Ever-Memorable Bishop John. These letters sometimes linger at the candle table, waiting for the priest. One such letter from the city of Boston was lost and only two or three weeks later was discovered and given to me. In a letter, the late Sergei Yulievich Konyus addressed a request for prayer for his wife. I served a memorial service for Vladyka John in the tomb, and then said a litany about the health of Sergei Yulievich’s wife - I informed Sergei Yulievich about all this in writing and attached photo postcards from the tomb. A few days later, an excited Sergei Yulievich calls me on the phone and asks what time I served a memorial service for Vladyka on the mentioned day. I answered him at about 10 o'clock in the morning. Sergei Yulievich informs me that at about 1 o'clock. (the time difference between San Francisco and Boston is three hours) that day, after a long period of serious illness, his wife felt better and got out of bed for the first time in several months! This in no way can be just a “coincidence”, especially since this is not the only such case. Prot. Petr Perekrestov, San Francisco. In August 1988, my wife and I went on vacation to Hawaii, to the island of Kuai. We have been there many times before and the place where we stayed has a nice beach for swimming in the ocean. Both my wife and I are good swimmers and therefore, when we swim in the sea, we don’t worry about each other. This time, on the night of arrival, a hurricane passed through the island and, as I found out later, after the hurricane, a strong undercurrent resumed near the shore. As usual during the day, we went for a swim in the sea. My wife stayed by the shore, and I went from the shore to a deeper place to swim, when I was overwhelmed, a large wave came from nowhere and an undercurrent dragged me under the water from the shore. Knowing that it was impossible to fight the undercurrent, I gradually floated to the surface and swam to the shore. Having swam, I stood at the bottom, the water there was up to my shoulders and began to little by little go ashore, when, suddenly, another large wave caught up with me and again overwhelmed me and dragged me under the water. After the first wave, I already had little strength, but I somehow swam to the surface. This time I was thrown further from the shore, and despite all my efforts, I saw that I could not swim against the current to the shore. I tried to draw my wife's attention to me, but she was on the shore and had her back to the ocean. Feeling that I was dying, I cried out “Vladika John, help!”, and in the blink of an eye my wife turned and, seeing my plight, rushed to a group of Hawaiians on the shore asking for help. They grabbed their swimming boards and ropes and, swimming to me, tied me to the board and pulled me ashore. I firmly believe that without the help of Vladika John, no one would have noticed how I went to the bottom. Alexey Vladislavovich Catel, San Francisco. THE LORD HELPES THE BABY Father Abbot Anastasius from the Old Cathedral advised me to write to you about the blessing that my son Christopher received. This was in 1983. Christopher, then 3 years old, went to see an eye doctor and the latter discovered that he had 30% hearing loss due to fluid that remains behind the eardrum due to repeated ear infections. This deafness also contributed to the slowdown of his speech. He was scheduled for surgery to drain the fluid and insert tubes. Even earlier, in early spring, my two eldest sons (12 and 10 years old) went to visit Fr. Anastasia in San Francisco. Brother Jacob, assistant to Fr. Anastasia showed them the tomb of Archbishop John and from there they brought home oil from the lamp. I anointed Christopher with this oil before a meeting with a speech pathologist, and then two days before the operation with the words: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, through the prayers of the ever-memorable Archbishop John, heal the ears of my son Christopher.” The next day, Christopher had his last, preliminary check before the operation. Doctors found, however, that his ears had healed. There was no hearing loss and all the fluid disappeared. The operation was cancelled. This was a great relief to us, but what struck us most was that our Christopher told our family “that uncle made my ears better.” He repeated this to me several times until once, after the prayer which he ended with the words: “Thank you, you made my ears better,” I asked him: “Who made your ears better?” He pointed to a postcard with a photograph of Vladika John standing in the corner where we hang icons. He repeated again: “this man makes my ears better.” He said this so persistently that I know that he believes that the blessed Vladika John healed his ears and he felt better. I don’t know how he knows this, but he knows it, insists on it and we believe him. I can’t explain anything more, except that my son is better now and we are very grateful for the prayers of the ever-memorable Archbishop John. Agape Kitrenos. Portland, pc. Oregon. HELP AFTER THE PANICHIDA FOR THE LORD On January twenty-ninth, 1989, we flew from Los Angeles to San Francisco. On February 4, Archimandrite Mitrofan invited us to go to a memorial service at the tomb of the ever-memorable Archbishop John. I submitted a note about the health of the sick servant of God Nicholas, whom we left in a hospital in Los Angeles. Returning home to Vermont, I called Los Angeles to inquire about the health of the ailing Nikolai. His wife replied that he was already home and I could talk to him. When I asked him when he felt better, after thinking, he answered: “On Sunday, at 4 o’clock in the afternoon.” It was just Sunday, at 4 o’clock in the afternoon, February 4, when I offered a memorial of health at the tomb of Vladika John. Nadezhda Paganuzzi. Floridle LORD – TRUSTEE OF FAMILY LIFE I received a lot of help through the holy prayers of Vladika John, which continues to this day. I would like to describe at least one case. Many years ago I entered into a situation with a child that neither my husband nor his family wanted - we already had several children. It was very difficult for me both mentally and physically, because... I was very sick. I often went to my dear father, Archimandrite Mitrofan, who consoled everyone with his Christian love and warm prayer. We prayed to Vladyka John and thanks to his holy prayers everything improved in family life. My father-in-law even helped my husband with the other children while I was in the hospital after giving birth. We had a boy, whom we named in honor of St. John of Tobolsk, the ancestor of Vladyka John. HEALINGS BY THE PRAYERS OF LORD JOHN Thanks to the fervent prayers of Vladyka John, my father Nikolai Mikhailovich quickly recovered after his third heart attack, which occurred in the summer of 1962. My father annually spent a month in the summer in the BRA under the supervision of doctors after he suffered heart attacks in 1954 and 1958. BRA was located east of Liege, in the Ardennes. My sister, Countess Maria Nikolaevna Apraksina, and I visited the doctor, who said that our father’s situation was completely hopeless. Suddenly, Vladika John appeared in our father’s room, and he began to pray. Soon our father completely recovered and returned home to Brussels. Our father lived another four years and died of a fourth heart attack on June 5, 1966. 2. Valentin Kolenda Stadnitsky graduated from the Poltava Cadet Corps and Vladyka John knew him from the corps, where he himself studied. Valentin Kolenga Stadnitsky lived in Brussels with his sister Madame Dobrovolskaya. After World War II, he came to Brussels from Yugoslavia. He was 65–66 years old when he began washing windows in his sister’s apartment and fell from the second floor onto the street. This happened in 1959. Many fractures did not give doctors any hope of recovery. Bishop John came to the hospital with Fr. Cedomir Ostojic and began to pray at the bedside of the dying man. Father Chedomir said that for the first time he heard Vladika John speak in prayer with the Lord God. The next morning, the doctors did not want to believe that the patient had not yet died, and even began to recover very quickly. A month later he left the hospital completely healthy and lived for a long time. This information was given to me in detail today by Vera Alekseevna Stassen, nee Kusonskaya, granddaughter of Father Archpriest Vasily Vinogradov, the first rector of our cathedral parish in Brussels. Father Vasily died in Brussels in 1932. 3. Philipp Goering was born in Brussels in 1943. Together with his brother Dimitri, they zealously served Vladyka John. They began to have an operation on Philip, they thought it was simple appendicitis, but they found that it was cancer and that the situation was hopeless. Through the fervent prayers of Bishop John, Philip soon recovered completely, which the doctors certainly did not expect. He graduated from the University of Louvain as an engineer, worked in Canada, and now in Italy. Reader Vladimir Kotlyarevsky, Brussels, Belgium. On February 25, 1990, on Forgiveness Sunday, our second son was born. Our first son, born in 1988, nearly died in childbirth, so we were very concerned when my mother became pregnant for the second time. Doctors informed her that a caesarean section would be required. A few days before giving birth, I anointed my mother with oil from the tomb of Vladika John, and his prayers for us were heard by the Lord. The birth went smoothly and very quickly - no surgery was needed... The mother was breastfeeding the newborn and signs of a breast tumor began to appear. With my first son, my wife had the same thing and needed two operations. Again I anointed her with oil from the shrine and the symptoms disappeared within 48 hours. God is marvelous in His saints! Naturally, we named our son John in memory of the Bishop. Priest John Prior, Scotland. My daughter has an ugly wart on her leg. It was in such a place on the leg that it was very painful and when wearing shoes, the wart rubbed. We live in the outback far from the doctor. The only ways to get rid of a wart were to burn it or cut it off with a razor. Then we decided to anoint her leg with oil from the tomb of Vladika John and advised her to pray to the Vladika for three days. By the third day the wart was no longer there. Not long ago, our son, Alexander, woke up crying at night. His ear hurt. I was very tired. I thought of anointing his ear with oil from the tomb, but I felt that I did not have the faith to ask for the Lord’s intercession. He continued to cry all night. I tried to calm him down - I gave him drops, medicine, put a compress on him... nothing helped. Already in the morning, in despair, I turned to Vladyka John to help Alexander. I made a vow that if the Lord helps him, I will write about it. I took out the oil and anointed Alexander’s ear. He immediately sighed, went to bed and fell asleep... Catherine Doll, British Columbia, Canada. THE LORD RELIEVES FROM A SHAMEFUL SINNY SKILL Since childhood, I have suffered from a habit that is embarrassing to even talk about. She didn’t leave me when I grew up. I tried my best to leave her, but I couldn’t. During Great Lent I abstained, but I was looking forward to the approach of Easter for... (oh horror, why wait for Easter!?)... for the resumption of this passion. When the need became overwhelming, I sincerely tried to quit, but it didn’t work. Several times after it happened, I told myself: “Well, that’s enough, this is the last time,” but the next day, or even on the same day, everything was usually repeated. On one such day, in despair, I turned to Vladika John with a prayer: “Lord, you see, I can’t do it myself, help me!” Since then, the need for this passion has simply disappeared. That's all a miracle, but what a miracle! Then I immediately felt (or knew?) that the Lord had healed me and I always thank him in my prayers. Many years have passed, and the Lord continues to protect me. LORD RELIEVES PAIN FROM ARTHRITIS My mother has suffered from arthritis for a long time, but since she has been expecting, the signs of arthritis have more or less disappeared, which is normal. If arthritis appears during pregnancy, it brings suffering because... You cannot take effective medications without endangering the baby in the womb. Two weeks ago we went to Texas to visit my mother’s father. In the evening, on the way from her sister's house to her father's, her knee became very swollen and she could hardly walk. Knowing that she couldn't take her medication and that we had a 1000 mile drive home, we were very concerned. I prayed to Vladika John and made a vow that if Vladika helps my mother, I will write about it. A day later the swelling subsided, and by the time I left home there was absolutely no more swelling or pain - and this without any earthly medicine. God bless. May the memory of His righteous Archbishop John be blessed! Rev. Stephen Allen, Denver, Colorado. For 47 years I have kept in my soul the memory of the help provided to us by the prayers of Vladyka John. My husband started having headaches, we thought everything would go away, but it got worse. In the end, he had to quit his job - he was then 39 years old - and the family was left without a breadwinner. What to do and how to live? Kind people advised us to go to Beijing (we lived in Tianzin), because... there was a large hospital where photographs and all sorts of complex operations could be taken. We went there and found out that my husband had a tumor on his brain and needed urgent surgery. Again, what to do, where to get the money? There was a kind person who paid everything - $280. They put my husband in the hospital, and I stayed at the Russian mission in Bei Guan with friends. At that time, Vladyka Victor lived there; there were services in the church every day. I went to church in the morning, attended mass and asked Vladyka to serve a prayer service for my sick husband, and Vladyka said: “We will now serve a prayer service, and you write to Vladyka John in Shanghai, he prays well for everyone - I’ll give you his address.” I carried out Vladyka Victor’s advice immediately. The operation took place, the husband was unconscious for a whole week, but then he gradually began to recover and after a while began to work little by little. There was no answer from Vladika John. 7 years passed, the emigrants evacuated from Tianzin to Shanghai, and settled us in French barracks. Vladyka visited us all very often and served the liturgy. One day my husband was walking across the yard, and Vladyka was coming towards him. He comes up to my husband and says why didn’t you send your son to school with me? Vladyka had never seen my husband before and did not know that we had a son. I consider this case to be supernatural. I believe that my husband also recovered through the prayers of Vladika John. Her husband, Gregory, died in 1987. My sister’s hand hurt very badly and for a long time. She went to doctors and was treated with home remedies, but nothing helped. She decided to turn to Vladyka John and wrote him a letter in San Francisco (her sister lived in Los Angeles). Some time passed, the hand stopped hurting, and the sister began to forget that her hand was very painful at one time. One time, she went to San Francisco and attended a church service. Holding the cross, Vladika John asks his sister: “How is your hand?” - after all, Vladyka has never seen her! How did he recognize her and that her arm hurt? Everything written here is true. I wrote as God put it on my heart. Anna F. Khodyreva, Sacramento, California. I want to share with you about the miracle that we received from Vladika John. Our family - me, my husband and three children - came to America in 1963. America did not greet us cordially. My son was admitted to the hospital because... They found problems in his lungs and he had surgery. My husband had already arrived sick and couldn’t find a job. I got a job, but it was very difficult to support my family on one salary. We didn’t know Vladyka John before, but here in America we heard about him and the miracles he performed. We kept thinking about how we could invite Vladika John to our place to tell us everything. We had no money and so all this was postponed. And that's what happened. Vladyka John unexpectedly came to us himself at 11 pm. We told him about our son, who is in the hospital. Vladyka approached his husband and looked him in the eyes for a long time, then went around all the rooms and asked who was sleeping here, and left without saying anything more. Soon the husband got a job and worked for 10 years, giving the children the opportunity to get a higher education. Vladyka John visited his son in the hospital and even came there with the Miracle-Working Icon. Most often I visited my son late in the evening. Soon the son recovered and everything went fine. Two days before his death, Vladyka John called us and asked how my husband was doing. The Bishop, anticipating his death, was still worried about his children. The second miracle happened to another son. Suddenly I received a call from the school and was told that my son was paralyzed on the right side of his face. Of course, we immediately went to Dr. Mironov. The doctor treated us cordially and immediately referred us to a specialist. A specialist checked his son and said that this can only be cured by surgery - his son has a pinched nerve. A conversation began about setting the day for the operation. Immediately after the doctor, we went to the cathedral, where we found Vladika John and told him everything. The guys were still serving then. When the sick son was approaching the anointing of oil (it was the eve of the memory of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker), Vladyka anointed him with a large cross in several places on the sore side. My son felt better and when we went to the doctor, the latter, having examined his son, said that no operation was necessary, and, shaking my hand, said that this was a miracle. Tamara Vasilievna Bogatskaya, San Francisco. In 1956, I worked in a hair salon on Catalina Island. When returning home from work, I always tried to go down to the sea and freshen up. The last time I plunged into the water, I felt a terrible pain on the back of my neck. I decided to immediately return home to Los Angeles. The next day, my husband and I visited Dr. Rebukhin. The neck was hard as stone. He took all possible measures within three days. Nothing helped. Then he did an analysis of the tumor fluid. After another three days, he discovered that it was a very malignant abscess-carbuncle, 75 heads near the cerebellum. The doctor had difficulty finding only one medicine to treat the abscess. I went to the doctor every day and the bandages were changed morning and evening. The head was all swollen. When the pus appeared in large quantities, the tumor in the middle of my head began to fall off, but the edges remained swollen and high. And a peacock egg could be placed in the middle of the head. The pain was incredible. I took sedatives to calm down. My situation did not improve. Meanwhile, the doctor told my husband: "I refuse to treat. I have taken all possible measures to treat your wife. There is nothing more I can do. Go to another doctor." I begged the doctor not to leave me and still did not lose hope for healing. I asked the current chairwoman of the Vladika John Foundation to submit a memorial for my health. She was surprised by my illness and immediately sent a telegram to Vladyka John in France. Soon we received a telegram from the Bishop himself. Just one word: “I pray.” With this I was sure that I would be saved. On the fourth day after receiving the telegram, we visited the doctor. The doctor who checked me said to my husband: "Now I must tell you that there was no hope for the healing of your wife. The pus was already approaching very close to the cerebellum, and she was in danger of death. Now your wife is saved! Someone was praying very, very hard for you." Nina Sigismundovna Makova I would like to share how the Lord helped me during a difficult period of my life. In 1987, after six years of happy marriage, my wife filed for divorce. Her attitude towards me became so aggressive that she not only managed to convince the judge to evict me from my own home, but she insisted that she be awarded absolutely all the property and, in addition, she also demanded a promissory note for a significant amount plus money belonging to my relative. Due to such unfounded demands, the trial has already lasted a year and a half. My aforementioned relative and parish priest, Rev. Sergius of Radonezh at the Tolstoy Foundation in New York State advised me to turn in prayer to Bishop John of Shanghai, pointing out that he himself had suffered from unjust prosecutions. I followed their advice and on Sunday the priest celebrated a memorial service for Vladika John. Suddenly on Monday I was notified that I had to appear in court for the final hearing of the case. For some reason, the case was heard by a new judge, completely different from the one who had been leaning towards my wife for the past year and a half. To my amazement and unspeakable relief, the judge cut through all this red tape and fairly divided everything in half. I have no doubt that this could not have happened without intervention “from above” - an unexpected turn in the matter occurred immediately after the prayerful appeal to Vladika John. It remains to add that my ex-wife tried for six months to change the court decision in her favor, but to no avail. As a ten-year-old boy, I became seriously ill with the disease “mononyucleosis.” I felt extremely weak and my temperature rose to 106 degrees Fahrenheit. I was so sick for more than a week. The doctors had already tried everything possible to cure the disease and finally told my parents to hope that the disease would go away on its own. I learned later that this illness often lasts several weeks and sometimes even, in extreme cases, is fatal. My father decided to call New York, where Vladyka John participated in the next meeting of the Synod of Bishops, and inform him about my situation. Vladyka quite calmly assured my father that I would soon recover and not to worry, but to hope for God’s mercy. The next morning my temperature dropped by 100 degrees and I remember that I felt much better and even got out of bed. Having learned about this, the doctors found it hard to believe how quickly I felt better, but they warned my parents that I would have to lie down for a long time and gain strength before returning to school. By the end of that week I had fully recovered and was back at school. It turns out that after a conversation with my father, Vladyka John went to the Synodal Church and served a prayer service for my health. Knowing that nothing happens by chance in life, I believe that it was through the prayers of our holy Master that I recovered. Priest Alexander Krasovsky, Santa Rosa, California. MIRACLE RELIEF FROM A SERIOUS ASTHMA ATTACK This was in 1965. I was 8 years old then. From the age of two I suffered from asthma and often had severe attacks of this disease. One evening our family was visiting for a name day and I had a severe attack. Because of this, my parents were going to leave - to take me home. The hostess of the house, the birthday girl, persuaded them to stay a little, because... the arrival of Vladika John was expected. Literally a few minutes later, Vladyka arrived and served a short prayer service on the occasion of the hostess’s name day. Immediately after the prayer service, my parents took me to Vladyka and told him about my illness and that they were going to leave immediately. Vladyka blessed us, and he stroked me on the head with the words: “Nothing, nothing, Natasha - everything will be fine.” We immediately went home and my parents were sure that I would suffer and not sleep all night, as had happened very often before. This did not happen. The asthma attack stopped and I slept peacefully until the morning. Natalia born Metlenko, Pacifica, California. OIL FROM THE TOMB OF LORD JOHN GIVES HOPE FOR RECOVERY On Bright Week 1991, my friend, the Greek Orthodox woman Cleopatra Nargais, called me and said that her mother, Magdalene Petropoulos, had been in the hospital for two months. She had heart surgery and since then she cannot breathe on her own and her kidneys do not work. Every day she gets worse and worse. Both the doctors and the Greek priest told their daughter that there was almost no hope for her mother to recover. I offered to bring Cleopatra oil from the tomb of our beloved Vladika John - she was delighted and agreed to anoint her mother with this oil. I explained to her how to do this: in the shape of a cross, in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, anoint the head, heart, lungs and kidneys with oil, while at the same time prayerfully turning to Vladyka John for help. We brought her oil - we live two and a half hours away from San Francisco. It was on Good Friday. Cleopatra anointed her mother with oil in the morning, and the latter began to cry. In the evening, the sister of mercy told Cleopatra that when she turned Magdalena on her side, the sick woman for the first time grabbed the bar on the hospital bed and tried to help the sisters. On Sunday I visited Magdalene in the hospital and anointed her with oil from the shrine. She cried again and asked Archbishop John for help. A week has already passed since they began to anoint Magdalene with oil from the tomb. Magdalena is already sitting up and has begun to eat food for the first time, after two months. The doctors and nurses in the hospital cannot understand what happened - they were already preparing the family for the worst, when suddenly, suddenly, an improvement in Magdalena’s health began. This change in Magdalene's health due to her anointing with oil affected her entire family. Even her son Jacob asked for oil to anoint his head with the hope of getting relief from a severe headache... I pray that Vladyka John will continue to help and heal Magdalene. THE LORD PROTECTS FROM DANGER IN MILITARY SERVICE In June 1988, my son, Alexander N. Logunov, received notice that he was being sent on a business trip to the Persian Gulf for six months. I was very concerned about this because... in that part of the world it was very turbulent and dangerous. As a mother, I could only pray and leave everything in God's hands. While at the tomb of Vladika John, I prayed to Vladika and lit a candle. The Troyan couple, after talking with me, placed a note with the name of my son under the Bishop’s miter. The note remained there until Alexander returned home. On the eve of his departure on the aircraft carrier, I prayed to Vladyka John to protect my son. At night I dreamed that Vladika John was standing on the bow of an aircraft carrier and covering it with his mantle... The son returned safely. Everyone on the aircraft carrier was talking about how unusual the voyage was. Despite the carrier's 6,000 personnel, there were no accidents, no one was injured and no one died at sea. I believe that through the prayers of Vladika John, my son and everyone on the aircraft carrier arrived back home safe. Marina Logunova, Sacramento, California, USA. THE LORD WARNES ABOUT POSSIBLE DISASTER I often go to the tomb of Vladika John, although during his lifetime I saw him only a few times. I heard from others how kind he was and how he pitied people. For example, how he, seeing some unfortunate person on the street without shoes, took off his boots and gave them to this person. In 1989, when leaving home, I poured some water into the kettle and put it on a very hot stove! Driving past the cathedral, where the tomb of Vladika John is, I crossed myself and at that same second the word “Kettle” hit my head. I thought that Vladika John suggested this to me. I jumped off the bus and ran ten blocks up the hill. The kettle stood completely empty on the hot stove, but everything was in order. What mercy of God! There are nine apartments in our building... It’s scary to think about such a misfortune. Alexandra L. Kolycheva, San Francisco. THE WOUND HEALS AND THE LORD HELPES FIND TRUE FAITH I converted to Orthodoxy in 1980. In 1984, on the day of the Holy Trinity, I received the Holy Mysteries of Christ and returned home from church. My parents and I were going to visit our sister. I was asked to change the windshield wipers on my car, and while doing this, I cut my hand very badly and began to bleed. I was immediately disturbed by the thought that I had just received communion. The wound was very painful and it was clear that stitches would be needed. I wrapped my hand in a scarf and while my mother was looking for a bandage, the thought came to me that the wound should be anointed with oil from the tomb of Vladika John. I anointed the wound and the pain immediately went away. We spent a pleasant time with my sister and, returning home, I opened the wound and saw that it was already healing... For many years I prayed for my friend, James, in the hope that he would give up the errors of Martin Luther and come to the Church. I knew him from high school, where he was distinguished by his intelligence and arrogance. We lost contact with each other for a while, and then the friendship was renewed in Minnesota, where we lived at the same time. He matured into a devout, conservative Lutheran who was greatly disturbed by events occurring in the church world. Over time, he began to show some interest in Orthodoxy, although there were still many obstacles along the way. I hoped that sometime in the distant future he would convert to Orthodoxy. Now this was unthinkable because... he had a believing Lutheran wife, a new son, and we moved and lived very far from each other. On November 29, 1990, he sent me a letter in which he said that he was sick and part of his face was paralyzed. Concerned, I answered him and offered to send oil from the tomb of Vladika John. I thought that he would refuse my offer, but on December 31, 1990, Jacob sent a second letter in which he wrote that facial paralysis was more of a nuisance than a test; he asked for oil. Having received the oil, he told me on the phone that nothing miraculous had happened, but he understands that the oil is not a magic formula, but a request for God’s mercy. But a miracle happened! His body did not immediately recover, but his soul changed. The effect of God's grace on his soul began to clearly manifest itself in him! In the next letter dated May 13, 1991, he wrote to me: "I feel good at the moment. Thank you. Nothing exciting has happened, but I have been feeling better and better lately. I partly attribute this to Vladika John." He asked me where the nearest church of our Church was. I gave him the address and advised him to visit the church for Easter. He had been reading a lot about Orthodoxy lately - now it was necessary to touch his heart, and the Easter service could do this! In a letter dated April 11, 1991, after attending the Easter service, he wrote to me: "There are no words to express how touched I was by the service. I now know where my place is - in the Orthodox Church." He asked to pray for his family so that they could all convert to the Orthodox faith together. His wife is not very opposed to this step... It is clear to me that, to some extent, Vladika John, with his prayers, helps Jacob in his search. Even many years after his death, Vladika John continues to engage in missionary work and bring people to the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church. Luke Gehring, Pri, Pennsylvania, USA. THE POWER OF LORD JOHN'S PRAYER My sister and I had an accident. A drunk young man was driving towards me and with great force he hit the car door from the side where my sister was sitting. An ambulance was called and the sister was taken to the hospital. Her condition was very serious - her lung was punctured, a rib was broken and she suffered greatly. When Vladyka John visited her for the first time, her face was swollen like a pillow, so that her eyes were not visible, but she was conscious, and when I told her that our Vladyka was nearby, she opened her eyelid with her fingers and, seeing his face, took his hand and kissed it. She couldn't speak because... there was a cut in the throat. Tears of joy flowed from her slits (instead of her eyes). Since then, Vladika visited her many times and she began to recover. One day, Vladyka arrived at the hospital and as soon as he entered the general ward, having not seen or spoken to anyone before, he told us: “Musa is very ill now.” Then he went to her, drew the curtain near the bed and prayed there for a long time. By that time, two doctors approached us and I asked them: “How serious is the situation with my sister and is it worth calling her daughter from Canada?” We hid it from our daughter that her mother had an accident so that she wouldn’t worry. The doctors answered me: “Whether or not to call your relatives is your business, but we do not guarantee that your sister will even live until the morning.” Thank God that she not only survived that night, but completely recovered and went back to Canada... My sister and I believe that the prayers of Vladika John saved her. On the day of the anniversary of the death of Vladika John, one believing lady came up to me in church and told me an interesting incident that happened to her. She was in church once. The service was performed by Vladyka John. The service seemed very long and tiring to her, and she, feeling very tired, thought to herself: “It’s a long service - if only Vladyka shortened it a little,” but she continued to stand patiently. After the service, she approached the cross that the Bishop was holding, and suddenly he said to her: “If you cannot stand for a long time and your legs hurt, then you can sit down or go home, because your apartment is close to the church.” Of course, the lady was very embarrassed and surprised that the Lord read her thoughts in the church. Anna S. Sheveleva, San Francisco. THE LORD STOPS THE SHREKING Winter 1988–89 I started shaking violently. There were no other symptoms. In the evening or evening the trembling gradually increased. For several hours, I felt like I was freezing and began to shake uncontrollably. Then the trembling went away. Each time (there were only three or four times) these trembling attacks intensified. Although I felt fine between the tremors, I began to fear that I had a brain tumor or some other terrible disease. The third or fourth attack was the most severe. I was lying in bed under layers of blankets. My husband tried to warm me up, but the shaking was so strong that the husband himself was shaking. I couldn’t hold a cup of tea in my hands - it was spilling. My jaw ached from the chattering of my teeth. Trying to calm down, I said the Jesus Prayer. Then I remembered Vladyka John and asked for his intercession for my healing. And suddenly the shaking stopped. I doubted this wonderful relief and the trembling began again. I immediately prayed to Vladika John, the trembling stopped and has not repeated since then. I firmly believe that Vladika John, by the grace of God, healed me. M. Bushu Nova, Dewitt, PC. New York. BODILY AND MENTAL RELIEF I was baptized in the Greek Orthodox Church as an infant. I am Greek by origin. Before my transition to the Russian Church Abroad in 1969, I had never heard of the ever-memorable Archbishop John. Members of my parish informed me that Vladyka John died here in Seattle. I read several articles about him in church periodicals, but for me he was a man from the past. Until recently, I knew nothing about the fact that Vladyka John founded many parishes and shelters. I didn’t know that he lived at the Church of St. Tikhon Zadonsky in San Francisco, which previously served as an orphanage in Shanghai. I had no idea how much his spiritual closeness could touch Orthodox people. In 1987, my brother, George, called me from Texas and said that he had been diagnosed with cancer and would have surgery the following Tuesday. I immediately called my daughter, who lives near San Francisco, to ask Fr. Archimandrite Anastasia from the Church of St. Tikhon of Zadonsk to pray for the health of my brother. After the telephone conversation, I wrote to Fr. A detailed letter to Anastasia, without even once mentally remembering Vladyka John. There were great difficulties in our parish. For various reasons, many did not confess or receive communion for a long time. During the Week of the Cross, as usual, I was in church and after the service I spoke on the phone with a Russian friend. She told me that there was a rumor about the arrival of a priest who would be able to confess to everyone who had not confessed for a long time. I told my friend that I don’t believe the rumors, but I will believe it when I see such a priest. On the way home, I began to think, is our beloved Vladyka Nektary trying to somehow unite and reconcile our parish? No - that's just nonsense. Before going to bed, I prayed, went to bed, and before dawn I dreamed of four hierarchs. Among them was Vladika John. He looked at me with his eyes, as if saying: “I hear you and I’m trying to help you.” In the morning I got up and immediately began to pray to the Lord with tears. I felt that he was close. My brother's operation went well. He feels so well that he stayed with me for a whole month. And before Easter, a priest from the Holy Trinity Monastery in Jordanville came to us and confessed to everyone. I learned that I need to trust the Lord, Who acts through His chosen ones... Euphrosyne Beck Summer, pc. Washington USA. It was in San Francisco, on the Friday before Palm Sunday 1963. We were returning from the store in our new car and a completely drunk man ran into us. I felt a pain in my head for one moment and that’s all I remember until I regained consciousness in the hospital. I had severe damage to my head, neck and back. The doctor diagnosed that I had a concussion, a cracked skull, spinal damage and damage to the nervous system of the musculoskeletal system from the waist to the legs. And I haven’t recovered from two other very serious operations yet! I had to lie on my back without moving. I was tied at the head and thighs, with heavy weights at each end pulling me down. Doctors hoped to free the damaged nerves in the spine in this way. And if not, then you need to stay like this or you need an operation, which can worsen the whole matter. I was in a very gloomy state - and Easter night was coming soon! Suddenly two teenage boys enter the room. Behind them comes a small, old, hunched, squinty priest. The sister pointed her hand at me and the three of them moved towards me. I felt a little embarrassed in front of my sister and the other patients in the ward - I thought: “Why did this priest come, who called him, why did he need to come here?” And at that time the priest was already at my bed and was saying something, but I couldn’t make out anything. He then leaned a little closer to me and asked my name. I answered. He looked at me, looked at me from head to toe, and suddenly placed his hand firmly on my forehead and said: “Did you have an accident?” I answer: “Yes,” but I think, “How does he know this?” “Well, let’s pray,” says the priest, and I answer: “Okay.” Holding his hand on my forehead (the hand was so warm, warm!), he closed his eyes and began to pray. Then he took oil from a bag that one of the boys was holding and anointed my head, forehead, throat, chest, arms and legs and gave me some wine to drink with a piece of prosphora. After sprinkling me with holy water, he smiled and gave me an Easter egg (not edible, but wrapped in gold ribbons and painted). Continuing to smile, the priest reached into his large pocket, looked for something there for a long time and finally took out a bluish-lilac, marble egg and gave it to me with the words: “Here, this egg is not an ordinary one, but a golden one.” With this he blessed me, I kissed the cross and his hand and they all left. After he left (he was with me during the day), I fell asleep with the egg and woke up when it was already dark. That night a miracle happened! I needed a sister, but I couldn’t call her. Suddenly I felt an incredible need to get out of bed myself! I took off all the straps, belts, weights, crawled to the end of the bed and began to slide off it onto the floor. My neighbors in the ward woke up from the noise and saw that I was standing on my feet by the bed and knowing that I was paralyzed from the waist down, they began screaming to call my sister. The sister rushed in and screamed in horror: “Help me with this patient!” Two more sisters came running and began to put me back into bed, saying that they would get punishment from the doctor for everything that was happening. I insisted on my own and walked to the bathroom and back! Of course, my legs trembled from weakness, and tears flowed from joy. The next day, my doctor, after many pictures and examination, tells me: “I don’t understand anything! From a medical point of view, this should not have happened! We will call other doctors for a consultation.” Other doctors came... They kept me for another nine days and let me go home, without explaining what happened. Since that night, after visiting that little priest, I have been walking on my feet to this day without any complications and without any surgery. At the time I had no idea who this priest was. I didn’t know Vladyka at all and had never seen him in person before that Easter. We haven't heard anything about him at all. And then, after a long time, I found out and understood who visited me in the hospital. I realized what mercy I had received from the touch of his hand, having received such healing through his prayers! At the end of 1963, I had a number of complications and experiences of a personal nature - my soul was terribly heavy. And so, already knowing about Vladyka, my mother asked him to come to our house. When he came and sat down on the sofa, I simply fell to my knees sobbing, and he, stroking my head, quietly prayed. And all the mental suffering passed and my whole life flowed differently. I was honored with healing through the prayers of Vladika John twice in one year... both I and my family continued to receive mercy and healing over all these years, to this day, after the death of Vladika. Tatiana Estrada, Concord, California. A miracle happened after I received the next issue of the English-language publication “Orthodox Life” from Jordanville, which included a photograph of Vladika John. I had a Muslim friend from Russia who suffered from blood cancer and was losing his sight. Doctors told him that in three months he would be completely blind. I placed a photograph of Vladika John by my lamp and prayed daily for my friend. After a very short period of time, my friend recovered from blood cancer and began to see normally. The eye doctors were amazed. Three years have passed since then and my friend reads books and leads a normal life. Indeed, Vladika John is holy. On the morning of September 20, we went to visit Vladyka John’s niece, Mrs. Vera Maksimovich. She gave us a portrait of Vladyka. My daughter was previously in San Francisco, from where she brought several photographs of Vladyka, and therefore we left the portrait we received as a gift in the car. After lunch we drove out of town and on the way to see my brother we were in a terrible car accident. Our car was completely destroyed, but almost nothing happened to us. Since then, I have been prayerfully turning to Vladyka John and believe that it is a miracle that we did not die or even get injured in the accident. My brother is a drug addict and schizophrenic and is in a special hospital for drug addicts in Valencia. Because of his unwillingness to obey the doctors' orders, they want to kick him out of this hospital. I pray to Vladika John and have a candle burning in my house almost all the time. Until now, my brother has not been expelled and he seems to be getting better. I think this is a miracle... THE LORD ADDRESSES THE TRUE CHURCH I was not yet Orthodox, but thanks to tireless reading about the Orthodox Church, I came to the conviction that it was the true Church. After a number of difficulties I came into contact with a priest and began visiting the Russian Cathedral at Emperors Gate in London. Once, when we met, an elderly priest (of the Greek Church) strongly said to me: "It is not enough just to believe that the Orthodox Church is the true Church. You must remember at every liturgy that the liturgy is celebrated on the relics of martyrs and before you accept Orthodoxy, you must be ready to die for the faith." This instruction both scared and confused me, because... I did not know how convinced I was of my readiness to die for the faith. Of course, in theory, I am ready to die for my faith - but what will happen if the persecutors begin to interrogate or torture me. A few weeks later, I was at Sunday liturgy in a Russian church and knelt down while singing the “Our Father” - yes, I didn’t know then that this was not allowed, but the Lord even touches the souls of those who do wrong. I can only say that at that moment I was convinced that I needed to accept the Orthodox faith, and this conviction filled me with a feeling of peace and joy. After the liturgy, I really wanted to share with the priest my feeling of calm and joy at the thought of accepting Orthodoxy, but the Bishop and the clergy of the cathedral immediately began to serve the requiem. At that time I did not yet understand the Slavic language and was a little annoyed that another service was being performed. I turned to the old woman and asked her for whom the memorial service was being held. She answered: “According to Vladika John.” I clearly remember that I thought irritably: “These Russians always find some old bishops for whom they pray!” After the funeral service, there was no longer an opportunity to talk privately with the priest - he lived outside the city and always visited his flock on Sundays. Before leaving the city for home, the priest stopped by the house where I was staying to visit the elderly people living there. I thought that I would not be able to talk to him and was somewhat embarrassed, not knowing how to express my feelings and thoughts to him. Before leaving home, the priest turned to me and asked: “Isn’t it time for you to accept Orthodoxy?” I didn't even have to prepare a speech or figure out what to say to him! On the day of remembrance of St. Marina, in 1967 I converted to Orthodoxy. Only a few months later I read the life of Vladika John and then realized that that Sunday, when I came to the conviction that I had to accept Orthodoxy, was the first anniversary of the death of Vladika John. I came to the conclusion that through his prayers the Lord showed me such mercy. 2. Ten years later, when I was living in a monastery in the USA, I was told that I would soon be elevated to the rank of archimandrite and sent to England. I very much doubted the correctness of this decision, but it remained in force. It was only necessary to set a day for construction. I read somewhere that the elevation to archimandrite is likened to the special ministry that was entrusted to St. The Apostles of St. to the Apostle Barnabas, and I decided that to some extent it would be a consolation for me if the prayer of elevation was read on the day of his memory. But it didn't come true. A few days before the appointed time, I was sent to New York to be elevated to archimandrite by Metropolitan Philaret. At the last moment it was decided that the construction would take place on the day of the anniversary of Vladika John. I immediately felt comforted that Vladyka John would take loving care of me, especially since I was being assigned to the church that he consecrated and in which he served in Europe. These two incidents may seem insignificant to readers, but my dark soul felt the bright love of Vladika John... THE LORD HELPES TO FIND TRUE FAITH In 1968 I was a Roman Catholic and was very disillusioned with the Roman Church, especially because of the drastic reforms introduced at the Second Vatican Council. Something prompted me to visit an Orthodox church in Seattle, PC. Washington. After that, I began to make inquiries about the Orthodox Church and, through correspondence with Alexey Yong and reading some publications, I learned about the ascetic and miracle worker Archbishop John Maksimovich. Finally, I decided, when possible, to go to San Francisco to the tomb of the Lord. At that time I was interested in Orthodoxy, but did not dare to take any steps in this direction. In January 1973 I was able to go to San Francisco. During prayer in the tomb at the tomb of Vladika John, my heart warmed and I was so touched by this feeling that I decided to actively seek the path to Orthodoxy. Vladimir Anderson and his family came to San Francisco to show me the cathedral and talk with me. The next morning they took me to the Liturgy at the church in the monastery's courtyard (on Fell Street), and after lunch we went to the nunnery to pray before the renewed Images. There, in the monastery church, I was left alone for some time to venerate the icons of the Mother of God - I had a feeling of joy and peace. When I returned home, I told my wife that sooner or later I would become Orthodox, even though we lived several hundred miles from the nearest Orthodox church. She was never a Roman Catholic, although she went to a Catholic church with me - I didn’t know how she would react to my decision. She told me that during my departure to San Francisco she became very aware of her “mortality” - she would not resist my decision. Without any resistance, she, along with me and two (out of three) children, was baptized in 1973. This is all thanks to the prayers of Vladika John. 2. In February 1990, I was diagnosed with cancer and admitted to the hospital. Despite my age and the fact that I was attached to Christianity from an early age, I was very upset and frightened by the disease. I spent half the night before the operation in a state of anxiety—anxiety about my sinfulness and my attachment to this world. I prayerfully called out to the Savior, to the Mother of God and to the holy saints of God, although I did not mention Vladyka John, and received consolation. Four days after the operation, at night I woke up and saw the profile of Vladika John by my bed. He looked to the left, but did not move. I closed and opened my eyes again, and the Lord continued to look sternly straight into my eyes. He said nothing, but I thought that I should have turned to him earlier and that in general I should have been more zealous in acquiring Christian virtue. The second time I closed and opened my eyes, he was no longer there, and I fell asleep peacefully. In the morning I mentioned to the sister of mercy that yesterday afternoon I had many visitors. She answered “Yes. And at night someone came to you.” I was so amazed by her words that I did not know what to say, and the nurse left my room. I should have asked her to describe the appearance of this visitor... However, I have no doubt who it was. On the fourth day after Vladika John’s visit, I received a photograph of Vladika John by mail from Father Peter. In this photo, Vladyka is moving and looking to the left - just like he did in my hospital room. In his covering letter, Fr. Peter wrote that when he learned about my illness, he sent me a photograph of Vladika John. A letter with a photo was sent on the day of my operation... Joseph Miller, pc. Washington. “GIVE FREEDOM TO THE WILL OF GOD” After seven years of disappointment spent on examinations and treatments for infertility, we finally realized that we did not rely on the will of God in this matter. We delved into our spiritual lives and realized that we must trust the Lord so that He could accomplish His will in our lives. We then learned for the first time about the righteous and miraculous life of Vladyka John (Maksimovich). He was the archpastor of the Russian Church Abroad in San Francisco, and previously cared for orphans in China. We asked Vladika John to pray for us to the Lord Jesus Christ. We wanted the Lord to direct our lives and for us to have a child that we could take care of as our own. We prayed like this for several months and circumstances began to change. After two years of waiting, my husband received word that a position as a military chaplain in the US Army was opening up. Moreover, the wife of the priest who previously held this position was the president of an organization for placing foster children in that area. She introduced us to the woman who runs it. Five and a half weeks passed after she submitted our papers and we became parents of twins - a girl and a boy! We are writing to you about this with prayerful gratitude to the Lord God. We thank Vladika John for his intercession with the Lord and ask the Vladyka to continue to bring us closer to God. Mother Roberta B. Janich, Texas, USA. There have been many occasions in my life when Vladika John helped me. Until now, I kept thinking that I shouldn’t pay much attention to them, but my conscience bothered me. Yesterday I went to the doctor because I often have problems with my nose, especially I suffer from allergies. The doctor examined my nose, found a small polyp and immediately decided to remove it. The polyp was cut out and the blood began to flow. I had the same problem before, several years ago. Immediately I mentally promised Vladika John that if the bleeding stopped, I would report this to the diocesan Commission for collecting information about Vladika John’s prayer help. The doctor left me in the office for a while after the operation, and then I went home. At home there was still a little bleeding. I then anointed my nostril, from which the doctor had cut out a polyp, with oil from the tomb of Vladika John and lay down to rest. When I woke up, I saw that the blood was no longer flowing. Konstantin Yumin, Monterey, California. Two days ago I went to the local church to baptize my grandson Dionysius. Some young woman came up to me and said that she thought it was not good that all children were baptized in one “basin,” meaning a font. I tried to calm her down with an incident I had seen... It was in Shanghai in a Russian hospital. One patient temporarily came to his senses and asked to be given communion. Vladyka John arrived almost instantly. The sick man was given communion, and he (the madman), forgetting about his request, spat out the Body and Blood of our Lord on the floor. Vladyka John did what every true priest should do - he licked every drop and crumb from the floor! Vladyka John was not injured in any way. It turns out that this abnormal person was suffering from some terribly contagious disease. I’m not sure that the young woman to whom I told this incident understood what I was talking about, but I could not help but tell her the incident with Vladika John. I saw it myself and it’s not a figment of someone’s imagination. THE PLEASES OF GOD ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE About 11–12 years ago, my church acquaintances, the Petrovs, offered to take me home in their car after a service (in a church not under our jurisdiction), because... it was on their way. They were a middle-aged married couple, full of strength and health, with means. There were four of us in the car; there was another friend of theirs. The owner of the car, while driving it, spoke harshly and completely disrespectfully about Vladyka John the whole way. This was the last day before my husband and I left for Italy. When I returned to Paris a month later, I again met my friend Petrov and was greatly amazed at such a drastic change in his appearance within a month. He had lost 10 pounds or more and his complexion was pale grayish-green. When I asked him what happened, he replied that his wife was sick, she was in the clinic, they operated on her, nothing was found, and she lost strength for almost minutes. Very soon the wife dies and her body is burned. The husband immediately became friends with a French Catholic woman and converted to her faith. I saw them together, but soon they left for the south of France, where the husband immediately died and his body was also burned. This is how the married couple tragically ended their earthly existence. It was and is too clear to me how the Lord protects His saints and how one must be careful in criticizing and condemning, especially saints. THE LORD HEALS AND STRENGTHENS This was in January 1966. I suffered excruciatingly from severe pain and was taken to the hospital, where I learned that an operation was urgently needed. Gangrene had spread and my life was in danger. On the day of the Epiphany, a complication was discovered during the operation - my blood did not clot well, so I lost a lot of blood. After the operation, I lay barely in my body from severe weakness and loss of blood. According to the Greek woman who was with me when I was still unconscious: “A bishop of short stature came to you, walked in with quick steps and prayed at your bedside, sprinkled you with holy water, blessed you and left.” Hearing this, I thought: who could it be? I found out later that it was Vladika John! I began to recover quickly through the prayers of the dear Master for me, a sinner. I remember this with gratitude and believe in the power of the Lord’s prayer. When I need something, I turn to him and get help. My grandmother told me how, back in Shanghai, in her youth, when my uncle was lying seriously ill with a fever, Vladyka came to him, prayed, and instantly he became completely healthy. Another case. My mother had difficult emotional experiences. One day she was reading and singing in the choir. After the liturgy, she sat down at a table near the choir and began copying out the proverbs. Vladyka John came out of the altar and, seeing his mother, began to tell her the life of St. Eustathia Placida. Then he anointed himself with myrrh, and then his mother. Mom noticed that soon all previous worries disappeared and inner peace and reinforcement appeared. Vladika John helped again! Irina Trubetskaya Burlingame, California. My godson Adam was born on January 6th, 1989 and was adopted a few days later by Fr. Andrew and Mother Ruth. He was healthy until the fall of 1989 when he began having spasms that turned into seizures. In October he was given strong medications, to which others were added from November to January. All this time he was either in a lethargic state or very irritated. He rarely slept through the night and his development was stunted. I asked Fr. Peter in the cathedral in San Francisco to pray at the tomb of Vladika John for the health of Adam. January 12 Fr. Peter prayed in the tomb of the Vladyka, put a note with the name of Adam under the miter of Vladika John and sent us oil from the tomb. We anointed Adam with this oil every day. Adam's mother reported that in January he became less agitated and finally began to respond to his parents after a three-month period of inactivity. In March 1990, doctors stopped giving him some medications, and on Annunciation Day his seizures stopped! He gradually stopped taking the medications and began walking on August 29th. By the feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, he no longer took medications and the seizures completely stopped. Adam's parents, relatives and friends believe that his recovery is a miracle, thanks to the prayers of Vladika John and the oil from his tomb. I consider myself happy that I had the opportunity to learn about Vladyka John from my father, who was his student at the Serbian Seminary in Yugoslavia... I sent some people to pray to the Lord’s tomb and take oil from there and will continue to educate others about this holy man. Mileva Savin, Chicago, USA. On behalf of my family, I want to convey in detail about the intercession of Blessed Vladika John. It is possible that for some these events are not miraculous, but my husband and I know that before we asked for the prayers of Vladika John, we were helpless. The first episode in these related cases occurred when the parish council of St. Nicholas in Endicott, PC. New York, invited my husband Fr. Svetoslav and I live in the vacated parish house. We hoped to move closer to Jordanville and to a parish of the Russian Church Abroad (Fr. Svetoslav has been a cleric of the Serbian Church since his ordination in 1974). Until we began to turn daily to Vladika John in our prayers, we could not find a new place that met our desires. Before moving to Endicott from Philadelphia in 1982, Fr. Svetoslav tried to get a job in a hospital in numerous places, but due to the fact that he did not have the desired medical experience, he could not find a job. By the time we moved to Endicott, however, work was found through the prayers of Vladika John. Bishop John did not stop helping us even after we moved to Endicott - Fr. Svetoslav was accepted into the school of paramedical personnel, despite the fact that he had not been accepted into any similar school before. Finally, 21 months after our stay in Endicott, we adopted our first son and named him John - in honor of our intercessor, Bishop John. After 10 years of marriage, numerous meetings with doctors, various meetings with local and foreign adoption organizations that would only give us the opportunity to get on the next list, by the grace of God we were given the child we had prayed for. John was born in a local hospital on the day we first notified St. Nicholas Parish in Endicott of our decision to move. Our decision to name our son John was confirmed when, the day before we saw our child for the first time, the prayers of Vladika John saved our brother Fr. Svetoslava, Predrag, from a dangerous situation. Hieromonk Hilarion (now a bishop) baptized John in the Holy Trinity Monastery on June 19/July 2, 1984, on the day of the death of the ever-memorable Archbishop John... Fr. and I Svetoslav continues to this day to turn to Vladyka John for prayer help... Mother Nancy Mirolovich, Buffalo, Neyu York. Of the following episodes from the life of Vladyka John, the first was told to me by a clergyman in the city of Shanghai, and the second by a Shanghai businessman, Dimitri Mikhailovich Azovtsev (now deceased). 1. Bishop John was invited to give communion to a dying man in the Russian Hospital in Shanghai. He took the clergyman with him. Upon arrival at the hospital, they saw a young and cheerful man, in his 20s, playing the harmonica. He was waiting in line to be discharged from the hospital. Vladyka John called him over with the words “I want to give you communion now.” The young man immediately approached him, confessed and received communion. The amazed clergyman asked the Bishop why he did not go to the dying man, but lingered with the apparently healthy young man. The Bishop answered very briefly: “He will die tonight, and the one who is seriously ill will live for many more years.” And so it happened. 2. One of Dimitry Mikhailovich Azovtsev’s friends (also a businessman) had his own car. Seeing Vladyka John from the car, he stopped, approached him and took his blessing. It was a rainy and stormy day. Having given the businessman a blessing, Vladyka asked him to lead him. Gave me the address. It was late evening. We stopped and entered the apartment. The hostess opened the door. The Bishop asked to see her husband. He was told that the husband was tired, had dinner and was already sleeping. Nevertheless, Vladyka asked the owner to wake him up. Having confessed to the owner, Vladyka gave him communion. On the way back, the businessman, surprised by what he had seen, asked Vladyka why such urgency was needed to give communion to an apparently healthy person. The answer was short: “He will die tonight.” And so it happened. Mikhail 77. Biryukov, Stratphyla Australia. THE PAIN STOPS BY THE LORD’S PRAYERS At the beginning of October 1989, I began to experience acute pain in my spine and back, the result of work. Despite my condition, I continued to work and tried to do as much as I could. I didn’t go to doctors, knowing that they couldn’t always help. I shared about my illness with one friend. On Monday, October 9th, in the morning, as usual, I get up and bow to the ground first, which I have been doing for the last week with great difficulty and even not completely. I'm speechless! I didn’t feel any pain, as if there had never been any pain. God bless! Only later did I find out that the kind soul with whom I shared about my illness, without my knowledge, went to Vladika John’s tomb in San Francisco and prayed for me while I was sick. Great is the Lord in His saints. Alexandra KiritiSu Los Angeles, California. THE LORD HAS PITY FOR THE YOUNG GIRL This was from November 1988 to August 1989. One Sunday, my daughter went to Archbishop John at the tomb. She loves to pray to the Lord. On this day, she prayed strongly to the Lord - she begged him with tears to give her eyebrows, eyelashes and body hair. She cried and couldn't stop. She told the Lord that she could do without hair on her head, but please give me eyebrows, eyelashes and body hair. The fact is that doctors found she had a disease - this is when a person loses absolutely all the hair on his head and body. Medicine does not know the cause of this disease and there is no cure for it. And here's a miracle. Her eyebrows, eyelashes and body hair began to appear. She is very grateful to Vladyka and regrets that she did not ask for a hair on her head then... THE LORD APPEARS IN THE TOMB Mr. I. Ma got up early in the morning on July 2, 1984 to go to the service on the day of the death of Vladika John. He was warned that there would be a lot of people and so he came there at 5 o’clock in the morning. The clergy were already preparing for the liturgy when suddenly I. Ma saw Vladyka John in white clothes. The Bishop walked among the priests and approached I. Ma. I. Ma bent down to the ground to take a blessing from Archbishop John, but when he raised his head, the Bishop was no longer there. It must be said that Jonah Ma had just arrived from China in December 1983, where, thanks to the communists, he spent 17 years in prison and was in exile for 35 years because, at the request of Bishop John, he helped the Russians 1 L.N.I., San Francisco California. From the sermons, words and teachings of Archbishop John The doors of repentance are opening, Great Lent begins. It is repeated annually, and each time it will bring us great benefit if we carry it out properly. Great Lent is preparation for the future life, and most immediately preparation for Bright Resurrection. Just as a staircase is built in a tall building so that the steps can easily be used to climb to the height of the building, so different days of the year are steps for our spiritual ascent and ascension. These especially include the days of Great Lent and Holy Easter. During Great Lent we are cleansed of sinful filth, and on Holy Pascha we feel the bliss of the coming Kingdom of Christ. When climbing a high mountain, they try to free themselves from any extra weight. The less someone is loaded, the easier it is for him to climb and the higher he can rise. So, in order to rise spiritually, you must first of all free yourself from the burden of sin. It is removed from us by repentance on the indispensable condition that we ourselves expel all enmity from ourselves and forgive everyone whom we consider guilty of us. Purified and forgiven by God, we then meet the Bright Resurrection of Christ. What most precious gift of God do we receive then, which is the completion of our Lenten feat? The first hymn, which begins the daily singing of the stichera of Lent, tells us about this: “And the Lamb of God is given to us as food, in the sacred and luminous night of the resurrection, for our sake the slaughter given, which the disciple received on the evening of the sacrament.” The communion of the Body and Blood of the Risen Christ into eternal life, this is the goal of the Holy Fourth Day. They receive communion not only at Easter. On the contrary, communion should be given to those who fasted, confessed and received communion during Great Lent on Easter. Before Easter itself there is no opportunity to confess everything well; time and priests are busy with Passion Services. You need to prepare for this in advance. Every communion of the Mysteries of Christ is a union with Christ Himself and is saving for us. Why is such importance attached to communion on the night of Holy Easter and why are we all called to this? Especially then is it possible for us to experience the Kingdom of Christ. Especially then we are illuminated by the Eternal Light and strengthened for spiritual ascent. It is an irreplaceable gift of Christ, an incomparable good. Let no one himself be deprived of this joy and, instead of receiving communion on Easter night, do not rush to taste meat and other foods. Communion of the Holy Mysteries then prepares us for a meal in the eternal Kingdom of God. Word before the memorial service for the Tsar-Martyr Forty years ago, in one day, the greatness and glory of the Russian Power, the stronghold of peace throughout the world, collapsed. The signature of the Sovereign Emperor Nikolai Alexandrovich on the act of abdication of the Throne is the historical boundary separating the great and glorious past of Russia from its dark and painful situation now. The entire burden of the evil of the current government and the way of life is directed at honest, well-intentioned and pious people, and the entire people are in oppression and constant fear. People are afraid even of their own and unspoken thoughts, afraid that it will be reflected in their facial expression. What happened on that day 40 years ago? The people’s retreat from the Anointed One of God, the retreat from the power submissive to God, the deviation from the oath of allegiance given before God to the Sovereign, the Anointed One of God, and his delivery to death. Deprived of power, and then of freedom, is the one who gave all his strength in the name of God to serve Russia. For dozens of years, the dark forces of evil waged a struggle against the Anointed One of God, against the state power faithful to God. The same forces killed the Sovereign Emperor Alexander Nikolaevich, the Tsar-Liberator. That crime sobered up the people, shook up the whole country, and that moral upsurge gave the opportunity to Sovereign Emperor Alexander III the Peacemaker to rule Russia with a strong hand. Two decades of peaceful life and development in Russia passed and a new conspiracy to overthrow the Royal Throne was created. It was a conspiracy by the enemies of Russia. In Russia itself there was a struggle against its very essence and, having destroyed the Throne, the enemies of Russia destroyed even its name. Now the whole world can see how the Tsarist power, faithful to God, and Russia are connected with each other. There was no Tsar - there was no Russia. The struggle against the Tsar and Russia was waged by hidden atheism, which later manifested itself openly. This is the essence of the struggle against the Tsar and Russia, against the basis of its life and historical development. This is the meaning and purpose of that struggle, which perhaps not everyone was aware of - those who were its accomplices. Everything dirty, insignificant and sinful that could be in a person’s soul was called against the Tsar and Russia. All this, with all its might, rose up to fight against the Royal Crown, crowned with a cross, for Royal service is bearing the cross. People are always raised against the cross with slander and lies, doing the work of the devil, for, according to the word of the Lord Jesus Christ: “He is a lie and the father of lies, and when he speaks a lie, he speaks his own.” Everything was raised against the most meek, pure and loving Tsar, so that in the terrible hour of the struggle against him, he would be left alone. Dirty slander was first spread against the Tsar and His family, so that the people would lose interest in Him. Infidel allies took part in the conspiracy. The closest employees, when the Tsar needed moral support, did not give it and violated the oath. Some took part in the conspiracy, others, out of weakness, advised renunciation. The Emperor was left completely alone, with “treason, meanness and cowardice” all around. From the day of the renunciation, everything began to collapse consistently. It couldn't have been any other way. The one who united everything, standing guard over the Truth, was overthrown. A sin was committed and a free path was opened for sin. It is in vain that they want to separate February from October: one was a direct consequence of the other. In these days of March, Pskov was Gethsemane for the Emperor, Yekaterinburg became Golgotha ​​for him. Emperor Nikolai Alexandrovich died as a martyr, with unshakable faith and patience, having drunk the cup of suffering to the dregs. A sin against him and Russia was committed by everyone who in one way or another acted against him, did not oppose him, or even took part in the event that took place 40 years ago with sympathy. That sin lies on everyone until it is washed away by sincere repentance. As we offer prayers for the repose of His soul, we also pray for Tsars Pavel Petrovich and Alexander Nikolaevich, who were also killed in the March days. And we pray for forgiveness of the Russian people for the grave sin of treason and Regicide. Woe to those who call evil good and good evil. Before us, before the Russian people, the path of rebellion is the path of consciousness of sin and repentance. For the revival of Russia, all political and programmatic associations are in vain: Russia needs a moral renewal of the Russian people. We must pray for forgiveness of our sins and for mercy for our Fatherland, just as the Lord God freed Israel from Babylonian captivity and restored the destroyed city of Jerusalem. Exaltation of the Holy Cross The cross, which before Christ was an instrument of execution and caused fear and disgust towards it, after Christ’s death on the cross became an instrument and banner of our salvation. With it, Christ crushed the devil, from him He descended into hell and, freeing those who languished there, led them into the Kingdom of Heaven. The image of the Cross is scary for demons and, as a sign of Christ, is revered by Christians. The Lord revealed it in heaven to Tsar Constantine, who was marching on Rome to fight the tormentor who had seized power, and having erected a banner in the form of the Cross, Tsar Constantine won complete victory. Having received help through the Cross of the Lord, Tsar Constantine begged his mother, Queen Helena, to find the Life-Giving Cross itself, and the pious Helena, going to Jerusalem, after many searches, found it. Many healings and other miracles have been and are being done both from the Cross of Christ Himself and from its image. With this the Lord protects His people from all enemies, visible and invisible. The Orthodox Church solemnly celebrates the discovery of the Cross of the Lord, remembering at the same time the appearance of the Cross in heaven to Tsar Constantine. On these and other days dedicated to the Holy Cross, we pray to God that God would grant His mercies not only to individual people, but to all of Christianity, to the entire Church. The troparion of the Cross of the Lord, compiled in the 8th century, when a friend of St. John of Damascus St. Cosmas, Bishop of Maium, wrote the entire rite of the service of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. O Lord, save Thy people and bless Thy inheritance, granting victories to the king (the faithful) against the resistance and preserving Thy residence through Thy Cross. The beginning of this prayer is taken from Psalm 27. In the Old Testament, the word people meant only those who professed the true faith, people faithful to God. “Property” or “inheritance” was everything that actually belonged to God, God’s property, which in the New Testament is the Church of Christ. Praying for the salvation of the people of God (Christians), both from eternal torment and earthly disasters, we pray to the Lord that He would bless, send down grace, His good gifts to the entire Church, and strengthen it internally. The prayer for the granting of “victory to the king,” the bearers of Supreme Power, is based on Psalm 143, verse 10, and recalls the victories, by the power of God, of King David, as well as the granting of victories through the Cross of the Lord to King Constantine. This appearance of the Cross made the kings, who until then were persecutors of Christians, defenders of the Church from external enemies, “external bishops,” in the words of St. Tsar Constantine. The Church, internally strong by the grace of God and protected externally, is for Orthodox Christians the “city of God,” God’s residence, from which the path to Heavenly Jerusalem leads. Various disasters shook the world, nations disappeared, cities and states perished, but the persecuted and even internally torn Church stands unshakable; for the gates of hell will not prevail against it. Now, when the efforts of the world rulers to establish order on earth are fruitless, the only true weapon of the world remains the One about whom the Church sings: The Cross is the Guardian of the entire universe, the Cross is the beauty of the Church, the Cross of Kings of Powers, the Cross of the faithful is affirmation, the Cross of Angels is glory, and the plague of demons. Glorification of the holy saints of God Holiness is not just righteousness, for which the righteous are rewarded with the pleasure of bliss in the Kingdom of God, but such a height of righteousness that people are so filled with the grace of God that it flows from them to those who communicate with them. Great is their bliss, which comes from beholding the glory of God. Being filled with love for people, which comes from love for God, they are responsive to people’s needs and their prayers and are intercessors and representatives for them before God. These were, first of all, the Old Testament righteous, freed from hell by Christ and introduced into heaven, and “the greatest of those born of women,” John the Baptist. This then became the apostles and their immediate successors. None of the Christians doubted their holiness and after their death, mostly martyrdom, they immediately began to be revered and called upon in prayers. During the high spiritual upsurge in the first centuries of persecution of Christians, martyrs also appeared as such. The martyrdom itself was the door to the highest Abodes and Christians immediately began to call on them as holy saints of God. Miracles and signs confirmed this faith of Christians and were proof of their holiness. Also, then great ascetics began to be revered. No one decided to honor Anthony the Great, Macarius the Great, Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian, Nicholas the Wonderworker and many others like them as saints, but the East and the West equally honor them; only those who do not believe in holiness can deny their holiness. The host of God's saints grew continually; in all the places where there were Christians, their own new ascetics appeared. However, the general life of Christians began to decline, spiritual fire began to dim, and there was no longer that clear feeling that there is Divine truth. Therefore, the common consciousness of believers could not always determine who the real righteous and saint of God is. In some places, dubious personalities appeared who captivated part of the flock with imaginary exploits. Therefore, the church authorities began to monitor the veneration of saints, taking care to protect their flock from superstition. They began to investigate the lives of the ascetics revered by believers and check the stories about their miracles. By the time of the baptism of Rus', it had already been established that the recognition of a new saint was carried out by the Church authorities. The decree of the church authorities, of course, extended to the region under its jurisdiction, however, other places usually recognized the glorification performed somewhere, even if they did not include it in their monthly calendars. After all, church authority only testified to holiness. The righteous became saints not by the decree of earthly church authority, but by the mercy and grace of God. The church authorities only approved the praise in church and the prayerful invocation of the new saint. What kind of power should and could do this was not precisely determined, at least the episcopal power. There were glorifications performed by the highest Church authority of an entire local church; the names of the newly glorified were then included in the church calendars of that entire church; others were glorified in one area or another and their veneration gradually spread to other places. Usually the glorification took place in the area where the ascetic lived or suffered. But it also happened differently. Thus, George, a young man from the city of Kratova (Serbia), who suffered in Sofia (Sredets, Bulgaria) from the Turks in 1515, was already glorified in Novgorod 14 years later. Despite the fact that his fellow citizens revered him as a new martyr, and even his confessor compiled a church service, they did not dare to show this openly, fearing the Turks, and therefore in Novgorod, which was in trade relations with those places, by order of the Archbishop, a service was compiled and the memory of the martyr George the New began to be venerated, from where it spread throughout Russia. When Serbia and Bulgaria freed themselves from the slavery of the Turks, they began to use the service compiled in Russia, and the one originally compiled in Sofia is still the property of the library. For the last two centuries, when Russia lived in glory and prosperity, the glorification of new saints was usually performed very solemnly according to the decree of the Supreme Authority, sometimes (but not always) taking place throughout Russia, and especially in the area where miraculous relics were found. However, this does not change the general order in the Church, and if Russian people, under the yoke of a godless government, cannot openly praise and call upon the glorified saint of God, it is the duty of the part of the Russian Church free from the oppression of atheists to publicly honor and call on the Wonderworker, like St. Nicholas, now revered throughout the world, and to pray to Saint Righteous John for the correction of our lives and for the end of the disasters that befell his Fatherland according to the prophecy ours. May the Lord grant that that longed-for day will come when it will thunder from the Carpathians to the Pacific Ocean: We magnify you, righteous Father John, and honor your holy memory, for you pray for us, Christ our God! Come, people, let us worship the Trinitarian Divinity God is the Holy Trinity. Trinity Consubstantial and indivisible. Consubstantial, that is, one being, one nature. The Trinity is indivisible; The Son has never been separated from the Father, or the Holy Spirit from the Father or from the Son, and never shall he be separated. The Father, Son and Holy Spirit are not three gods, but one God, since They have one nature, but not only for this reason. And people have one nature, one nature. But about people it cannot be said that two or three people are one person, no matter how close and friendly they are to each other. People not only have separate bodies, but everyone also has their own will, their own tastes, their own moods. No matter how similar people sometimes are in body and character, it still does not happen that everything is common, everything is the same. The Three Persons of the Holy Trinity have everything in common. The boundless love of the Father for the Son, the Son for the Father, and the same love between Them and the Holy Spirit makes Their will and all Their deeds common. They have one will, everything is done by Them together. Whatever the Holy Spirit turns away from, the Father also turns away. What the Son loves, both the Father and the Holy Spirit love. Everything is accomplished by the Holy Trinity together. The Bible says about the creation of the world: “And God said: “Let there be light.” And there was light.” What does “speech” mean, that is, said? This means that God the Father created with His Word, that Word about which the Gospel says: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was to God, and God was the Word,” and which is the Only Begotten Son of God. God the Father created everything with His Word, in other words, He did everything through His Son. The Father does nothing without the Son, just as the Son does nothing without the Father; the Father and the Son are always assisted by the Holy Spirit. The Bible says about the creation of the world: “And the Spirit of God was carried on the top of the waters.” “Hurled” over the creation, not just hovered over it - the word, which does not have an exact corresponding expression in the Slavic language, in the Hebrew original means “to cover, to warm,” just as a hen, sitting on her eggs, revives them with her warmth and living beings emerge from them. “By the Word of the Lord the heavens were established, and by the Spirit of His mouth all their strength” (Ps. 33:6). Everything that exists was created by God the Father through the Son and brought into Life by the Holy Spirit. Or to put it another way: everything that the Father wanted and wants was immediately fulfilled and is being fulfilled by the Son and is inspired by the Holy Spirit. This is how the world was created, this is how everything happened in God’s providence for the world and humanity. In order to save man, who through the Fall fell from God and became mortal, according to the eternal advice of the Holy Trinity, obeying the will of the Father, the Son of God descended to earth, was born by the action of the Holy Spirit from the Ever-Virgin Mary, announced to people the True God the Father and His Divine will, taught true worship of God, having suffered for our sins, descended in soul to hell and, having freed the souls of the dead from there, rose from the dead. Even before His suffering, Christ promised His apostles, whom He had chosen from His disciples, to give them the power to decide and bind - to forgive the sins of people or to leave them on them. After His Resurrection, the Lord gave this gift of grace not separately to any of the apostles, but to all of them together: He created His Church, the guardian of that grace, and united in it all those who believe and love Him. Having promised the apostles to clothe them with power from above, having sent them the Holy Spirit, having accomplished everything for which He came to earth, the Lord Jesus Christ ascended into heaven, receiving for humanity the glory and honor that He had as the Son of God even before the creation of the world. The Holy Spirit, who descended on the disciples of Christ, according to the promise, confirmed them in the faith of Christ and poured out the gifts of God on them with His grace. He strengthened them for preaching and implementing in life the teachings of Christ, for the establishment of the Church created by Christ and brought into action by the Holy Spirit. The Church, which has its foundation on earth and is headed by the Son of God sitting at the right hand of the Father, is mysteriously guided by the Holy Spirit. She internally unites her children and connects them with God. The grace-filled gifts of God, through the Church, are poured out on those who strive to walk the paths of Christ, sanctify and strengthen all that is good in them, cleanse them from sin and all defilement, making them capable of becoming receptacles of the radiance of the glory and powers of God. Through the Church, humanity becomes a partaker of the Divine nature and enters into the closest communion with the Holy Trinity. Not only the soul, but also the human body is sanctified and communicates with God through the communion of the Body and Blood of Christ, through Whom it is united with the entire Holy Trinity. By the grace of God, with the participation of his own will and effort, man becomes a new creature, a participant in the eternal Kingdom of God. For that coming Kingdom of God, the future nature is also being prepared for the coming cleansing by fire from the consequences of human sins and the curse that lies on it. She receives the beginnings of sanctification by the descent of the Holy Spirit on her during the Epiphany blessing of water and many other Church ceremonies, in order to later become a new earth and a new heaven. This will happen when the dates set by God the Father arrive and the Son of God comes in glory to pronounce judgment on the world. Then those who have loved God and united with Him will shine from the rays of the Divine Light and will forever enjoy the uncreated light of the Triune Divinity of the Consubstantial Life-Giving and Indivisible Trinity. To her, God, our Creator and Savior, be glory, honor and worship forever and ever: “Come, people, let us worship the Trinitarian Divinity, the Son in the Father, with the Holy Spirit: the Father, without children, gave birth to the Son, co-eternal and co-throne, and the Holy Spirit with the Son we glorify: one power, one being, one Divinity. And to Him we worship all with the verb: Holy God, who did all things by the Son, with the assistance of the Holy Spirit; The Mighty Holy One, who knew the Father and the Holy Spirit came into the world; Holy Immortal, Comforter of the Soul, proceed from the Father and rest in the Son: Holy Trinity, glory to Thee. I hope for the resurrection of the dead and the life of the next century Our grief for our dying loved ones should have been inconsolable and boundless if the Lord had not given us eternal life. Our life would be meaningless if it ended with death. What is the use then of virtue, of good deeds? Then those who say “let’s eat and drink, for tomorrow we will die!” are right! But man was created for immortality, and with His Resurrection Christ opened the gates of the Heavenly Kingdom, eternal bliss, to those who believed in Him and lived righteously. Our earthly life is a preparation for the future, and with our death that preparation ends. “A man must die once, then the judgment.” Then a person leaves all his earthly cares, the body disintegrates in order to rise again in the general resurrection. But his soul continues to live and does not cease to exist for a moment. Many manifestations of the dead have given us some knowledge of what happens to the soul when it leaves the body. When her vision with her bodily eyes ceases, then her spiritual vision opens. Often it begins in dying people even before death and they, while still seeing those around them and even talking to them, see what others do not see. Having left the body, the soul finds itself among other spirits, good and evil. Usually she strives for those who are more akin in spirit, and if while in the body she was under the influence of some, then she remains dependent on them after leaving the body, no matter how unpleasant they may be upon meeting. For two days the soul enjoys relative freedom, can visit its favorite places on earth, and on the third day it goes to other spaces. Moreover, she passes through hordes of evil spirits, blocking her path and accusing her of various sins to which they themselves tempted her. According to revelations, there are twenty such barriers, the so-called. ordeals, at each of them one or another type of sin is experienced; Having gone through one thing, the soul gets to the next, and only after safely passing through everything can the soul continue its path, and not be immediately cast into Gehenna. How terrible those demons and their ordeals are is shown by the fact that the Mother of God Herself, informed by the Archangel Gabriel of her impending death, prayed to Her Son to deliver Her from those demons and, fulfilling Her prayer, the Lord Jesus Christ Himself appeared from Heaven to receive the soul of His Most Pure Mother and ascend to heaven. The third day is terrible for the soul of the deceased, and therefore it especially needs prayer for it then. Having safely passed through the ordeal and worshiped God, the soul visits the villages of heaven and the abysses of hell for another thirty-seven days, not yet knowing where it will end up, and only on the fortieth day is its place determined until the Resurrection of the Dead. Some souls are in a state of anticipation of eternal joy and bliss, while others are in fear of eternal torment, which will completely come after the Last Judgment. Until then, changes in the state of souls are still possible, especially through the offering of the Bloodless Sacrifice for them (commemoration at the Liturgy), as well as through other prayers. How important the commemoration during the Liturgy is is shown by the following event. Before the opening of the relics of St. Theodosius of Chernigov (1896), the priest who was performing the redressing of the relics, tired, sitting near the relics, dozed off and saw the Saint in front of him, who said to him: “Thank you for working for me. I also ask you, when you perform the Liturgy, remember my parents” - and named their names (priest Nikita and Mary). “How do you, Saint, ask me for prayers, when you yourself stand at the throne of Heaven and give people the mercies of God,” asked the priest. “Yes, this is true,” answered St. Theodosius, “but the offering at the Liturgy is stronger than my prayer.” Therefore, memorial services and home prayers for the deceased, and good deeds done in their memory, such as alms, sacrifices to the church, are useful for the deceased, but commemoration at the Divine Liturgy is especially useful for them. There were many apparitions of the dead and other events confirming how beneficial the commemoration of the dead is. Many who died with repentance, but did not have time to show it during their lifetime, were freed from torment and received peace. In church, prayers are always offered for the repose of the departed, and even on the day of the descent of the Holy Spirit in kneeling prayers, at Vespers there is a special prayer “for those held in hell.” Each of us, wanting to show our love for the departed and provide them with real help, can best do this through prayer for them, especially by remembering them at the Liturgy, when the particles taken out for the living and departed are lowered into the blood of the Lord with the words “Lord, wash away the sins of those remembered here by Thy honest Blood, by the prayers of Thy saints.” We cannot do anything better or more for the departed than to pray for them, offering commemoration for them at the Liturgy. They always need this, and especially in those forty days in which the soul of the deceased makes its way to the eternal abodes. Then the body does not feel anything, does not see loved ones gathered, does not smell the fragrance of flowers, does not hear funeral speeches. But the soul feels the prayers offered for it, is grateful to those who create them and is spiritually close to them. Relatives and friends of the deceased! Do for them what they need and what you can. Spend money not on external decorations of the coffin and grave, but on helping those in need, in memory of deceased loved ones, on churches where prayers are offered for them. Show mercy to the deceased, take care of his soul. We all have that path ahead of us, how we will then wish that they would prayerfully remember us! Let us ourselves be merciful to the departed. As soon as someone dies, immediately call or notify the priest to read the “Sequence on the Exodus of the Soul,” which is supposed to be read over all Orthodox Christians immediately after their death. Try to ensure that, if possible, the funeral service takes place in the church and that before the funeral the Psalter is read over the deceased. The funeral service may not be performed magnificently, but it must be performed completely, without reduction; Then think not about yourself and your comforts, but about the deceased, to whom you are saying goodbye forever. If there are several dead people in the church at the same time, do not refuse to have a funeral service for them together. It is better to have the funeral service for two or more dead people at once, and let the prayer of all their loved ones gathered be even more fervent, than to have the funeral service for them in turn and, not having the strength and time, to shorten the service, when every word of prayer for the deceased is like a drop of water to a thirsty person. Be sure to immediately take care of performing the sorokoust, that is, daily commemoration for 40 days at the Liturgy. Usually in churches where daily sacred services take place, the dead there are remembered for forty days or more. If the funeral service is held in a church where there is no daily service, loved ones should take care of it themselves and order the magpie where there is a daily service. It is also good to send for commemoration to monasteries and to Jerusalem, where there is constant prayer at holy places. But you need to start commemoration immediately after death, when the soul especially needs prayer help, and therefore begin the commemoration in the nearest place where the daily service is held. Let us take care of those who go to another world before us, so that we can do everything we can for them, remembering that “Blessed are the mercy, for they will receive mercy.” In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was to God, and God was the Word At the liturgy on the day of Bright Resurrection, the beginning of the Gospel of John about the Divine Word is read. When everything is fulfilled by the Light of the Resurrection of Christ and the heavens are united with the earth in the glorification of the Conqueror of death, the Gospel proclaims Who He is: “In the beginning (according to the ancient translation - from the beginning) was the Word.” It was said about the Word in the Old Testament: “By the Word of the Lord the heavens were established, and by the Spirit of His mouth all their power” (Ps. 32:6), “Sent His Word, and I healed” (Ps. 106:20). The powerful action of the Word of God is spoken of especially vividly and expressively in the book of the Wisdom of Solomon. However, the Old Testament people by the Word of God meant only the manifestation of the will and action of God. Now John preaches that the Word of God is the Only Begotten Son of God, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity. Why is the Son of God also called the Word? Because through him the Father expresses His will. The Word of God is not the same as the word of man. A person expresses his thoughts and desires in words. But the word spoken by a person becomes silent and disappears. The desire he expresses is sometimes fulfilled, but often remains unfulfilled. The Word of God is eternal and omnipotent. It is always with God. A man's word is his ministering power. The Word of God is the Second Person of the Holy Trinity. It is God Himself. God the Word is the Son of God and loves the Father, and does everything voluntarily according to His will. More precisely, they have one will. God the Father loves His Son and does everything through Him. Nothing was created by the Father apart from the Son. “That’s all it was.” Everything began to be through Him, and without Him nothing began to exist that exists: “All things were by Him, and without Him nothing came into being” (John 1:3) (As the 2nd member of the Creed says about this). When the book of Genesis says that at the creation of the world God “said, let there be light, and said, let there be firmament,” this means that God the Father wanted to create light, firmament, and so on, and that the Word, His Son, brought this to fruition. The Word of God gives life. It is the source of life: “In That is the life and life of men.” The Word of God is Light, through Him God the Father reveals Himself and proclaims His divine will: “This is the true light, which enlightens every man who comes into the world” (John 1:9). That Light cannot be hidden by any darkness: “The Light shines in the darkness and the darkness does not comprehend it.” The darkness of sin took possession of humanity after the Fall, but could not hide the Divine Light. According to the will of the Father, the Son of God sanctified the world by descending to earth and becoming incarnate. “The Word became flesh and dwelt in us” (John 1:16). Having prepared the way for Him in the hearts of men, John the Baptist was sent by God. He preached about Christ and called to believe in Him, for He is the Son of God. Long before that, the Law was given through Moses. But the Law, limiting evil, could not save people. While outwardly fulfilling the Law, people remained full of evil within themselves. Therefore, the world did not recognize His Creator, the Son of God, who came to earth: “In the world there was no peace, and the world knew Him not: its own came, and its own did not receive Him” (John 1:10,11). The guardians of the Law did not accept the incarnate Word, for His Light was intolerable to them. But the Source of Life, betrayed by them to death, descended into hell, destroyed it, dispersed the darkness with His Divine Light. Having risen from the dead, Christ opened the gates of the Kingdom of His Glory to all who believe in Him. Those who believe in the incarnate Son of God and accept Him into their soul and heart become children of God. The grace of God spiritually revives them, indwelling them and giving them strength to love the Truth and do the will of the Lord. “And the little ones received Him, and gave them the realm to become children of God, who believe on His Name” (John 1:12). Those reborn by grace, if they remain in it until the end of their earthly life and follow the path indicated by Christ, the True Light, will be worthy to receive a new gift from Him: they will forever enjoy in the Kingdom of the Heavenly Father the vision of the Glory of His Only Begotten Son, the Glory that surpasses everything in the world, while experiencing inexpressible joy and bliss. The same eternal Word of God, by whom the world was created, saved and revived the human race to a new joyful life by His incarnation and Resurrection. Bright Resurrection is the triumph of God the Word, the day of His victory over hell and death, the beginning of a new life and eternal joy bestowed by Him. Let us sing to the co-original Word of the Father and the Spirit, born of the Virgin for our salvation, and worship, as He deigned the flesh to ascend to the cross, and to endure death, and to resurrect the dead by His glorious Resurrection. Only Begotten of the Son and Word of God, immortal, trampling down death by death, One of the Holy Trinity, glorified to the Father and the Holy Spirit, save us. An edifying lesson for young men from the Parable of the Prodigal Son And the youngest said to his father: Father, give me a worthy part of the estate. – The parable of the prodigal son contains the most instructive lesson for a young man. Indeed, in the prodigal son we see the full character of flighty youth: frivolity, thoughtlessness, passion for independence, in a word - everything that usually distinguishes most young men. The youngest son grew up in his parents' house. Having reached his teenage years, he already dreamed that his parents’ house was too small for him. It seemed unpleasant to him to live under the leadership of his father and the supervision of his mother; he wanted to imitate his comrades, who indulged in the noisy pleasures of the world. "I am," he reasons, "the heir to a rich estate. Wouldn't it be better if I now receive my part? I can dispose of the wealth differently than how my father disposes." And the frivolous young man was carried away by the deceptive shine of the pleasures of the world and decided to throw off the yoke of obedience, decided to leave his parents’ house. Is it not similar motivations that force many even now to leave, if not the house of their earthly parents, then the house of the Heavenly Father, that is, to leave obedience to the Holy Church? The yoke of Christ seems difficult to immature minds, and His commandments are heavy. They think that there is no particular need to observe what God and His Holy Church commands us. They can serve, it seems to them, God and not give up serving the world. "We," they say, "are already strong enough to resist disastrous temptations and seductions. We ourselves can firmly adhere to the truth and sound teaching. Let us improve our minds with multifaceted information! Let us ourselves strengthen our will) in the midst of temptations and enticements! And let our feelings be convinced by experience of the vileness of vice!" - How are such desires better than the thoughtless request that the young son made to his father: “Father, give me a worthy part of the estate!”? And so, the frivolous young man ceases to heed the commandments and suggestions of the Holy Church. He stops studying the word of God and the teachings of the holy fathers, but inclines his ears to the wisdom of false teachers and kills the best hours of his life in these studies. He begins to visit the churches of God less often or stands in them inattentively and absent-mindedly. He does not find the opportunity to diligently practice piety and practice virtue; because most of the time is consumed in attending shows, public entertainments, etc. In a word, every day he devotes himself more and more to the world and, finally, goes “to a distant country.” What does such a distance from the Holy Church lead to? Moreover, what did the prodigal son’s removal from his parents’ house lead to? Frivolous young men very soon waste the wonderful strength and abilities of soul and body and ruin everything that they have done good for the time of eternity. Meanwhile, “a strong famine appears in that country”; emptiness and discontent appear - the necessary consequences of noisy pleasures; there is a thirst for pleasure, which intensifies even more from the satisfaction of vicious passions and, finally, becomes insatiable. And how often does it happen that an unfortunate peace-lover, in order to satisfy his passions, resorts to low and shameful activities, which do not bring him to his senses as a prodigal son and do not return him to the path of salvation, but complete his destruction, temporary and eternal! “Open the doors of repentance, O Life-Giver!” Repentance is expressed by the Greek word “metania.” Literally, this means changing your mind, your wisdom. In other words, repentance is a change in one’s mood, one’s way of thinking, a change in a person within himself. Repentance is a revision of one’s views, a change in one’s life. How can it happen? Just like when a dark room into which a person finds himself is illuminated by the sun's rays: while he was looking at the room in the dark, it seemed to him in one form: he did not see much of what was there, and did not even imagine that it was there. Many things seemed to him completely different from what they really were. He had to move carefully because he didn't know where the obstacles were. But now, the room has become bright, he sees everything clearly and moves freely. The same thing happens in spiritual life. When we are immersed in sins, and our mind is occupied only with everyday worries, we do not notice the state of our soul. We are indifferent to what we are like inside, and we constantly follow the wrong path without noticing it ourselves. But now a ray of God’s Light penetrates our soul. How much dirt we will see inside ourselves then! How many untruths, how many lies! How ugly many actions that we imagined beautiful will turn out to be. It will become clear to us that we are going the wrong way. It becomes clear to us which path is correct. If we then realize our spiritual insignificance, our sinfulness, and sincerely wish for our correction, we are close to salvation. From the depths of our souls, let us cry to God: “Have mercy on me, God, have mercy according to Your mercy!” “Forgive me and save me!” “Grant me to see my sins and not condemn my brother!” At the onset of Great Lent, let us hasten to forgive each other all griefs and insults. Let us always hear the words of the Gospel of the Forgiven Resurrection: “If you forgive their sins, your Heavenly Father will also forgive you; if you do not forgive a person their sins, your Father will forgive you your sins.” Brief transcript of the sermon on Spiritual Day In the Old Testament there are only vague indications of the Divine Mystery of the Holy Trinity. The Holy Bible says that before the creation of man, God said: “Let us make man in our image and likeness,” which indicates that God is not one person. But how many persons are in God and who these interlocutors and creators are - there is no indication of that. And another time, somewhat more clearly, but also only in the visible image of three Angels, the Divine Trinity is revealed to the Righteous Abraham. In the New Testament, the mystery of the Holy Trinity is revealed three times: in Baptism, Transfiguration and the Descent of the Holy Spirit. At Baptism, the Divine voice was heard: “This is My beloved Son,” when the incarnate Son of God, the God-Man, set out to the feat of saving man. Here is the glory of God the Father, and his rejoicing at the sight of that feat of love. God the Son stands in the streams of the Jordan in the form of a servant, God the Holy Spirit, in the form of a dove, confirms the word of the Father, testifying to the Divinity humbly bowing his head under the right hand of the Forerunner of the Son. Today the waters sanctify nature. Today the Son of God is baptized in the waters of the Jordan, not needing purification Himself, but in order to cleanse the sinful human race from filth. Now the heavens open and the voice of God the Father is heard: “This is my beloved Son.” The Holy Spirit descends on the Savior of the World standing in the Jordan, confirming that He is the incarnate Son of God. The Holy Trinity appears clearly and is revealed to the human race. The waters of the Jordan are sanctified, along with them all the waters in nature, all aquatic nature. Water is given the power to wash not only the body, but also the entire soul of a person, to revive the whole person to new life through Baptism. All nature is sanctified through water, for the world was built from water and moisture penetrates everywhere, reviving everything else in nature. Neither animals nor plants can live without moisture; moisture penetrates into stones and into all places in the universe. The waters are sanctified, and through them the whole universe is sanctified, preparing for renewal and rebirth for the coming eternal Kingdom of God. Every year on this day the Glory of God appears, renewing and confirming what was accomplished at the Baptism of Christ. Now the heavens have opened again, the Holy Spirit descends again. We don’t see it with our bodily eye, but we feel its power. When a sacred ceremony is performed, the consecrated waters change, become incorruptible, and are preserved for many years. This can be seen by everyone, both believers and non-believers, the wise and the ignorant. Where do they get this property of water? That's the action of the Holy Spirit. With faith, those who drink and anoint themselves with them receive relief and healing from mental and physical infirmities, their homes are sanctified, demonic power is driven out, and God’s blessing is brought down upon those sprinkled with them. Through the consecration of water, God's blessing is again given to the whole world, cleansing it from the sins we commit and protecting it from the wiles of the devil. Now the Holy Spirit, descending on the waters when the Cross of Christ is immersed in them, descends onto all nature. It just cannot enter a person without his will. Let us open our hearts and souls to receive Him and with faith from the depths of our souls we cry: “Great art thou, Lord, and wonderful are thy works, and not a single word will be sufficient for the singing of thy wonders.” Sermon on the Sunday of Orthodoxy In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit! “In the midst of two thiefs, the standard of righteousness was found in Your Cross: for one who is brought down to hell by the burden of blasphemy: for another, I am relieved from sin, to the knowledge of theology...” (Lenten troparion of the 9th hour, for glory). - This is what they say about the Cross of the Lord. Having found a righteous standard in the midst of two robbers, Pilate set up three crosses on Calvary: two robbers and one the Giver of Life. But only the Cross of the Savior was salvation for all humanity, that Cross that stood in the middle, it is an instrument of peace, an invincible victory - victory over the devil and victory over death. The remaining two crosses - one was saving for the one who hung on it, the other was for him a staircase to hell. Two thieves hung on crosses near the Lord Jesus Christ, one blasphemed Him all the time and continued to blaspheme, and the other, who began to blaspheme, then came to his senses, and, having recognized all his sins, cried out to the Lord: “Remember me, Lord, when You come in Your Kingdom!” And the Lord answered him: “Today you will be with Me in paradise!” So, through the Cross, through suffering, the prudent thief believed in the crucified Christ, believed, as they say, to the knowledge of theology. But when the Lord forgave him for his sins, he recognized in Him the Son of God Himself, understood that the Man Who hangs in dishonor and dishonor is the glorious King of Glory, understood that He Who now seems weak and weak is Himself the almighty Creator and Ruler of the entire universe. So, his mental eyes, the spiritual eyes of that robber who was hanging on the right side, were opened, to which he came through repentance, through humility. So Christ humiliated Himself more than all other people, humiliated Himself in order to thereby erase and destroy the sin of Adam’s pride. So the thief, who humbly recognized his sins, asked the Lord for forgiveness, and through this the Lord appeared to him in all His Glory. And that other robber, hanging on the left side, “on the left,” - as they say in Slavic, he blasphemed Him all the time, blasphemed because he realized that he was a sinner, that he was a criminal, that he had violated both human and Divine laws, but did not want to repent, did not want to humble himself, and he blasphemed the very laws that he violated, blasphemed the Lawgiver Himself, Who gave the laws of nature, who put into people conscience, according to which they write their human laws, although not always in agreement with it, he blasphemed Him and continued to blaspheme until his soul descended to hell through the burden of blasphemy. Here are two paths that lie before people. Before us lies the Life-giving Cross of the Lord. The Lord said: “Whoever wants to follow Me, let him take up his Cross and follow Me.” Where is it coming? – First, through suffering, just as Christ suffered, then he will enter with Christ into the Eternal Kingdom, into the Kingdom of Heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ sits on His throne. There is no other way but to follow the Lord. And the thief, who was hanging on the right side, knew God and followed Him with his soul. He, of course, could not miraculously change then, this is not necessary, he followed Christ with his soul, recognized God in Him, humbled himself for the salvation of men, humbled himself, recognized his sins and went to heaven with Christ. Before us lies the path of two robbers. Which way will we go? All the time, humanity has been going one way or another. The Cross of the Lord was a temptation to the Jews, but to the Greeks, that is, the pagans, it was madness, how can one worship an instrument of humility, an instrument of execution, they did not understand that with this instrument the Lord saved all humanity from the kingdom of the devil, from the kingdom of sin, from eternal destruction. For the Jews, the Cross of the Lord was also a temptation; they wanted to see their messiah as the king of glory, as the king of the earth, who would elevate their Jewish race, and the Cross on which Christ was crucified was a temptation for them. The crucifixion of Christ seemed temptation and madness; and through this, as St. tells us. Apostle Paul: To the Jews there is a temptation, to the Greeks there is foolishness, but to us Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. So, what was death for some, became salvation for others. The Cross of the Lord divides people into two parts. So some believed in Christ, while others stumbled over the stone of transformation and persecuted the Church of Christ, the body of Christ, the Head of which is the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. The Church of Christ is the Body of Christ, He Himself heads it and with His Divine Body and Blood nourishes the believers, nourishes the children of His Church, so that we are one with Christ, both physically and spiritually. We unite body with Christ through Divine Communion, we must spiritually join and immediately follow His commandments. We all sin, but some sin and repent, others blaspheme all the laws that they break. This was the case in ancient times, when Arius and other heretics rejected the dogmas of the Holy Church and then believers often suffered; believers suffered when there were wicked rulers who sent them into exile; so St. Athanasius the Great spent twenty years in exile out of the forty-seven years of his priesthood. And other saints also suffered for the truth, many believers also suffered, but in the purity of Orthodoxy they were saved and opened the gates of eternal life, the gates of the Kingdom of Heaven. The unbelievers often triumphed, they often trampled on the Church of Christ, but then their death and fall came, and their souls were sent not to the Kingdom of Heaven, but to eternal torment in the underworld, just as Christ once sent the soul of Herod and others who were looking for His soul to hell. Before us lies the path of salvation or the path of destruction. Christians also stumbled over the Cross during the Iconoclasm, when they began to persecute St. icons, when other shrines and the Cross of the Lord began to be despised. And these are those who called themselves true believers, even considered themselves Orthodox. So, for one hundred and fifty years the iconoclastic heresy reigned, until finally it was finally broken. On the day of the Triumph of Orthodoxy, we celebrate the victory of Christ over iconoclasm and over all demons. The Cross of the Lord separated believers and unbelievers, those who walked the path of salvation and those who walked the path of destruction. The Cross of the Lord is also rejected by the current Protestant iconoclasts and others who deny holy icons, they are ready to allow beautiful images of some Gospel events in their homes, but however they reject the veneration of holy icons, which remind us that salvation is acquired through the hard, narrow path that the Lord Jesus Christ Himself walked, by struggling with one’s sins and vices, through fasting and prayers - this is not recognized by those who want to see In Christianity there is only something rosy and beautiful when you can, without any effort, without any strain on yourself, without any struggle with your sins, enter into eternal bliss. They follow the path that the thief walked, hanging on his left hand: they deny all the laws that the Lord gave with His mouth and sent the Apostles to preach them throughout the entire universe; they deny those statutes and scriptures that are sacredly preserved by the Holy Orthodox Church. And through the Cross, some are saved to the knowledge of theology, to the knowledge of the eternal Truth, while others, through the burden of blasphemy, descend into hellish torment. Such a long path lies before us Orthodox, and here there are temptations that divide believers if they want and desire to follow the path that Christ showed them. We all sin, we all violate Christ’s commandments and the laws of the Holy Church, but some recognize themselves as sinners in the fact that they violate them and repent of their sins, while others, instead, deny the laws themselves and do not want to obey them, saying that these laws are outdated, the laws are no longer needed, we ourselves are smarter than those who gave the church laws, which the Lord Himself gave through the Apostles and His saints. Here are two paths before you - the path of the prudent thief and the path of the one who, through the burden of blasphemy, descended to hell. Here we also have before us those eternal works. Some are ready to recognize images if they are well painted, if they are beautiful and pleasing to the eye, others venerate those icons where the saints are depicted suffering, where their martyrdom, their fasting and prayers are depicted, those external disgraces, but the internal goodness is seen in these sacred images. This, brothers, is the path of two thieves. Some want salvation, others want only pleasure in this world, and when this is not given to them, they blaspheme those laws that were given for our salvation. And now we may also have different divisions. Because the laws of the Church of Christ are immutable, a Christian must obey the laws and statutes of the Church, regardless of how others relate to this, how the surrounding society relates, favorably or negatively, to the laws of the Church. The faithful of Christ follow Christ along the path of those laws, those statutes that are sacredly preserved by St. Church. And those who want extra comforts and joy in this earthly world, which will perish sooner or later, prefer other laws - not church ones, but those that allow them to live as they want and think as they want, to place their will above the spirit of the Church, the spirit that is given from the Lord God Himself, and call on others to follow their path. Perhaps, brethren, soon there will be unrest here again before you, and some of you will be called upon to follow the path of denying the Holy Spirit. laws and obey only those laws that are given only by human authority. Beware of this path! Fear this path that the thief took, hanging on his left hand, for through the burden of blasphemy, through the burden of the blasphemy of Christ, he went into eternal destruction. And those who blaspheme the laws of the Church, those who blaspheme Christ Himself, Who is the Head of the Church, for the laws of the Church were given by the Holy Spirit through the Apostles. And local laws are based on the same laws, on the laws and canons of the Church. Let us not consider ourselves wiser than those saints who established the rules of the Church, let us not imagine ourselves to be great wise. Let us humbly cry out with the prudent thief: “Remember me, O Lord, in Thy Kingdom! Pray for forgiveness of sins. If we deviate from the laws of the Church, if we constantly violate them, pray that the Lord will have mercy and bring us into the Kingdom of Heaven with the thief. Then we will not go the way that the wicked thief went, remaining wicked to the end and descending to the underworld. From which may the Lord deliver us all. Amen. The Lord uttered a parable about how a master distributed talents to his slaves in accordance with the abilities of each. After some time had passed, he demanded an account from them and rewarded those who had earned as much as they had received. But the one who did nothing and brought only the talent he received, he subjected to severe punishment. The master is the Lord God, the talents are His gifts, the slaves are people. The Lord gives spiritual gifts, gives to individual people, and gives to entire nations. Before the coming of Christ, the words of God were entrusted to Israel. When Israel wavered in faith, when Judah began to fall, the prophet Baruch, a disciple of the prophet Jeremiah, cried out: "This is the book of the commandments of God and the law that endures forever. All who hold to it will live, and those who leave it will die. Turn, Jacob, take it, walk in the brightness of its light! Do not give your glory to another and what is useful to you to a foreign people. Happy are we that we know what pleases God.” (Baruch 4:1–4). However, Israel did not remain in the covenant of God, and, having rejected the Son of God, fell away from God. The Lord founded His New Testament church, which included many former pagan nations. After the victory of Christianity over paganism, Byzantium became a special guardian of Orthodoxy, in which the Ecumenical Councils and the Holy Fathers of the Church established an accurate presentation of the dogmas of faith and Orthodox teaching. After the fall of Byzantium, the Orthodox faith was most preserved by the Russian people, who by that time had already completely absorbed it into themselves. People's life and state laws, customs, everything was based on the Orthodox faith or was consistent with it. One of the personifications of the Orthodox faith are our churches, and the entire Russian land was covered with them. The church itself is already an image of the invisible universal Church, about which we speak in the Creed: “In one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church.” That is why our churches are called churches. The dome rising above the church shows us our aspiration to heaven and reminds us of the heavenly vaults under which our prayer rises to God. It reminds us of the invisible sky, the heavenly kingdom of God. Churches are decorated with icons. Icons are not a simple image of some person or event. An icon is a symbol of the invisible. If we see the outer appearance of Christ and His saints, then the icon should also depict their inner appearance - their holiness. Even secular images often represent one idea or another to us. Take for example the famous monument of Peter the Great in Petrograd, where he is depicted on a horse raising his rider high, which depicts how high he raised Russia in many ways. Many other monuments depict one idea or another. If this is so in secular art, all the more so it should also be in spiritual art, where the highest, heavenly, and spiritual are depicted. An icon is not a portrait; a portrait depicts only the earthly appearance of a person, while an icon also depicts his inner state. Even if you depict only the external appearance, at different moments the images will all be different. His Beatitude Metropolitan Anastassy told how, as a student at the Theological Academy, he and his other peers were in Kronstadt at the services of the righteous Father John. And when Father John finished the liturgy, he looked brightly illuminated, like Moses when he came down from Mount Sinai. After some time, Father John received them in his cell and was like an ordinary person. And our Lord Jesus Christ Himself once showed us His Divine glory on Mount Tabor, and the rest of the time He seemed like an ordinary person, and people wondered where He got such power and miracles. The icon should depict not only the external, but also the internal life, holiness and closeness to heaven. This is mainly depicted in the face and its gaze, and the rest of the icon should be written in accordance with this. All the attention of our Orthodox icon painters was directed to depicting the state of the spirit hidden under the flesh. The better this was done, the better the icon appeared. There were often shortcomings in the depiction of certain parts of the body, not because this was done consciously by the icon painters, but because achieving the main goal did not always allow them to pay enough attention to secondary aspects. However, even if you take ordinary photographs, especially unexpected ones, many would undoubtedly show unnatural positions of human bodies, which we usually do not notice. You cannot paint an icon only depicting the external appearance of the body, but it must display invisible feats and shine heavenly glory. This can be done perfectly by someone who himself lives a spiritual life, and who understands and is close to the lives of the saints. Therefore, our ancient icon painters always did this and prepared for it with fasting and prayer. The Lord gave many icons painted in this way miraculous power. Of course, every icon after consecration must be revered and cannot be treated with disdain and disrespect, which is why we will refrain from making judgments about the icons already standing in churches, but we must always strive for the best, and most importantly, pay attention not so much to the external beauty of the icons, but to their spirituality. Icons that clearly do not meet the requirements of Orthodox iconography cannot be placed in churches and even sometimes in houses. Not everyone with the art and ability to write can paint an icon. Often the mood of the one who paints the icon and the desire to serve God are more important than the art of writing itself. After Peter the Great in Russia, along with the good that was brought from the West, many new influences, alien to the Orthodox spirit, entered into Russia, to which a significant part of the educated Russian class fell, introducing many unhelpful, bad innovations into their creations. This was partially reflected in the icon painting. Instead of imitation of ancient Russian icon painters, imitation of Western artists alien to Orthodoxy began to dominate. The new images, although very beautiful, did not correspond to the spirit of icon painting. A spirit alien to Orthodoxy began to take root in Russia and gradually undermined it. The words of the prophet are now addressed to us: “Do not give your glory to another, or what is useful to you to a foreign people.” Both in life and in church customs, we must return to those solid and pure foundations on which Russia was built and maintained. Our icon painting also reflects them. Icons for our churches should not be painted in a spirit alien to Orthodoxy. Those who claim that Orthodox icons must necessarily be painted dark and with an unnatural body position think incorrectly. Ancient icons were painted with bright light colors and over time they became dark, from time and centuries of dust. But at the same time, we must remember that many saints were indeed dark-skinned, spending their lives in hot deserts, and that indeed many of the bodies were exhausted by many years of exploits. They were famous not for earthly, but for heavenly beauty. May they help with their prayers so that our churches will be a reflection of heavenly glory, and our flock will unite in the search for the kingdom of God and preach the truth of Orthodoxy both through their churches and through their lives. “He (Christ) is the head of the body of the Church” (Col. 7:13) “For His body is the fulfillment fulfilling all things in all” (Eph. 7:22). Repeatedly in Holy Scripture the Church is called the Body of Christ. “I rejoice in my sufferings for you... for His Body, which is the Church” (Col. I, 24) the Apostle Paul writes about himself. Apostles, prophets, evangelists, shepherds and teachers, he says, were given by Christ “for the work of service, for the building up of the Body of Christ.” (Eph. 4:11–12). At the same time, bread and wine are offered into the Body and Blood of Christ during the Divine Liturgy and the faithful partake of them. This is what Christ Himself established, when He gave communion to His Apostles at the Last Supper with the words “Take, eat: this is My body; drink of it, all of you, for this is My blood of the new testament” (Matthew 26:26–28). How is it that both the Church and the Holy Mysteries are the Body of Christ at the same time? Are the faithful themselves members of the Body of Christ - the Church and partake of the Body of Christ in the Holy Mysteries? In both circumstances, the name “Body of Christ” is used not in a figurative, but in the very real meaning of this word. We believe that the Holy Mysteries, preserving the appearance of bread and wine, are the true Body and true Blood of Christ. We also believe and confess that Christ, the Son of the Living God, having come into the world to save sinners, became a true man and His flesh, received from the Virgin Mary, was real human flesh; that in body and soul Christ was a true man, in every way similar to others except sin, while remaining at the same time true God. The divine nature did not diminish or change in the Son of God during His incarnation, just as human nature did not change, but completely retained all its human properties. Unchangeably and unmerged, forever, “inseparably and inseparably,” Divinity and humanity were united in the One Person of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Son of God became man in order to make people partakers of the Divine nature (2 Peter 1:4), in order to free man from sin and death and make him immortal. By uniting with Christ, we will receive divine grace, which gives human nature the strength to overcome sin and death. The Lord Jesus Christ showed people the way to victory over sin through His teaching and grants them eternal life, making them participants in His eternal Kingdom through His Resurrection. In order to receive that Divine grace from Him, the closest communication with Him is necessary. Drawing everyone to Himself with Divine love and uniting them with Himself, the Lord united those who loved Him and those who came to Him with each other, uniting them into One Church. The Church is unity in Christ, the closest unity with Christ of all those who rightly believe in Him and love Him, and the unity of them all through Christ. The Church consists of its earthly and heavenly parts. The Son of God came to earth and became man in order to raise man to heaven, make him again a resident of paradise, returning him to his original state of sinlessness and integrity, and uniting him with Himself. This is accomplished by the action of God’s grace, given through the Church, but it also requires the effort of the person himself. God saves His fallen creation by His love for Him, but man’s love for His Creator is also necessary, without which it is impossible for him to be saved. Striving towards God and clinging to the Lord with its humble love, the human soul receives strength that cleanses it from sins and strengthens it to fight sin until complete victory. The body also participates in that struggle, now being the receptacle and instrument of sin, but destined to be an instrument of righteousness and a vessel of holiness. God created man by breathing a god-like spirit into the animated body He first created from the earth. The body was supposed to be an instrument of a spirit submissive to God. Through it the human spirit manifests itself in the material world. The spirit, through the body and its individual members, reveals its properties and qualities that God gave to it as His image, which is why the body, as a manifestation of the image of God, appears and is called “our beauty created in the image of God” (Verse at the funeral). When the primordial people fell away from their Creator in spirit, the body, until then submissive to the spirit, perceiving its commands through the soul, ceased to obey it and began to strive to dominate it. Instead of the Law of God, the law of the flesh began to dominate in man. Sin, having cut man off from the source of life - God, also cut man himself. The unity of his spirit, soul and body was broken, death entered him. The soul, without drinking the currents of life, could not transmit them to the body. The body became corruptible, languor became the lot of the spirit. Christ came to earth again to restore the fallen image and return it to unity with Him whose image it is. By uniting with Himself, God restores man to his original goodness in all its fullness. By giving grace and sanctification to the spirit, Christ also cleanses, strengthens, heals and sanctifies soul and body. “Being joined to the Lord, there is one spirit with the Lord” (I Cor. 6:17). The body of a person united with the Lord must be an instrument of the Lord, serve to fulfill His will and become part of the Body of Christ. For the complete sanctification of a person, the body of the servant of the Lord must be united with the Body of Christ, and this is accomplished in the sacrament of Holy Communion. The true Body and true Blood of Christ that we have received become part of the great Body of Christ. Of course, for unity with Christ, only the union of our body with the Body of Christ is not enough. Eating the Body of Christ is beneficial when we rush to Him in spirit and unite with Him. Accepting the Body of Christ, while turning away from Him in spirit, is like the touch of Christ by those who beat Him, strangled Him, and crucified Him. Their touch to Him served them not for salvation and healing, but for condemnation. Those who partake with reverence, love and readiness to offer themselves to serve Him are closely united with Him and become an instrument of His Divine will. “He who eats My Body and drinks My Blood abides in Me, and I in him,” said the Lord (John 6:56). Uniting with the Risen Lord and through Him with the entire Ever-Essential Trinity, man draws from Her strength for eternal life and himself becomes immortal. “As the living Father sent Me, and I live for the Father’s sake, and he who eats Me will also live for My sake” (John 6:57). All who believe in Christ and who are united with Him by surrendering themselves to Him and accepting the Grace of God collectively constitute the Church of Christ, the Head of which is Christ Himself, and its members. Christ, invisible to the bodily eye, manifests himself clearly on earth through His Church, just as the invisible human spirit manifests itself through its body. The Church is the Body of Christ both because its parts are united with Christ through His Divine Mysteries, and because through Her Christ acts in the world. We partake of the Body and Blood of Christ (in the Holy Mysteries) in order to ourselves be members of the Body of Christ (Church). It doesn’t happen right away. Full stay in the Church is already a state of victory over sin and complete cleansing from it. Everything sinful to some extent removes us from the Church and from the Church; That is why over every repentant it is read in prayer during confession, “Reconcile, unite the Holy Ones of Your Church.” A Christian, through repentance, is cleansed, united closely with Christ in the communion of the Holy Mysteries, but then the dust of sin settles on him again and alienates him from Christ and the Church, which is why repentance and communion are again needed. Until a person’s earthly life ends, until the very departure of the soul from the body, the struggle between sin and truth continues in him. No matter how high a spiritual and moral state someone has achieved, it is possible for him to gradually or rapidly, deeply fall into the abyss of sin. Therefore, it is necessary for everyone to receive communion of the Holy Body and Blood of Christ, strengthening our communion with Him and irrigating us with the life-giving streams of the Grace of the Holy Spirit flowing throughout the Body of the Church. How important the communion of the Holy Mysteries is is shown by the life of St. Onuphrius the Great, to whom, like other hermits who were in that desert, angels brought Holy Communion; Venerable Mary of Egypt, whose ultimate desire, after many years of desert life, was to receive the Holy Mysteries; St. Savvaty of Solovetsky and many others. It was not in vain that the Lord said: “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you will not have life in you” (John 6:53). Communion of the Body and Blood of Christ is the acceptance of the Risen Christ, the conqueror of death, who gives those who are with Him victory over sin and death. By retaining within ourselves the grace-filled gift of Communion, we have the guarantee and the beginning of the eternal blissful life of soul and body. Until the “Day of Christ”, His Second Coming and Judgment over the whole world, the struggle between sin and truth will continue, both in each individual person and in all of humanity. The earthly Church unites all those reborn through baptism, who have taken up the cross of the struggle against sin and followed the hero of that struggle - Christ. The Divine Eucharist, the offering of a bloodless sacrifice and its communion, sanctifies and strengthens its participants, making those who partake of the Body and Blood of Christ true members of the Body of His Church. But only with death does a person determine whether he remained a valid member of the Body of Christ until his last breath, or whether sin triumphed in him and expelled the grace that he received in the Holy Mysteries and connecting him with Christ. He who has fallen into grace, as a member of the earthly Church, passes from the earthly Church to the Heavenly Church, but he who has fallen away from the earthly Church will not enter the heavenly one, for the earthly part of the Church is the path to the heavenly one. The more a person is under the influence of the grace of communion and is more closely united with Christ, the more he will enjoy communion with Christ in His coming Kingdom. Since sin in a person’s soul continues to act until death, and his body is subject to its consequences, carrying within itself the seeds of illness and death, from which it will be freed only when it disintegrates after the death of a person and rises already free from them on the General Resurrection. He who is united in spirit and body with Christ in this life will be with Him in spirit and body in the life to come. The grace-filled streams of the Life-giving Mysteries of the Body and Blood of Christ are the source of our eternal joy in communion with the Risen Christ and the contemplation of His Glory. The same consequences of sin, which has not yet been completely expelled from the human race, act not only in individual people, but through them they also manifest themselves in the earthly activities of entire parts of the Church. Heresies, schisms, and disturbances constantly appear, alienating some of the faithful. Misunderstandings between local churches, or parts of them, have troubled the Church since ancient times, and prayers for an end to them are constantly heard in Divine services. “We ask for unanimity of the Churches”, “Unification of the Churches” (resurrection canon of the Trinity, chapter 8), “Organize discord for the Church”. “Leave strife to the Church” (Archangel Service. November 8, March 26, July 13) and similar prayers have been offered by the Orthodox Church for centuries. Even on Holy Saturday, before the shroud, the Church cries out: “Who gave birth to the life of the Immaculate and Pure Virgin, quench the temptations of the Church and grant peace, for it is good” (end of Article 2). Only when Christ appears on the clouds will the tempter be trampled underfoot and all temptations and temptations will disappear. Then the struggle between good and evil, between life and death, will end, and the earthly Church will merge into the triumphant Church, in which “all God will be in all” (I Cor. 15:28). In the coming Kingdom of Christ there will no longer be a need for communion with the Body and Blood of Christ, for all those who have been worthy will be in close communion with Him and will enjoy the eternal light of the Life-Giving Trinity, experiencing bliss inexpressible in language and incomprehensible to our weak minds. Therefore, after communion of the Holy Mysteries of Christ during the Liturgy, a prayer is always offered at the altar, sung on Easter days: “Oh, great and most sacred Easter to Christ! Oh! Wisdom and Word of God and Power! Grant us more of You to partake in the eternal days of Your Kingdom.” In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Now before our mind’s eye there are two feasts, about which today’s Gospel readings tell us. One feast described in the parable is given by a king full of goodwill and mercy. However, those invited to it did not come when the feast was ready. They preferred to engage in some purchasing, some with their own economic affairs; others, seizing the messengers, insulted and even killed some. The angry king, having severely punished the guilty, sent his servants again to invite everyone they met to the feast. Many people had gathered, and when the king came to see them, he saw one not in festive clothes. The king asked why he came dressed inappropriately, but he remained silent, thereby expressing contempt for the king and unwillingness to participate in the celebration, for which he was thrown out. So there were many invited to this feast, but few were chosen to take part in the supper. The other feast is not an influx, but a real one. This is the feast of the lawless Herod. Apparently none of those invited refused to come; everyone was dressed festively and enjoyed themselves to their fullest. It took place in drunkenness, revelry, not restrained by shame and conscience, and ended in the greatest crime, the murder of John the Baptist. Those two feasts are images of two orders of life, two kinds of pleasure. The first image of a spiritual feast, spiritual pleasure. It is arranged by the Lord. That feast is the Church of Christ. We are invited to that feast when we are called to participate in Divine services, especially the Divine Liturgy, and to partake of the Divine Body and Blood of Christ, to do good, to pay attention and to be sober. We refuse to go to that feast when we do not come to church services, when we do evil instead of good, when we prefer everyday worries and pleasures to Divine life. We do not come in wedding clothes when we bring an alien, sinful mood into that life. Each of us is invited to that feast many times a day and refuses each time when he prefers the carnal and sinful to the spiritual and Divine. We are also invited to Herod's feast many times a day. We often do not immediately notice that we are being tempted by evil. Sin always starts small. At first, Herod even listened to John the Baptist to his heart's content; he internally recognized the sinfulness of his act, but did not fight against sin and went so far as to kill the greatest Righteous One. We go to Herod’s nasty feast every time when instead of good we choose evil, carnal, sinful pleasures, unmercifulness, inattention to our soul, and so on. Having started small, it is already difficult to stop, and if you do not come to your senses in time and do not make efforts on yourself, you can reach the greatest sins and crimes, followed by eternal torment. And now John the Baptist calls to each of us: “Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.” Repent in order to enjoy in the bright, eternal abodes the supper of the Lamb, slain for the sins of the whole world, and not share with the devil the feast of malice and torment in Tartarus (in the underworld) and pitch darkness. Why was the Prudent Robber pardoned? “One of the evildoers promised to blaspheme Him, saying: If You are Christ, save Yourself and God. And the other answered him better, saying: Do you not fear God, for You are condemned for the same thing; and we, therefore, in righteousness: worthy for the deeds we received: This one has not done a single evil. And Jesus said: Remember me, Lord, when you come into this kingdom, Jesus said to him: Amen, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:39-43). This is how the holy Evangelist Luke tells about a deeply edifying and touching event, about the conversion and pardon by Christ of the thief hanging next to Him on the cross on Calvary. What did the robber deserve such mercy? What caused such a quick and decisive response from the Lord? All the Old Testament righteous people were still in hell, including St. John the Baptist. The Lord Himself was going to go to hell, though not to suffer there, but to bring the prisoners out of there. The Lord has not yet promised anyone to elevate him to the Kingdom of Heaven; he even promised the Apostles that he would take them into His abodes only when He prepared them. Why is it that the robber is the first to receive mercy, why are the doors of heaven opened to him so quickly? Let us delve into the state of mind of the robber and the environment around him. He spent his whole life in robberies and crimes. But apparently his conscience did not die in him and something good remained in the depths of his soul. Tradition even says that he was the same robber who, during the flight of Christ into Egypt, took pity on the beautiful child and did not allow his comrades to kill Him, who together with him attacked the holy family who fled to Egypt. Didn't he now remember the face of that Child when he peered into the face of Him hanging next to him on the cross? But whether this was so or not, in any case, the thief’s glance at Christ awakened his conscience. Now he hung next to the Righteous One, next to “Red in kindness more than the sons of men” (Ps. 41:3), Whose at that time was “dishonored in appearance, more humble than all the sons of men,” having “no appearance lower than glory” (Isaiah 53:2–3). Looking at Him, the robber seemed to wake up from a deep sleep. He clearly saw the difference between Him and himself. He is an undoubted Righteous One, forgiving even His tormentors and praying for them to God, Whom He calls His Father. He is a murderer of many victims, shedding the blood of people who did him no harm. Looking at Him hanging on the cross, it was as if he saw his moral fall in a mirror. All the best that was hidden in him awakened and was looking for a way out. He realized his sins, realized that only his own guilt led him to a sad end and he had no one to blame. Therefore, the angry mood against the executioners, which possessed the thief crucified on the other side of Christ, and initially himself (Matthew 27:44), was replaced in him by a feeling of humility and contrition. He felt the fear of God's judgment coming upon him. Sin became disgusting and terrible for him. At heart he was no longer a robber. Philanthropy and mercy awoke in him. With fear for the fate of his soul, he was combined with disgust for the outrage that was taking place against the innocent Sufferer. Undoubtedly, he had heard before about the great Teacher and Wonderworker from Nazareth. What was happening in Judea and Galilee was the subject of many conversations and discussions throughout the country. Previously, what he heard about Him passed by his attention. Now, finding himself with Him and in the same position as Him, he began to understand the moral greatness of His person. Kindness, forgiveness and the prayer of Christ struck the robber. He realized in his heart that this was no ordinary person next to him. Only one who truly recognized himself as the Son of God could turn to God as His Father in this way at the hour of death. Only one who was in close communication with the source of Love or was Himself could not waver in his teaching about love and forgiveness, enduring all the baseness of human slander and the malice of those to whom he did good deeds. The robber remembered everything that he had heard unusual about the one now crucified with him, and a warm feeling of faith arose in his heart. Yes, undoubtedly He was the Son of God, incarnate on earth, but constantly in communion with His Father, the Son of God, not accepted by the earth and returning to heaven, the Son of God, able to forgive people! He began to hope that he would avoid conviction at a posthumous trial. If Jesus prays to His Father for His crucifiers, He will not reject the one crucified with Him. One must turn to Him so that He, who now shares with him the same fate of bitter suffering, will accept him in His bliss. True, turning to Jesus with words of love and sympathy will be met with ridicule from the surrounding crowd, raging and blaspheming Him. To recognize Him as the righteous and Son of God means to attract the attention and anger of the elders of the Jews. Although they will not be able to inflict more physical torment on him than he already endures, how hard it will be to feel only anger around him, how severe the suffering will become for him when the idle people raging here begin to mock him! However, what is the wrath of earthly authorities to him now, what is human ridicule to him now? No matter how hard it is to be rejected by people at the threshold of death, it is even harder to be rejected by God. He is going to God's judgment and he only needs to fear God! In the last moments of life one must do what is still within one’s power in order to gain God’s favor! Let his words at least somewhat ease the suffering of Christ, so that at least one of those who blaspheme will be ashamed and stop slandering Him. Christ, who promised to reward the cup of water given in His name, will not leave him without reward. Let those who revile Christ also revile him with Him! This will connect him even more closely with Christ! He will share his fate here with Christ, and Christ will not forget him in His glory! And so, amid the noise of loud ridicule, slander and curses, he began to exhort his companion, who was hanging on the left side of Christ, to stop slandering Him. "Aren't you afraid of God, since you are condemned for the same thing? And we are in truth: we accept what is worthy in deeds. But this one has not done a single evil." And then a humble voice was heard from his lips: “Remember me, Lord, when you come into this kingdom.” It was the call of a former robber, and now a new disciple of Christ, who believed in Christ when his former disciples abandoned Him. “The theologian thief, but I was rejected” (sedal voice 5), cried out in sorrow after St. Apostle Peter At that time, all the other Apostles also doubted the Lord. Even St. John the Theologian, who inseparably followed his Teacher and stood at the Cross on Calvary, although he continued to be faithful to Jesus who loved him, did not then have perfect faith in the Divinity of his Teacher: only after the Resurrection, entering the empty tomb, where lay the shrouds and headcloth entwined around the dead Body of Christ, he “saw and believed” that Christ had truly risen and is the Son of God. The apostles wavered in their faith in Jesus as the Messiah, because they expected and wanted to see in Him an earthly King, in whose Kingdom they would be able to sit “at the right hand and on the left” of the Lord. The thief realized that the kingdom of Jesus of Nazareth, humiliated and betrayed to a shameful death, “is not of this world.” But it was precisely this kingdom that the robber was now looking for: the gates of earthly life were closed behind him, and eternity was opening. His calculations with earthly life were over; he was now thinking about eternal life. And at the threshold of eternity, the vanity of earthly glory and earthly kingdoms became clear to him. He realized that greatness lies in righteousness, and in the righteous, innocently tortured Jesus he saw the King of righteousness. He did not ask Him for glory in the earthly kingdom, but for the salvation of his soul. The faith of the thief, born out of admiration for the moral greatness of Christ, turned out to be stronger than the faith of the Apostles, although they were captivated by the height of Christ’s teaching, but they believed in Him even more for the sake of the miracles and signs that came from Him. Now the miraculous deliverance of Christ from his enemies did not take place, and the faith of the Apostles was shaken. But the patience, all-forgiveness and faith shown by Christ that the Heavenly Father hears him so clearly expressed the righteousness of Jesus, His moral height, that having believed in Christ for her sake, it was impossible for those who were looking for spiritual and moral rebirth to be shaken. And this is exactly what the robber, who realized his deep fall, longed for. He did not ask Christ to be in His Kingdom “at his right hand or at his left,” but, realizing his unworthiness, he humbly asked only to “remember him in His Kingdom,” to give him at least the last place. He openly confessed the Crucified Christ as Lord before everyone and asked Him for mercy. Humble faith in Christ made him a confessor. By his will, he was even a martyr, for having not been afraid to recognize as his Lord the rejected “King of the Jews” by all, on Whom was concentrated all the hatred of the countless people who had gathered in those days in Jerusalem from all over the world for the Easter holiday and, together with their elders and priests, blasphemed Christ, he certainly would not have been afraid to suffer for Him. Thus, the deep repentance of the thief gave birth to humility and with it turned out to be a solid foundation for such a firm faith, which Christ’s closest disciples did not possess at that time. The believing robber demonstrated a feat that none of them was capable of at that time. “Everyone who has confessed Me before men, we will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven,” said the Lord Jesus Christ (Matthew 10:32). The thief confessed Christ, confessed Him before the numerous people mocking Him, confessed when no one dared to do so and when even the few disciples and women who remained faithful to Him only testified with bitter tears of their love for Him. The thief did what the three youths once did in Babylon, who refused to bow to the golden image, which Nebuchadnezzar placed in the field of Deir and to which “all peoples, tribes and languages” bowed (Acts 3:7). The thief believed in the Lord of the suffering, “the confession of God in hiding,” before everyone else he knew him and the power of his resurrection, and his participation in His sufferings, conforming to His death (Phil. 3:10), before everyone else he understood what the “Kingdom is not of this world,” he understood “what the truth is” (John 18.36–38). He was the first to understand that there is the Kingdom of Christ, and therefore he was the first to enter it. He was the first to see “Jesus Christ and Him crucified” (I Cor. 2:2), the first to preach “Christ was crucified, a stumbling block to the Jews, and foolishness to the Greeks, but to those who were called Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God” (I Cor. 1:23–4). Therefore, he is the first to experience God’s power and wisdom, the power of the compassionate and regenerating love of Christ, the first “to hear the hearing of the power of the Cross, as if paradise was opened to them” (4th hymn of the canon of the Ascension). Complete repentance for one’s sins and crimes, deep humility, firm faith in the Crucified Lord Jesus Christ who gave Himself to suffer and his confession when the whole world was against Him - this is what the crown that crowned the head of the former robber as a winner and ascetic was woven from, this is what the key that opened the doors of heaven was forged from! Many sin and hope for repentance before death, pointing to the example of the prudent thief. But is anyone capable of a feat like his? “The Lord had mercy on the thief at the last hour, so that no one would despair, but only one thing, so that no one would place too much trust in His mercy” (Blessed Augustine). "This is his end! What ours will be, we don’t know, and what kind of death we will die, we don’t know: will it come suddenly or with some kind of foreknowledge"? (Venerable Theodore the Studite, “Admonition on the Sudden Death of a Brother”). Will we then be able to be morally reborn in an instant and spiritually exalted like the “companion of Christ”, “who let out a small voice and found great faith”? Will sudden death not delight us, leaving us deceived in the hope of repentance before death? (the word of St. Cyril of Alexandria “On the Last Judgment,” printed in the Great Book of Hours). Therefore: “Sinner, do not put off repentance for your sins, lest they pass with you into another life and burden you with an excessive burden” (Blessed Augustine, “Heliotropion” of St. John of Tobolsk, book 4, chapter 5). Let the example of the prudent thief encourage us not to put off repentance, but to “crucify Christ” (Gal. 2:19) and “repent warmly,” so that we too may experience the “mercy of compassion” (Prayer of Simeon the New Theologian). “The flesh having been crucified with passions and lusts” (Gal. 5:24) let us be zealous for our speedy complete internal correction, surrendering ourselves entirely to the will of God and asking Christ for mercy and grace. “O O thief, grant us also repentance, O One who loves mankind, who serve by faith, O Christ our God, and who cry unto Thee: Remember us also in Thy Kingdom” (Blessed are Risen, 4 Tone). “You have made heaven worthy of the prudent thief in one hour, O Lord, and enlighten me with the tree of the cross and save me.” Jesus entered Jericho and passed through it. And so a certain Zacchaeus, the chief of tax collectors and a rich man, sought to see Jesus who He was. But he could not follow the people, because he was small in stature. And running ahead, he climbed up the fig tree to see Him, because He had to pass by it. When Jesus came to this place, he looked, saw him and said: “Zacchaeus, come down quickly, for today I need to be in your house.” And he hastened down and received Him with joy. And everyone seeing this began to murmur and say that He had come to a sinful man. Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord: “Lord, I will give half of my property to the poor, and if I have offended anyone, I will repay him fourfold.” Jesus said: “Now salvation has come to this house, because he too is the son of Abraham, for the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost” (Luke 19:1-10). He is the chief of publicans - “the elder publican.” The usual contrast between the humble publican and the proud Pharisee often obscures the actual outlines of these two images in our consciousness. Meanwhile, in order to correctly understand the gospels, we must clearly present them. The Pharisees were indeed righteous. If in our mouths the name “Pharisee” sounds like condemnation, then in the days of Christ and in the first decades of Christianity this was not the case. On the contrary, the Apostle Paul solemnly confesses himself before the Jews: “I am a Pharisee and the son of a Pharisee” (Acts 23:6). And then to Christians, his spiritual children, he writes: “I am from the family of Israel, from the tribe of Benjamin, a Jew from the Jews, according to the teaching of a Pharisee” (Phil. 3:5). And besides St. Apostle Paul, many Pharisees became Christians: Joseph, Nicodemus, Gamaliel. The Pharisees (in Hebrew - perusim, in Aramaic - pherisim, which means “others” - separated, monks) were zealots of God’s law. They “rested on the Law,” that is, they constantly thought about it, loved it, strove to fulfill it accurately, preached, interpreted it. And the meaning of the Lord’s reproofs against the Pharisees is that the Lord warns them that they depreciate all their feats, all their truly good efforts in God’s eyes, turn them into nothing, and acquire condemnation from the Lord, and not blessing, by their exaltation of the deeds of righteousness they perform, by proud self-exaltation, and most importantly, by the condemnation of their neighbors, a vivid example of which is given by the tributary Pharisee, who says: “Thank you, God, for that I am not like other people.” On the contrary, tax collectors are truly sinners, violators of the basic laws of the Lord. Publicans are tax collectors from Jews in favor of the Romans. We must remember that the Jews, well aware of their exclusive position as God’s chosen ones, were famous for the fact that “we are Abraham’s seed, and have never been slaves to anyone” (John 8:33). And here, as a result of well-known historical events, they found themselves subjugated, enslaved by the proud and rude “iron” people, the pagans, the Romans. And the yoke of this enslavement was drawn tighter and tighter and became more and more sensitive. The most tangible, visual sign of the enslavement and subordination of Jews to the Romans was the payment by Jews of all kinds of taxes to their enslavers - tribute. Bringing tribute for the Jews, as for all ancient peoples, was primarily a symbol of submission. And the Romans, without any hesitation with the conquered people, rudely and decisively collected from them both the required and additional taxes. Of course, the Jews paid with hatred and disgust. No wonder, wanting to discredit the Lord in the eyes of their people, the scribes asked Him: “Is it permissible to give tribute to Caesar?” They knew that if Christ said that it was impossible to give tribute to Caesar, then He would be easily accused before the Romans, and if He said that tribute must be paid, then He would be hopelessly compromised in the eyes of the people. While the Romans ruled Judea through local kings, such as Herod, Archelaus, Agrippa and others, this enslavement to Rome, and in particular the need to pay taxes, was mitigated for the Jews by the fact that they directly obeyed and paid tribute to their kings, and they already obeyed and paid to Rome. But just shortly before the start of the preaching of Christ the Savior, a change occurred in the system of government of Judea. The general census associated with the event of the Nativity of Christ was the first step towards establishing a poll tax on all Roman subjects in this area. At 6 or 7 AD After the displacement of Archelaus, when a personal tax was introduced on all residents of Palestine, the Jews responded to this with the uprisings of the Pharisee Zadok and Judas the Galilean (see Acts 5:37), and only with great difficulty did the high priest Jazar manage to calm the people. Instead of local kings, Roman procurators were appointed rulers of Judea and adjacent regions. To more successfully collect taxes, the Romans also introduced the institution of tax collectors, which had existed in Rome since ancient times. But while in Rome and throughout Italy publicans were recruited from the venerable equestrian class, in Judea the Romans had to recruit publicans from moral rejecters, from Jews who agreed to serve them and force their fellows to pay tribute. Accepting such a position was associated with the deepest moral failure. It was associated not only with national, but above all with religious betrayal: in order to become an instrument of enslavement of God’s chosen people by rude pagans, it was necessary to renounce the hope of Israel, its shrines, its aspirations, especially since the Romans did not take into account the spiritual experiences of their agents: when entering service, publicans had to take a pagan oath of allegiance to the emperor and perform a pagan sacrifice of him spirit (the genius of the emperor). Of course, it was not only the interests of Rome that publicans observed by collecting taxes from their fellow tribesmen. But by pursuing their own selfish goals, enriching themselves at the expense of their enslaved brothers, they made the yoke of Roman oppression even more sensitive, even more unbearably heavy. That's what tax collectors were. That is why they were surrounded by justified hatred and contempt, as traitors to their people, who betrayed not the ordinary people, but God’s chosen people, God’s instrument in the world, the people through whom only revival and salvation could come to humanity. All of the above applies to Zacchaeus to a particular extent, because he was not an ordinary publican, but the chief of publicans - architelonis. Without a doubt, he accomplished everything: he made a pagan sacrifice and a pagan oath, mercilessly collected taxes from his brothers, increasing them in his favor. And he became, as the Gospel testifies, a rich man. Of course, Zacchaeus clearly understood that the hopes of Israel were lost for him. Everything proclaimed by the prophets, loved since childhood, from which every “leader of exclamation”, believing Old Testament soul trembled joyfully, was not for him. He is a traitor, a traitor, an outcast. He has no part in Israel. And then rumors reach him that the Holy One of Israel, proclaimed the Messiah by the prophets, has already appeared in the world and, together with a small group of disciples, is walking through the fields of Galilee and Judea, preaching the gospel of the Kingdom and performing great miracles. Joyful hopes flicker in the hearts of believers. How will Zacchaeus react to this? For him personally, the coming of the Messiah is a disaster. The power of the Romans must come to an end, and the triumphant Israel, of course, will take revenge on him for the damage suffered from him, for the insults and oppression he caused. But even if this is not so, for the Messiah, according to the testimony of the prophet, “comes righteous, the one who saves is meek,” then the triumph of the Messiah should bring him, Zacchaeus, only the greatest shame and deprivation of all the wealth and position that he acquired at the terrible price of his betrayal of God, his native people and all the hopes of Israel. But maybe this is not the case yet. Maybe the new preacher is not the Messiah at all. Not everyone believes in Him. The main enemies of the publicans, and in particular of him, Zacchaeus, the Pharisees and scribes do not believe Him. Maybe all this is just empty popular rumor. Then you can continue to live peacefully as before. But Zacchaeus does not want to establish himself in such thoughts. He wants to see Jesus in order to find out - to know for sure: who is He? And Zacchaeus wants the Preacher walking by to truly be the Messiah Christ. He wants to say with the prophets: “Oh, that you would rend the heavens and come down!”, even if this is connected with a disastrous catastrophe for him - Zacchaeus. It turns out that in his soul there are such depths that he himself had never felt before; there is in him a burning, fiery, scorching, completely selfless love for the “Aspiration of Tongues,” for the image of the meek Messiah outlined by the prophets, who “took upon Himself our infirmities and bore our illnesses.” And when the opportunity arises to see Him, Zacchaeus does not think about himself. In the triumph of the Messiah, for him personally, for Zacchaeus there is disaster and death. But he doesn't think about it. He only wants to see, at least out of the corner of his eye, the One about whom Moses and the prophets foretold. And then Christ passes by. He is surrounded by a crowd. Zacchaeus cannot see Him because he is small. But the thirst, the completely unselfish, extremely selfless thirst of Zacchaeus, to see Christ even from afar, is so boundless, so irresistible that he, a rich man, endowed with position, an official of the Roman Empire, among a hostile crowd that hates and despises him, not paying attention to anything, absorbed only in the ardent desire to see Christ, for this purpose violates all conventions, all external decency, and climbs onto tree, onto the sycamore fig tree growing along the way. And the eyes of the grave sinner - the leader of the traitors and traitors - met the eyes of the Holy One of Israel - Christ the Messiah - the Son of God. Love sees what is inaccessible to an indifferent or hostile gaze. Selflessly loving the image of the Messiah, Zacchaeus was able to immediately recognize Christ the Lord in the passing Galilean Teacher, and the Lord, full of Divine and human love, saw in this Zacchaeus looking at Him from the sycamore branches those spiritual depths that were previously unknown to Zacchaeus himself: the Lord saw that, not in the least obscured by any selfishness, the burning love for the Holy One of Israel in this heart of the traitor can revive and renew it. The Divine voice sounded: “Zacchaeus, struggling with tears: today it is fitting for Me to be in your house.” And moral revival, salvation, renewal came to Zacchaeus and to his entire household. The Son of Man truly came to seek and save what was lost. Lord, Lord, we, like Zacchaeus once, have betrayed You and Your work, deprived ourselves of our part in Israel, betrayed our hope! But may Thy Kingdom, Thy victory and Thy triumph come, even to the shame of us and those like us! Let not Your enemies mock Your inheritance! Even if it is deserved, because of our sins, Your coming will bring us death and condemnation, come Lord, come quickly! But let us, although from afar, see the triumph of Your truth, even if we cannot be participants in it. And have mercy on us, above hope, as you once had mercy on Zacchaeus! (St. Clement of Rome testifies that Zacchaeus subsequently became a companion of St. Apostle Peter, and together with the holy Supreme Apostle he preached in Rome, where he suffered martyrdom for Christ under Nero. According to Christian: he paid the Romans with the greatest good for the greatest evil that they almost committed to him. To the proud capital of the Romans who once seduced and enslaved him, forcing him to renounce all the sacred things of his soul, he comes, liberated and reborn by the grace of our Lord, the Lover of Mankind, and brings Rome not a curse, but the gospel, giving his very life for this.) Today is the week of the Last Judgment and it is natural for us to talk about the Last Judgment and the signs of the end of the world. No one knows that day, only God the Father knows, but signs of its approach are given both in the Gospel and in the Revelation of St. ap. John the Theologian. Revelation speaks about the events of the end of the world and the Last Judgment primarily in images and in secret, but St. the fathers explained it and there is a genuine church tradition, which tells us about the signs of the approaching end of the world and about the Last Judgment. Before the end of earthly life there will be confusion, wars, civil strife, famine, earthquakes. People will suffer from fear, they will die from the anticipation of disasters. There will be no life, no joy of life, but a painful state of falling away from life. But there will be a falling away not only from life, but also from faith, and when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth? People will become proud, ungrateful, denying the Divine Law: along with the falling away from life there will be an impoverishment of moral life. There will be a depletion of good and an increase in evil. St. speaks about this time. ap. John the Theologian in his inspired work called Revelation. He himself says that he “was in the Spirit,” which means that the Holy Spirit Himself was in him when the destinies of the Church and the world were revealed to him in various images, and therefore that is God’s Revelation. He represents the fate of the Church in the image of a woman who was hiding in the desert in those days: she does not appear in life, as now in Russia. In life, those forces that are preparing the appearance of the Antichrist will have a guiding significance. The Antichrist will be a man, and not the devil incarnate. “Anti” is a word that means old, or it means “instead of” or “against.” That person wants to be instead of Christ, to take His place and have what Christ should have had. He wants to have the same charm and power over the whole world. And he will receive that power before the destruction of himself and the whole world. He will have an assistant, the Magician, who, by the power of false miracles, will carry out his will and kill those who do not recognize the power of the Antichrist. Before the death of the Antichrist, two righteous people will appear who will denounce him. The magician will kill them and for three days their bodies will lie unburied and there will be extreme rejoicing of the Antichrist and all his servants, and suddenly those righteous will be resurrected and the entire army of the Antichrist will be in confusion, horror, and the Antichrist himself will suddenly fall dead, killed by the power of the Spirit. But what is known about the man Antichrist. Its exact origin is unknown. The father is completely unknown, and the mother is a nasty imaginary girl. He will be a Jew from the tribe of Dan. An indication of this is that Jacob, dying, said that he, in his descendants, “is a serpent along the way, which will smite the horse and then the rider will fall backward.” This is a figurative indication that he will act with cunning and evil. John the Theologian in Revelation speaks about the salvation of the sons of Israel, that before the end of the world many Jews will turn to Christ, but the tribe of Dan is not in the list of tribes being saved. The Antichrist will be very smart and gifted with the ability to deal with people. He will be charming and affectionate. Philosopher Vladimir Solovyov worked hard to imagine the coming and personality of the Antichrist. He carefully used all the materials on that issue, not only patristic, but also Muslim, and developed such a vivid picture. Before the coming of the Antichrist, the world is already preparing for his appearance. “The secret is already in action” and the forces preparing its appearance are primarily fighting against the legitimate royal power. St. ap. John says that “the Antichrist cannot appear until the “Holder” is removed.” John Chrysostom explains that the “Holder” is the legitimate godly authority. Such power fights evil. The “Mystery” operating in the world does not want this, does not want to fight evil with the power of power: on the contrary, it wants the power of lawlessness and when it achieves this, then nothing will prevent the appearance of the Antichrist. He will not only be smart and charming: he will be compassionate, will do mercy and goodness in order to strengthen his power. And when he strengthens it so much that the whole world recognizes him, then he will reveal his face. He will choose Jerusalem as his capital because it was here that the Savior revealed the Divine teaching and His Personality, and the whole world was called to the bliss of goodness and salvation. But the world did not accept Christ and crucified Him in Jerusalem, and under the Antichrist, Jerusalem will become the capital of the world, which recognized the power of the Antichrist. Having reached the pinnacle of power, the Antichrist will demand from people recognition that he has achieved what no earthly power or anyone could achieve and will demand worship of himself as a higher being, as a god. V. Solovyov well describes the nature of his activities as the Supreme Ruler. He will do something pleasant for everyone, provided that his Supreme Power is recognized. He will provide the opportunity for the life of the Church, will allow it to worship, promise the construction of beautiful churches, subject to recognition of him as the “Supreme Being” and worship of him. He will have a personal hatred of Christ. He will live by this hatred and rejoice in the apostasy of people from Christ and the Church. There will be a massive falling away from the faith, and many bishops will betray their faith and will point to the brilliant position of the Church as justification. Seeking a compromise will be a characteristic mood of people. The directness of confession will disappear. People will subtly justify their fall and gentle evil will support such a general mood, and people will have the skill of deviating from the truth and the sweetness of compromise and sin. The Antichrist will allow people everything, as long as they “fall and bow down to him.” This is not a new attitude towards people: the Roman emperors were also ready to give freedom to Christians if only they recognized his divinity and divine sovereignty, and they tortured Christians only because they confessed “Worship God alone and serve Him alone.” The whole world will submit to him and then he will reveal the face of his hatred of Christ and Christianity. St. John the Theologian says that all who worship him will have a sign on their forehead and right hand. It is unknown whether this will really be a mark on the body, or whether it is a figurative expression of the fact that with their minds people will recognize the need to worship the Antichrist and their will will be completely subordinated to him. During such complete – by will and consciousness – subjugation of the whole world, the mentioned two righteous men will appear and will fearlessly preach the faith and denounce the Antichrist. Holy Scripture says that before the coming of the Savior two “lamps”, two “burning olive trees”, “two righteous people” will appear. They will be killed by the Antichrist with the forces of the Magician. Who are these righteous people? According to Church tradition, there are two righteous people who did not taste death: the prophet Elijah and the prophet Enoch. There is a prophecy that these righteous people who have not tasted death will taste it for three days, and after three days they will be resurrected. Their death will be the great joy of the Antichrist and his servants. Their uprising in three days will lead them into unspeakable horror, fear, and confusion. That's when the world will end. Ap. Peter says that the first world was created from water and perished by water. “Out of water” is also an image of the chaos of physical mass, and perished - by the waters of the flood. “And now the world is being preserved for fire.” “The earth and all the works on it will be burned.” All the elements will ignite. This present world will perish in an instant. In an instant everything will change. And the sign of the Son of God will appear - that is, the sign of the cross. The whole world, which freely submitted to the Antichrist, will “mourn.” It's over. Antichrist has been killed. The end of his kingdom, the struggle with Christ. The end and responsibility for all life, the answer to the True God. Then the Ark of the Covenant will appear from the Palestine mountains - the prophet Jeremiah hid the ark and the Holy Fire in a deep well. When water was taken from that well, it began to glow. But the Ark itself was not found. When we now look at life, those who can see see that everything predicted about the end of the world is being fulfilled. Who is this man – the Antichrist? St. John the Theologian figuratively gives his name 666, but all attempts to understand this designation were in vain. The life of the modern world gives us a fairly clear concept of the possibility of the world burning, when “all the elements will ignite.” This concept is given to us by the decomposition of the atom. The end of the world does not mean its destruction, but its change. Everything will change, suddenly in the blink of an eye. The dead will rise in new bodies - their own, but renewed, just as the Savior was resurrected in His Body, it had traces of wounds from nails and spears, but it had new properties and in this sense was a new body. It is unclear whether it will be a completely new body, or the way man was created. And the Lord will appear in glory on a cloud. How will we see? Spiritual vision. And now, at death, righteous people see what other people around them do not see. The trumpets will sound powerfully and loudly. They will sound the trumpet in souls and consciences. Everything will become clear in the human conscience. The Prophet Daniel, speaking about the Last Judgment, narrates that the Elder Judge is on the throne, and in front of him is a river of fire. Fire is a purifying element. Fire burns sin, burns it and grief, if sin is natural to the person himself, then it burns the person himself. That fire will ignite inside a person: seeing the Cross, some will rejoice, while others will fall into despair, confusion, and horror. So people will immediately be divided: in the Gospel narrative, before the Judge, some stand to the right, others to the left - they were divided by their inner consciousness. The very state of a person’s soul throws him in one direction or another, to the right or to the left. The more consciously and persistently a person strived for God in his life, the greater his joy will be when he hears the word “Come to Me, you who are blessed,” and vice versa, the same words will cause a fire of horror and torment in those who did not want Him, avoided or fought and blasphemed during life. The Last Judgment does not know witnesses or protocol records. Everything is written in human souls and these records, these “books” are revealed. Everything becomes clear to everyone and to oneself, and the state of a person’s soul determines him to the right or to the left. Some go in joy, others in horror. When the “books” are opened, it will become clear to everyone that the roots of all vices are in the human soul. Here is a drunkard, a fornicator - when the body dies, someone will think that sin also died. No, there was an inclination in the soul and sin was sweet in the soul. And if she did not repent of that sin, did not free herself from it, she will come to the Last Judgment with the same desire for the sweetness of sin and will never satisfy her desire. It will contain the suffering of hatred and malice. This is a hellish state. “Gehenna of fire” is an internal fire, a flame of vice, a flame of weakness and malice, and “here there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth” of impotent malice. The Day of Remembrance of the Saints who shone forth in the Russian Land points us to the spiritual sky under which the Russian Land was created and lived. Until St. Prince Vladimir, pagan, scattered, warring tribes lived on Russian soil. St. Prince Vladimir brought them a new faith, a new consciousness, the meaning of life, a new inner state of mind, gave them a new, uniting spirit of life, and so a single people was formed. The very existence of the Russian people is connected with the emergence of spiritual life in them, with the assimilation of the foundations of the Christian worldview: it is pointless to look for the meaning and purpose of life in earthly life, which ends in death. We must strive to assimilate the Divine, grace-filled, eternal life, and then this temporary, earthly life will also be established: “Seek first the Kingdom of God and His Truth, and all this will be added to you.” Faith, the Orthodox Church, united disparate tribes into one people, and the most essential property of the Russian people was faith in the Kingdom of God, the search for it, the search for truth. For the sake of the Kingdom of God, for the sake of participation in it, for the sake of prayer, Russian ascetics left the bustle of the world, into the forests, onto uninhabited islands. They were looking only for the Kingdom of God, they did not want to create or build anything, they left people, but people followed them, for the sake of the Kingdom of God, which was on those islands and forests around the righteous, and so laurels and monasteries grew. The search for truth is the main thread in the life of the Russian people, and it is no coincidence that the first written set of laws, which was supposed to streamline life, was called “Russian Truth”. But not only those who left the world and people thought about heaven, about the Kingdom of God, all believing Russian people understood the meaning of life. All who truly built Russia as a state, living in the world and fulfilling their duties, also considered the most important thing to be faithful to the Divine Kingdom and Divine Truth. In Russia there were princes, generals, masters, people of all kinds and occupations, but their main understanding and desire and meaning of life was also the acquisition of the Kingdom of God, participation in it. St. Alexander Nevsky spent his entire life in military and state exploits, rode on horseback through all of Siberia to the Tatar Khan to establish peace in Russia, became famous for his military victories, but when he fell ill and death came, he accepted it as liberation from the labors of earthly life and surrendered to what was dearest to his soul and took monastic vows in order to enter the coveted Kingdom of God no longer as an earthly warrior, but as a warrior of Christ. Prince Theodore of Smolensk also became a monk before his death. Such spiritual leaders of the Russian people, in their striving for the Kingdom of God, are the best exponents of the main feature of the spiritual life of the people, the main force that directed their historical life. The assimilation of the Christian faith also reborn the Russian princes. Power is always an expression of consciousness and will. Power is always guided by one philosophy or another, one or another understanding of the purpose and meaning of life and its activities. Before Vladimir the Saint, Russian princes were leaders of warring tribes and waged wars for the sake of military booty and glory. Having become Christians, they became leaders of individual parts of a single people. With the adoption of Christianity came consciousness and a sense of unity. There was truth in the brotherhood of princes and the internecine war became a lie. St. Prince Vladimir gave the Russian people a new meaning of life and new vitality. Disasters, failures, defeats are powerless before the main force of life, powerless before spiritual life. The Kingdom of God and the spiritual joy of participating in it remain unaffected. A terrible storm passes and man lives again. This is how the martyrs smiled from the joyful feeling of God’s grace during the most cruel torment. Hence the vitality of Russia. Calamities do not strike her heart. The Tatars burned all of Russia. Kyiv fell and in the same year Novgorod rose and the Great commander and leader of the Russian people, the Blessed Prince Alexander Nevsky, raised the Russian people to fight not against the Tatars, who tortured the body of Russia, but against the Catholic Swedes, who, taking advantage of Russia’s misfortune, wanted to capture the soul of the Russian people and kill the spiritual strength of the Russian people and Russia. For Alexander Nevsky, it was necessary, first of all, to preserve that spiritual strength. The history of the rise of Moscow is a clear confirmation of the same idea. In its inception, Moscow was a small local association. But at its head are the noble princes who have mastered the indicated Orthodox understanding of the truth, and therefore, when St. Metropolitan Peter told the prince that Moscow would be exalted and the Saint himself would live and be buried there, if the prince built the House of the Most Holy Theotokos in Moscow, then the prince fulfills this covenant. In other words. Saint Peter said that if you are completely faithful to Orthodoxy and first of all you seek the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, then all this, everything worldly, everyday, and state will be added to you. This was Moscow’s plan and it was faithful to the covenant of St. Peter and the night military watch roll call on the Kremlin walls was done with the words: “Most Holy Theotokos, save us.” This does not mean that both life and people were holy! Oh no! People are always sinful, but it is important, but salutary, when there is a consciousness of good and evil, when there is a desire for truth, because then there can be an uprising. Sinful Moscow, the capital of sinful Russia, fell to the bottom in its historical life, but rose because the consciousness of truth did not die. In troubled times, Russia fell so much that all her enemies were sure that she was mortally struck. In Russia there was no Tsar, power and troops. In Moscow, foreigners had power. People became “exhausted,” weakened, and looked for salvation from foreigners, whom they fawned over. Death was inevitable, and Russia would inevitably have perished if the consciousness of Truth had been completely lost. But Russia, the Russian people, was saved by Saint Hermogenes. The enemies of Russia kept him in a basement, in the Kremlin, mocked him, tortured him, and tried to make him submit to them, betraying the Russian understanding of truth. Saint Hermogenes was tortured to death, but did not give up spiritually and called Russia to its historical path of a Christian state with Christian power, called to remember the truth and be faithful to it. Saint Hermogenes, in faith and confession, spiritually and morally revived the Russian people and they again took the path of seeking the Kingdom of God and its Truth, the truth of subordinating earthly state life to the spiritual principle, and Russia rebelled. In history it is impossible to find such a depth of the fall of the state and such a quick, miraculous uprising within a year, when people rebelled spiritually and morally. This is the history of Russia, this is its path. After Peter I, public life deviated from the Russian Path. Although she did not deviate completely, she lost the clarity of consciousness of the truth, the clarity of faith in the Gospel Truth “Seek first of all the Kingdom of God and His Truth.” The grave suffering of the Russian people is a consequence of Russia’s betrayal of itself, its path, its calling. But those severe sufferings, the melancholy of life under the rule of fierce atheists show that the Russian people have not completely lost the consciousness of the truth, that the untruth of a godless state and godless government is spiritually and morally difficult for them. Russia will rise just as it rebelled before. Will rise when faith flares up. When people rise spiritually, when they again have a clear, firm faith in the truth of the Savior’s words: “Seek first the Kingdom of God and His Truth, and all these things will be added to you.” Russia will rise when it loves the Faith and confession of Orthodoxy, when it sees and loves the Orthodox righteous and confessors. Today, on the day of all Saints who have shone in the Russian land, the Church points them out, and the Orthodox see with spiritual delight how many there are in the Kingdom of God! And there are countless others who have not yet been glorified. Here Metropolitan Vladimir of Kyiv goes silently and fearlessly to his death. The murderers take him out of the gates of the Lavra to kill him outside the city, as they killed the Lord the Savior, and the saint silently, like a lamb of the slaughter, will accept death for Christ, for the Faith, for the Russian Church, for the fact that he sought first of all to acquire the Kingdom of God, eternal life. There are many martyrs and confessors, and again we see God’s blessing over their feat of faith, and again the appearance of incorruptible relics: the bodies of the righteous who already live according to the laws of the future life, where there is no suffering and corruption, and the incorruptibility of the relics testifies to this. Thus, the incorruptible remains of Grand Duchess Elizabeth Feodorovna, resting in the Gethsemane monastery, testify to us her righteousness in the eyes of God. Russia will rise when it lifts its gaze and sees that all the Saints who have shone in the Russian land are alive in the Kingdom of God, that they have the spirit of eternal life and that we need to be with them and spiritually touch and partake of their eternal life. This is the salvation of Russia and the whole world. In Russia there is no spirit of life, no joy of life. Everyone is afraid of him, as they are afraid of demons. Russia was also terrible to other powers, but because it attracted peoples to itself. Loyalty to the commandment “Seek first the Kingdom of God and His Truth” was created by Russian humility, it humbled the authorities, and in the days of greatest earthly glory, the Russian authorities, through the mouth of Emperor Alexander I, confessed themselves as Christian authorities and wrote on the monument to their glory: “Not to us, not to us, but to Your Name.” The Russian sky, the Russian saints call us to be with them, as they are with us. They are calling to join the spirit of eternal life, and the whole world thirsts for that spirit. A restored Russia is needed by the whole world, from which the spirit of life has departed and it is all shaking in fear, as if before an earthquake. Russia is waiting for a Christ-loving army, Christ-loving Kings and leaders who will lead the Russian people not for earthly glory, but for the sake of loyalty to the Russian Path of Truth. “Not to us, not to us, but to Your Name.” In repentance, in faith, in purification, may the Russian land be renewed and may holy Russia arise. After the death of Saul, who fell on his sword during the battle with the Philistines, one Amalekite ran to inform David, who was being persecuted by Saul at that time. Assuming that David would be very pleased with the news brought, he decided to impersonate Saul’s murderer in order to further increase the expected reward. However, after listening to the story invented by Amalek about how he, at the request of the wounded Saul, killed him, David grabbed his clothes and tore them, and all the people who were with him did the same. They wept and wept and fasted until evening. “And David said to the boy who told him, “Where are you from?” And he answered, “I am the son of a stranger from Amalek.” Then David said to him, “How were you not afraid to raise your hand to kill the Lord’s anointed?” and ordered one of the servants to kill him. At the same time, David said: “Your blood is on your head, for your mouth testified against you when you said: “I have killed the Lord’s anointed” (II Samuel 1:1-16). This is how a foreigner was executed, posing as the murderer of Saul. He was cruelly executed, although Saul did a lot of evil, for which the Lord abandoned him, and he was the persecutor of the innocent David. From David’s words it is clear that he doubted the veracity of the Amalekite’s story and was not sure that he was the murderer of Saul, however, he put him to death, considering even calling himself a regicide and boasting about this act worthy of death. How much more serious and sinful is the murder of the Orthodox Anointed of God, how much greater the punishment should lie on the murderers of Tsar Nicholas II and His Family?! In contrast to Saul, who retreated from God and was therefore abandoned by Him, Tsar Nicholas II is a model of piety and complete devotion to the will of God. Having received not the Old Testament libation of oil on the head, but the gracious “Seal of the gift of the Holy Spirit” in the Sacrament of Confirmation, Emperor Nicholas II was faithful to his high rank until the end of his life and was aware of his responsibility before God. Emperor Nicholas II gave an account to his conscience in every action, and eternally “walked before the Lord God.” “The most pious” in the days of his earthly prosperity, not only in name, but also in deed itself, during the days of his trials He showed patience similar to the patience of the righteous Job. The hands of criminals rose against such and such a King, and, moreover, even when He was purified from the trials he endured, like gold in a furnace, and was an innocent sufferer in the full sense of the word. The crime against Tsar Nicholas II is even more terrible and sinful because His entire Family, innocent children, were killed along with Him! Such crimes do not go unpunished. They cry out to Heaven and bring down God's wrath on earth. If a foreigner - the imaginary murderer of Saul - was put to death, the entire Russian people are now suffering for the murder of the defenseless Tsar-Sufferer and His family, who committed a terrible crime and remained silent when the Tsar was subjected to humiliation and imprisonment. A deep awareness of the sinfulness of what we have done and repentance before the memory of the Tsar-Martyr is required of us by God’s truth. Memory of the innocent princes of St. Boris and Gleb awakened the conscience of the Russian people during the appanage unrest and shamed the princes who started discord. Blood of St. Grand Duke Igor produced a spiritual revolution in the souls of the people of Kiev and united Kiev and Chernigov by the veneration of the murdered holy prince. St. Andrew Bogolyubsky with his blood sanctified the autocracy of Russia, which was established much later than his martyrdom. All-Russian veneration of St. Mikhail Tverskoy healed the wounds on the body of Russia caused by the struggle between Moscow and Tver. Glorification of St. Tsarevich Dimitri clarified the consciousness of the Russian people, breathed moral strength into them and, after severe upheavals, led to the revival of Russia. Tsar-Martyr Nicholas II with His long-suffering family is now included in the ranks of those Passion-Bearers. The greatest crime committed against Him must be atoned for by ardent veneration of Him and glorification of His feat. Before the Humiliated, Slandered and Tortured, Russia must bow, as the people of Kiev once bowed before the Reverend Prince Igor, who was martyred by them, as the people of Vladimir and Suzdal did before the murdered Great Prince Andrei Bogolyubsky! Then the Passion-Bearer Tsar will have boldness towards God, and His prayer will save the Russian land from the disasters it endures. Then the Tsar-Martyr and His Compassionate Ones will become the new heavenly defenders of Holy Russia. Innocently shed blood will revive Russia and overshadow it with new glory! THE SPIRITUAL STATE OF THE RUSSIAN EMIGRATION 2 The consequence of the collapse of the Russian State was the emergence of Rus' Abroad. More than a million Russians were forced to leave their homeland and scatter across the entire face of the globe. Living in new conditions, among other peoples, many of the Russians over the past years have managed to almost forget their Fatherland, their language and their customs and merge with the masses among whom they live. The overwhelming majority, however, not only preserved their nationality, but also live in the hope of returning to their homeland after the fall of the current government. Currently, Russians live all over the world. There is no corner on earth where there are not more or less Russian people. The important question is: what do Russians abroad represent spiritually? A significant portion of Russians who have gone abroad belong to the intelligent class that has recently lived by the ideas of the West. Belonging to the number of children of the Orthodox Church, professing themselves to be Orthodox, people of that circle in their worldview significantly deviated from Orthodoxy. The main sin of people of that class was that they did not base their beliefs and way of life on the teachings of the Orthodox faith, but tried to reconcile the rules and teachings of the Orthodox Church with their habits and desires. Therefore, on the one hand, they had very little interest in the essence of the Orthodox teaching, often even considering the completely dogmatic teaching of the Church to be unimportant; on the other hand, they fulfilled the requirements and rituals of the Orthodox Church, but only insofar as this did not interfere with their European rather than Russian way of life. Hence the disdainful attitude towards fasting, visiting churches only for a short time, and even then to satisfy more aesthetic than religious feelings, and a complete misunderstanding of religion as the main basis of human spiritual life. Many, of course, were internally disposed differently, but not many had the fortitude and skill to reveal this externally, in life. In the social sphere, he also lived with the ideas of the West. Without at all giving any place to the influence of the Church, he sought to rebuild the entire life of Russia, especially in the field of public administration, according to Western models. Therefore, recently there has been a particularly fierce struggle with state power, and the need for liberal reforms and a democratic structure in Russia has become, as it were, a new faith, not to profess which meant to be backward. Using slander against the Royal Family, widespread throughout Russia, to fight the monarchy, and also seized by a thirst for power, the intelligentsia brought Imperial Russia to collapse and prepared the way for communist power. Not reconciling herself with the thought of losing the long-awaited power, she declared a fight against the communists, at first, mainly because of her reluctance to cede power to them. The struggle against Soviet power then spread to wide circles of the population, especially attracting young people who, in a fervent impulse, sought to recreate “One, Indivisible Russia” at the cost of their lives. Many feats were performed that captured the valor of the Christ-loving Russian army. However, the Russian people were still unprepared for liberation and the communists turned out to be the winners. The intelligentsia were partly destroyed, and partly fled abroad, saving their lives. Meanwhile, the communists fully revealed their identity and, in addition to the intelligentsia, many people from other strata also left Russia, partly to save their lives, and partly ideologically not wanting to serve the communists. The Russian people who found themselves abroad experienced great emotional turmoil. A significant change occurred in the souls of the majority, marked by a massive return of the intelligentsia to the Church. Many churches abroad are filled primarily with it. The intelligentsia became interested in issues of spiritual life and began to take an active part in church affairs. Many circles and societies have formed that have set religious and educational tasks, whose members study the Holy Scriptures, the works of the Holy Fathers and, in general, spiritual life and theological issues. Many of them took holy orders. However, all those encouraging phenomena also had a negative side. Not everyone who turned to faith accepted it in the fullness of Orthodox teaching. The proud mind could not agree that he was still on the wrong path. Efforts began to harmonize Christian teaching with the previous views and ideas of the converts. Hence the emergence of a number of new religious and philosophical movements, often completely alien to church teaching. Among them, Sophianism, which is based on the recognition of the intrinsic value of man and expresses the psychology of the intelligentsia, has become especially widespread. Sophianism, as a teaching, is known to a relatively small circle of people; very few adhere to it openly. But a significant part of the emigrant intelligentsia is spiritually akin to it, for the psychology of Sophianism is the veneration of a person who is not a humble servant of God, but is himself a little god who has no need to be blindly obedient to the Lord God. The feeling of subtle pride associated with the belief in the possibility for a person to live by his own wisdom is very characteristic of many cultural people today, who put their own conclusions above all else and do not want to be obedient to the teachings of the Church in everything, treating Her condescendingly - well. Thanks to this, the Church Abroad was shocked by a number of schisms that harm it to this day and have drawn even part of the hierarchy into itself. That consciousness of a sense of personal dignity is also manifested in public affairs, where everyone who has advanced at least a little from the ranks, or who thinks that he has advanced, puts his own opinion above all else and strives to become a leader. Thanks to this, Russian society was divided into countless parties and groups, irreconcilably at odds with each other and striving to implement their own program, sometimes representing a very developed system, and sometimes just a call to follow this or that person. Hoping to save and revive Russia through the implementation of their programs, public figures almost always lose sight of the fact that in addition to human actions, the Finger of God is manifested in historical events. The Russian people as a whole committed great sins that were the cause of real disasters, namely perjury and regicide. The public and military leaders refused obedience and loyalty to the Tsar even before His abdication, forcing the latter from the Tsar, who did not want internal bloodshed, and the people clearly and noisily welcomed what was happening, without loudly expressing their disagreement with it anywhere. Meanwhile, here a violation of the oath taken to the Sovereign and His legal heirs was committed, and in addition, the oaths of the ancestors - the Zemsky Council of 1613 - fell on the head of those who committed that crime, which sealed its decrees with a curse for those who violated it. It is not only the physical perpetrators who are guilty of the sin of regicide, but also the entire people, who rejoiced on the occasion of the overthrow of the Tsar and allowed Him to be humiliated: arrest and exile, leaving them defenseless in the hands of criminals, which in itself predetermined the end. Thus, the disaster that befell Russia is a direct consequence of grave sins and its revival is possible only after cleansing from them. However, there is still no real repentance, the crimes committed are clearly not condemned, and many active participants in the revolution continue to claim that it was impossible to do otherwise then. Without expressing a direct condemnation of the February revolution, the uprising against the Anointed One, the Russian people continue to participate in sin, especially when they defend the fruits of the revolution, for, according to the Apostle Paul, those who know “that those who do something are worthy of death are especially sinful; however, they not only do them, but also approve of those who do them” (Rom. I, 32). By punishing, the Lord at the same time shows the Russian people the path to salvation, making them a preacher of Orthodoxy throughout the universe. The Russian dispersion introduced Orthodoxy to all corners of the world, for the Russian refugee mass, in large part, is unconsciously a preacher of Orthodoxy. Everywhere Russians live, they build small, refugee, or even majestic churches, and often serve in premises adapted for that purpose. The majority of Russian refugees are not familiar with religious movements among their intelligentsia and feed on the spiritual reserves that have accumulated in their homeland. The broad masses of refugees attend the service, part of it, and actively participate in it, helping with their singing and reading in the choir and serving. Church cells were created near the churches, taking care of the maintenance and splendor of the churches, and often also engaging in charitable work. Looking at the churches filled with pilgrims on holidays, one might think that Russian people have really turned to the Church and are repenting of their sins. However, if we compare the figures of those attending churches with the number of Russians living in a given area, it turns out that about a tenth of the Russian population regularly attends church, approximately the same number attend services on major holidays, and the rest either very rarely, on some occasions, go to church, and occasionally perform home prayer, or have completely left the church. The latter sometimes happens deliberately under the influence of sectarian or other anti-religious influences, and in most cases people simply do not live by spiritual needs, become callous and coarse in soul and often reach real nihilism. The vast majority of Russian people live a hard life, full of difficult emotional experiences and material deprivations. No matter how hospitably we are treated in some countries, especially in our brotherly Yugoslavia, whose government and people are doing everything possible to testify to their love for Russia and soften the grief of Russian exiles, yet Russians everywhere feel the bitterness of deprivation of their Motherland. The whole environment around them reminds them that they are aliens and must adapt to customs that are often alien to them, feeding on the crumbs that fall from the meals of those who sheltered them. Even in those countries where we are treated with complete goodwill, naturally, in the distribution of labor, first place is given to the owners of the country, and newcomers, given the current difficult situation in most countries, cannot often earn a living. Those of them who are relatively well off are still forced to constantly feel their lack of rights and the lack of bodies that can protect them from injustice. Only a comparatively very small part of them completely merged with local society, but this is often associated with complete alienation from their native people and their country. In such a difficult condition in all respects, Russian people abroad showed exceptionally high qualities of patience, endurance and self-sacrifice. As if forgetting about the former excellent living conditions for many, their services to the Motherland and the countries allied with it during the Great War, about their education and everything else that could encourage them to strive for the comfort of life, Russian people in exile took up all kinds of occupations and work in order to ensure themselves the opportunity to exist abroad. Former nobles and generals became simple workers, artisans and small traders, not disdaining any kind of work and remembering that no work is humiliating if it is not associated with immoral acts. In this respect, the Russian intelligentsia showed not only the ability to preserve its vital energy in all circumstances and defeat everything that stands in the way of its existence and development, but also showed that it has high spiritual qualities - the ability to humble itself and endure. The school of refugee life has morally regenerated and elevated many. We must give honor and respect to those who bear their cross of refugee, performing unusually difficult work for them, living in conditions that they have never known or thought about before, and at the same time remain strong in spirit, preserve the nobility of the soul and ardent love for their fatherland and without grumbling, repenting of previous sins, enduring the test. Truly, many of them, both men and wives, are now more glorious in their dishonor than in the days of their glory, and the spiritual wealth they have now acquired is better than the material wealth left in their homeland, and their souls, like gold purified by fire, have been purified in the fire of suffering and burn like bright lamps. But with regret it must be noted that suffering did not have such an effect on everyone. Many turned out not to be gold or expensive metal, but reeds and hay, perishing in the fire. Many were not purified and became whiter through suffering, and, unable to withstand the trials, they became worse than they were. Some have become embittered and do not understand that, being punished by God, we must be consoled by remembering that there are no children who would never suffer punishment, that God, while punishing us, looks at us as sons and daughters who must be corrected with punishment. Forgetting about their previous sins, instead of repentance, such people add sins to sins, claiming that there is no benefit to being righteous, that God either does not look at human affairs, turning His face away from them, or even that “there is no God.” In their imaginary righteousness, believing that they suffer innocently, they are proud in heart more than the highly praised Pharisee, but often surpass the tax collectors in their lawlessness. In their bitterness against God, they are in no way inferior to the persecutors of faith in our homeland and in the way of their thoughts they are completely akin to them. Therefore, some of their ardent opponents have already become their friends here in exile, have become their open or secret servants and are trying to seduce their brothers, while others do not see any further meaning to existence, deliberately surrender to vices, or, not finding joy in anything, commit suicide. There are others who have not lost faith in God and consciousness of their sinfulness. But their will was completely broken and they became like reeds blown by the wind. Outwardly, they are similar to the previous ones, which were just mentioned, but internally they differ from them in that they are aware of the abomination of their behavior... However, not finding the strength to fight their weaknesses, they sink lower and lower, become slaves to intoxicating drinks or indulge in the use of drugs and become incapable of any work. It is sad to see how some once worthy and respected people descend almost to the point of dumbness and believe that the whole meaning of their existence is in satisfying their weaknesses, with their only occupation being to find means for this purpose. No longer having the ability to earn money themselves, they often look greedily at the hands of those passing by, and having received something, they immediately strive to satisfy their passion. Only the faith hidden in the depths of many of these fallen souls, combined with self-condemnation, gives hope that not all of them are completely lost to eternity. Better than they are outwardly, but perhaps far from better inwardly, are many who live, observing all the rules of decency and decency, but have burned their conscience. Occupying sometimes very well-paid positions, having even managed to acquire a position for themselves in the society in which they now find themselves, it is as if they, along with their Motherland, have lost their internal moral law. Imbued with selfishness, they are ready to do harm to anyone who stands in the way of their further success. They are deaf to the suffering of their compatriots, sometimes even trying to seem to have nothing in common with them. Without hesitation, they intrigue against others and slander them in order to eliminate them from their path, and they do this precisely in relation to exiles of the Motherland like themselves, as the most defenseless people. There are those who try to seem completely estranged from their former Fatherland in order to gain the favor of their new fellow citizens. Usually such people with an empty soul, have no restraining law inside, which is why they are capable of all sorts of crimes from which benefits can be expected if they assume that they will not be detected. Therefore, to our shame, in almost all the countries of dispersion, many abuses and crimes have been committed by people with Russian names, because of which the Russians began to be treated with less trust and for the sake of such our name is blasphemed among the people. The decline of morals among us is especially evident in the area of ​​family relationships. Something is happening there that no one would have believed 25 years ago. The sanctity of marriage seemed to cease to exist and marriage turned into an ordinary transaction. Many respectable spouses, who lived for decades in a happy, seemingly indestructible marriage, dissolved their marriage bonds and formed new ones. Some did this out of passion, others because of the benefits of new marriages. All sorts of reasons and grounds are sought for the dissolution of marriages, and often lies are revealed even under oath. Newly entered into marriages, both among older people and among young people, do not differ in any way. Petitions for dissolution of marriages a few months after their conclusion have become commonplace. The slightest misunderstanding and disagreement is now a reason for ending a marriage, because the consciousness of the sinfulness of breaking a marriage has been lost. The church authorities have widely condescended to the weaknesses of the current generation, significantly facilitating the conditions for the dissolution of marriages. However, licentiousness seems to know no limits, bypassing even existing rules. After the divorce, they quickly enter into a new, equally fragile one, and then often into a third. Not being able to satisfy all their lusts through marriage and not paying attention to any church and moral laws, many go even further, not even considering it necessary to turn to the Church for the blessing of their bonds. In countries where civil laws allow the registration of marriages and do not require compulsory church marriage, it is becoming increasingly common to enter into cohabitation without a church wedding, as well as the termination of family relationships through a civil divorce, even if the marriage was married in a church. At the same time, it is forgotten that the sinfulness of the matter does not decrease because it was given a more decent name and that any cohabitation that is not sanctified by a church wedding is fornication or adultery. Many openly live lawlessly, not caring at all to in any way cover up their obvious debauchery. Some do this out of passion, others for the benefits received from their cohabitation; Having suppressed all shame within themselves, they do not hesitate to appear everywhere in society with their male and female partners, whom they dare to call their spouses. It is especially regrettable that recently people have begun to look at such phenomena with indifference, without expressing any negative attitude towards such phenomena, which is why they are becoming more frequent all the time, because there are no longer any barriers holding them back. What, according to church rules, is punishable by excommunication from communion for seven or more years, according to civil laws - a restriction in civil rights, and which was branded with contempt by society until recently, has now become a common occurrence among even people who religiously attend church and want to take part in church affairs, which, according to church rules, with such a way of life, they do not have the right to do. What can we say after that about those who are less influenced by the church! How low the morality of some of our compatriots has fallen, when some became ordinary visitors, while others became inhabitants of dens of immorality. Indulging in something worse than bestial life, they dishonor the Russian name and bring the wrath of God upon the present generation. The future generation, youth and children, are growing up observing such immoral lessons from their elders. But in addition, before the entire future generation as a whole, the current generation is committing a great sin by devoting too little to its upbringing. If before the Motherland had a significant influence on the upbringing of children, everyday life and way of life had a significant influence, but now, without this, children could be raised well only with special attention to this from parents and elders. Meanwhile, we can observe the opposite: very little attention is paid to raising children, not only on the part of parents, who are often busy looking for a means of living, but also on the part of the entire foreign Russian society as a whole. Although Russian schools have been created in some places, which do not always satisfy their purpose, most Russian children abroad study in foreign schools, where they study neither the Orthodox Law of God nor the Russian language. They grow up completely strangers to Russia, not knowing its real wealth. In some places there are Sunday schools or other Russian schools for children to acquire knowledge that they cannot get in foreign schools, and some Russian organizations also do this to some extent. However, we have to sadly admit that parents care little about sending their children there, and not only poor parents are to blame for this, but even more so, rich parents. Over the past years, despite the difficult conditions for Russians, many have managed to save or create a significant fortune for themselves. There are also those among us who were able to withdraw significant sums from Russia, or who had capital abroad even before and have kept it to this day. Although among them there are many people who generously help their brothers and the all-Russian cause, the majority are busy only with their own personal affairs. Callously treating the misfortune of their compatriots, whom they look down on, they are busy increasing their wealth, and spend their free time on entertainment and fun, often surprising with their wastefulness foreigners who refuse to believe that there could be needy Russians if there are such rich people among them, and who are indignant if Russians turn to them for help. Indeed, with greater national self-awareness and understanding of one’s duty to the Motherland, much more could be created abroad. Now we have only a very insignificant part of what we could have, and even those few of our charitable and educational institutions are supported more by donations from foreigners than from Russians. Due to this, most of our institutions do not have sufficient funds, and Russian people who have wealth, instead of coming to their aid, prefer to use homogeneous foreign institutions, contributing their capital to them, while Russian institutions are used by those who are less wealthy. It is a shame for us that Russian people who have the means often raise their children in foreign schools, which cannot give the children anything for the Orthodox worldview and knowledge of the Motherland, even with the best provision. They do not provide any assistance to Russian schools, and besides, they do not care to fill the gaps in national education for their children, having the financial opportunity to do so. Many parents are completely indifferent to the future worldview of their children and some, due to poverty, taking advantage of scholarships, and others even having significant sums themselves, send their children to educational institutions that directly set themselves the task of raising their children in a spirit contrary to Orthodoxy. Various colleges, where a certain religious, but non-Orthodox education is carried out, are overcrowded with Russian children sent there either by rich parents who see only the external side of education, or by poor people who were flattered by the free education of their children, and therefore provide the children to the institution as it wishes. It is difficult to say which children will be more unhappy in the future, whether they are them or completely abandoned children, of whom there are also quite a few abroad. Often not knowing their father, abandoned by their mothers, they wander around big cities, begging for food, and then learning to get it by stealing. Gradually they become professional criminals and sink lower and lower morally. Many of them will end their lives in prison or on the gallows. But those unfortunates will not be asked as much in the future life as those who, having been educated in excellent colleges, will become the worst enemies of Russia. We have to foresee in advance that in the future Abroad will give many conscious workers against Orthodox Russia, who will strive to Catholicize it or plant various sects, as well as those who, while remaining outwardly Orthodox and Russian, will secretly work against Russia. A significant part of those who are now being educated in foreign schools, especially conventions, although of course not all of them, will turn out to be such apostates and traitors to their Motherland. It will not be they alone who will be to blame for this, but even more so their parents, who did not protect them from such a path and did not instill in their souls firm devotion to Orthodoxy. Striving only to provide for their children in this life and therefore choosing for them a school that, as it seems to them, can give them the greatest future, such parents do not pay attention to the souls of their children and become the culprits of their future downfall and betrayal of faith and the Motherland. Such parents are criminals before Russia and greater criminals than their children, often lured into a new faith at an unconscious age, and then raised in the spirit of hatred of Orthodoxy. Similar criminals, who also deserve deep contempt, are those who personally betray the Orthodox faith in order to secure for themselves a more advantageous position or a well-paid service. Their sin is the sin of Judas the traitor, and the position or benefits they received by betraying the Faith are Judas’s pieces of silver. Let some of them not claim that they did this after becoming convinced that Orthodoxy is not the truth, and that they will try to serve Russia by professing their new faith. Russia was created and exalted by Orthodoxy, and only Orthodoxy will save Russia. Like those who betrayed Her in the hard times of 1612, new traitors should not be allowed to build a new Russia and even be allowed into Her borders. What will the Abroad in general give for the future given the prevailing disintegration in it? Will it become a source of new spiritual infection when we return to our homeland? The condition of the Russian people abroad would be morally hopeless if, along with the above sad phenomena, we did not see manifestations of a high upsurge of spirit and sacrifice. Despite the difficult living conditions of exiles from their homeland in all respects, they have the means to build and decorate churches, support clergy, and also to partially satisfy the needs of the poor. Along with those who harden their hearts and bring nothing to the common cause, there are those who devote a significant part of their income to those needs. There are still among us those who joyfully donate to the Church, some - significant sums from their hard-earned property, and others - small mites, but making up almost their entire wealth, like the mite of a poor widow. Sacrifice is manifested not only in material gifts, but also in tireless work for the benefit of the Church and their neighbors, to whom many have dedicated themselves, zealously working in various church and charitable organizations or working independently. Burdened already with a multitude of official or related tasks and the search for what is necessary for life, they devote themselves to those tasks, reducing the necessary rest for the sake of them, their free time, their energy and their strength, while showing husbands the prudence characteristic of them, and wives the love inherent in their hearts. The concerns of Russians Abroad cover not only the needs of Russians Abroad, but there are also brave fighters for the Motherland who are preparing for its liberation, and some go to its borders for this purpose, going to almost certain death. Love for the Motherland prompted some to commit acts abroad, for which they were subjected to severe trials, but which history will mark as a feat. Much steadfastness and zeal were demonstrated in the struggle for church truth. A particularly gratifying phenomenon is the part of the youth who are ardently devoted to the Church and the Motherland, which they have never seen before, but wholly loved. Such examples and others like them, together with the incessant voice of conscience, give hope that in it there will still be those ten righteous people for whose sake the Lord was ready to spare Sodom and Gomorrah and show the way to the Russian Abroad. It has been given to the Russians Abroad to shine the light of Orthodoxy throughout the entire universe, so that other nations, seeing their good deeds, glorify our Father who is in heaven, and thereby gain salvation for themselves. Without fulfilling its task, even humiliating Orthodoxy with its life, our Diaspora has two roads before it: either turn to the path of repentance and beg God’s forgiveness for itself, being reborn spiritually, and become capable of reviving our suffering Motherland, or be completely rejected by God and remain in exile, persecuted by everyone, until it gradually degenerates and disappears from the face of the earth. The Roman country praises with praiseworthy voices Peter and Paul, who believed in Jesus Christ the Son of God; Asia, Ephesus, Patm - John the Evangelist; India - Thomas; Egypt – Mark; All countries and cities and people honor and glorify their teachers, who taught them the Orthodox faith. Let us also, according to our strength, praise with small praises the great and wondrous work of our teacher and mentor, the great kagan (prince) of our Earth, Volodimer, the grandson of old Igor.” This is what Saint Hilarion, Metropolitan of Kiev, said in the middle of the 11th century, when a little more than half a century had passed since the baptism of Rus'. Even then, the holy man saw with his penetrating gaze the greatness of the work of the saint. Vladimir and called on Rus' to glorify him with dignity. With what words and colors can we express what St. did? Vladimir, having baptized Rus', we, who have waited for the 950th anniversary of this bright event? Let us remember what Rus' was before Vladimir and what it became after its baptism by Saint Vladimir. Here is Rus' from the time of “old Igor” or Vladimir’s father, Svyatoslav. Each tribe lived its own separate life. Separate clans often quarreled with each other, took revenge on each other and often engaged in mutual self-destruction, observing the laws of bloody revenge. The Russian princes before Vladimir were more conquering leaders than fathers and benefactors of their people. Campaigns and mining attracted them more than caring for their subjects. Many tribes were still at a very low degree of moral and cultural development; Among some of them, even “kidnapping” was common, that is, kidnapping girls to make them their wives. It would be a mistake to think that the Slavs had only negative traits and represented an exclusively semi-savage mass. No, on the contrary, there was a lot of good in their nature. They were hospitable, courageous and honest. Wives were faithful companions to their husbands, often remaining faithful even to the dead. The Slavs honored their elders and obeyed them in private and public matters. But at the same time, they showed treachery, cruelty, and cunning. At times, especially during wars, they became terrible for everyone around them. The peaceful Slav became a wild beast. Woe to those upon whom his rage was directed; it spared no one! Byzantium was in awe of its northern neighbors, and they themselves were often afraid of each other. So the Slavic world stood at the crossroads between good and evil, now showing the wonderful properties of man created in the image of God, now showing the formidable signs of a beast in human form. What could be the highest ideals among the Slavs? What could their feelings and thoughts be directed towards? What could they be inspired by and to whom should they direct their gaze? The gods in whom they believed possessed all the properties of their worshipers and were the embodiment of their good and bad qualities. The Slavs served the gods they invented, thereby confirming their own shortcomings, the justification for which was the properties of their gods. Serving the formidable Perun, the Slavs waged cruel wars, exterminating their neighbors. It is difficult to say what Eastern Europe would have become if Saints Cyril and Methodius had not shed the light of Christ on the Slavs and laid the foundation for the enlightenment of the Slavic peoples. Saints Cyril and Methodius and their disciples enlightened some of the Slavs with Christian teaching. The influence of Christianity immediately affected them and introduced them into the family of Christian nations. In a short time, the countries that adopted Christianity were transformed. But the main mass of the Slavs, the Eastern Slavs, continued to live as before. One could at times fear that their warlike princes, like Svyatoslav, would destroy even the young shoots that had grown in the fields of their brothers watered by Christianity. The darkness hanging over the eastern Slavic tribes was so deep and hopeless that it could not be dispersed by the first Russian Christian princess Olga, who shone on the princely throne like a morning star in the sky. It was necessary for the Red Sun himself to rise, and Olga’s grandson, Grand Duke Vladimir, appeared as such for Rus'. Having received the first beginnings of the Christian faith from his grandmother, but drowning them out with the revelry of passions in his youth, Vladimir, shocked to the depths of his soul by the martyrdom of the Varangian Bolyars Theodore and John, decides to change his way of life. After carefully examining the issue of faith - Vladimir's life was closely connected with his beliefs - Vladimir makes a choice. Being holistic and straightforward by nature, he does not stop halfway and accepts what was best. He is enlightened by the light of Orthodoxy and, having been baptized, becomes a zealous fulfiller of Christ's commandments. With his example and appeals, he carries his subjects along with him. The change in Vladimir is striking, who has become, from a voluptuous and unrestrained young man in his passions, a holy man. But an equally striking change occurred in baptized Russia. The baptism of Kyiv, and after it the rest of Rus', opens up a new life for the Eastern Slavs and becomes the starting point of their glorious history. The disunited Slavic tribes that made up Vladimir's power, with the adoption of Christianity, felt their unity. The consciousness of unity was especially strengthened by the fact that in church terms all of Rus' for several centuries constituted one metropolitanate, despite the subsequent division of Rus' into fiefs. The Church had the greatest influence on the unification of Rus' into one state. Not only Slavic, but also other tribes living in Eastern Europe, with the spread of Orthodoxy among them, merged into one with the Russian people. Having a pacifying effect during civil strife, the Church at the same time instilled the consciousness that the Russian people are one and therefore must be one whole in everything. Under the shadow of the holy Orthodox Church, Rus' developed, strengthened and grew into a great state that occupied one sixth of the universe. The Russian people, who voluntarily accepted Christianity not under coercion, sought from the very first years after baptism to implement the gospel teachings into their lives. Baptism reborn and internally changed previously rough-hearted people. Having retained their old good qualities, they are freed from the bad properties that came along with them. The struggle between good and evil took place not only in the soul of Vladimir, but in the entire people as a whole, and a turning point in the direction of good occurred. The Russian people after baptism were no longer what they were before baptism. He was truly a new people, “new people.” This does not mean that everyone immediately became perfect, that evil disappeared from everyone’s soul and that it no longer existed in Rus'. No, it was there, it continued to fight against the good in every person. But the driving force of the Russian people was Orthodoxy, which covered all aspects of personal, public and state life. Family and social life was imbued with the spirit of the Gospel; views were formed under the influence of church rules, and state laws were consistent with the canons. The general direction of life of the Russian people was the search for God's truth. The desire to realize the truth of God permeated both legislation and the implementation of justice and government activities. The mental and spiritual life of the Russian people is distinguished by the same desire to serve God. Almost all aspects of its cultural life originate from church life and develop under the influence of the Church. Russian books and Russian art began in monasteries and were so imbued with the Christian spirit that even those writers of later times who set themselves the task of fighting church teaching could not completely free themselves from its influence. The supreme rulers of Rus' themselves, the Grand Dukes and Tsars of All Russia, were aware of their responsibility to the Tsar of the Reigns and looked at themselves as servants of God, and they were the same in the eyes of their subjects. Therefore, the Russian tsars were not tsars “by the will of the people,” but tsars “by God’s Grace.” Of course, not everything in Rus' coincided with that general direction. Much evil has happened to it over the past centuries. If “there is no man who lives and does not sin,” then all the more there cannot be sins and evil in the history and life of the people. However, just as to characterize a person it is important which qualities are the brightest in him and overcome the rest, so to characterize a people it is necessary to determine what constitutes the main content of their spiritual life. For Rus' and the Russian people, despite all the former individual deviations and even falls, the main thing was serving the truth and standing in the truth. When we remember ancient Greece, the words of St. Apostle come to mind. Paul about the ancient Greeks: “The Greeks seek wisdom”; although of course there were many among them who did not seek wisdom. Associated with the idea of ​​Sparta is the idea of ​​physical development. Phenicia associated its name with trade. Rome boasted of civic virtues. The Russian people acquired the name of a God-bearing people and the Russian land - the name of Holy Rus'. Holy Rus' is due to the multitude of saints who have shone in the Russian land. Starting from the sons of St. Vladimir - the faithful princes Boris and Gleb, the first to become famous for miracles in Rus', and from the baptist of Rus', Saint Vladimir with his grandmother Olga, a countless host of saints lived and were glorified by holiness and miracles in the Russian land. Those holy saints were the “red fruit” of Orthodox Rus', flesh of flesh and bone of bone of the Russian people. They were not alien to him in their beliefs and way of life, no, they were the most vivid expression of the aspirations of the entire people. From the baptism of Rus' to the present day, there has not seemed to be a single hour when a saint did not live somewhere in the Russian land, and after his death he became a heavenly representative for the Russian land. All regions of Russia, from Carpathian Rus' (Reverends Moses Ugrin and Ephraim of Novotorzhsky) to Alaska, which briefly belonged to Russia (Reverend Herman), had their own ascetics. Every country in Russia, almost every significant city had its own shrines. Its spiritual centers were monasteries, which influenced both villages and cities. Every place, every language was sanctified by the service of God. The history of Russia, full of wondrous evidence of God's providence for it, is the history of God's construction, a new sacred history. The influence of its holy men on the historical events of Russia is so great that it is impossible to separate the history of the Russian State from the history of the Church. The way of life of the Russian people was affected by the church. Even Russia's foreign policy was in many ways an expression of its spiritual image. It was never like this... But where are you now, Holy Rus'? Or are you no more? The throne of St. Vladimir fell, shrines were desecrated, churches were destroyed. Did the God-bearing people become a beast or did the red dragon devour Holy Rus'? How did the place of spiritual exploits become a place of heinous crimes, and where the saints were saved, now robbers rule? Is it really true that Holy Rus' no longer exists and will never exist, or perhaps it never even existed, and it only wore the cloak of holiness, which has now fallen away forever? No! Not self-deception and a ghost, but true reality is Holy Rus'! In heaven the incense of the prayers of the saints who have shone forth in the Russian land and are now praying for her before the throne of God does not cease to rise. But not only in heaven, but also here, on sinful earth, Holy Rus' continues to exist. The power of the God-fighters only enslaved, but did not destroy it. The council of the wicked, which has taken possession of the Russian people, is alien to them, for it has nothing in common with the essence of Russia. A foreign international power, the “international,” has thrown its yoke over it, but remains its enemy. Even those among them who previously called themselves Russian, being such by blood, have now lost that name, for they have become alien to Rus' in spirit. “She departed from us, but did not suffer from us” can be said about such people (I John 2:19). They fell away from the Russian people and became the oppressors of Rus'. Having rejected God, they renounced their likeness to God and surpassed wild beasts in ferocity and cruelty. But Rus' remains holy. The countenance of the apostles did not diminish when Judas fell away from them, nor did the lordship of the angelic order darken when Satan and the angels who listened to him disappeared from it. Just as the devil should have appeared from among the angels, but with the fall of Dennitsa and his followers, the rest of the angels were even more inflamed with love for God and shone even brighter in heaven, so atheists also appeared from among the Russian people, but their falling away even more revealed the holiness of Rus' and glorified it in heaven and throughout the heavenly world. Countless hosts of new martyrs testified to their fidelity to Christ. The Russian people as a whole, enduring suffering with unspeakable patience, the likes of which no other people in the world have ever experienced, gave countless new confirmations of steadfastness in the faith. Despite the most severe persecution, the Church remains undefeated. Although many churches have been destroyed, so that in a number of cities that formerly boasted majestic churches, now not a single one of them remains, but believers secretly gather and pray to the Lord God. The times of the catacombs, which she had never known before, have been resurrected for Russia, for she had never before experienced persecution of faith. In the great choir of saints of God glorified in Rus' there were many saints and saints, righteous people and holy fools. But there have been only a few martyrs on Russian soil in all previous times. The “blessed martyr’s army,” whose blood was the seed of Christianity throughout the universe, glorified almost daily by the earthly Church, almost did not exist in the heavenly Russian Church. The time has come to fill its ranks. The small number of martyrs and passion-bearers who suffered in past centuries have now been joined by a countless number of new passion-bearers and martyrs. Among them are the crowned Tsar, the descendant and successor of the Baptist of Rus', with his entire family, and the namesake First Hierarch of the Baptist of Rus', and hierarchs, and princes, bolyars, warriors, priests, monastics, scholars and non-learners, townspeople and villagers, nobles and commoners. Every age, every class, every region of Rus' has produced new passion-bearers. All of Rus' was drenched in the blood of martyrdom, it was all sanctified by it. O wondrous and glorious army of new sufferers! Who can adequately glorify you! Truly “blessed is the land that has drunk your blood, and holy is the village that has received your body.” Blessed are you, Russian Land, purified by the fire of suffering! You have passed through the water of baptism, now you are passing through the fire of suffering, and you too will enter into peace. Once upon a time, Christians reverently collected sand in the Colosseum, filled with martyr’s blood. The places of suffering and death of martyrs were made sacred and especially revered. And now all of Rus' is a field of passion-bearers. Its earth was sanctified by their blood, and its air by the rise of their souls to heaven. Hey, sacred are you Rus'! The ancient writer was right when he said that you are the Third Rome and there will never be a fourth. You surpassed ancient Rome with many feats of martyrs, you surpassed Rome, which baptized you, with your standing in Orthodoxy, and you will remain unsurpassed until the end of the world. Only the earth, sanctified by the sufferings and earthly life of the God-Man, is holier than you in the eyes of the Orthodox. Shake off the sleep of despondency and laziness, sons of Russia! Behold the glory of her suffering and be cleansed, washed from your sins! Strengthen yourself in the Orthodox faith so that you may be worthy to dwell in the dwelling of the Lord and move into His holy mountain! Arise, arise, arise Rus', you who drank from the hand of the Lord the cup of His wrath! When your suffering is over, your righteousness will go with you and the glory of the Lord will follow you. Nations will come to your light and kings to the radiance rising above you. Then lift up your eyes around and see: behold, your children will come to you from the west and the north and the sea and the east, blessing Christ in you forever. Instructions, decrees and orders of Archbishop John The Lamb of God will be carried away by us in the sacred and luminous night of resurrection. We pray for this as soon as we begin to prepare for Lent and then repeatedly during Lent: that the Lord will grant us the privilege of communion on the night of Holy Pascha. Then the grace of God especially acts on the hearts of people. We then partake of the Risen Christ, we become participants in His Resurrection. Of course, you need to say the fast earlier and, having already received communion during Great Lent, partake of the Holy Mysteries again. There is no time to confess in detail before the Easter Liturgy; this must be done earlier. And on the luminous night, having received general permission to proceed to the Divine Lamb, the guarantee of our Resurrection. Let no one leave the Church prematurely, in a hurry to taste the meat of animals, instead of tasting the Most Pure Body and Blood of Christ. POSSIBLE PARTICIPATION OF THE CLERGY IN PUBLIC LIFE Having as the main goal of their ministry the revival of human souls and leading them to the eternal Kingdom of God, those who have received the gift of the priesthood should not be distracted from the work of the apostle and waste time on worldly affairs. What a priest gives to people cannot be given by anyone else, and nothing can compare with the eternal good to which he leads people. Therefore, the clergyman does not dare to be distracted from his direct duties, to engage even in useful worldly affairs, remembering that he is the guardian of human souls and will give an answer at the Last Judgment of God for every sheep that died due to his negligence. An example was set by the apostles when disputes arose among their disciples about the distribution of benefits, saying: “We who have abandoned the word of God do not want to eat and serve meals.” Church canons strictly prohibit clergy from engaging in worldly duties and taking on public positions. However, this does not mean that clergy can completely withdraw from all worldly affairs. People consist of soul and body, and it is impossible, while caring for the soul, to completely forget about the needs of the body. The Lord commanded us to show love for our neighbors in acts of mercy, which He will ask about at the Last Judgment. Many saints and saints were active participants in the events that took place in their times, sometimes even heading states. But that happened when it was caused by persistent necessity. When it is necessary to save people in disasters, when the participation of a shepherd is necessary to guide them on the right path, the shepherd does not dare to remain indifferent. He not only can, but must come to their aid. This applies to both private and general matters. It is the pastor’s duty to encourage people to charity and, if necessary, to become the head of charitable institutions, to give direction to public affairs in accordance with the spirit of Christ’s teaching. But at the same time he must always remain a clergyman and a shepherd. It is unacceptable to join any party subject to its discipline. It is also inappropriate for a pastor to immerse himself in the purely everyday side of public affairs. Everything that the laity can do must be left to them, trying to concentrate on spiritual matters, which are the work of shepherds. The priesthood is the light of the world, and its participation in public life should consist in sanctifying the path of personal, social and state life. It is the duty of the clergy to indicate the moral foundations on which the life of society should be organized and to inspire its activities, imbuing it with the spirit of Christ’s teaching. Without descending into the midst of everyday vanity, the shepherd must hover over his flock and, vigilantly observing it, descend when it is necessary to support the weak in spirit or body, to stop and expose evil, to encourage them to do good deeds and deeds, and to strengthen them in doing good. The highest and most important gift of a clergyman to society is the calling upon him and the bringing down of the blessing and grace of God, for which the pastor must be especially diligent in prayer and, remembering that first of all he is a servant of God, be “an image of faithful word, life, love, spirit, faith, purity,” leading them to the Kingdom of God through prayer, example and instruction. RESOLUTION CONCERNING THE DISTRIBUTION OF EGGS ON EASTER NIGHT I hereby have the duty to notify you that in response to your request dated April 2 for permission for your Circle to distribute red eggs to those praying in the Memorial Church after Easter Matins, because a large number of lonely, elderly, infirm and poor pilgrims cannot remain until the end of the Divine Liturgy and then return to their place of residence in damp, cold weather - His Eminence, the Most Reverend Archbishop John, put forward the following resolution: “The main thing on the Bright Day of Easter is our communion with the Risen Christ, which is especially manifested in communion during the Bright Service, for which we repeatedly offer prayers in the services of Great Lent. Leaving the Easter service before the end of the liturgy is a sin or misunderstanding of the Church service. If an irresistible necessity forces one to do something, then the egg, which is only a symbol of the resurrection, cannot replace the actual tasting of the Resurrection in the Divine Liturgy, and distributing eggs before the liturgy would be contempt for the Divine Sacrament and a deception of the faithful. Church rules strictly prohibit bringing to the altar anything other than bread and wine made by the Body and Blood of Christ, and oil for lamps and incense, and a clergyman who violates this, according to the 3rd Rule of the Holy Apostle, is expelled from the sacred rank. I urge everyone to take an intimate part in the Divine feast of the Risen Christ - the Holy Liturgy, and after it is over, proclaim His Resurrection and greet each other with the symbol of the Resurrection. APPEAL FOR HELP TO THE HOLY LAND If I forget you, Jerusalem, my right hand will be forgotten,” King David exclaimed prophetically, back in the days of Zion’s prosperity. The Jews sang that psalm with bitterness during the Babylonian captivity. The Lord Jesus Christ loved Jerusalem, shedding tears for the coming disasters. Jerusalem, sacred to the Old Testament Jews, became even more sacred to Christians, having been sanctified by the feet and then by the blood of our Divine Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. As soon as the persecution of Christians ceased, pilgrims began to flock to him from all countries where the Name of Christ was glorified, starting with Queen Helena, who found the Cross of the Lord and built a number of magnificent churches in sacred places on the earthly path of Christ. Those places were also filled with monasteries, in which ascetics sought for themselves and showed others the path of salvation. The enslavement of those countries by heterodox eastern peoples did not reduce the veneration of the Holy Land by Christians. Western peoples undertook campaigns to liberate them, but did not achieve the desired goal. New pilgrims came from Russia, which was then baptized, from the very beginning of Christianity there. The Russian Church, from its earliest times, was in close communion with the Holy Land. Everything that came or was brought from the Holy Land was sacred in the eyes of the Russian people. The ultimate goal of pious people was to visit the Holy Land. Individuals succeeded even in times when it was fraught with incredible difficulties; in the last century, streams of pilgrims flowed there almost without ceasing. To facilitate the pilgrimage, the Russian Spiritual Mission in Jerusalem and the Palestinian Society were created, which acquired ownership of a number of plots in sacred places, and Russian monasteries appeared on them. Those monasteries, on the one hand, provided the opportunity for Russian people who arrived there to have refuge while worshiping holy places, and for those who even wanted to stay there until the end of their lives. On the other hand, those monasteries, thanks to funds flowing from Russia, could develop broad educational activities among the local population and thus provide significant support to the local Jerusalem Patriarchate. All that changed with the advent of sad times for Russia. Since the beginning of the First World War, the flow of pilgrims and funds for the activities of our holy monasteries stopped, and with its end, after the collapse of the Russian State, their situation became even more difficult. After the Second and the division of Palestine, new disasters and dangers appeared between the Kingdom of Jordan and the restored state of Israel. The monasteries that ended up in Israel were deprived of part of their property and transferred to the jurisdiction of the Moscow Patriarchate. The monasteries in the Kingdom of Jordan remained part of the Russian Church Abroad, despite attempts by the Moscow Patriarchate to subjugate them; Those monasteries and other Orthodox Russian institutions there refused to submit to the Moscow Patriarch because of his connection with the Soviet government. The latter seeks to subjugate and extend its influence to all nations and by all means. For this reason, in the Middle East, taking into account the former importance of Orthodox Russia and its glory among Orthodox peoples, the Soviet government, being an enemy of the Church and religion, presents itself there as their patron and strives in every possible way to establish the influence of the Patriarch of Moscow, who is in the hands of Soviet power, in the Middle East. If there had been no opposition to that activity, it could have had great success and places with names dear to the entire Christian world could have become bases for anti-Christian influence. However, that plan and activity met an insurmountable obstacle in the face of the poor, and truly Holy Abodes and Russian Orthodox institutions in the Holy Land. Knowing the subordination of the Moscow church power to the Soviet government, knowing that the Moscow Patriarch is not a free servant of God and His Church, but a slave of the atheistic power, those Holy Abodes and institutions refused to recognize his power and remained subordinate to the power of the free part of the Russian Church - the Synod of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad, although through recognition they could have had great material benefits. Russian Monasteries in the Holy Land are the personification of a pure Christian conscience in the Middle East, and their presence and confession do not allow the Orthodox peoples there to open their hearts to the influence of church authorities, which are dependent on the enemy of the Church and God. The courageous feat of confessing the truth by those Abodes evokes a feeling of tenderness and is worthy of admiration. It is natural and necessary that Russian people abroad recognize their duty to provide support, moral and material assistance, to that glorious feat of elderly nuns and monks who suffer great need in everything, but are strong in spirit. To organize this matter, the Synod of Bishops established the Palestine Committee under my chairmanship. As we begin to establish representative offices of the Committee throughout the world, I call on all Orthodox Christians to assist them and to recognize the work of helping the Abodes and Orthodox institutions in the Holy Land as their sacred duty to the Church and Holy Russia, which so sincerely and reverently revered Jerusalem. If I forget you, O Jerusalem, my right hand will be forgotten. DECREE ON ORDER AT DURING SERVICES In order to avoid confusion or misunderstandings when concelebrating with clergy, observe the order of seniority of consecrations: archimandrites are ranked according to the seniority of their elevation to archimandrite, archpriests by the seniority of their elevation to protopresbyter, the rest of the priests according to the seniority of their ordination to the priesthood. The same order is observed by deacons, subdeacons and readers, although on any occasion it is not forbidden to voluntarily grant the honor of primacy to one’s brother. Priests who are late for the start of the service stand at the end of the line of clergy so as not to cause confusion during the service, for the grace of God rests on them equally no matter where they stand before the Lord God. DECREE ON THE IMPOSSIBILITY OF PARTICIPATING IN ENTERTAINMENTS ON THE EVE OF SUNDAYS AND HOLIDAYS The sacred rules dictate that the eves of holy days should be spent by Christians in prayer and reverence, preparing for participation or presence in the Divine Liturgy. If all Orthodox Christians are called to this, then even more so it applies to those directly taking part in church services. Their participation in entertainment on the eve of holidays is especially sinful. In view of this, those who were at a ball or similar entertainment and amusements on the eve of the Resurrection or Holiday cannot the next day participate in the choir, serve, enter the altar or stand on the choir. DECREE TO THE CLRIS AND CHORISTS One must always remember and realize that church singing is prayer and that the singing of prayers must be done reverently, in order to excite those standing in the church to prayer. Tunes and chants that merely delight the ear, but in content or execution are not conducive to prayer, as well as those that are inappropriate for the given service, event celebrated by the church, day and church charter, are unacceptable. At the same time, the behavior of those singing should be reverent and consistent with the high rank of church singers, uniting their voices with the voices of angels. Supervision of this lies with the responsibility of the leaders of the singing and the clergyman performing the service, whose instructions must be followed unquestioningly. DECREE ON THE IMPOSSIBILITY OF ATTACHING TO ICONS WITH PAINTED LIPS It is the duty of the clergy, and especially the rectors of churches, to pay attention so that those who have painted lips do not touch icons, crosses or any shrine, leaving a trace of lipstick on them. This should be posted at the entrance to the church and repeatedly explained in sermons about how great the sin is of those who desecrate holy things with an unclean touch, why those going to church should wash off the paint or not touch anything, and in any case not partake of the Holy Mysteries of Christ without thoroughly washing their lips. DECREE ON THE CORRECT NAMING OF THE CHURCH In view of the abbreviated name “Holy Sorrowful” Cathedral that has come into use, it is explained that the said Cathedral in the name of the Most Holy Theotokos has in its church icon the image not of the Sorrowful Mother of God, depicting Her sorrow, but the image of All the Sorrowful Joy, depicting the joy of all those nourished and consoled by Her. Therefore, as personifying joy, and not sorrow, this image and the Cathedral bearing his name should be called, in case of shortening its name, Sorrowful-Joyful or Joyful-Sorrowful, as it should henceforth be called when shortening its name. DECREE ON THE METHOD OF PLATE COLLECTIONS The order is confirmed that church wardens and other persons who collect for the church and other needs during the service do not enter the altar and do not distract the clergy from prayer, but stand with their plates opposite the Royal Doors before the presentation by the Bishop or priest of the general blessing, when at the same time the collecting sacrifices are blessed. DECREE ON POSTPONEMENT OF HOLIDAYS The clergy and flock are reminded that even in the Old Testament, by God’s command, holiday days were established - “whom God has chosen and sanctified” - as well as days of fasting and mourning. The Lord Jesus Christ, having taught a true understanding of the meaning of the holiday, did not abolish, but approved the observance of holidays, and the New Testament Church of Christ from the beginning of its days observed sacred days. Establishing the annual cycle of worship, the Church defined holidays, especially highlighting those on which great manifestations of God's providence took place and on which God's Grace is now poured out. In addition to them, we are commanded to honor other days on which significant events in the life of the Savior and the Mother of God, signs of God’s mercy and the memory of God’s saints are remembered. The Church has precisely established the meaning and order of their celebration, as well as the days on which they are celebrated, as well as the transfer to other days in certain cases. Whenever possible, the simultaneous remembrance of sacred events and saints is observed, so that Orthodox Christians are united with one thought and one feeling, unanimously offering prayers and praises, which does not, however, exclude special local celebrations of events or saints, known or especially revered only in a particular area. Among the great days for each church is its patronal holiday, that is, the day of celebration of sacred events or the saint to whom it is dedicated. Church Holidays are equated by church charter with the Great Feasts of the Lord and the Mother of God in their meaning and are celebrated with an appropriate service intended specifically for this day, which is a solemn and blessed day for those praying in the church and its church community. Therefore, it is unacceptable to arbitrarily postpone a church holiday for worldly reasons. Both the clergy and the laity must clearly realize that transferring the celebration to another day does not make that day a church holiday, just as an uncelebrated church holiday is not diminished by this in its spiritual significance and remains such regardless of the attitude of the clergy and parishioners towards it. The clergy and parishioners should try in every possible way to celebrate their church holiday with dignity, perhaps by diligently taking part in the divine service of that day, gathering in it. Those who do not have the opportunity to visit the church even for a short time, transport your mind and heart to it, at least receiving into yourself the rays of grace poured out in it. The end and glory to our God! Out of necessity and for clarity, we had to shorten and edit some testimonies about the prayerful help of Archbishop John. At the same time, in all cases we have preserved the meaning and spirit of what was written. Due to the fact that a lot of material has been received about the prayerful help of the Bishop, we tried to select a wide variety of testimonies for this collection. The unpublished and still incoming material, God willing, will be printed in the future. Compiled by Report to the All-Diaspora Council of 1938