РОСА УТЕШЕНИЯ СТРАННИКОВ

There are no consolations for the imams, except for You, the Lady of the world (Troparion at the prayer service). A certain woman from Mozir district, named Vera, was paralyzed for a whole year. Being mute, she also had a withered hand. Having reached the Elias Monastery, on Saturday, on the eve of the Descent of the Holy Spirit, during the singing of the Akathist before the miraculous icon of the Most Holy Theotokos, that woman received healing. At first, she began to move her dry and motionless hand, showing everyone, she stretched out her hand - and it became whole, like the other. Then, during the liturgy, at “It is worthy to eat,” she spoke with a mute tongue - and screamed, thanking the Most Blessed Virgin for the sudden healing. Surrounded by sorrows from poverty, widowhood and childlessness, Naomi said: “Do not call me Naomi (that is, beautiful), but call me Mara” (that is, bitter), because the Almighty sent me great sorrow” (Ruth. 1:20). However, in so many sorrows she had considerable joy from Ruth, her daughter-in-law, who did not leave her, but became attached to her with such love: “Wherever you go, there I will go, and where you live, there I will live; Your people will be my people, and your God my God; and where you die, there I will die and be buried; death alone will separate me from you” (Ruth. 1, 16–17). We are no less surrounded by sadness, outside and inside. Diseases are found on the outer man: either relaxation of the body, then dumbness of the tongue, or drying out of the hands - just like that woman. The inner man is weakened by sins: he is dumb and speechless when he does not want to confess his iniquities, and, like a withered hand, he has a will that does not want to carry out good intentions. But in all these troubles we have great consolation - the Most Holy Theotokos, if we have undoubted faith in Her, bold hope and a union of love. Naomi, deprived of her husband and children, who could console her in her bitter sorrow? Ruth did it. But what was comforting in Ruth, capable of liberation from sadness, when she was just as poor, an orphan, and a widow? The fact that she became a prototype of Mary, the Mother of Christ, for she was also one of His foremothers: “Boaz begat Obed from Ruth; Obed begat Jesse; Jesse gave birth to King David” (Matthew 1:5–6), who was the forefather of Christ in the flesh. This consoled Naomi in her sadness. For when she saw Ruth, her heart rejoiced, secretly being told that from her fruit would grow the joy of the whole universe - Jesus, the Son of Mary. And if only the shadow of Mary could transform sorrow into joy, then how much more will Mary Herself, the Mother of all consolation, console us in all our sorrow, heal the inner and outer person! Let us only resort to Her by faith and become attached to Her with the same love as Ruth did to Naomi, so that we may be inseparable from Her all the days of our lives. Oh, Lady, be with us always until the end of the age! If by the grace of the Mother of God a woman named Vera was healed, I hope that (by her very name) she had undoubted faith. For it is impossible for anyone to receive healing or any gift from God without faith. The physician of souls and bodies, the Son of God, “healing every disease and every infirmity in people,” demanded faith everywhere, and by faith gave healing (Matthew 4:23, 9, 29). So in Capernaum, through the faith of the centurion, He healed his servant: “Go, and as you have believed, be it done for you. And his servant recovered at that hour” (Matthew 8:13). So the bleeding one: “Be brave, daughter! your faith has saved you,” and you have been saved from that hour (Matthew 9:22). Likewise to the two blind men: “According to your faith, be it done to you. And their eyes were opened” (Matthew 9:29–30). Also to the Canaanite woman: “O woman! great is your faith; let it be done to you according to your desire” (Matthew 15:28). And he saved many others by faith. Oh, how powerful is faith in prayer to receive a request! Saint Cyprian is surprised, remembering the thief on the cross: how such a sinner, who lived his entire life in murders and other iniquities, at the end of his death, with his short prayer, opened paradise to himself, and asks the Lord: “What, Lord, gave to Stephen greater than this thief? What more did Thy beloved disciple, who reclined on Thy breast at supper, receive? What makes Pavlov's sweats more restful? How were so many Saints rewarded for their various torments, wounds and deaths? In one hour that robber was rewarded with the reward that they had received through so much labor and sorrow.” But don’t be surprised, Saint Cyprian! I will give you the words of your heavenly roommate in response, Saint Ambrose, who tells you how with great faith, albeit in small prayer, the thief opened the door of heaven for himself. For when our Lord, during His free suffering, was abandoned by everyone, when he was rejected by Peter, who promised to die with Him, then only one thief believed Him and, confessing Him, called Him the Lord of the Reign: “Remember me, Lord, when You come into Your Kingdom!” (Luke 23:42). Here one could see the great faith of the thief: when everyone’s faith became weak, when all who believed were offended in Christ, he was not offended, but prayed to Him with faith, for which he heard: “Truly I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise” (Luke 23:43). This is what Saint Ambrose says: “At that hour when heaven accepted Christ, it also accepted the thief.” But faith itself gave such glory to the robber, about which, reasoning, someone turns to him: “Invincible martyr! From the total barrenness of the world, Christ received the firstborn of faith in you; You are Peter on the cross, but Peter became a robber in the court of Caiaphas.” Do we hear that faith can? So we will also acquire it for ourselves in our prayer, so that we can receive what we ask for. Our Lord Himself teaches us: “Whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you receive it, and it will be done for you” (Mark 11:24). And Saint James instructs: “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given to him. But let him ask with faith, without any doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, lifted and tossed by the wind. Let such a person not think of receiving anything from the Lord” (James 1:5-7). How can we gain such faith in prayer that we will receive whatever we ask? Let us listen to Saint Callistus: “Faith is born from boldness towards God. Boldness occurs when someone pleases God. But a lot of work is required so that by pleasing God someone will acquire such boldness towards Him, so that he can firmly believe that whatever he asks, he will receive.” “Ask,” says the Lord, “and it will be given to you” (Matthew 7:7). And St. John: “If our heart does not condemn us, then we have boldness towards God and whatever we ask, we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do what is pleasing in His sight” (1 John 3:21-22). Thus the mountain was thrown into the river, in whom faith was combined with deeds. In Alexandria of Egypt there was a goldsmith, noble and skilled in his craft, and a certain woman, wounded by love for him, for he was very handsome, attracted him with fornicating words to lawlessness. He was also embarrassed by thoughts about her, however, being chaste and fearing God, he asked her: “What do you see in me that moves you to fornication?” She answered: “The beauty of your eyes.” Hearing this, the goldsmith hit himself in the right eye with the tool that he was holding in his hands and pierced it with the words: “Thus said the Lord my God: “If your right eye causes you to sin,” pierce it, for it is better for you to enter the Kingdom of Heaven with one eye than for someone with both eyes to be cast into fiery hell” (Matthew 5:29). Seeing what he had done, that woman ran away with fear and went to her house, having escaped sin by his wound. There was a fierce tormentor at that time, he owned Alexandria, and all of Egypt, by God's permission, was owned by the Saracens, who tormented Christians in every possible way. And the tormentor planned such a trick. Calling the bishop, he said to him: “We heard that your Christ commanded you to have such faith that you could move mountains with a word. Here stands a mountain visible to everyone near this city, called Adar. Now, if the Christ whom you serve is God and the faith you hold to is the best, as you think, go out to that mountain Adar and speak the word of the Lord your God, and if, having listened to you, the mountain is thrown into the Nile River, you will serve your Christ to glory, and we too will believe. If not, then all Christian wealth will be taken to the king’s sacristy.” Then the bishop answered: “The word that you spoke greatly exceeds our weakness. However, not for our sake, for we are all unworthy of such a deed, but for the sake of your blasphemy that you speak against our Lord Jesus Christ, so be it. Give us eight days, we will pray to God, and we believe that He will not despise the prayers of His servants, for it is written: “He will fulfill the desire of those who fear Him, and He will hear their prayer, and will save them,” for they trusted in Him (Ps. 144:19).” Hearing this, the lawless barbarian laughed: “I thought that you would show a prayer and give a part of your estates to my treasury, but you dare to do this, which is impossible even for our Bakhmet.” And he sent them away angrily, writing down the time they had asked for. The bishop gathered all the Christians in the city and its environs, up to three thousand men, not counting women and children, and announced to them the evil and cunning command of the ruler, who wanted not only to deprive the Christian people of their property, but also of their lives. And he told them about the mountain, ordering everyone to mourn and pray, holding an all-night vigil before God. Then that woman approached the bishop and revealed her criminal intention and firm faith in Christ of the goldsmith: how he was not seduced by her fornicating and flattering words, how he did not spare himself, having pierced his eye. Hearing this, the bishop was surprised and, not finding the blacksmith in the cathedral, sent for him to the house. When he arrived, the bishop said to him: “Brother, temptation has come from those who hate us.” And I told him everything in order. The blacksmith answered: “Vladyka, we must pray, for “with men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible” (Matthew 19:26; Mark 10:27; Luke 18:27).” On the third day, everyone went to Mount Adar and walked around it three times with crosses. And when everyone stood opposite the mountain, the bishop called the blacksmith and said to him: “Oh, child, now it is fitting for you to show the work of your faith, so that the tormentor who boasts of his idols will be put to shame, and the pillars of the Church of Christ will be established, and Christian weeping will cease.” Then the goldsmith bowed to the bishop, approached the mountain and prayed: “Lord Jesus Christ our God, listen to the prayers of Your servants and do not allow Your enemies to plunder Your flock! Let not those who hate us rejoice, saying, Where is your God? You are our God, who commanded the apostles: “If you have faith as a grain of mustard seed,” without a doubt, “say to this mountain, Arise and throw yourself into the sea,” and it will be done for you (Matthew 17:20). And now “not to us, Lord, not to us, but to Your holy name give glory” (Ps. 113:9).” And as soon as he said this, the place shook, and the mountain moved, and all the people fell on their faces, and there was a terrible cry in the city. Chambers were destroyed and walls fell. And the barbarians came out and saw a terrible miracle: how the mountain went from its place into the Nile River. And everyone, having fallen, began to pray to the Christians to stop the procession of the mountain, so that everything else in the city would not collapse. And the bishop answered and said: “No, brethren, this is not our work, but your will, because you blasphemed the Living God and burdened us with your rebuke. And in our humility the Lord remembered us. And what will we do now if He sends His wrath and not only destroys the city, but also kills you all?” Then they all promised to be baptized, and when the mountain had already approached the Nile River itself, the bishop prayed to God, and the shaking of the earth stopped. And many barbarians believed in the Holy Trinity and were baptized. The wicked wrote him an oath: from now on and forever not to harm Christians. This was written to confirm that all petitions from God are given to the believer. Oh, the power of faith of the chaste! You might be interested in: