Житие преподобного отца нашего Досифея, ученика преподобного Дорофея

Our blessed father Dorotheos, zealous for a godly life and loving the monastic life, went to the monastery of Abba Serida 1473, where he found many great fasters laboring in silence; Among them, two great elders were especially distinguished: the holy Barsanuphius and his disciple and fellow faster, Abba John, who bore the title of prophet, since he received from the Lord the gift of clairvoyance. Saint Dorotheus entrusted himself to the leadership of these fasters and began to imitate them with all zeal. Together with Holy Father Serid, the Monk Dorotheos often came to the great elder Barsanuphius and talked with him, and he was honored to serve Father John, who was distinguished by the gift of divination. Thus, blessed Dorotheus remained in the monastery of Abba Serida, practicing the feat of obedience. Then the above-mentioned holy fathers decided that Father Dorotheus should build a hospital and take care of it himself, for the brethren suffered greatly when they fell into illness - there was no one to take care of them and look after them. With God's help, the monk built a hospital with the assistance of his brother according to the flesh, who, being pious and loving monks, gave Saint Dorotheus the necessary funds for the construction. From then on, Abba Dorotheos, with some other reverent monks, served the sick and strange, considering this to be the obedience entrusted to him by the fathers of the monastery 1474. One day Abbot Serid called to him the Monk Dorotheus; Arriving at the abbot, Dorotheus found him with a certain young man in military attire, very young and handsome: he came to the monastery along with some of the prince’s servants, who enjoyed the love of Abba Serida and often came to him. When Father Dorotheos arrived, Abba Serid invited him alone and said to him: “These people brought this young man; they say that he wants to enter our monastery; I am afraid that this is the son of some nobleman, who, perhaps, has stolen something or committed some evil and now wants to hide: then, if we accept him, we will be in direct danger. I think so because neither his attire nor his appearance reveal him as a person who wants to strive. The young man was indeed a relative of one of the governors; Having previously lived among wealth, accustomed to a pampered lifestyle, he had never before heard the word of God. Some of that governor’s servants sometimes told him about the holy city of Jerusalem, so the young man wanted to see the holy places and asked the governor to let him go to see the holy city. Not wanting to upset him with a refusal, the governor turned to one person close to him, who intended to visit holy places, and began to ask him: - Show me your favor, take this young man with you so that he can see the holy places. The one who set off took the young man, showed him every honor and took great care of his comfort. When the travelers reached the holy city and worshiped the holy places there, they also came to Gethsemane 1475. There was an image of the Last Judgment of God, where various types of hellish torment were presented. Seeing this image, the young man looked at it carefully and was surprised. Not far from him he saw an honest wife, dressed in purple; she began to explain to him the torment of each of the condemned and, teaching him, added a few words of her own. Hearing her story, the young man was silent and surprised, for he, as previously noted, had never heard the word of God and knew nothing about the Last Judgment. Finally, turning to the woman, he told her: – Madam, what should everyone do to get rid of this torment? In response to this she told him: – Fast, don’t eat meat, perhaps pray more often, and you will be freed from these torments. Having given him three such commandments, the woman dressed in scarlet became invisible. The young man walked around the entire place, carefully trying to meet her; he thought that it was an ordinary woman, and could not find her anywhere, for it was the Most Pure and Most Holy Virgin Mary the Mother of God herself. The instruction of the mysterious wife made a strong impression on the young man: his heart was touched, he began to strictly observe the three commandments that the Woman he saw in Gethsemane gave him. The governor's friend, on the way back, seeing that the young man was fasting and not eating meat, began to grieve, fearing the governor, for he knew that the governor loved that young man very much. The soldiers who were with them, seeing such abstinence of the young man, began to say to him: - Sir, you are doing something that people living in the world do not do. This is done only in monasteries. Go there, and there you will save your soul. Knowing nothing about God and not imagining what a monastery is, the young man answered: - Take me and take me to some monastery. I myself don’t know where to go. Some of the soldiers who accompanied the young man especially respected Abba Serid. That's why they came to his monastery along with that young man. The abbot sent blessed Dorotheus to talk to the young man and find out who he was. To all the questions of the Monk Dorotheus, the young man gave one answer: Then Dorotheos came to the abbot and told him: “If you want to accept it, then accept it without any fear.” You can't expect anything evil from him. - Show him mercy, father, and take him to you, so that he can receive salvation, instructed by you. But the humble monk refused and said: “I can’t take him to myself, because this is beyond my strength, I can’t guide him on the path of salvation.” To this the abbot objected to him: “I care about your salvation and the salvation of all of you; You don’t want to worry about saving one young man. “If this is what you want, father,” Dorotheos noted, “then let’s ask the great elder Barsanuphius for advice.” “Okay,” answered the abbot, “I’ll tell him.” Going to Barsanuphius, the abbot informed him of everything that had happened. Then Saint Barsanuphius said to Dorotheus: “Receive this boy, for the Lord through you is pleased to save him.” After these words, Blessed Dorotheos received the young man with great joy, placing him with him in the hospital. The name of that young man was Dosifei. When it was time for lunch, Abba Dorotheos said to Dosifei: - Go and strengthen your strength, just tell me how much food you took. Returning, Dositheus said: “I ate bread and half a loaf, and each loaf contained four pounds.” – Is this enough for you? “Yes, my lord, that’s quite enough for me.” – And you’re not hungry? – asked Dorofey “No,” answered Dositheus. “Next time,” Abba Dorotheos said to this, “you will eat bread with a quarter of the bread, and divide the other quarter into two parts, and you will also eat one of them.” Dositheus did just that the next time. -Are you hungry? – Dorotheus asked him “Yes, I feel some hunger,” answered Dositheus. A few days later, blessed Dorotheus asked him again: - Do you feel hungry, child? - No, my lord, your prayers make me feel very good. - Now you eat only bread and half a quarter of other things. Dositheus did just that. A few days later the Monk Dorotheos asked him again: “Don’t you feel hungry now, my son?” “Divide,” said Saint Dorotheos, “and the other quarter into two parts, one of which you can eat, and the other you can save.” Dositheus fulfilled the words of his mentor. Gradually, with God's help, Dositheus began to eat only 8 lots instead of 6 pounds, for as in everything, habit is important in food: everyone eats the amount to which they manage to get used. Blessed Dosifei did everything he did quietly and meekly; he ministered to the sick in the hospital, and everyone thanked him for his care, for he tried to keep everything clean. If, out of fatigue, he happened to say something with anger to some sick person, he would immediately leave the hospital, go into the cellar and cry there. Other hospital ministers tried to console him in these cases, but their efforts remained unsuccessful: Dosifei remained unforgiving to himself. Then they went to Father Dorotheus and said: - Do me a favor, father, find out what brother Dositheus is crying about, we don’t know this, and we can’t console him. The Monk Dorotheos entered and found his disciple sitting on the ground and crying. He asked him: - What’s wrong with you, Dositheus, why are you crying? “Forgive me, father, I said an evil word to my brother in anger.” Then Abba Dorotheos told him: - Why are you angry, Dositheus, why do you allow yourself to speak to your brother with anger? Don't you know that by insulting him you are insulting Christ? Dositheus bowed his head down and did not answer. When Dorotheus said to him: - God will forgive you; get up, and from this day we will begin your correction, we will intensify our zeal for doing good, and God will help us. Then Dositheus stood up and joyfully set about his work, as if he had received forgiveness from God. Those who were in the hospital soon recognized Dosifei’s habit, and when they saw that Dosifei was crying, they said: “Something happened to Dositheus, he sinned in some way.” And then they turned to blessed Dorotheus: - Father, go to the cellar, there is something for you there. When Dorotheus entered and saw his student crying, he understood that Dositheus had again said an evil word to someone, and said to him: – What’s wrong with you, Dositheus? Have you offended God again? Have you succumbed to feelings of anger again? Have you forgotten your intention to improve? When the Monk Dorotheos saw that his disciple had already shed many tears, he said to him: - Get up, Dositheus, and may God forgive you; For your part, try again to begin the correction. Comforted by these words, Dositheus left his sadness and went to make his bed, which he did with meekness. Constantly confessing to his mentor in all his deeds and thoughts, blessed Dositheos, laying out soft beds for the sick, often said to Dorotheus passing by: “Father, my conscience tells me that I make beds well.” To this Abba Dorotheos answered him: “It’s an amazing thing, Dositheus, you become a good servant and an excellent bedfellow, but you don’t make a good monk.” The Monk Dorotheos never allowed Dosifei to have any attachments to anything, and the student fulfilled all the behests of his teacher. When Dositheus needed clothes, Abba Dorotheos ordered his student to sew his own clothes and gave him the fabric. Blessed Dositheos retired and fulfilled this assignment with great care. When he finished his work, Abba Dorotheos called him and said: -Have you finished your work, Dositheus? “Yes, my father, I sewed the clothes well,” answered Dosifei. - Go and give it to such and such a brother (he named him) or the sick person. Dositheus happily carried out this order of his mentor, and blessed Dorotheus gave him other clothes to sew; when he finished this, his mentor said to him: - Give it to so-and-so brother! And Dositheus gave it away. He never complained or said: “He takes my clothes and gives them to someone else,” but with zeal and love he did everything that his mentor ordered him. One day the monastery builder 1476 brought a good sharp knife from the blacksmith. Dositheus took it, brought it to Abba Dorotheus and said: - Father, brother builder brought this knife; I took it to have it in the hospital if you would allow it. Blessed Dorotheus always had something worse in the hospital; therefore he answered Dosifei: - Show it to me; I'll see if he's any good. Dosifei handed the knife to his mentor. Saint Dorotheos, although he saw that the knife was good, however, not wanting his disciple to have an addiction to any thing, said to him: “Is that what you want, Dositheus, to be a slave to this knife, and aren’t you afraid that this knife, and not God, will possess you?” Hearing these words, Dositheus remained silent. Having shamed him sufficiently, the Monk Dorotheos said to his disciple: - Go, put this knife somewhere, and don’t touch it. Blessed Dosifei holyly fulfilled this order; he never even dared to give this knife to anyone else, although other servants took it: only he alone did not touch it; Not once did he even think: - Why am I the only one ordered not to take it? Am I not equal with others? The Monk Dosifei never thought so, but he always did with joy everything that his mentor ordered him to do. Even when Abba Dorotheos, reproaching him, said something allegorically, Saint Dositheos, in this case, tried to guess and fulfill the desire of his mentor. So, such an incident took place in his life. At first Dosifei used to speak very loudly. Blessed Dorotheos, wishing that he would not speak so loudly, said: - Dositheus, we need to bring a cup of undissolved wine. Go and get the vessel! He immediately went and brought a full cup of wine and bread. By presenting this to the mentor, he wanted to receive a blessing from him, according to custom. Dorotheus, seeing this, was surprised and asked him: - What do you want to do, Dositheus? “Father,” his disciple answered him, “you commanded to bring me a vessel of undissolved wine; so give me a blessing. “You foolish one,” answered Abba Dorotheos, “you speak very loudly, like the Goths 1477 when they get drunk with wine.” Therefore I said to you: take the cup of wine, for you shout as loudly as the Goths. Saint Dosifei, having bowed, put back what he had brought, and from that time began to speak quietly. One day he came to the Monk Dorotheus and asked him to explain one place from the Holy Scriptures - for, zealous for the enlightenment of his mind, he began to reflect on some places of the Holy Scriptures. But his mentor did not want Dosifei to practice studying Scripture, because he was afraid that then he would dream about himself and would not maintain a humble consciousness of his spiritual poverty. Therefore, to the student’s question, the Monk Dorotheos answered: Another time, when Dositheus again came to his mentor and asked him about another passage of Holy Scripture, he received the following answer: - Go to the abbot and ask him about this, I can’t explain it to you. Obeying the command of his mentor, blessed Dosifei went to the abbot. But Abba Dorotheos warned the abbot: “If Dositheus comes to you, father, and begins to ask about various passages of the Holy Scriptures, strike him. When Dosifei came to the abbot and asked him to explain the incomprehensible passages of the Holy Scriptures, the abbot began to strike him, saying: – Why aren’t you silent if you don’t understand anything? Why do you dare to ask about this? Shouldn't you be more concerned about your purity instead of testing the Scriptures? Then, having hit him twice on the cheeks, the abbot released him. Returning to Father Dorotheus, the monk showed him his cheeks, reddened from the blow, and said: “The abbot also struck me on the back,” and did not add anything else. He did not reproach his mentor, did not tell him: “Why didn’t you enlighten me, why did you send me to the abbot.” No, Blessed Dosifei did not say anything like that; He accepted everything that his mentor ordered him with faith and immediately carried out his command without any reasoning. When Abba Dorotheos asked his disciple about his thoughts, Dosifei told them to his mentor and dutifully listened to all the instructions from him. At the same time, he tried to observe the command of his teacher with such precision that Saint Dorotheus never had to repeat his instructions. This is what he did throughout his short stay at the monastery, and he stayed in it for only about five years. So he ended his life, without leaving obedience to his mentor and his father, completely renouncing his will and having no attachment to any thing. The Monk Dosifei did not even care about his health. When he fell into a serious illness, so that his throat was bleeding, he heard that his illness could be helped by undercooked eggs. The Monk Dorotheos, who made every effort to cure his disciple of his illness, also heard about this remedy, but at that time forgot about it. And then Saint Dositheus once said to his mentor: – Father, I want to tell you one thing. I know one remedy for my illness, but I want you to order me not to use it, for I am afraid that otherwise my vain thoughts about recovery will disturb my spirit. - Tell me, child, what kind of remedy is this? – asked the Monk Dorotheos “Promise me in advance that you will not give it to me,” Blessed Dosifei again began to ask Father Dorotheus. “Okay,” answered the mentor, “I will fulfill your wish.” Then the sick man said to him: “I have heard from some that undercooked eggs are beneficial for patients like me, but I ask you, do not order me to eat them, so that the vain thought of recovery does not confuse me.” “Okay, my son, I will not force you, as you yourself asked me to do.” Just don’t mourn and don’t lose heart. And indeed, instead of undercooked eggs, the Monk Dorotheos gave his disciple other means to help with his illness. So Saint Dosifei, even having fallen ill with a serious illness, tried to renounce his will. The monk always had the memory of God in his mind and on his lips. His spiritual father advised him to constantly say: “Lord Jesus Christ, my God, have mercy on me,” and “Son of God, help me.” Saint Dositheus always had these prayers on his lips. When his illness intensified, Father Dorofey told him: – Dositheus, do not forget your prayers and double your supplications! “Pray, father, to God for me,” answered the sufferer. When the illness intensified even more, Dorotheus asked: - What, Dositheus, do you say your prayers the same way as before? - Yes, father, according to your prayers, I am not abandoning this matter. When his illness intensified even more, so that Dosifei himself could no longer get up and had to be carried on a linen, the Monk Dorotheos asked him: – Do you continue to pray, Dositheus? “Forgive me, father,” answered the sick man, “I can no longer pray.” “Then leave prayer,” answered Dorotheus, “just remember the name of God and always have Him before your eyes.” The suffering of Saint Dositheos intensified, and one day he turned to Elder Barsanuphius with the following request: - Let me go, father, I can’t live anymore. Saint Barsanuphius sent to tell him: - Be patient, child, for God’s mercy is not far away. Seeing that Saint Dositheos was very ill, the Monk Dorotheos was very saddened by this. A few days later the sick man again sent word to Saint Barsanuphius: - My Lord, I can no longer live. To this the great Barsanuphius answered: – Go in peace, appear before the Most Holy Trinity and pray for us before the throne of the Almighty. Hearing these words of the great Barsanuphius, the monks began to be indignant; they said to each other: – What great did Dositheus do? What was his feat? Why did he receive such an answer from the great elder? They really did not see the special feats of the Monk Dosifei, they did not see that he ate only every other day, as some of the monks who were there did; They did not see Dosifei appearing in church before everyone else, and they did not see him showing special abstinence. They all saw how Dositheus ate food, although in small quantities. They knew that Saint Dositheus sometimes ate juice, which remained after distribution to the sick, or fish heads, or other similar dishes. And in this monastery there were many monks who labored zealously in abstinence for a long time, ate food only every other day, and constantly prayed; These, hearing the answer of the great Barsanuphius, given to the sick man, who had spent no more than five years in the monastery, were embarrassed; for they did not know the uncomplaining and complete obedience of Saint Dositheos, and could not understand his great feat. That is why they began to grumble when they heard the words of Saint Barsanuphius addressed to him. But the Lord was pleased to show the glory prepared for Dositheus for his great obedience, and at the same time to show before everyone how wisely and quickly the Monk Dorotheus guided his disciple on the path of salvation. Soon after the death of Dosifei in 1478, one holy elder, an experienced ascetic, came to the monastery and was received with honor. This elder, wanting to see the previously deceased holy fathers of the monastery, prayed to the Lord that He would reveal to him something about them. His prayer was heard, and he was honored to see all the fathers of the monastery standing in a bright place, among whom was a young man with a cheerful face. After this vision, the elder began to ask who this young man was, whom he saw among the holy fathers. When he described his appearance, everyone understood that it was blessed Dosifei. Then everyone glorified God and marveled at His ineffable mercy. So the Monk Dositheos in a short time achieved great glory in the Kingdom of Heaven, because he labored in obedience, rejected his own will and enslaved it to the will of his mentor, as if to God Himself. For this he now stands with all the holy fathers in heaven who lives and among the humble and obedient to the looking God, to whom be glory forever. Amen. The Monk Serid lived in the 6th century and was the founder of the Palestine monastery near the city of Gaza. His memory is on cheese Saturday. The monastery he founded was a kind of communal monastery in which the brethren not only stand, but also receive clothes, etc. from the monastery, by order of the abbot, and for their part, all their labor and its fruits are necessarily provided for the general needs of the monastery. Such monasteries were called cenovia (from the Greek words - cenobitic). With what love the Monk Dorotheos performed such obedience, his own words show: “at that time I had just gotten up from a serious illness. And then the wanderers came in the evening, I spent the evening with them - and there were camel drivers - and I prepared what they needed; many times, when I went to bed, another need met and I was woken up, and then the hour of vigil approached.” Gethsemane is a village or place beyond the brook Kidron, at the foot of the Mount of Olives, where there was a garden, where the Lord often retired with His disciples, and where He was betrayed by Judas (Matthew 26:36; John 18:1-3). Gethsemane - in Russian means: a place of olives, or a winepress for squeezing juice out of olives. The Garden of Gethsemane is still shown at the foot of the Mount of Olives - on its southern side; in the garden they also indicate the place of the Gethsemane prayer of the Lord before the Calvary sufferings, as well as the burial den of the Mother of God, where Her coffin is now located. Builder - otherwise housebuilder, housekeeper, treasury guard, housekeeper, or housekeeper. This was the name of the monks who were in charge of the monastic household! The Goths were a semi-wild people of Germanic origin who originally lived southeast of the Baltic Sea. During the era of the great migration of peoples (5th century), the Goths spread to the south, and for some time threatened the Byzantine Empire. At the same time, as well as later, there were many Gothic mercenaries who served in the troops of the Greek emperor, and therefore this people were known even in Palestine. You might be interested in: