Житие преподобного отца нашего Луки Елладского

Saint Luke was born in Hellas 1250; his parents were immigrants from a foreign land: they arrived here from an island called Aegina, which lies near the Aegean Sea 1251. Unable to bear the constant invasion of the Arabs, they left their fatherland and, moving to the borders of Greece, wandered there, and finally settled in one area called Kastoria 1252. Here blessed Luke was born to them; His parents' names were Stefan and Euphrosyne. From a very young age, Blessed Luke, moving among children, did not show anything adolescent in himself; he willingly abandoned all children's games and amusements. Already in his adolescence, he seemed to be a perfect man: he loved silence, solitude and was distinguished by modesty. And what is most surprising is that at that age he was already a great faster and abstainer. He not only did not eat meat, but also abstained from milk, cheese and eggs; he did not even touch apples and other garden fruits, which are so especially sweet and pleasant for little youths: he ate only bread, water and garden herbs. On Wednesday and Friday until the sun set, he did not eat anything. But what is even more surprising is that with such fasting and abstinence, Luke had neither a leader nor a mentor; he himself, by the power of the grace of God acting in him, day by day ascended to greater and greater feats: - he avoided gluttony and sweet foods, - he loved fasting combined with labor, poverty in everything, even the necessary, and in general everything that mortifies the flesh: - he only practiced himself in these feats. And everything that seemed so sweet, joyful and pleasant to others - all this for blessed Luke was something heavy, hateful and unpleasant, and what almost everyone in life seemed difficult, unpleasant and unbearable, for him was pleasant and desired. The parents of Saint Luke, noticing such an unusual way of life for young men, were very surprised, but they were especially surprised at his fasting and abstinence. Thinking that this did not come from any virtuous mood, but only from childish frivolity, they decided to test him in this way: they boiled meat and fish in one vessel and offered him this dish at the meal; the father, taking the fish, gave it to blessed Luke. He, not knowing that this fish was boiled with meat, began to eat it, but when he learned how the fish was cooked, he became very sad and immediately vomited up what he had eaten; and as if he had arbitrarily committed some great lawlessness, sobbing and sighing, he did not even want to eat bread and spent three days in such crying and fasting. Then his parents, seeing that it was not through childish frivolity, but through God’s grace, that such a desire for piety was inherent in him, for the future they allowed him to live according to his good desire. Blessed Luke obeyed his parents in everything, doing with diligence everything they ordered: he tended the sheep; when he came of age, he began to cultivate the land, and from time to time he performed domestic service, mortifying his young flesh and suppressing his passions. He was so merciful to the poor that because of them he often deprived himself of everything he needed. When he left home for some work, he distributed all the food he had taken to the poor, but he himself remained hungry. In the same way, with great desire and love, he gave them his clothes and often returned home naked, for which his parents reproached him, scolded him and even punished him, and sometimes they even left him to walk naked and did not give him any clothes for a long time, thinking that he would be ashamed of his nakedness and would stop giving his clothes to the poor. But the virtuous young man did not stop doing works of mercy: he was not ashamed of nakedness and was not afraid of punishment; nakedness because of the beggars was for him royal purple, and he considered punishment and beating for them an honor and praise for himself - and even more after that he did good to the beggars. One day, blessed Luke went to the field to sow wheat and met beggars on the road; Then he divided the wheat for them, and left only a little for himself to sow. The Lord, Who rewards the poor a hundredfold for their alms, blessed this meager crop: this summer, more wheat was produced in his field than in previous years, so that when the harvest time came, they collected as much wheat as ever. When Stephen, the parent of Saint Luke, died ill and died, the man of God, leaving agriculture, devoted himself to book learning. Particularly zealous in the thought of God and the study of prayers, the Divine youth succeeded so much that, raising his mind to God, he sometimes physically rose from the earth, as his mother Euphrosyne once clearly saw. Noticing once that her son did not leave his room for a long time, she, wanting to find out what he was doing, looked secretly through the well and saw him praying: his mind was focused on God, but with his whole body he stood in the air, not touching the ground at all and standing as if one elbow away from it; Euphrosyne saw this more than once, but twice or thrice, and was very amazed at this; Afterwards she told others about it with an oath. This blessed young man had long had a desire to leave the troubled world and indulge in monastic silence and monastic deeds. One day, thinking about this, he, burning with the desire to accept monasticism, secretly from everyone, left the house, intending to leave Hellas; On the way, he met warriors and guards who grabbed slaves who were running away from their masters and put them in prison. They, seeing a poorly dressed young man, thought that he was one of the escaped slaves and grabbed him; they asked whose slave he was, where he came from and where he was running. The young man answered them that he was a servant of Christ and was going to the holy fathers for prayers. But the soldiers did not believe him; Thinking that he wanted to hide his slavery and escape from them, they began to mercilessly beat the innocent young man; then they put him in prison until he announced whose slave he was and how he escaped from his master. Blessed Luke looked at all this as a temptation from an envious enemy who was hindering his good intentions. But after some time the saint was recognized by some people; after their testimony about him, blessed Luke was freed from his bonds. When the servant of Christ returned to his home, he had to endure not only reprimands and reproaches from his family, but even beatings. Day and night the saint prayed to God that He would be pleased to accept him as a monk, and soon received what he wanted in the following way. Two monks came to that area from ancient Rome; Seeing them, Luke immediately remembered his intention, and his heart was even more kindled with love for God. While talking with them, he asked them where they were going. They said they were going to Jerusalem. Then blessed Luke began to beg them to take him with them on the journey and thus make him a participant in their monastic life. But they refused to take him, making excuses either by the fact that he was still young, barely seventeen years old and not used to long wanderings, or by the fact that they were afraid of his parents, lest they suffer something bad from them when they, having learned about everything, chase after them and catch up with them. Blessed Luke told them that he was an orphan and a wanderer and that no one was watching him, and begged those monks to take him. However, they left this area secretly and, having arrived in Athens, went to pray in the beautiful Church of the Most Pure Virgin Mary there, and spent the night in the monastery. Setting off on their journey to Jerusalem, the monks left blessed Luke in that monastery. “Here, young man,” they told him, “is a good place to fulfill your intentions, here you can get what you want and will soon be counted among the beautiful ranks of monastics.” Having entrusted it to the abbot, they set off on their way. The abbot asked several times where he was from and what kind of family he was, but he could not find out anything: the servant of God hid his fatherland and his home and did not want to reveal himself to anyone. However, seeing that he was a good-natured young man, quiet, meek, humble and obedient, he tonsured him to the novice rank. The mother of Blessed Luke grieved greatly for him: she could not bear the separation from her beloved son, whom she looked at as the only joy of her widowhood and as a consolation in sorrow, and she wept bitterly for him, crying out to God: - Woe to me, Lord! Witness of my widowhood and orphanhood - at first You saddened me by taking away from me by death the friend whom You had united with me in marriage, after which you subjected me to the troubles of a widow, which for me is worse than death itself - now You have removed from my eyes the one who was a joy for me in such great troubles, and now I do not know where I can see him - the only dawn of my many-troubled life. Now I must exclaim with David: “My heart trembles; My strength has forsaken me, and the light of my eyes, and even that I have no” (Ps. 37:11). And why did the boy move so far away from us? Did we forbid him to constantly serve You, our Lord? Or did we order him to do any household chores, thereby forcing him to neglect his usual prayers? Did I teach him to love the carnal more than the spiritual, the earthly more than the heavenly, the temporary more than the eternal? I learned from my parents to be a mother not only in the flesh, but also in the spirit, and I wanted to see my son perfect in virtues; I gave him more time for prayer than for serving me; It was a joy for me to see my beloved child, if not always, then at least for some time; for me it was enough just to hear my neighbors praise his good character and thereby console my sad soul. So, Lord King, do not despise the tears of my eyes, but hear them and deign to quench my great sadness; You will satisfy it when you again give your mother’s eyes to see your beloved child: then, having found my son, I will gather everyone and confess Your Majesty and will glorify You all the days of my life. So, having prayed in her sadness, the widowed mother bowed to the mercy of the good God, and what she asked for, she received. The Lord, who makes everything happen with His wave, vouchsafed a vision to the abbot of the monastery in which blessed Luke labored as a new leader: in a dream he saw a crying mother who called out to him like this: - Why did you offend me, a widow? Why did you add this sadness to my suffering? Why did you so mercilessly take away from me the only joy of my widowhood? Why did you kidnap my son, the support of my old age? While enduring this sadness, I will not stop turning to God and the King of all and crying out to you. Frightened by such a sleepy vision and the words spoken, the abbot at first thought that this was a simple demonic obsession, but when the next night and the third he saw the same wife in a dream and heard the same angry words from her, then he realized that this was not a demonic seduction, but a phenomenon sent from God. In the morning, the abbot, calling to him the young man Luka, who was in his new command, said to him with anger: “Why did you think of hiding everything about yourself, even though I asked you several times who you are and where you’re from?” Why did you say that you have neither parents nor relatives? And how did you dare to begin this holy rite and cohabitation with us, all filled with flattery and lies, as your deed itself testifies to? If at the beginning you had told us the truth, then now, contrary to your wishes, there would not be revelations about you. So, get away from us and from all of us monastics, and return to the one who gave birth to you; From her, who is very contrite, I have suffered greatly for the third night. While the abbot was saying this, blessed Luke, very frightened, stood as if amazed; he looked down, and his eyes shed tears: he did not want to be separated from the holy retinue. The abbot, seeing his tears and humility, was moved and began to meekly talk to him like this: “It’s impossible, child, now you won’t be able to return to your mother, and after that life in a monastery will not be forbidden to you; do so, I advise you; for it is evident that her prayer is powerful to beseech God, and is far superior to your prayer. Having heard this, blessed Luke did not object to the words of the abbot; Having bowed to him, he only asked for his prayers and blessings. And so, although he did not even want to leave the monastery, he was forced to set off on a journey to his mother, to the village of Kastoria. Entering the house, he found his mother lamenting, but when she saw him, she was filled with joy and tenderness, but did not immediately rush to her son in order to hug him: as a woman strong in spirit and fearing God, she first of all, raising her eyes to God and raising her hands to him, offered Him thanks that, through His assistance, she now again accepts her beloved son, whom she had previously lost. “Blessed is the Lord,” she said, “who heard my prayer and does not deprive me of His mercy.” So Luke, by God's will, was returned to his mother; he served her like a son and stayed with her for four months. Then blessed Luke, burning in spirit for God and for a silent life according to God, again decided to leave his mother. This time she no longer interfered with his good intentions and did not keep him from the path, for she knew that her son, like any other, should honor God more than his parents. So, Saint Luke, accompanied by the prayers of his mother, like a good leader, soon came to a certain seaside mountain, which was called St. John’s; there was a church in the name of the holy silverless doctors Cosmas and Damian. There, having built himself a small cell, he began to live in it according to God. What kind of labor he went through here, fighting demons and mortifying his flesh - it is impossible to tell about this in detail, but one cannot keep silent about everything; So, out of many, we will tell only a few in order to know what kind of life this saint of God was like. The monk had one disciple who was tempted about his mentor: he thought that the saint was hypocritically praying incessantly. Seeing that he was not doing anything: neither reading Divine books, nor studying the works of his fathers, this disciple thought that his mentor, as an unlearned person and ignorant of the Divine Scripture, spent all his nights not in vigil, but in sleep and laziness. And so, one late night, when the elder had already closed the doors of his cell, his disciple sat down from outside the door and, bowing his head towards them, began to listen to what the elder was doing at night - was he resting or praying? And so, eavesdropping, he remained at the door all night until the morning. He himself later relayed what he heard here. “I heard,” he said, “how the saint, bending his knees, hit his head on the ground and with each bow reverently said: “Lord, have mercy!” Then, inflamed with even greater zeal for God, he began to make more frequent bows, and cried out even more fervently: “Lord, have mercy!” And so he prayed until his body was exhausted; but even falling prostrate to the ground, he did not faint in spirit, for even while lying down he cried out to God in prayer. And then, having risen, he bowed his knees and began to do the same, and spent the whole night in such prayer, until the dawn. After this, this disciple, having become confident in the exploits of his father, repented of his previous doubts and after the death of the saint, he confessed all this with an oath before others. But the monk mortified his flesh not only by nightly genuflections, but also by daytime labors. He built himself a small garden and began to plant various trees there and sow all kinds of seeds, but not for his own needs or sale, but for the exhaustion of his flesh, for every day he worked until he sweated in his garden, and if there were fruits from his tree and seeds, he distributed them to those who came to him, sometimes, having filled a large basket with them, he took it to neighboring, other people’s fields and left it there; Thus Saint Luke fed others with his labors, while he himself always remained in fasting. It happened that deer began to come to his garden; by eating one and trampling on the other, they greatly spoiled it. The saint drove them away, but when he returned to his cell, they came there again; and this was repeated several times. Then the saint, annoyed, went out to the deer and said to one of them, who was larger than the others, as if he were any intelligent and verbal creature: - Why are you doing something unpleasant to me and ruining my work, while I have never offended you? After all, we are slaves of the One Lord and the creation of the One God; In addition, I was created in the image of God and have power over all creation, for the Creator subjected everything to man. So, according to the command of the Lord, do not move from the place where you stand, but accept a worthy punishment. And as soon as the saint said this, the deer, as if struck by some arrow, fell to the ground and lay motionless, while the rest of the deer ran away. Hunters walking in the desert happened to see all this; They hastily approached the deer and happily dragged their unexpected catch for slaughter. The monk, taking pity on the deer, said to them: “Brethren, you do not have the right to take this deer: you did not hunt for it and you did not catch it, but you have already approached the caught one and now you want to slaughter it. You should have taken pity on him, for he fell from weakness and now lies there, not thinking of running away. Hearing this, the hunters left the deer, marveling at the saint’s mercy. The saint released the deer safe and sound into the desert. Being such a perfect monk in his life, our venerable father Luke had not yet been invested with the full monastic order. But he greatly desired it and diligently prayed to God, that He would grant him this holy Angelic image; and his prayer was heard: he got what he wanted. One day, out of nowhere, two old monks came to him, adorned with honest gray hair and magnificent faces: they said that they were going to old Rome; These monks, having made a prayer, clothed St. Luke in the full monastic image; Having instructed him, they began to get ready for the journey. The Monk Luke, not having anything to admonish them, since he was poor in body and spirit and did not even have the necessary food, accompanied them, feeding on spiritually useful conversations with them along the way. Arriving at one seashore, the travelers sat down to rest for a while and already wanted to part with blessed Luke at that place, giving him a kiss in the Lord. But while they were still sitting, suddenly a large fish jumped out of the sea and fell on the shore before their feet; then the other one jumped out, and both of them fought on the ground, as if giving themselves into their hands. This was through the prayers of St. Luke; for he, not having the necessary food in order to treat his benefactors on the road, with his secret, heartfelt prayer, begged the Lord, the Provider of all creation, to send them food on the way. And the One who once sent Elijah bread and meat through a raven, also sent food to these holy fathers from the waters of the sea. And they, taking both fish, gave thanks to God, who opens His hand and satisfies every living creature. Our venerable father Luke, having accepted the perfect angelic rank, undertook a more perfect life; he began to strive even more, adding even more difficult labor to his previous exploits, and increased his fasting with tears and all-night vigils. His food was barley bread, and sometimes raw herbs and water; He rarely indulged in sleep - for this purpose in his cell he had a dug ditch, like a coffin; He did this to always remember death. And when he needed to sleep at night, he lay down in this coffin, as if dying and being buried; and, having rested a little, he immediately got up again to pray, uttering the words of the prophet David: “Thou openest Thy hand and satisfies all living things with good pleasure” (Ps. 144:16). “I anticipate the dawn and call; I trust in Your word. My eyes anticipate the morning watch, so that I may delve deeper into Your word” (Ps. 119:147-148). When Saint Luke began to lead such a life, the fame of his virtue soon spread among all the surrounding residents, and people began to flock to him from everywhere. One day two brothers came to the monk and told him that before his death, their father, unknown where, buried all his gold, silver and fines in the ground and, when dying, did not show them the place where he buried all his treasure. So, father, we ask you, they said, pray to God that He will show you this secret place, and then the daily quarrels between us will stop. For we, being brothers, think about each other that one of us stole our father’s inheritance and hid it for ourselves. So, make sure that through your prayers, the enmity between us will be quenched, and our poverty will cease from the treasure found. The monk refused and sent the brothers away, saying that his prayer could not beg the Lord for this. But they often came and pestered him with their requests and finally won him over to his mercy. The saint, having prayed for them to the all-seer God and in revelation, recognizing the place where the father of these two brothers hid his treasure, showed it to them. Then they went there, began to dig the ground in that place and soon found their father’s gold and silver and glorified this miracle throughout all the surrounding villages. The hater of good - the devil, although he was always defeated by this brave warrior of Christ, however, again decided to wage war against him. Wanting to insult and harm him, he arranged the following with his machinations. At his instigation, three women came to the saint from one nearby village; falling at his feet with tears and sobs, they began to confess their grave sins and ask him to heal their souls with his good advice and prayer. Saint Luke, wanting in every possible way to avoid their troubles and get away from them, sent them to the priests, since he himself did not have this rank, but was only a simple uninitiated monk, but these women did not listen to the saint, and here he heard from them a confession of the most terrible female sins. When these sinners left, the enemy of people, who shoots at the upright in heart (Ps. 10:2), again attacked the saint with evil thoughts and aroused sinful warfare in his mortified members. Then Saint Luke, realizing the deceit of the devil, armed himself with the weapon of prayer against him. Having stood in one place for three days and praying to God all the time, he defeated this wiles of the devil, with the rain of tears he extinguished the flame of this terrible lust and, thus, with the help of God, erased the head of the hellish serpent. After three days of prayer, when the saint’s body was completely exhausted, he fell asleep a little; at this time an Angel appeared to him in a vision in the form of a beautiful young man; in his hand he held a fishing rod, which he began to thrust into his mouth and larynx; and it seemed that blessed Luke swallowed it all, and it reached his very entrails; then the young man who appeared pulled the fishing rod out of him and on it pulled out a certain part of his body, fleshy and bloody, and, throwing it away, said to him: Immediately awakening from sleep, the saint realized that the Lord had delivered him from carnal sinful passion and thanked his Savior and Deliverer. The Monk Luke, despite the purity of his life, also possessed the gift of clairvoyance and predicted the future: for example, he announced in advance the invasion of Bulgarian troops on Greek soil, which came true in due time, as will be discussed below. The holy ascetic also foresaw the secrets of the human heart. The monk had a sister named Gali; she was his sister not only in flesh, but also in spirit: imitating her brother in everything, she spent her life in virginity, chastity and monastic deeds. Sometimes, together with the novices, she came from her monastery to her brother and here served him if he needed anything - sometimes she cultivated his garden, planting and clearing trees. One time the monk said to her and those who were with her: “A man is coming to us, carrying a great weight on his shoulders, and is therefore greatly burdened. Having said this, he left the wives who came to him and went to his own mountain. They, not understanding what was said to them and wondering, wondered what the words that the monk said meant: who is this burdened one and what is he burdened with? And so, after some time, a certain man came here, who not only did not have any burden, but did not even carry anything, and began to ask about the monk: “I need to see him on some business,” he said. The saint’s sister answered this man: “He’s not here, he went into the desert for a while, and if you want to see him, then wait until he comes.” The man who came said: “I won’t leave until I see him,” and, waiting for the saint, I sat near his cell for seven days. After seven days the monk came from his desert, and, noticing this man, looked at him without his usual meekness and even angrily, and in a menacing voice said to him: - Why did you come to this desert? Why did you leave the cities and retire to the mountains? Why, having despised the shepherd and the church priests, did you come to us, unlearned simpletons? And how did you dare to appear before our eyes, without fear of God’s vengeance, being guilty of immeasurable iniquities? Frightened by such words of the saint, the man who came began to cry and, out of fear, could not utter a single word. Then Saint Luke turned to him again: - Why are you silent? – he asked. - Why don’t you confess your deeds and don’t talk about the murder you committed, so that, while repenting of all your iniquities, although it is not enough, you may appease God? Then that man, barely able to speak from crying and sobbing, said to the saint: - O man of God! What else do you want me to tell you? Enlightened by the grace of God living in you, you yourself, before my confession, spoke about my grave sin. As I see, you know everything that I did secretly. However, if you command, I will speak loudly about my iniquity. And the man began to tell in detail in front of everyone how, where and why he killed his friend on the way, confessing this sin with weeping and humility; then, falling at the feet of Saint Luke, he began to pray to the saint not to leave him stuck in the devil’s snares. The saint, having taught that man a lot and instructing him on the path of salvation, sent him to the priests. All this is told to show the foresight of St. Luke, how he foresaw even secret human sins. Let it be permitted to speak of another similar case. One shipowner, named Demetrius, often sailing on his ship to the pier, which was located not far from the saint’s cell, got to know him well, and when he came to him, he was honored with his holy prayers and enjoyed his conversations. One day, landing on the shore and preparing to go to the monk, he decided to come to him not empty-handed, but to bring him something from his catch; He often fished at that pier, but this time, throwing fishing rods into the sea with his sailors, he did not catch anything and worked all day in vain. But, already late in the evening, he, remembering the Monk Luke, cast a fishing rod in his name and he came across such a big fish that he barely pulled it out of the water; then he cast his fishing rod a second time in the name of the saint, and caught another fish, similar to the first, but only a little smaller than the first. Going to the monk, he took with him the smaller fish, but kept the larger one for himself. Saint Luke, being a seer, learned about everything that had happened, but he accepted his guest and the gift he brought kindly. But, talking with him, he among other things reminded him how Ananias sinned before God by withholding the price taken for the village, and how the holy Apostle Peter found out about this (Acts 5:1-5). After listening to this, Demetrius realized that these words of the saint also concerned him, since he had hidden a large fish; Filled with horror at the insight of the blessed father and ashamed of the exposure of his sin, he fell at his feet and, confessing his sin and repenting, asked him for forgiveness. Saint Luke, having instructed him meekly, forgave him, but ordered his disciple to boil the fish he had brought and give it to the brethren who came to him, since he himself had not eaten the fish. And many times, foreseeing that the brothers would soon come to him, he predicted this to his disciple and ordered him to prepare food and bread for them. Seven years after Saint Luke’s stay in his mountain, invasions of the Greek country by Bulgarian troops began, which the monk had previously foretold. Residents fled, some to cities and fortresses, some to the Euboean island and Peloponnese 1253; Then the Monk Luke, leaving his mountain, boarded a ship and went to Corinth 1254. There, having heard about a certain stylite who labored in Patras 1255, he went to him and stayed with him for ten years, serving him with complete obedience and zeal, like a son to his father. One presbyter began to speak ill of this stylite and, seducing those who heard, blasphemed and reviled the righteous man. The Monk Luke, having heard the blasphemous words that reviled his father, abandoned his characteristic meekness and, contrary to the presbyter, began to praise the ascetic and, denouncing the false words of that presbyter, stood firmly for the innocence of his mentor. The presbyter, a cruel man, struck Saint Luke on the cheek, and immediately the execution of God befell him: enraged, he fell to the ground and remained so until his death, being handed over to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that the spirit could be saved (1 Cor. 5:5). After ten years, the Monk Luke returned again to his fatherland, to Hellas, and settled at the place of his first stay in Mount John. One day the bishop of Corinth happened to pass by the saint’s mountain, who was on his way to Constantinople and now stopped to rest near the saint’s cell; Saint Luke, having learned about this, went to worship him and brought with him gifts from his labors - tree fruits and garden roots, and herbs. The bishop, having kindly received him, went to see his cell and, seeing his deserted and silent life, his garden and his labors, he was surprised and received great edification from it. He decided to give alms to the hermit and ordered that each of those who came with him give a few coins, and he himself gave gold, and so a lot of money was collected, which he wanted to give to him; but Saint Luke did not want to accept them. “Holy Lord,” he said, “I seek and ask not for gold, but for your holy prayers and teachings; and why do I need gold when I have chosen poverty and this wretched life? So, give me what I ask and desire: teach me, a simpleton, how to be saved? The saddened bishop, thinking that Saint Luke was rejecting and despising not alms, but himself, said to the monk: - Why do you reject our donation, and at the same time ourselves? After all, I too am a faithful Christian, although a sinner; a bishop, albeit an unworthy one. And why don’t you, imitating Christ in everything, imitate Him in this: after all, He also accepted alms given by pious people; So, if you do not need gold, then still accept it and distribute it to those in need. If you consider a good deed to be an unnecessary thing, then you take away from the poor what they need and do not recognize the salvation of people who give alms: for a beggar, without accepting alms, how will he acquire everything he needs, but without giving alms, how can we be saved? Convinced by these words of the bishop, the monk accepted alms, but not all the gold, but only one coin, and the bishop, having given him his blessing, set off on his journey. Saint Luke had a custom during the Flower-Bearing Week to ascend early in the morning to the top of the mountain and, carrying a cross in his hands, chant: “Lord, have mercy.” When one day, according to his custom, he was ascending the mountain, an echidna crawled out of the hole and, at the instigation of the demon, stung his big toe and hung on him. The saint, bending down, took the echidna and, throwing it away from his leg, said to it: “Neither you harm me, nor I will harm you, but let’s each go our own way: after all, we are the creation of the One Creator and we cannot do anything without the desire and command of our Creator.” And the viper crawled into its cave, and the saint went his way up the mountain, remaining completely unharmed from the viper’s sting. One courtier, in charge of the royal treasures, was once sent by the king to an African country; when he was in Corinth, carrying with him a lot of royal gold, a theft was committed from him, and all the royal gold was lost. During the search for the stolen property, many were tortured and executed, but the gold was not found, and the royal dignitary was in great sadness. Noble citizens came and consoled him, but could not console him: despairing of finding gold, he did not think of staying alive, for he was afraid of the royal wrath. Then one of those who were there, standing in the middle, said: - No one can indicate where the stolen goods are, except for Luke the monk, through whom God works many miracles. Hearing this, the others said: “This is truly so,” and they all began to talk about him, praising his virtuous life and God’s grace in him. The royal dignitary, having heard this, sent to the saint with the following prayer: - Imitate the One who, for the sake of the salvation of the human race, did not refuse to come down from heaven, and come to our city for a short time to visit those overcome by great sorrow. Saint Luke at first did not want to go, avoiding vanity and human honor, but then, for the sake of many who suffered because of stolen gold, he went; in the city he was greeted with honor by the royal dignitary and citizens, and first of all ordered a meal to be prepared: “Let us first of all pay tribute to the belly,” he said to the dignitary, “and rejoice in the glory of God: He who gives us the wine of tenderness to drink is able to dissolve the cup of joy for us in a loving manner.” As they sat and dined—they satiated their souls more with the good teaching of the saint than their bodies with food—the Monk Luke, looking at one of those standing before them and serving them and calling him by name, called him to himself and said to him: “Why did you almost bring death upon yourself, and such great misfortune upon your master, by daring to steal the royal gold?” Go quickly and bring here the gold that you hid in the ground if you want to be worthy of mercy and forgiveness. Hearing this, the servant was very afraid and stood silently, trembling all over: the one whom conscience itself had denounced could not now utter a single word; then falling to the ground and hugging the saint’s feet, he told the whole truth, asking for forgiveness with tears, which he received. The saint wanted not only to expose his sinful ulcer, but also to heal it. And immediately that thief, having gone out, quickly returned, carrying the stolen gold all intact, and laid it before the eyes of everyone; and there was great joy both for the royal dignitary and for all those who were with him, and all those who feared for the gold calmed down. And the devil, who instigated this theft, was ashamed that the thief was forgiven, and the lips of everyone glorified the Lord Jesus. The saint, not in the least appropriating glory from everyone around him, but attributing all the glory of this miracle to God alone, returned home. After some time, the Monk Luke went to a monastery, located in the city of Thebes 1256, to visit abbot Anthony there: he had such a custom - to come to inspired men and conduct soul-saving conversations with them. While he was with Abbot Anthony, it happened that the son of one of the noble citizens became mortally ill. This citizen, having heard that Saint Luke had come to their monastery, immediately went there and, falling at his feet, weeping, began to beg him to come to his house and visit the sick and now dying youth: he believed that after visiting the saint of God, his son would become healthy. The saint humbly began to refuse, saying: - What am I? And what great do you see in me, what is your opinion about me? There is only one Physician of souls and bodies who can deliver us from death - this is God who created us; a sinful and mortal man cannot do anything like that. And that citizen left in grief, sobbing and despairing for his son’s life. In the evening, the abbot, talking alone with the monk, said to him: “I think, honest father, that you did wrong by not visiting the sick man and not comforting the saddened father; after all, we too will have to hear the word of Christ: “I am sick and in prison, and they did not visit Me” (Matthew 25:43). To this Saint Luke replied: – Healing the sick is a work of God’s power, but comforting the sorrowful is fitting for those who have the word and wisdom on their lips; I am far from the first, and completely deprived of the second, being a simple and unlearned person; but if you agree and think that it will please God, then go first and be my leader, and I will follow you. And immediately, already late in the evening, they both went to the city. Arriving at the house of that citizen, they found the youth half dead and no longer speaking, and all the household awaiting his death. The father of the sick man, together with everyone in the house, fell at the feet of the saint and began to ask him with tears to pray for his dying son, so that he would be returned from the gates of mortals. Entreated by the father of the sick man and convinced by Abbot Anthony, the monk, raising his hands, prayed for the sick youth and after prayer immediately returned to the monastery, and as soon as the morning dawn broke, he hastily went to his mountain; so he avoided human glory. When morning came, Abbot Anthony sent his servant into the city to find out what was happening with the sick youth: whether the prayers of St. Luke had time to do anything. And this servant, returning almost immediately, told the abbot a strange and wonderful thing: “I met the boy who was near death at night,” said the servant, sitting on a horse and going to the bathhouse to wash. Hearing this, the abbot was surprised and glorified God. Many, coming to St. Luke for their needs and breaking the silence dear to him, bothered him, and he decided to leave for a more deserted place. But he did not immediately fulfill his intention, but first sent his disciple Herman to Corinth, to a certain experienced and inspired man Theophylact, asking him for good advice: should he stay in one place, in Mount John, and endure the hassle of those who come, or should he move to another, unknown place? Theophylact sent him the answer once given from heaven to Saint Arsenius the Great: - Run away from people and you will be saved. The Monk Luke joyfully accepted this advice and, together with his disciple, left Mount John and settled near the sea, in a certain deserted place called Kalavie; While staying here, he earned food for himself through the labor of his hands: the saint dug the ground, sowed wheat and, grinding it on millstones, prepared bread for himself. Once sailors sailed past him and landed on the shore not far from the saint’s cell; Having entered it, they did not find anyone there, since Saint Luke, together with his disciple, had gone somewhere. Seeing a good millstone, they took it and carried it to the ship. The monk soon came to his cell and, seeing that his stone was gone, went to the sailors, asking them to return the stone to him. But they argued and began to claim that they did not take it. Then Saint Luke said to them: - If you didn’t take it, then swim into the sea, but if you have it, then the Lord will reward you as He wants. Having said this, the monk left, and immediately the one who took the stone fell dead. After this, all the sailors were filled with great fear and, having arrived, began to ask the saint for forgiveness and returned the stone. The saint of God was very saddened by the unexpected death of the sailor and cried for him for many days. Three years after the saint’s stay in this place, the Greek country was invaded by the Arabs, and the saint moved to a deserted island without water sources, called Ampil; on it he endured both hunger and thirst for quite a long time, and from there he moved to a fertile place called Sotirie. Having expelled a demon from this country that wanted to frighten him with ghosts, he remained here until his blessed death; the brethren gathered here to join him, and a small monastery was founded. The praetor of that country, named Krinet, who had love for the monk, created a church in his monastery in the name of the holy Great Martyr Barbara; and the saint remained in this monastery in fasting and prayer, constantly working for God and serving the salvation of people: for with his teachings and life he brought spiritual benefit to the souls of his brethren, and with his prayer he healed bodily illnesses. Monk Gregory, who always almost suffered from stomach pain, he healed with one word. He also healed a certain noble woman who lived in Thebes; she was obsessed with a severe and prolonged illness and had already despaired of help from doctors; he sent his disciple Pancratius to her, who, having come, anointed her with holy oil, and the woman was suddenly healed. In general, the monk gave quick healing from all illnesses, and even predicted the future for many. Having lived in that place for seven years, Saint Luke approached his death. Before his death the following happened. Among others, the monk had one student named Theodosius, who had a brother, the layman Philip. Once he decided to come to the monastery of the monk, partly to visit his brother, and partly to see Saint Luke, about whom he had heard many glorious things. The monk, foreseeing his coming, said to Theodosius: – Prepare, brother, everything you need for a good meal; your brother is coming to supper with us. Theodosius, overwhelmed with surprise and joy, carefully prepared the food and, often leaving the gate, looked at the road and eagerly awaited the arrival of his brother. In the evening Philip came and brought with him a lot of things necessary for the meal. He was lovingly received by the saint, and in the evening everyone began to dine together, eating everything that had been set for the glory of God. At this meal the monk drank and ate more than usual - and he did this for the sake of Philip's treat. After supper and the usual bedtime prayers, Philip lay down to rest; but on his bed he was tempted about the holy saint of God, Luke: he thought: “This old man is a hypocrite; he drinks and eats a lot, and only pretends to be fasting and holiness.” After this, falling asleep, Philip saw in a dream two bright young men who looked at him with angry eyes; their faces were furious, and they spoke cruel words: - Why do you think so wickedly about the reverend? And why do you condemn an ​​innocent and holy person? Lift up your eyes, which see only earthly things, and see what great honor has been awarded to the one who, in your opinion, is a hypocrite and a deceiver. Philip, looking up, saw a certain glorious place, all covered with purple, and in that place standing the Venerable Luke: he shone with Divine glory, like the sun. Rising from sleep, Philip was horrified and told all this to his brother Theodosius and other monks, and then with repentance confessed his sin to the Monk Luke himself; Having asked him for forgiveness, he left with great spiritual benefit for himself. Anticipating his imminent departure to God, Saint Luke went to visit all the fathers who were in that desert and kissed them all with his last kiss. “Pray for me, brothers,” he told them, “pray to the Lord Christ, it is unknown whether we will see each other later or not.” Having thus bypassed everyone, he then locked himself in his cell and for three months prepared for his death. Finally, eight days before his death, Saint Luke fell ill; when he was already completely sick and lying on the ground, Presbyter Gregory asked him: -What do you bequeath about your burial? And where do you want to put your body? “Tying my legs with a chain, throw me into the wilds of the forest, so that I, no longer useful to anyone, may be useful even for the beasts to eat.” Then the presbyter began to beg the saint to dispose of his body differently and to indicate the place for his burial. After some time the monk said: - Bury me in the very place where I lie: the Lord wants to glorify it for the glory of His holy name. Having said this, the saint, already at sunset, raised his eyes to the mountain and said: - In Your hands, Lord, I commend my spirit! And fell asleep in the sleep of temporary death; it was on the seventh day of the month of February; His holy soul departed to God for immortal life. When morning came, all the monks and worldly people from the surrounding areas gathered at this holy monastery, and there was a great crowd of people; everyone cried over the deprivation of such a great lamp to the world. They buried the saint of God with honor in the very place where he commanded - in the cell in which he labored. Six months later, a certain monk, Cosmas the eunuch, walking from the Paphlogonian country 1257 to Italy, had a vision of God; in this vision he was commanded to go to the place where the Monk Luke rested, and that he would inseparably remain at his tomb. Arriving at this place and settling there, the monk Cosmas removed from the ground the ark with the incorruptible relics of the monk and, placing it on top of the tomb, fenced this holy ark with boards and bars, and turned his cell itself into a church; and there were great miracles from these holy relics: fragrant myrrh flowed from them, and those anointed with it received healing: the lame were healed, the blind received their sight, lepers were cleansed and demons were cast out from people, through the prayers of St. Luke, and by the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, to Him be glory with the Father and the Holy Spirit, forever, amen. In ancient times, Hellas was the name given to the middle part of Greece. Aegina is one of the islands of the Archipelago. The Aegean Sea - otherwise the Gulf of Thessaloniki, in the northwest of the Archipelago. Kastoria is a village in Attica, the southeastern region of Hellas or central Greece. Euboea is a long island stretching from northwest to southeast along the coasts of the central Greek regions of Boeotia and Attica. – Peloponnese – southern Greece. Corinth is the oldest, famous and rich city of ancient Greece; lay on the Isthmus of Corinth, connecting the Peloponnese with the rest of Greece, in a beautiful and fertile plain on the southeastern shore of the Gulf of Corinth between the Ionian and Aegean seas; At present, the ruins of ancient Corinth are located near the present Corinth, called Curonto and having only about 5,000 inhabitants. Patras is an ancient city on the northern coast of the Peloponnese. Thebes is the main city of Boeotia, the middle region of ancient Greece. 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