Житие преподобной матери нашей Афанасии

The description of the lives and exploits of the saints for the edification of those reading or listening is not only a praiseworthy and saving work, but also the fulfillment of the Apostolic commandment, which commands us to make remembrances in their honor. This forces us to offer, at least a brief, narrative about the life of Blessed Athanasia, especially since the good examples of her life, as events of a long past time, can be forgotten, and many would thus be deprived of very edifying lessons for their souls. This wife 2506, worthy of praise and the name of immortality, who appeared in her virtuous life as a faithful and good servant of the heavenly Master, came from pious and noble parents - Nikita and Mary; they lived on the island of Aegina 2507, where the young woman was born, who later became the chosen vessel of the Holy Spirit. Even at the age of seven, she quickly learned to read the Psalter and, distinguished by her love of books, was especially diligent in reading the Holy Scriptures. One day, while working at the loom, she saw a brilliant star descending towards her from above, which, having reached her breasts and illuminated her whole, disappeared. From this time on, the young woman’s soul was enlightened: hating the vanity of the world, she decided to go to a monastery. But the parents strongly opposed their daughter’s good intentions and forced her, against her wishes, to get married. She lived in marriage for only sixteen days, after which she unexpectedly became a widow: suddenly wild Moors attacked that country, so Athanasia’s husband had to go to war, where, by the inscrutable providence of God, he was killed. Having been widowed, Athanasia again decided to retire to a monastery, but before she could carry out her desire, a decree from the king came demanding that virgins and young widows marry his soldiers. Convinced by her parents, Afanasia remarried. And in her new marriage, she did not abandon concern for her salvation: not being seduced by pleasures and not indulging in excessive concern for temporary goods, she spent almost all her time either reading the Holy Scriptures or singing psalms. Meekness and sincere humility constituted her main adornment, so her family could not help but treat her with anything other than love, and her neighbors, who knew her virtuous life, could not help but speak of her with praise. She loved helping the poor so much that sometimes in her rich house there was nothing left for alms: she honored the monks and strangers who came to her, lovingly giving them shelter; She generously distributed the necessities of life to widows, orphans and all those in need. At one time, when there was a severe famine in that country, which brought many to poverty, Athanasia fed not only fellow believers, but also the pagans living there: dying of hunger, they came to blessed Athanasia, and she gave them not only food and clothing, but also everything else they needed, thus fulfilling the word of the Lord: “Be ye therefore merciful, just as your Father is merciful” (Luke 6:36), “yes.” You will be sons of your Father in heaven, for He makes His sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust” (Matthew 5:45). On Sundays and holidays, Athanasia cordially invited her neighbors to her place and read the Holy Scriptures to them, instilling in them love for God and instructing them in a virtuous life. Thus, constantly growing in a godly life, Athanasia was decorated with virtues, just as a field is decorated with flowers in the spring. After several years of marriage, she convinced her husband to renounce the world with its temptations and go to a monastery: he heeded the instructions of his wife and, having become a true monk who led a life worthy of his calling, in peace, some time after taking monastic vows, he departed to the Lord. Remaining free, Blessed Athanasia devoted her entire life exclusively to serving God. Having found other pious wives who had the same love for God and had the same intentions as her, she joyfully joined them. Soon, having distributed their property to the poor and taken monastic vows from a pious elder, the wives retired from the world, choosing a secluded place for a silent life. Three or four years later, despite Blessed Athanasia’s refusal, her wives convinced her to take charge of them. But she, although she bore the title of abbess, considered herself to be the last among them according to the commandment of the Lord: “Whoever wants to be great among you must be your servant” (Matthew 20:26). And it is difficult to find words to express the full height of her humility: considering herself unworthy even to be among her wives, she considered herself even more unworthy to accept services from them: she, therefore, never allowed any of them to serve herself, even to pour water on her hands. Her abstinence was very great: only in the evening she ate a little bread and drank no more water than was needed to quench her thirst; She consumed oil and wine, cheese and fish with thanksgiving to God only on the holidays of the Nativity of Christ and the Holy Resurrection of Christ; During Holy Pentecost and the rest of the fasts, her food was only uncooked greens, which she took only two days later; In those days she consumed as little water as possible. The stones, laid on the ground and covered with sharp sackcloth, were for her a bed, which every night, like David (see: Ps. 6:7), she doused with her tears; and these tears, excited by love for God and the consciousness of her sinfulness, flowed from her eyes like streams during prayers and psalmody. Afanasia's outer clothing consisted of sheep's wool; on her body she wore a sharp hair shirt. She slept very little, but spent most of the night in fervent prayer to God and in pious meditation, and during the day, either alone or with other wives, she occupied herself with singing psalms. She made sure that not a single hour passed without prayer, constantly praising the Lord, imitating David, who says: “I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise is continually in my mouth” (Ps. 33:2). Until her death, from the day she entered the monastery, she never tasted a single garden fruit. Afanasia saw a lot of grief while managing the sisters and caring for them, and yet, out of humility and meekness, she never said a reproachful or insulting word to any of them; no one heard anything offensive from her, neither small nor great, neither slave nor free; She endured repeated disobedience from her sisters meekly and calmly, hoping for reward in her future life. After leading the sisters for four years, Blessed Athanasia came up with the idea of ​​moving from this place to another, where it would be more convenient to serve God in silence. At God's discretion, she found one monk - an elder, who was a priest and abbot, named Matthew, a virtuous and holy man. Having learned about the good intentions of the wives, he pointed out to them the desired place on the same Aegina island: it was one deserted mountain, in which the ancient church in the name of the holy first martyr Stephen was preserved. Seeing this place, the Monk Athanasia said: “I have known about it in spirit for a long time and I think that we will live here until our death.” The Monk Matthew, with the blessing of the bishop of that country, built a monastery for Blessed Athanasia and her sisters at the Church of St. Stephen. Worthy of mention, although in a few words, is the life of St. Matthew. This reverend father took upon himself a great feat: every night he read the Psalter, adding prayers to the reading; when the need arose to refresh himself with sleep, he slept not lying down, but sitting up and for that very short time. When singing psalms, reading prayers or making a bloodless sacrifice, he became so moved that he could not help but cry, and those present could not help but benefit from such a touching spectacle. The Monk Matthew wore only a sharp hair shirt and completely withered his flesh through great abstinence and labors. He had a special love for the holy Evangelist John the Theologian, beloved disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ. One summer, on the day of remembrance of the Holy Apostle, the Monk Matthew, starting to celebrate the Divine Liturgy, said to one of the presbyters who served him: “Who is worthy now to be in Ephesus and see the holy Evangelist John the Theologian there?” After these words, he sighed with all his heart and cried heavily. And a miraculous event occurred: the monk and his two fellow priests saw Saint John the Theologian standing at the throne; the vision continued until the end of the liturgy. From this sight, Saint Matthew became so moved and filled with such spiritual joy that he could not eat food for the next three days. One day a completely paralytic man was brought to the monk: taking pity on him, he took off his mantle and put it on the paralytic, and he immediately recovered. Another man came to him, having a distorted face due to the action of the devil, and when the monk touched his face with his hand, making the sign of the cross over it, it immediately took on its usual appearance. Also, one old woman, tormented by an unclean spirit, came to the saint and through his prayers freed herself from her tormentor. Another nun’s wife, who also suffered from an unclean spirit, was healed in a similar way. But this, as can be seen from what has just been told, this great saint of God, who received the gift of healing from the Lord, according to the inscrutable fate of God, died a violent death in the water. The ship on which the monk was traveling, heading to Constantinople, sank with all the people on it. The island of Aegina, therefore, lost the relics of the venerable father, which for many would have been a source of healing. After him, a presbyter and abbot was a eunuch from birth named Ignatius; in his virtuous life and gifts received from the Lord, he was like St. Matthew; without deviating from the path of a godly life until his death, he honestly departed to the Lord; At his grave, demons were cast out and healings from illnesses were obtained. Now let us return again to the story of the life of St. Athanasia. It was said that the Monk Athanasia possessed great meekness and humility: almost constantly praying to God, she, looking at the sky, sometimes saw an amazing sight that aroused horror in her: she saw a bright cloud scattering the rays of the sun and in the middle of it some husband, shining with indescribable beauty. This repeated vision aroused surprise in her and forced her to ask herself: “Who gave her husband such beauty? For what virtues did he deserve such great glory? During these reflections, she seemed to hear a voice addressing her with the following words: “The husband whom you marvel at was adorned in a similar way with humility combined with meekness; know that through these virtues you will achieve the same.” Every day, contemplating this miraculous phenomenon, the saint adorned herself with humility and meekness with such zeal that it was difficult to find a person similar to her in this respect: not the slightest trace of anger or exaltation was noticeable in her, she also excelled in other virtues, which is why her spiritual eye, unclouded by sin, could contemplate miraculous phenomena in heaven. At the same time, the Lord honored her with the gift of miracles. One day, when she was privately indulging in pious reflections, a man whose eyes were very painful came to her and asked her to pray to God for him. She humbly and, as if consoling him, said: “I also suffer from eye disease, so can you, and God will help you.” But he did not leave her, asking with faith for healing. Then Blessed Athanasia laid her hand on his eyes with the words: – May our Lord Jesus Christ, who healed the blind from birth, grant you, brother, perfect healing. And immediately the man got rid of his illness. The fame of Blessed Athanasia spread throughout the country: many sick people came to the monastery, receiving healing here through the prayers of the saint. At the Church of St. Stephen, the Monk Athanasia built three more: one in the name of the Most Holy Theotokos, another in the name of St. John the Baptist, and a third in the name of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker; She especially decorated the Church of the Most Holy Theotokos, receiving everything necessary for its organization from pious people who deeply respected the saint. But fame and honor from people, embarrassment from those who came, gave rise to discontent in her and a desire to retire to some other place. Taking two sisters, Marina and Eupraxia, she secretly retired to Constantinople, where she stayed in the same nunnery for seven years. Greatly yearning for her beloved Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary, created by her labors, she often said with tears: - Constraint and vain veneration of man forced me to move away from the church of my Lady Theotokos; Avoiding vain glory, I left Her magnificent church and now sit here as a wanderer. However, the saint could not remain unknown there, and here God glorified His servant: she began to cast out demons and heal the sick. Rumors about her also reached her sisters who lived in the Aegina monastery: having come to Blessed Athanasia, they begged her to return with them to her monastery, which a certain vision prompted her to do. The venerable woman said to the sisters Eupraxia and Marina: “It’s time for us to return to ourselves: in a vision I saw the open church of the Most Holy Theotokos, from where we were commanded to enter it.” And, leaving Constantinople, she returned with her sisters to the island of Aegina to her monastery. Here, a short time after her return, she became very ill and within twelve days learned of her death: she saw two husbands dressed in white robes, who, approaching her, handed her a written charter and said: “Here is your freedom; take it and rejoice.” Having come to her senses after the vision, she learned that she would soon have to go to the Lord and, therefore, she remained in prayer and pious meditation for twelve days, without eating or drinking; to the sisters around her she said: “Sing, my sisters, and constantly praise God, so that He may be merciful to our sins.” When the twelfth day arrived, the monk said, turning to them: - Help me, since I am already very weak, go to church and finish reading the Psalter, but I can no longer do it, because I have almost completely lost my strength. They asked her with tears: – Which psalm did you finish reading? Where should we start reading? – Now I’m reading the ninetieth psalm and I can’t do it anymore. The sisters went and finished reading the Psalter. Then they came and fell before the saint’s bed, asking her for her last prayer for themselves. She prayed for everyone and, hugging Marina and Eupraxia, said: – My beloved sisters, on this day we are separated, but in the next century God will unite us again; May the Lord give you peace of love, unanimity and send His bounties upon you. During these and other farewell words, her face shone like light, so that those present were filled with surprise and horror. Meanwhile, the feast of the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos was approaching, and the monk said to the sisters: - Look, don’t forget anything you need for the holiday; let the service be performed decently and arrange a festive meal for the orphans, the poor and the widows; after the Divine Liturgy, commit my wretched body to the earth. Having said this and hugging the indicated sisters, she rested in the Lord, as if falling asleep in an ordinary natural sleep. She looked as if she were alive: she closed her eyes and closed her lips, so there was no need for the usual service after death. The sisters, falling to her body, mourned their orphanhood: “Where,” they said, “have you gone, our holy mother, the same name as immortality?” Have you really left us completely orphaned, moving away from our eyes? Where else will we see your angel-like face? Where will we hear your voice, comforting us in sorrows and instructing us in good deeds? The lamp that instilled cheerfulness and hope in us has gone out! Here you are sleeping, and we are close to death from longing for you; we will no longer see you participating with us in worship and teaching us with words and your own example. The Lord took you to His immortal abodes. With such weeping they removed the saint’s venerable body. Blessed Athanasia died on August 14, on the eve of the Feast of the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary; on the very same holiday, after the Divine Liturgy, she was buried with honor amid the inconsolable sobs of her sisters. The sister, who assumed the power of abbess after the saint, did not leave her tomb day and night, and Saint Athanasia appeared to her in a dream, saying: “Believe without doubting that on the fortieth day after my death I will receive what was prepared for me from the Lord.” The abbess, having woken up, was perplexed as to what the vision and words of the saint meant. On the fortieth day, the sisters forgot, as sometimes happens, to perform the usual commemoration, thinking that it would come in another two days. On this day in the evening the holy abbess appeared and said: “Why did you forget the fortieth day and did nothing to commemorate me - you didn’t give it to the poor and didn’t receive, as you should, those who wanted to remember me.” The abbess, getting up, carefully counted the days and became convinced that it was indeed the evening of the fortieth day, on which the commemoration was to be performed. On the morning of the next day, when they were commemorating, during the Divine Liturgy, two nuns, the heads of the choir, to whom God had opened the eyes of their souls, saw a wondrous sight in the church: two splendid men, dressed in bright robes, entered the church, leading the Venerable Athanasia; Having placed her before the holy altar, they put on her a royal purple decorated with precious stones and placed a royal crown on her head, crowned behind and in front with a cross, and gave her a golden scepter, also decorated with precious stones, in her hand, then, taking her by the arms, they led her through the Royal Doors into the holy altar. The Prologue also tells the following about Blessed Athanasius. Departing to the Lord, she commanded the sisters to serve a memorial meal to the poor every day, throughout the fortieth day. But they carried out her command only until the ninth day, and then they stopped. Then the saint appeared to them with two Angels and said: - Why did you forget my will? Know that alms and priestly prayers offered for the soul for forty days appease God: if the souls of the departed were sinners, then the Lord will grant them remission of sins; if they are righteous, then those who pray for them will be rewarded with benefits. Having said this, the monk stuck her staff into the ground and became invisible; The sisters, getting up in the morning and seeing her staff blossom, glorified the Creator of all God. So says the Prologue. A year after the repose of the Monk Athanasia, on the day of her remembrance, as Metaphrastus relates, two sacred men came to the monastery, bringing with them a woman tormented by evil spirits. Having removed the cover from the tomb, they dug up the ground and took out the very coffin with the body of the saint, and immediately the unclean spirits left, and the woman became healthy. A fragrance spread from the coffin, and those around them saw myrrh dripping from it. Then the coffin was opened, and the saint appeared to the eyes of those present as if she had just fallen asleep: her face shone with splendor; the body, exuding myrrh, was soft, so that the arms bent; nothing was destroyed. This sight brought involuntary, joyful tears from everyone’s eyes. The holy men, having closed the coffin, decided not to place the relics in the ground, but to place them openly in the church, which they did: then, having built a new tomb, they transferred the honest relics of Blessed Athanasia into it. The nuns, having removed the hair-hair clothing from the relics, prepared new, silk ones, but when they wanted to clothe the honest relics in it, they could not do this due to the reluctance of Saint Athanasia. She, as if alive, held her hands tightly to her breasts, opposing the intentions of the sisters: she did not want silk clothes, and after death she loved poverty. One of the nuns, who for her virtuous life became the chosen vessel of the Holy Spirit, knelt down and prayed, turning to the saint as if alive: “Our lady, just as during your life with us you always showed unquestioning obedience, so now deign to listen to us and put on this humble garment that we bring.” When she prayed, the Monk Athanasia listened to her, and, lo and behold! Having risen, she sat down, stretching out her hands for her robe; after the endowment she again lay down in the tomb. And many miracles were performed with her holy relics: healings were obtained from all kinds of illnesses, demons left people through her holy prayers; There will not even be enough time for a detailed description of all her miracles, and let those who read or listen to her life not regret this: let us be content with a brief, but still useful story about the saint. But you, blessed Athanasia, honored in the name of immortality, cohabitant of the Divine Angels and for the sake of Christ in the Gospel, became poor and enriched with Divine gifts, always cried and found undisturbed consolation, spent a temporary life in thirst and greed and received eternal bliss, merciful to the poor and pardoned by God, you who accepted for the purity of your heart the light of the Holy Spirit and peace into your soul, who has become the temple of the Holy Spirit and a treasury of virtues on earth, for which you have been honored with ineffable glorification in heaven, you, who are installed in the host of saints and share bliss with them, remember us, who praise your virtuous life and honor your memory with spiritual joy. Look at our life, spent among the rebellious waves of the world, so that by your prayers we have lived righteously, we have escaped the devil’s snares and together with you we have been worthy of eternal bliss by the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, with Him to the Father and the Holy Spirit be glory, honor and worship, now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen. Athanasius from Greek translated into Russian means “immortality”. This island is located near Greece. You might be interested in: