Житие преподобного отца нашего Арсения Великого

The Monk Arseny was born in Rome from pious Christian parents, who raised him in the fear of God and taught him the sciences. Arseny was not only a virtuous husband, but also a very wise one: he studied the works of all rhetoricians and philosophers and knew both Greek and Latin well. However, he abandoned the vain worldly life and neglected Hellenic wisdom; he entered the host of clergy, devoting himself to the service of God, as he sought true wisdom, praised by the holy Apostle James, that wisdom that is “pure, peaceful, modest,” obedient, full of “mercy and good fruits” (James 3:17). Arseny, having assumed the rank of deacon of the great Roman Church, led a chaste life, trying to make himself a worthy dwelling of the holy and all-sanctifying Spirit. At this time, the eastern part of the Roman Empire was ruled by Theodosius the Great 3018, and the western part by Gratian 3019. Theodosius, having two sons - Arcadius and Honorius, was looking for a teacher for them who would teach them not only human, but also Divine wisdom; Theodosius wanted his children to be taught not only philosophy and other Hellenic sciences, but also a virtuous, godly Christian life. For this purpose, Theodosius ordered a search throughout his empire for such a person, but he could not find him, because those sent by him found many smart and learned people who were not leading a life pleasing to God, and, on the contrary, they met people who lived a pious life, but were completely untrained in secular sciences. Therefore, Theodosius was forced to write to the Western Emperor Gratian that he needed just such a person to teach his children, as stated above. Gratian, having consulted about this with Pope Damasus 3020, said to him: “Our kingdom will be ashamed if we do not find in him a virtuous and wise man, such as Emperor Theodosius asks. We need to find a person who could teach his sons philosophy and instruct them in the fear of God not only by word, but also by the example of their virtuous life.” Having carefully searched throughout Rome, they did not find a more wise and more virtuous man than Arsenius the deacon, who led a virtuous life and surpassed many in his exploits and was no longer young in age. Having called him to them, they conveyed to him the desire of the king of the east and ordered Arseny to go to him. But Arseny made every excuse, saying that he had long ago abandoned all worldly sciences, since he decided to devote himself to serving God in the rank of cleric; Arseny said that he had long forgotten all the speeches of the rhetoricians, since he decided to devote all his strength to serving the Church and the altar. However, the more Arseny dissuaded himself, the more the emperor and the pope exhorted him to fulfill their request, since they asked him to do something useful to the entire Christian world and the Church of God. They told him that he must teach the royal children not only book wisdom, but also Christian piety, so that they would not believe in pagan fables, but would defend and spread the Christian faith. Then Arseny, against his will, obeyed the orders of the emperor and the pope. They sent him to Constantinople to Emperor Theodosius with great honor. When the monk arrived in Constantinople, he was received here by Emperor Theodosius very graciously: when he saw him, Theodosius, even by his appearance, recognized him as a man of God, full of wisdom and knowledge of God, and was very happy at his arrival. Having given thanks to God, Theodosius brought his children, Arkady and Honorius, to Arseny, and handed them to him, saying: “Now you will be more of a father to them than I am, because it is more difficult to raise them than to give birth to them.” I entrust them to you and your prudence; bring them up as I ask you; accustom them to virtue and teach them wisdom; as their spiritual father, take care that they avoid various youthful temptations. For all this you will receive a reward from God. Honest Arseny! Oh that you would increase them in piety and virtuous life! How I would rejoice at this and how I would thank God for it! I am telling you all this in front of my sons, so that they can hear and see it all for themselves. Do not look at the fact that they are the king's sons; raise them to be obedient and submissive to yourself, because I want them to obey you in everything, as their father and teacher, and to obey you, like your children and students. Having entrusted his children to Arseny, Theodosius ordered that a school be built for them near the palace, so that it would be convenient for him to come to them and observe their education and life; The emperor showed great honor to blessed Arseny: he gave him a place among his advisers and ordered him to be called not only the father of his children, but also his father, so that everyone called Arseny “the father of the sovereign and his children.” There is also news that Blessed Arseny was the recipient of the holy baptism of the royal sons, Arcadius and Honorius, since both were baptized not in infancy, but in adolescence. Having taken the royal children under his leadership, Arseny zealously took care of their upbringing and education; he studied Greek and Latin books with them and at the same time instructed them to a pious life, explaining to them the Holy Scriptures; in particular, Arseny taught them how they should behave when the Lord deigns to give them control of the state; he told them that they should adorn themselves not so much with a royal crown as with good deeds of piety; - although wicked, lawless people reigned, as all pagan emperors were, Christian kings must be virtuous people, must please God and do good to people, if they want the memory of them to pass from generation to generation. Thus teaching Arcadius and Honorius, Arsenius showed them every respect, as the sons of the king; therefore, he usually invited them to sit on thrones, while he himself talked with them while standing. It happened one day that Theodosius came to them unexpectedly during their training. Seeing that his sons were sitting, and their teacher, Arseny, was standing in front of them, Theodosius was very sad and said to Arseny: - Did I order that? Didn’t I tell you that you should consider my sons as your disciples and children, and not pay attention to the fact that they are the king’s children? Blessed Arseny answered Theodosius with humility as follows: - King! Each thing has its own task: youth requires learning, but veneration is appropriate for royal honor. At these words the king was even more offended and said: - So you consider them kings? Having said this, Theodosius removed the signs of royal dignity from his sons and forcibly placed Arseny on the throne, but forced his sons to stand before him and said: – If they learn to fear God and keep His commandments and please Him with a virtuous life, then the King of Heaven will make them kings on earth if they are worthy of it; but if they are bad people and unworthy of the royal throne, then it is better for them not to reign at all. I pray to God that He would rather take them out of this life in their youthful years than allow them to grow up in evil, to the destruction of both their own souls and other human souls. Arseny approved of the king in his thoughts and from then on acted according to his orders: he taught the king’s sons while sitting while they stood in front of him. But the greater the glory that surrounded Arseny, the more he grieved in spirit, because his heart lay neither towards fame, nor towards wealth, nor towards vain worldly praise; in the depths of his soul he strongly desired to serve God in the humble monastic life, in silence and poverty; therefore, Arseny began to earnestly pray to the Lord, asking to free him from his stay in the royal chambers and to grant him a deserted monastic life. It happened one day that Arseny somehow noticed some misconduct in Arkady. Angry with him, Arseny beat him with rods and, moreover, so severely that Arkady remembered this punishment until his death, since traces of the rods remained on Arkady’s body. All this happened according to the providence of God, in order to free Arseny from this worldly life and give him the opportunity to lead the deserted monastic life that the monk so longed for. Arkady, harboring anger at his teacher in his heart and having come of age, began to think about how he could kill Arseny. He revealed his intention to one trusted adviser and begged him to kill Arseny in any way he liked. But he, fearing God and Emperor Theodosius and not wanting to do such a bad deed, especially since he respected Arseny for many of his virtues, secretly, in private, conveyed to him Arkady’s plan and advised the monk to take care of his life. Arseny, filled with grief and fear, began again with tears to pray to God so that He would guide him on the path of salvation. At night, during prayer, Arseny heard a voice from above saying: “Arseny! Run away from people and you will be saved." Hearing this, Arseny dressed in thin clothes and, secretly leaving the royal palace, came to the seashore; here, by God's providence, he found a ship departing for Alexandria 3021. He sat down on it and set off, placing all his trust in God. When the ship arrived in Alexandria, Arseny immediately went to the monastery of ascetics 3022. Arriving at church, he began to tearfully beg the elders to ordain him into monasticism and guide him on the path of salvation. These latter, seeing that an honest and reverent husband was speaking to them, asked him: -Who are you and where did you come from? - I am a wanderer and a poor person. The elders, having consulted among themselves about who could give the stranger to for instruction in monastic life, decided to give him to Abba John Kolov, of which they informed him. Elder John, having prayed to God, said: “The will of the Lord be done!” Meanwhile, John ordered a meal to be prepared for the brethren, since it was ten o’clock in the afternoon. The brothers sat down at the table, but Arseny stood because no one invited him to sit down. The brothers began to eat food, but Arseny did not eat anything and stood all the time with his head down, as if standing before God and His holy Angels. Elder John took one of the crackers offered for the meal and threw it to Arseny, saying: John did this in order to test the stranger’s humility and find out whether he really came here to renounce the world. Meanwhile, Arseny thought to himself like this: “This old man is an Angel of God and a seer, because he knows that I am worse than a dog; That’s why he threw the biscuit to me like it was to a dog; for the same reason I must eat it like a dog.” And bending down to the ground, he went on all fours, like a four-legged animal, to the cracker, took it directly with his mouth, then went with it to a corner and ate it there while lying on the ground. Blessed John, seeing such humility of Saint Arseny, said to the elders: - He will be a great ascetic. John greatly loved Arseny for his humility and soon clothed him in the rank of monasticism, then, having taught him the ascetic life, he gave him a cell not far from himself, as a monk already firm and experienced in virtue. Meanwhile, Emperor Theodosius began to look for Arseny, soon after he left the palace. Theodosius was very sorry for Arseny and therefore ordered to look for him in different cities. However, he could not find him, since the Lord hid the whereabouts of His saint until the time when it would please Him to reveal him to the world for the benefit of many. Arseny, living in the cell indicated to him by the elder, labored in fasting, prayer and monastic labors and was so successful in all virtues that he surpassed many elders in his exploits. One day, while he was praying, he said: - Lord, teach me to be saved! In response to this there was a voice from heaven, saying: - Arseny! Hide from people and remain silent; it is the root of virtue. Hearing this voice, Arseny left that place deep into the desert and built a small cell for himself here; in this cell he always stayed alone, trying his best to maintain silence. He avoided all conversation and constantly directed his mind to heaven; While he was on earth in body, he flew in spirit to the forces above. Every Sunday and holiday he came to church. At the end of the service, he immediately returned silently to his cell; at the same time, he never entered into conversation with anyone; only occasionally, when asked, would he answer the question as briefly as possible and then rush off to his silent home. All the ascetics who lived in the monastery desert were greatly amazed at the virtuous life of the Monk Arseny. Once Abba Mark asked him: - Why are you, honest father, moving away from us? – God knows how much I love you; but I cannot be with both God and people at the same time, because in heaven, although there are a lot of higher powers - thousands of thousands or tens of thousands - they all have one will and therefore unanimously glorify God; but there are many human wills on earth, and each person has his own thoughts; each of us has different intentions and thoughts, and therefore I cannot, leaving God, live with people. Striving to become as close to God as possible, Arseny withdrew from people in every possible way, so that he did not even want anyone to see him or know about him; but like a lamp he could not hide under a bushel; the rumor about his exploits spread everywhere and reached Constantinople. After the death of the pious Tsar Theodosius the Great, his son Arkady reigned 3023. Having learned about the whereabouts and way of life of the Monk Arsenius, Arkady wrote him a message in which he humbly asked him for forgiveness for the sins of his youth, and also asked him to pray to God for him and for his brother Honorius, who ruled the western half of the Roman Empire 3024, so that their reign would be blessed by God. In addition, Arkady gave Arseny the right to use all the tribute that was collected from Egypt and distribute it to churches, monasteries and all those in need, at his own discretion. The Monk Arseny did not want to answer the king in writing, but only said to the messenger: - Tell those who sent you: this is what the humble Arseny says - May God forgive your sins and bless your reign and help you fulfill His holy will. You wrote about tribute; but Arseny does not need it, because he died for the world; let no one consider him more alive (i.e. living for the world). With this answer, the messenger went to the emperor, but the monk retired to his deserted cell and remained in it in silence, constantly talking with God in prayer, and only sometimes came out of it, teaching others monastic virtues. One day the Monk Arseny came to a place where a lot of reeds grew. He found monks here sitting near the reeds. Since the reeds were rustling from the wind, the monk asked the monks: – Where does this noise come from? “It’s the reeds that are making noise from the wind.” Then the monk said to them: - Why are you sitting here and listening to the noise of the reeds? Anyone who truly loves silence should not even listen to the singing of birds, which can disturb the peace of mind; all the more so can the noise of the reeds confuse the heart of a monk. One day, Archbishop Theophilus of Alexandria 3025 came to the monk along with a nobleman who wanted to talk with the monk and receive instruction from him. The monk, after being silent for a while, said to them: – Will you do what I tell you? They promised to do whatever he said. Then the monk said: – Never come to where Arseny will be. Those who came were surprised by the monk’s answer, however, they obeyed him and left. After some time, the archbishop wanted to see Arseny again, so he sent him to ask: “Will you open your cell when the archbishop comes to you?” The monk answered the messenger: “If you come, I will open it; but if I open the cell to you, then I will have to open it to everyone; but in this case I will have to leave the cell.” Having heard such an answer, the archbishop did not go to the monk, as he was afraid that he would leave that place. It happened one day that a traveling monk came to the cell of the Monk Arseny, because he wanted to see him. Approaching the door, he knocked on it. Arseny, thinking that it was his novice who was serving him, immediately opened the door. But, seeing a stranger, he fell to the ground, face down, so as not to see the stranger. However, this latter began to beg the monk to rise from the ground. Arseny did not want to get up and said: “I won’t get up until you leave here.” And indeed, he did not rise from the ground for a long time. The monk begged the monk for a long time; but, since the monk did not agree to fulfill his request, the monk left from there. Another time, another monk came from afar to the skete, also wanting to see the monk, and began to beg the brethren to show him the way to Arseny’s cell. At the same time he said to the brethren: – I want to talk with Father Arseny. - Wait, brother, until Sunday, and you will see him when he comes to church. The monk said to the brethren: “I won’t eat until I see the monk.” Therefore, the brethren sent one monk with the newcomer and instructed him to show the way to the cell of Elder Arseny (it should be noted that Arseny’s cell was thirty furlongs from the monastery) 3026. Approaching the cell, the brother knocked on it. The elder opened the door and let the strangers into the cell; then he sat down with his head down and was silent. Those who came also sat silently. Everyone was silent for quite a long time. Finally the monk of the monastery said: “I’ll go back because I have to fulfill my duties at the church.” And, rising from his seat, he prepared to go. Another brother, who came with him, not having the audacity to stay with the elder, said to him: Then, getting up, he bowed to the elder and left the cell, without hearing a single word from the lips of the monk. After this, the wandering monk began to beg his brother to bring him to Moses, who was a robber before he was tonsured a monk. The brother agreed to fulfill his request and took him to the Monk Moses. When they came to Moses, the latter received them with joy, offered them rest and refreshment with food, and, showing them great love, sent them away from him. On the way, the skete brother said to the stranger: - So you saw both Father Arseny and Father Moses. Which one is better, in your opinion? “The best of them is the one who received us with love.” One monk, having learned about this, began to pray to God, saying: “Lord! Tell me which of them is more perfect and deserves more of Your grace: the one who hides from people for Your sake, or the one who accepts everyone also for Your sake?” This monk, in answer to his prayer, had the following vision: he imagined two ships sailing along some very large river; in one ship was the Monk Arseny, and the Spirit of God controlled his ship, keeping it in great silence; in another there was the Monk Moses; His ship was controlled by the Angels of God, who put honey into the mouth of Moses. The monk told about this vision to other, more experienced ascetics, and everyone found that Arseny, who remained in silence, was more perfect than Moses, who received strangers, because God Himself was with Arseny, while only the holy Angels were with Moses. In every possible way avoiding seeing people and talking with them in general, Arseny was especially wary of seeing women and talking with them, as can be seen from the following incident. One rich noblewoman, pious, chaste and very God-fearing, who led a strict life, heard about the Monk Arseny, wished to see him; For this purpose, she came from Rome to Alexandria to the archbishop and asked him to persuade Arseny to accept her as a wanderer and grant her his blessing for undertaking such a long journey. The archbishop received her with great honor, since she came from a noble senatorial family, and tried in every possible way to persuade the monk to fulfill her request, but had no success, because the elder not only did not want to see her, but did not even want to hear about the woman. Having learned about this, the noblewoman ordered her servants to prepare for the journey, saying: – I hope in God that He will vouchsafe me to see Arseny, because I did not come to see an ordinary person (and there are many ordinary people in our city); no, I want to see the prophet. This is why I made such a long journey. Having said this, she headed into the hermitage desert. When the noblewoman approached the saint’s cell, it happened, at the discretion of God, that the elder was outside the cell; unexpectedly approaching him, she fell at his feet. He, ordering her to stand up, said to her with anger, looking her straight in the face: - If you wanted to see my face, then here it is - look. But out of shame she could not even raise her eyes to him. Then the elder said to her: “If you have heard about any of my good deeds, then you will do well if you fulfill them.” There is no need for you to look at my face. Why did you take such a long journey? Don’t you know that you are a woman and that you, therefore, must be in your house and not leave it anywhere? Have you really come here so that, when you return to Rome, you can boast to other women that you saw Arsenius? If you do this, then all the city women will come to me. “If the Lord helps me return, then I will not allow anyone to go to you, so as not to interfere with your exploits.” But I ask you - pray to God for me and remember me in your prayers. “I will pray to God that He will erase the memory of you from my heart.” Hearing this, the noblewoman left the monk with a very confused heart. Arriving in the city of Alexandria, she fell into even greater sadness. The archbishop learned that the noblewoman had returned from the monk with great sadness. Having come to her, he asked her about the reason for her grief. The noblewoman answered him: “It would be better for me if I didn’t come here at all.” I asked the elder to remember me in his prayers, but he told me: “I will pray to God that He will erase the memory of you from my heart.” For this reason I grieve to death. Then the archbishop said to her: “Do not be sad about this, my daughter, for the elder said this not without reason: after all, you are a woman, and through women the devil causes a lot of trouble to holy men.” Therefore, the elder said those words, fearing the temptation of the demon; He prays for your soul and will always pray. The noblewoman calmed down after these words, stopped being sad and happily set off on her way back. The Monk Arseny continued to remain in silence, deepening more and more in the thought of God; he burned with such strong love for God that he was constantly, as it were, on fire because of his fiery prayers. One day a certain brother came from the monastery to the elder’s cell for some business; approaching the window, he saw the elder standing in prayer, and the elder was inflamed with prayer like fire. Seeing this, the brother was horrified. Since he was worthy of this vision, he stood for a while and knocked on the door. The elder left the cell and, seeing his brother, horrified about something, asked him: - How long have you been here? Have you seen anything special? Then, after talking with him on business, the elder sent him to the monastery. They also tell about this wondrous old man that when he lived in the royal palace, no one wore better clothes than him; but when he renounced the world, no one had worse clothes than he. This elder retained one habit from his royal life, namely: sometimes, when sitting down, he crossed his legs, which might not seem entirely decent. Some of the brothers saw this, however, none of them dared to make any reprimand to him, because everyone respected him very much. But only one elder, Abba Pimen, said to the brethren: - Go to Abba Arseny and I will sit with him the way he sometimes sits; then you reprimand me that I don’t sit well. I will ask you for forgiveness; At the same time, we will correct the elder too. They went and did so. The Monk Arseny, realizing that it was indecent for a monk to sit like that, gave up his habit. Blessed Arseny was so humble that he even listened to instructions from ordinary monks. For example, talking with one Egyptian elder, he asked to teach him how to drive away sinful thoughts from himself. Another brother found out about this, who then told Arseny: - Why do you, honest father, so skilled in science, knowing Greek and Latin well, ask a simpleton for advice on how to drive away sinful thoughts from yourself? The monk answered the monk: – I know well the secular science of the Greeks and Romans; but I don’t even know the ABCs of what a simpleton knows about living a virtuous life. The monk said this in order to show that humility is the basis of all virtues, just as the alphabet is the basis of all science; he who would study all worldly wisdom, but would not have true humility, cannot be saved. In addition to humility, the monk also possessed the gift of tenderness. Throughout his entire life, when he was doing needlework, he always had a scarf on his chest, since tears constantly flowed from his eyes. He was very cheerful in body as well as in spirit; He worked all day and prayed to God all night, and only occasionally indulged in sleep. When his eyes closed and he really wanted to sleep, he said to himself: “Go away, evil slave, and do not stay with me!” And if after this he indulged in a slight doze while sitting, then soon, having gained courage, he stood up and prayed to God. He often told his disciples: - A monk should only sleep for one hour. On the eve of every Sunday, he stood in prayer on Saturday evening, raising his hands up; He stood with his back to the sun and stood there until the sun, the next morning, began to shine in his face. The blessed elder was always engaged in handicrafts: he wove baskets and mats from date leaves, and did not change the water in which he soaked the leaves for a whole year; I only occasionally added a little water. Because of this, some of the brethren said to him: - Why don’t you, honest father, change the water in which you soak the date leaves? Don't you notice how that water stinks in your cell? The monk answered them: “Instead of the incense and fragrant ointments that I smelled when I lived in the world, I must now smell this stench, so that on the Day of the Last Judgment the Lord will deliver me from the unbearable stench of hell.” Sometimes demons dared to tempt the monk; the brother who served him, approaching his cell, heard the elder cry out to God in such cases: “Do not leave me, Lord! Although I have not done anything good before You, help me, by Your grace, to now make a good beginning!” It happened one day that the Monk Arseny became very ill. The skete monks came to the monk, took him and carried him to the hospital at the church to serve him. They laid him on a bed, well made and with a soft head. One brother came to visit the monk. That brother, seeing that the monk was lying on a soft bed, was tempted and said: – Is this Father Arseny! And is he really lying on a soft bed? Hearing this, one of the elders called that brother to him and asked him privately: “Brother, when you were in the world, what duty did you perform and what was your life like?” “I was a shepherd and spent my life in many toils and sorrows. Then the presbyter asked him again: - How do you live now? “Now I live in peace, I have everything for my needs and do not know any worries or sorrows.” Then the presbyter said to him: - This one you see, Father Arseny, when he was in the world, was the father of kings; thousands of servants in light clothes, golden belts and hryvnias 3027 stood before him; his bed was very decorated and his wealth was countless; and you used to herd cattle and were a beggar; you did not have such peace in the world as you enjoy now; you are resting from worldly labors, and Father Arseny now works and suffers in poverty, after peace and contentment in the world. That brother, touched by the presbyter’s words, bowed and asked for his forgiveness, saying: “Indeed, honest father, everything was as you said: I came here to rest from work, but Father Arseny came here to work from peace.” Having received instruction useful for the soul, that brother left the presbyter. Once upon a time there was an invasion of barbarians in that country. All the monks fled from the monastery to cities and villages; but the monk did not want to leave the desert for the city, thinking like this: “If the Lord does not save me, then I have no reason to live on earth.” The barbarians plundered the entire monastery, but could not find the Monk Arseny, since God Himself hid His servant from them. However, having reflected within himself, in order not to listen to praise from other fathers and not to indulge in vanity, the monk went on the same path along which the other fathers fled. Arseny cried a lot about the devastation of the monastery, saying: - Rome destroyed the world 3028, and the monks destroyed the monastery. When the barbarians left the monastery, the monks returned there again; Having restored the monastery, they began to live in their places again. The Monk Arseny returned with them to his cell. One day the will of a boyar, his relative, was brought to the monk from Rome, who provided all his numerous riches in favor of the monk, so that he would spend them as he wanted. The monk, having taken the will, wanted to tear it up, but the one who came with the will asked him not to tear up the document, saying: “I ask you, honest father, do not tear up this will, as those who sent it will exact it from me.” The monk, returning the will to him intact, said: – I died even before him (for the world); Why does he, who recently died, make me, a dead man, the heir of his wealth? And he returned the messenger with the testament to those who sent him. The monk did not always asceticize in the same place, but sometimes he moved from the hermitage desert to more secluded and silent places, moving away from the people who came for conversation, since they disturbed his peace of mind. So he labored for some time in Trogin, near Babylon and opposite the city of Memphis, then in Kanop, near Alexandria and in some other desert places; then he returned to the monastery again, so that no one knew his way of life. Once, when the monk lived in the lower countries of Egypt, he wanted to leave his cell and go to some other place, due to the multitude of people who came to him and interfered with his silent residence. Taking nothing with him, he set off, saying to his two disciples Alexander and Zoilus: “You, Alexander, stay here, and you, Zoilus, go with me to the river and look for me a ship that goes to Alexandria.” Then return to your brother Alexander. His disciples were very embarrassed by these words, however, not one of them dared to ask the elder: “Why are you leaving us?” Having sailed to Alexandria, the elder fell into a serious illness and was ill for quite a long time. Alexander and Zoilus, who remained in the elder’s cell, began to ask each other: had any of them offended the monk by any disobedience? Finding no fault in themselves, they fell into great sadness for the elder. When the monk recovered, he said to himself: “I will now go to my disciples.” It happened that he was near the river and met here with a crowd of travelers walking that road; at the same time, one Egyptian woman touched the saint’s clothes. But he, offended, made a remark to her that a woman should not touch monastic clothes. The woman said to him: – If you are a monk, then go to the desert mountain. The old man was touched by her words and often said to himself, repeating the words of that woman: “Arseny! If you are a monk, then go to the mountains and wander through the deserts.” Finally, the monk came to the place (called “Stone”) where his disciples lived. Alexander and Zoilus, having met him, fell at his feet and cried for joy. The old man also cried, hugging them. Then the disciples said to the elder: “Your departure from here, honest father, plunged us into great sadness, because some monks told us that Abba Arseny would not have left his cell if his disciples had not upset him with their disobedience.” - Children! I also thought that the monks would say this regarding my departure from here; That's why I returned to you. Now the monks can say about me: “The dove that flew out of Noah’s ark, not finding solid ground under its feet, returned to Noah in the ark” (cf. Gen. 8:8-9). With these words of the saint, the disciples were comforted and from then on they remained with him inseparably until the saint’s death. One day, when the monk was in his cell, he had such a revelation from God. He heard a voice: “Get out of your cell, and I will show you the deeds of men.” The elder, leaving his cell, seemed to be in some kind of delight. He saw an Angel of God who took him by the hand and led him to one place; here he showed him a black man chopping wood and preparing a lot of it; Then the man wanted to take the wood that he had chopped onto his shoulders and carry it, but he could not do this because there was too much wood. However, instead of somewhat reducing the wood from the bundle, the man continued to chop wood again and again tried to lift it, but was completely unable to do so; however, he chopped more and more wood and increased his burden more and more. Then the Angel of God showed the monk in another place a man standing near a well and drawing water into a leaky vessel; the water flowed out of the vessel and returned to the well, but the man who drew the water continued to work in vain. Finally, the Angel showed the monk a new vision: Arseny saw a church with open doors and two horsemen each holding a log in their hands; These horsemen wanted to ride through the church doors, but could not, because the logs were across the way; one rider prevented another from placing a log along the path; Instead of one giving way to the other, the riders tried to pass through the door at the same time and therefore fussed around the door all the time and could not enter the church. After all this, the elder asked the Angel: - What does this vision signify? – Two people holding a log in their hand is an image of virtuous, but proud men who do not want to humble themselves in front of each other; they will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven, but will remain outside it because of their pride, which will destroy all their virtues. A person who draws water and pours it into a leaky vessel is like a person who has some good deeds, but does not abandon sins; this person works in vain, because with his sins he destroys the reward that he could have received from God. The black man who chopped wood and added more and more burdens to himself is the likeness of a man who indulges in many sins and, instead of repenting, adds lawlessness to lawlessness. The Monk Arseny told his disciples about this vision for their edification, and, in his humility, he told them that he did not see all this himself, but only heard about it from another elder. In addition, Arseny told his disciples about the terrible revelation about the Divine Mysteries of Christ that happened to other desert fathers. “There was,” said Arseny, “in the monastery there was one elder who led a very strict life, famous for his virtues among all the monks. This elder, due to his simplicity (he was not taught the Holy Scriptures), was tempted by the most pure Mysteries of Christ, thinking that the bread that we accept from the sacred altar and the cup with which we receive communion are not the true Body and Blood of Christ, but only the likeness of the Body and Blood of Christ. Two experienced elders learned about this; Realizing that that old man thought so not out of malice, but out of simplicity and ignorance, they decided to bring him to reason. For this purpose, they went to him and, having talked with him about many things for the benefit of the soul, among other things they said the following: “We have heard, honest father, about one brother that he thinks incorrectly about the bread that we accept from the holy altar, and about the cup that we drink - that this is not the true Body and Blood of Christ, but only their likeness. They began to persuade him, saying: “Don’t think so, honest father, but believe as the Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church teaches us to believe.” We believe and confess that the bread is the true Body of Christ, and the wine in the cup is His true Blood, and not a likeness of only the Body and Blood. Then those fathers brought numerous testimonies from the Holy Scriptures and from the works of the fathers and teachers of the Church to prove the truth of their words, trying to convince that elder to abandon his false belief. But he said to them in simplicity of heart: “If I don’t prove it by doing it myself, I won’t believe it.” Then the elders said to him: “Let us all three pray to God about this, so that He may reveal this secret to us, having first fasted for the whole week.” We believe that He will reveal this secret to us, since He will not allow your many years of labor to perish. The elder listened to their advice with love, and they all secluded themselves in their cells for the whole week and spent time in fasting and prayer. The elder prayed to God like this: - God! You know that I do not think this way out of malice, but with my simple mind I cannot comprehend the mystery of this. Reveal to me, by Thy grace, the truth, so that I do not err in unbelief. The other two elders said in their prayer: - Lord! Reveal to our brother Your great secret, so that he does not remain disbelieving in it and do not destroy his works and virtues. God listened to His servants and revealed to them that terrible secret in this way. After a week had passed since the elders began their fasting and prayer, and Sunday came, those three elders went to church to listen to the Divine Liturgy; in the church they stood next to each other. The Lord opened their spiritual eyes. When bread was prepared for the holy meal, they saw a young baby instead of bread. While the priest extended his hand to break the bread, the elders saw an Angel of God descend from heaven and have a knife in his hands. Having stabbed the baby, the Angel poured the Blood into the cup. When the priest broke the bread, the Angel broke the Body into pieces. Meanwhile, it was time for communion. Together with the other brethren, the unbelieving brother also went to receive communion. Taking into his hands a piece of meat 3029, raw and bleeding, and seeing the blood in the bowl, this old man exclaimed in horror: “Lord, I believe that this bread is Your Body, and this wine is Your Blood.” Immediately the meat turned into bread and the blood into wine. Then the elder took communion of the holy Mysteries of Christ with great fear and tenderness of heart. The other two elders said to him: – Christ God knows that man cannot eat raw meat and drink blood. Therefore, He offers believers His most pure Body under the guise of bread and His life-giving Blood under the guise of wine. Then the elders thanked the Lord for the revelation and for the fact that He did not allow that virtuous elder to perish in unbelief. One day a brother asked Arseny about what is good for the soul. The monk answered him: - Take care in every possible way that what you think in your mind is pleasing to God. By doing this, you will easily overcome every sin. The saint said this in order to show that all sins and passions are born from bad thoughts accepted by the heart and held back with pleasure; he who watches his thoughts and drives away sinful thoughts, thereby extinguishes his passions and conquers sinful lusts. Another time the monk said: – If we really seek God with all our hearts, then He Himself will come to us and we will see Him; and if we keep Him close to us with a pure life, then He will remain with us. One elder asked Abba Arseny: - What should I do, honest father? I just can’t get over the idea that I’m old and therefore I can neither fast nor perform monastic feats because of my old age. Therefore, it seems to me that one should go and visit the sick, since this is a matter of Christian love. The monk, realizing that this was a demonic temptation, said to the elder: “Eat, drink, sleep, but just don’t leave your cell.” The monk said this because he knew that a monk leaving his cell and approaching worldly villages would face many temptations and temptations of the enemy; and in general, one who has died for the world should not leave the monastery without a good reason, just as a dead person does not leave his tomb. A monk who leaves the monastery of his own free will truly becomes dead, because he dies in soul. – There are many people who try in every possible way to maintain bodily purity and for this they mortify their bodies with fasting, vigil and many labors; but there are few who jealously protect their souls from the sins of vanity, pride, love of money, envy, brotherly hatred, anger, resentment, and condemnation. Such people are externally pure in body, but their soul is dirty; they are like coffins, decorated on the outside, but full of stinking bones on the inside. Blessed is the one who tries to preserve both his body and soul from defilement; truly blessed are the pure in heart (and not just in body), because they will see God. One brother said to the monk: - Honest father! I have studied many books and psalms and want to read them with tenderness of heart, but I do not have tenderness, because I do not understand the power of the Holy Scriptures, and I grieve greatly about this. The monk answered this: - Child! You must constantly study in reading the word of God, even if you do not understand its power and do not have tenderness. I heard Abba Pimen and other fathers say that snake charmers themselves do not understand the words that they say, however, the snakes, hearing their words, are tamed, as if understanding their words, and freely surrender into their hands. We can do the same, even if we do not understand the power of Holy Scripture. For when we have the words of the Holy Scripture in our mouths, then the demons, hearing them, come into fear and flee from us, unable to bear the words of the Holy Spirit, who spoke through His servants the prophets and apostles. When the time of the saint’s blessed death approached, he said to his disciples: - When I die, do not hold a wake for me, do not gather the brethren for dinner, but just make sure that the Divine Sacrifice is offered for my sinful soul. His disciples, hearing this, were very sad and began to cry. But the monk told them: - Don't cry, children! The hour of my death has not yet come, although it is already not far from me. Then the disciples asked him: - How to bury you, honest father? “Tie ropes to my feet and throw me over the mountain.” When the very hour of the saint’s death began to approach, he began to cry a lot and fell into great fear. The disciples, seeing him crying, asked him: “Are you, honest father, really afraid of death?” “Indeed, I always felt the fear of death in all the days of my monastic life, starting from the day on which I put on the monastic image. Then the monk fell asleep in the blissful sleep of death, betraying his honest soul into the hands of his Lord, Whom he served so diligently throughout his entire life. When Abba Pimen heard about the peaceful death of the saint, he shed tears and said: - Blessed are you, Father Arseny, because you cried throughout your entire life; for this you will have fun forever. The one who does not cry here of his own free will will involuntarily cry after death in the midst of torment, but this crying will not benefit anyone. They say about the Monk Arseny that he often said to himself the following words: “Arseny! Why did you come here? You came here not for rest, but for work, not for laziness, but for achievement. Strive, work, and don’t be lazy.” The monk also often spoke these words: “Many times I regretted the words that my lips uttered, but I never regretted silence.” Abba Daniel told about the Monk Arseny that he never asked anyone questions from books, even though he could offer them, because he knew the Holy Scriptures well. The monk did this because he did not want to appear wise in books; The monk never wrote messages to anyone, considering himself a simpleton and ignoramus for Christ's sake 3030; never entered the altar, although he had the right to do so, being ordained a deacon, but always approached the Divine Mysteries together with ordinary monks. He did all this because of his great humility. When blessed Arseny came to church for divine services, he stood behind a pillar so that neither he could see anyone’s face, nor anyone could see him. In appearance the monk was as handsome as an Angel; He was gray-haired, handsome in body, thin from great abstinence, had a beard to his waist; had sunken eyes from constant crying; He was tall, but hunched over from old age. The monk died after spending fifty-five years in monastic labors and exploits, pleasing God with fasting and prayer; stayed in the monastery for forty years; lived for ten years in a place called Trogin, near Memphis; then the monk spent three years in Kanop, near Alexandria; from here he returned to Trogin again, lived here for two years and here he rested in the Lord. In total, the monk lived about one hundred years, 3031. May the Lord, through his holy prayers, grant us forgiveness of sins and eternal life with Christ our Lord, to whom glory is given with the Father and the Holy Spirit forever. Amen. With your tears you cultivated the barren desert, and with your sighs from the depths you brought forth fruit with a hundred labors, and you were a lamp of the universe, shining miracles, Arseny our Father. Pray to Christ God to save our souls. From Rome you shone like a great sun, and you reached the royal city, most blessed, illuminating this with your words and deeds, driving away all folly and darkness. For this reason we honor you, glory to the fathers, Reverend Arseny. Theodosius - ruled the eastern half of the Roman Empire from 379 to 395; western from 383 to 395 Gratian reigned from 375 to 383. Damasus I occupied the papal throne from 366 to 384. Alexandria is a famous city in ancient times, located at the mouth of the Nile in Egypt and founded by Alexander the Great (336–323 BC). Alexandria in ancient times was a center of trade, industry and education, and in the first centuries of Christianity a hotbed of Christian enlightenment. Currently, Alexandria is one of the most important port cities. Egypt was the usual habitat of many ascetics. Monastic monasteries were located in both Middle and Lower Egypt. The Nitrian desert, located in Lower Egypt and lying inland, beyond the Nile River, was especially famous in Egypt. The Skete desert was located near Libya. This is a wild, sandy desert; There was no beaten path here - the path here was guided by the flow of the stars. Emperor Arcadius ruled the eastern half of the Roman Empire from 395 to 408. Theophilus was patriarch from 385 to 412. About 5 miles according to our count. Hryvnia is a gold chain worn as a decoration around the neck. This probably means the persecution raised against Christians by the Roman emperors. It should not be surprising that the brethren received the honorable Body of Christ into their hands; in the first centuries of Christianity, even the uninitiated were allowed to pick up the Holy Gifts and take them with them home or on trips; but subsequently the fathers and teachers of the Church forbade doing this for the following reason: during the patriarchate of St. John Chrysostom in Constantinople, one woman brought home the Holy Gifts and mixed them with some kind of potions for sorcery. Having learned about this, St. John Chrysostom made an order to all churches so that the honest Body of Christ should not be given into the hands of Christians, but that together with the Divine Blood it should be taught to believers from the chalice. – St. Demetrius of Rostov speaks about this on November 9, in his account of the life of the Venerable Theoktista. After the Monk Arseny, only a few sayings and instructions to monks remained, like the two above, preserved in the ancient Patericon and collections of sayings of the ancient desert fathers. The life and work of the Monk Arseny is arranged by year as follows: born in 354, accepted to the Court in the 29th year of his life - in 383, lived at the Court for 11 years - until 394, lived for 40 years in the hermitage - until 434, lived for 10 years in Trogin (or Troyon), spent 3 years in Kanop, the last two again in Trogin and died at the 95th year of his life in 449 or the beginning. 450 g. You might be interested in: