Похвальное слово на Преставление Святой Владычицы нашей Богородицы. Святого Климента, епископа Величского

Rejoicing now at the bright festival, come, beloved, let us enjoy this wondrous miracle and, rejecting the darkness of everyday life, let us enlighten our sensual eyes and move our minds in order to see the wondrous Dormition of the Mother of the Lord and the disciples on the clouds gathered for the burial of the most pure body, truly our Most Pure and Glorious Lady Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mother. For by this the human race, worn out by sin, was renewed, by this we opened up Eden, which was imprisoned in ancient times by Eve. By this the oath was ruined, and the blessing flourished; and the immortal belly came from where death entered us. She appeared as a new heaven, carrying the Creator of heaven and earth; Humanity was deified by Her, since Christ reclined in Her holy wombs. For, seeing us, through the deception of the devil, fallen into death and aphid, the Lord our God, impatient to see the image of His creation decayed and fallen into such evil, but, in His mercy, having mercy on us, bowing the heavens, descended like rain onto the fleece, dwelt in the womb of the Virgin, covering His Divinity with flesh, and together God and man were nature, which is why She who gave birth to Him was called the Mother of God, whose Holy Dormition we now venerate, we rejoice brightly. If anyone, thinking something dissimilar in His mind, says: “It was not fitting for Her, who gave birth to the Life-Giver God, to taste death,” then we will give such an answer: since Adam, after his crime, was told: For you are earth, and to earth you shall go (Gen. 3:19), and since from this we have the beginning of being, as well as the end: then our Lord Jesus Christ has come to earth and took on mortal flesh, and for our sake tasted death in the flesh, and not in the Divine: for the Divinity has always been impassive and immortal. But since He was purely by nature - God and man, He tasted death as humanity, and not as Divinity, and, as an immortal, He was resurrected and raised with Him the primordial Adam and the other righteous who died after him. Therefore, this most pure Lady and Ever-Virgin Mary, the Mother of God, tasted death in the flesh. The Lord God Himself descended to Her from heaven, with many incorporeal Powers, and with His most pure hands received Her Most Holy soul; Through Her prayer, from all countries, with spiritual power, the apostles gathered on the clouds, not only those who were alive, but also those who had already passed away, to see off the venerable body of the Most Pure Mother of the Lord. They brought Her to Gethsemane and, having kissed and praised Her, they laid Her in the tomb, and from there She rose from the grave on the third day: for it was fitting for Her to be snatched from the grave, and for the Mother to be with the Son. So, on this day, the Mother of the Belly reposed, opening the entrance doors to eternal life for the human race. On this day, the Mother of our Lord God ascends from lower Jerusalem to the upper, heavenly city of the eternal kingdom of Christ. Now the bright cloud ascends to the impregnable light of the ethereal Forces. Falling down to Her, we now say loudly with praise: “Rejoice, O Thou who hast given off immortality to the human race. Rejoice, new ark, who did not bear the tablets of stone, but who gave birth to Christ the Lawgiver Himself, the Savior of the world. Rejoice, burning bush, who carried the Divine Fire in His most pure womb. Rejoice, unmovable Mountain, from which the reasonable Stone - Christ, who destroyed the idolatrous churches - was cut off. Rejoice, bright cloud, carrying the mental Sun - Christ in His womb. Rejoice, joy of the disembodied Forces, who without seed conceived and gave birth to the Creator of angels and the Creator of all creation, greater than words. Rejoice, prophetic event and accomplishment of our renewal. Rejoice, apostolic joy and firm standing of the martyrs. Rejoice, spacious container of an incontainable nature. Rejoice, thou who has received into Thyself the luminary of the unfading Light, who has wisely illuminated and illuminated the whole world with Thy prayers. Rejoice, spiritual table, which has received into itself the bread of heaven, which gave itself to everyone for salvation and gives life to the faithful. Rejoice, renewal of Adam and resolution of Eve. By you, Lady, we got rid of idolatry's flattery, by you we again found a return to our first life. By You, Most Pure Lady, we are called sons of God, baptized by faith into the Holy Trinity. By you, our adversary the devil, having been defeated, was condemned to eternal fire with his demons. By You all kinds of heresies and Christian opponents are defeated. By You, Most Holy Virgin, our illnesses and passions are driven away. By you the great are humbled and the poor are enriched, preserved by grace. By You, Most Holy Lady, paradise has been opened, and the kingdom of heaven is given to those who confess the Mother of God by faith: You appeared for the sad as intercession, for the sick as healing, since you bore Him who carried on Yourself by nature our illnesses and passions. You are glorified, Virgin Mary, the archangelic and disembodied faces, the patriarchs and prophetic ranks praise you, the apostolic councils and martyr regiments honor you. You are the crown of the bishops and the salvation of the human race. Even now You unceasingly pray for us, who honor Your Holy Dormition, driving away all passions and healing illnesses, squandering misfortunes, consuming heresies, giving peace and health, asking for the kingdom of heaven from Your Son and the Lord our God and our Savior Jesus Christ; to Him belongs all glory, honor and worship with His beginningless Father and with His Most Holy Good and Life-giving Spirit now and ever and ever. Amen 180. See “The Triumphant” of the Solovetsky Library of the 15th century, No. 369; Wed Orthodox Interlocutor 1881, III, countries. 225–228. You might be interested in: