Святитель Феофан о начале христианского пути

2nd year master's student Sretensky Theological Seminary The life path and spiritual heritage of Saint Theophan testify to the need for personal achievement in a person’s spiritual life. The ascetic brings to us hidden spiritual mechanisms and rules that a Christian must apply, especially in the initial period of children’s spiritual growth. Saint Theophan warned that it is necessary to find spiritual and physical strength within ourselves to prepare ourselves for spiritual growth and to prepare the environment in which the child will develop. First of all, this is work on oneself, but this requires a spiritual base, which will become the foundation on which one can rely during spiritual growth. At first, it is important for the parents themselves to have zeal and passion for God. Indeed, in this process, parents will act as a kind of primary source of all those educational and educational rules of spiritual life, which they will then pass on to their child in the process of spiritual education: “When this heat of jealousy begins, then the beginning of Christian life begins; and in whom it constantly acts, he lives like a Christian” 885. The saint notes that self-sacrifice must be shown to those who are being saved through the desire for God: through maintaining the purity of speech and word, vision, through maintaining the purity of soul and body, not allowing self-indulgence and being constantly on guard of one’s consciousness. But what to do if you don’t have the strength to start an internal battle: “The first step is difficult, the first self-conquest, the first determination to fight; and then every battle in battle becomes easier and easier. – And jealousy will flare up, and the ability to overcome will increase, and the enemy will weaken. Here it is the same as in ordinary abuse. “Warriors are scared just to start,” and then they don’t look at anything, “everything is somehow handy and easy.” And in spiritual warfare, just begin; further the scolding will heat itself up and make it easier. And then - the more zealous and lively the fight, the sooner the end of the battle and the closer the peace. – Don’t have enough strength to start? - pray. The Lord will send. Surround yourself with thoughts about the danger of remaining in passions, and you will drive yourself out of their darkness towards the light of Christ. – Revive the feelings of the torment of passions, and you will become annoyed with them and want to get rid of them. Then, having confessed your weakness to the Lord, stand and push at the door of His mercy, crying out for help. - Help will come. The Lord will look upon you. “The Light of His Eye will burn in you self-pity and kindle jealousy, and then, if the Lord is with us, who will be against us!” 886. Next, the saint gives a recommendation, which states that both parents and teachers need to conduct the process of spiritual education from a very early age of the child. Through spiritual concepts, the child will develop a correct worldview of what his life should be like. Through remembering God, the child will get used to the thought of Him, remember the commandments of God, that they must be fulfilled precisely in this life for the salvation of the soul, which strives for perfection. Through the constant memory of God and knowledge of the Heavenly Fatherland, correct goal-setting is formed, life becomes Christ-centered, which allows all desires and thoughts to be led to one thing - to communion with God: “If education is conducted in such an order that faith and life in the spirit of faith rise above everything in the attention of the students, both in the way of studying and in the spirit of teaching, then there is no doubt that the beginnings laid in childhood will not only preserved, but also exalted, strengthened and come to proportionate maturity” 887. It is important that over time, having come of age, a teenager can boldly and affirmatively say that he is an Orthodox Christian: “A person is not born a Christian, but becomes one after birth” 888 - and the first important step on this path the saint calls the Sacrament of Baptism: “Baptism is the first Sacrament in Christianity, making a person a Christian, worthy of receiving the gifts of grace through other Sacraments” 889. According to the testimony of Holy Scripture, “if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation” (2 Cor. 5:17). It is important to note that without God’s help, without grace, we cannot cope with ourselves; we need real, immediate help from above, we must expect it, call on it, wait, we cannot imagine life without it: “Sin hides the bonds in which it holds the soul, and it, blinded, gets used to its slavery and begins to love it. The sinner, not suspecting any danger to himself, sleeps in the sleep of death. He will not rise and rise again unless grace arouses and revives him. The excited person is brought by grace into a state intermediate between sin and virtue. She removes him from the bonds of sin, depriving him of this last power to determine him to act, as if against his will, but does not transfer him to the side of good, but only makes him feel his superiority with a sense of obligation to be on his side. Man now stands exactly between two crossroads, and he is faced with a decisive choice” 890. This is the difficult situation we have if we are without divine protection from above, and in this state we want to take on the most responsible process of raising the children given to us by God. It should be noted that the process of education has its own internal hidden mechanism, which parents as responsible persons should be aware of: “In the future, this unconscious person, when he comes to consciousness, will willingly devote himself to God. All divine grace is given to the baby based on one assurance that the required desire and surrender to God will be undoubted - the assurance that the recipients and parents give, committing to God before the Church that this baby, having regained consciousness, will show exactly the kind of use of freedom that is required for grace” 891. This process clearly outlines the responsibilities of parents and children to conduct spiritual upbringing and education in accordance with the rules of the Orthodox Church. The next stage of education will be the implementation of the rules that must be applied during the period of human growth: “Attention ... on the baby in the cradle. You can influence his life. The Holy Mysteries are applicable here, followed by all the churchliness and with them the faith and piety of the parents. Frequent communion of the Holy Mysteries of Christ, as often as possible” 892. Practical, visual means in raising children include “carrying to Church, applying to the Holy Cross, the Gospel, icons, frequent making the sign of the cross, sprinkling with holy water, making the sign of the cross on the cradle, food, the priest’s blessing, bringing icons from the church and prayer services to homes” 893. All this, according to Saint Theophan, lays the first and solid foundation of the future Christian, absorbing with his mother’s milk the grace-filled Gifts of the Holy Spirit and growing in piety. Spiritual and moral education in the modern world is fundamental to the creation and development of a moral society. A modern person seeking the Truth of God must be able to integrate into his consciousness the way of life and rules that St. speaks about. Theophan the Recluse. A modern person must consciously, at the level of social and family practice, accept and use pastoral experience in the education of spirituality: “Living into the past, looking at events as if from the inside, through the eyes of past generations, one can be convinced that we differently understand the essence of the basic categories of social sciences, in particular the categories of “spirituality”, “culture”, “education”, “upbringing”” 894. The saint’s thought about the “spiritual man” differs from the modern and distorted understanding of the purpose of man, which was given to people by the age of the Renaissance and Reformation, where priority is given to earthly categories: individuality and autonomy of existence, where the achievements of science and technology serve as an idol. Saint Theophan warns future generations: “It must be an immutable law that every science taught to a Christian should be imbued with Christian principles, and, moreover, Orthodox ones. Christian principles are undoubtedly true. Therefore, without hesitation, set them as the common standard of truth. Our most dangerous misconception is that science is taught without any attention to true faith, allowing oneself liberties and even lies” 895. A young man must be able to give a correct Christian assessment of everything that happens in life, and be able not to be deceived by the modern innovations of the world. A child must have a holistic vision of himself and the world from the outside, he must have correct thinking regarding the functioning of all the forces and parts of a person, and for this the action of God’s grace within us is necessary, which we learn to acquire from childhood through Orthodox upbringing from parents, through spiritual education: “It is especially remarkable that those enlightened by grace often contemplate the meaning of things without special help from reason, that is, their reason does not yet know the actual structure of things or knows it partly, but they already contemplate their meaning" 896. Today it is important to see the difference between the understanding of a person brought up according to spiritual rules, and a person brought up by the spirit of modern times, whose concepts of the spiritual side of life are considered from the secular secular position of the world. Secularism understands the spiritual world as a sphere of higher psychological achievements, including cultural and scientific achievements, and all this becomes a kind of indisputable standard, therefore, in modern conditions, in the process of educating the younger generation, it is important to realize the true key concepts about spiritual life, which the saint speaks about: “It is an honor for a person not to be a blind confessor, but to be aware that in doing so, he acts as he should. He will do all this when he consciously imposes on himself the good yoke of Christ” 897. It is important to note that for the formation of characteristic positive traits in a growing child’s personality, not only a favorable environment and conditions, good character and pious upbringing of the parents themselves are necessary, but also the education of the needs of the body and feelings of the soul with the acquisition of the skill of dealing with sin, for these qualities will directly shape the inner spiritual world of children. A well-known researcher of the life and spiritual heritage of Saint Theophan, Archimandrite Georgy (Tertyshnikov), noted: “The natural inclinations and qualities of the soul, acquired in the family, developed and multiplied by the incessant work of the future saint on himself, opened his soul to the gracious influence and guidance of God and formed the basis of that bright and integral appearance of the Recluse, which we know from his life and works” 898. During the period of study, the influence of not only parents, but also teachers and educators of the future Saint Theophan is felt. Here it is necessary to place emphasis on ensuring that parents are able to correctly evaluate what their child is learning and correctly evaluate the upbringing of teachers. For example, when a child comes home from kindergarten or school, you must talk to him and let him express everything he wants to say. It is necessary to show maximum love and trust in this process so that the child learns to trust you. This trust and love have an important meaning, which our Lord Jesus Christ tells us about in the parable of the “Prodigal Son”: “And while he was still far off, his father saw him and had compassion; and, running, fell on his neck and kissed him. The son said to him: “Father! I have sinned against heaven and before you and am no longer worthy to be called your son.” And the father said to his servants: “Bring the best robe and dress him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet; and bring the fatted calf and slaughter it: let us eat and be merry! For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.” And they started having fun. His eldest son was in the field; and, returning, when he approached the house, he heard singing and rejoicing; and, calling one of the servants, asked: “What is this?” He said to him: “Your brother came, and your father killed the fatted calf, because he received it healthy.” He became angry and did not want to enter. His father came out and called him. But he said in response to his father: “Behold, I have served you for so many years and have never violated your orders, but you never gave me even a kid so that I could have fun with my friends; and when this son of yours, who squandered his wealth with harlots, came, you killed the fatted calf for him.” He said to him: “My son! You are always with me, and all that is mine is yours, and it was necessary to rejoice and be glad that this brother of yours was dead and is alive, was lost and is found." (Luke 15:20-32). So God, our Heavenly Father, with joy and forgiveness accepts every sinner who comes to Him with a repentant heart. Therefore, parents should try to do the same, and this is seen as the guarantee of family well-being. Through this lesson, children will love God and thank Him for good parents, and then the words of the Divine commandment will be fulfilled for them, that for this they will live long on earth: “Honor your father and your mother, so that your days on earth may be long.” These commandments were given by the Lord God of Hosts to the people and all mankind through His chosen one and the prophet Moses on Mount Sinai (Ex. 20:2-17). The words of the Holy Scripture confirm the fact that a person needs accurate, true guidelines in life, which are formed precisely in the initial period of life through reading the Word of God, which parents will then convey to their children. Saint Theophan wrote: “Education is the most sacred of all matters. We must so position the spirit of the students that they do not lose the conviction that our main task is pleasing God, and scientificity is an additional quality, an accident, suitable only for the duration of real life. It must be an immutable law that every science taught to a Christian should be imbued with Christian principles, and, moreover, Orthodox ones” 899. Today, many believe that the subjects taught do not contain the inner Orthodox Christian potential. At the same time, there is often and everywhere the opinion that “faith and science are two areas that are decisively separated. We have one spirit. He also accepts science. Moreover, there is only one area of ​​truth. Why stuff into your head something that is not from this area” 900. Saint Theophan says that one must be able to correctly perceive the visible world, through faith, to accept knowledge about the world as a natural and logical phenomenon for a person, who is also the crown of Divine creation: “All science is a cold thing. Science is of a spiritual nature, and prayer is of a spiritual nature” 901; therefore the saint comments: “Alone in itself it [Science. – Author] is a matter of the soul, does not understand the spiritual and oppresses it. On the contrary, the spiritual also crowds out the soulfulness. To prevent this from happening, it is necessary to spiritualize the soul: to pass spiritual elements through it and make it a servant of spiritual interests” 902. To summarize, we can conclude that on the basis of Orthodox Christian education, dissolved by the grace-filled cover of parental care and love with attendance at Church services and participation in the Sacraments of the Church, the manifestation of sincere burning love for God the Creator, the Most Holy Trinity, the Mother of God, the heavenly holy powers and all the saints, a gracious spiritual environment is formed in which the gradual growth of a true Christian occurs. It is important to note that the initial period in education is very important and necessary, because it forms all the necessary spiritual qualities that will serve as the foundation for further growth on the spiritual ladder. Such an ascent helped Saint Theophan to learn and discover the secrets of the ascetic experience of the Holy Fathers, ways of combating passions at their different age levels, which allowed the saint in the future to formulate concepts about the primary methods for the Orthodox Christian education of the younger generation. It is important to note the importance of education, the environment in which the image of the Creator of the world and all the objects accompanying creation, emitting substances that the Lord God created, should be correctly formed in a person. In the Sacrament of Baptism, integrity is given to our composition, and this integrity must be preserved. The main task of parents is to instill in the child love for God and the people around him, this will help him pass the trials of youth and strengthen him on the path of life, this will serve as a storehouse of virtues from which he can draw spiritual treasures: “My son! From your youth, devote yourself to learning, and then until your gray hairs you will find wisdom, for you will labor in cultivating it for a short time and will soon eat its fruits” (Sir. 6:18-20). It is important to understand how great a danger a person can be in who was unable to receive good spiritual instructions and rules from his parents in childhood and adolescence. I would like to draw attention to the following words of Saint Theophan: “We must remember God. We must bring this to the point that the thought of God becomes akin to and dissolves with our mind and heart and consciousness. In order for such a memory and such a thought to be established, one must work on oneself without laziness. Work hard - God willing, achieve this; If you don’t work, you won’t achieve it. If you don’t achieve this, nothing will come of you; You will not get any success in spiritual life, for this is spiritual life. This is how essential it is!” 903. And the saint also advises applying the following practical actions: “Thoughts of God and a short prayer nourish the feelings of the heart. Try to keep the thought of God. Think more about God’s creation and providence, about the incarnation of God the Word and the work He accomplished of our salvation, about His death, resurrection and ascension into heaven, the sending of the Holy Spirit, the dispensation of the Holy Spirit. Church, guardian of truth and grace, and about the preparation of heavenly mansions for all believers in the Kingdom of Heaven - and for yourself" 904. Theophan the Recluse, St. The path to salvation. A short essay on asceticism. M.: Blago, 1996. P. 9. Theophan the Recluse, St. Passions and the fight against them / comp. 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