5. Путь духовного делания

“It is also true that good is strength, and evil is weakness; but not without care, so that the passionate will does not confuse and eclipse the light. Let us pray to the Lord" (8:36) “Let faith delight the past for you, love the present, hope the future... Both the past and the future will be present, and faith and hope will be rewarded with eternal love” (29:448) “Love Christ, and when you love Him with all your strength, He will come and dwell in you... And the worst people will honor you when God is within you” (Elder Amphilochius Makris, p. 74) 5 The image of spiritual work was revealed to us by our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, when “He opened His mouth with His hand” (Matthew 5:2), proclaiming: “Blessed are the poor in spirit... Blessed are those who mourn,... the meek,... hungering and thirsting for righteousness,... mercy,... purity of heart,... peacemakers...” (Matthew 5:3-12). But He also pointed out many other things, which also constitute steps on the spiritual path, which is essentially endless - God is its limit, and God is unattainable. St. John Chrysostom, the father of the 4th century, characterizing mercy, says that “there are many different types of mercy, and this commandment is extensive” (St. John Chrysostom. Creations. T. VII, book 1. St. Petersburg, 1901. P. 154). – The path of spiritual activity is widely and variedly presented in the Russian Chrysostom of the 19th century, St. Philaret of Moscow. Entering into service to God, people, on the path of one’s own salvation - spiritual work, a person “naturally desires success; For this purpose, he tries to learn and notice some signs of success and signs of God’s mercy. This is partly what is necessary so that the worker does not find it difficult to doubt whether he is on the right path: and the Lord gives signs of His mercy in order to attract a person to Himself and grow him in spiritual life... Questions: am I now worthily prepared? Do I find grace-filled consolation? - must be cast at the feet of the Lord without permission. - “I am nothing, but You, Lord, call me to serve You - “draw me after You,” create out of my insignificance what is pleasing to You!” – There is no doubt that the more perfectly a person surrenders to the Lord, the more abundantly the Lord grants him His communication. Marvelous is the mercy of the Lord, Who, on the path of the innermost life, where there is no elder observer and pointer, Himself indicates when what is not good enough, because the best is required; and speaks His word: leave yourself and serve the Lord. Whether an angel of the Lord, according to the will of the Lord, forms a word in the heart, or another hidden action of the grace of God, let this remain in His omniscience” (10:221-222). People are very different in their spiritual structure. There are those who only grieve without dissolving the sadness with consolation; “There are comforted people who regret that they do not mix with their consolation a little sadness, which would come from love and humility. There are people for whom the invisible does not seem to exist - an unprofitable elimination from the inevitable. But there are also people who, by force of will, have made, so to speak, a breach into the spiritual world, or think that they have made it and are trying to keep it open” (4:26-27). There are many who do not feel invisible, but genuine, sins because of imaginary visible virtues. “Another, for example, without true need, of his own will and invention, burdens his body with chains and thinks that he has already entered the true rank of Christ’s crusaders in spirit, but does not notice that on the inside of the chain it is written: “In unauthorized service and not sparing the body” (Col. 11:23). This, however, I say not against faiths, for which there are people, and times, and reasons” (5:7-8). Some people think that they know how to “be zealous for the benefit, to bring service to God, but in fact they guess (and not always successfully) an idea that is now in fashion and is patronized by the powerful, and they serve it, in the hope that it will serve them too. This is not how the true good of the Holy Church is created” (2:72). The tares are not suddenly uprooted. “The Heavenly Farmer Himself leaves them until the harvest time is imminent.” But if they outgrow the wheat, they must be weakened by “measured justice.” (6:16). The task of a Christian is “to explore the truths and ways of his heart, thoughts, desires and deeds, and to establish the Kingdom of God within himself by the power of God’s grace” (4:446). If we were to distract ourselves from earthly things and purify ourselves “in order to contemplate the power of the resurrection of Christ, acting on everything damaged by Adam’s fall, from the spiritual to the physical, how many new sources of surprise, thanksgiving and glorification would open up to us! But the dust of earthly vanities and passions falls asleep on the eye of the mind, and, without turning our eyes away from vanity, we block ourselves from contemplating the truth” (7:203). If it is not proper for a table-goer to act carelessly in the matter of the meal, then much less for a Christian called to a perfect life. There is no need to bother “out of passion,” “but it is necessary to care about order with reasoning and peace.” And the Saint calls out: “Don’t be careless. Do not allow it to be destroyed prematurely. If we say: we will not repair the dilapidated house - next spring we will move to a new one, and the dilapidated one will be broken, then winter will come before spring and will make us repent that we decided to live somehow without repairs” (7: 132-133). The great Old Testament righteous man Job, who experienced a lot, but retained boundless devotion to the will of God, says that earthly “life is war” (Job 7:1; 29:274). Yes, the path to Heaven is not strewn with flowers - one goes to Heaven most often “over thorns.” And the Saint asks: “Have you seen how food is cooked? What confusion in a boiling vessel! But the food will be tasty and healthy, and without that it would not be tasty or healthy. If your vessel is near the fire: what can you do if it is restless!” (5:5). There are difficulties everywhere, but everywhere God is “the Helper of men of good will” (33:428). According to the Apostle’s word, “as your sufferings abound, so by the grace of God your consolation in the Lord also abounds and will abound” (16:120). You just need to “firmly hold a humble thought and do everything as before God, and not as before men” (8:175), position yourself so that serving God is the most important activity, and worldly things are secondary, “to which the soul would descend only out of need, trying to constantly return to a higher and better task” (29:357). “Perhaps there is no need to complain too much about the inactivity of the mind. Let him be silent and listen to how the heart cries out to God, let the heart give movement to God to the mind. If the heart does not soften before God, the Fathers order to test yourself to see if a cruel thought has crept in, for example, conceit, or improper concern for something earthly, and to reject it in every possible way, and turn yourself before God, forgetting yourself and your own, with the sole desire to serve Him” (3:66). “Proud philosophizing with speculations extracted from earthly nature” is not permissible. It covers the soul “like fog, with ghosts of faint light. Let this fog fall into the valley of humility, then only you can see the clear, high sky above you. With the movement and noise of arrogant, and therefore always restless, thoughts and passionate desires, the soul deafens itself. Let her calm down in humility, only then will she be able to listen to the harmony of nature, which has not yet been completely upset by modern man, and hear in it harmonies worthy of the wisdom of God” (4:61). About a person who imagines that he has already achieved a lot with his knowledge and supposedly surpassed many, Saint Philaret prays to the Lord to give him something saving - “humble repentance,” and continues: “He confesses his sufferings, not his mistakes. He already sees and preaches the first resurrection, and our fathers loved to preach cleansing from passions and sins, not daring to touch the Mysteries and destinies. He teaches generously after the Church took the authority to teach from him and placed him in the place of the penitents. Forgive me for these remarks. Wish him well, but leave him to go his own way; You have the royal way, the churchly and paternal way” (3:68)... One must be careful and moderate in praising people, even good and well-known ones. “In three letters in a row,” the Moscow Hierarch answers A.N. Muravyov, “you are very merciful to me and generous in praise. Beware that I do not believe and dream that it would be bad for me and not very good for you” (4:446)... It is not recommended to enter into an argument - in general, into an argument, especially with a person who knows only his “I” and his so-called truth. “It is always undesirable to enter into a dispute, and especially when the wrong one can say more than the right one, without fear of being stopped and hoping, if necessary, to kill his opponent with abuse and ridicule, whom he cannot wound with evidence” (4:268). “A dispute is easy to start and difficult to end” (4:402). Those who are zealous for exposing the actions of others are advised to know the matter unmistakably, “so that, by exposing one disorder, out of ignorance, do not lead other ignorant people into another.” And the Saint wisely explains: “You see the archimandrites that when they were incense, they did not enter the altar. Let it be known to you that this follows the order that your humble servant probably learned somewhat in the Assumption Cathedral at more than thirty years of age. Here one bishop, presenting the image of Christ, enters the Holy of Holies, archimandrites and priests come before the Holy of Holies, and, looking only at the royal doors, cense the altar” (4:418). The trouble is that denunciations sometimes turn into insults of opponents and reproaches, responding with irony with their characteristic exclamations and playing at indignation. “It is the nature of truth to appear to human conscience without joking or teasing” (4:297, 298). And it’s really bad to pull out rubbish from a common house, covered with the mud of ad-libs, “from which the one who pulls them out is more unclean” (4:117). One must treat one's neighbor with an understanding of his spiritual and physical weaknesses. “A brother’s weakness must be covered up and quietly corrected, while there is no temptation for many... Do not scold for a vice, but only show its shame and consequences” (7:95). “I,” the saint testifies, “knew a man who, having become ill, said to himself: now the Lord does not require efforts from you, which, perhaps, you would not use fully, or incorrectly, or not to the point; no matters for which you should be responsible; but requires that you simply and obediently accept what He does to you.” The saint agrees: “Thus (the sufferer) had peace in illness rather than in health” (3:51). “Do not demand much from a weak body so that it does not become weaker, but show it indulgence, so that, as St. Maxim, to have in him a co-worker in serving the best” (3:60). To this we can add that spiritual forces strengthen the body - “it is necessary to heal the body with the soul” (7:21). Don’t be quick to succumb to someone’s charm, but don’t be too quick to say an unkind word about someone. – “Temporary and accidental charm” occurs in the “short-sighted” (7:57). “You also invented the expression “dispossessed person.” This is stronger than the one who is possessed; this means - almost turned into a demon. Do me a favor, look around, is this expression used in love?” (7:114). It should be remembered that “every violation of the law requires purification, and it is good for us if the purification is accomplished through temporary tribulation” (3:74). Saint Philaret, opening wide the instructions on what to avoid and what to do, states: “It is useful when a person has enough to do and little idleness” (9:77). “It’s sad... because a lot is seen and heard that cannot be approved; and once again it’s sad because when you judge what you see and hear, you will need to condemn yourself, remembering what was said: “Judge not, lest you be judged” (14:247-248). The prayers of the Elders “may they help us learn how to fulfill them” (7:95). “Now let’s talk about false life,” St. Philaret begins his teachings on what should be avoided. “Every carnal and sinful life can be called false... A hypocritical life, presenting only a superficial image of piety, is especially befitting of the name false” (7:126). False life is spread by the sins of carnal people - “by a wrong word, an unworthy example” (7:126). “I am afraid of infinity,” the saint reflects, “and I say to the sinner who is not quite zealous about correction: beware lest you too become infected with false life and become an instrument for its spread” (7:136). Evil happened just like darkness happens when you close your eyes. “The one who created the eye is not to blame if you closed your eyes and it became dark for you. What does freedom serve? “To choose good and to be blissful in an angelic and human way, and not just wander the earth like cattle or vegetate like grass” (23:38). Relying on freedom, the human mind rebuilds, or rather breaks, the commandments of the Law of God and almost puts a person on the path of spiritual darkness. “In its construction, commandment II is: “Rightly know God.” But this positive thought is contained in the first commandment. The second has its own thought, a negative one. IV: “Do the right thing.” This is so vague that there is not even a hint of the true fourth commandment. VI: “Do not harm the body.” The Holy Apostle does not understand the sixth commandment this way. He says that he who hates his brother is a murderer, although he does not harm the “body” of his brother. VII: "Do not harm the soul." Does breaking the seventh commandment really only harm the “soul” and not harm the “body”? VIII: “Do not harm the property.” Gold does not feel any "harm" from being stolen. A thief does not harm the property, but the owner. The Catechism says more carefully: “Do not harm property,” that is, not the substance of the property, but the right of ownership over the property. “Contradictions and correspondences” between the commandments are drawn up forcefully and can hardly lead to conviction and benefit. For example: “The fourth corresponds to the eighth,” - The fourth commandment: “Remember the Sabbath day.” Eighth: “Don’t steal.” Is there any consistency here? Don't you need a lot of tension to find it? Is it necessary for the logical mind to take upon itself the claim to compile a system of commandments when God’s wisdom has already compiled it? – The first and great commandment: “Love God”; the second is subsequent: “Love your neighbor.” This is the true source of spiritual and moral life! Here is a pure stream of spiritual and moral life from this source! The Apostle adds: “The fulfillment of the Law is love” (13:65–66). The evil force is also drawn to darkness, but its power is limited. “Is it Orthodox said that the devil not only tempts, but “compels to evil, and by force draws and plunges into the abyss of sin”? There are those who are physically raped by the devil and suffer, but has the power been given to the devil to captivate the freedom of a Christian? Enlighten me,” he poses questions with transparent criticism of them, which is more clearly visible in his other words: “Blessed is the power of the holy, which so conveniently overcomes the power of the enemy, and is perfected in our weakness. But how pitiful is a person who cannot hold back the power of light that has already visited him!” (8:419–420; 9:78). He loses it because he walks between the nets set by the enemy, and he ties nets for himself, or strengthens the enemy’s, with his passions. Break, O Lord, the snares and deliver Your creation” (9:88). Sins can be voluntary or involuntary. The Holy Fathers teach, “That involuntary sins come from voluntary ones” (29:324). The greatest sin - unforgivable - is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. The Evangelist himself gives an explanation of this sin when, having mentioned it, he adds: this is why the Lord said this because they said, “There is an unclean spirit in Him” (Mark 3:30). So, the scribes’ blasphemy against the Holy Spirit consisted in the fact that, seeing the power of God in the miracles of Jesus Christ, against their conscience and with stubborn impenitence they called His works demonic. There is no need to intensify further - to penetrate these depths of Satan. The fear of sinning against the Holy Spirit out of ignorance is a mental temptation. To resolve this, it is enough to note that every sin committed out of ignorance is not a sin against the Holy Spirit, but against the Son, Who is Wisdom and the source of knowledge: sins against the Son are forgiven, as it is said in the Evangelist Matthew in chapter twelve” (29:240). The beginning of sin is thoughts about something worldly, pulling us towards earthly things. “If we complain about laziness and coldness, we need to look to see if any of those thoughts that weigh down and do not soar up grief have entered the soul; and these are thoughts in which something is appropriated or ascribed to oneself, the success of a business, praise, noticing the shortcomings of others with a preponderance in our favor” (7:43). It is the same when standing in holy prayer: “Thoughts of worldly care, inappropriately coming during holy exercises, show that the soul has not freed itself from addiction to earthly things” (29:326-327). “If thoughts do not always follow prayer, is it not because they follow some attachment of this world, which entertains them like a burden and prevents grief from rising up? In this case, let us remember how the Church teaches in hymns: “Let us put aside all worldly cares, so that we may raise up the King of all.” Having renounced, O soul, all earthly cares, there is no need for us to return to our thoughts when we are called to things above” (29:334). Unclean thoughts should be cast out of your heart as quickly as possible. And, meanwhile, people often either excuse them, or, “feeling their unworthiness, somehow want to suppress them within themselves, ashamed to open them, that is, to tear them away; or, being hurt by them for a short time, they forget them, that is, everyone leaves the unclean seed cast into the heart. But the pure eye of God sees the depth of our heart and cannot, without disgust, see uncleanness where the sanctuary of God should be” (29:321). And therefore the Saint insistently calls: “Do not let thoughts that are useless and not based on the truth of things disturb your world. Keep it so that in the world of the soul you can see more clearly what you need to see often for correct action, and in order to act with full and free strength” (35:29). Fight against thoughts (9:139). Tell your thought: “Look in the book,” you will look at other places after (4:36). When the Assyrians, approaching the walls of the city of Jerusalem, shouted at those standing at them, blaspheming God and trying to shake their faith, then the pious king Ezekiah ordered his people not to answer, but he himself went to the church to pray. “Christians should do the same when their thoughts are overwhelmed. Don’t answer, don’t listen, go deep into your heart, call on the name of the Lord Jesus, protect yourself with the sign of the cross, externally and internally” (21:34). “This is what I wish for you, this is what I advise you, this is what I ask of you from God, with peace and love for you” (35:29). The cause of many evils are self-will, arrogance, lack of love, self-praise, distrust, indifference... This is precisely what the Moscow Hierarch turns his fatherly attention to and laments that they fall into a kind of self-isolation and do not run away from vices, do not shake off the dust of sin. “We must,” he writes, “beware of arbitrarily and self-strenuously seeking the desired dispensation and consolation, and sacrifice everything we do to the Lord as a sacrifice of perfect devotion, forgetting our strengths” (10:222)... It is a pity that with constant “reminders of caution, we still end up with either carefree or arrogant imprudence” (15:23)... Why do small things cause considerable temptations? – Because “that love and harmony are dissatisfied” (17:113)... “We boast a lot and do not repent enough. And time advises us to boast less and pray more” (14:65)... “Oh, if instead of the mistrust and divisions that are so common today, the children of the Church would be more united in love, which believes everything and hopes everything! (1 Cor. 13:7). And the weak would find strength in unity, and the small ears of corn in the sheaves would be whole and safer” (29:223–224)... For lasting peace, some dispute is better “than endless indifference and precautions under the guise of peace” (3:53)... The most common evil is condemnation - sometimes even good is perceived with condemnation, for this is the age of condemnation. “The monk,” says the saint, “was merciful to the beggar, but the beggar became a robber. Why is this turned into a disgrace to the monastery and monasticism? - True, the world often, without examining the matter, points to a dark line and pokes it into the eyes, which especially happens with the clergy. The prudent know this and do not rush to condemn, and will judge the matter. And the people of the present century are ready to condemn virtue, along with vice” (10:457)... What do people usually look for most of all? “It is true that nowadays they are usually looking for large glasses in order to discern the mote in the eye of a Church servant and turn it into a log. And this is so well known that it is time to learn caution” (7:272)... Two novices of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, as the Saint again tells, sent him a letter in which they expressed their desire to move to the Gethsemane monastery and, “humblely speaking,” heavily condemned the holy monastery. The saint sent this letter to the abbot of the Holy Trinity Sergius Lavra, Archimandrite Anthony, and added to him: “I am sending this letter for your information, in case they come, so that you have preliminary information about them and know not only their humility, but also their inclination to judge. Wouldn’t it be necessary to advise them not only to judge less, but also to seek humility less?” (10:46). Or, addressing a certain person (presumably Princess S.I. Barataeva), the Saint in a few words revealed the unsightly inner essence of a person filled with condemnation: “You condemned someone before, but now you have stopped, because you see many worse than him. But don’t you see that before you condemned one, but now you condemn many? But you don’t see their hearts. Doesn’t what is said concern you: “Judge not, lest ye be judged”?” (Matt. 7:1) (21:43). In order to sober up those who condemn, the Saint shows the harmfulness of condemnation for themselves. “To avoid the sin of condemnation,” the saint teaches, “one must think that condemnation returns to the condemner, not only by the judgment of God, but, according to the secret destinies of God, often by deed itself. Where a man condemns his neighbor for stumbling, in that he himself stumbles” (29:368). “For what we condemn others for, the Lord often withdraws His guarding hand from us, and the enemy drags us into those guilts with which we presumptuously blamed others” (29:254). And even more strictly: “Whoever judges others does not invite judgment upon himself?” (21:69). By judging our neighbors, we “deprive ourselves of much. We must take care of this and protect ourselves from it with condemnation and reproach, and pray that God will be merciful to those whom we have condemned, and to us along with them” (23:22; 21:19). It is not recommended to condemn even when it seems to us that we have grounds for this. Do not judge, “even if it seems that you are judging not without reason, because your neighbor stands or falls in the Lord. And it’s even worse if you judge as judges judge evil thoughts. You think that people talk idlely, but they talk about the benefit of the soul and about doing good” (21:30; 23:22). It is good to speak the truth about your neighbor, but the truth must be dissolved by love for him. This must be done “without condemnation, and without vanity and exaltation of oneself, as if one knows the truth better than another... Moreover, one must know people and deeds, so that instead of the truth one does not say reproaches, and instead of peace and benefit one does not create enmity and harm” (21:45). “When we see condemnation in our neighbor, we can and should always think that perhaps we see worse than what is, and perhaps God sees good in the present and future of this person, which covers or will cover the shortcomings that we untimely judged. How we would condemn the thief who took it according to his deeds when he was led to the cross! But one word on the cross: “Remember me, O Lord, in your kingdom” put him ahead of us on the path of salvation and made him a model for us” (29:338-339). “To call one a righteous man and another a monster is to place him at the right hand and at the left. The one whom you have elevated to righteousness, if he is careful, will not want to be righteous before Him who came to call not the righteous, but sinners to repentance; and on the contrary, I do not know a monster who could not become righteous through repentance from Him who came to save sinners. What will a premature trial do to us? Will it condemn us, the judges?” (29:286). There is one Righteous Judge - God, who knows the heart. We make mistakes even in our knowledge of visible affairs, and even more so we cannot accurately and correctly know a person’s intentions. If he is “to blame, then God is to blame,” as in many ways we ourselves are. We must be at peace with him, just as we want others to be with us (29:322). Nicodemus, “the enlightened prince of their laws,” told the Jews: “We must not condemn Christ” (21:42). And the Moscow Saint, the God-enlightened Holy Father, turns his voice to us: “Do not be quick to condemn your neighbor and trust in unkind words” (21:26), especially when we recognize “our sins and weaknesses” (29:376). If someone sees himself “worse than he seemed before, perhaps it is because the eye becomes clearer, and this is not bad” (21:45). Pulled towards condemnation - contrast this sinful attraction with “a prayer for the one who was trying to condemn.” This is a good rule, “and one should not be concerned about this, to to the extreme detriment of prayer and brotherly love” (29:334). Take “a humble mind, condemning no one” (21:22). “Let us not strictly judge the affairs of others, for which we are not responsible, but let us carefully examine our paths, so that we may guide our steps steadily in the paths of righteousness and peace” (36:16). Let us remember: “The word of man can be sharpened like a sword, and then it will wound and kill; and it can be softened like oil, and then it will heal” (23:21). Let “condemnation of one’s neighbor be silent, let idle talk be silent, let all passion be silent” (21:33). “Oh, if only it were possible,” we say through the mouth of the holy Hierarch, “to say today’s or yesterday’s word without condemnation: now let Thy servant go, Master!” (10:214). Next to condemnation there are even more terrible sins: slander, lies, slander. “If the slander is great, then the slanderer is terrible. And so one must try to reach the truth in a serious word, in order to take caution either from a gravely guilty person or from a grave slanderer” (7:67). Slander itself is terrible and its path is difficult: it “expels, leads to poverty, throws into prison - this is difficult” (3:75). Lies are always condemned, no matter for what purpose they are allowed: “I,” says the Saint, “do not approve of the rule: to lie so as not to bother. No matter how bitter the truth is, it is still sweeter than a lie. If God sends me humiliation in some sorrowful adventure, who dares to correct the path of Providence? And why do they want to deprive me of the instruction that God sends me? If a person deceived me once, under the pretext of not bothering me, should I not fear every minute that he is deceiving me in some way now? Thus, in order not to disturb once, one deprives one of peace forever and destroys the trust” (5:24). The saint calls falsehood a “heavy” word that must be gotten rid of (8:163). You should also avoid using too many verbs, both written and verbal (5:20). The enemy of spiritual life is self-love. “Pride is the common enemy. But He who sacrificed endless love for us, laying down His soul for us and crucifying all our passions on this Cross, has the power to give us victory over our pride. For this, let us diligently look at His crucifixion and pray for our co-crucifixion, not complaining that victory is not suddenly granted, but also not becoming lazy in the feat” (29:221). Where there is pride, there is ambition and cruelty, accompanied by drunkenness, as the products of an empty soul that has gone far from its neighbors. “When I,” reflects Saint Philaret, “find in some people a tendency towards ambition and even cunning, I ask: would you like to supplement this moderate concern for yourself alone? When I notice in others the emerging cruelty of character, or passion for drunkenness, I think: does this not prove the emptiness that the lack of consolation from others leaves in them? (12:76–77). Vanity also leads away from goodness. “If the enemy cannot prevent a good deed from being done, then he tries to steal what has been done with thoughts of vanity. You have to do it and not allow yourself to be justified” (29:334). The ambitious and vain person knows only his own “I” and does not tolerate anyone - he throws out anger, ready to trample and destroy everything. If anger corresponded to opportunity, then everything would be incinerated by it. “Aren’t you a little angry at people? - the saint asks and advises: - And this, perhaps, is not necessary. What is the need to exaggerate guilt? (8:231). “Being angry is not good. “The wrath of a man does not accomplish the righteousness of God” (James 1:20). Anger can only produce or increase the irritation of another, but one can only be brought into a better disposition through patience and peace” (21:48; 3:43). Anger is not cured by anger. “Solid but calm truth admonishes self-deceiving passion” (8:451). Pagan wisdom also said: “When you feel irritated, do not say or do anything immediately, but stop and read all the letters of the alphabet. The pagan did not find anything better than the alphabet to pacify the spirit. We Christians know the best words that can be given to the mind and heart to calm anxiety” (8:454). The Christian is recommended to: in sinful moments of anger and irritation, “calm the passion with reasoning and prayer, and then pronounce reproof with moderation, and with condescension determine the punishment for the sinner. “The fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace” (23:28). By law, a Christian is not allowed to become despondent. “If it were permissible to indulge in despondency, then what deep despondency one would have to fall into when looking at not just one incident, but at everything, or at least at many things that are around us” (10:457). Despondency comes - let a Christian remember “the consolation of God: “Whom... the Lord loves, he punishes”” (Prov. 3:12) (29:342); “You must not be discouraged by human temptation: God is faithful to provide abundance” (36:15). No matter what circumstances happen, there is no need to be despondent: despondency does not make things better, but we ourselves are worse off” (23:42). By despondency we only please the enemy of our souls. “He wants to weaken and stop the soul in its path with despondency. God wants patience and hope when he subjects a soul to privation, for its testing and purification” (21:18). There is especially no need to imagine yourself pitiful and despondent where “there is no trouble” (21:46). “Let us mourn, let us be sad, may the Lord accept this as a sacrifice of repentance, but may he save us from despondency and may he not deprive us of our hope in our humility” (10:457). Close to despondency, a kind of branch of it, is lamentation, grief. “And the mourning of the Saints for temporary deprivation is not called a favorable sacrifice to God, and our prolonged and heavy lamentation is not only not pleasing to God, but can even be sinful. We are told: “Do not grieve like others who have no hope” (23:33). The consequence of despondency and pride is the most serious – mortal – sin of despair. “I recently read,” the saint writes, “that despair is a product of pride... We are worth despairing, but the grace of God does not deserve to lose hope in it. It gives us the right, and even more than hope, to believe in hope” (29:280-281). The passion of love of money is denounced by the reproach of one late abbess, who found “a lot of money in tickets” for “her, sisters, and without a name.” “I had the idea,” Saint Philaret testifies, “that the deceased did not contribute all the monastic income to the books. But I didn’t think that anything would stray far from the right path.” “It’s amazing how much debt she left behind at the monastery.” The monastery buildings were erected out of place, somehow - “the roof bends from the rare rafters.” “Lord,” the Saint prays for the deceased and the living, “forgive all of us sinners” (9:353, 354, 384, 354). Against laziness in spiritual work, the Saint writes: “Even though I want to, I do not achieve good deeds. I know that if the desire were firmer and truer, it would not have happened. It is not a matter of God’s help” (8:73). “May the Lord find you vigilant before Him and grant you success in good deeds, and you, having found this help, call for help on me too, so that I will be excited, and may the work of the deeds that clarify it receive strength” (7:307). “Pray that I may be delivered from laziness and vanity” (8:73). Disobedience distorts spiritual work, even in something seemingly small. “Disobedience is not good. A rule with the intention of disobedience, in the hope that it will be forgiven, is a dangerous rule... If someone does not obey in small things, then what hope of obedience in greater things?” (29:260). Temptation is unacceptable. – “To avoid harm to one’s rank, one should not allow oneself to engage in unseemly behavior, in which there is no moral evil, but in which there is a lack of order, and which give rise to unfavorable opinions. The apostle did not want to eat meat forever, lest he cause his brother to stumble” (9:178). Idle curiosity is of no use. – “To be saved, you need to believe, keep the commandments, purify your heart, and not be curious” (23:10). Immoral shows and such literature ruin spiritual life. “I wrote that cheap wine has a destructive effect on the people,” the Moscow Hierarch testifies, “in a report to the diocesan Holy Synod, and added evidence. I wrote the same about immoral spectacles and about faithless and immoral literature; and in conclusion he said: regarding protective action through legislative and administrative measures, I hope that the Holy Synod will raise an interceding and pleading voice to the sovereign defender of the Church.” However, the Saint laments, “duty prompted me to write this, and not the hope of success” (10:423). The Saint also grieves that public entertainment is harmful and the voice of protest is not taken into account. “I didn’t dare to suggest that public entertainment would be stopped at the present time, because I was sure that they wouldn’t listen, and on occasion I used to say that now is not the time for fun. Those who thought so without me confirm this, while others think their own. On the day of St. Nicholas, in a sermon (probably in a “conversation about mercy for the poor.” - K.S.) I allowed myself to doubt the merits of entertainment established for charitable purposes. They say that one of the significant persons showed an unpleasant look at this, and there were conversations about this. Despite this, the question arises to me whether this sermon should not be published so that it would be evidence, although probably unsuccessful, against the resumption in the next Great Lent of a spectacle similar to last year, in which people of the highest circle turned into actors” (8:364). The evil is aggravated by the fact that there are people who “force others to look with their biased eyes. It is desirable to be in unity with good people, and, of course, it is bitter when this does not happen with them” (10:213). “Without developing extensive pictures of darkness” (8:185), pointing out what must be feared and avoided, the holy Hierarch calls: “Let us try to correct those who have sinned with patience, so that we may correct what has been omitted” (98:405). “A bad age more readily believes evil than good, ... temptation comes rather than edification, and one must beware not only of evil, but also of negligence, ... which feeds temptation” (8:75). To this we can add: “Do not listen to the actions of the evil ones, but strengthen the mind in the presence of God and prayer, ... examine yourself carefully to see if a person is voluntarily holding back any passionate thought, or something dark in his conscience that opens the way and access to the inhabitants of darkness, and carefully - to preserve and restore peace of conscience. Is it still necessary to advise that a person generally maintain calm firmness in his actions and beware of any excitement and irritation? For excitement and irritation of the nerve increases the ability to receive impressions of the dark invisible” (8:71). And one more thing: the saint reminds us of the very important thing that everyone is responsible for their own actions - not for those of others: “The sin or shortcoming of a father or mother cannot deprive a son of bliss.” The prophet Ezekiel said: “The son will not take away the iniquity of his father” (Ezekiel 18:20) (29:303). The conclusion is brief - in the form of a recipe - and therefore extremely clear: put harsh self-accusation in a fairly deep mortar of humility and pound it with the pestle of patience; Take this powder every time lofty thoughts begin to enter your head” (7:25). “To overcome evil with good... If you use patience and humility as an aid for this, this is all the profit of good. We must take advantage of such opportunities to gain” (36:15). And the Saint prays, teaching us to repeat: “Test me, O Lord, and try me, and see if there is a way of iniquity in me, and guide me on the eternal path” (7:43). “The discovery of the sources of evil,” teaches the Moscow Saint, “can be the beginning of good (see the previous section: “Avoid...” - K. S), because by blocking the sources the streams must dry up. But it would have been better if earlier there had been not only faithful hands, but also sharp eyes” (19-2:127). Hard years help a person to do what he is called to by Providence (see: 2:76). But a person does not always see the Hand of God. And the Saint testifies: “The present time is strict... But we bear little fruit of repentance to remove the ax from the root of the tree” (2:90). Or: “Invisible but genuine sins sometimes prevent a person from seeing visible but imaginary virtues” (3:4). How can we live and strive in order to do not imaginary, unprofitable deeds, but genuine good deeds? – A short answer was given a long time ago – back in the Old Testament by the holy Psalmist: “Turn away from evil and do good; seek peace and marriage” (Ps. 33:15). A lengthy answer is given by St. Metropolitan Philaret. It is difficult to determine (it seems to me even impossible) when and with what spiritual life begins - either with the inherent thirst of the Christian soul to know God, or with an understanding of the purpose of one’s appearance in the world, or with some event that shook us and prompted us to think deeply about the passage of time - and where; or... You can go on and on like this, just as you can talk and talk about doing good deeds, build a certain system or sequence based on the instructions of the wise Moscow Hierarch, but the question can always arise: is this construction correct enough? – One thing is true: all good deeds, how alas! and unkind ones are interconnected. So is it worth attaching much importance to the fact that this or that virtue, this or that evidence of a spiritual state is not entirely in its place? Let it be as it is perceived!.. We must live in faith in God, in His closeness to us, in the fact that He sees us, hears, extends His arms to us and is ready to receive us at any hour, unless our self-will prevents this. “We must not forget that God can give comfort to the inconsolable in a moment, and we must live in this faith” (3:10). What was begun by faith and with faith must be continued with hope in God, in His grace, “which favored the work to begin and grow. But whatever care and foresight is possible on our part, we must use it” (3:67). It will not be superfluous to remember here what our Lord Jesus Christ, the “Physician of the souls and bodies of those being healed,” taught (the Savior’s instructions are never superfluous): “Your faith will save you; go in peace” (Matthew 5:34); “Behold, you are healthy, let no one sin” (John 5:14). This remembrance confirms faith and hope in God, instills peace in the soul, and encourages us to “always live and act according to the holy will of God” with a noble heart (17:22). And the Saint calls: “Do not become decrepit in soul,... but be strengthened by faith and hope. When God is patient with us, He truly desires our repentance. And when he frightens us with examples of punishments, he excites us to repentance. Let us use both the fear of punishment and the hope of pardon to excite ourselves and strengthen ourselves in the saving feat. Moreover, we must not forget that the only true Conqueror of the world and His Prince is our Lord Jesus Christ - the more firmly we adhere to Him, the more faithfully we participate in the victory. Without Me, He says, you cannot do anything. If our work is not done, is it not because we want to create without Him, that is, we rely on ourselves. Let us acknowledge our weakness; let us know His power; all in His name; and it will prosper us” (17:112). Trust in Him, and He will do what He knows is best and saves. Try, as much as possible, by thinking about God and calling on Him to put your feelings in order and into a quiet state... Most of all, you need to live by God” (29:256). Do not lose heart and do not even talk about inconsolability: a Christian should not remain inconsolable forever and be careful not to reproach Providence with inconsolability. Has the God of all consolation (2 Cor. 1:3) become so poor in consolation that he has none for you? Has and bestows: open your heart and receive; do not put up sad memories as a strong wall against the consolation of God; let them find and pass like clouds, and the light of Christ freely enters the sad soul and shines in it with its bright consolation so that the darkness of sadness does not overcome it” (29:341-342). Most of all, we must try to love Heavenly Father. “See at what terrible event Abraham was not horrified (Gen. 22:1–18); but since he sacrificed everything to Divine love, he lost nothing, but received everything beyond his expectations” (29:239). The Saint asks those who express a desire to teach them “genuine love for the Lord: has anyone taught them to “love kind” people, do they not love deeply without learning this! “Is it really more convenient to love something that is less worthy of love? - “Her many sins are deafening; for you love a lot”: where did she learn to love like that? Instead of oil, she had tears of repentance; God's love for the repentant woman fell on her like heavenly fire; and her lamp burned” (Luke 7:36–50) (3:25). God knows our weaknesses and does not require anything beyond our strength—“hard food, a hard bed, and the like,” but “quiet prayer” (3:36). “I do not scold the human heart and the heart that loves (natural love), - teaches the Saint, - for is it better that it is cold and stone? What is stone must be broken, what is cold must be warmed, what is sensitive and loving must be exalted with natural and spiritual love” (4:76). Our Savior must be the “center of action” for the Christian. If we are faithful “in striving towards this center, our unity will be complete in Him” (4:200), in Him we will be “and not far from those who are distant” (4:154). “There is goodness when we can serve God with inner fervor and delight. The feat becomes not difficult because it rewards itself. But if, despite our involuntary coldness, we continue to serve God with peace and firmness, isn’t this also good? The Lord will look upon the unsatisfactory deed and will not deprive him of the reward that is now hidden” (3:63). Our strength to do what is pleasing to Christ our God is joy in the Lord and in the Lord (7:222). “It is good if we rejoice in God, our Helper. But when joy about God is joined by joy about His gifts to us, you will not always notice how joy about yourself will be mixed in, and this mixture will deprive the Divine joy of the purity that is characteristic of it. Therefore, it is very necessary to be careful to add to the pleasant something spicy, to the joy of awe, to the joy of God the awe of one’s unworthiness, which can disturb a pure source with excessive movement, and obscure the light, or turn it into a superficial shine and a ghost” (5:8; 3:14). How can we distinguish earthly joy from sorrow about the Lord? – “Earthly joy is permeated with sadness, because the soul intimately feels the unsatisfactoryness of earthly things and the need for something better. Sorrow for the Lord is permeated with joy because the soul anticipates what the Apostle said: “Sorrow for God... brings about salvation.” Let us seek joy, the Saint cries, in which the sting of sadness is not hidden. Let us not be afraid of sorrow, for it will turn into joy” (3:54-55). Sadness for Bose is inseparable from gratitude to Him. – “Gratitude belongs to God, who benefits us in many ways, and the subject of grief should be our sins. So there will be gratitude and sorrow in the place” (29:254). We must thank the Lord for everything and submit everything to His holy will. - “Let everyone be informed by their thoughts, as long as that thought is subordinated to obedience before God” (19-1:112). Here’s the thing: “Learn to sacrifice to God everything that somehow occupies us between people” (19-1:115). And this is not because God commands as a just Judge - He is “infinite in mercy, but He commands us to know our measure” (7:172). The essential duty is to “do what pleases God” (8:108). And for this it is necessary to feel the omnipresence of God. “It depends on a person to place himself in the presence of God by reflecting that the Lord is near, that He sees us and our innermost interior, but to revive in us the feeling of the presence of God is the work of God and the gift of God. We must accept this deprivation with humility and condemnation of our unworthiness and assure ourselves that God is nevertheless present, although we do not feel His presence” (29:331). Having a strong faith in God, accompanied by undoubted hope in Him, all-soul love for Him..., it is impossible not to confess it before others, but again - not out of one’s own boldness, but according to the will of God, out of zeal for God. “What is more holy, what is more desirable for a Christian, how to confess Christ before the pagan government for the glory of Christ, for the confirmation of believers, for the instruction of the ignorant?” - asks the Saint and concludes: “The faithful servants of God... awaited the calling of God” (29:299). Great good is for that person whose heart and life is our Lord Jesus Christ - “and not only to him, but through him to those who draw near to him. For whatever force is in the center, such is distributed in the circle and acts in it. And vice versa: he who deprives himself of this gift through his negligence deprives others of something” (7:121). Truly, true consolation is in God. And “if the Lord sometimes allows you to taste in your heart how good He is, offer Him this feeling as a pure sacrifice of gratitude, thinking that it is His gift, sent by grace, and not the acquisition of our labors. What are our small efforts worth before God, which we do in no other way than with His help? And if we do anything for Him, isn’t there always more left over that we should do, but have not yet done?” (29:254). If someone has lived for a long time only through “love for the created,” although not unlawfully, and then has learned the duty and need to live through love for the Uncreated, let him patiently endure the feeling of the poverty of love. It must take place in order: when created love must die, so that Divine love can be born” (3:11). We are not saved if we do not care about the salvation of our neighbors. The holy apostle and evangelist John the Theologian directly says: “If you do not love your brother, he remains in death” (1 John 3:14). The Moscow Hierarch also directly says: “The desire for salvation for ourselves will not achieve fulfillment if we abandon the desire for the salvation of our neighbors. And if we want the salvation of our neighbors, we need to take care of their peace, especially those of them who, by God’s special dispensation, are entrusted to our care” (3:64-65). The Lord requires from us not the severity of feat, but quiet love for our neighbor, understanding him, and condescension towards him (5:9; 3:36). And the Saint recalls the words of St. John the Theologian: “We love not in word, nor in tongue, but in deed and truth” (1 John 3:18) (7:74). Love, by its nature, “thinks only good” and therefore even in the ordinary activities of its neighbor sees primarily something good and, moreover, “something especially good” (14:37). He sees and wants to help. And this is what the Saint says: “The love of a Christian, desiring salvation for his neighbor, asks me to write what I will now write. The gunsmith... Batov, ... a schismatic of the non-popovshchina sect, needs money to marry off his daughter. He needs help in the following way. You (Archbishop Alexy of Tver, then still Bishop of Tula and Belevsky - K.S.) will find a well-disposed and modest person, mainly a merchant, who will say to Batov: I learned that you were formerly in contentment, but now you are in need; I offer you one hundred rubles (sent at the same time) as loans or irrevocably, as you wish. In this case, there is no need to mention either your name or my name, because otherwise Batov, a zealous supporter of the split in Tula, will not accept the benefit... Do yourself a favor, do not be weary of doing this with precision, and may the Lord make this small act of goodness a harvest for the saving catch of one wandering in the wilderness of the church” (14:192–193). Reproof will also be effective if it is combined with love. – “It is necessary to expose wickedness in order to convert people to sincerity, but this must be done with love; then only success. By being embarrassed by others, we confuse others, and do not correct them” (29:312). Humanity must be demonstrated even when there is no or almost no hope that it will be met correctly. “I am bothering you with a matter of philanthropy, perhaps with little hope of success, but in the matter of philanthropy it is permissible to act with little hope of success, and it is not a shame to be refused!” (13:91). It is pleasant and good if someone “is greeted out of love and humility, or even according to custom, but to order this means to meet oneself” (8:384). Greeted with love - “thank God for those who have love, and for the fact that He gives you the consolation to see this; Just be afraid to think that you deserve it. The love of God loves in the children of God, and it also loves the unworthy, out of condescension and love for mankind. Therefore, a person cannot say: “Apparently, I am worthy to be loved.” No, the mercy of God is that good souls love you; feed on their kindness and love, and serve them with love in return” (5:8; 3:22). The saint rejoices “that the love of mankind bequeathed by St. Sergius is spreading its spirit and its actions. May the Lord establish this, which He has done by His grace” (8:214). A spiritually constituted person does not condemn anyone, much less an innocent one (3:16); he does not think like others, “but like conscience and the spirit that lives in him “feels and sees” (7:111). His thought: “I wish I could better think that all people are good, but they misunderstand each other” (14:248). Both by word and example the Saint teaches to forgive one's neighbor. “The gift of forgiveness is higher than the gift of correcting with punishment. He who undertakes the work of his own measure succeeds” (7:28). We shouldn’t suddenly trust the thought that “we are right and others are wrong. It is likely that they are right in some ways, and we are to blame in some ways. Not only must we forgive, but we must forgive in the same way as those who need forgiveness themselves” (29:341). If the Holy Church says: “We will forgive all through the resurrection,” then we must forgive “all” for the joy of the Holiday (4:169). The saint himself forgives everyone and asks for forgiveness for himself: “Looking at the mercy of the Lord our Savior, who through the sacrifice of the cross acquired forgiveness for all of us, I pray to Him to grant you, and to all of you, forgiveness for whatever anyone requires. With hope, I ask for your forgiveness for myself, in every word and deed, which through my lack of judgment or impatience has caused offense or embarrassment, and for your prayer, that I may bring unrepentant repentance for salvation, and receive from the Most Merciful the forgiveness of my many sins” (9:268-269). And again: “May the Lord look upon your humility, fathers and brothers, with which you ask for forgiveness, and may He forgive you everything that requires forgiveness, and may He lift up the meek and humble into salvation. And my pride wants to humble itself, imitating your humility: and, falling down, I ask for your forgiveness and your prayers” (9:317-318). “On the eve of the days of repentance, I ask forgiveness from you and the brethren; and to all of you from the merciful Lord, whatever you need, forgiveness, blessing, affirmation and prosperity for good” (8:10-11). It is worthy of a Christian not to be suspected only by rumors. But when the rumor reaches the “supervisor,” “isn’t this some kind of indication of Providence? Namely: an instruction to increase attention and observation, in order to then treat either the disease of vice, or the disease of suspicion spread by rumors” (7:31). In all cases, it is necessary to check the hearing - “to find out the matter as it is,” and not to accept it as someone seems or as one likes to see (17:104). God is the God of peace (1 Cor. 14:33) - and a Christian needs to be peaceful. “But why are we calling for peace? Why does the Lord Himself command to call him? - asks the holy Archpastor and answers: - Without a doubt, either because it is precisely the lack of it, or we possess it imperfectly, or we possess it not without the danger of violation and loss of it. This is the case with everything in time: what is unchangeable, indestructible, and secure belongs to eternity” (3:40). “Peace is the best shield” (8:59) and “the benefit of common affairs” (19–1:97). This is a treasure that must be guarded and not allowed to be accessed by those who would try to steal it (3:45). We must live in peace with everyone. - “How to put up with people who do not want peace?” – The answer is in the Holy Scriptures: “Be peaceable with those who hate peace” (Ps. 119:6) (29:304). “And if one did not refuse to be at peace with those who hate the world, do not refuse to have peace with those who sin, who do not renounce correction” (8:251). Business disputes should not disturb the peace. “According to his position, it is necessary to encourage everyone to be efficient in their work, because this is required by the truth and the benefit of the work. I heard,” writes the Saint, “that Plato and Gabriel (both “Synodal” metropolitans. - K.S.) after a heated argument in the Synod about business, straight from the Synod we went together to one or the other of them for dinner. “So things did not interfere with the world then” (17:87). Even “a bad world is better than war,” the Saint reminds us of the famous proverb (8:360). And, at worst, one must be peaceful “in the performance of one’s duty” (4:96). A quarrel has arisen - hurry to rectify the matter “in the quietest way... with condescension and love” (19–1:98). – “It is good to seek peace in thinking about Heavenly things and the insignificance of earthly things. However, earthly needs cannot be neglected by those who must care for the brethren. Let us do what is for Heaven as work, and what is needed for earth as a share, and not so much for ourselves as for the brethren” (3:47). The saint persistently asks and commands: “Do yourself a favor and pay all your attention not to punishment for the past, but to the well-being of a person to follow the path of peace and common good. Show him his deviations; show what is due and what pleases you; guide him with your fatherly direct word, so that it will not be unpleasant for you and for him to put up command barriers on a path that he does not see wrong” (19-1:98). “Give up the feuds that can no longer be continued,” Saint Philaret quite sternly commands the abbot of the Holy Trinity Sergius Lavra, Archimandrite Athanasius, “and begin to choose a person whose service would be pleasing to St. Sergius and useful to the Lavra, without thinking about pleasing only yourself or me” (17:121). And to another vicar of the same holy Monastery, Archimandrite Anthony, he writes more gently and heartily: “Be peaceful with those who have lost peace by mistake, through the trick of the enemy. Peace to all" (8:107). “Let there be peace around, especially within” (4:648). “Let God the Word speak peace to His people and to those who turn their hearts to Him” (3:40). You are not supposed to upset your neighbor, but you are also not supposed to engage in unnecessary pleasing. “You demand that you not be upset,” the Saint writes to Princess S.I. Barataeva, “isn’t it just as fair to demand from you that you not burden unnecessarily? Learn to be simple, not to call people by fancy names that are above them, and do not indulge in unnecessary gratification” (21:15). It is good to heal an unkind attitude with love. “It is good and useful to cover, if there was any dislike that has passed, and to overcome, if there is any real dislike that remains, and to completely establish love. This is pleasing to God and possible from God” (21:15). It is also good not to be indifferent to one’s neighbor, but to show unanimity, more “attention to human species,” for “the work of God especially calls for pure zeal” (7:165). “If there is a feeling of indifference to earthly things, as long as the soul does not tear itself away from Heaven: then let the soul preserve this feeling and let it hold on to Heaven. But it does not contradict this to not be indifferent to a grieving neighbor. In this there is brotherly love, but it does not separate us from Heaven” (3:79-80). According to spiritual law, “one must be generous” (14:262). These are the words with which the Saint thanks such a person: “I do not have the strength or means to thank Your Excellency for the merciful attention and favor shown to me by so many experiences, with such condescension to my requests, with such participation in my difficulties... The less I can attribute this to my dignity, the more I rejoice in your soul... I resort to the Supreme Source of love and grace and cry, yes... will keep you in His love and grace" (16:77–78). It is better not to use strictness. “I am afraid of severity for others,” the saint testifies, “because I am afraid of it for myself. And knowing that because of my sins, I am the first worthy of exile, I am afraid to expel others without extreme need” (4:444). “Take into consideration that harsh words irritate people, and irritation prevents them from receiving edification, and that, on the contrary, meek words soften harsh people. The servant of the Lord, according to the Apostle, should be meek, a teacher, and gentle (2 Tim. 2:24)... Let jealousy not be cruel, and let the word of jealousy be softened and sweetened by the word of love” (19-1:206). Having given your word, you must fulfill it - do not deceive. “I,” says the Saint about himself, “need to fulfill the word given in the past year, to be in Kolomna. True, I promised only conditionally, if possible, but they expect it there. And one is ashamed to deceive this expectation” (7:80). “In an honest person” even rudeness is perceived without much condemnation - in him “it will be, and truly is, not dangerous” (17:129). You shouldn't call anyone damned. “May the Lord give correction and cleansing to everyone who needs it, by what means He knows” (7:162). The action is attractive in simplicity. “How have you not guessed until now that simplicity makes you feel better, but sophistication torments you?” (8:136; 23:39) - in interrogative form the Saint shows its usefulness and calls: “Let us act... simply” (7:142). “Act simply, without being overly concerned or in a hurry, but calmly doing what is due, relying on the will of God and the king’s heart. In your speech, do not praise the sovereign, but say something useful and truthful, and not much” (19-1:47). Our guesses are unreliable - they cannot penetrate the soul of anyone, and therefore “it is more reliable to follow the simple stories of eyewitnesses and those close to them” (15:52). It is wonderful when simplicity is accompanied by wisdom - “simplicity must not be without wisdom” (23:38). “You are afraid of evasions about. treasurer,” the Saint reconciles those who have departed from wise simplicity. - But in the case before this, his subterfuges did not save him, and they did not harm you: therefore, there is nothing to be afraid of them. And this is not a subterfuge that he demands consideration of the report. You are making a subterfuge if you don’t allow us to look at it. Act directly and impartially yourself, and then do not be afraid of the subterfuge of another” (17:118). We must intercede for the unfortunate and show them our mercy. The first primarily belongs to the clergy, the second to everyone. “We, the servants of the Church,” declares the Saint, “according to ancient tradition, have the right and duty to intercede for the unfortunate” (13:91). The saint attaches great importance to mercy and returns to this topic several times. The Holy Apostle Paul, recalls the Moscow Hierarch, collected alms and provided “good not only before God,” so that alms “would be correctly used, “but also before men,” so that they would not doubt its good use. This is an example and instruction for people holding public positions" (7:110). “May the Lord appear to us in His compassions, the poor for the sake of His people” (7:403). The saint rejoices at the kindness of the children of his Metropolis: “The brethren of the Moscow Church consoled me with their love for the Christians in need in Syria. During the month of opening the subscription, 18,000 rubles were collected and forwarded.” (4:584). The Saint rejoices over mercy and calls to expand your embrace: use flour to feed the strange. “It always seemed to me that in this kind of help there is more benefit and spiritual communication than in cold monetary alms” (7: 163–164). “The poor servants of the Lavra need to be helped. Think about whether to use this method to sell them bread, that is, flour, applied to the number of the family, for half the price, for example, so that they would receive benefits in need and use it more thriftily, not receiving it in vain” (7:89). Send relief to “those in need in Arzamas” (7:246). “It seems to me,” the saint continues, “according to the spiritual law, it would be necessary ... to help our neighbors in need with medical knowledge” (8:264–265). But the Saint notes that when giving alms one should also have some caution: “God will bless you to help those in need, especially the sick, with firewood, making sure that it is done correctly” (7:392). For those who work every day, “I agree to give, in addition to the regular salary, an additional salary, as long as it’s not lazy, not thieves and not drunkards. Nobody imagined to me that they really need and do not have enough time to work for themselves, and that they are lazy, steal and drink, it has long been known. I will be very glad if the content becomes a guide to their behavior” (7:29). - And the order for help to the suffering Greeks: “They will ask for a donation... Look in the sacristy, ... to see if there are any stones that are not in use... It seems that you can give at a considerable price: may the Apostolic commandment be fulfilled, and may the Lord, seeing mercy, bless His place with mercy and forgive the sins of those living in it. We received holy faith and salvation from the Greeks! Why do you regret such an acquisition? (17:21). As a rule, the Saint himself helps - with his own means: “Clothe the poor students. For this, take from me one hundred and fifty or two hundred silver rubles” (8:265). Or: “Help the burnt and the poor according to reasoning, taking one hundred and three rubles from my money” (7:109. See also 7:287). “Give one hundred alms of three rubles in silver, but not from the monastery, but from me: so that through the prayers of His lesser brethren the Lord will help the needs of His Church, through the message of fate, enlightening our ignorance and not remembering our sins and unworthiness” (8:10). “Your humble servant wanders in the midst of worries about places and families after the death of fifty-five priests of the Moscow diocese, during this year” (4:281. See also: 7:26, 54, 88, 108, 123, 222; 8:60, 78, 279; 9:365, 371...). What is the correct attitude towards alms giving and receiving? – “The one who gives benefits should thank God for what he can give; and the one who receives must give thanks to God, who sent the giver” (31:485). “Thank God that we can help provide food for those in need... Without need, not many will go to someone else’s bread, cabbage soup and porridge, and that, as a result, those who are truly in need take advantage. And this is already a blessing for charity when it goes to the truly poor” (7:350-351). Mercy is good, but with it must come truth. This is how the Saint states it: “Why did the Bethany treasurer gallop up? The petition could be sent by letter. In vain does he think that, standing face to face, he can forcefully snatch what he wants. Mercy is good, but there is no need to offend the truth” (9:246). The truth must be told, “even if it were necessary to speak the truth that would cause shame” (16:101). You must be reasonable in your relationships with your neighbors. “Irregular actions should not be responded to with other foolish actions” (7:102). We must “try not to listen to absurdities and not pay attention to them, but to pray.” If anyone hears them, “there is no need to laugh at this, for blasphemy is not funny, but disgusting; we must call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ and protect ourselves with the sign of the cross” (17:33). Don't be offended by the ridiculous rumors that affect us. “This is not uncommon in modern times” (14:189). You can be cold towards cold people, but on condition that you do not damage your love. “Regarding your coldness towards those who show coldness to you, I do not condemn you and do not demand anything special from you,” the saint writes, “just be careful that the kind of coldness shown to some for the edification of others does not turn into a feeling of coldness and harm love. Simple, peaceful, calm behavior, both without refined affection and without artful coldness, is useful in relation to the non-peaceful and will not harm the peaceful” (5:20). Do not please people and do not encourage ambition. “Take away sidelong glances unfairly cast,” teaches Saint Philaret, “by not responding with a sidelong glance, but simply. Don't be afraid: it's not an arrow. To avoid sidelong glances, one should not fall into people-pleasing and encourage the ambitious” (5:21). Don’t be afraid of slander, but be careful and refute it: “You shouldn’t be afraid of slander, but you need to be careful against them. Slander and teach caution; and caution makes slander powerless” (14:264). “One slander, sufficiently refuted, discredits many slanders” (14:263). Beware of relationships with dubious people, so that “doubt does not touch the innocent and does not offend the purity and holiness of the place to which God has vouchsafed us to belong” (7:51). “Have patience and remember the word that the wounds of a friend are more reliable than the free kiss of an enemy” (19-1:59). And again we hear the calls of the Holy Father of the Church of God: “Be gentle, like children, be kind, like children, be simple-heartedly loving, like children” (4:77). “We need to awaken each other to what we should do, even now, when the hand of heaven touches us so firmly, and the thunder thunders so loudly, to awaken us” (19–2:28). If we cannot have an edifying conversation with our neighbor, then “we must try to have an innocent one. If you condemn your neighbor, see if you can say something in his apology or defense. If your thought tends to agree with those who condemn, remember your shortcomings, which, perhaps, others would condemn no less if they saw. And when you return to yourself, you must cleanse your lips by repentance before God” (29:231). And finally, which is also very important: if we treat our neighbor with love, we can expect his disposition towards us: “If we have a good opinion of our neighbor, we are more likely to think that he favors us for the love of God, and not through any human agency” (3:33). The Christian is also entrusted with such duties that the Saint in his Long Catechism calls “duties to oneself” (see part three “On love” ... - “The division of the commandments into two tablets”). Caution is necessary in the performance of any ministry. “We must try and conduct good deeds with caution, so that our wisdom and our will do not go ahead of them” (3:8). Caution is needed both for the healthy and even more so for the sick. “And I learned from the pilgrims,” the saint writes to Archimandrite Anthony, “that for 26 days you not only served, but also preached a sermon. It was possible to entrust the ministry to another archimandrite, and even more so the preaching” (7:46). (Although in parentheses, I would like to note: in the above words, both Saints are clearly highlighted - both the fatherly care of the Saint and the jealousy of the Archimandrite). Caution is also required in small matters, “especially now, when it is much easier to attack than to defend” (14:267). Meanwhile, we, believing in safety, “do not think about caution.” So what? – “Trouble comes to teach” (10:455). Why does the Holy Father recommend: “It is better to use caution, which may not be necessary, than not to use caution, which may be necessary; and that by this no harm will be done to any good deed” (8:264). “Let the brethren test their intentions carefully in the Lord, being careful, like those who draw water from springs. It happens that, without noticing, they scoop up a so-called toad with water. So often, when we walk the path of virtues, we are drawn to vices inconspicuously intertwined with them. Thus, gluttony is woven into love of homosexuality, fornication into love, severity into prudence, wickedness into prudence, deceitfulness, clumsiness, laziness, bickering, waywardness, and disobedience into meekness; to silence is teacher's arrogance, to joy is conceit, to hope is laziness, to love is also condemnation, to silence is despondency and laziness, to purity is bitterness, to humility is boldness; behind all of these, as if the general main medicine, or better yet, poison, follows vanity” (14:13-114). - “The days are evil. Encourage... to use caution in business” (10:388). Slowness is closely related to caution. – “It is not an unimportant rule not to act hastily and abruptly on the first impression” (14:259). “Rushing in haste can cause more sluggishness later than acting slowly and carefully” (3:84; 5:11). “Having given ourselves time to calm down and reflect, we often find a peaceful path to a non-peaceful task that previously seemed impossible” (14:259). “Let us not be hasty” (5:11). “May the Lord protect you” (14:259). Just as caution is connected with slowness, so contrition is connected with repentance. About contrition: “The Fathers also say: if there is no contrition and tenderness, one should suspect whether there is vanity” (3:4; 5:8). On repentance: “The speck torments until it is removed by the opening of the conscience, and the oil of comfort softens the soul” (7:48–49). “Therefore, it is not surprising that the states of the soul change, and sometimes in such a way that it is difficult to give oneself an account of the reasons for the change that has occurred. Not only natural states pass from one type to another, but also grace-filled ones ascend according to the gift of God, and descend according to God’s dispensation.” Let man humble himself and repent (3:40). Having repented (and always) - one must stay awake and be ready to spend the last minute at any hour. “We must stay awake and be ready, especially at a time when the drowsiness that engulfs everyone, from the bourgeois to the wise, I don’t know, with many exceptions, is a poorly noticed harbinger of dangerous surprise” (17:131). Humility opens Heaven and makes it visible. It is true that “from the depths you can see the stars every day... only the depth should be narrow and steep, little accessible to sunlight. “The deeper a person is in humility, the better he sees Heaven” (8:130; 23:9). “Every admission of guilt” leads to humility (3:78). Humility is characterized by simplicity, the absence of hypocritical people-pleasing and “the arrogant cunning of one’s own mind” (3:72). This alone “can bring peace to the soul. The soul is not humble, constantly torn and agitated by passions, dark and vague, like chaos. Confirm its power in the center of humility - only then will the true light begin to appear in it and a harmonious world of right thoughts and feelings will form. – Proud wisdom with speculations extracted from earthly nature rises in the soul like fog, with signs of weak light. Let this fog fall into the valley of humility, then only you can see the clear, high sky above you. With the movement and noise of arrogant, and therefore always restless, thoughts and passionate desires, the soul deafens itself. Let her calm down in humility, only then will she be able to listen to the harmony of nature, which has not yet been completely upset by modern man, and hear in it harmonies worthy of the wisdom of God. Thus, in the deep silence of the night, distant sounds are sensitive and subtle” (4:60–61; 23:26). It is enough for a humble person if others are disposed toward him, “albeit by someone else’s mercy,” and not by his merit alone (3633). – Putting yourself highly is “not healthy” (7:43). Our Lord Jesus Christ Himself showed the highest example of humility. “The Savior, having washed the nose of the disciples, this Lord and Teacher, commanded, like leaders, to humble themselves before their subordinates and thereby edify their subordinates” (7:402). “Glory to Christ God, who appeared in the humility of our nature, may he show us images of humility. He appeared in a den so that we would be pleased, not with a red cell; - in a manger, so that we do not require a soft bed; - in swaddling clothes, so that we love simple clothing; - in the lack of speech of an infant, let us be like children in simplicity and gentleness, and let us not destroy our tongue into idle talk” (23:10). And the Saint himself shows an image of humility. “I,” he writes to Archimandrite Anthony, “will try to arrive in advance; and I wish to come so that neither people nor bells make any movement for me, neither in the Lavra, nor in Posad” (7:408). “Forgive me if in these words my pride preaches humility to you. Teach me humility and obedience and pray for this” (7:187). The saint wishes everyone and himself the wisdom of humility: “Let us recognize our unworthiness and humble ourselves and humiliate ourselves before the One who visits us with mercy and bounty. Let us recognize His mercy and bounty, and let us do His will the more willingly, the more joyfully. If He opens a little the door of the Kingdom, which, according to His word, “is within us” (Luke 17:21), we will stand firmly on guard at this door, against every thought hostile to the Kingdom of God. May He help you in every good deed, out of faith and love for Him, for the glory of His name!” (29:255). “Let this be wisdom in you, and let it be wisdom in me” (23:10). In learning humility, one must learn to judge oneself. “He who knows and judges himself well does not have the time to judge others. However, all good things are acquired through struggle, recognition of one’s weakness and the help of God, which may be with you” (5:3). What is decided at a closed meeting cannot be made public. - “You should not talk behind the doors of a public place about what is happening in this place not with the doors open” (19-1:56). There is no need to be afraid of persecution for the sake of truth - they are predicted and lead to God. “The persecution of the world against those who want to be not of the world has been foretold by the Lord. Should we be embarrassed that His word is being fulfilled? Let them be driven out of the world, but where to? - Look for where you can drive out of the world, and you won’t find anywhere except to God. Beyond the world there is nothing but God. So, is persecution a bad thing if the persecuted one does not spoil the work of the persecutors, which they wanted to do as worse as possible, and who are controlled in secret by God better than one can imagine? He who is persecuted, or who fears persecution and sympathizes with persecution, must pay attention to himself, so as not to give a just cause for persecution, and thereby deprive himself of the just protection of God’s Providence” (3:8). It is allowed to leave “only when they are persecuting, and when they are not yet persecuting, one must stand and, despite the contradictions, testify to the truth” (19-2:104). Why succumb to every wind of the human word “to shake yourself? The grass sways in the wind and calms down when it passes: the word has passed you by, but you never cease to sway. It is necessary for a person, and especially a believer, to be harder than grass” (5:20), in his actions to maintain “calm firmness and beware of any excitement and irritation. For excitement and irritation of the nerve increases the ability to receive impressions of the dark invisible” (8:71). A high feat is a “work of self-sacrifice” - to forget one’s weaknesses and even one’s life in the name of salvation. “And if anyone neglects life because he has lost his beloved consolation in it, this is a kind of continuing reproach to Providence” (29:273-274). It is good to accept the cross of self-denial “with humility and obedience... from the hand of God, but there is no need to work it out for yourself” (3:20-21). “The Lord’s commandment to you: take up the cross every day, that is, always with a ready heart, with obedience, with love, accept the sorrow that comes internally or externally according to the destinies of God’s Providence. May the head of the crusaders make your cross comfortable for you to wear and life-saving in action” (3:12). Effective medicine for both body and soul is peace of mind. “I ask you,” the saint urges, “to maintain peace of mind in every possible way; this is a medicine that you can always give to yourself, and which is no less important than external medical remedies” (3:51). If any changes for the worse have occurred, do not worry, but consider, “first, whether it was because of our negligence or infidelity that a change from better to worse occurred, so that our negligence or infidelity was quickly cleansed by repentance and corrected; secondly, how, in the state that has befallen us, we can conform to the intentions of Providence, and turn the worst into a means for the better” (3:40). Therefore, one must not allow “external disturbances to disturb the inner peace,” but calm them down with this peace (7:113–114). Without losing heart, a work undertaken out of love for the Holy Church must be done calmly and continued “with peace and firmness, entrusting it to the Providence of God.” Whatever the consequences may be, such work will not be lost before God (4:498; 14:264). One must calmly look at those “who do not see what they are doing, using non-peaceful words, and consequently depriving themselves of peace before they violate it in others. I would say: look at them with pity, if I were not afraid that the condemnation of your neighbor might creep in here” (3:42). – Peace can be founded “only on truth and righteousness” (7:17). Keep calm and rejoice always (Phil. 4:4). “Remember what the Lord said about a person who grieves but trusts in Him: “I am with him in sorrow” (Ps. 90:15). So truly. Let us learn to bear our sorrow with the thought that the Lord is with us in it. The Lord is with you as a consolation!” (29:296–297). The Lord sometimes sends unexpectedly “consolation, when it is needed to strengthen the weary, which you may have experienced, but when there is no special need, but only our will, discontentedly subdued, thirsts for consolation, self-excited by thirst, and arrogantly promises it to itself, then, judge for yourself, is it necessary to send us consolation or is it better to continue our wait and exercise us in patience, knowledge of our unworthiness and humility! (29:300). Consequently, if the Lord “gives us a feeling of consolation, then this truly is a gift of His pure mercy, so that we may come to know the Merciful One more, believe in Him more, love Him more and be confirmed in love for Him, and in the event that He deems it necessary for our purification to visit us with new sorrows. Therefore, it is commanded to rejoice before God with trembling (Ps. 2:11), with fear lest we, instead of being comforted by the Good Lord, begin to be comforted by ourselves. God! "What is man, that you remember him? Or the son of man, that you visited him? "" (Ps. 8:5), says the word of God. The same Holy Scripture says: they sow in tears - they reap in joy and solemnity (Ps. 126:5). But was it sown with humility, with tears for the beloved, and an effort to be worthy of exaltation from the Lord? The blessed harvest will naturally bring forth joy and solemnity” (13:87). In life, as a rule, “earthly joy is permeated with sadness, because the soul intimately feels the dissatisfaction of earthly things and the need for something better. Sorrow for the Lord is permeated with joy, because the soul anticipates what the Apostle says: “Sorrow, like God, brings about salvation” (2 Cor. 7:10). Let us not be afraid of sorrow, for it will turn into joy” (5:10). One should not be afraid because in grief a Christian is comforted by the thought “that he has not done evil to others. Thank God this is the case. But at the same time, it is not superfluous and not useless to ask: was not enough caution used, and are there cases in which it is useful to strengthen it? (8:318). The commandment to a Christian: do not lose heart. “Whatever the circumstances, there is no need to be discouraged; from despondency things are no better, but we ourselves are worse off” (14:233). We must look at everything that happens in our lives as an action of God’s Providence. “Don’t be embarrassed either,” the Saint exhorts the abbess of the Spaso-Borodinsky Monastery, Maria Tuchkova, “that you didn’t foresee why they sent your treasurer to Moscow. You wished her health, and the Lord, perhaps, foresaw that you would suffer a lot at the sight of her death and burial and decided to remove this spectacle from you. She entered the hospital safely, but before treatment began, she hurried to go there, where there was no illness, no sadness, no sighing. I ask you to accept this with obedience to the will of the Heavenly Father, and obedient children, if they cry, do not cry very much and quietly” (3:76-77). Do not lose heart even at the hour of death, but rely, as in life, on the mercy of God! - “What will happen at the hour of death? – What the Lord gives is the same as we always have what He gives; for in Him alone is the source of good. That is why the Church cries out: let us betray ourselves and each other to Christ our God, for all the hours of life and for the hour of death” (3:85). “Being attentive to ourselves, we must not fail to look at the many surrounding sorrows from poverty and others at the righteous destinies of God’s visitations.” They should not plunge us into sadness, but “should encourage others to patience, others to correction, others to doing good, and those who have dedicated themselves to God, especially to deepen their prayers for our sins and for people’s ignorance” (7:393-394). Patience is important. “Temptations are not meant to make you lose heart and thereby increase them, but to be strengthened by patience and overcome” (17:120-121). “Where can we escape from temptations, Father Viceroy? - Saint Philaret asks Archimandrite Athanasius and answers: - Nowhere. We must endure and endure what others do not according to us, and what we may have done wrong, note and correct” (17:117). It is difficult to show patience, and sometimes almost unbearable, but its price is high - it contains something that relates to our salvation. – “By feat and patience, good reward is acquired. If for God’s sake you bear difficulties graciously, God will bless you with success” (19–1:206). Patience brings peace. “Peace lies in patience,” asserts the Moscow Hierarch. - This is better than suspecting and sinning against the rule: do not judge if the suspicious guess is incorrect. It also happens that a person thinks to act in truth, not noticing the creeping ill-will. One can regret human weakness: that’s enough” (14:273). ... Patience is strengthened, and, perhaps, born during a reasonable, calm meeting with what is undesirable for us. – “Use what happens against your will to practice patience. If everything were voluntary, how would we acquire the virtue of patience? (3:65). After some trials, God can “bless new patience” and, as soon as he sees devotion to His will, “he who has learned patience” will free him from what he endured (4:363). But in relation to people of “invincible malice” there is a special instruction: “Talk about people who are necessarily tolerant. They must not be harmful; there should be no need to tolerate harmful ones” (9:126). The Saint rejoices over the patient: “Whoever becomes more patient and through patience becomes calmer—in him I rejoice” (14:248). “If you endure and are ready to endure, thank God! This is worthy of a Christian and a bishop” (14:259). And he exhorts: “As long as St. Sergius endures us, let us patiently endure temptation, as you should too” (17:122). Patience is commanded to be combined with meekness. “Everything leads me,” declares the Saint, “to one conclusion: that it is not unjust and not useless to fill the measure of patience with the water of meekness and pour it on the fire of jealousy, so that it burns quietly and does not flare up needlessly into a fire that, beyond fear, can damage the peaceful tabernacles of love, forbearance and humility” (4:241). Or, “as someone said before: if you are angry, you are obviously wrong. It is better to respond to reproaches with meekness than with reproaches. Dirt must be washed off with clean water. Mud cannot wash away dirt” (14:262). Just as it is commanded to combine patience with meekness, so it is commanded to combine silence with it. “It’s good,” teaches Saint Philaret, “silence with meekness and humility; good and the word with love for good and zeal for truth. Especially don’t threaten me with silence” (4:401). With the same patience, obedience is inseparable. “Glory to God,” the Saint begins his further instructions by glorifying the name of the Lord, “that there are those who console us with obedience, and if there are those for whom patience is needed, then we must think that we also need such people, so that we can exercise patience and, with God’s help, achieve success in it. Where would there be patience if everything was optional and there was nothing to endure?” (3:79). Emphasizing the importance of obedience, Saint Philaret recalls the story of the Paterik: “It would not be bad for the monastery to remember the example of a novice who, having spent his life with a cruel old man, answered from the grave that the obedient do not die, and thus saved the cruel old man with him” (8:466). Obedience can be higher than vow. – “It is written in the Law of Moses that the head of the family, having heard the intention of the vow, can forbid, and then the promiser is free from fulfillment; and if at the first hearing the head of the family remains silent, then after that he cannot contradict the vow. Maybe you don’t have a vow, but just a desire. If there is a vow, the rules of monastic obedience must be no less strong than the rules of family obedience. I opposed your intention to travel on foot, as soon as I heard about it, and therefore you will not sin if you do as commanded in the book of Numbers in chapter 30, verse 6" (8:346). (Although in parentheses, it is necessary to note: there is no need to rush with “vows”, but to be very careful: “A promise was made. It’s a pity that it was made hastily. However, the trouble is not yet great. How often they promise a visit and then send to say that due to the circumstances this cannot be. And there is no shame here. And an account of the circumstances is not always needed.”) (8:261). Another instruction from the Saint: to be stable, steady, constant, or rather, sedentary. “Hereby,” he writes to Archimandrite Anthony, “I bid you farewell, Fr. The governor, Onesima, who appeared again and again asks me what he should do, now wanting to be where I suggest, now expressing his desire to travel to Kyiv. I only told him that if he still wanted to travel, he would make the journey now, and when he sat down, he had to sit and obey. Talk to him and tell him something useful, and then tell me what you would like to do with him” (7:143)... Let physical and spiritual fasting be a withdrawal of food from the passions, a beneficial aid “to the purification of souls and to entry into the pure and perfect joy of the resurrection of Christ” (5:4; 10:484); “a teacher of abstinence, prayer and attention,” a mentor “to those who are heard, accepted and followed” (7:309). During fasting, food is supposed to be simple, not aggravating, but comforting in such a way “to maintain strength and have sleep. And it’s not bad to refrain from tea, because it irritates the nerves” (919–1:164). Under the Lavra, it is not allowed to cook meat food on fasting days, even in a hotel (7:195). But “do not demand much from a weak body, so that it does not become weak any more, ... show it indulgence to preserve its strength, so that, as St. Maximus, to have in him a fellow worker in serving the best” (5:10). For fasting to be blessed, “it is necessary to correct the feat of obedience and humility” (7:346). What is lacking in “fasting is what comes into the mouth, let us supplement what comes out of the mouth and from the heart,” by feeding “the spirit with the memory of God and the desire of the Divine” (5:4). On the eve of Great Lent, these are the words with which the Saint addresses those who labor in the God-protected monastery of our Venerable and God-bearing Father Sergius, and with this he sets an example for everyone: “I ask you, brethren, for my humility, forgiveness and prayers of assistance; and to you, from the All-Merciful God and our Savior, I call upon you, everyone... to leave in pure repentance, to undergo the fasting period, a soul-sustaining passage, and to reach the joy of the resurrection of Christ, fulfilled and perfect” (7:393). Examples of fasting by fathers are varied. “Others,” the Moscow Hierarch testifies, “coming from the deep desert closer to the hostel, strengthened the fast, without fear of exhaustion, because in this case the help of their neighbors is not far away; others, on the contrary, said that in the deep desert, far from human help, the Lord more abundantly bestows strengthening help for fasting labor, and there they intensified this feat, as if to replenish others who have no chance in the desert” (7:345-246). “I remember that during the first week of Lent, Father Theophan of Novoezersk did not eat anything except water twice before Saturday, but his face was not dry, but only white and clean” (8:391). What can we say about the main examples of the Pentecost, in Moses, in Elijah, in the Lord Himself? They are so high that I don’t know if I would dare to advise anyone to strain their fast until this measure is fulfilled, but rather would advise the lover of achievement to humbly set his measure... May the Lord arrange what is good and saving for the soul” (7:346). “May the Lord open the doors of fasting as the doors of spiritual silence and light” (8:293); “may he bless the feat of fasting,... May labor not be empty before the Lord, and may He delight in the conversation of prayer... and may peace and joy in the Lord increase for purified souls” (10:25). “May our fast be pleasing to God and beneficial to the soul, mortifying passions, reviving and nourishing the spirit, with the strength of us for the sake of the Dead and Resurrected” (7:98)... In paradise it will be different: “Whether on earth there is a feat called fasting, in heaven there is simply a natural state, because there they do not eat material food, which, along with nutrition, is burdensome, but they feed on spiritual food, which the grains falling to the ground here constitute the sweets of fasting” (9:269–270). Hard work is also praised - without doing anything designed to make a favorable impression on anyone. “Your works,” the saint writes to Archimandrite Anthony, “let them go as they need to, and there is no need to give them forced direction in order to show me the altar work completed. Whatever I find, I will see” (8:244). When working, don’t give up. The same Archimandrite was told: “Say that you are 70 years old. More to me. Consider generously whether it is philanthropic to throw upon me a difficult task, which I allowed only out of trust in you?” (10:348). “Even if you said,” the Saint addresses Archbishop Philaret Gumilevsky of Chernigov, “that your strength has been reduced to exhaustion, I hope, however, that you will still have strength, having said with the Apostle: “When I am weak, then I am strong”” (2 Cor. 12:10) (15:39). What is beyond your strength cannot be lifted or taken upon. “I regret that you were not careful,” the Moscow Hierarch relates with sympathy to his brother Archbishop Alexy of Tver. “We who are weak cannot be in a forced position for very long.” Sit a little, stand a little, walk a little, don’t deprive yourself of outside air, and the job is done, and the body serves. Be healthy” (14:39)... “May your labor be for salvation and rest in the Lord” (7:82). One of the pious acts of a Christian is to travel to places of sacred memories. A letter from the Saint to Muravyov, who arrived in the Holy Land, has been preserved: “I don’t know, beloved in the Lord Andrei Nikolaevich, where and when my true word will find you, but my thought is now looking for you in Bethlehem and wants to find you there on that night, and in those hours when the shepherds heard the heavenly song: “Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace,” when they worshiped the Child in the manger, and God the Word, silently, he blessed their souls. May your heart open there to Heaven. If not Angels, then let an Angel make himself heard in your heart. And the Lord, who speaks peace to His people and to those who turn their hearts to Him, may He speak into your heart His peace, which surpasses all understanding, and joy, but no one can take it. Remember there someone who is called a shepherd, for whom it would be quite happy to be worthy of being among the last of the sheep” (4:321). Every action and every time must be spent in the fear of God: “May God grant us... that we may work out our salvation every day with fear and not be afraid of any year” (7:193). Finally, one cannot stop on the spiritual path, especially when a lot has already been done - one must remember “that the enemy intensifies his temptations in the end, as Anthony the Great noted, and therefore one must strive to finally win, and not remain defeated forever” (17:131). As if completing his instructions about what a Christian needs to “create”, the Saint wonders why people forget the meaning of their earthly life, and grieves about this, and again calls not to hesitate - to come to their senses, preserve goodness, sow and water. “I am often amazed,” the holy Metropolitan shares his thoughts with the holy Archimandrite Anthony, “at the present time, in which people, with apparently increasing education, are not as prudent in their actions as in former times; and even the same people, with increasing experience, are less thorough than after several years. This is noticeable in both small and great” (10:422–423). We are given the treasure of days generously, but “we do not find happiness in it. Doesn’t this mean that we don’t know or don’t understand the value and use of time when we neglect it so much?” (29:328)... “You are in trouble, you say (Abbess of the Spaso-Borodinsky Monastery Maria Tuchkova. - K.S.). Which ones? At least not in one misfortune, that is, the danger of illness? If this is so, then remember that you can die every minute, even when there is no threatening illness; that danger did not come to you first, and that God, by His Providence, preserved many around whom it walked. Whoever still needs to strive in earthly life, God will leave him in it, as long as he does not attract trouble to himself. Who is the time to take in peace from the world: “The blessings you have chosen and accepted, O Lord!” Use the caution that you know, and what you do not know, then entrust it to the will and providence of God and say: “Even if I walk in the midst of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me” (Ps. 22:4). In order for God to be with us, you know what is necessary: ​​- for us to be with Him. I pray to Him that He will grant this to you through prayer and faith and love” (3:9-10). And the Saint again and again calls: “Let us do everything until the day is over” (17:83). More desirable: grace, peace, salvation of souls and such a life on earth “which would be a proper preparation for eternal life in Heaven” (4:85-86). If we know “that virtues free the mind from passions, then to achieve this it is obvious that we must practice virtues as much as possible” (21:33); “not only the act of goodness, but one effort towards goodness is invisibly accepted and blessed” (29:238). But “we should not passionately desire fulfillment and good undertakings, but pray to God to bless them to be fulfilled, if it is for good, or to give them a direction other than what we want, in His holy will” (29:327). “Beware of arrogance, beware of acting on the first movements of your own will; discuss every matter with attention; there are very few things that are safe to do, as it happens; consult often with the elders and most well-intentioned of the brethren; love to listen to the truth and know how not to be angry for the harsh truth” (17:126) (Please note: this advice is given to the abbot of the Holy Trinity Sergius Lavra, Archimandrite Athanasius!). One should not lose heart in doing good, although “the gates of hell are opening wider and wider; They will not prevail against the Church, so that the word of Christ may be fulfilled” (29:314). Walk firmly and calmly “in the royal way” (3:65). “Let a man sow good seed into his soul, let him water it, let him preserve what he sows, and let him wait for mercy from God, who alone gives things back” (21:44). The Moscow Saint also expresses his attitude towards poverty and wealth. Both the poor and the rich are saved, just as they perish. – Everything depends on the spiritual structure of the first and second. “It is true,” the Saint asserts, “that God leads some to salvation through poverty, but He Himself does this, and He did not instruct you to think about this, but the Son of God told you: “Give alms from those who exist” (Luke 11:41). Fulfill this commandment and be saved by it. And in order to determine whether someone needs to be purified by poverty, God will not ask you for help” (21:25). Poverty then leads to salvation when it is accepted voluntarily in the name of God. Naturally, it cannot be prescribed to everyone. Here is how the Saint reasons about this: “Poverty in the Gospel is not prescribed for everyone without discussion and to the same extent. Look, when a rich young man asks the Savior how to be saved, the Lord’s first answer is: keep the commandments (Matthew 19:17). And in the commandments it is only prescribed not to steal from another, but it is not required to give the last to another. When the young man says that he has kept this, the Savior presents to him what he can do in order to enter the number of... the perfect or saints, capable of superior glory in Heaven, namely: if you want to be perfect, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and follow Me, and have treasure in Heaven (Matthew 19:21). From this you see that the Gospel does not prescribe poverty for everyone, but for those who are zealous for perfection, and that those who do not have the gift of poverty, ... if they believe and do good according to their measure, ... will not be as rich in Heaven as those who left everything to follow in the footsteps of Christ” (Luke 18:28) (29:260–261). There is a way for a rich person, without ceasing to be rich, to become a beggar - perfect, worthy of Heavenly glory. Namely: “When he does not have the slightest addiction to wealth and does not use anything according to his whim; but as a steward of the treasure that belongs to God, he uses it according to his best understanding for the good of his neighbors. So Abraham was at one time both rich outwardly and perfect in poverty inwardly. The rich man in the Gospel, who, having heard about the perfection of poverty, became sad because of his addiction to wealth, perhaps perished from this addiction, and perhaps he was also saved later, having overcome this passion and another, namely pride, by which he considered himself to have fulfilled the whole law. It is true that the Savior strongly depicted the inconvenience of being saved by a rich man and thereby horrified the Disciples, who asked: “Then who can be saved?” But to this He immediately responded that this is impossible only according to the strength and understanding of men, but that this can be accomplished by the all-wise Providence of God and the power of God, which is communicated to man through faith. “It is not possible to eat these things from man, but from God all things are possible”” (Matthew 19:25–26) (29:261–262). For those who are attached or attached to the earth, to everything earthly, it is useful to “remember the saying of the Apostle: “The earth and the works in it will be burned up” (2 Pet. 3:10) (3:19). Why save and preserve something that will burn or may attract the attention of thieves and become food for the crime of others? (17:52). - Don't cry about the greenhouse. It was not the bread that was burned, but the luxury that was burned” (17:71). We must diligently thank God for the fact that “He deprives us of worldly consolations, to which we could become addicted with extreme danger to the soul, and through sorrows teaches us to show our inner shortcomings and encourages us to seek His Kingdom” (29:248). The Saint sums up this topic primarily with the words of Holy Scripture: “If, as the Apostle says: “Whoever wants to be rich falls into adversity and into snares, and many senseless and harmful lusts” (1 Tim. 6:9), then how is it not sinful to harbor such desires? Some, bound by the bonds of social life, can excuse themselves for this, as if it were an involuntary sin, but those who have more or less freed themselves from these bonds, how can they justify themselves if they unnecessarily want to surround themselves with nets, flattering themselves that they will not get entangled in them? If you don't want to say that it's sinful, at least you can't say that it's prudent. If it is said: “Even if wealth flows” by itself, “do not apply your heart” (Ps. 61:11), isn’t it much worse for the heart to chase after it?.. May the Lord give you understanding about everything” (21:30-31). “I was born to love...” Greek elder Amphilochius (Makris). Mite Book. M., 2007. P. 74. You might be interested in: