Житие преподобной Евфросинии, игумении Полоцкой

In the city of Polotsk there lived a prince named Vseslav 3412, who had a son, George. It was from this George that blessed Euphrosyne was born. Before accepting monasticism, Saint Euphrosyne bore the name of Predislava. Having been taught to read and write from a very young age, Euphrosyne diligently studied the Holy Scriptures and other soul-saving books. From the Holy Scriptures she learned the fear of God and zealous love for God, her Creator. The venerable woman was very beautiful in her face, so that when she was twelve years old, many glorious princes asked Euphrosyne’s father to give her in marriage to their sons 3413. But in no case did the young woman agree to give herself in marriage to an earthly mortal husband, since she had disgraced herself to the immortal heavenly Bridegroom, the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God. All the saint’s thoughts were directed towards God. However, Euphrosyne’s father decided to marry her off to a prince, at least against her will. When Euphrosyne found out about this, she secretly went to the convent of the blessed abbess, Princess Romana, and began earnestly asking to be tonsured as a monk. Blessed Romana did not agree to this for a long time, partly because of Euphrosyne’s young years, and partly because of fear of her father; Therefore, Romana advised her to enter worldly life, saying that she was still so young and so beautiful in face. But seeing that Euphrosyne had a firm intention to cut her hair in order to preserve her virginity and acquire the Kingdom of Heaven, and also seeing that Euphrosyne had great heartfelt love for the Lord Jesus Christ, Romana ordered the priest who was in her monastery to tonsure Predislava and clothe her in an angelic image; at the same time, the young princess was given the name Euphrosyne. When the parents of the blessed young woman learned about everything that had happened, they were filled with great sorrow and immediately went to that monastery. Seeing their daughter here in a monastic form, they indulged in uncontrollable crying. But Blessed Euphrosyne, not embarrassed by her parents’ tears, advised them not to cry, but to rejoice in the fact that they had their daughter betrothed to the Lord Jesus Christ, the King of Heaven. In the monastery, the Monk Euphrosyne remained in constant fasting and prayer and, together with the other nuns, performed all the monastic works, submitting to everyone with great humility. After some time, the Venerable Euphrosyne began to beg Bishop Elijah of Polotsk to allow her to settle in a tent built at the Great Throne Church in honor of St. Sophia (by doing this, Blessed Euphrosyne imitated the ancient virgins of Jerusalem, among whom was the Most Holy Virgin Theotokos; those virgins lived near Solomon’s Church, in special tents built near the church wall 3414. The bishop, seeing the angelic life and Seraphim's love for God, did not interfere with the good desire of her heart. And the saint, like an Angel of God, remained in the tent at the church, constantly, all days and nights, praying to God and praising Him. In her free time from prayer, she wrote books with her own hands and sold all the money raised in this way to the poor. After the saint had labored for quite some time at the Church of St. Sophia, one night she saw an Angel of God in a dream. Taking her hand, the Angel led her outside the city, to a place called Selts; here was the Sophia Palace; there was also a small wooden church in honor of St. Savior; at the same time the Angel said to the blessed one: “It’s fitting for you to stay here, because God, through you in this place, will lead many to salvation.” This vision was repeated a second and third time. The venerable woman was surprised, perplexed by what she saw and thanking God, who had honored her with such a vision. However, obeying the command of God, Euphrosyne answered: “My heart is ready, God, my heart is ready!” And an angel appeared to that bishop in a vision and said: - Lead the servant of God Euphrosyne to the Church of the Savior, located near Seltse, and settle her at that church, so that there will be a monastery of girls dedicated to God, whom God wants to save through this blessed Euphrosyne. Her prayer ascends to God like fragrant ointment and the Holy Spirit rests on her, as on the head of a queen; and as the sun shines throughout the universe, so does its life shine before the Angels of God. The bishop, awakening from sleep, went to the Monk Euphrosyne in order to announce to her the will of God. Euphrosyne told the bishop about her vision, and both thanked God. Then the bishop called Prince Boris, Euphrosyne’s uncle, Prince George, her father, and many boyars and other honest men, and, telling them about the vision, said: “Here, in your presence, I give Euphrosyne a place at the Church of the Holy Savior on Seltse, so that there can be a nunnery there.” Let no one hinder her or take away from her what I have given her. Everyone agreed with the bishop. Then Saint Euphrosyne was settled at the church in honor of the Savior and a monastery was built here for girls who wanted to serve the Lord Jesus Christ in purity. Thus, Saint Euphrosyne became a mentor and leader for many girls who renounced the world and took on a monastic form. Looking at the godly life of Blessed Euphrosyne and all the other girls were encouraged to perform godly deeds. After some time, the monk sent to tell her father: - Let my sister Gradislava come to me so that I can teach her the holy books. The father let Gradislava go. Saint Euphrosyne taught her younger sister to read books and, having taught her with many soul-saving conversations, brought her to Christ, as she prompted her to take on the monastic form with the name Evdokia. After some time, Euphrosyne’s father sent to tell her: - Let your sister come to us. “Let her stay with me for a while longer, since she has not yet fully studied the Scriptures.” However, Euphrosyne's parents soon learned about the tonsure of their other daughter. Filled with anger, they came to the monastery and with heartfelt bitterness said to Blessed Euphrosyne: - O our daughter! What have you done to us! You have added to our old sorrow a new sorrow, and to one sorrow another new sorrow! Wasn't it enough for you to leave us? So you took away our other child, dear to us, from us! Is this why we gave birth to you, this is why we raised you! Did we give birth to you so that before your death you would be imprisoned, as in a coffin, in these black vestments, installed in a monastery and deprived us of those joys that we expected from you?.. The Monk Euphrosyne began to console her parents with soul-saving conversations. Having consoled themselves a little, they returned to their home, easing the natural sadness of their parental hearts with spiritual joy. Soon, Princess Zvenislava, her relative, the daughter of her uncle Boris, came to the Monk Euphrosyne. Zvenislava brought to the saint all her precious clothes, prepared for the wedding, and said to the blessed one: - My lady and sister! I count all the treasures of this world as nothing; I give these wedding decorations to the Church of the Savior, but I myself wish to marry myself with a spiritual marriage to the Lord and my God and bow my head under His good and easy yoke. The Monk Euphrosyne received her with joy and immediately ordered her to be tonsured, giving her the name Eupraxia. And both ascetics remained in fasting and all-night prayers, serving the Lord with one soul in reverence and in truth. Noticing that the number of sisters in the monastery was increasing day by day, the Monk Euphrosyne desired to build a stone church in the name of the Savior. Her zeal, with God's assistance, was crowned with success. Soon, in the same year, a beautiful stone church was built. The overseer of the work was a certain man named John. Once, when he was sleeping at night before the sun rose, he heard a voice many times saying to him: - John! Get up, go and see to the construction of the church in honor of the Almighty. One day he came to Euphrosyne and asked her: “Madam, are you sending me to wake me up and get down to business as quickly as possible?” Euphrosyne, realizing that this voice was not from people, but from God, answered John: “Even though I didn’t send you to wake you up, you must, however, obey the voice calling you to work and do what he orders you, for this is God’s work.” The construction of the church was nearing completion. The only thing missing was the bricks needed to build the church. Then the saint prayed to God, saying: – Thank you, Lord Lover of Mankind, Almighty God! You, who have given us more, give us also less, so that we can complete the work of building the church, built for the glory of Your most holy name. The next morning, by the will of God, the builders found a kiln filled with baked bricks, already cooled down, and very strong. These bricks were made by an invisible hand and in a very short time - this wonderful thing happened in just one night. Everyone was filled with joy and glorified God. Thus, the construction of the church was completed. Then the bishop with the clergy and the princes and all the townspeople arrived here to consecrate the church; Everyone celebrated the consecration of the church with joy. The Venerable Euphrosyne, falling on her face in the church, prayed to God with tears in these words: - You, Lord, Knower of the Heart, Almighty, look upon this church, built in Your name, as you once looked upon the temple of Solomon; Look also at the verbal flock gathered at Your church. Be merciful to all of us who serve You in this holy church. Give us help in every good deed, so that we may successfully bear the yoke placed on us and follow in the footsteps of You, our Bridegroom. You Yourself guard this courtyard of verbal sheep. Be our Shepherd, Doorkeeper and Guardian, so that not one of the sisters is kidnapped by the wolf that destroys the souls of people - the devil. You, Lord, be a weapon and a strong defense for us, so that “evil does not touch us and the wound does not come close to our bodies” (Ps. 90:10), and do not destroy us for our sins. We place all our trust in You, because You are a merciful and merciful God for all who believe in You. We will continually send glory to you until the end of our lives. Then the saint began to teach the sisters, saying this: “Behold, I have gathered you for the sake of the name of the Lord, just as a bird gathers its chicks under its wings; I have gathered you as the sheep of God into the Divine meadow: feed in the commandments of the Lord, prosper in virtues from strength to strength, so that I too may take care of your salvation with joy, and not with sorrow, and teach you, and so that I may rejoice in spirit, seeing the spiritual fruits of your labors. You see for yourself with what great labor I sow the words of God in your hearts: however, sometimes your fields of heart remain as if unripe, not prospering in virtue, while the time of harvest approaches. Now the shovel is on the threshing floor, it will separate the chaff from the wheat. I am very afraid, my sisters, lest among you there may be found tares that will be consigned to unquenchable fire. Hasten, I pray you, to keep yourself unharmed from the tares of sin, so that you can escape the fire of Gehenna. Prepare from yourself the pure wheat of Christ, improve yourself through your fasting labors, striving in humility, purity, love and prayer, and then you will prepare from yourself bread pleasing to God. This is how the Monk Euphrosyne taught the sisters of her monastery, who carefully cared for them like a child-loving mother about her spiritual children. Thanks to her instructions and prayers, all the nuns succeeded in a virtuous life and prepared themselves as vessels worthy of inhabiting the Holy Spirit. In addition to the mentioned stone church, the Monk Euphrosyne also built another stone church in honor and glory of the Most Holy Theotokos. Having decorated it with icons, she handed it over to the monks, for whom she built a monastery at this church 3415. The Monk Euphrosyne wished to have in her monastery an icon of the Most Holy Theotokos, called “Hodegetria” 3416 - precisely one of those icons that the holy evangelist Luke painted during his lifetime. The venerable woman knew that three icons painted by Saint Luke were located - one in Jerusalem, the other in Constantinople, and the third in Ephesus. Having fervently prayed to God with tears, asking Him to grant her what she desired, she sent one of the servants of her monastery, named Michael, to Constantinople to the pious King Manuel 3417 and to the Most Holy Patriarch Luke 3418 with many gifts and asked them to send her one of the icons of the Most Holy Theotokos, painted by the Evangelist Luke, and precisely the one that is in the city of Ephesus. The Tsar and Patriarch, seeing the great zeal of Blessed Euphrosyne for God and the Most Pure Mother of God, decided to fulfill her request and sent a messenger to Asia, who brought a wonderful icon of the Most Holy Theotokos to Constantinople from Ephesus. Having given the icon to the servant of the monastery of Euphrosyne, the tsar and patriarch released him and gave him a letter, which expressed praise for the servant of Christ and gave her the patriarchal blessing. Having received the honorable icon, the Monk Euphrosyne was filled with great joy and gave thanks to the Lord Jesus Christ and His Most Pure Mother. Euphrosyne placed this icon in the Church of the Holy Savior, decorating it with gold and precious stones 3419. Meanwhile, the parents of the Monk Euphrosyne died. Having spent a sufficient number of years in monastic deeds, Blessed Euphrosyne wished to see the holy places of the city of Jerusalem and venerate the life-giving tomb of Christ. The blessed one thought to end her life there, for which she earnestly prayed to the Lord. When everyone around her learned about her intentions, they were filled with great sorrow. Having come to her, everyone with tears began to beg her not to leave them and her fatherland itself. The blessed one consoled everyone with love and soulful conversations, just as a mother consoles her children. By the way, her beloved brother Vyacheslav came to Euphrosyne along with his wife and children. Bowing to her, he said with tears: - Madam, my sister and mother. Why do you want to leave me now? Why are you leaving us, the light of my eyes and the leader of my life! “I don’t want to leave you, but I want to pray for myself and for you in those holy places.” When blessed Euphrosyne finished her spiritual conversation with her brother, she ordered him to leave his two daughters, Kyrenia and Olga, with her sister Evdokia; for blessed Euphrosyne had such a spiritual gift that whomever she looked with her eyes, she immediately recognized whether he had the spirit of virtue and whether he could be a chosen vessel for the Lord. Thus, she knew in advance that those two young girls, her brother’s daughters, would please Christ with their virtuous lives. When Vyacheslav left Euphrosyne, the saint said to his daughters: “I want to betroth you to the immortal Bridegroom in order to bring you into the palace of the Kingdom of Heaven.” Those young women, having enjoyed her God-inspired conversation, were touched in their souls and, falling at her feet, said: - May the will of the Lord be done! Let your holy prayer arrange for us as you please. Euphrosyne, rejoicing in her spirit about the good intentions of those young women, taught them with soul-saving conversations and cultivated love for Christ in their hearts. Then, after some time, Euphrosyne called her brother Vyacheslav and told him: “I want to tonsure your daughters so that they will be brides of Christ.” But Vyacheslav was indignant in spirit at her words and said to her: - My lady and mother! What are you planning to do to me? You want to add another sorrow to one of my sorrows; you want me to cry, first of all, for the sake of your removal from us to a distant country; then, you want me to cry for the sake of my children, being deprived of their joy! Vyacheslav’s wife, the mother of those young women, was even more distressed than her husband and cried a lot and for a long time. However, Vyacheslav and his wife did not dare to resist the words of Blessed Euphrosyne, since they accepted her words as if they were the words of Christ Himself, and knew that she was a true servant of Christ and a worthy receptacle of the Holy Spirit. Following this, Euphrosyne asked Dionysius, who was then bishop, to come to the monastery, bring the young women into the church and tonsure them; at the same time, Kyrenia was given the name Agathia, and Olga Euphemia. Then the bishop blessed them with the blessing of the holy fathers and mothers who have pleased God since the ages. After some time, blessed Euphrosyne entrusted her monastery to her sister Evdokia and, having kissed all the sisters, prayed to God and placed all her trust in Him, she headed to Jerusalem; At the same time, everyone saw off Euphrosyne, shedding bitter tears. Taking with her another brother named David and a relative Eupraxia, Euphrosyne first arrived in Constantinople. Here she was received with great honor by the king and patriarch. Then, having venerated the holy churches and many relics of saints here, she went to Jerusalem. Arriving in this city, she bowed to the life-giving tomb of Christ, then placed a golden censer at the tomb and brought many gifts to the Jerusalem church and the patriarch. Blessed Euphrosyne also visited other glorious places in the vicinity of Jerusalem; Having bowed to the shrines with great tenderness, Euphrosyne settled in a monastery called Russian and located at the church built in honor and glory of the Most Holy Theotokos. Then she again came to the Holy Sepulcher and began to pray here with tears and tenderness of heart in these words: – Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, born of the Most Pure and Most Holy Ever-Virgin Mary, for the sake of our salvation, who said: ask and it will be given to you (Matthew 7:7). I thank Your mercy that I, a sinner, received from You what I asked for, for I was honored to see these holy places, which You consecrated with Your most pure feet, and I was honored to kiss Your holy tomb, in which You rested in Your most pure flesh, accepting death for us. O Most Good Lord! I ask You one more thing: grant me permission to die in this holy place. Do not despise my humble prayer, my Creator! Receive my spirit in this holy city and place me along with others who have pleased You in Abraham’s bosom. Having prayed like this, the saint went to the mentioned church, where she settled. Here she fell into physical illness. Lying on her sick bed, she prayed to the Lord like this: – Glory to Thee, my Master, Lord Jesus Christ! I thank You for listening to me, Your unworthy servant, and for doing with me as You Yourself wanted. Blessed Euphrosyne also wanted to be on the Jordan, but she could no longer go there due to her illness. Therefore, she sent her brother David and Eupraxia to the Jordan. Returning from there, they brought her Jordanian water. The saint accepted that water with great joy and thanksgiving; She drank that water and sprinkled it all over her body. Then, lying down on the bed, she said: – Blessed be God, who enlightens and sanctifies every person coming into the world. During that illness, the saint had an angelic vision, and she was told from God both about her blessed death and about the peace prepared for her. And the holy soul rejoiced in God, her Savior, praising and glorifying Him for His many benefits. Then the saint sent to the Lavra of Saint Sava to ask the archimandrite and the brethren whether it was possible to give her a burial place there. - We have a commandment from our holy father Savva - never bury women in his monastery. There is a communal monastery of Theodosius, built for the glory and honor of the Most Holy Theotokos. Many holy women rest there. There rests the mother of Saint Sava, and the mother of Saint Theodosius, and the mother of the holy unmercenary Theodotius, and many other honest wives; Blessed Euphrosyne should also be buried there. The venerable one, hearing such an answer, thanked God that her body would be laid together with the relics of the holy women, and immediately sent the Monk Theodosius to the monastery with a request to prepare a place for burial. The monks of that monastery pointed to a place near the church vestibule and arranged a coffin for the burial of the saint. The Monk Euphrosyne lay on her sick bed for another twenty-four days. When the time of her blessed death approached, she called a priest, received communion of the Divine Mysteries of Christ from him, and in the midst of prayer gave up her holy soul into the hands of God on the twenty-third day of the month of May 3420. Her venerable body was laid in the monastery of St. Theodosius, at the porch of the Church of the Most Holy Theotokos 3421. Then her brother David and relative Eupraxia, returning to their native country, to the city of Polotsk, brought here the news of the blessed death and honest burial of the Venerable Euphrosyne. Having mourned the death of blessed Euphrosyne, everyone decided to commemorate her every year to the glory of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, praised and glorified by all creation, now and forever. Amen. Vseslav Bryachislavich, son of Bryachislav Izyaslavich, reigned in Polotsk from 1044 to 1101. Early marriage was common in ancient Russia. A more detailed account of this can be read in the legend of the Entry into the Church of the Most Holy Theotokos, placed on the 21st day of November. The monastery, founded by Saint Euphrosyne, still exists today with the name of Spaso-Euphrosyne. In 1579 it was captured by the Jesuits, from whose rule it was liberated in 1820. The monastery houses the built St. Euphrosyne on the altar cross; The pilgrims are shown two cells in which the Monk Euphrosyne labored. At the monastery there is a school for girls of clergy rank. Hodegetria (path and lead) from Greek. - guidebook. This name was given to some icons in honor of the Mother of God, as the spiritual Guide of believers. In particular, the icon of the Mother of God Hodegetria, located in Constantinople, in the Blachernae Church, was named so because one day the Mother of God Herself, appearing to two blind men, led them to Her icon in the Blachernae Church and in front of it gave them sight. The name “Hodegetria” was also adopted by those icons of the Mother of God that sailors placed on the bow or stern of the ship. Therefore, in many places a pious custom is preserved - when setting off on a long journey, especially by sea, to perform a prayer service before the image of the Mother of God - Hodegetria. The celebration of the icon of the Mother of God Hodegetria takes place on January 21, July 28 and other days. Emperor Manuel Komnenos reigned from 1143 to 1180. Luke Chrysoverg was patriarch from 1186 to 1196. In 1239, this icon was transferred to the city of Toropets by the wife of St. great Prince Alexander Nevsky. The death of St. Euphrosyne followed in 1178. The venerable relics of Saint Euphrosyne were subsequently transferred (as some believe, in 1187) to Kyiv, where they rest in the caves of St. Feodosia. You might be interested in: