273. Беседа на празднество Успения и в третий день явления Божией Матери Апостолам

(Spoken in the Gethsemane monastery on August 17; printed in the Works of the Holy Father, 1852 and in the collection, 1861) After the dead there is usually a time of mourning, then a time of consolation for the sad; and beyond both, the time continues during which children and relatives enjoy the righteous inheritance of those who have departed. And the Dormition of our Most Holy Lady Theotokos should have been accompanied by similar consequences, according to Her nature akin to us, natural, according to the abundance of grace given to Her, abundantly gracious. The Apostles cried when the life of the Mother of Light, like a quiet dawn after the Divine Sun of Christ, shining for the Church, faded away before their eyes. They cried with bitter tears of natural sadness, but at the same time with sweet tears of grace-filled tenderness: because faith in the undying grace of the Mother of the Lord and the feeling of reverent love for Her dominated over the feeling of deprivation. They received complete and complete consolation, of course, when, on the third day after Her dormition, for the sake of Thomas, who was late for Her burial, they opened Her coffin and did not find Her most pure body, and after that they saw Her in the glory of the resurrection, and from Her they heard the word of consolation: “Rejoice, for I am with you always.” If the joy that the resurrected Mother of God gives has its source in the presence of the Mother of God with us all our days, then it is obvious that joy, like a stream from this source, must flow throughout all times, until it flows into the sea of ​​eternal bliss. And here is a wonderful and inexhaustible inheritance, which the Mother of God in Her Dormition not only left, but definitely appointed and taught by grace to Her children and relatives. “Rejoice, for I am with you all the days.” And the Church of Christ received this inheritance from the Mother of God and preserves it, and from days to days, from summer to summer, from century to century, it does not cease to share it. Why did She now gather this cathedral, if not so that, if possible, everyone would receive a certain share of holy and beneficial joy from the gracious treasure of the Queen of Heaven? True, she did not bequeath this joy to everyone without distinction, but mainly to the Apostles: however, because she promised to continue it, along with Her presence in the Church all the days; then through this she extended Her promise to those living after the days of the Apostles, if they assimilate themselves to Her as children and relatives by the Apostolic faith in Her undying grace and the Apostolic reverent love for Her. So “rejoice,” souls struggling in faith, in the image of Peter, who hastened before others to confess Christ the Son of God, and, by faith in Him, dared to walk on the waters! The Mother of the Author and Finisher of faith “is with you”; and just as she is blessed for believing, so she will help you through temptations and dangers to achieve bliss. “Rejoice,” souls striving for the perfection of love, in the likeness of the “beloved Disciple” (John 13:23, 19:26, 20:2, 21:7, 20), who contemplated God primarily in His quality of love, with the eye of love, and in love contained the entire teaching of life! The Betrothed Mother of the beloved Disciple “is with you”; and he will not deny being matter for you either, in order to patronize your spiritual education from slavish fear to “perfect love... casting out fear” (1 John 4:18). “Rejoice,” zealots of the word of truth! The Mother of the eternal Word “is with you” and relentlessly intercedes before Him for you, “that you may have a mouth and wisdom that all who resist you will not be able to resist, or answer back” (Luke 21:15). Rejoice, you who preserve virginity and chastity! Ever-Virgin "is with you"; and just as virginity brought John closer to Her, so it will bring Her closer to you. This is learned through beneficial experiences, especially by those who, at a distance from the world, prudently remain chaste in spirit and body: and from some of them this is known in the world, as for example, from the monks: Anthony of Pechersk, Sergius of Radonezh. "Rejoice" and blessed be the married ones! The betrothed Virgin and unbrided Mother, Who not only deigned to visit the bride and groom in Cana of Galilee, but also asked for the first open miracle for them from Her Divine Son, is not shunned by you; She loves virginity, but does not disparage marriage; and you who pray to Her will not be deprived of beneficial help if you look at marriage as a union not only natural, but also spiritual, having a high mysterious image of it in the union of Christ with the Church. “Rejoice,” pious parents and children raised in piety! The daughter of the prayer of the righteous Joachim and Anna, raised in the house of God, the Mother of the Son, from whom all sonship in heaven and on earth has its beginning, recognizes you in spirit as Her relatives and children, and extends Her grace-filled cover to you from the house of God in heaven and on earth. “Rejoice”, although through tears, tested by various sorrows, but strengthened in patience and trust in God! She who, more than anyone on earth, except Her Only Begotten Son, was tested by sorrows, Whose soul was “passed” by the “weapon” of the cross (Luke 2:35), from Her experiences knows what you feel, and will sympathize with you, and can and wants to relieve you, which is why she was called “the joy of all who mourn.” But it is impossible not to notice that many are not included in the section of the blessed inheritance of the Queen of Heaven that we designate. What will remain so? What can those expect who do not strive in faith, do not strive for the perfection of spiritual love, are not zealous for truth and righteousness, do not honor virginity, do not sanctify marriage, childbearing and childbearing, do not bless God in happiness, and grumble in misfortune? The truth must be told: it was not to them that the resurrected Mother of God uttered Her immortal words: “Rejoice”; it was not to them that she promised Her gracious presence. However, didn’t She leave something for these too, just as beneficent testators not only favor worthy heirs, but also leave something for the unworthy out of excess of mercy? In the book of Solomon there is a record of a certain share of the inheritance that the righteous leaves for himself. It is very natural that the First One among all the righteous should leave for herself the inheritance that every righteous person leaves. What kind of inheritance is this? - Repentance. “When the righteous die, leave repentance” (Proverbs 11:3). To those who did not approach the Mother of God through the feat of faith, the zeal of love, did not imitate the example of Her virtues, and therefore did not acquire the right to inherit the blessed joy from her, She left, as the last mercy, repentance - a legacy that is not sweet at first, but saving later if it is directed towards the correction of life. If we did not know how, or, more accurately, did not bother to acquire, following the example of the Blessed Virgin, “the joy of the spirit... in God the Savior” (Luke 1:47): then let us hasten to accept the “sadness ... even according to God,” which “repentance unrepentantly brings salvation to salvation” (2 Cor. 7:10) and through which, consequently, the joy of salvation is finally found to be maybe. Amen. You might be interested in: